Good Morning! Grab a cup of coffee and join our chat group. Just jump into the comments and follow along with everyone. If you drop in and it looks like no one is around, just be patient for a minute or two, I come in and out when things slow down, but I'll be back in a just a minute. Chat Group goes until 12 noon.
Chat room is now closed. Thanks for a great morning everyone~
153 comments:
Good Morning RMJ and everyone else. I have one on his way to a confirmation retreat until tomorrow, another one sick with possibly strep, and the third has a football game.
GOOD TIMES!!
Good Morning Nancy how are you?? Sounds crazy. I have one who is going to be in a wedding. That's it. Hang in there.
I am doing OK. Feel like I do not have a minute to sit down during the week now that hubby is gone. He came home last night for the weekend, so at least I will have some help for a couple days.
Am also wondering if I am catching EI's bug. My stomach is queezy, but sometimes I get that way when they are sick. Maybe out of sympathy.
How's Eli's cheek? Is he the one in the wedding?
I am so sorry that it is taking me so long to get back to you. My husband is downloading some file that he said would take 2 minutes...yeah right.
I have moved to my upstairs nook.
I usually catch whatever illness the children get and I get it twice as bad as they have it. I hope you are't coming down with your son's bug.
My oldest Zach is in a wedding. His youth group pastor is getting married.
Eli's cheek looks much better, but I am still worried about a scar. I'm still fighting it.
Good morning girls.....busy day for the tribe today...soccer game and b-day party for Em. Wish me luck..... ;) Have a wonderful day!
A 13 year old girls birthday par-tay!!
Oh, to be a fly on the wall.
Have fun!
Have a great day! Tell Emily I say hello and good luck!
Yes, those were fun! There's a lot of drama when you are 13.
Mornin' all! Can't stay and chat- but just wanted to say Hi. Hope everyone is having a lovely fall day. It's a bit warm and drizzly here.
Good Morning Carolyn,
It's cold here this morning. I hope you have a great day!
Good Morning all!
I'm spending most of my weekend at the Savannah Jazz Festival. Free Jazz all weekend in the park. I'll be there most of the weekend, if I don't get the call to work at the pizzeria;)
I would love to go to the Savannah jazz festival. Who am I fooling? I would just love to be a southern woman and Savannah would be my city of choice.
Have a great time Adele!
GOOD MORNING EVERYONE...
Good Morning Kim!
Did you do anything special for your bday...
rmj, did you get more info on Hepatitis B?
Anytime you're here or want to come, please give me a shoot.
Kim,
I had a great day. I ate calamari with some girlfriends for lunch and then my husband took me to a fondue restaurant called the melting pot for dinner. It was really good. The kids got me the cutest little gifts. They were so sweet. It was a great birthday.
Working today?
Speaking of the Hep B.. Are you thinking about putting your name in for SN or have you already?
Does that actually mean if you go SN that your wait time is cut shorter? I don't know to much about that..
Adele,
I did some good information. We were considering a baby that was another agencies list, but it didn't work out.
Our agency has just passed a new rule that you have to be through the review room before you can even see their SN list. Which has many of us very upset. This adoption process just keeps getting tougher and tougher.
We are considering going SN and most likely will. It's the only way not to be waiting for years and years. There are many with LIDS behind ours who are bringing their children home.
But you have to know which SN's you would be comfortable with and that is what we are trying to figure out.
If you go the SN route, you select a child and bypass the wait for a referral. It is going faster, but you have to be fully aware of which SN's you would be willing to work with and what would be needed to be a successful parent and home for that child.
Yes... I have to work...
In a couple weeks I get a 3 day weekend, so I will get to stay and actually chat...
After work I have a lady who is coming by the store to bring me a Baby Sling (Mei Tai)...She has an American Flag one on clearance.. And she is going to show me the other styles she has so that I can find the fabric I want use..Then a little later I will have her make me one that I like.. I have been going on different web sites and they are all ranging from 85-180 ..
I will post a picture tonight or tomorrow..
It sure does. We are considering it but I don't know what the rules are with our agency regarding being thru the review room, thanks for bring it up, I'll have to ask. My sister, who is also adopting from China, told me we can be on both SN and NSN. I may submit my paper work next week to switch...just not sure yet.
