Empty Red Sofas....

I genuinely needed new furniture.  Our green sofa had suffered through eleven years of kids, snacks, pets, spills, maybe the occasional diaper change and multitudinous other stuff---so the logical thing to do was get another one.  We went to Bob Mills Furniture (no longer the "Working Man's Friend" like he was in the early 90s---now he's your "Home's Best Friend".  My home doesn't need a "best friend", but anyway...) and walked through the entire store even though I had decided to get the sofa right inside the front door as soon as I laid eyes on it.  It's red.  In case you don't know, when adoptive parents take their new babies and children to the consulate in Guangzhou (had to stop and look up the spelling for that one) they often stay at the White Swan Hotel.  One of the "must do" things at the White Swan is to have your baby's picture taken on one of the many RED COUCHES located around the hotel-----SOOOOOOOOOOOO, I figured every year on her Gotcha Day anniversary I'd take Maisy's picture on her very own red couch.  Besides, I've always wanted a red sofa (got the love seat, too).   I got pretty teared up this evening upon reading Rumor Queen because rumor has it that the CCAA is going to refer only 2 days of LIDs this go around.  That is devastating.  If you believe in the power of prayer please join me in praying that the rumor is wrong and so many families just like mine will be joined with the babies they have waited years to hold.  I just cannot imagine waiting another two or three years before I get to put our Maisy on her own red sofa.  God help us all.   Spring Festival is coming up (known as Chinese New Year only to folks who are not Chinese).  Maybe we will go down to the Golden Palace downtown and watch the dragon dance and eat some dumplings to celebrate----wait a minute, celebrate what?---Yeah, I don't know either.   I made Maisy another bonnet and a couple of baby blankets.  Maybe I'll post pictures of them soon.  One of the blankets is pink with pandas all over it.  I couldn't bear to cut off any of the little pandas' heads---so it's a pretty big blankie!   Here's a funny I will sign off with (since I'm still pretty much reeling from the punch in the gut of the latest rumor)----Every adoptive family who stays at the White Swan gets a "Chinese Adoption Barbie".  You can't buy them anywhere or get them at any other hotel---just the White Swan.  Anyway, a woman I know who has two children from China was showing the Barbie with the Chinese baby (still in the box) to a group of folks interested in Chinese adoption (years ago, because Ben and I were in that group) and her daughter who was three at the time said "Hey, what's that?"  Her mother explained the dolls origins and that she got it when the little girl was only eighteen months old.  Of course, the child asked to play with it and her mother was aghast---(it's a keepsake, right?)  Mom refused and told the little girl that she could have it when she was grown up.  "Well fine" says the three year old, "But I'm taking it out of the box and THEN I'M GONNA PLAY WITH IT!!!"   Holding on to Hope----Because it's all we've got. Amy