The Adventures of Kristen, Bryan and Owen

New Pictures!

2008-07-03T20:25:00.005-04:00

Here is Owen drying off from a bath....all 17 pounds 7 ounces and 27 inches of him! He just got his four month check-up and is doing great! He's in the 90 and 97 percentile for weight and height, respectively.

Grandma and Papa got Owen his first Bama outfit and many more after that! He didn't actually say "Roll Tide", but we had to add the cheer to the picture for fun.

Owen's first food!

2008-07-03T19:43:00.004-04:00

Owen got his first taste of solids...rice cereal mixed with formula...yum.
Below is a clip from his "first supper"!

Owen Laughing!

2008-07-03T19:32:00.004-04:00

Owen is now 4 months old and starting to laugh, which makes our hearts just burst! He's also clicking his tongue now and both of us didn't teach him that so it definitely surprised us and Bryan called me in the room to witness it when it first happened. Below is a video of him enjoying a bath, laughing.

New Pictures!

2008-05-02T08:55:00.003-04:00

We haven't taken Owen to get professional pictures, but we've been trying to take many at home. Here are some pictures of Owen on one of his blankets. He's now 9 weeks old! Time is flying! He's already into 3-6 month clothing. He has a budda belly and dimples on his elbows and knees now. It's too cute!

Amusing Owen...

2008-04-11T19:55:00.005-04:00

Owen can now socially smile! I'll do anything for his amusement. I'll even make embarrassing high-pitched noises as evidenced in the clip!

Proudly Announcing our New Son Owen!

2008-04-11T13:53:00.007-04:00

Bryan and I are happy to announce the adoption of our new son Owen! A picture of him at 5 weeks old is shown above. He was born in February and we were lucky to take care of him since birth. Since we've been waiting for our daughter from China for almost 2 years now, we've been wanting to pursue a concurrent adoption for some time now. Our agency finally allowed concurrent adoptions as of Dec 2007 so Bryan and I got very busy when the policy was issued. We met with an attorney on Dec 27 and we were so fortunate to be chosen and placed with a child so fast. We just passed the final hurdle in adoption land by finalizing the adoption in court this month. We never have felt so much love in our lives.

Needless to say, we haven't been busy posting due to holidays and our efforts spent in pursuing Owen. I hope to post more going forward!

Thank-you Destiny and Richard

2007-10-28T11:16:00.000-04:00

Bryan and I went to Destiny's and Richard's wedding recently and had a blast! Destiny is a beautiful bride! They make a wonderful couple. Below are some of my pictures from the wedding.

Second Annual Pumpkin Carving

2007-10-28T08:19:00.000-04:00

It's been a long time since I last posted. I'm studying for my last professional certification test and basically have no spare time. I will update our blog more frequently after Nov 14.

Unfortunately, the China adoption program has slowed down further. Bryan and I are very disappointed, but we still believe China is the right place for us to adopt. Thank-you to all our friends and family for supporting us during this difficult wait. I will post more details about our adoption after my test.

Last night, Bryan and I went over to Sandra and Chad's house for the Second Annual Pumpkin Carving! We had yummy food, including our traditional roasted pumpkin seeds, and the lasagna that Chad and Bryan made was yummy and funny at the same time. Let's just say they got creative with the quantities and layering technique. Below are some pictures of the carvings.

Drum Roll Please....

2007-07-27T09:33:00.001-04:00

I can't believe it, but China has already finished reviewing adoption applications in our log-in date group of June 2006.

Bryan and I got passed the review stage with no questions asked. Phew!

This is a great way to start the weekend!

Minneapolis!

2007-07-23T12:14:00.000-04:00

I was in Minneapolis last week on business. I saw my first Minnesota Twins game in the famous Metrodome that is shared with the Vikings. I think this was my first in door baseball game. Unfortunately, the Twins lost and there were many disappointed fans, but I had a blast just enjoying my surroundings. Of course, I went shopping too! Many locals think that the Mall of America is overrated, but I absolutely love it. I had not been shopping for awhile so I had bottled energy that exploded. I shut down the mall one night and had to go back to my car twice with all the goodies. I got the famous brown bag from Bloomingdales.