Our agency just passed a new rule this month, that you have to be through the review room to see their SN list. No other agency that I am aware of is doing this. That rule means we can's even see their SN list until we are around 14 months LID. Which is not sitting well with us. Other agencies release theirs day one. The child we were thinking about was on an agencies list that we aren't even a client of and they shared all of her information. But their clients get top priority, so we lost her.
Here is her website
http://sunshinebabyslings.com/
It was funny how I met her.. She kept coming in the store.. and everytime her sling was the color of her outfit.. and they are made out of silk threads...
Very nice..
So I asked her where she bought them and she said that she made them..
Adele,
You don't switch anything. All you do is ask to see their current waiting child list, our agency gets a new list every quarter, some are different.
You can look over this list, if there is a child you are interested in, then you ask for their medical information and have your pediatrician review it. If all looks good, you throw your hat in the ring.
You do not have to step out of the NSN arena until you choose a child on the SN list and are told that they are yours. Then you have your paperwork pulled and re-submitted for the SN child.
You may never find a SN child that would fit well with your family and still be in line for a NSN child, so you have nothing to lose.
I'm sorry, rmj. It must have been difficult and fustrating that you lost her.
Kim,
I have heard that the Mei Tai are the best slings. Women are always blogging about how great they are.
thanks for the guidance. I'll have to look into it.
It was a little tough. I still have her picture on my desk here. It's hard not to know which way to go. I just keep waiting for God to let me know where she is.
Good Morning Everyone!
Happy belated Birthday Kim!
I don't have time to chat long. We have a busy day planned. I just wanted to pop in and say good-morning. This is the first morning I have gotten on the computer in a while. I have so much catching up to do.
Enjoy your day!
have a wonderful day Stacey!
Good Morning Stacy! I've missed you. Thanks for the B-Day wishes. How's your tea?
Kim did you get my email on my Secret Buddy...
I don't know what would have happened..
I have never had anything lost..
I thought it came yesterday but it was my From China with Love 2008 (cal) and I ordered a couple books..
The Red Blanket & Little Miss Ladybug and her magical red thread..
Adoption books are hard to find in a Reg. book store..
It was good - I'm about to brew a second mug. :)
Well hope all you ladies have a wonderful time chatting with Mrs. Kimberley...( I know you will)
WIsh I could stay longer...
But have to go to good ole work..
Take care
I will post about the Sling later..
and but up the website so everyone else can take a look..
Nick has Homecoming tonight..
They lost their game... He was pretty upset..
Hope everyone has a great morning!
Kim,
I did talk with your Secret Buddy and she sends her apologies and will send double the gifts next month. She mailed 3 packages all at the same time and yours was the only one not to arrive.
I feel badly for both of you!
Hi Holly!
I hope that you have a great morning too!
Do you have any great weekend plans?
Stacy,
I have a good morning image with a cup of tea and I think of you everytime I see. I'll post it one of these saturdays.
Good Morning RMJ and All!
How are you all doing! RMJ The Melting Pot is the Best. We have one here on Orlando and I just LOVE it!
Hi Noemi!
We had a great time eating there last night. The food was really good. The dessert was FABULOUS!
I am glad to say that we got two infomation packs from different agencies and we will be looking over them this weekend.
Noemi,
I would ask some questions regarding when you would be able to apply for an SN child if you chose to later down road.
Noemi,
And congratulations to you and your family! I am so excited for you all and for your child who will be so lucky to be matched with all of you.
I have so many questions... It really can be overwhelming and scary at times. I have been head into the internet about IA and I know we have a long way ahead of us. I know that GOd will choose the correct path for our family...
Noemi,
That is all you can do, just have faith. Your child is out there and God will bring them home.
Well I am headed out to the mall. The two littles have a double birthday party to go to, so I need to go and get the presents and The teen is off to some good friends house to spend the night, but before they will go to Halloween Horror Nights in Universal Studios. Big day ahead. Have Fun
Wow, it sounds like you all have an incredible day planned. Have fun Noemi!
Good morning SUNSHINE! Hope you had a beautiful birthday. Have a lovely weekend.
Hi Daleea!!
