He's getting so big!

Sniff, sniff! Our baby is growing up so fast and getting so big. We are very fortunate though to have received a couple of new, updated pictures today. He's getting quite a bit of hair and still has his chubby fingers. He's still stinkin cute and we can't wait to meet him!

Hand-me-down

Being the little brother means lots of hand-me-downs coming your way. You already have so many cute clothes, shoes, bedding, toys, blankets, and lots of things you will need and use, but it all has previous experience! I promise it's still all in really good shape though. So, last weekend, you received another hand-me-down and your big brother got something new. He got a new peapod and you get the old one. Sorry, but his is bigger (and cooler!).

The Kidco Peapod is the coolest travel bed on the market (in my opinion)! When G was 5 months old we were looking for a compact travel bed that would be easy to fly with and ran across this. We have been using it ever since and love it. It folds up really small, fits nicely into a suitcase, is much more comfortable than a pack n' play (because it has an air mattress in it) and is very portable. We take it everywhere we go. So, we thought Neylan needed one too. Especially since Grayson will be traveling with us to Korea. In Korea the families typically sleep together in one room on a thin mat on the floor (that does not sound like a good night's rest to me). We know that sleep is often a difficult transition for many kiddos coming from other countries. So, we are hoping that by having him try to sleep in his peapod with big brother in his own peapod next to him and having Mom and Dad in the same room while in Korea, that this will help. We'll keep our fingers crossed and see!! Hope he likes it. It's likely both boys will be using it every time we travel.

I found this Peapod Plus on craigs list last week and emailed about it immediately when I saw that is was $20 less than the original price. The family said they tried to put their daughter in it and she screamed the whole time so they decided not to try it again and sell it. The OT in me says that's craziness, but the bargain hunter mom in me says awesome!!

A new fundraiser begins!!

First, I just have to say that it is a true blessing to have such great friends who know when help is needed. Carla, you are awesome!!

For the next 9 days, I will be hosting an Uppercase Living book show as an adoption fundraiser. My great friend, Carla, has agreed to do this for us and is donating 25% of the sales to our fund to bring Neylan home. If you are not familiar with Uppercase Living, you should definitely check out a catalog. They have amazing vinyl expressions for every room of the house and every occasion. You can also design custom expressions in the My Design suite on Carla's website. The possibilities are endless with Uppercase Living. I have one in my living room and love it. They are also very easy to apply to the wall. Happy shopping. Thanks so much for supporting us in our quest to bring Neylan home.

You may place an order by letting Carla or I know. I can give catalogs out if anyone wants them as well.

Deadline to place an order is March 27th!

Carla's website is http://carlasmith.uppercaseliving.net (no www in the web address)
Carla's email is lilhut@yahoo.com 
Phone #s are 913.254.9702 (h) & 913.269.1299 

We're moving (for the moment)

We are another step closer Neylan!! We will be there get you as soon as possible and are so excited to meet you and introduce you to your big brother, the monkey. I've been telling him that there's no reason that he needs to teach you all that he knows, but I just don't think he will listen. You are going to learn so many new tricks and likely give Mommy some gray hair and panic attacks! But we're ready for you and all that you will bring to our family.

I called the NVC (National Visa Center) today and found out that we have been logged in and out! Our approval of the I600 form last week means that our government will allow Neylan to come into our country. When they approved that form it was sent to the NVC and "logged in". Today it was "logged out" and is on it's way to the US Embassy in Seoul.

The next step? The Embassy in Seoul will issue the P3. This is an acceptance packet that contains certain paperwork, forms, and a physical form. This should be issued within the next few days. I'll update when we find out about it. It's a very confusing process. I'm still learning and confused. Just taking it step by step.

APPROVAL!!

