We were hers and she was ours

One year ago tomorrow, so April 3, 2009, we got the phone call that changed our lives officially forever. I was a Mom. For real. An Ethiopian judge almost 8000 miles away signed the necessary paperwork that made us parents. We were hers and she was ours. It was real. It was finally real.

Just days before this we got our social report which contained these amazing photos.

April 3rd was a Friday so I was at work and completely freaked out that we wouldn't hear about our court date that day and have to fret about it all weekend. I was a total basket case. We were hoping to hear by noon that day. I was resisting the urge to contact my specialist and ask as I knew that if she knew she would call. I made it until about 11am and I broke and emailed her. She didn't know anything yet.....

I was a wreck. About an hour later the phone rang at work and I answered it. Since I am the manager the phone is usually for me and it was this time too. The one BIG exception was this time it was someone from CHSFS. It wasn't my specialist as she was out of the office so another specialist called to tell me the FABULOUS news. I couldn't contain the tears. I was over the moon excited and immediately called oh let's see everyone.

I wanted to shout it from the rooftops. I AM A MOM!!!!! Sometimes I still pinch myself to make sure this is all real. Life is good.

Peanut pictures!!

How could you not fall in love with that smile?? Isn't she sweet? She is hopefully getting over her ear infection on this new medication. She is sleeping through the night 10-12 hours and then has the morning nap thing down. She will go down between 8:30/9am for a nap and then wake up between 10:30/11am for food. Afternoon naps are a work in progress but she will usually take a short one sometime after 1pm and then is in bed by 8pm after a bath of course.

I made up some leave in conditioner for her hair and that works fabulously. I haven't tackled a hairstyle beyond putting a headband in but I will soon. She has so much hair and it is a little intimidating.

We have also filed our court paperwork and are awaiting word on when our hearing will be so things are moving in the right direction.

As I write this Peanut is alternating between sucking her finger and thumb and squealing/laughing in delight while playing in her swing. So very in love with this little girl.

WE MADE IT!

WE PASSED COURT!!!!! I am officially the mother to this beautiful baby girl. May I present to you the fabulous Miss Peanut. For privacy reasons we aren't revealing her name on my blog. But I can tell you her first name means "sweet face" and it is a name Dave and I picked for her. Her middle name is her birth name and it means "most beautiful one" and her second middle name is the same as my mom's and mine. This first picture is her referral picture. Isn't she precious?


This is may very favorite picture of her from the social report. You can see the love the nanny has for her. She has such a sweet face.

Tummy time in action :)

Now we wait for a birth certificate that lists us as her parents. Once we get that we are leaving on a jet plane to bring this sweet baby girl home. Hopefully we will have a birth certificate in the next 1-2weeks and then we can travel 2 or so weeks after that. This a very exciting time :) Is it too early in the day for champagne.

More good news

No we didn't pass court early but we are only 2 days away!!!

We got another growth update on Peanut! She gained over 2 lbs in the last month and now weighs in at just over 10 1/2 lbs. I am so excited!! She is starting to catch up at the pace the doctor likes to see. She is still tiny and only on the WHO charts for head circumference but her rate of growth overall has been tremendous and couple that with her reaching developmental milestones of average 4 month olds and we have one awesome little girl. I am so proud of her for figuring out how to drink from that cup and start packing on the pounds.

Other than that I am still staring at her beautiful face and realizing that this is all starting to happen. We could be on a plane in a little over a month or possibly less. WOW! I still have a lot to do but for now I am going to try not to stress out about our court date and enjoy the good news that has already come to me this week and hope and pray for more good news on Friday.

Here is a poem that sums things up really well. I saw this on a friends blog and cried when I read it as I do kiss her sweet face each night.

Kisses In The Wind

I hold you in my heart and touch you in my dreams.
You are here each day with me, at least that's how it seems.

I know you wonder where we are...what's taking us so long.
But remember child, I love you so and God will keep you strong.

Now go outside and feel the breeze and let it touch your skin.
Because tonight, just as always, I blow you kisses in the wind.

May Gold hold you in his hand until I can be with you.
I promise you, my darling, I'm doing all that I can do.

