Read from the bottom up.
19 months DTC!
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December 05, 2007
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19 months DTC! Billy and I
celebrated by going to Imperial Garden after church tonight. We are
going to be so sick of chinese that when we go to China we'll eat Pizza Hut
& McDonald's every meal. (Yes they do have Pizza Hut and McDonald's
in China.)
Billy's fortune cookie said,
"Find a place to stand and move the world."
Tara's fortune cookie said,
"Treat yourself to a special time this coming weekend."
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Our 8th Anniversary!
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December 04, 2007
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Today is our 8th Wedding
Anniversary! It's hard to believe we have been together that
long! Billy and I have been through so much....and longing for children
all the way. We can't wait until Nora gets here and we can pour some of
that love on her! We are planning to celebrate our anniversary when we
go out for Chinese tomorrow night!
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Billy's Birthday
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November 29, 2007
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Today is Billy's 39th
Birthday! We celebrated by going to Texas Roadhouse to eat. We
hope Nora will be here before Billy turns 40. I keep telling him he is
old enough to be her grandfather, but he won't listen. I still
love him and have no doublt he will make a great Father!
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18 months DTC!
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November 05, 2007
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Billy and I celebrated our 18
month DTC today. We have revival at church this week, so we went to
Imperial Garden after church.
Billy's fortune cookie said,
"You deserve respect and will eventually get it." (Not sure what
that means, he already has my respect.....for being the Man God called him to
be!)
My fortune said, "Soon
someone new coming into your life will become a very good friend."
(Hopefully that means Nora)
(Of course the 18 this month is in
honor of my favorite NFL player - Peyton Manning!)
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2 loooooooong years
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October 24, 2007
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Today makes 2 long years since we
applied for Nora. Although the wait has been long and when we applied
for her we thought we would have her within 12 months - we know that God is
still in control and knows exactly the right time for her to be born and to
come home to us! God is still an on-time God! Billy and I have
been very busy the last 2 months preparing her room and her bathroom and
trying to fill our time with productive activities.
The last year has been a hard one for
us both. My mom has been sick with cancer and in March we found out her
cancer was gone. Then again on October 5th her CT scan showed the
cancer had returned. We are glad it was found early again and it
is only in her adrenal gland and in the lymph nodes above the adrenal
gland. She is taking chemo again and they may even remove the
gland. She just found out today that her PET scan results show that is
the only cancer in her body - which is a great blessing!
As we continue to wait - we ask
you all to pray for my Mom, pray for us as we wait and also to pray for Nora,
wherever she may be, that God and his angels will watch over her until we can
bring her home.
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17 months DTC!
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October 05, 2007
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Today was our 17th month since DTC
(Dossier to China)! On October 24th, it will be 2 years since we
applied for Nora's adoption. At that time, we had no idea how long the
wait would be. We are still much closer than we were, but I am
beginning to run out of ideas for pictures for this journal each month!
Ha Ha!
Today Billy and I celebrated by
going to P.F. Chang's. This has become our favorite place to eat!
The food is excellent and so is the service. We were really treated on
this trip - the manager - Joshua Gadd came over to the table to check on us
and we striked up a conversation. We were really full and did not have
room for our favorite dessert on this trip (The banana spring rolls, served with
toasted coconut and pineapple ice cream - YUMM!!!!!) We asked if we
could find that delicious ice cream anywhere other than P.F. Chang's and of
course NO you can't. It is made exclusively for them.
However, the manager brought over
a complimentary dessert on the house just for us - and the ice cream scoop
was HUGE!
We have been to P.F. Chang's so
often now the staff is getting to know us and look for us every 5th day of
the month - too funny! We had a wonderful waitress named Ashley - who
was great and we will ask if she is working on our next trip. After she
learned our story, she told us that she was adopted and wanted to adopt too
one day. Such a sweet girl!
Billy's fortune cookie said,
"Opportunities surround you if you know where to look."
My fortune cookie said,
"Getting together with old friends brings new adventures."
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Chinese Moon Festival
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September 25, 2007
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Today is the Chinese Moon
Festival! The moon was so beautiful tonight! Billy and I went
outside tonight to look at the moon and think about and say a prayer for our
precious daughter. I had chinese for lunch today and my fortune cookie
said, "You have firm convictions - stand strong behind them."
