Two Kenney boys and now a girl!!!

Happy Gotcha Day, Mia!!

2009-01-14T07:55:00.032-05:00

Wow! Time flies. A year ago today Mia (Wei Ling) was placed in our arms. I remember that day (the whole trip actually) vividly. I guess it is comparable to a birth mother remembering the day a child was born. At age 2 and a half she is happy, healthy, funny, and smart. She is a joy and an amazing child. We are so grateful to have her in our family. (Aside - Jacob and Zach have "gotcha" days that we celebrate too! Jacob's is 5/20/2000 - Romania and Zach's is 7/2/2002 - Republic of Georgia).

Here are some videos of that day and some before/after photos

The handoff...

I'm holding the baby doll that Aunt Wendy gave her - mostly so that I could do something with my hands while we waited - b/c Mia wanted nothing to do with it at that time!

I don't know if you can see this, but she had a cookie in one hand and a little packet of jelly in the other. Not sure what happened to the cookie, but she held on to that jelly for days. We still have it!

Warming up to us...

Then ....

and now....

Merry Christmas 2008

2008-12-29T11:59:00.028-05:00

Gettin our tree from the Willey's

It was actually snowing!!

Christmas morning - we got Elmo!

Brothers hug!

Zach got a Disney Mix Stick (MP3 player)

I think I like this Christmas thing.

Dad and Jacob on Christmas morning.

Finally, a dog that won't jump up on me.

Three kids in Christmas PJ's - awesome!

We need a bigger bed!

Copper - 6 months old and very sweet.

Jacob trying to help "miss independent."

The day after Christmas we went to Pole Green Park to play and fly our new radio control air plane.

Mia likes the slide.

Yes, it will fly.

Chris and Jacob flying the plane.

Where did it go?

Christmas night - with the Fearnow's

Mia and Jacob having some dessert.

Zach trying out his new tennis racquet.

Mia and cousin Bailey checking out a lady bug on the trampoline.

Now I got it....

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-13T11:37:00.007-05:00

In case you can't tell, Jacob was a SWAT team guy with lots of gadgets, Mia was a pumpkin, and Zachary was a vampire. All got way too much candy, which is almost gone. Mia has added "candy" to her growing list of words and she knows how to get it when she wants it!

New Addition: Copper!

2008-09-08T15:51:00.003-04:00

In case you can't tell, she's a hound dog - a redbone coonhound to be exact. Copper is 11 weeks old and as sweet as they come. The kids absolutely love her, including Mia. Max (our older German Wirehair) is still adjusting.

Gotta love those ears!!!!

Posing here with our nephew, Justin, and niece, Kaitlyn.

Whew - those kids just wear me out!

First Day of School

2008-09-02T15:39:00.003-04:00

Holden Beach 2008

2008-08-25T15:44:00.005-04:00

Hi everyone! We just got back from 2 weeks at the beach. Mia seemed to enjoy her first time at the beach - and the boys loved it as always!

hmmm.... what a pretty sunset.

Jacob flying his kite.

Fish in a bucket! What could be more fun?!

Zachary, Mia, and Jacob on the beach at night.

Zach surfing.

Now that is one determined little woman!

I can't think of a caption - I just think she looks beautiful.

Vacation Bible School Week!

2008-06-27T14:21:00.008-04:00

Jacob, Mia, and Zachary

The movie below is Zach's group singing. He is in the middle, just to the right of his buddy, Cole Newton. It is 2:46 minutes long.

Jacob's group sings below. He is to the far left, front row. It is 1:32 minutes long.

New pictures!

2008-05-12T14:17:00.005-04:00

Mia is now 22 months old and has been home almost 3.5 months. She is talking more and more every day. She says, "uh-oh, stinky (in reference to her feet!), dog, ball, more, Zach, baby, ma-ma (rarely), and sometimes bye-bye and ni-night." She has been sick quite a bit with ear infections, viruses, fever, and runny nose. We are hoping she is getting over all of that. When she is healthy, she is a very happy baby who sleeps and eats very well. We just have to keep her healthy! The boys are still crazy about her and are figuring out the "big brother" thing. The pictures above are the first portraits we have of her, so I went a little overboard. I'll probably do the same thing in a couple of months when she turns 2. Oh, well - we have some catching up to do!!!