We're finally moving again and if feels great! We applied for our I600 approval (petition to classify an orphan as an immediate relative) on Feb. 8th. This is the last piece needed by our government. We patiently waited a couple of weeks before calling about it and were told it could take 75 days from the time we applied to approval. Well that's discouraging news when you see other families get approved much faster. So, we waited another two weeks and called again last Friday. The lady told Adam that we were in the system, but it would take another two to three weeks to be assigned an officer, who would approve our paperwork. Bummer! Really discouraged now. Why is it taking soooo long??? Adam did some sweet talking and this week. . .  .

GOOD NEWS!!

We're approved! Our approval notice came in the mail on Friday. We were approved on March 9, which was just Wednesday. Just 3 days after we called last week. Hmm!! We'll take it.

So, things might start moving along a little faster for us now. Since this was the last piece of paperwork needed by the US govt, the rest of the process is up to Korea. So, we just sit and wait on them to do their thing. Hoping they do it quickly! We now anticipate we might travel late May or early June. That's just our guess though. Really, no one knows. But, we do need to get ready to get our little guy. We have a room to get ready for him!

Winter Jam 2011

Several months ago we learned about Winter Jam, a VERY large Christian concert with many fabulous artists, was coming to KC and they needed volunteers. Our agency, Holt, International, is partnered with this event to promote sponsorships for orphans across the world.

We decided to volunteer, which allowed us to get into the concert free. When we showed up to the training, we were assigned to work the aisles of our section during the 15 minute intermission. That's it! We also met a lady as we were walking in who had adopted two little boys from Korea. We all sat together and I was able to pick her brain on issues that could be coming our way. She was great to talk to and had some great info. Small blessings like this are not coincidental.

Since we were volunteering, we were able to go into the arena an hour before the doors opened and pick any seat we wanted. Never been able to do this before. So, we went close to the front with a great view of the stage (hence the better than usual pictures). It was really loud, but the view was fabulous!

Three and a half hours into the bands performances, intermission came. We wore lovely yellow vests filled with five cards with precious faces on them, all needing love, food, and most importantly, a forever family. Adam took one aisle and I took the other aisle in our section. Unfortunatly, Adam couldn't convince anyone to sponsor a child, but I was able to get four of my kids monthly sponsors. Fabulous!

I wondered the whole time if Neylan's picture was out there. Had someone taken him to sponsor or was he left on the table? I did see a Holt kiddo who has been matched with a family and is waiting to join them. I never saw my Neylan. We would have grabbed his card so fast to start sponsoring him monthly, but it won't be long before we begin sponsoring him for life! Our journey to adoption started with a child sponsorship. Had we never done that, I don't know we would be where we are now. I would encourage everyone to sponsor an orphan for a small amount of money each month. It can be life changing for them and for you!

One Delicious Fundraiser

Just a quick update on our latest fundraiser- a cookbook. I am feverishly proof reading many yummy sounding recipes submitted by family and friends. We have over 150, which is incredible! Thank you all who have submitted. As I sat and proof read for hours today, I just kept getting hungrier and hungrier until I had to get up and get a snack. I have extended the deadline for recipe submission to Sunday. I would love to have everything done tomorrow, but that's being ambitious. So, if you have waited until the last minute possible to submit, or if you are just hearing about this cookbook, you still have time to add a few recipes. Comment on this post or email me for the login and password to submit online. It's super easy. We would love to have any recipes (as long as they are tasty)!

Thanks again. I will keep you posted as to when the books will be available for purchase.

A Small Snapshot

We received an encouraging email from our agency today. It was an in-depth report on Neylan's development, characteristics, and personality. He is doing really well and we can't wait to have him home. Many people have said that this phase of the process is the hardest. The waiting gets more difficult with time. I can fully attest to that. All we have is some info on paper and 4 pictures, but I am falling in love with this kid. My kid!! Unfortunately, we still have a few months to wait to meet him. So, for now, I will try to be happy with the info and pictures that we do have. He better enjoy not having so many pictures now, becuase when he gets to this house, his momma is going to make up for it. There will be a camera out all the time.

