And the 'Stroller Coaster' Dips Again

Here we go again! The CCAA website was updated just a few minutes ago and shows another batch of referrals have been issued. This batch covers August 26, 2005 to September 8, 2005....14 days. This is great news if you're in those dates but for the rest of us....UGH!!!!!!!!! Another small month of referrals.

There had been rumours out early last week that this months referrals could go 'deep into September.' I didn't post much about it here because with referrals I'm at the 'I'll believe it when I see it' (read: cautious) stage as lately we've been disappointed so often. Sadly, the big referral batch didn't happen although the rumour was a good ride for a few days and definitley brightened my spirits.

So I'm back to anticipating a late 2007/early 2008 referral should the current trends continue.

I am SO THANKFUL that GOD is the one in control because days like today are tough. Really tough. So many mixed emotions. Happy for those receiving their referrals. Thrilled for Julie and Lisa who leave next week to meet their beautiful babies face to face!! But, yes, I'm also hosting a pity party for those of us who are still so far away. If you'd like to join me please feel free. I should warn you though, it's not going to be a long party. For a little while we'll feel badly, quite possibly cry a little but then...my pity party will be over for right now because hey...God's timing is perfect and it's not His timing yet and there is so much life to be living for right NOW! I refuse to put God in a box and tell him that life will begin once Hannah arrives. Oh no!!! I love her already but I also want to be thankful for today and each day God gives me!

To help me up I'm starting a thankful list...
Today I'm thankful for my great God, family and friends!!! I'm thankful for some upcoming exciting events:
- getting together with adoptive friends this weekend
- preparing for a Disney trip with my niece in only 8 more sleeps!
- Christmas and all the preparations as we celebrate Jesus, the Reason for the Season!

Yup...beginning to feel better already! Like I say, if you want to attend this pity party ya better show up quickly as I'm already beginning to remind myself of the good things God has given today and my mood is beginning to lift.

Congrats to those who will receive their referrals shortly!

Congrats Julie and Lisa!!! (I can't believe I won't have access to a computer the week you receive Tess and Maisie! Could you hold off travel just one short week so that I don't miss any of the wonderful details of meeting your daughters?!! LOL!!!)

Thankful to God for providing me with the funds and job to ride this 'stroller coaster' and for all the AMAZING friends He's bringing along on this journey. This journey takes so many of you on this stroller coaster with me and I am thankful for each of YOU! Some of you have known me for years and others just months or days. I'm so happy to have you along! Hang on friends....we're going around again.

This ride is far from over!

Mmmm...Christmas Baking!

Tonight my friend Joy-Lynn is hosting a Christmas cookie exchange so part of yesterday was spent preparing these yummy little treats. They're not officially 'cookies' but am sure they'll pass the test!

Friday I was trying to figure out what kind of cookies to bake. Scanning the web, analyzing how much time I'd have over the weekend to bake, etc. What a wonderful surprise it was to arrive home and find out that there was a package waiting for me at the post office. I hopped back into my car, looking forward to finding what little treat awaited Miss Hannah. What a fun surprise when the package was for me from my cousin Julie in Michigan! What a sweetie you are! Julie has made these tasty morsels the past couple of times we've gotten together at my aunt's place on Boxing Day (December 26th - A holiday in Canada except the stores are open and big sales! Kinda our version of Black Friday.) In the box was all the fixings I'd need to make these tasty treats! Round pretzels are impossible to find in Ontario. If anyone sees them, please let me know as these are a real crowd pleaser and very easy to make.

Anyway, as the weekend progressed I thought what fun it would be to take these little treats to the exchange so bright and early yesterday morning I was up making 16 dozen treats.

In the meantime I'd also emailed my friend Norma on Friday asking for her recipe for coconut tarts. She sent it so figured I couldn't let all her hard work go to waste so I made these too. Yummm! Note to self: Next year don't put tarts in oven and then climb up on the roof to hang Christmas wreaths. :o) Oh well, they're delicious all the same even if their tops are a little crusty!

