Add Sugar and Stir

With all the lemonade I've been making these past few days, I realized it was tasting rather bitter. With every thing that has occurred in the past few days it's hard to not feel some bitterness. Even Micah was feeling rather bitter toward his situation. Once the pain medicine that the doctor gave him began to where off and it was too soon to give him another dose, he began to get upset. He became completely frustrated when the realization of having to wear a cast for 5-6 weeks hit him.... So he had a himself a little meltdown. He was going on and on about everything he will not be able to do because of his cast... how he couldn't 'breath' with the cast on, and he wanted us to take it off for him. We tried to comfort him as much as possible and soon he comfortably fell asleep on the couch and we let him sleep there for the night.

As far as Soowan, he has a few options to pick up some contract, recruiting jobs until he is able to find the right, long term position. If push comes to shove, he does have two standing offers that would return us back to California. This is not what we want because moving there would cost us an arm and a leg, and it's not where we want to live and raise our family either. No offense our CA friends & family, but we love it here in Texas. It's something that is not easy to put into words, but we really don't want to leave this Great State. There's a saying around here that goes...



This pretty much sums up how we feel about Texas. Not many get it, until they have lived here themselves.

With our lemonade tasting bitter as it did last night, friends & family brought us some sugar. Through emails, phone calls, stopping by to talk with us or by bringing over 'get well soon' gifts for Micah... The outpouring of love and encouragement our family has received has been inspiring.

This morning we woke up to a new day and the sugar kept on coming to sweeten all the lemonade we've been making. Micah loves to listen to the 'Coconut Radio Show' on KCBI on Saturday mornings. They have several contests for kids to call in to win prizes. We call almost every Saturday morning to get a chance to win something, and what a morning for Micah to WIN a prize!!! God is so GOOD!!! If you're wondering what he won... he received an Adventure in Odyssey DVD and CD! COOL!

Micah also received a couple of phone calls this morning. His teacher and couple of his classmates called to ask how he was doing. His baseball coach called to say he still wanted Micah to show up at the game tonight, in his uniform and sit in the dugout with the rest of the team. This made Micah smile from ear to ear! Then the team's dugout Mom called and told Micah she needed some help tonight and if he wouldn't mind assisting her with getting the batters lined up for the game.

At the game Micah felt completely loved by his teammates. They all signed his cast, and at the end of the game the coach gave Micah the game ball. Our, sweet, sweet, sweet dugout Mom put together a little gift for Micah as well. Everyone seems to have great sympathy for Micah... breaking your arm at the beginning of the Summer. That's tough. But this too will soon past and come mid-July he'll be back in action!

Another blessing is while I was whining and complaining a few weeks back on how it took so long for Amanda's passport to get here, so we could get a SS# for her, in order for us to file our income tax return. Praise God the our income tax return and stimulus check will be coming at a time when we'll be needing it. God is GOOD! He is our great provider!

One more praise and I'll be done with the obscenely long post. ;0) We were to leave for vacation on June 6 for a week long vacation in Hilton Head, SC. With Micah's broken arm, the fact he can't get his cast wet, and because the cast goes above his elbow therefor he can't golf, we decided to cancel the trip. I booked this trip last fall through the timeshare that we own. When booking the vacation the man asked me if I wanted to purchase vacation insurance just in case we needed to cancel. At first I said no, but then he reminded me that June is hurricane season and just to be safe, I should add on the insurance. In all honesty I was thinking in my head that this guy is trying to sell me something I didn't need, so I asked him how much it was. It was a nominal fee of only $37, so I agreed and told him we would get the insurance. In the 5 years we've owned our timeshare, I can't recall anyone asking me to purchase vacation insurance while booking nor have we ever cancelled a trip.

Soowan called yesterday to cancel the vacation. The woman on the phone reminded him we purchased the vacation insurance (I never mentioned to Soowan that I bought it when booking our trip). So Soowan was thinking... "Cool, they will return us our points so we don't lose a week's worth of vacation time."

