Please pray

This was posted on the MPAK blog  if you would like to follow any progress that happens in South Korea.  We have followed this blog over the last year because the founder of MPAK (mission to promote korean adoption) has established a relationship with Korean adoption officials, and his information has been proven to be reliable.

 "Starting Sunday, February 26, 2012, there will be nightly prayer vigils at 7PM Eastern Standard Time, which would be 4PM Pacific Standard Time.  Wherever you are, whatever you are doing, whether you drive or whether you are working, spend a minute or two to pray for all the children that need to come home.  Pray for all the anxious parents that they will trust God, and find peace in their hearts and certainty that their children will come home soon.  "

On Friday, he posted the following response from the Korean government as to why things are being held up.

This is the response from MOHW last night.  I was surprised at how quickly they responded to me this time.  However, MOHW was very careful not to reveal the date when they might start issuing the EPs, but their response should help all of you to understand what is going on, at least to a certain extent.  The recommendations have been made and they are waiting for an approval from the higher up.

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"...Currently, we have submitted our recommendations for the direction of issuing EPs and determination process and other issues for this year.  I wish to express my regrets in the delays in the EP process due to the impending impacts by the new adoption laws that will go into effect this year.

For all the concerned and waiting parents, it is our hope that in the future something could be worked out between the agencies to shorten the waiting periods between the time of referral and the time of granting EPs. 

Also starting this August, all adoptions will be handled through the Adoption Court, and there will be greater scrutiny in determining the qualification of adoptive parents. (See Steve’s Note 1 below)

 There is also an issue of adoptive parents’ responsibility in the US on obtaining the US Citizenships for their adopted children, and please explain to the parents how important this procedure is. (See Steve’s Note 2 below)

Even the US State Department got involved with the issue of long wait period and the issue of some adoptees not getting the US citizenships.  We are keenly aware of these problems and it is our hope to resolve them as soon as possible.

I thank you for your interest in adoption and your continued assistance to us."

I am posting all this because we get inquiries daily as to when we will travel.  Thank you for your inquiries and prayers.  This is as close to an "answer" as I can give at this point.

Thank you for your prayers!!!

Reasons to Smile

There are many reasons to smile around here.  


1.  The SUN has come back out!!!  We couldn't resist playing at the park on the way home from school today.  


2.  I can exercise AGAIN!!! I hurt my hip last March, and so after almost a YEAR of fighting pain induced by even mild exercise, I CAN exercise!!!   This may sound like NO big deal, but I feel like a new person...you hear me?  My whole family will be happier for it!


3.  Garrett's been a little "sensitive" lately.  His teacher was nice in referring to him as "sensitive."  He's had lots of fits for the last couple of weeks.  Just in a bad phase again I guess.  One particular morning, he told his teacher that I spanked him 20 times and that I was very mad at him.  We'd actually had a very pleasant morning  that day, and he'd not been spanked at all or even been spoken sternly to!   A week later, she sent me a text saying that she was sending this magic dust home. 

Guess what's in the bottle?  NOTHING!  You heard me NOTHING.  Alls ya gotta do is spray the dumb thing, and it cures him.  He'll quit crying in 2 seconds flat.  I wonder if she thought I was spanking him 20 times for every offense.  Maybe she was trying to give me a less violent option!  Now we are just trying to use the "NOTHING" judiciously.  We wouldn't want to use it so much that it loses it's "magic." Genius.

4.  Found this in Mary's school folder today.

If that doesn't make you smile, you may need to stop by for squirt of magic dust:)  

Changin' it up a bit

We decided to try something a little different for Valentine's since hubs was not working.  He wanted to take the girls out to eat for a special date, BUT who goes out to eat on Valentines?  Not a good idea for kids.  I offered to cook their favorite meal (Stuffed salmon...ready made from Sam's..ha!). They wanted to wear a favorite dress of their choosing.

Mary checking her lipstick.

THAT Is ONE excited little girl:) 

I borrowed this dress for Allie like three years ago from my friend, Amy....and I never gave it back.  Thanks Ames...Mary loved it.  I'll get it back to you!

Hubs wrote both the girls letters and read them while they ate.  

Wild man and I went to chick fil a.  Good gracious what a mess behind me. 

Allie wanted to pick a dress from MY closet!  She wore a sundress of mine and a shrug which looked like a sweater on her.  She wore a necklace that she made at a beading place a while back.  They LOVED the dress up part the most!

