The kids are off to school!

Have a great first day back!




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:S Goldenrod Ln,Hanover,United States

And we're off!

After all night packing, making detailed lists for my mother in law to reference while caring for Conner, Braeton, and Hannah, we are finally leaving for China!
We are dropping off the kids for their first day of school on the way. We will miss them. Thank God for Skype :-)
I am months away from a doctorate degree and had a number of issues putting the fancy car seat in the car. After hours of pain, a few choice words, and the assistance of my wife, I am happy to say that the car seat is in place and Jia will be safe on the ride home. I hope we never have to switch vehicles.
Here is an updated picture of Jia that we received a few weeks back! More to come!




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:S Goldenrod Ln,Hanover,United States

Making our LOA wait productive!

We have launched a new online adoption community!  There are so many helpful groups that we are a part of that provide so much valuable information to the adoption community.  One gap that we have found is that there isn't one group/site that serves as a central portal for all types of adoption information.  We found ourselves doing research about the paper chase on one site, looking up currency conversions on another, travel info on another, cleft specific info on another, and the list goes on.  We have put together a site that serves as a portal to all of this information and more!  The site isn't complete and there are a number of features on the roadmap that will be released later in the year but we feel it is a good start and provides a different experience for the adoption community.  Our site is www.Adoption-Community.com!  Here are a few features I think are particularly cool:

• ·       Single sign on.  Already have a Facebook, Yahoo, Google, or Twitter account?  You can sign on using those accounts.
• ·       There is an advocacy group to advocate for waiting children.
• ·       Want to calculate how long you have been waiting for LOA/TA/LID?  We have a “days passed calculator” to help you out.
• ·       There is a currency calculator on the site
• ·       Rumor Queen has a lot of great information!  In recognizing that, we have embedded a real-time Twitter stream showing all of Rumor Queens Tweets!  Simply click on the tab labeled “twitter stream” to see ChinaAdopt.com and Rumor Queen tweets!
• ·       Just like Facebook, you have your own page called “My Page” and it will highlight your existing word press or Blogger blog!  In addition, you can add photos, videos, and links. 
• ·       There are existing forums I have created with discussion topics such as fundraising, travel tips for Guangzhou, and a cleft lip/palate forum.  Would you like to see an additional group created or forum added?  Simply add your own by clicking “Add”
• ·       Adoption-Community is 100% integrated with Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Blogger, etc…  you have the option to post your adoption-community comments, likes, and topics to any of these social networks with one click.
• ·       Adoption-Community has live chat!  You will be very familiar with the interface.  The chat engine is just like Facebook.
• ·       There is a section for gotcha day videos so feel free to share your special moment with the group or add one that you have found elsewhere.

Again, we have only been live for a few days and there are a lot of additional features on the roadmap that will be released this year.  A few of the more notable ones are:

• ·       Interactive table that allows you to sort by agency, province, LOI before LID, LOI before PA, etc…  to see current wait times between stages
• ·       A featured section for adoption fundraisers
• ·       A featured writer section
• ·       A section with sample forms for LOI, I-800A, I-800, Visa form, etc…
• ·       Agency spotlight
• ·       And much more!

Have a look around, feel free to tell your friends and spread the word!  If you have any feedback or suggestions, feel free to send me a message through the site or click on the "idea" tab at the top of the page and submit your idea!  My goal is to make this a community that works for its members and has the content they need.

Thanks,

The Taylor family

PA and updated photos of Jia!

Wow!  We received update photos of Jia today.  We just requested the update on Friday and they were quick to send it!  She is progressing nicely, walking, loves to dance, and happy :-)  I will post more info as I receive it.  We also received our PA today! 

We have been matched!!!

It has been a number of months since the last post and a lot has changed!  As of our last post, our dossier was submitted to China and we were waiting to receive LID.  LID stands for Log In Date, this is the date that China logs our dossier into their system and the date that we were eligible to be matched.  We received LID on 2-2-2012!