It's even better than that! The woman told Soowan that the insurance doesn't return us our points. Instead the insurance gives us the cash value of what the condo would rent out for, for the week we were to stay there. I'm not sure if any of you realize how much a Marriott, 2 bedroom condo goes for in Hilton Head, SC in June. Let's just say... A LOT! Again, our Lord is the great provider!

As our family and friends keeps on giving us sugar to add to our lemonade, God keeps on stirring! We have no doubt we're in good hands! Things may not end the way we would want them to, but at this point in life we realize it's not about what we want, but what God has willed for us.

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
~Jeremiah 29:11

Making Lemonade

Yesterday, Soowan lost his job. It wasn't completely unexpected, but we didn't think it was going to happen the way it did.

On top of that, this morning Micah broke his arm during field day at school. Today was also his last day of school and due to the accident he had to leave before the party. The two of us spent over 5 hours going to the Pediatricians office, then going from there to the x-ray place, back to the Pediatricians and then off to a pediatric orthopedist. We even stopped for lunch some time in between. It was hard to see my Micah in the amount of pain he was in until we could get his arm set and put into a cast.

Micah will need to wear the cast for 5-6 weeks, possibly longer. He will need to go back to the pediatric orthopedist in two weeks and they will do another x-ray to see how the bone is setting. If the bone looks like it's not setting right, Micah will need to have surgery. Please keep Micah in your prayers because he's in a lot of pain right now, and is a bit fearful of possibly needing surgery. He is also not very happy that he is now unable to play the rest of the baseball season, and the fact that he can't swim until the doctor puts him in a half cast. This will depend on if he needs to have the surgery or not.

And if you think things can't get any worse, THEY DO! Soowan did not receive any sort of a severance package and tomorrow is the last day we will have medical insurance through his (former) employer. We're already getting all the paperwork to file for COBRA.

You know that old saying, "When life throws you lemons... make lemonade!" In all honesty, the last 24 hours I feel like I've made enough lemonade to fill up my swimming pool!!!

We're trusting in God at this time and waiting on Him to show us what He wants us to learn through all of this. Throughout all that has happened in the last 24 hours we do feel rather calm and at peace with what has happened concerning Soowan's job. We realize there might/will be some tough times in the near future, but in the end I know we'll be OK. We're confident we're in good hands.

If you would please join us in prayer for Micah's arm and direction for Soowan, concerning him finding a new job, we would really appreciate it.

In His Hands,
Nancy

Tagged Again

I guess once you start playing tag... you'll eventually get tagged back! This time I was tagged by Rachel L.! This one is a bit different that the last one though.

This time around you must list 6 random 'quirks' about yourself. Also, you must list the rules (as I just did) and name 6 other victims that must follow suit.

Quirk #1
I can't stand the smell of seafood. The smell of fish makes me want to throw up. I can not and will not eat at a seafood restaurant. My poor husband loves seafood, so he opts to eat it for lunch or when he needs to take a client out to dinner for business.

Quirk #2
Whenever I'm driving and going onto a narrow road, alley or through a tunnel, I always pull my elbows in towards my torso. By doing this I 'feel' like I'm making my car more narrow to get through the road/ally/tunnel without scrapping the sides of the car onto the concrete barriers or the car driving beside me. I'm not sure if I'm making much sense in describing this particular quirk. Sorry.

Quirk #3
I sleep with an insane amount of pillows that all need to be positioned in a special way in order to sleep comfortably. If Soowan takes one of my pillows or moves them while turning over, I will immediately wake up . I love my pillows... and my husband too!

Quirk #4
It bugs me when pictures hanging on a wall are crooked. If I'm at someones house and see a wall hanging that is crooked, I wait for my chance to go over and fix the picture when the host/hostess is not looking. And don't even get me started when I'm at a furniture store. One time while we were at Haverty's, a couple came up to me and asked for help while I was straitening out all the pictures on the wal. When I told them I didn't work there and that I was just fixing the crooked pictures, they gave me this weird look like, "Umm... OK, FREAK!"