Our three!!

2008-03-01T14:59:00.003-05:00

Need I say more?! We are blessed!

More slow progress

2008-02-26T14:55:00.004-05:00

We had a great visit to SC the weekend of February 16th to see Grandma & Grandpa Kenney, Uncle Matt & Aunt Lindsay, Uncle David, and Uncle Gerry & Aunt Nancy. Mia would go to others (mostly when mom was not around) and gave hugs and kisses freely. She really is starting to explore more and gaining confidence. She is eating fairly well but sleep is still hit or miss. She will sleep through one night and be up crying 6 to 10 times the next! We can't figure that one out, but overall, I'd say she is making progress. All medical tests have come back normal so far, and she is starting to catch up on her immunizations. Here are some pictures of the weekend in SC. Hello to all of our travel families - we miss you and hope your adjustment is going well too!!

Mia and Grandma Kenney

Jacob and Zachary

Mia and Zach

SLOW Progress

2008-02-12T14:52:00.001-05:00

Here are a few new pictures including 2 with the 3 kids together. We are still making very slow progress. Mia still will not go willing to others. She will let my mom and sister hold her IF I'm not around. Still no luck with Chris either, although she will play with him and give kisses - but no holding. Still not sleeping through the night either - wakes up crying at least a half a dozen times a night or more. BUT - we are seeing lots of progress. Mia is really coming out of her shell. She is babbling like crazy, "singing," and dancing. She waves bye-bye and blows kisses. She can feed herself with a spoon. She is generally a happy baby and laughs a lot. Plus, she likes to watch basketball on TV, so how can I complain?! Hope everyone is doing well!

Jacob (7, right), Zachary (5, left), and Mia (18 mos)

This is REAL progress. She actually enjoys taking a bath and will splash water in her face and laugh. She hated baths at first and screamed bloody murder. The boys helped with this alot - but 3 may be a crowd in the tub!

Jacob looking cool.

Zach's "muscles."

Rough beginning but getting better

2008-01-31T08:30:00.000-05:00

I know I promised a photo of the 3 of them together, but read below to understand why that has not happened yet. These were taken the first morning home.

Tickles from Zach.

Hugs from Jacob.

Let me show you the kitchen.

We got home safe and sound and had a wonderful reunion at the airport with lots of friends and family. Mia took to the boys almost immediately. She walked straight to them in the airport and gave them hugs. But she was starting to get sick before we left China and was very fussy and slept little on the airplane. Saturday I took her to Patient First because she was thrashing her head around and crying a lot. They gave her Amoxicillin for an ear infection. Sunday Mia was up the entire night screaming in discomfort. I took her to the pediatrician Monday morning and she thought she needed a breathing treatment and some other tests - couldn't figure out what was wrong. So she sent us to the ER at St. Mary's for x-rays and tests. We got there around 10:30am and didn't leave until about 5:30pm. They did so many tests - urinary catheter, 10 viles of blood, x-rays, 2 breathing treatments, 5 doctors later..... they let us go home with Augmentin for double ear infection and nebulizer for upper respiratory infection and bronchospasms. She slept a little Monday night but was still up a lot crying. Tuesday night was better. She slept for 7 hours straight (I slept for 6 straight!) and was in a much better mood Wednesday morning - up until her scheduled visit with the pediatrician when she got 4 vaccinations. Today (Thursday) we go to Labcorp for even more blood work.

