Bless our child, so far away,
Keep him safe and warm we pray.
We count the days 'til we're together,
United for always...
A family forever.
Sunday, February 07, 2010
Thursday, February 04, 2010
Care Package
Ann at Red Thread China sent me this photo of the care package she sent to David for us. In it are a toy, a blankie, a book, cute little jammies, and candies for the caregivers. There is also a disposable camera included, in hopes that the staff might take some photos of David for us. Judging by the speed with which they gave Ann the most recent four photos, I'm very optimistic! Included is a letter and pictures from our family to the institute staff, telling them about our family and how excited we are that David will be joining us soon. It was difficult to express in a letter just how thrilled we are about David being a member of our family. This is the first time we have been able to send our child a care package before placement. I'm sure Shi Shi doesn't understand that we have sent him these things to cuddle with, but if it brings him a little happiness over the next four weeks, then it's all good. It certainly makes me happy to be able to be doing something - anything - while we wait. And the pictures we received are so worth it!
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
New Pictures of Our Shi Shi!
This morning, as I was fixing breakfasts and sack lunches for the girls, I peeked at my in box and found these:
This weekend, I ordered a care package for David from Red Thread China. Included in the cost of the care package was the translation of a letter we can send to David's welfare institute, and if possible, updated photos and measurements of our child. Ann got these to us very quickly, and she's been so sweet. I've heard wonderful things about her service, and I agree - she does a great job. She also provides a shopping service for families while they are in Guangzhou - she'll take you around to the pearl and jade markets and other shopping spots, helping you get the best deals on the best quality merchandise. Our group is planning to have her help us while we're there.
This weekend, I ordered a care package for David from Red Thread China. Included in the cost of the care package was the translation of a letter we can send to David's welfare institute, and if possible, updated photos and measurements of our child. Ann got these to us very quickly, and she's been so sweet. I've heard wonderful things about her service, and I agree - she does a great job. She also provides a shopping service for families while they are in Guangzhou - she'll take you around to the pearl and jade markets and other shopping spots, helping you get the best deals on the best quality merchandise. Our group is planning to have her help us while we're there.Included with the photos were updated measurements of David, but they really weren't all that different from the measurements we received in November. He's still a bruiser!
These photos made me cry. I just can't wait to get to our little boy! We leave four weeks from tomorrow. Still so much to do to get ready, so it will help make the time pass quickly.
Monday, February 01, 2010
Travel Group Number Four!
Last night, we had dinner at Stir Crazy with our new travel group! Greg and Judy brought their 5-year-old daughter; their new son is in the same province as David (Shanxi - with one "a"). Dan and Jamie brought their 5-year-old daughter, as well; their new daughter is in Shaanxi province (that's with two a's). They are waiting on TA and are hoping to have it in time to travel with us.
Our noisy little group must have been quite a sight! Three sets of parents, discussing everything from "family tree" school projects to which sippees we're bringing for our children to the best places to shop for jade in Guangzhou. Five little girls who kept taking trips up to the stir fry bar to watch the chefs cook the food. It made for a delightful evening with new friends! You could just feel the excitement at our table!
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Tips and Tricks and Getting Ready
I have been spending the last few weeks getting our house and routines ready for a sixth member of our family. I know things will be VERY busy once we get David home. Not only will we be adding an active toddler to the mix, that toddler is going to have a lot of medical and therapy appointments to add to our already full schedule. My goal is to get rid of the excess in this house, and streamline routines as much as possible. Here are some things I'm doing/planning to do...
1. Girls' Laundry Baskets - Our three girls share a bedroom and one big laundry hamper. I just do all their laundry together - much more efficient than three small loads. One afternoon, as I was spending my usual hour or so sorting and folding their clothes, I decided there HAD to be a better way of doing it. I had already started to leave their folded piles on their beds for them to put away, but I was still spending a good chunk of time with the sorting and folding. So I headed to my friendly neighborhood dollar store and bought three little laundry baskets. I wrote the girls' names on them with a Sharpie. Now, I sort their clothes into their individual baskets as I pull them out of the dryer. It takes me maybe an extra 5 minutes to do. The girls are responsible for folding and putting away their own things. I thought I was going to have to "let go" of my idea of how the clothes should be folded and the drawers should look when they're done, but actually, they take great care in their job and do it very well! Time saved: approx. 1 hour every 5 to 7 days! Works for me!
2. Socks - Back when Hannah and Rachel were really little, I bought them identical socks in two different sizes. When I did their laundry together, I went nuts trying to distinguish the two sizes as I matched their socks. I bought two of those mesh lingerie bags at Target. As each girl's socks came off, they went in her bag. Then I ran them through the wash in the bag, and pairing was much easier when they were done. There are now three bags in the laundry. Each bag has a different color ribbon and they hang on a hook by the hamper. The girls put their dirty socks in them, and then get their bags back filled with clean socks to pair and put away (see #1). Do you have any idea how happy I am not to have to do that?