May God wrap you in his arms and hold you very tight,
And let the angels bring the kisses that I send to you each night.

SOCIAL REPORT!!!

We got our social report today. It had 10 new pictures of my little Peanut. She has changed so much but she is still my little girl. She weighs just under 10lbs at 4 months and is reportedly a very smiley baby. So she is still tiny but doing well.

I am so amazed by this report. It is a fabulous comfort to know that Peanut is being so well loved until we can get there. You can read it and see it in the pictures how much the nannies really do care for our children and more than that. They really love our kids. That is beyond comforting.

Apparently Peanut likes her sleep and is a peaceful baby. She cries when hungry and tired and when she has had enough of sunbathing. She still has a full head of curly hair and in one of the pictures she was wearing an outfit we sent her. She is too cute for words that's for sure.

I am trying to figure out how to extract the pictures from the social report and print them as actual pictures so I can update my frames around the house. Hopefully come Friday this blog will finally be graced with the beauty that is my Peanut.

This report and the pictures are a nice distraction to occupy me this week while we wait for Friday. Hopefully by about 10am on Friday we should know if we passed court or not. Please pray for us and for the other families with upcoming court dates. And hang on Peanut, we really are almost there. We can't wait to hold you in our arms and shower you with love.

7 days

Yes that is right. We are 1 week away from our court date. I am totally freaking out. I am anxious beyond belief. I want so much to pass court on the first try. I am not sure what I will do if we don't. I know it is all out of my control so I have to sit back and let it be.

Easier said than done. I have been praying every day for Peanut, for her caregivers, for her little friends that she is hanging out with and for the Ethiopian judges. Oh I so hope they receive all the papers that they need and can sign off on our case.

I am trying not to think to far in advance. People ask about travel and how soon we can leave and right now I just need to get through next Friday. After that I will start to really plan and think about traveling to bring home my baby girl.

So I apologize if my head is some where else for the next 7 days. I can't stop thinking (read: obsessing) about our court date. I am also waiting for our social report so I keep hitting refresh on my email hoping/wishing/praying for that email from our specialist. The social report will hold all the little details about Peanut's daily routine and PICTURES!!! I can't wait. In the pictures we have she is 5 weeks old and on Sunday she will be 4 months old.

We have a busy weekend and a possible snow storm so that should provide some distractions for a few days. Is it April 3rd yet??? Can I sleep or fast forward until then, please???

10 days and counting

10 days until court. 10. What am I going to do with myself for the next 10 days?

Well to pass the time today I went to Target. I have a list of things that we still need to get for Peanut and for travel. I would have enjoyed the trip more had it not been pouring down rain but oh well.

I got some inflatable travel pillows today which came highly recommended for the long flight. I got some gas drops and children's motrin for Peanut. I bought a box of gallon size ziploc bags and 3 packages of sensitive baby wipes. 120 wipes should be enough for our trip right?? We are kind of heavy wipe users and I definitely don't want to run out.

I also got Peanut two different types of pacifiers as I am not sure which ones she will like. Then of course there was this cute pink hat that found its way into my cart. Oops. Can't help it :)

Lastly, some friends have told us that our agency's care center desperately needs infant vitamin drops so I bought the last 4 boxes that were on the shelf and plan to pick up plenty more before we travel.

I can't do this everyday as my list of needs for Peanut and travel is getting a lot smaller so I will have to find other distractions. Right now I am doing the rest of Peanut's laundry so all those cute outfits I got last weekend will be clean. I also cleaned the exersaucer and am washing the seat and cover for the bouncy seat. Okay now what...anyone have any ideas on how I can fill up the next 10 days?

Oh I sure hope that a nice Ethiopian judge signs off on our case in 10 days. I may go crazier than I already am if they don't. Please pray for us and for good news for all the families with upcoming court dates.

Fabulous time, fabulous friends, fabulous finds

We had a great time this weekend with our friends Matt and Kerry and their beautiful daughters. Lots of laughs, beer and good times were had by all. Okay beer was just consumed by the adults. They generously let us borrow some things for Peanut too which was well fabulous. We now have a bouncy seat and an exersaucer for her. We don't know if she will like either of these things so it was nice to not have to buy them since she may only use them for a few short months if at all. They also lent us some great toys and a floor gym. They are great friends for sure and we can't wait to hang out with them again.

