Our Little Tiger: Abigail Jiang Yan Schlotterback

One year ago today…

2010-10-13T10:48:00.001-04:00

I saw Feng Jiang Yan’s face for the first time. Our little Tiger, Abby. I can’t even describe the joy we felt upon first seeing her picture. All those years and years of waiting melted away, and we knew without a doubt that she was meant to be our little girl.

Fast forward to today… we love this child with every cell in our body. She is the light of our lives and continues to amaze us each and every day. At 19 months old she is into everything. All hands and feet and go go go! She is really starting to use words more and more. I can ask her her name and she will say Abby. Then I can ask her what’s my name and she will say mama. She knows the dogs name is Maggie and has recently started calling Derek Daddy instead of always dada.

She is stringing together her words now to form short sentences. Bye bye dada. Up peas. (please). no, no, no maggie. (when maggie is trying to steal her food). She loves to be outside and can say grass, trees, flowers, bee, bird, doggy.

She loves animals (elmos as she calls them) and can oink, moo, and bah with the best of them.

Our little girl is rapidly leaving her babyness and is fast becoming a toddler. Oh. My. Goodness. In some ways I am ready for her to be able to talk more and communicate and understand more. But I will morn the loss of my sweet little snuggly baby.

Here are some recent pictures, these were taken at her first Clemson Football game on 9-4, so they are about 1.5 months old…

Ready for Football season!

2010-08-21T22:01:00.001-04:00

Today we made our annual trip to the Valley for some new Clemson gear… of course we ended up outfitting our newest little Tiger….

and I present CJ Spiller’s #1 Fan!

Here’s a few more… just because she’s so stinkin’ cute…

Abby at 17.5 months..

(BTW, the overalls are a size 12 months and they swallow her whole, but hey, they’ll work for next year too!)

Words Abby can say….

2010-07-07T11:23:00.001-04:00

Uh Oh, Bye Bye, Dog, Mama, Dada, Hi, Bird, Ball, Backpack, Dora, More, and she can growl like a Tiger.

Windows Live Writer… does this mean I’ll Post More often?

2010-07-07T10:10:00.001-04:00

I just downloaded Windows Live Writer after reading about it on another Adoptive Mom’s blog. Her posts are always so funny and well put together, so I thought I’d give it a whirl. Here’s a picture to get things started…

Is it Spring yet?

2010-03-10T11:19:00.001-05:00

This mama has SPRING FEVER!!!! Hurry up warm weather, I'm ready for you!

Abby is learning so many things since she's been to school (aka daycare). Recent things she's picked up since starting daycare are:

1. drinking from a straw
2. clapping
3. mimicking us when we cough
4. standing for a few seconds
5. trying to get into cabinets
6. jabbering on and on loudly about something. Anyone speak baby?
7. wants to feed herself all the time now and does so well!

We are very excited that we are going to have a mini-reunion with some of those in our travel group over Memorial Day weekend. YAY!! Asian Invasion in Hotlanta!

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snow and stuff...

2010-03-04T16:57:00.001-05:00

Well I am back at work. Daycare for the most part has been going well. But I hate only having about 2 hours with my girl before bed time. I can't WAIT for the weekend to get here. Lots of play time. Lots of mommy-Abby time.

The daycare teacher has said that Abby's only problem is that she wants to be held all the time. Heh. Imagine that. Probably because we hold her all the time. Who wouldn't want to? I told the teacher that Abby had 8.5 months of never being held and from the day we got her, we have held her and loved on her, and you know what? Abby decided she liked it and it was good. So it's a good thing she wants to be held all the time!

This weekend is Abby's first birthday!!!! I can't imagine that she's already one. She has changed so much since we became a family. When we got her she could just barely roll over and couldn't sit up by herself at all. 3 months later, she is crawling and pulling up and wants to walk so badly. She was toothless but now has 4 teeth. She had never been fed anything but the bottle and now she wants nothing to do with babyfood, only wants table food! She can say Mama, Ma (for maggie), uh oh, and bye bye, though she won't talk on command at all. When asked where's daddy, she looks at him, when asked where's Nai Nai, she looks at Edra, and has no problem picking Maggie out either!

She won't leave poor Maggie alone. She crawls over her, pulls on her, "pats" her and in general just tortures her. But Maggie must love it, as everyday when we get home from "school" she runs around in circles jumping up and down and tries to kiss Abby. It really is cute!

I'll leave you with some pictures, because I know that's what you want to see!

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Abby is Crawling!

2010-01-27T22:17:00.003-05:00

And it had absolutely nothing to do with the fact she was wearing a Clemson onesie....

For no other reason than she's so stinkin' cute

2010-01-22T15:24:00.001-05:00

I decided to whip out the camera today. I love this green on her!!
She loves to stand and can do so for a long time, and is almost crawling!

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So you've probably already figured this out...

2010-01-06T09:04:00.000-05:00

but I am not the best blogger. Heh. We are home, everyone is happy, healthy, and growing! I have been super busy trying to work part time from home as well as take care of Miss Abby and we are having sleep issues. As in she isn't. And that is making my life very challenging!

Parenting an adopted child is different from regular kids in that you can't just let them cry it out. Abby spent almost 9 months in an orphanage where she didn't learn that crying would get her needs attended to. She is just learning that and we are building a level of trust between us and we are in a crucial bonding period. So I must answer her cries. At first we went with her getting up 5-6 times per night. And then there for a while, she was up 5-6 times in the first 2-3 hours of her nighttime sleep. And she wasn't napping good during the day. I had a very sleep deprived baby.

A dear friend (thanks Sandy!) who adopted and who is a child pyschiatrist gave me some wonderful advice which we are following and it is slowly getting better. last night she went down at 8 and was up at 8:30 and then not again until 12:30 and then she slept until 6. I got her up and fed her and tried to start some housework with her in the carrier and she fell back asleep at 7:30. And now it's almost 9 and she is still asleep. The key to our success the past few days is that after she's up this morning (whatever time that is), I won't let her nap again. I will do everything in my power to keep her up. We won't do this on and on, I know she needs an afternoon nap, but we won't start those again until her internal clock is reset to sleep at night. I think a few more days may be all we need. Thank Goodness. Mama needs a break!

I also am feeling very lost without my exercise. I really need to get back into it and plan to try a trainer ride tonight after she eats just as Derek is coming home from work. I may not get an hour in, but I'll take what I can get. I've had several friends offer to come and sit with Abby so I can run (Thanks Missy and Jan!) and will probably take them up on their offer next week. When it warms up a bit I can take Abby in the jogger, but it's a bit too cold right now. I love training and racing, and I really want to be able to do that this year, though I realize I am going to be limited to sprints, 5Ks and 10Ks until Abby is a little older and we are in a good groove. Maybe 2010 is the year of short course and in 2011 I can move back to longer distances.

Now, back to Abby. Still no teeth, though I am sure they are just about to break through. She is not crawling yet, though we expect that to happen at any time. She is up on all fours rocking back and forth and pushing backwards. Very soon she will get the hang of it and be all over the house and then the fun will really begin!

That's about all I have time for right now... need to get a few more things done before precious wakes up. Here are some pictures to keep you entertained!

Suzanne

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Such a blogger slacker...

2009-12-01T07:11:00.001-05:00

But I have a good excuse... I'm a new mommy and I've just been handed a 8 month old.... when she sleeps, I sleep. When she's not sleeping, I am on duty... daddy is doing a good job, but when he's got her, i'm cleaning the room or getting the bottles washed and ready, or putting laundry together, or showering, or... you get the idea. This is hard work! All you mommies out there can laugh at me now...

Let me see.... Friday we came to Guangzhou. Abby did pretty good on the plane. She only got a little fussy because we weren't moving and had to sit in a seat for a hour and a half. The 14.5 hour trip home should be fun. NOT. Ready to come home, but I am not looking forward to that flight.

The White Swan hotel is beautiful. And the AC is glorious! And the breakfast buffet is huge! We are pretty much doing a big breakfast and then dinner. Lunch is just snacks.

Saturday we toured Guangzhou... went to a Buddhist temple and the babies all received blessings. We went to a arts and crafts store and also an art museum. Sunday we did visa paperwork and a group dinner at the local Thai restaurant. Which was ok, but was not as good as Thai Taste at home. Monday we went for the babies visa photos and medical exam. Abby was a trooper and didn't cry once. She was 25" long and 13.7 lbs, but I take that weight with a grain of salt. She had a full diaper and had just taken a bottle, so i think she is probably just over 13 lbs. Either way, she's gained weight! In the afternoon we went to the pearl market. Very fun, I spent a ton of money and got presents, Daddy stayed at the hotel room with Abby as she was snoozing good. Today we had to wait in our room while our guide took our paperwork to the Visa appt. Just one hiccup for us as I left out an important document, but our guide got it from us later and took it back to the consulate so it was all ok.... At noon we took the babies down to the lobby for the traditional red couch photos. It seems all the families who stay in the White Swan hotel get their picture made on the red velvet sofa...

We received Abby's going home Barbie yesterday. It is a gift from Mattel Hong Kong. A white barbie with a Chinese baby. Very sweet and very collectable! Though Abby is going to get to play with hers....

Today after the red couch photo we shopped. I bought a suitcase and have been filling it up. I will know I am done shopping when I can't fit anymore things in it! LOL.

Some more tidbits about Abby. She loves her bath and doesn't mind when we dump water on her head to rinse her hair. She is taking 5 bottles per day instead of 4. The extra one comes in the middle of the night and seems to help her sleep. She hates to have her clothes changed, and is now sitting up precariously on her own. Rolling over is no problem. She won't take any solid food, only her bottle. She pushes everything out with her tongue if we try to give her any soft foods. Still no teeth.

Ok, ok, enough writing, I know you really just want to see pictures. Don't know when I'll get to blog again, I'll try to do it once more before we leave on Friday. You know, it's just hard to fit it in when you have a new little one!

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A Thanksgiving we'll never forget...

2009-11-27T01:40:00.001-05:00

Sorry for the lack of posts, but this is our first rodeo. New mommy and new daddy = not much time for anything else. And yesterday miss abby didn't feel too good. A little fever and diarhea, and didn't sleep well the past few nights, but I think we are past all that now. I'll get the hang of this before too long and will be able to multitask better.

I quit following the feeding schedule the orphanage gave us and prett much went to feeding on demand. She is such a tiny peanut, she needs all the extra calories we can stuff in her. She is not interested at all in solid food... that will take some time. We are getting more and more smiles and giggles and this morning she discovered she could splash with her feet. So stinkin cute!

She's napping right now... and we have to pack soon for our trip to Guangzhou soon... we are so ready to leave Jiangxi... it is so freaking hot in our room... no air right now...and I've been sick all week from the pollution...we literally are dripping in sweat all the time even though it's about 50 outside... hoping the White Swan has better AC....

Last night we had thanksgiving dinner in the hotel restaurant... they tried, but it wasn't the same. We have a great group of families... everyone is so much fun and we all get along pretty good. This morning we woke up to Christmas decorations and Christmas music all over the hotel. It was almost like Santa had come!

We are ready to come home... still not looking forward to the plane ride from hell (14 hours on a plane with a baby) but we are so ready to be able to brush our teeth with tap water, breath clean air, and not have to dress the baby like a mummy. seriously, if skin is showing you will get chastised. I was reprimanded in the shopping area because apparently the fleece snowsuit I had abby in was not thick enough nor did I have her in enough layers. It apparently did not matter that she was dripping with sweat...

enough with the writing, I know you just want to see the pictures!

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More about Miss Abby

2009-11-24T02:24:00.001-05:00

She sucks her thumb a lot. Actually, it's her first finger and her thumb. I am sure it helps with teething and she is doing it when she is overstimulated or needs to calm herself. It is so stinkin cute!

We had her first poopy diaper today. Hooray! It is a big deal around these parts as stressed out babies tend to be constipated. One way to know they are relaxing with you is when they finally have that first poopy diaper. And it was a doozy. Abby didn't sleep well last night and after seeing that diaper I am sure she was constipated. She was wiggling every which way, I'm sure she was not comfortable. Tonight should be much better.

It's not that cold here, but we have to dress her in so many layers that she is sweating. Today we took a walk down to the local market and a Chinese grandma, aka the clothing police, examined her big pink fluffy fleece snowsuit and looked at her layers and indicated it wasn't enough. For real! All this with sweat practically dripping off her little head. I didn't even have a jacket on, just a long sleeve t-shirt. Oh well, you can't please everyone. Mostly everyone just gives us the thumbs up and a lot of smiles. They follow us along chattering in chinese, probably wondering why we don't answer them. A few know english and that helps a lot.

I did see the biggest baby I've ever seen today. A boy, looking like he was less than a year old, had to be 25-30 lbs, and short. A true Buddha baby. LOL. Poor little Abby looked like a squirt compared to him.

So far we are having a wonderful time getting to know our daughter. She is giving us all kinds of smiles and laughs now, and we are trying to teach her about eating baby food... she's not quite sure what to do with her tongue, she spits out about as much as goes in. But we'll keep working on it, no doubt about it, she won't lack for food at our house, LOL.

CCAI had a pediatrician come today and look at all our babies. Another great thing about our agency... they truly are on top of everything. The doctor said her lungs and heart sound good and that her ears were wet but clear. Evidently the Chinese babies' eardrums go up instead of down and it's hard for them to get ear infections. Very good news. He did say she has pretty severe ecxema (sp?) and gave us cream to put on her cheeks. Should clear up. Told us to get outside a lot and give her more sunshine and when it clears up to keep moisture cream on it. Can do!

Ok ok, here are some more pictures... the first two are from this morning when she woke up... and the last one is of a little school group of children that we saw in the marketplace. Will try to post more pics later today as we take them...

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Abby is here!

2009-11-23T07:55:00.001-05:00

And she is fabulous!!! She cried for maybe 30 seconds when we got her but then settled down. She was a bit shell shocked last night, but she is rapidly showing us her little personality! She loves her bath, she loves to kick her feet, and she loves being in the Ergo carrier. She doesn't show a preference for either one of us, and is quite content to be held by either...

She is tiny tiny tiny. She is swimming in her 3-6 month pants. The tops almost fit, but the pants are huge on her! And the shoes I have for her are all way too big. Not sure I can find any that will fit here. But I'll sure try!

Today we went to the government office and made her adoption official. Everything went very smoothly... I give all the credit for that to CCAI. These folks are definitely on top of everything! Then we came back for lunch and met with the director from the orphanage. I can tell he is very proud of his babies... as soon as we walked up, the girl with him starting saying "jiang yan, jiang yan" so she must have been pretty special to the people at the orphanage. The director had books made up for the babies, that has their pictures in it, the staff, the orphanage, and a little about it all. At least that's what I think it says... it's all in Chinese.

Hopefully tomorrow we'll get more giggles out of girl. We are seeing them, but she is stingy with them... you have to really be funny to get a giggle...

Now here are some pictures!

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Touring Hong Kong and McDonald's

2009-11-23T07:45:00.001-05:00

Today we toured Hong Kong, going to Victoria Point and the Aberdeen Harbor and a marketplace of some sort. I was struck by how clean everything is. There are people everywhere constantly cleaning. And the entrepreneurs are everywhere... they sell sell sell and set up their shops pretty much any place you could put a table. We didn't buy any thing today, but it was fun to look at everything.

Lunch was dim sum at a restaurant near the hotel. Our guide had prenegotiated drink prices for us, so Derek and I were able to get cans of coke zero for $2 USD per can. Normally they sell for $4 or $5 each! After lunch we went to the History Museum and are now on information overload. But I did see some nice pieces of blue and white pottery that dated back to 1375. Apparently, the blue and white china never goes out of style! LOL. I really hope to be able to find a cup and saucer or finger bowl when we are in Guangzhou.

Tonight we went to the harbor for the spectacular laser show. That turned out to be a dud. One color laser and it didn't last very long. Makes me wonder if they were having technical difficulties. But we did get to spend time with 2 of the couples here on the trip and that was fun! We have a very good group of people!

After the light show Derek and I went to the McDonald's. Our last night as just a couple and that's where we ended up. Kind of fitting since we had pizza hut on our wedding night. But it was after 9 PM and we wanted something fast and easy.

Hong Kong has been very impressive. Most every sign is in Canton and also English, and there are a lot of foreigners (non Chinese) that live here. Our guide says her son refers to himself as Hong Kongese. I imagine things will be very different when we get to mainland China.

That's about it for today. We are pretty tired and want to get a good night's rest tonight. We get Abby tomorrow. I can't believe that the day is here. WOW.

Here are some pictures from today!

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We're Here!!

2009-11-23T01:42:00.001-05:00

Wow, all I can say is that was the LONGEST plane ride of my life. I thought we would never get off that plane! And Derek and I sat inbetween two Chinese people who must have been camels in a previous life because they hardle drank anything and consequently never got up to go to the bathroom. LOL.

I also got a cold 2 days prior to leaving. Nothing like flying at 40,000 feet with a stuffed up head. But I'll live. It's for a good reason! We didn't manage to sleep much on the plane, so when we landed in Hong Kong, we came to the hotel and went right to bed around 9:30 and slept through until 5:30 this morning. And now we are both wide awake, waiting for them to start serving breakfast at 6:30.

I'll leave you with pictures I took on the way, today we are sight seeing around Hong Kong so maybe I'll have more to blog about!
<a href="http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k123/SuzanneS_01/?action=view&current=HongKong002.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k123/SuzanneS_01/HongKong002.jpg" border="0" alt="China Trip"></a>

<a href="http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k123/SuzanneS_01/?action=view&current=HongKong003.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k123/SuzanneS_01/HongKong003.jpg" border="0" alt="China Trip"></a>

<a href="http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k123/SuzanneS_01/?action=view&current=HongKong004.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k123/SuzanneS_01/HongKong004.jpg" border="0" alt="China Trip"></a>

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Updated pics!

