The Birthday Girl!

Right after we met:

Later, playing in the hotel room:

She was the quitest baby when we got her, at 4pm local time. She was grieving a bit ago and seemed none to interested in her bottle. Daddy got her to sleep and she is napping now. Daddy also managed to get her first almost-smile, thanks to his Donald Duck impersonation....it works every time!

We will write more later, but first a pizza party in the hallway with our travel group. Our guide is wise enough to know that no one wants to venture out to eat this first night. Also, our guide Cindy remembered that Keira's b-day is today and she brought us a cake! She has been taking such good care of all of us.

Don't worry - more photos to come later tonight.

Sheng ri kuai le, Jiaojiao! Happy Birthday, Keira!

And Happy Family Day too!

Countdown to Keira

Ni hao, y'all (we are in southern China, afterall!)! We are now in Nanning, and boy - is the weather so much nicer down here! Sunny and 60-something. Nanning is a "small" Chinese city - only about 6 million people in the metro area, 1 million in the downtown area. Tomorrow afternoon we meet Keira. Yippee! Our travel group has been great so far, and I think everyone is getting excited about the big day. When we checked into our hotel this afternoon we found cribs in our rooms. I don't know if you can tell from the photo, but the quilt in the crib for Baby K says Happy Birthday on it. Can you believe that? As if they knew that her day is tomorrow!

Upon further inspection in the room, I also found this in the fridge:

For some reason, blogger turned the photo sideways, but you get the idea: a Diet Coke! Yippee!! I haven't seen one of these since I left Indy. It is actually a bit different from the DC in the US, more like a Coke Zero, but I'll take it. Yummm.

After some of this tasty stuff, I was ready to hit the road! Our guide took us to a nearby grocery store and we did a little shopping - mostly for water and snacks. We will baby shop more on Tuesday. We got some yummy Chinese snacks - like seaweed flavored crackers and BBQ chips. We passed on buying the chicken feet at the end of aisle 1.

We also stepped into a Chinese pharmacy. For my pharmacy and LLY friends, thought you might like to know that we spotted some cephalexin and cefaclor on the shelves (apparently some atb are OTC?), along side a whole slew of flouroquinolones. I also learned that our guide has a friend that works for "some American pharmaceutical company"....as she tried to say the name, I knew what she was talking about: the Colonel's! Small world, eh? I was happy to hear her report that LLY is doing well apparently in China, thanks to the increasing recognition that depression and other mental illnesses are real diseases.

OK - enough shop talk. Here are a few photos of Nanning. They were taken from our hotel window. One is a general skyline shot, the other a picture of the People's Park, which we can see from our room. We hope to take Baby K there for walks soon!

Hope all is well back home. We miss you and will write more soon!

If It's Saturday, It Must be Beijing

Hello again! Today was our Beijing-in-a-day tour. Or rather, Beijing in one really, really, cold and windy day. It was about 30 degrees here, but the wind was ridiculous. We did a quick walking tour of Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City; then on to lunch at a Chinese restuarant (are there any other kind here?!). We did a bit of shopping. And then - the Great Wall. The photo to the side shows one of the countdown-to-the-Olympics displays. Beijing is very excited to host the Olympics in 2008 and a lot of construction is on-going.

Now, the best part of the day was the ride home (tour bus with our fabulous guide, Cindy, and 10 other families): we got updates on our daughters! We learned, among other things, that Keira is active, restless, energetic and extroverted. She has a sweet smile (we can't wait to see that ourselves!) and gets along well with other kids. The following tidbit assured us she indeed belongs with us: she likes to...."and watch TV commercials"! Ah yes - a kid who likes TV! She will fit in well with her parents and older brother. We also learned that Keira has been in Foster Care since late August. We did not know this information when we got her referral, but I think it is a good thing. There was also a current height and weight. We guesstimated pretty closely, so the clothes we bought for her should fit OK.

Now, other fun facts from the trip: a new KFC opened across the street from our hotel this morning - there was a dancing dragon (like in Chinese NY parades) to celebrate! While surfing Chinese TV this afternoon, I saw a bit of what was apparently the Chinese equivalent of The Price is Right. "Bob" was dressed more like Austin Powers, and the "Barker's Beauties" had more clothes on than their US counterparts. There was, however, "the big wheel" that they spin to get into the showcase.

That's all for now. Tomorrow at 7am we hop a plane to Nanning and get settled in to meet Keira on the 18th. After today's weather here, I am so thankful to be headed to south China! Yippee!

Ni Hao!