Thanks again Julie for the wonderful gift! I'm looking forward to seeing you on boxing day!! Love ya!

Spoiled Once Again!

Oh my!!! When I drove home yesterday there was a huge package waiting on the front porch. Wahooo...it's Secret Pal time again! This month's theme was 'Travel Essentials' and my SP thought of absolutely everything! I kept pulling item after item out of the envelope. It kinda felt like that clown that pulls a stream of kerchiefs from his sleeve. Just when I thought the envelope could not have held one more item I'd place my hand in and pull out another treat! SP - You're the BEST!!!

The first items I found were a cozy neck pillow and matching blanket for the flight. Mmmm...I've often looked at these pillows but never purchased one. There were also 2 luggage tags with the Canadian flag on them! Neat! A cute little face cloth with a panda on it will be much used both in China and again at home.

The next items were to help out while in China. A box of disposable bags for dirty diapers. Oh yes...we'll be sure to use those when we leave those wonderful little bundles of fun in Grandma and Grandpa's room I mean, our room. There were also some really great things I hadn't thought about buying yet...travel package of Q-tips, a first aid kit, Shout wipes, Lysol wipes, Wet Ones, gum, hand sanitizer (the fancy stuff at that!) travel size Johhson's baby stuff and a tiny bar of baby soap too!

Another great item was this fun picture frame with airplanes all over it and a caption that reads, 'What a Trip!' How perfect!

My SP also comes up with some ingenious ways to use the March DTC logo. This month it's with 2 CD's entitled, 'Chinese for the Adoptive Parent' Parts I and II! I've looked absolutely everywhere for CD's where I can learn basic Mandarin and haven't been able to find them. How did you know SP? Thank you!! (Now...to learn a teeny, tiny bit of the language. That's another hurdle to jump.) She also included a laminated sheet with words and phrases in English, Mandarin and the english translation. Now I'll be able to tell Hannah such things as 'Wo men hui yong yuan shi ni de jia ren' (phonetic spelling) (We will be your family forever) And, my very, very favourite....Wo ai ni...I LOVE YOU! Oh yah...gonna use that one lots and lots!

Thank you SP!! Once again you outdid yourself and I am very, very thankful!

Yeah!!! 8 Month LIDiversary!

What a wonderful day! Today is my 8 month LIDiversary, celebrating my file being in China for 8 whole months! Wow! What a wonderful feeling! As rumours of a large referral batch dance through the adoption world, it gives us another reason to celebrate! If the referrals go deep into September 2005 LID's (as the rumours are leading us to believe) it could finally be the beginning of the speed-up we've been praying for. What a blessing that would be!

What all this means in layman's terms is that if this month CCAA refers a full month's worth of LID's and if this is the new trend, then I could be seeing a referral late next summer (August Bridge???) and travel in the fall!

As you can see, there are still a lot of if's but this girl is celebrating 8 months today and that allows me the opportunity to dream!

Still enjoying the flower celebration too. Nothing extravagant. Just a little $4.99 bundle of carnations from the grocery store but oh those flowers make me smile every time I see them and think of beautiful baby Hannah!

So Much To Be Thankful For!

Happy Thanksgiving

to my wonderful friends to the south!

Enjoy some turkey...and stuffing...and potatoes...and pie for me, k?

Have a wonderful holiday and tomorrow, shop 'til you drop! Come on, I've seen your blogs and I know you can do it! :o)

A Beautiful Gift of Love!!!

When I arrived home a few weeks ago there was a box waiting for me (well...Hannah) on the front porch. It was light when I picked it up and I read that it was from my wonderful friend Della! Della and I met in Bible College ummm...a while back...and I knew immediately it was something that she had made for Hannah. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined the gift of love that was contained within that box!!!! 9 pairs of handmade booties for precious Hannah's sweet feet! I cried as I oooed and awwwwwed over every pair and held them so carefully. What a precious gift! Not knowing what size she'll be when we meet, there was a variety of sizes in the beautifully wrapped box and each pair was beautifully made with such care a love!