This kid has been through it! Her nights and days are still mixed up. But....I see a light at the end of the tunnel, finally. This has been an incredibly hard week for all of us. Chris is exhausted too and frustrated b/c she still won't go to him - making it impossible for him to help out in the middle of the night. Jacob loves her so much but is constantly trying to feed Mia, give her a bottle, hug her, pick her up..... Zach (our now middle child) has been great. He likes to play with her and make her laugh, but also backs off when needed.

Things are getting better every day and I know we will all make this adjustment and probably forget this rough time soon. We miss our friends in our travel group and their beautiful children. We look forward to a reunion with them soon. Thanks again for following our journey. I'll try to get that photo of the 3 kids posted soon.

Leaving on a jet plane...

2008-01-24T18:46:00.000-05:00

Don't know when I'll be in Hong Kong/China again. Come on, sing it with me!

Good night. Even better morning. No pictures though. Thanks again to all who have helped out in so many ways. You know who you are and we do too. My next posted photo will have 3 kids in it!!!!

We're in Hong Kong!

2008-01-24T08:52:00.000-05:00

We made it!! We had our consulate appointment and got Mia's passport and Visa. She is ready to enter the U.S. We didn't have any problems going through the China or Hong Kong checkpoints, and Mia was in a great mood on the bus.

Tomorrow we leave the hotel early and our flight leaves at 11:25am (Hong Kong time). We should get into Richmond Friday on Continental Flight 2740 from Newark, NJ at 5:22pm. Come and catch that first glimpse of this beautiful girl - but forgive us if we look like we've been up all day and night. I can't wait to get my hands on my boys!!!

Here is my last photo of Mia from this side of the world. See you all soon!!

WE ARE OUTTA HERE!

2008-01-23T23:22:00.000-05:00

Good bye China, hello Hong Kong!!! (We think-still waiting on a final call from the Consulate!!) What a huge relief! I can't even tell you. All I have to say is Der is the man and Helen is the woman (Der and Helen are our facilitators in Guangzhou and they have lived up to their reputations)! They were on this situation and I have never heard so much loud, intense Chinese talking in my life. Der was on the phone with the consulate in one of the families' rooms while we were all there. Ten minutes later, we were back in the clinic for our 3rd full examination. No fever. No bumps. No problem. The medical report was sent to the U.S. Consulate and we still await the final word. However, it really sounds like we are good to go. I will post differently if that is not the case, but I wanted to go ahead and write this just in case we get a call to be downstairs in 5 minutes or something.

I won't be completely relieved until we get that call and actually head to Hong Kong - but this is pretty good. Bags are getting packed and Mia is sleeping - exhausted from yet another medical exam. She will be thrilled to learn that she has another one in the states for the 30th.

I wish I had gotten a picture of Mia today, but it just wasn't a picture taking kind of day. Too much stress and tension in the air. But she did look really cute - denim dress, pink shirt, and pink tights. Since I don't have a picture (yet), I'll post a video from the other day. Enjoy - and I'll try my best to post again after we get to Hong Kong.

P.S. It is now 2pm and we are supposed to leave the hotel at 2:45pm. Still no call from the Consulate. We are all packing up as if this is going to happen. Keep fingers crossed!!!!

Bump in the road...

2008-01-23T04:42:00.000-05:00

I know you want to scroll to the pictures, but we have some important news first. What was supposed to be a routine last day in Guangzhou, has turned out to be quite stressful. It appears that this chicken pox thing is a very big deal. We were called to a meeting this afternoon with representatives from the US Consulate (they issue the babies' visas). We (along with another adoption group called Holt) may not be able to leave on time. The CDC is reviewing all information, but right now the children who were exposed to the 2 kids with the chicken pox cannot leave the country. The consulate people did not have the information about our children being vaccinated and cleared twice at the clinic. They did not have our dates of exposure and other information. The consulate is supposed to relay that information to the CDC right away. All we can do now is wait. It appears that one parent may be able to leave on time. That will be Chris, if it comes down to it. We are all very nervous and upset right now. Some of the parents in our group are looking into chartering a plane to get us out of here, because the concern is that our children will be on a commercial flight with lots of other people. We just don't know anything right now but it is highly likely that we will not be coming home on Friday. I hate it - but it is out of our hands. Please pray that the CDC reviews this new information and gives us permission to leave soon. Tensions are high but we are trying to keep a positive attitude. At the very least, I hope that Chris can make it out as scheduled. I will post new information as we get it.

