MORE THAN A FEELING....

Ok, so I've been in "task mode" for the last 2 months preparing for this trip, preparing to meet our son, getting the house together......all of a sudden, I'm sitting here answering emails and I get this nervous feeling. You know, when you get that tingling feeling up your spine and your stomach feels tight..like you're starting to realize....HOLY COW!!!..I really AM going to China...I really AM going to be a mom!

Yes folks, reality is hitting hard. Your mind begins thinking of your "firsts" & "lasts". This is our last night as just the 2 of us...the last time I'll be sitting on our porch steps not having to think about whether my son is waking up from his nap yet....last time I'LL really get to enjoy a long nap (ha!)....last time to really be spontaneous.

On the other hand, I think about that INCREDIBLE feeling the first time I see my child's face....first time I see him laugh and call me "mom"....first time he and Harvard get to play tug of war....first time for him at Disneyland!!!! Yeeeah baby!! (had to throw that one in there).

I never want to forget what this feels like. The last time I really felt like this was when I went on my first date with Don (dinner & a movie (Aliens...don't laugh, we had a blast!) and walking down the aisle to my future husband.

Aaaaaahhhhh......good times!

WHEN THE MOON HITS YOUR EYE.......

We had our last fundraiser...a big Italian spaghetti & meatballs dinner by master chef, Bob Motta! It was a huge success! They raised nearly $500 which was the EXACT amount we needed for the rest of the legal fees!! Bob gave a very informative speech on the proper way to cook and eat spaghetti. Us Irish & Filipinos were exempt of course. haha! It was a great night and the massive storm we had right before it, didn't stop nearly 40 people from showing up.

Now we are scrambling to get things together for our last few days here.


ONLY 3 MORE DAYS TILL TAKE OFF!!

FUNDRAISER FRENZY!!

WOW! Within the last 2 weeks people have helped us raise over $2,300 through 2 exciting fundraisers!!!!! We had a Concert/Raffle that was the perfect way to spend a summer evening. Toby and his band played their heart out and we had a good crowd of nearly 100 people! Nancy and her group rounded up several AWESOME prizes to raffle off ranging from Gold & Ruby earrings to original artwork. We were worried that we would get rained out (they predicted 40% chance of showers) but God held off the rain and the weather was pleasant through the entire evening. Most of all, it was fun to be able to meet new people and visit with everyone who donated to this adoption.

The Poker Tournament was a great success as well! We had a group of about 20 people who raised over $1,000..not to mention the nearly $700 in prizes that people donated for the winners! They comped a seat for Don and he had a lot of fun playing. I got there late but was able to meet people and visit with some that I normally don't have time to do on Sundays. We got down to the last table and a massive thunderstorm hit. The lights went out in the steakhouse so Don had to hold a huge flashlight over the table so they could finish the round! Nothing's going to stop this group!!

I'm going to post photos this week to our Shutterfly album (link is to the right) of both events. I will post a list of winners on our Sponsor a Mile website. We have one more fundraiser on Saturday, the Spaghetti Dinner and they already have over 40 people signed up at $10 a head! Bob Motta's cooking all the food and he's got his hands full.

THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU, ESPECIALLY THE LEADERS OF THESE EVENTS FOR THE HARD WORK & MANY HOURS IT TOOK TO ORGANIZE THESE EVENTS AND BRING ALL OF US TOGETHER FOR ONE PURPOSE.

Love Don & Denise Sullivan

INSIDE CHINA TRAVEL

Hooray!! We got our final inside China travel itinerary (below). We get to do more sightseeing than I realized which is great! I thought we might be stuck in government offices most of the time with a baby who's not going to be too happy that we're "mom & dad". As far as Nate's concerned, we're total strangers who are taking him away from everything he's comfortable & familiar with. I wouldn't be a happy camper either! :-O

I am such a dork! I just realized that I totally added up our fees wrong. It might be 15,000 miles roundtrip from Tucson to China but in reality, the total fees are $16,000 - $16,500! Thank God that he's much better at math than I am (that's why I'm an artist) and he knows exactly what we need. He's provided so far and I know that he will continue to guide us.