I can't wait to put them on my precious baby girl but until that time, this year they will hang lovingly on my Christmas tree reminding me that Lord willing, sweet Hannah will be here by Christmas next year!

THANK YOU Della!!!!! Love you lots!


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Please Meet My China Travel Group!

Last night I had the awesome priviledge of meeting the families I will travel to China with! We are all with the same agency and share a LID. Our files were sent to China together in March of this year and logged in on March 23rd. Currently our little group of files are either waiting patiently at the door to go into the review room or already in there and doing their very best to show CCAA what a great group of Canadians are and how thankful we would be to be parents of their precious children!

Our travel group met at the Mandarin Restaurant with is a huge Chinese food buffet. What better place of all of us to get to know one another? It was so nice to finally put faces to names and meet one another. It seems we probably still have a long wait in front of us so we'll have lots of time to get to know one another more prior to travel.

Here's my great group!


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Waiting Mommies Meet-up!

What a great evening! There are a number of waiting mommies in our area who have met via friendships, blogs and yahoo groups. Tonight we decided to get together and what fun we had! With the exception of Jill and Andrea, it was my first time meeting the rest of these wonderful gals!

From left to right we have Rebekah, Paula, Kathy, Andrea, Laurie, Jill, myself and Michelle.

We had an absolutely wonderful evening getting to know one another, sharing adoption stories, baby names and of course, gifts for our sweet babies! (It was funny to watch 8 women open gift bags decorated with baby themes yet none of us looking pregnant. Hmmmm...I guess this is what 'paper pregnant' looks like!)

Kathy gave Hannah her very first Christmas book! It's has the fun reindeer who sticks his head through each page of the book. She also gave us adorable little frames that will be the perfect size for displaying Hannah's referral picture!

Paula found this cute little Hello Kitty dish with matching baby chopsticks and scooop spoon...perfect for feeding baby congee. Guess I'd better learn to make congee (whatever that is!) before heading to China as it seems to be a staple for babies there.

The 8 of us had a great time and the evening just flew by! Before we knew it it was almost 11:00 and we'd arrived at 6:30! Where did the time go? It was so interesting to share adoption stories, family stories and so much more.

Laurie is our resident expert as she has an absolutely adorable 2yo from Hunan province at home and is in the process of adopting her second. We asked her a ton of questions and she was great with sharing all that she could about her trip to China, meeting her daughter and the time after that. Your daughter is absolutely beautiful Laurie. God has blessed your family in such a wonderful way and now He is preparing another little girl in China to join your family too!

We found out through our time together that our LID's are spread over the months of March through Ocotober or November this year. (Michelle, Jill and Laurie are currently waiting to hear their LID's as they were all DTC in October.) Another neat thing is that we're with 2 different agencies. It was neat to learn things from one another and from the seminars that some have attended. So much to learn....and so much time to learn it! Guess that's a positive spin on the referral slow down.

Had a great time gals! Looking forward to getting together again early in the New Year!

Out of the Mouths of Babes!

I received the neatest email this morning! It was short and sweet and yet at the same time gave me God-bumps upon God-bumps and brought a huge smile to my face!

Last month I met a new friend who lives in Orlando, FL. Next month, my sweet niece and I are boarding a plane…destination everything Disney! I hadn’t planned on taking her this year but an amazing deal came my way and sadly for a 7yo, she’s had a tough fall and she needs a break. What better place than Disney and who else but her aunt who is a complete Disney freak to take her? (This is our 3rd trip in as many years so you’ve guessed it – I’ve passed my love onto the next generation! Yeah!!) So yes, we head off in a few short weeks to the land of everything happy, make believe and where Rebecca’s on a first name basis with the Mouse himself! After all, he and Cinderella have both sent her post cards personally ;o) so they must know her name!

