Rick and I are so excited and nervous at the same time about becoming parents soon. Our adoption process has been long and there have been many ups and downs. At the present time, we are on track for April 2007 to pick up our daughter or twins. We should receive a picture in March. Yeah!!!!!
One day I was feeling down because there was a mix up on some of our paperwork and when it should have only taken two weeks for some papers to be sent to us, it took 10 weeks! I was at work and I shared with my good friend, Dawn, how I felt. Later that day, Dawn had put this beautiful poem on my desk. I cry every time I read it, and I know I'll cry as I type it. Thank you Dawn for being a kind, sincere and supportive friend.
Here it is:
Dear Mommy,
I know we haven't met yet,
I don't even know what you look like - and you don't even know what I look like,
but I've imagined you in my heart many times.
I don't know what color eyes you have,
but I know what it will feel like when your arms hold me tight.
I don't know how tall you are,
but I know what it will be like to feel your kisses on my cheeks.
I don't even know what language you speak,
but I know that I will feel so safe and warm when we snuggle together to read stories.
I don't even know your name,
but Mommy is enough.
I can't wait to meet you!
I know that waiting is hard for you too.
But God created me to be your daughter
And he created you to be my mommy.
Before either of us were even born,
He knew we would be a family.
We are the same, you and I.
God is leading me to you
And God is leading you to me.
Even when this journey seems long and tough
I now that in the end we will be together as God meant us to be!
Thank you for waiting for me Mommy.
Thank you for loving me even though we are apart.
Thank you for not giving up on God even when you don't understand his plan.
Thank you for being my mommy!
Ok, so the keyboard is wet now. I can hardly wait to be a mom. Rick is also excited to become a father. It will all happen in God's time.
-Vicki
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Friday, November 24, 2006
Rick Takes on the Feds (not a brilliant move)
We created this blog site to help update people on our adoption process, so you'll have to forgive our previous post about the wash-out created by our sprinkler system. It was just too exciting to ignore.
Back to the adoption process....
For those who are curious, it looks like we will be adopting a baby girl from China in early 2007.
At this point in time, we have perservered and muddled through about 90% of the China adoption process. We started this process sometime in early 2005, so if you are thinking about adopting a baby from China, you should figure that it will take a little over two years. Do not get mad or upset during this long process -- it really doesn't do any good. Just roll with it. Your little bundle of joy will arrive sooner or later.
And our "sooner" is finally starting to happen. We are at the stage that they dub "Pending Referral." In a nutshell, Pending Referral means this: "In about 5 or 6 months, we (China) will send you a picture of the baby (or babies) that has been selected for you."
Once we receive the picture, we'll make flight plans, and then we'll leave for China about six weeks later. We'll spend two weeks in China -- our baby will be given to us on the third day that we are there. She'll be given her immunizations and assorted medical check-ups; and then we'll tour the countryside and experience Chinese culture together as a family.
So that's the status of this adventure as of November 24, 2006. Other than the long process, we've had relatively few surprises or mishaps -- with one notable exception. One of the adoption requirements is to get fingerprinted by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, and then your fingerprints will be forwarded to the FBI to make sure that you are not a drug dealer or wanted for some other nefarious crime. USCIS gives the FBI a few days to perform this routine check, then USCIS calls the FBI to make sure that all is good. If all is good, USCIS sends the appropriate -- and very important --paperwork to you.
Unfortunately for our process, the USCIS wrote us a letter stating that they could not find evidence of my prints being cleared by the FBI. We immediately called the FBI, and they said my prints had cleared with no problems whatsoever. After hearing this from the FBI, we called USCIS, and the telephone receptionist said we could not talk to anyone at USCIS about the mistake. She told us we could only write via email or USPS.
So in a unusual moment of frustration, I wrote the following email to the Department of Homeland Security. Looking back, I definitely regret it and feel that I could have been a better person about the whole thing. The only good part is that it makes for a couple decent chuckles. Enjoy.
*************************************************
Dear Ms. or Mr. USCIS Staff Person (for some goofy reason, we're not allowed to know your name or speak to you like real people do),
It seems that we are in receipt of an erroneous letter from USCIS (CASE TYPE I-600).
You stated in your letter that we need to be fingerprinted by USCIS and that the FBI must process the the fingerprints.
