FAITH for Maggie

2009-09-17T11:06:00.001-05:00

New video at bringhomeeli.blogspot.com

Eli is here!

2009-08-25T06:25:00.001-05:00

Check out Eli on his blog: bringhomeeli.blogspot.com

Moving blogs!

2009-08-09T11:44:00.002-05:00

Hey all! We are changing blogs for Eli. Eli's blog address is: bringhomeeli.blogspot.com

We are heading to the city Wednesday after school to stay in a hotel near the airport. Our plane leaves at 7:10 a.m. Thursday morning! We can't wait! We will try very hard to keep Eli's blog updated while we are on our trip. It may be hard sometimes with slow internet connections and no electricity every other day!! :0 Please pray for us!

July update on Eli!!!

2009-07-30T14:26:00.003-05:00

We got our July update on Eli today! The closer it gets to going to get him, the more I ache to hold him. We think he's just beautiful. They said that he is 62 cm long (I think that is around 24 inches. I'll need to check my math!) and weighs 12 lbs. He's a little guy, for 5 months old. He looks healthy though. They reported that he is a happy, content, and quiet baby who hardly ever cries. He drinks 7 - 5oz bottles a day, with 2 of the feedings in the night. Those night feedings will be an adjustment! :) They report that his development is good. It looks like his chicken pox are getting better. We just can't wait to have him in our arms!! Only 2 more weeks until we head that way!!

We Passed Court!!!!!

2009-07-27T08:31:00.006-05:00

Introducing Elijah James Yabetse Corderman!!!!
He is officially ours!!!
For this child I prayed. I Samuel 1:27
3 months old - referral pictures

4 1/2 months - poor little guy had chicken pox, but doesn't he look healthy and happy!!

Prayers needed!!

2009-07-23T16:35:00.003-05:00

We are so in prayer that MOWA (Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs) in Ethiopia will reopen as planned tomorrow. Ethiopia is 8 hours ahead of us, so possibly while we are sleeping tonight, they could be writing our letter of recommendation. This letter is what is needed in order for us to pass court on Monday. We are hoping to get mass prayers going!! :) Our hearts yearn more everyday to get to our son. Please help us to pray our baby home!! Thank you!

Colorado Trip 2009

2009-07-14T10:57:00.025-05:00

This was a gorgeous double rainbow after a short shower one day. I took the picture from our campsite looking at mom and dad's campsite.

A dew dotted wildflower

This butterfly was in a mound with about 4 or 5 others like it. It was beautiful!

We had a super time in Colorado! It was so nice to get away from everything. We needed a break from the computer, TV, news, etc.

There were many of these little fellows around our campsite. We kept them fed with bread. We went on many 4 wheel drive excursions this year and was lucky enough to see a bear on one of them!

We stayed at this location (in our camper though) the night before we left for home. We always dry camp when we're in Colorado which means we don't have electricity, we have to haul water, and we have to dump our septic on the way home at an RV dump site. We decided this year, to stay at a place that had electricity, water and dump hookups on the night before we left. We thought since we were going to have a late night watching the fireworks in the mountains, that it would be easier on us. It was, and it saved us time on our way home the next morning because we didn't have to dump!

4th of July parade in Creede.........What a blast!

I took a lot of scenery and flower pictures this year. The wildflowers were extra beautiful and plentiful this year because of all the rain Colorado's gotten.

Baylee and I continued our tradition of rock painting this year!

We went on several hikes this year too! This was the hike that I fell on a rock on a mountain side! Wow! It bruised and knotted my leg nicely! Guess I need to quit being so cocky trying to run up the mountain!

Brian acted like he was going to dive right in!

This is Crystal Lake where we hiked to! It was beautiful!

This is North Clear Creek Falls near where we camp.

Baylee and I in the camper.

Engineers Pass..........very high..........Baylee was scared the whole drive up! She covered her head half the time!

New Court Date!

2009-07-09T12:00:00.002-05:00

We have a new court date on July 27th. Our agency is very hopeful that we will pass this time. MOWA (Ministry of Women and Childrens Affairs) will open again on July 24th and they feel that they will have our letter of recommendation ready for court on the 27th. Oh please join us in prayer that we will pass this time so that we can go get our sweet baby boy. Adoption is such an emotional roller coaster!!!

Not yet

2009-07-07T13:27:00.002-05:00

We did not pass court today. They were missing 1 document on our baby's end. It will be at least a few more weeks before we know anything. So sad, but yet rejoicing in the knowledge that he is ours and God will not let him stay in Ehiopia one day longer than he is supposed to. I know he has a nanny that takes good care of him........I just long for it to be me.

JULY 7TH COURT DATE!!!!!!!!!!

2009-06-24T14:00:00.002-05:00

Yeah! We received word today that our court date is July 7th! We are beyond thrilled!! Please join us in prayer that we will pass the first time so that we can possibly travel to get Eli by the end of July!

Chef Baylee and the Dogs!

2009-06-19T13:38:00.011-05:00

Baylee took a cooking class this summer, so she has sure been into cooking. She has made us lasagna and garlic bread for supper, as well as 2 different kinds of cookies! Yeah! Keep it up Baylee!

The cookie monster in my life!

Annie girl..........the onriest dog in the county!

Sweet Ariel.........doesn't she look like those big nosed stuffed dogs you can get?

Oh happy Missy...........If she could talk, I know she would be saying I love you, love you, love you, thank you for giving me a home!!

Complicated Babe.........She loves us so much, but you always wonder what's going on in her head!

Louie and Gracie pics to come later! Baylee loves volleyball and Annie would love to play with her!!

Brian's and Baylee's garden

Time with family!

2009-06-19T13:29:00.004-05:00

Daddy Mom and Aunt Trish

Aunt Trish and Uncle Larry

Taking it all in!

2009-06-14T10:06:00.004-05:00

Well, it has been 3 days since we first laid eyes on our precious Elijah. I can't stop staring at his beautiful baby face! The longing for him is intensifying every moment. It has been a long and winding road for Brian, Baylee and I to grow our family. But let me tell you, looking at our little guy, it is well worth the wait! I just finished reading this awesome book called "Wild Goose Chase". It came highly recommended by both a fellow blogger, and our pastor. It is about pursuing God and how sometimes it seems he's leading us on a wild goose chase! This is so true, but it's really how we grow as Christians on the chase. Here are a few excerpts from this awesome book:

"Getting where God wants me to go, isn't nearly as important as becoming who God wants me to be." I love that part! It's so true. I look back at our 8 year quest to become parents again and it's amazing how much I have grown in my faith and patience. Don't get me wrong........I still have a long ways to go in my walk with God, but I feel stronger and more at peace than ever before. It is pretty freeing and a relief to let go and know that God is in control. I know that I will continue to try to control things at times. That's in our human nature, but I think I am more quick to realize when I am doing that now.

This part of the story, I read the day before we received our "CALL" :
"Divine Delays - The longer the wait, the more you appreciate. We take for granted things we don't have to work for or wait for.
Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is just hang in there. Unfulfilled dreams are downright depressing, but nothing builds emotional and spiritual endurance like divine delays."

Wow! I recommend this book. It spoke to me!