Hello! We made it to the other side of the world. And pretty smoothly, I might add - Thank God! Even our suitcase followed us from Indy to Beijing. Our flights were nice; even the food was decent. OK - some was actually good! And, as our luck would have it, this nice college student sitting next to us on the flight from Chicago to HK (the loooong flight), got invited to sit up with the rest of her friends, in what seemed to be one of the few open seats on the plane. So, we ended up with the empty seat next to us. Yippee! Being able to stretch out a bit saved our sanity I think. Other than that, which even isn't that interesting, nothing else much happened. That's how smoothly it has gone so far. Tomorrow, while it is 31 degrees and windy in Beijing, we will be touring. I have no photos to post today, as it is 1am in the morning and we just got in a few hours ago. But, I will tell you that I have seen a couple of Santas, a hotel worker dressed like an elf, and many, many lights.
I leave you with the one word that is the same in any language: iPod!

Til tomorrow....

From 0 to 9000 in 26 hours

Our United Frequent Flyer Mileage bank will go from zero to over 9000 in the matter of a day. Since some of you asked, here are some stats about the trip:
From Indy to Beijing, by way of Chicago and Hong Kong, it is about 9200 miles.
We will be in the air a little over 20 hours total.
And if you include airport time, total travel time will be a bit over 26 hours.
And that's assuming it all goes on schedule. I will not post any snide remarks here about the airline industry, on-time ratings, or lost luggage statistics, lest I anger the gods of flight. I will say, however, that other than meeting Keira on Monday, my happiest moment may indeed be the moment I realize that our checked suitcase did actually follow us from Indiana all the way to China.

Thanks to all who have called or e-mailed to wish us well. We really appreciate your thoughts and prayers.

No thanks to those of you who threaten to make Q a Bengals fan by the time we return. Remember that Santa is watching and I'd hate for a lump of coal to come your way!

Next time, the writings will be from the east. Zai jian!

I'm Dreaming of a White (Swan) Christmas

The departure ticker is counting down: less than a week until we head to China! I made some modifications to our travel intinerary below (nothing major -just a few more details, if you're interested).

We recently received our travel group intinerary - we are 1 of 11 families from our agency that are headed to Nanning for their children. We also have our hotel accomodations. We will be staying here in Beijing -->

I don't have a photo of the Nanning hotel. But below is a photo of beautiful Nanning. We can't wait to visit!

And for the last leg of our trip, we will be in Guangzhou at the White Swan Hotel. Most adoptive families seem to end up here. The White Swan is the home of the famed "red couch" (actually, there' s more than one, I'm told), upon which nearly every child who has passed through is photographed. (Consider yourself warned...Red Couch photos coming to a blog near you SOON!) Additionally, the White Swan provides, courtesy of Mattel, "Coming Home Barbies" for the girls. This is a lovely little Barbie mommy holding an Asian baby. I wasn't planning on K having a Barbie for her first birthday, but I can live with it I suppose...especially since the Barbie mommy looks so much like her own (I say this for the benefit or those of you who have never seen me...I want you to have an accurate picture in your head....bwah-ha-ha!).

Well, off to pack a little more while I can. Q has collapsed on the couch after a full afternoon of adoption-related errand running. At least the bank teller offered him a lollipop, so the day wasn't a total loss for him.

I Love It When a Plan Comes Together!

We've had a busy day today! Our consulate appointment was confirmed for December 26, and so we were able to go ahead and get our airline tickets. We also now have a general itinerary for our whole trip. It goes something like this:

December 14: Fly from Indy to Chicago to Hong Kong to Beijing
Dec 15: Finally arrive in Beijing
Dec 16: Tour Beijing - Great Wall, Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City. Try to get turned around on the 13-hour time difference so we can be somewhat coherent when entrusted with a small child!
Dec 17: Leave in the morning to head to Nanning (in Guangxi Autonomous Region)
Dec 18: Meet Keira! On her first birthday! She will be with us from this day on. We are currently scheduled to meet her about 2pm local time. That translates to 1am EST, for those of you keeping track in the states.
Dec 19: Adoption registry at the Civil Affairs Office.
Dec 20, 21: Tour Nanning, Guangxi.
Dec 22: Get passport for K.
Dec 23: Fly to Guangzhou.
Dec 24: Sightseeing - Chen Family Temple.
Dec 25: Enjoy Christmas in Guangzhou! Keira's first Christmas will consist of getting her visa picture taken and getting a medical exam.
Dec 26: Appointment at the US Consulate in Guangzhou
Dec 27: Go to consulate for interview and to pick up K's visa.
Dec 28: Fly home! Finish enjoying the Holidays as a family of 4!

While I am so excited about getting ready for the trip, I know that we'll be missing Q terribly this whole time. He will be spending time with his Buckeye Family, and I'm sure they will keep him plenty busy with holiday festivities and all. He'll likely be learning to sing the OSU fight song and Hang On Sloopy while we are gone, in preparation for the Big Game in January...which is OK, as long as he's still a fan of the big blue horseshoe when we get back.

TA-dah!

