Off to his half marathon

It was an early morning rise this morning and to be honest much too early for a Sunday.  After months of preparation, Dada is running his half marathon.  While I initially had planned to take the pups and go with him, we woke to a 30 degree day with a slight chance of snow.  (bulletin to winter, please go home and hibernate).  So, here I sit awake, but in a deep funk.  This is his first half marathon so I think he was a little nervous, but I know that he will do just fine.  Mike is a rock star and there is no quit in him.  While we await his return in a few hours, the pups and I are cuddled on the sofa.  Would it be that wrong to take a little napper with the pups?  If only I could get Mattie to move a little bit to the left and with a gentle nudge of Trojan, there actually might be room for me to sleep.  (And yes, the pups were initially not allowed on the sofa, but somehow they have not only made their way up, but have taken over).  Cavaliers rule!    

Madagascar - I Like To Move It, Move It

Giant Step Forward

True to our case worker's word, our approved I600 arrived today.  Yeah!  The I600 is a notice of provisional approval to recognize our son as a immediate relative.  We now move onto the National Visa Center (NVC). When they approved the I600, it was sent to the NVC and "logged in".  Once it is "logged out" it will be sent to the US Embassy in Seoul.  

The next step?  The Embassy in Seoul will issue the P3.  This is an acceptance packet that contains certain paperwork, forms and a physical form.  On the Korean side, we still need to be granted an Emigration Permit (EP).  The EP is the key.  The Korean government only issues so many EPs per year to each agency.  And you never know when an agency will run out.  So, we are desperately hoping that we are one of the lucky families to receive one.  

As I say to the girls while we walk in the park "I like to move it, move it.  I like to move it, move it.  I like to move it, move it.  You Like to Move It."      

Rainy Wednesday

So, it's a little rainy around here.  And more importantly COLD.  How did that happen?  It was a balmy 70 degrees on Friday.  The birds were happily chirping away.  My spring flowers were showing rebirth.  Trojan, once again, discovered ball ball and boy does she like to play ball ball.  Then, we woke today with calls for snow showers.  What?!  Luckily, most of the real snow is north of us, but the mere thought of it sends shivers up my spine.

It has been one of those gloomy days.  I received a call today that my hip specialist has a surgery opening for next Wednesday.  Next wednesday are you kidding me, was my first reaction.  I'm still having a hard time wrapping my mind around the fact that I'll be on crutches for a month.  Ugh.  Honestly, I am really lucky.  This doctor is doing me a huge favor and getting me in extra early so that I can travel to Korea.  He caters to professional athletes and is one of the top hip surgeons in the field.  And when his lead nurse found out that we were adopting, she immediately went to work to secure an early appointment for me.  I'm just a little down because spring time is one of my favorite times of the year and I really won't be able to do much.  But, if it makes me better by Korea time, the agony will be worth it.  I really need to learn to stop these self induced injuries.  Ladies lawn bowling here I come.  (Don't laugh, it exists and yes, I was recruited to play by a group of shall we say peppy 80 year olds).

Funny thing also happened.  With my last post, I mentioned that I had called USCIS about our I600, but thought that I forgot to give my phone number.  Well as luck would have it, I didn't and got a call back from them.  Our case worker indicated that we should be approved by Friday.  Yeah!  And then onto the National Visa Center...  Here's hoping for a sunnier tomorrow.

Wordless Wednesday: We're Walking in the Rain

Wordless Wednesday: I Love Goretex

Sunny Saturday

The last few weekends have been spent painting and I must confess that I have a knack for putting more paint on myself than on the walls.  But, I must admit that even I took it to a new level today.  I picked up a sample of a color for the back bedroom.  By the time I hit the check out counter, I somehow managed to get paint on all of my fingers, the entire can and yes a little smudge on my face.  How is that possible?

Yesterday, we requested an update picture from our agency.  They said that they would put word into Korea and that they will send a new one once they receive it.  Yeah.  I also called USCIS to check on our I600.  Funny little story.  The lady who answered my call was super nice and confirmed that it has been assigned to a case worker and transferred me to her.  Of course, it went straight to voice mail.  I left my name, a SIM case number, another A case number and by the time I got to the end I asked for a call back and hung up.  Minor detail here (after all of those other numbers) I really believe that I forgot to give my phone number.  So, I think I'll wait until next Friday, and if we haven't received it, give another call.

DADA is bowling today in a tournament.  So, the girls and I ran errands this morning and will attempt to paint this afternoon.  Honestly, I feel like joining the pups in a little napper.  They really have perfected the ability to sleep anywhere at any time.  What a life!