My agency called...

but it wasn't "the call". They did, however, let me know that his passport has been issued and his visa application has been submitted. They expect the application to take 1-2 weeks to process. Once he visa is issued, he has to have a physical, and THEN we get "the call"! So I guess we're looking at about a 1.5 - 2.5 week timeframe for travel! I am in tears because I thought this was going to be the call, but still happy to have an update. What a roller coaster!
Ryan

Tomorrow is the last day in August!

Well, tomorrow is the 31st! Ben still says "August" for travel. I don't really agree, but I guess we'll see! I have been watching people left and right pass by me and get their travel call ahead of me. It's so frustrating!

I have been in overdrive recently trying to get everything done. Today I re-arranged all the car seats in the minivan, I started packing the suitcases, and now I'm going to go dig out Micah's old clothes for Arie. We have more baby clothes than I know what to do with... they are overtaking our basement.

My mother-in-law, who was supposed to come up here and watch the kids when we get our call , may not be able to now. Her son broke his leg last night playing football. So, if we get our call anytime within the next 1-2 weeks, we're screwed. We will have to drive the kids (and our dogs) to Ohio (6 hours away)and back, RIGHT before getting on the plane to Korea! UGH! No fun. Oh well.

I'm starting to enjoy the weekends again... it's a break from the phone. We'll see if Ben is right, but I'm not very optimistic!

Misc.

Blogger worked for once... here are the pictures I mentioned the other day.

A couple days ago, I got a "comment" on my blog from a woman named Kim... she is also with ASIA and has a referral date of June 1st (we're June 15th) and she is still waiting for travel. I was a bit bummed out to read that, but there is no reason why we couldn't get our calls on the same day!!! :)~ Kim, if you can e-mail me at mommy2arie@yahoo.com I would LOVE to chat with you!!!

I worked all weekend at the hospital (I'm a labor and delivery nurse). We had a very interesting weekend. Today there was a situation where ethics came into play... at least they almost did. I was going to have to decide between fighting for the beliefs of my patient, or just going with the grain. Totally torn... I prayed. Now, I'm religious, but it's not like me to just pray at work when I get frustrated... I have never done it before. But, this was a life and death situation, and I felt torn. Anyway, I prayed, and God must have had his ears WIDE OPEN because as soon as I walked back out to the nurses station we found out that the patient for whom I was praying for had just delivered at another hospital and mama and baby were doing alright. It's a long story, and because of confidentiality I can't post about it on the internet... but let me just tell you that God truly is amazing and answered my prayer RIGHT AWAY! I was humbled... and that baby's life was saved.

Also, Just thought I would share our timeline with anyone who is interested:
12/9/05 Intake interview with ASIA
1/06 Formal application submitted
2/06 - 4/06 Home study
4/20/06 Offically on "Waiting for Referral" list with ASIA
6/15/06 Referral of Arie!
6/26/06 Acceptance papers sent to ASIA
6/30/06 Acceptance papers sent to Korea
7/4/06 Acceptance papers recieved in Korea at ESWS
7/7/06 Recieved "legals", sent in I-600 application to USCIS
7/13/06 Recieved I-600 approval (171) in mail
as of 8/25/06... still waiting for our travel call to go get our son!

Our Timeline

I finally got those animal pictures to work... aren't they cute??

I got a "comment" from a girl named KIM yesterday saying that she is still waiting for her travel call with a referral date of 6/1. Oh Kim I HOPE that we get our calls togethor because if I have to wait 2 weeks longer than you I'm going to loose my mind!!! I was hoping for today, but no luck. You can e-mail me too at mommy2arie@yahoo.com, and amybe we can chat!

For those interested, here is our timeline:
12/9/05 Intake Interview with ASIA
2/06 - 4/06 Homestudy
4/20/06 - HS sent to ASIA
6/15/06 Referral of Arie!!!
6/26/06 Acceptance papers sent back to ASIA
7/4/06 Acceptance papers recieved at Eastern
7/7/06 Recieved Arie's "legals"
7/10/06 I-600 Approval (171) recieved
as of 8/25/06 WAITING FOR TRAVEL CALL!!!

I know this blog has become entierly boring, and for that I apologize. If I could will my mind to think of something other than this long awaited phone call, believe me, I would! I'm working all weekend, so I'll update next week! Have a great weekend!!!

Ho Hum.

