Our Trip to Maryland

On Friday, we (Mom, Isabella, Elisabeth, and I) took a trip to Maryland to see Blake (my brother who just returned home from Iraq). Although WE were quite happy to see him, I am not sure how happy he was to see us. Having 4 girls descend upon a bachelor may not qualify as a 'good time'. He did see to our needs, though, by driving us to every mall within a 45 mile radius. We hit Ikea, Baby Gap, Carters, OshKosh, Bloomingdales, Macys, and many, many shoe stores! We also made time to eat - surprise, surpise for those who know me :) We went to a great Italian restuarant the 1st night, Chipolte and California Pizza Kitchen on Saturday, and DuClaw on Sunday. YUMMMMYYYYY!!!! No need to tell you that I am on a diet, AGAIN! The kids were so great we stopped by the Hershey Chocolate Factory on the way home and did the famous tour. Oh...and we had enough room in our stomachs to wolf a burger and fries from Fuddruckers:) I ran out of baby food and formula on the ride home so Isabella ate a brownie covered in icing for dinner...her carseat shared ;)

Wings and Soda

Elisabeth and Todd's favorite thing to eat is wings...and now Isabella has joined the pack! We went to Quaker Steak and Lube on Friday and she tried wings for the 1st time with the sauce! She loved them! She also learned to kiss....full on the mouth! You don't realize what she is doing until she is sucking your lips :) Next step is to teach her how to aim for the cheek!

I am also posting pictures of Elisabeth and Todd playing soccer-he is her coach for the soccer team she is on. Also a favorite past time they share....while I do my favorite past time-sitting on my hinney.

9 Month Doctor Visit

Somehow in the last 3 months, Isabella has gone from the 25th percentile to the 72nd percentile for height and from the 50th percentile to the 25th percentile for weight. The doctor described her as tall and skinny today...when 3 months ago, she described her as short and fat. I am totally confused but completely happy she is healthy and perfectly normal. Elisabeth took great pride in undressing her, sitting her on the 'big person' scale (with her feet hanging off-like her Mama likes to get weighed) and holding her while the doctor listened to her heart. Then we all went to Ruby Tuesdays to celebrate 7 months of being a family (yes, I use any excuse to eat out)...Isabella had peas, cucumbers, cheese, crackers, ham, diet Coke (shhhhhh..don't tell the Dr.), and broccoli soup. Elisabeth dined on peas, grapes, mozzarella sticks, and french fries and a huge piece of chocolate cake for dessert - which she got to enjoy in peace when Todd took Isabella home early :)

Hellion on Knees

What was I thinking when I wanted this child to crawl? Why wasn't I happy with her just sitting peacefully on the rug or wherever I sat her? Now, not only does she crawl, but she pulls herself up on everything! Coffee table, rocking chair, toilet, dressers with drawers that come out too easily, gates, stairs, outlets, and the vacuum cleaner-AHHHHH!!! She not only pulls herself up, but pitches everything on to the floor. Nothing is safe in our house...except her crib and playpen. To all you new mothers out there, listen to what my mother told me-USE A PLAYPEN. It is the only time you have peace of mind. She was in bed today for the 2nd time when Elisabeth and I finally got to sit down and watch a LifeTime movie...our favorite past time. No interruptions for a whole 45 minutes. If anyone was watching "Trophy Wife", email me and let me know what happened :)

Happy Easter!

Easter this year was spent in Syracuse-first the Easter egg hunt, Easter baskets, and then church and lunch. Elisabeth hid Isabella's eggs (filled with Cherrios) in very obvious places but she still needed help finding them. She preferred to pull herself up using the coffee table legs rather than search out her eggs. She also preferred the grass at the bottom of her basket. Elisabeth had a great time, though, helping Isabella and finding her own eggs. Happy Easter to everyone!

Timeline for Travel...Looking Back

I talk to so many people about our experience with World Child International (our adoption agency) and our trip to Vietnam that I thought it would be helpful and less time consuming to post a timeline of what happened when we were there. I will also post the emails/pictures I sent from Vietnam (they will be under the date they were actually sent).

