Home

Been home for a while.  Things have beens somewhat...hectic to say the least.

Today

Today is the day that we've been waiting for.  We finally leave for China.  I am such a whirl of emotions that I don't even know where to start.

I can't believe this day is here.  On Monday we will meet Lily. On Tuesday she will become ours forever.  While I am excited to see what these two weeks bring I am even more excited for the return home so we can finally begin our lives as a family.

Hang on tight baby girl!  Mommy and daddy are on their way!

Travel Dates

We have our travel dates!  We leave Canada August 8th and return the 22nd.  We still don't have our itinerary for China but I am guessing Lily day will be the 10th or 11th.  I think we should be getting our itinerary in the next week or so.  We got direct flights which is good. I don't like transferring and this will make things much easier.  On the way back home we opted to fly business class.  The cost difference was minimal and having the extra room with Lily I think will make for a better flight home.

I've been looking for information on Shihezi, Lily's city.  There isn't a lot of information out there.  It's waaaay out there in the province of Xinjiang.  Population is about 650,000 people.  There is a big university that has a student population of about 40,0000.  Cotton is the main economic driver in the area.  Textiles also plays a big role.  It's been said Shihezi is a Shining Pearl in the Gobi Desert.

Can't wait to go and pick up our beautiful girl!

Referral Formally Accepted

This week we met with our social worker and formally accepted our referral.  We signed all our paperwork and faxed them back to our agency before mailing off the originals.  We've also requested that our agency try to get updated information on Lily, hopefully that will include updated pictures as well.

Now we wait (again) for ministry approval and then off to the C3WA for approval. Once we get our LOI we can FINALLY confirm flight dates.  If we can't go before the end of August then we have to wait until after the LNY celebrations which this year will be September 10th.  Please keep your fingers crossed that we get the earlier date.

People have told me before that this part of the wait was difficult.  This part is excruciating.  I just want to go to Shihezi and get Lily, hold her in my arms and let her know that she is a part of our family forever.

In Search of Advice

Well we are finally coming back to earth after the referral of our daughter and realize we have a lot to do in these next few weeks.  We were told we would be travelling in the next 9-10 weeks.  I have a few questions from BTDT parents and hope you can answer some of them.

1.  Baby carrier: Which baby carrier did you use?  Was it good? Did your back hurt after a while?  Lily is a bit older but a wee little thing so we're trying to figure out which carrier would be good to use.
2. Stroller: Did you use a stroller?  Did you bring one from home or buy one in China?
3. Gifts: What kind of gifts did you bring for the orphanage? Did you buy it at home or in China? For those who had kids in foster care, what did you bring for the foster family?
4. Carrying cash: How did you carry your cash into China?  Did you use a money belt or just left it in your carry on?  What type of money belt did you use?
5. Bonding and attachment tips: We've read a lot about bonding and attachment but just looking to see what worked for you? My good friend Catherine has given me a lot of great tips, use the baby carrier, bottle feed and feed with fingers.  Anything else?

That's all I can think of for now.  May come back with more questions later.

And her name will be...

We finally decided on a name!  Shi Wen Yu will now be known as Lily Justine Shi Wen Yu.  Still so over the moon thrilled!

Here She Is!

It is with great pride that we announce the referral of our daughter!  Her name is Shi Wen Yu and her birthday is December 28, 2012.  She is from the SWI in Shihezi City in Xiajiang in northern China. She is from the Han ethnic group, which apparently is unusual.  She is currently foster care and likes to go outside.  We have a Canadian name in mind but will post that later.

It looks like we will be travelling in August to go get her.  We are just over the moon thrilled!