5 Days...

Which Erwin pointed out to me is only 4 sleeps! We leave at 3:00am Friday morning so we are not actually going to make it to bed Thursday night!

I’ve been crossing out more things on my ‘to do’ list. Today’s highlights include paperwork, forms and photocopying. Our agency had given us a list of all of the documents that we need to have with us. So I glued the list onto the front of two separate envelopes; one with my name on it and one with Erwin’s. Then I proceeded to make 2 copies of all of the documents for each envelope. We will each take our envelope and then if anything gets lost, stolen or goes missing we are covered. I also made scans of all of the documents and emailed them to myself so that we could access electronic copies if we were in dire need. Yes, I am a bit crazy of an organizer.

Now Erwin is going to pull down our four suitcases so that we can start packing. I took some more pictures of the nursery before it becomes packing central! Erwin officially declared that I am in charge of packing everything for the baby...I wouldn’t have it any other way...but he really did not need to say that it was my job as mommy. Just wait until I get him to change a diaper!

Off to do some packing...

6 Days...

I am looking at the time in Hanoi on the sidebar to the right and I cannot believe that this time next week we will already have woken up in Hanoi, eaten breakfast and maybe, with any luck, be heading to the orphanage with the rest of our group to meet the babies!

So I will start my countdown to travel, on November 5th...6 days to go.

Today I made a long “To Do” list. I very much enjoy ‘To Do’ lists, the feeling of satisfaction when I get to check something off is so great, that it motivates me to make a ‘to do’ list almost every day! But today’s was special because I got to put a heading for every day until we travel and then list everything I need to do that day underneath. When Erwin came into my office to see what I was up to today, I simply flipped the computer screen to my list. Then I asked him where his list was...LOL . Anyone who knows Erwin will know why that is so funny! Opposites really do attract and we are definitely a balancing act!

Here are some things I checked off my list today:

 Hung picture in the baby’s room
 Mailed a few letters
 Returned all of the adoption books that I have been reading to my class, to the library
 Bought travel size shampoo, conditioner, hairspray and mousse
 Bought labels to label all of my boxes at school (while I am on parental leave we are moving buildings. I am going to have to trust my replacement to move 16 years of teaching materials to the new school!...anyone who knows me, knows that this is challenging my comfort zone!)
 Bought a couple of extra gifts to take with us, in case I have forgotten anyone
 Met up with another family that is travelling with us. Ruth had picked up the travel pack that our paediatrician prepared for us, earlier this week, so she was kind enough to pass it along

I still have two things left to check off tonight so that I do not fall behind...I’d better get to it!

Travel Confirmed!

This morning while I was doing the usual before school run around I decided to check my email to see if any updates had come in over night.  (I've been a bit of a computer hog at work lately, with my constant checking).  And there it was - the update that we've been waiting for!!  I let out aloud "we've been cleared to travel!!!"  Everyone in the office knew exactly what I was talking about and was very excited to share in the moment.

So my last day of work is going to be Wednesday, Nov. 3rd.  When I was telling the students about it before home time today, I asked them how many more days we had left together.  When they put up their hands and answered three...it kind of hit me...I only have three more days of work left!  Unbelievable!

Erwin and I will be flying from Vancouver to Hong Kong early Friday morning (3am) and then spending the day in Hong Kong before travelling on to Hanoi.  We are scheduled to reach Hanoi just after 7pm on Saturday, Nov. 6th.  We have arranged for someone to pick us up at the airport so that we don't even have to think about trying to navigate our way to the hotel!  At this point, I am all for easy!

So now we will spend the weekend packing and doing any last minute things that we can think of.  It sure feels good to have a set timeline...what a relief!

More Waiting

Some of you knew we were hoping to travel this Friday, however, that is not going to happen.  We are still waiting for confirmed dates for the G&R.  That being said we are being told that it is estimated that we will need to be in Hanoi for November 6^th.  This is not for sure yet as we still need to have the G&R date confirmed before we can book travel but it is looking promising.  Keep your fingers crossed for the G&R date to come through soon.  I’ll post when I hear anything more definite. 

Still Waiting...

Yes, we are still waiting to hear anything for sure.  We know we are getting closer and ultimately the number of sleeps, before we can be united with our little guy forever, is going down but we are really ready to hear something definite.

In the meantime...


This cute little handmade sweater and toque were a gift from Erwin's Aunt and Uncle.  I absolutely love knit baby wear.  He won't fit in it for awhile but I bet this time next year it will be the perfect little sweater to grab to keep our little guy warm and snuggly!

 We have not actually started to place items of clothing or supplies into suitcases but all babywear has been washed and is making its way to a spot or pile so that it can be packed and not forgotten.

Outfits and sleep bags all ready to for the big trip.

Drawer packed full of onesies, sleepers, socks, hats, toys, etc.
and other baby essentials all piled up on top.

I will post as soon as I know when we are leaving.  In the meantime please be thinking of us and send all of your good thoughts and prayers our way.  We just want a date for the G&R that way we can get on with plans and bookings.

Sizing Up the Situation

All of this wait time has allowed Erwin and I to get everything that we will need for the baby, together and organized.  I just need to wash everything and then I can pack baby's suitcase.  But let's just take some time to comment on packing clothes for a baby...

