Background checks...check!

Just mailed out the background check forms to the criminal registry and the child abuse and neglect departments. One more thing to cross off the list!

Checking items off the list

Progress Report:
1.All of our reference letters are out and in the capable hands of those who love us! We had to choose 5 of our closest friends and (almost) family members to report to our adoption agency just what great parents we would be to another miracle from Korea. We tried to choose some different people to help us out this time. Sophie's reference letters still move us to know that our community really did support us in getting our baby girl. In international adoption, it really does take a village. So, thanks to those who are working on drafting their letters - we love you and appreciate you!

2. Steve and I had our health examinations and blood tests done this past Friday and we're all in the clear! Korea and our agency require that we are healthy and stable and free of disease to care for a child. We are happy to know that we are both in excellent health and still meet the weight guidelines as well!

Most of what remains of the paperwork are forms and applications into which we just need to input information. We are hoping to get this done within the next couple of weeks. Sophie has her health examination mid-February and I would love to send in the entire application part 2 after that last form is complete! Keep your fingers crossed!

Doctor, Doctor

This past Friday, Sophie attended her annual Cleft Palate Clinic at Children's Mercy Hospital. It really is a blessing to have such a great resource in our own backyard! The clinic visit is set up so that we can see multiple doctors at the same time, rather than making separate appointments on separate days - genius! We are happy to report that Sophie did amazing this year. Her hearing test came back with all normal results (which made me cry a little remembering those early tests that were "less than impressive") and we just have to attribute that to the tubes being placed in her ears, getting all of that fluid out of there. The speech pathologist said that she is very advanced for a child with cleft palate in her speech comprehension and practice. We may need to start early with some more aggressive therapy to help with the nasal qualities in her speech, but that's only because Sophie is so willing to learn and seems to be ahead of where she should be. The nutritionist just spoke to us about adding more fat and calories to her 17.5 lb figure - all of which we know, of course...but it will just be a constant battle to keep weight on this child. What a problem to have! The dentist reported that her molars have already broken through - ouch! Finally, her cleft palate surgeon is pleased with her healing and is hopeful that we can combine future surgeries into one big one around 6-7 years old. That was music to our ears - the least amount of surgeries, the better!

It was a busy morning, but well worth our time. Sophie enjoyed playing with the other kids and saying "hi" to all of the adults in the waiting room - there is nothing shy about her! She did an excellent job of letting the doctors poke and prod her and was her usual cheerful, fun-loving self - we are so proud!

It's wonderful to see the progress she is making...so different from even just a year ago when we went to our first clinic. We won't need to see this team of specialists again until next year...hurray!

The Holidays...whew!

Lots of you have asked what progress we've made in the adoption process lately and we regret to inform you that we have made none during this crazy holiday season! We so enjoyed having Christmas here in our own home and having everyone over for various festivities, however that left us very little time to devote to the application part 2 staring at us from our to-do stack of papers! I'm pleased to say that now that our activities have halted for the time-being, we will slowly begin working on growing our family.

We just received an update letter from our adoption agency and lately, the trend seems to be that referrals are happening much more quickly than anticipated. As it stands now, the wait list is very short and adoptions have not slowed as much as expected. Therefore, depending on when we actually become "official waiters," our wait could be significantly shorter than the projected 12 months. One couple just received a referral after being on the list for only 2 months! NOW, a word from experience in international adoption...don't get your hopes up too high! Things can change in an instant, but we are optimistic that this process may not be as long as we feared. We'll keep you updated as we are updated. By the way, isn't our agency great in keeping everyone informed?! We love the staff at Dillon International - they always have our best interest at heart!

Happy 2008 to everyone and we hope to keep this blog moving once again as our journey starts to pick up speed - Weeeee!

Rock Chalk Jayhawk!

Thanks to Matt and Leah for coming out to watch the Orange Bowl with us here in Kansas! It was so much more fun being able to share it with you. Of course, we are super-excited that our beloved Jayhawks actually won, but we'll try not to rub it in too much! We respect you Hokies and cheer you on the other 364 days of this year! In all seriousness we loved sharing a little healthy fun rivalry with you and Matthew, you should totally blame those socks!