The Power Ballad and You

This is definitely stretching it a bit, but I'm sick of the big loom lingering over all of us with the recent lull. There's nothing we can do about it so let's have a little fun.

What 80s power ballad fits your current state of mind? They're all about angst, waiting and fighting the odds - if it's true that misery loves company, the lyrics to these ballads may actually cheer us up! If you feel like joining in, post a few lyrics to your ballad.

No, this doesn't mean I'm content with the lull. I'm just ready for a non-thinking distraction that will hopefully generate some good replies that we can all laugh at with each other. Okay ladies, bring on your best 80s big-hair ballad...

P.S. If you're playing and didn't grow up in the 80s, please note that 'girl' in any ballad is equivalent to what we are all missing and looming over.

P.P.S. Whoever has the best ballad at the end (determined by other readers) will get a little tee for your kiddie with your band's logo on it. (I make them and have a closet full that need to be cleared out before our kiddie arrives)

Ours would be GnR's Patience...

(1..2...1,2,3,4)
Shed a tear 'cause I'm missing you
I'm still alright to smile
Girl, I think about you every day now
Was a time when I wasn't sure
But you set my mind at ease
There is no doubt you're in my heart now
Said woman take it slow
It'll work itself out fine
All we need is just a little patience
Said sugar make it slow
And we'll come together fine
All we need is just a little patience (inhale)
Patience...Ooh, oh, yeah

Dad

One of Kai's Valentine's Day gifts arrived early.

Now, anyone who knows me knows that I normally distribute my gifts early. I get too excited in the hub-bub and build up to whatever the big day is that we're all awaiting. I've always been like that and most likely will not change at this point.

Niko's first Christmas is going to be interesting. It may be the first time a child tells a parent, "It's 4am, please go back to bed mommy".

So, I found this amazing collection of Amharic tees, coffee mugs, aprons, etc. When I saw the "DAD" tee, I sqealed and whipped out my credit card. Sold. (I know Kai doesn't look very excited in the picture, but he really is).

We girls blog, shop, read and talk about being a mom from day one. We've referred to each other with the ultimate title of "mom" or "mommy" at some point already. Our mothers, sisters and friends have had heart to hearts about what motherhold holds. I wouldn't imagine the average dad-in-waiting encounters the amount of warm & fuzzy "oh boy, we can call you daddy soon" moments as us.

I kind of saw this when Kai opened his present and asked "What does this say?" When I simply said "Dad", I saw the coolest look on Kai's face.

Happy Birthday Gram!

I love you!

A grandmother is a little bit parent, a little bit teacher, and a little bit best friend.-- Author Unknown

Grandmas don't just say "that's nice" -- they reel back and roll their eyes and throw up their hands and smile. You get your money's worth out of grandmas.-- Author:unknown

There's no place like home except Grandma's. ~Author Unknown

When grandparents enter the door, discipline flies out the window. ~Ogden Nash

Being grandparents sufficiently removes us from the responsibilities so that we can be friends. ~Allan Frome

If nothing is going well, call your grandmother. ~Italian Proverb

My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. She's ninety-seven now, and we don't know where the hell she is.-- Ellen DeGeneres

Ups & Eccchs

I'm making a conscious effort right now to be a more timely-blogger. Through the rest of our journey, I will make every attempt to not let it slip in excess of a week, like now. It takes a lot of mind-energy to get back in the flow. I feel like I need to list a diary of events in order to catch up for the past week and that's no fun for anyone, especially the reader!

So, to recap I'll simply highlight the ups & not-so-ups; some adoption-related and some not.

Ech: The waitlist crew have all set their sights on a 7.2 month average wait time. That was the trend with our agency at the time of our last conference call prior to the holidays. Well, the new conference call happened this week and we're all back up to an 8 month average wait. Boo.

