Happy Blogger-versary to me

Wow! It's been a year since I started my blog. Time has passed very quickly. I read my posts over the past year and I realized how much we've accomplished. How much work got done. How blessed I am.
I have been keeping an old fashioned pen and paper journal since Sept. 2005. When I realized that's been 16 months, which is what wait time for referrals is now, I really realized how quickly time passes! WOW!
My heart felt prayer is that the wait time, at the very least, will stabilize where it is now and will not increase any more. If I know how long we have to wait, I can handle that. If they double or triple again, I honestly don't know what I'll do. Actually, I do know what I'll do.....I'll wait. That's what I have to do to bring Lili home. end of story. BUT!! It would really be nice if I didn't have to wait 2 years---just thought I'd put that out there :)

Obviously the world is coming to an end!!

HOLY GUACAMOLE!!!!
3 reasons to love Superbowl XLI:
1) Colts
2) Bears
3) Prince
That's right, all my favorite fellas all in one place--all for me (OK, I'm sure others will appreciate it, but not as much as ME!!)
I am DYING with anticipation!! I will not sleep for the next 2 weeks, and at least the next 2 days after that!
Sadly, we are a house divided.
My hubby is a Colts fan, I am a Bears fan. Although, each of our second teams are the other's first team, so really everyone wins! And I really would like to see Peyton FINALLY get a ring. And, seriously, does Rex really deserve one?
And DO NOT even get me started on PRINCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I will not leave me seat for the entire game. Now I can't even pee.
I am going to be such a screaming freak! I'm scaring myself just anticipating it!
I AM SOOOO EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!
Go Bears!!
(go Colts!)
Go Prince!!
:) :) :) :) :) :)

January--Month #4

January 13th was our 4 month "LID-versary". We ate Chinese food and talked about when we think Lili will be born. None of us thinks she has been born yet. Maybe not even conceived yet. I guess our line of thinking directly relates to the wait time for referral. If it was only taking 6 months to referral, we'd KNOW she's been born. Even if it was 12 months to referral, we'd be able to figure that she's been born or will be maybe this month. With the tentative wait time for us around 20-25 months, her parents may not even know each other yet!!! Not that it matters to us. She's alive in our hearts and that's what counts for us. No matter who she really, physically is, she's our Lili. We know that, and that's what's keeping us going. She does exist and we love her. We just have to keep waiting and one day we'll see her picture, hold her and get to know her. We cannot wait.

Lilibug, Lilibug, Fly Away Home

I KNOW I have PLENTY of time to get Lili's room done. But, I love to decorate and scrapbook, so I combined the 2 and tah-dah! I had the frames and didn't know what to do with them and I had this scrapbook paper that I loved and didn't know what do with with it--too pretty to get lost on a page.
It didn't take that long to do and I don't have a place to hang them yet, but SOMEDAY (very soon---right?!) they'll be up on Lili's wall.
We're thinking that we'll start work on her room by this summer. I'll be sure to post pics as we go along. I have SOOOOO many ideas in my head and SOOOOOO many things in boxes in her room---I can't wait!!
By the way, the Rumor Queen did another analysis/prognosis that included our LID. It's way more encouraging than what I've been hearing recently, so I'd love to be able to believe it. As soon as next May (2008) we could be getting our referral, IF the CCAA speeds up. Then, of course, that would mean travel would be right around the time of the Olympics, so we'd probably be delayed traveling, so........
Whatever. I'll take whatever God has in store for me.

"For the love of all that is sane and just in this world......"

Lola (above) would really like Lili to come home.......soon. If not, she fears that I will take out all my pretty little girly clothes angst on her.
Even though she looks so pretty in clothes, she would much prefer to run around naked and free like some kind of------DOG! (gasp)
So, China, to know Lola is to love Lola, so help a girl out. Bring Lili home soon.

Happy 2007

Another year has come and gone. wow. As I just sit and wait everyday I tend to forget how quickly time passes. Especially when you have kids. Unreal.
10 years ago I was pregnant with my son, we were living in North Carolina and I was in my mid-twenties.
Now, our son is 9 1/2, we're living back where we started from and I'm 10 years past my mid-twenties! (you can do the math!)
I remember like it was yesterday suffering with morning-noon-and night sickness, waiting IMPATIENTLY for the birth of my first baby, being so happy that we were in a place where it was 70 degrees in January......unreal. Where has the time gone? I just wanted so badly for my baby to be born.
The more things change, the more they stay the same......I'm still waiting, not for my baby to be born (although maybe that's the case), but for my baby to come home. If only I had to wait 9 months! I thought pregnancy was hard!!
I'm trying to wrap my mind and my heart around the fact that it may be 2 OR 3 MORE YEARS before we bring our daughter home. I just can't do it. I guess I'm in self-preservation mode. I can't let myself believe that it will take that long. I just can't.
Now, I have faith in God. I have faith that He can move mountains, work miracles and that prayer changes things. My faith is not as strong as it could/should be, but I'm working on it.
Not a day goes by, not a silent minute goes by without me praying for things to change in China. I pray that God would work miracles in our adoption. I know He knows what's in my heart. I know He listens to me when I pray. I KNOW that. And I think that's the thing that's keeping me going right now. I don't have control over anything. period. The ONLY thing that I can really do is trust in God and pray without ceasing. I'm a control FREAK and this whole "knowing that I don't have any control"-thing is really hard for me. But I do have control over prayer and how I handle things. So, I'll take what I can get. I will pray everyday and I will try my hardest not to give up on God, because He won't give up on me.
I just pray with all my heart that 2007 will be a better year for all of us (babies and parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents and aunts, uncles and cousins) who are waiting. Waiting with hope.