Quirk #5
I can't handle the sight of blood! It make me sick and nauseous. This is probably WAY TOO MUCH INFORMATION.... But after giving birth to Micah, I passed out as the nurses got me out of bed to use the restroom. I knew I shouldn't of looked, but sure enough when I saw the amount of 'red stuff' all over the delivery room floor and on my legs, I was down for the count. I fainted again the next day when they had me get up and take a shower. With all this said, I don't faint or become queasy at minor cuts and scrapes, or would be passing out daily with my active 9 and 1 year old, who seem to need a band-aid or two each day.

Quirk #6
I'm deathly afraid of needles. Going along with my #5, I normally pass out or become very queasy when I need to have blood drawn. When giving birth to Micah, I opted to have no I.V. line (and of course no epidural), because I was more afraid of needles being put into my arm/back than the pain of natural child birth. It actually wasn't all that bad. The Lord was good to me! My labor lasted less that 4 hours from the first sign of a contraction to holding my precious newborn son.

The funny thing is... I don't mind going to the dentist. They can do whatever they want to my mouth and I have no anxiety what so ever. They can even stick needles into my gums and I don't care one bit. But to go along with my fear of needles going in to my arms/skin... I opted to have my wisdom teeth removed with only local anesthesia instead of being knocked out during the procedure. I didn't want to be put to sleep, because it required me to have to have an I.V. line put in my arm. I know... I'm a complete masochist.

Those are my 'quirks'. The last two are more or less my phobias, but my family makes fun of me and I think they see them as my quirks.

Let's see... who shall I tag?
Sarah T. (This will give you a chance to write about something other than your post pregnancy figure and your sore boobies =0) ).
Cherie Y. Love your photography girlfriend, but let's hear something more about yourself!
Maggie (that's what sisters are for)
Crissy Y. (I tagged you last time and you refused to be IT! Or you never read that I tagged you! Hopefully this time you will come out and play!)
Soowan (I know you're a newbie at blogging, but you can handle it!)
Anyone from Holt BB Blog Roll I know you're out there reading my blog and NEVER comment! HA! =0)

Character

Today Micah's teacher gave out classroom awards at school. All the parents were invited to be present at the little award ceremony she had planned. Mrs. R. gave out certificates for academic achievements within the classroom and recognized students who participated in the A.C.S.I. speech meet, Math and choir competitions. The next thing she did really impressed me... She presented each student with a Certificate Of Character.

Mrs. R said she spent several nights in prayer as she considered which character quality she would mention for each child, for she knew every child held several wonderful qualities. She called up each child one by one and looked them in their eyes (as if they were the only two people standing in the room), and told each child why she chose that particular character quality for them. I could tell that Mrs. R's words were from her heart, because she would get all choked up while talking to each student. She would have to pause continuously, and tell herself that she had to save her tears for Friday when she would be saying her final good-bye for the summer.

I could tell that the children admire her and that they took every word she said to heart. Their eyes lit up and they smiled from ear to ear as they heard the positive words coming from Mrs R's heart.

When it came Micah's turn, Mrs. R said the character she sees the most in him is Availability. Mrs. R then defined to Micah what she meant by him having this quality. She said to him (and also wrote this on the back of his certificate)

AVAILABILITY - Micah, you are always ready and willing to accomplish a task and help others. You have a willingness to be used by God in whatever way He desires. She also went on and gave examples of his willingness to help others witnin the classroom.

I know Mrs. R's words brought so much joy and encouragement to not only Micah but to myself as well. It confirmed to me (once again) that we made the right choice to take him out of public school and put him into private school mid-year. Mrs. R's words were a far cry from his former teacher's choice of words when she (the former teacher) told Soowan and I that Micah was 'rather annoying' at our parent teacher conference in the Fall.