Anyway, back to the original story. My friend and I have been trying desperately to figure out how we can get together while Rebecca and I are visiting the sunny south. I tried to change 3 different dinner reservations from 2 people to 4 but with the huge success of the Disney Dining Plan (a great program!) we’ve been unable to do so. So, what we’ve worked out is that the night R and I are dining with Cinderella, my friend and her granddaughter are going to meet us at the Grand Floridian and after touring the beauty there, will head back to our resort for the girls to swim.

My friend mentioned these plans to her granddaughter last night and this was her response.

‘Is her niece Chinese?’

Can you imagine?!!! She’s never met me nor even heard of me yet that was her question! Too cool!

I love it when that happens! I see things like this as God’s way of reminding me that He is in control and in His timing He will bring Hannah and I together. Ahhh…peace! What a wonderful feeling…God’s peace!

Thanks for the cute hair stuff Cathy!

October's colour for hair accessories was orange. Pretty appropriate considering the beautiful fall colours.

I received this cute assortment of orange do-dads for little Miss Hannah. They're all great but I just love the fishie barrette! Can't wait to see that in her beautiful head of jet black hair!

Small Things Can Bring Such Happiness!

I'm excited to tell you I'm posting this from home using high speed internet! Wahoo!

After 31 days of strugges, arguing and stress with the phone companies my phone is back to analogue and Sympatico is hooked up and humming. Yeah! I can actually read the Internet while on the phone, download a web page in 10 seconds rather than 2 mins and open more than 1 window. Oh yes...it's a happy day!

We now continue with our more frequent bloggy postings. I'm baaaack!

An Important Lesson

Please take a moment to watch this video. It may make an important difference in the life of someone you love.



After reading many safety reports I had already decided that I want to purchase a Britax car seat for Hannah. This video just reaffirmed that decision. They're pricey and hard to find in Canada but thankfully I found a store in Whitby that carries them and started saving for one about a year ago.

*Update* A Canadian bloggy friend just found the car seat for $50 less. Yeah! It's a bit further to drive but worth it for a bargain. :o)

Twinrix #2

Must admit, my doctor kinda wondered about me when I asked if I could have his secretary take a photo when he was giving me my 2nd Twinrix vaccination. But he went along with it and just laughed. After all these years he's almost used to me by now! :o) Each time I go in his secretary tells me how excited she is for me and that she can't wait to meet Miss Hannah. That makes 2 of us! :o)

The final vaccination in this series is due in the spring and I'm praying that we're much closer to referral time by then but I'll believe it when it happens! Seems like I've been saying that I anticipate receiving my referral 'in about a year' FOREVER! Ugh! Looking forward to the day when referral timeframes begin to settle a bit so that I can better 'guesstimate' my referral month...or at least season! I'm still not sure if my precious Hannah is born yet and I guess I really won't be sure until I'm gazing into her beautiful referral picture for the very first time.

I must admit, that's one of the fun things about this blog. I'll be better able to determine what I was doing when she was born. Will I feel different that day? Will I somehow know that she has been born? I'm not thinking I will but man wouldn't it be wonderful to know!

Praying for you today my sweet daughter. I don't know where you are but God does and He is cradling your in His arms. Hugs and kisses precious daughter. Mommy loves you!

Limping...

...but at least able to connect (via verrrry slow dial-up service) to the Internet at home. It's far from the resolution I'm looking for but is better than what I've had for the past 4 weeks.

The person I spoke with Friday also put a $150 credit on my account to cover for the hassle caused. No complaints there as that equals 4 months of service. Since ultimately the problem was caused by a company other than my Internet provided I feel that's more than generous.

After it's all up and working Ill be calling Rogers back who are the ones who did cause the problem when they took me to digital telephone without telling me they were doing it or the side-effects. I'll be looking for some reimbursement there too. Oh yah!

Still surprisingly calm (most times) when I call these companies but the 2 things that drive me absolutely crazy are:
1. Listening to 20 mins. of advertisements for their 'great services' while on hold; all of which end by saying, 'To find out more go to www.....' If I had Internet to find out more info I wouldn't be on hold!!!
2. After speaking with a rep...or 2....or 3 who have been unable to get me any closer to being connected than the 10 people before them, they end the call with, 'Have I been able to assist you today?' Umm...Nooooooooo....I still don't have any Internet service in my home you twit!

