While We're Waiting (13 months)

February 28, 2014       - 13 months waiting since our LID (log in date in China)
                                     - 21 months waiting since we began our adoption process
                                     - 40 months (3 years, 4 months) since we began the process of adding
                                        to our family

February was a busy month.  I started off shopping for curtain and roman shade fabrics for Emma's room.

Then Favorite Monkey needed serious surgery to repair his much loved neck.  It's a good thing I majored in Biology in college - mostly it's a good thing this mommy knows how to sew!

We mailed a package to Emma for her 2nd birthday - we included a blanket, lovey, baby doll, outfits, lady bug book and photo album.  (sorry for the sideways photo - blogger and I aren't friends today).

We took a trip to the beach house - it was cold and rainy so we made good use of our time and did some shopping for gifts we need to bring to China - for guides, officials, orphanage director, nanny.

Before the big snow storm, my very talented friend Heather helped chalk paint Emma's dresser (and by helped, I mean she chalk painted the entire dresser while I opened all of Emma's baby dolls and played with Margaret Ann).  She refused to let me photograph her while she worked.  But her little cutie helped out and let me snap her photo.

Since we were having another snow storm just in time for Valentine's Day, I sewed Emma's duvet cover together.

And we watched it snow and snow and snow.

Then my mom and I spent way too many hours working on the roman shades for Emma's room.  I love the end result, but I had an argument with the design and stopped speaking to those roman shades about halfway through the project!

I have a sweet group of friends who spent February planning an adoption shower for Emma.

Since our fingerprints were set to expire on March 5, we had to be re-fingerprinted at the Homeland Security Office in Charlotte.  It sounds very official, right?  When we first visited there in December 2012, I had this expectation of what this very important building would look like.  It couldn't have been more nondescript.  It's certainly an experience.  I can say with a fair amount of certainty that we were the ONLY people there to be fingerprinted for an international adoption.  They were very kind, efficient and prompt.  Fingerprints are good for another 15 months!

We took the boys to see a Davidson basketball game - Daddy's alma mater!  Someone might like popcorn.

Another lady bug!!

I finally have some curtains to show for all the hard work. 

Aidan had a multitasking breakfast - watch a show on the iPad, eat Lucky Charms and rub Favorite Monkey's ear.

We received I-800 approval on February 24th which allowed us to call the NVC (national visa center) to request our Cable Letter for our Article 5 drop off in China.  

So Emma's room is on the way to being finished - shower curtain hung and finishing up decorations in her room.

We celebrated Emma's 2nd birthday with some doughnuts.  We also received some photos of Emma and the birthday cake we sent her in China.

This process is moving along quickly now - look for another update very soon!

While We're Waiting (12 months)

January 30, 2014          - 12 months waiting since our LID (log in date in China)
                                     - 20 months waiting since we began our adoption process
                                     - 39 months (3 years, 3 months) since we began the process of adding
                                        to our family

Wow - January has been a big month!!

It began with me driving to pick up this gorgeous monogram decoration to hang on the wall above Emma's bed.  Our Emma Reid McGinnis will be home before we know it!

We've been working hard to prepare Emma's room - thanks for the help painting Mom and the amazing construction projects Dad.  Nesting is a little different when you aren't actually pregnant.  This room is the first I've painted while expecting any of our children.  It's been a unique experience - a labor of love.

Any good paint job begins with preparation of the walls and LOTS AND LOTS of blue painter's tape.

I selected a beautiful medium grey.  Depending on the time of day (with no window treatments), it's a beautiful blue grey.  Brian was so excited that I decided to paint our daughter's room blue!  I remain hopeful that it will actually look grey once the window treatments are installed and the room is completely furnished.

Here's a quick glimpse of the built-in wall in progress - with her bed in place.  Our girl has a pink trundle bed.  :)

In preparation for a little celebration before Emma's arrival, I made a registry at Target.  It was a surreal experience.  When I walked up to the counter and told the attendant that I'd like to make a gift registry, she was a little surprised as she looked right at my non-pregnant belly.  To which I replied "I look pretty good to be 26 weeks pregnant with a toddler, right?"  Then I explained that we are adopting a 2 year old girl this spring.  She was happy to help as I created Emma's Adoption Registry.  

On Sunday night January 26th, I was turning lights off and putting away a few things before bed.  I found this ladybug walking around near the kitchen.  I'm always amazed by the presence of ladybug's in our house - especially in such cold times.  Ladybugs are viewed as a Chinese symbol of good luck.  (I saw one crawling by my foot while pumping gas in October - just before we learned our transfer was completed in order to match with Emma!)  So I made sure to photograph this little ladybug hoping it might be a sweet reminder that our process was moving along.

