My new obsession...

Well, it isn't really all that new but I am obsessed with trying to figure out how to be a one income family. I am reading a number of financial planning books, have my list of blogs that I read regularly and have tried to work out a plan. In preparation, I bumped up our mortgage payments to the legal limit set by our lender, I bumped up our monthly RRSP contributions, I have set up an ING savings account for an "emergency fund" and we have stopped eating out (which we did about twice a week). Ok, so we have also tried to put together a budget that looks like we are only living on one income HOWEVER we do have many disagreements stemming from this process. We do have debt and our adoption savings were depleted recently when we had to attend to a family emergency. Ughhh. Any thoughts about how to do this successfully without conflict in your marriage?

100 Good Wishes Quilt and a dream...

So for posterity, I am recording here that I began sewing Isabel's quilt today. At least I think it is Isabel's. There was a surprise referral of a beautiful baby boy this month to a family in my February DTC group. They have to redo everything in the nursery etc but they are thrilled. I have 53 squares sewn together and Shawn and I were discussing the backing. Fortunately, most of our squares are not gender specific however the squares that I sent out and consequently the fabric that we are going to use for the backing is pink with butterflies and hearts. Oh well, I might have to wait until we have our referral to do the backing...
In other news, I have been feeling very low since the last referral batch because of our spot in line. It is hard to explain but I have said it so many times - the closer you get, the harder the wait seems to become. Anyway, the other night I was having trouble sleeping so I took a Ty.len.ol P.M. and had wild dreams. One dream was about our referral. We received the photos, a video and the regular information but our daughter appeared to be about 4 years old as she danced around. We were thrilled and excited and in China when we realized that this wasn't a referral for our daughter at all but a child that we were sponsoring through an agency. Talk about devastated. We turned around and went home without our child, hopes dashed. Yes, it is definitely harder the closer you get...

6 days...

It looks as though the cut off for the latest batch of referrals is Feb. 15th - they did 6 days. That leaves 13 days ahead of us and Feb. 28th is a big day. I am hoping, meditating, praying to the Gods and sending thoughts to the universe that we will have our referral in December... It is REALLY hard to be this close and yet so very very very very far away from our daughter. She is on this earth and we think of her all the time, hoping that she is receiving our love and thoughts that we send her every day. We know that Anita and Benji's little angels as well as our Grandma's are watching over her, making sure that she is safe, warm and has a full belly.
Colleen said something that really made me think yesterday. She said that it just sucks that I don't have a big belly for people to fawn over and take care of. No one gets up for me on the bus - teehee, BUT they also don't understand how difficult (I can't think of a word that will adequately describe the roller coaster of the adoption world) it is to go through this emotionally. It takes a toll. Luckily we have a strong marriage and strong friendships which have carried us through - not to mention a little wine and chocolate on the side!! I hope that in two short months, I will be posting a photo of Isabel here...

Happy Mid-Autumn Moon Festival

Hope that you are all enjoying your mooncakes!!!!!!! I am off to the grocery store to buy some- we like the nut kind!!

Wow, its been a while OR From the mouths of babes...

So, it has been a while but we have gone through two more LIDversaries and there are now ONLY 19 days of LID referral days ahead of us. Who KNOWS how long it will take to get through these days, especially since according to a number of sources, Feb. 28th, 2006 was a big day for LID's. November is my wishful thinking, December is a possibility and January - well you know where this is going. I have to say though, that seeing people in my February group receive their referrals has been an incredible "pick me up" and somewhat of a reality check!!

In other news my niece and nephew along with my Mom were out to visit from Ontario in August. I keep thinking of Emma's question "Why is Isabel in China?" Our brother-in-law does quite a bit of travelling for his business and he was in China last spring. Emma just couldn't fathom why her Daddy didn't just pick Isabel up for us and bring her home. I WISH!!!!!!!! For a child who doesn't understand how babies are created yet, this is a real dilemma!! We had some answers but I found that for an intelligent 6 year old, the stock answer "because Isabel is Chinese and that is where she was born. We must wait to get the OK to go and get her from the Chinese government because she is Chinese. We have to have the official papers to take her to Canada but right now she is living in an orphanage with nannies" wasn't enough. She wanted to know why Isabel was born there, why she couldn't stay with her Mommy and Daddy etc etc. It was a difficult discussion that kept coming up but one I believe, will be part of our lives once Isabel is home and I want to have better answers for her and her cousin...Sigh.

Now, I must dig my head out the "waiting parent" sand and start to brush up on everything that I was soooo into reading two years ago. Luckily, our library is a wonderful resource. Oh and I have to say Happy Birthday Mom!!!!!!!! It was great to chat with you today. Love you!!!

Which month is this?

Well, I haven't had a look at the blog lately so I'm not quite sure!! Too funny. Anyway, yesterday we actually went shopping for Isabel!! A good friend gave us a gift certificate for Christmas that we hadn't used yet so we decided to use it!! We bought Isabel her high chair and a few goodies for the diaper bag that we are taking to China. It has been a looooonnng time since we have purchased anything for her but it just felt right!! I put the chair together in the kitchen and it looked so right!!! I then disassembled it and put it back in the box (storage issues). Ah well.
Happy ? LIDversary to us... it really doesn't matter anymore I guess. We are counting the months ahead of us instead of those behind. Oh and I just finished the book "Eat, Pray, Love" - can you say Italy!!! I LOVED the first section - I am a pleasure seeker I guess. My favorite was the drawing with four feet on the floor, no head and a smile at the heart - how we should all strive to live!!

27 Yesterday...

Wow, the months are just rolling by... can't believe that it has been 27 months since China logged us in... I do wonder if there will be an end to the wait and if a child waits there for us... only more long months of waiting will tell.

The roses are blooming and the sun is shining...all is right in our little corner of the world. I love this time of year.