Many have asked what's next. When will we get to go pick up Eli? Well, here goes another divine delay!! We have to wait for a court date. Hopefully, that will be next month. If we pass through court, then we travel 2-4 weeks later! We pray that we will pass through court the 1st time. 40% of families don't. We hope to be in the 60%! Please pray specifically for a quick and successful court date! We will keep you posted when we find out our court date. Once we pass through court, we can share pictures of Elijah on the blog, until then keep us in your prayers.

We have a baby boy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-06-11T12:54:00.002-05:00

We received our referral for an absolutely beautiful baby boy today! He is 3 months old and just amazing! We can't wait to hold him in our arms and love all over him!!!!! Praise God for this miracle!!!

Soooo Close, but yet it seems so far away!

2009-06-09T21:31:00.002-05:00

Baylee and I are going bonkers I believe, waiting for the CALL! I never dreamed being in the number 1 slot would be so nerve wracking! I almost wish school was still going so that I would have more to occupy my time! We are trying to not think too hard about it, but we just can't seem to help it! Brian is way better at this kind of thing. He never frets about much at all! Today I took my mom-in-law to the eye dr., ran a couple of errands, and then did some craft projects. Tomorrow I need to clean the house, focusing mostly on our back(family) room. It constantly needs attention. On Thursday I will take Baylee to golf lessons, run some more errands, get Baylee's haircut, and then I am going to school to get all my books to bring home. I am trying to get more organized at school. I am going to try to implement a new classroom library plan. I am going to code my 100's of books with sticker dots according to author's first letter of the last name. This should take quite a bit of time! Yeah! See, I am trying to stay busy and productive. I have already cleaned out closets, the frig, the garage, planted tons of flowers, among other things, but I still have quite a lot of idle time. I know that in less than 2 short months, school will be back in session, hopefully things will be progressing with the adoption, and I will miss these days of idle time! I really do enjoy my summers, because with school, things are always busy, but right now these lazy days of summer are just the thing to give my mind too much of an opening to think about ............that CAAAAALLLLLL!! Just think, next summer I won't have any time to think, because I will be chasing a little one again! Oh, I can't wait! Please pray for us!

Jason's wedding!

2009-06-02T18:32:00.008-05:00

Brian's nephew got married a couple of weeks ago. It's hard to believe! He and his new little wife will be graduating soon with teaching degrees.

9 months

2009-05-30T13:16:00.003-05:00

Well, no referral news yet! The investigation in Ethiopia is still ongoing which is probably playing a role in the slowdown. April was such a big month of referrals and successful court dates, but May has been just the opposite. There was a referral yesterday........the day that marked exactly 9 months since we officially began the WAIT. It went to another couple with our same DTE date: 8/29/08. This is pretty exciting! It means that we and another couple are tied for number 1 in line for a little boy! Our agency numbers the dossiers as they come into their office, though we have no idea who exactly is next between us, but I hope we get our referral the same day along with many others! We so want to beat the court closures, but each day that goes on without our referral slims our chances even more. We pray for our referral soon along with successful court dates for all those with court dates scheduled and those of us yet to be! It is all in God's timing.............haven't I said that many times before?? I know it to be true, as hard as it is to accept sometimes and understand. One day we will hold that baby in our arms and oh what a glorious day it will be!

Still waiting.......................!

2009-05-17T14:07:00.002-05:00

Yes, we are still waiting!! :( They did say within 1 to 2 months! I am the eternal optimist, so all I heard was the "within the 1" part!!!! Oh well, it will be soon though, I can feel it!

We walk by faith, not by sight!

We have been praying for a situation that has arisen in Ethiopia regarding adoptions. They are suspecting some corruption in abandonment issues and are doing an investigation which in turn is holding some adoptions up. We are so thankful they are protecting their children like this, and we pray for a swift correction to this situation. We pray for all families in the middle of it. We suspect this may be holding some of our referrals up as well. We keep going back to the knowledge that it is all in God's timing. It will happen when it is supposed to!

All else is going well. This is the last week of school for Baylee and I. We are happy for summer, but it's always hard to end a chapter of your life. We have a lot of changes coming up this year! Brian and I are turning 40 (yuk), Baylee is going to middle school (yuk), we are traveling to another country halfway across the world (exciting and scary), and we are becoming parents again (at 40!!)(exciting, scary, wonderful)! Life is like a rollercoaster..........you just got to enjoy the ride! One of my favorite sayings (my mom's too) is "Happiness is journey, not a destination."

Hopefully, the next time I post will be with REFERRAL NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Update!

2009-04-16T18:36:00.003-05:00

We got our "on deck" email today from our adoption agency! This email basically states that our referral will be soon! We are now in the top 10 waiting for referrals! There are 4 families, that we know of, ahead of us in line for a baby boy. It is so hard to believe that this is really happening! We have been in the China line so long that it seems unreal that Africa is so fast! Our paperwork was just submitted August 29th. So hopefully within the next 1 to 2 months, we will get our call that we have a baby boy! I'm busy right now contacting our social worker about a homestudy update, getting background checks again, getting travel vaccinations, filing to renew fingerprints, and renewing our I-171H(government approval for a foreign adoption)!! Waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting, and then BAM, it hits you all at once!!! I am glad that I have school to teach because it keeps me too busy to fret over the phone waiting for "THE CALL"! I, normally don't keep my phone with me or even charged up, but lately I have been keeping it charged and close by! Say a prayer that we will get that CALL soon and that we will have a successful court date so that we can beat court closures!

7 months DTE!

2009-03-29T18:17:00.014-05:00

Baylee ............all ready for the Spring Band Concert! She did so well! Some days I feel like this monkey while we are waiting for our referral! Ho hum! Is it ever going to happen! We are getting closer though!!!! AWAA (our adoption agency) has had an incredible month with over 20 referrals and lots of successful court days! Yeah! Keep it rolling! There is a big group of us praying a lot and we can definitely feel God's movement! There are currently 7 people ahead of our DTE group (place in line) that are waiting for boys or either. There might be mystery families that we don't know about, but that is sure getting close enough to get excited! We are currently #2 or 3 for a toddler boy though, so if any older babies come into the orphanage...........well wow!

Baylee and I, with some friends and our church group, went to the Wichita Zoo over Spring Break! It was cool and very windy, but we had a great time!

Baylee went to an opposites birthday party. The boys dressed like girls and the girls dressed like boys. It was quite hilarious! Baylee is the one in the blue jersey and OU hat.

We met my parents at a place on Route 66 called Pops. It was pretty cool! We had a great burger and of course a pop!

6 months DTE!

