Spoke to soon

Remember when I was so proud of myself for getting Lori Christmas gift all put togather now that it was warmer out side.

Well this is what our yard looked a couple of days later. So much for waiting until it was spring.

Glen

Annie gets First place in region.

Annie has been competing in math contest for awhile her last one she got first place in region, we are proud of her, next month she competes in the state math contest .

Glen

A photo opportunity.

We have a tree in our front yard that blooms so pretty with white flowers in the spring. I thought that it would make a good backdrop for pictures of the kids because they both have dark hair, so I got out my scaffolding that I use for work and set it up to put the kids right up in the tree where the blooms were the best. I stood on a ladder to shoot the photos. I am very pleased with the results. The Braford Pear tree blossoms don’t last long. Annie even got a couple shots of me. At first Annie was so cared of the scaffolding that the first couple of shots we took she has a nervous look on her face. The scaffold wasn't a problem for Brandon because he has worked with me doing drywall before. After a few minuets she got more comfortable being up that high and smiled.

Glen

Annie made this shirt for Geometry class.

Brandon with his bomber jacket that Nana and Poppi gave him for Christmas.

Ginger gets her care package.

Lori and I have wanted to sponsor a child in China one on one for some time now and we have been able to do that this year. We sponsor a little girl named Ginger that for one resin can not be adopted, so she is set to live out her life in the orphanage until she is old enough to leave. We write her and send photos of the family cards and gifts. We translate them into Chinese so she can read them with out any trouble. Luckily the care package we sent her with the Blanket got there just before snow storm hit this winter. We also sent her a camera so she can take photos of her life and friends so when she wrights us we will know who she is talking about. All this would not be possible if it wasn’t for a very good man I came in contact with a few months back. (Ginger twin sister Maggie already had a sponsor so we chose Ginger as the one to write and send care packages to.) Ginger is such a special little girl who has so little yet when we send her things she makes a point of shearing some of what we send with her twin sister Maggie and friends at the orphanage.
If you have ever thought of sponcering a child it is worth it, you get back a lot more then you give.
Glen

Haaah spring

We did some much need spring cleaning around the house this weekend, it was so nice outside we opened all the windows and doors and bleached out the bathrooms, shampooed the carpets and rugs. And I put together Lori’s hammock I got her for Christmas. I love spring.
Glen

We are finally in the waiting child program.

Some of you know that we sent in a waiting child medical check list back October 2006, we were so happy at the possibility of adopting 2 waiting children and were devastated when we were told it was to narrow in scope and that we would get a referral in the NSN program before we were match in the waiting child program. What you don’t know is we sent in another Waiting child Check list in April 2007, and were told it was too liberal for us and to protect our family we weren’t let in then either. That was a W-T-F moment! We then decided to wait until we got our referral for NSN. Then for the next adoption find a waiting child on an agencies list first, get approved then sine on with that agency. This whole time we have been watching and reading stories of the people who have adopted Waiting children. Looking at list thinking we could provide a home and parent that child. Watching some of the problems that come up with adopting an older toddler age child, and how different family worked throw though problems, has been a real asset, thank you for keeping up your blogs, and post here if the information was something that is not appropriate, for your blog. Also reading toddler adoption a weaver’s Craft has good information in it the about only thing I didn’t like about that book was the cover. We never gave up hope, and we do have a strong desire, and the resources to parent a waiting child, we felt that is where we are constantly pulled. So we sent in our medical check list one more time, this one very close to the one that we sent in in October 2006, except VSD-ASD made the list, with the understanding that if it was not approved for the waiting child program we would, forfeit all our time and money we spent on this adoption and start over looking at waiting Childs list from other agencies.
My wife has spent the last two years in the OR as an RN on the heart team, scrubbing in to hold the heart for the surgeons or circulating. Not all Heart surgeries turn out good, she thought at first to have a child with VSD or ASD would be to clause to home, for the field she works in so it never made the list. We Have talk about it and reached it, and decided it wasn’t to close to home, and with her experience, and contacts that she has gained over the last two years are now an asset to having a ASD or VSD child. So we asked for a heart baby or toddler this time.
Well third time a charm I guess, because they gladly accepted it, either that or they got tired of us. It will problubly be a ten months to year before we get a referral then another 3-6 months for a travel that is what we are told the average family has to wait in our agency’s program. But with out having to forfeit the time and money we put into this adoption that is just fine with us because that money can go to pay the fees of our next waiting child adoption.
Glen

China may scrap one-child policy

If its true, For human rights it would be a step in the right direction.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080228/lf_nm_life/china_population_dc
http://www.iht.com/bin/printfriendly.php?id=10538076
http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7270442.stm

200 days with Annie.

