Fishin' Around

The girls got it in their heads that they wanted a pet fish so last weekend Jeannette took them to the pet store and they got two beta fish.

Three Days Down, A Lifetime to Go

Well, we've completed three full days at home with Jillian.  So far, so good.  We definitely have a long road ahead of us, but there are a lot of good signs.

Jillian seems comfortable at home and has made a good connection with her brothers, especially Jordan maybe.  There's a lot that is new for her, obviously, from sinks that are too high to reach to lasagna for dinner, from grey rainy weather to the whole concept of roughhousing.  I feel so bad for her, because she simply can't communicate well with us.  Sure, it's hard for us, too, but it's definitely not the same.  There's no one in this house she can talk to.  Fortunately, she doesn't seem anxious and she's remarkably capable of figuring out what we're saying.  We're making good use of Google Translate from time to time as well!

This morning we took her to visit her new school (Ben Franklin Elementary) and, man, was that a blessing.  The principal, Mrs. Dilley, once again struck me as being totally student-centered and having a big heart for Jillian.  Jillian's special needs didn't throw her off at all.  We met the school psychologist, who seems great, and then got to take Jillian down to her classroom to meet Miss Hu, her teacher.  Fortunately, the class was out for PE so Miss Hu was able to take five or even ten minutes to really focus on Jillian.  She showed her the entire classroom, asked her questions, told her about how things work . . . all in Chinese.  It brought tears to my eyes to think about how comforting it must be to Jillian to see this fantastic facility and know that she has a caring teacher who can communicate with her in her own language.  She starts school on Monday.

Jeannette and I are still struggling a bit to get on a good sleep schedule.  We fall asleep during the day and can get to sleep right away at night but then have long periods of time in the night when we can't sleep.  Melody has not been feeling well so that's been an issue, too, as she's been dealing with a fever.  We're hoping she's over it now, though.

One Year Ago

Exactly one year ago today--October 29, 2011--Jeannette casually (carelessly perhaps) asked if we should revisit the idea of adopting again.  One year ago.  We had just finished telling our story of adopting Melody, at an AWAA adoption seminar in Vancouver. 

I can tell from archived emails that by November 1st I was in touch with WACAP and on November 22 we received our first detailed information about Jillian.  On December 11th, we submitted our application to adopt her. 

Time flies. 

Not Sure What to Think of This

As a father, I'm really not sure how I should feel about this little picture from this evening . . .

 

I'm not certain, but I think this is the first time Jeannette has had her wedding dress out of its cover since we got married in 1984.

World Premiere Video Here!

Here it finally is . . . a video slideshow of our big Both Hands adoption fundraising project from Saturday.  And catch this:  It features four brand new pictures of Jillian that we received just today.  They were taken last week.  We also got some updated info about her that was very encouraging and I'll share some of that here on the blog in the next day or so.  One month for today, we depart for China!

It's Done!

Saturday was our big Both Hands project and it was a fine success.  The weather was perfect, we had an awesome team that worked long and hard, and I think it turned out very well.  I will post only a few photos here because soon I'll be able to put up a video that shows the project more completely.  To everyone who helped, I don't think we can say thank you loud enough or often enough.  We appreciate your sacrifice!

More from Jeannette's Big Birthday

Some photos from Jeannette's birthday week.  We won't say how old she is now.  We'll just say that this was a big enough birthday to merit multiple celebrations.

On Wednesday night, Ellen Zarfas managed to pull together eight of our good friends from college days and convince them all to drive to Portland to have dinner with us at Claim Jumpers (our first time there).  I told Jeannette she should feel very honored!

  On her actual birthday, I bought Krispy Kreme donuts and took them to her school so that all her coworkers could recognize this milestone in her life.  Sadly, there is no photographic evidence of this.

That night, Melody's cousins slept over and the next morning they got up (quite) early and (not quietly) made breakfast for Jeannette.  They knocked on the door and Jeannette had to follow the trail of arrows leading her to the kitchen . . .

They even made her a crown of ivy.

And Melody sang to her.  I'm not sure it really was singing.

