The Wait Continues

Sorry I haven't blogged in a while. It is rather hard to at times. Friday marked our 9th week of waiting for a court date. We were able to talk with Natalie on Thursday of last week. It is looking like it will be another week or two (minimum) before our file is ready to be submitted for a court date. We are thankful that Natalie talked with Belay and was able to share more details about our case with us. The wait is hard. On Thursday, I totally broke down and just sobbed while talking with my mom. We are all ready to have Isaac home, but we are also thankful that the courts in Ethiopia and Gladney's Ethiopian team work to make sure that adoptions are done correctly and legitimately. Please keep us in your prayers.

No Court Date Yet

Well, I haven't fallen off the planet, but I have been traveling a good bit doing some home visits and have not had a chance to update our blog. Good Friday marked our 8th week of waiting for a court date. I had a phone call with Natalie, our case worker on Thursday afternoon and basically I didn't learn too much. It seems there isn't any rhyme or reason to court dates, so we are just stuck waiting some more. I never thought the wait would be this long. It is hard not to think about all the ways Isaac is growing without us, but we continue to trust God and know that His timing is perfect (notice I said trust, I definitely don't understand it, but I am trusting in Him). Natalie is hoping to hear good news for us this week. I'm not getting my hopes up until we get the call or email.

For those of you who have court dates tomorrow, I will be praying extra today and this evening. I'm hoping for successful court dates the first round for all of you. Blessings!

"Tagged"

I was "tagged" by one of my friends also waiting to adopt from Ethiopia, and now must share 10 interesting things about myself.

Here are the rules: You have to tag 5 people and you can't tag the person that tagged you. You leave them a comment on their blog letting them know you are tagging them and why. Also, direct them to your blog for instructions. It is also asked that you notify the tagger when you post your list so that they can enjoy reading the responses.

Here are the 10 somewhat interesting facts about me:

1. I met my husband, Sean, on a blind date. His sister had us over to her house for a spaghetti dinner. Spaghetti dinners have never been the same since.
   
2. Ciara and I were both born on full moons.
   
3. My favorite recent movie is The Bucket List.
   
4. One of the things on my Bucket List: ride on a hot air balloon (more than just 50-100 feet up which I have already done).
   
5. When I was little (around 3 years old), after learning the Bible story about Jesus walking on the water, I tried to walk on water in a fish tank at a Chinese restaurant. It didn't work.
   
6. My favorite TV shows are LOST, House, and The Closer.
7. Best Childhood Memories--Most Cherished--learning John 3:16 with my dad (he died when I was 5), Most Touching--remembering the way my grandma Virgina's face lit up when she saw me, Most Exciting--a sled ride on a piece of laminate counter top with my cousin, Christie (we went really fast and ended up ducking under a fallen tree and landed in a mud muddle that wasn't totally frozen over).
8. Worst Childhood Memory--a bicycle accident the summer before my 3rd grade year. One pedal went into my ankle and one of the handlebars went through my upper lip. The saga continued when some family members tried taking me down a paved road in the mountains in a wheelchair. I did master bowling on crutches that summer, though.
   
9. I first started wanting to adopt when I was somewhere between 9-12 and saw the Save the Children commercials. I told my mom then that I wanted to adopt instead of having children biologically.
   
10. God provided me with an awesome husband who started thinking about adoption before we even met. We knew we would build our family through adoption before we were ever married (not that we wouldn't rejoice if we had a child biologically).

Now, the lucky ducks who get tagged... John and/or Dottie, Dana, Becca, Christy, and Shelley.

A New Update on Isaac

Yesterday we received an update on Isaac, along with a new photo.

"Isaac is really an adorable little guy! He is even a cute sleeper, with his two middle fingers in his mouth sucking in his dreams! And then for the icing on the top, he wakes up laughing – no joke! Isaac is definitely a boy! His “grunts” and “umphs” are means of expression! Isaac is very active and energetic during the day and likes people! He does not cry much and is just an easy-going person! Weight- 13.89 pounds”

We still are waiting on a court date. We know of two families who received court dates yesterday for April 9th. One received their referral on January 21, 2008 and the other received their referral on February 27, 2008. We are hoping for news very soon about our court date.