Many Thanks

To everyone who has sent condolences regarding the passing of our greyhound, Konrad, we say thank you. The outpouring of concern and understanding has truly helped Pat and I with the grieving of this great loss.

We also say thank you to the Nevin family for taking the last batch of pictures and video of our darling girl.

Another thank you goes to Pam and Joel for sending what we think is a picture of Devi at about 2 months old that was taken during their trip to India to get their son, Micah. All pictures are precious and we are grateful to have every one.

Lastly, thank you to Macy's for putting an end to my year long search for small recliners. We realized after living in this house ten years that there was no comfortable seating in the room that gets used the most...the family room. Since finding out about our sweet pea, Pat has had this starry eyed dream of having Devi fall asleep on his chest while seated in a recliner...hence the new chairs have been dubbed "Devi's recliners".

Parallels

How is it possible for the human heart to be near bursting with joy over the addition of a new child into the family and breaking apart at the contemplation of losing another member of the family at the same time?

It is with great sadness that I share that our Konrad has been diagnosed with osteosarcoma in his rear leg below the knee. This cancer is a fast growing extremely painful disease with no cure. Ironically, it is the one of the same types of cancer that my mother faced. Left untreated, the risk of broken bones would be high and Konrad's life would probably be coming to a close about the time we would be leaving for India. I don't know if there is such a thing as perfect timing, but I can tell you this is not it. Amputation is the option we chose. While this is not a cure, it will take away Konrad's pain and hopefully will prolong his longevity, allowing us to travel to India and avoid leaving Konrad's fate in the hands of those who would be caring for him in our absence. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we pursue Konrad's treatment. His surgery is in progress as I type this.

On the same day that we received this sad news, we also received new photos and a video of our sweet DeeDee, courtesy of another traveling family. Naturally, it brought a lift in our spirits as we witnessed, for the first time, our princess sitting independently and sucking her thumb. What a bright spot she brings to our lives at this difficult time without even knowing it.

*Update: Our dear boy made it through the surgery quite well. He rallied, was drinking water and things looked very hopeful. Unfortunately, there was a complication. A blood clot broke loose and went to his heart. The vet administered CPR and revived him and again Konrad was doing well. Later, his heart stopped a second time and Konrad could not be revived.

It is with heavy hearts that we say goodbye to our dear poochie. He would have truly loved a tail pull or ear scritch from Devi and certainly any scraps of food that may have fallen his way. He will be dearly missed. He was such a good boy.

Monsoon in Seattle

Dear Devi,
More and more often my thoughts are stolen away to images of you. Today as I was eating lunch I noticed that we are experiencing a day similar to what you must be having during your first Monsoon season. Through the folds of the angry gray sky are the rays of sunshine that somehow are finding their way to earth, proving that we are truly in the height of one of our warmer months. The day is leisurely passing the time going from sprinkle to shower and back to sun again. Although we rarely experience humidity, today steam, like the kind one sees leaving the rim of an open pot just before it boils, is rising from the warmed and wet asphalt and is swirled away by the breeze of passing traffic. This rare combination of intermixing warm and cool wind intensifies the scent of spices wafting from behind the counter where I am eating my vegie taco lunch. As I close my eyes, I am in the India I have been imagining this past 2 and a half years. You are on my hip, fascinated by my earrings or my hair and are swinging your chubby legs, babbling a thousand miles an hour about all things you just can't wait to tell us. Your dad bargains for the treasures we have chosen from a vendor at the local market place that is overwhelmed us with it's energy and colorful wares. The clatter of the restaurant and next sudden downpour brings me back to the present where I sit staring at the same page of my book....India: A travel Guide. I've read the same page about Jaipur, the pink city, several times now and must go back to work....with a smile on my face.

Thanks for sharing my lunch with me sweet DeeDee.
Love you so very much,
Mom

Losing Patience!

Losing patience! I guess we all are. I have received so many phone calls, emails and inquiries about what is happening with Devi. We appreciate all of your support so much and I wish I had more details. (If you just can't wait...you might want to scroll to the bottom first!)

I do have one morsel of information to share. On July 3rd we received email from Dillon that the "scrutinization" of our documents was complete. Scrutinization is the first part of the Kolkata court process. Basically, all of our information has been "scrutinized" by an attorney of the court and a report has been written that "recommends" that the judge "approve" our guardianship. That all sounds positive to me, so woo-hoo and high-fives to that!

The next step is having a court date set for our guardianship hearing. This usually takes 3-4 weeks. This is the scary part because sometimes cases have to go through several hearing dates before the case is done. The agency will let us know when the case is approved or if the judge asks for additional paperwork. In addition to the possibility of multiple hearing dates, we also have a judge whose term ends in August. He may or may not decide to continue on for another term. Although he has been difficult at times, I hope he chooses to stay on because if a new judge takes his place, they tend to take a month or more to learn their new positions...a time when NO cases will be heard. Of course the timing falls right at a crucial time for us. I explained all this to my sister-in-law, Lisa, recently and to quote her..."Now I know what I am praying and crossing all my body parts for!" We are gladly accepting prayers for a smooth and speedy court process and if you feel like crossing body parts too...by all means, do! :)

There are a lot of outside sources that sustain us through this time. Family and friends for sure, but I have to give kudos to the Dillon forum (a group of Indian adoptive families) who share thoughts and their own experiences with adoption. They are the "go-to" group...a wealth of information and just plain support. They remind us of what we are trying to accomplish and that the outcome far surpasses the journey to get there.

We just try to stay busy, although Patrick tells me every morning he can't wait to hold her! Currently, we are fast and furiously working on Devi's room which we hope to share photos of soon. We view the video of her often and are starting on her Lifebook which will tell the story of how we found each other. And for those of you who are still starved for information, after all that, we hear rumors of updated pictures coming soon! I hope, I hope!

SIDE NOTE!! No sooner had I posted this latest message when what should arrive? A message from Dillon and our Bengali girl graces my computer with her presence! I LOVE FRIDAY THE 13THS! This photo was taken July 6, 2007 by a traveling family. We are so thankful for their efforts.