It is really happening! I just can't believe it! What a full circle moment for us! Tomorrow Dayton turns 11 and I always get a little emotional every year at this time. We have such a wonderful son! He makes us so happy and proud. He has been the light and joy in our lives since the day he was born. I have always called him my little tulip. He was due to arrive on Mother's Day 1995 but decided to come into this world 2 weeks early, on May Day. The day of his birth, we left for the hospital and saw that the only tulip in the yard of our new (to us) house was beginning to finally blossom. We pulled out of the driveway and the tulip looked pink, I thought it must be a sign, my baby is going to be a girl. Well, 8 hours later we learned that he definately wasn't a girl! My parents had come down to stay at our house and when they called the hospital the next morning, they informed me that the tulip wasn't pink after all, it was red. Years later, I looked at the pictures that were taken in the delivery room and realized that there was a picture with hundreds of tulips on the wall. Every year, we still plant red tulips at our house. This past week, the tulips were ready to burst, one had accidently been cut and so I put it in a bud vase. On Thursday morning, it blossomed. I really belive that it was a red thread moment. A connection from Myah to us. A sign that she knew that we were getting our call that morning. As simple as it is, I was comforted when I saw that tulip. I knew that things were going to be alright. God makes everything perfect, and he picked the perfect little girl for us. The fact that her picture was on a police car really struck us immediately. And then we saw those cheeks and that hair! What a beautiful child! We just stare at her pictures and praise God for this miracle. Even though we did not create her, she is ours and we feel a connection to her already. She is our daughter. Dayton no longer will carry around the title of an only child. We by no means ever let him feel that he wasn't "enough" for us. There is never a moment that we ever felt slighted that he is our only child, we are so grateful and blessed to have him, he is our miracle. It is different this time, I really feel like we all wanted Myah in our lives and it was a family decision that we all came to simultaneously. God put Myah in our hearts and gave us the opportunity to act on our desires. Her little face, oh her little face... it has graced our refrigerator, our dashboard, wallets, classrooms, police department, picture frames, friends and family's homes and on this website. Her face makes everyone smile (some people have cried ...... I won't mention any names, you know who you are!) I can't imagine the joy that she is going to bring to our world once she joins our family forever. I know that she is being loved by her foster family. They seem to be taking excellent care of her and are giving her a family atmosphere. I pray that I can take the place of the only mother that she has ever known. I pray that God will allow her heart to embrace me and reassure her that we are her forever family. I want her to feel safe with us.
We have been so touched and overwhelmed by everyone's well wishes. These last few days have been a whirlwind and such a happy time for our family. Our heads literally are spinning. We are so happy!! I can't quit smiling. My friend Debby Kowalak said that I am glowing, I guess that even a paper pregnancy can create that special "glow". It is just such a relief to finally know who our little girl is and to see her face. I am so proud to be her mom already. We are just so thrilled to share her story and her pictures with everyone.. FINALLY! I know that these next 6 or so weeks are going to fly by and we will be traveling before we know it. I actually allowed myself to finally buy some clothes for her, Li Wen Ting. I am like a fish out of water in the little girl clothes dept. There is a lot to it!! Help!!
Well, I have rambled on long enough, I have so much to say, but I really can't even attempt to put into words what we are feeling. We are so happy, blessed and grateful and can't wait to share her with everyone!
