It's July!

Well, everyone, it is officially July! And it is Fourth of July weekend. To be honest, this is harder than I thought. We had planned on having our little girl home and even bought a dress for the 4th of July, but of course that referral fell through, as you all know. Then we were told about another little girl that was born on June 3 that could put us in Japan right now during the 4th. But that of course didn't come to fruition either. So being home and without a little one right now is difficult, along with still coping with the loss our our Stormy boy, who has left a hole in our lives. But we are trying to make the best of it.

On the adoption front, we do have some good news...potentially. It seems as if things in Japan are starting to shift in favor of the US again, which means more and more women are starting to decide on US adoption over domestic and Canada. There are many women due between now and the end of August, two of which are due in the next ten days. Of the two, one is US as of last Friday and the other is still undecided between US and Canada. So as long as either one of these brave ladies chooses US adoption, we will have a referral by the end of July. If not, there are still many more upcoming due dates. Faith International has been in touch with us about twice a week keeping us informed, which we love, and they are very optimistic that our little one is coming very soon! So our fingers are crossed and prayers have been sent!

I will say that this wait has been much harder than we anticipated. But we are trying to keep ourselves busy (as cost efficiently as possible) in order to keep our minds from running away from us. So we celebrated my little brother's 26th birthday at the Newport Aquarium. I had cheer camp with my girls, which leaves no downtime for thinking. :) Then Vince and I took a day to visit the Columbus Zoo, which I personally love. We also had three days of summer photo sessions for donations where we made $665 to put toward our adoption. Yay! Thank you to all of you who came out! We had fun and I hope you all love your photos! After that I decided Sadie needed her first photo shoot, of course...she was a champ! And just this last Friday, I had the chance to have a free manicure, pedicure, and facial. That was the most relaxing three hours of the last several weeks. I've also been looking through past pictures from when my mom, brother, and I went to Japan in 2012. It's amazing how at home I felt there back then. Part of me wonders if that's because my heart already knew what was in store for us. I cannot wait for Vince to experience that amazing country!

Now we wait and hope our little one comes soon! We have been praying for peace and comfort for the birth mom of our future little cherry blossom and would love it if you all would send positive vibes and prayers. This decision cannot be easy, and we are blown away and in complete admiration of a woman we haven't even met. May she always know how much love and respect we will always have for her.

Until next time...here are a few pics to enjoy! :)

A few of my favorite pics from Japan in 2012!

Terry turns 26!

Cheer Camp!

Columbus Zoo!

Jackie and Sadie cuddling with momma! Yes, Sadie has a Cavs jersey...that's all Vince! :)

My day of relaxation...and new books for baby Banion!

Sadie's Photo Shoot...the last picture is an updated pic of her...she's getting big...oh, and yes, she loves sitting in the sink while I do my make up...she's strange...and yes, I cleaned it out afterward...

Silly girl...