Poor Ben. He just called to check in and I yelled at him for calling, because once again, I thought he was the agency. Sigh.

No news to report. Umm... lets see. I'm sure I can think of something. OH! We started making Arie's "welcome home" sign. After it's finished I'll take a picture of it and put it on here.

I've been spending the past few days reading a lot of blogs from Korean Adult Adoptees. The debate over weather Korea shoul closed down international adoption or not has really caused an uproar. There are many KAA who think it should be shut down, and many who don't. I have learned a lot by reading all of this the past few days, but let me tell you, I am wiped out. There is so many emotions involved and the issue is so complex. I can't even begin to have an opinion. I will, however, continue to educate myself on the issue and "listen" to all of the opinions out there.


On a happy note, my step-mother e-mailed me these pictures below. They cracked me up, so I thought I would share!
..................................Ok, after several attempts of trying to upload these picture, I have determined that Blogger, once again, isn't working. Grrrrrr.

10 things I LOVE about Korea

(NOT IN ANY ORDER!)

1. The food. Bulgogi is my VERY favorite and I can make it with the best of 'em!
2. The country side is breathtaking. I could look at pictures of Korea all day long
3. Tae-Kwon-Do. Well, this was Ben's pick! It's great for children and adults, and teaches so many things including respect, discipline, and self-esteem.
4. The people. To me Korean people seem so gentle and honest. I like that they have "old-fashioned" values... I think that the U.S. should "regress" a little bit in what we think is acceptable.
5. Hanbok's. A Hanbok is the traditional gown/outfit worn by Korean's for important events/ceremonies. They are often bright colored and made out of silk. SOOO pretty.
6. Their love of children.
7. I'm TRYING to love their language, but let me tell you, it is HARD to learn! We've been working hard and the only think I KNOW I'm saying right is "car".
8. Their music. We have some ceremonial music and it is so different from anything I have heard. It has soothing drum beats and a quiet rhythm. Micah listins to it when he goes to sleep at night!
9. They traditions and customs. During our home study, I was asked what "American" customs and traditions we have. That was a REALLY hard questions! I think because the U.S. is such a melting pot, there aren't really a lot of "American" traditions. Bar-b-ques? Aside from holidays, what would you have said?
10. ARIE!!! Obviously he is going to be on my list!

Add on if you want!
Ryan

Maybe we're close!

There were two more travel calls today on the CHSFS board. I am now in the #1 position waiting for travel (on the forum)!!!! I can't believe we are so close. I still think it wont happen until next month, but Ben is still hopefully optomistic for this month.. and maybe even tomorrow. Who knows! We have started packing our bags, we got an extra suitcase from my parents, and I'm trying to get things organized. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

And so it begins...

I knew that the day was coming where I would begin to hate my telephone. Yesterday was that day. See, when you're waiting for a travel call, EVERY PHONE CALL could be that call. So EVERY time the phone rings now I think to myself "this could be ASIA". I even pause for a second and imagine that the caller ID will say "Adoption Service Information Agency", (ok, well it would only say about half of that because it couldn't all fit on the screen... but whatever). The worst part of this is that I get disappointed when it's not them. Even when Ben calls... I'm not as happy to talk as I normally would be. Oh well. He understands. The trials and tribulations of adoption are NOT for the faint of heart!

Arie's "Throne" picture!

Today in the mail I was surprised with a NEW picture of my baby boy!!! On the CHSFS forum we call these pictures "throne" pictures (for obvious reasons). Most of the babies have their picture taken in this chair at some point. I think Arie looks like a perfect little prince! I can't believe how big he has gotten in just 3 months... I ache to hold him in my arms. Seeing hispicture makes me realize all of the "firsts" that I'm missing. I want my baby home :(

I hope our call comes tomorrow. I'm ready.

I went upstairs last night and caught Ben...

LEARNING KOREAN! He was able to get The Rosetta Stone Korean language course free through the Army. We had been practicing together but recently haven't had the time. I guess he was going to surprise me with his vast knowledge of the language (yeah, right). After I "caught him" we both worked on it together. I know we will still be lost when we go there, but at least we can say we tried!

A woman on the CHSFS forum got her travel call today. Her referral date was 5/24. Only 3 weeks before ours! We're getting closer, although it still feels like it will never happen. I can't wait.

