I-797C

We received our I-797C today in the mail. Who-hoo! This is the last document for our dossier. PJ & I are so excited! This document (or actually a copy of it) is headed to Austin tomorrow (if we can find a notary!). Thank you so much for all of your prayers & encouragement.

Pictures from the Weekend

Philip, Ava & Ashlyn
Philip being handsome.

This is a really cute picture of Ashlyn.

My babies!

Days Waiting for Approval

I broke down & emailed USCIS to check on the status of our case. The notice of action that we received from them shows a date of 11/20. I just assumed this was our "date" of being logged in. So, I was thinking we were on 62-ish days. Remember the average is 90 days but there has been a rumor that they "might" speed up. A family from our agency received their approval in 68 days! USCIS shows our log-in date as 12/03. We are only on day 50. Our case is still waiting on an officer. It is in God's time. I keep telling myself that.

Ski Trip

We went to Angel Fire, New Mexico over the weekend. The Boyetts invited us to hang out with them. The weekend was filled with tons of fun! This is the 3rd season that Philip & Ashlyn have been skiing. We were really impressed with their skill this year.

This is the last year for the polka dot jacket. PJ & I are really sad about that! PJ was a little teary eyed when we were talking about it. Funny how something as simple as a ski jacket can make you aware of time and changes.
Who is that mountain man with my princess? Oh yeah, that is PJ!! People always comment on his "scruff" these days.

Isn't he so cute?! Philip is a very safe skier. I love that. He rode the chair left by himself this year. He was really proud of that!

Ashlyn had a really bad crash on the 1st day. She "biffed" it hard! Our kids have always worn helmets while skiing & will continue to do so until they leave our house. (that is with my mother tone!)

I think he is trying to go faster!

Fingerprint Mission Complete

We were able to get our fingerprints done today! Who-hoo! Now we are just waiting on our approval from the government. Come on US Government! Thank you for all the prayers & kind words!
After PJ & I talked about the day, I forgot to add this. We turned on KLove after pulling out of the driveway. The song that started to play was Steven Curtis Chapman's Yours. When we decided to adopt (Feb 2008), I played this song every morning after I dropped Ashlyn off for preschool. I would tear up every time Steven would sing the verse about every child in Africa is Yours God (and still do). This was before Maria's tragic death & the adding of the last verse. I just thought it was perfect that this song played. (sorry i have edited this once small posting twice now!)

PS Thank you to Mimi & Aunt Melissa for picking up the kids from school today! We really appreciate it.

On Tuesday

PJ & I are scheduled for our fingerprints this Tuesday. If you just started following our journey, we were supposed to get the "prints" done the day after Christmas (but they were closed & we did not know it). We are really praying that everything goes as planned:
The office is open.
Good traveling weather (travel time is 4 hours round-trip).
No freak accidents between now & appointment time (3pm & 4pm); therefore, I will not be using any knives for cutting cheddar cheese. We might try to go in early if they will let us.
We are able to get really good fingerprints/biometrics so we do not have to travel for a 3rd time.

**Also our agency (AWAA) has about 22 families in China right now getting their "babies". I think 19 are special needs & 3 are non special needs. How exciting!! Please say a little prayer for them!

Cracking Myself Up

I decided to read our blog from the beginning tonight (College football games were not on TV & the kids went to bed early because they go back to school on Monday). I came to the August 21 post & just started laughing--first to myself & then out loud. I posted that we were close to being DTC (having our dossier in China). That was over 4 months ago & still we are not DTC. Anyways, I just thought I would share how "optimistic" I was back in August! (say that with my Texan accent!) We are not even close now! Hopefully, by the beginning of March we will be DTC!!

Happy New Year

Happy New Year! Hard to believe that another year has gone by. Where did the time go? This time last year, we were not even thinking about adding to our family. Amazing how much our lives have changed in the last year. We can not wait to see what 2009 has in store for our family.
I thought we(the Vinyards) should make resolutions this year! Nothing deep or major. Just for fun! (I'm ignoring the "what" & the "oh mans" !)
Here they are:
Jennifer--Learn how to use chopsticks. I'm awful at using them. I automatically give up & reach/ask for the fork. (If anyone has helpful ideas on achieving this, please comment.)

Ashlyn--Wants to help people that do not have a home. Help them have a bed, food, stay healthy, get a job and buy clothes and toys. (Ash is 5 years old. She came up with this on her own.)

PJ--Compete in 3 Triathlons and try to knock off 10 minutes off my time. (Good one PJ!)

Philip--Get "pro" status on Wii Sports Boxing. (Philip is already really good at it.)

Happy New Year to everyone!

The Alamo (& other stuff)

We went to the Alamo today (obviously!!). Philip really enjoyed it! It was crowded from the Alamo Bowl game last night. We also rode on one of the Riverwalk boats. All of us had a great time but we are ready to be home!

Kids in front of a cannon at the Alamo. It was an 18 pounder!! (that is what PJ just told me!)

Philip looks like his grandpa here. Grandpa Philip that is. (Philip is named after him & his daddy & also a great-grand father.) He is studying the Alamo map.

I took this picture. It turned out not too bad.

The kids on the Riverwalk today.

Philip hanging out in the pool this afternoon.

Ashlyn being the "super-star"! Great picture PJ!

"Sea World is Awesome"

Ashlyn pretty much summed up Sea World in her post--it was AWESOME! All of us had a great time. From petting the dolphins to eating lunch with Shamu to getting completely soaked--it was a blast. We sat in the "splash zone" during the Shamu exhibit. We thought we might get misted or a few drops on us. Oh my goodness--we were so wet when we left! A great time.

Philip and Ashlyn realized today that they are very afraid of birds! Just like their mom. One of them wanted to go into a bird cage & feed them nectar. Philip freaked out when he first got in & spilled all of his nectar (which was probably a good thing). Then a bird stopped on Ashlyn's head & she just started bawling. This sweet little man helped her out of the cage. In the meantime, PJ was covered in birds (which was so disgusting). One thing good--nobody had bird poop on them! Tomorrow we are heading to the Alamo & riding on a riverwalk boat.