Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Adoption stuff
I have created a new blog for our adoption stuff. Check out our adoption journey, it's also listed with our links.
Thursday, November 23, 2006
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone. We hope you are having a wonderful day, hopefully hanging out with your family and eating some fabulous food. Kevin and I had a unique Thanksgiving this year and we want to share it with you. There is a bit of a story behind it, so sit back and listen.
Thanksgiving is the first potential vacation for me once football season starts. The regular season usually ends the second week of November. Before we realized that the Yellowjackets were an unbelievable football team, we made plans to go to Big Bend, TX. Kevin has been wanting to go there since we moved here, but it is about 12 hours from here, so not really a weekend trip. As Rockwall continued to win I realized that a Thanksgiving vacation was not a guarantee, so we scrapped the Big Bend trip. We just knew that I would be working and we would be playing football. Unfortunately, the outcome was not as planned. The good part is I got Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off (although I would have traded it for a playoff game).
Some people from our ABF (Adult Bible Fellowship) own a courier service and on Thanksgiving they partner with Meals on Wheels to deliver Thanksgiving dinner to people all over the area. So we contacted Tim and told him that we would love to deliver some meals. So we picked up the food at 9:30am and delivered the food to an independent living complex to ten different people. My grandma has received food from Meals on Wheels for many years, man I wish I could have delivered her Thanksgiving meal today! Just a side note, my Grandma Ann had her 98th birthday yesterday (11/22), WOW!
After we delivered the meals, my plan was to come home and cook dinner. I had decided that two people really didn't need a turkey, so we were going to have a meal made up of side dishes only. That's the best part of Thanksgiving dinner anyway. Well, last night we were watching TV and a very interesting type of "turkey" was talked about. So, we decided that this was the "turkey" for us.
Anyway, we did that, went and bought our "turkey" then headed home. We then went out for some exercise, I jogged a few miles and Kevin rode his bike then it was back home to cook.
OK, I know you are all just dying to know what we ate. Here is a picture of our "turkey."
Thanksgiving is the first potential vacation for me once football season starts. The regular season usually ends the second week of November. Before we realized that the Yellowjackets were an unbelievable football team, we made plans to go to Big Bend, TX. Kevin has been wanting to go there since we moved here, but it is about 12 hours from here, so not really a weekend trip. As Rockwall continued to win I realized that a Thanksgiving vacation was not a guarantee, so we scrapped the Big Bend trip. We just knew that I would be working and we would be playing football. Unfortunately, the outcome was not as planned. The good part is I got Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off (although I would have traded it for a playoff game).
Some people from our ABF (Adult Bible Fellowship) own a courier service and on Thanksgiving they partner with Meals on Wheels to deliver Thanksgiving dinner to people all over the area. So we contacted Tim and told him that we would love to deliver some meals. So we picked up the food at 9:30am and delivered the food to an independent living complex to ten different people. My grandma has received food from Meals on Wheels for many years, man I wish I could have delivered her Thanksgiving meal today! Just a side note, my Grandma Ann had her 98th birthday yesterday (11/22), WOW!
After we delivered the meals, my plan was to come home and cook dinner. I had decided that two people really didn't need a turkey, so we were going to have a meal made up of side dishes only. That's the best part of Thanksgiving dinner anyway. Well, last night we were watching TV and a very interesting type of "turkey" was talked about. So, we decided that this was the "turkey" for us.
Anyway, we did that, went and bought our "turkey" then headed home. We then went out for some exercise, I jogged a few miles and Kevin rode his bike then it was back home to cook.
OK, I know you are all just dying to know what we ate. Here is a picture of our "turkey."
I know what you are thinking, "Allison, that is not a turkey!" You're right, it is a Tofurkey! It is tofu with stuffing in the middle. We were a little nervous about it, but thought, what the heck. Surprisingly it was good. It kinda tasted like turkey. We even bought some gravy to go with it, vegan of course. The rest of the meal consisted of sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole, strawberry jello, rolls and a pumpkin pie cheesecake. So, here in the middle of Texas, the state with the best meat in the country, we had a vegan Thanksgiving! It was fantastic!!!
