The Final Countdown

There are some of you out there that know me and others that do not. For those that don't, I've got big news! About 4 1/2 years ago my sister (you know, the one who gave me "that dog") started the adoption process. You heard that right... 4.5 years ago!! Anywho, for what seems like an eternity, she has been waiting in line to bring home a beautiful baby girl from China.

quick disclaimer... I'm sure that everyone has a different opinion on adoption. domestic vs. international, how a person makes their family, etc. Sadly, this is not the place for those conversations. Just be happy. Babies rock! No matter where they come from. :)

We had no idea when she began this process that it would take this long. But she has stayed true to her maternal gut feelings and hung in there. We have decorated a nursery, bought countless amounts of precious baby girl clothes, studied up on attachment issues, and prepared ourselves as best as possible for all that adopting a baby entails.

Folks, the time is getting nearer. We expect to finally travel to China before the end of the year to bring home Nola Avonlea Richards. I'm thrilled and honored that my sister has asked "Cool Aunt Rainey" (i plan to be reffered to only as this) to be a part of this journey. Mostly, I'll be schelping bags and attempting to document every second of this historic moment.

Here's a quick rundown of the process:
1. First you complete a crap ton of paperwork basically saying that you're not a psycho. Even I wrote a letter saying that my sister was not a psycho.

2. Then China writes back and says your Log In Date is... Broooke's is 5/19/2006. That's when she officially got in line.














3. you wait
4. you shop
5. you cry cause you've waited so long
6. you wait some more
7. you eat a lot of ice cream, or brownies, or hot dogs
8. you hope and wish that time would go by faster

Each month China sends out referrals through a certain log in date. This month they referred through May 10th, 2006. My head is spinning, we are only 9 log in days away from seeing this sweet baby's face for the first time. I've got my sharpie ready, I cannot wait to mark the rest of the days off of this calendar!!!














(Pay no attention to the Wrestlemania program! They're a client, and I happen to think the idea that I get to work on a Wrastlin' event is HILARIOUS. I've already scoped out potential mullet hairdos for the event week.)

Stay tuned for more details as we get closer to brining Nola home. We'll be documenting the whole process on another blog so you can go to China too!!!

You Look Just Like Your Mother

I get this a lot. Mostly because it’s true. I do, in fact, look just like my mother. We’re the same height which I’m truly thankful for. There were a few years there where I was the same height as her elbow and I remember getting jabbed in the forehead on many occasions. Evidently I was a little bit of a Velcro kid and my mother made lots of sudden stops. Anywho… we’re the same height, dye our hair basically the same color, laugh the same, and act the same.

Like any child, when people first started telling me I look like my mother, I was annoyed. But as I’ve grown, I realize there is no need to fight the inevitable. Thanks to her, I know exactly what my rear will look like in 30 years and it is fine by me.

The only time this “looking like your mother” thing rears its ugly head is when I start dressing like her. See these feet?

These are my feet in shoes of my choosing. I love flip flops, especially these metallic ones right now. If I had my choice, I’d where these shoes everyday. They’re comfortable and they make me happy.

See these feet?

These are my mothers. Notice that these feet didn’t become hers until I put on these shoes. These are shoes that my sister and I would immediately look at in a store and go “those look like momma.” Then, two days later, we’d go to her house and she’d say “look at my new shoes” and there they’d be. I needed some non-flip-flop sandals for work because it’s summer in Atlanta and my feet are just not feeling dress shoes at this time. According to my boss sandals cannot go between my toes and must have something over the heel. I thought these were soooo cute, until I went to work one day and realized I had on my mother’s feet. I guess copious amounts of Capri pants are in my future now too.

The great thing is… I love my momma and have come to accept taking her feet to work every now and then.

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Sidebar... i'd be remiss if I did not point out that the amazingly adorable pictures of my dogs were taken by Atlanta photographer, Lessia Teh. She's phenomenal. Check out her blog and business at http://www.leesiateh.com/blog/

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Sidebar #2... HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!! I'm so proud to live in America and happy to think today of all the brave things our founding fathers and thier families did to declare thier independence so long ago. Now go out and celebrate by grilling meat and drinking beer! (weird country right?)