Mother's Day 2008

I got bombarded in bed by all three kids on Sunday morning. Victoria and Austin had made cards for me at school. I love homemade cards from the kids. So much love goes into them.
















This is Austin’s card. You have no idea how much it meant to me when I read that he loves me more than computer games. That’s HUGE! He could play on the computer all day long if we would let him – that’s how much he loves computer games. And guess what? He loves me even more! Yay!



















Victoria’s card was so pretty. Here’s what she wrote inside: “Happy mother’s day! You are my best mom in the whole world. I love you very very much! You are the best! Love Victoria.”

All of the exclamation marks had hearts at the bottom instead of periods. She’s becoming such a good writer, and it means so much that she thinks of it and writes it all by herself.






Notice both kids picked orange for their cards . . . mommy’s favourite colour!

Waiting Mommies Dinner

On Saturday night I had the priviledge of attending another Waiting Mommies Dinner in Toronto.

Tammy (my driving partner and navigator) and I headed out and this time we had company in the van. Victoria and Samara were also invited to join us at the dinner this time. Victoria was so excited that she got to come because every time I leave for one of these dinners, she begs me to take her along. Her and Samara were both very good and had a lot of fun.

Victoria sat beside "Mrs. Tammy" and I heard a lot of giggling going on across the table! Samara also had a lot of fun being silly and goofy and even surprised "Miss Catherine" at the end of the night with a huge squeeze and a kiss.

Notice the pretty hairbands in their hair. Liz and Ava brought little surprises for the kids - hairbands, stickers and chocolate princess lollipops.

Thank you Liz and Ava for being so thoughtful!

The group is getting larger all the time and it's so neat to connect with others on the same journey.

(These pictures are all courtesy of Catherine since I can never remember to bring my camera - she is really a serious blogger and doesn't leave home without the camera.)

The theme for the optional gift exchange this time was a book theme. I got the book "M is for Maple". It's a Canadian alphabet book. I love this book and have wanted a copy of it for a long time. In fact, I almost bought it the other night when I was buying my gift for the exchange. But I'm glad I resisted the urge cause I got it! It's even the board book version. (Thank you so much Leslie!)

Oh and I should mention that while the girls were enjoying a girls night out, the boys were also having fun at home. Tammy's husband Mike came over to hang out with Mike and Austin and apparently the three of them had a lot of fun. I know Austin did as he couldn't stop talking about it the next day. He had a lot of fun playing the "punch game" (boxing) and bowling on the Wii. Thanks for coming over and sharing your toy with my guys Mike!

The courier came to the agency today, picked up our file and it is officially on it's way to Ethiopia! Hooray!

Finally . . .

After nine long weeks (+ two days) we finally received our official Ministry approval letter. For those of you who aren't familiar with the adoption process, this is a letter from the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services that gives us permission to adopt another child. We are breathing a huge sigh of relief and Mother's Day will be that much better now.

Many of you know that over nine weeks ago, we brought our homestudy and other parts of our dossier to our agency in Cambridge. We were told at that time that it would only take 2 - 4 weeks for us to get our ministry approval since our homestudy was only an update (it's an update because it's our second time adopting). So that was really good news and we thought it was great that we wouldn't have to wait the 6 - 8 weeks it was taking at that time for original homestudies to get approval. After four weeks went by, I emailed our agency to see if they had heard anything and they said they hadn't. They also said that things were taking a little longer at the ministry for a variety of reasons so not to worry. At six weeks I emailed again and they still hadn't heard anything. I was starting to get a little more anxious but I was still holding it together and remaining somewhat calm.

