Another Step Closer

Does this look familiar to anyone?  It is our dossier picture!!  We received our approval letter from USCIS in just a little over two weeks -- thinking it could very possibly take up to two months.  What an awesome surprise!  So that therefore means our dossier is now complete and is on its way to our agency via FedEx as we speak.  We took this same photograph almost two years ago when we sent off Ari's dossier (December '08) and now here we are sending off the dossier for Baby Girl Wasson!!  Another huge step closer to a sweet little someone in Ethiopia.  We are so excited!!  We are anticipating a 6- to 9-month wait until our referral, give or take, which is of course subject to change.  But in case anyone is wondering, that's what we're anticipating next! 

 

Ari has now completely transitioned into his new routine with school.  He is loving it!  Still exhausted every day after school but really loving it.  And, in recent developments, just in the past few days his vocabulary has started to expand.  His repertoire now includes:

• Da-ddy, Da-da
• hi
• up
• down
• go
• hat
• light
• hot
• ice
• bu-bu (bubbles)
• car
• a-dee (again)

These are words we are absolutely positive of.  Then there are "words" I hear frequently that I have yet to figure out what they actually are.  I think I can count on one hand how many times he's said "ma-ma," but that's okay.  This past Saturday morning Ari woke up at 6 a.m., so Roger went in and gave him his sippy cup of milk and turned on his rainforest light thingy to try to buy us another half hour or so of sleep.  About five minutes later we hear "Dad!" coming across the house in the clearest, most direct little voice you ever did hear.  It was hilarious!  That was the first time Ari has ever called for one of us by name.  No crying or whining or moaning -- just "Dad!  Da-ddy!"  So, so cute.  It was very reminiscent of the time we turned on the monitor and saw Ari standing in his crib for the first time.    "Ice," "car," and "bubbles" are all very new and recent, so I'm excited to hear what he'll say this week!