Travel Dates Confirmed

Ok - so it appears that this is all REALLY happening! We now have a final itinerary! Here it is:

Tuesday, June 10 - Fly to Bay Area to join up with Sadie's new Grandma!
Thursday, June 12 - Mom and I depart SFO to start the big adventure!
Friday, June 13 - Arrive in Guangzhou and meet up with another family in our group
Saturday, June 14 - Fly to Changsha and meet up with third family in our trio
Sunday, June 15 - Rest up for Gotcha!
Monday, June 16 - GOTCHA SADIE!
Friday, June 20 - Return to Guangzhou for U.S. Paperwork
Thursday, June 26 - Home to SFO!
Monday, July 14 - Arrive in Portland

Are we there yet?!!! :)

Bottles and High Chairs and Bath Toys - Oh My!!

(This post is for my good friend Audry! :) :) ) Yes, I'm still here! The last couple of weeks has been a whirlwind of paperwork and planning and shopping lists. Yesterday, I did some serious registering at Babies R Us! Good thing I had the Village Aunties in tow!!! They were a great help! We made our way through aisles and aisles of baby stuff - and out again!! Cindy - the only experienced mommy in our group was the voice of reason.......

...and so we were able to "gun down" some great stuff for little Sadie......

In the end... I think Dumpling and Auntie Mary summed up the whole trip quite nicely!!

In other news - we learned that thankfully - Sadie's orphanage was spared any serious damage in the earthquake. All the children in that area - 600 miles from the epicenter - are doing well. Our hearts are broken for all the others who were not so lucky. For anyone who wishes to know what they can do - you might consider donating to Half The Sky Foundation.

I received a welcome update on our Sadie. She is described as active, smart and timid and has a bit of a fear of strangers. I can't imagine what will be going through her little head when she sees her mommy - a totally new person in her life - and with red hair to boot! I've sent Sadie a little photo album with pictures of me and her grandma so her nannies can hopefully get her a little familiar with our faces before we arrive.

Finally, we received travel approval from China on Friday! That means we are free to hop on a plane at any time! We now just have to wait a few more days to be sure of the dates of our appointment with the US Consulate in Guangzhou...BUT...if all goes well, we'll be on our way across the ocean on June 11th!! Wow!! After three years of waiting, I'm suddenly feeling like I'll never get everything done in time!!

So - stay tuned. I plan to update much more often during our trip. BUT...to hold you over - you can look forward to the next nailbiting installment - PACKING!!! :) :)

NEW PICS!!

Here are two new pictures of the cutest girl in the world for your viewing pleasure. Don't worry, we'll find your smile little Bao Bao!!

It's A Girl!!!!!!

I have a daughter and she's a Hunan spicy girl!! Yong Lan Bao is from the Lanshan County SWI in Hunan province. Her birthdate is July 20, 2007. She's 9 months old!!! Isn't she beautiful?!!!

Here's another pic. I'll know more about her once her documents are translated into English on Monday.

Stork Sighting?!

Stork Alert!!! There have been a couple of early rumor stork sightings this morning. This COULD mean that Sadie Amelia's information is on it's way! It sounds like Monday might most likely be the big day but it could happen anytime. I've put out my mommy feelers to my agency to see if they know anything. Cross your toes!