2009-03-01T11:30:00.004-06:00

Well, we have officially been in the waiting line for Eli for 6 months now. Things are not quite as fast as they were in the beginning, but still going pretty quickly and smoothly. We have about 26 families ahead of us and they are referring about 10 children a month. This means if they continue to do what they are currently doing, then we will get our referral in May or June. Court is usually scheduled 2 to 3 months after your referral. Court is where the child is declared legally yours. After you have a successful court date, you travel within a couple weeks. If we get a referral in May, we might squeeze in to a court day before court closures which usually occur in August and September. This means we would travel to pick up Eli this summer, but there is a big possibility that we will not make it before the courts close and would have to wait to travel in the fall. Of course I am trying to be optimistic! The court system closes for energy saving reasons. It is hard to believe. Aren't you glad to live in America? Say a prayer that we make it before the courts close! Our China adoption is still moving, just very, very slowly! There is a Christian rock song out that is so my personal anthem on this long adoption journey. Here are some of the words:
Sometimes it's hard to just keep going
But faith is moving without knowing
Can I trust what I can't see to reach my destiny
I want to take control, but I know better

Forget that fear is just a crutch that tries to turn your dreams to dust All you got to do is just TRUST

God I want to dream again, take me where I've never been I want to go there, this time I'm not scared Now I am unbreakable, it's unmistakable

All else is great! The school year is flying by, much too fast! My baby has only a couple more months of her elementary school career. She is doing so well! I am so very proud of that special little girl. What a huge blessing God gave to Brian and I, and all who know her. She spent the night with a friend last night and Brian and I had a date night. We went to church, ran a few errands, and then came home and watched the movie, Fireproof. What a super movie! It was made by the same church that made Facing the Giants. It was quite inspirational!

I am definitely in nesting mode lately. I told Brian that we are a MESS! Our attic and closets are overflowing with stuff we really don't need! We are trying to start cleaning out. I am doing the same thing at school. My file cabinets are falling apart because they are too jammed packed. I can't even find anything. It is ridiculous! :0 Brian and I both try very hard to be organized, but the trouble is we are both pack rats. We are trying to change that!!!! Wish us luck!!

Hope your March is wonderful!

Family Happenings!

2009-01-27T14:23:00.005-06:00

Gung Hay Fat Choy! Happy Chinese New Year! We had our annual Chinese New Year Celebration this past Sunday evening at Imperial China! We had a wonderful time. Despite China's drastic slowdown the past couple of years, our group has really grown. It is hard to believe that this was our 3rd year to go and yet we still have no baby. I have to admit it sucks! (sorry, no other word describes it as well) We hope that next CNY we will have our Ethiopian baby and maybe the following year, finally our China baby! The wait is sometimes very hard, but we still trust in God's perfect timing and boy do we have a lot to be thankful for! This group of special people for one thing...........that we would have never met, had we not embarked on this long and tedious journey called adoption. The weekend before last, we had a birthday celebration for Lynn's 25th birthday! Mom and Daddy came and brought enchiladas and cake. Grandma Margie came and brought snicker doodles and pecan pie. Grandma Brown came and brought macaroni salad. We made queso and chips. We had a great time!

Today is Baylee Bear's Birthday!

2009-01-27T13:44:00.016-06:00

It is so hard to believe that my baby is 12 years old today! Where has the time gone? We are iced in today! I really wanted to go to school because we will lose our Good Friday holiday now, but I have to admit, it was sure good to sleep in. Brian got me an electric blanket for Christmas! It was absolute heaven to stay under the covers this morning and not hear an alarm clock! Baylee was NOT happy about missing school, on her birthday especially! She didn't want to be stuck at home with just Mom and nothing to do! Her social life is about the most important aspect in her life right now! I woke her up with a candle in a warm cinnamon roll this morning and sang Happy Birthday to her. I fixed her her favorite potato soup for lunch and we will have cherry cheesecake in a little bit. We have been snuggled up under some blankets watching 7th Heaven, Little House on the Prarie, and Touched by an Angel too. She has enjoyed her day afterall! She is on the phone now though with her friends!! We are taking her to the city this Saturday for a shopping spree. She wanted clothes for her birthday and to eat at Ted's. Her party with her friends was this past Saturday at Sugar Rush! She had a ball! There were 11 kids running around crazy for 2 solid hours, but I didn't care, it wasn't in my house! Sugar Rush did a great job. She had a murder mystery party. They had to search for 29 envelopes with clues in them that led them to the killer. Oh what fun! Sugar Rush also had a dress up room and they had a lot of fun dressing up too! The boys looked quite cute dolled up in dresses!

Christmas 2008!

2008-12-28T11:01:00.003-06:00

Mama, Daddy, and Baylee Bear Aunt Lynn and Baylee

Baylee always lines up her presents in order of how she will open them!

Uncle Keith and Baylee

Aunt Karla and cousin Cody

Cousin Jason with fiancee' Kelly

Grandma C and Baylee

Brian and I

Baylee with a very special quilt Grandma Margie made

Baylee with cousin Jordi

Baylee with cousins Jaci and Josie

New cousing Caroline

Christmas came and then left way too fast! They say the older you get, the faster time flies. Well, I believe it! I am just wondering if I will even feel the days when I am in my 80's as fast as the days are going in my 30's! I love Christmas! I love the whole month of December that leads up to Christmas. I enjoy the shopping, the making out Christmas cards, going to the mailbox and getting cards, hot cocoa, a warm blanket and Christmas movies. I love the Christmas trees and decorations in my house and going to see Christmas lights while enjoying a steamer from Starbucks. I love making Christmas goodies and wrapping packages while listening to Christmas music. I love looking at my ceramic nativity set my Great Aunt Twila made for me and remembering why we celebrate Christmas. Most of all, I love laying on the living room floor in the dark, looking up at the Christmas tree lights and remembering.........remembering being a child and doing the same thing, and just simply enjoying the wonder of it all and then seeing that same wonder in my child's eyes. Christmas is a magical time and I always mourn the loss of it! I always tell Baylee that I think that's why God gave her to me in January instead of March when she was originally due! I needed something very special that month, and then my baby's birthday to celebrate every January there after to get over Christmas being gone! I do have this saying with Baylee, because she is so like me.....which is "There is always something to look forward to!" .......And there is too!

I posted slideshows of our 4 Christmas(s). One is Brian's family. That is alway fun, because of the Mendenhalls.......they keep us laughing with their bantering! One is our personal Christmas. Brian always beats Baylee and I up......he's such a morning person. Baylee usually wakes me up and then we tear into our presents. I usually fix a big lunch and Marge comes over for the afternoon. Another Christmas is with my parents and sister. That is always a lot of fun, because my dad is "A man of Action"! He keeps us laughing. This year Baylee got a remote control helicopter and Daddy's wienie dog, Gus, was after it with my dad's coaching of course. Gus did manage to taste a little propeller, so Baylee decided to put it up! Mama, Lynn, Baylee, and I played games too. Our other Christmas is our Laverne one with my mom's family. Since Thanksgiving is a big celebration with my daddy's family, we spend Christmas with my mama's family. It is always great fun. This year, two of my mom's 3 sisters, and my cousin and her family didn't get to come. That was disappointing, but we still had a lot of fun at my Aunt Carolyn's house. We have a beautiful new addition to the family........little Caroline, my cousin Brody's baby girl. Wow, she looks exaclty like him! We all played games and Brandon and Brody played guitars and sang. We hope and pray we will have our new little guy next Christmas. What a blessing that will be!

Thanksgiving Fun at the Farm!