Of course, as we sat down to eat we each said what we were thankful for. Kevin said he was thankful for a job that was close to home, something he couldn't have said last year. I am thankful for loving my job again, something I couldn't have said last year! Then I said I was also thankful that we were adopting a little girl from China, and to that Kevin said "Me too."
HAPPY TOFURKEY DAY!
Monday, November 20, 2006
Adoption update
So, through this whole process there isn't much to update you on, but I will do my best. People have been wondering just what we are doing so, I will explain what has happened so far.
As of today out home study is complete! We had to fill out about 20+ pages of paperwork with all sorts of information. Things like our financial history, previous employment, previous residences, reference letters (thanks to those of you who did those!), and we had to answer TONS of questions about our childhood and our marriage. Then we were asked things about our parenting style and how our child would be raised, and we had to get physicals. Then a social worker came and asked us to "clarify" our answers. We collectively spent about 4 hours speaking to her, telling her about our families, our relationships with every one, how much contact we have with family and friends...it was nuts! She then wrote up an 8 page Home Study to be submitted. Truth is, I'm not sure who it is submitted to. It may be someone in the US or it may be someone in China...or maybe both. It is basically a referral for us to be able to adopt. This same process is used for domestic adoption (from my understanding). So, that was completed today (11/20/06) and should be submitted tomorrow (11/21/06)...yippee! That is the first, the hardest and the quickest step.
The next steps are easy, but they are long! We will submit our USCIS I-600A form tomorrow. This has something to do with getting pre-approved (sounds like a loan) to adopt an child from another country. This is filed with the immigration department. That form can take a while to get approved, from 4-8 weeks, but our placement coordinator told us they were running slow, so it could be longer. :( Our next step is getting state clearance to adopt. We have to make an appointment to be fingerprinted and that can take a few weeks just to get an appointment. After you are fingerprinted it is filed and it is about a week before we get state clearance. Are you still with me? This gets so confusing!
Next week I will also meet with our placement coordinator - her name is Dawn, so from now on I will just say Dawn! Dawn will go over the remaining documents that we need to submit to China.
That's it, that's all I got.
As of today out home study is complete! We had to fill out about 20+ pages of paperwork with all sorts of information. Things like our financial history, previous employment, previous residences, reference letters (thanks to those of you who did those!), and we had to answer TONS of questions about our childhood and our marriage. Then we were asked things about our parenting style and how our child would be raised, and we had to get physicals. Then a social worker came and asked us to "clarify" our answers. We collectively spent about 4 hours speaking to her, telling her about our families, our relationships with every one, how much contact we have with family and friends...it was nuts! She then wrote up an 8 page Home Study to be submitted. Truth is, I'm not sure who it is submitted to. It may be someone in the US or it may be someone in China...or maybe both. It is basically a referral for us to be able to adopt. This same process is used for domestic adoption (from my understanding). So, that was completed today (11/20/06) and should be submitted tomorrow (11/21/06)...yippee! That is the first, the hardest and the quickest step.
The next steps are easy, but they are long! We will submit our USCIS I-600A form tomorrow. This has something to do with getting pre-approved (sounds like a loan) to adopt an child from another country. This is filed with the immigration department. That form can take a while to get approved, from 4-8 weeks, but our placement coordinator told us they were running slow, so it could be longer. :( Our next step is getting state clearance to adopt. We have to make an appointment to be fingerprinted and that can take a few weeks just to get an appointment. After you are fingerprinted it is filed and it is about a week before we get state clearance. Are you still with me? This gets so confusing!
Next week I will also meet with our placement coordinator - her name is Dawn, so from now on I will just say Dawn! Dawn will go over the remaining documents that we need to submit to China.
That's it, that's all I got.
Sunday, November 19, 2006
well...
I wish I had better news. The Rockwall Yellowjackets dream season ended tonight with a 24-31 defeat by the Plano East Panthers. It shouldn't have ended so soon. They played their hearts out and deserved more than this, but tonight wasn't their night. Texas Stadium was a great experience, one all these kids will never forget. Thanks for going on this ride with me, it's been a great year!