Latest guesstimation for my normal service to be up in running is Friday. Yah...right! I'll believe it when I see it! Skeptical? Oh yah!!!

Baby Name Fun!

This is a great website! You enter your baby's name (or any other name you want) and it shows you the trend over the past 100 years! It's really fun. Enjoy!!!

My Detroit Shoppy!

The first shopping of the weekend was at an outlet mall! Oh baby...gotta love the US outlet malls, eh?! (That one's for you my Motor City Mama's!)

The very first store we went into was 'The Children's Place' and within 5 mins. I'd found this cute plaid jumper and top for Hannah. Bought size 24 months so figured that would be a safe. It's so hard to buy things in advance living in the 'Great White North.' Not only don't I know what size my little Miss will be when she arrives, I also don't know what season of clothes she'll be wearing. Figured 24 months was safe as she'd be growing a little slower pace at that age - said like I know what I'm talking about. Ummm...nope! I just liked it too much to pass it up so decided to risk it. When I left the first store carrying a bag I knew I was in big trouble when it came to shoppy, shoppy!

At the outlet mall was also a chocolate (how did that happen?) I mean book store. I love children's books and Hannah is quickly accumulating a wonderful library of books. The store was going out of business so books were 70% off then they took an additional 40% off that price at the register! I was able to pick up 7 books for under $30.00! (I'd previously purchased the Steven Curtis Chapman, Shaoey and Dot book and paid $20.00 for that one alone!) What great deals! I love to think of the times when Hannah and I will be curled up together in the glider in her room, reading and saying bedtime prayers as we prepare for bed. (I hear all you current mom's snicking and saying, 'Oh, if it were only that easy! :o) Looking forward to receiving my referral and hoping to see the box, 'deep sleeper' checked!

One of the last stores we hit on Saturday night was JoAnn's Fabrics. We Canadians are deprived and don't have these great stores...yet! Hopefully someday. I haven't done much to plan for Hannah's room but one think I have decided is that I wanted to make up frames using the fabric of her comforter as background. The letters will probably be painted white as will the frames and they'll be hung with pink ribbon bows. That's the plan for now anyway.

Sunday morning our first stop was at Ikea. This was Connie and Krista's first Ikea experience as they don't have them in Ohi-er yet! Hopefully soon...hopefully soon! The only thing I ended up purchasing at Ikea was a new lamp for the living room. I liked it a lot and it was 50% off so that decided it for me.

The final purchases of the weekend were found at either Target or Babies 'R Us. I received some of these great Gerber plates with lids from my secret pal a few months ago. My friend Michelle saw them on my blog and raved about them! This set is for her but I added another set to my Babies 'R Us gift registry. While shopping I also took advantage of the variety and prices to pick up some things for my Secret Pal...and Hannah too! You know what it's like...one for her...one for Hannah...repeat! I found some great disposable change pads that can be used in China and when at home too plus the infamous stacking cups that everyone takes to China.

As you can tell, there was no lack of shopping or great deals to be had. Paid full price for almost nothing that I purchased. Yeah! Another yeah was flying through customs since I'd been over for 2 nights. No duty...yeah!

Saving my pennies now for when I meet Dawn in Vancouver in January and also for 'Motor City Mamas Bloggy Meet II' in February!

Still Causes Me to Stop...

...when I see Hannah's name in print and realize it's my daughter they are referring to! There were little treats for the girls this weekend and it was such fun opening gifts for Hannah! I remember hearing people say that once you have a child it's them that you're excited to shop for or receive gifts for and I'll be honest and say there were times I questioned that. I like to buy gifts for others but I still like to open a little something for myself too. This weekend I realized again what these people were referring to. I didn't want to shop for myself, just for her. And the same thing happened when I saw these gifts with her name on them. It brought a tear to my eye to see Hannah's name in print! It's all becoming so real!

