Last Post Stateside

Todd will be home from work in just a few minutes. I'll be leaving shortly to go get Lauren from school. The bags are packed and ready. There's not much left to do but shut down the computer and pack it up.

Sally, your package for Frankie Tru is packed in Lauren's suitcase. We LOVED the SLC onesies, and thank you so much for Mia's shirts. But our favorite is the onesie featuring Max-Min's artwork! How very adorable! Please give him a big hug and thank you from us!

So, we're off and on our way. Please keep us in your prayers! We love y'all!

We Leave Tomorrow!

Today was my last day of work until before our trip - Yippee! Tonight, we're working through the final checklist of things to be done before we leave town. Todd mowed the yard, I was in charge of installing Mia's car seat in the car. Easier said than done. Apparently, there is a car seat system in newer cars called LATCH. Our 1999 Honda Accord doesn't have that. I couldn't make heads or tails out of the seat installation instructions. So I called our local fire department and they told me to come on up and they would install it for me. An hour later, we still weren't satisfied on how the seat was fitting in the car in the rear-facing position. This LATCH deal apparently makes all the difference. So, I guess we'll have to see what we can do about making the proper adjustments when we get back from our trip. Hmmm.

Lauren 's first day of school is tomorrow; it is also her first day of middle school (sixth grade). She's growing up so fast! She's excited about going off to what we used to call "junior high," but mostly she's just excited about leaving tomorrow to go get her new little sister!

We're all counting down the hours until we get on the plane to wing our way to Mia! This afternoon, I glanced over my journal entries for the past couple of years. Although it's been less than a year since we filed our application to adopt from Taiwan through Journeys of the Heart, those of you know know us well know that we have been waiting years for this adoption to happen! I am amazed at the journey God has taken us on and how far we’ve come. I know that we are always growing in Christ, but He surely has brought us a long way in our faith and our level of trust in Him. I remember how very discouraged I was when we cancelled our first home study. It seemed like we would never begin our adoption process. Then, after the breast cancer when all the agencies turned us down to adopt from China, I was in the depths of despair. It is nothing short of miraculous that we are now just a few short hours away from leaving to go get our Mia. God has blessed us with the perfect little girl for our family. Everyone says what a lucky little girl she is to be taken out of an orphanage and placed in a Christian family, but we know that we truly are the lucky ones!

I believe that God will continue to reveal more of His nature to us through our relationship with Mia. God’s love for us--His adopted children--is a mystery, but I feel like parents who choose to adopt here on this earth get the “inside scoop” on that mystery, and God lets us in on the secret of how He feels about us and just how much He loves us! It is one thing to love your biological offspring – it comes naturally and it isn’t much of a stretch for most people. But to choose to love a total stranger, to take them into your family and make them equal to your own flesh and blood – to make them joint-heirs and give them the same rights, privileges and love as you do your “own” children – that is a perfect picture of God’s love for us, isn’t it? Selah.

So tonight, just a few short hours before we are about to embark on this remarkable journey, I want to take a moment to share with you, my friends and family, just how grateful we are to God for the incredible privilege of becoming Mia Ju-Hsuan's parents. It is a humbling thing to have the God who created the very universe move on our behalf to bring about such a blessing as this for our little family! It is nothing short of remarkable to think about how He knew Mia before she was even formed in her mother's womb, and how He orchestrated events to make this little girl a part of our family. To Him be all the thanks and the glory!

Ten Hours Later ...

Why is it that everytime you try to download new software on your computer, what should take just a few minutes turns into an ordeal? Remember I told you yesterday that Todd's brother came over last night to finish helping him download music to his phone? Copying the music into iTunes was the easy part. The trouble started when they tried to download the music to the phone. The phone software required MS-Windows Service Pack 2. (Apparently, our Windows XP hadn't been updated since we bought that computer!) The service pack took two hours to download. Then, the system went looking for critical system upgrades and found 80 (!!) that needed to be downloaded and installed! When I went to bed last night at 10 pm, they still had about 15 more to go! To make a long story short, they finally got the music loaded on his phone, but it took two nights and a total of ten hours to get the job done! Thank goodness for Chuck, my brother-in-law, who is a computer whiz! Without him, Todd would be "tuneless!" Chuck, you are a genius! And apparently you have quite a bit more patience than I have! BTW, our system is now set to automatically check for and download operating system updates!! Duh.

