Sarah is 16 months old!

Just got this new picture in my email this morning!
This report was written by Sarah Mei's foster mother, who is pictured with her in this month's photo.
"Sarah Mei is doing well and is quite healthy. This month she has learned how to walk by herself. She worked very hard on this skill and finally acquired it with my help. She looks so cute when she is walking. She is clever and can understand me well. If I say, "I am hot; bring me the fan please." She will get the fan for me at once. When she leaves her things on the floor, I ask her to put them away right away, and she does. We are happy with all the progress she has made."

Glitch...

I got a call early this morning from our adoption agency. I was immediately excited, because they don't usually call unless there is something to report. "Could it be that we have received our LOA?" I wondered as I pick up the phone.
Not quite. Apparently in the mad dash to get every document notarized and authenticated appropriately, I didn't notice that our family physician forgot to mark "normal hearing" on my physical exam. (Nothing was marked for this question). I never caught this omission, and neither did our agency...but CCAA (China adoption officials) did!
So we have to send a doctor's letter to CCAA stating that I do indeed have normal hearing. Arrggh! Thankfully my doctor was quick with the letter (and got it notarized, too).
So this morning I was off to the doctor's office to pick it up, then to FedEx to get it sent next day air (morning delivery-$30+!!!)
The girl at FedEx seemed puzzled by my rush to send one piece of paper.
She said, "Couldn't you just fax it to them?"
I was too frustrated to give her the "everything must be an original, notarized document" adoption lecture, so I just said, "No."
Hopefully, hopefully this will get back to CCAA by the end of the week. And hopefully this won't slow our LOA down too much. I have nightmares about our paperwork getting put back in the bottom of some pile because of this dumb glitch.
And yes, I've about had it with the waiting.
The silver lining to this cloud is that at least we know our dossier is being reviewed! We are praying for a speedy LOA and no more glitches!!!

Trip to the dentist!

The picture is tiny because I pulled it off New Day's website, but here is our sweet Sarah getting her teeth checked by a dentist. She looks pretty calm about the process, especially for a 15 month old! I am constantly amazed by the care she receives at New Day. We are grateful for New Day Foster Home EVERY DAY!
The shirt she is wearing is one that we sent!

20 Years???

My 20 year high school reunion is next month! I can't believe it's been 20 years!!! The silver lining to this sign of my aging is that I have been able to reconnect with several great friends! It's been fun to get in touch and find out what everyone's been up to.

Prepare youself for serious cuteness!

Care package #4 has arrived! Sarah is wearing one of the outfits we sent! The orange shoes make quite the fashion statment! :) Can she get any cuter? She melts my heart!

"Hey, I could get used to opening presents every month!"

"This present is for you, foster mom!" These are the dried berries that I sent from our local fruit growers. I also sent jellies and jams (in the bag with the pink bow).

"Those brothers are sure silly!" We sent 2 baby photo albums full of family pictures several months ago, but I thought I'd send some more pictures this time around.

What all fashion forward toddlers need-- orange shoes and a pink purse! The purse is adorable (Fisher Price)! It talks and sings songs and comes with keys, money, a bracelet, a mirror, and lipstick!

"I'm ready to go!" Soo cute! I can hardly stand it!

Grandma's package arrives!

Each time we send a package, we address it to New Day Foster Home. When the package arrives, a New Day helper brings the package to Sarah's foster family's house so she can open it. In this picture Sarah is wearing the Mickey Mouse shirt and capris that I sent her last month! It's fun to see her in clothes that we have sent!

This is Sarah and her sweet foster Grandma!

Sarah is wearing one of the shirts that my mom sent (other clothes are one the couch)!

Sarah is 15 months old!

We got our monthly update from Sarah's foster Grandpa (usually it is the mom/Grandma who writes it, so this was fun to get a different "view" of her progress!)

"Sarah Mei is a very smart girl who is interested in playing with more than just toys. One time she found a flashlight on the bed and it held her attention as she turned it over and over and studied it. She laughed when Grandma turned it on and was excited to see the light. She also enjoyed taking it apart. When Sarah Mei is happy, she often stands on the couch and sings dances and claps her hands. When Grandma praises her for her performance, Sarah Mei keeps singing, with a smile on her face. She loves to be praised!"

I can hardly stand it! I want to scoop her up and kiss those cheeks RIGHT NOW! We love getting the updates, but each month the wait becomes harder and harder...