Above are pictures from the Twins game and a Spam castle at the Mall of America (of course I had to get a picture of the Spam castle).

Wow! Police Renunion Tour Unbelievable!

2007-07-15T10:43:00.001-04:00

Bryan and I saw the Police last night and they were better than ever!! They played around 20 songs and came back on stage 3 times for encores. They physically look amazing and pretty much the same as the 80's, maybe with the exception of Summers who gained a few pounds.

I never got to see the Police in concert since they broke-up when I was young, but I have seen Sting in concert and I've never been disappointed.

The first picture from the concert is borrowed from someone and the second picture is from my camera phone from our seats.

Favorite songs: King of Pain, Wrapped around your Finger, Message in a Bottle

May 2006 out of the Review Room!

2007-07-05T15:52:00.000-04:00

We just received notice that adoption dossiers with log-in dates through May 2006 are out of the review room in China. That means that our personal adoption documents (dated 6/14/2006) that we worked on for three entire months that contain every detail of our past and present life are finally being scrutinized by China. No pressure!

What does the review room mean? From what I’ve learned, each agency has a dedicated review person so each agency is already familiar with what their reviewer likes to see. So hopefully, our U.S. agency has tailored our documents accordingly.

If the reviewer finds something that is questionable or in need of clarification, they will send questions to the adoptive parent’s agency and the agency will notify the parents. This is where it gets scary. I’ve heard of cases where the parents received questions and even though the questions were cleared successfully, the parents experienced a delay in receiving their child because their paperwork was not placed back in the same log-in date order. This can be very devastating for parents that have already waited eons for their children.

Once China has reviewed an entire month of dossiers, they will show that a month is complete. Please cross your fingers and toes with us that we successfully get out of the review room with no questions! I will let you know when we are in the clear.

One Year Anniversary

2007-06-14T10:27:00.000-04:00

As evidenced by the ticker on the right side-bar of my blog, Bryan and I have officially experienced 1 year of waiting since being logged-in with China’s adoption program.

I’ve been thinking about today’s arrival for the past 2 months with dread. This one-year anniversary just represents the time we have waited after being logged-in. There was also the paperchase time, years of trying to conceive, and a couple instances of domestic adoption that were never realized for various reasons. I hate feeling sorry for myself, but I must allow myself to be sad sometimes.

I have to repeatedly remind myself that I will become a mom, no matter how hard it is to believe. One day, Bryan and I will travel to China and finally become parents. I believe in fate and believe we’re already connected to a particular child. I'll wait forever (if I must) to welcome that child into our lives.

Vacation at Last

2007-06-11T21:16:00.001-04:00

Bryan and I just got back last night from a week cruising the Caribbean. It was the ultimate lazy vacation. I highly recommend Royal Caribbean to everyone. I still have my sea legs and am hoping to adjust soon.

Here are some of the highlights from the trip:
-I slept 12 1/2 hours the first night on the cruise and generally 9 hours each subsequent night
-We saw a mongoose and many iguanas in the wild
-We received $800 in airplane vouchers, meal vouchers and first class upgrades on our subsequent flight home for voluntarily accepting a bump due to overbooking...totally worth the wait.
-We played a 9-hole miniature golf course on the cruise ship
-We went zip lining under the canapy of trees in the jungle. One of the zip lines was a free fall with a counter balance at the bottom and one of the zip lines was 600 feet long. It was amazing even though we looked like geeks with our helmets.
-We went hiking in the forests around the Mayan ruins

I checked my work email halfway through the trip, but it still didn't prepare me for the backlog of work today. I felt hunger today for the first time in a week. I forgot what that felt like with the round-the-clock food on the cruise. Back to reality!

Japan

2007-05-28T18:52:00.000-04:00

I just got back from a business trip to Osaka, Japan. Unfortunately, I was in meetings the entire visit so I couldn't tour the sites. It was a great experience though since it was my first time in Japan. I learned a great deal about their business etiquette and culture. Flying to and back from Japan in the same week does a number on your body. I'm hoping to go back to Japan in the fall for more than a week and hopefully Bryan will be able to join me.

By the way, being allergic to seafood is a bad idea if you're visiting Japan.
I'm already anticipating potential food issues when we travel to China to pick up our daughter. Thankfully, I know a few Chinese people that can make me allergy cards in advance of our trip.