We had to have our pest control professional out to the house today because I found Black Widow spiders in our garage yesterday. Todd killed one in our mailbox the day before that. The thought of having those nasty critters even close to my family makes my skin crawl! We live in a new subdivision and all the construction has brought them out, I guess. You can bet I won't be letting my pest control contract lapse any time soon! I'd never seen one of those things before in my life, and I wouldn't be too upset if I never saw another one. Gross!

The packing is nearly done - Todd is working through his "honey-do" list tonight. Just a few more things to cross off the list and we'll be ready to go! Tomorrow is my last day of work before we leave. Yippee! My co-worker's birthday is tomorrow, so the girls in the office are taking her out to lunch. That means that not only is tomorrow my "Friday," but a longer lunch means a shorter work day! Happy 35th, Alicia!

Amazing, the stuff you have on your to-do-list ...

... before a big trip. Todd's "honey-do" list includes vacuuming out the car (because my sister-in-law is driving us to the airport and I can't BEAR the thought of her thinking we never clean out our car!), mowing the lawn, and laying out his clothes so I can pack them. So, what is he doing tonight? He and his brother are downloading music to his phone so he has something to listen to on our trip! Everything is a matter of priorities, you know. Well, there are two more nights before we leave, so he still has time to get everything on his list accomplished!

Mia's room is all ready for occupancy. I thought y'all might like to see it, so I've included a couple of pictures. The walls are still a bit bare, but I'm sure some photographs will go up before long. My friend, Debbie Stevens, gave me a beautiful adoption poem personalized with a small picture of Mia and a red thread connecting a map of Taiwan and Louisiana. That will have a special place of honor, as soon as I get a chance to hang it up. If you don't know the Chinese Legend of the Red Thread, you need to "Google" it -- the legend holds a special place in the hearts of parents adopting from China. The scrapbook I'm putting together for Mia has a red thread winding through every page ... with ladybugs, of course!

Our friends David and Margaret Tidwell dropped by last night for a visit. David told me about an adapter that you can buy for your laptop so that you can plug it into the "outlet" on the plane and not run down your battery. Well, I called Dell first thing this morning and ordered me one of those babies - overnighted! I justified the purchase by rationalizing that it also includes a car adapter and since, we drive alot more than we fly, it will get a good deal of use. Right? Of course, right!

Okay, that's enough for tonight. I've got to get back to work ... overpacking!! I know I'm probably bringing too much, but what do you leave home? Actually, it's not as bad as it looks. We're each taking one suitcase and one carryon. Mia has one small suitcase, and there's one extra small suitcase with all the gifts, and other stuff we have to bring "just in case" like medicines and snacks (there's only so much Chinese food three Louisianians can eat in one week!). Oh yeah, and the umbrella stroller. That's not so bad, huh?

Getting Ready To Travel

After all the months of anticipation, waiting, and praying, we are finally preparing for our trip to Taiwan to bring home our precious Mia! The floor of our bedroom is covered with suitcases and piles of stuff yet to be packed. Ugh! What a mess! For an ultra-organized person like myself, it's a little unsettling, but a few days of kaos is SO worth the prize that awaits us in Taiwan!

Rather than send individual e-mails, I've decided to create this blog so friends and family can follow our journey. So log on whenever you like, and we'll try to have a few lines about our day's adventures and a few pictures to share with y'all!

Please continue to keep us in your daily prayers -- we'll miss y'all and can't wait to get back home so you can meet Mia!