2009-10-21T17:11:00.001-04:00

Here she is in all of her annoyed, why are you taking a picture of me glory!
Her updated physical stats are that she still weighs 12.1 lbs but is now 24.8" long. Not sure if I believe that she grew an inch in 2 months without putting on any weight. I think one of these measurements is off! Still no teeth yet!

One week down, approximately 4-5 more to go. As busy as I am going to be, I'm sure 4-5 weeks is not nearly enough to get ready. However, it feels like it's going to be an eternity before I can get my hands on those sweet cheeks!!! Abby, hang on, Mama and Baba are coming as quick as we can!

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We have a name!!

2009-10-15T13:24:00.001-04:00

Our little Tiger, Feng Jiang Yan will be Abigail Jiang Yan Schlotterback. We will call her Abby! Abigail means "Father's Joy" and we are so happy to have made a decision!

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More Pictures!!!

2009-10-14T19:54:00.000-04:00

And a correction... Our Feng Jiang Yan is in the Fengxin County Welfare Institute....
We are so in love! Trying to decide on her American name right now. We do plan to use Jiang Yan as her middle name but that's all we've got so far!

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Here she is!!!

2009-10-13T13:11:00.001-04:00

Introducing, our little Tiger....
Feng Jiang Yan
Born: 3/7/09 (she's 7 months old!!!)
Feng Xian County Welfare Institute
Jiangxi Province
As of 8-21-09 she was 23.62" long and weighed 12.1 lbs.
Her favorite activity is playing outside and she sucks her fingers when sleeping!!!!
She is described as being very quiet, likes to listen to music, and can be very obstinate!
She is perfect for us in every way!

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This is not a drill.... deep breath

2009-10-12T14:22:00.001-04:00

Referrals were mailed Friday and calls are starting in the US!!!! Our agency always delays referrals by one day because they have their China reps confirm with the orphanages that the babies referred are still available. So if our agency receives their glorious package today, then we will get our call tomorrow.

YAY!!!! OMG!!!

In other news, I got a new to me dishwasher this morning! My mom redecorated about 5 years ago and replaced her barely 2 year old dishwasher because it didn't go with her new color scheme. Well, it goes with mine just fine. So we picked it up yesterday and the Roto Rooter man installed it for me this morning! Now I can wash all the new little baby eating utensils!

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You put your left foot in...

2009-09-28T16:29:00.001-04:00

You take your left foot out. You put your left foot in and you shake it all about. You do the hokey pokey and you turn yourself around. That's what it's all about!

Conflicting reports are in. Some folks are reporting referrals won't be mailed until after the Chinese holiday period. Another agency is reporting a package on the way due to deliver Wednesday, and while they don't know what's in it, they are speculating referrals.

At this point I don't know if I should jump on the roller coaster or not...

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This is a post about not much

2009-09-25T13:28:00.001-04:00

This morning we got a little news. Seems there are more agencies reporting that they think the 29th is in. This doesn't really affect us, since we are for sure next, but it may explain why they are taking longer with referrals. Still no news as to when they are going to send referrals. I am hoping for next week before they break for their holiday. But if they send them after Tuesday I may have to wait another weekend. Will this wait ever end?

In other news, I am a big ole hot mess right now. Super duper amounts of nervous energy. Enough to drive Derek crazy. So I am planning projects to do over the weekends to keep myself occupied. This weekend I plan to paint the stairwell and landing, our guest bathroom, and our guest bedroom. I am a painting madwoman. I actually plan to do this all on Sunday. Hopefully I can get it all done. If not, I've got another weekend on the horizon...

Color choices: stairwell and landing: China Doll. Most of my house is painted China Doll. It's a really light tan, very much a cool neutral.
Bathroom: Down Pour: this is a dark blue, more in the royal family than the navy.
Bedroom: Light lilac

Will post pictures!

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I think the stork got lost...

2009-09-24T09:40:00.001-04:00

Perhaps we should have given the stork a GPS unit for the trip....

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Enough already!

2009-09-23T11:29:00.001-04:00

You know, after 41 months and 27 days of official waiting, I thought I was a patient person. Really I did. I have been so good during this wait. We've accomplished so much and really, both of us have not struggled. We've enjoyed each other, we've done things we knew would be hard with a little one, we more or less lived our lives, and lived them fully.

The past 2 weeks have been absolute torture for me. I don't know about Derek... he really is my calm center... he has the patience of Job! But I am going crazy. I think for me if I had a date when I knew I could count on, I would be ok. But this not knowing part, but knowing it's close... it's insane.

Right now there are rumors that the Chinese govt is going to wait and send referrals just before they leave for their national holiday, which begins 10-1. That means if they mail on Sept 30th, they will land in the US on 10-2 or 10-5, and we will receive the information the following day. There are also rumors that they aren't going to send them until after they return from holiday, which is 10-8. That would mean we wouldn't hear until 10-13 or 10-14. That to me is unbearable. How in the heck am I supposed to wait until then? Arghhhh!!!!!!! And, if we don't hear until then, we will likely be travelling in mid to late November and will miss Thanksgiving at home. BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.

But, there are also people who believe that they may mail referrals out at the end of this week, and there is always the chance that they've already been mailed.

Do you see why I'm going nuts?

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A post about nothing...

2009-09-21T15:47:00.001-04:00

Can you hear it? Silence.

BOOOOOOOOO.

Hurry up stork, flap those wings faster!

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A post about something other than the impending referral

2009-09-17T10:00:00.002-04:00

Pictures from our first football game of the year!!! This weekend we play Boston College at noon on Saturday.
Thank goodness there is a big game to distract me this weekend. Oops, I guess I mentioned something about the referral. Oh well, this is then the post that is almost about something other than our referral...

Rumor Queen

2009-09-17T08:50:00.001-04:00

You've probably read many references to Rumor Queen on my blog. Who is she? What is this website?

Rumor Queen is the reason I know so much about the adoption process in China. She is an adoptive mom herself, to two little girls who she refers to as GlitterGirl and TwinkleToes. She is anonymous, as the CCAA and her agency would probably be very upset with her if they knew who she was. Why, I don't know.

She reads all the different adoption sites daily, and she takes information that readers send her from their agencies and compiles it. If she's hearing it from a lot of different sources, she will rate it as a R4 or R5 which means she stakes her reputation on it being correct. She may also do this if the information is being put out by an agency that is usually right about such things. If she only hears rumors form a few sources or unreliable sources, it may only garner an R1 or R2.

She has been invaluable to all China adoptive parents in waiting because without her, we would not have any information. Agencies are very guarded with the information they put out, so as to not offend the CCAA. Trust is everything, and if the CCAA(the govt agency that handles adoptions in China) knew that a specific agency was putting out sensitive information, they would definitely jeopardize their relationship.

Not only does Rumor Queen know about the rumors of what's going on, she is very knowledgeable about the process on the Chinese side of things. She has spoken with people who are VERYCLOSE to the process in China and has some insider information. Seriously- this lady knows more than most US agencies.

And so she's been a lifeline for all of us waiting families. I check site daily, and here lately, every hour. Waiting for the announcement that referrals are on their way. Waiting. Waiting. Waiting. If it weren't for her, I would not have a clue when my referral was expected.

And so I hit refresh. And wait. And read. And wait.

Next week is our week. I feel it in the depths of my soul. We will know our daughter next week.

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Soon

2009-09-14T15:36:00.001-04:00

The rumors have started.... so that usually means that matching has begun... which means we are 1-2 weeks away from seeing our sweet baby girl's face!!!

Would anyone like to start guessing what province she's from and her age?
My totally random guess is Jiangxi and I think she will be 9 months old...

We still are working on names. Planning to see her sweet face first and take it from there....

This weekend was a fun one. I did the Tour de Paws Metric Century bike ride to benefit the Spartanburg Humane Society. The ride went really well and I was averaging a good speed when a rider in front of me decide on a hill it would be a great idea to down shift to a smaller gear and his speed dropped SOFAST. I couldn't react fast enough and hit his back wheel with my front wheel. So what does one think about when one knows she's about to hit the pavement? PROTECT THE BIKE!!! Luckily all I got was some road rash on my knee and hand (yay another scar on my poor knees!), a few bruises, and some ripped up tape on my handlebars. Easy to fix. Phew. I was not a happy camper though about the incident. When you are riding in a group, no abrupt changes please!

I also took Edra shopping- we had a great time and found lots of cute things. I mostly stayed away from the baby clothes. I did buy one pair of orange stripped pants in a 6-9 month size. I couldn't resist! Gosh, I can't wait to go shopping for baby girl! At least then I will feel like I'm doing something productive!

Next weekend is the Boston College/Clemson game at home. That will help the weekend go by fast. Thankfully. I want all weekends to go by fast until we are together as a family!!!

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Ok, I just had to buy these...

2009-08-29T22:08:00.001-04:00

Yes I know that when we are in China we can get squeaky shoes for about $4-$5. But what are the odds that they have THESE squeaky shoes? Baby girl has to have Clemson shoes. She just has to. So mama bought these for her. Aren't they just the cutest things ever??????

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The countdown has officially begun...

2009-08-24T16:10:00.001-04:00

With the stork bringing referrals on Friday for families logged in on 3-23-06 and 3-24-06 (Thursday and Friday), it is now safe to begin the countdown for our referral in September. Our log in date is 3-27-06 which was on a Monday. Yahoo!!!

I am guessing that referrals will arrive around 9/22, so we are at 29 days and counting.....

And, another 5 1/2 month old baby was referred... I love seeing the young babies!

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Drumroll please.....

2009-08-18T14:00:00.001-04:00

The rumors are out, and my gut instincts are correct.... we will not receive our referral this month, but we are on for September. It's finally official, we are NEXT. The rumors say that referrals are in the air as we speak and the cut off is for families logged in on March 24th. In 2006, March 24th was a Friday. There are a few families logged in on March 26th which was a Sunday- it seems odd to have a log in on a Sunday, so my guess is that these families were actually logged in on the 27th but somehow their date was miscommunicated. Regardless, by all intents and purposes, the 27th (which is our log in date) is the VERY NEXT date to be referred. This means there are no ifs, ands, or buts... we are definitely in for September.

Referrals in July came on the 21s/22nd. Referrals for August are expected on the 19th/20th. So, my best guess is that we will see our referral arrive somewhere between September 18th and September 25th with the most likely days being the 21st or 22nd.

Oh my goodness. That means there are only about 34 days until we will see the face of our baby girl! It is wild for me to think that somewhere in Beijing, our file is sitting on a worker's desk with a bunch of files of other families. And on that same desk are a pile of babies' files. And that worker is deciding which family gets which baby. It most certainly has to be Divinely inspired.

Thursday is my birthday. I will be 37. How is this possible? I still feel like I'm 24. I never in a million years thought I would be a first time mother at 37. But, somehow this feels right. It also means that I'm younger than the rest of the 37 year olds. Right?

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Trying out the new Flip Camera...

2009-08-08T21:28:00.002-04:00

Pink Puppy

2009-08-06T21:21:00.000-04:00

Because everyone deserves a friend...

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Granola Shoes

2009-08-06T21:19:00.001-04:00

Part of me loves Coach purses, Ann Taylor clothes, getting my nails done every month, and reading Glamour magazine. The other part is a no-makeup-wearing northface patagonia merrell outdoor loving tomboy who has no time for all that. The two vastly different sides of my personality seem to peacefully coexist.

I present to you my new shoes. Derek calls them my granola shoes. I thought they would be good for the trip- they are Merrells and they are easy to get on and off for airport security, and by golly, they are pretty comfortable.

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Impatiently Patient

2009-08-03T15:18:00.001-04:00

When we are travelling to get Baby Schlotterback, on our in-China flights we will be limited to one bag, 44 lbs or less per ticketed passenger.

44 lbs. That's not that much when you consider how big the suitcase is that I planned to pack. And if we travel in November, we will likely need warm clothes for our daughter's province and summer clothes for when we go to Guangzhou to finalize. (Avg temps for Guangzhou in November are around 80- it's on the same latitude line as Cuba)

Trying to figure out now how we are going to handle this. 44 lbs just isn't a lot. We'll stuff our backpacks too as carry-ons. But still. 44lbs.

At the consignment sale I found a stroller. A Graco Metro Lite for $50 (retails for about $140) that is in great condition. I also bought just a couple of outfits, but mostly pjs. And I bought a brand new pair of Robeez in size 0-6 months for $4 and a brand new pair of pink Nikes in size 3.5. I don't even know what age child wears a 3.5, but hey, they were only $5 and looked brand new. All in all I showed restraint and stayed within budget and then Grandmommy Ann surprised me with money to cover it all! YAY! Thanks Mom!

All I can say right now is that we are impatiently patient. I've been so good throughout this whole wait, taking it in stride and not really obsessing about anything. (Thank you triathlon!) But I've found as we get closer to our referral, I am becoming a neurotic mess and am very impatient, wishing the time away. But because this is all on China time, we must wait, there is nothing we can do about it. So here we are. Ok, mostly me. Impatiently patient.

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stuff

2009-07-29T11:38:00.001-04:00

A few things that I've ordered have come in over the past few days. First of all, our Ergo Sport Baby Carrier came this weekend. I'm dying to try it out, but the puppy dog just doesn't want to cooperate with me on that.

A few books also came in... Rosie's Adoption Story, I Don't Have Your Eyes, and Red Thread Journey; a Fairy Tale. So Cute!!

Tonight I am going to a large consignment sale at the local Catholic church. I went to this same sale back in January and bought so many cute spring and summer outfits. Yes, those same outfits that are now probably going to waste. Today starts the fall and winter sale, so I am going to stock up.

The good news is that I found out that anyone can be a consignor. You don't have to be a member of the church. So all those things I bought before... if they end up not being used, I can take them back and re-sell them in January. They tell you to price your item at 30% of the retail price. Then if it sells, you get 70% and the church gets 30%, for which you get a tax receipt for a donation. A friend of mine said she made over $700 at one of the sales!!! Woo Hoo!!! So, I feel much more inclined to do my shopping for fall and winter. I'll buy a few 6 month things, a lot of 9 month things, and a few 12 month things. That should cover the range I need.

I can't wait. I'll try to post pictures of any treasures that I find!!

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Pins and Needles

2009-07-24T15:20:00.001-04:00

Since figuring out we are next NEXT and should be receiving our referral at the end of September, I've been on Pins and Needles. All day long I've got packing lists and to do lists and what not dancing through my head. Every morning I must check the blogs of those in China now and it makes me giddy with excitement.

This is not good. This is going to make the next 2 months DRAG by.

The good news is that this months referrals had a lot of very young babies. The youngest referral I've ever seen was this month and it was for a 5 1/2 month old. I would LOVE to get a young young baby. I'm not counting on it, and I won't be disappointed if we don't, but it sure would be nice to have more of our daughter's babyhood, and that means less time for her without a mom and a dad.

So, there is a chance that all those 12 month old clothes I bought will not go to waste after all... we might be using them next spring if we get a young baby! Chinese babies are typically smaller anyway. It would not be uncommon for a 12 month old child to wear 6-9 month old clothing. But of course, with all the different ethnic minorities in China, this is not a hard and fast rule.

So that's where we are right now. In the final countdown. Less than 2 months to referral. My birthday is in August, right around the time referrals are expected. I have my last triathlon for the season on August 16th. Clemson Football starts on September 5th. If there ever was a time where I wished for time to fly by, this is it.

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September it is...

2009-07-20T14:45:00.001-04:00

The big news today is that the CCAA has mailed referrals for families logged in on 3-21 and 3-22. What this means for us, is that next month, the referrals should be for 3-23, 3-24, 3-25, and 3-26. (3-23 and 3-24 are medium big days and 3-25 and 3-26 are teeny tiny). We are a shoo in for September. I am 95% sure this is when it's gonna happen- when we will receive our referral. I think at this point the only thing that would prevent that from happening is if referrals stopped altogether for a month again.

So, a referral in September (likely the week of 9-21 through 9-25) would mean we will travel to China late October/Early November. YAY!!! We should be home in time for Thanksgiving. The long wait is almost over. It's hard to comprehend.

I would like to address something that today I had to address with my mom. I will not be taking the baby to any baby showers, parties, or any kind of get together until we are home for several months. Over stimulation for a child who has only known a very small world can cause them to shut down and will make the attachment process harder.

Let me paint the picture for you... a child, who is around a year old... has never ever left the orphanage except on the day she was brought to you. If she was fortunate enough to be in foster care, she was likely in a home that was very simple, perhaps even dirt floors.

Suddenly for the first time in her life she is removed from that world. And handed over to 2 people who look nothing like her other caregivers. Who smell weird and want her to eat different food. Her clothes are different too... no longer bundled up in 10 layers. And airconditioning in the hotel...this is new too. Suddenly she's in an airport... surrounded by a crowd of people...loud noises and lots of lights. Then she is on a plane for at least 17 hours. Day is night and night is now day. She is brought into a new home...all the Chinese faces have disappeared... no one looks familiar. The things these people are saying... they don't sound anything like the sounds she's heard. Suddenly there is a furry creature there....

That is a lot of change to happen to a one year old in a very short amount of time. When we come home, our world will be very small. We are going to be at home most of the time. Any trips out of the house will be to quiet places like the library, or a park, or for a walk in the neighborhood. If I have to take her to the store, she will be in the carrier facing me and we will go when I know not a lot of people will be there. Even though it will be near Christmas, the only decorations I will likely put up are the tree and stockings. All my attention will be on this child and teaching her what it means to have a mommy and a daddy and a home. After we get home I will only have 10 weeks before I am back at work full time. I have to make sure she is as attached to us as possible, and part of that means keeping her world small.

Until we feel she's bonded with us, Derek and I will be the only ones to hold her and feed her and change her. She has to learn that we are her parents and she can trust on us to take care of her.