Sunday, April 30, 2006
Saturday, April 29, 2006
Myah's Life Story
Myah's life story was unfolded to us today as we received her translated information. What a miracle is it to receive such detailed information about her. Besides containing all of her standard health questions we received personal information also. We learned that she was brough to the Tenfeng Welfare Institute on June 12, 2005. We know what she was wearing and what she was wrapped in. She was given a physical and then admitted to the orphanage. She then went into a foster home 3 days later. She was about 2 1/2 weeks old. We learned that at 4 months she could stand up with support. She babbles "yiya" and giggles. She loves her foster mother and smiles when she sees her. At 6 months she could sit for a while on her own. She can now stand on her own and cries hard when she is hungry and her foster mother is coming towards her with a bottle she will be very impatient and starts waving her hands. She fits in already I can tell! She likes to be held and can babble "mama". She likes to play outside in the crowd (?). They said she giggles hard when she sees her foster mother coming home. She has quite the feeding schedule, and goes to bed at 8 pm. She likes music and rattles and " is a lovely adorable girl". The orphanage gave her Li Wen Ting as a name " in hopes that she would grow up happily and to be a beautiful charming person." I thought that was very special. We have quite a bit more information, 4 pages to be exact, I won't go into every detail, but be assured that we really got a feel for her personality and her schedules by receiving this invaluable information.
Friday, April 28, 2006
Myah's Orphanage
Here is Myah's orphanage. I have located a few pictures through other families who have daughters from there. She went into foster care 3 days after she was brought here but she has to visit weekly for playtime and check-ups.
Thursday, April 27, 2006
Daddy's Journal
A letter from Dad
Myah...
I want to share my thoughts with you as we wait to come and bring you home. There is so much excitement surrounding your arrival. We have asked God so many times to bless us with another child and until now He has asked us to wait. Sometimes we wondered why we had to wait so long but we had faith that God was leading us where He wanted us to go. Last January, God finally said that it was time and today he has blessed us with you!
God knew long ago that he was going to bless our family by bringing us together.
We want you to know that you are already loved and will continue to be loved by us forever. You will never again be alone, you will never yearn for affection, you will never wonder if you are loved, and you will always have a warm and loving home to call your own.
I also want to tell you a little bit about your Mom, Leslie. Let me start by saying that she is the most caring and loving person that I know. I was blessed when she chose to spend her life with me and you will be blessed by this as well. God could not have chosen a more loving and compassionate person to be your Mom. Your Mom is so excited and anxious to come and bring you home. She has always looked at little girl’s clothes and wondered what it would be like to love and pamper her own daughter … and now she will wonder no more. You and your mother deserve each other and you both will complete each other. She prays for you every day asking God to watch over you and keep you safe. The day that we finally see you and are able to hold you is the very day that God has been preparing us for. When your Mom holds you in her arms for the first time, you will have not doubt that you are loved and you are safe. In fact, I am sure that God has already comforted your heart, knowing that you are loved very much.
What about your big brother, Dayton ?!!!! Well, he is so excited to come and get you. He has been praying every night for you and he always says, “And God bless Myah”. How cool is it that you have a big brother that is asking God to watch over you. He loves you so much and that is the neat thing about your brother, he loves you because you’re his little sister. In fact, last January he came to your mother and I and told us that he would like a little sister – I think this had a lot to do with your friend, Whitney (you will get to meet and play with her very soon). Also, I hope you like baseball because as soon as we get you home, Dayton is going to want you to watch him play ball.
Myah, I just want you to know that your big brother will always watch over and protect you and will love you with all his heart.
Today when we went and got your referral we met our other parents there and we were able to see pictures of your other friends who are coming home with you. You will be so blessed to grow up and make lifelong friends and memories with these girls, some of which you have known since birth.
So many of our friends and family have been praying for us and especially for you. We are surrounded by a special group of people in our lives and we could not ask for anything more. We can’t wait to get you home so everyone can enjoy you!!!
Each and every day, Myah, I pray that God will wrap his loving arms around you and comfort your heart; knowing that soon we will come and bring you home. I pray that your wonderful caregivers will watch over you and keep you safe; please know that the hugs and kisses that they give you are extensions from us. We are so blessed to be your parents; you will bring so much love to our family.
We will be there soon!! Your in Gods hands now and we know that he will keep you safe until we get there!!
I love you,
Dad
Myah...