GROUP SCHEDULE (detailed events are always subject to change):
Fri, Aug 3: Group Arrival at Radisson SAS Hotel
Sat, Aug 4: Sightseeing in Beijing: TianAnMen Square, Forbidden City, & the Great Wall (Juyongguan); Lunch is included.;
CHI Orientation
Sun, Aug 5: Fly from Beijing to Chongqing (7:45a-10:10a)/ Meet your child in the afternoon/ Stay at InterContinental Hotel
Mon, Aug 6: Adoption process (notary and registrar)
Tues, Aug 7: Free day
Wed, Aug 8: Sightseeing: Chongqing Zoo (Giant Pandas)
Thur, Aug 9: Sightseeing: Ci Qi Kou Ancient Town
Fri, Aug 10: Get all the papers back, prepare documents for the ACS appointment
Sat, Aug 11: Fly to Guangzhou, (13:05pm-14:50pm)/ stay at Westin Hotel
Sun, Aug 12: Free Day
Mon, Aug 13: Get medical exams for children
Tues, Aug 14: ACS appointment; Farewell dinner
Wed, Aug 15: Go to ACS to take oath and get visa late in the afternoon
Thurs, Aug 16: Departure to US.

THE NURSERY & OTHER EXCITING STUFF!

The last few days have been very exciting! We had the Concert/Raffle fundraiser and nearly 100 people showed up! They ended up raising $1358!!! God is AWESOME! It was the perfect night for a summer concert and nice to meet so many people as well as visit with friends from church. Believe it or not, being the pastor's family, we rarely have time to do that on Sunday because we're pulled in every direction. These people have such great hearts!

A friend from church gave us a crib and we went to Babies R Us today and found a changing table/dresser to match. Not only was it on clearance but they had reduced it even more, plus we had a coupon! In the end, we saved $95, not to mention that it was originally several hundred dollars brand new (it was the display model) so technically, we saved $300!!! Sweeeet! I added more photos to our Shutterfly album of the complete nursery. All we need is the bedding!

Looking forward to another exciting weekend...one more shower, the Poker Tournament Fundraiser and a Spaghetti Fundraiser! Also our final travel arrangements will be here by Friday. Yea!

ONLY 2 MORE WEEKS TO GO!!!!!!!!!!
Mmmmmm. I'm finishing up a tasty breakfast burrito from Nico's Tacos and MAN is it good! :-)

Dangerous Book for Boys

Ok so I broke my rule of not buying anything for Nate and picked up a copy of "The Dangerous Book for Boys". Of course as soon as I did that, my brother said "WE were going to get that book for you! Didn't I read something in a previous post of how you weren't buying stuff for your child??!!" DOH!! Caught red-handed again.

It's a really cool book...full of fun stuff to do and make including, "how to play stickball", "how to make paper airplanes", "how to build a go-cart", fun facts, learning morse code, famous battles and true stories of adventure and courage. We found it at Costco for those of you who have boys and want to check it out.

Check out the YouTube trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5PSdBWvx8s
My son might have to pry it out of MY hands. ha!

-denise

CONCERT, RAFFLE & TOURNAMENT FUNDRAISERS!!

WE HAVE A COUPLE OF FUN ADOPTION FUNDRAISERS COMING UP FOR EVERYONE IN THE ARIZONA AREA. CLICK ON THE IMAGES ABOVE TO ENLARGE THE FLYERS. THIS SATURDAY IS THE FIRST ONE...A GREAT CONCERT AND EXCITING RAFFLE PRIZES!

THE POKER TOURNAMENT IS NEXT WEEK BUT A DIFFERENT LOCATION: AT THE LARIAT STEAKHOUSE. SIGN UP FOR A FUN AFTERNOON WITH GREAT PRIZES AND GREAT FOOD!

