Waiting Stitches

Jon got a great birthday gift today! We have been waiting for over two months to hear ANYTHING about Little C and we finally got word today that his VISA medical exam is scheduled for Dec. 15, and the VISA interview is scheduled for Dec. 19. Now we are just praying this really does happen as it is Typhoon season and there is a big system heading towards the Philippines. Not to worry about Little C as his island should be safe, but the main government systems in Manila could be affected which could deter the adoption timeline even more. Following the VISA appointments we have been told it is typically a quick turnaround until we are called and told we can travel; however, they will be closed for about a week during Christmas so this will add time to our wait I'm sure. So we are thinking we may be traveling the end of January, mid-January at the earliest, could even be February. So, truth be told, I am accepting this news with both joy and sadness. I only had celebration on...

God has blessed me with a wonderful family near and far, not sure I could ever be thankful enough for the love they all send our way everyday. Our friends too - we are so very blessed! Today was bittersweet - loved spending time with family but had really hoped to be thankful that we would be traveling soon, but still no word. I had thought for sure we would know by thanksgiving-once again I'm wrong with my assumptions.  Thankful for family time today, but just really wishing my family time had been with my sons - plural - today. Next thanksgiving....right? I've let that silly-quite ridiculous-thought slip into my head more than once this week..."maybe this will all fall through"... Every time there is a big waiting gap I start to doubt and fear the worst. Should I do this? No. But I admittedly let my head travel there anyway. I've had several comment on how well I am handling this waiting game and how patient I am, but if only you all knew the craziness that talk...

Happy Sunday everyone! It is a brisk, and yet, beautiful day here in Wisconsin! The colors on the trees are fantastic and there is a chill in the air that just feels right . We had a little snow the other night on the ground - yikes. I am not ready to see the white stuff yet. It is crazy to think that our Little C is going to be immersed so quickly into the cold! Poor little guy! He is going to go from 90 degree weather to... well... who knows what!?! Most definitely it will NOT be anywhere CLOSE to 90 degrees!!! Hopefully Little C is able to adapt quickly to the cold, and if not, then we will just make sure he always has on really warm clothing! We were given word that Little C's passport is being processed! As soon as this is received, they will fly him to Manila to do the VISA physical examination and interview. As long as Little C's examination doesn't bring up any illnesses, such as TB, then we will be good to go and called shortly after the VISA visit! Our approxi...

Friends & Family!!! We are one step closer to bringing home our Little C!!! Look what came in the mail today! This Notice of Action  means that immigration has cleared us to bring home Little C to the United States! The process to get this done was much more eventful than I would have liked it to be.  I've meant to write about it, but it was so frustrating and a downer that I never did.  Long story short - we didn't have all of the necessary paperwork from the Philippines, so the first letter I got from immigration made for a VERY SAD weekend. I thought I had done something wrong when sending in the paperwork! I was happy when I learned a couple days later that I had done everything correct, we were just still waiting for papers, and then out of the blue the papers showed up! They came without us contacting ICAB wondering where they were! But, of course, another hiccup, we were still missing one document. Ugh! The agony! So frustrating. But miraculously, th...

The day officially arrived - our son is now in Kindergarten! Caleb loved EVERY minute of his day! Lunch was beyond awesome (mozzarella dippers), PE was his favorite part, his teacher is Super nice, and he gets to have a math journal. Success! It is so much fun watching him not just grow, but truly blossom. He is a great kid - can drive his parents mad somedays! - but really is a great kid. He is spunky, witty, and genuine. My prayer for him is that he learns how to be selfless, giving, strong, polite, secure, hard-working, and just downright kind. All of these things can be so hard to learn and  maintain  while growing up, but fingers crossed, he at least learns them all and if he forgets here or there, he at least remembers them all once out of college and on his own!!! I too had my first day back at school. Maybe not as exciting as his, but I was happy to be back and making music with "my kids". It is my third year teaching music in this district and it is fun to...

One of the hardest things I have heard through our adoption journey is "there must be a reason why your child is not home yet...". I can't tell you how much I dislike hearing this comment. Truth be told, it makes me question my thoughts about God and how He conducts His works. I don't feel God really WANTS a child to sit in an orphanage for years. I don't feel God WANTS us to be uncertain when we will be able to raise our child. So, if I believe it is not what God would want, then why is it happening? Why the wait? Not just our wait, but for Little C... for all the orphans of our world. Why do they sit while our world demands paperwork, money, letters of recommendation, background checks, and so much more, so that they can come home YEARS LATER to a forever home?  These are questions that plague my heart and brain on a regular occurrence. Will I ever learn the answers - most likely not - but if I am ever allowed to ask a couple questions in the presence of th...