Kelly, John and Johnny's Visit

2007-05-28T18:44:00.000-04:00

I visited with my sister, nephew and brother-in-law last weekend. I miss my nephew, Johnny, already. He just turned 4 and I coached him on ping-pong and he can already serve! Below are some pictures from the visit.

Mother's Day

2007-05-13T20:05:00.000-04:00

Someone sent me a Mother's Day card today. It melted my heart. I wasn't expecting any cards, but it was so nice to be recognized as a waiting mother. Happy Mother's Day to everyone, including those who are waiting for their adopted children.

San Juan Trip

2007-05-13T12:09:00.000-04:00

I just got back last night from a business trip to San Juan. I had one partial afternoon free when I was there so I got to see some sites. My company was nice enough to book a hotel on the beach for me, but it was torture seeing everyone in their bathing suits headed for tours while I was headed to work with my laptop.

Above are beach pictures from my hotel, some pictures of goverment buildings including the governer's house, pictures of residences in Old San Juan, and a picture of a WWII natzi war prize ship now commissioned by the US Coast Guard.

Planet Earth

2007-04-30T21:33:00.000-04:00

Has anyone been watching the HD Discovery Channel Planet Earth series? They are by far the best earth documentaries I've ever seen. There are 11 episodes and I didn't catch the first runs. I am now desperately trying to DVR whatever I can. They must have spent a ga-zillion dollars producing it, visiting 62 countries for filming. There are a few animals eating other animals scenes where I have to do a partial-eye watching from behind my hands and knees, but overall it is the most beautiful footage of our planet. Sigourney Weaver narrates the series in the US-run versions and there was a funny bit where a parasite was protruding out of an ant and she described it using an alien reference.

Tacky Shirt!

2007-04-28T08:08:00.000-04:00

Someone on an adoption chatgroup posted a link to an adoption t-shirt that a major retailer is selling. I have copied the picture from their website to this post. Some people thought it was funny. I personally think it's extremely tacky. Someone said that the retailer took it down after receiving many complaints, but I heard the t-shirts are still on their store shelves.

My Heart Breaks

2007-04-28T08:01:00.000-04:00

My heart breaks for my sister that is continues to be sick with a condition called Fibromyalgia. It’s been 2.5 years since my sister was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. Her illness prevents her from working and she is on constant pain medication. She is very strong and is currently making the best of it, focusing on her love for her son and family. My friend’s husband has also been diagnosed with this condition and also is not capable of working now. Many people have never heard of Fibromyalgia. Here are some quick facts about this condition:

1. Symptoms can include muscle achiness, muscle spasms, nerve pain, chronic sleep disturbances, cognitive overload, “brain fog”, myofascial pain syndrome, chronic paresthesia, physical fatigue, irritable bowel syndrome, genitourinary symptoms (such as those associated with the chronic bladder condition interstitial cystitis), dermatological disorders, headaches, myoclonic twitches, and symptomatic hypoglycemia.
2. Fibromyalgia is occasionally mistaken for lupus.
3. Possible causes include genetics, prolonged stress, dopamine abnormality, dysregulation of serotonin, trauma, major surgery, disease and sleep disturbance (not getting REM sleep). Some evidence shows that Lyme Disease is a common trigger. However, there is currently no known strong correlation between any specific type of trigger and the subsequent initiation of symptoms. My sister was very stressed before the onset of her fibromyalgia and started to get severe migraines. My friend’s husband believes it may have been a heat stroke that triggered his fibromyalgia.
3. It affects more females than males, with a ratio of 9:1.
4. Fibromyalgia is seen in 3% to 6% of the general population.
5. There is no universal cure for fibromyalgia. The treatments mainly consist of pain management, sleep management and psychological support.
6. As many as 30% of those diagnosed with fibromyalgia are unable to maintain full-time employment.
7. Fibromyalgia is often referred to as an "invisible" illness or disability due to the fact that generally there are no outward indications of the illness or its resulting disabilities. The invisible nature of the illness, as well as its relative rarity and the lack of understanding about its pathology, often has psychosocial complications for those that have the syndrome. Individuals suffering from invisible illnesses in general often face disbelief or accusations of malingering or laziness from others that are unfamiliar with the syndrome.

