The cat is out of the bag...

The past two days have been crazy. When I got to work yesterday, I called my employer. I thought he deserved to know before the rest of my coworkers. So after I told him, Rob & I sent out our emails. Mine was short and to the point (very typical of me I think!) and Rob's was really long! I even emailed him mine so he could just copy it. So I was really surprised when I got his. I tried to remember as many addresses as I could but I know I missed some so please don't be offended if you weren't on the list.

We've had many good wishes and for that we are truly grateful. We know our true friends and we are blessed to have you in our lives.

Already the house has more stuff. Diapers, onesies, bibs, blankets, that big round thingie...We're seriously going to need a different house. This isn't big enough for the two of us and all of our stuff let alone a baby and all that stuff.

Billy is going to stay with Rob's parents while we're gone so we're going to take him over to their house for some play dates so he can get used to the new environment before we leave.

We've been asked about daycare so I'm throwing out the question "Does anyone want to babysit?" :)

Would you like the good news or the bad news first?

We'll start with the bad. If you live around here, you know we had a little bit of snow this weekend. But we had our INS appointment on Monday in St Paul so we drove to the Cities on horrible roads, snow, ice...because we didn't dare change our appointment. We got to our friends, the Shantz's, on Sunday afternoon and really enjoyed our time with them. Monday morning, Jason & Rob went to school while Ann & I went shopping. I did pick up a few pieces of clothing at Once Upon A Child that can go with either a boy or a girl. I also got a play thingie from there and two books from Barnes & Noble. Then it was time to pick up Rob at Jason's school and head to St Paul. We got over there and the sign on the door said that they are closed on Mondays. Now why would they have scheduled us on Monday if they are closed on Monday?! So we frantically called our SW in Sioux Falls and couldn't reach her. We then frantically called our SW in Minneapolis who tried calling the INS. They said they would not have scheduled us on a day they were closed. I kept saying "I have proof! I'm looking at the document!". So after sitting there for a couple of hours, she finally said that we wouldn't be getting our fingerprints done that day but we could go to Sioux Falls on Wednesday. Like we really want to take ANOTHER day off. But we really have no choice. Wasn't it just last week that I said things were going too smoothly?

So on to the good news....last Friday Karen told us that we were "in queue". Of course I had no idea what that means, but Erin said it was good news! We are on the list!! Yay!! So when I was on the phone with Karen yesterday I asked her what number we are on the list. She didn't know but said to talk to LouAnn. So I asked LouAnn and she said number 5 and that we should expect our referral at the end of April or middle of May. While we were in WalMart, LouAnn called back and said that she called Los Pisingos and they should have our application translated by next week and that we are actually NUMBER TWO on the list since one family got their referral and two of the families don't have their paperwork done. See, I knew it was a good thing that I'm obsessive and got that paperwork done! So she said while this isn't set in stone, we should expect a referral at the end of March or middle of April. Holy Smoke! That's a month away! After a few moments of being excited, it hit us. That's a month away! We have two stuffed animals and about five outfits! What will this child eat? Where will he/she sleep? We have nothing! We thought we had a little more time to get these things but I guess not. It's better to have it go quickly than to wait the 12-16 months (from the time our application was sent to the orphanage..which is NOW) like we originally thought it could be. So Target...here I come.

We decided to tell our families last night so that we could tell everyone else today. So I first called my parents and told them the story. Poor Rob heard it about six more times as I called my family members. He wanted to know if we could just record it and then say "please stay on the line if you have any questions". After we got back to Redfield, we stopped and told his grandma.

So today is the day for the world to know. It's been difficult lately keeping it a secret but I don't have to anymore.

A few side notes to this post:

1 ~ Congratulations to the wrestlers on bringing home the 8th place trophy from the state tournament this weekend. We are so proud of each of you. And also to the wrestlers from EPJ & Highmore. We may not be there anymore, but we cheered and prayed as if we were. TC, we knew you could do it.

2 ~ I lost my wallet last week. I really have no idea where it is. I had it on Monday at the dentist and didn't have it on Wednesday morning. I have looked in the freezer, the washer, the laundry baskets...everywhere. I know it's somewhere totally stupid but just haven't figured out that place yet. Unfortunately, my ID's are in there so I had to get a new driver's license in Aberdeen on Friday because I needed it yesterday. Little did I know.

