New News!! (well, kind of...)

I received a call from our China Coordinator this afternoon with news that there is a possibility that we will get our travel approval this week or next week. Once again, nothing is predictable, so we will hold our breath until we hear more. The EXCITING part is that if it comes this week, there is a chance we will leave for China on April 13th...yes I know, that is only a couple of weeks away! If the travel approval comes next week, we will probably travel April 20th. Because of the Trade Fair in China, the hotel rooms will be more expensive and she wanted to make sure we would want to go as soon as possible (as if she needed to ask : ) ) This may mean that we would have to stay a little farther, but I refuse to wait longer than I have to to hold my little girl. Panic has already set in with all the things we would need to accomplish to be ready, but if I could, we would pack up tonight and leave tomorrow. I have also posted this adorable picture of our little Mia. It was a small photo so it didn't get posted before, but I think it may be the cutest one! We are still hoping to get updated info and pictures, but once again, nothing is predictable and we are content with just rolling with the punches. I cannot believe we are nearing the end of this "ride" only to begin the best years yet!!

In Loving Memory

I am sad to say my Grandpa passed early this morning in Idaho Falls, Idaho. He has been in a skilled nursing facility for a short while now and this picture is from our recent trip to see him. I have so many great memories of my grandpa and am glad he will not suffer anymore. This is my mom, big brother and younger twin sisters. Tomorrow, I will leave to Idaho and return on Monday. When we were young, we would spend whole summers at Grandma's and Grandpa's on the farm and these are some of my favorite memories ever. I can still feel my grandpa's "Bear Hugs" that I thought might just squeeze me til I burst! He always had a quiet way about him not needing much in the way of conversation but I always knew he loved me as he would give advice or discipline if I needed it. He would take us camping, fishing, to the bowling alley to eat lunch, to Ada's Cafe or just around town to run errands. I know my grandpa is in a better place but I am sad he was not able to meet Mia in person. I know he will be watching over her though just as I know my grandma is. She will have some wonderful Guardians guiding her through her life. Grandpa was asking about her constantly during our trip in February and kept telling me "You take real good care of her Trishy". I promise I will.

Just Back From Meeting..

We just got back from meeting with our China Coordinator to give her the "care box" for Mia (she will ship it out for us) and to sign our Visa applications . She was able to answer a few more questions we had. I had read somewhere that oftentimes, foster babies will spend their days in the orphanage then go home to the foster family at night. She does not think this is the case with Mia. The only time she would go to the orphanage is for check-ups. Also, we will be getting updated info and pictures at some point. Since the orphanage doesn't have a camera, she has to be taken to "the studio" to have her picture taken and they will also send updated info on her measurements. The best 'guess' for when we will travel is the end of April. We are still waiting for our travel approval so it is still up in the air. During April, there is a Trade Fair in Guangzhou which basically shuts down most other activity. We need to go to Guangzhou to complete the paperwork, so we would go to Mia's province first, then go to Guangzhou at the end. For her "care box", we sent a blanket, disposable camera, Classic Pooh Bear, Pooh rattle and a small photo album with pictures of us, Grandpa and Kayla.
We would like to thank everyone for being so happy for us! It is overwhelming that we have so many good friends, family as well as people we have never met wishing us well!

OK...Due to popular demand...

Due to popular demand I guess I should let everyone know what is next! We have accepted our referral (of course!) and our paperwork is on its way back to China. Then we wait for our TA (travel approval) which may take anywhere from 2-4 weeks. After we get our TA from China, we can make our Consulate appointment in China which ultimately is the date we will travel around. We cannot wait to go and bring our daughter home. Wow! It is still sinking in that we have a daughter! Kevin says its hard to think of anything but her. We have conversations like "where will her seat be on the sofa?" and "she will like American Idol because she likes music". OK, give us a break, we are first time parents!! We also received more info from our China Coordinator today. I think I forgot to mention she was 15 1/2lbs at the end of December. I have no idea what this means (high, low, average) and 25" long. I had them reversed and I know some people were alarmed...sorry! She is a light sleeper (uh oh), drinks about 7oz of milk per day, likes music, she can hold her head up when on her tummy, can locate the direction of sounds/ voices, distinguishes between acquaintances and strangers, is active, has a ready smile, impatient sometimes (she is Kevin's daughter!) and best of all...laughs aloud!
Doesn't she sound precious?
On Saturday, we will take our "care package " for her (a blanket we have slept with, outfit, pooh bear, rattle, disposable cameras and a small photo album) to have it sent to her. We also need to apply for our Visa's. That's all for now... more later! What a wonderful ride this is!!!

What we know so far..

This is our baby girl Mia. She will be 8 months old on 3/10/07. She is from the Fengcheng Social Welfare Institute in the Jiangxi Province. Her DOB is 7/10/06 and we there could be no parents more proud than us! We are actually finally a mommy and daddy. Can you believe it? We are still reeling from the reality of it all but I wanted to fill everyone in on our day..

Couldn't sleep at all last night, I "knew" today could be the day. Woke up and checked the message boards, but still wouldn't let myself believe it would be real. I thought I should let Kevin know there was a good chance we would get the call today. After a brief moment of panic, he regained composure and said "are you sure?" I assured him anything was possible and went to work with a stern warning to Kevin "Make sure you have your phone on you all day". He looked at me like "do you think I'm stupid?" Work was very unproductive but I tried to keep busy.
At 11:50am, I received a phone call and my heart skipped a beat. It was our China Coordinator telling me there was good news and bad news. As my heart sank, she told me the good news was that she received a referral package from China. The bad news was it only contained one referral (was supposed to have 2). She then told me it was our referral that she received. I was happy yet devastated for the other family who should have gotten their referral too. I wrote down all the info she gave me on scratch paper as I was not expecting the call til after noon and we set up an appointment at the Agency for 3pm.

When we met, we signed the referral accepting Mia as our daughter and now we wait for Travel Approval. Oh, I forgot to mention she is in Foster care which is great! I will update more later. Thank you for all your wishes, love and support!!!!

We Introduce to you Mia...

Referrals better come soon : )

I think I am going crazy! All I can think about is Mia. When I am at work, all I think about is Mia, when I am at home, all I think about is Mia... from the time I wake up til the time I go to bed, Mia, Mia, Mia.... If referrals don't come soon, I can only imagine what may happen! First of all, work may figure out I am walking around all day daydreaming AND they're paying me to do it! Secondly, the housework is not getting done which will soon become "wild cleaning woman on a rampage" (not a pretty sight I assure you). And lastly, soon no sane adult will want to talk to me because all I talk about is Mia.... So come on referrals!!! Save Me!