Excuse Me? What Did You Just Say?

2007-04-18T21:25:00.000-04:00

Somebody said something totally inappropriate to me today that prompted me to vent and post this entry to my blog. Since we announced our adoption, we have been receiving inappropriate comments from some people. I don’t think they realize the impact of what they’re saying so I usually give them the benefit of the doubt. But there is such thing as being sensitive and thinking before you talk. The following have been the most memorable comments (keep in mind that most people know that Bryan and I tried to have a child biologically unsuccessfully):

1. “Oh, you’re adopting. You are so lucky that you won’t have to go through a pregnancy. My pregnancy was so hard.”…while this may seem well intended, this is especially a cruel statement when you have tried very hard to have a child biologically.
2. “Now that you’re adopting, just wait, you and Bryan will get pregnant right away. I have a ___________ (fill in the blank…friend, cousin, sister, brother) that applied for an adoption and that is all it took to get pregnant.”…this kind of implies that having a child biologically is still superior to having a child through adoption and that we should still be holding out for a biological child.
3. “I bet seeing all these pregnant people around you makes it that much harder for you.” Or “I’m pregnant Kristen. I’m so sorry that it took me longer to tell you. I was afraid to mention it given your circumstances.” ….Do people really think that I hate all pregnant people and that I am automatically jealous and envious and can’t be happy for them? Sheesh!
4. “You are doing such a good thing by adopting. You are so generous and charitable.” …this is a very nice thing to say. However, this is not even close to why we’re adopting. We’re adopting out of purely selfish reasons to try to fulfill our goal to build a family.
5. A family member of Bryan’s, no mention of names here, said, “I want to have a biological child for our family since you can’t.” …I can’t even respond to this.
6. “I know this child that needs a home with several health problems (and these are usually major issues). Why are you on an adoption wait list when you can just adopt this child? …just because we can’t have children biologically doesn’t mean that we are obligated to adopt a child with special needs. Why doesn’t the person asking this question adopt this child?
7. “Oh, you’re adopting from China. That is the popular/in-style thing to do now.” And then, they often compare us to Angelina Jolie …What!? Do people really think that we’re that shallow to adopt a child because it is the popular thing to do and we aspire to be like Angelina Jolie? Our child is not a hand-bag or some other accessory that is a fad!

Am I oversensative? Probably. But I think some of these comments are over the top. Don’t get me wrong, most people are very supportive and friendly and I can not survive without them. Plus, our family and friends that we know love us can say anything that is offbeat because we know that they mean well and don’t mean to hurt our feelings.

Just had to vent….

Adoption Wait Update

2007-04-15T09:04:00.000-04:00

China sent the April batch of referrals for parents with log-in-dates ("LID") through 10-26-2005. Bryan and I have a LID of 6-14-2006. This means that there are approximately 8 months worth of families with LIDs who will receive their children before we do. This does not mean that we have 8 more months to wait though because China is issuing referrals at a super slow pace. China releases referrals just about once per month. In April, China only referred 2 days of LIDs (10-25-2005 and 10-26-2005). In the past 6 months, China has referred an average of 13 LIDs per month. What does that mean for us? That is the ga-zillion dollar question! It really depends on China's future "productivity" and you would have to possess a crystal ball to know this. Using a productivity of 13 LIDs per month, Bryan and I will not receive our referral until November 2008. This would represent a wait of 29 months between LID and referral date and we already have waited 10 months, so we would have 19 more months to wait.

If their productivity increases to 15 LIDs per month, Bryan and I will receive our referral in early September 2008; a productivity of 20 LIDs per month would get us a referral in April 2008. Some people believe that the China's productivity will continue to slow down before it gets better. The wait truly depends on the available number of "paper-ready" children that China's orphanages make available for international adoption.

I have included my tables and graphs below that I update every month when China releases their referrals. I am such a nerd!

Happy Birthday Chad!

2007-04-10T10:25:00.000-04:00

Bryan and I went to Chad and Sandra's house on Saturday for Chad's birthday celebration. It was fun! Chad and Bryan enjoyed playing a guitar game on the Playstation. Attached is a humerous picture of them before they rocked out to Guns and Roses, Sweet Child of Mine. Too Cool!