3 ~ I somehow ended up on the wrong road yesterday on the way home. Rob was sleeping and I know I went through Hutchinson. I was on the phone with Erin when Rob woke up and said "Where are you?". I had no idea really but knew I hadn't turned anywhere so I must have been on the right road. Hmmm...what do you know. I wasn't! We ended up going through Litchfield and Grove City and then turned south to go through Cosmos and get back on track. I have no idea how that happened but it made me feel a whole lot better when my brother David said he's done it about four times.

4 ~ A dear man passed away on Friday. Mary and family, you are in our prayers.

More later after I spill the beans! :)

I'd just like to say...

I want my mom and dad to come home! :)

I'm not sure if time is moving fast or slow...

This week has gone by so fast. Every week does. Every day does. And I really haven't accomplished anything worth noting. Still not done with my laundry. And I've gained about two pounds. Casey's doughnuts really seem to be a problem for me. Anyway...so it seems like we should be receiving our acceptance information from the orphanage soon. That would be great, except our application hasn't been sent down to Colombia yet. Hello, people...we can't get on the list until they receive our application! I've been busy getting dossier info taken care of. When I was in Aberdeen on Tuesday I stopped to pick up my birth certificate and marriage license. I also talked to my doctor in SF (actually the nurse) to see if we had HIV tests done last year. We had blood drawn for everything else and test after test after test so I would have been very surprised had we not had HIV tests done. Sure enough we did. How depressing is it that we had so many tests done that I don't even know if we had an HIV test!? Anyway, the nurse said that I could send her the physical evaluation part of the dossier and they'd sign off on it. Rob knows a social worker and he's going to see if he'll do the psychological exam part. Paul is going to act as my "financial planner" and verify our net worth. He's also going to notarize Rob's request for a birth certificate and verify our legal names. We already have our fingerprints from the FBI. So we're pretty much good to go. Getting this dossier information hasn't been too hard at all. The whole process has been so easy. It makes me nervous.

Tuesday at my doctor's appointment, I had such a good conversation with the doctor during such an awkward (is that not a weird word?) moment. I won't name the doctor for fear that it could come back to bite him in the butt. He had a very strong opinion on mothers living off of welfare without making an effort to get a job, waiting to get married until after they are all done having kids so the government will pay for it, medical insurance not covering infertility treatment but yet the government passes on to the taxpayers the costs to support these mothers and their children (who don't deserve to be in those situations). So the whole exam went by really fast because we were too busy talking. Never thought I'd say that.

I'm really jealous of my parents being in warm Cancun while we suffer through this miserable weather. We had above zero temperatures today, though. I almost broke out the shorts.

I've been trying to find outfits for the baby to wear when we meet him/her. I just can't find anything that knocks my socks off. Shopping for clothes, I'd love for this child to be a girl. Paying for clothes, I'd love for this child to be a boy. There are just so many cute girls clothes out there. Of course I can't find anything for the baby to wear on that first day. Internet shopping just isn't cutting it. I'm on my way up to Groton tomorrow for regional wrestling so I'm going to stop at the mall and see what I can find. I know I don't know if it's a boy or girl but I just really want to find the perfect outfit. And I'm afraid that if I have to power shop after we get our referral, the mall in Aberdeen just won't have the right outfit.

Well, I better end this post for the night. Rob's at wrestling, Billy's lonely, and I'm tired. I've really struggled this week without Kramer. Billy isn't a snuggly kitty and I miss that so much. I dream about her at night which makes her be in my thoughts during the day. So then I dream about her at night again. I'm not sure why this week is harder than last week. It just is. I'm ready for this baby to get here so I can devote my attention to him or her. I can't wait! :)

The grandparents know!

We told our parents this weekend. Christy, too. I called my mom & dad on Saturday morning and talked about their upcoming trip to Mexico. My dad and I were discussing the weather and I asked what he thought about taking a trip to South America this summer. He talked about the weather (he is a farmer after all) and then asked where at in SA. I said Colombia. He talked about the weather in Colombia and finally I said "Dad did you hear why I said we're going to Colombia" and he said "no". I said "Rob and I are adopting a baby from there". And there was a big pause. And then he said "You are?" We talked and cried (well I did at least) for quite a while. My mom was at my aunt's house so when she came home, she got on the phone and I told her. By this time, it was after 10:30 and I was supposed to be leaving for the wrestling tournament at 11:00 and hadn't showered yet. So we didn't talk long. After the tournament, Rob and I went over to his mom & dad's. We talked for a while and then Rob told his mom "I got you a Valentine's present but I'm only going to give it to you if you can keep a secret". So he gave her a picture frame that said "Grandma and Grandpa's little something". I can't remember what it said and I even picked it out! We gave his dad a little Christmas ornament that said "Grandpa" and a bib that said "I love Grandpa" or something like that. I'm amazed that I can't remember what they say! And then Christy was home so we gave her a baby picture frame. And then we talked about it until 1:00. Way past my bedtime. Rob's dad ran in the bedroom and got something. As he came back out he said "I have the baby's first present!" It was a Green Bay Packers sweatsuit. I'm glad we told them but we still have a little bit of time before we tell everyone else. Hopefully the acceptance letter will come from the orphanage soon and then we'll know how long it will be.