PASS THE WORD ON!
-Don & Denise

OUR PHOTO ALBUM

I've created a photo album on Shutterfly that I will continue to add photos to during our adoption journey. The link is under "Don & Denise Links" and is called "Sullivan Photo Album". You don't need a Shutterfly account to view our photos. This is where I'll post photos during our trip to China so save it to your favorites and check back every so often!

:-D
-denise

TRAVEL DATE APPROVED!!!

Hooray! We now have our official travel dates and are booking our flights! We leave Aug 2 - Aug 16. ON AUGUST 6th, WE WILL RECEIVE OUR SON!!!!!!!!!!! In less than a month we will be parents!! Below is our approx. travel schedule:

TRAVEL DATES FOR CHONGQING GROUP
Wed. Aug 1: Leave the US
Fri Aug 3: Arrive in Beijing
Sat Aug: Sightseeing in BJ (TianAnMen Square, Forbidden City, & the Great Wall (Juyongguan); Lunch is included.; & CHI Orientation
Sun Aug 5: Fly to Chongqing City
Mon – Fri Aug 6-10: Receive your child and go through adoption processes
Sat, Aug 11: Fly to Guangzhou.
Sun, Aug 12: Free day
Mon, Aug 13: Medical exam for children
Tues, Aug 14: ACS appointment
Wed, Aug 15: Go to ACS to take oath and get visa late in the afternoon
Wed, Aug 15: Departure from Guangzhou back to the US

We had our first shower yesterday and it was a blast! It was a co-ed shower and there were a lot of families from the church who celebrated with us. It was a little surreal and I was overwhelmed and dizzy AND EXHAUSTED afterwards from all the excitement. Don had fun assembling the first toy (a dump truck that Nate can ride around on), trying on the "man carrier" (Hip Hammock) and reading all the wonderful cards and well wishes. I swear our kid has more clothes already than we do (or least it seems that way. ha!)

Some of our friends who had an LID of 11/08 just got their referrals last Friday. What a happy day as we remembered our feelings of incredible joy when we got the news.

COUNTING DOWN NOW...ONLY 2-1/2 MORE WEEKS TO GO.......

China's Lost Girls

For those of you who have NetFlix, here's an interesting dvd to add to your queue called "National Geographic: China's Lost Girls". Reporter Lisa Ling (previously of ABC's "The View"), accompanied by her team from her travel show, "National Geographic's Ultimate Explorer," flies off to China with American parents set to adopt baby girls, the casualties of the country's long-standing one-child policy. In hewing to this strict rule, families wind up aborting, abandoning or hiding their daughters, many of whom end up in the United States, brought by couples longing for children.

The dvd is only 40 minutes long and is a very moving video. We have it and have loaned it out to family and friends so that they can get an idea of the adoption process and why there are so many girls available for adoption. You might also be able to get it at your local video store.

Enjoy,
-Denise

Lucky Fortune

Did I tell you I think God sometimes speaks to us through fortune cookies? ;-)

Nate's Room

Well I think I've finished "embellishing" Nate's room. Had a blast doing it though! Here's some photos above..minus the furniture. Of course it looks much better in person! Click on the image above to see a bigger photo. We're renting so I didn't want to paint a gianormous mural right on the wall, so I got a big sheet of rolled canvas, pieced it together and painted on that instead. I wanted his room to look sort of like Adventureland in Disneyland! You can't see it very well, but above the closet door is a sign that says "Nate's Imports". Our digital camera broke so I had to rely on a disposable until we can get a new one. I think I've been spoiled because all my photos are a little "off". ha! I'd like to get some oversized stuffed lions, giraffes, elephants and other jungle animals to put around his room. Might have to wait on that one!

Chongqing..Small City..Lots of People!

