And what a weekend!

What a wonderful weekend! I stopped by the USCIS to have my fingerprints scanned on Friday after work and then drove up to my parents weekend for TCU Homecoming weekend. My sister, brother-in-law (BIL) and nieces came up from Austin as well and great times were had by all. Friday night was uneventful as I didn't get into town until 9 pm. Saturday, we had breakfast prepared by my Dad and then went into Fort Worth for some shopping. Afterward, I took my oldest niece, C., to TCU for a tour of the campus. Yes, she's only five, but she's interested in what college is all about, and she likes spending time with her Aunt. I took the opportunity to talk with her about my plans to adopt. (I know it's a long way out, but I really wanted to let her in on what was going on.) It's a conversation that will be a favorite memory for a while. We walked and sat in the grass for about a hour and a half. Key highlights of the conversation:

• The excitement as her face lit up with joy as I told her. She is looking forward to teaching the baby many things such as how to swim and all about baseball, and she wants to babysit.
• She asked wonderful questions: "Will the baby have two mommies?", "Why will the baby's Mommy not keep her?", "Will the baby have two birthdays?"
• I told her that it won't be until a year from this Christmas or when she is finishing 1st grade, and she responded, "I'm patient every year from Christmas to the next Christmas or from my birthday until my next birthday. I promise I can be patient!" All with a huge smile!
• She wants to put together presents for all the boys and girls that don't have mommies and daddies yet. She said she'd put together two boxes one for boys and the other for the girls with crayons in one and coloring books in the other, but they would share them. The boys would get baseballs and the girls would get hair bows and clips. She's such a giver!
• This morning she drew a picture of me, J. (her sister), herself, and the new baby. The picture also had the plane that the baby and I would fly on to get home from Vietnam. (I'll try to get a picture of it scanned tomorrow.)
• She also told me that I'm not allowed to move from San Antonio unless I move to Austin, Round Rock, or Georgetown because she wants to see her cousin all the time. Too cute!
  

What a week!

Things have been moving this week! I received my final home study document on Monday and immediately went to the post office and sent it to the San Antonio USCIS office. Wednesday I had my second physical and had the rest of the documents notarized. Given the 3 month expiration on forms by the Vietnamese Consulate/Embassy, I sent all of my documents to Austin for authentication. I know I'll have a lone document when I get my I-171H, but I'll be darned if I'm going to the doctor for a third time! Of course, I did this thinking it will be two or three months before I get my I-171H. Well low and behold, I came home today to a fingerprint appointment. I can go anytime during working hours Tuesday through Saturday. USCIS here I come! Now, the question is how long will it take to get approval after I get fingerprinted? Any guesses?!?

Yay! Fall is here!

I would like to thank everyone who sent cool thoughts to Texas. Thanks to your sharing we finally have some Fall weather. I haven't had my air conditioner on since Thursday. It's so wonderful! I would also like to congratulate all of my online friends that have recently received referrals and travel approval. Yay!

My paper chase is moving along. I received my approved home study yesterday and immediately went to the post office to mail it to the USCIS. Thanks to online tracking, I know they received it this morning. On to the wait for fingerprints... While I'm waiting for fingerprinting and the I-171H, I might as well finish all the little things like mounting photos on card stock, getting passport size photos taken, and send a batch of documents to Austin and the Vietnam Embassy for approval. I'm worried about the timing, so I'm going to submit in two batches.

I had a great weekend. Besides the cooler weather, my best friend in the whole wide world ( ;o) ) came to visit this weekend. We drove around to a bunch of small towns in the Hill Country and then road tripped to Corpus Christi. Unfortunately, it was raining along the coast, so we didn't get out to the beach. Seriously, it was pouring only along the beach front roads. Once we got a 1/2 mile from the beach it stopped!

I wish everyone a wonderful week with more referrals and safe travels!

Where, oh where, has my fall gone?

I'm a Northeasterner or New Englander at heart. Unfortunately, my parents and sister have settled in Texas and I really enjoy seeing them. It's very difficult for me this time of year. My friends who live in Mass. and NYC call and tell me how wonderful the weather is right now. For me? I'm running the air conditioning and sweating as it's STILL SUMMER here! I hate this time of year in Texas. Where are the color changes? And I don't mean where the grass has died from the lack of rain. Where is the cool weather? A cold front was supposed to come through this weekend, but it was warm and very humid. Blech! For those of you that live in the North, where it has already snowed, do you think you could send just a little bit of the cool weather this way? I'll forgo the color changes, if I could have a few days in the 70s. Please? With sugar on top?