2008-12-07T15:25:00.012-06:00

We went to Gate for Thanksgiving. As always, we had a lot of fun! This year, we had a lot smaller number of people because my dad's cousins and their families didn't make it out. We still so enjoyed spending time together. I am very thankful to be so close to my cousins still, so that Baylee can have the same memories I had growing up. We will be spending Christmas with my mom's side of the family. Can't wait for that too! I am very fascinated with these things!

Mom and IMom, Lynn, and Grandma Brown

Cousin Julie and Rustin

Brian as Ozzy and Dad

Baylee with cousins

Aunt Jo and cousin Jennifer

I got a kick out of the cows watching us play on the haybales!

Ali and Baylee

Haybale jumping

On the truck ready to go to the haybales!

Say turkey!

3 MONTHS DOWN!

2008-11-30T10:12:00.002-06:00

Yesterday marked 3 months in our wait for Eli! The wait for referral is currently fluctuating between 6 and 9 months. A referral is the baby chosen for you. When you get your referral, you are sent pictures and information on your baby. After the referral, you wait aprox. 6 to 8 weeks for travel. (sometimes longer, but they are really working on that aspect) We pray that we will get to bring home Eli next summer or even sooner! Please remember our family and other waiting families in your prayers. Waiting is hard. Our wait for Maggie is nearing 27 months. It is hard to fathom that it could be another 2 to 3 years wait for her.

Thanksgiving was wonderful! It is so nice to spend time with family. Baylee had a ball with her cousins. I will post pictures later in the week.

Baylee's 6th grade program!

2008-11-24T19:57:00.001-06:00

Halloween Fun!

2008-11-06T18:43:00.004-06:00

Baylee and her friend Olivia at our church's Trunk or Treat! Baylee dressed up as a Chinese princess and Olivia as Dorothy. Right after Trunk or Treat, it was off to a big Halloween party! It was an exciting and fun night!

For actual Halloween, Baylee and Olivia dressed up as a Toothbrush and Toothpaste! They were so cute! We went on our annual Halloween hayride. This year our hayride grew to 11 kids and 9 adults! It was quite a night! Baylee counted 115 pieces of candy when it was over! Wow! Too much! I will have to recycle some at school! Once again we have to thank Larry and Jackie, our dear neighbors, for loaning us the trailer, and for giving Baylee something extra!!

50six Scavenger Hunt!

2008-11-06T18:33:00.001-06:00

2 MONTHS DOWN!

2008-10-29T17:43:00.003-05:00

We are 2 months into our Ethiopian adoption wait! Here's to hoping and praying that the wait stays where it currently is......approx. 7 months! Wow! Please God, let it be!

Can we really have too many dogs?

2008-10-27T21:08:00.000-05:00

Annie and Babe play fighting!

2008-10-24T16:29:00.001-05:00

Fall Fun!

2008-10-18T22:22:00.001-05:00

What happened to my Sooners?!!

2008-10-12T14:35:00.003-05:00

ONE MONTH DOWN!

2008-09-29T18:14:00.002-05:00

We are 1 month into our 5 to 7 month wait for referral! Let's pray the wait time stays the same!

All else is fine around here. We had a great weekend with friends and family! Saturday, Baylee went to a Girl Power Rally hosted by the YWCA. She had an awesome time!

Saturday evening we went to a Chinese Moon Festival get together. It is alway so much fun to see all the families who have their children home, are in the paperchase phase, or in the waiting for referral phase. I never in my wildest dream imagined that we would still be going to these get togethers without a baby after more than 2 years. The wait time for our China baby continues to grow. It is so sad, for all the waiting forever families, but mostly for these babies waiting for us. These get togethers do keep it real for us though because they remind us that it will happen..........eventually!

Sunday was a special day because the people I hold most dear to my heart were at my home for dinner! My mama, daddy, and sister, Lynn were here as well as my Grandma Margie and Richard, my Grandma Brown and Chet, and also my Aunt Vic! We had a great time. I am so blessed with family and friends!

Me, Queen of Pictures, did not take 1 picture of any of these happenings. Can you believe it? I am ashamed of myself. I guess I got too caught up in enjoying everybody!

Verse for this week!

2008-09-21T13:56:00.003-05:00

But these things I plan won't happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, be patient! For it will surely take place. It will not be late by a single day." -Habakkuk 2:3

This verse was posted on our yahoo adoption group board. It is so appropriate. I am soooooooo learning that I am not in control. It is all about God and His perfect timing.

State Fair Fun!

2008-09-14T16:11:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, we went to the State Fair of Oklahoma in OKC. It is a September tradition for our family to go and to also go to Disney on Ice while we are there. This year Disney on Ice was High School Musical 1 and 2!! It was a lot of fun! Baylee thought it was one of the best we've been to. We invited our longtime friends, the Morrisons to go with us. Lori, her daughter McKenna, and Baylee and I all went on ahead to the city first to get some shopping in! We met Mac, Brian, and Lori's younger 2 children later for lunch at On the Border. Yum! Then we went on to the fair. Brian was a little excited to get out of Disney on Ice this year and hang out with Mac doing "man stuff", while Lori and I took the kids to the ice show. I have news for him. With 2 more little ones in our future, there will be many more Disney on Ice shows ahead. He is a good sport though!! It has been raining cats and dogs the last few days. Today, however, it is just beautiful!! We have all the windows in the house open. It sure seems like an early Fall. It will be really tough if it gets hot again before Fall truly gets here! It is hard to believe that we are already half way through September. It will be time to start making Halloween costumes soon. I love Fall.

Well, it has been over 2 weeks since we were officially DTE (dossier to Ethiopia). I want the wait to fly by, but I just can't wish the days away. Every day that God gives us is too much a gift to wish them away. My baby, Baylee is growing up way too fast. This is her last year in elementary school and if I wish for our wait for baby Eli and baby Maggie to hurry up and be over, I am also wishing Baylee to get older and go to junior high! Yuk! I don't want that! So, I think the best thing to do is to just enjoy every day as it comes,........to look forward to what lies ahead, but relish the present, which is so good too. We are truly blessed. Thank you God!

DTE!!!

2008-08-31T14:02:00.004-05:00

FIRST DAY OF 6TH GRADE!

We are now officially DTE! If you are wondering what DTE stands for, it means Dossier (fancy term for our life in papers) to Ethiopia! This really basically means we are now officially waiting! I prayed we would get our DTE date by the end of August and we did just barely! Thank you God! Our prayer now is that the wait time stays where it is which is 5-9 months from DTE date. Wow! It is hard to believe that we could be holding our baby by the end of the school year. Once you get your referral it takes 2-3 months before you travel. We hope that God's perfect timing is in alignment with our perfect timing. We know that this is not always the case, as we found out with our China adoption. We however trust God and His infinite and perfect wisdom and timing.

Nothing else really to report except that things are going well. I have a large, but loveable class. They are quickly growing in my heart. I still get to see my babies from last school year, as they stop by often after school to visit. Baylee is having a wonderful 6th grade school year so far. She is in band, playing the clarinet. She does Safety Patrol before school starts and after school. She has also recently gotten involved with Wednesday night church activities. I am very proud of her. She is a super kid!!! Brian has luckily been home the last few weeks, but will have to travel again before too long. Phoeey! I hate when he leaves! We have acquired 2 more dogs. We are trying to find a home for the loveable things, but we aren't having any luck! If you know of anyone that would like a couple of sweet, country dogs, please let us know. We have our hands full and our pocketbook empty already with the 4 we have!!!!