Our group photo today (before the consulate meeting)

No worries on her face!!!!

Isn't this beautiful?!!!

Our happy girl sporting her new (pink) outfit!

Love you Jacob and Zach - and doing everything we can to get back to you!!!!

Yun Tai Garden (3 more days till home!)

2008-01-22T01:37:00.000-05:00

Today we went to Yun Tai Garden. It was really beautiful and a nice day to get out. Mia was a little cranky this morning, so she is not smiling in very many pictures.

All bundled up because it was chilly.

Tea pot with running water.

Tribute to the Beijing Olympics.

These are the little olympic characters - we see them everywhere.

Mia with her toothbrush.

We had to go back to the clinic this afternoon to get double-checked for the chickenpox so that we could all get cleared to leave the country. She was in a good mood until she actually had to be seen by the doctors. But - we are chickenpox free and ready to come home!!!

Wiggle worm!

No fever! Check out the nurse's hat.

I don't know how he could hear anything!!

Hair cut day (day 8 with Mia)

2008-01-21T04:21:00.000-05:00

The day started for me with a 6am run. After convincing the door man that I did not want to go to the health club and that I actually wanted to go outside, he reluctantly let me go. It was still dark so I ran by the river where there are lights. There were people out there doing Tai Chi to Chinese music - very cool. I saw a man getting out of the river from a swim. I only saw a couple of other runners and I got lots of strange stares, but it was a 100% better than the treadmill and very entertaining.

At breakfast we were told by a waitress that Mia would be "more beautiful" if we cut her hair. She expressed "cut her hair" by making the scissor motion across Mia's bangs with her hand. I promised not to cut it myself, so we ended up at the beauty salon on the 2nd floor of our hotel. She was a wiggle worm on my lap, but I think the lady did a pretty good job of evening some of it out. Judge for yourself.

Being silly on the bus coming back from yet another shopping trip.

Turn up the volume for this video. She is a giggle box!!!

Sunday trip to the zoo (day 7 w/Mia)

2008-01-20T04:25:00.000-05:00

We had a beautiful day today for a trip to the zoo. Mia continues to warm up to Chris gradually each day (as you can see in the photos below). Her tummy seems to be feeling a little better. We are ready to come home but trying to take in as much as we can while we are here.

She watched me brush my teeth and decided she would try it herself all day at the zoo.

Unfortunately, they were cleaning the grounds around the Panda exhibit, so he/she was in a dark cage. We really couldn't see it very well.

This is a typical smirk. At first glance, it is a grin. But upon closer examination, she's not really happy with you. I can't wait to cut her hair - but I promised Wendy (my sister) that I would not do it myself! :-)

Playing with daddy on the bed.....progress!

Day 6 with Mia (Saturday)

2008-01-19T06:26:00.001-05:00

After a somewhat rough start, we had a pretty good day. Let's just say that we had to go and buy some prunes for Mia!!! The picture below is the result of an exhausting morning for her.

She actually rode in the stroller today and gave mommy's back a much needed break!! We went for a walk to the park and decided to give the stroller another shot. This is very good news because tomorrow we are going to the zoo and the stroller will be much better than carrying her the whole day.

This is our new friend, Nia, and her parents Joy and Todd from Pennsylvania.

Back to Starbuck's sporting my new jacket - it was a bargain!

Dinner at Lucy's again tonight with my friend Jovie and her parents DeDe and Paul from Greensboro. I ate fish and rice - but I'm not too crazy about french fries, yet.

