Onward and upward...over the sea to Mali

Wow! I can't believe it's tomorrow!! All of these days, weeks, months, and years of hoping, dreaming, planning, worrying and wondering are all finally culminating into an adventure of a lifetime that begins tomorrow!! I can't believe it.

Lots of butterflies in our stomachs, problems sleeping, strange dreams, racing thoughts, worries, doubts, excitement, panic, sheer joy, happy tears, and more wondering what lies ahead have filled our days lately. I just want to be able to get on the plane already! Since about 4 days ago, I have only wanted to be able to go to bed and wake up to July 1st and Shawn just keeps saying some variation of "I just want to get my hands on our little monkey" for days now as well. It's been so hard to be patient and deal with all of the mundane little odds and ends that go into everyday life while anticipating something this big. But, we made it….our time has finally arrived.

Here is a photo of our "golden ticket"


And here is a photo of the nursery (calm before the storm), no longer considered "Operation China ~ Central Packing Station" :)


So signing off for now...the next time we set foot on American soil, there will be 6 feet where there were 4, and a family where there was just a couple :)

First Father's Day

A good day. Shawn got up and got to go out and golf with his friends this morning. Then he met me and my dad and the family at Olive Garden for lunch. It was really nice to be there with everyone together. Every card Shawn got for Father's Day brought tears to his eyes and made him choke up, even having to excuse himself to the bathroom at one point. It was so adorable. He also told me that when he was out on the golf course, he kept getting texts from people wishing him a Happy Father's Day, one in particular from his cousin Kelsea who said she couldn't wait to meet us at the airport and see Mali brought more tears to his eyes. He/we have been waiting for this for so long...it's hard to believe the time has nearly come. 10 more days until we leave for China...and 15 more days until she's in our arms.

Happy Father's Day hon...I love how openly you can express your emotions, I wouldn't have it any other way!

We're Skyping!

Just finished setting up the last of the family that we will be keeping in contact with while in China. I have never used Skype before, but it has got to be one of the coolest inventions EVER!! Maybe I'm behind the times, I usually am when it comes to technology, but I am having so much fun playing with this thing!! And I think our parents all are too...it's funny to see what some people do when a web-cam is placed in front of them! Everyone reverts back to the playfulness of a 5 year old - it's been hilarious!

Anyway, if anyone is on Skype already and wants to add us as a contact, you will need to search for carolgarrabrant.laptop and add my mom as a contact as she will be our personal IT guru (and luggage/paperwork wrangler, basic sanity maintainer, seasoned veteran parent, emotional support for new parents of a toddler, etc, etc :) while in China. I just hope that the Great Firewall of China (e.g. all of the government restrictions placed on internet use) will allow us to access this blog, as well as our personal email accounts through yahoo, and Skype while we're there. Fingers crossed!

But wait...YES!!!

Wait, is this real? Is it happening? No turning back now!

Had a melt down on Sunday night, knowing that that was actually Monday morning in China and that we were supposed to have met our little girl for the first time that day. Shawn and I both got so upset and frustrated, not hearing anything yet from China and then reading about how the mayor of New Orleans just got quarantined upon landing in China and fearing that all of this quarantining was going to lead to indefinite delays in our travel, then thinking of all the worst possible scenarios and worrying about when, or worse yet if, we would get over to meet Mali. So, not knowing what else to do, Shawn texted Kim at our agency (a bunch of times) to try to get some peace of mind. But not hearing anything back, we didn't understand what was going on and so got ourselves a little more worked up...it was that sick, suffocating feeling of helplessness again. But little did we know...

Kim and Zhou were feverishly working their asses off all weekend to finagle some way to get us to our little girl...and lo and behold - they frickin did! Shawn got a call yesterday morning at 8:30am -> Kim saying, "Pack your bags!" That's right, they did it, we finally got provincial approval to come in on July 1st! Yeehaw!!

And today, we got the more official version of this wonderful news, and actually booked our flights through EAC's travel agent in OKC. There's just something about actually booking travel that makes it all seem final...no turning back now (not like we ever would, but you know what I'm sayin'!)

This is still a little scary though because we were told that not only will they check our temperatures and symptoms for swine flu upon landing in Beijing, but also when we travel from Beijing to Guangzhou...anything over 98.8 and you could/most likely will be quarantined. Lots of tylenol, ibuprofen, and ice packs on our wrists and neck before landing for us! But regardless of whether or not we get quarantined, at least we'll be there, that much closer to our baby girl. And it will all make for a better story in the end, right?