I will keep you updated!

Back to School and other stuff!

2008-08-20T18:50:00.003-05:00

Whew! You can sure tell around here that school is back in session! We have been so busy getting back in the groove of things. Baylee is much happier when school is going on. She is such a social butterfly that she needs to be in the middle of friendships and happenings. Right now, her daddy is taking her and a friend to Fifty-Six, a church service for 5th and 6th graders at our church. She is also debating on taking band or not. I will let you know how that turns out. As for me, well, I am just tired! I always forget how tough the first weeks of school are. My class is delightful, but we have a lot of work to do to get in a good routine. They will get there. It just takes awhile. It takes me awhile to get in a good routine as well. It doesn't help with the millions of beginning of school year things to do. Enough with that already!! Brian was in Iowa last week. It sure is good to have him home. He sure helps take some of the stress off, with helping with things around the house. I told him that I wish I made enough money to make him a house husband!! He wishes that too! As for our adoptions.............China is still moving at a snail's pace. It took them 7 months to get through one month of the waiting list. They just finished January of 2006 people and we are September of 2006. Our Ethiopia adoption is going much smoother! I hope it stays that way! We sent our dossier (paperwork) to AWAA, our adoption agency, yesterday!! Boy, that was a wonderful feeling! I pray now that it will get there by Monday of next week and that everything looks good and they can forward it on to Ethiopia. Once it is in Ethiopia, the wait has been between 5-7 months. Hopefully, it stays that way! Once you get your referral of a baby, it is about 2-3 months before you travel. We are so anxious! Well, that is what is going on around here!

Adoption Update!

2008-08-07T09:10:00.002-05:00

Well, our home study addendum is complete, notorized, and should be at the OKC USCIS office right now! Hopefully, they won't take long to change the country and get it back to me. The next step is taking it along with all our other dossier (adoption) documents to the Secretary of State and getting them certified. Then we will mail the dossier to AWAA, our adoption agency, for them to go over and then have authenicated. The final step is sending it on to Ethiopia where we will officially begin the wait! The wait currently is taking between 5 to 7 months for a baby boy. Hopefully, that won't change, and if so, not by much!!! We are so excited! Please join us in prayer that we can have our dossier in Ethiopia this month!! We will keep you posted!

This and That!

2008-07-27T11:08:00.008-05:00

Mom, Daddy, and Lynn came over for my birthday! We had a great time!

We recently went to Laverne and Baylee spent a fun time with cousins, Jordi, Jaci, and Josie!

My beautiful Grandma Margie with Baylee Bear! We got to spend time with My sweet Grandma Brown too, but I missed getting a picture. Darn it!

Baylee with he daddy!

Aren't they crazy!! I took probably 8 pictures and all but the one above this one was like this!

Things are going well for us! Staying busy, but havin lots of fun! Our adoption paperwork is going somewhat smoothly so far. Please pray with us that we can get our dossier(paperwork/otherwise known as your whole life story) in Ethiopia next month. It is a big prayer, but with God all things are possible!

School for me starts this Friday. Officially it starts next Friday for teachers, but this Friday, I am going to a teacher share fair all day. It should be fun! Next week, there is no way I can wait until Friday to start on my room or I will never get it done. So Baylee and I will be working on it almost every morning next week. Baylee is a great helper. She has been coming to my classroom to help ever since she was a toddler, but let me tell you, I not only can get way more done now that she is 11, but she can do about anything I ask her to do. Thanks Baylee!

COLORADO PICTURES!

2008-07-08T09:04:00.031-05:00

Sunset view from our campsite.

Baylee and I doing our traditional Colorado rock painting.

Tame chimpmunk in Creede.

Brian and Baylee in the Creede firehouse.

This is the coolest firehouse ever! It is inside a cave! Brian was in heaven!

Mining competition in Creede on the 4th of July

At the Creede 4th of July parade

Smokey the Bear during the parade

Creede is a neat little town nestled in the middle of lots of mountains. This was the start of the parade.

Our almost nightly ritual. We sit around the campfire and be goofy usually! We laugh a lot!

If you click on this picture to make it bigger, you will better be able to see the herd of elk.

Close up shot of a deer on one of our evening drives.

Look at how tiny Brian looks! It makes you realize how small we really are in God's great big beautiful world!

Our almost 10 year old camping outfit. We have shared a lot of wonderful memories in this camper and truck. In the next couple of years, after we expand our family with 2 babies, we will hopefully be able to get a bigger camper and truck.

The fishing wasn't good this year, but the memories made trying are awesome!

Hummingbirds were as always thick! We enjoy watching the amazing and mean little creatures!

I love this happy picture of my silly daddy!

My little sister Lynn and Baylee. They had quite a time together!

Baylee and her grandpa share a lot of silliness and laughs!

Freeman's is a little general store a couple miles from our campground. We go there quite often for their delicious and large icecream cones! They make great burgers too!

OMG............Is that Baylee reading?

Despite overall bad fishing this year, daddy did manage to catch a 16 incher, or was it a 20 incher?

My beautiful and silly mom gathering fire kindling!

Yes, snow in July! Isn't it awesome!

Throwing snowballs........oh what fun!

This looks like snow, but it is actually cotton from the cottonwood trees in Lake City.

This is the waterfall Baylee and I sat by during our picnic. We went on about an hour hike.

Baylee during our hike!

We are off to Colorado!

2008-06-26T13:20:00.003-05:00

As my daddy would say, "We are off and running like a roaring herd of turtles!" My parents will get to Bristol Head today. We are heading out early in the morning to make the 12 hour trip in 1 day. I have our lunch and snacks made for tomorrow. Baylee and I have new magazines and books to read. Baylee has her I-Pod and DVD player with movies ready too! Kids these days have it sooooo much easier traveling than we did in our day! Of course, I am sure my parents said the same thing when I was a kid! All 3 of us have been crazy busy today. I like the house to be clean, the bedding to be washed, and everything else to be in order, so that when we come back, it's all nice! Poor Gracie knows something is up. I so wish Brian would let her come camping! I try every year to talk him into it, but to no avail!

Our paperwork did not come in the mail today.......pooh!!! It will all work out though. We did get a letter from Kim at our China agency, basically stating that they will make sure we meet the 12 month between adoptions requirement. She stated in the letter that due to China's continuing lengthening referral timeframe, we would probably feel little or no impact from the 12 months between adoptions, but if we did, that we could put our China dossier on hold for 6 months and then if we needed still more time, we could put our travel on hold for another 6 months. So there is our 12 months! This was very good news! The part that would be extremely hard though and I pray we don't have to do, is put our travel on hold. This is because we would have our referral at that point. We would have our picture of our baby and know who she is, so to have to wait to go get her would be very hard to say the least. I highly doubt with the backlog and wait times, that we will have to do that. We will choose to think optimistically, and know God will take care of it all.

I wanted to thank everyone for the nice emails, post, and calls. I love the friends I have made through this adoption journey! You are all very special and true blessings to our family.