Girl Scout Cookies at Work

2007-02-27T09:22:00.000-05:00

Girl Scout cookies are here, in case you are on another planet and haven’t noticed. My favorite cookies are Thin Mints. I have experienced a recent phenomenon at work whereby people that ordered their cookies last month are now concerned about weight gain or other health issues and not wanting to eat them so they are literally giving them away! Yesterday, someone gave me their box of Samoas. Today, someone gave me their two boxes of Thin Mints. Yummo! They both insisted that I not pay for the cookies. But today, I felt guilty and payed for the Thin Mints. After all, they cost $3.50 per box. I will be on the hunt today for more cookie giveaways from desperate dieters!

It's not Broken!!!

2007-02-26T10:56:00.000-05:00

We are so relieved that Bryan's ankle is not broken. It's just an extremely bad sprain. He needs a brace and crutches and is prohibited from driving for awhile, and of course no basketball for the next 4-6 weeks. The orthopedic doctor that's our friend played a practical joke on Bryan during our visit, showing Bryan another patient's x-ray, whose ankle was extremely injured, in place of Bryan's x-ray. Bryan laughed nervously at the joke, but I thought it was extremely humorous. :)

Junior League Event

2007-02-25T13:25:00.000-05:00

Last night, Bryan and I attended a Junior League event that was organized by our friend Taunya. We had a blast! It was a great event full of gambling (with play money), a string quartet, an orchestra band and silent and live auctions. We got a couple small oil paintings by Norman Korpi and our friend got a UK basketball signed by UK's coach. Bryan dusted off his old tux and I must say he was very handsome. Below are pictures of our friends Taunya and Melita and her husband Lee.

Sprain or Fracture?

2007-02-25T13:11:00.000-05:00

This morning, Bryan came home early from his Sunday basketball game hobbling into the house. He has been laying down since and his ankle is extremely big. Fortunately, on of Bryan's friends that was playing basketball with him and is an orthopedic surgeon. The friend gave him care instructions until Bryan can be seen tomorrow morning and he said there is no need for an emergency room visit. The big question is whether the injury is a sprain or fracture. Needless to say, I dusted Bryan's old crutches off. I'll keep you posted on his doctor's visit tomorrow. I uploaded a couple pictures of the patient. So far his spirits are good.

Paula Zahn is the WORST Journalist!

2007-01-06T08:45:00.000-05:00

Paula Zahn's program on CNN last night contained a segment on China adoption. It was extremely offensive.

It started with a short segment on some of the new China adoption regulations that was incomplete. Then Paula spoke with someone who is against discrimination against people who are heavy [one of the new China adoption regulations requires parents to be under a BMI index of 40.] Then a panel went off topic from the new regulations and talked about how racist people are for adopting from China instead of from Africa or African American children in this country. Basically, the panel made presumptions and said that adoptive parents want to adopt children from China because they are smarter, cuter and not African American.

Most people choose China because the program is predictable, reliable, relatively inexpensive and the wait-time has been shorter than other programs. As for the new restrictions, it is China's program and China's children, so whether Americans like the new restrictions is irrelevant.

I just went to CNN and posted the following comment to the Paula Zahn show:

"Your show on January 6 about China adoption was the worst quality journalism I have seen in years. China adoption and all adoption for that matter is a very complex issue and your coverage of adoption was extremely shallow and ignorant. It's insulting that you and your guests made presumptions about the parents' motivations for adopting children from China, implying that their motivations for choosing the China adoption program over domestic programs are race and appearance based. Now I know why CNN is failing in the ratings and being trumped by higher quality journalism from other networks."

It's Official!

2007-01-05T17:39:00.000-05:00

My company is now offering a $5,000 adoption reimbursement benefit! I wrote a 2-3 page proposal on January 16, 2006 to my company requesting that they equalize the benefits among the biological and adoptive parents. Since then, it has gone through the various limits of authority and got approved starting this calendar year. Bryan and I are beyond happy! I spent approximately 25 hours on the proposal, researching the names of other companies that offer benefits, including our competitors, and refining my arguments for providing benefits. I am so proud that my company is now among the other companies that provide the much needed assistance to adoptive parents.