To my surprise the next day, our sweet social worker Karisa called on Monday afternoon to let me know they'd seen movement in our status in the database - Matched Reviewed!  EXCITEMENT!!  That status means our Letter of Acceptance would soon arrive from China - leaving just before Chinese New Year and all the governmental closures!  (When our actual LOA arrived, it was dated January 26th - sweet little ladybug!)

So work continued on Emma's room while we waited.  

While Brian did this . . . .

My dad and I did this . . . .

And then we had a snow day or two . . . .

And a date night with Chinese dinner out before attending Shen Yun - a Chinese dance performance at the Blumenthal.  Here are the fortunes we found in our fortune cookies:

And then the construction and painting continued - the accent wall in Emma's room.

We celebrated Chinese New Year with Ian and Aidan.  We read our books and found some red envelopes for the New Year.

And this might have happened yesterday!  I chased the FedEx delivery man back to his truck to take his photo with our Letter of Acceptance from China.  He was happy to take an extra minute to hear how important that package was for our family.  Thank You!

And today this document was sent overnight back to our agency with a stack of paperwork.  China officially recognizes us as being matched with Emma.  

Finally having this letter means we are so much closer to our baby girl.  After a 65 day wait for the LOA, we are so happy to be one step closer to travel.  We have been told that we are now 2-3 months from travel - friends - that is 8-12 weeks away!!  This is really (finally) happening!

Thank you for following our journey and supporting us.  Our story is really just beginning . . .

While We're Waiting (11 months)

December 30, 2013     - 11 months waiting since our LID (log in date in China)
                                     - 19 months waiting since we began our adoption process
                                     - 38 months (3 years, 2 months) since we began the process of adding
                                        to our family

Since our notification in November that we received Pre-Approval to adopt Emma, we've celebrated Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.  It's been a super busy time as McGinnis - Party of Four prepares to become McGinnis - Party of Five!

Historically, the fall is a super busy time at our home, and this year has been no different as we celebrated birthdays, holidays and tossed in lots of adoption related business!

During mid-November, our guest room went from this view to this view.

        

Then we discovered we needed to complete a home study update to request an extension for our USCIS approval (for immigration purposes).  I spent HOURS sorting through documents we collected and prepared more than a year ago to submit these piles of paperwork in order to schedule an appointment with our social worker.

So we hurriedly prepared our home for a December 12th visit (happy 43rd anniversary Mom & Dad).  As of December 5th, we'd not yet decorated our house for Christmas!  So our party of four spent three hours one evening decorating as much (or as little) as we could during that evening.

Then we welcomed our social worker into our home and enjoyed some Panera Bread treats and warm beverages.  We are excited to work with Jennifer over the next 5 years - we will need to submit post-adoption reports to China six times over the next 5 years.

Somewhere along the way, Aidan needed to visit the optometrist's office for an eye exam.  Luckily, the optometrist didn't ask Aidan to take his eye exam with this chart, but we were excited to see the Chinese symbols decorating the wall.  No glasses at this point - he may look like me, but I'm afraid he has inherited his daddy's vision.

We have a sweet friend, Michelle, who is an art teacher.  I asked if she could create a special painting for Emma's room.  She came over and looked at the space, took some fabric samples and created this gorgeous painting to decorate Emma's room.  I'm in love with the painting - the piggy tails and pink from head to toe remind me of one of the first photos we received of Emma.

  

We decided to begin a new Christmas Eve tradition this year in preparation for Emma joining our family.  We had lunch in downtown Charlotte at our favorite Chinese restaurant, Soho Bistro.  The boys enjoyed pizza from next door and fortune cookies.  The owners are sisters and are so sweet with our boys - we've visited this restaurant since before I was pregnant with Ian.

Then we visited the singing bears in Founders Hall - Aidan was fascinated and Ian promptly fell asleep during the 45 minute performance!  Let's be honest the singing bears freak me out a little.  :)  We hope Emma enjoys these new traditions next year. 

We were able to use a care package service contracted through our adoption agency.  We received notification a couple days after Christmas that the package had been received at the orphanage.  We hope Emma enjoys the Chinese Barbie, ladybug blanket and photo album filled with photos of our little family.  We also sent along a disposable camera that we hope to receive when we meet Emma in China along with some candies and nuts for the caregivers at the orphanage.

We received notification yesterday that our dossier has moved through the translation phase - at day 41 (January 2, 2014) of our wait for the Letter of Acceptance (LOA).  We've been told to expect the second half of the LOA process to move a little more quickly than the first half moved.  We are praying that we receive notification of our Approval and Match Approval by the end of January - before the governmental closures for the Chinese New Year holidays.  We think we will travel in April based on other families' travel experiences.  

Next week, we will get back to preparing Emma's room for her arrival - painting, installing, sewing.  (I promise not one McGinnis boy will be involved in the sewing!)

I can hardly wait until we bring her to her forever home - just a short time now!