Here's a map to show you the area where we'll be traveling and where our child is. At the far right, you'll see QianJiang which is where our child is in foster care. Chongqing is the municipality that Qianjiang is in and it's on the far left side of the map. The distance is approx. 7 hours between the 2 areas. Apparently it's known as the city of lights (sort of like chinese Las Vegas) and there are 13 million people there!

Travel Approvals Coming!

When do we go? When do we go? Like the child whining..are we there yet??!! Our agency might get our TA's this week and we'll probably get the confirmed TA date next week...that's our Gotcha Day (or as another couple said..their "Metcha" Day!) Right now our tentative travel dates are Aug. 2 - Aug. 16 and we will be traveling to Beijing, Chongqing and Guangzhou during our stay.

During that time we'll be sightseeing, getting to know our child, going to paperwork appointments, medical exams, taking the oath that we promise to be good parents...and officially becoming a threesome! It will be an exciting, exhausting and whirlwind 2 weeks. One that we can't wait to start!

In the meantime, we're trying to hit the movie theater and restaurants as much as funds allow before we have to give that up for awhile. haha!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!!!!!!!!!

WHAT WE'LL SEE & DO IN CHINA

In case you're wondering...here's some more AWESOME tips we got from another couple who've adopted 2 girls from Chongqing. More of what we'll do and see over in China........

TRAVEL:
CHI has the parents (unless requested otherwise) to fly in to Beijing. Once there, the following day is spent sight seeing, getting over some of your jet lag and getting to know your fellow travel mates. You will go to the Great Wall, Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square and possibly other places. It is a wonderful time to see some of the well known sites of China. The following day your group will fly to their child's orphanage city or a larger city near the orphanage. You will fly to Chongqing (2.5 hour flight). Chongqing is a wonderful city of 13 million and is growing. It's been dubbed the new Beijing or Shanghi because of it's building boom. CHI typically has the parents stay in 3-4 hotel choices. They are the Harbour Plaza, Hilton, Holiday Inn and the Sheraton. We stayed at the Holiday Inn on our first trip in 2003. It was a nice hotel but very isolated from the downtown district. On our second trip in 2005 we stayed at the Hilton. It was close to a small market and there was a nice park just across the street to take our daughter. It was only a 15 minute cab ride to the downtown district for shopping. The Harbour Plaza hotel is located in the downtown and is attached to a MALL!! Very nice..... You will spend approx. 7 days in Chongqing before flying to Guangzhou. While in Guangzhou you will stay at the White Swan on Shaimen Island. It caters to adoptive parents and you will see and meet many other couples that have adopted. It is a great place to shop for your clothes, China souvenirs etc. Chongqing is expensive but there are certain things that you can only get in Chongqing and I would recommend picking them up while in Chongqing. Items include drawings on banyan leaves. While in Chongqing CHI will take you to the Chongqing Zoo to see the Giant Pandas. You may also go to old town Chongqing (Ci Qi Kou) which is a lovely step back in time to where families owned a shop or market and lived above the shop. It was one of my favorite places both times we went.Other sight seeing places may include the People's Great Hall or Eling Park. I would recommend a Snugli to carry Nate in and close to you. He may be use to a stroller because he was in foster care but the Chinese people LOVE to see the babies with their new families and they will come up to you and try to hold Nate. Do not let them take Nate if you can avoid it. Nate is working hard on bonding with you and your husband and it is disturbing to him that he is being taken away from you. In his head he is thinking that he is being abandoned again and he needs to know that he can trust you. I never let them hold either of my girls. Seriously, they mean well but it can be a bit obtrusive and hard to get use to since here in the US we don't go around unbuckling strange babies from their strollers and holding them. The other thing you may learn about is the "Grandma Police" They are well meaning older Chinese women that want to see the baby covered up, regardless of the temperature outside. Chongqing in August and September is humid and hot. The Chinese keep their children covered to not bring shame to them and they will come up to you and pull down on your child's shorts while in the Snugli or even take the light blanket you may have and cover up the baby. They took the elastic headbands right off of my first daughter's head! So I would recommend shorts that are long enough to show through the leg holes of the Snugli and short sleeves. No tank tops. Not wearing shoes is a sign of being poor so going bare foot is a no-no. They even came up to my husband and corrected him on how he was holding the baby bottle while feeding Lindsey. While in the hotel room we had the girls running around in onesies to be cool and comfortable, just nothing revealing while out in public. In Guangzhou it is much more relaxed and the clothing police aren't so bad. :-) It's all just part of respecting the culture that your child has come from.


