Ok...it's been almost a week and I haven't heard ANYTHING about how the dossier looks yet from my agency. I'm going crazy wondering what in the world is going on..is it acceptable? is something wrong? is it all there? do I need to redo some paperwork? ugh!!

I brought KaCee to the vet yesterday for her annual heartworm check. We noticed a bump on the inside of her ear so I had the vet look at it. He said it was a hematoma. She is 3 1/2 years old, weighs 85 pounds and has never spent the night away from us! We take her and Jasmine everywhere - the lake, NY, the mountains. KaCee is even afraid of the dark! Anyway, the vet said that she would have to spend the night so he could drain out the blood and then bandage it up for 12 to 14 hours. Poor puppy - had to sleep in a cage...no one there to love on her and give her treats or play with her. I think that we, as a family, are more traumatized that she is!! I'll go pick her up tonight after work and I'm sure she will be even more spoiled when she gets home than she usually is.

My youngest son is driving me crazy - he is into playing this game on-line - which is fine. But, when you ask him to get off it will take him 30 minutes! He said he needs to finish a deal, say good-bye, etc. I've started to ground him from it and he's done better - except for yesterday. It was time to get off and get ready for Church, well he got mad and started running his mouth. I cut him short and said he was grounded from it for a week - that made him madder and he started slamming around his room. I ignored the little punk and told him to meet me in the car. When he came in I looked at his shorts and they were FILTHY!! I asked him to go change and he slammed the car door, kicked the pool table, slammed the screen door, slammed the kitchen door and stomped into the house - so I just left!! He enjoys the youth group at church so he didn't get to go. I was so mad at him! I went to Wally world for some retail therapy and found this:

Yes, I know - I already have 4 blankets for little T - but I just couldn't resist. I called J and went to her house to borrow her sewing maching. I'll post pictures when I'm done.

***UPDATE*** - I've finished sewing the blanket and now I'm cutting it. Ugh!!!! What a PITA!!!

Back to L - when I returned home from J's he was in his room and didn't say boo to me the rest of the night. He is only 13 and he needs to control his anger so no internet for 2 full weeks and no going to Bean's house either.

That's pretty much the happenings around this place for the past few days. Not too much excitment in hicktown USA!!

Guess what a fruitcake I am!! Yesterday I went to the post office to send in our 6 passport photos. I was so proud of myself getting those out right away. So I'm home in bed - it's a sleepless night and I'm starring at the ceiling thinking. I bolt up and say OH MY GOD!!! What a dumb arse!!! I sent the pictures with NOTHING ELSE!! No explanation of what they were let alone who they were of. And if their mail department is anything like ours, they'll open the package and throw away the envelope. I quick like email my agency first thing this morning and they said not to worry - they'll match them up!!

Whew....not only was I thinking I would have to shell out another 32 bucks but then I would be wasting another day when our dossier could be sent to China.

OMG...my oldest son is growing up so fast! This is his girlfriends Junior prom - his will be next year. Doesn't he look handsome??

Here's a picture of T & T ready to go to the prom. Aren't they a great looking couple??!!

Yes, I'm bored. On one of the forums I'm on it was suggested that while we wait we write down what we have done everyday. This way we will know what we were doing when our daughter was born, etc. So, even though we are not even DTC yet (should happen next week)I'm going to go ahead and start this. Since we would like a girl who is around 15 months there is a very good chance that she is already born! Wow...our daughter could already be born, sitting in China just waiting for us to come get her.

So this last week went by very quickly:
Monday I had to take L to the doctors for his eye. The school made him leave because they though he had pink eye. We tried to tell him he didn't, that his eye was just irritated from his contact but for safety reasons they said he had to leave. Well of course he didn't have pink eye but the nurse gave us a script for antibiotic for a sty he has on his other eye.

Tuesday T had a ball game and his team did not do well at all. He went 2 for 3 with a nice double but they still got beat by the mercy rule (10 run lead).

Wednesday I took L to the eye doctor for his yearly eye examine. What a fiasco that was!! They had a problem with big T's insurance and it took me forever to get it straightened out. Once we got back to see the doctor she examined him. She asked how long he kept his contacts in and I said too long. Well, sure enough, his corneas are swollen so she couldn't get a good read for his new contacts. He is out of contact for at least 2 weeks. Oh, and the sty...it's not a sty at all. She said it is a pore that is blocked, sort of like a pimple - but it's something else. Anyway, she tried to excise it but couldn't. He has to put hotpacks on his eye 3 times a day and if it doen't go away he will have to have it surgically removed! Oh joy!! We went out to dinner after that because big T and little T were in Wilmington for another ball game.

Thursday was a run around day. When I got home I had to take L to get his new glasses and little T to get his Tux for prom this weekend. OMG!! He looked so good in that tux! I can't wait to get pictures today!! We also went to our neighbors house for D's 1 yr old birthday.