Up: Our artist, Phoenix, won a Grammy!!!! Yay. Yay. Yay. If you're not familiar with them, I'm sure you've heard them in one of the gazillion Cadillac commercials currently running.

Up: Sticking with the musical theme, Cyndi Lauper was in the office today. I LOOOOVE Ms. Lauper. Who doesn't? Seeing someone like her just makes me smile and makes life seem fun and light. Nice aura to have!

Ech: Not to harp on this conference call business, but...something was mentioned that I wasn't aware of nor have I read about this before (and I have done a TON of research).

Children are available for adoption because they are either a) relinquished - parent(s)/living family member(s) willingly give their child(ren) to the orphanage or b) they are abandoned (self-explanatory). That we knew.

What we didn't know is that abandoned children are named by the police officer who writes up their case when taken into the station. After hearing this a few days ago, it still isn't sitting well with us and has taken us aback. Our intention was to take our son's Ethiopian name as his middle name. The whole purpose was because of its meaning and to keep part of our child's past with him forever. Knowing what we know now, I'm not sure we want that. I'm not sure he would. I don't know. We don't know. My middle name is after my maternal grandmother and it's comforting to know that. I wouldn't want that name if I knew a police officer, aka stranger, selected it. Has anyone else faced this and hesitated? not hesitated at all? Should our son be referred to us as an abandoned case, we may be considering a different Ethiopian name.

I would love to hear others' thoughts/experience on this topic. I already want to protect this little guy whom I've never met and do what's right on his behalf. Hmmmm...

And to end on an Up...our nephew thoroughly enjoying his day at Chelsea Piers. The genuine happiness that bouncing brings to a four year old's world! I'm seriously jealous.

The Stroller

The best stroller for NYC?
It has taken us two months of hardcore research to answer this question with an educated guess. The answer for our family is the City Mini.

This predicament doesn't apply to the rest of the country, nor should it be expected to make sense to anyone outside of NYC that your stroller purchase is one of the toughest decisions on your list. As ridiculous as it sounds, it is downright serious.

You see, we don't have a car nor do we want one. That means no throwing the stroller in the trunk. It's with us at all times - up the subway stairs, standing on the train when there are no available seats, collapsing stroller at a moment's notice to hop on the bus & throw it on the floor before the driver pounds on the gas as you maneuver to find a seat with baby flung under your arm - just a few of the daily situations. p.s. - he's NOT going to wait for you to find the 'release' button and tuck it all in neatly. It's pack & go or risk flying down the aisle with arms & gear a flappin'. I've seen it happen!

Now for the weekend...a trip to the museum with lunch and stop by the boutique for some shopping on the way home. All of this is done with no car, no carseat for sleeping, no trunk for storing stuff. And did I mention it's February and there is 2" of snow on the ground? Yes, all of this must be transported, stored, kept warm and travel safely in a stroller. There is no heat, no winter tread, no wipers, no trunk.

The majority of strollers are pulled from the trunk, used in the shop/mall and then put back in the trunk. Our 'trunk' is my back & Kai's back while out and about.

For the past two months, we've researched what seems like every stroller on the market in order to create a short list. Well, our short list still ended up having 20 models on it. So off we went today to test drive each one of them with our excel spreadsheet in hand; noting various pros & cons based on our personal needs and preferences. It's not showing up that well, but if anyone wants it for their own research, I can forward it.

I would like to send a huge thanks to Kai's family! They know NY well and understand our concern for finding the perfect stroller. Because of their generosity, all models were a potential option for us, from the most economical to those that may appear to be pure status symbols and may have otherwise been overlooked. I can honestly say strollers in all categories were considered and the City Mini met each need except two...

1. adjustable handles: okay b/c the fixed height works if you're tall like us
2. air tires: the City Elite (one model up) has air tires but was too heavy for us

The City Mini is one of the lower priced models in the "lightweight-plus" category. The Bugaboo was a strong contender for its quality and smooth steering until after multiple failed attempts at locking the front tires in place in order to move onto the "quick fold" I had red, worn fingers, no more patience and was wondering "where is my baby while I'm doing this with both hands"? For $600-700 they need to fix the plastic lock-grips!!! Are you kidding me??? It was a deal breaker.

