Update #2!

Hi guys!

So, I have been procrastinating on doing update #2 because I keep forgetting to have the disk of C's 1st bday party pics with me... so my solution is to go a little out of order in our events and then revisit the bday party in maybe the next update...

About a week after C's 1st birthday, our little family of 3 drove down to Fresno to attend a picnic that I organized for adoptive families from Central California. Normally, or at least in the past 5 years or so, our adoption agency Holt has put on a picnic for Holt families down in the Fresno area- we attended last year and it was lots of fun to meet families who had adopted from Korea and China. Well, this year Holt decided to not have a picnic because of low attendance. I was SOOO upset! I loved going last year and think it is so important for C to grow up knowing that our family isn't the only family out there that looks like we do. I decided something had to be done about this picnic deal and quickly contacted a few people that I had met thru the Holt BB. We decided to set a date and then I found a place to go. We ended up at Woodward park in Fresno and let me tell you that this park is HUGE and BEAUTIFUL!

When we arrived at the park we were the first family there and my initial thought was "Oh NO! NO one else is going to come." However, within the next 40 minutes we had between 25 and 30 people at the picnic. There were lots of kiddos for C to "play" with and run around with. All in all, I think there were about 9 families that attended the picnic. There was another family there whom we had met last year and they just got to bring their baby girl home from Korea in May. Another family just brought their son home from Thailand around the same time C came home. There was a couple there who has been waiting almost 3 years to bring home a baby from China and they were really hoping to have a referral by next spring! A 3 year wait- I can't even imagine how excruciating that must be! We waited 19 months start to finish and trust me that was long enough for me to feel like I was going loony! Most of the rest of the families we had met back in September at a Korean heritage night in Fresno and most of them are also members on the Holt BB! It is so fun to get to hang out with others that I have talked to for months on the BB!

All the families seemed to have fun at the picnic and I really hope to be able to organize it again next year! The day was nothing too special... just a day for happiness, talking, laughter and some good food. It is so good to connect with other families/friends (!) who have adopted as I believe we all share a very special connection with one another...

I would love to put up pictures from this event but can't as all my pictures have other kids and families in them and for privacy reasons it just wouldn't be right of me to post those pics online! If you ever want to see the pics of all the wonderful adoptive families let me know and I will be happy to share those pictures with you in person!

M