These cute little penguin pajamas are adorable and the fun Christmas tree ornament with a mommy and baby penguin will hold an important place on my tree this year. It's my very first mother/daughter anything!







The other gifts were fun to open too! A little Fisher Price Sonya Lee dolly for Hannah and beautiful pewter frame. I also loved the t-shirt that Connie made! Ya gotta know my baby girl will be wearing that for a post or 2 when we meet. It's absolutely perfect!

Thanks for the treats everyone! Hannah (and Mommy) will love them!

New Friends That Immediately Feel Like Old Friends!

How is it that you can meet some people and from the very start it feels like you've known one another for ages? That's exactly what it was like this past weekend. Wonderful!!!

Arrived at the hotel around 11:30 Friday night. The other gals were still on the road so I checked into my room, unpacked and what else...hit the business centre to check out my emails! It was referral day! I felt I'd done well to wait until after going to my room!

I couldn't access my email at first! Ahhhhhh! (Only slight hyperventilating followed. Nothing a paper bag and putting my head between my knees couldn't fix.) After recovering, checked Julie's blog to see if she'd posted anything new about sweet Tess. I also read Lisa's blog and saw adorable Maisie's picture for the first time. What a sweetie with that adorable shaved head! (I'm partial to little baldies as mom says I didn't grow much hair until I was 2!)

Checked with the front desk around 12:30 and still no sign of the US contingency. Tried another computer and phew...could access my email! There was an email from Connie saying that they would be arriving early Sat am (2:00ish) so not to be concerned. (I confessed to the girls Saturday that by about midnight I began scheming Plan B in my head if they didn't show up. Hey...the rooms were paid for. Why not treat my friends to a weekend away! ;o)

Knowing my counterparts would arrive in the wee hours of the morning, I left a note at the front desk for them to call me when they arrived and headed back to my room. Turned off the lights around 1:30, set the timer on the TV and drifted off to lala land.

Shortly after 2:30 the phone rang and this fun, bright voice with a great accent said, 'Good Morning Sunshine!' Yup...the US gang with their fun accents had arrived! Connie told me their room numbers twice but in my sleepy stupour I didn't remember them in the morning. A quick call to the front desk confirmed that we were all on the same floor. Yeah! That was a nice bonus as when I checked in I was told they would probably be on a different floor. That would have made it much more difficult for Saturday night's PJ party if I'd have had to ride the elevator in my fuzzy pink pj's!

We met around 10am and it quickly became evident that we'd get along famously! No worries there!

Our first stop was back at the business centre to check out Julie's blog once again. Here is our gang posing with Tess' picture. Julie, you may not have been there in person but you were with us every step of the way in our hearts!

As the weekend moved on we shopped, talked, laughed and ate. Shopped, talked, laughed and ate. Repeat......and again! I'm guessing you get the picture.

It was so neat to see how 4 people with such different personalities and histories can get along so well! To see (and hear) us you'd never have guessed that we'd just met! There was never a lack of conversation (like you're surprised!) and we just fit together so well. No stress about where to go, what to do or where to eat. Ahhh...a wonderful, comfortable friendship!

Let me introduce you to my new friends!

Stacy hails from Kentucky and after watching this season of Amazing Race I was wondering if I'd need an interpreter to understand her. No concerns...she's originally from Boston. Phew! Stacy is so sweet and she and I often commented over the weekend how we wished we lived closer than a 10 hour drive from one another.

Stacy claimed to be shy but after an hour or so we no longer believed her! She was fun and my back seat buddy for most of the trip. Her shopping warmed up slowly but once in the groove that girl could shop! I often laughed as she'd enourage the rest of us to buy things if we even dared mention we were thinking of doing so. While at Ikea (can you believe they don't have Ikea in 'Ohier'?) I thought about purchasing a large white mirror I'd found and she was ready to take me back into the store to get it. It's dimensions are 2 1/2' x 5 1/2' so not sure how we would have fit it in Connie's SUV but it sure was nice to consider. Thankfully it was out of stock so there was no pressure to decide. (My main floor at home is quite dark in the afternoon so I'm guessing a large mirror would help to open it up and brighten it too.) I'll keep this idea in my back pocket for another time. (Just found out in looking up the link above that it worked out better too because it's the same price in Canadian and US dollars so it will cost me less to purchase it here. Great!)