We went to a baby resale while we were there too. Okay, us girls went to a baby resale. I found some great clothes for Peanut. Some she will have to grow into but others should fit this summer. Most of the clothes that I got were brand new or like new. Some still had the original store tags on them and they were all from higher end baby clothes stores like Baby Gap, Gymboree, Hanna Anderson, etc.

This first picture is hands down the cutest baby jeans I have ever seen. They have seahorses on them and a matching hat and it was brand new with store tags for $10 for all 3 pieces.

Peanut will have to grow into these overalls but they were super cute so maybe this fall and who can resist a pink plaid dress.

Peanut will have to grow into the pink dress on the right but it was like new and $7. And the other outfit has these cute little dogs on it and she should be able to wear it soon. It is Gymboree and was brand new with store tags. I couldn't believe it. New it was like $32 and I got it for $12.

Again two adorable like new dresses that I just couldn't resist.

This was a brand new Gymboree dress that may fit Peanut now and may be her Embassy appointment dress or her homecoming dress, I can't decide. It was brand new with store tags and only $15.

This Hanna Anderson dress should also fit Peanut relatively soon so it may be be making the trip with us as well.

I had no idea that I could find such great stuff for Peanut. She had a ton of clothes before this weekend but it was lots of shorts, pants and onesies and just a few dresses or actual outfits so it was nice to find some things to spice up her wardrobe a little.

All in all we had a fabulous weekend and came home with lots of great stuff for Peanut. Only 11 more days (hopefully) until Peanut can make her debut in public. Warning you all in advance, she is extremely adorable!

TGIF

I am for once in a long while so glad that it is Friday and what a great Friday it has been.

1) First off a HUGE congratulations to my former Secret Pal, Sara. She and her lovely family just accepted a referral for a beautiful little girl that is probably hanging out with Peanut right now. I am over the moon happy for them.

2) A former co-worker, who I haven't seen in a long time, stopped by today and brought me 12 boxes of gloves. I was shocked and elated. In the last 2 days I have received over 16 boxes of gloves. I am on my way to filling a suitcase.

3) One of my adoption buddies is in Ethiopia right now and she had the opportunity to see Peanut. She said Peanut seems to be doing well. She was laying on the floor and babbling away :) This email made my day. She also said she made sure to tell Peanut that we will be there soon.

4) I don't have to work this weekend!!! It has been a long time since I haven't had to work on Saturday.

5) We are going to visit our dear friends Kerry and Matt and their gorgeous children. We went to college with them and truly enjoy spending time with them. I can't wait to hop in the car.

6) I opened my mailbox today and inside were these beautiful bracelets that I ordered from the Habesha house boutique. LOVE THEM!

After the way this week started, I thought for sure it was going to be a rough one but once I gained a little perspective things seemed to flow a little better. I am so very blessed.

Oh yeah 14 days and counting!!! Peanut we are hoping and praying we pass court. Hang in there baby girl, your Mom and Dad will get there as soon as we can. We love you little one.

Trying to find my happy place....

A few months ago before we had our referral, I wrote about the things I have learned while adopting internationally and one of the things I mentioned was having questions and there not always being answers and to be prepared for delays.

Unfortunately I have had to encounter lots of questions with no answers and these lack of answers may translate into delays.

So we have learned that the US Embassy is requiring that all children be tested for TB prior to being issued a US Visa. I get that. The part that gets challenging is when are these tests done? For children under 2, a panel will review the child's history and determine if there are any physical signs and determine if they need a gastric aspiration (whatever that is) and then if that is positive they will need to stay in Ethiopia for an undetermined amount of time to be treated. So I see this going a couple of ways. 1) The panel could decide that Peanut's history looks good and there are no physical signs and all is fine or 2) The panel will decide that she needs to have this culture test done which could take up to 8 weeks to confirm a negative (but we aren't sure about that) and lastly if she is positive she would have to stay for a few months to be treated.