Starbucks! Day 5 with Mia

2008-01-18T02:06:00.001-05:00

Today (Friday) has been pretty uneventful. We gave Mia a bath (which she absolutely hates), went shopping a little, and then to Starbuck's. Mia entertained a lady from California who is here visiting a friend. Tomorrow we do paper work and Sunday we are going to the zoo. Sorry I don't have more exciting pictures to post - it has been a pretty boring day. Love you Jacob and Zachary!!!! Justin - you are good to go (know what I mean???).

Mia's firtst trip to Starbuck's. She likes latte`s and blueberry scones.

Feeding mommy a piece of scone.

The shopping street from yesterday.

Our friend, Jovie, soon to be from Greensboro, NC!!!

Day 4 with Mia

2008-01-17T05:19:00.000-05:00

Picture from yesterday (Wednesday) taken by a family from Hampton, VA.

What a smile!!!!

Wow! What a busy day. First we went to the Chen Clan Academy - see the pictures above. It was cold and rainy so we had to wrap Mia up in her jacket plus mine. Next we went to a shopping district - very interesting. The Chinese people there took pictures of us with our babies and older ladies came and covered all of the babies up with our blankets and coats. We bought Mia another pair of shoes - this time with squeaks in the soles. She looks down at them when she takes each step. When we got back to the hotel we were all very tired and took a nap. We were woken with a phone call to come back down to the lobby to go for a chicken pox vaccination. One of the children in our group has chicken pox so we all had to go and get shots. You can just imagine what she thought of that!!! While we were at the clinic, they went ahead and did her physical exam (which was scheduled for tomorrow). She screamed through all of that. She weighs 22 pounds - which is what I predicted based on her previous weights. All in all I think she handled the exam pretty well.

We have seen a little progress with Mia and Chris. She let him feed her cherios at the clinic and even smiled at him. She is on the bed right now eating cherios with him and fussing in between each one. BUT - that is some progress. Maybe she will let him hold her tomorrow. Tomorrow we have a totally free day because we had the physical exam this afternoon. More shopping maybe? Or another run on the tredmill? We'll see.

Hope our Virginia friends and family get to see some snow tonight and tomorrow!!!!

Day 3 with Mia

2008-01-16T05:37:00.000-05:00

Today we shopped until our meeting at 3:15pm. We bought a few outfits for Mia and some gifts for other folks. She continues to be a good sleeper both at night and at nap time. I actually got in a short tredmill run while she napped.
I believe we got her passport picture taken today - I don't know - they say show up on the bus with your passports at 3:15 and that's what we do. Thirty minutes later, we show up at this official looking building, answer some questions, sign our names, and get back on the bus. Tomorrow we are going to Chen Clan Academy and Shangxiajiu Shopping Street. Hopefully we will have some more exciting pictures to post than just Mia sleeping. She is playing with blocks and cherios on the bed right now while Chris is out picking up some dinner. We're dining in tonight. She's been fussy and I'm tired of carrying her all day. We bought a baby sling thingy but it's not such a good one and it hurts my back. She screams bloody murder in the stroller - but we are going to work some more on that!!
Love you Jacob and Zach - have a good day at school and have fun at choir practice!!!

P.S. Remember - we can't read your posts while we are here for some reason - but we can get emails at mdfearno@uncg.edu

technical issues

2008-01-15T20:21:00.001-05:00

Hi everyone,

It seems we are having issues accessing the blog from our end here...we can no longer view the blog or the comments you have been leaving. We can however continue to update! So going forth, we will update it without being able to view it ourselves with the hopes that everybody else can view. Please feel free to send any comments to Mel's email address (mdfearno@uncg.edu). Take care and God Bless,

Chris and Melodie

Pictures first, report second

2008-01-15T02:39:00.000-05:00

Reality kicks in

2008-01-15T02:17:00.000-05:00

We had a great first night - she slept from 9:30pm to 6:30am. I wish I could say the same. I guess this time change and jet lag has my sleep all messed up. Chris slept well though, so that's good.

