Really BIG Announcement!!

Sorry I've been MIA in the blogosphere the past week and a half! I taught at South Bay this past Sunday (Mother's Day) and all of my attention and free time last week was devoted to preparation for that. I'll share some thoughts on that tomorrow, but I have to get on to our huge announcement:

WE RECEIVED OUR REFERRAL!!!!

We received a phone call on Friday morning telling us that we have been matched with a child. It was the best Mother's Day gift anyone could have given me this year. My heart was racing as I spoke with our family coordinator about him. Looking at his picture for the first time with Andy & Caedmon was a very moving experience. I kept thinking, "That is my son! That is my son!" Right now he looks like a stranger...just another (beautiful) little kid in a photo. But that precious little face will soon become as familiar as Caedmon's and he'll be filling our home with laughter and joy.

He is a beautiful little boy about 20 months old. He's small for his age, but overall in really good health. We already have a picture of him framed in our living room and I so wish I was allowed to share it on my blog. However, we are required to protect his confidentiality and not share his name, photo, or health info until after we pass court.

The first words out of Caedmon's mouth when he looked at his brother's picture were: "Oh, he's brown!" Andy and I laughed out loud when he said that and I thought how funny that will be in future years that those were Caedmon's very insightful first words of his brother.

We have formally accepted the referral and we're now waiting for our court date. It looks like we'll be traveling to Ethiopia sometime between 4-6 weeks from now for court. (So mid-to-late June). That is great timing because Andy had already scheduled to have vacation time during that window. If all goes smoothly and on schedule, we'll be traveling back to Ethiopia somewhere between August and October to bring him home!!

My heart is so full! "My cup runneth over."