3. Towels - Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a real fan of big families. I mean really big families, with, say, 10 or more children. (Must have been those years of growing up as an only child and watching every episode and rerun of The Waltons.) I enjoy reading blogs and websites by and for large families, and sometimes take away some good ideas (I figure, if they work for a mom with 10 kids, they can work for me!). This one I've read many times in many places and am ready to use myself. I am weary from all the laundry, particularly towels. We have a variety of bath towels, mostly blue, that we have acquired over the years. It's hard to remember exactly which blue towel you used the last time you showered, so you just grab a clean one. I am assigning each family member a color and will buy bath towels in each color for each person. That way, we can know exactly which towel is ours and reuse it. I figure that will save me the time of at least one, possibly two, loads of laundry per week, not to mention money saved in soap and electricity costs.
4. School Papers - Back when Hannah was in her first year of Preschool, I saved just about every scrap of paper and artwork she brought home. Each year, the papers collected in various bins and manila envelopes throughout the house. Then Rachel started Preschool and started bringing home her own piles of paper. Now, Abbie's in school. The piles were out of control! I went to the post office and picked up a bunch of those large, rectangular flat-rate boxes. Each girl has one box for each year of school. I printed labels for the tops and sides. I put their work for that year in the box. If I can't fit it all in the box, some of it has to go. They're a good size because they give me enough room to fit a fair amount of work inside, they stack flat, and are uniform in size so they will stack nicely on shelves in the basement. Oh, and unlike plastic bins, they're free! And as for their large works of art, I'll head to Hobby Lobby and pick up a large artist's portfolio to store those works in (I'll use a coupon, of course).
5. Keepsakes - Everyone knows I'm a "saver" - I am sentimental about stuff and save everything! So our basement and drawers and closets and shelves are full to overflowing with not only useful stuff, but "meaningful" stuff. Then I read this post by Rachel at Small Notebook. Rachel remembers the scene in My Big Fat Greek Wedding when Toula's grandmother gives her a box of special keepsakes handed down through generations of women in their family. Then Rachel tries to imagine that, instead of a beautiful box, Toula's grandmother gave her the key to a storage unit, filled floor to ceiling with "keepsakes"! (Go read the post - the accompanying photos are just great!) I'll always be a "saver" - it's in my genes, I think. But I am learning to rethink keepsakes and memorabilia. I am starting to let go of a lot of stuff.
Next Post: Nesting!
1. Girls' Laundry Baskets - Our three girls share a bedroom and one big laundry hamper. I just do all their laundry together - much more efficient than three small loads. One afternoon, as I was spending my usual hour or so sorting and folding their clothes, I decided there HAD to be a better way of doing it. I had already started to leave their folded piles on their beds for them to put away, but I was still spending a good chunk of time with the sorting and folding. So I headed to my friendly neighborhood dollar store and bought three little laundry baskets. I wrote the girls' names on them with a Sharpie. Now, I sort their clothes into their individual baskets as I pull them out of the dryer. It takes me maybe an extra 5 minutes to do. The girls are responsible for folding and putting away their own things. I thought I was going to have to "let go" of my idea of how the clothes should be folded and the drawers should look when they're done, but actually, they take great care in their job and do it very well! Time saved: approx. 1 hour every 5 to 7 days! Works for me!
2. Socks - Back when Hannah and Rachel were really little, I bought them identical socks in two different sizes. When I did their laundry together, I went nuts trying to distinguish the two sizes as I matched their socks. I bought two of those mesh lingerie bags at Target. As each girl's socks came off, they went in her bag. Then I ran them through the wash in the bag, and pairing was much easier when they were done. There are now three bags in the laundry. Each bag has a different color ribbon and they hang on a hook by the hamper. The girls put their dirty socks in them, and then get their bags back filled with clean socks to pair and put away (see #1). Do you have any idea how happy I am not to have to do that?
3. Towels - Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a real fan of big families. I mean really big families, with, say, 10 or more children. (Must have been those years of growing up as an only child and watching every episode and rerun of The Waltons.) I enjoy reading blogs and websites by and for large families, and sometimes take away some good ideas (I figure, if they work for a mom with 10 kids, they can work for me!). This one I've read many times in many places and am ready to use myself. I am weary from all the laundry, particularly towels. We have a variety of bath towels, mostly blue, that we have acquired over the years. It's hard to remember exactly which blue towel you used the last time you showered, so you just grab a clean one. I am assigning each family member a color and will buy bath towels in each color for each person. That way, we can know exactly which towel is ours and reuse it. I figure that will save me the time of at least one, possibly two, loads of laundry per week, not to mention money saved in soap and electricity costs.
