CIS Fingerprints done...

Shad and I finally made it to Buffalo to have our fingerprints done today!! Yeah!! Seemed like everytime we tried to get there something came up. I picked him up from work after I got the boys off to school and away we went. We were in and out in about 20 minutes or so, maybe not even. We both were craving Indian food so we figured we'd celebrate the next step of the process and went to lunch at The India Gate. We are sloooowly making progress. But... we are still waiting for our homestudy. So... we wait some more!

Cooper is 7 !!!!

My darling baby boy is now 7. March 26, 2001 at 4:18 pm my chubby little 9 lb 1 oz Cooper brightened my world. He is the heartbreaker of the family and a true "mama's boy". I feel bad because he wanted to go to Darien Lake so bad for his birthday but it's not open yet. The Easter Bunny brought season passes to Darien Lake this year so he thought we could use them now. Not to mention Cooper's day started out crappy because he thought that Shad forgot his birthday. This is because he didn't wake him up before he went to work (mind you, Shad goes to work at 5 am, sometimes earlier). Needless to say, he was kinda cross all morning to everyone. We went to Applebee's for dinner to celebrate and he got his presents when we got home. He got a DS game, PJ's, a treasure hunt book and a new bike! He's been riding a two wheeler since he was 2 and always got the hand-me-downs. Now the hand-me-downs are extra in case a friend comes over or something :). Coop's day turned around when Shad surprised him and was home from work when he got off the bus.

No, it's not a mistake! You are not misreading. Austin's birthday was on Tuesday and Cooper's was Wednesday. What were we thinking...

March is a crazy month for our family...............

one more birthday wish goes out today to my cousin Wendy's little girl............

Happy 6th Birthday Alyssa Joy Schultz!!!

So, that's Alana and Aliya on the 18th, Easter on the 23rd, Austin on the 25th, Coop on the 26th, and Alyssa on the 27th. We've had a busy week... a little breather and then we do it all over again in August!!! Hahahahahaha!!!! Can't wait!!!

Austin is 11!!!!!!

March 25, 1997 at 7:10 pm I held Austin for the first time!! It's so hard to believe that he is 11 already. Where does the time go?! I am so proud to be his mom!! My mom took him to lunch a couple of weeks ago and the waitress commented on how kind and polite he was. "No thank you, mam." "Yes, please, if it's not too much trouble." She told my mom that she could tell that he was going to make someone a nice husband someday because of how he treats others now. Awww... that was so sweet!!

He's never been that hard to please. He's pretty laid back and easy going for the most part. Everytime we go to the mall he wants to get a cookie from the Cookie Co. so this year, I dropped the boys off at school and scooted off to the mall to get him the cookie of all cookies (and a few other things of course!)!! Can you believe the balloon is from Valentine's Day?! Needless to say he was estatic with all of his gifts this year.

Austin: "Oh, my gosh! You drove 2 hours just to get me a cookie?"

Me: "Yes, yes, I did. Why is that so hard to believe?"

Austin: "Wow! You're awesome! Thanks!"

Me: "Mom's do crazy things when they love their children."

Austin: "2 hours for a cookie?! Wow!" (Still not knowing what to think)

Some time goes by... we eat some cookie and laugh, he opens his gifts from us...PSP game, book, and a GAP box...

Austin: "Hey, mom, isn't GAP in the mall?" (with a devilish look)

OK, OK... so I didn't go just for a cookie... how nutty do you think I am... don't answer that!!! You all know I'm a push over when it comes to my kids!!

He still thinks I'm cool though and that's all that matters!!!

Not much is new with the adoption. I spoke to our Social Worker today and she still is not done with our homestudy!!! It's taking way longer than I had expected it to. Passports are here and we're having our fingerprints done (hopefully) on Monday. It depends on Shad's work schedule. By the way, did I mention I found another gray hair?! A little humor helps keep me sane!! I think anyways!!! Hahahahahaha!!!!!!