CC@A Building Pictures

2006-12-28T09:13:00.000-05:00

These pictures are of the new Beijing building of the China Center for Adoption Affairs ("CC@A") courtesy of Love Without Boundaries. The CC@A moved into this building during July 2006. The pictures are of the following:

1. CC@A building
2. Plaque at the front door of CC@A building
3. Dossier room
4. Matching room
5. View from CC@A building

It is interesting to see where our fate will be determined. Our papers are likely sitting in the dossier room right now, unfortunately collecting dust for the moment! The matching room is interesting. First, the CC@A matches the orphanages with agencies. For example, if the number of children from a particular agency is 10 and a particular agency has 10 parents waiting for a child, the CC@A will likely pair these two organizations together. Then the CC@A starts matching children with parents.

This is the point in the process that is mostly hearsay. This is a description of the next process from another website called chinaadopttalk.com:

"I’ve heard from several people who have had the opportunity to speak with someone who works in the matching room. The various conversations seem to all agree that they first look for something that stands out: a matching birthday, a baby who looks a lot like a parent, or a baby who likes music and a parent who teaches music. Several matching people have stated they match by bone structure of the baby’s face and the parent’s faces (this is why they need our passport photos, so they can compare our mug shot with the baby’s mug shot). Some have stated that they used Chinese astrology, also. Once they’ve matched the obvious matches they then start to look at things like age of child requested. The age requested is not a priority for them, they feel they are matching families and not filling orders."

Darth Tater

2006-12-08T21:22:00.000-05:00

Today I purchased Mr. Potato Head, Darth Tater! It is a must have for a Star Wars fan. Since I'm visiting my nephew, I used the excuse that I was purchasing this for him...but everyone knows that it really is for me! The set comes with R2D2, Darth Tater and Spudtroopers. How cool!
May the force be with us!

Visiting Alabama!

2006-12-07T17:50:00.000-05:00

I flew into Alabama yesterday to visit with my grandma, parents, brother and wife, and sister and newphew. Bryan couldn't travel with me so he is working while I'm visiting. I miss you Bryan if you're reading this. We ate at your favorite restaurant, the Casa~! Sorry you missed the Casa!

Today, Johnny rode on the merry-go-round and visited santa. He is constantly running and is as cute as ever! He is always introducting himself to other kids his age whenever we're in public. It's adorable. Attached to this entry are pictures from today's adventures.

Adoption Wait Time

2006-11-30T19:38:00.000-05:00

The adoption referrals for parents with log-in dates through 9/8/2005 received their referrals today. Congratulations to those parents who are able to see their childrens' pictures for the first time. That represents a 14.9 month wait for these parents. If their wait time is indicative of our wait time, we only have 9.3 more months of waiting. However, it is probably inappropriate to predict our wait time based on the most recent parent's wait time. It may be better to consider the most recent CC@A (China Center of Adoption Affairs) productivity. If you look at their most recent productivity, our wait time is even longer. The lengthening wait time is depressing. I hope that when referrals come out next month that we can report an improvement in the statistics. We think about our baby all the time.

The following table represents the historical wait time for 2006:

Cut-off in Log-in Date	Date of Referral Release	Average Wait Time (In Months)
4/25/2005	1/5/2006	8.5
5/13/2005	1/25/2006	8.6
5/25/2005	2/27/2006	9.3
5/30/2005	3/27/2006	10.0
6/6/2005	4/27/2006	10.8
6/15/2005	5/26/2006	11.5
6/28/2005	6/26/2006	12.1
7/13/2005	7/31/2006	12.8
7/22/2005	8/24/2006	13.3
8/9/2005	9/25/2006	13.7
8/25/2005	11/2/2006	14.5
9/8/2005	11/30/2006	14.9

Window Cafe

2006-11-19T09:13:00.000-05:00

Our window cafe is now open for business! It's hours of operation are from sunrise to sunset and we offer a wide variety of seeds. We have had repeat customers so far, and hope to attract new customers soon.

