3 Months Down...

... who knows how many to go! The CCAA is now predicting at least a 2 1/2 year wait, possibly up to 3 years, or more. Many rumors as to why, but the one I believe most is that they are trying to put on a good face for the world for the 2008 Olympics. They publish that 1/5 of adoptions are international and 4/5 are domestic, so I think they are trying to force the numbers to match the "ideal." Sucks to be us stuck in the PR machine.

So any ideas you have to pass the time, we are certainly open to them. The 100 wishes quilt is slowly progressing. I have about 25 squishes so far. Keep them coming!

We went to Siena's first birthday party last weekend. We took our nephew Ben with us, and he had a fantastic time. The picture is of him giving Siena a Happy Birthday kiss. How sweet!

We go to see Phantom of the Opera tomorrow at the Kennedy Center. I am so excited!

Hope all is well in your neck of the woods!
:D

Welcome, Miss Belle!

I was fortunate enough to be in the delivery room as my sister and her husband welcomed Isabelle Marie into the world today! She made her debut at 10:33 AM, and weighed in at 7 lbs 12 oz, and was 19 inches long. Mom and baby are doing great!

Now let's hope that we get Ladybug soon so she and Belle can be best of friends! We hope to hear sometime this week from the director of our agency about the meeting that she had with CCAA officials last weekend. We hope one of the topics of discussion was realistic wait times and what is being done to shorten them.

Keep you posted!
:D

Thank You, Becky!

This GORGEOUS quilt was made for Ladybug by my friend Becky. The dedication on the back of the quilt says: "For Ladybug ~ When your wings have carried you home." Isn't that the best?! I hope you can see all the different ladybug fabrics she found. How blessed am I with such talented, caring friends?!

I am still collecting squishes for the 100 Wish Quilt. Thank you to all who have sent their squish already. There is still plenty of time to send one in if you have not already.

We finally got some good news this month - the USCIS (Immigration) has made a ruling that those who have to renew their I-171H (Permission to adopt an orphan from overseas) after 7/30/07 can do so free of charge! This is a $600 fee that will be waived! YEA! Let's just hope that we only have to renew it once and not twice! (It is good for 18 months, and we got ours in January 2007.)

Well, I hope to continue to share good news with you! Hope all is well in your neck of the woods!
:D