Back to my friend Stacy. We laughed, shopped and enjoyed getting to know one another. She's calm in frustrating situations we found out too. Saturday her room was not cleaned. No problem right? Just call the desk and they'll take care of it. Ummm...no. The less than kind kid at the front desk told her that rooms are only cleaned when requested. Ya right! Our other 2 rooms were done. Anyway, 'Ashley' (real name used in order to show the guilty) was quite the piece of work! Eventually Stacy's room was cleaned and towels, water, etc. provided but we still wanted to talk to someone the next day about the way she was treated. It was only 9am when we were at the front desk and we were complaint #2 about her already that day. Let's just say that by the time we came back Sunday night, Ashley was no longer employed by Sheraton. I hate to think of people getting fired but this chicke was nasty!

Stacy, Can't wait until we get together again!! Love ya!

Next is the infamous Connie! If possible, she's even funnier in person than she is on her blog! She was our driver for the weekend and most times was great! (Let's just say I learned a new word for that handle in the ceiling of the car when she almost missed a 90o curve that the road took! :o) We laughed, shopped and she was officially named our shopping queen for the weekend! Little Jadyn is going to be the best dressed kid in all of Ohier! Connie loved to tease me about my accent (what's she talking about eh?) and before the weekend was over I had her speakin' real good Canadian! As a 'professional baby catcher' I learned a ton about being a midwife! Sounds like a great job and Connie's fun, happy personality would be the kind of person you'd want in your delivery room!

Connie will be the first in our group to get her referral so we're all excited for her! We still don't know when it will be but you know we'll all be tearing up in front of our computer screens when we see Jadyn's beautiful face for the first time.
Thanks for all the work you went to in setting everything up Connie! Much appreciated!

Last, but definitely not least I'd like to introduce you to my friend Penguin...err, I mean Krista! Krista is all about penguins! I think little Mia is going to be wearing new, adorable little penguin pajamas every night for the first 5 years of her life! I've never realized how much penguin stuff there is around until spending the weekend with Krista! Just today while out at lunch I saw some penguin clothes and immediately thought of my new friend from Ohio, Krista, the baby of our group is a detective! Who woulda thunk it? She had a ton of great stories to tell us and we often probed for more. She was the observant one in the group and could tell us what was going on and who was around us at all times. Thanks also for placing my supper order Saturday night Krista! :o)

I'd looked forward to this weekend with great anticipation but a part of me was concerned. What if we didn't get along? What if we ran out of things to talk about or places to go? I need not have worried one iota! The entier weekend was AMAZING from start to finish and I met 3 awesome women that I am pleased to call friends!

Looking forward to Motor City Bloggy Meet-up II in February gals! We'd better start saving our pennies now!

Group Retail Therapy

Not much explanation needed for these!

Saturday Shoppy:















Sunday Shoppy:
















Party Shoppy:
I had to head home Sunday night (as late as I could possibly push it as we were having just way too much fun) but the girls had a party planned. I did my share of buying munchies and ate right along with them but while on the road rather than back at the hotel.

Gloating Shoppy:
Krista got carded when purchasing the 'beverages' the girls were going to enjoy at their party. Ah man! Ya gotta know we gave her a hard time about that one! (For those who don't know, you have to be 30 to adopt from China and the legal age in Michigan is 21 so you can figure out the math.) Another fun memory created!

My Shoppy:
















Miracle Shoppy!!
How did that happen??? Store after store Connie won the prize for most purchases but at Babies 'R Us the girl used self control and just added items to her gift registry. As you can see from the pic, Stacy, Krista and I weren't quite as disciplined. :o)

First Stop - A Visit with Grandma

On my way to Detroit I stopped in to visit my Grandma. We live 4 hours apart and she didn't know I was coming so it was fun to surprise her! I had called ahead and booked in for supper so we shared supper together in her dining hall.

