Weekend days...

First of all, a huge congrats to my friends, Sue, and Blake, for receiving their travel call to go pick up their son!!!!! They will be home before long and they will finally be a family of three...or four, can't forget Sage, their dog! Please keep them all in your thoughts and prayers as they go through this huge transition in their lives. This also makes me long to be at this part in the process as well; I can just hope that these months pass quickly for us and smoothly for our paperwork so that we can finally be mama and papa.
Two weekends ago, we drove to Ohio for my big sister's engagement party. It was sooooo much fun getting the entire family together and celebrating Brenda and Nathan. They were both very surprised by a scrapbook we put together for them; the whole family did a page or two about them, their courtship, their engagement, etc. She did the same for both me and my little sister when we got married and what a treasure!! I have NO PICTURES of that weekend because guess who forgot her camera?!?! Yep, ME! I couldn't believe it when we got to Brenda's place and I just then realized I didn't have it with me. Aaagghhh!! So hopefully I get some sent to me that I can put on here.
Even though I was not at work that weekend, I got to put my nursing skills to work on my nephew; he ran into a table edge at the restaurant with his forehead and had a little gash in it. His mom, my little sister, I think wanted to cry along with him. Trying to put butterfly bandaids on his forehead really did not work; the way he wrinkles up his forehead (so cute) is a real detriment trying to keep that type of bandaid on. So we just slapped a regular 'ol bandaid on it..which worked. They said it looks like it's healing well now. Poor Caleb!

This picture is a few weeks before the head ordeal...he's our class of 2030 from Notre Dame!
This past weekend finally felt like spring. It was overcast on Saturday, but the rain held off...yeah! I ran some errands and then got to spend some time at Jo-Ann Fabrics where I purchased the material I need to make the world quilt for our baby. My mom gave me the two big pieces of material, one with the world on it and the other with the USA. We are going to *try* to put this together in two weeks when she comes to visit while Chris is in Belize with his class. I will get some pictures up of the process, but it will probably depend on how smoothly it goes! :)


On Sunday, Chris and I pulled out our pop-up camper and got it ready to go for the summer. It is now parked in its spot in the garage, which takes precedence over either one of our vehicles! We are so looking forward to going up to our land in the UP of Michigan and spend some time there to make this wait for our child go faster. We now have electricity up there, so I won't have to worry about wearing out flashlight batteries reading at night!! Anybody wanting to come spend time with us there is more than welcome; we'd love to show off our little piece of paradise to you!

Happy days...

So much exciting news lately! There have been 4 referrals...yes, FOUR...in the past 10 days! I'm sure those families are so excited to get pictures and information on their new family additions. This also means that everyone else who is waiting on the list moves that much closer to receiving their own referrals and getting to feel the overwhelming joy, excitement, and exultation of finally knowing that we will be parents!! Congratulations to my "waiting buddies"!
I am now also 1/4 of the way to my goal of 100 squishes! Between seeing Chris' family two weekends ago and my family this past weekend, we are now up to 25 squishes in hand!!! I do have pictures of them all up on the website, so watch the slide show and enjoy. I don't plan on starting to put this project together for a few more months, so there is still plenty of time for more squishes to come in (hint, hint). :)
A project I *will* be working on, with my mom as she can't wait to do something with me for the baby (yeah!), is a smaller crib quilt. This will (hopefully) prepare me to do the wish quilt without many problems. (fingers crossed) Mom bought the material; one has a map of the world on it and the other has the United States. We are going to be placing them back to back, so then our child can see where they were born and where they live now. They're both very colorful, done in primary colors, and it will look so good once it's done! I will definitely put a picture on here once it's complete.
Here's to more referrals coming in quickly! And travel calls for those waiting to go pick up their children!!

Made with Love

Thanks, Great-grandpa!!
Chris and I went to visit his family this weekend and were surprised by his grandparents with a gift for the baby...his grandfather, who is 88, made this amazing wagon for our child! It's great!! We can't wait to paint it and get some toys to put in it for the baby. (Grandma told us that he put some other business off in order to have this finished for us this weekend.) This really means a lot to both of us and we can't thank them enough for this priceless gift!



Saturday was a beautiful day, sunny and warm and almost no wind. Has spring finally arrived?! Yep, 'cause today it rained!

Gobble, Gobble!