Do you have any good weekend plans?
checking in .. no football for me this morning ... princess has a fever ... i think she may have an ear infection ... this will be her first illness since coming home from China ... she is one rock solid little girl ... will check the comments and see what all is going on ...
Gwen,
We're talking about all sorts of things.
I hope that Emily is feeling better soon.
Steffie and I have been talking a lot about the new review room rule.
It's tough for us.
Hello all !
We had Mia's birthday party last night. I will get pictures up soon. I am facinated at the SN talk. We are looking and praying about a 3 year old c/l/p kiddo.
It's so crazy!
i know it is such a sad rule, but i guess the reality is that they weren't matching anyone not thru the review room unless it was a case like ours where no one else really requested maggie ... so it is sad, but it does paint a real picture ... i am loving all the talk this morning about SN ... i definitely say everyone should investigate it at there agency and pray about it ... these children are precious and need parents too .
how did i miss your bday ??? happy belated bday ... got your pkg ready to go ..now it is just trying to find time to get to the post office .. yuk
did my Hep B stuff help .. i can give you my friend's email if you wanna ask her questions ... she is an open book .. their daughter was brought home with Hep b and missing hand at 17 months ... this child is precious and so active !!!
Waala family,
At first we were not considering SN at all, but I have been so touched and so inspired by many of the women here. And now we are eager to look at the lists. I don't know if that is our path, but we are open to wherever we are led to go.
I will you keep you in my thoughts and prayers regarding this little 3 year old.
Gwen,
You don't have to send me anything. It was my pleasure. I love the showers.
And you my friend have given a lot to my soul. I am a better person for knowing you.
The hep B info did help. We would be willing to persue a hep b baby. The little girl we were looking at was with another agency and it looked like we might have had a chance, but she was matched internally.
Plus, we couldn't get any info out of our agency at all. No one would return our request for information on what we would need to do to persue a baby listed with another agency.
I just think it is crazy that another agency we aren't even signed with would give us medical information and access to the their SN list, while our own won't let us see theirs for 6 months.
ok, i think i soundy a little pushy on the SN issue ... i just think people should pray and if they are open then it is a fabulous path to take.. there were definitely some SN we didn't feel like we could parent, but God should us many that we could... i hope that is makes me sound clear... i would never advise anyone to take a child they didn't feel the Lord calling them to ...
on another subject .. i got a big map for the bonus room ... we are going to highlight china and ethiopia for the kiddos to see ...
I hear what you say- our only route now is SN (with 5 kids already at home) but for us I decided right away before the rule changed that if we did it again it would be a c/l/p boy. Wouldn't you know I can't stop feeling I should jump back in again. With Mia there wasn't an once of hesitation. It seemed so easy. Now I waiver...
ERRR !
I am sure you can relate having NSN/SN options.
Sorry I have to run so quickly but the kids want a breakfast buffet today. Gotta go cook !
Have a great weekend !
Gwen,
I don't think you are pushy at all. I think you raise awareness that there are children who need homes and open peoples hearts to consider something they may not have even thought about before.
It's a very good thing.
I don't know if SN is for us. But I think that we should be open to wherever God leads us and educate ourselves regarding the different SN's so that we can make a decision that is in the best interest of a waiting child and our existing family.
It is frustrating to have that door closed right now while other agencies have it right open.
I think that map is a fantastic idea! Your children are going to have such a 'world' outlook on life. I just love that. That our children will be looking at the whole world as a place to love and serve God, not just our neighborhood or country.
Have a great breakfast Waala Family!
i think our agency is just to big..they have so many people to deal with it is more like a business than an adoption agency...it is such a hard spot for many to be in..
i am typing with one hand while i hold em in the other...it is moments like this that God speaks to me...there r many children who have no one to hold them when they r sick...it breaks my heart...
I think that you are right.
I also think that the agencies regardless of size get approximately the same number of SN children and the smaller agencies have fewer families going after them while my SW told us that over 100 families have applied for a single child at times.
Gwen,
Go and take of little Emily. There is a plan for us, we just have to wait for the doors to open.
off to rock my sweet angel...
I appreciate your friendly Saturday morning greetings! Autumn is my favorite time of year too. Now if we could just get some autumn weather...
Have a great day!
Hi there Rebecca!