Ok, I just need to sigh...*ahhhhhhh*, what a relief to have approval and be locked into a flight. Thank God! Now on to fret over all the packing and loose ends to tie up (once again) before we actually leave...it never ends, does it? Of course, to answer my own question ~ I have this strange feeling that this is only the tip of the iceberg...the very beginning of the best adventure of our lives :)

Here's a sneak peak at our itinerary (all except for our in-country flights from Beijing to Guangzhou) as it is now...however it could all change should we get quarantined at any point during our journey. Keep all of your fingers and toes crossed for safe and quarantine-free travels for us!
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Flight - United Airlines Inc Wednesday, July 1, 2009


Flight Number: UA0331 Confirmation Number: T0KT2O
Class: COACH
Depart: Columbus Port Columbus Int'l Arpt 08:00 AM
Columbus, OH USA Wednesday, July 1


Arrive: Chicago O'Hare Int'l Arpt 08:13 AM
Chicago, IL USA Wednesday, July 1
Terminal 1
Seat: Not Assigned Stopovers: 0
Meal: None Mileage: 286
Aircraft: Airbus A319 Travel Time: 1:13


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Flight - United Airlines Inc Wednesday, July 1, 2009


Flight Number: A0851 Confirmation Number: T0KT2O
Class: COACH
Depart: Chicago O'Hare Int'l Arpt 12:41 PM
Chicago, IL USA Wednesday, July 1
Terminal 1


Arrive: Beijing Capital Arpt 03:15 PM
Beijing CN Thursday, July 2
Terminal 3
Seat: Not Assigned Stopovers: 0
Meal: Lunch Mileage: 6572
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200/300 Travel Time: 13:34


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Flight - China Eastern Airlines Thursday, July 16, 2009


Flight Number: MU5316 Confirmation Number: EZ01Y
Class: COACH
Depart: Guangzhou Baiyun Arpt 08:05 AM
Guangzhou CN Thursday, July 16


Arrive: Pu Dong Arpt 10:00 AM
Shanghai CN Thursday, July 16
Terminal 1
Seat: Not Assigned Stopovers: 0
Meal: Snack Mileage: 752
Aircraft: Airbus 320-100/200 Travel Time: 1:55


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Flight - United Airlines Inc Thursday, July 16, 2009


Flight Number: UA0836 Confirmation Number: T0KT2O
Class: COACH
Depart: Pu Dong Arpt 03:55 PM
Shanghai CN Thursday, July 16
Terminal 2


Arrive: Chicago O'Hare Int'l Arpt 04:16 PM
Chicago, IL USA Thursday, July 16
Terminal 5
Seat: Not Assigned Stopovers: 0
Meal: Lunch Mileage: 7065
Aircraft: Boeing 747-400 Travel Time: 13:21


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Flight - United Airlines Inc Thursday, July 16, 2009


Flight Number: UA0334 Confirmation Number: T0KT2O
Class: COACH
Depart: Chicago O'Hare Int'l Arpt 07:43 PM
Chicago, IL USA Thursday, July 16
Terminal 1


Arrive: Columbus Port Columbus Int'l Arpt 09:54 PM
Columbus, OH USA Thursday, July 16

Seat: Not Assigned Stopovers: 0
Meal: None Mileage: 286
Aircraft: Airbus A319 Travel Time: 1:11


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Remarks

Sadness

Today was supposed to be the day that we left for China.

I could hardly concentrate on anything all day long. I felt like I was in a straitjacket, suffocating...work just seemed utterly pointless.

It made matters even worse when people who hadn't heard of the delay just happened to pick today to ask when we were going to bring home our little girl. It was like rubbing salt in a fresh wound. It completely sucked. I couldn't figure out if I wanted to scream or cry or do something more drastic.

I'm feeling so helpless and frustrated right now. I just can't wait for this to all be resolved but at the moment I have never felt more a mess or physically farther away from Mali. I don't know what to do with myself.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!!

Hello all! Good, no...GREAT news!
We actually got an update on Mali!

I don't know how he did it, but Zhou worked his amazing magic. In fact, Kim said that this is the most photos EVER in an update for a child at their agency in the China program, which probably means that Mali's caregivers really love our little angel...which also means I'm really glad to know she's in such good hands there and we can try to rest easy knowing that she will be truly cherished until we can bring her home and begin to shower her with all of our love and kisses that we've been saving here :)

As for the update -> along with her pictures (which I'll post some highlights below, however there are 17 total so I put them, in their entirety, on Facebook if you want to see EVERY single one), they sent more measurements which show that she seems to be a bit petite for her age. Of course we're not quite sure when the measurements were taken, so she could actually be a bit bigger now. I guess we'll see for ourselves soon enough! :)

height 28.3"
foot length 4.5"
weight 17.6 lbs
head circumference 17.3"
chest circumference 18.5"


And now, the moment you've been waiting for...drumroll please.................
IT'S MALIANA! (in all her glory!! :)



















And finally, the amazing crew that is making this all possible... (left to right) - Zhou, Chris, and Kim from EAC! The best adoption team/dream-come-true makers in the world!

Ha ~ had to laugh...

I had to post this little note because I thought it was funny.

First, yesterday I was really dreading telling my parents about the delay in our trip because of how excited they are and just not wanting to disappoint them. But I am pleased to say they both handled it really well.

However, I had to laugh at my dad's reaction. First thing he said when he called was, "Well, don't worry, the doctors get this stuff wrong all the time", and then he just stopped saying anything else. I was initially so confused about what he meant and was like, "What? What are you talking about?". Then as he explained more, he said that I "must just not be as far along in my "pregnancy" as they had initially thought. She's just not ready to be born to you guys yet". I had to laugh at that. I really appreciated that perspective on the situation :) I guess it really is like a real pregnancy now...we were just in false labor, our version of Braxton Hicks! LOL

Thanks Dad!! 1-4-3