I'm not going to be one of those parents who think their way is the only way. BUT, I am going to be vigilant about helping her bond with us in the beginning as that will set the stage for how secure she is her entire life. I'm reading the books, doing the research. I realize there are no guarantees. And our daughter may bond to us very quickly and I will be able to relax more about it when we are home. I have to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. I have to be ready for this to be a difficult transition.

I know many of you mean well, and think, "Oh it will be ok, all you have to do is love her and she'll fall in love with you and Derek." I respect the fact that many of you are parents and grandparents and you have a wealth of experience and advice. But please know that parenting a child who has been instituionalized her entire life and has been abandoned twice (1st by birth parents and 2nd by her orphanage caregivers)is different than giving birth to a child. If we do it right in the beginning, the chance for problems later greatly diminishes. So while I realize you do know what you are doing for your children, please respect our wishes concerning our child. I can't wait to introduce her to our friends and family... but I will do so only as I feel she can handle it... one at a time... most likely in our home.

I hope you all can share in our joy and I hope that no one gets their feelings hurt. We are just trying to do what we feel is best for our daughter.

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Freak out!

2009-06-26T10:27:00.001-04:00

So I'm surfing the net this morning, making all my usual stops and I see a new post on Rumor Queen.... apparently a Canadian agency received referrals yesterday for their families logged in on 3/21 and 3/23. WHAT?

What does this mean? Were these referrals sent out by accident too early? Were they really logged in on 3/20 and they are just late?

So many possibilities. I've emailed CCAI to see what's up. Because if this is a 2nd batch, and that batch goes through 3/23, then there is a great chance that we are NEXT.

Did I just type that?

Oh Boy. I'm gonna be one busy girl next week. I suddenly feel so unprepared!

A List a Mile Long...

2009-06-25T16:01:00.002-04:00

So next week I am off from work (mandatory shut down) and my to do list has grown like kudzu on a steamy afternoon in the South. (for those of you that don't know, kudzu grows like a gazillion feet per day).

I want to replace our front shutters... the green ones that are up are getting kind of bleached out from the sun. I am putting up black instead (they are in stock at home depot). I also need to pull weeds and clean the house. You know, one of those "good" cleanings where you do things like dust the ceiling fans.

I want to go register at Target and Babies R Us. This is how I am going to feed my shopping habit without actually spending any money. I am very excited to do this, I've held off because our referral seems so far away. Well, it's getting closer now, and I know I won't have time to do it after the referral, so I thought I'd go ahead. My friend Jennifer is going with me to do the Target one and my mom is going with me to do the one at Babies R Us. Fun stuff! I hope to visit a few consignment shops as well while we are out.

I also need to start the 100 good wishes quilt. If I don't do it before baby girl comes home, she'll be in college before I get to work on it. I figure I'll do the top and then get someone else (perhaps the quilt shop) to quilt it to the bottom. First I have to decide on a design and buy the coordinating fabric. I will probably do that this Saturday, after my triathlon.

Oh yeh, did I mention I'm racing again this weekend? Short sprint here in town, shouldn't be too big of a deal. Should be home and done by lunch.

I am also taking Derek's mom to a few doctor's appointments, and I'm sure other things will crop up during the week. And of course I'll need some relaxing-by-the-pool time. Good stuff.

Today I ordered "Taming the Tiger While It's Still A Kitten" attachment parenting cds and booklet. I really need to start educating myself on this. Odds are our daughter won't have any issues, still, I think we need to be prepared in case there are problems.

I guess that's all that's going on at the moment. The next set of referrals probably won't be out until the week of July 20th- 24th. I hope hope hope they do more than just 2 days worth, but that is all I am realistically expecting.

June Referrals are in...

2009-06-23T11:09:00.001-04:00

And the Log in Dates covered were March 15th, 2006- March 20th, 2006. If you remember, our LID is March 27th, 2006. So we are close.... very close....

My best guess is still September, though there is an outside chance for August. If we receive our referral in September, we would likely travel at the end of October-Beginning of November, and should be home in time for Thanksgiving.

Wow. How cool is that? Thanksgiving- Christmas is such a special time of the year anyway, so being able to spend that time at home with my new baby girl getting to know one another will be such a blessing. Maybe I'll be able to piece her 100 good wishes quilt together before we go. I would love to find someone who can quilt it together for me. I can do it, but really don't have the time to sit and quilt it... (truth be known I'm not sure I have the patience... hand quilting is sloooooowwwwww).

In other news, I think I will be making a new purchase soon... a Flip Ultra HD digital camcorder. They are so reasonably priced and seem to offer everything we need in the way of a camera. I love that they are so small and honestly, I don't think I will ever need anything more than the 2 hours of footage that the camera will hold.

Had a sprint race this past weekend. Tri the Midlands in Columbia, SC. It was hot. Hell Hot. I saw the devil on the course. I did pretty good, finished 27th OA female and 6th of 19 in my age group. I was satisfied with my swim, pleased with my bike, and disgusted with my run. I had to take 3 walk breaks. That is so unlike me. The 5th place girl passed me in the last mile... I tried to run her back down but had nothing left. She ended up about :30 ahead of me. But I am pleased that I seem to be getting better overall... still not at the front of the pack but seem to be moving to the front of the middle of the pack. That's better than I thought I was capable 3 years ago. I'll keep training and working hard. It seems to be paying off.

Have another race this weekend in downtown Greenville. Go Tri Sports Sprint- 300m swim, 9 mile bike, 5K run. The bike is a 3 loop course and the 5K run is an out and back on a trail. This should be interesting...

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Does this worry anyone else?

2009-06-12T15:19:00.001-04:00

Ok, having been the daughter of an engineer who worked for Milliken & Co., I have always been taught the importance of buying American made products. This fact has been reiterated to me over and over in my life, and even more so as an adult since I work for an American manufacturing company.

I believe a lot of our country's problems today can be directly linked back to what I call "The Walmart Effect" and our country's primary focus on finding and buying cheaper and cheaper products. This has not only killed the small businessman, who now can only exist in a niche market, but has also killed American manufacturing companies. The fact is that labor is cheaper in other countries and transportation, which was once an obstacle to doing business with foreign countries, is now easily accessible and relatively inexpensive. This has driven the consumption of Chinese made products up to an all time high.

Lately, with the way the economy is going, people have started to once again talk about "buying American" and steering clear of the "cheap and inferior" products coming out of China. This worries me.

1. I am absolutely behind the "buy American" campaign. I truly think that by doing so, we can help bring this country back.
2. I am worried that my Chinese born daughter will hear someone comment about the "cheap and inferior" products coming out of China and will think that about herself.

Obviously, we will do our best to raise our daughter so she NEVER questions her self worth. But, surely she will hear these comments over and over again throughout her life. And I'm sure it will not make her feel proud to be an American, but rather ashamed that she is Chinese. This is something I really worry about.

And to be honest, while I loathe Walmart, and try to never step foot in there, I can't blame the Chinese for the downfall in American manufacturing. The people of China are doing everything they can to create wealth for their country- to rise from severe poverty levels that claim so many Chinese families... which may have been a reason that my daughter was abandoned. So, I can't disparage China for wanting more for their people. I want my daughter to be proud that she is Chinese. As proud as I want her to be that she is American. Can the two co-exist?

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Festival of Flowers OLY Tri 2009

2009-06-10T10:43:00.001-04:00

Sometimes a race is good because you have fun and not because you PR. This weekend I did the Festival of Flowers OLY distance triathlon. I finished in 2:51:39. Last year I finished in 2:47 and change. Of course, I was in the best shape of my life heading into Ironman CDA.

This year I was fine on the swim, slightly faster on the bike, but my run stunk. I had to take 8 weeks off from running due to some mysterious hip flexor injury. I've only been running again pain free since the end of April, so my expectations of what I could do were not what they have been. I was just hoping to run 10 minute miles for the 10K. I managed to do the 6.2 miles in 1:01:59. I'm not sure I could have nailed 10 min miles more perfectly if I had had an official pacer.

Next year I'm going for that PR.

Anyway, I managed to finish 5th out of 9 in my age group. For the swim I was 3rd of 9 (missed 2nd by 1 second!), 3rd of 9 on the bike, and then 6 of 9 on the run. I see lots and lots of running in my future. Hopefully pushing baby girl in the jogging stroller will help me get stronger and faster.

I leave you with a picture from the race. Left to right are: Brad Fraedrich, Kimberley Westbury, Jan Garrett, Katie Malone, Me, and Andy Van Evera. All on the Malone Coaching team!!

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one more test

2009-06-05T14:12:00.000-04:00

Testing from hotmail account to see if all the legal mumbo jumbo is left off the end of the post...

A little pic of my girl when we met....

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Testing

2009-06-05T14:05:00.002-04:00

Just a little test to see if this email to post option works or not….

A little funny I found…. I wonder if Chip and Dale realize someone is selling their Chippendale chairs…

Random thoughts...

2009-06-05T12:27:00.004-04:00

I am having one of those days where it seems like all I can do is think about the adoption, the trip to China, and what our little Tiger is going to look like. It's days like this where I can't imagine that we've waited already over 38 months. A few more to go, that's all. I guess it's normal... if I were pregnant, I would say I'm just getting ready to enter in the last trimester.

After reading about Pugmama (her blog is http://pugmama.wordress.com) and how she got her TA (travel approval) and then had to leave for China in 2 days, I am starting to make plans for everything that needs to be done once we receive our referral. I do not want to be stressing about what needs to be done at the last minute, and since we have that little black cloud hovering over us, that is bound to be what happens... We need to register... we need to purchase a car seat... we need to pick out a pediatrician...we need a stroller... we need a booster seat/highchair.... we need baby clothes (once we know about the size)... we need sleepers and onesies... we need bottles and sippy cups... you get the drift.... and don't even get me started on packing.... my plan is to take 2 large suitcases. One large suitcase for Derek and I and one that has a smaller suitcase in it for all things related to baby (yeh i'll probably mix the two in case one gets lost). I will pack diapers for the trip home all around the smaller suitcase inside the large one. This should leave us with an extra suitcase to bring home all kinds of special goodies. From what I understand Chinese diapers are not as absorbant as those sold in the US, so parents who have BTDT advise to bring some from home for baby to wear on the journey home. The last thing you need is a diaper blowout at 35,000 feet or in line at immigration...

Lately I've been enjoying reading the blogs of new parents in China... because it helps me to imagine what it's going to be like for us, and what to expect. It brings me such joy to read all about these new families. I race to my computer each morning to see what the latest post is all about!

Thank goodness it's Friday. I have a full weekend planned. Tomorrow I have a short 20 mile bike ride and then need to clean my bike and lube the chain. After that I need to get my pigsty of a house in order and laundry washed. Sunday I have my first race of the season! Festival of Flowers OLY triathlon in Greenwood, SC. Last year my time was 2:48 and change. Hoping to shave a few minutes at least off that... but I was in much better shape last year getting ready for the Ironman. Hopefully Derek can get some good pictures this year!

I guess that's all my random ramblings for now (is that redundant?).

Trying this on for size....

2009-06-04T11:40:00.001-04:00

Thinking about the name Samantha.... would probably call her Sam for short....

It's not for sure, but it's moving up in the short list....

One little day makes all the difference...

2009-06-02T14:24:00.002-04:00

Over and over again throughout this adoption process, I've learned that one little day makes all the difference in the world. One day sooner on our doctor's visits, one day sooner on our fingerprints, one day sooner on our homestudy, etc would have meant one, or even a few days sooner that our dossier was logged in in China.

Well, after looking at the number of waiting families to be referred, I am reminded that STILL... one day makes all the difference in the world. I am beginning to understand that the best way to predict the # of referral days that are going to come out each month is to look at the number of families that are reported for each log in day (this is based on the rumorqueen website and her polls). The closer we get to referral, the more important these numbers are....

Basically I have crunched the numbers and poured over them, and if the next batch of referrals goes through a LID of 3/21/06, then we will get our referral in August. If the next batch only goes through 3/20/06, then it will most likely be September.

This date assumes that the next batch will be received sometime during this calender month, after the "April" referrals were received on May 20th. Yes, this means that a month in there will have been skipped.

On another note... I just watched a "gotcha" moment (I hate the term gotcha, btw) on the web. A one minute video showing a waiting mama receiving her precious baby girl. It suddenly hit me, I just watched a family being made, as much as if I had just watched her give birth. It was a beautiful thing, and I am not ashamed to say I got a little teary watching it. After all, that will be us in a few months. It's all starting to sink in.

tick tock tick tock tick tock

2009-06-01T17:12:00.002-04:00

Well, if I had a biological clock, that is what it would be doing. So instead I present you with what my "adoption womb" is doing.

Our best guess is still that we will get our referral anywhere from the end of July to the end of August. But I wouldn't be surprised if it extends to September. Either way, we are for sure going to be travelling this year to get our little Tiger! We still don't have a name picked out. You understand that we will probably be on the plane over the pacific still discussing names....

I received some distressing news from my employer. It seems that while I can take up to 12 weeks leave as required by law under FMLA, I will receive no compensation. I also understand that if I were giving birth to a child, rather than adopting, I would receive 6 weeks of paid time off as part of what I could take under FMLA. I guess I never realized prior to this journey all the... what's the word I'm looking for here?.... the... second class treatment that adoptive moms get. I mean, after all, we aren't REAL moms.... according to many.

It is so frustrating to be in this situation. We've had so many obstacles to overcome on this LOOOOONNNNNGGGGGG journey that I just want to know, can't we catch a break?

This too shall pass. No one ever promised that life would be fair. We will be ok, I'll take the full 12 weeks (instead of only 6) and will bond with my beautiful baby girl. No, we won't have money to live high on the hog, but we'll be ok. It's just hurtful to think that not everyone will recognize our family as being "real" and that my child will go through life with other's questioning our family and perhaps not being treated equally.

But, I still love Derek, and he loves me, and we'll love our little Tiger. That's all that matters, right?

Rumors Rumors

2009-04-27T13:04:00.002-04:00

Looks like the newest set of rumors has referrals this month going through 3-14-06. If that is so, then I am excited! That puts us on track to get our referall at the end of July/Beginning of August. We would travel in September... baby girl might actually get a chance to wear all those summer clothes I bought....

Not much else to report. Spent the weekend working in the yard and getting ready to open the pool next weekend. I love our home. I could just sit on our porch and by the pool all day long everyday. *sigh*

On another note, I am starting to run again since my long hiatus due to hip flexor injury. I've been cycling and swimming, but there is just nothing like a nice long sweaty run. Oh how I've missed it. (seriously). I am slow now and can't go very far yet, but I am hopeful to be back to my racing speeds by end of June. I've got 3 races in June, one in July, and one in August that I want to do. I hope to be able to "race" in June and not just participate. We shall see...

Maggie Mae is still such a dream dog. She is so sweet and loving... seriously one of the best dogs I've ever been around. Oh she's had her moments, but only a few... and we've had her for 7 months. I love how she gets on her belly and crawls to little kids when she meets them... it's like she knows not to scare them. She's gonna be great with the baby!

Are we there yet?

2009-04-01T11:11:00.000-04:00

I'm wondering if anyone is still reading this blog? I gave up on it after a year, so it wouldn't surprise me if everyone else gave up as well!!

I did some analysis for Derek to let him know what the current situation is... and let me just say that nothing is written in stone. It changes every month. BUT, based on what the Chinese govt is doing right now, we can figure out when we would get our referral if that continued.

So, the new rumor is out that referrals for March (let's call it March/April since it's now April the 1st) are for 2 days- March 7th and March 8th LIDs. Now at first that sounds discouraging. But we must look at how many families are logged in on those two days. March 7th is huge- according to the Rumor Queen polls, it's the largest Log in Date for 2006 to present. So that being said, if they get through the 7th and the 8th, there is reason for some celebration.
If they get through the 8th and continue at that same rate, I believe we will get our referral at the end of July/beginning of August. I do think there is going to be a speed up. The question is, is it going to happen before or after we get our referral?

My reasons for thinking a speed up is in the works have merit. The orphanage donation increased on January 1st from $3000 to over $5000. This increase is meant to not only cover the rising costs associated with caring for our children from the time they are received until they are put in our hands, but to also bring the donation in line so that it is no longer more profitable for the orphanages to hold on to their children. (If this is all it took, why didn't they do it 3 years ago?) But I digress...

Children who are placed for international adoption in China must be legally declared an orphan. To do this, a finding ad must be placed in a local paper and no one must come forward to claim the child for 6 months. The orphanage directors do not place ads for babies unless they are destined for IA. So, if the fee increase went into effect in January, and this increase encouraged the directors to make more children available for IA, then it stands to reason that if they started placing more finding ads in January, then we should see more babies being referred starting in July or August or September. The ad is only one part of the process. The directors must fill out a lot of paperwork for each child being adopted, much like the stacks of paperwork we had to fill out. These things take time, but I am optimistic that we will start seeing more families being matched later this year.

I would love to be matched at the end of June and travel in August to get our child, but I'm afraid it may be that we are matched at the end of July and travel in early September. At least by going in the hottest months of the year, we'll have more room in our suitcases because all we'll be wearing is shorts!

What in the world is going on?

2009-01-19T14:35:00.012-05:00

Well folks. I'm back. It looks like we are getting close to a referral. And I'm not kidding. Our agency is thinking things are heading towards a slight speed up, so while we will DEFINITELY have our referral by Junish, we might even have a referral in the next 2-3 months. Wow. Suddenly I feel so unprepared. I mean, evidently, 3 years was not enough. I have books on attachment to read. I need to dust off the baby care books. I mean, what do babies even eat at 8 months- 15 months old? I need to find a jogging stroller! I need to register. I need to finish the nursery (at least that is almost done). I need to find a daycare. I need to find a pediatrician. WE NEED TO AGREE ON A NAME! (this probably won't happen until we are being handed our child!)