While Micah is not perfect by any means, and we'll be the first to admit it, I believe a good teacher (like Mrs. R) helps their students in their weaknesses, and help them develop skills that the child can take with them into their adult life. To not only teach academic skills, but to show them life skills, through example and by loving their students as Christ loves them as well. Mrs. R is the first teacher Micah has had who holds this type of character quality... She exhumes the title TEACHER in every way possible.

Soowan's Blog

My sweet, loving, gentle, smart, witty, fun-loving and wonderful husband has decided (with much convincing from me), to start his own blog! YAY! He has titled his blog "A Heavenly Affirmation".

I'm not sure how faithful he will be to posting, but I'm sure when a topic comes to mind, or if something strikes a chord he'll write about it.

Some of the topics he'll be writing about will be about his experience as an adoptive father and as a Korean adoptee. He's not starting another 'disgruntled' adoptee blog, so no worries there... ;-). With that being said, his blog is not going to be this overwhelmingly sappy... 'Oh, I'm so happy I was abandoned as an infant so I could be adopted, and I'm going to share my experience with you' either. My husband is real... authentic... thoughtful... courteous... and a man seeking after God's own heart.

I LOVE MY HUSBAND!!!

Prayers For The Chapman Family

If you have not already heard, The Chapman Family lost their youngest, baby girl Maria Sue Chapman, last night in a horrific tragedy. If you are not aware of what occurred click here to read the news story.

Steven Curtis Chapman and his family has ministered to many of us through their music ministry, adoption and orphan ministry and in many other forms ministry throughout the Christian community. The family is now in a position that they will be needing to be ministered to. Please pray for their family as they go through burying a child. Pray for their son who was involved in this tragedy as well. I can't fathom the burden this young man is carrying right now. May he not be overwhelmed by the evil one who will try and penetrate this young man with guilt and lies. Pray that his faith is and remains strong and that he will look up and keeps a tight grip on Christ.

If you would like to give a donation to Shaohannah's Hope (orphan ministry the Chapman's founded) in Maria's name, please click here.

Life Is Good....

Recently the weather has been warm and comfortable in our neck of the woods. For the past week we've been in the swimming pool (at least Micah has), playing in the backyard, grilling on the BBQ and eating out on the patio just about every evening. We are taking advantage of the nice weather we are having, for we know within a month or so the Texas heat will be here. But for now we're enjoying ourselves and spending as much time as possible outside.

Sweet Memories From My Garden

I have a passion for flowers and many of my favorites come from fond memories of my childhood. Currently blooming in my garden are two of my favorite flowers, with sweet memories to go along with them.

First is the gardenia. I love the spicy, yet sweet fragrance of this flower. The scent reminds me of my Grandma. I remember the walkway up to her front door was lined with gardenia bushes. My grandmother loved to garden and I think I inherited this labor of love from her.




Next is the Hydrangea. This flower reminds me of one of the houses we lived in, in Arcadia, CA. In the front yard there was a gigantic hydrangea bush, that would produce blooms larger than my head. I use to call the large shrub 'the wedding bouquet' plant. As a six year old child at the time... the flowers resembled a bouquet that a bride would carry on her wedding day. My sister and I would pick off the large blooms and practice our wedding marches up and down the driveway all afternoon long. If some unsuspecting, young man would happen to pass by, we would drag the poor boy over to our house and perform mock wedding ceremonies. Some boys would stay and play along, while others would run away as fast as they possibly could! Mmm... wonder why?

Rough Riders Game

Last night we went to the Rough Riders Game. Every year our church purchases a huge section of the ballpark for our church family to attend. The children's choir was able sing the National Anthem (on the field... Hey it's a really big deal to the 4 year olds) and they also were able to sing one of the songs from their spring program as well.

The game was really slow and long, so we didn't stay until the closing fire works. Micah was a little disappointed but the evening wasn't at a loss for him, because he caught a foul ball! This is the third ball he has caught at a game. Twice at the Rough Riders and once at a Rangers vs. Angels game. That ball was actually hit by Vladimir Guerrero, Micah's favorite player from the Angels. We're hoping to get the ball signed by him the next time the Angels are in town.