One of my best friends gave birth to her new baby boy last night... CONGRATULATIONS TRACI!!! I can't wait to meet my new "nephew"!!!

I'm home... & new Korean adoption rules.

***Edited to add:*** Someone left a comment asking what "EP" is. I explained it in an earlier entry, but I'll copy and paste it here:

EP is the petition for immigration granted by the Korean government. (Basically it's permission for us to adopt Arie.) Once EP is obtained, then your travel call is imminent (like within one month, typically 2-3 weeks). EP is the LAST thing you are told prior to travel... BUT our agency doesn't tell us EP, so I'm tring to guess when we got it based on when families from another agency recieved their EP.

Well, we had a great week visiting the grandparents! Elaine is still there. This gives me a week to organize organize organize! We haven't really heard much about Arie. There are a couple of people who got there referrals around the same time we did, but are with a different American agency. They just found out that they have EP, so, once again, I'm hoping that we are in the same batch. Although they have a different American agency, we all have the same Korean agency (Eastern).

Korea has decided to change their adoption rules. The new rules go into effect January of 2007. Two of the big changes are:

1. Singles will be allowed to adopt in Korea.
2. They will not release the babies for U.S. adoption until they are 5 months old (prior to that age they can be adopted by Korean families).

Here is an article from The Korea Times that talks about these new changes. There are so many differing opinions about these changes. The main goal of the Korea government, however, is to decrease the amount of children being adopted out of the country. Obviously they would prefer for the children to stay in their birth-land and grow to know the Korean culture. Here is another link to a blog by a woman named Martha Osbourne. She is the creator of the website www.rainbowkids.com. It's a site that photolists children from all over the world that need to be adopted. She discusses this topic on her blog too. In the adoption community there are so many opinion and questions that have been raised because of these changes. Korea is still very old fashioned, and adoption is still not widely accepted in Korea (i.e. if you were an adopted child living in Korea you and your family might be looked down upon). These new changes have raised many questions and have made for some heated debates recently. Go check out the links and then follow the "links" trail.

Hopefully everything will work out in Korea. Obviously the Korean Government wants what's best for their children, as do we. I pray that all these new changes help encourage more positive views of adoption in Korea, and lead to more babies finding their forever families.

"Word Verification" added.

I added "word verification" on this blog. What that means, is that to leave a comment, the system will show you a word, and you have to type the word in. I was getting spam and this is the best way to avoid that. Sorry for the inconvenience!

Taking a break...

Me and the kids are gong away for a week to Grandma's house!!! I need a break from the house, and the kids need a break from me, so it's off to Grandma's house we go. Ben has to stay behind and work, so we'll miss him a lot. It will be nice to get away for a few days though. I need to get my mind off of the "waiting", and this is the best way to do it. My mother-in-law and I get along great and we always have a blast visiting. Elaine is going to stay for an extra week without us... she is SO EXCITED. Grandma lets her eat a lot of junk food when we're not there, so that is what she is looking forward to the most I think.

Anyway, unless I hear some kind of news, I won't post during next week. Hope everyone has a wonderful week and maybe I can greet you with good news when I get back!

Food for Thought

I received an e-mail from the head SW at ASIA today. I had written her asking if there was any new information. There isn't any, but after reading her response, it made me realize something...

I often complain on here about the wait for Arie, how things take a long time, how we hear different info from different SW's, etc. Although I complain sometimes, these complaints are NOT directed at either ASIA, Eastern (ESWS) or the Korean government. All my "whining" is simply my unhappiness with Arie being so so so far away.

ASIA and Eastern have both done fabulous jobs in my opinion. The SW's are honest and have never given me the impression that I have bothered them. Even with my countless e-mails! They have always given me honest answers to my questions, and they are the ones responsible for this process moving so quickly. I would use them again in a heartbeat.

At the moment we are just waiting for the Korean Government to grant Arie's petition to travel. The government in Korea is very hard working and also very honorable. They have been working with the U.S. for a long time and both countries have a very respectable relationship with each other. We know that Korea is doing the best that they can in getting Arie home to us.

I just wanted to make sure that everyone reading... wether your family, friend, adoptive parent, or future adoptive parent... knows that we are 100% impressed and happy with our decision to adopt from Korea and our decision to use both ASIA and ESWS. If you are considering international adoption, Korea is the way to go. I apologize if I have inadvertently given the wrong impression to anyone about this!