On adoption news, I'm back in the game. My receipt for my I-600A came on Saturday, followed by my state background check and revised home study. Yay!

Still waiting

This adoption process is going to be difficult for me. I tend to be a little impatient to waits. I've written this post a couple of times over the last few days, but hopefully tonight is the night to post. I've been a little crabby for the past few days, and I see others moving through segments of the process and I am at a standstill. There is nothing I can do but wait for others. At least during the referral wait I can craft and get the nursery ready. The anxiety that is spurring this negativity? I mailed my I-600 almost three weeks ago and I have yet to receive a receipt. I'm all afraid that I messed something up! I know, I know, welcome to the club, right? On a positive note, with the increasing wait at my agency, I'm telling myself that it will probably be two years before I meet my child. See, if it happens sooner then I'll be thrilled!

All's quiet on the adoption front

No adoption news, work, or thoughts, so I thought I would share a bit about myself since there are people reading my blog who don't know me. I'm a 32 year old single woman who works for a hospital in San Antonio, Texas. I decided to adopt a child after accomplishing the goals I set for myself after graduating from college. I lived in multiple place, travelled, obtained a graduate degree and have a successful career. Now I'm back in Texas and within hours from my family. I always wanted my child to be close to their extended family. As far as my adoption, I'm requesting an infant girl, but if I end up with a boy I'll be just as happy. Why a girl you ask? It's more of a comfort thing. I know girls. I grew up with a sister, and have two nieces (with lots of great hand-me-downs). I've worked at an all girls camp, women's college, and have dealt with all the "growing up a girl" type things. Don't worry though! If I end up with a little boy, I'm more than confident in myself that I'll figure it out.

I found this survey on a friend's blog and thought I'd share it here!

1. FIRST NAME? Cara
2. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Nope.
3. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY? It was when I was exhausted during a big project at work. I pushed the down button instead of the up button for the elevator and I lost it. Go figure!
4. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? I guess so, but only when I take my time. Otherwise, it's chicken scratch.
5. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Salami, but I know it's bad for me so I rarely eat it.
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Of course! I'm a good friend.
7. DO YOU HAVE A JOURNAL? this blog and another defunct one. I have an old fashioned journal too, but I don't write in it often.
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Nope. They took them away from me.
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? Never
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? I haven't had cereal in a long time. I used to like Apple Jacks.
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Sometimes but I usually wear flip flops.
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? No..... I know I am strong!
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR? Mint chocolate chip.
14. SHOE Size? 8.
15. RED OR PINK? Pink.
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? My chin. I think it's pointy.
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? My best friend Kevin. We used to take long walks around the city.
18. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? khaki shorts with bare feet right now.
19. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? The television. HGTV is on.
20. WHERE IS THE ONE PLACE YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE RIGHT NOW? I like where I am.
21. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Lavender...no reason why.
22. FAVORITE SMELL? Chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven.
23. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? My Dad.
24. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO? Their smile.
25. FAVORITE DRINK? Coke Zero
26. FAVORITE SPORT? Watching or participating?
27. WHATS YOUR FAVORITE COLOR? Purple
28. HAT SIZE? No clue! Do women know their hat size?
29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Sometimes.
30. FAVORITE FOOD? Sushi!
31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy endings.
32. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Pink
33. SUMMER OR WINTER? Fall is actually my favorite.
34. HUGS OR KISSES? Kisses.
35. FAVORITE DESSERT? Carrot Cake! Yum!
36. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING? Haven't felt like reading much since grad school.
37. WHAT'S ON THE MOUSE PAD? No mouse pad - I have a laptop.
38. WHAT DID YOU WATCH LAST NIGHT ON TV? Pride and Prejudice
39. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE SOUNDS? Crickets and the wind at night when camping.
40. THE FURTHEST YOU'VE BEEN FROM HOME? London
41. WHAT ARE YOUR SPECIAL TALENTS? Hmm...Cooking, work, being a fantastic aunt
42 AND WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Chicago, IL
43. WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? I borrowed it from another blog, but I don't remember where
44. WHAT DAY IS IT? Sunday

For a change of topic, I'm sick of this template. I signed up with Blogger Beta and there aren't a lot of compatible templates outside of the ones that Blogger provides. I know I can go in and mess with the HTML, but I've been to lazy to do it. I'm looking for things to do today, so maybe this is my project for the day.