Hello Again! So Much Has Changed…

Hey all! Long time no see. I just now realized how long it has been since I last posted. My life has changed so much changed this past couple of years. It has been quite a whirlwind. Some days I still feel like I haven’t been able to set my feet on solid ground.

Before I tell you all that’s happened, let me tell you what prompted me here. A blogger that I had once followed also had stopped blogging. But she made a recent post that was very sad. Hawkeye at http://browndogcbr.blogspot.com/ has passed on. Though I hadn’t been following any bloggers for a while, the news touched my heart. I miss all of you and your stories about your furry loved ones. Many of you, including Hawkeye, have provided me with fond memories and a connection with fellow dog lovers that is not always easy to find. You will be greatly missed, Hawkeye.

Before you get too worried about what has changed in my life, let me assure you that my life changes have been good changes and that Maya and Pierson are still doing well. Pierson is the same ornery booger that he’s always been. He still hates other dogs (except Maya). I’m still working on his leash reactive behaviors. He still barks at everything, eats poop, and still manages to mangle some poor wildlife animal that couldn’t escape our yard fast enough. But he’s still as cute as ever, albeit a little less actively cute because he’s getting older. He’s still good at giving me comfort when I get stressed. Maya is the same loveable Labrador, but she has gotten noticeably old. She sleeps a lot more and her playful moods happen less often. Her face is much whiter and she’s starting to get those old-lady-dog-warts. But she’s still very happy and healthy for her age.

Now to the changes that have taken place… After my husband and I moved back to Kansas from Iowa, we reopened the discussion about having children. Since I’m over 40 years old and since our earlier attempts at IUI, IVF, and other infertility treatments didn’t work, we decided on another route. Early in 2016, we began the process of becoming foster parents. We decided to take it slow by only fostering one child at a time and only on a respite-need basis, which means very short-term, such as a few days or even a few weeks.

A few of our foster children ended up staying with us longer. After taking in one girl for a week, we were asked a few months later if we’d take her again but this time for a few months. We gladly agreed. I can’t tell you her circumstances, but I can tell you she is back with her family and is doing very well. I will tell you more about our next long-term placement shortly.

While fostering children, we also looked into the possibility of adopting. We weren’t quite ready to adopt through the foster system because we weren’t sure we could handle the extra challenge of caring for children from hard places. Our hearts wanted to, but there’s a huge difference in wanting to and being able to. Because my husband is Chinese and because his parents still have old fashioned beliefs about continuing the family line, we decided to meet them halfway and adopt a child in need from China. In November of 2016, we contacted an organization called CCAI. In December of 2016, our home study was approved. And in January of 2017, we were matched with a two-year-old boy with spina bifida. The process for adopting him was only just beginning though. There was a lot of paperwork to complete and approvals needed from various organizations in both the U.S. and in China. So it wasn’t until December of 2017 that we were able to meet him and bring him home.

Before that, we were still fostering children. As I said, we were only fostering one child at a time. But in April of 2017 our caseworker begged us to take in two teenagers. It was only supposed to be for a month, but their placement with their relative kept falling through because the relative was having difficulty in meeting all the requirements. What was supposed to take a month turned into two, then four, then eight. Needless to say, we all became very attached. When it came time for us to go to China to get the boy we decided to name Edward, or Eddie for short, they were excited for us but there was also a bitter-sweetness to it. While we were in China, we were expecting that they’d be placed with their relative. So leaving for China meant saying goodbye to them.

But placement with the relative fell through again. We flew into the U.S. on December 23rd, but did not get Eddie home until Christmas Eve. And on Christmas Eve, our two foster children were returned to us. It was an amazing day. Eddie looked at my foster son and said ge ge, which means big brother in Chinese. Eddie still wasn’t quite sure what to think of me (he latched on to my husband right away), but he felt comfortable enough to want to sit in my daughter’s lap. He’d never seen dogs in real life before but was luckily more curious about Maya and Pierson than afraid.

This day was also very special because it was then that our foster kids decided they didn’t want to go live with their relative and they wanted to stay with us. I can’t even begin to tell you how much my heart swelled that day. The happiness of it still makes my eyes water. My foster son has since decided he doesn’t want to be adopted, but he does still want to live with us. We are still working on adopting our foster daughter. The process for adopting her wasn’t nearly as complicated for us as it was for adopting Eddie, but the bureaucratic slowness of our government system is ridiculous. We are hoping her adoption will happen within the next month or so.

I feel extremely blessed. But, as you might imagine, free-time is not something I have much of anymore. So it may be a while before I blog again. Thank you for stopping by!

Our New Family (images of our teens are blurred because we are not allowed to say their names or post their faces until adoption has been finalized.)

Pierson is living it up with his new family additions.

Eddie meets Maya and Pierson in December 2017.

Eddie is sitting in his big sister’s lap.