Happy New Year!

I got this update of Collin yesterday. I'm a little bummed that our paperwork doesn't seem to have moved anywhere, but Collin looks as adorable as ever, and that is something I'm always grateful for.

I'll admit, this last week has been a little rough. I'm sure it's been enhanced by the holidays, but I've found myself thinking about him constantly. This is his first official picture as a two year old. Now, I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure these are supposed to be taken at Kiddie Kandid's or something, not in the back yard (I think) of an orphanage.

I miss you Collin. I hope next year finds you, and all of your friends, ringing in the new year at home with your forever family! Here's to a brand new year and all of its promise!

Happy Birthday Big Boy!!

I'm not 100% sure that Christmas Day is really Collin's birthday, but it's the only day I know of so far, so it's the day I'm going with. Today Collin turns two. Happy birthday my sweet boy! I know we don't know each other very well yet, but here are a few things I've already learned that I absolutely love about you!

1. You are such a cuddler. It's a good thing too, something we have in common.

2. You are already so compassionate. You're so good to share your toys with your friends.

3. You have such a contagious smile. That may prove to be a problem for me in the future!

4. You already have such a great sense of humor.

Happy 2nd Birthday my silly little boy!! You have completely changed my life in such a great way. I can't wait until you are finally home and we can discover your new world together. My special birthday wish for you is that this is the last birthday you spend in an orphanage. I love you so much and can't wait to hold you in my arms again!

You 'Otta Be In Pictures!

I love baby pictures. In the beginning, I was a little sad about the fact that I wouldn't have any baby pictures of Collin. My mom made a baby book for each of her children, nine total, and the very first picture was the one taken at the hospital. I was sad that Collin wouldn't have that. Then I found out that one of our coordinators was, apparently, as obsessed with him as I am. She's been there with him from the beginning. Thankfully, so was her camera. I asked her if she wouldn't mind sending a few of the "early" ones to me. A few days later, I got a cd in the mail with over 100 pictures. Wanna see? Of course you do, otherwise you wouldn't be checking out my blog! Don't worry, I won't post all of them, just a few of my fav's.

Collin's debut

Pretty sure this is Collin's birth mom.

So sweet!

I can't get enough of this smile!

This is the special rice cereal the kids eat. It's pretty much all they eat.

Love the hair!

Not sure what the pirate's hat was about, but he seems to like it.

Special thanks to Nichole, for taking the pictures, Chareyl for getting them to me, and Lori for transferring them to a cd I could open!

New Friends

Friends, I'd like you to meet my new friend Ralph. Ralph is 6 years old and lives in Haiti. I have the opportunity to help Ralph go to school through an organization a friend of mine started called Haitian Roots. This last trip I was fortunate enough to meet Ralph.

As you can see, Ralph would prefer to be ANYWHERE else. I couldn't really blame him. After all, he had no idea who this tall white woman was, and why in the world should he look he look happy about having to take his picture with her? He doesn't speak any English, so our good friend Harry played translator. Harry told me that Ralph loves school. I think he told me his favorite subject was math, but they were talking pretty fast, I had a hard time keeping up. He also likes to read and color. I also learned that Ralph has two older brothers. Oops, I only brought two cars...

This is Ralph's mom. (I think the man behind her is Pierre, he's trying to get Collin to smile. Didn't happen. He just wanted the cars.) Ralph's mom was kind enough to bring him all the way down to the hotel so I could meet him. No small feat when you consider what they had to go through to get there.

The next night, Chareyl came to find me. Ralph's dad had made his way to the hotel to sign some paperwork and had asked to meet me. I was thrilled. He was so appreciative and so humble. After I left, he left a special message with my friend Brent. He asked him to tell me how grateful they were that someone else cared about Ralph and his education. Then he asked Brent to be sure that I knew that, while what I was doing was definitely helping Ralph, my life would also be blessed by helping someone in need. Right you are, my new friend, right you are! Funny how that works, isn't it?

P.S. If you're interested in sponsoring a child through Haitian Roots, you can visit their website at www.haitianroots.com. The cost is only $250.00 per year. It provides needy kids with school supplies, uniforms, books and most of all hope for a better life. Remember Ralph, you promised me all A's in school. I'll be back to check on you...with my camera in tow!

Yes Virginia There Is A Santa Clause!

Okay, so I'm not Virginia, and I already believe there is a Santa Clause, but I'll bet the title got your attention. :) This isn't a horribly exciting post, but because I plan to print this blog out and use it as a baby book of sorts for Collin, I'm documenting it anyway.

I've been waiting for about two months for Uncle Sam and his friends to process my I-171H form. Two weeks before I went to Haiti, I was told that my application was 8 back in line and that they would do their best to get it to me before the trip. Obviously, that didn't happen. I expected it to be in the mail when we got back. Still didn't happen. But finally, after two very long months of wondering if my application was either being used to prop open a door or had accidently been sucked into a beaurecratic black hole, it finally arrived!!! I admit it, I did a little happy dance in the street. Good news, it was dark and no one saw me. Bad news, the roads in my neighborhood had not been plowed yet and were a little snow packed. No worries, a little slipping and sliding, but no falling and bouncing! All that for one little piece of paper... Oh well, this officially puts us one small step closer!

Now, let's see if I can make it to January/February without losing it! :)