Happy Valentine's Day

Wishing all a very Happy Valentine's Day - especially my wonderful husband Robert - I love you more than I can say. And to my parents - thank you for always being there for me when I've needed it.

Hopefully we'll have our own little Valentine by this time next year.

Sunday morning traditions

Since I was little Sunday mornings always meant my dad would make either pancakes or waffles. Sometimes, to gross us out, he would even add food coloring (I mean what kid wouldn't want a green pancake I ask?!) We used to love it. I've tried to continue the tradition and make them most Sundays.

Today, I decided to be daring and break the mold - I made a German Apple Pancake. Oh my was it good! I've had it at restaurants but always thought it must be difficult to make - was I wrong! I think I'm going to have to add it to my repertoire. I got the recipe from "The Best of Waffles & Pancakes - A Cookbook". The recipe is too good not to share.

German Apple Pancake

1 cup milk
3 large eggs, at room temperature
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons butter
2 medium cooking apples, such as Granny Smith, peeled, cored & cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
Confectioner's sugar, for dusting
Lemon wedges (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375°F. In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, flour, and 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar.

In a large heavy ovenproof skillet over medium high heat, melt the butter. Add the apples, cinnamon, and the remaining 1 tablespoon granulated sugar. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the apples are softened slightly. Remove the pan from the heat. Pour the batter over the apples in the pan. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the pancake is lightly browned and puffy.

Remove the pan from the oven and cut the pancake into wedges. Transfer the wedges to warmed serving plates, dust with confectioners sugar, and serve with lemon wedges, if desired.

Happy eating!

Understanding the Referral process

Since the referral process has been confusing for some members of my family, I thought I'd create this calendar along with a brief explanation to help everyone understand.

The child match time frame refers to the wait time between our dossier being logged-in at the CCAA (China Center of Adoption Affairs) and the moment we receive our child match from the CCAA. When it is our turn to be matched, the CCAA will match us with a child according to our qualifications and preferences as requested in our dossier. Our child’s photos, translated Physical Examination Report, State of Growth, Background Information, and Immunization record will be sent to us through our international adoption agency - CCAI.

Each month the CCAA looks at the number of paper-ready children that are adoptable and the number of waiting families waiting to adopt them for each LID (Log-In) date and they "match" them based on some unknown magical process until there are theoretically no more babies available. This gives us the "referrals through XX date" that you see every month.

Right now the CCAA has referred through June 2, 2006 and our LID is July 14, 2006. I hope the calendar helps visualize the process. I will try to update this calendar at each referral batch that comes in. As you can see, we have 42 more Log-in dates (which is just calendar days) to go until we're referred our daughter(s).

It's off at the quilter's

Today, I dropped the quilt off at Coleen's who will be doing the long arm quilting of our 100 Good Wishes Quilt. I had such a hard time deciding on what pattern to use for the all-over quilting. Then I had to decide on thread color. So many decisions... and I'd have to live with whatever I chose forever. It was not to be taken lightly.

This is a pretty close representation of what I chose as the all-over pattern. I can't wait to see it all done.

It seems only fitting that our initial meeting got postponed from yesterday to today due to the snow - so now she's starting it on the Chinese New Year!

Matches Mailed and Calls being made

Well, as is traditional it seems, the CCAA mailed out referrals right before the Chinese New Year. The calls are being made to those lucky families who get to see their child's face for the first time today. Hopefully this will be our lucky year as well. Time will tell...

While not official since the CCAA is closed for their holiday, it seems the cut-off is June 2, 2006. A 4-day referral batch. Not exactly the stellar performance by the CCAA, but at least we're knocking a few days off the calendar. (Side note: the CCAA will be out of the office until Feb. 9th)

So we are now down to 42 days worth of referral days to go until we receive our match.

Since today marks the beginning of the Year of the Rabbit, maybe we'll be multiplying like one this year? Once can dream....

Happy Chinese New Year of the Rabbit

Today marks the first day of the Chinese New Year of the Rabbit.

Here is a little something I found on a website about those who are born under the sign of the Rabbit, which is the fourth sign in the Chinese Zodiac. Each sign is characterized with certain personality traits. I am a Snake and Robert is a Tiger. What will our daughter be??

THE SIGN OF THE RABBIT

Rabbits, like their animal counterparts, are quite calm people who do not exhibit aggressive behavior and will avoid confrontation at all costs. When angry about something, a Rabbit will approach it calmly and considerately, hardly ever raising his voice or becoming visibly annoyed. Because of their serenity, Rabbits seem to miss things, whether they are confrontational in nature or not. However, the Rabbit is quite keen and pays close attention to the situations developing around him. He is intelligent and quick and can talk himself in or out of most situations with no problem. 

The Chinese Rabbit is one of the most stylish creatures of the Chinese Animal Signs and finds interest in different cultures. He is classy and sophisticated, and can be found adorning one of the latest fashion magazine cover looks. Rabbits also like artistic ventures, such as painting and music and are generally quite present in these worlds. They love top express themselves, which is evident when joining them at home for a function or a cup of coffee.

The 100 Good Wishes Quilt top is done

My mom came in today and we finished putting together the quilt top for our daughter's 100 Good Wishes Quilt. It turned out so beautifully! I just wish my daughter was here to be wrapped up in it. All in good time, I guess...

I chose this pattern because it kind of reminded me of a basket weave - all the love being woven around her to keep her warm and loved all night long.

And as is tradition in Amish quilts - it's not supposed to be perfect. It should always have at least one flaw in it. As neither of us had made a quilt before - there are plenty of those to go around! Just don't look too closely!

Thanks mom for all your hard work. I love you!

Now, I have to call the quilter who will be doing the long-arm quilting on her machine. Fun times!

My mom sewing on the last of the sashing

the finished 100 Good Wishes Quilt

My mom modeling her handiwork

Me modeling the finished quilt. Love it!

A little excitement

Well, when you can't get excited about the adoption (which has been moving as of late at a snail's pace), at least we have the Green Bay Packers to celebrate with! We're Super Bowl bound!! An exciting game right down to the last seconds. Go Pack!!

My mom is a busy little beaver!

I was just informed today that my mom finished sewing the last of the strips/rows for our daughter's 100 Good Wishes Quilt. On her next visit here, we just need to sew them onto the finished part of the quilt and then add the top and bottom sashes to the quilt. I can't believe that it's almost done already. After that, I just have to meet up with the lady who will be doing the quilting. Exciting!!

Happy Birthday Dad!

I just want to say a big "Happy Birthday" to my dad! Hope you're enjoying your day!

His favorite subject is food (but I think that goes for anyone in my family). This photo was taken of me making him his favorite Filet Mignon with a Peppercorn sauce - gotta love flaming alcohol!