Day 1/2 Flew from Syracuse to Detroit to Los Angeles to Hong Kong to Hanoi, Vietnam (36 hours)
Day 3 Checked into the Guomann Hotel in Hanoi
Day 4 Sightseeing
Day 5 Traveled to see Isabella in Lang Son and file paperwork with the province
Day 6 Sightseeing
Day 7 Traveled to see Isabella again
Day 8-10 Sightseeing
Day 12 Giving and Receiving Ceremony - YEAH!!!!
Day 13 First meeting with INS
Day 14 Apply for Isabella's passport/get passport picture taken
Day 15 Medical appointment for Isabella for VISA
Day 16-22 Sit by the phone from 8 am to 4 pm waiting for a call from INS then go to Cathay Pacific to change our tickets (a total of 5 times!)
Day 23 Move to the Melia Hotel for a change of scenery
Day 24-28 Continue to sit by the phone and wait, swim in the pool, change our tickets
Day 29 Second interview with INS for Isabella's VISA...
Day 30 Pick up VISA and board the plane home :)

Tuesday Update

My sister said that my posts are slightly on the boring side so I promised to only post pictures of the kids. NOT! How can I not brag about my little angels just a little bit?? We will see what her blog is like when she has a baby:)

The pictures of the kids in the tent were taken in a store downtown that sells outdoor clothing. It will probably be the only time they experience a tent-I only do hotels.

Isabella got yet another cold on Saturday and is on antibiotics for an ear infection. Finally, a trip to the doctor's office that ended up being worth the money! A friend was over the other night and when I went to show her how Isabella moved like an inchworm, she got up on all fours and started crawling (Isabella, not my friend:). I couldn't tell who was more proud-us or Elisabeth!

Hump Day!

Only 2.5 more days until the weekend:) And the weather has been great! We actually WALKED to dinner the other night-if food is involved, I will walk anywhere. Isabella rode in Elisabeth's old walking stroller while Elisabeth rode her bike. On Monday night, the girls and I picked up dinner at a chinese restaurant and then picked up Todd and went for a picnic in the park. Isabella giggled her head off when Elisabeth pushed her in the swing. Watching them together is amazing.

Sunday in the Sun

After church, Isabella was playing upstairs while Todd and Elisabeth were getting ready for a bike ride. She was crawling around and the next thing we knew, she was standing by herself at the gate! I thought Elisabeth had helped her up but she had done it all on her own. The kid can't crawl but she's getting close to walking :)

After skipping her nap, we went to Lazer Tag with Elisabeth for her friend's birthday party. She ran around for 2 hours and then they both went outside to swing....while Todd picked up 1,000 piles of dog poop.

After yet another skipped nap, Elisabeth helped me vacuum the couches-my style....while feeding the baby :)

Saturday Fun

Today Elisabeth decided to make a movie ticket booth out of cardboard boxes from my Pampered Chef party. It is about 5 feet high with 2 cuts outs-1 to look through and 1 to pass your credit card through and get your ticket. She has a cash register that amplifies your voice and uses that to speak back and forth to the 'customer'. Her little friend came over for a movie tonight-which is why she designed the whole thing. I had to take Isabella, who has a cold AGAIN, to the mall so Elisabeth could finish her masterpiece. The tickets have been bought, the 2 of them are upstairs watching their movie, and Isabella is in bed for the night (hopefully). Life is good.

Standing Alone-Sort of

Isabella has found the joy of standing on her own...she can't get up by herself and can't sit down by herself, but she feels quite proud to hang on for dear life and smile! Like her mother, she can multi-task while gripping the couch. Like her father, she enjoys her baby computer :)

Positive News From Vietnam

Hello Everyone,

It looks like we may be home some time next week! We are hoping to get an interview this week and then we have to wait for Isabella's VISA to be processed and given to us. Then we arrange our flights. AHHHHH!!! It will feel so good to be flying towards home. I miss everyone and can't wait for you to meet Isabella! (And for me to loose weight after eating at every known Italian place in the city of Hanoi!) Love, Catherine

Waiting for VISA

Hello Everyone,

Wonder where we are 21 days after we left for Vietnam?? We are still IN Vietnam! We have changed our tickets 3 times and we still don't have an answer as to when we can leave. We filed all the paperwork with the Immigration and Naturalization Services (USA NOT Vietnam) last Wednesday and were told we would hear by this Wednesday (which has come and gone). We thought for sure we would be on a plane tonight at 7 but here we sit. Another LONG weekend ahead of us. We have seen and done everything we want to do. Isabella is certainly worth every minutes we spend waiting, but come on! Enough is enough and I have certainly had enough. Todd and I take turns throwing fits...we haven't done it at the same time thankfully :) We are sick to death of pasta and pizza and I am sure the people who work at those restaurants are sick of seeing us!

