Saturday, May 30, 2009

11 months...I mean 4 years.

We are now at 11 months of waiting for our referral; however, it has been over 4 years since we signed on for our second adoption. I have been so fixated on getting through to our referral on a month-to-month basis that it only dawned on me the other day that Sara was only one-year-old (she will turn five this month) when we were officially approved and began waiting for adoption number two. Over the past four years, in our adoption world, we have complete two full homestudies (one domestic and one international), three homestudy updates, have had two birthmoms change their minds, and switched our adoption plans from domestic to international - even when I don't want to think about all of "it", there is always some kind of reminder marking our journey. It better be true about what people say - "good things BETTER come to those who wait!"

Will this month be "the" month? I have not the foggiest idea! My heart wants to believe "yes", but my brain and the reality know that we are still a few months away. Several months ago we had planned to save up our vacation days for our trip to Ethiopia and my mat. leave, but we have decided that life is too short to save and wait for all this to happen. So, we are taking three weeks off this summer, just to hang out, maybe take a trip somewhere - not sure where yet (any kid-friendly suggestions are welcome).

Friday, May 15, 2009

May 15, 1999

Today marks our ten year wedding anniversary - somedays it feels like much longer and other days it feels like the first day we met, but we always wonder where the time has gone. I think we both would agree that we have only gotten better with time.

I love so many things about Chad (too many to list), but the one thing I love the most, since the day I met him, is the way he makes me laugh - even at the most unsuspecting moments, he can get me smiling. The best way to describe our marriage is "fun". We have a blast together - even when I am rolling my eyes at all his bad (and sometimes inappropriate) jokes, I could not live without the fun we share.
I love Chad above all else - we are the foundation of our family and if we are strong our family will be too. To this day, I still rush home everyday from work to see him and still smile when I see him from across a room.

People have told us that they admire us as a couple for what we have been through as we continued to thrive and grow stronger - for us, this is what we signed up for from the start, all the good, the bad, and the ugly - this is nothing to admire - this is what marriage is all about... and no matter what life throws at us, we find our safe place with each other.

...and people told us that marriage would be tough...ha, we showed them...
My life, my love, my everything...I love you, forever and a day.