The CCAA (China Center of Adoption Affairs) has finished the review of the adoption application documents registered with our office in June 2005.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (okay - I added the exclamation points)
Our log-in date with the CCAA is 6/29/05 so that means they have reviewed our dossier and we have moved on to the next pile of folders. Not as monumental perhaps as labor pains but pretty close for us.
Next step is getting the referral. To us, this news means that the CCAA is not slowing down as much as we feared and we might get our referral in March instead of April! Needless to say, we are thrilled. I told Jim that if I checked the CCAA updates every day eventually they would post good news!
Thursday, January 19, 2006
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Travel Overview
When we go, we will first fly into Bejing and spend 2-3 days there. We will sightsee and adjust to the major time change. After that, we will fly wherever we are directed to get our child. (Until we get the referral, we do not know where this is.) The better part of the week is spent there, dealing with paperwork. Last, we fly to Guangzhou, which is in southern China, close to Hong Kong. This is where the US Consulate is. A physical is done, travel visa acquired and citizenship process is started. We will be there for the better part of a week as well. Often people need to fly to Hong Kong and spend the night there before flying back to the US.
Sunday, January 08, 2006
What to Pack???
This weekend I looked over several recommendations of items to pack.
In China, baggage is determined by total weight. We are allowed a whopping total 44 lbs of baggage each. We are told to bring minimal clothing and several people suggested bringing old clothes and leaving them there. Evidently the hotel maids will re-sell or re-use items (good luck with Jim's) and then we free up space for the return trip.
So here is a sample of my 3 page packing list:
zip loc bags of every size
baby nail clippers
instant coffee
every baby medicine imagineable (and a few I'd rather not think about)
rehydration mix
kitchen tongs! (to hold on to bottles in boiling water in hotel room)
plastic bowl, mug and utensils
blow up tub
handheld recorder for taping tourguide
polaroid camera and film to give pictures to our guides
own pillowcases (that you know are clean)
diapers, wipes
variety of baby clothes in different sizes
duct tape
backpack
stainless steel thermos (to carry boiled, safe-to-drink water)
formula
books for us and the baby
toys
and 1 nice baby outfit to wear as we get off the plane
Fortunately, our doctor is great and has said just tell him what we need regarding meds and he will get it.
The most inconsistent item is diapers. Some people say pack enough for the trip and others say pack enough for just the first few days. Guess it depends where we are staying. I think I will pack more rather than less; don't want to run out. But of course, there will be an entire group of us to share items. We all communicate via email so hopefully some of the items we will likely share as a group and save on packing. How much duct tape will we need???
In China, baggage is determined by total weight. We are allowed a whopping total 44 lbs of baggage each. We are told to bring minimal clothing and several people suggested bringing old clothes and leaving them there. Evidently the hotel maids will re-sell or re-use items (good luck with Jim's) and then we free up space for the return trip.
So here is a sample of my 3 page packing list:
zip loc bags of every size
baby nail clippers
instant coffee
every baby medicine imagineable (and a few I'd rather not think about)
rehydration mix
kitchen tongs! (to hold on to bottles in boiling water in hotel room)
plastic bowl, mug and utensils
blow up tub
handheld recorder for taping tourguide
polaroid camera and film to give pictures to our guides
own pillowcases (that you know are clean)
diapers, wipes
variety of baby clothes in different sizes
duct tape
backpack
stainless steel thermos (to carry boiled, safe-to-drink water)
formula
books for us and the baby
toys
and 1 nice baby outfit to wear as we get off the plane
Fortunately, our doctor is great and has said just tell him what we need regarding meds and he will get it.
The most inconsistent item is diapers. Some people say pack enough for the trip and others say pack enough for just the first few days. Guess it depends where we are staying. I think I will pack more rather than less; don't want to run out. But of course, there will be an entire group of us to share items. We all communicate via email so hopefully some of the items we will likely share as a group and save on packing. How much duct tape will we need???
Thursday, January 05, 2006
New Year news
Current Baby
Thanks to my sister-in-law, Heidi Jenkins, for the idea of creating a blog. We realize this process is as new to you as it initially was for us and that there are a lot of questions...maybe this can be a means of answering them!
Anyways, when we started this process, the time between log-in-date and referral was 6 months...it is now longer. The log-in-date is when our dossier was officially received and put in line at the China Center of Adoption Affairs. The referral is when you have been matched with a child and receive a picture and any information about him or her.
Our log-in-date was 6/29/05 so we expected to hear in January or February. Now, we are told that we will likely get our referral in March or April. sigh Once the referral is received, you aren't done yet! Next we will get a Travel Invitation and then we can make our plans. People generally travel 6-8 weeks after receiving the referral.
So in short...
log-in-date 6/29/05
expected referral Jan 2006 revised to maybe April 2006
expected travel March revised to perhaps June
In the meantime we are waiting and reading...
I just finished "The Lost Daughters of China" and Jim has completed "A Traveller's History of China." We are starting to "babyproof" the house and checking out sippy cups.
Next time I will share with you our list of things to pack. Not sure how I will fit any clothes in...
Thanks to my sister-in-law, Heidi Jenkins, for the idea of creating a blog. We realize this process is as new to you as it initially was for us and that there are a lot of questions...maybe this can be a means of answering them!
Anyways, when we started this process, the time between log-in-date and referral was 6 months...it is now longer. The log-in-date is when our dossier was officially received and put in line at the China Center of Adoption Affairs. The referral is when you have been matched with a child and receive a picture and any information about him or her.
Our log-in-date was 6/29/05 so we expected to hear in January or February. Now, we are told that we will likely get our referral in March or April. sigh Once the referral is received, you aren't done yet! Next we will get a Travel Invitation and then we can make our plans. People generally travel 6-8 weeks after receiving the referral.
So in short...
log-in-date 6/29/05
expected referral Jan 2006 revised to maybe April 2006
expected travel March revised to perhaps June
In the meantime we are waiting and reading...
I just finished "The Lost Daughters of China" and Jim has completed "A Traveller's History of China." We are starting to "babyproof" the house and checking out sippy cups.
Next time I will share with you our list of things to pack. Not sure how I will fit any clothes in...
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