MEETING YOUR CHILD/FEEDING:
The children are brought to the Civil Affairs office or to your hotel room to meet you. They will be very hot and tired since it is a 6-8 hour van ride from Qianjiang. The aunties (hopefully the foster moms!) will ride along with the children are will be available to asnwer your questions you have regarding Nate. Have questions prepared ahead of time because your brain will go to mush the minute Nate is placed in your arms. Each child will react differently to Gotcha Day. Most children wail and cry uncontrobably. Since Nate was in foster care with a foster mom, I would expect that he will bond quicker with you Denise. I had a bottle with room temperature water and a little bit of sugar in it ready to give Lindsey as soon as I saw her. She drank some of it and never cried, except when daddy (baba) tried to hold her. I purchased the Playtex starter kit that has many different types of nipples and bottle sizes for both of our girls. The majority of babies from China are use to the silicone (clear) nipples with a cut in the nipple to increae the flow. Most of the children in our group had a slight cold but we had no scabies, lice or giardia (intestional parasite that causes diarrhea). Some good questions to ask Nate's care giver are about sleeping habits, favorite foods, ways to console him, favorite toys, does he like his bath/water, nicknames etc. We called our girls by their Chinese names while we were in China just to make them feel more comfortable and began introducing their American names after we were home.

The aunties will give you a bag of formula that the child has been using. Before leaving Chongqing, have your guide help you to find more to purchase (2 bags). The QJ babies are on a Nestle brand. My daughter hated it and spit it out instead of drinking it. I thought she had a swallowing/suck reflex problem until I fed her some rice cereal and water through the bottle and she ahd a perfect suck reflex and drank like a pro. I do recommend keeping them on the formula they are use to till you get home to avoid diarrhea but also bring Gerber rice cereal and Cheerios. Since Nate is in foster care, he will have been exposed to more foods and will probably be eating steamed eggs, congee, soft fruits. All these foods you can get at the breakfast buffet. Don't introduce too many new foods to Nate or he will probably get constipated or have diarrhea. If he gets constipated try 1/2 qand 1/2 water and apple juice. The apple juice is something you can get from the breakfast buffett. We just put it in an empty water bottle and took it up to our room to have on hand if necessary. The breakfast buffett will be your very best friend!! It was always our biggest meal of the day because later on in the day you might be out sightseeing and they usually take you to a Chinese restaurant to eat. There are many different (strange) foods in China and you don't want to get sick so stick to what you know to be safe foods! Room service at night when you are tired and Nate is sleeping is a great lifesaver!


PACKING:
Yup, I over packed for both trips, especially the first trip. They have laundry services in the hotel and down in Guangzhou that you can use. The day before you leave GZ, take all of your dirty laundry to get cleaned and pick it up the morning before you are going to leave. They press all the clothes and put them in nice clear bags that are FLAT as a pancake. The reason for this is that it will make packing up a lot easier and it is wonderful to come home to less laundry to do because you will be exhausted.

Disposable bibs (Bibsters), wipes (pack of 100) and 65 diapers are a must. I did not rely on Chinese diapers because they were so thin. A few small toys and STACK CUPS for sure. The kids love the stack cups to bang, play in the tub with and just to hold on to. A thermos to carry food or formula and a pair of tongs for when you are rinsing dishes with the boiling water. The Playtex disposable liners for the bottles were wonderful and cut down on the messy dishes.