Sad news

I've been putting off writing this post because I've been struggling to verbalize my thoughts on this topic... On Friday afternoon, USCIS posted a statement concerning all Vietnam adoptions. You can read the article here, if you haven't already done so. The bottom line is that as of Sept. 1, Vietnam will be closed for adoptions to families in the United States. They also posted this statement, which gives first-hand accounts of the wide-spread corruption they have been finding across the country of Vietnam. Rumors alluding to both the shutdown and the corruption have been flying for months, but to see it in writing, from the government, is the real deal.

There are so many people caught in this mess... the children who will remain in the orphanages, the couples that have already battled infertility and now have another battle ahead of them, the families that have completed their adoption and will now be questioning their child's history, the families that have been waiting for years and now have no other options.

All of the families and children stuck in this heartbreaking situation are in my thoughts and prayers.

Sad news

I've been putting off writing this post because I've been struggling to verbalize my thoughts on this topic... On Friday afternoon, USCIS posted a statement concerning all Vietnam adoptions. You can read the article here, if you haven't already done so. The bottom line is that as of Sept. 1, Vietnam will be closed for adoptions to families in the United States. They also posted this statement, which gives first-hand accounts of the wide-spread corruption they have been finding across the country of Vietnam. Rumors alluding to both the shutdown and the corruption have been flying for months, but to see it in writing, from the government, is the real deal.

There are so many people caught in this mess... the children who will remain in the orphanages, the couples that have already battled infertility and now have another battle ahead of them, the families that have completed their adoption and will now be questioning their child's history, the families that have been waiting for years and now have no other options.

All of the families and children stuck in this heartbreaking situation are in my thoughts and prayers.

I'm Back!

We finally arrived home super late Monday night. I had to get up for work 4 hours after getting home. It's been an exhausting week trying to catch up on sleep and laundry, but it was worth it because we had an amazing vacation. That was the first time since college that I have gone on "Spring Vacation" and I'm pretty determined to make it an annual event in our household. It was so nice to be in the warm sunshine, drinking coronas on the beach, going out for dinner every night. Ahhhh. I finished reading "The Other Boleyn Girl", which I absolutely loved, and am now obsessed with learning about King Henry and Queen Elizabeth and the whole era. And then I read "Digging to America" by Anne Tyler. I was super excited to stumble upon this book, which was about two families that met at the airport while waiting for their adopted daughters to arrive from Korea. At first, I found the book really interesting as you follow along with the families experience with international adoption. But by the time I finished reading it, I really didn't care for it. As a PAP, there were a few things that really struck a chord with me that I almost found offensive. I'd be interested in hearing from any other AP's, or PAP's that have read this book to hear what your opinions were.

And other than reading pretty much non-stop while at the beach, we had plenty of Poppy conversations. Do you think Poppy will like the beach? What do you think Poppy will like to eat? What do you think Poppy is going to be when she grows up? When should we celebrate Poppy's first birthday? Do you think Lola will like Poppy? And the list of our Poppy questions goes on and on, to the point I was really glad that we didn't plan this trip with another couple, because we probably would have bored them to death.

We did get to meet up with quite a few people during our vacation. The first day we met up with some of my friends from work. We had a great dinner on the waterfront, followed by me and Marc getting whooped at Trivial Pursuit. Then later in the week, we got to meet up with my parents and aunt and uncle who were on vacation in Marco Island, just a few hours away from where we were staying. I haven't had a chance to upload our pictures yet, but when I do, you can see what sort of adventures we had with them. Needless to say, fun was had by all and I'm already looking forward to going back next year for our first vacation as a family of three.

I'm Back!

We finally arrived home super late Monday night. I had to get up for work 4 hours after getting home. It's been an exhausting week trying to catch up on sleep and laundry, but it was worth it because we had an amazing vacation. That was the first time since college that I have gone on "Spring Vacation" and I'm pretty determined to make it an annual event in our household. It was so nice to be in the warm sunshine, drinking coronas on the beach, going out for dinner every night. Ahhhh. I finished reading "The Other Boleyn Girl", which I absolutely loved, and am now obsessed with learning about King Henry and Queen Elizabeth and the whole era. And then I read "Digging to America" by Anne Tyler. I was super excited to stumble upon this book, which was about two families that met at the airport while waiting for their adopted daughters to arrive from Korea. At first, I found the book really interesting as you follow along with the families experience with international adoption. But by the time I finished reading it, I really didn't care for it. As a PAP, there were a few things that really struck a chord with me that I almost found offensive. I'd be interested in hearing from any other AP's, or PAP's that have read this book to hear what your opinions were.

And other than reading pretty much non-stop while at the beach, we had plenty of Poppy conversations. Do you think Poppy will like the beach? What do you think Poppy will like to eat? What do you think Poppy is going to be when she grows up? When should we celebrate Poppy's first birthday? Do you think Lola will like Poppy? And the list of our Poppy questions goes on and on, to the point I was really glad that we didn't plan this trip with another couple, because we probably would have bored them to death.