I want to share my thoughts with you as we wait to come and bring you home. There is so much excitement surrounding your arrival. We have asked God so many times to bless us with another child and until now He has asked us to wait. Sometimes we wondered why we had to wait so long but we had faith that God was leading us where He wanted us to go. Last January, God finally said that it was time and today he has blessed us with you!
God knew long ago that he was going to bless our family by bringing us together.
We want you to know that you are already loved and will continue to be loved by us forever. You will never again be alone, you will never yearn for affection, you will never wonder if you are loved, and you will always have a warm and loving home to call your own.
I also want to tell you a little bit about your Mom, Leslie. Let me start by saying that she is the most caring and loving person that I know. I was blessed when she chose to spend her life with me and you will be blessed by this as well. God could not have chosen a more loving and compassionate person to be your Mom. Your Mom is so excited and anxious to come and bring you home. She has always looked at little girl’s clothes and wondered what it would be like to love and pamper her own daughter … and now she will wonder no more. You and your mother deserve each other and you both will complete each other. She prays for you every day asking God to watch over you and keep you safe. The day that we finally see you and are able to hold you is the very day that God has been preparing us for. When your Mom holds you in her arms for the first time, you will have not doubt that you are loved and you are safe. In fact, I am sure that God has already comforted your heart, knowing that you are loved very much.
What about your big brother, Dayton ?!!!! Well, he is so excited to come and get you. He has been praying every night for you and he always says, “And God bless Myah”. How cool is it that you have a big brother that is asking God to watch over you. He loves you so much and that is the neat thing about your brother, he loves you because you’re his little sister. In fact, last January he came to your mother and I and told us that he would like a little sister – I think this had a lot to do with your friend, Whitney (you will get to meet and play with her very soon). Also, I hope you like baseball because as soon as we get you home, Dayton is going to want you to watch him play ball.
Myah, I just want you to know that your big brother will always watch over and protect you and will love you with all his heart.
Today when we went and got your referral we met our other parents there and we were able to see pictures of your other friends who are coming home with you. You will be so blessed to grow up and make lifelong friends and memories with these girls, some of which you have known since birth.
So many of our friends and family have been praying for us and especially for you. We are surrounded by a special group of people in our lives and we could not ask for anything more. We can’t wait to get you home so everyone can enjoy you!!!
Each and every day, Myah, I pray that God will wrap his loving arms around you and comfort your heart; knowing that soon we will come and bring you home. I pray that your wonderful caregivers will watch over you and keep you safe; please know that the hugs and kisses that they give you are extensions from us. We are so blessed to be your parents; you will bring so much love to our family.
We will be there soon!! Your in Gods hands now and we know that he will keep you safe until we get there!!
I love you,
Dad
Myah's Referral
Here is the little bit of information that we do know about Myah. Her given name is Li Wen Ting. In China, the last name is always first and with orphans it is usually the name of the orphanage director or some other special name, that all of the little girls share. So her first name is actually Wen and her middle Ting. We learned the meaning of her name, Li means black, plum, sharp, strength (it's also her orphanage director's name); Wen means cultured and refined; Ting means slim and graceful ( we chuckled about that!). She was born on June 1st 2005 in Hubei and was brought to the orphanage on June 15th, she was then put in foster care 3 days later where she has been ever since. The Chinese bundle up their babies in layers, several layers! Even in the hot heat! So we weren't surprised to see her all bundled up today. She has such chubby cheeks but she weighs 18 pounds and is 28 inches. She must be mostly cheeks (and hair!) I have not seen a referral with so much hair! She has 2 teeth, can stand up, likes music, picture books, tearing paper (made us laugh), she likes to laugh and imitate. Dayton liked the fact that she could hold a biscuit on her own. She is a heavy sleeper and active! Sounds like she fits right in! We have more information that needs to be translated for us and hopefully we will get that tomorrow. We are just thrilled beyond words. What a day!