The picture is from the
Chinese Moon Festival at Chinatown in New York City!
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Shaohannah's Hope
Newsletter.......great advice!
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September 20, 2007
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Today we received the fall
newsletter from Shaohannah’s Hope and I had to share a story from the
newsletter.
Rick and Cherly Richardson adopted
two children from South Korea. This is
their adoption advice.
“Everything will work out in God’s
time. We did pretty well during the
wait, paperwork, financial drain, and more wait, but still we would give in
occasionally to the helpless feeling, wasting precious energy in doubt. If I could impart anything, it would be to
have faith and resist the temptation to doubt. God’s time is always best. The struggle that we have faced has only made
us stronger and more apt to lean on God as we face future struggles. We knew as we prayed and anguished waiting
for our little miracles to come home, that the day would come, and the reward
would be much greater than the work, and boy we were right. We have been blessed beyond
comprehension. The days of waiting
seem pale now as our children call us mom and dad. Our cup runneth over! My advice during the wait would be to seek
God, find patience, and wait for Him to move, because when He does, the joy
of your child coming home will make you chuckle at the horrible “wait” you
had to endure. When I look at my
beautiful children today, I smile when considering how many times I
complained about the wait, and I always think to myself, “I would have waited
on you forever.””
This is exactly how I have felt, especially this
year. October 24th will be
2 years since we applied for our adoption and the last 9 months have been the
hardest for me. I don’t want to
complain at all because I know when they place my beautiful daughter in the
arms of her mom and dad that we will forget all of the hard waiting we have
endured!
Isaiah 40:31 says, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall
renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall
run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
This scripture has helped us make it through the last few
months and that is exactly what we will continue to do……..WAIT……on the
Lord. I know He has something in store
for us because He loves us so very much and I am so glad He choose us for
this journey!
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USCIS
Fingerprinting.......again?????
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September 14, 2007
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Today we received a notice from the USCIS that we are to
report to Atlanta to be fingerprinted again!
We were just fingerprinted in May and those are not scheduled to
expire until 8-2-2008. I will have to
mail back the notice along with a copy of our updated I 171-H to both Memphis
and Atlanta and hope for the best in their records. Say a prayer that we get something back in
writing soon saying that we are all up to date.
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Shaohannah's Hope
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September 10, 2007
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We received an email today from
America World (our agency) asking for anyone who is interested to work at a
booth for Shaohannah’s Hope at one of Stephen Curtis Chapman’s concerts this
fall. The closest one to us is on
Friday, November 16th in Nashville . We received a grant from Shaohannah’s Hope
in the amount of $2,000 last October!
We sent back an email letting them know we would be more than happy to
help!
Shaohannah’s Hope is a foundation set up by Stephen Curtis
Chapman and his wife Mary Beth to reach the church with God’s call to care
for orphans and to help more children experience the miracle of
adoption. During Stephen Curtis
Chapman’s “Live In This Moment” tour this fall to promote his new album,
“This Moment” (in stores October 23rd) he is promoting “Change for
Orphans” and asking concert goers to bring all their loose change to help
change the life of an orphan!
We are very excited to promote this and you can visit
Shaohannah’s Hope on the web at
Or Stephen Curtis Chapman’s website at www.stephencurtischapman.com
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16 Months DTC!
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September 05, 2007
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I loved this pic of number
16....if only this were our number for referral....
Today makes 16 loooooong months
since DTC.......ha ha. Billy and I celebrated by going to eat at
Imperial Garden after church. Billy had double luck with 2 fortunes in
his cookie.
My fortune said, "Your luck
will soon be at a high point."
(Maybe we will get a referral
soon!)
Billy's fortune's said, "You
will be thankful for the pleasures of the coming months." and his other
fortune said, "Something on four wheels will soon be a fun investment
for you!"
(I hope this means something for
Nora........ha ha)
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Nora's Bed
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August 25, 2007
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 Today we FINALLY got Nora's bed
put together. We started last Saturday, but realized very soon that the
hardware was no where to be found. I had to call JCPenney and request
the hardware. It finally arrived yesterday and it only took us about an
hour to put it together! Billy did most of the work and we didn't kill
each other....ha ha! |
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15 Months DTC!