We did get to meet up with quite a few people during our vacation. The first day we met up with some of my friends from work. We had a great dinner on the waterfront, followed by me and Marc getting whooped at Trivial Pursuit. Then later in the week, we got to meet up with my parents and aunt and uncle who were on vacation in Marco Island, just a few hours away from where we were staying. I haven't had a chance to upload our pictures yet, but when I do, you can see what sort of adventures we had with them. Needless to say, fun was had by all and I'm already looking forward to going back next year for our first vacation as a family of three.

Can't stop smiling!

I seriously have not stopped smiling in a week! I just can't stop staring at her pictures. They're in every room of our house, at our offices at work, on our cell phones, everywhere!!! And then last night I got to see one of my all-time favorite concerts, Michael Buble. And now I'm leaving for the sandy beaches of Florida!!! Does life get any better than this?!

Before I leave, here are some details about our beautiful daughter. She was born on May 7, 2007, which happens to be our wedding anniversary. As you all know, we have always planned on naming her Poppy (as in the flower) and her birth mom named her Han Yeong (pronounced On Young), which means elegant flower. Was this child meant to be ours or what?! This picture was taken at the very end of March.

Can't stop smiling!

I seriously have not stopped smiling in a week! I just can't stop staring at her pictures. They're in every room of our house, at our offices at work, on our cell phones, everywhere!!! And then last night I got to see one of my all-time favorite concerts, Michael Buble. And now I'm leaving for the sandy beaches of Florida!!! Does life get any better than this?!

Before I leave, here are some details about our beautiful daughter. She was born on May 7, 2007, which happens to be our wedding anniversary. As you all know, we have always planned on naming her Poppy (as in the flower) and her birth mom named her Han Yeong (pronounced On Young), which means elegant flower. Was this child meant to be ours or what?! This picture was taken at the very end of March.

Our Daughter

We are proud to announce the referral of our daughter, Poppy Han-Yeong! Coming all the way from South Korea, Poppy is expected to come home in late July. Let the countdown begin!

I can finally tell the biggest secret I've ever kept in my life! I don't even know where to begin with the turn of events that have led us to our daughter. Everything happened so fast that it's almost a blur! Basically, we decided that with the uncertainty that is going on with Vietnam adoptions and with our agency, it was time to pursue another adoption. Our agency allowed us to put our Vietnam adoption on hold for 12 months, which we still intend to follow through with next year. In the mean-time, we found an agency that solely does Korean adoptions. They have been an absolute dream to work with and made every step of our adoption with them a priority due to how long we have already been waiting. We can't believe we received a referral this quickly and we can't believe that our daughter is so gorgeous and healthy. As Marc said when I told him the news, "All of our dreams just came true". We are so in love with this girl that it is unbelievable.

Our Daughter

We are proud to announce the referral of our daughter, Poppy Han-Yeong! Coming all the way from South Korea, Poppy is expected to come home in late July. Let the countdown begin!

I can finally tell the biggest secret I've ever kept in my life! I don't even know where to begin with the turn of events that have led us to our daughter. Everything happened so fast that it's almost a blur! Basically, we decided that with the uncertainty that is going on with Vietnam adoptions and with our agency, it was time to pursue another adoption. Our agency allowed us to put our Vietnam adoption on hold for 12 months, which we still intend to follow through with next year. In the mean-time, we found an agency that solely does Korean adoptions. They have been an absolute dream to work with and made every step of our adoption with them a priority due to how long we have already been waiting. We can't believe we received a referral this quickly and we can't believe that our daughter is so gorgeous and healthy. As Marc said when I told him the news, "All of our dreams just came true". We are so in love with this girl that it is unbelievable.

More parties and finally, some good news!

This weekend is filled with more parties, but this time they are adult parties. We went to a "wine-tasting" party last night with friends from Marc's work and tonight we're going to a party with my work friends and then I'll wrap things up tomorrow with a baby shower. The best part about all these parties is that when people ask how the adoption is going, I can finally say, "We're moving up the list!!" Yes, our agency finally had some referrals in the past couple of weeks. I'm not sure exactly where we are on the list right now, hopefully our agency will send out an updated list this week, but it feels so good to finally see some movement!

More parties and finally, some good news!

This weekend is filled with more parties, but this time they are adult parties. We went to a "wine-tasting" party last night with friends from Marc's work and tonight we're going to a party with my work friends and then I'll wrap things up tomorrow with a baby shower. The best part about all these parties is that when people ask how the adoption is going, I can finally say, "We're moving up the list!!" Yes, our agency finally had some referrals in the past couple of weeks. I'm not sure exactly where we are on the list right now, hopefully our agency will send out an updated list this week, but it feels so good to finally see some movement!