Friday I relaxed - well almost. My neighbor called and asked if I could watch her youngest. No problem!! He is such a cutie patootie!! He hadn't had a nap so he was pretty tired and just a little bit fussy. At 8:30 I gave him a bottle and he was out like a light. Around 9:30 or 10 I brought him home. His sister was in bed already watching Buzz Lightyear and his grandma was drinking coffee and watching tv.

And you all know what I am doing today - Saturday. Working!! yuck...

It's 10:40 on a Saturday morning. I should be at home, just getting up from a restful sleep...but nooo.....I'm at work and have been since 9 this morning!! What am I doing blogging? Well, we are doing an upgrade and waiting for our vendor to finish it. They should have been done first thing this morning but of course they aren't. That means we sit here and twiddle our thumbs - not much else we can do. I've filed some, moved some files around...was a little bit productive but I've decided to take a break.

The bad thing about this whole deal is that today my oldest goes to his first prom. (Let me hear it...awwwwwww....)He goes for pictures at 5, has a dinner reservation at 6:30 and then off to the prom. I want to be there but it will take four hours or more to do testing and I'm almost an hour away from home. We won't be able to test until 11:30 at the earliest. You do the math. If I make it home it will be just in time. This makes me sooooo mad!!!

So it goes in the Saturday morning rut for C!! Oh well...I'll talk to my boss and see if I can't skate out early - we'll see what he says.

I received a comment from a reader about how she and her husband have talked about adoption. We too have talked about adoption in the past in fleeting moments. I even called to talk to a social worker about foster care but never followed up with it. The seed for adoption was planted years ago in both of us - it just bloomed quicker for me. For me the decision to adopt was easy, but for my husband it was another story. He wanted nothing to do with it for an entire year!! I cried, begged, pleaded, and prayed and still he said no. I don't know what turned him around - I asked one day on the phone and he just said "Fine - call my company - find out what they give as benefits - lets do it." I just about fainted!! We talked some more that evening about this life changing decision, about how it would affect the boys, us, our marriage and especially how it would affect her, our daughter, to come into this family, to America, away from everything she has known her short life. We of course went forward with it and we are looking forward to seeing her beautiful face next year.

If the seed of adoption has been planted in your heart, let it grow. It's a journey you'll never forget nor regret.

Tracking number 8XX4055XX34X
Signed for by T.KRIER
Ship date May 1, 2006
Delivery date May 2, 2006 10:22 AM

Delivered to Receptionist/Front Desk
Service type Priority Pak
Weight 2.0 lbs.

Status Delivered


That's right folks....our package has arrived. Now the agency does their critical review and then it flys off to China.

Tracking number 8XX40XX78XXX
Ship date May 1, 2006
Estimated delivery May 2, 2006 10:30 AM
Service type Priority Pak
Weight 2.0 lbs.

Status On FedEx vehicle for delivery

Tracking number 8X74XX578X47
Ship date May 1, 2006
Estimated delivery May 2, 2006 10:30 AM
Service type Priority Pak
Weight 2.0 lbs.
Status In transit

Details

May 1, 2006 7:38 PM

Left origin GREENVILLE, NC 8:44 AM
Picked up GREENVILLE, NC

My little brother is starting his own business cleaning up the debris after natural disasters like wild fires and hurricanes. His company is called Leve1dmc. I've put a link to his website on the side bar. He has also put some of the pictures he took of the California wild fires up on the site. I've included a picture here but you gotta go check out his site and look at all the other pictures.



Firestorm

DONE!!!! We are finally done with the paperchase. What you are looking at is the FEDEX shipping document. CCAI will receive our dossier tomorrow morning by 10:30. It then goes into critical review where they make sure everything is correct, mount the pictures and bind the whole thing together. Then they will send it to China which will be our DTC (Dossier To China) date. When China receives it and logs it into their system we will get our LID (Log In Date). Yeah!!! This is a huge step closer to our daughter. Now the real wait begins.

Shenzhen, China.

What was a tiny fishing village on the border of Hong Kong in 1970 is now a buzzing metropolis of over four million people. With 13 buildings at over 200 meters tall, including the Shun Hing Square (the 8th tallest building in the world), Shenzen is a marvel of lights after sunset. You can’t help but ask yourself if you are in a video game or in a real city.
Metro/Urban Population: 4.2 million

Guangzhou, China


Guangzhou

Guangzhou is a very modern city, yet it is called "the City of Flowers,” as each of its spectacular skyscrapers is surrounded by grand green spaces and flower beds. Although it only has six structures at over 200 metres tall, there are plenty of other high-rises, each displaying a design that stands out in its own respect. This includes the 391 metre, 80-floor, CITIC Plaza which appears transparent against the (usually) clear blue sky!
Metro/Urban Population: 4.1 million

Shanghai, China




Not to be mistaken for a space station, Shanghai is a real city! China's biggest and most advanced city, Shanghai was said to be the most cosmopolitan city in the beginning of the 20th century, but lost its glory during the “Mao era”. It is now quickly regaining its position as one of the biggest economic powerhouses in the world as well as a showcase of modern architecture. In Shanghai you’ll find 25 structures that are over 200 metres tall, one of which is the insanely tall, the 468m downtown Oriental Pearl TV Tower.
Metro/Urban Population: 13.1 million