Last night we finally had a chance to use our new camera! I love it!!! Here are a few (or should I say, "A few too many") pictures from our time at the ballpark!

NKOTB Are Making a Come Back

My sister sent this video of NKOTB performing on the Today Show. It's kind of funny seeing them all grown up and singing their old songs on stage. Kind of creepy seeing them up there performing. What's even creepier is seeing all the women, MY AGE... getting all worked up as if they were some teenager. EEEEWWWW!!!!

Apparently NKOTB are going on tour, but you won't find me at any of their reunion concerts. I really prefer not to be found in the mix of the 'desperate, still stuck in the 90's, and I'm in my mid-30's complex'. Nope... I left my junior high and high school ways far behind me.... THANK GOODNESS!!!

I will admit I really liked the group back when I was a freshman in high school. My sister and I listened to their music and would try to win concert tickets on the local radio stations, etc. It's fun to hear their music and remember the fond and not so fond memories of yesteryear... but I'm not going stand in the rain at Rockefeller Plaza, screaming in excitement because I'm watching these has-beens preform. Maybe it's just me... I don't know.

What do you think of the group's come back?

This Past Weekend

This past weekend was full of fun, good friends, laughter, hard work, one huge migraine and lots of love and kisses from my husband and kids.

Friday night was spent at Blue Mesa (YUM!) along with all my close, dear friends who I serve in Children's Choir with at our church. Each May, after the Spring concert is done, we gather together to reflect on what the Lord has done throughout the year. God surely revealed himself to all of the children and to us leaders as well these past 5 months!!! We had fun sharing stories and learning how God worked behind the scenes in each choir. (there are 4 choirs in all). We also get to eat yummy food and spend time in fellowship with one another. I have made life-long friends within this ministry. Each woman I serve with in this ministry are incredible women of God who inspire me, challenge me and bless me every time we are together. GOD IS SO GOOD!

On Saturday we worked out in the yard! YAY! I love, love, love to garden. We purchased new plants and flowers to put in the front and backyard, and moved some older plants around so they can flourish and grow in a better setting. Micah had a friend come over and they swam throughout the afternoon. This is the first time using the pool this year! The water temperature is already in the low 80's, without having to heat it. We almost never use the heater for the pool really, only to heat the jacuzzi in the cooler months. ;0)

We had gone to the grocery store earlier in the day to get some food for Soowan to BBQ for dinner. Unfortunately I was not able to share in eating dinner with my family, because shortly before dinnertime I started to get a migraine. This is the second one I've had in a month. I usually get one every 2-3 months and there really isn't any rhyme or reason when or why I get them. This particular migraine persisted until early in the AM on Sunday, and the residual effects after it ended lasted throughout most of the day. =0(

On Sunday morning Soowan and Micah made me breakfast. I managed to eat a bit of the breakfast, but still feeling fairly nauseous from my migraine... food didn't really sound very appetizing. Soowan took the kids to church and I stayed home to lay in a quiet, dark room and took a little nap. When they returned we all cuddled on the living room couch and watch The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe... MY CHOICE!

Amanda took a long three and half hour nap (I think it was God's Mother's Day gift to me. =0) ), which allowed me to lay down and catch a few more Z's before dinner. Soowan had made reservations at my favorite restaurant Terilli's per my request. Thank goodness I started to feel better to make it to dinner. The food was delicious and we even sneaked in a little dessert for us all to share! YUMMY!

Sadly, I don't have any pictures of our weekend to share this time around. Soowan did go out and purchased a new camera this weekend though. We are saying that it's both my Mother's Day gift and his Father's Day gift combined. ;0) We ended up getting the Nikon D40. (Thanks Rachel for you advice!) Soowan was hoping to take some pictures on Sunday, but when we finally took the camera out of the packaging, we learned that the battery needed to be charged for up to 18 hours prior to using. Oh well!