Saturday, November 18, 2006
PLAYOFFS!
Today is the big day. It's 2pm Texas time and kids are getting here to get ready for the game. Kickoff isn't until 7pm, but due to the three games before ours it will probably be more like 8pm or 8:30pm. Everyone is excited! No one seems nervous or over confident. I expect to bring you good news of a victory first thing tomorrow morning!
GO JACKETS!
GO JACKETS!
Monday, November 13, 2006
I almost forgot...
Yellowjackets go undefeated in district!!!
We did it with a huge win over the Sachse Mustangs 54-7. We are now in the post-season, something Rockwall HS has not seen in a very long time. We are getting ready to play the Plano East Panthers on Saturday at 7pm in Texas Stadium. HOW EXCITING! I may be more excited than the athletes, or at least I act more excited. I guess I'm not worried about acting cool.
There hasn't been much time for anything else. I have been working more hours than I thought humanly possible, but all for good reason. I love seeing these kids excited.
Kevin and I did get to enjoy a fancy dinner and auction to benefit our adoption agency. We were invited but chose not to go due to the high price tag for a ticket. However, someone donated a whole table for families going through the process and we were asked to attend. We couldn't turn it down. We had a wonderful time, it was hosted at the Dallas World Aquarium. There was good food and we were able to talk to other familes who had been through the process and who were in the middle of it. We are grateful to the people who donated money so we could attend!
GO JACKETS!
We did it with a huge win over the Sachse Mustangs 54-7. We are now in the post-season, something Rockwall HS has not seen in a very long time. We are getting ready to play the Plano East Panthers on Saturday at 7pm in Texas Stadium. HOW EXCITING! I may be more excited than the athletes, or at least I act more excited. I guess I'm not worried about acting cool.
There hasn't been much time for anything else. I have been working more hours than I thought humanly possible, but all for good reason. I love seeing these kids excited.
Kevin and I did get to enjoy a fancy dinner and auction to benefit our adoption agency. We were invited but chose not to go due to the high price tag for a ticket. However, someone donated a whole table for families going through the process and we were asked to attend. We couldn't turn it down. We had a wonderful time, it was hosted at the Dallas World Aquarium. There was good food and we were able to talk to other familes who had been through the process and who were in the middle of it. We are grateful to the people who donated money so we could attend!
GO JACKETS!
Sunday, November 05, 2006
DISTRICT CHAMPS!!!
CONGRATS YELLOWJACKETS!
That's right, the Rockwall Yellowjackets are District 10-5A Champs! With a 42-26 victory over the Naaman Forest Rangers they earned their first district championship in 16 years! It is awesome to see a great coaching staff and amazing kids reach this goal. This is very exciting for the city of Rockwall, who has been through the "rotten years."
With a win next week against the Sachse Mustangs the Yellowjackets will be undefeated in district. Even the projected powerhouse of district 10-5A, the Garland Owls, have two losses in district. We will stand alone at the top with two wins over 2nd place.
Friday night the Allen Eagles (see post "Rockwall Yellowjackets Game 2") play the Plano East Panthers. The loser of this game will face the Yellowjackets in the first round of playoffs...where they will lose again!
GO JACKETS!!!
That's right, the Rockwall Yellowjackets are District 10-5A Champs! With a 42-26 victory over the Naaman Forest Rangers they earned their first district championship in 16 years! It is awesome to see a great coaching staff and amazing kids reach this goal. This is very exciting for the city of Rockwall, who has been through the "rotten years."
With a win next week against the Sachse Mustangs the Yellowjackets will be undefeated in district. Even the projected powerhouse of district 10-5A, the Garland Owls, have two losses in district. We will stand alone at the top with two wins over 2nd place.
Friday night the Allen Eagles (see post "Rockwall Yellowjackets Game 2") play the Plano East Panthers. The loser of this game will face the Yellowjackets in the first round of playoffs...where they will lose again!
GO JACKETS!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)