So, back to the update. Developmentally, all is good. He is learning to sit on his own. He rolls all over the place, reaches for toys and brings them to his mouth, visually tracks objects, smiles when he makes eye contact, and looks up when his name is called. He is also a good eater and sleeper!!

It was fun to hear about his personality and some of his likes and dislikes.

• He laughs at music
• He watches children's TV programs attentively
• He enjoys deep sleep in a quiet and dark environment (HALLELUJAH!!!)
• Does not fret before sleeping
• Likes to take baths
• Likes to be massaged after baths
• Is not shy with strangers
• Makes friends easily when he is played with
• Likes to be held

Does this personality sound familiar to anyone? For those of you who know Grayson well, it sounds like Neylan and Grayson are two peas from the same pod. Reading over this list brought a lot of joy to our hearts as we realized that our boys have a lot in common already. This is going to be a fun journey.

SO CAN WE GO ALREADY?!?

Oh Happy Day!!

Well, it's not as exciting as our referral day or the day we will meet Neylan, but since there has been very little happening in our process since we got our referral, Tuesday was a big day. We received our legal paperwork!! It's always fun to come home to find FedEx envelopes at your door. We knew this one was coming, but it was still exciting. This is very important paperwork from Korea that we need to proceed.

 It is the paperwork that tells us that Neylan is officially adoptable and his rights have been severed between he and his birth mom. I'm not sure why, but for some reason, it was a bit difficult for me to see the piece of paper that had his birth mother's name and fingerprint on it, where she had signed this perfect little boy over to be adopted because she was not able to care for him. She is giving us an incredible gift. I hope that she is able to experience the joy of being a mother one day and know that her first son is going to be well taken care of and loved unconditionally.

Basically, we took out the legal paperwork and put it in a different envelope with some other documents and sent it on to the immigration office. We applied for our I600 within this paperwork, which says that we are making a petition to classify this orphan as an immediate relative. It will take 2-4 weeks for this to be approved and then the rest of the process is up to Korea to complete. We are still hopeful to travel in late spring or early summer.

Doesn't Grayson look so excited to bring Neylan home?! He's going to make a great big brother (or bother)!

We're trained parents!

Well kinda! Last week we completed our 8 hour training course that we needed before we travel to pick up our little guy. When we told people we had to go to "parenting classes" we got quite a few comments such as "they really don't think you know how to parent", or "why do you need to go to parenting classes when you already have a kid"? These are not just simple parenting classes for the sake of learning how to raise a child. These are classes designed to prepare us to take on an adopted child and all that that experience brings with it. It was a great class and I think we are better prepared now. It definitely brought up some issues and questions that we had not discussed. There are some really tough issues that adoptive families deal with and knowing how to properly handle those as they arise makes a world of difference to your child. Our social worker made the comment that the minute we agreed to adopt, we became a transracial family. This is something we are completely comfortable with, but know that we will likely have many comments and stares from others as our family will look different than most. We will not all be one color. So we have many things to think about and get prepared for such as:

How will we deal with racial comments directed towards our family or our child?

How much information would we like to share about our child/process and what information should be private to those who like to ask questions?

How will we incorporate other races into our family routines?

How much information will we share with our child about Korea, their culture, and his heritage?

How will we deal with the really tough questions that he will begin to ask about his birth parents and why he was placed for adoption?

How will we handle "family tree" projects at school?

Although, we know that adoption is not the easiest road to navigate, we are embracing our experience and are excited about how our family will soon be changing. We are praying that Neylan adapts quickly to us and our lifestyle and that God gives us guidance and wisdom about how to love him and welcome him into our family. We are so excited that each day we are one day closer to bringing him into his forever family. We still have a lot to learn about how to be a good adoptive parent and in time we will have it figured out (ha ha). I'm really glad we had our "parenting class". We learned a lot and had a few eye-opening moments. Now, I just really need to start reading an adoption book that was recommended. I need to learn more about how to correctly attach and bond. You know, that really big, important piece of this whole process!