Whew. Suddenly my to-do lists have to-do lists. I can't believe that it's almost time. Am I going to be ready? Am I going to be a good mom? I think this is all natural nervousness, but suddenly I am realizing that this person we are going to be entrusted with to raise is just a few months from becoming a reality in our world. Oh my gosh!!!

In other news, Derek's mom just finished chemotherapy for non-hodgkins lymphoma. We are praying that the nasty drugs did their job and that she is on the mend for good. We adopted a rescued Springer Spaniel and named her Maggie Mae! She has been lots of good company for Derek's mom and is such a sweet, loving little girl. She is great with kids. She recently met Derek's cousin's granddaughter who is 2 and she literally crawled to the little girl and was so gentle with her. God has sent us a fur-angel!!! We are so in love with her. She is a very good girl and has just made herself at home with us. It's like she's been with us all her life instead of just a few months. We think she is about 2 years old. She was pulled from a high kill shelter and was literally skin and bones and pregnant when we met her. She was spayed (didn't find out she was pregnant until she was spayed!) and has quickly put on weight. She is now at a normal weight and we are soon going to have to put her on weight management food. A good problem to have!

I trained for 2 ironmans last year. Let me explain. I originally signed up to do Ironman Coeur D'Alene in June. BUT (and that's a big BUTT) 10 days before the race in one of my final training rides, I crashed and broke my collarbone. Race was done. Luckily I had registered for the race through a charity, and they were gracious enough to let me change my race registration to Ironman Wisconsin in September. I literally only took about 10-12 days off and began training again, hoping to maintain fitness and rehab my shoulder. I swam with one arm for 6 weeks. Literally. My coach gave me workouts full of kicking drills and one armed swimming drills. We're talking 1 hour of this. 2200 yds of this. Ughhhh. By the time the doctor released me to swim with both arms I was about to go crazy!!! I maintained my run fitness through pool swimming and the elliptical. I rode my bike on the trainer for crazy 3 hour rides.

I wasn't sure I would be able to come back and be ready for the race as there was only 12 weeks between my crash and the race, but not only did I do it, I was only about :30 off my predicted time. I finished in 15:31:58. I should have finished in about 14:30, but my stomach was not agreeing with me on the first part of the run. I got my issues worked out and by the last 7-8 miles, I felt the best I had during the entire run. (for those of you who don't know, an Ironman is 2.4 miles swimming, 112 miles biking, and 26.2 miles running and you have to finish in less than 17:00:00 to be considered a finisher.) I swam about what I expected. I could have been faster, but with a bum shoulder, I was happy. My bike kicked butt. I got a new carbon tri bike with my stimulus check, and let me tell you, it made a huge difference. I know they say it's not the bike but the engine running it, but having a nice bike does make a big difference.

I will say that I loved every minute of it. I will do another Ironman. But I realize that because of the time it takes to train for it (at least 20 weeks of 12- 18 hour training weeks) I will need to wait until our daughter is old enough to not want mom around 24-7. So for now, I will focus on shorter races: sprints, olympics, and maybe half iron. I might even throw in some more run only races. I would love to do another stand alone marathon. Maybe in 2010.

I am still about 10-15 lbs from my goal weight. I plateaued and then with all the training for the ironman, it was impossible to lose weight. Yes, I know this sounds silly, but when you are eating 3000+ calories a day to fuel workouts and maintain enough energy to do it all, it's literally impossible to try and lose weight. I think I gained about 3 lbs during the process.

I guess that is enough ramblings for now. I will leave you with a few pictures....

Me with the big inflatable M-Dot. The unofficial mascot of the Ironman.

Brad, Katie (my coach) and me. All 3 of us raced. Katie finished first in under 12 hours, Brad was next in the 13 hour ish range, and I was pulling up the rear at 15:31. Yes, Brad is very tall and we are very short.

The sea of bikes that is transition 1. This is on the top level of the Monona Terrace in Madison, Wisconsin. About 2200 bikes were lined up and ready for the race.

My bibs. I wore Schlotterback during the bike portion and Suzanne during the run. It was nice to hear people cheering for you by name. Since no one can pronounce Schlotterback, I figured I better wear the one that said Suzanne during the run.

The mass start of the swim in Lake Monona. 2200 people all trying to occupy the same space. It was like swimming in a washing machine.

Sunrise on Lake Monona waiting for the gun to go off..

More waiting....

This wasn't during the race but during a practice swim. Since Derek was unable to travel with me for the race (due to his mom's health) I have the pictures that the pros made during the race and the ones that my coach made before and after. This was 2 days before the race during a practice swim. The lake was around 70 degrees, and with the wetsuit it felt great.

I blinged out my new bike, a Felt B12. I wanted everyone in that race to know I was a TIGER! Isn't it sexy?

Just at the beginning of the bike. Yes, I was taking it easy. Hey, I probably had 110 miles to go at this point. Gotta pace yourself...

At about mid point of the bike, somewhere around mile 50ish. I played cat and mouse with the chick in the pink all day on the bike. I'd get her on the hills and she'd get me on the flats...

During the run- this was during the first of two laps and we ran through Camp Randall Stadium. BTW, this stadium was TINY compared to Death Valley, though it is very historic. The grass was fake, but it was all very neat...

Hamming it up for the camera man. This was at the very beginning of the run, probably in mile 2. I will say that shortly after this picture was taken, the wheels fell off the bus and my stomach started protesting. But hey, I looked good for the picture!

Me crossing the finish. With about a block to go a race official called in my number so as I ran down the finisher's chute, Mike Reilly (the voice of IM)called out "Suzanne Schlotterback from Simpsonville, SC, YOU are an ironman!"

I ran down the chute with my Tiger Rag up in the air. Yes, you know it, I'm all orange!

Here is a close up of the finisher's medal. It's in the shape of a cow. Ironman Wisconsin is frequently referred to as Ironman Moo or IM MOO for short because we ride through dairy country during the race. So it was neat how they combined that idea to make the medal we all received after crossing the finish line.

Last but not least, here is a picture of our sweet Maggie Mae the week before she came home to her forever home. She is such a good girl! We love her with all our hearts!

Wow, has it been a year already?

2008-06-02T11:16:00.002-04:00

I can't believe it's been a year since I last posted on this blog. My my how time flies.

What have we been up to?

Well, in a nutshell I've been training and working. Working and training. Triathlon and work have taken over my life. I finished up my season last year with a Half-Iron Distance tri and decided to sign up for Ironman Coeur D'Alene. And in 3 weeks, I'll be in Idaho toeing the line with 2000 other crazy tri peeps.

I remember when I ran my marathon in 2006. I couldn't imagine swimming 2.4 and riding 112 and then running 26.2. But now, that's not so crazy. In my training I've done 4 rides at 100 miles + and 3-4 (I can't remember, they all run together) runs of at least 20 miles. I remember training in 2006 for the mary, I only did one run of 20 miles. Heh. I guess I 'm a little better trained this time around.

Oh, and how is the adoption going? Well, it's likely gonna be another year. I feel like a broken record saying that, but referrals have slowed down to a trickle. And by a trickle, I mean a trickle. May/June referrals have not been announced yet, but it's likely only 2-3 days worth of Log-in dates. (probably Jan 21-23, 2006.) Our log in date, once again, was 3/27/06, so if they are doing 2-5 days each month, we still have a long wait ahead of us. Boooooo. I will be the oldest new mom on the block!

I'll leave you with pictures from the past year. We've certainly been busy!

Pictures from the SC HIM Sept 30, 2007 And the Spinx Run Fest Half Mary in Oct 2007.

October 2007. PR!!! 2:04:14

Derek and I had our portraits made in December. Gee, I wonder if anyone noticed the orange and purple theme?

Suzanne hamming it up for the camera at the Parris Island Sprint Tri in March 2008. And finishing the Myrtle Beach Half Mary in February.

Ironman training takes a lot of bottle washing and requires a lot of running shoes. (actually no on the shoes but I just love running shoes. Doesn't every tri closet look like this?

I've got at least 7 pairs of running shoes (all but 3 pairs are retired) 3 swim suits, a road id, reflective arm bands for night running, and a ball to do wall squats with.

Isn't this a riot?

Here is an updated picture of our backyard oasis. We have planted 27 rose bushes. Derek and I are very proud of all of his (mostly) hard work!!

And on the weight loss front. I am almost at goal weight. Still would like to lose about 10 lbs of fat and put on a few pounds of muscle, but that will have to wait until after the Ironman. Right now it's just eat, train, and work!

And last, but not least, here is the view from the house we've rented for the race. Coeur D'Alene, ID is a beautiful place and I can't wait to get there and experience everything. We fly out in the evening of the 18th. The race is 6/22 and we fly home on 6/25.

No Fathers Here

2007-06-18T10:28:00.000-04:00

Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there. This year, as the past 5 have also been, was hard for us as we have no fathers in our family. Literally. Derek's father passed away in 1992, my grandfather passed away in 1998, my father in 2002, and my uncle in 2006. So, it's just us girls and my husband. We didn't have a father's day celebration at our house. It's sad, because we miss our dads so much. Watching all the new fathers with their kids is also not much fun, since we've been trying to get there for so long.

So what did we do? Well, after breakfast at the Waffle House, I rode 45 miles and Derek did yardwork. (He rode 15 prior to princess suzanne even rising from bed). Then we got in the pool and just relaxed. We grilled steaks and had a beer. Why? Because both of our dads would have loved that.

Derek's father loved to cook out. He loved to share a beer with friends, and he was fiercely loyal to those he considered friends. He loved to watch baseball, and loved to be involved in Derek's life. He coached most of Derek's baseball teams, and nothing was more important than his son and his wife. I only knew Derek's father for about a year before he died, but he was a wonderful person. He welcomed me into the family without hesitation. I still remember one of the last times we all went to dinner. As Derek and I were leaving to go back to school he hugged me and told me he loved me. I was so touched. That hug and those words meant so much to me. I had been completely drawn in to his family. They were my family now.

Derek's dad was career air force. He served 2 tours in Vietnam and was an air traffic controller at Da Nang (sp?). When he retired from the air force he went to work for the FAA as a Flight Service Specialist. The pilots would call and give him their flight plans and he would provide the weather reports for their routes. He had a very important job, one that he loved.

My father never knew his father. I often wondered how then he knew how to be such a good Daddy since he didn't have one. I never doubted that I was the center of his world. He always made time for me when he got home from work. Whether it was throwing the ball in the backyard, going for a swim, or coming to a basketball game, he was always there for me. I remember how when I made the soccer team in high school. I just assumed that my parents wouldn't make it to my away games. After all, the games were at 5:00 and Daddy had to work. But he came to almost all of them, sometimes driving as much as an hour to watch me play. That meant so much to me.

He also was perfect at the daddy hug. You know how it is when you are upset about something. Sometimes you just have to cry it out. Even as a high schooler I could crawl into his lap and he'd hold me and let me cry. He didn't try to "fix" it, he'd just comfort me. Later, when I was just sniffling, he'd put whatever it was into perspective for me. And I'd always feel better.

One thing my dad and Derek's dad had in common was how they both loved to brag on their kids. My dad never held back. His unwavering confidence in me made me into the woman that I am now. I am not afraid to attempt new things because of it. Derek is the same way.

I miss my dad so much. Thoughts of him cross my mind at least several times throughout the day. Every time I am out running or riding, I think Dad would be so proud of me. He'd be there at my races, grinning from ear to ear. Dad's special song for me was "Daddy's Little Girl" by the Mills Brothers. Some days I just have to pull out the CD and listen to it. It makes me smile.

Derek will be a wonderful daddy to our daughter. You know how some men are just meant to be daddies to little girls? That is my Derek. He will be perfect for it. He has that same sweet, encouraging demeanor that my dad had. I can't wait to see him with our little Tiger. She will be the apple of his eye for sure.

Festival of Flowers Olympic Triathlon

2007-06-13T20:02:00.000-04:00

is under my belt!! Race was on Sunday, June 10th and I had a great race. Finish time was 3:03:47. I did the Swim (1500M) in 35:15, the bike(24 miles) in 1:24: and change, and the run (10K) in 1:01:37 (I think). Overall I was pleased. The 10K was a PR for me by almost a minute.

The swim was good although the water was really choppy and a few sighting buoys were missing. So a lot of us got off track and had to make up time getting around the 1st one. And there was a man in distress hanging on the first sighting buoy that a bunch of us stopped for and yelled for a lifeguard. Other than that, the swim was uneventful.

The bike was on rough pavement. Rolling hills. Headwind on the final 8 miles. That was tough but manageable. About halfway through the bike I heard the motorcycle with the bike officials come by, and the Entertainer was playing on their sound system. This was my grandfather's favorite song, and he would get me to play it for him on the piano, so when I heard it, it was like a pat on the back from Grandaddy. I immediately picked up the pace a bit then!

The run was hot, and it started on an incline. I went out too fast and had to take a walk break in the first mile to get my HR down. But my overall pace was still ok, so I went with it. Paced myself off an older guy in front of me. With about 1.5 miles to go I picked up the pace and pushed my pacing partner to do the same. We passed one of the guys who ran the marathon with me last summer (but finished about 2.5 hours ahead of me!) and put another 3 minutes of separation between us. I ended up beating that guy by 11 minutes!! I can hardly believe it. I may have placed 10th of 12 girls in my age group, but passing that guy literally made my race. (He started 8 minutes ahead of me in the first wave of the swim).

Here are some pictures. I can't wait to take our new daughter to races. So many kids were here to cheer on their parents and they looked like they were having a ball swimming in the lake, etc.

I am the one with the teal green shirt. I can't figure out why I can't keep my arms down when I run. I look like a bird flapping my wings!!! The finish line was at the top of a short but steep hill. The race director really has a sense of humor....

Clemson Sprint Tri

2007-05-16T13:51:00.000-04:00

Murphy's Law: it happened on my way to this tri. Clemson is about 1 hour from our house, so I'm heading over the morning of the tri and when I am about 6-7 miles away, I get 2 flat tires. I freak out and finally end up waking up our friends Darlene and Jason to look up my coach's phone number on her website. I call her and she sends a friend to pick me up (come to find out the girl she sent is someone I was friends with in college!) I make it to the tri just in the nick of time. Adrenaline is flowing... I do pretty good for me, I met my goals. Finishing time was 1:27:18. I was 65th of 138 women and 12th of 16 in my age group (35-39). The tri was a 750 m swim, 11 mile bike ride, and a 5K run. I wanted to average over 17 mph on the bike (I avged 17.44) and I wanted to run the 5K in under 30 min (I did it in 29:58). I am very excited that I met my goals!

PS. I won $1000 from USA Triathlon for answer their online survey. Now I can pay off the new bike!

So, What's new?

2007-05-03T08:34:00.000-04:00

Referrals have arrived for families logged in Oct 27- Nov 1 2005. One thing I have noticed about these referrals is that most of the babies are younger. I've seen lots of 8 month olds and even one 6 month old. Hmmm. I think this is interesting.

Our agency still believes we will get our referral in the March, April, May 2008 time frame. So that means another year. I hope that our wait won't get longer than this, but you never can tell. It's frustrating because those outside of the Chinese adoption community don't know about the long waits, all they know is that we're waiting, and thought we'd have our daughter by now, so we get all kinds of questions about it. I've even had some people approach me about going to a different country or considering domestic adoption. Which really bothers me. One, we are pretty well vested in China. This is where our daughter is. Two, we chose China over domestic and other countries because it felt right. Just because the wait is getting longer does not mean that it's still not right for us. It was not a decision we took lightly therefore it is not a decision we will change. I know people have our best interests at heart, but it really bothers me when they say "so and so adopted from Guatemala. They only had to wait XX months. Have you considered that?" Or I know someone who is pregnant and considering adoption, do you want me to give her your name? I have nothing against domestic adoption. Many many many times it works out perfectly. But many many many times someone ends up with a broken heart because it didn't work out. No, my heart has had enough over the past few years. I do not want to go through a broken heart again. Waiting is hard, but at least there is a bright ray of sunshine at the end.

I have my first Tri of the summer on 5/12. I'll be sure to post pictures of the event. It is a tri that has an open water swim in Lake Hartwell, and I'll be wearing a wetsuit for it since water temps will likely be below 70. I just bought a used wetsuit and you should see me trying to put it on. I have a hard time getting it over my calves and knees. I feel like Ross in the Friends' episode where he's wearing the leather pants. He starts to sweat and can't get them back up after being in the bathroom. He tugs and pulls and sweats more. The pants aren't budging. He adds powder and then lotion. Still no luck and now he's made a paste! This is exactly how I feel putting the daggum thing on. It's pretty funny. I'm glad I can entertain Derek.

Nothing to see here, move along....

2007-03-30T08:56:00.000-04:00

Ok, so I am not quite sure why I haven't been motivated to post more regularly. I suppose it's because there's not been a whole lot to say since the new year began. Now that Spring is here, I am out of my funk and feeling more post-worthy, so here you go....

Let's see, not much happened in January. In February, I went to Tybee Island and ran in the Memorial Health Half Marathon. I started out with a goal of running this race in 2:45:00. But during practice a few weeks before that, I ran it in 2:40:00 without much effort really, so I revised my goal to a rather ambitious 2:30:00. Well let's just say I had a really good day. It was cold, in the 40s, it was flat (YES!), and I had the race of my life! After about the first 2 miles I noticed that there was a guy running about the same pace and we began to talk. After the first 6 miles, neither of us could believe how strong we felt so we decided to pace each other and try to hold on for the whole race, which we did, and both of us had our best races. I ended up finishing in 2:15:13, which was about a 10:17 pace. A far cry better than my marathon pace of 14:59!!!