It is hard packing for a baby that we have never seen.  The last measurements that we got were at 9 days old.  We know from growth charts that asian babies are typically smaller.  And we know that he is four and a half monthes old. So for the most part we are taking the 3-6 month sized clothing for him.  Take into account that we are unsure of the weather, temperature and humidity and well, all we can do is our best on the whole clothing thing.  But really could manufacturers make it any harder for us?



The bottom one is size 3-6 months.  The top one is 6-9 months.
 How's that for making it tough on new parents? 


I have to include our best deal while shopping for baby clothes.  This set of two Winnie the Pooh sleepers cost $1!  That is $1 for the set not each.  I'll take that type of smokin' deal anyday!

Still no definite travel dates yet.  I'll post when I hear anything.

No Travel Dates Yet

Just a quick post before I head off to bed.  No travel dates yet but we did get the news that our LONO have been issued and forwarded to the DIA in Vietnam.  Now we are just waiting for final approval to be forwarded from the DIA to the province of Bac Ninh.  Once that is done the province can issue our Letter of Invitation.  Hopefully soon...

Baby Shower

Wow what a day! I have to give a HUGE thank you to my friend Joyce for hosting and organizing a lovely shower for me and to her sisters Sharon and Naomi for all of their help with the decorations and food. Everything was absolutely beautiful and it was so great to see everyone.

Check out the decorations (done by Naomi) do they remind you of a certain bedding set...amazing!

And the goodies done by Sharon.  Look at the rattles and the booties!  So Cute!

And the special cake made by Sharon.

The baby food game...that stuff is just not good!

Here are some of the fabulous gifts we received.

Toys and Teethers

Books

Shoes and socks!



3mos - 6mos



6mos - 9mos

12 months

Thanks Elaine!

Thanks Sharon!

Blankets, washcloths, and towels. 
Thank you to Vasantha for the home made crotchet blanket.

Odds and Ends which will come in very handy.
Thank you to my mom for the home made stroller blanket!

Thank you Annie and Tara...now I might have some hands-free time!

 Thank you to everyone.  Erwin and I are very fortunate to have such wonderful family and friends.  It is very exciting to think that the next time we see most of you, we will be a family of three.  Can't wait!!

A Little Gift

A special thanks to Jessica for the cute little baby socks. They are his first pair.


They seem so small...and they are up to 12 months!

For parents who are just waiting around to get a travel date we certainly have not bought much yet – clothing that is. I decided long ago that I was not going to buy too much for little N before we knew our travel dates, for the simple reason that we really would not know what size to buy. But now that travel seems (almost) upon us I feel like we should be more ready. A very good friend of mine is hosting a baby shower for me on Sunday so I certainly hope that after that I will feel a little more prepared and will actually have something to put away in his dresser drawers or hang in his closet...with any luck some of it will even make it into a small suitcase!

A question for the mom’s out there...I am assuming I should wash all new clothing before using it. Does any detergent work or is there special baby detergent? Hey, I’m new at this, I need all the help I can get.

Four Months and Lots to Do

Still no word on travel dates...

I did get a few things done / set up today. I began the process of setting up medical insurance for the baby while we are in Vietnam. However, they need our travel dates to complete the request (more things to wait on). The baby is only covered by BC Medical (Care Card) once we set foot on Canadian soil so we have to get in term coverage just in case.

I also picked up a whole bunch of story books about international adoption from the public library. Tomorrow is the day that I am going to explain what is going on to my little kidlets at school. I am reading through the books to decide which ones are best but I keep getting all teary. I wonder how that is going to go tomorrow?

On another note, our little guy is four months old today. I don’t really know what to say – I just want him now and pray that we will be spending his 5 month milestone together.

To end with, here are a few pictures of the glider and ottoman that Erwin put together. When he checked the blog the other day he was disappointed that I had not posted the project that he did all by himself! So here it is.



We even have diapers!





Cautiously Optimistic

I could not sleep at all last night. I just could not stop thinking about EVERTHING that is happening. I have such a long ‘to do’ list but I can’t do anything else until we have travel dates. (sigh)

The good news though is that our Letters of No Objection (LONO) have been requested. Once we have the LONO they get forwarded to Vietnam and then final paperwork can be completed by the Department of International Adoption (DIA). Finally the DIA will give the province approval to issue our Letters of Invitation. The Letters of Invitation and dates for the G&R ceremony are what we are waiting for in order to book travel. I feel that things are about to happen but am cautiously optimistic all at the same time.

We also received word that Group 7 is on their way back! They have had the quickest turn around yet...15 days to get all of the paperwork / passports completed!!

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we wait for our paperwork to be completed and the Letter of Invitation to be issued.

Holding Pattern

I picked up our medical documents on Thursday and mailed them to our agency right away. So our file should be up-to-date again. Other than that we have not heard any more news. Group 7 is still in Vietnam but everything seems to be going smoothly. We are still waiting for travel dates. We have looked into hotel and airfare as much as we can but we just can’t book anything until we have travel dates. I feel like we are on hold.

We bought, and Erwin assembled, a glider and ottoman so all of the furniture for the baby’s room is done. We have two sizes of diapers...and that is about it. Yup – definitely in a holding pattern.

Medicals...Again!

Just got an e-mail that Erwin and I need updated medical certificates. Ours were last done in April and they expire after six months. I dropped them off at our doctor's office, so hopefully we will get them back by the middle of next week and then send them in as soon as possible.

We also got word that group 7 completed the G&R on Wednesday, as scheduled and the whole process in Vietnam is going very smoothly. I hope that is what I am typing in another month or so about our group!!