Bubbles and Sweet Dreams

The bubbles you see here are from Gymboree and if you are coming to China I would highly recomend them. They are wonderful and stay in the air a long time and when they land they do not pop right away so the little ones can get a good look at them and sometimes hold one like Miah is doing in one of the shots above. They are a great ice breaker for baby and parents too and a wonderful distraction for a baby in melt down mode. I have not found any like these except at Gymboree but I know bubbles of any kind are fun for kids of all ages!

See My Big Brother... The HAM!
This is near the Walmart.
James trying so hard to not wake her... NOT!!
Just look at my cheeks... Mommy says they are that kissable!!!
Mother, daughter bad hair moment!

Our time

It is our time in China and I am so grateful for that. I am going to keep this short as I know you just want the pictures.... Chongqing is a wonderful place with so much old and new side by side. The people are friendly and very curious about James and then when they see Miah they are even more so. Yesterday we went to Wal mart and did a little shopping while in line an older man came up to James just talking away and picked him up right from between Randy and the shopping cart James was clinging to. He was just chattering and then trying to hold James up for all to see him.... James took it well and we explained to he that the man was happy to see James and that the man only wanted every one to see how cute he was. James was also surrounded by a group of ladies at a market we ventured to yesterday as well. They loved touching his cheeks and I think they keep telling him he is beautiful. James got a yo yo as a reward so he felt it was worth the sacrifice of his cuteness. Miah is doing well. She will go to both Randy and I but wants me in sight and defiantly seems to understand that I am taking care of her so she clings to me. Ok here comes the "POOP NEWS" so don't read if your not interested... She went last night but it was so hard for her. I am talking bricks here.... I think she may have been trying to go for two days now but last night she just cried and whimpered so I picked her up and sure enough she was pushing with all her might and no luck so I layed her down and pulled her knees to her chest and massaged her tummy It still took a long time and she was in pain but we did have success. After that she has sleep really well. POOP NEWS OVER.

Well I guess I will post Photos now and then I am off to get ready to go and see the SWI Miah was in for eight months of her little life.... Oh we did find out Miah was in foster care for four months and then brought back to the SWI for one month before we came to get her. Miah loves ... LOVES.. Her blocks, and baning them!Time for our first family outing to .... WALMARTI am not walking yet but I sure do look cute trying.See my Smile... It comes out from time to time.My Big Brother Likes to Share With Me.

Miah day Pictures

That very first moment!


Hello Daddy

See my cheeks....

Brotherly Love

Pure Beauty....

The Most Amazing gift...

Oh if only I could put into words what a day today has been...But I can not, there are to many emotions and to much spinning around between my ears. Not to mention I am just TIRED. I have got to tell you I have the most beautiful little girl on the planet. Miah is perfect from her tiny little nose to the tip of her toes.
The moment came and went in a flash and I was holding her before I even had time to wonder when it would be our turn. It was so amazing when we got to the Civil Affairs floor there were the babies just waiting for us and every one immediately started snapping pictures and trying to figure out who was who... I guessed right but I must admit I was not sure at all until they handed her to me. She did not cry at first she just stared at me her little eyes searching, it was a wonderful feeling. When I handed her to Randy she only fussed for a few seconds before really looking him over as well. It took James a moment before he would say hello, but just as I knew he would he has taken to being a big brother as well... A little jealous, but still wonderful none the less. Miah is fitting into the nine month things I brought her very well and the size 3 diapers are right on the money. She is about middle in our group size wise and she is the youngest. Her hair is thick and course and so shiny .... I LOVE IT! She took just fine to the Playtex bottles we brought and has already had two bottles for us as well as some bread, what I think was Con gee and some banana and Cheerios so we no she will not starve. It is still early to really tell but I do not think she is really crawling very well yet, she seems to scoot backwards and get frustrated with it. She is sitting up but more at the level of a eight month old at this point ... still a little floppy.
When we got back to our hotel room after being in the civil affairs office for three hours she was all about playing with stacking cups and smiling and giggling... She likes to be tickled. James had great fun teaching her how to play with them.Tonight laying her down went pretty well all things considered, she did fight sleep and so eventually I just layed her down in the crib with a soft blanket and just rubbed her head while she just let it all out and went to sleep in a matter of minutes. All in all she really has not cried much at all and has even smiled and laughed for us and that for sure is a blessing. Well I hate to cut this short but I really must get some rest so enjoy the pictures and be sure and check back for more.