After that race, I decided I wanted to get serious about getting better, and I set my sights on competing in the SC Half Ironman on Sept. 30th. To get there, faster and injury free, I decided to hire a coach. So I did. Katie Malone of Malone Coaching (www.malonecoaching.net) is now working with me trying her best to make me a better and faster Suzanne. So far it's been fun- speedwork is not something I have ever concerned myself with in the past, but I can tell she's made a pretty big difference in the quality of my workouts. So, I've got a pretty good line up of races for this season. Of course I may add some, but right now I am planning on:

Clemson Sprint on 5/12

Festival of Flowers Olympic on 6/10

Greenville Sprint on 8/19

TriAmerica Long Course on 8/26

SC Half Iron on 9/30.

I may add another sprint on 6/2, not sure yet.

The weight loss is still coming, albeit slowly. I am losing about a half pound a week tops, but I only have about 12 more to go. So far I've lost about 60 lbs. I feel great, and shopping is more fun now. I am having to completely re-do my wardrobe. I am about 3 sizes smaller than I was last summer, so clothes I wore then look ridiculous now... It's a good problem to have!

The wait for our little girl is creeping by. We've come to terms with it though, and have decided to embrace our last summer as a couple. We plan to do lots of fun things and just enjoy being with each other. Summer is my favorite time of year anyway, and it always seems to go by faster than I want it to. Football Season will be just around the corner, so the fall will be full of good times, and then the next thing you know it will be Christmas, and I have a feeling we will get our referral anywhere from Dec- Feb. While I would love to have our daughter here tomorrow, I know that God has given us this wait for a reason. We can either choose to be happy and patient or we can choose to be angry. I would rather be happy....

Also, I do believe that unless we just feel totally different after our daughter is home, she will most likely be an only child. I would love to have a sibling for her, but to be honest, I am not sure I want to put all of us through this long process again, and of course we are not getting any younger. I am an only child and I had a very happy childhood, so I know it would be ok. We have such a small family my only concern is that when we are gone, she will be alone. I hope that she will grow up close to her Savannah cousins, and I hope that those relationships will be strong and enough to sustain her as an adult. I do know that as an only child I grew up super close with my parents, after all, I didn't have to share them with anyone. My mom and I are 2 peas in a pod, and I truly feel like my dad and I were kindred spirits. I want that same kind of relationship with our daughter, and while I know that can be achieved with many children in the family, I think one may be the right number for us. And, if, by some miracle, we happen to get pregnant (we never stopped trying to prevent this) then we will know that God meant for us to have more than one.

I'll leave you with some pictures from the half mary...

Fa Ra Ra Ra Ra, Ra Ra Ra Ra

2007-01-01T19:21:00.000-05:00

Happy new year peeps! I've been on blogging hiatus, dealing with the holidays and coping with the thought that we will still have to wait ANOTHER YEAR before we get our little Tiger. I'm done wallowing, so I'm back....

Here's what's happened in the past few months.
1. decorated the house for Christmas
2. had Christmas
3. Clemson lost the bowl game
4. Family visited for New Year's
5. Family went home

Don't you feel enlightened now?

Derek left today for his first fishing tournament of the year at Lake Okeechobee, FL. I went shopping. Had some success. Got some new sneaks to just wear around (not run in). Got a new outfit, a new bra, a new exercise bra, and some makeup. I know it's too exciting, right?

Derek and I are also starting tomorrow our "boot camp" until Good Friday. Essentially, we are going to follow the Abs Diet and add weight training and core exercises to our cardio packed workouts. My goal is to lose the last nagging 20 lbs that I'm carrying. Derek wants to lose at least 30. I think our work is cut out for us.

I leave you with a before and almost after picture of me. The before is from Summer of 2005. The almost after is from early December.

Almost done...

2006-11-13T15:58:00.000-05:00

with our new family room! Tomorrow the plumber will be here, and Wednesday the carpet is being put down!! I can't wait! We are now staining and finishing some new furniture for the room, and I hope the carpet layers will move the sofa down from upstairs (I plan to throw $40 at them to entice them into doing it- Derek said he'd pay more not to have to do it!)I hope to have the room semi-put together by Thanksgiving. I love decorating and arranging furniture, so I am sure this weekend I will be in HOG HEAVEN!! I will most certainly take pictures for all of you out there in cyber land! The pool table should be moved from my mom's house on Black Friday and we are getting Clemson ORANGE felt on it. Should be gawdy, but what can I say? We love our TIGERS!

Referrals for October were late getting here- they came the first week of November. The CCAA referred babies to families whose dossiers were logged in 8-10-05 through 8-25-05. We've still got a way to go before they will even get close to us! (3-27-06)

BTW, I completed my duathlon in 3 hours, 19 minutes, and 41 seconds. That was Running 8K (4.99 miles), biking 26 miles, and running 5K (3.1 miles). My next even is a half marathon in February. I plan to do either the Tybee Island Half or the Hilton Head Half. Tybee is 2-3 and HH is 2-10. It will just depend on which weekend is better for us. My goal there is to complete it in less than 2:45.

I have now lost about 51-52 lbs. Still have about 15-18 to go. Hope to be there by next spring sometime!

Something Fun!

2006-11-06T10:16:00.000-05:00

Saw this on www.blackdogrunning.blogspot.com and thought it was pretty cool. Who do I look like? I'm ok with all these choices!!!

Referrals

2006-09-26T09:43:00.000-04:00

Referrals were received yesterday for families logged in 7/23/05 through 8/9/05. That means this month there were 18 days included in the referrals. That is an improvement, but not where we'd like it to be. So, you are asking, what does that mean for us?

Well, in a nutshell, it means this:
Best Case Scenario: If they refer the balance of August 2005 in October and then start referring FULL MONTHS (something they haven't done in a year) then we would receive our referral in MAY 2007 and would likely travel in late June or July 2007.
Worst Case Scenario: If they continue referring 1/2 of a month at a time, we would receive our referral in December 2007 and would likely travel in February or March 2008.
Most Likely: Since I do not believe that we are looking at either one of these predictions, I'll give my prediction as most likely. Based on what I've seen so far, I think we will get our referral around August or September 2007 and will travel Late October - December 2007.

When we started this process in October of 2005, we were told that the wait was about 6 months. We had visions of having our daughter home for Christmas this year. Now, I will be thrilled if she's home for Christmas 2007. Why so long? Everyone asks me this, and really, I don't have a good answer. I've heard about everything under the sun, but I believe the slowdown is because of several factors.
1. Not as many babies are being abandoned (this is a good thing!)
2. A lot of families in the Russia program switched to China when the Russian Gov. put a halt on their adoptions. Also, many new families have been drawn to China because of it's stability. Consequently, there was a huge increase in the number of families logged in over the past year as compared to other years.
3. The baby scandal in the Hunan Province basically shut down non-special needs adoptions from that province for 4.5 months. Since roughly 25% of the babies adopted internationally have historically come from Hunan, this made a huge impact. More families, less babies = longer wait
4. China is doing what it can to encourage domestic adoption in China. Once again, this is a good thing...

I know it will all be worth the wait when we have our daughter in our arms. And I've been doing good with the wait so far. We have 6 months of waiting under our belts so far, and they've gone by relatively fast. My biggest problem right now is that it is hard for me to see the end to this wait because it is unknown. If I knew for sure our wait would be over in exactly one year, I could deal with that. It's the not knowing that's driving me crazy. I feel foolish buying baby clothes and setting up a nursery not knowing when we'll have a baby girl to put in it, yet I long to do it because it makes me still feel like an expectant mom. Does that make any sense whatsoever?

I'll most likely be 35 when we get our daughter. That's the same age my mom was when she had me. Of course, she got pregnant after one month of trying and after being married less than 2 years. We've been married over 11 years and have been trying for over 4. My patience is running out and I'm sprouting gray hairs left and right.

To all my sisters in waiting, be strong. It will happen. Eventually. Right?

I'm such a slacker

2006-09-20T13:44:00.000-04:00

I haven't written, I haven't posted pictures, I haven't done squat.

I'm sorry- this is about to be fixed. I got a new camera and I'm itchin to use it. Hopefully this weekend I'll get all caught up.

Let's see, what's new with us?
1. Finished our screened in porch. Started on the addition.
2. I completed my first triathlon on 8-20. Now training for a duathlon on 10-28.
3. I've now lost right at about 50 lbs total. Size 10s are starting to be loose on me!
4. I'm planning a surprise bday party for my mom. Shhhhh it's a surprise- don't tell her if you see her.
5. Work is busy for both of us.
6. Clemson Football, baby! Woo Hoo!!

Ta Da!!!!!!!!!!

2006-07-23T21:44:00.000-04:00

Here is the pool! It officially was finished on Saturday. We have lots of landscaping to do, as it is just a big mud hole right now, but we are so in love!!! YAAAA!!! We are pool owners!!!

I also want to send a big thank you to my CCAI Feb/Mar DTC Secret Pal for the awesome July gift. We so love the beach and it was a box of beach goodies! A pail and shovel, baby sunscreen, a pink and white beach hat, a beach ball, a flip flop note pad and a couple of sand toys. I know we will get a lot of use out of those goodies!!! What could be better than the 4th of July at the beach with our little Tiger?

7 Things....

2006-07-20T10:17:00.000-04:00

Looks like I've been tagged by Jackie Rochester of the CCAI yahoo group.... Here are my 7 things...

7 Things I would like to do before I die
1. Retire
2. See the USA in an RV on a summer long trip!
3. See my Tigers play in another National Championship Football Game!
4. See my child (ren) achieve their dreams
5. Complete a half iron man triathlon
6. Be a size 6 (frivalous I know)
7. Watch my husband win a professional bass tournament :)

7 Things I can do
1. Run a marathon (woohoo!)
2. Sew
3. Most any home improvment project
4. Read Fast
5. Cook
6. Water ski and snow ski
7. Know exactly what Derek is thinking on most things...

7 Things I can't do
1. SING (Derek is probably nodding his head yes to this- I'm awful, but I love to do it!)
2. Turn down M&Ms (my favority candy!)
3. Get up early on my own
4. Dance (ummm, not well anyway)
5. Wait patiently
6. Leave a zit alone
7. Eat seafood (ok, theoretically I can do this, I just won't)

7 Things that attracted me to Derek
1. His open friendliness to everyone (he makes everyone feel like a friend fast!)
2. His smile
3. His confidence
4. His muscles (ha ha, this was probably actually #1)
5. His baby blue eyes!
6. His thoughtfulness
7. His intelligence!

7 Things I say most often
1. GO TIGERS!
2. Whatever
3. Anyway
4. Good morning (afternoon), this is Suzanne (on my work phone)
5. I love you (to my sweet baboo, Derek)
6. DUH!
7. Cool!

7 Books I love
1. Little Women
2. All of Catherine Anderson's books (yes I love Romance novels!)
3. The Velveteen Rabbit
4. All of Diana Palmer's books (more in the romance field)
5. To Kill a Mockingbird
6. There's a Monster at the End of this Book (by Grover)
7. 2006 Clemson Football Media Guide (ha ha, had to stick something else about Clemson in here)

7 Movies I love
1. The American President
2. Sabrina (the remake, not the original)
3. A Christmas Story (You'll shoot your eye out kid!)
4. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
5. Old School
6. Sweet Home Alabama
7. Pretty Woman

News on the pool front and more...

2006-07-18T16:14:00.000-04:00

Concrete is being poured for our pool today! I hope this means we will be swimming this weekend! I will post pics as soon as the worker bees are done.

No new news on the adoption front. Rumor is that the July referrals will be for June 30th - July 13th 2005 Log in dates. Our adoption agency is still predicting a 12-14 month wait, others are going out to 18 months.

It will happen when it is supposed to. But all this waiting makes me wonder if our little tiger will be an only child....

More time before the referral gives me more time to work out and become a red hot mama. This is how I would love to look.... although I don't think it's in my gene pool... and I don't have blond hair... and I'm not this tall...and I don't have a red bike...and I don't have this tan... it IS something to work towards...

Motivation

2006-07-06T16:02:00.000-04:00

What is motivation? Is it desire? Is it will? Is it something that someone gives you, or is it deep down inside of you?

For me, my motivation is deep down inside of me. Ever since I was a child, I have never been content to sit back and watch. If it's something that interests me, I want to DO it. Sure, I have my lazy streaks, but my parents instilled in me at a very young age that life is full of nothing but possibilities. Anything I want is within my grasp if I want it bad enough and if I am willing to work for it.

I want a family. All the wanting in the world isn't going to make me magically get pregnant, but we're making it happen through adoption.

I want to be healthy and fit, so I am making it happen through diet and exercise. (Actually I want to be a red hot mama, but this is a PG rated site)

I want to be a happy person, so everyday I choose to be happy and not let the little things in life get me down. After all, is it really important in the grand scheme of things? Most of the time that answer is "no."

Everyone has the ability to achieve their dreams, you just have to decide "How bad do you want it?" Are you willing to put it ahead of other things? Most people are not willing to do this. They may dream of one day doing something really special, but yet in their day to day life they don't do anything to MAKE it happen. Well folks, it isn't going to happen on its own. And no one will hand it to you on a silver platter (and if they did it wouldn't mean anything to you).

I challenge everyone to start making their dreams come true. This doesn't have to be your millionaire dreams. If you want to own your own business, start making it happen. If you want to go back to school for a different career, go back to school. If you want to get in shape, start working out. If you want a better relationship with someone, make the first move. If you don't try you'll never get what you truly want.

Ok, I've been philosophical enough for now.

It is now officially 57 days until CLEMSON FOOTBALL starts!

Epiphany

2006-06-29T20:53:00.000-04:00

I want all my friends to know I've had an epiphany. One of Oprah's "AHA" moments.

I have figured out that to lose weight, I have to pretty much dedicate my life to it. That means eating right 6 days out of 7, working out like a freak, and constantly thinking about it. I can't let up, not at all, because letting up leads me down a slippery slope.

I'm not kidding. Once I get to my desired weight, I can relax and just let the routine of it all take over, but for now I have to be a diligent, dedicated, crazy person. An example of this is that my husband is at the Kenny Chesney concert right now. Friends of ours had an extra ticket, and even though I am the big country music lover, I let Derek take it. Why? Well, the primary reason was I didn't want to miss a workout. Isn't that anal and crazy? Well it is. But I know that for me, staying dedicated means I can't stop. Stopping once makes it ok to stop the next time, and then before you know it, I'll only be working out once per week.

I am still in training. This time it is a triathlon. The Greenville Tri is on August 20th (my 34th birthday) and it is a 400 m swim, a 15 mile bike ride, and a 5K run.

Here is my weekly training schedule.... assume AM means before work at about 6-7AM. PM means evening, or after work.
Monday AM- 25 minutes of Swimming (typically do about 1150 meters, or 46 laps in a 25 meter pool)
Monday PM- Biking (typically do about 9 miles)
Tuesday AM- Running (3 miles)
Tuesday PM- weight training (starting next week)
Wednesday AM- swimming again same as Monday
Wednesday PM- biking again same as Monday
Thursday AM- Running (3 miles)
Thursday PM- Weight training
Friday- off, rest day
Saturday- AM, LONG BIKE (15-20 miles) and LONG RUN (5 miles +)
Sunday- off, rest day.

Whew. I'm tired now. That's about 6.5 hours of training per week. But I can see all these changes in how my body looks and performs and I love it. I can't wait until I am more muscle than fat! I am going to be one of those women. You know, the ones that make you want to say "Grrrrr"

You know what, I am ok with that....

OK NOW I AM MAD

2006-06-29T20:51:00.000-04:00

I have no idea where my pictures are and why they didn't upload. Hmmm. I think I am going to have to start using an image hosting service.

I'll just have to try this again later this weekend. Sorry for the promise of pictures only to fail to show them....

I'm just baiting you for later! I've got 5 or 6 I wanted to load... You'll see them soon enough....

OH!! BY THE WAY, Derek found a new job! YAY! He starts on Monday, so we won't miss a single paycheck. This job is with WABCO (westinghouse air brake company) and he will be a buyer for one of their teams- I think the mass transit pneumatic brake team. He's making more money, but will have about half the vacation he had before. I think he is really disappointed about that because it will impact his fishing tournaments, but he's being a good sport about it.

I hate to say it, but it's almost a good thing we've got this long wait for a referral. Maybe he will qualify for Family medical leave when we go to China. He will qualify for that next July. That way he won't have to use vacation to travel.... good thing too since he won't have that much!

The Marathon

2006-06-29T20:36:00.000-04:00

Ok ok ok, I've heard enough crap about not writing about the marathon, so I will. Mom, Judy, and I all had a great time visiting San Diego. It truly is a beautiful city, and I would love to go back sometime and really get the full experience. 4 days including travel and the marathon is just not enough.

Lynn (my running friend) and I were in corral 21. Your corral number was how you got lined up for the start. There were 1000 people per corral and there were 22 corrals. You are assigned your corral based on your expected finish time. As you can see, we were back with the walkers. The indignity of it!! It took us about 15 minutes to cross the starting line. Keep in mind your official "chip time" is based on when YOU cross the start and the finish and all the clocks in the pictures I will post show the gun time. You have to subtract those 15 minutes from the gun time to get my approximate chip time. I say this because I finished in 6 hours, 30 minutes, and 30 seconds. My goal, which I thought I would never meet, was to finish in 6.5 hours. I was THRILLED beyond belief to meet that goal (I'm going to forgive the extra 30 seconds, I had to stop and pee at mile 5, so I think that's reasonable.) What I especially loved was crossing the finish line after passing a dude from corral 15. HA!! GIRLS RULE!!

Did I hit the wall? Yes. Did I hit it at mile 20? No. I actually hit it at mile 23. See, in all of our training runs, we would go 2 miles further than the time before. My longest was 20. I was ok for 20, I was ok for 22. 23, however, about did me in. I stopped and walked from mile 23.5 to mile 25. Once I saw the mile marker for 25, I decided to have a strong finish so I kicked it in gear and actually had a pretty decent last mile. The joy of finishing and the adrenalin helped me to eek out what was probably about a 12 minute mile. As I crossed the finish, I held my Tiger Rag up. ORANGE NATION, baby!!!

