Happy New Year to all our family and friends.
I can't wait to see what '09 will bring our family! Hopefully, there will be an extra place setting at our table sometime in the new year. However, if it takes longer, it takes longer.
We will wait for you!
Happy '09 baby Lauryn. We hope you are happy and healthy and heading home soon.
With lots of love and best wishes to all!
Bring it on '09!
xo
Merry Christmas little one! Well, it's Christmas Eve in China! Baby Lauryn might not even be in the world yet. However, where ever you are little one, please know that you have a family all away around the world that thinks of you daily!
Holiday or no holiday, we are thinking of you and counting each and everyday! Your Daddy bought you a party dress. Mommy bought you an ornament for our tree. Nana and Grandpa, and Grandma T are also awaiting your arrival. You have presents under their trees too! Lucky girl! You are part of the family. Born in our hearts!
We already love you, and can't wait to meet you. My dreams show me what you look like, my heart tells me you are waiting for us too.
We love you baby girl! Merry Christmas. Hope that 2009 will help you find your way home. Quickly!
Sweet dreams.
With lots of love,
Your waiting family
xo
To our family & friends:
Thank you all for your support. I hope that you and yours enjoy the wonder of the holiday. I hope that we don't take for granted our daily blessings and that 2009 is a plentiful, happy, healthy year.
With all our love and the best of wishes at this time of year and always.
Merry Christmas Eve Eve!
xo
Just a quick post to wish my Mom and Nana to be a very happy birthday.
May you have the best year ever! We love you more than you could ever know. You've been an inspiration for many! Thank you for teaching me to follow my heart. Thank you also for being our biggest fan through all the ups and downs of this adoption roller coaster.
We love you Mom!
We put our tree up today. Both Johnson and Peanut have curled up on the tree skirt... too cute. We thought that we were going to wait until Lauryn came home to decorate. But, decided today to pull everything out. It's beautiful and so nice to sit and look at. I love it!
It has been a pretty busy weekend. We got a LOT of snow. I mean a LOT! They are calling for more. Yikes, I don't know where we are going to put it.
Hope everyone is in the holiday spirit. Like it or not, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!
So today was a crazy day! This week has been really busy! I have been fighting a really bad cold, broke down and went to the clinic. Good news... the magic pills are working. I am feeling much better.
Today... we had a wonderful Christmas potluck lunch at work. It's a tradition, and a lovely one at that! Got a call from my darling husband to ask about our computer. It's been really acting up and today... it just gave up. So, after work I went out and bought a new computer. Certainly wasn't expecting that expense! But, we managed to get a pretty good deal. One of those don't pay until whenever things... works for me!
My dear friend came over and set us all up. Hence the post! We are back up and ready to roll! Thank goodness! Kyle was pretty freaked out. He works from home and our computer is his lifeline! So, we are all fixed up, and he is tucked into bed without the headache of lost files, missed emails etc. How did people work without home computers and blackberry's? Seriously!
What would we do without our dear friends?
Tomorrow night we will celebrate an early Christmas with Kyle's Grandma and her husband.
Things just keep rolling right along.
I don't know why but for whatever reason, Lauryn has been on my mind a whole lot. Yes, truth be told, I think of her often. But lately... much more than usual. I got an email from my sister in law saying how excited she is about the newest family member on her way. People seem to really be into this whole adoption thing. I love it. It warms my heart!
There is still the wait, and yes, it's a long long road. However, when our family and friends are making such an effort to make Lauryn apart of our holiday, the wait doesn't seem all that long.
I hope you and yours are enjoying the complete chaos of this season, and take time to realize that everyday brings you one step closer to your little one.
12 more days till Christmas!
