Civil Affairs

This is the happy family with the orphanage directors

Day 2 and all is well!

This was Mia first thing this morning! Then the inevitable happened. She ripped the bow right out of her hair! Oh well, it was cute while it lasted. Last night was not bad at all : ) Mia fell asleep about 8pm then woke at about midnight and wanted to play! She finally fell asleep again at about 1:30 and slept right til 6:30. She woke up smiling and talking! After breakfast at the hotel, we had a paperwork day. We went back to the civil affairs office where we received Mia and finalized her adoption certificate. We were able to see the 2 men who brought our little one to us yesterday. They were directors from the orphanage. We also took a picture with them which I will post. They were very nice. I will also try to fill in some blanks from yesterday. Yesterday, we got Mia as well as the things from her care package that we had sent. We sent a disposable camera that we received back as well. Can't wait to get that developed! They also gave us a gift from the orphanage. OK, so this morning we had a classic rookie parent moment. We met our guide Echo in the lobby after breakfast to go to the Civil Affairs Office. (it is almost across the street) Oh that is another story!! Well, Echo said "you need to cover her more it is windy" so I wrapped a blanket around her since I already had a jacket on her and we proceded outside. It was WINDY and cold and I should have been better prepared as it started to rain hard right before we had to go outside again...argh!! Bad Mom!! So back to the streets....I had heard about how crazy the drivers were here, but I had NO idea!! The traffic is the most chaotic yet almost orchestrated I have ever seen. There are cars, scooters, bicycles and pedestrians (even saw carts people pull) everywhere!! They all share the same road and if you don't know exactly how big your car is, you will lose parts!! I am fascinated and feel like Frogger crossing the road. So today we received Mia's adoption certificate and applied for her Passport as well as had stuff notarized. Then we went to Wal Mart!! Interesting and different, yet still has everything you could need and more! The only thing I bought for Mia was a few pairs of soft shoes. The rest was snacks, formula, rice cereal etc... Now we are resting and Mia is napping (still waiting for the tough part) She is very active and happy. She fights sleep, but eventually gives in : ) Daddy is also napping and has been so awesome!! He got up with her last night and is totally in love with his new baby girl!! Sorry not many pics, but it was the best I could do with the weather! Oh, and the hotel we are staying in is beautiful!! Will post again soon!

And now without further ado....Mia!!

Here are just a few pics. The bottom two are from right after we got her. To see more pics, click on the image to the right of us in front of the Tom Bradley Terminal at LAX. This will be a short posting since I am EXHAUSTED and little Mia is sleeping. This has been the longest best day ever! We got to LAX at 7:30pm on the 14th (thanks Lynn, Keith and boys!!) and arrived in Guangzhou at 6:30am on the 16th. Anyone ever have to take the bus to the gate?? From the time we arrived at LAX, we felt like we were in the Twilight Zone because we were clueless!! After we arrived in Guangzhou, we had a 5 hour layover and I experienced my first squatty potty(will save that one for a later post). Then we got on another plane to Nanchang. Oh and almost left our luggage in Guangzhou because we didn't realize we had to re-check it! BUT once we saw Mia, everything was ok. She has been smiling and laughing and we are just holding our breaths knowing there will be a rough patch. She got a bath tonight and liked it! OK it's 8:45 pm and I better get some rest before she wakes up. Just wanted to let everyone see her and know we made it here ok!

We leave Saturday night!

We have tickets in hand and are beginning to pack...what a whirlwind!! I wanted to give everyone an idea of our itinerary:
4/14/07- Leave LA at 11:50pm
4/16/07- (yes, we miss a whole day!) arrive in Guangzhou at 6:50am
12:20pm get on another plane to Nanchang
1:45pm arrive in Nanchang
Sometime this same afternoon we receive Mia!!! (Gotcha Day)
4/17/07- Provincial Adoption Registrar (Adoption Certificate)
Provincial Notary Office (Adoption Cert, Birth Cert, Abandonment Cert)
Apply for Mia's passport
4/18/07- City Tour
4/19/07- Relax
4/20/07- Pick up Mia's passport and all adoption documents
4/21/07- 2:30pm Fly from Nanchang to Guangzhou
Arrive In Guangzhou at 3:45pm
Check in to famous White Swan Hotel, walk around Shamian Island
Photo/ Medical Exam/ Review Paperwork
4/22/07- Rest
4/23/07- 9:30am Consulate Appointment (we don't need to be there : ) )
4/24/07- 12:00pm checkout
3:00pm Go to the new US Consulate for Swearing-In Ceremony
Pick up Visa
6:00pm Arrive at Guangzhou Airport
9:00pm fly home!!!
6:50pm arrive at LAX (Yes, the same day...before we took off!!)
The time difference from US to China is 15 hours ahead! Mia will be a US Citizen as soon as we land in LA: )!

We received our Consulate Appointment!!

We received the call today that our China Facilitator has confirmation for our Consulate Appointment!! What this means is that we will leave next week for sure! Our Consulate Appointment (CA) is for April 23rd which means that we will hold Mia for the first time on April 16th. Can you believe it? I'm still in half a state of shock and half panic! But 110% bliss and gratefulness for so many people including so many we have never met face to face, but who have shared the same heartache, waiting, frustration elation and the biggest lesson in patience we may ever face. Today I have also been reflecting on Mia's birth mother who has given us the greatest gift we are truly so blessed to receive. Her bravery and love for Mia has not been lost on us and we promise to teach Mia how much her birth mom loved her so that she could be with us forever. God has answered our prayers for a child to be a part of our family and like everyone says, all the waiting and sorrow just drop away the closer you get to your baby!

Getting Closer!!

Well, today we received our TA (travel approval) Yea!!! Our China facilitator has asked for a consulate appointment for April 23, 24 or 25th. As long as we get one of those dates, we will leave on April 13th. We will not know for sure for 2-3 days but we are running around anticipating leaving in less than 2 weeks! Every milestone we reach makes bringing Mia home a little more real. This is all becoming very 'real' very quickly! Just think, if we do get to travel on the 13th, then 2 weeks from now, we will have Mia in our arms!! Oh we can't wait! Just wanted to spread the good news, now off to do more preparation!!

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!!