At eight weeks and one day, I was on the verge of losing it. I was worried we weren’t going to get approved for some reason, I wasn’t sure if our file was lost or if it even got to the ministry. I emailed our caseworker again (by the way, her name is Julie and she’s the best caseworker ever!) to voice my concerns and see if there was anyway we could check the status of our file or contact the ministry by phone to see if our file even made it there. Julie got on the phone right away and found out that yes, they had our file and it was “being processed”. They told her that it would be done by the end of the week and we should hear something the following week (that would be this week). Ok, that sounded really good to me. And the other really good thing was that, because we had all our paperwork together and at the agency office and because Julie is the best caseworker ever, she worked ahead on our file so that the next step would be shorter for us. She told us that instead of the next step taking 2 – 4 weeks, it would only take one week for us. Yay Julie! (See? Isn’t she the best caseworker ever???)

Soooooo, that brings us to this week . . . the week we should be hearing from the ministry. Monday – I didn’t assume we’d hear anything yet. Tuesday – I thought maybe we would hear something but was somewhat ok that we didn’t. Wednesday – I thought was a very strong possibility that we’d hear something – I mean how long does it take to send an envelope via courier or even snail mail within Ontario? I emailed Julie on Wednesday just to make sure she hadn’t received it and forgot to tell us (Ya right! After all, she is the best caseworker ever!) By the time Thursday came around, I was falling apart. What was going on??? Are we approved or not approved? Why is it taking more than nine weeks when it should have been 2 – 4 weeks??? There is only one day left for us to hear something this week - I can’t go through another weekend not knowing for sure if we’re approved or not. And yes, I emailed Julie last night (Thursday night) to voice my concerns once again.

Ok, I need to interrupt to tell you more about how great Julie is. This whole time as I’m emailing her, she has been the most patient, understanding, kind person. We’re still just at the beginning of this process and already she’s done so much for us. She even went so far as to tell me I could email her everyday to check in and not to apologize for that (I was apologizing in every email because I felt like I was bugging her). See how great she is? We are truly blessed to have her as our caseworker.

This morning (Friday) at 8:33 am, I received an email from Julie saying that she had contacted the ministry last night before she left work. She was told that we were officially approved on May 2 (last Friday) and that our letter was on its way. That made me feel better but I still wanted that final confirmation . . . the official approval letter. Julie also told me that we received our declaration back from Ottawa (part of the next step that’s supposed to take 2 – 4 weeks) so as soon as they receive our approval letter, our file is on it’s way to Ethiopia.

This afternoon at 2:20 pm, we received the following email from Julie:

Hi Mike and Karen,

I just wanted to let you know that I received your letter of approval today! Congratulations – you have been approved to adopt “a healthy male child, as young as possible, up to the age of 12 months, from Ethiopia”.

As I mentioned before, I have your file all ready to go. I will be sending your file to Ethiopia either Monday or Tuesday (depending on when I can get DHL here, but it will be going soon!). I will certainly let you know what day it gets picked up and you can certainly celebrate that milestone!

Have a great weekend and HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

HOORAY! We are so excited to have this part of the process behind us. We know that it will still be many more months before we see a picture of the precious child that God already has picked out for our family, but we are so happy that we are finally officially expecting again. Let the real waiting begin!

Books

These are a few books that have been added to our home library over the past months. The pictures and book descriptions are all from the Amazon website.




China (DK Eyewitness Books)

Eye-popping...It's a text, but also a trip educators, students and parents can enjoy taking together.













D is for Dragon Dance

In this alphabetical celebration of the Chinese New Year, a boy and a girl prepare for the festivities with their family. Each page or full spread, representing one letter, includes such headings as A is for Acrobats, I is for Incense, and P is for Peking Duck. One- to two-sentence subtitles under some of these headings explain the traditions. The Z is for Zodiac page includes a circular chart to allow children to find their own Chinese sign. The back matter includes an authors note on the traditions surrounding the New Year, an artists note on the calligraphy appearing in the background, and a recipe for dumplings. While Compestines text is well researched, many of her subtitles are written in an uneven tone, vacillating between a second- and third-person voice. The art makes up for the patchy text and depicts the vibrancy and color of the celebrations as they occur in modern China. Done in watercolor, acrylic, and latex, it features stylized, richly colored figures layered on subtle, full-page calligraphic designs. Young readers will enjoy observing the antics of a playful cat on each spread. Overall, this vivid introduction is sure to fascinate youngsters new to the traditions of this holiday.


