YUMMY!!!!

In my attempts to stay focused on positive activities right now, I have been trying my hand at some traditional Guatemalan dishes! I absolutely fell in love with Guatemalan food when I lived with a host family in Antigua during college. The fresh fruits, juices, black beans, the BEST tortillas in the world, lots of veggies, soups, etc. Jason and I went to a couple of Guatemalan restaurants on our last visit and, oh so delicious!! I think I need to tackle making tortillas, pepian, and tamales soon.

These pictures did not turn out that great, but the food did! This first dish pictured is from a Guatemalan cookbook we bought in Antigua. Some of you may have it! We purchased it at Nim Po't and you can also purchase it from Mayan Traditions. It is Green Chicken Stew (Pollo en Jocon). It is not the most appetizing color of green, though it looks like guacamole. It is made from tomatillos, cilantro, green peppers, pumpkin seeds, and sesame seeds. We ate it served over rice. Yummy!!

This next dish is Chicken Chilaquiles. I don't know if this is a traditional Guatemalan dish, because everything I read online said it was a Mexican dish. But, we ate chilaquiles every morning at the Marriott in Guatemala City. They served these on the breakfast buffet and we loved them!!

There is no such thing as traditional Guatemalan food without fried black beans!! Well, that's not really true, but they are definitely a staple food. I know, you don't need to tell me what this looks like! But, they are delicious! I could probably eat black beans at every meal. This was another staple on the Marriott breakfast buffet and at the home I lived at in Antigua.

Jason enjoying his chilaquiles and black beans while watching football. *Note my newest purchase in the background behind Jason's head. I bought this purse at the gift shop in the Marriott right after Eli and his foster mom left. It was definitely retail therapy!

As promised....

More pics from our baby shower in December. Thanks again to all my friends/coworkers for a fun time and the wonderful gifts!

The parents-to-be!

My friend/coworker Vicki painted this picture for us. We LOVE it and can't wait to hang it in Little Pea's room. Thanks Vick!!

Hmmmm....does Jason realize this is for Little Pea??

My sister and I work together so she was also at the shower. Have I mentioned she is goofy? She is going to kill me for this, but I just couldn't resist!!! Hee hee!!

Fav Foto Friday

Happy 9 month birthday, sweet pea!!!

More funnies **EDITED**

Some of my blog pals have joined in the "laughter movement." Check them out!!!

Donna
Beth
Tracy
Nicole
Ashley
Bobbi
Vikki
Emily

Who else wants to join in???

Time for laughter

With so much stress and anxiety surrounding Guatemalan adoptions right now, we REALLY need to spread some joy and laughter! Eli has already blessed us with so much happiness and our recent visit trip was a reminder of why we will wait as long as it takes to bring him home. I don't think the smiles ever left our faces while we were with our little pea! Despite the anxiety we feel right now, our recent time with Eli renewed our strength to keep holding on and to focus on what an amazing journey this has been.

So, while we wait for an update from the powers that be on the status of current cases, let's have some fun! I tag ALL of my blogger friends to share some funny moments with your little one or other family members or your pets or whatever. Just give us a reason to smile and laugh! I look forward to much laughter to lighten the mood right now!!

I will go first....This video was taken after a long day "in the city." Eli was just kickin' back, scratchin' his belly, and enjoyin' a bottle. It doesn't get any better than this!! We just laughed and laughed!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Our furry baby

So, do you think Porter missed us while we were in Guatemala???? From the looks of these pics...NO WAY!!

M niece and nephew with Porter

Porter getting a snuggle from K

Porter thinks he is a lap dog

What a cute snuggle bunny! I am sure he will try to snuggle on Little Pea's lap, too!!

Scrappin' Weekend

Today, I got together with my sister, my mom, and my friend Kristy for a day of scrapbooking. Scrapbooking is one of those hobbies that requires a huge chunk of time (at least for me!) so we all get together periodically to spend the day together sharing supplies and ideas (not to mention lots of food!). I used to think scrapbooking was silly until my friend Tamara introduced me to this vast, endless world of possibilities. Now, I am hooked! Right now I am working on a scrapbook for Eli's foster mother as her final gift when we go to back to Guatemala to bring Eli home. Here are some pics from our gathering today.

Do you think we have enough alphabet sets???? For you non-scrapbookers, each case is a separate alphabet font for cutting out letters. Yes, it is a sickness. Ha!

My mom working diligently! She is a standing scrapbooker!

My goofy sister

My friend, Kristy. We also share an office. Yes, we spend a lot of time together!

Looking for inspiration.

My nephew, budding scrapper???

A few pages from the scrapbook for Little Pea's foster mom.

Fav Fotos Friday

It's been a stressful week in the world of Guatemalan adoptions. The new adoption law went into affect and the Guatemalan government has yet to establish clear procedures for handling current cases. So many of us feel like we are in limbo right now. Even so, we will be bringing our children home, it is just a matter of when. The biggest tragedy is the uncertaintly surrounding the future of Guatemalan adoptions.

But, for now...TGIF!!! The weekend brings a much needed break so let's lighten it up a little with some fun pics!