In other good news, our good friends Angie & Wade had a little boy on Friday! I'm so excited to think that our babies will be the same age! So when we were in Target on Saturday, Rob was Mr. Shopper and picked out two outfits for Carter. He also bought a different stuffed animal because the one I bought was too girly. Neither of us is too into Pooh, but we bought a stuffed Pooh because he is so soft. Rob felt every stuffed animal there trying to find the softest one. We also bought a picture album so we can take with us. It's a baby one and the pictures go behind plastic. Then we'll be able to show the baby pictures of our family and Billy. At Target Rob kept finding shirts that were in the Toddler size that said "My dad is so cool" and I told him if he could find infant size he could get it. He searched furiously but to no avail. Thus, Mom must be the coolest! :)

Today has been rather lazy. I had to play for church and Rob got a fire call shortly after church started. We both got home about the same time. And we haven't done much since. I fell asleep for over two hours. I had to force myself to get off the couch and wake up. Otherwise I won't get any laundry done.

I'm going to get my paperwork started tonight for the dossier. At least our birth certificates and marriage license.

I'll leave you with two special moments from yesterday. My dad told me "You know, this baby isn't just your baby. This baby is for our entire family". And Rob's dad said "Now we really are grandparents". Both brought tears to my eyes. And my dad is right...not only have we been waiting for this baby for nine years, so have our families.

We received our dossier information!

Woo-Hoo, we're within six months! I received the email from LSS today. It was a pretty hectic day...lots of bills to be paid, checks to be paid for corn delivery last week, and a board meeting. So I'm peacefully relaxing at home. I'm supposed to be doing laundry.

Back to the dossier...we have to get another copy of birth certificates & marriage license, social worker's report stating that we're mentally fit to care for a child, a physician's statement stating that we're physically capable to care for a child, employer statements that we're employed, we have to state that our names are actually our names...I think that's it...and then have it all notarized. Good think Marcy is a notary! Then we have to send it all to the state to prove that Marcy is really a notary. We also have to include a copy of our homestudy, which is done and notarized.

These things all expire within six months, that's how I know we'll be there within six months. I'm really hoping it's quicker than that but that would still be August. We only started the process on July 30 so we have no right to complain about August.

So that's our big news of the day. Rob's home now so we're going to play a game. It's either cards, Backup, or cribbage. Lately it's been Backup. We're going to have to take some games with us to Colombia. Otherwise we'll go through withdrawal!

I-600 A update...

We received our appointment to be fingerprinted. February 21 in Sioux Falls. When I sent in our required documents and the money requesting to be fingerprinted, I sent this nice letter telling them where we wanted to be fingerprinted and which days we are unavailable. Never in the letter did I say the words "Sioux Falls". It generally takes about three months to get everything taken care of when the fingerprints are done in Sioux Falls. However, if we could go to the office in St Paul, it would take about a month. Three months from February 21 is May 21. I had sort of hoped to be close to leaving for Colombia by then. So I'm a little frustrated. I'm going to call tomorrow and see if we can get it changed. Cross your fingers...

Today is Super Bowl Sunday. We're going over to friends' house to watch the game. While I was always a Bears fan growing up, Peyton Manning has sort of grown on me. So I guess I'm rooting for the Colts. If the Chargers aren't there, I guess it really doesn't matter anyway.

I woke up this morning with a sore neck and it's been killing me all day. I've taken more aspirin today than in the past year and it just isn't helping. Needless to say, I'll be going to the chiropractor tomorrow.

February is a big birthday month in our family. So I'm going to do all my shout-outs today. Otherwise, I'll be about a month late. My family knows that so it really wouldn't be a surprise. I realized about a week ago that it's way past January 9 and I totally missed Denita's birthday. Sorry, man. So anyway...

Happy Birthday to:

Allan on the 1st
Sandy on the 3rd
Emily today (the 4th)
Dick & David on the 5th
Caitlin on the 7th
Brianna on the 20th
Pam on the 24th

Hope you all have great birthdays!!