I'm not bashing on the Bugaboo. It did make it to the #2 spot. The final push for the City Mini was seeing six of them in use by NYC moms today. One CM-mother even jumped in when she heard us speaking to our rep. When she overheard our conversation with our rep with our criteria, she tapped me on the shoulder and began raving about her City Mini. Our rep then told us it's the number one seller in his store for NYC moms because of its weight, fold and functions. SOLD.

My apologies for the lengthy stroller post, but I must say, I was eager to read personal details when doing our research. Our info may not apply to 90% of those reading this, but for the 10% it makes sense to...I would love to hear your stroller choices and feedback.

6 Months on Wait List...

Six is a unitary perfect number, a harmonic divisor number and a highly composite number. Six is the only number that is both the sum and the product of three consecutive positive numbers. Six is also the number of strings on a standard guitar.

Did you think I completely lost it? Nope, just a quick visit to Wiki while searching for a "6" image that has a connection. LOVE Eve6. They were with RCA when I was there - awesome guys!

Six months on the waitlist tomorrow. We're off to our nephew's baptism bright and early tomorrow morning and will not be able to post, so I wanted to get a jump on it tonight.

I want to first send a big fat warm & fuzzy congratulations to Mr. Kai. Last night was four years to the day that he had his final cigarette. Not an easy task, yet he did it and stuck to it. LOVE YOU :) That day also happens to be my mother's birthday. Yes, she shares it with Elvis. Happy Bday mama :)

All in all, the past six months (12 in all when you count the first six doing paperwork) have been a great ride thus far. A few spurts of anxiety, which is my current state as we speak, but that will soon pass to bring back the state of mind of "simply waiting". That's the stage...simply waiting. It doesn't matter what you do, you're waiting. But it's not a wait compared to that of being in a really long line at a shop or waiting for your delayed flight in a storm or waiting for your neighbor to stop dj'ing while you're finishing a project or, or, or, or...you get it. None of that matters anymore. Who cares? This is the monster of all waits and it is upon us with fury.

It's the wait that includes months & months of climbing to reach a peak with such excitement to simply be rewarded by being put at the bottom of the next peak and start again. It's quite ridiculous really. Isn't the definition of insanity when one does the same thing over and over again and expects different results?

However, it's a process I fully embrace because at the end of this is our family. The one little member who will make it complete is there . Nothing is more exciting than that!

We're in such a funny place because according to the trend, a call is in our near future. So is Niko in Gladney's care now? Is he being evaluated by doctors for his medical paperwork and by caseworkers for his birth history portion of the paperwork? Have other families who are in country picking up their children already been fortunate enough to see him, maybe even snagged a photo? See...this is where I get antsy because we're waiting on so much more than a phone call when you open your eyes and try to imagine what's happening PRIOR to your phone call. What happens prior to our call, is happening NOW.

The part that comforts me is knowing that as long as he is in Gladney's care, he is in good hands. And if he's not in their care yet, he will be fully taken care of as soon as he is, which is hopefully NOT a long wait. I can wait. Kai can wait. I don't want Niko to wait.

Lastly, I want to wish one of our very special waitlist buddies safe and exciting travels tomorrow. They are off to Addis to pick up their little girl!!!! Can you imagine? I don't know how they're sleeping tonight. She's one of the first few in our little wait-group to reach this stage. Just think, when we all go to work on Monday, this woman will be meeting her beautiful Beatrix for the first time. Yes, worth the wait.

Happy Belated Thanksgiving...

It's been awhile since my last post. So long in fact, that many important dates have passed that would have otherwise been addressed...Thanksgiving, World Aids Day, court dates, referrals and recent updates to name a few.