Please.....can he come home with us????? Hee hee!!!

Oops....BUSTED!!

Come on mom & dad...I am ready to go home!!

Happy New Year!!

What a year it has been! Christmas Eve of 2006, Jason and I discussed that it would be our last Christmas as a family of two. Well, we were right! At the time, however, we assumed our little pea would be home by Christmas 2007. Instead, we spent our first Christmas together as a family of three in Guatemala. This year has certainly taught us a lot about assumptions and expectations: never assume and let go of any and all expectations. Much easier said than done! This past year has probably been one of the most exciting and one of the most difficult times of our lives. As hard as this process has been, it has also been full of pure love and joy. We have been so blessed by this precious little boy and we have been wrapped in the love and support of family, old friends, new friends we have met along the way, and complete strangers. I am completely amazed at how much our lives have changed as a result of this journey.



In the meantime, we continue to wait. Waiting is so hard. Waiting is so hard when there seems to be so much movement around us while we are stuck in this blackhole called PGN and with so much uncertainty still surrounding Guatemalan adoptions. This process is terribly unfair sometimes. Yes, I am feeling some pity tonight while also desperately trying to hold onto faith that there is a greater plan at work that I have yet to see or understand. Tonight I miss my little boy terribly; it is so excrutiatingly hard handing him back to his foster mom not knowing when we will be back to bring him home. There are no words to describe that experience. Even so, I would go back to Guatemala tomorrow and do it all over again to have those precious moments with Eli. So, as I wait and as I bask in a little pity tonight, I do find comfort and joy in the amazing week we had with Eli. Simply incredible and worth every tear saying goodbye.

Ho Ho Ho

Little Pea's First Christmas!!

We are having such an incredible time! Eli is such a happy boy and soooo much fun!! He is making us laugh and melting our hearts. Yesterday we spent the afternoon lounging by the pool with several other FTIA families and then some of us went to a fantastic restaurant for dinner. Today we went to the Zoo, a large handicraft market, and we got to tour the clinic where Eli was born. How awesome is that?!?!?! It has certainly been an amazing week and we are so incredibly happy!!

He's crawling!!!

Oh my gosh!! Eli crawled for the first time today. I was crying tears of joy that we got to have this experience all to ourselves!! Yay!!

Sweet Pea

Merry Christmas!!!

We made it!! Quick update (little pea is sleeping, but needs frequent reassuring back rubs!). WOW!! Eli is SO big and he has so much hair!! He is no longer our little pea, but rather our chunky monkey! He was all smiles when his foster mom handed him over to us. Ohhhh, heart melting!! We are amazed at how much he has changed! He is so active, very alert, and is on the verge of crawling. He even stood up today with mom's assistance. It is so wonderful to see how well he is developing. Hopefully, we can all get a much needed good nights rest tonight and possibly hit the pool tomorrow. Yes, it is beautiful here!!!

Back in!!

We are back in PGN as of yesterday! Our attorney FINALLY picked up our file yesterday and also resubmitted us yesterday. We were KO'd for the birth mother's birth certificate again. For the first previo, our attorney had to get a new witness to sign the birth certificate and the witness signed with a fingerprint, which is very common in Guatemala due to the high illiteracy rate. Well, for the 2nd previo, PGN wanted to know why the witness signed with a fingrprint. Hmmmm...... Good grief! How frustrating! But, at least we were resubmitted very quickly!! Now, let's hope and pray for a miracle that we get a speedy approval.

We received Eli's updated measurements yesterday and he is up to 19lbs. I really should have kept up with my exercise routine!

Eeeeeeeeeck!!!! We are sooooo excited to be spending Eli's first Christmas together as a family AND in Guatemala. YAY!!!! I can't wait to get my hands on our little pea!!

Thank you

Thank you, thank you, thank you!! This has been an extremely difficult week for us as we went from expecting approval to, yet, another delay in bringing our little pea home. In fact, my supervisor asked me today if I was okay (I had not shared the news with her, yet) and she said, "you seem crabby." Ha! Was it that obvious?!?! Your kind words, prayers, "plans", faith in miracles, and shared tears mean the world to us. As heartbroken as we are right now, we are comforted by all of the love and support surrounding us. We are so blessed.

We are still waiting to hear from our attorney as to the reason for this second kickout. Hopefully we will have more information tomorrow. In the meantime, I still can't believe we will be in Guatemala on TUESDAY!!!! We changed our flight to earlier in the day so we can spend most of Christmas Day in Guatemala. Lots to do until then!!!

Too good to be true

I just had this nagging feeling so I called PGN again today. We were informed today that our case was KICKED OUT on 12/14, one day AFTER we were told we were waiting for approval. Talk about a punch in the gut. How does this happen??? Needless to say we are so disappointed. But, there is absolutely nothing we can do about it. We are waiting to hear back from our agency to find out what the problem is this time. All we can do is hope and pray it is an easy and quick fix so we are resubmitted soon. So, we are just going to focus on getting ready to love our sweet little pea next week.

So, what does one do with the news of a kick out?? Margaritas and beer, of course!!