Well, I better get busy again, still a lot to do! I will post Colorado pictures when we get back!

We are approved!

2008-06-23T17:01:00.003-05:00

We got a call today from America World Adoption approving us to do a concurrent adoption! This means that we will be working on our dossier (paperwork) over the next couple of months to adopt from Ethiopia. Please join us in prayer that the paperchase process moves quickly. First prayer request is that we will get our official paperwork from AWAA (adoption agency) by Thursday before we leave for Colorado on Friday. We want to get the paperwork sent before we leave. All we can do is take one day and one step at a time. We are very excited!

RANDOM PICS!

2008-06-18T20:28:00.021-05:00

Baylee's newly decorated room! She fell in love with this bedspread and wanted polka-dots on her walls, so we set out to find just the right paint colors and room accessories. We still have more to do, but she's very happy with it!

At each school year ending since kindergarten, Baylee and I go and pick out a new cross for her collection. This year makes 6! My baby is growing up right in front of my eyes!

Look at all those Webkinz! Way too many!

Baylee and I paint rocks each summer while in Colorado. It has become quite a tradition. We are making the town of Lake City and adding to it each year. Last year we made this apartment building, a gas station, a church, and a few other things. This year our plan is a school, a grocery store, and more houses!

Baylee is a constant flipper!

Fun at our 1st annual Chin-okie picnic!

SUMMER IS HERE!

2008-06-06T20:52:00.002-05:00

Whew!! I am glad it is summer! I had a wonderful school year with super kids, but summer break is always awesome! I did go to a 2 day Great Expectation workshop yesterday and today at UCO. I had a wonderful time and learned a lot! I just hope I remember all the ideas when school starts!

On the adoption front, things are going at a snail's pace. We will be extremely lucky at the rate we are going to get her in 2 and half more years!!! We did apply last week to adopt a baby from Ethiopia. We are waiting on approval. They may not approve us because of our concurrent China adoption. We will not pull out of China. We are praying that we will have time to adopt from both countries. Ethiopia at the present time is taking around 12-15 months from start to finish. Once you bring your baby home, you have to have him or her home for 12 months before you can adopt another baby. It will be pretty close possibly, but who really knows............we may have plenty of time.............or China could miraculously speed up and Ethiopia slow down!!! Only the big Guy upstairs knows.............and I am pretty sure He is the One in charge. Make that I am positive He is the One in charge! Are you hearing me God? I know you are in charge...........Haven't I learned my lesson?! Not my plan, not my timeframe...........I know already. Please help everything to fall into place a.s.a.p. (just kidding God)!

Family Updates!

2008-04-27T10:37:00.000-05:00

Baylee's fun volleyball season! Here she is ready for action and with her team!

Sweet Gracie and our newest addition adorable Annie!

Spring Fever!

2008-03-30T17:49:00.000-05:00

Brian is just so dang happy to be getting flower beds ready this Spring!

Isn't our Bradford Pear beautiful?!

Happy Easter!

2008-03-30T17:46:00.000-05:00

Our annual Easter picture with Baylee and the boys........Cody, Jason, and Brett!

Fun with a pink bunny and a ceiling fan!!!

2008-03-30T17:41:00.000-05:00

Sam Noble Museum of Natural History

2008-03-09T19:33:00.000-05:00

We met my parents in Norman this past weekend and had a great time at this cool museum. The picture of Baylee is next to a dinosaur thigh bone. Wow! Check out the cool pictures below!

Our adoption is still going. We are just waaaiiiting! We have some friends that are there right now adopting their little boy, Mr. Kaeleb. Check out their blog by clicking on Johnsons at the upper right hand corner of our blog. We have some other friends that will be leaving soon to adopt Miss Piper who will be 5 this month. Their blog is under Downings. The Pophams also just received their referral of Miss Marossie. They will be leaving next month. All so exciting! Can't wait for ours!

2008-03-09T19:15:00.000-05:00

Isn't my daddy cute!

Chinese New Year!

2008-02-10T17:36:00.000-06:00

We had a lot of fun with our FCC
(Families with Children from China)group! We all met at a local Chinese restaurant and just visited, ate, and let the children run semi-wild! We thankfully had a room to ourselves. The folks at Imperial China are awesome! Our FCC group is the best! It is such a blessing to have this wonderful group of people in our lives!

Baylee and Mary were having a ball. Mary was being so silly and Baylee of course was just loving every minute of it!

Baylee, Rachel, and Libby! Rachel and Libby both have their little sisters already! Baylee can't wait! She is having a hard time being patient sometimes! Me too!

Family time and China Update!

2008-01-13T15:54:00.000-06:00

Well, we just got back from having Christmas in Laverne. What a wonderful time making special memories! We are so blessed and rich in family through both my mom's side, and my dad's side. Thank you God!! I get a little emotional every time I leave Laverne. I have a whole lifetime of memories at that special little town. When I think of who I have lost, it still hurts, but I just focus on all those powerful memories, and know that we are still making them, and will always continue to.

Our adoption is going by painfully slow. It will probably be 2009, and hopefully not 2010, but it is a possibility. I can't do anything about it, so there is no use stewing about it. I have to just enjoy the present, and I do! God will work in His time! Sometimes people ask me why we don't change directions, and go somewhere else, but it isn't that easy for us on many different levels. First and foremost, that is where we feel God has led us! Too many doors closed when we were in the research stage, and China was wide open! God gave us many signs that led to China. We have to be faithful in that!

Below are some Christmas pictures. The following poems and verse were in my devotion:

Count Your Blessings
In counting our blessings,
we find when we're through
we've no reason at all
to complain or be blue.

A faithful man will be richly blessed.
Proverbs 28:20

Today count your loved ones as your top priority and blessing. It is also important to be remembered by your loved ones. For which reason, characteristic, personality trait, or act of kindness do you wish to be remembered? Think about it. Work on it.

CHRISTMAS WITH GRANDMA MARGIE!

2008-01-13T15:37:00.000-06:00

Isn't Elf Annalee a cutie!!!!

2008-01-13T15:16:00.001-06:00

THE WAIT

2007-11-28T22:29:00.001-06:00

As Christmas draws near, I have received a lot of questions from family and friends lately about when we will get our Maggie. We are certainly inching closer, but still so far away. I pray for a miracle speed up everyday and wish on every star that next year at this time we will be holding Maggie or a picture of her and getting ready to travel. Some days I feel very optimistic and other days, not so positive. In my heart I know that there is a reason for everything and that when I do hold Maggie, I will know just why we had to wait so long. She will be the reason. God has chosen this little angel for us already..........she is just not here yet. I visit a China adoption forum everyday and another waiting mother shared an excerpt of a letter that her mother had written her. I thought it was beautiful and wanted to share it:

My mom wrote me a letter many months ago, after I had cried to her tears of frustration about the wait. The letter was so important to me, I’ve kept it - and maybe it will provide some encouragement here to someone. Some excerpt of what she wrote:“I’m thinking of you tonight, wishing I could run over and make your heart lighter. It does seem forever till you hold your daughter - but the certainty is that you *will* hold her. You will know her all your life on - she will always be your daughter. There is another woman across the world who will not know this child. This child will never know her as mother….“That, too is a certainty. When you feel so discouraged, try to pray for that mother’s grief and healing. Her sacrifice is your blessing and your daughter’s. What I am trying to say is *not* to feel guilty about this Chinese mother, or feel guilty about your discouragement. That is what it is. But, to find a way out of it. The wait is prolonged, but it will not be forever. The gift of your daughter will be forever….”
What Mom tried to gently remind me is that ultimately, time is on our side — we will be forever families.