Today is the day

As I sit here I am just in awe that we are almost there and that our daughter will be in our arms in a matter of hours. Amazing. I am going to keep this short but wanted to let every one know our journey to Chongqing was safe in not long due to the extra three hours we sat on the plane waiting for take off. Beijing had snow yesterday and from what I understand that is rare so needless to say it was a mess at the airport, but the plus to that was the beautiful ride on the way. James continues to do very well and made a special friend on the plane. I will write more on that latter but for now I have a diaper bag to get ready.

Great Climbing at the Great Wall 1

We had a wonderful if not wet and cold day! James was amazing yet again and did very well, Nana and Nene do not worry about him he is doing better than we are and loving it too. Every one is so great to him and that helps a lot. Well I made it to the first tower at the great wall behind James who booked it up there with his dad and would have gone even farther but we decided it was best he stay behind with me as Randy went on and on and on.... Randy did great he made it past the third tower and got a few really great pictures, but when he came back down his legs were doing the noodle dance of there own acord. We also saw Tian An Men Square and the Forbidden City both of which are very neat and I could have spent all day taking pictures, but alas it was a quick moving tour and so I did the best I could! My favorite was the Royal Garden and the story behind it. Well I will keep this short for now since we are due to leave our hotel first thing this morning but I will try and send photos of Miah as soon as I can.

Great Climbing at the Great Wall

We Made It

We are here!!!!! I can hardly beleive it as I type this but it is true and I have a sore everything to prove it. The travel was blessfully uneventful and James did a wonderful job.Infact he did better than Randy and I both.. Thank the Lord. We made it through customs without any hitches and Randy just breezed us through the airport like he had done it a million times. I am so greatful that he is the way he is or I would still be wondering around that airport. I was running on two hours sleep for the trip and did not sleep at all on the plane rides so needless to say but by the time we landed I was a walking Zombie.

What have I done so far? Well I have seen lots and lots of construction, been on my first bus ride( yep it was scary but only a little), gotten money changed over and feel rich LOL, been to my first Chinese grocery store... really small like a convience store so nothing to out of the ordinary, found out they have Subway Restraunts here( did not try it yet it does not smell to good to me) and then crashed ....HARD.... on the HARD bed and slept on and off for the past eight hours. James handled last night pretty well while we were out and then he slept all night, Randy too... Infact they are still sleeping, so hopefully James will adjust pretty well pretty fast and make things go a little smoother. I will try and post pictures tonight...We love and miss you... Just two days till we get Miah!!!!

Today we head out to see the Great Wall and Tianmen Square, as well as the Forbidden City. Hopefull I will down

The Final Stretch

This is the final stretch, we are almost there. It is only three more days of waiting until we board a plane and head to China, and only one more week until I hold my daughter for the first time. The next Monday I face will find me a mother of two and finally in a family of four ready to face all the joys that life has to offer together. These last few days sleep has been just out of my reach as my mind races of thoughts of how the "forever moment" will be. I wonder will she cry and will I be able to comfort her, will James fall in love with her right away or will it take him some time to adjust to being a big brother. Will Randy be at ease with our little girl, or will he fear "Breaking" her? This is just a sample of my minds eye, among worries of travel and fear of Miah being really sick, I just can not sleep. I long to have this moment so that all will come to rest in my mind and I will KNOW my daughter. I love her. I LOVE her. I LOVE HER. All will be ok and I know that no matter what we face God is on our side and he will lead and guide us. Lord it is my prayer that you whisper to Miah's little heart that we are coming. Father in heaven please give this child a sense of peace, and help her to know that it will all be alright.

This will be the last post before we go, but I plan on blogging as much as possible while we are in China. I wanted to take the time to thank a few people before I go, just in case when we get home I find myself a little to busy at first.