You may remember me writing about a month ago about us losing her home in a house fire so she has recently moved into a nursing facility. It's absolutely beautiful!! I tell ya, it's like the Taj Mahal of nursing facilities. She has her own apartment, eats meals in the dining room and her apt. even has a little patio for her to use next spring and summer. This place even has a little movie theatre, a snack bar, library, beauty parlor and lots of other stuff too. Beautiful!

The hard part was that it broke my heart to leave her as she kept talking about how lonely she was and how desperately she wanted a friend. Ugh...I was in tears before I left the building and cried on the phone with my Dad as I made my way to Detroit. I'm praying for a friend for my Grandma and if you think to do that too, I'd greatly appreciate it! She's an awesome lady and still has lots of spunk in her, she's just lonely.

God's Amazing Handiwork in the Sky!

As I travelled to Detroit on Friday I couldn't help but gaze (briefly) at God's amazing handiwork as He painted amazing picture after picture with the clouds and sun dancing together in the sky!

(Yup...all these pics were taken while driving 110km/hour down the highway. It's a boring stretch and wasn't busy so I'd just point my camera and shoot without really looking to see what I was taking. Think it worked out just fine. :o)

Having a GREAT Time!!

Hi from the Motor City!

Connie, Stacy, Krista and I are still in Detroit and having an amazing time! You'd think we had known one another for years! I met the girls for the first time yesterday morning as we all arrived late Friday/early Saturday at our hotel. From the first moment is was like we were old friends. What fun!

Yesterday we did our best to support the Michigan economy and shopped up a storm. I have pics that I can post once returning home. What fun it was to shop, and shop...and shop for the babies! It was also fun for us to talk and think about Tess and Maisie and how excited their new mommy's are!

We're off for some more retail therapy today and then I'll be heading home late tonight. You know me...want to spend as much time as I can with these new friends before hitting the highway and heading home.

Gotta run...there's shopping to be done! :o)

Tess is Here!!!

Just got off the phone with Julie and she's received Tess' referral! I was shaking so bad when she told me all the wonderful details about her daughter(!!!) that I could barely write! Tess is just too cute for words!

Congratulations Julie!!! Praising God with you for answered prayers!

Motor City Mamas Bloggy Meetup!

Yeah!! The much anticipated weekend is here!
Connie, Krista, Stacy and I are meeting up in Detroit to walk, talk and shop everything baby!

Looking forward to it! Thanks for housesitting for me dad and clearing up the phone mess.

CCAA Website Updated with GREAT News!!!

Wahooo!!! CCAA updated their website overnight and it's even better than I'd dared hope! This month's referrals will include LID's up to and including August 25, 2005!

This means my awesome friend Julie is in!!! Tess' referral will be arriving in the next couple of days! I'm sooo excited for her and for Lisa and Lindsey too. Lindsey has been on her own with her parents for 18 years and is anxiously awaiting their referral of baby Chloe that will officially make her a big sister!

As well as all these great friend's receiving their referrals, the August 25th cutoff date is wonderful for another reason. This date represents about a 15% increase in the number of matches CCAA has made over the past few months. The greater the number of matches they make now, the sooner I'll receive Hannah's referral and she'll be in my arms. Still no real guess as to when that will happen, just figuring it should be before I retire! :o)

Congrats to all those waiting. Can't wait to hear your wonderful referral news and see your sweet babies faces!

Finally...A Stork Alert!

Wahooo! It's been a long month for the latest group of waiting families and rumours of cutoff dates have floated through the air for weeks. By this time tomorrow we should have more answers and some excited parents will have referrals! Looking forward to celebrating with online friends tomorrow!

Fly stork! Fly!!!

Ladybug Fun!

As a fundraiser for the United Way, there was face painting available at work yesterday. This year it was easy to decide what I wanted. I'm not a big fan of Halloween but it was fun to have my face painted and think of baby Hannah often yesterday.