 Jeannette's mom also had spent the night and so they went out for coffee.  Phillip and I hastily assembled the storage chest I bought her and we set it up on the back deck, and I hid a pair of hedge trimmers inside.  These are actually two things she requested for her birthday.

That evening, the girls' parents, Paul and Wanda, picked up my mom and came to Portland to meet us all at Red Robin to have another birthday dinner with Jeannette.

The boys showed their brotherly love . . .

Melody can never keep her hands off my Diet Coke . . .

Mo' money, mo' years . . .

An applique that Wanda had made for our house, which includes Jillian's arrival in our family . . .

And the day ended with Jeannette opening her gifts from Laura and Jamey (because I forgot to give them to her earlier, of course) . . .

Maybe it's just me, but I think she'd be willing to turn 50 again if everyone treated her so well every time!

Jeannette Stumbles Upon Her Birthday Gifts

I'll post birthday celebration photos shortly but, in the meantime, here's a video I took on Saturday when I noticed Jeannette was out in the backyard and seemed likely to finally notice her gifts on the deck.  (And, yes, these are things she specifically asked for.)

A Quick Family Trip

Last weekend, we went down to Klamath Falls for a couple of nights to attend Jordan Lyman's wedding and visit our old church. Here are a few photos from our drive home.

At Salt Creek Falls, a quick stop near Oakridge as we drove to Eugene . . .

On Monday, we spent the day on the lake with Jeannette's brother, Scott, and some of his family.  I enjoyed reading my Grisham novel in the front of the boat . . .

A Major Milestone in the Adoption Process

This afternoon, I received a call from our adoption agency, letting us know that they had received our "Letter of Seeking Confirmation from Adopter" from China. This is roughly equivalent to when we received our "referral" when adopting MelodyJoy. The letter tells us that ". . . in accordance with the Adoption Law of the People's Republic of China, the China Center of Adoption Affairs matched a child with you." It wasn't quite as dramatic as it was with Melody, in that [a] the letter came by email rather than special delivery FedEx and [b] we already knew exactly who we were being matched with. Nonetheless, this is certainly a milestone worth celebrating.

We celebrated in classic American fashion, with a quick trip to a Chinese buffet closest to Jeannette's school. Here are pictures of us holding the Letter.  I know I look cranky . . . it's just that the sun was very bright and since we took them with my old cell phone, we couldn't even see what we were shooting.  But trust me, we're happy.

There are still a lot of steps remaining.  Our I-800 petition was mailed to the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services.  Anywhere from two to six weeks from now, we'll receive our I-800 Notice of Provisional Approval. The National Visa Center will then get in touch with the US Consulate in Guangzhou, China. About two weeks later, if I understand things right, the Consulate will issue the "Article 5 Letter" (whatever that is!) and it gets sent to Beijing.  Two to five weeks later, the Chinese adoption bureau will issue our Final Notice of Traveling to China for Adoption. Families usually actually travel about three weeks later.

If you do the math, we could travel in as little as nine weeks from now or traveling to Jillian could be four months away.  Jeannette's hoping for travel in mid-October and I'm thinking mid-November seems more realistic.  We'll keep you posted!

Something Old Becomes Something New

When we moved to Vancouver from Indiana, my mom gave us their old dining room table and chairs, which had been part of our family for as long as I can remember . . . at least back to 1964, I imagine.  I wish I had a "before" picture to include here but I don't have time to hunt for one.  Anyway, last week, Jordan repaired the burned spot and Jeannette painted the entire set a glossy black.  Here is the result!

Just a Few Shots from Last Weekend's Trip to Seattle

All Together Now for Mother's Day

Jordan and I picked up Phil in Chicago last night and brought him home from college, arriving in Fort Wayne around 4:30 AM. This meant that Jeannette didn't get to go to church with all her kids this morning but we tried to make up for it by taking her to Red Robin for lunch. It was the first time we've all been together since January. Melody exclaimed, "We're a family again!"

Phil gave her some silk pajamas . . . I have her some dark chocolate and the final season of 24 on DVD . . .

Jordan gave her a certificate for dinner and a movie . . .

Melody got her a new toe ring . . .