Thursday, December 31, 2009

Happy New Years...

In the New Year,
may your right hand always be stretched out in friendship, but never in want.
~ Traditional Irish Toast

Wishing you all a Happy New Year and all the best in 2010!

Monday, December 28, 2009

Happy New Year to Those Who ...

... have finally received their referrals. What a great way to start the New Year!

The CCAA has updated their website to say that they have placed children for families with log-in dates before April 3, 2006.

Friday, December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas...

And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

~Luke 2:10-11

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and all the blessings of the season!

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Xmas Origins...

You learn someting new every day...

"Xmas is an abbreviation for Christmas. It is derived from the word ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ, transliterated as Christos, which is Greek for Christ. Greek is the language in which the whole New Testament was written.

Originally, Xmas was an abbreviation where the X represents the Greek letter chi, which is the first letter of Christ's name. However, because of the modern interpretations of the letter X, many people are unaware of this and assume that this abbreviation is meant to drop Christ from Christmas."


Ok, I will admit I was one of those people. I didn't like the use of Xmas instead of Christmas. Now I know it's not as bad as I thought. Still, I like the look and sound of Christmas better ;op

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Please Remember ...

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.
Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.
The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.
My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.
The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear..
Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know,
Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.
Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.
A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.
"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,
"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!
"For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..
To the window that danced with a warm fire's light
Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,
I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."
"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.
No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.
My Gramps died at ' Pearl on a day in December,
"Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers.
"My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ' Nam ',
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.
I've not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile..
Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue... an American flag.
I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.
I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..
Who stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall.."
"So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."
"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,
"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you've done,
For being away from your wife and your son."
Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.
For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us.

I received this poem today and it touched my heart. At the bottom of the e-mail was also this request -

PLEASE, would you do me the kind favor of sending this to as many people as you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our U.S service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities.. Let's try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe. Make people stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us.
LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN
30th Naval Construction Regiment
OIC, Logistics Cell One
Al Taqqadum, Iraq


I don't know where this request originated from but I believe that it should be honored. Please remember to keep our soldiers in your thoughts and prayers this Christmas season and every day. Without them we would be living in a very different world. Thank you and God Bless!

Monday, December 07, 2009

Count UP to 39 Months...



We are 158 referral days away from being matched. With as little as 2 days being matched in some months our estimated wait time could extend to early 2013. That's really just too depressing to think about...

Thursday, December 03, 2009

Early Christmas Presents for Some...


Congratulations and Merry Christmas to those of you who are receiving referrals in this batch. You have finally almost reached the end of your journey, the end is in sight. Wishing all of you speedy travels and wondereful "gotcha" days.

The CCAA has finished the placement of children for the families whose adoption application documents were registered with our office before March 31, 2006.