We're leaving next Wednesday!!

After a lot of worrying and obsessing (mostly on my part, of course) we finally have everything scheduled for China. Our agency called us yesterday morning and told us we have an appointment at the U.S. Consulate for March 17 and she will be sworn in as a U.S. citizen on the 18th. Once we got those appointments we were able to book our flights. We will be on a Continental flight leaving Atlanta on March 4 (next Wednesday!!) at 8 a.m. and connecting through Newark. We will then fly nonstop to Beijing and arrive there on March 5 at 3 p.m. The flight back will leave Beijing on March 19 at 4 p.m. and will connect through Newark before Atlanta. We will be back in Atlanta at approx. 10:30 p.m.

There is soooo much to do before next Wednesday and we are so excited!! Can you believe we will have Julia in our arms in a little over a week?

New pictures and updates!!

Thanks to a service that delivers care packages and calls orphanages for adoptive parents I was able to get new pictures and some additional information about Julia, plus a copy of her finding ad. A finding ad is a mandatory ad placed in the newspaper after a child is abandoned. It is required that a finding ad is published before a child is adopted so that birth parents have an opportunity to come forward and claim the child. We're thrilled to have these new pictures of Julia. Can you believe we're going to meet her in less than two weeks???? We hope to get our appointment for the U.S. Consulate either today or tomorrow so we can book our flights.

Here's some of the information provided to us from the orphanage by www.ladybugsnlove.com.:

What are her favorite toys?
She loves dolls and toys that makes sound.
What foods does she eat?
She can eat some noodles, rice and steamed bread.
Who chose her name and why?
Her name was given by our staff. Because 2008 is the year of rat, her name has a “Zi”. Xuan is given name.
Does she have a nickname?
No nickname. We call her Zi Xuan.
Are there any other children in her foster home with her?
There is another child from out institute whose name is Guo Xin You.
Is she walking?
She can walk by one hand holding onto handrail.
Her updated measurements:
Height: 78cm; Weight: 9.5 kg; Head: 43cm; Chest: 44cm; Teeth: 6; Foot: 11cm

It's official! We leave for China soon

This week I received what is probably one of the best Valentine's and birthday presents I could have received: We got our Travel Approval!! Our agency notified us today that they received our Travel Approval from China today and they expect us to travel the first week of March. They have tentatively told us to expect to leave on March 4! We are SO excited we can barely contain ourselves. We'll be travelling with a group of about ten other families.

Our agency is confirming with the U.S. consulate in Guangzhou, China, our appointment date to get Julia sworn in as a U.S. citizen and then we'll be able to book our airfare!! In the meantime we are going to be swamped getting things ready for her at home and getting packed. As soon as we get our final itinerary we'll post it for you, but I'm pretty sure we'll be flying into Beijing.

We were also fortunate this week to get an update on Julia. As of February 5 she is 13 months old and weighs 20 pounds!! I wish we had updated photos but we'll see her in just over two weeks!!

Other things going on:
Anna is doing great. She is still doing a lot of independent standing in the pool and we are thrilled. She has come so far and I'm so proud of her.

My stepdaughter, Kaitlyn, just bought a car!! She worked a long time to be able to get her car, a red Kia (UGA colors!!) and we're thrilled for her. It's so hard to go to college and work at the same time.

Our dog is still a pain in the you-know-what. He's got this thing now where after we leave for the day he'll take the loaf of bread or whatever happens to be on the table and eat it all. It's been cold/rainy so we don't leave him outside all of the time. Any ideas on how to break him of this would be appreciated.

My parents have figured out how to get revenge on my sister: give her son (Robbie, 1) M&M's!! He's wired for hours after he has chocolate. It's so cute though!!!

Happy Birthday to Anna!!

My baby is five.

It's hard to believe sometimes, especially after everything that she's been through. Every birthday is a celebration, not just of her being with us, but also of the progress she's made the past year.

Anna's birthday party will be small and we'll celebrate it with my parents on Super Bowl Sunday. We also sent cake and ice cream with her to school today as a treat for her and the other kids.

A day of extreme joy and sadness

First, let me just say: We're going to China!!! I'm excited to say that we received our Letter of Acceptance (LOA) from China today; all we're waiting on now is our Travel Approval. Our adoption agency has told us that, assuming everything goes OK, we will travel to China to get Julia in the next four to eight weeks!! I'm hoping for the shorter end of the time frame, of course. In the meantime, we have to start finalizing our paperwork and getting our visas in order. There's going to be a LOT to do these next few weeks as we prepare to travel. Our LOA will get to us from the agency by Monday. We then sign it, get it back to our adoption agency and they will send it on to the CCAA (China Center for Adoption Affairs). By the time it gets to China it will be the end of the Chinese New Year and hopefully the Travel Approval will get processed quickly.

On a more somber note, for those of you who don't yet know, we've been at the hospital with Anna since last night. She's been battling a bad stomach virus and finally we needed help from the local children's hospital to stem the vomiting and keep her hydrated. I'm happy to report that she seems to be doing much better today and we should be discharged tomorrow. There are also two other "mito" families at the hospital at the same time and my thoughts are with them as well. The child of one of those families is in very serious condition and it pains me to think of this. I honestly feel that I have nothing I can realistically complain about when I know they're going through such a hard time right now. Our situation seems like nothing in comparison but times such as this always keeps my priorities in order and reminds me how much I value and love my family.