This has been accomplished. We have already been fingerprinted by the USCIS.
The fingerprinting was completed on September 7, 2005.
I distinctly remember the experience. We arrived early for our September 7 fingerprinting appointment, not at all expecting the incredible fun we were about to have. First, Mr. Security Guard checked our names, photo IDs, and looked at our hands. Then he directed us to the Table Lady. The Table Lady looked at our hands again, reviewed our paperwork, and checked our IDs. She gave us numbers out of one of those red machines like you see at the grocery store when you're waiting at the deli counter (I was 000 and my wife was 001). She said to have a seat among the 75 available chairs in the waiting area. My wife and I sat in two of those seats (after we sat down, there were 73 chairs available). She said that someone would call our number in a few moments. Sure enough, the Number Announcer (actually it was just the Table Lady again -- she appears to be a multi-tasker) called out my number after only about 30 seconds. Excited at my good fortune of being picked first out of the crowd of two people, I sprang up out of my chair and quickly made my way back to the Table Lady.
The Table Lady introduced me to the Fingerprint Lady, who promptly inpected my hands once again. The Fingerprint Lady brought me over to the Fancy Machine and began the process of scanning my fingerprints. At times, the Fancy Machine did not scan my fingers very well, so then the Fingerprint Lady rubbed Magic Greasy Stuff on my fingers so that the Fancy Machine could read the prints better. Let me tell you something -- that Magic Greasy Stuff really works! The Fancy Machine scanned my fingerprints with ease.
Once the Fingerprint Lady completed the fingerprint scanning, she called over the QA Person (she did so by calling in a strong voice, "QA, please!"). I believe that QA means Quality Assurance, but I am really not sure. Anyway, QA Person looked at my hands, too. (At this time, I was beginning to feel a little self-conscious about my hands -- they've never been looked so many times in such a short time span.) After inspecting my hands, QA Person reviewed the fingerprints that now were inside the Fancy Machine and verified my personal information in the Fancy Machine. QA Person gave the "all clear," and I was free to go.
I headed to the men's room to wash the Magic Greasy Stuff off my fingers (plus I was afraid of germs from the Fancy Machine -- I don't think it is cleaned very often). After washing, I exited the men's room and took a seat to wait for my wife. Her fingerprinting was completed a few minutes later. After she was done, we made our way to the door -- but not before we said goodbye to QA Person, Fingerprint Lady, Table Lady (aka Number Announcer), and Mr. Security Guard. We wished them all the best, as this was the most incredible USCIS fingerprinting session we ever experienced! (Okay, it was the only USCIS fingerprinting experience we ever had.)
The FBI cleared the fingerprints the same day (or shortly thereafter).
This has been an unusual process. My wife and I are both "people persons," so dealing with the whole USCIS "do-not-talk-to-us" thing is kind of impersonal and just feels kind of weird. We're making the best of it, though. I guess everyone must go through it, but it sure stinks. Anyway, we are emailing you the above information as this appears to be the protocol.
Please correct this error (or notify us as to what needs to be accomplished) within the next three business days. We look forward to hearing (actually reading) back from you.
*********************************************************
Well, that's it for now. Feel free to chastise me for being such an idiot.
-Rick
Back to the adoption process....
For those who are curious, it looks like we will be adopting a baby girl from China in early 2007.
At this point in time, we have perservered and muddled through about 90% of the China adoption process. We started this process sometime in early 2005, so if you are thinking about adopting a baby from China, you should figure that it will take a little over two years. Do not get mad or upset during this long process -- it really doesn't do any good. Just roll with it. Your little bundle of joy will arrive sooner or later.
And our "sooner" is finally starting to happen. We are at the stage that they dub "Pending Referral." In a nutshell, Pending Referral means this: "In about 5 or 6 months, we (China) will send you a picture of the baby (or babies) that has been selected for you."
Once we receive the picture, we'll make flight plans, and then we'll leave for China about six weeks later. We'll spend two weeks in China -- our baby will be given to us on the third day that we are there. She'll be given her immunizations and assorted medical check-ups; and then we'll tour the countryside and experience Chinese culture together as a family.