Despite me having a migraine this weekend... I had a wonderful Mother's Day. Thank you to my sweet husband and wonderful kiddos for making me feel loved, not just one day a year... but every single day the Lord grants me to have with you. I LOVE YOU ALL VERY MUCH!

My New Favorite CD

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE MY NEW CD... 'Roots Run Deep' by Jadon Lavik. The CD is the artists interpretation of classic hymns. His music has a acoustic, jazzy feel to it. Just thought I would share my new find!!!

Before I was a Mom...

I made and ate hot meals.
I had unstained clothing.
I had quiet conversations on the phone.

Before I was a Mom…
I slept as late as I wanted.
And never worried about how late I got into bed.
I brushed my hair and my teeth every day.

Before I was a Mom…
I cleaned my house each day.
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to lullabies.

Before I was a Mom…
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunisations.

Before I was Mom…
I had never been puked on,
Pooped on,
Spat on,
Chewed on,
Peed on,
Or pinched by tiny fingers.

Before I was a Mom…
I had complete control of my mind,
My thoughts.
My body,
And my time.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom…
I never held down a screaming child,
So that doctors could do tests,
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
Watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom…
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put him/her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces.
When I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom…
I didn't know the feeling of having my
heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to
feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and child.
I didn't know that something so small
Could make me feel so important.

Before I was a Mom…
I had never risen in the middle of the night
Every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
The joy,
The love,
The heartache,
The wonderment,
Or the satisfaction of being a
Mom.

I didn't know I was capable
of feeling so much before I was a Mom!

- Author unknown -

The non-mom mom... WHAT???

***EDITED TO ADD***

When viewing the link to the contest (mentiond below) the category now states "The Adopting Mom". After much pressure from families on the forum I frequent (and I'm sure hundreds to thousands of many others outside of our little forum as well), let NBC know that grandmothers, step mothers and mother's of adopted children are not Non-mom moms. I'm happy they changed their wording, but I'm still not hot on the whole idea of categorizing mothers in the first place. I'm hoping to watch the Today show (if I have the chance) tomorrow and on Sunday (when they announce the winners), to see if NBC will apologize to all of us 'Non-moms' and to our 'Non-children' for their orignal, idiotic choice of wording. Grrr!!!


***MY ORIGNAL POST***

It was just brought to my attention on a adoption forum I frequent, that NBC considers many people (including myself) a Non-Mom. The Today Show is having a Mother's Day contest and they have selected different categories for people to enter. This is strait off their website


The non-mom mom
Grandparent, step mom, or mom to adopted children, each one raising and loving a child. A priceless gift for everybody.

The contest has other categories such as Military Moms, Single Moms, Working Moms and SAHM. To me all of the above are MOMS! Why categories them? As if there is not enough tension between SAHM's, single and working mom's. Why continue the division??? In a whole MOST MOM'S (and Dad's as well) are doing the best they can!

Another thing that completely irritates me is the way NBC quotes some of the Mom's stories.

Jennifer Keller
Home, KS
She was an adopted child who is now mom to her own daughter, plus six adopted children who started life as "meth babies".

Why can't NBC say this women has 7 children? Why say this woman has "her own daughter,plus six adopted children"? I mean seriously... do parents honestly think they "own" their children? Do parents see their children as a commodity? Something to acquire? To collect? To trade? Who cares that this woman has one biological child and the other 6 were adopted. She is parenting all seven of them with a open heart and open mind.

Most adoptive parents will agree with me that they don't adopt to "save" their children, or adopt to wear some badge of honor. Not all adoptive parents are infertile either. Some can very well get pregnant, but they choose to adopt. It's the way that GOD has built and/or is building their family!!! You don't accidentally adopt (like many people claim they 'accidentally' get pregnant). Come on if you're a willing participant and doing the deed... there is the possibility you will conceive a child. And I'm not trying to say that adoptive parents 'wanted' their children more than biological parents wanted their children either. I'm just sick of the division society makes of the two. (i.e. this non-mom mom malarkey).