China releases an update to the shared list monthly, most often the update is on the 3rd Monday of the month.  The list is expected to be updated this Monday, 2-27-2012, so last week we were excited and patiently waiting for the updated list!  When we set out to adopt, we filled out a matching form that asked questions such as the desired age of the child we wanted, sex, and which special needs we would consider.  The needs we listed are considered "low needs" and given the age range and the fact that we are looking to adopt a girl, the timeframe for being matched was very much up-in-the-air because of the number of adopting families that fit into the same bucket we do.  

While we were waiting for the shared list release date to be announced, we received an unexpected email from our adoption agency with the subject line "File???".  I had just emailed Kerry, our case worker, scanned copies of some documents that she requested so I assumed, based on the subject line, I forgot to attach the documents when I sent her an email.  This was Thursday, 2-23-2012!  I opened the email and there was a referral for a 14 month old little girl that stole our hearts!  It is very rare for an "LID required" child to be released to the shared list outside of the standard release or update date.  Just so happened her name popped up and our case worker locked her for 72 hours for us!  There are hundreds of agencies watching the list and trying to lock so we feel so blessed to be matched with her!

We received a 3 page document outlining her growth statistics, medical needs, blood work results, measurements, and 2 photos!  We had to accept the referral within 72 hours or she would go back onto the shared list and be matched with another family.  Our international adoption doctor was on stand by and reviewed her file the same day.  After speaking with the doctor we felt comfortable moving forward and submitted our LOI (letter of intent) to adopt Taoying Hong!  We will call her Jia.  We are still debating over her middle name but we will update you once we decide!

We are proud to welcome Jia to the Taylor family!!!  Here is a picture of Jia (@ 7 months old) and an outline of what we know about her so far.  Jia has a cleft lip and palate, it is likely that her lip has been repaired already given that she is in a city orphanage.  My brother was born with the same need!

Welcome Jia Taylor!!!

- Jia was born on December 11, 2010.  It is rare to ever know the actual birth date of most orphaned children in China but she was found with a note pinned to her shirt!  The note contained only her birth date.

- Jia lives in the Nanchang Social Welfare Institute today.  Nanchang SWI is one of the better orphanages in China.  It is one of the few orphanages that has a school, consistent medical care, and rehab programs for children with special needs.  A sign that Jia is being well cared for is that her growth stats are within the spectrum of normal.  Even more unusual for a child with CL/CP in a chinese orphanage.  Here are couple of photos of the Nanchang SWI:

- Jia was found by the department of public security in Nanchang.  Like most orphans, she was found in a high traffic public place.

- Jia was put in intensive care 12 days after she was born because she couldn't feed and was very ill.

- At 3 months old, Jia loved to smile and babble.  She is a very happy girl and follows bright objects.

- At 4 months old she likes staying in caretaker’s arms and listens to them, she often joins two hands together and play them, sometimes she sucks her fingers after meals, giggles blissfully when she’s happy.

- At 5 months old she lifts her head up high and observes her surroundings while she lies on her stomach, call her name and she can turn around, she waves her arms and expects to be picked up, can sit alone and lean forward, sometimes she catches toys at hand and shakes the bell, when she hears the sound of the bells and she jumps for joy!

- At 7 months old her bight eyes are searching around the kids who are playing games and caretakers all the time, she can sit alone with hands support and hold bottle to drink milk, roll over to get the toys. Taoying can recognize the strangers and likes being held in arms, interested in playing the game “hide-and-seek”, communicates with adults with “ah-ah” when she’s excited, also likes whispering some words lowly on her own. Taoying is a happy lovely baby.

- Jia's favorite toys are musical toys.

This is all we know about Jia so far.  We hope to receive an update on what her life has been like for the most recent 7 months.  Our family is so excited and can't wait to bring Jia home.  While the wait is going to be difficult, we need the time to gather funds to bring Jia home.  We will start fundraising heavily within the next few weeks!  We are going to be raffling off some great items!  We have an IPAD 2, Kindle Fire, Jewelry and more!

 

DTC!!!

Our dossier is officially in China!   We are so happy to be done with the paper chase.  Now the toughest part of the waiting game begins.  We will be eligible to be matched in about a week so the call could come at any time after that.  We will see if Jia is on the shared list in February!  