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August 05, 2007
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 Today was our 15 month celebration
of our DTC! We celebrated by having lunch at P.F. Chang's with my
brother Josh and his girlfriend Lori, who brought a gift for me and
Nora. For me, she brought a T-shirt with the breast cancer emblem and
for Nora she brought a book about the prophet Elijah. I can't wait for
her to read it to Nora!Billy's fortune said, "You should have a talk with a friend today." My fortune said, "An unexpected relationship will become permanent." Josh's fortune said, "The problems of today will soon be buried by the sand of time." Lori's fortune said, "Don't pursue happiness - create it." (To see more pictures, see the link labled "15 month DTC Celebration") |
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We are in the matching
room!!!!!!!!
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July 12, 2007
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We found out today that our
dossier has officially been reviewed by the CCAA and is now in the matching
room! This means they are FINALLY in the process of actually matching
our paperwork with a child that is in the CCAA's system! This process
is expected to take about 6 more months, so we are expecting a referral
sometime in January of 2008!
This date actually changed on July
5th but we didn't find out until today - which happens to be my Dad's
birthday!
We are very excited about this
news as this is the most information we have heard in 14 months!
You can keep track with the CCAA's
document processing by viewing their website. The english version can
be viewed by clicking this link.
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14 month DTC!
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July 05, 2007
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Billy and I celebrated our 14
month DTC anniversary by going to PF Changs to eat tonight. Billy used
the chopsticks once again! We had a great time! Billy's fortune
said, "Getting together with old friends brings new
adventures." My fortune said, "Your love of life can carry
you through any circumstance."
I'm not sure my love of life has
carried me this far on this journey to my beautiful daughter, but I know my
love for her surely has!
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News on Nana Bunnie!
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June 25, 2007
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Great News! My mother just
had her second cancer free CT Scan! She is now able to have her knee
replacement surgery which is scheduled for July 25th! Please continue
to pray for her and her recovery from this surgery! She is eager
to get this behind her and be completely recovered from all her health issues
for Nora's arrival early next year!
(By the way, she has been walking
around with a broken shin bone taking chemotherapy treatments! She is
one tough lady!)
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13 months DTC!
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June 05, 2007
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 Today is our 13 month DTC
Anniversary! Billy and I got takeout from YUMMY and had a picnic on our
back porch together! Billy's fortune cookie said, "You will
inherit a large sum of money". My fortune said, "You will be
sucessful in everything."
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1 Year DTC & LID Celebration
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May 19, 2007
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 Today we were given a celebration
party to celebrate our 1 year DTC and LID dates. This was given by our
friends Mitchell & Sherri Roe at their home. Everything was
decorated in traditional chinese colors, Red and Black. We even got a
few gifts and so did Nora. We cannot wait until we receive our referral
and we can at least share pictures of the beautiful child that God will give
us! There a few pictures of today on a new link labled "DTC
PARTY". Hope you enjoy!
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1 Year LID (Log In Date)
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May 16, 2007
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Today is our 1 year anniversary of
our LID (Log In Date), which is when our Dossier was logged into the CCAA
(China Center for Adoption Affairs). Currently the referral times are
18 to 19 months, so we are hoping to have a referral by the end of the year!
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Happy Mother's Day
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May 13, 2007
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Dear
Sweet Daughter
As a girl I had a common dream, to
be a mom someday. My baby would have eyes of blue and hair the hue of
hay. But now my dreams have been transformed. New visions fill my
head. Now the tresses I long to stroke are raven black instead.
And in my dreams those eyes
are not so big or blue or round. Now in my dreams they’re almond shaped
and colored cocoa brown.
And in my dreams my arms can
stretch across enormous seas. They reach halfway around the world and
hold you close to me. As you grow in your mother’s womb, carefully knit
together, you’re also growing in my heart, where you will stay forever.
And in my dreams the moment that your mother says goodbye, I’ll be right
there to comfort you and hold you as you cry.