Our Adoption Process
An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but it will never break. Ancient Chinese Belief
There is alot of paperwork involved in adopting a child! We had to prepare a packet of information which is called a dossier, these are all of the documents needed to send to China for review. In addition to immigration papers, we had to apply for passports, complete a homestudy, had physicals, and were fingerprinted. We had to have letters of reference from friends/neighbors and teachers. Then every document has to be notorized. We then took everything to the Office of the Great Seal in Lansing to be sealed with our state seal. After our papers were sealed we went straight to Kinkos in East Lansing and Fed Ex'd everything to a courier service in Chicago who specializes in Chinese adoptions and she took our papers to the Chinese Counselate in Chicago. We literally kissed all of our papers good bye! That was the last time we would see them! A red seal was put on each document and when they were finished our courier sent our dossier to our adoption agency in Jenison and we just made the May deadline! We learned that 13 other families had also made the May deadline. We were very relieved to have that part of the process behind us,although we didn't really encounter any problems, it would get frustrating waiting on people to approve certain documents, which would either hold or speed up the process. We would like to thank everyone who had a part in this stage with us, your letters were wonderful and we appreciate your promptness! Someday we will share our dossier with Myah and it will be a great keepsake for our family.
There is alot of paperwork involved in adopting a child! We had to prepare a packet of information which is called a dossier, these are all of the documents needed to send to China for review. In addition to immigration papers, we had to apply for passports, complete a homestudy, had physicals, and were fingerprinted. We had to have letters of reference from friends/neighbors and teachers. Then every document has to be notorized. We then took everything to the Office of the Great Seal in Lansing to be sealed with our state seal. After our papers were sealed we went straight to Kinkos in East Lansing and Fed Ex'd everything to a courier service in Chicago who specializes in Chinese adoptions and she took our papers to the Chinese Counselate in Chicago. We literally kissed all of our papers good bye! That was the last time we would see them! A red seal was put on each document and when they were finished our courier sent our dossier to our adoption agency in Jenison and we just made the May deadline! We learned that 13 other families had also made the May deadline. We were very relieved to have that part of the process behind us,although we didn't really encounter any problems, it would get frustrating waiting on people to approve certain documents, which would either hold or speed up the process. We would like to thank everyone who had a part in this stage with us, your letters were wonderful and we appreciate your promptness! Someday we will share our dossier with Myah and it will be a great keepsake for our family.
What A Day!!
I am going to have to write later, I think I am running out of steam, it is late, but I wanted to say something today! We always wondered how this day would feel, I can honestly say I never imagined that it could be so wonderful. I have been smiliing all day. She is so adorable, I can't believe her hair! I can hardly wait to accessorize! It is a good thing that the only thing I have been buying is hair bows! This day was magical and spent sharing this news with all of our loved ones. We were able to share this moment with some very special families and it is a day I will cherish for the rest of my life. The girls are just beautiful, we are so lucky. We were bummed to learn that our group was split up, unfortuately my buddies are split up, but at least we have 2 going one direction and 2 going another so we each have someone, in addition to the other great families that we will be with. And it will only be for the middle part, we start out together and end together. We laughed, cried, laughed some more! We ended the night at Kelly and Linda's, we felt that they were really our inspiration in all of this and we couldn't wait to share the picutures with them. So our early morning, late night is coming to and end. This is a day that will always be special. I put Myah's pictures in frames in her room and it just feels so complete now. It is hers. Her toys, her bed, her clothes and our daughter. Wow. This was bittersweet though, my good friend Debbie lost her mom Sharon Banning, yesterday, she was a wonderful woman and I had really hoped that she would have had the chance to see Myah's face. Our friends are like family and my heart is heavy. I know that Sharon will log on in heaven and sneak a peak at our little angel. Please keep her family in your prayers too! Thanks to everyone for the calls and well wishes today! Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Breathe, Breathe, Breathe!