Here is an overview of how the process works from now until matching:

- In one week we will have an LID (log in date) which is simply the date that we are logged in to the CCCWA's system in China.  You can't be matched off of the shared list until you have an LID

- The shared list is posted for all hague accredited agencies to see and match children from every month.  The date that the list is updated varies from month to month.  Sometimes it is on the 13th or it could be the last day of the month or any day in between.

- We are first in line with our agency because we are the only family with an LID that hasn't been matched.  This is great for us and increases our odds of being matched off of the February list substantially. 

- The agency will be made aware of the list release date and time, 24 hours before it is released.  Our caseworker waits for the list to be released, which is usually very early in the morning, and searches for a child that matches our criteria.  If one is found, she will be "locked" for 72 hours and we will be sent her file for review and approval.

There have been a lot of people who have given their time and been so supportive through this process.  We appreciate you all and couldn't have done it without you.  

Adventures in the windy city...

I was in Chicago last week to get all of our documents authenticated by the Chinese Consulate.  I lived in Chicago for a number of years and was very excited to have an excuse to visit the windy city.  I had visions of spending 40 minutes or so in the consulate and the rest of the time taking in all of the beautiful architecture, food, and nice weather!  I had all 111 pages of the dossier ready for authentication (except for immigration approval), the shiny golden seals of the state of indiana visible on all of the documents, my debit card in hand, and I was ready to mark this milestone off.

Me on the phone prior to driving to Chicago: "Nín hǎo, do you take debit/credit cards or do I need to bring a money order or cashiers check"

Nice lady at the consulate:  Debit/credit cards are fine.

Me on the phone prior to driving to Chicago:  Great, Is there any paperwork I need to fill out ahead of time or do I simply need to bring the documents and my debit card.

Nice lady at the consulate:  Only other thing is a copy of the photo page in your passport.

Me on the phone prior to driving to Chicago:  ok great!  Thank you!

I drive 5 hours to Chicago and check into my hotel and found the walking directions on my iphone.  I arrived @ 12:15 only to find that the office is open from 9:30 - 12:00 and 1:00 - 2:30.  I patiently waited for 1:00 p.m. and my number to be called.  My number was called at 1:05 and I walked to the window with a smile and my documents.  The first thing the nice lady asked was if I had the application for authentication completed.  I reminded her that I called and was told there wasn't any additional documents required.  She handed me the application and told me to go to the back of the line.  I filled the application out and waited for my name to be called again.  

I walked to the window for a second time and before I could say anything, she asked if I had a money order for the authentication fee.  I let her know that I would be using my debit card.  I was then informed that the debit card could only be used if I was going to return in 4-5 days to pick the documents up in person.  This was not an option so I made the 3 block walk to the post office to get cash and a money order.  

Upon my return, 15 minutes before they closed, I was pleased to see that the lines were short.  Feeling more confident than ever, I returned to the window only to be asked "have you made copies of all of the documents because we need two sets".  I politely responded "no" and reminded her again that I was not made aware of, nor was it clear on their site, that an additional set of documents was needed.  She told me to come back when I had copies.

The next hour and a half was spent at FedEx making copies of documents with golden state seals that cannot be broken or bent without me having to start the process over with that particular document.  The next morning I decided that I should get their early given the challenges of the day before.  Upon arrival, I noticed the lines were much longer than the day before.  I pulled my number and the wait was on.  I walked to the window, sufficiently beaten, and she asked me if the copies were in order of the originals.  I told her no and quickly started to put them in order.  I was sent to the back of the line.  Luckily I had taken an additional number after 5 or 6 people came in, just in case I needed a quick return spot in the line.

Back at the window, I handed her my documents and she cracked her first smile.  She said "Oh!  This is for an adoption.  You should have told me and I would have given you more time at the counter."  Wow...  I was angry and relieved to be done.  I thanked her and took my time walking back to the hotel so I could take a few pictures and enjoy the architecture.  The paper chase is officially over for us.  We have a fingerprinting appointment for immigration approval on December the 9th.  Once we receive approval from the USCIS, we are simply a $6400 check and a return envelope away from dossier submissions!

Here are a few pictures from the two day trip.  Enjoy!