4. School Papers - Back when Hannah was in her first year of Preschool, I saved just about every scrap of paper and artwork she brought home. Each year, the papers collected in various bins and manila envelopes throughout the house. Then Rachel started Preschool and started bringing home her own piles of paper. Now, Abbie's in school. The piles were out of control! I went to the post office and picked up a bunch of those large, rectangular flat-rate boxes. Each girl has one box for each year of school. I printed labels for the tops and sides. I put their work for that year in the box. If I can't fit it all in the box, some of it has to go. They're a good size because they give me enough room to fit a fair amount of work inside, they stack flat, and are uniform in size so they will stack nicely on shelves in the basement. Oh, and unlike plastic bins, they're free! And as for their large works of art, I'll head to Hobby Lobby and pick up a large artist's portfolio to store those works in (I'll use a coupon, of course).
5. Keepsakes - Everyone knows I'm a "saver" - I am sentimental about stuff and save everything! So our basement and drawers and closets and shelves are full to overflowing with not only useful stuff, but "meaningful" stuff. Then I read this post by Rachel at Small Notebook. Rachel remembers the scene in My Big Fat Greek Wedding when Toula's grandmother gives her a box of special keepsakes handed down through generations of women in their family. Then Rachel tries to imagine that, instead of a beautiful box, Toula's grandmother gave her the key to a storage unit, filled floor to ceiling with "keepsakes"! (Go read the post - the accompanying photos are just great!) I'll always be a "saver" - it's in my genes, I think. But I am learning to rethink keepsakes and memorabilia. I am starting to let go of a lot of stuff.
Next Post: Nesting!
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Chenzhou Girlfriends
Rachel and her girlfriends from Chenzhou are 7 - nearly 8, now! This week, we had their annual portraits taken...
Jasmine, Rachel, Isabella, Katie
Isabella
Jasmine
Katie
Rachel
Four lifelong friends!Thursday, January 21, 2010
It's the Little Things That Make Me Happy
I went to the pharmacy to pick up an antibiotic prescription for David, so we can have something to help him in case he gets sick while we're in China. The pharmacist asked for the name on the prescription.
"Cormier. David Cormier."
I loved saying his name!
"Cormier. David Cormier."
I loved saying his name!
Monday, January 18, 2010
A Few More Shower Pictures
The delicious cake we enjoyed, David's name in Chinese characters, and a photo of David so he could be "with" us. Aren't the primary colors wonderful?
A backpack to carry around everything he needs - juice, snacks, toys, blankie...
Very boy-ish jammies that say "Mom's Prince"...
Of course, every toddler needs Cheerios...
I wish I had pictures of all the delightful gifts David received. Our friends were so generous, and it was a wonderful afternoon!
A tee shirt with David's name in Chinese characters...
A backpack to carry around everything he needs - juice, snacks, toys, blankie...
Very boy-ish jammies that say "Mom's Prince"...
Of course, every toddler needs Cheerios...
Opening the group gift...
I wish I had pictures of all the delightful gifts David received. Our friends were so generous, and it was a wonderful afternoon!
Saturday, January 16, 2010
A Shower of Love
Last weekend, moms from all three of my China travel groups got together and threw me a baby shower for David. There were 20 women all together, and we had a wonderful time, talking about our children and sharing stories of our different adoption trips.
I received some wonderful gifts for David. Lots of cute little boy clothes with puppy dogs and frogs, some toys, including some trucks, and the adorable bedding I had chosen with jungle animals on it. But the biggest surprise was the generous contribution to our travel fund. Such a generous, loving gesture!
How good it felt to be surrounded by so many special friends, women who have become my extended family, and who are all so excited about David's arrival!
This sign, David's name written in Chinese characters, greeted me at the front door. I cried the moment I saw it.
...then Rachel's...
...and then Abbie's.
Then, I set the timer on my camera to get this shot of everyone!
I can't wait for David to meet all his "aunties", wonderful women who have become such an important part of my life, and whom I love dearly! I know they already love him, too!
I received some wonderful gifts for David. Lots of cute little boy clothes with puppy dogs and frogs, some toys, including some trucks, and the adorable bedding I had chosen with jungle animals on it. But the biggest surprise was the generous contribution to our travel fund. Such a generous, loving gesture!
How good it felt to be surrounded by so many special friends, women who have become my extended family, and who are all so excited about David's arrival!
This sign, David's name written in Chinese characters, greeted me at the front door. I cried the moment I saw it.
We took pictures of each travel group. First Hannah's...
...then Rachel's...
...and then Abbie's.
Then, I set the timer on my camera to get this shot of everyone!
I can't wait for David to meet all his "aunties", wonderful women who have become such an important part of my life, and whom I love dearly! I know they already love him, too!Friday, January 01, 2010
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