On a happier note, Isabella is wonderful! She eats, sleeps, and poops. We were sitting in the airline office (killing another hour which has actually gotten to be our highlight of the week) and she decided to stick her tongue out and take a very LOUD dump in her pants while grunting at the man next to me. Cute. That was after she let the biggest fart out while riding in the elevator with the manager of the hotel. She has also started drooling while she sleeps...a true Connors. We are very lucky to have this time with her - that is my mantra to keep me going through the day.

Well, off to try a new restaurant. We could become the newest Hanoi eatery critics. We have been everywhere and tried most things. Our bags have been packed since Monday and our 'last load of laundry' has been dropped off 5 times. I know we will make it home but this is the pits. Yes, labor pains were more fun :)

Enjoy the pictures...she is an amazing baby. I just can't wait to show her off in the USA!!!!

Love,

Catherine (and Todd)

Around Town

Here are some pictures of us in Hanoi...mainly eating, going to eat, or coming home from eating - which might explain the 10 pounds I gained instead of lost :)

Pictures From Our Visit With Isabella

I did not send an email with these pictures....they are of our second visit with Isabella and her caregiver.

Seeing Isabella for the 2nd Time

Hi Everyone!

It is midnight here and I am SO tired! I feel asleep while Todd was downloading the pictures and then he had to drag me out of bed to write this. Forgive me if I don't sound very coherent :)

We saw Isabella again today! We drove 3 hours to Lang Son, went back to the orphanage, and held/played with her for about 45 minutes. I got to give her a bottle, change her clothes, and Todd rocked her to sleep :) Her hair was sticking straight up:) Her nanny wanted a picture taken with her and started to cry when she explained that she has taken care of Isabella since day 1. We have to go and find some place in Hanoi that will develop digital photos so she has a copy of the picture.

We had the big meeting with the head of the adoption office in Lang Son. She was very nice but stern. All the papers are done and now we wait until the Giving and Receiving Ceremony. It should be on Monday but may not be scheduled until Tuesday. Our INS (Immigration) meeting is for Wednesday and that will determine if we can come home at the end of next week or the week after. Everything changes around here at the last minute so we are trying to go with the flow.

Tomorrow we are going to sleep in and venture out into Hanoi by ourselves. I'll email again when I have more news :)

Take care...we miss all of you!

Love,

Catherine and Todd

First Email from Hanoi, Vietnam

Hi Everyone!
Sorry for sending you so many pictures! There were so many cute ones-I didn't know which ones to leave out :)

We arrived in Hanoi on Monday morning (which was Sunday evening your time). The city is very different! It takes some time to get used to it all...the hotel is beautiful, though! The breakfast is wonderful! (Of course, food is my main priority). We spent the first few days sleeping and getting used to everything and then yesterday we got to see the baby! We drove about 3 hours into the mountains and went to the orphanage. We all waited in a room together and finally a young woman showed up with Isabella in her arms! I knew it was her from all the hair! She is so tiny and sweet and wonderful. She actually smiled at me...I swear those eyes looked right into my heart. It was instant love at first site for all 3 of us. She was very clean and very well taken care of. They let me change her into an outfit Elisabeth picked out but they didn't put a diaper on her. I figured she could hold it :) Not true....about 45 minutes later, I felt something really warm running down my leg. She peed everywhere! Of course, I could have cared less! We changed her into her first real diaper and then kissed and held her some more. She fell asleep at one point. She never cried once and seemed completely happy being held by us. She has long fingers and long feet! Her hair is adorable-at one point I even put a barett in it! I can't wait to get her home and dress her up in all my favorite outfits. She is very petite and even the 0-3 month outfit was big on her. It was heartbreaking to give her back to her caregiver when we had to leave. I kept running back to kiss her while the caregiver was pumping her little hand to wave goodbye to us. They do not like her in the sun or in the way of the fan or wind. We had to sit in a hot corner most of the time but it was fine-as soon as the caregiver was looking the other way, I would move under the fan to cool us off :)

We are back at the hotel today (it is 8:00 in the morning on Thursday as I type this, which is 9pm Wed your time-we are 13 hours ahead!). We are now going to breakfast and then off for really cheap Vietnamese massage. Tomorrow we go back to Lang Son and fill out the formal paperwork, see Isabella again and then return to Hanoi for the weekend. We thought we would be getting her tomorrow but we have to wait until Monday or Tuesday-hopefully Monday!

We miss you all! We will send more pictures after we see her tomorrow. She really is the most beautiful thing, besides Elisabeth, we have seen in 9 years!!!

Love you all!
Catherine and Todd