Thanksgiving with the turkeys (Browns)!

2007-11-23T17:33:00.001-06:00

Aren't we blessed! Thanks Aunt Jo and Uncle Gary for opening your home and hosting Thanksgiving every year! What memories!

Great News!!!!

2007-11-15T19:06:00.000-06:00

We received word today from our adoption agency that our dossier(paperwork) is out of review. Here is the exciting letter:

Hello September LID families,

I wanted to let you know that we received word from our Beijing office that the CCAA has finished the review of the adoption application documents registered with their office before September 30, 2006. Yeah September 2006 is out of review!!!!!! Congratulations to all of you!

Kim O'Bryant
Referral Counselor
Great Wall China Adoption

This means that the Chinese officials have cleared us to adopt. Now we just wait some more! Here is an excerpt from a letter from the president of our adoption agency, Snow Wu:

I know right now, the thing on your mind is the long wait. Last night, I talked to the CCAA officials and expressed all of your concern over this long wait. CCAA officials told me that they are very concerned over the wait as well. They have held many trainings with the orphanage directors to teach them how to get children's file ready, and they encourage them to send the children's file to the CCAA so the children can be matched with a family. The officials are not able to provide any timeline, but, assure me that once the backlog of dossiers is matched, the wait will go down. I still ask that you keep your faith in Chinese adoptions. As I said, it will happen. Please do not give up your hope!

This sounds encouraging as well, except to what date do they count the backlog of dossiers?
Oh well, it will happen!!!

Fall and Halloween Pics!

2007-11-01T18:34:00.001-05:00

Thanks to Larry and Jackie loaning us their trailer, we got to have our 2nd annual hayride around the neighborhood to trick or treat! It was so much fun!! Pictured are: McKenna, Maci, and Tyler, Baylee and Lais. Lais has never been trick or treating, so she discovered it was a lot of fun!

Every year since Baylee was 9 months old, we have taken pictures at the Pumpkin Patch. She will be 18 and I will still be making her pose there!

We are in the review room!

2007-10-15T18:21:00.000-05:00

Yeah! We made it to the review room with our adoption paper work!! The review room is where the China officials look over all the paper work and make sure that it is all correct and ok. We will breathe a big sigh of relief when we are out of the review room. The next room is the matching room! There are still 9 months of people ahead of us, but we are inching closer everyday to our Maggie! We received an email from our adoption agency today, stating that China is working on the continued lengthening adoption wait. They are receiving indications that things could move faster in the future. Well let's hope so!! We are still at least a year away, but we hope not much longer than that! All we can do is be patient, pray, and trust God.

Not much to report!

2007-09-09T16:35:00.000-05:00

In one year, the CCAA (China Center of Adoption Affairs) adopted babies out to 4 months worth of dossiers. That means they got through 4 months worth of families waiting to adopt. They used to get through 12 months of families waiting. There is a rumor of a possible speed up in 2008. Let's keep our fingers crossed and our prayers to God for this to happen! All else is well on the Corderman Homefront. We are in a nice school routine now. Baylee loves school and her friends! I have a giant class of 25, 16 boys and 9 girls. With that many boys you can only imagine the energy level in my room, but the good news is that the kids all mostly get along and are very sweet! Lais is enjoying her transition into America and Enid High. She is doing well! Brian is still working hard and traveling way too much! We are all healthy and happy! More later!

Baylee's first day of 5th grade!

2007-08-19T17:25:00.000-05:00

My baby is in 5th grade! She had a great day! She likes her teacher and the children in her class. She has some of her friends in her class and is getting more aquainted with others.

Introducing Lais!

2007-08-19T17:20:00.000-05:00

Lais brought all kinds of food and candy from Brazil! She and Baylee had fun preparing cheese bread and brigaderios for us!

BEFORE and AFTER!

2007-08-19T17:04:00.000-05:00

Getting ready for school is hard work, but lots of fun too! See the neat covered wagon Brian made me? He is so handy! It is Oklahoma's centennial this year, so I chose to do a western theme.

What goes up, must go down!

2007-08-11T15:36:00.000-05:00

Well, things aren't so up in the air now, at least not with Lias! Yeah! Lias got an earlier flight! We pick her up from the airport at 8:15 Monday morning. That is going to be one early rising day, but we are so excited that we probably wouldn't sleep well anyway! After we pick her up, we plan on taking her to the Cracker Barrel for breakfast! Yum! Now, with the earlier flight, I will be able to get her enrolled on Monday too. Things have a way of working out. We just have to let go and let God! We will update you on her arrival later.

Up in the Air!

2007-08-09T22:57:00.000-05:00

There are a lot of things up in the air right now in the Corderman household! I don't do too well with that. After a couple of fitful days, I finally released it to God! I don't know why I don't do that to begin with. I guess it's that old control issue I have trouble with. When am I going to learn that I am not in control? You would think with this baby wanting and a possible 3 year total wait for this adoption, I would have this control issue learned, but I don't. I am getting better though. Up in the air right now is: 1.) When is Lais coming? We have been given 3 different dates so far. The confirmed latest is August 14th. This date is so not good because I have open house that evening, so does Baylee, and so does Lais for that matter. The 14th would mean that Lais has one whole day to get adjusted before school starts. Kids are resilent and she would make it, but it certainly is not the ideal situation. Not only that, but we still would need to enroll her and buy school supplies, etc. Not to mention I have meetings on that "one day", the 15th. They are trying to change her flight schedule, but we have not heard anything yet. They may not be able to. 2.)Who will Baylee's teacher be, will she have any of her friends in her class, and will she have a good year? Let's face it, we worry over our children constantly. Their happiness is our happiness. When Baylee was a baby, my grandma Brown came to visit. I was in Baylee's room watching her breathe and telling my grandma how worrisome having a baby is. She said, "Oh honey, you have only just begun. This is the easy part." She was so right! I can only see it getting more and more worrisome as she grows. Wait till she drives!! Oh my goodness!! 3.)Will our school faculty unite, be nicer, and less judgemental of each other? Teaching is tough work. We need each other for support and encouragement. I hope things will improve in that direction. These "wills" and "whens" were starting to get to me and then I was reminded by Baylee to put it in God's hands. Who is the mother here? So back to my bible and my favorite verses written in the cover including: Don't worry about anything; instead pray about everything; tell God your needs and don't forget to thank him for his answers. If you do this you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will keep your thoughts and your hearts quiet and at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus. Phillipians4:6,7 and So don't be anxious about tomorrow. God will take care of your tomorrow too. Live one day at a time. Matthew 6:34 God's timing is perfect and he will take care of everything. We just have to quit worrying and trust him!!

Exciting News!