Everyone keeps asking me if I will ever do another. Right now, the answer is I don't think so. I do think I will do half marathons- I felt great at mile 13!! I think half marys give you all the satisfaction (ok half the satisfaction) and none of the pain!

I've tried adding pictures, but this is all that took. BAH HUMBUG!!!

So much has happened

2006-06-13T16:02:00.000-04:00

So much has happened. I've tried to update my blog about 3 times but each time blogger went down. So, this is a quickie- I'll update more thoroughly later.

First let me say thank you to my secret pals. The gifts have been awesome and I feel so guilty that I haven't been able to acknowledge them yet. But I do have a good excuse.

1. First of all, the legal action with my father's brother is now over and done. We settled after almost 4 years of "legal disagreements" and he has bought my mom and I out of the farm. I cannot begin to tell you how we thought we'd never see the day we'd be free of him. But it's finally happened.
2. My grandmother's house sold. I spent the week of memorial day helping my mom and my aunt pack it all up. We were very happy that it sold to a nice family, but sad to leave it. The packing up wasn't a problem but everyone in our small family has established homes, so we have lots of things and no one to use them. Fortunately we left a good bit for the family who bought the house as they didn't have a house before and could use a lot of the things!
3. I had my marathon. Finished in 6 hours, 30 minutes and 30 seconds. Will post more about that in a bit...
4. Derek found out he's lost his job effective June 30th. Apparently when the textile mills that buy spare parts shut down, that affected his job(textile spare parts business). Go figure. So now we are searching for the "right" position for him.
5. Derek's mom fell on Tuesday after Memorial Day. Scraped up her arms pretty bad. Didn't break anything, thank goodness. But, that evening was spent cleaning her up and getting her wounds addressed. Anytime a diabetic has a wound you really have to be careful. I won't get into the specifics of what happened, but it was in the bathroom and I had to help her, not Derek. I totally feel prepared for motherhood now. I am so glad she's ok. The fall ended up being a good thing in disguise, because now she will let me help her bathe, and I know that will help her feel better on a daily basis.

Whew. Crazy couple of weeks. Will post more on the secret pal presents and on the marathon later. I've got pictures to post, folks, so stay tuned!

Moving forward...

2006-05-24T16:32:00.000-04:00

I think we've made the decision to move forward with the addition. But we will also be adding a pool. I love to swim and a pool is something Derek and I have always wanted. I taught swimming lessons when I was in college, so I will begin teaching our daughter as soon as we're home!

I am pretty excited about this. We are going pool shopping(looking) this weekend since that will have to happen before the addition because of the configuration of our backyard and proposed new room. We hope we will be able to enjoy our pool to be before the end of summer. It will just be a small pool, we don't have enough room for something big, but I am still pretty excited about it all.

It's also interesting to note that Derek and I agreed about all this pretty quickly. That just reinforces to me that we should do it. Obviously it's something we both value and would both enjoy.

Mom and Aunt Judy are coming home to SC tomorrow. We'll have a week before we leave for San Diego. They are also trying to finalize the sale of my Grandmother's house. So much going on right now! When it rains, it pours!

That's about it for today. Isn't that enough?

The Object of my Affection

2006-05-21T20:14:00.000-04:00

Ta Da!! Here it is, the new bike! It's a 2005 Trek 1000c, which basically means it's a "comfort" road bike. What makes it a "Comfort" bike is that it's very similar to the women's design, but also has brakes on top of the handlebar. I do like that. I thought I wanted the women's specific design, but this was so similar and it had the added appeal of the extra brakes, a slightly more upright riding position, and a slightly smaller price tag, since this was left over from 2005. I figure I need all the comfort I can get since I am doing the triathlons to get fit and have a workout goal, not to actually win! (But I will be pushing myself to get faster and set personal records, I just live in the real world and know that I'm not going to be competing to actually win.)

I got it on Saturday after my 12 mile run, which I did for the most part in the rain, starting at 6:30 AM. Does that make me hard core? LOL!

I rode for about 5 miles on Saturday but had to stop. My nether region needs to toughen up a bit. Even with padded shorts and an extra cushy seat, my butt hurt! Oh well, I suppose in time I'll get used to it.

I bought this from the Great Escape here in Greenville. The assistant manger personally fit me and set up this bad boy to my exact specifications and needs. I was very happy with the service... the assistant manager is actually someone I dated right before I met Derek! Obviously there were no hard feelings, and I am happy to know that he's doing well and getting married to a cutie pie in about a month. I wish them both well.

Derek had a tournament on Saturday. Caught 2 fish, but didn't hit the mother load. Derek wishes he had had more time to scout the lake before the tournament. His next tournament is June 21st. He'll be on that lake scouting it out before that tournament I'm sure!

The marathon is 2 weeks from today. I'm a bit nervous but just because I don't want to be last! I am sure that's normal. All this extra exercising I am doing (swimming, biking, running) is paying off. I lost 3 lbs this week according to my weigh in at weight watchers today. Woo hoo! That makes a girl very happy.

Spent the afternoon working in the yard. Derek and I are considering an addition to our home. We have always wanted a rec room/den that we can move the computer to and put Dad's pool table in- but the thought of moving any time soon is something we both don't want to ponder. Maybe we'll just add on the room we need and want. I know one thing. I don't want to not do it because we think we'll be moving into a bigger house in a few years. Time has a way of sneaking up on you and I don't want 10 years from now to look back on everything and think "I wish we had done that..."

Know what I mean? Heck, it's only money. LOL!!!!

Just a quickie!

2006-05-15T16:30:00.000-04:00

Nothing to post in the way of the adoption (except I've got the crib now and just need to paint it!- that really hit home when I saw it in the garage- Kev and Jennifer dropped it off while we were in VA)........

I have lost now a total of 30.8 lbs!! Woo hoo! Only 30-35 more to go, I'm almost half way there....

Got my 20 miler under my belt on Saturday. The weather was perfect and it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Didn't really get fatigued bad until mile 16 or 17, but it wasn't too much. Went to Wally World after and walked around hanging on the buggy. By the time I was done shopping, my legs felt great! I even went to the nursery and bought flowers to plant afterwards. Don't know where THAT energy came from. Nevertheless, by 9:30 PM I was out like a light!

Our finish time for 20 miles was like 5 hours, 22 minutes. That included our walk breaks and water stops. We'll be doing good to finish under the 7 hour recommended max. But hey, I'd rather be slow to finish than quick to quit. That's my moto!

I think I've picked out my bike, will be going to the bike store this weekend. I wanted to get it before the marathon so that I could start up training on it when I get home. I plan to compete in my first sprint triathlon on my birthday (Aug. 20th). It will be a 400 m swim, 12 mile bike ride, and 3.1 mile run. I'm excited to be doing something other than running so that I will get a better full body workout. Who knew I would like doing this stuff? It actually is pretty fun, once you feel empowered to do it!

That's all for now! Thanks for reading....

Uncle Jim

2006-05-08T12:43:00.000-04:00

Last Tuesday my Uncle Jim passed away. He had been sick with Esophogeal (sp?) cancer and had been bravely fighting it for about 5 years. My aunt and uncle live in Gainesville, VA, and my mom had traveled up the previous Thursday for a "roast" their church was having in Jim's honor. They called it Jimboree and Judy 2. Jim was loved by everyone who knew him and this roast was their opportunity to share their love. Jim put on a brave face and did his best to enjoy the event, but he was very sick and suffering greatly. Monday brought a trip to the doctor, who told him that everything that could be done had been done. My uncle accepted the news well, and passed on early the next morning. I think he chose that time because he knew my aunt was not alone, my mother was still there. He had just spent a lovely weekend with the family, and had an opportunity to see everyone. He was suffering, and God decided it was time to bring him home.

While we all grieve, we do not do so without hope, because as Believers we know we will see Jim again. He will meet us at the Gates of Heaven and will try to sell us aluminum siding for our home (a running joke with him).

Jim was a very loving and generous man. When I write generous, that word seems inadequate to describe how he was. Jim gave without hesitation, and he did so all the time. Jim was a true servant of God. If there ever was a person who embodied the servant spirit, it was Jim. That saying, to whom much is given, much is expected, is exactly how Jim lived his life. He gave to his family, his church, his community, and even strangers, although, they weren't strangers for long.

My family is very small. My mom has one sister and my father has one brother. My father's brother never married and we really don't have a relationship with him. My mother's sister's family was the extent of our family when I was growing up. I remember thinking that I hoped my parents made provisions for me to be raised by my aunt and uncle if anything happened to them. Jim was such a good daddy, and my aunt a mother; if I couldn't have my parents, they were the next best ones.

I love them dearly, and will miss Jim tremendously. I doubt he's missing us, though. His rewards in Heaven were immediate and plentiful, and I know my father and grandfather were waiting on him to arrive. I am sure there was an issue that still needed to be argued. They all loved that.

At the end of Jim's memorial service, the organist played "Take Me Out To The Ball Game." That was a perfect ending. I am sure Jim had a big ole smile on his face.

Jim was a retired FBI agent. I think it's fitting to say, "Mission accomplished, Settle. It's time to go Home now."

What a week!!

2006-04-30T18:18:00.000-04:00

Today is Sunday, and I must say I am glad this week is about over! I was sick with a stomach bug Monday, Tuesday, and recovering Wed and Thursday. I really have not had any interest in food until Friday. That is sooo not like me. And on top of that, I only lost .2 LB. Where is the justice????

I did manage to hydrate myself enough to get my 18 miler in on Saturday. Let me tell you this, it was a breeze compared to the 14 I had to do LAST Sunday. I never quite realized how much the heat can take it out of you, but last Sunday it was in the mid 80s. My running friend and I struggled to get our 14 in. Actually we started struggling at mile #6 and through sheer will and determination we made it through 14. This week was much different. The temp was in the 60s and we rocked!!! We were both dead tired (no pun intended) when we got done, but there was never a question of "Can we do it" like there was last week. I am beginning to think we just might make it through the marathon, which is 5 weeks from today. That's only 35 days away. YIKES!

The only highlight to my week were the quilt squares I received, the bib and book gift I received from Jan on the CCAI Feb/Mar DTC group, and the MAR2006 DTC Secret Pal gift I received. I loved all my gifts. The bib and book gift came first. Here's a picture:

Don't you just love the Tiger!!! I know our Little Tiger will love it. And she will love the Born to Shop bib. Like mother, like daughter. She will get that honestly!

The books are all super cute, especially the language book. I hope our daughter will be fluent in a foreign language. I only know a little french. Je parle francais un peu.

I hope I said that right!

And when I was feeling like Ralph Rotten, the postman brought me another present!! This really made me feel better- especially since my secret pal sent a pink bunny hoodie towel that I had been looking at myself. How's that for great minds??

Here is a picture:

Isn't this the sweetest thing? I can't wait until I have a little some-bunny to wrap up in this! Hopefully we won't have to go through another mother's day without our daughter or our referral at least!

Thank you secret pal, you ROCK! (that's suzanne speak for you are awesome!)

Karen Tagged me

2006-04-20T15:24:00.000-04:00

6 Weird things about myself? I am pretty weird, so it will be hard to limit it to just 6, but I'll try to pick the weirdest of the weird traits.

1. I have freakishly short arms. Stand me next to someone my height, shoulder to shoulder, and my arms will be at least 4- 6" shorter than hers...
2. I am 5'4" and wear a size 10 tennis shoes. (dress shoes are 9 to 9.5) You would think with feet that big, I'd be a little taller. I inherited my mom's short stature and my dad's big feet. Gee thanks.
3. I love to pop zits and pick scabs. It doesn't matter if they are mine or Derek's. I'll chase him around if he's got a big 'un on his back!
4. I can't say the word ominous without first saying "omnious" Don't know why. You'd think someone with a master's degree could say ominous easily but I can't. Say it 6 times fast and you'll know what I mean.
5. I can't watch the Wizard of Oz because the witches and the flying monkeys are too scary to me. In fact, when I was a little girl, I made my mom cut all the pictures of witches out of my books because they were scary.
6. I love to sing, but I am sooooo bad. But that doesn't stop me. I'll sing and talk to myself in the car all the time, especially if someone in the car next to me gives me a "what in the world" look. I just don't car. To me, I sound like Faith Hill. To others, I sound like a shreiking cat (no insult to cats).

Ok, is that weird enough? I better tag 6 more people. Hmmmm. I guess I will tag
Lisa, Donna, Lindsey, Carmi and Doug, Kim, and Chrissie.
http://www.waitingforlaurenelizabeth.blogspot.com/
http://lindseysmeimei.blogspot.com/
http://journeytogracie.blogspot.com/
http://hendersonhomeonline.com/
http://www.estokjourney.blogspot.com/
http://www.journey2ourangel.blogspot.com/

BTW, these are not in any kind of order....

Tag on, friends!!

RETAIL THERAPY!!!

2006-04-09T21:38:00.000-04:00

I had the best weekend and the worst weekend. Best for shopping, worst for marathon training (knee and hip problems- I'll be calling the dr tomorrow)

BUT about the shopping! Mom and I had so much fun! I bought the fabric to make the crib linens. I am sooooo excited about these. Remember that my room is a light mint green. The plaid is going to be the cribskirt, the pink, and the print (asian looking) will be the quilt and the bumper pads!!!
Don't cha just love it!!!

Ok, I've decided against using Ralph Lauren Allison for the twin bed. Instead I will use the pink check sheets that I bought to go with the Allison and a green matelasse. I have the pillow sham to the matelasse, I just need to find the coverlet...

This isn't all I've bought. I got books, secret pal stuff, 2 cute dresses etc. I am attaching pics of them all as well as some of the books I've already bought, etc. I can't stop myself!! It makes me happy to by our daughter things!

I had one more pic to post of a cute pink ladybug photo album that says love bug on it, but for some reason it wouldn't upload. Go figure. Must be a bug in it somewhere. LOL just kidding, sorry for the pun.

It's a work night, so it's off to bed I go now!

LID and a Shout Out!

2006-04-05T12:44:00.000-04:00

We have officially received our LID (Log in Date) and it is 3-27-06. This means so much to me as I really wanted to be logged in by the end of March. March is such a good month for us, and receiving our LID just reinforced that! Typically, it had been taking about 8 weeks to learn of your LID after DTC, and most LIDs were 2-4 weeks after the DTC date, so receiving our LID 1.5 weeks after DTC was a big surprise! We have learned from our agency that the CCAA (China Center for Adoption Affairs) had gotten behind in logging in dossiers, so they brought in some temps to get caught up. YAAAAY For US!

(I hope all that writing about DTC and LID and CCAA doesn't have anyone too confused. Lots of letters, but they are all important ones to us!)

I'd like to give a shout out to The Cantrells and to The Cetons! The Cantrells are dear friends of mine from my growing up years. Christy and Amy (twins) and I were in Sunday School together, played basketball together, and were just always really good friends. I received a note from their mom and know they check out my blog to see what's going on. I have such fond memories of all the time we spent together at church and on the court! Christy and Amy were the core of our team!

The Cetons are a dear family from Pennsylvania that we met at the beach one year (Surfside Beach, SC). Their daughter Merrie and I are close in age and neither of us had a playmate, so Merrie's mom, Judy, introduced us out in the surf and we began a wonderful summer friendship that extended way beyond that first summer. In fact, for years our families would try to schedule vacations at the same time so that Merrie and I could visit. Merrie has 2 younger sisters, Gwen and Allison, and I adored having them tag along with us. After being an only child, it was so cool to have 2 younger ones around that were so much fun. They are all grown up now, of course, and have exciting lives, and I enjoy getting caught up with them through Christmas cards and the like. Judy, thank you so much for your card, it was totally unexpected and so nice to hear from you! Mama and I think of you guys so often as those summers with your family are such good memories for us. Mama and Daddy really enjoyed getting to know you, too- happy happy times!

The marathon training is going well. I still am having IT band issues, but am trying to rest up more this week and have ordered a book on stretching to help with this. I did 14 miles (through guts, sheer will, and determination) last Sunday, but I have to say I wasn't good for much the rest of the day. I went to weight watchers (down another lb), to the grocery store, and that was about it. The rest of the day I spent on our porch swing reading!

The fund raising is also going good, but slowing down. I still need to raise about $1200. I have literally one more month (deadline May 1st) to do this. So please, if you have a couple of bucks you can spare (even if it is just $5), click on my donation link and help support the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. This is such an important cause! Many thanks to those who have already contributed, I really do appreciate it!

I guess that's all that's going on. I plan to jazz up my blog this weekend. If anyone knows of links and stuff that will help me do this (for free, LOL) how about leaving me a comment with a link!

Suzanne *who is patiently beginning her wait for a referral*

Our Map!

2006-03-27T19:05:00.000-05:00

I've added a Frappr Map, and so far only one couple has added themselves. So, come on all you lurkers, let me know where you are from!!!

We're Waiting YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

2006-03-27T18:51:00.000-05:00

WooHOO! We were notified that our dossier was received in China on 3-20, so I guess we are officially waiting! It feels good to be at this point now, but frustrating too since we don't know how long of a wait we will have. I suppose it is an exercise in patience.

Derek and I celebrated our 11th anniversary on Saturday. Wow. 11 years. The time has certainly flown by. Derek fished and I ran and had a 2 hour massage (HEAVEN!) and then we went to dinner at one of our favorites, a Japanese Steakhouse (Mimi's) and it was delicious. I am afraid the salty food however, hindered my weight watchers weigh in, I was only down .4, but it was so worth it!

I need help. Really. I can't stop shopping for our daughter, and I don't know how to stop! I haven't bought clothes, but books are fair game! Books are safe, books are one size fits all! Our daughter will have enough books to check them out to her friends. But that's ok, I figure, if you are going to spoil a child, it might as well be with books. So far my favorite is a Buoyton Board book, it is says " A cow says Moo. A sheep says Baa. Three dancing pigs say La La La. No no you say, that isn't right, the pigs all say oink oink all day and night....." Isn't that hysterical???