The day started with heartbreaking news, but ended with a celebration! My dear friends and coworkers threw us a baby shower this evening and it was just what we needed. I will post more pics on that later (Yes, it just wasn't my day. The batteries ran out on our camara so my friend Becky had to take over!). Thank you to all of my friends for helping us get through a tough day by celebrating Eli.

Could it be true??????

We called PGN again today and............we are waiting to be signed for APPROVAL!!!! Eeeekkk!!! I asked the woman if we were waiting to be signed for a previo or approval. I initially thought she said previo so I said "previo?" She said "No, no, no. Approval." Could it be???? Could our sweet little pea actually be coming home soon??? Hopefully, the information we received is TRUE and we are on our way OUT. It certainly is not over until we receive that stamp of approval and Senor Barrios could choose to kick us out himself, though it does not happen often. I have no idea how long we have been on Barrios' desk so it could be at least another week before we hear anything. We will definitely be calling again at least one more time before our trip. Dear Santa............

We also spoke with Eli's foster mom tonight. He has two teeth and is up to 19lbs!!! Wow!! She said he loves the walker and maneuvers himself all over the place. He is eating cereal and table food. No wonder he is up to 19lbs! We also got to hear our little pea cooing, babbling, and laughing. Oh boy. We were crying our eyes out. Marta, as always, told us how smart he is and that he is getting big like his papi. Hee hee!! She reassured us that Eli is happy, healthy, and smiles whenever he hears our voices on the tapes we left. She is so caring and sweet. Marta and her family will always be a part of our family.

Check it out

We have received so many compliments on our little pea's valance both on and off line.

"How do they know how to do that? "

"Very impressive! Those are beautiful!"

"Window treatments? Like something out of a very expensive kids' bedding catalog. Awesome job!"

"I am SO jealous! You have an AWESOME brother and brother-in-law!"

Yes, I do have an AWESOME bro and bro-in-law! And, they know how to do this because they actually are professionals. They have been making custom window treatments for several years now and recently made their business "official." They are incredibly creative and gifted.

So, if you are in need of some adorable, custom made window treatments, crib skirts, pillows, etc for the nursery or anywhere else in your home or office, check out their website. Their website is still under construction, but feel free to give my bro a call or e-mail for more information.

www.windowwear.info

Today

One year ago today....we mailed our application to FTIA.

8 months ago today...I sent a prayer with a traveling adopting mom who organized a worldwide prayer/meditation called The Journey to Find a Home Meditation. Families from all over the world sent her photos of their Guatemala children, prayers, poems, meditations, and more. People gathered at a specified time to mediate and pray for all of the children and families waiting to be united forever. At that time, we were still on the waiting list and anxiously waiting for that call. This is the prayer I sent to be included in the meditation:

I am so inspired by the world wide meditation/prayer. I just imagine these huge arms enveloping all of our children and adopting families.

I would like to add one more prayer. I waited until the last minute just in case we received a referral before you left! But....we're still waiting!! So, I would like to pray for our child's birthmother as she makes probably the most difficult decision of her life. I hope that she finds peace in her heart knowing that her child is already loved.

I sent that prayer on April 11...8 months ago today...the day our son was born.

7 months ago today...Eli came into our lives

2 weeks from today...we will be on our way to Guatemala to see our sweet boy again.

Papi holding Eli for the first time

Mami holding Eli for the first time

Sewing frenzy!!

My brother and I worked on the valance for Eli's room this weekend. I cannot take credit for ANY of it! Oh wait, I cut some fabric and covered some buttons. Does that count for anything? My brother and brother-in-law are the masters behind it all!

I LOVE IT!!!!!!! THANK YOU GREG & CHRIS!!

The MASTER at work

Next....the crib skirt

Still IN

We broke down and called PGN today. I have been sooo nervous about calling just because I did not want to hear any bad news! Well, we are still in! We are with the second reviewer right now. Our plan is to call again right before our trip to check our status. Come on PGN!! It's the giving season!! Give us a BIG FAT O-U-T!!!!

Nursery Sneak Peek

Oh, the pictures don't do these fabrics justice!! The nursery transformation is underway........

I've been tagged!

I've been tagged by Beth. A little bit about me...here it goes!

4 jobs I have had:

waitress (got me through college!)
mediator
guardian advocate for people with disabilities
case manager for people with disabilities

4 movies I've watched more than once:

The Christmas Story
Dead Poet's Society
Harry Potter movies
Bourne Identity

4 shows I watch faithfully:

Survivor
LOST
Grey's Anatomy
The Office

4 places I have vacationed:

Smoky Mountains (one of my favorite places!!)
Grand Canyon
Edisto Island, SC
Arches National Park

4 Favorite Foods:

Anything with black beans
Pizza with artichoke hearts and mushrooms
homemade chex mix (pretty much all I eat between T-day & Christmas)
sushi

4 Places I'd rather be:

There's only one place I'd rather be right now...GUATEMALA!!

4 Hobbies I have:

Scrapbooking
hiking (though, not too many opportunities in NW Ohio!)
quilting
bargain hunting!!

Okay....I tag Nicole. You're it!