I'm a mother to both a biological child and a adopted child. The love is no different. There is no division for the love I feel for each child. I don't put my role of parenting my children into two different categories. I don't "own" one of my children and have the other child on lend. Sounds ludicrous... Right?

As one person on my adoptive forum put it... "If you are called mom- then you are a mom."

Another person on the forum looked up the definition of Mother and found this.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
moth·er1 Audio Help /ˈmʌðər/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[muhth-er] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun
1. a female parent.
2. (often initial capital letter) one's female parent.
3. a mother-in-law, stepmother, or adoptive mother.
4. a term of address for a female parent or a woman having or regarded as having the status, function, or authority of a female parent.

Adoptive mom's, step mom's, grandmothers, foster mother's, birth mother's, SAHM, working Mom's etc.... DON'T ALLOW NBC TO CATEGORISE YOU. WE ARE ALL MOMS!!!

Shame on you NBC! Shame on you!

IT'S ABOUT TIME!

Today we finally received Amanda's passport. We applied for her passport way back in mid-January. We even paid extra $$$ to have it extradited! Soowan has been calling the Passport Offices down in Houston for the past month in a half and all they had to say was, "The passport is still being processed."

We did not apply for a passport because we're planning to leave the country or anything like that(although somewhere far and tropic sounds very nice at this moment). It's because we can't file our taxes and claim Amanda as a dependent until we have a U.S. Social Security Number for her. Since we did not get her passport on time we had to file an extension, something we've never had to do before. It's really not a big deal to have to file an extension, but it has everything to with dealing and waiting on ANY US government agency to get ANYTHING done... THAT is the headache. I'm serious!

When we finalized we received Amanda's U.S. birth certificate, but apparently that's not good enough to prove U.S. residency to get a SS#. So we were told to get a U.S. Passport (to prove she's a US citizen... Umm... HELLO... When we finalized she became a U.S. citizen!!!) then apply for a SS#.

Tomorrow we will head off to the Social Security office and get Amanda a SS#. This will help out tremendously with filing claims with our health insurance agency as well. It has been such a pain that I don't have a SS# for her,to write down when sending in a claim and then have to go through the whole shmeal of "We adopted her from South Korea and we do not have her SS# yet... Yada...Yada...Yada."

Our next and last step of paperwork (even though our adoption has been finalized and Amanda is ALREADY an official U.S. citizen already) is to apply for a COC (Certificate of Citizenship). In all honesty I'm not sure why we need this, but we've been told it's good to have. I think it's all because the left hand of our government has no idea what the right hand is doing, so this covers all areas in between to prove Amanda's U.S. citizenship. I think it has something to do with the government will only recognize Amanda as a legal resident (which is different than being a U.S. citizen) if she does not have a COC. WHATEVER!

So it's HAPPY-HAPPY-JOY-JOY time (NOT!) once again. I loath the USCIS office here in Dallas. They are slow as molasses and I seriously don't think anyone there knows how to do their job. And it's not just me! Other international adoptive families in the DFW area share my sentiments. ;0) OK vent is over. YAY for passport... Boo we need to deal with the USCIS again.

It's comforting to know all this doesn't matter to our Heavenly Father. We are his children without any formal paperwork, stamp of approval, etc. PRAISE GOD!!!


For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
~Philippians 3:20

SUMMER IS ON IT'S WAY!!!

Having Micah home sick for a couple of days this week (see post below), made me think about how awesome SUMMERTIME is going to be. Those two days I was able let my sweet girl sleep soundly without having to wake her up to take big brother to school! She slept in until 8:30 both days!!!

So out of my pure excitement and complete selfishness of loving my sleep and not having to be rushed each weekday morning, I decided to put up a ticker in honor of Summer officially starting for our household! Ahh... only 29 more days left! YIPPEE!