Another baby boy referral!

Okay, I just had to post because I can barely contain my excitement. There was another baby boy referral yesterday!!!!! This puts us at #4...or #2 if the two families open to siblings are referred siblings. It's this crazy feeling of wanting to jump up and down but then there's this force that keeps you in your seat, telling you it could still be another month before you get your referral. Ahhh! This crazy world of international adoption. There is absolutely nothing like it. I hate it for the way it makes you feel like you're losing your mind. I love it for the way it makes you feel like you're on cloud nine. And, of course, I'm obsessed with it for the way God works through it to unite families and their children. Oh, the rollercoaster of emotions!

The fact that we are getting closer to our referral has made me stop and think about the day we get "the call." Will we both be home? Will I be calling Aaron, telling him to rush home? Will I be able to a hold of him (surely with all the communication devices that exist)? Will we videotape our call or just leave it to our memories to remember the day? Will we be able to get a hold of our parents to tell them? Will we cry (okay, was that even a question...I will sob)? What will Grayson think? Only time will tell!

Have a great weekend!

22 weeks and a beautiful, snowy day!

Today marks 22 weeks! I can't believe we've made it this far!

We got quite a bit of snow between yesterday and last night. And, it's still coming down! All the schools around here were either on a 2-hour delay or were closed, except, of course, Lafayette schools. I don't know if Grayson will ever get a snow day! His little friends that happen to live outside of city limits, however, may never go to school! Despite Lafayette not being on a delay, our bible study leader's meeting was canceled. Which means, no bible study tomorrow either. It will be nice to have the extra time this week, but I'm a little disappointed. I had such a neat day planned for the kids tomorrow. The lesson was about God choosing Aaron and his sons as priests. I had gone to Burger King to get little crowns for all the kids and they were going to get to decorate them and wear them for certain activities throughout the day. Oh well!

We did get a chance to get out in the snow yesterday. I'm hoping Aaron will take Grayson out again today. He really liked it. He just has trouble keeping the snow out of his mittens. I remember putting bread bags over our feet on top of our socks to keep our feet dry! Maybe Ziploc bags would work!?!

Staying busy...but starting to get excited!

We are staying busier than ever with bible study, church, hanging with friends and family...but, I'm starting to get so excited thinking about our referral. Realistically, we probably have another month. But that's not that far off considering we've already waited 5! I'm really starting to think more and more about how old he will be. Most of the little boys referred seem to be between 5 and 7 months old, which is perfect. However, if he were 12 mos. old I would be just as ecstatic. I'm really hoping he and Grayson will be less than 2 years apart. I just know they will be best buds.

Carrie and I are 2 years apart and I think about how much fun we had together. She was always very tall for her age, and I just average. A lot of people thought we were twins and I loved that. We would dress alike just to fool people. She didn't like it as much as I did - she has always insisted on being seen as an individual and not just Emily's sister. I would even try to take is as far as dressing our dolls alike..she often resisted. There were of course the occasional misunderstandings. One argument while playing Barbies led to me throwing a Barbie at her and it's head popping off. The tears instantly turned to hysterical laughter and we completely forgot about whatever it was that had us angry. Then there's the incident that has still not been settled. I dropped a doll down to her out of the treehouse...she didn't catch it. It unfortunately led to the doll's eyes coming loose. You could put them back in place, but the next time you looked over her eyes would be crossed. I of course insisted she play with that doll because she dropped it! She claims she wasn't ready and I threw it prematurely. To make matters worse, when we got in fights I would make my baby dolls say things like, "I don't like Aunt Carrie, she's mean!" Those comments were eventually deemed unfair and were not allowed to be made by either party. Most of time we resolved our arguments without Mom's assistance. On the rare occasion that Mom would step in, she would take us downstairs, stand us against the wall, and read us the riot act. We would instantly join forces either laughing at her as she yelled at us, or our favorite, we would hug each other, cry, and insist we were best friends and Mom was mean. Oh, the fun Grayson and Abram will have!

Totally off topic, but here is a picture of Grayson with the boots we got him this weekend. He loves tromping through the snow! However, he picked some up today without a glove on and started crying!