First to the few of you who have commented on my blog on a regular basis... Thank you, you have not gone unnoticed and have brought many smiles and much joy to my heart.

Kelly, I love you girl! You have been a wonderful source of information for me. You have made me feel apart of our little adoption community and most of all you have just been a wonderful influence to me. Your joy over my daughters homecoming was just the icing on the cake, thank you so much for sharing in this with me and I can not wait to come and introduce my Miah to your M. and E. What wonderful little friendships may bloom here?? Oh what fun it will be to see!

Erin, You have on more than one occasion been a life saver to me. You are my Notary In Shining Mini Van.... LOL! I am so very thankful for you and your warm heart and bubbling personality and I look forward to introducing Miah to you and Miss M. I also wait with great anticipation for the next Little Miss M. to come home too!

Kingdom Life Family, Thank you all so much for your continued support and Love. Your prayers and blessings are such a strength to our family. We love you all and we know Miah will too.

Karen S., I know that you may never see this but in the event that you do, thank you so much for your time and prayer for Miah. Thank you for encouraging me in the beginning of my Journey to her and for reminding me that with God all things are possible. I love and miss you girl.

Karen E., Thank you for sharing in my joy with me. Thank you for being a wonderful friend in Christ and just for loving me. You are a true Gem and I know that very soon God will bless you with a wonderful bundle of your own.

Gram, Oh how I love you!! Thank you for just being you and for wanting Miah just as much as I do. One of my greatest joys in life is being your granddaughter and I so look forward to bringing your great granddaughter home to you. Thank you for your open mind, open arms and open heart.... We are almost there!

Mom, My best friend, my buddy.... You are my hero! I love you mom. Thank you for all your support, for the joy you find in bringing this baby home. Thank you for loving my children and wanting the best for them. Thank you for being my shoulder to cry on and my ear to bend. Thank you for encouraging me and for telling me like it is even when I do not always want to hear it. Thank you for getting it. For seeing it through my eyes, and knowing that adoption is just as special and just as real as any biological child. Thank you for opening your mind and listening when others will just not hear, you made this "pregancy" real for me ... Thank you.

Mom S. I love you and thank you for all that you are in my life and all that you will be in Miahs life. Thank you for already loving her and for just being thrilled she is coming. I know you two will have a special bond and I look forward to it!

James, Mommy loves you buddy. Thank you! You are going to be a wonderful big brother and I thank you for always believing that sister really would come home.... We are almost there monkey!

Randy, Thank you. My life long soul mate, my love, my one and only, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for taking this journey with me and for having this baby with me. I am so in awe of the love you already have for this little girl that we call our own, I am thankful for the father you already are to James and I know Miah will be blessed to call you daddy too. Thank you for making this choice with me and helping me get through when I almost felt like giving up... you knew I never would! You put up with the mood swings and the depression, you put up with the pity parties and the down in the dumps moments on this roller coaster that no one else could really understand and I am thankful for that. Thank you for sharing the dream with me, the looking ahead and the planing for our daughter. I love you babe.

We are almost there.

Will you recognize me?

Well my creative corny side has come to the surface. I made T-Shirts for my little family!!! For the plane ride over that is, so no one can miss who we are and why we are on this journey. Ok so the truth is I could not resist showing off my daughter and what better way than to have her plastered on the front of not just one but three different shirts! I did try to have a little variety and did not make my DH's shirt to girly ;o) Here they are for your viewing pleasure....

I must admit I am really looking forward to taking lots and lots of new pictures of Miah. I think I have done just about all I can with the three I have. There are a few other pictures that I am pretty sure are her but I will not post them until I can ask the nannies at her SWI. Oh and by the way we are less than a week away from take off.... Only six more sleeps!

Single Digit

I have never been so happy to see a single digit number in all my life. 9.... that is all that remains in our count down....9 days and then up, up, and away we go to China. Right now it is almost unbearable to be home as the clock seems to stand still and time lingers on and on. I am so ready to hold our daughter to see her face and tell her I love her. I am trying to find busy work to do but have almost run out of things to keep me occupied and I no longer need a computer fix every few minutes of the day, it is funny how that has made a huge void. Ok I will stop complaining I know that there are many many families still waiting and just hoping for that moment when they will see the dream of a life time before their very eyes... To you I say hold on your day is coming.
9 days!!!!!!

