We're Going to China...Part II

Okay....we found out today that we were able to get our consulate appointment rescheduled to Monday, November 14 at 9:00 am. This puts us leaving for China around November 3 or 4, with 'Gotcha Day' on November 7 (when we meet Hannah for the first time). We'll probably be home around November 19 or 20.

We were a little sad that we're delayed by a few weeks. But, on the bright side, we'll be home for Halloween with Alex, and we'll be home for Thanksgiving with our newest family member....and we'll have a lot to be thankful for!!

We should hear more about our travel next week....we'll keep you posted!!

Joe & Darese

Travel changes....

Just after we received our consulate date, we were notified by our agency that our travel coordinator can't find hotel rooms in Guangzhou during the week of October 31. UGGHHH!! There is a huge trade fair in that region in the later part of October, and originally, everyone thought the 31st would be late enough, and there wouldn't be any problems getting rooms. But, people are choosing to stay in Guangzhou after the trade fair, so they can't find rooms anywhere.

Our agency has requested dates later in that week, or possibly the following week.... we'll keep you posted!!

We're going to China!!

Well, one short day after receiving our travel approval, we received confirmation of our appointment with the US Consulate. Our interview date is set for Monday, October 31. That puts us travelling around October 20, with our "Gotcha Day" on Monday, October 24, if all goes well. By the way, "Gotcha Day" is when we get to meet Hannah for the first time, and she becomes our daughter. For our particular orphanage, this will probably take place in the Civil Affairs Office in Chongqing.

We're awaiting our preliminary itinerary from our travel coordinator, and will post here when it's finalized. In the meantime, we'll have a travel meeting with our agency and one of the other couples we'll be traveling with (the other family is in Florida), and we'll be working on putting the final touches in Hannah's room.

Hard to believe we're only one month away from meeting her!!

Travel Approval!!

We received our travel approval (TA) today!! That's one step closer to traveling to China to pick up Hannah. Now our agency will request an appointment with the US Consulate in Guangzhou. Since this is primarily done over email, we should hear about the appointment within the next day or two. Once we have our appointment date, we'll have a much better idea of when we'll travel. The consulate appointment is usually the last thing we'll do, so whatever the date is, we'll actually travel about 2 weeks before then. We've been told that consulate dates are now in the first and second weeks of November, which means we could be traveling in late October.

We've been in touch with the two other families who received referrals from the same agency as ours. They have both adopted before, so we're really happy that we'll likely be traveling with families who have been through this already. Their daughters are also in Qianjiang.

We'll be using a travel agency called Chinasmith, who specializes in arrangements for families traveling to China to adopt. Here's a website that details a typical itinerary: http://www.chinasmith.com/adoption.htm --

We will keep you posted about our plans!!

Joe & Darese

Alex's First Day of School

Last Wednesday, September 7 was Alex's first day of Kindergarten. He did quite well!! He liked riding the bus, and is fortunate to have his friend Brianna (from down the street) sit with him on the bus. Here's a picture of Alex and Bri on the first day of school waiting for the bus.

Growth Report of Qian, YuYan

We received the translated referral today for Hannah. Basically, the referral is a 12 page document that tells us all about the baby, from when she was found, to her daily routines to medical information. Here's what the referral said:

Qian Yu Yan was brought in to the Qianjiang Social Welfare Institute on January 5, 2005. She was given a physical exam by the Women and Children Health Protection Hospital in Qianjiang District. She was 48cm (18.9 inches) tall and weighed 3.6kg (7.9 lbs). Her head size was 36cm (14.1 inches), chest size was 34cm (13.4 inches). She cried loudly and was very conscious. She was normal. Based on her physical growth and her umbilical cord, her birth date was determined to be January 3, 2005. She was named Qian, YuYan. Qian comes from the name of River Qian Jiang. YuYan sounds good.

At one month old, she was 51.5cm (20.3 inches) tall, and weighed 4.0kg (8.8 lbs). At 6 months old, she was 64.5cm (25.4 inches) tall, and weighed 6.0kg (13.2 lbs) .

As a result of good care of caretakers, she has a regular life, good eating habit, good sleep and normal physical development. She gets up at 6:00am, has a nap between 11:30 and 13:30 and between 17:00 and 17:30. She goes to bed at 20:30. She eats 5 times a day at 6:30, 10:00, 15:00, 19:00, and 24:00. Her major food is milk and rice pudding. She has good appetite. She eats about 170ml per meal. She also gets rice soup at 10:00 and 15:00 as supplement. She takes meat soup and crunched fruits too. She takes bath at 8:00. She has normal urination (5-6 times a day) and defecation (2-3 times a day).

She slept a lot when she was 1 month old and would cry when she was hungry or wet. She would fall asleep soon after she was satisfied. When she was 2 months old, she had strong arms and legs. She liked to play. She liked to look at light. She could smile. When she was 3 months old, she had more body movements. She liked to move her arms and hands. Her head could turn to follow sounds. She is now about 6 months old and very active. She likes to smile. She likes to listen to music and watch TV. She likes toys with bright colors.

The referral indicated all of her medical to be normal.

We spoke with the company that will coordinate our travel, and it looks like we will travel through Beijing and spend a few days there before flying to Chongqing to pick up Hannah. We'll be in Chongqing for about 4-5 days before going to Guangzhou, where the US Consolate is located to complete the formal paperwork. We'll probably in in China for about 2 weeks total.

Referral!!

Hi Everyone --

We are happy to announce that, on Thursday, September 1, we received the referral for our daughter!! Here are the details:

Name: Qian Yu Yan (soon to be Hannah YuYan Scaffido)
Birthdate: January 3, 2005
Location: Qianjiang Social Welfare Institute - Chongqing, China (Sichuan Province)

She is in good health, and is reported to be a deep sleeper, enjoys tearing paper, laughs aloud, has an active personality, and is fond of listening to music. Her 13 page referral is currently being translated by our adoption agency, and includes more detailed medical information, along with her history, daily routine, and other information.

Here are her referral pictures.




If anyone is interested in learning more about the orphanage she is in, another adoptive parent who has been there put together this website: http://www.qianjiangorphanage.com/index.htm

Big brother Alex, who started Kindergarten on Wednesday, is excited
to have a little sister, and can't wait to go out and buy her more
toys. We are also busy putting the final touches in the "Disney
Princess" room.

Darese and I will probably travel to China in late October/early
November for about 2 weeks to pick up Hannah, and complete the
adoption process. While we're in China, my parents will stay with
Alex at our house so that he doesn't miss school. We will keep you
posted about our travel plans.

Best Wishes!!

Joe, Darese, & Alex