Our features may not look alike;
we’re different as can be. But still I know the Father has created you
for me. And though I’ve not seen your face, or held your tiny hands,
and though we’re half a world apart in very different lands.
I’ll be right there to get
you just as soon as God allows. But till he says the time is right I
give to you this vow. I’ll pray for your protection every night on
bended knee. For God will hold you in His arms, until you’re here with
me.
-Gayle Leubecker
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1 year DTC!
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May 05, 2007
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 Today is our 1 year DTC
anniversary! (For those of you who are new to chinese adoption talk,
that stands for Dossier To China) Our paperwork was sent to China a year
ago today. Billy and I celebrated by going to P.F. Chang's to eat and then going to see Spiderman 3! Billy actually eat his entire meal with chopsticks.....which is a miracle! Now maybe with practice he will not get us killed when we go to some rural province in China and he asks the waiter for a fork! (The chinese consider utensils like forks the same as a weapon) Billy's fortune cookie said, "The limit to your abilities is where you place it." (Fitting for today) My fortune said, "Learning is a treasure which accompanies us everywhere." I have to say I agree! |
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Fingerprinting.......again!
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May 03, 2007
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Well, our fingerprints for Nora's
USCIS approval expire this Sunday, May 6th, so Billy and I went to Nashville
today to be re-fingerprinted. They expire after 15 months and we wanted
to wait as close as possible to the expiration to have them re-done just in
case our referral doesn't come for another year. The girl that did
Billy's prints told him that they have had several families come in for their
2nd prints...but not ANY for their 3rd......which is GREAT news.....so
far! We had a great day...we stopped in Murfreesboro and eat lunch at a
place my brother told us about - the Santa Fe Cattle Company - great
steaks! Only 2 more days until our 1 year DTC Anniversary! I
can't believe it has been a year!
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Nana Bunnie's 60th Birthday!
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April 20, 2007
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 Today we celebrated my (Tara) Moms
60th Birthday with a party and 50 of her closest friends at the home of Bob
Hughes. My Mom had a great time and enjoyed getting to see all her
friends and family and spend time with them! Happy Birthday Nana
Bunnie! The picture is of Mom with her life long friends Kathy and
Suzanne. |
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11 Months DTC!
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April 05, 2007
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 Today is our 11 month DTC
anniversary! Billy picked up chinese takeout from YUMMY because I had
to work over and we had a picnic on our backporch when I got home.
Billy's fortune cookie said, "Let the spirit of adventure set the
tone." My fortunce cookie said, "Life consists not in holding
good cards but in playing those you hold well." Only 1 more month
until our 1 year DTC anniversary!
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PRAISE THE LORD!
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March 30, 2007
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Today, my (Tara's) mother found
out that she is CANCER FREE! She had been taking chemotherapy
treatments off and on since December and has been terribly sick at times.
On Wednesday, March 28th her oncologist decided to take another CT and Bone
Scan before starting a different type of chemotherapy drug. On Friday
the results were a Miracle - All the cancer is gone! We just want the
thank the only person that is responsible - GOD! And THANK YOU to
everyone that has prayed for her quick recovery. None of us could have
made it without your prayers! Now she has plenty of time to completely
recover and get ready for Nora's arrival!
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The Promise..........
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March 29, 2007
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Below is a poem I wrote
today about Nora........
The Promise
As the night sky pours out a
mysterious shade of light
The sun waits in anticipation of
the day ahead
A child a half a world away dreams
of the day she awakes
to the loving arms that long to
hold her
A family destined to be no matter
what fate may deliver
An urge so strong that nothing or
no one could explain the determination she once had
Yet how could something so simple
alter the dream off its course
What does the journey hold for
this child?
Could she rise up as Esther to
save her people?
Or win souls for the cause
Whatever her destiny holds I know
full well the promise given to this family
This beautiful child that waits
across the sea will be loved like no other
Her Father found her so special
that he chose her for this life
Because no one else could fulfill
his plan the way she will….
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10 Months DTC!
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March 05, 2007
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Today is our 10 month DTC
anniversary! (It has actually been 17
months since we applied for Nora, but who's counting, right?)
Billy and I went to eat at YUMMY
in Cleveland with my best friend Sherri and her husband Mitchell
and children Sarah and Colton .