Neylan update- We received his well baby check last week. He's doing really well health and development-wise. He weighs 22 lbs at 7.5 months. Grayson finally weighed 22# at 15 months! Wow!! Gotta keep going to the gym, especially since Korean babies are used to being carried in backpack carriers all the time. He is creeping around and is sitting well by himself. Unfortunately, no more pictures.

Looking Back

I have to admit that while doing my Project 365 blog is a lot of work, there are definitely some positive things that come out of it. Like this post. I saw this on someone else's blog and decided to copy it. I wanted to take a look back at what was going on in our lives on some significant dates in Neylan's life. Little did we know that while we were having fun here at home, our second child was entering the world.

On June 20, 2010 Neylan was born. This was actually Father's Day, which I think is pretty cool and special.

This was the only picture I had taken that day. Adam left to go out of town to chaperone at youth camp, but Grayson and I kept up the routine of going to the volleyball game that night so he could play outside. It was a beautiful summer day here.

I really hope we are able to bring Neylan home in time for Father's Day this year.

Just a few days later on June 23rd, Neylan was placed with his foster family. This was the only picture I took that day and made the comment that it was a very uneventful day for us. Little did I know how eventful it was for Neylan as he left the mother who graciously carried him to birth and then gave him up and was placed with a family who would take care of him until we are able to bring him home. We are so grateful for the care he is receiving and the love that is being shown him by his foster family. It makes the waiting a little easier knowing he is in good hands. 



We've Got It!!

I know, I know. I have been lazy in updating the blog since we made a final decision on our little one's name. But since yesterday was Korean American Day, it's a great time to reveal. I meant to post yesterday on the actual holiday, but forgot. So. . . . . .

Neylan Min-Seok

 is what he will be called. Neylan means "our wish has been granted" and Min-seok, his Korean given name, means "sturdy and bright".

I hesitate to even tell the story of how it came about, but it's fun and we will have to tell it eventually. So, I'll just put it out there. As you know we were having a really hard time with his name for some reason. I guess we should have been more prepared with a boy name just in case, but we weren't. So, I had to buy the book. This book has a bunch of different categories of names listed such as names of politicians, famous musicians, hillbilly names, artists, athletes, and on and on. I read through all of those and then came to the category "College football stadiums". And of course, Tennessee's stadium is listed, Neyland. I mentioned it out loud as a joke and Adam jumped all over it. He loved it. So, just to humor him, I turned to the back where all the names and meanings are listed to see if there was a better meaning. Neyland wasn't listed but Neylan, without the D, was. And it meant, "our wish has been granted". Adam was sold at this point. And I have to admit, I didn't mind the sound of it either. This was the first name that we both somewhat liked. We then learned that the stadium is correctly pronounced "knee-land" and our name is "nay-lan". So, they are similar, but do not sound the same. After thinking about it for several days, asking family their opinions, and saying it outloud, it has stuck. I also think it fits his picture. So, then I said, "our wish has been granted"? We started this process wishing for a girl. Adam's response-- MY wish was granted. I'm getting another boy!!

Oh, the Pressure!

The pressure to pick a name is big. I never thought it would be so hard. But this time around, we are having the hardest time. We didn't have another option or a second choice when Grayson was born. He was just going to be Grayson. I'm thinking it's been harder for me since I know what he looks like. We throw out a name and then look at his picture and know that it's not a good fit. So, the list of options got shorter and shorter. Not to mention that we both have worked with kids for over five years. Again, the list shortens because we can't name him the same name as one of our most dreaded kids. So, after going home for Christmas and having lots of pressure from family to name this little one, I gave in and bought this book. Adam and I had thrown around lots of names, but couldn't agree on ANY of them. I quickly found out that there are a lot more girl name options than boy names. I think I've read all of the options and we do think we have made a decision. Give me a few more days to think about it and then we will reveal.

Introducing. . . .

 Little Brother Foster

We received our call over a week ago and this little one still has no name. Maybe I should open it up for suggestions. We are struggling with this one.

He's such a cutie and we pray he fits right in. We are excited for him to join our family.

