The 21 Month Freak?

Yep its our 21st month of waiting anniversary. I have been doing pretty good for a while. Starting to feel my frantic side kicking in though. You PAP's and BTDT folks know what I mean. Suddenly it is imperative that I am reading all of the adoption literature again. Checking emails constantly. Reading through the CAFAC materials, checking to see how many people are ahead of me (sadly waaay more than I would like!)on the DTC site, wondering how many people are not on the proboard site so that I can try to figure out some kinda time line. Aiyiyiyiyiyi I think I will be a nut case by the time it finally gets to be my turn for a referral! The way that things keep getting extended I am so afraid that we will be the first couple to hit 30 months waiting...seriously having nightmares about that. In fact, I am way more concerned about the wait than the whole two trips issue everyone keeps talking about.Although of course nothing definitive on that front either. You know, I remember being told how fraught with risk and roller coastery this journey was...I just hoped that was only for other people and NOT ME!!! Hmmmm....back to the search for serenity.

Just to clarify, I am not wishing bad things for others in fact I hope everyone ahead of me gets the perfect child of their dreams...I guess every human just assumes that they will be the one exception to the rules...

My DH is a Closet Photographer

I just had to find something great to blog about for this week. I want to share with the world one of my darling husbands many talents...photography. He has never had a class, but I think he has amazing potential. Here are some samplings of portraits, action, landscape... it was hard to choose just these few (you should be able to click on the photos to enlarge them for better viewing):

I'm Proud of This But Still Tough to Post About

So I am coming fully outta the closet about my weight loss. I hit rock bottom due to massive comfort eating over the adoption and topped out at almost 300lbs last summer folks.


Pause for the shock effect.

I have made a comback in the last 6 months due to my own desire to be fit, my husband unfailing support (he truly is amazing and thought I was beautiful anyway)
and the combined effort of my success on the LA Weight Loss plan and my excercising with Zumba 3+ times per week I have gone from this....




to this


in 6 months.

I have lost 21.5 inches. 11 of them just since January! I feel great, my husband took me out and bought me a celebratory workout outfit that will stay up now! the others kept falling off my hips! I think i even look happier in some of these later photos.

Obviously I still have a ways to go but I want to celebrate anyway. Oh, and forgive the no makeup/glasses/etc in the after-it had been a long day. I have actually lost more inches even since these photos. My waist went from 42 to 36 inches, my hips from 53 to 44 and my bust from 51 to 46.

I just felt the need to share...maybe someone out there will see that this is possible and feel motivated to begin their own journey to a happier existence.

Not a Teen Anymore

Here is my problem...I keep trying to reach the finish line in this jalopy. What I need to make a pit stop and switch out for this car! Surely we can make it to the finish line faster now!





Woohoo, here's celebrating 20 months of waiting as of this coming Friday.

Question For Those in the Know

I don't want to call the agency and bug them right now so can anyone tell me if timelines are faster or slower for those families requesting singleton's instead of siblings? Most people whose blogs I read lately seem to be requesting sibs and I am a little freaked out by some of the timelines I am hearing about. As my beloved husband and I approach 20 months DTC we are trying to figure out some kind of timeline...I thought I had it all figured out but..............I am just not sure anymore. If it helps our basic requests were: infant to age 3, either sex.

I had been hoping for a June referral which would be around the 23rd month of waiting. Am I setting myself up for utter disappointment? Should I just tell myself (and all of the eagerly awaiting extended family) not to hope for anything until Septemberish (26 months?)


HELP I am slowly losing my mind (as each month passes)!!!!

Trying to Manifest...and oh yeah a pic of me

Ok, so I am hearing a lot of talking lately about bringing about the life/desires one wishes by willing them into being-aka "The Secret". I must be doing something wrong because no amount of my "willing" is moving ANYONE any faster in the adoption process. I have been trying to use my incredible powers of the mind to speed along all of the paperwork, glitches, etc that other adoptive families are facing. Hoping of course that this will help our referral to arrive more quickly. No such luck. I am quite sure there are many others out there "willing" with me....

Looking ahead....hmmm referral hopefully by June/July (I hope I hope I hope), waiting waiting waiting for court-what averaging 5-8 months right?...all the other paperwork/visa hoops to jump through.....I'll be LUCKY to have this wonderful Bebe home by hmmmmm let's do the math......earliest probably Jan 2011, latest could be....well we just won't even go there! I am not going to give that thought a chance to "manifest" itself. This is getting to the point of being kinda crazy. Manifest schmanifest....

A good friend did a photoshoot after my last performance (hence the slightly sweaty look) and I quite liked this photo. Keep in mind this was taken pre-weightloss!

Success!

As of Saturday I am down 10 inches since October! This means my hiney (from which I lost 2 of those 10 inches) is that much closer to being comfortable in the airplane seat on my long trip to Ethiopia!