It's a baby shower

This past Saturday the ladies at my church got together and gave me a baby shower. It was such a wonderful event, and I felt so much love and anticipation for my little girl! I just want to say thank you to every one who came and to all who blessed my daughter with an abundance. We now have just about every thing we need and that brings a wonderful peace of mind.

I was so touched by the little ladybug placed on the corner of the cake.... She tasted pretty darn good too ;0).

The out pouring of gifts was over whelming, They also had a money tree for me and several gave us a financial blessing!

My mom got Miah two of the cutest little dresses.... I love the ladybug dress!

I so adore this little purse set. I wanted to get it for Miah so bad so I put it on the registry and am so very thrilled to have it for her.

More Darling Ladybug stuff... I like the ladybug and what she represents to me.

Here is the final outcome... or most of it, there are a few things that were given to me before or the day after by those who could not attend, but all in all I would say we made out like a bandit!

One thing to notice is the quilt on the couch.... It was made with love just for our Miah and we LOVE it!

Itinerary

Finally I have my itinerary! We have known for a couple weeks now that we would leave on the first but everything else was up in the air. So it looks like this:


March 1 : Depart for China
March 2 : Land in China
March 3: Tour the Great Wall, Forbidden City and Tian An Men Square
March4 : Fly to Chongqing
March5 : GET MIAH!!!!! do paper work at Notary Office and Police Bureau
March6 : Shopping for Babies
March7 : Visit Dianjiang SWI
March8 : Sightseeing tour CiqiKou Ancient architecture Street
March9 : Sightseeing tour to E'Ling Park, get passport, FLY to Guangzhou
March10 : Get Miah's Visa photo and medical examination
March11 : Sightseeing tour Chen Family temple
March12 : Documents to American Consulate CA appointment
March13 : Get Visa
March14 : Fly Home

Now to get throught the next 13 days without going nuts waiting to take off in that jet plane!!!

Happy Valentines Day

( This is from the beginning of our Journey to Miah, but I am posting it as a Valentine to my Daughter today)

Chocolate, hearts, rosebuds, and I Love You written for your sweetheart. Yes it is valentines day, but I got a gameboy game !??! No really I asked for it so that I can have something mind numbing to do on the flight over while my son is hopefully sleeping! Thank you Babe!

James is all cuddled up with his new stuffed puppy and eyeing his candy every few minutes waiting for the go ahead to gobble it up.

I also got one other very special gift , The finding add picture of Miah. It was unexpected and a real blessing to me. My sweet little girl Happy First Valentines Day to you! I love you so much already and I am counting the hours until I can tell you so in person.

Happy Valentines Day to all!

Back to Scraps

I am a scrapbook-er. I love the use of paper to get a message across. What is more for me it is a type of therapy. When James has given me a rotten time as all children do at some point, I can use my scrapbooking to remind me why I love this little boy so much. If I am just feeling down it brings a smile to my face and I feel as though I have accomplished something by saving a memory or really just creating something that is my own. Some day James and Miah will be able to look back on their childhood and really see it through these pages. Now I am aware that this is not for every one and I would never ever expect every one else to get the same joy from it and the needed calm sometimes that I do, but if you do love it like me drop me a line.

Any way with the last few months I have been away from my scrapbooking due to a new obsession with the computer and all the Yahoo boards and information sites. I literally logged on to my computer upwards of 20 times a day looking for any information on referrals, and then on TAs. Well now that all of that is done I find that I have much more time in my day... go figure.. and I have found my love again with a whole new passion as I get to scrap for my daughter now. I have started her a Life/scrap book for her, but it is not her "Scrapbook" However I did do the first page for her this week and I was so excited about it!! Her first page is here now for you to see, and I am also putting up a few of James that I just completed as well. Enjoy!