"TA", as in T.A. That's Travel Authorization to those of you who don't speak adoptionese. It is the piece of paper we've been waiting for that tells us that yes indeed, we may travel to meet, love, and bring home the lovely Little Miss K. Woo-hoo! The proverbial slow boat to China is speeding up!
The next step: our agency makes the US Consulate appointments (last step in process, to get visas for the kiddos) and then they can finalize the entire trip and all of our travel plans. We could be leaving as soon as December 14. Two weeks from now.
At last! (Would somebody please cue up Etta James?!!)

Are We There Yet?

No, unfortunately, we are not in China yet. We do not even have our TA (travel authorization) yet. Other agencies have received their TAs this week, but not our agency. We are hopeful that our TA will arrive later this week or sometime next week. Keira's b-day is December 18 and we would love to be with her then. But we'll see.
Although we are not yet in China, our pictures are....or should be, at least. We sent Keira a care package on or about November 17. According to the US Postal Service, courtesy of their Global Priority Mail service, the package arrived in the PRC on November 21. Delivery to her orphanage was guaranteed to happen by the 27th (yesterday). So, hopefully, as we sit looking at her photo, she can now be looking at us too.
And snuggling with the blanket we sent her.
And playing with the toy her brother chose for her.
Soon, we can do this all face-to-face. And our world will be one baby Brighter!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I found this nice quote on another's blog and liked it enough to post here, along with photos of what we are most thankful for.

"You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them."

--Desmond Tutu

OK - sorry for the quick trip to Sappy-ville. I usually try not to go there (in "public", anyway), but hey - that's what this holiday is all about.
That, and eating. A lot.
Besides, I was tired of scrolling down so far to see pix of my babes - weren't you? :-)

Gobble, gobble!

Out of the Mouths of Babes

Today when I picked Q up from preschool, a friend and fellow adoptive mom loaned us 4 books that she used with her kids to prepare them for the adoption of siblings and for becoming a big brother in general. So far, we've read 3 of the 4 books; 2 of them we've read more than once. Q has been very interested interested in these stories. After some of the reading, we talked about how Keira was going to come home to us, after mommy and daddy go to get her, on an airplane - just like in one of the books.
"Do you think babies like to ride on airplanes?" I ask.
"No," he says, "I think home is best."
I think home is best.
Well-said, young one. Sometimes, I do think they get it.
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
And in case you are wondering, here are the books we've been reading:
Things Little Kids Need to Know, by Susan Uhlig
I'm a Big Brother, by Joanna Cole
Seeds of Love: For Brothers and Sisters of International Adoption, by Mary E. Petertyl
Over the Moon: An Adoption Tale, by Karen Katz
And here is another one that we haven't yet read, but will soon. It was recommended by another parent who is in a similar family situation to ours:
A Sister for Matthew: A Story About Adoption, by Pamela Kennedy

Thanks, J and K, for sharing with us!

From Here to There, Part 2

We are sending a care package to Keira and her orphanage later this week. It will be headed from Here, to There (see above).

The package includes a photo album of us!

Her Family! 家庭

We are hoping she'll have a bit of time to get used to seeing our strange faces before we arrive in person. And so she can see who will be waiting for her here at home - her big brother and a couple of 4-legged friends.

Hubby and I were just talking the other day about the fact that we've been thinking of her for over a year now. She, on the other hand, has no idea of what's to come. We'll need to keep this in mind when we first meet. It will be a lot of change for her and we are doing our best to educate ourselves in advance, so that we can be prepared as possible.

In the spirit of next Thursday's holiday: We are thankful for the internet, so that we can virtually meet many others who have gone before us and who have shared their stories. And we are thankful for the books and articles on attachment, written by adoption professionals and experienced parents. And we are thankful for our family and friends, because we are sure to need your support in the coming months.

From There to Here, From Here to There....

....funny things are everywhere! (Yes - once you are a parent, you stop quoting movie lines, except for Disney flicks, and start quoting Seuss!) Anyway, the following is your there-to-here fun fact of the day.
There = Guangxi province, PRC, current home of the Lovely Miss Keira, where it is expected to be 85 degrees today. And sunny.
Here = the Midwest. Indiana, to be exact. Forecast? High of 51. And cloudy.
But never fear, little one, it is always sunny in the Brighthouse! (Or partly sunny, anyway...hey - we all have those days!) And we can't wait for you to join us. Here.

Sing...Sing a Song...

Q and I have learned this song, courtesy of womende pengyou (our friends) at Chinesepod.com, so we can sing a Chinese children's song to Keira.
And Keira's dad? Well, he's trying too.

	菜鸟115 Baby Talk - Friends Song
	Visit ChinesePod.com

Oh Happy Day!