I'll keep it simple by wishing everyone a belated Thanksgiving and give a little recap of our holiday. I say holiday because we took the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving away as our pre-adoption vacation. You all know the one...the one that has more significance than any trip you've ever taken because the next time you board a plane with your passport, it will be to pick up your child(ren).

At the beginning of our paperwork phase, someone (I forget who, but I thank them from the bottom of my heart) suggested planning a trip that would fall in the middle of the "wait list" period. It would serve as a very attractive alternative point of focus from the ritual of stalking blogs and watching the unofficial wait list creep along. They said a getaway would also do wonders for your thought process for the transition and ups & downs that come with international adoption.

hmmm....okay. Who am I to turn down a trip suggestion, considering the benefits we'll reap afterwards? Done. In February, I booked an apartment in Barcelona for Thanksgiving. We only needed to use 3.5 vacation days, yet 10 days of vacation time were ours! Woohoo!

And the best part? Kai's family are big travelers and joined us the second we mentioned it. There may not have been turkey on our table, but there was plenty of family, fun and paella to go around!

Now, as someone who has made it a ritual to blog-stalk and continually press refresh on the unofficial FBI list a bazillion times daily, this trip was therapeutic on many levels. No computers, no blogging and the obvious distractions to real-life when being on vacation made for a wonderful, refreshing break.

It doesn't matter where you go, but a break is a good thing at this stage in the game.

p.s. My friend, Heidi, had the most wonderful post on World Aids Day. I couldn't say it better. Please check it out here.

Cashmere & The Crusty Cheerio

Pretty self-explanatory, no?

Our nephews are the perfect little guinea pigs as we begin to dip our toes into the unknown; this new world called parenthood. Everytime we're with one of them, I walk away with a bit more insight into what this new world holds for us.

The latest? Bringing a little remnant from our weekend toddler-extravaganza to the office. I had just finished presenting my portion of the project to approximately ten others in the conference room. As I glance down at my notes to make sure I covered everything, I notice a shriveled up, crusty Cheerio dangling (by what is some sticky substance that only a 4-year-old can create) to my cashmere hoodie. OMG. This has been here ALL day. Because it's a hoodie (and did I mention it's cashmere?) I certainly wear it more than once before it hits the dry-cleaner.

For those who don't know me, I am not a fancy-schmancy label-whore. In fact, I find much more pleasure in styling pieces from the local thrift shop with ones I've made myself, so this isn't a snob-thing. It's that this sweater was a gift and one I've had for YEARS. It's my go-to piece for making my own creations look a little more "serious". And now there is a crusty Cheerio stuck to it and I can't stop laughing! This is my new life.

And if I ever write a book, I think I found the title...Cashmere & The Crusty Cheerio.

Another Family Hoopla...The Sis' Wedding

A whole lot can happen in a few days.

I boarded a plane last Thursday (Kai came Friday) for my sister's wedding reception in GA, very content to be sitting in the #12 position on the unofficial Wait List. I must note that a few days prior to that we were at #15, so all in all there was much excitement yet a teeny bit of "oh my, this is picking up rather quickly".

Fast forward two days. I take a break early Saturday morning from my reception to-do list to check the computer. (aren't we all Wait-List-checking-addicts at this point?) I scream, "MOOOMMMMMM!!!" I ask her to please double check my counting skills. (she's a retired teacher) It's official. There have been two more referrals posted on the unofficial list and we are now #10. An utter state of confusion takes over. Is this how it works? Will we now wait two-three months with no movement on the list? How else will this take eight/nine months? Are four referrals a week normal????

I quickly move into to-do list mode - and it's not for the reception on hand that is taking place in a matter of hours. My head is spinning with a brand new to-do list; one that only a natural born control freak can understand. Back to reality...my sister is celebrating her wedding reception this weekend, following a bride/groom only ceremony that took place in Jamaica last month. I MUST focus. This pace must simply be a rare little surge.