It is pretty chilly here this morning. Do you have any weekend plans?
Hi Kim. Hi Gwen
Just wanted to stop by and say hi. Happy birthday Kim. Are you doing anything fun this weekend to celebrate?
Good morning you incredible women (oh, and Mr.Brian too if you stop by) Hanging out this morning and heading to gymnastics in a little bit : )
RMJ..hope you had a great birthday!!
Hi there Laura!
I had a wonderful day yesterday. Last night my husband took me out to a fondue restaurant called the melting pot and the food was wonderful.
This weekend we are decorating for Halloween. I just LOVE Halloween.
Good Morning Laura!
How are you?
Gwen..I hope she is feeling better soon. Let me know if she isn't up to the Zoo on Monday. We are totally flexible so you can even wait and call Mon morning. I will email you my digits : )
I have two Laura's on at the same time~
Awh yes its time to decorate the house. Ours is already to go. Aiden is so excited. Sounds like a wonderful dinner.
Yes, I am really excited about it each October. My stuff is all in the attic this year though, so I have to get my hubs to get it all down.
Zach, my oldest is in a wedding today. But other than that, it's going to be a quiet weekend.
Thats nice. I like quite weekends. I am sure Eli will loved it now that he is a little older this year.
I think Eli is going to go nuts when all of the decorations come out. We have one of those blow up cats outside that is like 6 feet tall. Everything just thrills him right now. I love this age.
Aiden and Morgan are SO cute. Now, are you adopting?
I love this age to. We have not felt lead to adopt, at least not right now. There are days that we have our hand full. After reading these blogs there are days when I really like the idea though.
You have two little ones, so I would bet that your hands are full.
What are you all up to this weekend?
Morning everyone. Thought I would say hello for a minute before I went to bed
Good Morning Amy!
How was work last night? Any amazing families that you met?
Maybe some day, but for now it's nice to follow along the journey. Hubby is working this morning and then church tonight. We have a b-day party and Aiden's baseball game tomorrow afternoon.
Very easy night..All of my patients slept except for Hermionne and Elvis and I am not kidding
Laura,
My husband is working today too on a consulting job with our neighbor. So, I'm holding the fort. We have church tomorrow am, Zach has a hockey game in the afternoon and then youth group tomorrow night.
Not too crazy though.
Hermionne? Really, how old is she? I wonder if that is a common English name or if she is named directly after the Harry Potter character?
Elvis, now you gotta love that. I wouldn't name my son Elvis, but I love the king.
oh now, she is 3 and it is from Harry Potter!!
Ladies, I will chat longer next week I have to get to bed...Chow!
Goodnight Amy!
Yes we both get to hold up the fort.I will actually get to hear the pastor speak this weekend, since I wont be helping in Morgan's two year old class this weekend. She still cries when I leave her. :( Well off to make some breakfast for the kids.
Have a great weekend Laura.
Yeah! I'm up early enough to drop in and say hi!
Good Morning all!!
Hi Kayce! How are you? Any good weekend plans?
Not too many good plans...costco I guess could be fun! My son is at his dads this weekend so it's just my dh and I. We tend to just hang together and do nothing when it's "our" weekend. I am working on a some embroidery paterns that I got from Jiinkin Kids.
How about you?
We're all good here.
I saw the square that you did with the ladybugs on it. It looks great. My hubs and I used to have 'our' weekends until Eli was born. We're so happy to have him, but we miss being able to eat out alone together and we never get to see any movies until they come out on video. It's all good though.
We're going to decorate the house for Halloween this weekend.
Hi there, first time joining in on the chat. Guess I'm a little late.
How far do you think the CCAA will get this month? I'm hoping for at least December 2nd.
Donna :)
Hi Donna,
I sure hope we can get some more days through this month. Morale is so low right now in our community. When is your LID?
We are LID 2/17/06. About a month after you, right?
I can't wait for them to get into 2006. Would be great if they could get there by Christmas.
I wish, we are a year behind you. We are 2/6/07. I will be so happy to see you get your baby! I keep hearing that December should go faster because November was a large month as far as LID dates are concerned.
hey laura and RMJ... i am back for as long as princess is happy watching some cartoons ... her belly is full and she has some more meds in her belly... i think her fever is already going down ...