A perfect night...a perfect little photographer:)

Valentines and mid Feb

My sis-in-law, Melissa, passed along a gem of a scrapbooking site..The Lillypad.  I've used their site for several years to do all my scrapbooking.  They had a vday card kit, so I used it to make the kids' cards this year.  

Happy Heart Day:)


I've had many texts and emails lately concerning CC.  I haven't updated my blog in a while because I keep thinking we will hear something, and we just haven't.  It is discouraging.  We thought surely by now that the Korea program would be up and running based on the history of the last couple of years.  It is officially mid february, and no exit permits have been issued for any agencies this year.  The only email we've received said things like "keep your expectations gentle" and "we are entering a period of unpredictability that has not existed before."  To say the LEAST, these words are very unsettling to me.  We have prayed for many months that we would rest in God's timing. If "things" would resume, I'd be much less anxious knowing we are not far down the list.  The fact that things are not moving has me quite anxious.  Please keep praying for our boy!


Couple of funny adoption related "funnies" from the kids...


Last week when we were at the girls' school, Garrett walked up to a first grader who was adopted from China and said, "You look just like my little brother."  It was so sweet and hysterical wrapped into one. 


Our social worker came to update/redo our home study since it has now been one year.  She sat down to visit with us, and we sent the kids off to play (well coached all morning to be perfect angels and to certainly refrain from sharing anything other than glowing comments about our parenting skills..ha:), and then....


Mary came running through the living room with an adult pair of scissors yelling that I need to help her cut out her ground hog for Ghog day.  So the first words out of our sweet social worker's mouth to start our interview..."right in front of the social worker"..as she neatly pounds her stack of papers on the coffee table.  


Oh well!

The prayers of a three year old

"Dear God,  Thank you for me.  Thank you for myself.  Jesus, mommy says I can't have anything to eat because it's 8:00.  I have to go to bed, and that makes me so sad."  In Jesus name, Amen." ---Garrett  2/13/12

We are born selfish.  At 3, how selfish are we?  Add 3 decades of life, and I wonder how far I've come in my life.  Of course I don't pray, thank you for me.  I do, however, spend much time praying for my family, my friends, my, my,  and my.  

I've been reading a book lately.  Two of my besties and I went to hear Jenn Hatmaker speak a few weekends ago.  Remember Jenn??  She was the "after the airport" blogger that I referred to months ago.  Now, I'm a Jenn stalker.  She's hilarious, and she's blunt.   

She wrote a book recently called "7."  That's pretty much what she spoke on that weekend.  It's rockin' my perspective lately.  We are a SELFISH culture.  

I'm only half way through, and honestly, I'm afraid to keep reading.  

Wiggle, tug, and pull

That was the order of things ALL DAY on Saturday.  Mary's been wanting her teeth to fall out since she was three, only because she has seen the fruits of the tooth fairy.  Her big moment finally arrived, and she almost chickened out!  

Sweet daddy surveyed the situation.  It was more than wiggly...maybe almost hanging.  She seemed scared, but she didn't fight it.  

Allie was SOO sweet and encouraging...talked her through the whole thing!

She was SO excited!!  She is such a child of restraint, so to see her get this giddy was quite the treat!

Sporting two hands

Happy Happy Birthday to my sweet Mary! 

 Mary wanted to paint for her birthday party.  She does NOT like to be the center of attention, so we had a small group of girls, and it was quite calm.  She's getting so big...one of her teeth is WIGGLY!  No baby teeth, stay in!

Don't roll your eyes.  This was the only "over the top" thing I did. (thanks for the idea A.Mitchell) I just LOVE LOVE LOVE a computer full of pictures over the years, and so I have to find ways to use them...makes me happy:-)  Her friends liked seeing her at different ages.

When you do a pottery party, the kids don't get their item for another week, so we sent them off with cake pops.  No complaints there...

Last night when we were driving home, from the back seat, Mary told Garrett she "was going to get to use her WHOLE OTHER HAND!"  It took a minute to register, but she was talking about holding up 6 fingers when asked about her age.  Welcome to the two handed club Mary!!  Happy happy birthday to you big girl!  We have so enjoyed watching you come out of your shell a little bit this past school year.  We love your laid back, compliant personality...more than you'll ever know!!!