Ok, I was getting Dayton ready for school this morning and Linda Voigt called to see if I was going to water aerobics around 7:30 am. Mark beeped in and asked if I had checked the CCAA website and I told him no and he said that it had been updated overnight and that they are sending out referrals for people logged in between May 31 and June 6th!!!! We made it finally!!!! I couldn't believe it! Everyone said that around the 25th things happen and once again the rumors were right. So obviously I skipped water aerobics because I wasn't sure if I needed to be home or not today. We have since learned that the packages were mailed out on Tues in China ( they are 12 hours ahead of us). So we are expecting that maybe this week we will have our referral in our hands! Can it really be happening? It has been a year since we saw our documents last, and 4 months prior to that of preparing them. It has been a long wait but one that we are sure is worth it! Dayton's 11th birthday is Monday May 1st, what a gift it would be to have her info by then! My head is spinning today and I am really not accomplishing much, I can't complete many thoughts ( which is probably pretty evident if you are reading this!). I am so thankful and grateful to God that this is finally happening! I can't imagine what she will look like, what her birthday is, where she is etc..... ! She is ours now, even though we will just be staring at her picture for a while, she is already in our hearts and we love her. My stomach is doing flips, this is a much different type of labor than what I had with Dayton! Longer too!!! As soon as we can we will post her picture on our homepage so that you may all get your first glimpse of her too! It warms our hearts to know that we have been surrounded by so many loving people throughout these long months. Your excitement has made this experience just that much sweeter. Thank you everyone!!! There are so many more exciting moments to come and we look forward to sharing them with you!
Monday, April 24, 2006
Referrals Are Coming Soon!
Sounds like referrals are going to be sent out this week!! I am starting to get excited, we are 98% sure that we will be in this next group. We have learned to leave a little room for the unexpected! We hope that maybe by the end of the week or early next week we will be staring at our little girl's picture!!!! The excitement is building but we are so used to waiting that I really don't know if it will actually sink in right away when we finally get "the call". I was sitting in the living room with Dayton today and we heard a loud thud on the deck, we looked outside and the glass to our table shattered and was in a million pieces! I couldn't believe it! Our front door did the same thing a few months ago. Dayton said that God must going to give us good news for all the things going bad around here! I have to believe he is right. I did however park far away from the ball field tonight while at Dayton's baseball practice, I don't feel like cleaning up any more glass today! Keep praying for us and for our little girl, I can't wait to finally see her face!
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Spring Break
Spring Break
April 13, 2006
We are going to Florida this weekend for Dayton's spring break. We have put off any type of vacation for 6 months for fear that we would miss "the call". Now we are so close and I feel like we need the break more than ever. We are hoping to receive our referral once we return home the following week. We have been busy with Dayton's baseball season and look forward to his first game once we get back. We will be sure to post Myah's pictures as soon as we get our little hands on them. The suspense is mounting around here and I am so glad that we are going to get away, sitting around here for a week staring at ourselves would be painful! We laughed because last spring break we were in Florida and we said that it would be our last one without Myah, never guessing that the process would take so long! Let's pray that next spring break she will join us! She has to meet Mickey! Thanks for all of the prayers and support, our friends and family are the best! Keep stopping by the site and hopefully in the next 2 weeks Myah's little face will be staring back at you! Won't that be wonderful! God' s timing is perfect and we know that there is a reason why we have been waiting so long.
**we ended up cancelling our trip at the last minute due to rumors swirling that referrals were on their way!**
April 13, 2006
We are going to Florida this weekend for Dayton's spring break. We have put off any type of vacation for 6 months for fear that we would miss "the call". Now we are so close and I feel like we need the break more than ever. We are hoping to receive our referral once we return home the following week. We have been busy with Dayton's baseball season and look forward to his first game once we get back. We will be sure to post Myah's pictures as soon as we get our little hands on them. The suspense is mounting around here and I am so glad that we are going to get away, sitting around here for a week staring at ourselves would be painful! We laughed because last spring break we were in Florida and we said that it would be our last one without Myah, never guessing that the process would take so long! Let's pray that next spring break she will join us! She has to meet Mickey! Thanks for all of the prayers and support, our friends and family are the best! Keep stopping by the site and hopefully in the next 2 weeks Myah's little face will be staring back at you! Won't that be wonderful! God' s timing is perfect and we know that there is a reason why we have been waiting so long.
