Day at Carowinds

We decided to take a last minute "vacation" with Davis before Hanna arrives and before he starts kindergarten.  The original plan was to visit the Great Wolf Lodge but they wanted far more than we wanted to spend for one night away.   We opted for a night with his cousin Micah, and a day at an amusement park.  What a great choice and day away.  He had a blast and he is a bit of a dare devil on the rides.  He was just tall enough for some of the more experienced rides, with shoes on!  No way he would have passed without shoes.  He was very appreciative of the special day away and we are lucky to have such a cool little kid!  We ended the day meeting Vince's brothers for dinner.  Here is Micah and Davis having a ball at dinner along with a few shots from Carowinds.

May Has Been a Good Month for Us

Yesterday we received our I-797 Notice of Provisional Approval to allow Wang Xu Fei (Hanna) to be classified as our immediate relative.  It was the last approval that was needed to send to the CCAA to grant us travel approval.  I am hoping to receive that in the next 4 weeks or so.  Hopefully sooner!  I am ready to be on that long flight!!  We also celebrated Davis' 5th birthday two weekends ago.  He has a bowling party and it was a great time.  We were able to spend quality time with Anthony (Vince's brother), Ella and Micah that weekend.  Below are a few photos from the weekend.  Of course when aunt Ella is in town, we maximize our photo opportunities.  I love the one of Davis with his favorite cousin eating HUGE lollipops.  They are the best of buds and play so well together.  It's always great to see them interact.  It's been an amazing year for us, and we are so blessed for all that God has provided and for the support of our family and friends.  

Hanna's Care Package was Received!

Today was a great day- we received confirmation that Hanna received our care package. We received our letter seeking confirmation last week and we confirmed that she is the daughter for us. Now we just wait for that paperwork to process back to China Center for Adoption Affairs (CCAA) and the US consulate office. They will approve our case and then grant us travel approval. That is an email I can't get soon enough. Vince and I plan to to tour Beijing before heading to Hangzhou, where Hanna currently lives with her foster parents. From there we head back to Guangzhou, where our US embassy is located. We had our first toddler shower this weekend that my dear friend, Amy Hadley threw for us. We are blessed in so many ways. The first picture is her holding the scrapbook we made with pictures of us, Davis, mom and dad, Vince's parents, Nick and Lauren and her bedroom. We labeled each picture in English and in Mandarin. Thanks to our friends who are from Hangzhou who assisted us with the translations. The second is of her holding the stuffed caterpillar we sent as part of the package. She is a cutie and the personality description they provided us says that she is smart and naughty. She likes to imitate people. Seems like a great addition to our family!

Davis Started Swimming Lessons This week

This past Tuesday Davis started swimming lessons. He was so excited to show the teacher he already knows how to swim because his Oma taught him. Yep, that is exactly why he's getting swimming lessons- because he thinks he can and he can't! It was very cute how he kept looking back at me and Vince to make sure we were watching. His next lesson is tomorrow and put simply- he can't wait. He also had a free lesson at Lee Brother's Tae Kwon Do (http://www.leebrothers.com/). What a great facility and it had such a positive and disciplined atmosphere as soon as we walked in. This seems like a sport that would suit Davis, and he like kicking and punching, but he has to work on the bow part. He kept wanting to bend at the neck only and not the waist. Maybe we do a trial period for a month to make sure its something he is interested in. His birthday is next Thursday and we are looking forward to his bowling birthday party.