The coupon got me

I went shopping on Sunday with my friend Kathy, who is waiting patiently to bring her Elijah home from Ethiopia. We went to the Carter's store in Tuscola - it had been many, many years since I was in the Carter's store. Wow - so much cute baby stuff! I entered the store saying that I was just looking, getting an idea of what we might need, once we get our referral. Not a good idea to buy clothes, when you don't know for 100% sure if you're getting a boy or a girl, right? We started on the boy side, picking out adorable things for Elijah - sleepers, shirts, jeans, etc. Very necessary for someone who is hopefully coming home in a month! :) Then, we wandered into the girl side. So, so, cute, too! We looked, commented on the high cuteness factor of many of the clothes, and I still had nothing in my hands. This is good - I'm doing well! And then - the lady with the coupons spoke to us. She had extra coupons that expired soon, and did we want them? Who can resist 20% off, especially during a clearance sale?? So, I caved, and bought some adorable little girl clothes. Just going with the odds that we will need pink, you know? I guessed on the sizes, went with what size I hope we need, and just got a few little basics. Nothing drastic - just some shirts, a couple of pants, and the cutest little dress ever. Thank you, coupon lady!

I told one of my Quincy friends this weekend that I have no idea if very many people are reading this blog or not, and she assured me she and her family are faithful, enthusiastic readers. So - hi to the Koontz family and thanks for being excited with us! :)

This will be my last June entry - can't wait to see what July brings. Maybe big, miraculous numbers that will assure us an August referral. A girl can dream, can't she?

P.S. Carter's has a great return policy, so we are in good shape on the clothes either way! :)

Another dream

This time the wacky dream was not in my head, it was in my favorite mother-in-law's sleepy head. She dreamed (dreamt?) about being somewhere, waiting for babies to be brought off a bus, and off walked a group of 6- or 7-year old Chinese boys. Another boy dream! Oh, and Mark and I were not anywhere around. I think dreams are awesome.

Speaking of boys, we have finalized a boy's name, just in case. We will have an Isaac if she turns out to be a he. Isaac Allender. That has a nice ring to it, just like Audrey Allender does, don't you think?

In the name of getting into the swing of things, and starting to get things ready for our new little bundle, we purchased a carseat today. We went gender-neutral on the color, but for many items, we will wait to find out if we need fun girl things or fun boy things. :)

Just when things were starting to look kind of rosy...

....the U.S. State Department throws this thorny warning our way. Basically, they are saying that with the H1N1 flu pandemic, China has been quarantining travelers exhibiting symptoms, which we knew, but even to the extent of separating parents and children. Wow - that's bad. This travel alert expires on 9/30/09, so who knows how the situation may change, for better or worse, between now and then.

I have been made aware of this blog, written by a family in China right now. On their flight over to China, they were sitting one row ahead of someone who 'exhibited symptoms' of H1N1. People in hazmat suits came to their hotel in Beijing, took their temperatures and swabbed their throats. Long story short, the dad tested positive for H1N1, he was put in a Chinese hospital, and the mom and 3 young kids are in a quarantine hotel, which she describes as being pretty bad. If everything remains as is, they will all be released on Saturday, with hopes to meet their new daughter on Monday. I don't know if they were there a week early to sightsee, and have missed that week, or if their date to meet their daughter has been pushed back.

We have planned to take Erica and Ian with us to China since the very beginning of this journey, almost four years ago. We want to be together when we become a family of 5, we want to share what we experience in China together, and we want to create those memories together with them. Also, Ian's diabetes plays into the equation. We won't feel comfortable leaving him here for 2 weeks. But the thought of being quarantined or separated in China brings up a whole new set of difficult questions.

So, where does that leave us? Praying very hard that the situation improves before we travel. We obviously can't wait until the last minute to decide what to do, so we will stay in contact with our social worker and pray that the best solultion is very clear. Please feel free to pray with us!

Moving forward

Well, in the 48 hours since my last post, I have had a lovely transformation take place in my mind. I don't know if it is the fact that we are now down into single digit LID's remaining (!), or what, but we've finally decided it is time to get moving on our preparations for this sweet baby that is going to be coming our way! Yes! I have researched car seats and looked at sample Chicago to Hong Kong flight prices. Both of those activities sent me into sticker shock, so maybe I better look into something a little more reasonable tomorrow, like a baby washcloth or pair of socks or something like that! :)

6 it is!

Referrals came out today through LID March 20, 2006! That's 6 more LID's checked off, leaving just 7 until we are included! Wow - we are in single digits! If I'm thinking very optimistically, I think we could see our referral in August, but September is a little more realistic. So - 2 or 3 more months until we see that sweet little face. That's soon!

The reality that this might actually happen is seeming more real, and yet still surreal all at the same time. That doesn't make much sense, does it? I was talking with friends today, and we were discussing the lists and lists of things that we need to be getting to take with us to China, not to mention the things we will need at home. Wouldn't it make sense for us to be doing that NOW, when I have the time, versus after our referral, when school has started and things are crazy? But - I can't quite bring myself to jump in to that yet, especially clothes, etc., when we don't know our new little one's age. I can at least start making some lists - I'm good at that! :)

A rumor - finally

The latest word is that matching is complete for the next set of referrals, but nobody knows when the referrals will be sent out. There is also no definite word on how many LID's are included in this batch, but the early thinking is through March 20th or 21st. That would be 6 or 7 LID's - not too shabby!

The Latest Dream

I had another dream last night that we got our referral - and, of course, it was weird. I was sitting in the gym at Judah, working on a laptop, and we received our referral via email. It was for a little girl, born November 10, 2002. A 6 1/2 year old! That is a little closer than the high school student I dreamed about awhile back, but still not quite right. :) There were people all around congratulating us, but I didn't know what to think. Hopefully when our real referral happens, I can be a little more enthusiastic!

Now, I think it would be very fascinating if that November 10th date comes into play somehow in real life. If we are looking at a referral late this summer or into the fall, November 10th is a very plausible birthdate for our little one. Time will tell. In the mean time, there are very few rumors circulating, but hopefully something will start stirring next week.

Sharing the Joy

Our friends the Garrisons, over at Impressed Upon Our Hearts, received a referral today for a beautiful 5-month old baby boy from Ethiopia! I feel so very excited for them, and was thrilled to see a picture of their little guy this afternoon. Words are hard to come by, thinking about that little baby boy on the other side of the world, knowing that he is no longer an orphan, that he is loved and is the reason for so much joy and excitement here in central Illinois today. And - if I feel so much joy, looking at that picture today and thinking about him, what will it be like when it is our turn, when we get to see the picture of our new little Allender for the first time? That will be amazing.

Crazy!

The first rumor out for this month is a little ludicrous. Rumor Queen reported that someone else reported to her that ALL of March '06 LIDs were going to be matched and sent a referral this month. That would include us. Come on - kind of hard to believe that things would go from crawling-like-a-snail slow to super-duper speed up. I know miracles do occur, but I don't think so this time. I will admit that my little heart did a bit of a skip-dee-doo when I read all of this, but then I gathered my wits about me and remembered that we're dealing with the CCAA in China - they don't do things fast. :)