I have signed up for 2 different secret pal lists so I can feed my need to shop.

I've also made one blanket for our daughter, but it was a practice one. Those blanket bindings are tough to sew and get even!

The training for the marathon is going well. My long run to date is 12 miles, and this weekend I will tackle 14. I never thought I would be able to do this, but it is amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it! For a while there, I was having trouble with my legs, but I went to a store called Run In, and Jeff Milliman there hooked me up with some awesome Mizuno Wave Elixirs. Trust me, as soon as I put these puppies on, a lot of my pain went away. I am still having some residual issues, but I can tell it is getting better everyday. I ran pain free on Saturday, so I know that I am on the right track. Here is their website, http://www.runin.com check them out.

The fundraising is going well too. I am over half way there, but still need to raise about $1500. So keep those donations coming!

Vacation!

2006-03-11T19:03:00.000-05:00

Just a quick note to let everyone know that Derek and I will be on vacation the 12th-18th, so there won't be any posts from me! We are going to Lake Eufala for Derek's Stren Series Bass Fishing Tournament. Hopefully we'll be bringing home a pot full of money!

Today we fished in a couples tournament, and came in 5th out of 27 boats. We weighed in a limit of 5 bass that weighed a total of 14.94 lbs. I caught 3 of them for 8.88 lbs and Derek caught 2 for 6.06 lbs. We won our entry fee back plus $5 so overall it was a good day. We were really on some fish. Between the two of us, we caught a total of 16 fish (6 for me, 10 for Derek) which was great considering the fact that only 16 boats weighed in a limit, and 2 caught ZERO....

Tomorrow is my 10 mile run, I am sure it will be ok. I took Thursday and Friday off from running to give my poor knees a break, and my legs are feeling much better today because of it! They are saying "Thank you!"

I'll post again when we return from our trip. This is EXACTLY why I want a laptop. I can't keep up with all my blogging friends without it!

So how long IS it going to take?

2006-03-07T15:51:00.000-05:00

One of the things that has supremely frustrated me about the adoption process is the ever-changing timelines. I am a Monica Bing personality and when I want something, I want it now, or I at least want to know the specifics of EXACTLY when I will have it.

With a pregnancy, you pretty much know that give or take 36 weeks after you find out you are pregnant that your child will be born. And, to top it off, you have ultrasounds, baby kicks, doctor's appointments, maternity clothes shopping, and an expanding waistline to take your mind off the wait. Each day presents something exciting, and the wait goes by quickly!

With an adoption, you don't have any of that. There is a lot of activity getting your paperwork together, and then pretty much nothing until the referral. Oh you can work on the nursery, and what not, but you really can't shop as you have no idea what size or age you will be referred. Now, if I knew that I was going to have to wait 6 months for a referral that would be ok. But the timeline keeps changing. At first, when we sent our application in, we were told that referrals were 5-6 months after LID (log in date) in China. Then the wait stretched to 7 months, then to 8, then to 9, and now they are projecting 10-12. Of course, that's not to say that over the course of the next year that the timelines won't drop back down just as quickly, but I can't hope for that or expect that, because all that leads to is disappointment.

Derek and I will definitely make use of the time together- we are going to Alabama for his fishing tournament next week, I've got the marathon thing, and we'll cheer for our Tigers this fall like the crazy fanatics we are, but to have this mysterious wait time hanging out there is enough to drive me batty! I can't plan, I can't shop, and there's nothing to do right now but wait.

I ordered a pattern to make the crib bedding, that will take up a couple of weekends, and I plan to paint the guest bathroom. That will take up all of one weekend. I've painted everything else, the new carpet is in, scrapbooks are in process, books are being read, movies are being watched. What else is there?

Well, I can go to everyone else's blogs and see how they are. The ones with babies home are the best, as it gives me a glimpse of what we have to look forward to. The ones in the same stage of the process as us are comforting- it helps to know I am not the only one suffering from the "I can't wait any longers..."

On that note, I will end this post. If anyone is starting up a secret pal thing for adoption couples in the same time frame as us, I am up for it! Just let me know... will give me an excuse to go shopping.....

DTA!!!!

2006-02-26T19:37:00.000-05:00

To steal a term coined by my blogging friend Karen, as of Friday, 2-24, we are DTA (dossier to agency)!! I am extremely relieved to be done with this part of the process. Now we just wait for agency (CCAI) to review, translate, bind, send to China and give us our DTC (Dossier to China) date, which really means nothing, and then we wait for our dossier to be logged in (our LID date). The LID is the official start of the waiting period. I really hope our dossier is logged in by the end of March. Our anniversary is on the 25th and this would be a wonderful present!

We got new carpet this past week. It is wonderful! It feels so soft to my feet (and I know little knees will appreciate it). I will probably be spending the next 2 weeks trying to get my house back in order, but it is a small price to pay for new carpet!! :)

Training for the marathon is still going great. This Saturday I did 6 miles, my longest to date. I will never win any speed contests, but it is so gratifying to be able to complete these distances that I've set my mind to!

Well, I've been saying that I would post pics of the nursery to be. I still have a lot to do. Officially I plan to put a twin bed, the crib, a chest of drawers (that was mine when I was a baby) and a glider in the room. I haven't started on the furniture, because I have PLENTY of waiting time to do that, but I have painted, hung curtains, and bought some accessories.

Here is a glimpse of the room....

I love Classic Pooh and friends. I just love that Pooh has many friends but only one Piglet. That's how I feel about our daughter. Yes, there are thousands of abandoned babies, but only one will be OUR daughter.

The fabric shown is the Ralph Lauren pattern "Allison"- This is what I will be using on the twin bed. The sheets will be a pink check and this is the comforter. I will probably use coordinating material for the crib bedding, which I will probably end up making.

The picture below is of my mom's rescued beagle surprise named Tabitha. I imagine she is thinking, "How dare they dress me up like a doll. The indignity of it!!"

Almost on our way...

2006-02-17T14:41:00.000-05:00

This week was a pretty good one, inspite of the fact that Derek was gone to West Point Lake for a fishing tourney (Stren Series). Our documents came back from the Sec of State with their certification, so as soon as they did, I sent them to the courier in DC to be certified and authenticated by the US Dept of State and the Chinese Embassy. We should have them back by the end of next week, and then our dossier will be ready to go to our agency! WOO HOO. At that point, all the paperwork is out of our hands and we just wait. And wait. And wait. But at least now, we are closer to the waiting!!

Training for the marathon is going well. I am almost through week 2 and have upped my mileage considerably. Before I started this training I was logging 9-10 miles per week. Week #1 I logged in 16 miles and this week I will have 19 miles. Tomorrow is a five mile easy run in the cold rain at 6:30 AM. Last week was also in the rain. What do I have to do to not run in the rain? Oh well, at least this proves to myself how dedicated I am. Before signing up for this, I would have said anyone who got up that early to run in the cold rain was smoking something funny! I did buy a couple of books written by Jeff Galloway. He is a marathon runner who advocates and running/walking approach for long runs. This is what Sunny Lea does (my cousin who will be doing the marathon with me) so I will probably give it a try. So far I can do 5 milers, but the thought of 10, 14, or more is a little daunting.

I need to get to work on my donation letters. One of my adoption blog friends, Karen, gave me my first donation. Thank you Karen! This means so much and it was such a surprise to find out about!

Well, that's about all I know to report right now. Hopefully the CCAA will be sending out referrals soon. Here's to hoping it is for a full month this time!

Just Added...

2006-02-07T15:51:00.000-05:00

I just added a link to my Team in Training Donation Web Page. This is for the money I committed to raise to support the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for the Rock n Roll Marathon in June. I need to raise my funds by late April, so if you want to donate, please click on the web page on the right and it will take you to my web page which will accept donations. *Please Note* that if your company participates in matching gifts, please fill out the matching gift form that your company uses and send it to me. LLS will follow up with your company to get the donation, and I will get credit for the amount that you and your company donates.

My address for the matching gift form is Suzanne Schlotterback, 8 Winslow Way, Simpsonville, SC 29681.

This is such a great cause, and all donations are tax deductable. I will automatically send you a receipt if your gift is larger than $50, but I will send a receipt for a gift of any size if you let me know you need one.

Thanks in advance to all my family and friends that will be supporting me. And if you are unable to donate any money, your moral support will be needed just as badly!

Rock On!

And the next hurdle is.....

2006-02-07T14:00:00.000-05:00

We received our 171H on 2/2/05. WOOO HOOO!!! This is exciting news, as this was the last bit of paperwork we were waiting on.... well, sort of. We also didn't have our homestudy, but our social worker assured us that as soon as we received our 171H, he would give us our homestudy so it would have the latest date possible on it. Monday morning Derek and I went by and picked it up, and to say I was disappointed is an understatement. There were so many mistakes in it, it was pathetic. I faxed it to our agency and they agree that some changes are necessary. I have emailed the social worker and asked for the changes to be done, but I can tell you he doesn't get in a hurry for anything. This is now all I need to start the certification process, so it is really really really driving me crazy that I am waiting on this. I asked for a rough draft from the social worker but never got one, probably because it was not ready yet. UGHHHHH.

We spent the weekend in Savannah so that Edra and I could attend Frances' 80th birthday party. The party was so nice, and it was good for Edra to reconnect with some of her friends from her life in Savannah. It was also good to visit with the Kesslers. Krissy is pregnant with a little girl and due May 16th. She is showing now and milking it for all that it is worth!

Because I needed to get a workout in anyway, I participated in a 5K on Tybee Island Saturday morning. I surprised myself and posted my best time yet all because of a gamecock! I set out at my normal 13.5 minute mile pace, but quickly realized that there was a man wearing a gamecock t-shirt right in front of me. His t-shirt had a gamecock "the good", a Florida Gator "The bad" and a Tiger Paw "the ugly." I looked at this shirt most of the race as he was in front of me the majority of the time. When we started into mile #3, I decided there was no way I was letting this gamecock beat me, so I kicked it into high gear, passed him like he was walking and finished in 37m29s. The Tigers win again! I wanted so badly to shout "Touchdown Jasmine" as I ran by but decided to keep it to myself. LOL!! Now, I know that I'll never be a speed queen, but at least that is somewhat respectable!!! (I didn't finish last! Actually, I finished like 630 something out of almost 1000, so that wasn't too bad!)

We had our first Team in Training fundraising meeting last night. I am pretty anxious to get started. My first team workout is Saturday morning, and I am actually looking forward to it. Can you imagine that?

It's official, I've lost my mind....

2006-01-30T15:22:00.000-05:00

This weekend I signed up with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team in Training for the Rock-n-Roll Marathon in San Diego on June 4th.

I am very nervous about this. Our coach said that it was entirely doable for me to be able to train for this, given the fact that I am already running 3 miles (which is a far cry from 26.2). This has always been one of my dreams, so I am going to go for it. Derek's cousin Sunny has expressed interest in running with me, so that will be a huge help- having a friend right by my side who has done a marathon before! I have decided to give it my all, and will most likely use a combination of running and walking to complete the marathon. (many runners whose goal is just to finish do this- we are not at all concerned about our times!)

What I am most nervous about is the fact that I have committed to raise $4000 (this race's minimum) for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. $4000 is a lot of money, and whatever I don't raise I am responsible for donating myself. YIKES!! So, I am compiling a list of friends to send letters to asking for money. I hope that raising this money won't be a problem. From what the Team in Training folks say, most people are willing to help, even if it is just a small amount. I hope so, because with this adoption, I don't have a lot of extra $$ I can throw in! I do want to say that this organization is very worthwhile. Our honorary team member is a young grandmother who was diagnosed with leukemia last year. She is taking a drug that was FDA approved in 2001 and has increased her life span from 3 years from diagnosis to 20-25. That is HUGE!! The researcher who developed this drug received half of his funding from LLS. So the money is making a difference. That means a lot to me. I go on Feb. 6th for a fundraising kickoff meeting, so as soon as I have more info on it, I will post it here. I should have my own web page where folks can donate online. I hope that some of my new adoption friends will help me with this endeavor. But if you are unable to donate, that's fine, I just ask for your prayers and encouragement as I meet this challenge.

Our 171H is still missing in action. I run to the mailbox everyday hoping I will find this treasure!

Come on 171H, where are you?

2006-01-26T16:31:00.000-05:00

We received a notice in the mail that DSS approved our homestudy (YAAA!) and forwarded it to the USCIS on January 18th. According to their website, they are processing I600As dated 11-15-05 and ours was 11-10-05, so I am thinking that we should be getting that precious little piece of paper any day now. That's all we are waiting on to begin the authentication process...

Just an update on my New Year's resolutions: As of 1-22, I have lost about 16 lbs since starting Weight Watchers (slow and steady wins the race!), but I still have about 50 to go. I am running 3 miles at a time with no problems, and I'm working on my speed (you can still call me a penguin!). I will start adding mileage in February. Still no work on the quilt or scrapbooking, but that's coming! Hey, I've got to pace myself.

We still like the name Lauren, and have even discussed calling her by a shortened form of Lauren..."Ren." Ren Schlotterback... I kinda like the sound of that.

That's about it for now. Thanks again for all the comments. Please post your blog if you have one, I love learning about new friends!

Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name...

2006-01-16T14:06:00.000-05:00

Cheers was always one of my favorite shows. I loved how Coach, Dianne, Woody, and Sam would all yell "Norm" when he walked in. Although it isn't quite the same for us, we seem to have developed a bit of an Outback habit. For the past few years, almost every Friday night at about 6:30, we can be found at the bar at the Greenville Outback. Sometimes we eat at the bar, sometimes we get a table, but it is starting to be a bit of a reunion every week when we see all those we know. Our friends the Marcous are the true regulars. They have made friends with most of the staff, and while they all know the Marcous' names, we are pretty much just "the couple who are always with the Marcous." That's ok with me. It's nice to know the manager, the bartenders, the good servers, and the freaky servers. Let's just say we've never had a bad meal! LOL!

This past Friday we were in our usual spot at the bar when our friends the Rankins showed up. We had a rip roaring good time, and we even got Scott the bartender (and fellow Tiger!) to take a picture of the 4 of us for one of our "family and friends" dossier pictures. (It seems only fitting that we include an Outback pic!) Then, before we know it, a few hours have passed and our friends the Marcous surprise us. They were supposed to be in Atlanta, but due to some late Friday evening work for Joanne, they decided to hit the Outback and travel on Saturday. The six of us all had a really fun time. This is truly the highlight of my week. I hope that the others look forward to the routine as much as I do. I know Derek does, because this Friday we thought we were going to be alone and we still wanted to do OB.

I know to some, it might seem a little boring to head to the same place for dinner every Friday night, but we love it. Our friends are there, the food is good, and it is just a comfortable place to hang out. You know, sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name...

Moral Victories

2006-01-11T13:19:00.000-05:00

If you are from the state of SC, or if you follow Clemson and USC, you have heard about moral victories. Steve Spurrier used the term when USC went toe to toe with a good team and almost won. I had a moral victory over the holidays. Having been going to Weight Watchers for a couple of months, I just wanted to get through the holidays at a lower weight than at the beginning of them, and I succeeded, albeit by .2 lb. Yes, I said, .2lb. Not 2, but .2. That is a moral victory! LOL!

We are getting new carpet. The good folks from Home Depot are coming out tomorrow to measure our house so that a quote can be prepared. I am pretty excited about this. New carpet was one of the goals I had before we have children. The carpet in our house now is builder-grade carpet that is just over 10 years old. We've managed to keep it halfway clean through diligence and steam cleaning, but it overall looks grimy with bad spots in it, and has lost its softness. So, I am very happy to be getting new carpet. I really want berber, but I agree with my husband that plush would be easier on a baby's knees. It is really neat to be basing decisions on our daugher to be!

We also have a mouse in the house. We had seen evidence of a mouse, so Derek and I plugged up what we thought was their point of entry. Point of consideration: make sure the mouse or mice is out of the house when you do this. We have had 3 that have been trapped in the house now for a few weeks. We've caught 2 of them (no-kill traps of course) and rereleased them to the yard, but one little bugger is almost laughing at us. We've seen him scurry across the room several times. It is almost as if he's saying "na na na na na na, you can't catch me!" We've been baiting the trap with peanut butter, and this little fatso has figured out how to get the peanut butter without getting caught in the trap. I guess we are going to have to build a better trap! Maybe tonight will be the night... (this is what Derek and I keep telling ourselves, anyway!)

The running is going good so far. I ran 3 miles on Saturday, and then about 2.8 on Monday. Saturday was outside and Monday was on a treadmill. It has actually been easier than I thought it would be, it is not like starting from scratch. I think on Saturday I ran about 80-85% of the time, and on Monday I ran for 35 minutes and walked only 5 minutes. All in all, not too shabby. I do have a way to go, but I am at least headed in the right direction.

I sent off pictures of Katie to have a formal portrait painted of her. I plan to frame it with her paw print. Looking at her brings comfort to me, even though it does bring tears to my eyes. But that is only because I miss her so much.

Thanks to everyone for their comments- keep 'em coming!!!

To those who share weight loss as a resolution, here is a recipe I found on www.halfmysize.com
Brownie in a cup

Mix 1/4 cup of fat free brownie mix and 2 tablespoons of water in a coffee cup. Nuke in the microwave for 1.5 minutes. Top with 1 tbsp of Lite or Fat Free Cool Whip. Makes 1 serving. 117 calories, 0 fat (if fat free cool whip) and 1 gram of fiber. YUMMY!!!!

Happy New Year! 2006 Here I come!

2006-01-03T13:32:00.000-05:00

First of all, I just have to say that I am soooooo glad 2005 is over. It just wasn't a good year for our family. 2006, however, is bound to be better with the prospect of a little one a world away.
I do, however, have the obligatory resolutions that I feel the need to post. Here they are, for all the world to see and hold me accountable to...