I know, I know, it's Easter, not Thanksgiving! But it WAS turkey-hunting season this past weekend and Chris got one...yeah!!! I don't know why, but the man loves to sit out in not-so-good weather, "calling" to those birds so they will come to him. Well, I guess he loves it when he gets one; not so much when he doesn't! No picture, though :( even though I sent the camera with him for that purpose.
We have received a few more squishes and I will hopefully be getting the pictures up on the slideshow here in the next day or two. Thank you so much to those who have given us squishes and also to those that I know are coming. They are so adorable and thoughtful...and I can't wait to have them all so I can start working on putting the quilt together. I need something to do to pass this time when we have no paperwork to do and are just waiting!
Other good news is that some online friends of ours who are waiting for their children from Korea are moving forward in the process and getting soooo close to having their little ones in their arms finally! We are all hoping that this week brings a lot of good news: visa interviews, travel calls, and referrals. Our social worker is (hopefully) finishing up our home study and it will be off to DCFS and Immigration Services soon! Keep those prayers coming.
Happy late Easter greetings to all!

Here are a few more quilt squares that we got from my younger sister, Becky, and her family.  They are soooo cute; I've especially had quite a few comments on the one from my nephew to his new cousin!

It's hard to believe that some day, Chris and I will be wrapping our child in a quilt made from these squares.  The wait is going to be so hard, so we're hoping to keep busy with work, doing projects around the house, going camping, and getting ready to bring a child into our lives.  Hopefully, you will all join us on our journey.

I surprised Chris yesterday with a massage at a local spa while I got a pedicure.  He said he really enjoyed it and actually looked like he was going to fall asleep afterwards while he was waiting for me!  :)  And I am now officially ready for spring to get here since my nails are done in "Conga-line Coral"!  No more snow...I need to show these babies off!!!

We'll keep updating this blog so you can all follow along with our adoption story.  Today will be our home visit with the Social Worker and then we should be "paper-ready" once she gets her report completed.  That means that they can call us with a referral at any time! (although it will likely be months before we hear anything :( )  Praying that this time goes quickly. :)

Our girls!!

These are our "babies"!!  Lexi is our 18-month-old beagle; loves to lay on the heat vent in the morning after being outside...she likes being a hot dog!  And, of course, I have to cover her up to make sure she gets all the heat she can. :)

Then, there's our first dog together, Jinx, an Airedale.  We can't believe she just turned 6 years old!!  What a big girl.  She is usually our laid-back one, unless we have visitors and then she thinks she's a puppy and allowed to jump on her new friends.  These pictures are kind of misleading since they don't usually lay around...only when we're lucky!

How sweet they look!!

100 Good Wishes Quilt

For those who do not know yet, Chris and I are in the process of adopting a baby from South Korea.  We have just begun our journey, but are already anxious and ready to have him or her in our arms!  We hope you all continue to check back here, as I will try to keep this blog updated.  Keep reading for a project I hope you will all help us out with!!

Here is the first square we have received for our baby's quilt!!  Our friends, Sue and Blake, who are adopting a little boy, Cohen, from South Korea gave us this square.  It is the same fabric that they chose for Cohen's quilt.  Here are the details if you would like to participate and share in this wonderful gift we will make for our child:

100 Good Wishes Quilt

A 100 good wishes quilt, or Bai Jia Bei, is a tradition that comes from the northern part of China.  The quilts are made to welcome and celebrate a new life.  We have decided to make one for our baby.  I am really excited about this project and seeing the completed quilt with all the good wishes!  I will continue to update on this project as it progresses.  I know it will be a lot of hard work, but I know it will be worth it.  The fun part is that our friends and family get to participate!!

If you would like to participate (and we hope you do), here is what you need to do:

1. Choose any 100% cotton fabric that you like and that has meaning to you.  (100% cotton is best as it washes and wears well),

2. Cut a 10" x 10" square of fabric that will be made into the quilt

3. On card stock card (up to 8 1/2 x 11"), glue (archival safe please) a small swatch of the fabric and include your "good wish note."  If you don't have archival glue, send your card and wish unassembled and I'll put it together for you.  Your good wish can be a poem, a favorite quote or saying, bible verse, advice, etc.  Please also include your name, city, and state.  

The first piece of fabric will be used to make the quilt and the swatch and good wish will be incorporated into a special memory book for our child.

If you have any questions, please email me or leave a comment.  Thank you for taking part in this fun and special project for our baby!!!