If you get a minute check out http://www.glenncolton.com/ . Glenn Colton travels around to schools and puts on a fun family concert for Pre-school trough 6th graders. He comes to our school every year and the kids really get a kick out of him. He's a little on the goofy side, but a hoot!

Two of our nieces share a birthday. Happy Birthday girls!! Alana (my sister's little one) and Aliya (Shad's brother's little girl) both turned 3 on March 18th.

Home Study is done!!!

...and on we go!! Our final home study visit was completed today!! YEAH!!!! Our social worker thought that she would have it to us by the end of next week. Next step, the Dossier!! Things seem to be moving rather quickly for us, I think. The hard part is going to be the wait for a referral. We received notice earlier this week from Dillon, that they've increased their wait times to 18-24 months for a referral. I was prepared for the 12 month wait time that was estimated when we started but the new wait time put a stab right into my heart!! I have to believe that God will bless us sooner than that! I'm going to stay positive! Our social worker assured us that these increased wait times are happening across the board. Please pray that things go smoothly for us and that we don't have to wait very long for a referral.

Homestudy postponed... :(

Our homestudy visit has been postponed until March 7. Our social worker facilitates domestic adoptions and a birthmother went into labor. Good news for this little miracles new family, but frustrating for us. I was hoping she would schedule us sooner than she did, but there must be a reason. In the mean time we are collecting as many of the documents that we can for our dossier while we wait.

Weekend in Philly!

We had such a great time in Philly 2 years ago that we went to Philly again this past weekend to see George Strait. The boys stayed between my sister's and my mom's. They couldn't make up their minds who they wanted to stay with so they decided to stay with both :). I am so lucky to have all of my family around!!! Any who... we decided before we ever left that we wanted to find an Indian Restaurant so I could try the food. Shad already knew that he loved it as his college roommate was from India and his parents were always sending stuff. We found one called "KARMA". Oh my goodness... the food was amazing! They had a buffet and I tried everything on it! There were a couple of things that didn't appeal to me but the lamb and butter chicken... mmm mmm good!! The price was great. The food was amazing. We will definately being going back!! It's kind of funny, we've been to Philly twice now and have not had a REAL Philly cheesesteak. Everyone we talked to said we had to get to Pat's or Gino's because that's where you go when you come to Philly. Maybe next time! We saw the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall the last time we went, so we skipped that this time. I love the zoo, so we ventured out to the Philly Zoo. I didn't realize that it was the first zoo in the US. I was surprised to see so many people there for a February afternoon. The concert was a blast on Saturday night. Sarah John and Little Big Town opened for George Strait. I've included a video from the concert of George's new song - "I Saw God Today". We plan to take the kids to Philly the next time we go. There is so much to do and see.

APP 2 APPROVED!!!!!

Just got off the phone with Katie at Dillon. App 2 has been approved!!! On we go... homestudy is scheduled for this Thursday. We've been mailing everything to Family Connections throughout the process. We were just waiting for Dillon before we scheduled or "in home" visit. This works out great because the kids have school off all this week for winter break. I'm so excited!!!!!

APP 2 has been mailed!! YEAH!!!!

Finally, App 2 has been mailed to Dillon. Physicals and references are in and we've contacted our home study agency to schedule an appointment. Little by little the house is showing progress with drywall dust everywhere :). One step at a time, I guess.

Still plugging away...

Wow!!! So much paperwork! Not much is new with the adoption. We are just waiting for our physicals so we can send App 2 in. Our homestudy agency has been approved through Dillon, so that's one less thing to worry about. As soon as we get the go ahead we can get moving on our homestudy. We had a bit of an emotional streak trying to figure out who the children's guardians would be if something were to happen to us. It's a topic that we've discussed in the past but always wound up avoiding. We prayed and eventually our hearts led us in the right direction. :) On a "fun" note...we decided that since we are redecorating a bedroom for Malina, it's only fair that the boys get bedroom make-overs as well. YEAH!! I love to decorate!! So... needless to say, they are thrilled.
A big THANK YOU to all of our friends and family for your continued support.