2007-08-02T22:10:00.000-05:00

We are going to have a new member of our family! No.....it isn't Maggie yet! We hope to have her by next winter. Pray: Baby Maggie in 2008! We are welcoming a beautiful girl named Lais from Brazil into our home on August 13th. She is a foreign exchange student who is going to be a junior in high school this year. We have somewhat gotten to know her through emails but we are looking forward to meeting her in person. Baylee is so excited to have a big sister! She says that she will get to experiment having a big sister and then will get to be the big sister! We pray that we can teach Lais a lot about, not only our wonderful country, but our great state as well. With Oklahoma's centennial coming up....how perfect to learn about it now! We know she will teach us a lot about her country too! We also know she will be a precious addition to our family. She is a sweetheart! Her family seems pretty special as well.

Adoption Update

2007-08-02T21:25:00.000-05:00

Well referrals have come in! They came in a little earlier than expected...hope this is a good sign!! Remember that referrals are babies matched with families. They also covered 5 days worth of LID's. In recent months they have only covered 2 days. Back in 2005 they were covering a whole month's worth of LID's every month. That was why it only took about 6 months to get your baby once your paper work was LID(logged in to China). I sure hope they start covering more and more days! Remember that we are LID September 4, 2006 and they just referred babies to families with LID's of November 17 - November 21, 2005. Hopefully they (CCAA- China Center for Adoption Affairs) will be done with 2005 before the end of the year. I thought I ought to explain the CCAA process. There are 3 rooms that our dossier(paperwork) has to go through while in China. The first room is the Translation Room. This is where they translate all our paperwork into Chinese. The next room is the Review Room. This is where they review all your paperwork and OK you to adopt. Our dossier is between the Translation Room and the Review Room. It is called pending review. They just got done reviewing June 2006 dossiers. They moved through June very fast. We hope this is also a good sign! The last room is called the Matching Room. This is the room that they choose a baby for your family! We obviously will rest easier when we get out of Review. Only 2 months of dossiers to go! I will keep you posted!

Louie and Gracie

2007-07-23T20:10:00.000-05:00

Aren't they sweet! Louie is the one peeking over the fence. He is crazy, but loveable! He is 8. Gracie is our little baby. She is 4. Ariel (pictured in previous posts) is 7.

Laverne Trip

2007-07-18T17:18:00.000-05:00

Since Brian is in Wisconsin, Baylee and I decided to go to Laverne to see the Grandmas. Boy, were we spoiled with good food and sweet company. It was so hard to leave. We are so blessed to have such wonderful family. Not only my precious grandmas, but aunts, uncles, and cousins too. Below are some pictures I took while we were there.

Lisa and Baylee at Aunt Carolyn's Soda Shop

2007-07-18T17:15:00.000-05:00

Baylee, Jaci, Josie, and Jordi

2007-07-18T17:05:00.000-05:00

Baylee and Grandma Brown

2007-07-18T17:04:00.000-05:00

Baylee and Grandma Margie

2007-07-18T17:03:00.000-05:00

Yeah! The go cart is finally done!!!

2007-07-18T16:59:00.000-05:00

Daddy had just as much fun as Baylee!

Baylee and Diablo

2007-07-18T16:51:00.000-05:00

Baylee having fun at Wild West Night at church!

Baylee and Daddy submarining!

2007-07-09T09:17:00.000-05:00

Look at that gorgeous face!

2007-07-09T09:15:00.000-05:00

Relaxing!

2007-07-09T09:12:00.000-05:00

Ariel was so hot outside. She had just had a bath, so I let her come in to the kitchen to lay on the cool tile while I was cleaning out cabinets. She thought she was in heaven!

Ahhhhh!

2007-07-09T09:04:00.000-05:00

Ariel always puts her arm around you when she is with you. She speaks with her paws. Sometimes those massive paws can hurt however. She is such a lover though!

I love puppies!

2007-07-09T08:58:00.000-05:00

Baylee with Drew and Colton's new puppy Emma.

Fireworks Fun!

2007-07-09T08:51:00.000-05:00

Brian and his nephews, Jason and Cody, put on an exciting display of fireworks every year. This year a lot of neighbors put on a display as well. It was awesome.

Swimming Fun!

2007-07-09T08:46:00.000-05:00

Finally the rain stopped! Now we can swim with neighbors/friends Drew and Colton!

CCAA Update

2007-07-06T21:27:00.000-05:00

Referrals are coming in! People are getting calls and referral pictures of their babies. These people are LID (Logged In Date) November 8th thru November 14th, 2005. We are LID September 4th, 2006. This means that there are still 8 and 1/2 months of LID's before us! Yuk! We still celebrate everybody's referral however. It means that more orphans have a forever family. We so hope for a speedup because it has taken 2 months to get through 2 weeks worth of referrals. At this rate it will take another 2 months just to get through November 2005. Let's not even go there and figure out the math to what that would mean for us. The rumor has it that November is a really big month, and that is the reason it is taking so long to get through it. We were at 10 months on July 4th. I did call my adoption agency the other day and she said the wait is still lengthening, and she expects it to get to 2 years for sure, but she doesn't believe it will get to 3 years. I could handle 2 way easier! That would mean we are almost half way there. I will keep praying for our baby in 2008!!!!!

But if we must keep trusting God for something that hasn't happened yet, it teaches us to wait patiently and confidently. Romans 8:25

What a cutie!

2007-07-03T15:36:00.000-05:00

Beautiful Big Meadow!

2007-07-03T15:29:00.000-05:00

We could see this gorgeous lake from our campground! I have many wonderful memories of digging for worms with my grandma in that green field and then fishing with my grandad. When I walk around the lake, I can still feel my grandad's presence and hear his voice. It always makes me a bit emotional. I hope that we are creating the same sweet memories for Baylee.

Cute chipmunk

2007-07-03T15:27:00.000-05:00

These little guys would eat right out of our hands!

Cheezy grin!

2007-07-03T15:26:00.000-05:00

Baylee with Grandma and Grandpa

2007-07-03T15:25:00.000-05:00

Bristol Head Campground

2007-07-03T15:22:00.000-05:00

This is where we camp between two charming towns called Lake City and Creede. We have many wonderful memories here! The view is beautiful!

Beautiful young buck

2007-07-03T15:21:00.000-05:00

Baylee is quite the fishergirl!

2007-07-03T15:19:00.000-05:00

Mom and Daddy

2007-07-03T15:16:00.000-05:00

These two are the real adventurers! They know how to live life!

Quadrun Fun!

2007-07-03T15:13:00.000-05:00

Brian and I went on an adventure. It was so much fun! Note to self: Next quadrunner adventure-do not wear contacts!

Cool Brian!

2007-07-03T15:03:00.000-05:00

4 Wheeler Fun!

2007-07-03T15:00:00.000-05:00

The North Pole

2007-07-03T14:45:00.000-05:00

The North Pole was so much fun!

Santa's Sleigh!

2007-07-03T14:44:00.000-05:00

The sleigh was taking off! Hold on Baylee!!

Tilt a Whirl

2007-07-03T14:42:00.000-05:00

Fun! Fun! Look at Daddy's face!