2011 Goals

I've tried New Year's Resolutions before without much success and no accountability.  So this year I'm going to do goals for 2011.  When I look at this post in a year I wonder how many things I will have finished.  Feel free to keep me accountable.

1. Buy and begin to fix up our first home.
2. Finish our wedding scrapbook (not even half way done, pathetic I know) and begin Addilece's "Life Story" book (we aren't doing a "baby book" with her due to the fact that none of our other children will have baby books....we are going to try and make them as similar as possible).
3.  Spend two kid free weekends with my hubby (one possibly being a trip).
4.  More date nights (that's a hard one).
5.  Go camping for the first time.
6.  Loose an inch or two in the waist.
7.  Teach Addilece her first Bible Verse. 
8.  Tony beginning Grad School.
9.  Start saving for our adoptions.
10.  Build our emergency fund back up to one month of emergency money
11.  Leave our food budget where it is at but eat healthier.
12.  Completely potty train Addilece using the 3 day method. 

Lots to do but all of it is definitely with in reach.  Loosing the inches in the waist and date nights with the hubby are definitely the hardest. 

A Year at a Glance

It dawned on me the other day how much has changed in a year.  I think its a LOT harder to measure change, until you have a kid.  Then you realize how much takes place in a year.  So here was our 2010

January:

* A trip to California and a visit with Uncle Preston.

* My birthday

*Tony's sweet grandmother passed away.

February:

*We welcomed a new little munchkin into the mix.  I babysat Conner for 3 months while friends welcomed a new foster baby into their mix.

March:

*We have a crawler

April

*Tony's birthday.

*First Easter with our Sweet Pea

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May:

*Tony accepts the position as the new staff accountant at CIT (an amazing event complete orchestrated by God).

* A trip the Wisconsin Dells.

*Moving into a new apartment.

*1st Mother's Day

June:

*1st Father's Day.

*Happy 2nd Anniversary

July:

 *We have a walker

*Happy 1st Birthday Addilece.

August:

*I take a trip to Ecuador.

September:

*Welcome cousin Julianna.

*Awana begins again.

November:

*Thanksgiving!

December:

*Tony and I began dating six years earlier.

*Christmas!

Eric Ludy - Depraved Indifference

Project Hopeful on CBS

Project Hopeful is doing amazing things for Orphans who are dealing with HIV and AIDs.  Also, notice the abudance of 147 Gear!  I hope my closet is full of it someday.

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7108307n&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+CBSNewsPCAnswer+%28PC+Answer%3A+CBSNews.com%29

Philippines

My future sis-in-law over at Renowned and Crowned asked a the questions Why the Philippines? after this post.  I've only mentioned this country a few times because Tony and I are not sure if this is where we will adopt from.  Right now its the path we are headed down, but God has a funny way of flip flopping the paths for us. 



Tony and I have walked around the Connecting Hearts with the Forgotten and read lists and lists of countries.  We have talked about each one and are finding it easier to find countries we don't feel called to then countries we do feel called to.  I have felt a strong tug toward Sub-Sahara Africa (currently Ethiopia is the only country available here) and India.  Tony was never overwhelmed about any country until we came across the Philippines.  While my heart doesn't beat quit as quickly for this country I am slowly falling in love with it. 

Every country has positives and negatives to adopting, so here are the positives for us:

1. Cheaper than many countries.....starting at $14,000.  (Russia and Ukraine start over 30 and China starts at over 40). 
2. Travel is minimum: 1 parent, about 7 to 10 days.  (Other countries require 2 trips-Ethiopia and some require very long trips-Columbia, 3 to 8 weeks.) 
3. The income requirement is minimal....125% of the poverty level, which is standard for all international adoptions. (China and several others require 10,000 per family member, including the child coming home)
4. Sibling sets are readily available (which is what we will be pursuing due to the age requirement).
5. We have friends currently going through the Philippines.....that will be a great resource and encouragement for us.  Just think....Filipino buds to play with.
6. The Philippines likes to adopt their children to Christian families.  I'm hoping (maybe) that means several of the orphanages will be Christian based.

Negatives for the Philippines:

1. A minimum age of 27.  You must be 25 to adopt internationally.  We are hoping to have all US paperwork done by Tony's 27th birthday.  This means that Addilece will be a bit older than we hoped.  (This isn't as long as other countries though....China and India are 30)
2. The travel time is......LONG.  It is 12 hours from there to the West Coast.  Then we have to fly home.  Like I said.....LONG.  Then add layovers, children who don't know you, and jet lag....not fun.  Also, if our children one day decided to move back to their home country it would not be easy for them to come home or us to visit them.
3. You can not specifically choose a sex.  While it is true, if we were having a biological child we couldn't choose either, we do truly want a boy at some point.  We will just have to trust God that if we don't get one from the Philippines then we'll get one another way.

Unique things about Philippine adoptions:

1. A child adopted from the Philippines is not legally yours when the first arrive home.  They are considered foster children for the first six months (I think) that they are in the US.
2. When your file arrives in country it is placed in a file folder (yes, we are talking paper here).  Then every so often an orphanage director comes to Manila (the capital) with a list of adoptable children.  They sort through the folders and pick 2 families for each child.  Then they take them back to the orphanage and decide which family gets each child.  If your file is not chosen they keep it until they return to Manila.  While this could mean a long wait, it probably also means a better fitting placement for our family.  After all, who knows these kids better then the directors?

Tony and I still have a LOT of talking and praying and reasoning to do before we make a final decision.  Right now we are trying to focus on enjoying our daughter and listening to God.