We are family...come on everybody and sing!!!

Hola, from sunny Guatemala! It is Tuesday evening here in Ursula's birth country and we had our Embassy appointment this morning....it is complete now, Ursula is a Raab! The appointment was really no big deal like everyone said...the biggest task was keeping 15 to 20 babies entertained for 3+ hours! It's not a very big room that we are all in and everyone was working on little to no breakfast and not a lot of sleep. All in all, it went well and the process was a piece of cake. We waited for awhile until we were called to go into door number 10, which literally was a closet with a woman behind a glass window. Steve had to answer a few questions like...was he ever married before and was he ever denied citizenship. Then he initialled afew things and we were back out with the lot of unhappy babies to wait some more. Once we were called the 2nd time to window number 7, the lady there verified that Ursula was the same baby as the one on the passport, again asked some different questions, such as, is she our only child, are we going to change her name, when did we meet her and the agency that we used. We raised our right hands and swore that all the info they had was true to the best of our knowledge, and she said...Congratulations...you can come pick up your visa tomorrow afternoon. That's it...I guess all the really important stuff was gone over throughout the process and that's what took so long...It seems to me that they just have to ask something while you're there to make it official, I don't know!
So we're off to the zoo tomorrow, yes, I said zoo...I know you're all shocked! I can't even get out of a foreign country withour hitting a zoo! Steve will go over with our translator tomorrow to get the visa and then we are all done. Our flight leaves on Thursday and we are so ready to come home. We've met some new families this time, some picking up and some just visiting with no idea when their day will come. We met a woman at the Embassy that is adopting a little girl who is going to be 8 in June and she is sooo cute. She's very shy and doesn't speak English, but she is so happy to have a new mommy and they seem to get along great. They are actually going to be on our flight to Charlotte, but will travel onto Jersey from there.
So this experience has been a tough and trying one to say the least, but one that we wouldn't trade for anything! We can't wait for you all to follow Ursula's journey once we get home! So, this is going to be my one and only post from Guat...we'll see you in the US!

Leaving as 2, coming home as 3....

Well, the time has finally arrived and in a few short hours we will be leaving for Guatemala to pick up our little girl! I've checked and rechecked all of my bags and paperwork, so hopefully you won't hear me yelling all the way from Central America that I forgot something! :)
I have very mixed emotions right now...I am so excited to be starting a new journey in my life with Ursula, but at the same time, I know that there is a family that is saying goodbye to her and will miss her terribly. Even up to this point, it is still a roller coaster ride. Also, my thoughts are with all the other families still in process...for those who do not know, Guat adoptions have been pretty much at a stand still after we got out of PGN. They are now requiring all the cases still in PGN to have birthmother interviews to make sure they gave up their babies legitimately and under their own will. They have been saying they are not going to release ANY cases until ALL interviews are done. We could have easily been one of those families still waiting and not knowing when our child would come home. It's all so sad.
On a happier note...Susie, the girl I traveled to Guat with in April, has her Visa appointment on May 30th and they are coming down on Monday! We will meet one more time in Guat, this time we each will be leaving with one more than we came with! We are planning to go to the zoo and market together and also to get together sometime when we get home.
So the moral of my story is....even though the road was long and bumpy, the rewards so outweigh the tough times. We will have a beautiful daughter and have met some very special people that will be a part of our lives forever.
Keep checking back...we will post from Guat in a few days!!!!

Our last week as a family of two.....

Well, we are entering into our last week as a family of two, next weekend we travel back to Guatemala one last time to be reunited with our daughter and finally become a family of three! Just as throughout this entire process, I am still having my ups and downs...I am happy, still in shock that this is actually going to happen, anxious, to think that life as we've known it will never be the same, and scared, hoping I will be as good a mom as she deserves.
We do have our travel plans set: we leave Sunday May 25th and return on May 29th...yes, she will be coming home on her 1st birthday! Right now we are finishing up all the last minute cleaning and organizing around our house, packing and getting all of our gifts and paperwork in order for the trip.
I will probably post one more time before we leave, but until then, enjoy some pictures from Ursula's 1st year.....

Guess what we got.......

That's right, no matter what shade you prefer, it's still all PINK!!!!!!
Our DNA test results were only to get to the US Embassy today, so I wasn't expecting to hear anything for a few days, but when I got home this evening, the email we've been waiting many many months for, was right there in my inbox! Our Embassy appointment is Tuesday May 27th at 7:15am! We can pick up her visa on Wednesday the 28th and if all goes as planned, we will bring Ursula home on Thursday the 29th, which I might add is her 1st BIRTHDAY!!!! What a present, she'll come to her new home and become a US citizen on the same day she turns 1! Not that she'll remember, but it will be very special to her daddy and I!
I'll keep you all posted on our travel details, but I have to go celebrate now.....

Almost home......

Hi all!
We received word this morning that our DNA results should get to the US Embassy in Guatemala tomorrow!! Woo Hoo! That means anytime after that we can stalk our email for our Embassy appointment. We could get our appt in as little as 48 hours to up to a week. The trend lately has been that the appt is scheduled for one week later....we should have her on or before her 1st birthday!!!! How fun is that?
I will post again once we get our appointment!

One small step in Guatemala, one giant leap toward Ursula's homecoming...

Hi again! I am writing with exciting news....Ursula's birth certificate has been obtained and we are now on our way to getting her a passport! WooHoo!!! This is a major accomplishment for us since she was born in Mixco, a municipality that can sometimes take weeks, even months to issue a birth certificate. We got ours in about a week and a half. We thought we'd get it in about 2-3 days, but at this point, I'm just glad we can cross another thing off our list!
Next up...she gets her passport and her 2nd and final DNA test is ordered. The test is done in Guatemala (birth mother already signed the final adoption decree, so is not needed for this one), the sample is sent to the US and the results are sent back to the US Embassy in Guat. At that point, they will review and issue us our "pink slip" or Embassy date, which is when we get to go get our daughter! So, we should be looking at no more than a few more weeks (we hope!).
I'll post more news as I receive it!

April flowers bring May showers...no wait, that's not how it goes!

Hi everyone! Just a little update on our wait for Ursula...on Sunday May 4th, three of the bestest girlfriends a girl could have and my mother in law, aka Gammie, threw a shower for me. And believe it or not, I was actually surprised! For those of you who don't know me very well, I somehow find a way to ruin every surprise, but I have to give them all credit, it worked! I walked in to a room full of friends, friends from work, bowling buddies, friends of Gammie's, and also my other moms (you know who you are).
It was beautifully decorated in all pinks and browns for a "diva baby shower" theme. Boy, do my friends know me :) We received many gifts, including great things from our registry, lots of cute stuffed animals (one bigger than Ursula!) and some colorful outfits for Spring and Summer. Oh, and did I mention that she got tons of hair bows? A girl can never have too many accessories!
The food was great, we had a double chocolate cake (mmmm!) and we played fun baby games....I learned a lot! All in all, it was a great celebration! I am just thrilled that she already has so many people who love her, one can never receive too much love (that kind of sounds like Confusious says...).
Anyway, a great big THANK YOU goes out to my peeps, Tia Tina, Tia Kristen, Tia Lara, and of course Gammie!!!!!! You guys are awesome and I'm so glad Ursula will have Tia's like you! (by the way Tia means Aunt in Spanish)