I think reality set in for Mia today. When she woke up, she just looked around in shock. She cried a lot today and was very clingy to me. But as you can see above, she let Chris hold her briefly today and feed her some Cherios! He held her for a fair amount of time AFTER she fell asleep this afternoon. Baby steps - I think she is coming around and I'm glad he got to hold her today.

Today we went back to the Guangzhou Center for Adoption Affairs (not sure if this is the official name) and had our pictures taken with Mia for the official record. She screamed and cried the entire time, so that should make for a good one! We were asked questions about why we wanted to adopt from China by several different officials. I guess we passed b/c they let us keep her. Tomorrow we don't have anything to do until 3:15pm - so maybe we will have time to shop or go to the park.

Thanks for all of your emails and comments!!!! They really help us feel connected to home. Love you Jacob and Zachary!!!!!

Weiling (Mia) Kenney is here!!!

2008-01-14T05:49:00.000-05:00

Okay, the first picture wasn't taken right away. The ones that follow are a better representation of our first introduction - cry, pout, stare, stare longer, grin, smile, laugh, and repeat. Chris served as an excellent photographer because Weiling is not very familiar with men just yet. I know it won't take long though.

Safe and sound in Hong Kong

2008-01-13T09:51:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone! We made it to Hong Kong with no problems - unless you consider a 16 hour flight a problem! I hope we only have to do that one more time. We have checked into our hotel, the Regal Airport Hotel, which is very nice. It is 10:53pm (Sunday night) here and 9:53am there. I hope we can sleep tonight. We both slept a little on the plane, and they fed us well: steak & veggies for dinner, steak sandwich and ice cream for a snack, and fruit with cheese omelet before we landed. No need for all the snacks I packed (not yet)!

The best news (as Maria Bakeman predicted) is that we get Mia tomorrow (Monday)! We leave the airport at 8:30am (7:30pm your time) and drive to the China border. We have to do some immigration checks there, and then it is a 1:45 minute bus drive to the White Swan. We get Mia some time after that, so I will try to post pictures tomorrow night - which should be sometime Monday during the day for you.

We've met some nice people from Pennsylvania and Hampton, VA. Everything is going well so far.

Hugs and kisses to Jacob and Zach!!!! We'll get your sister tomorrow!

Count down to Saturday!!

2008-01-09T16:08:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it is almost time to go. We fly out at 9:15am Saturday morning (the 12th), get to spend 3.5 hours in Newark, NJ, and then enjoy a 16 hour flight to Hong Kong. We get to Hong Kong on Sunday the 13th at 7:55pm Hong Kong time. Monday morning, we get up and take a bus to Guangzhou where we will check into the White Swan Hotel.

We should get Mia on Tuesday the 15th, or possibly on Monday. I'll do my best post pictures and updates. There is a link to the bottom right of each post where you can submit a comment back to us. Feel free to do that or email us at mdfearno@uncg.edu.

Time to finish packing and preparing the boys. My head is spinning. Thanks to everyone for all of your well wishes and prayers. If you aren't doing anything on Friday the 25th, we should arrive at the Richmond airport at 5:22pm (Via Continental flight 2740). The returning flight is only 15.5 hours, but there will be 3 of us by then!!

Leaving to get Mia on January 12th!!

2007-12-21T10:47:00.000-05:00

We got our travel arrangements! We are leaving on Saturday, January 12th at 9:15am and returning on Friday, January 25th at 5:22pm. We leave Richmond, fly to Newark, and then on to Hong Kong. From Hong Kong we take a bus to Guangzhou and stay at the White Swan Hotel for the rest of our time there. I think we get Mia on the 4th day - so that should be the 15th. I'll post more details later. It is so nice having a date so that we can plan things for the boys - and start packing!

No Christmas in China

2007-12-10T14:12:00.000-05:00

Correction on the travel dates - it looks like we will not be in China for Christmas. We were told to be ready to leave some time between January 8th and 12th. I hope it is closer to the 8th! As soon as Christmas is over, I'll be ready to go get her! Hopefully we will hear something definite soon.