Gwen,
Poor Emily,
I hope it isn't an ear infection.
We're talking about how far the CCAA will get this month.
Good Gawd! Halloween is coming!!! I am still in shock that September is already gone. For some reason the months are starting to fly by, which is good though, it means that I'm busy enough to deal with the rest of our wait. :)
What is Eli going to be for Halloween?
Did you read on RQ about the agency getting referrals for LID's ahead of other agencies. I wonder if there is any truth to this.
I can't imagine something like that could be kept quite for so long.
Kayce,
I have looked at Halloween costumes, but because this is his first big year, I think that I am going to take him to a store and let him choose. We're breaking out the Halloween decorations today around the house. I am a Halloween FREAK. Our whole house is primped.
I'm glad that you are hanging in there ok with waiting, when is your LID?
Donna,
I did read that whole ordeal and unfortunately I believe it's true. I think that some agencies have better relationships than others. That was really upsetting to me though. It is so hard to have absolutely no idea of when we are going to have our little girl. I did start buying some clothes though. I bought the cutest little holiday dress yesterday, it was on clearance at Tuesday Morning, so I thought why not?
Fall is my favorite season and I love Halloween too. I can't wait to have a little one to share the holiday with. I will totally get into the costumes, decorations, etc.
i can't imagine any agency getting anything ahead of anyone else ... CCAA is pretty strict on their process .. now i know some agencies will get TA's a couple of days apart because some agency like ours (Bethany) won't give out TA's till they have consulate appts. ... I am just praying for our LOA to arrive sometime in next couple of weeks so Maggie can be home by T-giving...
I can't wait to decorate for Christmas! That's my fav time to decorate the house. Have fun with Eli picking out his costume, I can't wait to see what he comes up with.
Our LID is 3/29/06...18 months today! It's funny, I finally feel like we are on the downhill slide, even though we've got what seems like a long road ahead.
I agree. I love the fall holidays. Christmas is wonderful too. After January is when I start to get the winter blues.
Gwen, I agree with you that I can't imagine in this strict process that agencies are getting referrals ahead of others. It seems too regimented for that.
Although, we'll never really know what's going on and that's the frustrating part.
Kayce .. hello i am Gwen ... 18 months LID ...yiiipppeeeee ... i can't imagine how long this wait has been for you, but at the end is a precious little one you will have forever and boy are they worth it !!!!!
Gwen,
There was supposedly a big scandal where an agency has been getting their people referrals months ahead of the rest of the world.
They were telling their clients to keep it quiet and there were supposedly people with February 06 LIDS who already had their referrals. It was a huge deal on the RQ site last week.
Haven't heard any confirmation anywhere else.
Kayce!
Congrats on 18 months closer~ I don't think you will be waiting much longer. I really think that things will start going faster in December. Hoping anyway!
Christmas is another thing I can't wait to share with our daughter. There are SO many things that are going to be so much more fun with a child.
I guess I just can't wait to be a mommy!
Donna,
You guys are so ready. I see all of the cute things you have for your child. I am excited for you. Are you still making jewelry?
My heart sank when I read that RQ post about the early referrals since our LID is 2/06 too. The thought of other families with the same LID having their referral just because they are with a certain agency makes me sick after all this waiting.
We are going on 20 months on 10/17.
Hi Gwen! Thanks for the good wishes. This wait has been um...well there are no good words for it. When we started this process in July of 05, the wait was 6 months. By the time our paperwork was logged in, the wait was 8 to 10 months. I can't tell you how many times I've had to tell people that the wait has gotten longer, "oh another 10 months". They just look at you like you're the one with the problem.
It's funny though, now I am okay with the extensions, I expect them now. This whole thing is out of my control. When is your LID?
RMJ,
I agree with you about things speeding up. It may be a dream, but I do like good dreams! Thanks for the happy 18 wishes!
No, I'm not really making the jewelry anymore. I've been meaning to take that link off my blog. I wasn't getting enough orders to justify keeping a stock of the photo charms. Plus, there are some other things I really should be doing...lifebook prep, scrapbooking, working on Lauren's room, etc...
Donna,
Maybe it isn't the case, but I wouldn't be surprised and if I was you guys, I'm sure that it would be hitting even closer to home.
