What a difference a year makes

Snickerdoodle turned 1 year on the 4th.  Mrs. Cheriway took Snickerdoodle into her arms for ever a year ago today!

I had thought that at some point, being a parent would become just an every day thing.  I thought that at some point we would start to take it for granted - maybe even start complaining about it.

NOPE!

There isn't a day that goes by that Mrs. Cheriway or I don't make a comment about how perfect Snickerdoodle is or how lucky we are to have her.  She is healthy, smart and strong.  She sleeps well, she is great to take in public.

She is becoming such a big girl.  She is now able to climb stairs and get down off the bed.  She's constantly running around the house giggling and loves to torment the dogs.

Life is good, and so is our little girl.

Getting no where fast

Well, I had been predicting another 3 years before we go to China, however, over the past two months, the CCCWA hasn't done any referrals.  They've stated that they have been updating to an online system and have had some issues.  Supposedly they should be back up in July.  No word on whether they've been putting referrals together during the downtime or not.

Either way - so far for 2013 - they've gotten through about 13 days.  We've got 154 more days to go.

If they complete an average of 30 days a year (which is faster than the current rate) - we're looking at another 5 years.

Very disappointing.

On a positive note - Snickerdoodle is still doing great.  She's perfectly healthy, extremely happy and hitting all her milestones.  She'll be 10 months old on the 4th of July!!!  It's hard to believe how quickly time is going by with her.

Maybe having her will make our China wait go more quickly!  Still can't wait to get her little sister!

Jackpot!

Mrs. Cheriway and I started our journey to build a forever family 16 years ago.  It's been a crazy roller coaster with more valleys than peaks. It' been stressful, heartbreaking, and exhausting.  So many times we'd be given a small glimpse of hope only to have our dreams taken from us.  When we logged in to China, we thought that two to three years would be an impossible wait.  That was almost 6 years ago and my estimates are that we're just starting our three year wait.

All that being said - I can't believe how lucky we are.  Our little Snickerdoodle is amazing!!  She is perfect, and Mrs. Cheriway and I have never been as happy and fulfilled as we are now.

Snickerdoodle is such a good baby.  She's healthy - she's growing like mad, she loves to smile and laugh and has been sleeping through the night since week 7!!!!  I feel like my heart grows three sizes every time I look at her.

The wait was well worth it.

As anxious as we are to go to China and bring home her sister - we don't want to wish away one moment with our little angel.