11 Months Old

Today my daughter is eleven months old. It is hard to know that I will have missed all but two days of the first year of her life, but as tough as it is I know that for every day I missed I will have the rest of my life to be her mother. The milestones that she has accomplished are ones I can never see but I will be there for the lifetime of others. Her first birthday is the first I will witness and for that I am more than grateful! I really am trying to look on the bright side of this but I must admit that the waiting now is almost more than I can take. Every thing is in place and we even have tickets to fly to China, but due to the Chinese New Year that travel is delayed and it is HARD. The first thing I think of in the morning is how many days till lift off and the last thing I think of at night is how many more sleeps till Miah. It is funny that the nearly two years of waiting for a referral could not prepare me for this part of the wait, you would think I would be an expert by now. Ok enough of my ranting.

Miah happy eleven month birthday my darling. I will be with you this time next month and we will celebrate your first birthday, till then I am sending you my love, prayers and thoughts. I love you, mommy

It's the little things

So I went shopping the other day and just happened down the baby isle when imagine my surprise there was a sell on baby food. Now I know to some this may seem silly but to me it was such a big kick picking out baby food. I choose one of every kind as it was a really good sale, nearly 30 cents off a jar of 3rd foods! So it made my happy little choices and chalked it up to needing food stocked up for when we get home from China. Well I was even more elated to see the food all stacked up in the cabinet and knowing that by this time next month I will actually be feeding this to my little dumpling! Oh how fun to know it is the little things that bring so much joy, you know like little jars of baby food!

Packing and Such

Well I would love to show you a photo of Miah's nursery with the piles of stuff to be packed and the fact that you could barley see a floor, however I forgot to take a picture of that! Take my word for it mess is not nearly descriptive enough. The good news is that we are packed for the most part, you know only twenty five days till take off! No really we have been packed for about two weeks now, no joke. It really helped to buy a few things here and there during the nearly two year wait and we did not have that much to purchase after referral, with the exception of a few extras I opted for at the last min. we are totally packed and ready to go. One thing we did do was buy socks and underwear just for the trip and a few new clothes so that we could pack early without having to wait on laundry or going short on clothes for next few weeks. It will be nice to have a few new things to wear and feel good in while we are super tired!

We are waiting on our visas to come in and we have to get some paperwork notarized but other than that every thing for the trip is ready... Can I say it enough ...We are READY!! The wait just gets a little harder every day! Now we are also trying to keep busy with other things like all the little projects we have had on our plate for months now thinking we would get to it before referral and low and behold they are still waiting to be done! It is so hard to be motivated when all you want to do is be on the computer looking at any hint of news of referrals for months on end... that is my excuse and now I am all out of them ;0) So it is off to cleaning out closets , painting touch ups, organizing James room, setting up a baby proof playroom, finding some solution on baby proofing a fireplace that we never use, and well about a dozen other things I could come up with. Here are a few pictures of the finished...almost... suitcases.

** The formula in the pictures has been cut down to only one small can just in case we can not get to any when we first get Miah.

Happy Happy Day

Wow yesterday was such a great day. Watching all the referrals come in and knowing what that feels like was a whole new experience and I loved it. After being on the out side looking in for twenty two months as people got their referral it took me by complete surprise how emotional I would be for those who are getting their babies this time around. It is all good and I want to congratulate all the new moms and dads out there and I am wishing you a very speedy TA too!!

Now not only did I watch all the referrals come in but I also had my own special drama going on as well... WE HAVE A CA...... and WE LEAVE ON MARCH 1st..... It was amazing, we had only just gotten our TA the day before yet when I checked our email yesterday morning there it was, confirmation on our CA. All in one day we got a tentative schedule and Plane tickets. It looks like right now we will get our Miah on the 4th or 5th of March. This is such a HUGE deal for me as I really really really wanted to have our daughter on her first birthday and now I know I will YEAH!!! Oh in case you forgot she turns one on March 7th. I also found out that our church will be throwing us a baby shower on the 17th of this month and I am so looking forward to that. I really do not like being the center of attention, but I am looking forward to a time that is just about Miah and being able to show off her picture and talk all about her. I can not wait!

How I am going to get through the rest of February is a mystery to me *sigh* !