So enough about my hysteria...on to my sister's. Ha! It was a huge success. She was a beautiful bride and we're so happy to welcome Brian to the family!

Unfortunately, our dad couldn't make it but the majority of the family attended which was wonderful! Such a GREAT time. Our family is amazing and did I mention a bit on the large side? My mother (3 bio kids) remarried Glen (4 bio kids), producing quite an ecclectic blended crew that will make for an amazing new family for our newest little addition.

And those characters are...

(They requested Aunt Tam do their hair)

and then of course, there is US

and then me and The Nana (note the blow-up jumping machine in the background that was brought in for the kiddies)

Jack & The Dinosaur

Some little tidbits will be thrown into this blog that have nothing to do with adoption, but more to do with either family or simply a current event in NYC (or the world). We'll definitely be creating a Life Book for our new baby, but with technology making things so easy, we may be able to capture a more complete story for him by including our family blog along with his Life Book.

It seems like we're always celebrating a birthday in our family. Yesterday was my sister's...Happy Birthday Mandie!!! And a big congratulations on her recent wedding in Jamaica. We'll be seeing them all this next weekend for the reception. Can't wait!

Next up on the birthday list is our nephew, Jack, who will be four very soon. We have the pleasure of his company this weekend, as he'll be spending the night with us tonight after his soccer game today. The inspiration for the dinosaur?

His mother's Facebook posts last week:

Mommy to Jack: "Jack, you need to wash your hands."

Jack to Mommy: "I also NEED a dinosaur."

Next morning...

Mommy to Jack: "Good morning Jack. How are you today?"

Jack to Mommy: "The same. I still don't have a dinosaur."

That's the moment Operation Dinosaur began for Aunt Tam & Uncle Kai. And voila!

Now, I only hope his reaction is what I've built it up to be in my head! Stay tuned.

Off to the gym now. (yes, I'm still plugging away on that venture)

Four Generations Celebrate a Birthday

My maternal grandfather, aka Poppy, shares a birthday with my lovely hubby. The short story? A good time was had by all this weekend.

I know I've used that line more than once in the past, but this weekend was the real deal. It was four generations getting together to celebrate the 90th (YES 9-0) birthday of Poppy. He has four daughters (one being my amazing mother) who rarely have the chance to get together and simply 'hang out'. Our family is spread out along the East Coast, not making for an easy, quick weekend get-together. Thank you Aunt Jill & Uncle John for hosting this bonanza :)

My mother, stepfather and toothless twin nephews drove a whopping 1,600 miles between Friday and Sunday, making the trek from GA to PA. Aunts, uncles, cousins, sisters, brothers, nephews, nieces and girlfriends all came together for what really matters...family.

Kai and I have always had a strong sense of family since we met. We grew up so differently...country mouse v city mouse, my Brady Bunch-style large, blended family (and my mom's name is Carole!) to Kai's two child/two parent household...and the list goes on. The point is, your family is your family. Growing up, my close friends were even treated like family. My mom always made it clear her door was open, literally. Ours was the house with a constant flow of teenagers coming and going.

So the point of this, in addition to wishing a very Happy 90th to Poppy and a 3_ Bday to Kai is...anyone going through adoption realizes more & more, the value of family and friends. It's not something you focus on. It's something that will surface on its own at each stage of the process, shedding an interrogation-like light on the important people and relationships existing in your life.

Most of us live in a Tweeting, texting, Tivo'ing, take-out world that makes it too easy to put some things on the back burner. Adoption will shed a new light on the back burner and will make you realize what's really important in your oh-so-important and hectic life. One of these things is family; the ones who have always been there and will always be there...no matter where in the world they live.

Check out the coolest cake ever. My mom had this ordered for the music guru Mr. Kai, which we all devoured in the hotel room following the first round of festivities last night.

