We are leaving tomorrow.

When I think about it a surge of energy shoots through my body.  A surge that is new, and foreign, and awesome.  This morning I was folding clothes and Sean walked in and said, "Do you feel it?" and I said, "Yes. My blood is on fire."  It's the only way to describe it.

We leave tomorrow morning.  We'll be keeping in touch through this blog and calling family when possible.

We are praying for the bonding process with Abiella, as well as the bonding between us and her caregivers.  We are praying for Abi's health, for healing, and for clearer discernment regarding what we can do to help her mind and body grow, for safe travels, for a joy and peace throughout this journey, and for a wonderful experience getting to know her beautiful country.

Much Love!
Mary Susan

3 days and megan james...

We're leaving in

WHAT??!?? It's so exciting!!! Each day we continue to mark things off our list.

Today, my goal was to get all of my school work finished for this week and next week.  Unfortunately, this includes a term paper that has officially frozen my mind.  I need someone to hit control,alt,delete on my brain and reboot me.  I'm not kidding when I tell you that I've been sitting in the same spot for the last 9 hours, and all I have is the heading.  What? I'm normally good at writing papers.

Luckily, on my 6th hour of research staring blankly at 6 textbooks, I heard a knock at the door and when I peeked through the window (expecting to see a delivery truck) I saw this beautiful face staring back at me:

(She really is that gorgeous all of the time. Very frustrating.)

Pop-ins are the best.  Megan walked in, squealed about the piles of baby gear that have currently taken over our living room, celebrated the 3 day mark until Ghana, and then proceeded to tell me one of the most hilarious stories I've heard in a long time.  Megan's life is like a sitcom.  After the five years I've known her the most unimaginable things continue to happen to her...  Ten minutes after she was gone, I was still shaking my head, repeating unmentionable phrases under my breath and wiping away tears of laughter.  If you haven't already, you really must check out her blog b/c this gal has got some serious talent (she's an UNBELIEVABLE singer/songwriter) and has some super serious ability to attract hmm... how should I say it...unique situations. I believe it's her spiritual gift :)

I leave you with a video of her melting faces in Nashville. 

Enjoy!

mae

We leave in...

mae mae

A.B.I.E.L.L.A.

A few weeks ago a bunch of girlfriends and I had a wonderful weekend at a cabin in the mountains.  You can read about that glorious mini-vacay here.  While we were there we decorated the letters to Abiella's name.  

While making them, none of us looked around to plan a theme or color palette, and yet when we lined them all up at the end, they worked perfectly! These letters will eventually go in her room, but for now they live on my mantel... where I can stare at them everyday.

Thanks ladies!!  Y'all are the best and I can't wait to put them in Abi's room!

xoxo

mae mae

Merry Indie Christmas

Happy Post Thanksgiving Folks!

Hope you had a great one!

We sure did.

(Pictures to come later.)

But first, if you're here from Follower's Fest, WELCOME!

Become a follower or leave a comment and I'll gladly come check out your space.

I always love to meet new bloggers and see the amazing things people are doing in their lives... it's a bit like looking in a stranger's home as you drive by at night when their lights are on... except with blogs they know you're looking and they're okay with it.

Very satisfying and slightly addictive.

On this blog, I tend to write about life, friends, family, and our adoption journey.

Today, however, in honor of a Merry Indie Christmas I thought I'd share with you a cheap gift idea.  I love word searches and at www.puzzlemaker.com you can make your own. Today, I used it to create a gift for my friend, Katherine.

 On this site, I created a word search with her name as the hidden word.  I then printed it, found her name, and circled it in red.  Next, I grabbed a clean jar (that my pasta sauce lived in last night), stuffed the puzzle inside, tied it with rafia & a ribbon, and topped it off with the letter 'H' (the first letter of her last name.)

Katherine loves office supplies, so Christmas morning this jar will be full of freshly sharpened pencils, a few of her favorite pens, and an old wooden ruler.

Done.

Way under $5 and the wrapping itself serves as a gift.

Have fun blog-hopping and cheers to the Christmas Season!

mae

Making a List & Checking it Twice

Wow.  The past few days have been awesome.  We are getting so excited for our trip we can hardly stand it. Our bags are getting packed and things are getting real.  We got our second round of shots yesterday, booked our hotel, confirmed our itinerary with our social worker, met with our pediatrician, and took two trips to Target for things we need.  Sean and I bought our first set of wipes and diapers (very exciting) and loaded up on small things we can leave with Abiella.  We're packing one of those baby chairs that bounces and vibrates and has a mobile on top.  It fit nicely into our luggage.

On Monday afternoon, Sean said, "What if I break my glasses while I'm there?" and I said, "Oh my gosh... what if you do?? You'd be blind. You need a backup pair." So 45 minutes later he was sitting in the doctor's chair getting a current prescription.  I needed a new pair as well and so we got it all done in one visit.  Here I am getting fitted for my glasses.  If you haven't been lately, get ready for the not-too-exciting contraption they put on your head to fit your glasses to your face.  It takes a magnified photo of you and then displays it on their huge screens where all customers walking by can see.  Imagine a closeup of your face times 20.  You can tell by my stance I wasn't too happy about this.

While I was at Target a mother and her two daughters were walking past me in the Christmas aisle when the young daughter spotted the "holiday" bras next to the ornaments.  Seriously Target... seriously?  But anyhow, she immediately broke out into song singing her original, "Deck the halls with bras of glory, fa-la-la-lala-la-lalala."  Her mother was humiliated but I thought it was hilarious.  I've had it in my head for two days now... and maybe you will now too.

Looking forward to Thanksgiving tomorrow and Follower's Fest on the 25th!!

I'll post again soon, but for now I've got to finish loads of laundry, go to the store for tomorrow's feast, and finish washing bottles and baby clothes we're taking.  What?!?  So exciting.  Meanwhile, if any of you know where to find a mobile that attaches to a crib, let me know.  We're on the hunt (we want to leave it there with her) and for some reason Target doesn't have any.  Next stop: Essex, Wal-mart, Babies-R-Us, and anywhere that sells a hot holiday caffeinated beverage... 'Tis the season!

Happy Pre-Thanksgiving Day!

Our Tickets are Booked!

Our tickets are officially booked!  In 11 days we'll be flying here

Woohoo!!!  We will be leaving the states on December 2nd. We're so excited we can hardly stand it!  We will stay for a full week, visiting Abiella everyday, and experiencing life in her beautiful country. We've been told to pack a pair of nice clothes for us and Baby Abi just in case we go to court while we're there.  This doesn't mean that Abiella would be able to come home with us, but it does mean that she'd officially be a McConnell!

Also, we had our first doctor's visit today at Vanderbilt International Adoption Clinic.  That hospital is amazing.  I love that the directions to their office included the phrases, "Go past the train and follow the big yellow stars on the ground to the correct elevator."  I felt like I was walking through the Santa's workshop instead of a hospital.  Way to go Vanderbilt!  I'm very, very impressed.

WOOHOOOO!!!

We'll be keeping you posted!!

Mary Susan