Annie has now been with us for 200 days now so she only has about 100 more before she has to say good bye for the summer and make the trip back home to see her family that must miss her terribly. We hope she gets to see the opening ceremonies of the Olympics on the 8th of august before she has to jump on a plain back to here. She has report go to collage on the 10th or 11th I can’t remember right now. Looking forward to her being reunited with her parents, and glad she will be come back after the summer.
Glen

How to bargain in Beijing?

Bargaining seem to be a big thing to the Chinese people if you plan a trip to China, here are some tips from the Chinese government’s website. They are for Beijing but they will work all over china. If it is not inside a department store with a fixed price on it, or a
grocery store it can be and is expected to be haggled over.
Glen

Bargaining is the rule here in Beijing. At least, at the many markets and back-street clothes stalls. Bargaining is an art and if you are unfamiliar with it we'd like to offer you some advice. The tips here are Beijing specific but may help you at any place in the world where bargaining is practiced. DO NOT say how much you want to pay for an item unless its near the end of the process. Always try and drop the seller's offering price as much as possible before opening your mouth with a price. DO throw out really low prices like 10 RMB as long as you have a big smile. DO keep smiling throughout. The seller is much more likely to continue bargaining with a happy smiling face. Getting angry rarely gets you the price you want. BE AWARE the initial price offered by the seller is usually at least 40% over the general price acceptable. It can be up to 500% over. DO have an idea of what the item is worth. You can ask Chinese friends, hotel staff, ex-pats or look at our rough guide below. This is very general and is based on a market like Xiu Shui. You may not be able to get the lowest prices stated at Xiu Shui, especially on a weekend when there are lots of tourists around. DO walk away once you've given them your final price, even before. If you get called back, you know you are close. If you do not get called back, go to a similar stall and try again with a slightly higher price.

The year of hair.

This has defiantly been the year of the hair. We had to put the kibosh on it though, I woke-boo up a couple of weeks ago to find he had dyed his hair blue. He is lucky the stuff doesn’t fall out. I will be so glad when this faze of his life has passed like the all encompassing Poke-mon years. Yaha we were "blessed" with that too.

Glen

Chinese New Year

We had a good time at the FCC, Families with children from china Chinese New Year Celebration.
The girl in the top photo I have had the pleasure of knowing for about 4 years now. By the way according to Jen-Jen we are best-ist friends, as you can see she was a big help to me in hanging up the umbrellas and lanterns from the ceiling. I don’t know if it makes it harder to wait for our referral going to the events or easer being able to interact with the kids every few months. I do know I have loved watching the kids that have come home over the last 4 years grow-up and thrive with there new families. Plus I do now have a best-ist friend.


Oh our Annie, She looked so pretty in her dress we had family photos taken at the FCC I hope they turn out. Our first Family photo ever!
Annie just got done sending in her form for AYUSA’s Community Service Challenge Contest, out of all her volunteer work she choose to right about the her work with the FCC. I hope she wins if her dues win she gets to go to San Francisco for a weekend that would be cool, I and Lori use to drive to San Francisco when we were 16; yes we have been together that long now well over hafe our lives have been spent together.
GOOD LUCK ANNIE!
Glen

Extra! Extra!

Annie has become a published author! She was asked by someone at U Power magazine in China to write about her experiences here in the U.S. She received the magazine with the first installment of her articles in the mail today. She included pictures from different activites and celebrations that we have attended as well as photos of her school and friends. We are very happy for her and proud of her accomplishment. It is a select few teenagers that can say they are published.

Glen

Photos around the our city.

Lori painting Annie room Befroe she for she arivel

School

Annie's first Cake.

Annie AKA "Connoisseur of the Cream".

Annie loves her I ice cream she finds great joy when we go to the grocery store and we get what she calls the family size ice cream. For though of you who wonder what family size Ice cream is see photo below.
She is such a joy to have in our home; she has a way of putting a smile on your face with the way she cheers when we have some thing for dinner that she is found of. We are looking forward to Chinese New year next week. I am in charge of set up and tare down of the event this year so it will be a long day but still fun. We usually have a big group of people that show-up to help.
Glen

Annie's family size Ice cream bucket!

Bad weather holds on in China

Please remember the people are desperate to get home they are not standing in line to get the last tickle-me Elmo or guitar heiro-3. From most it is the only time they have all year to see and communicate with there family.

From CNN Correspondent Hugh Riminton in Guangzhou

China's economic rise - and my cheap T-shirts and kids' toys - depend on ordinary Chinese who leave their homes to work often seven days a week in factories in the south. The trip home for Lunar New Year fulfils ancient obligations to family. It is also the only chance most of them have to see family members - including spouses and children - all year.