So that's the status of this adventure as of November 24, 2006. Other than the long process, we've had relatively few surprises or mishaps -- with one notable exception. One of the adoption requirements is to get fingerprinted by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, and then your fingerprints will be forwarded to the FBI to make sure that you are not a drug dealer or wanted for some other nefarious crime. USCIS gives the FBI a few days to perform this routine check, then USCIS calls the FBI to make sure that all is good. If all is good, USCIS sends the appropriate -- and very important --paperwork to you.
Unfortunately for our process, the USCIS wrote us a letter stating that they could not find evidence of my prints being cleared by the FBI. We immediately called the FBI, and they said my prints had cleared with no problems whatsoever. After hearing this from the FBI, we called USCIS, and the telephone receptionist said we could not talk to anyone at USCIS about the mistake. She told us we could only write via email or USPS.
So in a unusual moment of frustration, I wrote the following email to the Department of Homeland Security. Looking back, I definitely regret it and feel that I could have been a better person about the whole thing. The only good part is that it makes for a couple decent chuckles. Enjoy.
*************************************************
Dear Ms. or Mr. USCIS Staff Person (for some goofy reason, we're not allowed to know your name or speak to you like real people do),
It seems that we are in receipt of an erroneous letter from USCIS (CASE TYPE I-600).
You stated in your letter that we need to be fingerprinted by USCIS and that the FBI must process the the fingerprints.
This has been accomplished. We have already been fingerprinted by the USCIS.
The fingerprinting was completed on September 7, 2005.
I distinctly remember the experience. We arrived early for our September 7 fingerprinting appointment, not at all expecting the incredible fun we were about to have. First, Mr. Security Guard checked our names, photo IDs, and looked at our hands. Then he directed us to the Table Lady. The Table Lady looked at our hands again, reviewed our paperwork, and checked our IDs. She gave us numbers out of one of those red machines like you see at the grocery store when you're waiting at the deli counter (I was 000 and my wife was 001). She said to have a seat among the 75 available chairs in the waiting area. My wife and I sat in two of those seats (after we sat down, there were 73 chairs available). She said that someone would call our number in a few moments. Sure enough, the Number Announcer (actually it was just the Table Lady again -- she appears to be a multi-tasker) called out my number after only about 30 seconds. Excited at my good fortune of being picked first out of the crowd of two people, I sprang up out of my chair and quickly made my way back to the Table Lady.
The Table Lady introduced me to the Fingerprint Lady, who promptly inpected my hands once again. The Fingerprint Lady brought me over to the Fancy Machine and began the process of scanning my fingerprints. At times, the Fancy Machine did not scan my fingers very well, so then the Fingerprint Lady rubbed Magic Greasy Stuff on my fingers so that the Fancy Machine could read the prints better. Let me tell you something -- that Magic Greasy Stuff really works! The Fancy Machine scanned my fingerprints with ease.
Once the Fingerprint Lady completed the fingerprint scanning, she called over the QA Person (she did so by calling in a strong voice, "QA, please!"). I believe that QA means Quality Assurance, but I am really not sure. Anyway, QA Person looked at my hands, too. (At this time, I was beginning to feel a little self-conscious about my hands -- they've never been looked so many times in such a short time span.) After inspecting my hands, QA Person reviewed the fingerprints that now were inside the Fancy Machine and verified my personal information in the Fancy Machine. QA Person gave the "all clear," and I was free to go.
I headed to the men's room to wash the Magic Greasy Stuff off my fingers (plus I was afraid of germs from the Fancy Machine -- I don't think it is cleaned very often). After washing, I exited the men's room and took a seat to wait for my wife. Her fingerprinting was completed a few minutes later. After she was done, we made our way to the door -- but not before we said goodbye to QA Person, Fingerprint Lady, Table Lady (aka Number Announcer), and Mr. Security Guard. We wished them all the best, as this was the most incredible USCIS fingerprinting session we ever experienced! (Okay, it was the only USCIS fingerprinting experience we ever had.)
The FBI cleared the fingerprints the same day (or shortly thereafter).
This has been an unusual process. My wife and I are both "people persons," so dealing with the whole USCIS "do-not-talk-to-us" thing is kind of impersonal and just feels kind of weird. We're making the best of it, though. I guess everyone must go through it, but it sure stinks. Anyway, we are emailing you the above information as this appears to be the protocol.
Please correct this error (or notify us as to what needs to be accomplished) within the next three business days. We look forward to hearing (actually reading) back from you.
