Sunday, Oct 22nd we celebrated our nephew's birthday. The big number 2!! Here are a few pics from the party...
(click on each picture to enlarge)
Make a wish, little man! Hope you had a blast on your big day!!
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Thursday, October 12, 2006
LID Anniversary - 1 Month Down
We have been logged in with the CCAA for 1 month today! It's actually been a pretty quick month... let's hope the rest are just the same.
Speaking of the rest, just how many more are the rest? That's the magic question..... One year ago at this time, referrals were arriving only six months after you were logged in. Since then the wait has continued to creep up and is currently at about 13 1/2 months. Wowsers! We hope and pray this stablizes and/or lessens. Why the longer wait time, you ask? There are many factors that have contributed to this, but it is primarily due to an increase in families from around the world who submitted their dossiers last fall (when the wait time was so short). There was such a dramatic increase in applicants that we are now apparently up against a bit of a backlog. This is not to say there is a shortage of children needing homes... that is certainly not the case. It all comes down to China's ability to handle the paperwork efficiently.
All too often we find ourselves focusing so much on getting "somewhere" or "something" and we forget to appreciate all that goes on while we're getting there... we forget to savor the journey. While this news of increasing timelines is kind of a bummer, we are really going to try to stay positive and enjoy every step along the way... HOWEVER long it takes.
P.S. For those of you who were curious, moon cakes must be an acquired taste. Maybe moon pies next year... mmm... marshmallowy goodness!
Thursday, October 05, 2006
The Name Game
It seems the question, "Have you thought of a name yet?" is happening more and more these days, so we thought we would let you all in on a little secret.......... We're working on it!
You didn't think we were actually going to tell you right then, did you? Suckers!! :-)
We've spent the last few months tossing around names and have pretty much narrowed down the first name to one we really like. The hard part has been the middle name, which we want to be a Chinese name... as one way to preserve her heritage. This obviously becomes a little more tricky. Not only do we want a name that "fits" with her first and last name, but it's also important that it be a proper Chinese name and have a good meaning.
The meaning of a name seems to be of extra significance in Chinese tradition. It is common to combine two shorter names into one. And the names, when put together, take on a somewhat varying meaning than the two separate. Also, depending on how it's arranged, the name could have a completely different meaning.
Some of you might be wondering, "Won't she already have a name when you get her?" The answer is yes, she will. However, it is likely that this will be a name given to her by the orphanage director, and might only mean something about the location of the orphanage itself. It is our feeling that this won't carry the "specialness" or distinctive quality that she deserves. Of course, we will always hold close to our hearts the name she has when we first meet her. But our wish is for our daughter to have a name that was chosen with love, and especially for her.
We've been doing a bit of research on Chinese names and have a few ideas that we are talking about. Currently, we're in the process of consulting some Chinese sources to make sure the name(s) we like are acceptable and have a meaning that we are happy with.
We feel like we're pretty close to a final decision, so we'll try not to leave everyone in suspense for much longer. On the other hand, what's the rush?... It's not like we're running low on time. :-)
Cheers,
Greg, Laura and ????
You didn't think we were actually going to tell you right then, did you? Suckers!! :-)
We've spent the last few months tossing around names and have pretty much narrowed down the first name to one we really like. The hard part has been the middle name, which we want to be a Chinese name... as one way to preserve her heritage. This obviously becomes a little more tricky. Not only do we want a name that "fits" with her first and last name, but it's also important that it be a proper Chinese name and have a good meaning.
The meaning of a name seems to be of extra significance in Chinese tradition. It is common to combine two shorter names into one. And the names, when put together, take on a somewhat varying meaning than the two separate. Also, depending on how it's arranged, the name could have a completely different meaning.
Some of you might be wondering, "Won't she already have a name when you get her?" The answer is yes, she will. However, it is likely that this will be a name given to her by the orphanage director, and might only mean something about the location of the orphanage itself. It is our feeling that this won't carry the "specialness" or distinctive quality that she deserves. Of course, we will always hold close to our hearts the name she has when we first meet her. But our wish is for our daughter to have a name that was chosen with love, and especially for her.
We've been doing a bit of research on Chinese names and have a few ideas that we are talking about. Currently, we're in the process of consulting some Chinese sources to make sure the name(s) we like are acceptable and have a meaning that we are happy with.
We feel like we're pretty close to a final decision, so we'll try not to leave everyone in suspense for much longer. On the other hand, what's the rush?... It's not like we're running low on time. :-)
Cheers,
Greg, Laura and ????
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