I have asked a lot of questions and there are no answers of yet. I apologize in advance for this next part may be quite whiny but I am grumpy! Since no one knows how this will play out it could mean that we will be delayed in being able to go get Peanut. Yes I said delayed. THAT STINKS! I am trying to stay positive and hope and pray that we aren't delayed but that is a lot easier said than done. I mean I really do understand the need for the testing but the urgency of implementing it immediately and the effects that will have on me being united with my daughter are why I am frustrated. The fact that they are implementing these new practices without being able to answer questions is infuriating. Why now? Why not in 6 months? Why not say starting May 1st at time of referral all children will be given a TB test and then go through the necessary steps. That way if the doctors need to wait for cultures, the family isn't waiting to travel but maybe still waiting for their court date and if a child needs treatment then that can be started before a family passes court so they aren't that much more delayed.

I fully realize that I am being selfish. I am trying to find my happy place. I mean I really am trying. I realize that this may all turn out fine and we won't get delayed or we will be delayed. The fact that no one has the answer to that question is frustrating.

When they tell you that International Adoption is not for the faint of heart, they mean it. This is tough. The toughest thing I have ever done and I am not sure it is any easier now that I can stare at my daughter's face on the mantel. Seeing that tiny little face makes my heart melt and being unsure of when we might be able to united with her makes my heart break.

On the plus side, 18 days until our court date.

Blog Union and T-3 weeks

I was asked to post about Blog Union 2009 today so here it goes. If you have a blog, are adopting/have adopted from Ethiopia and want to hang out with other cool bloggers who are doing the same thing then click here: http://www.meetup.com...

Blog Union '09 will be in the Windy City. You have to be approved to see the info and there are a few stipulations that must be met before getting approved. They are:

1. The family must have a blog

2. The family must be officially waiting (aka – had background checks, fingerprints etc.)

3. The family applying must be adopting from ET and/or have adopted from ET – this is an Ethiopian adoption specific group.

4. Once signed up we ask that you all have pictures on your meet-up profiles so I can keep track of who is who.

So if you haven't already sign up and join us. It is sure to be a good time. I can't wait!

As for the other part of my post--we are T minus 3 weeks until our court date. To say I am rich with anticipation is an understatement. I just pray we hear on that day. It is a Friday and I am dreading the thought of going through the weekend not knowing if a nice judge in Ethiopia signed off and made us officially Peanut's parents.

Not much we can do until then. We, as of today, will have all of Peanut's clothes washed and ready to be packed. We are starting to think about what we will pack ourselves and just how many suitcases are we going to bring. We are at 1 for each of us, 1 for the gloves I am donating to AHOPE and maybe another small one. Then for carry on's, I have my big diaper bag and this really cool bag I just got in the mail made by another Mom adopting from Ethiopia and Dave will have a backpack for the laptop and then another small bag as well. Wow that is a lot of luggage but with weight limits being what they are (50lbs for checked bags and 15lbs for carry ons), we don't really have a choice.

21 days...and counting. If you are the praying type please pray that the nice judges in Ethiopia sign off on our case and all the rest of the families with court dates coming up. If you aren't the praying type could you keep your fingers crossed or think happy thoughts for all of us waiting to get one step closer to our children?

30 days and 30 wonders

We are 30 days from our court date so in honor of Peanut here are 30 things that I wonder about her in no particular order.

1) I wonder what she smells like... may seem weird but I LOVE the smell of babies and miss the smell of formula in my house

2) if she will look like her birth mom

3) when she will call me Mama

4) if she will be sitting up when we meet her

5) if she will be scared when we first show up

6) if she will make that cute little grumpy face she is making in her referral photo (can't wait to post that)

7) if she will still be wearing 0-3 months clothes at 6 months

8) if she will still have a fully head of hair

9) if she like tummy time or if she will hate it

10) if she will like to be carried in the Ergo

11) if she will sleep through the night

12) if she will survive the plane ride home with at least one clean outfit left

13) if she will like bath time

14) if she will like my meager attempts to fix her hair

15) if she will laugh a lot

16) when she will first smile at us

17) will she be afraid of the pugs

18) will she be outgoing or shy

19) will she be ticklish

20) will she ever be on the growth charts

21) will she like sports, music or both

22) will she like to climb trees or play dolls or both

23) will she like injera

24) if she will want long hair or short

25) if she will like to give hugs

26) if she will ever know how much we love her

27) when she will crawl

28) what her first word will be

29) will she still suck her thumb

30) if she will understand her story when we tell her

Peanut, we love you and we miss you. We are getting that much closer to being with you as a family. Hang on baby girl, Mom and Dad will be there soon.