We're at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Scottish Rite. It's such a phenomenal hospital and it's worth the long drive from our house in order to get Anna the great care she receives here. One of the great things about CHOA is that not only do they treat the kids great, they also try to pamper the parents (well, as much as is possible at a hospital). We truly value having such a great hospital fairly close to us.

Congrats to all of my online adoption friends who also received their LOA today!! We'll be travelling together soon enough.

Update: Anna is feeling much better now. She was discharged from the hospital on Friday and seems to finally be over the virus.

No different than you

I saw this in a recent edition of the FOCUS newsletter. Recently someone said to me how strong Jason and I are for taking care of Anna the way we do. When I saw this in the newletter I started to cry because it was so similar to the way I sometimes feel that I could have written it. Thank you to Lisa Ringenberg for writing it. But, here it is:

No Different From You ... by Lisa Ringenberg (FOCUS atlanta group)

One day, I was over it, you know? I’ve heard the same thing too many times when what I really needed was a hug or something (a big cry probably!). I ended up writing, as I usually do, and this is what came out. I thought I’d share it, because I am sure that people hear this same type thing when going through a divorce or losing a job or whenever we wear our brave face. I think sometimes saying nothing and just sitting with the person is a gift that is worth its weight in gold. We are all “over it” sometimes and just need a good cry, right? 99.9% of the time I really am just fine; I know you won’t think less of me for knowing the real truth. I hope this somehow serves you too:
You say “Special children are given to special parents.” I am no more special than any other parent. Truth is, sometimes I feel like not running this race and I am barely hanging on. I do not have super powers or special abilities to make this load any easier than if it happened to you or anyone else. My burden is the same as it would be for anyone else, I just don’t bore you with the details. Truth be known, many parents given the same circumstances as me, walk away.
God didn’t pick them as special parents, now did he? I am no more special than anyone else.
You say “I don’t know if I could do what you do.” I don’t know each day if I will be able to do what I have to either. Can I bear hurting her one more time, or staying in the hospital for another week? I don’t know either, but the last time I checked, I had to. My only other choice
is to lose my daughter to someone else who can step up to the plate, so I have to. There is no choice here. I don’t set out to be super woman everyday and see how much I can endure. I don’t want to play this game or live this way, I don’t choose to, I have to, there is no choice.
Do you really think there is a choice involved? Many, many mornings I wake up and think I can’t do this anymore. But I somehow do. You say “You are always so strong.” No, I am not. Saying so makes me realize that you do not know me. I cry, and I hurt like you would never imagine. I am sick with worry and fear and my own life has passed me by while I was hanging onto every day with my kids. Hoping for just one more day with her. I cry alone, I cry out loud, sometimes I shed just a single tear to make a little more room for some other emotion. There is no one who can make this better, I am alone, I am scared, I am not in control and I am beyond sad. I am not strong. You should know that if you think I am strong, you just haven’t seen me break down yet. I am not super-human, I am not above it, I am not beyond it. I am like you and it hurts like hell sometimes. Actually, more often than you probably could imagine. Whew, that feels better!

Madison Ringenberg will be 6 in January. She is moderately compromised
with DiGeorge syndrome and Tetrology of Fallot. We are preparing now for
her 3rd open-heart surgery.

For more information on FOCUS (Families of Children Under Stress) please go to http://www.focus-ga.org/

You know you parent a special needs child when ...

You compare ER's instead of grocery stores.

You compare your child's oxygen saturations.

You view toys as "therapy."

You don't take a new day for granted.

You teach your child HOW to pull things out of the cupboard, off the bookcases, and that feeding the dog from the table is fun.

The clothes your infant wore last fall still fit her this fall.

Everything is an educational opportunity instead of just having plain old fun.

You cheer instead of scold when they blow bubbles in their juice while sitting at the dinner table (that's speech therapy), smear ketchup all over their high chair (that's OT), or throw their toys (that's PT). You also don't mind if your child goes through the house tooting a tinwhistle.

You fired at least 3 pediatricians and can teach your family doctor a thing or two.

You can name at least 3 genes on chromosome 21.

You have been told you are "in denial" by at least 3 medical or therapy professionals. This makes you laugh!

You have that incredible sinking feeling that you've forgotten SOMETHING on those few days that you don't have some sort of appointment somewhere!

You get irritated when friends with healthy kids complain about a sleepless night when they're child is ill.

Your vocabulary consists of all the letters OT, PT, SP, ASD, VSD, IFSP, etc.

You keep your appointment at the specialist even though a winter blizzard is raging because you just want to get this one over with.....you waited 8 months to get it.....and besides, no one else will be there!

Fighting and wrestling with siblings is PT. Speech therapy occurs in the tub with a sibling.

When potty training is complete, you take out a full-page public notice in the Washington Post.

When the Doctors/Specialist/Hospitals etc. all know you by your name without referring to your chart.

You keep a daily growth chart.

You calculate monthly statistics for the number of times your child vomits, and did this for more then one year.

You phone all your friends when your child sits up for the first time, at age two.

With a big smile on your face you tell a stranger that your four-year-old just started walking last week.

Her medical file is 25 inches and growing.

You have a new belief...that angels live with us on earth.