Here is the latest on our Little C.. Friday, we sent our immigration paperwork to the USCIS (United States Citizenship & Immigration Services). This paperwork is scheduled to take 4-6 weeks to process, although a friend of friend just got theirs done and it only took 2 weeks! So hopefully they are still moving at the same pace! Friday afternoon we received word that our Final Acceptance letter had been received by our agency and was being directly sent to the Philippines. Along with this letter we also sent a photo book for Little C. The book included pictures of us, our dog, the house, pictures of things we like to do, and pictures of WINTER! Poor kid will most likely becoming home around winter time... it will be quite the shock to the system I'm sure. Once immigration has processed our I-800 forms, we will give word to the Philippines that all is cleared on our end and then it is their turn to finish paperwork there. They will fly Little C to Manila where a passp...

Guess what!?!?... Yep, the ICAB board FINALLY met (two weeks after we were told they would).... And he is officially going to be ours!!! Our Little C is coming home!!!!! Woot! Woot! I will now try to answer any questions you may have (to the best of my knowledge!)... When did you find out?   I was called this morning during Caleb's swimming lessons. I saw there was a call from Portland and I didn't dare not answer - and then - for the first time in a while - I heard "I have good news!" - yey! Our socialworker got an email from the ICAB during the night which would have been during their Monday work day. How did you react?  Well, I didn't want to look like a mad woman!  ;)  But I did do a little crying and a lot of smiling. I then texted Jon right away since I knew he was in a meeting, and then I went and told Jon's parents as they happened to be watching swimming today as well! They were very excited too! After swimming I told Caleb a...

Ok folks, here is the new news on the street! First of all, I haven't written in awhile. There wasn't much to say, other than frustrating words, so I chose not to write. As many of you know, we had been waiting for the Philippines adoption board to review our paperwork to bring home Little C. We thought that this review would happen May 8th, but then were told it never happened and over two months later we still hadn't heard anything. This was so completely discouraging. I almost put thoughts of Little C "on hold" because I was so afraid that something was about to fall through. I became quite negative in this waiting period and started thinking the worst case scenario, instead of preparing and rejoicing for the upcoming events.  I kept myself busy with a community theater production and Jon has been very busy with his work, so I was able to keep everything on the backburner of my mind - but then the show ended, and I had way too much time on my hands to sit aro...

I've heard these words many times in the last couple weeks, "One Day More". I'm currently in a production of Les Miserables and these words have been sticking like leeches to my ears. If you have guessed yet - no we have not heard anything about Little C. Every day is one day more. One day not together.  But there are days to celebrate, and I would take many more like these.... A little boy and his blue bunny Last day of school.  He told me the rhyme to put on the paper. :) Soccer nights. Looks like his first time flirting even... Lol! Kicking one of his first goals!  Over the other teams goal line... But so proud of his accomplishment.  First Mohawk. First lost tooth (that fell out on its own).  My toothless wonder.  T-ball nights.  Kicking the dust.  Making sure it really is dust.  Getting his head in the game... But not looking at the hitter... Hmmm.... Batter up! Vacation Bible School. Celebrating God's love with my...

We've got ourselves a ticket folks! We raised almost exactly $1500!! That will help cover at least  one of our tickets to and from the Philippines. What a blessing!!!!!!!! A HUGE  thank you to all of our family and friends that donated items. This couldn't have happened without your donations! We had 58 items on the auction. FIFTY-EIGHT! Unbelievable. Thank you isn't enough. Another BIG thank you goes to all those who bid! Admittedly, I stayed up many nights looking and watching for new bids - it was all very exciting the whole week. We hope all of our final bidders are happy with their winnings!!! As far as when we will be purchasing these tickets - that is still very much unknown. Just got another call tonight from our caseworker at AGCI. She was able to contact our Philippines caseworker at the ICAB and was told that we were once again put to the side for another week. From what she gathers, there are several other cases that have been discussed at the board meet...

Thanks all for your birthday wishes yesterday! It was overall a pretty good day (some adoption woes...). I stayed busy with work, being Mom, and play practice; and among it all some fun highlights... *Jon and Caleb made me our family's traditional birthday muffins *Caleb made me the sweetest birthday drawings *Ronald McDonald (at our school for a presentation on respect) sang a birthday song to me to the tune of "Love Shack" when he learned my name was Mrs. Schack! Kids didn't get it, but I found it quite witty and amusing. *Got my costumes for "Les Miserables" and both fit really well! Always nice when you feel comfy in a costume. Now, trying to take a picture without smiling - that was not as much fun - I look so awkward!  :) *All the warm fuzzies I got through phone calls, texts, and Facebook  were really awesome! It's fun to hear so many well-wishes from family and friends. I'm loved! Yey! Unfortunately, among this all there wer...