One year ago today we handed in our first application for adoption! We can't believe that it's already been a year. To think at the start of this path we're on we knew nothing! We were a little nervous, scared and totally excited. Now jump ahead 365 days and WOW! We have a little girl somewhere in China waiting to be matched with us. I really can't get over it. A very nice lady gave me a copy of the poem below. I can't think of a better way to celebrate our one year mark! We both know the wait will be long, but some how already a year has passed. We are that much closer to Baby Lauryn coming home. The door is open Lauryn, come on home!
I tell ya something, I think Kyle and I are going to have a very lucky little girl on our hands!
This weekend I went home to my parents. Was able to spend the night at my cousins new house. It was great, we did some scrapbooking, and some invitations for an upcoming family get together. It was a wonderful weekend. My cousins new house is awesome! They have done a great job already... it makes me think that Kyle and I need to get out butts in gear!
While I was at my Mom's house she showed me the booties, blanket and hat set that she is crocheting for Lauryn - it's amazing. Truly beautiful. I can't wait for it to be done. She's so talented. Auntie D. and Auntie S. bought us some safety first stuff and some diapers and a baby doll with a stroller. The other Auntie S. brought us this really sweet barn yard animal thing! It's all plush shaped like a barn, the door opens and inside there are a rooster, duck, cow and pig. When you squeeze them they make their animal noise. Just to cute.
Other than that, nothing new to report. Just another post to thank our wonderful family.
We'd be lost with out all of the love, and support.
xo
This post is a tad over due! It's been one of THOSE weeks. From what I hear MANY other people are going through the same kinda stuff this week.
We had a wonderful dinner with some of Kyle's family last Saturday night.
Just as dinner was ending. Grandma (Kyle's Mom) and Auntie K (Kyle's sister) went to the car and brought back into the restaurant a huge bag!
"We have something for you both" "Well it's really for Lauryn", and "it's for Christmas"!
Kyle's Mom loves Christmas more than anyone I know and everyone knows that part of the curse of shopping early, is waiting so long to give what you've bought! Well, it turns out that Grandma and Auntie couldn't wait. Inside the bag was two BEAUTIFUL Chinese outfits. They are pink and gold and white. One is a pant suit and the other a dress with jacket. There is even a little hat and a purse. TOOOOO cute! They are perfect for Lauryn's first Santa picture.
Wanted to let you lovely ladies know that you made our night. You are both so thoughtful!
Thanks for thinking of us and Lauryn!
I can't wait to see her in them!
xo
I hope everyone will take the time to remember, because the people that fought for us, they will never forget. Here's an email I got today. It's a pretty incredible story!
THE VETERAN ON OUR TEN DOLLAR BILL ... If you look at the back right-hand side of a Canadian $10 bill, you will see an old veteran standing at attention near the Ottawa war memorial. His name is Robert Metcalfe and he died last month at the age of 90.
That he managed to live to that age is rather remarkable, given what happened in the Second World War. Born in England, he was one of the 400,000 members of the British Expeditionary Force sent to the mainland where they found themselves facing the new German warfare technique - the Blitzkrieg. He was treating a wounded comrade when he was hit in the legs by shrapnel. En route to hospital, his ambulance came under fire from a German tank, which then miraculously ceased fire. Evacuated from Dunkirk on HMS Grenade, two of the sister ships with them were sunk.
Recovered, he was sent to allied campaigns in North Africa and Italy. En route his ship was chased by the German battleship Bismarck. In North Africa he served under General Montgomery against the Desert Fox, Rommel. Sent into the Italian campaign, he met his future wife, a lieutenant and physiotherapist in a Canadian hospital. They were married in the morning by the mayor of the Italian town, and again in the afternoon by a British padre.
After the war they settled in Chatham where he went into politics and became the warden (chairman) of the county and on his retirement he and his wife moved to Ottawa. At the age of 80 he wrote a book about his experiences. One day out of the blue he received a call from a government official asking him to go downtown for a photo op. He wasn't told what the photo was for or why they chose him. 'He had no idea he would be on the bill,' his daughter said. And that's the story of the old veteran on the $10 bill.