We did get our growth update on Peanut. She is 3 months old and weigh 8.7lbs and is 21.2 inches long. She gained over a pound and a half in the last month which is great. She also had a growth spurt which is great. Her head circumference is a little small and not on the charts which is a little concerning. We sent the info off to the doctor and are waiting to hear back from her.

Great Day!

I am so happy today to report that lots of families with our agency passed court and are that much closer to be united with their children. It was so great to hear their news and to see the faces of some incredibly adorable children. I literally cried tears of joy for them.

Then when I thought it was already a great day it got even better. A family that had been originally assigned a January court date and then had their case rescheduled until March made it through court today. How awesome!

January was a rough month. It was really hard to see lots of forum buddies face delays in getting to their children. Those of us still waiting for court dates were on pins and needles. Today was the first big group of families with a court date. Those families getting through would give us some hope that we too could pass court on the first try.

Our court date is 6 weeks away and I can't stop thinking about it. That is the day that a judge in Ethiopia could make us officially Peanut's parents. 6 weeks. I can't believe it. We are getting so close to being able to hold Peanut in our arms. If you are the praying type, please pray for all the families in their various stages of the adoption process, pray that we all see success in court on the first try and pray for Peanut and all of her little friends at the Care Center.

We hope to get an update on Peanut and how she is doing the first week of March. I know she is being well taken care of and I can't wait to see how much she has grown in a month.

Court Date!!!

We got our court date assigned to us today. It is April 3rd and we are thrilled. We were hoping for March and then just praying if that didn't work that some time before tax day. Our prayers have been answered. Now we have something else to count down and wait for :)

Hopefully, we will make it through the first time but that doesn't always happen. There could be a power outage, a piece of paper missing or some other random thing that happens. The good news is that CHSFS has a great reputation for getting cases through court the first time. If we are delayed it will most likely be some other issue.

I was hesitant to post this today as there were some families that did not make it through court today and have been rescheduled. And some have been rescheduled for March. My heart goes out to all of them. Maybe there is some way their case can be heard earlier??? I surely hope so. I will keep those families in my prayers and hope they are united with their children soon.

Fun books for Peanut

I was looking for a specific book that I learned about on one of my buddy's blogs called "Motherbridge of Love" and I couldn't find it. So I started looking for a couple other books in the children's section. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find children's books? Much less children's books geared to telling adoption related stories at an age appropriate level?? VERY CHALLENGING!!! The books are supposedly in alphabetical order by author yet all of the books I was looking for were nowhere to be found. I will most likely buy them online as I was very frustrated with the Barnes and Nobles children's section. I found the books on their website yet the clerk I asked couldn't even find the books I was looking for in their computer. Weird.

I have already purchased some great books on www.amharickids.com that we can read to peanut and show her about Ethiopia but I definitely need more adoption related children's books. I have found lots geared towards Chinese adoption or international adoption in general that are fabulous but nothing Ethiopia specific. Any ideas???

One good thing came from my search though....


Who knew there was a book called "Peanut". It is a cute little story with a monkey and a beetle. However the monkey is so tiny, he thinks he is a Peanut and he names himself Peanut. He goes on to make friends with all the other animals around him. Peanut and the beetle are best friends and look out for each other in the forest. Yeah!

I bought another book by Karen Katz, called "Princess Baby". It was just to pink and too cute not to pass up. I took a picture of that too but my laptop is not cooperating so you'll just have to take my word for it.

In adoption news: Still waiting for a court date....hopefully we hear something soon. I am guessing we will hear what our court date is either at the end of this week or sometime next week. I would LOVE it if we were fortunate enough to be assigned a date in March but I am trying to remain realistic and plan for an April court date. There are some families that have court dates this week and next so hopefully all goes well and there will be lots of good news floating around the forum.