Things that made me happy today:
1. Keira's referral package came. Our official documents and some actual color photos of her (not the scanned copies). The FedEx man quietly left the package on our front porch this morning. We didn't even get a warning bark from the dog.
2. Looking at Keira's pictures. Including the "mugshot" with 3 chins.
3. Signing and sending back more paperwork to our agency. Each thing seems like one step closer to her.
4. Looking at pictures of Q and me playing in the leaves over the weekend.
5. Hearing Q sing his own made up song about his sister. It included a line that said, "Soon you'll be part of our family...."
6. Hearing Q say I'm his best mommy! Ever! Even if I'm pretending to be the bad girl when he's being Spiderman!
7. Still thinking about the Colts win last night. Eight and oh. Marvin's fabulous catch. So far, so good.

The Lovely Miss Keira

Zhe shi womende nu'er. This is our daughter.
She was born on December 18, 2005 and is reportedly a light sleeper (which, according to her daddy, is going to have to change!) and loves to play games (so she's with the right family!).
She is waiting for us in Guangxi province, in southern China.
I will post more soon, when I am in less of a fog!
Thank heaven for little girls!

Any Minute Now...

....we should be getting THE CALL! The Info! The E-mail! The Photo!
Hubby is at work, so we will be sharing this time over the phone. Young son has finally realized that mommy has a computer obsession today, so - like every good kid and blood-smelling shark - he has decided to take advantage and ask for more and more TV. And today - he gets it. A lucky day all around.
To the side is the official notice from the CCAA's website. The cutoff date was Aug 25. Our LID was Aug 24, 2005...so we made it by one day. We were worried that we would miss by one day. At risk of being Mr. Obvious, this way is so much better.

Oh! My! Gosh!

Aha! The good news we've been waiting for: earlier today our agency issued their "Stork Alert"!! Referrals are on the way, and we are included! Our little munchkin's info is making its way from Beijing to Austin, TX right now. We will find out all the details tomorrow, via phone/e-mail. And then on Monday, the FedEx person will arrive with the official documents and photos. We will get one photo via e-mail tomorrow.
I cried when I read that e-mail - excitement, joy, and relief! The guessing is over. This is really going to happen. Yippee! I can't imagine what tomorrow will be like...and then every day from here on out.
Upon finding out that we should get to see mei-mei's (little sister's) picture tomorrow, Q says: "Oh. Cool." Perhaps he will be a bit more excited tomorrow? But I'll give him a break for today: he was all ready to leave for our Children's Museum outing this morning, and here his mom and dad were --- hugging over some e-mail. Enough already, he's probably thinking. He doesn't even know the half of it....
He did show his true, sweet self later on today, though. I've been telling hubby that, if we get our referral this month, I was going to buy this totally adorable Hanna Andersson dress that I've loved for so long. And so here we are, referral about to arrive, and shopping to begin! :-) When Q noses in to see what I'm talking about, he says, "Oh, mei-mei will look beautiful in that dress....and I can be her prince." Yes - I'm in love with the boy.
And soon, more to love. We can't wait!
Stay tuned for more info tomorrow. If I can settle down enough to type!
Zai jian!

Here We Go Again....

Well, maybe 8/24 will be included afterall! Or so the current rumor goes....
We are supposed to be finding out "later this week". I'm hoping sooner rather than later, of course. :-) If we are in, woo-hoo! If not, I'll begin an immediate countdown for the next 4-5 weeks. If we are in, we should be able to travel (I'm hoping) before Christmas! That would be wonderful. Also, our anniversary is in early December, and traveling to China would be a fabulous way to celebrate. But whether or not we make the cut-off this time, I will just be grateful to know.
And just today, I listened to a Chinespod lesson on introducing your children. So bring it on - I am ready to say "Zhe shi wode nu'er!" (This is my daughter!). Women ai ni, bao bei!

Good Fer What Ails Ya'!

The Adoption Rumor Mill today is not loaded with good cheer, if you happen to be a prospective AP (adoptive parent) with an 8/24/05 LID. There is still some glimmer of hope for us, but there are signs that the cutoff will be 8/23. So, that - coupled with the depressing state of our basement - led me to grab my son and flee. We headed to a park across town (hey - any getaway is better than nothing!), played for while, and then hit Handel's for a little taste of the good stuff. We shared a scoop of pumpkin swirl (yummm) and a scoop of chocolate, then headed home with happy bellies.

Then, to perk me up some more, I found a package on our front porch. From ModernTots. My

order had been backordered for so long, I almost forgot about it. So this was a nice surprise. Q was thrilled with his set of chopstick helpers and suggested we get pork fried rice for dinner. I like how this kid thinks. And we can't wait for his mei-mei to get here so she can

practice with hers. And in reality, I should have ordered some for myself, as I am none too nimble with kuaizi [chopsticks], but I try. I hope munchkin won't be put out if she discovers upon her arrival that hers have been a little, um, used.