And finally Hong Kong




Hong Kong is number one on my list for many reasons: Hong Kong has a whopping 43 buildings over 200 metres tall, 30 of which were built in the year 2000 or later!!! It also boasts four of the 15 tallest buildings in the world… that's all in one city! Hong Kong’s skyline shows a large selection of distinct sky-reaching towers, with beautiful night lighting and reflection. This city exemplifies the post-modern skyscraper and skyline. Finally, the mountain backdrop makes this skyline (as you can clearly see) the greatest on the planet!
Metro/Urban Population: 6.9 million

I got the first picture from My Chinese Dream. Her daughter Mali is beautiful. Check her out and while you're out surfing around check out the other skylines at Top 15 Skylines.

Another dossier photo. We have to have 8 family photos and 3 couple photos. I also have a family reunion photo from last year we are going to send. So, that's 3 family so far. I have another picture of just the 2 of us from a friends wedding a month ago. That will be 2 couple photos. Jeez...who would have thought getting pictures could be this difficult??

Hmmm...maybe....the picture is off balance but it might just do. Everyone has a nice smile on. I had to crop the picture because you can see all the stuff on the deck by the back door and it looked kind of messy.

Waiting...waiting....waiting....we are waiting on the Assistant Stork to finish up with authenticating our documents so we can send everything to the agency. That should happen next week. So that is about all that has been happening around here. The boys are on Spring Break so there isn't any baseball (yeah!!). Work is still work and will always be work!
Here's a great picture that J sent to T of his parent's wedding day. Wow!! We've never seen this one before. Thanks J!!

I've been reading other blogs and noticed a trend. Quite a few of them have names without the word "Journey" in the title! I can be creative when I need to be (come on folks, I'm a programmer....Creativity is not needed, just logic!) "T for Two...Double Happiness...Grouchy LadyBug....little hugs...The Cady Chase...Wandering Child"...and so on are different blogs that I read. Ok, lets see. I have 3 wonderful guys in my life, 2 dogs, and a cat. We are a sports (ugh!) oriented family who is adopting a daughter and sister from China. What about "3 Guys and a girl" - nah...too corny. "Baseball and Ballet"..."Cleats or Pointes"..."Chopsticks vs Forks"..."Puppydog tails"...."To the Moon and Back"..."Jump Rope"..."hopSCOTCH"..."T For Me and You"..."The Maddening Chase"..."Chopstick Dreaming"

Tell me what you think!!

Well we have seen another snafu in the great paperchase of 2006! Our marriage certificate is FAKE!!!!!!!!!! Haha...just kidding. I did have to send it back to the county clerk for them to certify though. Here's the scoop. Sent the mc to Albany to be certified, they send it back and say it needs to be done at the county level. Ok, sure...sent it to the county clerk in Wampsville. They send it back and said it needs to be done at the town level. Um....ok. Sent it to Chittenango...guess what? They called and said it was already certified but they would go ahead and get me another copy with a notary stating it was a true copy. Sounds fine. WRONG!!! When I got it back I got nervous because all of the other documents that have been certified had the certificate attached to the original document. This one did not. So, I email my agency and they confirmed my fears. Sh......!!! So I called the Department of State and spoke to a very nice woman. She said that yes - the marriage certificate needs to be "County Certified". I explained to her what happened and she laughed and said they have no clue. Now look lady - this is no laughing matter - this is our daughter!! I next called the county clerk...she had NO CLUE what I was talking about!! She said "You need to send it to the town". Oh Lord...here we go, I opened up my can of whoop a$$!! I then said the magic words of "County Certified". Aha!!! The light bulb goes on and she says "Oh..yeah, we do those. Send it with $3.00" OMG!! So, I sent that off and should get it back next week, then it has to go back to the DOS so they can certifiy that the county clerk that certified it is certifiable....I don't know about that, but I sure am!!!

We are headed to NY for Easter this year. We will leave on the14th and return on the 18th. Quick trip. I think if I get that mc back before we leave I will hand carry it to Albany, even though it is a 3 hr drive from the house. Then - if T will let me....we could hand carry the documents to be authenticated in DC since we go right by it on our way home.

Latest rumor - China only referred PART of May 31st and not the whole day...I'm not listening anymore to rumors!! *LALALALALALALALALA**

All we have left to do now is to authenticate our home study, marriage certificate, I171H, and adoption petition. I'm going to send them to the Assistant Stork who did our other documentation. She hand delivers them to the State Department and Chinese Consulate in Washington DC. We are going to pay the extra $20 per document to have a 24 hr turnaround. That means that we should get everything back by Tuesday at the latest and then we can send everything to our agency CCAI.

Check out this video!!


Faith - the dog with 2 legs