Christmas in China?

2007-11-29T12:01:00.001-05:00

We are waiting for an official date, but it looks like we will be spending Christmas in China. We were told to be available to leave during the timeframe of December 15th through the 22nd. Travel Announcements (TA's) are on there way from China, so we should hear something more definitive around the end of this week. Time to get ready for Christmas, prepare the boys, prepare the grandparents who will take care of them, pack, .......... After 2 and half years of waiting, things have suddenly kicked into high gear!! I will hate to miss Christmas with the boys, but it will be wonderful to have Mia by then. Hopefully we will all be together next Christmas and for many more to come!

What's in a name?

2007-11-19T10:14:00.001-05:00

After much deliberation, and valuable feedback from friends and family, we have finally decided on a name.

Mia Dawn Weiling Kenney

"Mia" because we like it and, although it is not an Asian name, it sounds a little like one. (And...it did win the most recent name poll!)
"Dawn" because it is my middle name - so be very careful critizing this one! :-)
"Weiling" because it is her birth names combined.

Four names seems like a lot, but it is actually common for children adopted from China to have two middle names. When she gets older, she can decide to drop one or keep all four.

Thanks to all who participated in the poll!!

Two brothers waiting to spoil her rotten!

2007-11-12T15:22:00.000-05:00

Corrected name translation for Zhan Wei Ling

2007-11-08T10:50:00.000-05:00

A friend sent me a website where you can look up the meaning of a Chinese name by looking at the Chinese character for the name. The translations turn out to be different from those found on an American baby names site. I love the meanings of her name. See below:

Zhan (4 meanings): Chinese surname meaning deep and clear. Connotes a tranquil and calm personality. That should serve her well in our house!

Wei (13 meanings): To hold fast or stand firm; to maintain or preserve (like preserve peace, which could also serve her well in our house!)

Ling (11 meanings): Intelligent, clever, and quick - like her mom :-); or soul or spirit

It's a girl!!!

2007-11-07T09:06:00.001-05:00

After a false alarm with a UPS truck, the FedEx truck finally came at 9:50am.

Our somewhat reluctant FedEx guy posed with the package.

Chris was able to come home from work to wait with me. Check her out! I think she is the sweetest thing I've ever seen.

I think she is dribbling in the photo on the right - and note, she is using her left hand AND looking up. Look out R-MC? Va Tech?

This one makes me sad. You probably can't see it here, but she has a tear on her right cheek (her right, not your right!). Click on photo for a bigger version.

Mug shot - taken around 13 months. Gotta love that hair!

Okay, her stats...

Her name is Zhan Wei Ling (no, we haven't decided on a name yet)
Born 7-29-2006 (around 15 months old)
From Zhanjiang CWI, Guangdong Province
At 13 months, it appears that she was 18 pounds, which on US charts puts her at about the 5th percentile (not certain of this).
At 13 months, it appeas that she was 73.3 cm long, which would put her between the 25th and 50th percentile for height on US charts (again, not certain)
Deep sleeper (I think they say this about all of the babies!)
Knows her name when called
Laughs aloud (that's a good thing!)
Has a ready smile
Expresses her refusal in a simple way (wonder what that means?)
Fond of music, picture books, games, and toys

For everything else, we will have to wait for the translation because I can't read a lick of Chinese! I'll post more when I get it - but this is about all we have for right now.

Still waiting for the call....

2007-11-06T12:03:00.001-05:00

Okay, it is Tuesday and still no word. Hopefully we will hear something today. There are some beautiful babies being announced on our Dec '05 listserv!

Waiting for the call.....

2007-11-01T08:05:00.001-04:00

Hi everyone,

It is November 1st and we are anxiously waiting to see if our LID (Log in Date) makes it in the November referral batch. Our LID is December 7, 2005 - 2 whole years of having our documents in China. We should hear something in the next day or so......