Likely these are current 6 month pictures.

Doesn't he look smashing in his pink sweather and purple bumbo?

Call me asap!!!

This was the message I received on Thursday morning while I was at Renew for Moms, my mommy group. I was getting ready to pick up Grayson, but decided to check my phone for any messages. And, I had one!!! This one!! Now, what in the world does that mean? I did as it said and called. Adam answered, which really surprised me. His news??

We've been matched!!!

I said, "what?" He repeated the news. I think I just stood there in complete shock. We were not expecting this phone call until January at the very earliest, so it caught me completely off guard when he said we had just gotten our referral call.

Isaiah 55:8 says “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
   neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD.

When we started this adoption process, we were told it would take 18-24 months. I was just fine with that. Adding another child into the family when Gray is 2.5-3 sounded good to me. I thought I might be ready then. We also said we would take a child with special needs. With the backgrounds that we both have, this seemed like what we needed to do, or at least were experienced to do. And we preferred a little girl.

But just as this verse states, God's plans are often different than our plans. Fortunately, they are always for the better.

We have been matched with a healthy little boy!!! And are hoping to travel within 4-6 months. That means before Grayson is 2, or right around there, and that this entire process will likely be less than 1 year! This little one is 6 months old today. So, that means, I will have a 1 and a 2 year old running around!!! I should start claiming and clinging to Phillipians 4:13 now.

I can do all this through him who gives me strength

He's really cute, is in good health, and is being really well taken care of by his foster family. Once we get permission, we will post some pictures.

Ready for Christmas?

I know I'm not ready yet. And if you are in the panic "16 Days Left" mode, I have some great gift ideas for you.

When we began this journey, I thought it would be great if we could do a fundraiser every month. Little did I know how much work, time, and effort they were. But, we survived the October and November fundraiser and now I have so many ideas for December. The following items will be for sale for quite a while, but I wanted to get them up and advertised in time for Christmas, because they are so cute. 

Photo Necklace

 

Think about all the girls in your life that would be thrilled to receive one of these this Christmas. The pictures are so cute under the 1 inch glass tiles and can be placed on a number of chains. These are also very cute with pretty paper behind or a monogram. The possibilities are numerous.

All you have to do is send me a picture and I will do the rest.

A completed necklace is $20. A completed tile (if you have a necklace you choose to use) is $10

Decorative Name Boards

These were such a big hit during the November giveaways, I am going to start making them (with Carla's permission) in case you really wanted one and didn't win. The one above is one that I did for a baby shower gift a few weeks ago. These can be done in various sizes. The one above is 18x18". This size will be $40. So, think about all that baby showers you are attending or about the little ones in your life whose nursery needs a cute name board.

Personalized Letters

I made these letters for Grayson's nursery to match his crib bedding. They are such a cute addition to any nursery. I am also going to start custom painting these. The size and detail will determine the cost of this item.

If you are interested in any of these items, please contact me. I would also appreciate you passing on these great items to friends, family, and coworkers. Thank you all for your continued support.

Follower update

I know some of you have had trouble becoming a "follower" to this blog, especially if you have a yahoo account. I did some searching and never really found an answer as to why that is not working. But did find that it's easy to create a google account. You can do this with the email address and password you already have, so it doesn't create a new email address or anything for you. So, to become a follower (meaning you will get email updates when we update the blog):

1. click Follow on the right sidebar above the pictures of followers
2. click on Google
3. set up a google account if you don't already have one
4. choose if you want to follow publicly or privately. If you follow publicly, your name and/or picture will be on one of the little squares. If you choose to follow privately, your picture and name will not be displayed, but you will still get the email update when we update the blog. I just won't have any idea you are following along.

Hope this helps. Please don't hesitate to ask any questions. If I don't know the answer, I'll google it!!

Drumroll Please!!!

