New Number

Only time will tell if this matters or not... but as of last week we've moved up to slot #209 on the waiting list!

Nursery Ideas

I had a dream about Winnie the Pooh last night (I also dreamed that I intentionally melted nachos onto my leather couch, but that doesn't really have anything to do with this post). I woke up and told hubby we should paint our nursery-to-be to look like the Hundred Acre Woods.

He's on board. He suggested painting a tree that reaches up on the ceiling, and then hanging this lamp from a "branch" with bees around it to make it look like a hive.

Let me clarify - we are currently painting our master bedroom blue. Solid blue, one color, four walls. It's taken about a week thus far and left our entire house in disarray. So, we aren't master painters of any sort.

However, I found this website today. Check it out and see if it doesn't inspire you. Pretty soon you'll want to paint a forest - and stripes - and farm animals - and a castle.

(Li'l Sis? I know you have some mad crazy pumpkin-painting skills...)

I Met a Porcupine at Applebee's

Driving home from lunch today, I spied a tent and cages in the field in front of Applebee's.

"Puppies!" I cooed.

"Um, I think that's a porcupine... "

Hubby was right. Little River Zoo brought out several small animals and created a petting area. They suckered us right in.

I was a perplexed by this whole pet-the-porcupine concept, but Porky was down with it.

This goat and turtle were roomies.

Hubby fed a wallaby.

If ever an occasion to entertain a wallaby arises, and you don't know what vittles to offer, they apparently have an affinity for vegetable-flavored Ritz crackers.

Windblown

Our Shih Tzu enjoyed the beautiful weather on the way home from the groomer yesterday.

(No, Dad, of course I didn't take this picture while I was driving. I would never consider doing anything so unsafe.)

The Quick Summary

Hi all -

Yes, I fell off the face of the blogging universe. Adoptive families know why many of the Vietnam blogs have gone silent; for the few friends/family members who we've shared this blog with, here's the deal.

Y'know the Bog of Eternal Stench (quick, name the 80's movie reference!)? Basically, that's the current state of VN adoptions. USCIS posted this horribly disturbing message, closely followed by this one. Result: as of now, adoptions will not be processed for anyone who does not have a referral by September 1.

Remember when you were a kid and everyone would get in trouble because of the one bratty boy who just wouldn't settle down? That's basically what's going on here. The vast majority of Vietnam adoptions are ethical, but a very small minority of agencies/adoption personnel are causing problems for everyone; instead of making the troublemakers get out of the sandbox, all adoptions are being stopped.

Making sure adoptions are ethical should, of course, be priority numero uno - that goes without saying. However, there are ways to ensure ethical adoptions without shutting down the entire adoption system between the two countries.

As you can imagine, this hasn't been easy news to swallow. There was one particular Saturday that certainly wasn't pretty around our house (I recommend splurging for the Kleenex with lotion. The integrity of your nasal passages is worth the extra forty cents.).

I've exhibited unusual behavior since the news. I've cried over nonsensical things (though I did really love those shoes before the heel broke). When I carried a huge purse to work the other day, a coworker said she loved my "baby stealing bag" (she said it was big enough to hide a kid). I spent several moments seriously contemplating how she knew I was adopting, and further, how she knew I had contemplated nabbing one of the random children always wandering the toy section at Ross unattended*.

So, at any rate - we're sad. And mad. We're getting better, though. Hubby and I are now back on the pray/research/talk/pray/eat ice cream/pray some more wagon. It is kind of bizarre, exciting, and intimidating to think that, as of this moment, we have no idea where in the world our little children will come from - we are now charged (once again) with choosing the path that will lead us to our little ones.

So thanks to everyone who's told us they are praying for us - that's exactly what we need right now. I'm hoping one path or another becomes the evident choice for us soon. Please also pray for the other adoptive families, the orphaned children, and the government officials who have the ability to work out a new agreement.



*Disclaimer: I would never really steal a child. If a really cute kiddo turns up missing in, say, the south OKC area, I had nothing to do with it.

Brand New Family

Check out Tori, the newest cutie pie to be adopted by a CHI family! Her ecstatic and soon-to-be sleep-deprived new parents are blogging from Vietnam.

Movin' On Up

We're now #225. CHI received two referrals this week - a 13 month old girl and an 8 year old boy. Yay for the kiddos and their new families!

We went to see the movie 21 tonight. It was rather - eh. Kind of boring. It takes skill to make a movie about Vegas that dull. Ah, well, we had fun anyway. Our next movie venture will be to the snazzy new Warren Theatre that just opened a few miles from us. Balcony with wait service? I'm in!

OK, you blogaholics - I suppose I'm behind the times as I just discovered how to set up Google Reader to keep up with all the adoption blogs. Why has no one clued me in to this beautiful, beautiful invention until now? The lightbulb is on and my Blackjack is now tethered to my hand.