All the nephews. Hmmmm....call me crazy, but I think Theo may end up being a blonde.

What to Ask the Birth Family?

In the event your child is relinquished (vs. abandoned), your agency may have some very valuable information to share with you. Agencies operate under their own protocol in international adoption. (There are agency rules and then there are country-specific rules). We have selected an agency who openly offers birth family information to adoptive parents, when made available to them.

That being said, should we be fortunate enough to know the birth family's location at the time of our referral, we are most definitely traveling a week (or so) prior to our assigned date. This will allow for sufficient time to visit any biological family members, take pictures and record "memories" for our child. These are all things that so many of us take for granted. I must say that I have gained a whole new respect for the baby book my parents created for me - and all since trying to figure out where to begin with ours.

Since reading everything I can get my hands on re: the psyche of the adopted child, I must say that the impact of having first-hand stories and accounts from the child's family and birth-village is invaluable. It offers insight to their roots, answers questions they may be afraid to ask and most of all gives a little bit of closure to a past they never knew.

So, I came across an online discussion on this very topic...What to ask the birth family? Some are ours, some are borrowed from others and of course we welcome more from any of you.

I'll start with two that were mentioned by a mother after-the-fact. Those are hard. The ones you can no longer ask because the moment has passed. You try to think of everything, but there are things that are certain to be overlooked. Hopefully this assists others - and we also welcome any input from those of you who have already walked down this road or simply have a suggestion.

1. What time was he born? (for his birth certificate)
2. How did you choose his name?
3. What do you hope for your child's future?
4. Any known family medical issues?
5. What is your favorite food? color?
6. What makes you laugh?
7. What scares you?
8. How big is your family?
9. Do you like the morning or the evening?
10. Is your entire family from Ethiopia?
11. What would you like your child to know about you?

Happy Birthday to you...Happy Bithday to you...

Happy Birthday, dear Kaaaa-iiiii. Happy Birthday to you!

We started with a little birthday coffee to get going and are heading out shortly for some birthday croissants on our morning birthday walk. Skipping ahead to the pm, a seafood dinner is in our future which will conclude the birthday celebrations. (and there may be a little birthday US Open squeezed in there too)

I would also like to give a shout out to Poppy, who is turning 90 today! We'll see you next weekend at the festivities. Also, our nephew Ryan is celebrating his big day today. Enjoy!

On this day in history, 9/6/1970, Jimi Hendrix held his last concert.

A few more notes of interest to this decade...

• the Billboard #1 song was "War" by Edwin Starr
• Richard Nixon was President (and met with Elvis in 1970)
• The Mary Tyler Moore show premieres on CBS (9/70)
• Top Box Office Movie was Love Story
• a loaf of bread cost $0.58
• NYC subway fare was $.30
• average college tuition $3,500 (MIT highest at $10k+)
• cost of a new home $26k+
• IBM introduces the "Floppy" disk for storage
• Frank Zappa, Miles Davis and Blood Sweat and Tears are top performers
• New words: preppie, hassle, fast-food, rip-off, Fortran, blahs, put down
• Top Selling Fiction: Love Story, Erich Segal
• Top Selling NonFiction: Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Sex but Were Afraid To Ask, David Reuben, M.D.
• Fashion/Art: mood rings, string art, leisure suits, bellbottoms, pet rocks and disco

Happy Bday!!!...xoxo

Pocket-size Peppers & Family

Many months ago I posted a note that I was planting vegetables with the hopes of expanding our garden next year to include eggplant, blueberries and grapes, I believe. Well because I'm the person who always finds the silver lining, I will just say that Kai & I grow the cutest vegetables EVER. They may not be the most robust peppers in the group, but they are without a doubt, the most adorable.

I can also say that it's a good thing for Kai that we don't live in an area or time that holds the 'living off the land' platform. Poor thing would be wasting away to nothing if that was the case. I must admit though that our lunch yesterday was THE BEST pizza we've ever made. A whole lot of that had to do with the fact it included all the little guys featured above, who came straight from our balcony. And all were topped with fresh mozzarella.