My First Chinese New Year

In this colorful picture book, a young girl prepares for and celebrates the Chinese New Year with her extended family, describing how she makes an altar to honor her ancestors, gets a haircut, feasts with her relatives, and attends a Chinatown parade. The tale radiates warmth and quietly builds up to the dramatic dragon dance and the traditional greeting of "Gung Hay Fat Choy!” The collage illustrations, cut from paper with colorful Asian designs, also include paint and other media to capture the joyful celebrants. This is a clear introduction to the holiday that young children will enjoy in one-on-one or group read-alouds.


Tar Beach

Tar Beach is a work of modern art translated into a children's picture book, and the adaptation is so natural that it seems inevitable. From her 1988 story quilt, reproduced on the cover and within the last pages of the book, Ringgold has taken both the setting and the text. The painted scene in the center of the quilt shows a Harlem rooftop on a starry night with four adults playing cards and with Cassie Louise Lightfoot and her brother, Be Be, lying on a blanket gazing at the sky. Cassie sees herself flying over the city lights; dreams of wearing the George Washington Bridge as a necklace; imagines giving her father the union building he is not allowed to join because of his half-black, half-Indian heritage; flies over the ice cream factory; and takes her little brother with her to the sky. Cassie's story, written along the borders of the quilt in tiny script, becomes the text of the book. The illustrations painted for the book version are done in the same colorful, naive style as the quilt. This type of art translates beautifully into the storybook format, and a border of bright fabric designs on the bottom of each page duplicates the material used in the quilt. In capturing the euphoria of a child's dreams, and in its gentle reminder of the social injustices of the adult world, the book is both universal and contemporary.



Yo! Yes?

An effective, unusual 34-word story of the beginnings of a friendship, accompanied by wild and wonderful illustrations. Against pastel backgrounds, in vibrant, colorful images, an African-American boy and a white boy meet on the street. "What's up?” "Not much.” "Why?” "No fun.” "Oh?” "No friends.” These one- and two-word exchanges on each spread lead to a tentative offer of friendship, sealed as both boys jump high in the air and yell "Yow!” The succinct, rhythmic text and the strong cartoon like watercolor-and-charcoal illustrations are perfect complements. The feelings of each child run the gamut from loneliness, curiosity, fear of rejection, and hopefulness to, finally, joy; the illustrations do a particularly fine job of limning each boy's emotions in very simple images on the oversized pages. With a beautifully balanced, economical style, the book illumines the peaks and pitfalls of getting acquainted, and puts in a good word for brotherhood as well. Amusing for story times, or for use in discussions of feelings, it is fun to read and look at, and appealing to the eye, ear, and heart.



Dragon Dance: A Chinese New Year Lift-the-Flap Book


It's Chinese New Year and there are so many fun things to do! Shopping at the outdoor market for fresh flowers, eating New Year's dinner with the whole family, receiving red envelopes from Grandma and Grandpa, and best of all-watching the spectacular Chinese New Year's parade! Introduce the customs of Chinese New Year to even the youngest readers with this festive new lift-the-flap book.






Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters

An African villager named Mufaro had two daughters whom everyone agreed were beautiful. However, their dispositions were not alike: Manyara had a bad temper and was selfish (although not in front of Mufaro); Nyasha was always kind and considerate both to people and to animals. When Mufaro receives word that the Great King is inviting all of the most worthy and beautiful women to appear before him so that he might choose a wife, Mufaro decides that both of his daughters should go. Manyara, believing herself more worthy and beautiful than her sister, sets out alone so that she can be presented to the king before her sister. What happens to each girl along the way depends on her response to the strange people whom she encounters. This folktale shows the traditional qualities, characterizations, and predictability. It is distinguished, however, by its colorful ink and watercolor illustrations of the costumes, artifacts, flora, and fauna of the Zimbabwe region. The expressive drawings of people and events enhance the story and serve to strengthen readers' familiarity with traditional African culture. A magnificently illustrated book, filled with rich textures and vibrant color, and a story that will satisfy young romantics as well as those with a strong sense of justice.