We had a great time and cannot wait until Nora is here with us to
share in all the fun.
Below are our fortune cookies:
Billy: “You have much skill in
expressing yourself to be effective.”
Tara : “You love challenge” (evidently)
Sherri: “There is a prospect of a
thrilling time ahead for you.”
Mitchell: “You will be unusually
successful in business.”
Colton : “An angry man opens up
his mouth and shuts up his eyes.”
And Sarah’s cookie did not have a
fortune in it, but as beautiful and intelligent as she is I can only imagine
the future that God has planned for her.
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February 22, 2007
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Billy and I had our 3rd and last
Hepatitis A & B shots today. Those are all the vaccines that we are
required to get to travel to China.
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Happy Chinese New Year!
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February 18, 2007
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Happy Chinese New Year! It
is not only the year of the Pig, it is the Year of the Golden Pig.
According to Chinese folklore, this is an even that occurs once in every 600
years and will ensure that a baby born on this year will experience a
prosperous and wealthy life. So, will Nora be born in the year of the
Golden Pig or in the year of the dog? I really don't care, I just hope
she gets here in the year of the Golden Pig!
Billy and I went today to eat
Chinese at Panda Garden. My fortune cookie said, "You will soon
receive an offer you cannot refuse." Billy's fortune cookie said,
"Don't Stop Now!"
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9 months DTC!
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February 05, 2007
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I am officially overdue!
Today is 9 months since our dossier was sent to China! Today Billy and
I had lunch with my brother Josh and a few friends of mine from work, my
supervisor Tracy Dyer, Lisa Friend and Christy Swafford. We went
to Panda in Hixson (one of my favorite places for lunch). Below is
everyone's fortune cookies:
Tracy
“Get your mind set – confidence will lead you on.”
Christy
“The weather is wonderful.”
Lisa
“You are a person of culture.”
Tara
“It’s a nice day.”
Billy
“A pleasant surprise is waiting for you.”
Josh
“You will do well to expand your business.” |
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For Nora
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January 21, 2007
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Below is a poem that was written
especially for Nora
For Nora........ You may not know this But you will wonder why How did I get here From across the sky Through many a prayer And a heartache or two A fountain of tears Flowered the beauty of you Yes, you are more special Than the fiddlers bow Your cries are sweet music Only your momma could know So, we searched for the moment To begin our great quest Your father and I In search of our treasure chest No beautiful pearl Could be found on this shore No not that special diamond So we search even more We crossed a great ocean And coveted every prayer Hoping beyond hope That we would find our jewel there As the searching got harder And the miles were more A little light shined, appeared So, we ran through that door We put our feet to flight And we never looked behind The treasure now before us Which we new we would find And the treasure was more beautiful Oh bright shiny and new Cause the jewel set before us Was the treasure of you We brought you back quick To have and to hold Our happy ever-after Your story now told............. |
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January 19, 2007
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Today Billy and I celebrated my
31st birthday. It was bittersweet, however, because our very close
friend, Michael Dean passed away today. He helped us so much during our
paperwork phase of the adoption by notarizing nearly all of our
documents. He was so excited about our daughter Nora and I know he will
be watching over her in heaven, for I'm sure that is where he is now.
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Merry Christmas!
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January 06, 2007
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I know Christmas is over for most
everyone, but we finally had our Christmas dinner today with my Mom!
She went into the hospital on Christmas Eve and was there for 12 days.
We are so glad that she is finally home and well and eating again. So
today we celebrated all of that with her and had our Christmas Dinner!
Next year for Christmas I want my Mom well and Nora sitting in her lap
playing with her Mam!
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8 months DTC!
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January 05, 2007
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 Today was our 8 month DTC
Anniversary. Billy and I went to Panda Garden to eat. Billy's
fortune cookie said, "Custom is a great guide." My fortune
cookie said, "Acting on a good idea is better than just having a good
idea." I'm so glad I acted on the idea of adopting Nora!(OK. The pic of the number 8 this month is of course in honor of Nora's Daddy and her uncle Josh. Go Dale, Jr.!) |
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Happy New Year!
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January 01, 2007
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 Hopefully this will be the year of
Nora! |
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