The vast tides of people waiting at Guangzhou might be sources of fascination, curiosity - even incomprehension.They can never be figures of fun.

Thirty years ago, the travel writer Jan Morris made a trip from Guangzhou to Hong Kong.

She spoke of not seeing people so much as "statistics on the move." A neat line.But the tens of millions currently disrupted by China's weather are no mere statistics. Theirs are all too human faces, desperate to keep faith with their families after for the long months of separation. Their powers of endurance will be remembered long after their occasional flashes of exasperation or anger.

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/ver/251.7/popup/index.php?cl=6210278

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/ver/251.7/popup/index.php?cl=6220848

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/ver/251.7/popup/index.php?cl=6202151

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/ver/251.7/popup/index.php?cl=6197875

There is hope for our world.

I have met the most amazing Man. He such a great heart he is Currently helping kids in China the amount of self sacrifice that this person has put fourth, and the joy that he brings to all the children is truly inspiring. Along with the gifts of his time, money, and skills,

To help meet there needs he has given these kids the greatest gift of all,

Love.

Thank you my friend!

Glen

Stuck in Guangzhou

Chinese Travelers Stranded & adoptive familys too.

I know most of us would gladly be stranded in china if we could just go now for our adoptions.

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/ver/251.7/popup/index.php?cl=6128685

Chili's

We had a good time last night although Lori got stuck in surgery until 11:30P.M. Pore girl. So it was just Annie, Boo, and I along with the two students from UCA. We hit the Chilies for dinner. They were very nice and told us all about life at UCA and where in china they were from. Beijing and shanghai they spoke very good English and had been in the U.S. for only a little over 4 months. One of the girls had gone to high school in Sydney Australia.
They were glad to get out of UCA for awhile; the public transportation system in Arkansas is lacking to say the least.
Again we had a good time & Annie got a lot of good information about life at UCA so it all ended well, next time I will have to make sure Lori is not on call when we take some students out.
Glen

Something new.

Well we are going to take some collage students out tonight!
UCA has a big international student program, a lot of the international students are Chinese I think like 150 or so, when I was up there with Annie showing her the UCA campus the staff seemed like they really cared for the students and there wellbeing. That is one resin there international program has grown so big in a short time, from word of mouth from current and former students that go to UCA.
Any way back to my story most students don’t have a car so they are kind of stuck at the collage unless the school is doing something special with them. I E-mail the university and told them who I was and how Lori, Annie, and I, would like to take 2 students out for dinner and afterwards to the mall if there is time. They thought it was a grate Idea and set me up with one of there Chinese students who wanted to go out but had a school related thing she had to go to. She told me it would not be a problem to find two students that wanted to get off campus for awhile. So we will have to see what comes of this new advancer, if it go’s well for us and the students maybe we can work on getting some students off campus from time to time especially during long breaks in school when the school is out for holidays but they are still stuck there in the dorms. It mast be a hard time for some of them during long brakes like Christmas, thanksgiving and spring brake.
Glen

No USCIS I am still not a criminal thanks for asking.

Well if off to get our fingerprint redone.

Lori and I will make the trip to Memphis tomorrow to get our second set of prints done. I am still going to wait until around October 2008 to turn in our updated home study though in hopes that they will give me a new I-171-h that will be good long enough for us to get our referral. Hey they are the ones that took 3 months to get me my last I-171-h ,and now 3 mounts of login dates is taking a year for CCAA to get through. and USCIS told me I had a year to file my updated home study and still get a free I-171-H so I am going to milk it.

Glen

Ni hao kai-lan Premiering on Nick Jr. Thursday, February 7 at 11 a.m.

By the time my little Norah gets here it will be in box set.
Glen

What the Show's About"Ni hao!" That means "hi" in Chinese--and that's how Kai-lan greets you every day! Kai-lan Chow is an exuberant Chinese-American preschooler, almost 6, who wants you to come play with her and her best friends. Kai-lan's world is infused with Chinese culture and is brimming with magical sights and sounds, and everywhere you turn there's something amazing and beautiful to see. Along the way, she and her bilingual buddies speak in English and Chinese, but they always need kids' help to find creative solutions to the daily dilemmas that come their way!

http://www.nickjr.com/shows/ni-hao-kai-lan/kai-lan-about-the-show/ni-hao-kai-lan-about-the-show.jhtml

I-600-A / I-171 update, Update.

I was right about them giving you up to one year to file your updated home study for your free renewal. So we are going to milk this thing as long as we can so that hopefully our I-171H is good for the next couple years. looks like we will have to have our finger prints done sooner because I ask for a later date to be finger printed and they give me another appointment in three weeks. so we will are just going to have them done.
Glen

Annie says happy new year!

Hope everone has a safe and happy new year.

Glen