As good as they were, our tomatoes will never taste as good as my grandparents'. Their garden was bigger than our entire house and backyard combined. My grandpa & I would pick fresh tomatoes and beans, bring them inside to grandma who would then slice, dice & season. All of this on the side of a fresh macaroni salad with sun-brewed ice tea from the yard. OMG - amazing!

In fact, when I told my g-ma that we were growing our own tomato plants, her first question was "Oh, so you're going to start canning?" At which point I burst into immediate laughter. I don't have the heart to show her the size of our tomatoes. I think the fact that we have to include a quarter to show relative size in our photos says it all. It's so much fun though - and the best part is that they're growing like crazy! Not bigger...just a whole slew of them all this size.

On another note, more book reviews coming soon. I finished two more, but have issues with my camera (hence, the vegetable post)

Lastly, I joined a gym and am completely rocking it out. This is the first time (and there have been MANY gyms in my past) that I'm excited when I get there and am already looking forward to the next time as I exit. A huge inspiration was our last visit to Kai's parents. My mother in law is in amazing shape and exudes the healthy glow so many strive for. I realized then that I need to get in gear. If she can fit the gym & dance classes into her schedule, ANYONE can. So...no more excuses.
I'm lovin' it!

World Football Challenge

Today will be a fun day. I mentioned previously that we are big (B-I-G) football/soccer fans. When we were about a month into the adoption process we heard rumors of The World Football Challenge coming to town - (well, to six lucky towns across the U.S.). The teams: Inter-Milan, AC Milan, Chelsea and Club America were also rumored to be bringing their first-team guys to play. (fyi to the non-soccer fans - that's monumental)

After being advised by multiple reliable sources to do everything adult-friendly possible during Wait List phase to a) pass the time and to b) take our minds off the entire process while we have adult-only time remaining in our lives...we are doing just that! So, as an anniversary gift to each other, we snapped up amazing seats to the game closest to NYC, booked a hotel and took a vacation day from work.

So, this morning we are headed to Inner Harbor Baltimore to see Kai's favorite team (Chelsea) and an ex-Barcelona (my team) player, Ronaldinho. Hopefully we'll have some time to grab some crabs and check out a bit of the area before heading to the game (8pm, I think).

Our soccer-loving twin nephews caught the game in Atlanta on Wedesday and are still talking about it. For the past three years, Kai & I have been buying them jersey/short sets from their favorite players in the Euro leagues, so they were well armed on the wardrobe front for their game. It also took their mom two days to get them out of the little uniforms after the game. Their excitement has now spread to our house!

Tomorrow morning we head to DC where we'll spend the remainder of the weekend with Kai's family. Yes, a very good time is in our very near future.

The Moon, The Bank & The List...history

History this week in our world...

July 16, 1969: The world watched in anticipation as three men were hurtled skyward in a rocket bound for the moon. more at National Geographic

Are they the cutest twins EVER???
July 16, 2009: Our very grown-up seven year old nephews have a meeting at their local bank to open personal bank accounts with their own money. (well done mommy!) And you can see their little social security cards in front of their loot.
Notice the two chairs opposite the bank rep; they're sitting in only one.

July 10, 2009: So yes - as I posted very quickly last week, we are officially on wait list.

In the adoption world, the email from your caseworker with the subject line entitled: "You are on Wait List!!!!" is synonymous with a positive pregnancy test. It is happening folks! A baby son is imminent. A wave of excitement has filled us both while simultaneously, every fear you can imagine shoots through our entire being. Oh boy.

When I started this blog, I wondered if I would have anything to say during this waiting period or if there would be a nine month lull until our travel time. Based solely on the emotions, thoughts, discussions, research findings and comments from friends & family over the past six days, I can confirm there will be no lulls in our future.