Another happy day for Gladney families!

I can't believe it! There was another baby boy referral this week! We are now #5 on the list of those waiting for a boy or either gender! I sure hope the referrals keep coming! Congrats to all of those receiving referrals the last two weeks!

21 weeks and moving up in the world!

Today marks 21 weeks on the waiting list! And, even better, there was another baby boy referral! This means we are 6 on the list (4 not counting the people open to siblings)!!! However, I have to guard myself from too much excitement. It seems lately there will be a week with a few referrals and then a couple of weeks with no referrals. So, it may be a couple of weeks before we see any more referrals, and if they are for little girls, it won't move us up any. But, at this point I'm confident (as much as one can be in this process) that we have been matched with our little boy and are just waiting for all his documents to be gathered and medical reports/tests to be conducted. I'm really hoping that we will only wait 6 months rather than 7....but, like I said, I'm staying guarded!

Through Grayson's eyes

Grayson loves for me to take pictures. He can barely stand still long enough for me to actually take the picture before he is right there beside me wanting to see the picture on our digital camera.

So, yesterday when we were out and about and saw a Little Tikes digital camera at Radio Shack for only $25 (half off), we decided Grayson needed his own camera. He really likes it so far despite the fact that he doesn't quite get it. He holds it up and says, "CHEESE!" He's taken a lot of self-portraits, unintentionally I believe. Today, he's decided it's much more fun for him to tell me what to take pictures of. Which, I will admit the camera is a little tricky. You have to hold it really still to get a good picture and the button is on the front which is difficult for Grayson's little hands to reach. So, here is a day at home through Grayson's eyes.

A bowl of Fruit Loops and raisins.

Two stuffed puppy dogs.

Grayson using his potty.

A laundry basket of assorted balls.

Great week for Gladney families!

Yesterday Gladney gave out 3 referrals! Yay! And, two of them were for little boys! Double yay! This means we've moved up to #7 on the list waiting for a boy or either gender. Also, I looked closer at the unofficial waiting list, and two of the families waiting on either gender are also open to sibling groups. If they in fact get sibling groups, this would put us a #5 on this list! I still think it could be another couple of months until we hear something, but it was so great to move up the list a little!

All this excitement came exactly on the day I bought paint for the nursery/guest room. This exciting news definitely motivated me to get going! Here are a few pictures so far!

20 weeks!

20 weeks down, and I've stopped guessing on how many to go! Last I checked, we are #9 on the list of those requesting a boy or "either gender." But, this still doesn't give me much insight as to how long it will be! I guess the good thing is that we are moving up the list, as slow as it may be!

On a positive note, we are getting very beautiful snow here in Lafayette today. It wasn't so beautiful as I was making my way to my bible study leader's meeting this morning. But, from my nice warm house, it's beautiful!

19 weeks!

Yesterday marked 19 weeks of waiting! I can't believe we've made it this far! With all the chaos of the holidays, I actually had to stop and count how long it had been!

Where do I start???

Well, the holidays are officially over and we're getting back into the groove of things. The last week and a half or so have been VERY busy, but very, very blessed!

First, we had a great Christmas! Definitely one of the best I can remember. Grayson was so much fun this year. As soon as he opened up a present he wanted it out of the box, batteries in it, turned on and ready to play! This made it a little difficult to get him to open up all his presents. I eventually just started opening them for him.

Aaron was very surprised this year. His parents got him a Wii! He had NO idea. I have known since Thanksgiving and was so excited for him, but still managed to keep the secret! It was so great. It was like he was 10 years old again. He was just so surprised and excited!

I definitely thought about Abram. But, not in a sad, "oh, I wish you were here" sort of way. It was more a "I can't wait till next year" kind of way.

After Christmas we headed to Florida with my family. We spent the week on the beach. Grayson loved the pool and the sand! Definitely a huge improvement from last year. Last year, he was struggling with his first ear infection and pink eye. This year he was all smiles!

We got home late last night and have been unpacking ALL day! It's good to be home and in our routine, even if I am a little overwhelmed with laundry and unfinished bible study.

Here are some pictures from Christmas morning and Florida. More to come later.