*********************************************************
Well, that's it for now. Feel free to chastise me for being such an idiot.
-Rick
Monday, November 20, 2006
Down in the Hole
Yikes! What a day!
After a fairly uneventful weekend (which could have been much better if U of M could have mustered a glorious victory for old Bo), things got a little hairy today. Like usual, I was at work answering phone call after phone call, and around 11:00 a guy name Dale calls and says, "Hey Rick, it looks like your sprinkler line broke near your house. I saw it spewing water like a mother gusher, so I ran up and turned off the valve. Unfortunately, all that water created a hole near your house, and your air conditioner is kind of dangling into the hole."
At the time that Dale told me about this, I figured it would be no big deal. We had the same thing happen in 2004 -- we forgot to have the irrigation company "winterize" our sprinkler system, and the first episode of freezing temperatures spelled doom for our sprinkler line. There was water everywhere, and all the wood chips next to our house washed into our yard, and we spent a couple hours raking them back into their rightful spots. Worst of all, the repairs for the sprinkler line set us back about three hundred bucks.
In 2005, with lesson learned, we hired the sprinkler company to take care of things, and the winter passed without incident. But today was different... way different. Vicki returned home from work before I did, and she gave me a call at work to tell me the situation was very, very bad. Of course, I figured she was exaggerating.
I got home around 7:00 and immediately walked around the yard to check out the situation. Holy friggin' hole! The water had washed out a five foot wide hole about four feet deep! Vicki was not exaggerating. The air conditioner was literally dangling into the hole, supported by only a small piece of electrical conduit that was under great stress and was virtually crying out for mercy. The water had eroded an enormous amount of sand into our yard, depositing a 15' by 20' plume that will be raked up later.
Fortunately for me, Vicki had called her dad about an hour earlier, and he showed up just in time to help me get the situation under control. After a half hour of our back-busting effort, we managed to hoist the air conditioner up out of the hole, and then we cobbled together a makeshift frame to keep it supported.
Tomorrow, I plan to have about four yards of sand delivered. This is one heck of a hole that needs to be filled. I'll also plan on raking a lot of sand out of my lawn.
And, of course, I'm going to call the sprinkler guys and get my sprinkler lines winterized.
-Rick
After a fairly uneventful weekend (which could have been much better if U of M could have mustered a glorious victory for old Bo), things got a little hairy today. Like usual, I was at work answering phone call after phone call, and around 11:00 a guy name Dale calls and says, "Hey Rick, it looks like your sprinkler line broke near your house. I saw it spewing water like a mother gusher, so I ran up and turned off the valve. Unfortunately, all that water created a hole near your house, and your air conditioner is kind of dangling into the hole."
At the time that Dale told me about this, I figured it would be no big deal. We had the same thing happen in 2004 -- we forgot to have the irrigation company "winterize" our sprinkler system, and the first episode of freezing temperatures spelled doom for our sprinkler line. There was water everywhere, and all the wood chips next to our house washed into our yard, and we spent a couple hours raking them back into their rightful spots. Worst of all, the repairs for the sprinkler line set us back about three hundred bucks.
In 2005, with lesson learned, we hired the sprinkler company to take care of things, and the winter passed without incident. But today was different... way different. Vicki returned home from work before I did, and she gave me a call at work to tell me the situation was very, very bad. Of course, I figured she was exaggerating.
I got home around 7:00 and immediately walked around the yard to check out the situation. Holy friggin' hole! The water had washed out a five foot wide hole about four feet deep! Vicki was not exaggerating. The air conditioner was literally dangling into the hole, supported by only a small piece of electrical conduit that was under great stress and was virtually crying out for mercy. The water had eroded an enormous amount of sand into our yard, depositing a 15' by 20' plume that will be raked up later.
Fortunately for me, Vicki had called her dad about an hour earlier, and he showed up just in time to help me get the situation under control. After a half hour of our back-busting effort, we managed to hoist the air conditioner up out of the hole, and then we cobbled together a makeshift frame to keep it supported.
Tomorrow, I plan to have about four yards of sand delivered. This is one heck of a hole that needs to be filled. I'll also plan on raking a lot of sand out of my lawn.
And, of course, I'm going to call the sprinkler guys and get my sprinkler lines winterized.
-Rick
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