Part I of CIA Exam

2006-11-18T10:16:00.000-05:00

I tested for Part I of the CIA exam last Wednesday. I think I did OK on the exam, but grades will not be released until January 15. I've already taken Parts III and received credit for Part IV. So, if I pass Part I, I will take Part II in May 2007. Unfortunately, the exam is only offerred twice a year. I have so much free time now that I'm not studying that I don't know what to do first! The limited number of people that actually visit our blog may have noticed the big gap in posts while I was studying!

Breeder's Cup Gala

2006-11-18T09:57:00.000-05:00

Bryan and I went to the Breeder's Cup Charity Gala. It was fun! I even got my hair done for the event (which I haven't done since our wedding day!). Allison Krauss and Union Station http://www.alisonkrauss.com performed at the event and Wow! they were good. I didn't think I liked country music, but this was somewhere in between country and folk. I now have their CD and am a fan.

First Annual Pumpkin Carving

2006-10-22T19:32:00.000-04:00

Pumpkin Carving with Sandra, Chad and Andrew.

Stack o' Lanterns by Sandra
Graveyard Ghoul by Chad
Kitty on Moon by Kristen & Bryan
Roasted pumpkin seeds by Bryan...yum!

Brown Envelope

2006-10-22T08:30:00.000-04:00

We received the "brown envelope" from the U.S. Consulate General of Guangzhou containing documents we will use to complete our adoption in China. Everyone that adopts from China talks about this "brown envelope" because these documents always arrive in a brown envelope. This communication means that the INS has approved our adoption and therefore the U.S. Consulate of Guangzhou will approve our child's visa. This is the last formal communication we will receive until our long-awaited referral day.

New Computer Day!

2006-10-12T15:12:00.000-04:00

Bryan and I finally received our new computer after nearly a month of having no home computer. I never realized how computer-dependent I was until our computer crashed abrubtly. I was so happy that I ran out to the car to capture its first moment that it arrived at our house. Bryan and I quickly unwrapped the computer, took the computer casing off and admired the beautiful hardware inside! Hopefully my next entry will be made from our new computer.

Malaysia

2006-10-11T08:46:00.000-04:00

Our home computer crashed so I haven’t been posting lately. I posted this message reluctantly from my work computer since I hate to mix work files with personal files. A new Dell computer is arriving sometime in the beginning of November! Yeah!

I wanted to share a few pictures from my business trip to Malaysia. The pictures from bottom to top are as follows:

(1) Petronas twin towers. I took a tour up to the bridge. Too bad I didn’t see Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta Jones!
(2) McArabia chicken sandwich from McDonalds in the Dubai airport. I couldn’t resist trying Dubai’s version of a McDonalds burger and it was yummy!
(3) Batu Caves Sri Subramaniam Temple. This is a beautiful Hindu shrine. I climbed all 272 steps to get to the caves!
(4) Mom monkey with baby. Malaysia has all sorts of wildlife. I took this picture for my sister Kelly since she loves monkeys!

Adoption Log-in Date

2006-08-01T14:16:00.000-04:00

We just received our Log-in Date ("LID") to China!!!!! This isn't a major milestone, but we grasp for any milestone, no matter how minor, since we don't have our daughter yet.

Our Documents to China ("DTC") date is 6/9/06 and our LID is 6/14/06, so the CC@A is currently processing documents extremely quick. Historically, it has taken much longer to receive the LID. Assuming the current wait time stays stagnant, we will be traveling to China this time next year.

Yeah!

Yummy Stirfry

2006-07-31T20:14:00.000-04:00

Bryan cooked awesome stirfry tonight! He cooked enough to feed an army!

Passed Part III of CIA Exam!

2006-07-31T18:08:00.000-04:00

Today I finally received my test scores for Part III of the CIA Exam and I passed!!!! The letter was postmarked July 14 so I'm not sure where the letter has been since it left the Institute of Internal Auditors in Florida.

I will start studying for Parts I and II shortly and I have been comped for Part IV. Hopefully I can get this certification done before I become a Mom!

Welcome

2006-07-29T19:18:00.000-04:00

Welcome to Kristen and Bryan's blog. This website will be used to keep everyone posted on our China adoption during the wait time and during our China trip.

Left is a picture of our adorable nephew Johnny.