1. Lose 50 lbs. Already in process with this one. I've been going to weight watchers since October...
2. Sign up and run a half marathon. I am looking into signing up with the Leukemia and lymphoma society's team in training and doing a half marathon in San Diego in June. I used to be a runner and this is an awesome way to loose weight and exercise. There is an info meeting on 1/26 here in my hometown, so I think I am going to go to it. I know I can run the 13 miles, the question is can I raise the required money to participate?
3. Finish the quilt I started.
4. Catch up all my scrapbooking.
5. Get tickets to Oprah for my mom and I and to go! I tried to get this for Christmas to no avail, so now it is for mother's day!
6. Read all the parenting and child development books I can get my hands on! I think I better get a library card. LOL.
7. Finish cleaning out the attic. This is a big undertaking. Our attic is stuffed with things- when Edra moved in with us, so did all her household items. I've been paring it down since 1998, but I still have a way to go. Right now I've got about 8-10 boxes of older hardback books that I need to find something to do with. Perhaps I can sell them on amazon.com.
8. Spend more time fishing with Derek. It is good quality time for us.
9. Save some money for our trip to China!
10. Have a big garage sale with my mom. Really, I've got some good stuff I can sell!

Happy New Year to everyone. 2006 is the Year of the Dog. I think Katie would have liked that!

Suzanne

Merry Christmas!!

2005-12-27T13:22:00.000-05:00

Ok, so it's not Christmas today, but since I didn't post on the actual day, I thought I might make up for it today!

Christmas was wonderful at the Schlotterback residence! We have such a small family (Suzanne, Derek, Edra, Ann, and Tabitha the beagle) that it is very easy and relaxing for us all to be together. No family dramas, no fighting, just rest, relaxation, and enjoyment of our loved ones. I am constantly amazed by all the drama that goes on in other families. I wish that all my friends could experience the bliss of a quiet holiday. This doesn't mean I don't often wish for a bigger family (*I do and always have*) but the holidays have never been hard for my family. Even when I was younger and we would get together with my grandparents, my aunt and uncle and cousins, we all got along fine. Now that my grandparents are gone and my cousins all have families of their own, we see them throughout the year, but Christmas is spent at their own homes with their traditions, and that's how it should be. After all, we have traditions of our own.

We have our big dinner on Christmas Eve, and then watch the movie, A Christmas Story. I can practically recite this movie word for word. But you know what? I LOVE IT! During the day on Christmas Eve, I put together a breakfast casserole for Christmas morning (if you are from the South, you know what casserole I am talking about) so all I have to do upon waking is to turn on the oven and shove the pyrex dish in! 45 minutes later, breakfast is served!

After breakfast we open gifts. This is not a free for all. We dole out the presents and one by one we each open a gift while the rest look on and ooo and ahh. This makes gift opening take a long time, but it gives you the opportunity to thank the person who gave you the gift and to truly savor the moment. This took some getting used to by my husband and his mother, but I believe they've both come around. When we have our daughter I am sure this will be modified a bit...

After presents we just sit, listen to Christmas music, talk and enjoy each other's company. This year my mom went home in the afternoon to spend time with her best friend who was in town. We just relaxed and I did talk my husband into a movie on Christmas night. We went to see the new Jennifer Aniston movie and it was really cute. It was a nice ending to the day.

I can't wait to add a little girl to the mix. My memories of Christmas are some of the strongest memories I have of growing up. I can't wait to create magical memories for our daughter. No, the day doesn't have to be perfect, just perfect for us!

The Good and the Bad

2005-12-19T16:01:00.000-05:00

This morning as I was checking on one of the websites I frequent I learned that the SC USCIS office is processing I600A's received on 11-15!!! This is great news as ours was received by 11/10 and our fingerprinting was on 12/9. Looks like the 171H may not be a huge holdup after all!

The bad news is that our homestudy has not been completed and sent to them, so no processing will happen until it is. Looks like I am going to have to put on my "follow up" hat and start pestering the social worker!

This weekend was a nice one, we escaped power outages and icy conditions for a weekend in the mountains (where the weather was great). We rented a cabin in Gatlinburg, TN for us and our moms and we really enjoyed ourselves. Our cabin was brand new and the view was spectacular, and everyone was comfortable. We enjoyed the hot tub and the fireplaces, and the Winterfest lights in town. The only part we didn't enjoy were the poorly maintained roads leading up to our cabin. That was pretty scary since the roads were very steep!

We've got less than a week until Christmas and I can't help but feel sad and hopeful at the same time. Sad that our furbaby Katie isn't with us and hopeful that our daughter may be home this time next year. This year we are in limbo, and that will make it hard, but we have faith that good times are ahead. I was at a funeral recently and the minister said that it is ok for us to grieve. God expects it. However, it is not ok to grieve without hope because if you are a Believer, then you know that our separation from other Believers is only temporary. So, that being said, we grieve, but not without hope as we know that those we miss so badly will be waiting for us in Heaven.

We grieve for my father, and for Derek's. We grieve for lost grandparents, for the pregnancies that never happened, and for Katie, who lovingly held our hearts in her paws for 9 years. But, we have hope. And this hope is in the form of our faith in our Heavenly Father and in the form of a little girl who will call us mommy and daddy one day. While my soul cries, my heart sings, because I know that our grief is not the end.

On that note, I will wrap this up. I have passed my mushiness quotient for the day! I hope that everyone has a safe and happy time with their families. We love you all and wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

Fingerprinting time!

2005-12-06T16:27:00.000-05:00

Our paperwork is really starting to come together! Derek just had his physical yesterday and Friday we travel to Charleston for fingerprinting. As soon as we get his doctor's letter, we will send it to our social worker and our homestudy will be ready to be submitted for approval. YAAAA! So, all we will be waiting on is the passports and the 171H (immigration approval to bring a foreign orphan into the US). If my estimates are correct, we should receive our 171H somewhere in late January. I will be so much more relieved when our dossier is in China and logged in. Right now I feel a keen sense of urgency to get everything finished and on its way. Our agency is saying that right now, the wait from log in to referral is 9-10 months. That means if we submit our dossier and it is logged in in February, then we would likely receive our referral in November or December next year with travel in December or January 2007. That seems so far away!! Of course, referrals could speed up after the first of the year, and that is what I am hoping for, although I realize that it will all happen when it is supposed to. (that's what my head is saying anyway- my heart wants her home NOW!)

I want so much to start buying clothes, toys, nursery stuff, etc., but my head keeps saying to slow down, that doing all that now will make the wait that much harder. But how much harder can it get? I had planned to officially start on the nursery once the new year was past, but doing so will mean we don't have a guest room, so I guess I better wait until we get closer to referral time. Literally all I have to do is buy a rocking chair and crib and paint an old chest of drawers, so it isn't like I've got all that much to do. I will probably drive Derek crazy in the next year. LOL, that's what husbands are for, right?

Well, I guess that's all I have to report for now. Everyone take care and I'll post again soon!

Thanks and more Thanks

2005-11-28T13:03:00.000-05:00

Thank you to everyone who has posted comments over the past few weeks. It warms my heart to read the comments of old and new friends who are either on their own journey or just following ours. It truly reinforces to me that we are on the right path and that our child will be brought into an environment where love reigns!

I didn't get a chance to post over the weekend as I was extremely busy! I cooked Thanksgiving dinner for our family (well actually I just poured into a dish and put the dish into the oven, but I am calling that cooking even though it was more like food coordination!), and then proceeded to start to decorate for Christmas. Last year after the holidays we purchased an artificial pre-lit tree, thinking that of course we would be about 8-9 months pregnant and not have the energy for a real tree (I always planned for my pregnancy with each IVF attempt!). Well, let me tell you, that tree was more work than a real one! I spent over 3 hours putting it together and "fluffing" the branches. Let's hope next year I won't have to go through all the fluffing! Needless to say it is a beautiful tree, even if it required extra work!

I also went to Charlotte with my mom to a craft show. That was a lot of fun, so many beautiful things were for sale. I bought a few things and so did mom. Our favorite was a booth that featured dried oranges, pomegranets (sp?), and artichokes, all spiced with Christmas smells. I bought all kinds of potporri- the house truly smells like Christmas now.

Even though we are past Thanksgiving, I do want to share my list of things for which I am most thankful- keep in mind these are not in order of my thankfullness! (Is that a word?)

1. My personal relationship with God
2. The 29 years I had with my dad
3. The 9 years I had with my Katie.
4. The memories I have of my grandparents
5. The fact that I am married to my best friend
6. The close relationship I have with my mom- she is my mother first and my friend second and for that I love her with all my heart.
7. I have a wonderful mother in law- I couldn't ask for better. She is everything that a girl could ask for!
8. Our close group of friends- each one of you is special to us in a way that will last a lifetime! You all know who you are!
9. My job.
10. My education. Thanks Mom and Dad, Clemson University and the Jacques Weber Foundation!
11. Did I mention being married to my best friend? I did? Well, it bears mentioning twice because I am truly truly thankful. I can honestly say that Derek is my soulmate, that we are perfect for each other in everyway, and the thought of growing old with him makes my heart sing!
12. Clemson beat Carolina this year. LOL. Seems trivial I know, but to folks in SC we live and die by this game!
13. Our home.
14. The fact that adoption is available for us. We long to share our love with a child, and without the miracle of adoption, that probably wouldn't be possible!

Once again, thank you to all who have posted comments. I visit the blogs of each person who posts, so please know that I am following your stories as well.

I will post more pics of the nursery as I download them from my camera. Somehow I seem to find other things to do on the weekend, but I'll eventually get to it!

Paperwork pregnant...

2005-11-21T13:01:00.000-05:00

First let me say that I am still missing my Katie terribly. The house seems so empty, like a person is missing. I think about her at the oddest times, like in the middle of the Keith Urban concert, or while walking through the grocery store. I picked up her clay paw print, and I know I will cherish that momento of her. I also picked up her ashes on Friday. Not sure what I will do with them. I want to bury her, but I also know we won't live in our house forever and I will not want to leave her when we move, so right now I have decided to just do nothing.

Our paperwork for the adoption is moving along. I have all the documents for the homestudy except for Derek's doctor's letter, and his appt is the first week in December, so by the 9th we should have that part done. Our fingerprinting appointment is on 12-9. I have a good many of the dossier documents already. I have my doctor's form, our birth and marriage certificates, our police clearance letters, our employment letters, our financial statement, and our petition to adopt letter. So, all I am waiting on is Derek's doctor's form, the completed homestudy, and then the immigration 171H! Here's to hoping that we can finish up our docs and be in the certifying process in January. I just have no idea how long the USCIS stuff takes in SC!

This weekend I bought our daughter her first pair of shoes! I got her a pair of pink Robeez with flowers on them. Here is a pic:

How cute are these? You know I can't resist shoes! Since these are sized 6-12 months, I felt comfortable in going ahead and buying them. Now, if only I could find some baby Nikes in the same size range! I showed them to Derek and he didn't seem as interested. Men just don't understand about shoes!

We are still working on the name thing. Lauren and Alison are still at the top of the list. I told Derek that if we name her Lauren we can call her Ralph as a nickname! LOL, I wouldn't really do that, but it is funny!

Thanksgiving is this week. I intend to do a post about all that I am thankful for. As hard as 2005 has been for us, I still have plenty of thanks to give to God for all our blessings. As hard as our troubles are, it is nothing like what the pilgrims had, or even what some people face everyday.

On that note, I will sign off for now!

Missing you...

2005-11-11T11:20:00.000-05:00

Don't Weep for Me
Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glint on snow.
I am the sun on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awake in morning's hush,
I am the swift, uplifting rush
of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft starlight at night.
Do not stand by my grave and cry,
I am not there;
I did not die.
- Mary Frye

The Hardest Thing I've Ever Done

2005-11-11T10:13:00.000-05:00

Today my best friend died. Katie, my 9 year old springer spaniel, was diagnosed with hemangiosarcoma about 6 weeks ago. She had to have her spleen removed, but she bounced back from surgery and seemed like her old self. We knew we had a limited amount of time with her, but we never thought it would end this quickly. Last night when I came home she seemed very lethargic and not her self. She wasn't interested in eating her food or her treat, and that is very unlike her. This morning was the same, and she threw up what she did eat. I took her to the doctor, knowing they couldn't cure her, but hoping they could do something to make her more comfortable. They said her red blood cell count was 12 and that normal was 37 to 56. Said she was breathing hard because she didn't have enough red blood cells to carry the oxygen through her body. She was anemic, and her heart was racing, working extra hard, and she just looked miserable. The light was gone from her eyes and she seemed spaced out. She wouldn't give me any kisses or any of her "loving" habits. My heart was breaking in two. On the way to the vet, she didn't even act upset in the car, and normally she would be crying to me and shaking from fear. I think she was telling me it was ok, that she was ready.

The doctor said that because her red blood cell count was so low, she likely wouldn't make it through the weekend. That they might could give her steroids, but that would just get her a few extra days and prolong the inevitable. The doctor said that she would continue to fight for oxygen and would suffer from it. She said to imagine how scary it would be if you couldn't get any air. I didn't want her to suffer. Next to my husband, she was my best friend, my four legged soul mate. I couldn't let her go through that. I couldn't go through that. I asked the vet what she would do in my situation. She said she would put her to sleep and let her go peacefully. I thought if I could do one thing for Katie, it would be to make her passing easier on her. I didn't want her to feel any pain or be scared. I was scared enough for the both of us.

I called Derek, and he said he knew that this was coming so he said his goodbyes to her this morning. I wish now I had let Edra, my mother-in-law(who lives with us), say goodbye to her this morning. I never thought that I wasn't coming home with her.

So the vet put the drugs in her while I held her. It didn't take long, maybe 15 seconds. She was peaceful, but I was in pieces. How could I let her go like this? Just a few minutes ago, I got her to wag her tail. She was standing by the door to the exam room. She wanted to leave. I wanted to take her home. But at the same time, how could I not do this for her? If I took her home, she would just get worse, and she would suffer. I promised her I would make it better. This was the only way I could. I told her to wait for me, that one day, we would play together again in heaven. I said a little prayer to my dad to take care of her.

I want to tell everyone a little about Katie. She was very loving. If you were sitting down, she wanted to be in your lap. She couldn't get close enough to you. She liked to sleep under the covers. She had to have her chew treat every night or she would nag you until you gave it to her. She could tell time. We would feed her when we got home from work. On the weekends or days when we didn't work, she would start staring at us at 5PM until we would feed her. She could even spell. I would ask Derek if he F-E-D her and she would immediately run to her bowl. She would jump high in the air 3 times when I was fixing her dish. She really loved to eat! She would sit on the couch and put her paw on the armrest like she knew what it was for. She loved to sleep with her head on the pillow. She knew which Christmas stocking was hers and she would check it every morning to see if Santa had come. She loved to go for walks. She loved to play ball. A tennis ball was her favorite. She loved to chase chipmunks. They didn't stand a chance in our yard. She was very protective of us and our house, but if she met you on a walk, she was really shy. She liked to lay on the footrest of the lazyboy when you were sitting in it. She had to be between your legs. She had an attention getting spot. When she wanted us to pay attention to her, she would go sit on the red leather chair. Sometimes she would dig in it, sometimes she would just sit. She loved to lay on the bed in the front room and look out the window. She would lay there whenever we were gone and look for us. I could go on and on. She really was a special dog. I know everyone says that about their dog, but she was special. She has a place in my heart that is all hers and will be until I die. I hope that when it is my time she is waiting for me on the other side of rainbow bridge.

Here are some of my favorite pics of Katie. I hope they bring a smile to your face, as they are a comfort to me right now.

Monica?

2005-11-08T16:39:00.000-05:00

Hi to all! The painting is done and I must say it looks pretty good. I painted the nursery to be a light green and hung white battenburg lace curtains. I love it! I also got a Classic Pooh hand made wool rug at the Charlotte Flea Market. It is very sweet- hand made by someone in Nantucket. It will look so cute in front of the crib. I also framed a card my mom gave me for Valentine's day 2002. It is Pooh and Piglet and Piglet says " Pooh, you have lots of friends, don't you?" and Pooh answers, "Yes, but I only have one Piglet." I found small classic Pooh and Piglet stuffed animals at Target and they look good beside the framed card. I don't really want a "themed" room, but a few touches here and there of Pooh are nice. (Classic Pooh only- I don't like the Disney Pooh) I know I will have a ball getting her room finished!

I went this morning for my physical- the doctor has done many adoption physicals so he was very familiar with the process, which helped to ease my fears. The paperwork has to be done in such a specific way and any mistakes will force you to have to redo the paperwork. This afternoon was our first homestudy. I got up early this morning and cleaned the house from top to bottom, but the social worker only wanted to see the room that will be the nursery! Oh well, at least now I have a clean house.

The questions that the social worker asked were very basic. The whole process was pretty painless. We just have to turn in the rest of our letters of rec, employment, and dr's letters and then we are good to go for the homestudy. I believe we will have to have one more visit, but that will be to mainly go over everything.

I do have one funny from the visit. The social worker asked Derek to describe my personality. He said a few things and then the SW asked if I was organized. Derek laughed and asked him if he ever watches the TV show Friends. He told him that I was a "Monica." LOL!! That is so true!

I ordered a National Geographic DVD titled China's Lost Girls. We watched it last night and it was pretty informative. They interviewed some of the older girls that had been adopted in the early 90s and for the most part all were very happy here in the USA and were very secure with their families. Only one little girl expressed that she didn't feel like she fit in. I think a lot of that has to do with how we as parents approach their adoption. My hope is that our child will feel loved and proud of her heritage and that she will be secure and happy.

Derek will read this and say I am rambling. For those of you who are still reading this, thanks! Y'all come back now, ya hear?