It's finally time to announce the winners of the Countdown to Christmas Giveaways! We had a very busy weekend, so I apologize for being 2 days behind schedule. I know you have been sitting on the edge of your seat just wondering what great thing you might have won. Thanks to all that participated and a BIG thanks to those of you that donated prizes and funds. We really appreciate your help in this adventure to bring our next little one home.

So, without further ado. . .
The girly, girly, tutu-- Annie

Supercute nameboard-- Melissa

Alphabet photography-- Kim

Hooded towel--Carry

Candle--Judith

Creative Memories album-- Gayle

Pampered Chef salt and pepper grinder set-- Alicia

Cornhole boards-- David P.

Ethiopian coffee and silver necklace-- Amelia

T-shirt dress-- Leah

Christmas book collection-- Rachel R.

Scarf-- Kathy

Mary Kay winter lip set-- Cherry

Premier jewelry necklace-- Leah

Pampered Chef bowl and claws-- Amelia

Cupcakes-- Carla

Southern Living Cookbook-- Nicole

Crayon roll-up holder-- Kristi

And in case you are wondering how the winners were chosen-- I used http://www.random.org/ to make it as fair as possible.

Have a great week. I'll be contacting the winners to get more info on how to deliver your prizes.

Just Kidding!!

Just when you thought it was over and there were no more giveaways. . . There's one more. . . and it's a great one!!

This crayon roll-up holder has been made and donated by our friend, Kate. She has a bunch of really fun items that you can check out at http://www.katewdesigns.etsy.com/

Final Fundraiser post

Well all giveaways have been posted. Weren't there some great ones?! I wish I could keep them all for myself, but I have had a lot of fun posting them and seeing how many of you are interested in getting those fabulous things too. So, here's what will happen next. I am going to leave the fundraiser open for the rest of the week to give you a chance to continue telling friends, making donations, comments, and deciding on all that you want a chance to win. On Saturday, I will draw names for the winners. So, take a good look and comment on EVERY item you are interested in winning. The more people that participate, the better everyone's chance of winning something. I hope you all have had fun and thank you so much for your support. Thank you, especially, to all of my wonderful friends and family who donated great items for these giveaways!!

Here's a review of the rules. And remember, there is no obligation to donate. These are giveaways (FREE)! But you can't win if you don't comment. And the more entries you receive for doing the following, the better your chance at winning. This is raffle style, not an auction, so you can't outbid anyone (to disappoint some of you)!

• Receive 1 entry for commenting on that specific post. And for all of you out there that don't know how to do that or don't have a google account, simply click "comments" at the bottom of the post and fill in your info as "anonymous". Leave your name though in the comment as I won't know who it is otherwise. Then click "post comment".
• Receive 5 entries for your suggested donation of $10 or more through the "Adoption Donations" button in the top right corner of the blog.
• Receive 5 additional entries for any donation over $25
• Receive 2 entries for posting about our fundraiser on YOUR blog and linking it back to this blog.
• Receive 1 entry for posting about our fundraiser on Facebook and linking it back to our blog.
• Receive 1 entry for becoming a follower of this blog
• Receive 1 entry for becoming a follower of our family blog
• Receive 2 entries for sending an email about our fundraiser to 10 friends and carbon copying us as well.

When you comment on the item you are interested in, let me know how many entries you should have for that particular item, based on the the info above. The more entries you have for that item, the better your chance at winning the item.

Please let me know if you have any questions about how this all works.

It's Not Over Yet!

There's been one last donation for a Southern Living Christmas Cookbook. Cherry, Adam's mom, donated this and it has some great recipes with beautiful pictures. If you like to cook at Christmas, this would be a great addition to your kitchen.

A Delicious Ending!

A sweet ending to our online fundraiser. Our last giveaway is for up to a dozen gourmet cupcakes made by our friend Jennifer. These are beautiful and delicious and she has many flavors to choose from. These would make a great addition to any holiday party or simply to finish a great meal. You won't be disappointed!

Some flavors include: chocolate with strawberries and cream, red velvet, chocolate peppermint twist, and Florida Key.