What a week it's been. I went back to the dentist today. I needed a root canal. He started it today and will finish it Monday night. Although I do hate the dentist. I do adore my dentist and his team. He was kind enough...well, his wife was kind enough to bring in their baby girl for me to meet today. My dentist arranged for the visit. Let me tell you, she's a doll! There is nothing like a baby's smile to make your day!
As for the adoption front, nothing new to report. The Chinese adoption community is still waiting for the next referrals. I hope its a huge batch, and that the speed up after the Olympics is finally starting to happen.
Again, best wishes to all the families that are waiting for their referrals. I hope we get some news soon!
Not to much to add today. Just a quick update. Another batch of babies is being referred to their waiting families. Congratulations to all those families who are up next!
Did some nursery stuff over the weekend. Made a picture for the nursery. Mom liked it so much, that she ordered two for some upcoming baby showers that she's been invited to! I'm pretty impressed with myself! LOL!
We got our Christmas cards that we ordered from Carefree press. They are pretty cute! The have the Chinese symbols for Merry Christmas. I think we might send them every year. Kyle and I love em'!
I am currently dealing with some sore teeth. I've been to the dentist 4 times in the last two weeks! One more appointment to come on Saturday.
Hopefully this will solve all my problems.
Kyle and I have both been pretty exhausted. I think it's time for a visit home to Mom and Dad. I think I'm in the need for some good old fashioned TLC!
Congratulations to my adoptive Mommy friend. Her and her husband received their referral for a BABY BOY from South Korea yesterday!
We are thrilled for you!
With best wishes from the Thomson's.
We can only imagine how you are feeling!
Keep us updated!!
2 months today! Already we've been waiting 2 months for our referral.
They say it's around a 30 month wait. So, 28 more to go! Give or take a few!
We can do that! This week we received the names of the couples we will be travelling with. It's so neat to think that someone else is going through the exact same thing that you're going through. I also just read on another adoption blog that Katherine Heigl from Grey's Anatomy is adopting. Go figure!
Just a quick note to wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving!
We have a lot to be thankful for this year. We have a happy healthy family. One more soon to join us! It's a wonderful day outside, the leaves are changing and all together just a great day!
The wait started to get to me again this week. I found a new addiction... you tube!
I am obsessed... really. The day that you get your China baby is called GOTCHA DAY. Well, let me tell you, if you ever feel a need for a good cry try it out. Search Gotcha Day on you tube. There are thousands of video's profiling other families getting their babies and meeting them for the first time. Amazing!
All the best to you and yours. Lot's of baking to do before our company arrives.
Happy Thanksgiving!
xo
Kyle and I have decided to get some work done around the house. Nothing major, but the small stuff. We've decided to empty the babies room and then, we will kind of have a blank slate to work with. We can do as much or as little (LOL!) that we need to when the mood strikes! So far...baby Lauryn has a shelf, and a chair! A small rocking chair that was mine as a little girl. Her change table will be my old desk. However, it needs to be sanded, painted, it needs new drawer pulls. You get the idea.
It amazes me how people do ALL this stuff in only 9 months! We've got a little over 2 years. Maybe more, hopefully less. I'm already overwhelmed! We've created a huge "honey do" list. The baby's room has taken a page itself. We've got big dreams! Good thing is, is that we pretty much agree on everything that needs to be done. As well as how it's to be done!
So, the first weekend in October is clean up weekend! We are cleaning out the shed (yuck), and all the storage closets (yuck!) AND are attempting to clean up our office... alright it's not an office so much as it is a place where everything lands room. Like I said BIG dreams! Wish us luck!
Anyone who knows me, knows I love to shop! A new purse seems to be the cure all! You can imagine how much my purse collection has grown over the last couple of years! Infertility certainly can cause some strange things! Anyway, as Kyle looks over my shoulder while I type, we can save those little details!
So... there it is! I will keep this updated as we receive information from our agency.