Can't stay to chat, just wanted to say good morning!
Hi Kris~
Have a great weekend!
Donna,
You did make some beautiful jewelry.
I think that you are getting close and you will have a referral soon.
I will feel a lot better about everything if I can see a speed up in December.
If they could get through Dec in two or even three months, I think everyone's spirits would be lifted a little.
Hi Cindy...actually, I think you're just being realistic.
Hi Cindy,
I don't expect a lot for this month either. I'm hoping December will show a speed-up.
Donna,
I agree. If we could get to 10 days or 2 weeks being processed each month, which would still mean a really long wait for us, at least it would look like there is light at the end of the tunnel.
RMJ ... just tried one of the hats you sent on emily and will post soon ... absolutely freakin adorable !!!
Gwen,
I'm so happy! Emily is just beautiful inside and out, what a precious little girl. Can't wait to see the pic.
Cindy,
I just went over to your cool blog. You are at 20 months LID, so you are really close.
When we started this process, they had been doing 30 days of LID's each month pretty consistently. I KNOW they CAN do it!
It's unfortunate for us that politics play a BIG part in the process and it's not necessarily what they can do, but what they WANT to do.
ok, i heard that once they get through 2005 then things will go faster because there are less dossiers submitted in 2006 because people were scared away ...
i joined a yahoo group for COP (SN group from our agency and one lady got her referral Nov. 2006 and hasn't traveled yet due to paperwork snafoo in China ..that freaks me out ... we have been waiting almost 3 months to travel to get Maggie and it is really starting to get to me ...
It is getting bad lately. Reports about agencies getting preferential treatment, our agency just announcing that you have to be through the review room to see the SN list the very first month we asked to see it. It is wearing me down.
Gwen,
I'm sure that you well get your TA soon. It's all just a mess right now.
I was told about the 30 days of referrals too and that it wasn't such a long time ago that that was the case.
I am now hearing also that babies have been matched through February and on, but due to caps on how many children can be referred in a month, the dossiers just sit.
Gwen,
You were with Stefanie in China right? Stefanie told me she had her daughter's referral in 6 months. Was that the case for you with Emily?
Gwen, families who are LID in February, March and April 2006 started their process before the big slow down and weren't scared away. It's families who were looking at starting their paperwork process during the slowdown who were scared away. Unfortunately, the ones who decided to go for it weren't logged in until about mid-2006. I think that's where we will see smaller numbers.
Oh man, that's 7 months away.
yes, we got referrals in 6 months ...i do hope everything speeds up, so all the babies can get home ... some children due to the slow down have aged out and won't be processed for adoption ... that just breaks my heart ...
i was thinking that the numbers were smaller for 2006 LIDs than 2005, but could be wrong ... i pray every day for the CCAA to speed things up or hire more people ..
Well, the one thing we have all learned about this process is that it's unpredictable, so anything can happen!
I just wish we all knew when the end would be...it's SOOO much easier to wait when you know when the ending is!
Well, it's almost 9:30 here and if I don't hit the shower I'll never get moving.
Have a GREAT weekend everyone!
Donna :)
Hi Gwen,
Thought I might catch on here. Miss Morgan just woke up with a head cold. Poor Emily, sorry she is sick.
Wow I am reading about how long it takes to get a LID. It so sad and there are so many people out there that wont to adopt.
Have a great weekend Donna!
I'll praying with you Gwen.
LADIES, I HAVE TO RUN...I HAVE TO START GETTING READY TO ZACH TO A WEDDING.
Have a great weekend everyone! Thanks for chatting~
hey laura, yes we are home with a head congestion and fever ... the weather is turning out here and that is when all the stuffy head stuff starts ... sorry morgan is feeling bad ...
You girls can keep right on talkinga way though : ) Not kicking anyone out...
i am off to ... nothing fun though ... house work and perhaps i will get my suitcase out and pack maggie's bag ....
I feel so bad when they are sick. Hope Emily gets better soon.
Just noticed you guys do this. Not good for us West coast people-- cant wake up that early on a Saturday. Maybe next week I will join in. Sounds like fun!!
Christy :)
Hope you all had a great morning. I was busy cleaning house in preparation for Katiebug's visit with her mommy and daddy.
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