World AIDS Orphans Day - May 7

Over 15 million children worldwide have lost one or both parents to AIDS – equivalent to the number of people living in New York, Paris, and Bangkok combined.

In sub-Saharan Africa alone, over 12 million children have been orphaned by the pandemic.

Experts believe that millions more orphans remain unaccounted for in India, China and Russia.

By 2010, the number of AIDS orphans worldwide is expected to reach at least 20 million.

For more info check out this website.

Changes

Remember this?

And this?
And this?
How about this?
And this?
And this?

The habit that used to define our daughter . . . is gone! It's been over a month now and she hasn't had her fingers in her mouth - not even once. And it happened just like that - she quit cold turkey. One day she was sucking her fingers and the next day she wasn't.

The dentist will probably be happy but let me tell you, it was a little brutal at first around here. Samara is the kind of girl that can wake up a few times at night (and other nights we don't hear her at all). But she was in the habit of putting her fingers in her mouth and putting herself back to sleep. It was great. But once the self-soothing was gone, we would have to go into her room to get her back to sleep. It was a rough couple of weeks but it's getting easier now. She's starting to put herself back to sleep without the fingers. And I think we're starting to get used to the new look - you know, the one without the fingers attached to the face.

I don't know what the reason is. We tried to figure it out - sore throat, bad taste on her fingers, sore in her mouth, on her tongue etc, etc. etc. And we actually thought the habit would come back after the issue was resolved (ie: healed sore throat). But that doesn't seem to be the case. I guess the good thing is that we won't have to try to break her of it when she gets a little older.

Here's the new look:

Still pretty cute eh???

Thank you Secret Pal!

About a month ago, I was invited to join a secret pal gift exchange for families adopting from Ethiopia. I was so excited because when we were in the process of adopting Samara, I always heard and read about people having secret pals and it looked like so much fun. I never knew how to get involved in one and was secretly jealous of everyone else who had a secret pal. So now I have one! Here’s how it works. There’s someone who organizes the whole thing (thank you Sandi!) and when you agree to join the exchange, you give your mailing address and a bit of info about yourself and your family. Then she lets everyone know who their secret pal is. Every month there’s a different theme and you have to buy and send a gift to your secret pal relating to that theme. It’s so fun. It goes for six months (April – September) and then in October we find out who our secret pal is.

Two days ago, when I was down and out with the flu, I went to check for mail and there was an envelope addressed to me. It was from my secret pal! Perfect timing to brighten my day. In the envelope was a book called “E is for Ethiopia”. It’s a great rhyming kids book that goes through the Alphabet and for every letter, it discusses something in the Ethiopian culture. What a great way to help our little one learn more about the country he was born in.

Thank you secret pal!

Blogger Friends

When I first started this blog (well, actually Mike started the blog and hasn't posted on it since!), I had no idea how many people I would meet. It's been really neat to meet people who have all been on different journeys but all end up on the path to adoption. I have been able to meet some of them at the Waiting Mommies Dinners every other month. This past Saturday Catherine, who I met through our blog, came over to spend the day with us. When she finally arrived (I knew we were kindred spirits when she got lost and had to call twice before arriving - I get lost all the time too!), we had a great day together. The kids were so excited to have Miss Catherine come over (especially when she brought them a fun game) and Austin even held her hand when we were crossing the road to go for a walk (for those of you who know Austin . . . that's huge!) Thanks again for coming Catherine. I hope it wasn't too crazy with three loud monkeys running around and being hyper. I'm sure you slept good that night. :) I can't wait until it's me coming to visit you and your little monkey Hannah!

