Butterfly effect

The rumor mill is quiet - nothing new to report, really. Some are speculating that referrals will go through June 20, others say the 21st. Spain is reporting that China plans to stick with the week to seven days worth of referrals per month.

If they go through the 21st, that would be a good deal more than a week or seven days - more like 20 days. But it would mean that we would most likely get our referral in June. If they only do a week or so, then we're probably looking at July, possibly August. My goodness - the fun never stops, does it?

But I must admit, this wait does have it's "fun" side. For example, I feel like I'm part of this special little society. Chinese adoptive parents have their own society to begin with, but this - this is something else. I feel a connection to other June DTCers - I may not have anything in common with many of these families, but we have one very special bond and it supercedes all other issues at times.

This wait has brought people together from all kinds of background, religions, ethnicities and countries. I have a "friend" from France with the same LID as us. There's a chance we could be in China at the same time and actually meet. Same with the author at The Naked Ovary - our LIDs are one day apart. I've spent months reading, laughing and crying over her posts and it's quite likely that we might meet a world away. What an amazing power these little baby girls have. Talk about a butterfly effect!

I promise to keep the site as up to date with rumor and referral information as I can. Until then, here are some diversions. First, check out the column of adoption information to the right. We have a couple of new links - one is to a darling video sure to make you laugh and another to a sweet cartoon sure to touch your heart. Enjoy!

And don't forget Piper's birthday poll! Just click on the Comments link below and enter your guess. I'm going for October 19 - that would make Piper 8 months at referral if we get our referral in June. And October 19 is both my and Gary's dad's birthdate.

I read a post on At Last...A Family about middle names. She suggests an American middle name in addition to your child's Chinese middle name. We've planned all along to keep Piper's Chinese name for her middle name, but this whole "two middle names" thing has me intrigued. It's a good alternate - there may be times she doesn't want any preconceptions. On a resume for instance or a college or scholarship application. Or maybe she will want those preconceptions. Either way, an American middle name will give her the choice. Someday, she may shun all her American names and go by her Chinese name. Again, at least she'll have a choice to choose from her cultures and heritage.

So, with that in mind, we are thinking about Piper Sophia Chinese Name Szabo. What do you think?