**we ended up cancelling our trip at the last minute due to rumors swirling that referrals were on their way!**
Saturday, April 1, 2006
100 Wishes Quilt
These are the instructions for the 100 Good Wishes Quilt that we sent out before Myah arrived. We would love to have you participate. Please email Leslie at daysmom@charter.net to request our address.
Dear family and friends:
While we are waiting for the arrival of Myah we are working on a project that we would appreciate your assistance with. We are creating a “100 Good Wishes Quilt”.
To welcome and celebrate new life, there is a tradition in the Northern part of to make a Bai Jia Bei, or “100 Good Wishes Quilt”. The custom is to invite 100 people to contribute a single square patch of cloth. The 100 patches are sewn together into a quilt that contains the good wishes from all the family and friends who contributed a piece of fabric. The quilt is passed down from generation to generation. We would love to have our family and friends send us a square, but please don’t feel like you have to:
Here is what you do:
Choose any 100% cotton fabric that you like. It can be from a piece of clothing or the fabric store.
2. Cut one 9” square that will be used to make a quilt.
On a sheet of paper or note card, write out a “good wish note” along with your name. Attach a SMALL piece of the same fabric to the note. The notes will be placed in a scrapbook which we will give to Myah when she is older. She will be able to read your good wishes and then find your square on her quilt.
Ideas for Selecting Fabric Squares:
-Select a fabric that is meaningful to you.
-100% cotton fabric is best, as it washes and wears better.
-If there are several members of your family, please feel free to send more than one good wish note and piece of fabric. In , these quilts were originally made from the garments of family and friends surrounding the child with their good wishes.
Idea for Good Wishes Note: What would you wish for Myah to have in her life? Is there a prayer or anything else you would like to share with her? You may also want to include the reason you chose the fabric.
It would be great to get the fabric soon before Myah comes home. The adoption of Myah has been prayed for and nurtured by so many of you, and it will be incredibly meaningful to have you be a part of this.
Dear family and friends:
While we are waiting for the arrival of Myah we are working on a project that we would appreciate your assistance with. We are creating a “100 Good Wishes Quilt”.
To welcome and celebrate new life, there is a tradition in the Northern part of to make a Bai Jia Bei, or “100 Good Wishes Quilt”. The custom is to invite 100 people to contribute a single square patch of cloth. The 100 patches are sewn together into a quilt that contains the good wishes from all the family and friends who contributed a piece of fabric. The quilt is passed down from generation to generation. We would love to have our family and friends send us a square, but please don’t feel like you have to:
Here is what you do:
Choose any 100% cotton fabric that you like. It can be from a piece of clothing or the fabric store.
2. Cut one 9” square that will be used to make a quilt.
On a sheet of paper or note card, write out a “good wish note” along with your name. Attach a SMALL piece of the same fabric to the note. The notes will be placed in a scrapbook which we will give to Myah when she is older. She will be able to read your good wishes and then find your square on her quilt.
Ideas for Selecting Fabric Squares:
-Select a fabric that is meaningful to you.
-100% cotton fabric is best, as it washes and wears better.
-If there are several members of your family, please feel free to send more than one good wish note and piece of fabric. In , these quilts were originally made from the garments of family and friends surrounding the child with their good wishes.
Idea for Good Wishes Note: What would you wish for Myah to have in her life? Is there a prayer or anything else you would like to share with her? You may also want to include the reason you chose the fabric.
It would be great to get the fabric soon before Myah comes home. The adoption of Myah has been prayed for and nurtured by so many of you, and it will be incredibly meaningful to have you be a part of this.
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