Here's a picture of Catherine (well, actually Catherine's back) doing a puzzle with Austin and Samara. Notice the outstreched leg to make sure Samara didn't steal anymore of Austin's puzzle pieces. :)

Over the past few weeks I had the pleasure of meeting some more bloggers. Lori and one of her sons came over for coffee one morning. Lori and I actually met through a few mutual friends and we ended up having the same social worker for our homestudy. We have emailed back and forth for probably a year or so and finally met in person. Her and her husband adopted two precious boys last summer and have recently found out they are expecting twins! Yay!

Then on another evening we had Mike and Tammy over for a visit. Tammy and I have met on several occasions. We always drive to the Waiting Mommies Dinners together and often end up getting lost because we're talking too much. Actually the last two times we made it there with no detours. Anyway, I had never met her husband Mike so it was nice to get together with the four of us. The plan was to show them some of our video from China but we sat in the livingroom talking and talking and talking . . . by the time we looked at the clock, it was after midnight! So needless to say, we had a great time visiting with them too.

So as you can see, this blog has been so much more than a tool to keep family and friends informed and updated on our adoption journey.

You know you're an adoptive parent if:

1. The fact that there are 143 million children without a parent to kiss them goodnight has made you lose sleep.

2. You realize DNA has nothing to do with love and family.

3. You can't watch Adoption Stories on TLC without sobbing.

4. The fact that, if 7% of Christians adopted 1 child there would be no orphans in the world, is convicting to you.

5. You spend free time surfing blogs about families who have experienced the blessing of adoption.

6. It drives you crazy when people ask you about adopted child's "real" parents.

7. You have ever been "pregnant" with your adoptive child longer than it takes an elephant to give birth. (2 years!)

8. You had no idea how you would afford to adopt but stepped out in faith anyway, knowing where God calls you He will provide.

9. You have ever taken an airplane ride halfway around the world with a child you just met.

10. You believe God's heart is for adoption.

11. You realize that welcoming a child into your heart and family is one of the most important legacies you could ever leave on this earth.

12. You know what the word "Dossier" means, and you can actually pronounce it!

13. You have welcomed a social worker into the most private parts of your life.

14. You shudder when people say your child is so lucky that you adopted them, knowing full well you are the blessed one to have him or her in your life.

Author Unknown

I got this list from this blog as I was going from blog to blog to blog one day . . . not sure how I even ended up there but I loved the post.

Butterflies

On Monday we took the kids to the Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory. We've been going to see the butterflies ever since Victoria was a baby and the kids love it everytime . . . well, with the exception of Austin. If you look back about a year ago to this post, you'll see that when we went to Wings of Paradise in Cambridge, ON, Austin was not a big fan of the butterflies. In fact, he was paranoid of them. He did a lot better this year, being a little hesitant at first but by the end he loved it . . . until he picked up a butterfly on the ground that he thought was dead. He was going to place it on a rock so no one would step on it. When it started trying to fly away, he was freaked right out! Poor guy. But besides that, it was a good outing and we even did a drive by the Niagara Falls so the kids could get a peek at them too (it was too cold to get out of the van).


Here are a few pictures from our outing:

I love the reflection on this first one.

Before you go into the actual part where the butterflies are, there's a short educational movie to watch. This is the point where Austin is saying, "Mom! There aren't going to be any of those creepy caterpillar thingy's in with the butterflies are there?!?!?"


Victoria was trying so hard to get a butterfly to land on her arm. And Samara was . . . . well . . . you know . . . sucking those fingers! (what else is new!)



Family picture . . . hey wait, someone's missing! (Notice the fingers are out of the mouth)

Aaaah, that's better . . . family picture. (Notice the fingers are back in the mouth)


This is my favourite butterfly picture that Mike took. The flower and butterfly are so clear and focused with the rest of the background being blurry. I actually set it as the background picture on my desktop.