Loose ends: Over the past weekend, we spent quite a bit of time finishing up all the loose ends for the dossier. We still needed to do our pix, get the passport photos for the matching room, etc. I really hate to have my picture taken, I mean HATE!! But, if we want the kid, the pix must be taken. OK. So, we set the camera up in the backyard on the tripod and used the timer and took some snapshots of the "happy" little, albeit incomplete, family. I'm sure my neighbors thought we were crazy. Brett and Casey kept poking at each other and getting up to give us their input which required us to all get set up again. Try to imagine it... "Brett!! Casey!! would you guys knock it off!!! Sit down already!! Would you stop screwing around I want to get this done!!! OK, KNOCK IT OFF, SIT DOWN AND SMILE, DAMMIT!!! Ahh, those happy moments at home. Anyway, I thought the pix turned out OK. Looking at them the following day I actually liked them better. What do you think? Would you give these people a kid???

After the family was sufficiently tortured by sitting through the photo op, Bobby and I went off to WalMart to print the pix out and take the passport photos. Ohmygawd!!! We were there forever. I cannot figure out for the life of me why, oh why, does the stupid printing machine always break whenever I'm there. Then over to the portrait studio for the passport photos-- at least that was quick. If I figure out how to scan them in I will. Bobby has sort of a deer-in-headlights look and I think I just look tired. Anyway, those were OK too I guess. From what I've heard, those are the only pix that go into the mysterious Matching Room. Meaning, the powers that be look at those two little pix and match us up to a little pic of our baby. There's been lots of speculation as to exactly how the matching is done and some people swear that the babies look like the adoptive parent. I'm not convinced, yet. Also, people wonder if the more "attractive" parents are given cuter babies. Mmmm, I don't think so. I've seen some pretty average people get some pretty gorgeous kids and some pretty gorgeous people get some pretty gorgeous kids. Maybe I just think all the babies are adorable!!!

Anyway, the next day, all the pix (and a great, big check) were overnighted to Texas, yipee!

Wow, I forgot to mention that we received the I171H on 1/9/06. Opened the mailbox and there it was!!! Honestly, it doesn't look very important. A person could easily have thrown it away. In the last 10 days it's been notarized and overnighted, certified, expedited and approved, then overnighted again. Whew!!!

Another funny thing, I got a call from HFS on Wednesday saying that they needed for Brett and Casey to write a letter to CCAA expressing their feelings about the adoption. That seemed kinda strange but I guess they just want something in writing from the kids to know they're OK with it. HFS said I could "help" them with it if need be. However, I thought it would be fascinating to read what they actually thought. Both of them mentioned that they thought it was "strange" but that it would be fun. Hmmm... not the rousing words of joy and confidence I hoped for but, what the heck, they're teenage boys.

Anyway, we're all set to be DTC tomorrow, the 20th. CCAA closes for Lunar/Chinese New Year from 1/28/06-2/12/06. We won't know for a couple of months about our LID.

Two things I learned today...

Learned thing #1: Well, I haven't written in awhile and mostly because there hasn't been much to say. For any of you who have been following my blog, and there may not be any, I don't know... I have changed its name. Used to be Journey to My China Doll, updated to Journey to My China Princess. Why? I learned today on APC -- the mother of all china adoption related yahoo groups-- that the term "china doll" is not PC. I thought it was cute and used to call the boys my little dolls when they were younger but apparantly it is considered impolite because at some time chinese prostitutes were referred to as "china dolls". I didn't really like the association, so I changed it. I must comment that I think its better than one blog I read where a mother, obviously unknowingly, referred to her newly adopted chinese daughter as "the little nipper".

Learned thing #2: I am waiting, not patiently, for the dreaded I171H. Our homestudy was received by the Los Angeles USCIS office on 11/28/05 but no I171 yet. I have officially turned into one of those frantic people who is surfing every china adoption related yahoo group looking for answers as to when the heck we can expect to receive it. Looks like it may be another couple weeks. I was so hoping to be DTC (Dossier to China) by 1/20/06, the last date in January that my agency will be sending dossiers but, that's starting to look unlikely. More likely is that we will be done by the next mail in date which is 2/4/06. I know that to the average person that doesn't seem like such a big difference but to me, it is agonizing. I know it sounds funny but I could hardly wait for the holidays to be over so we could stop losing CIS working days. I come home from work every day and check the mail first thing. I feel pathetic. Lesson: I'm really bad at waiting.

In order to help pass the time I have registered for Mandarin classes at the local community college. I think it will be fun. I purchased some language CD's and that's going along pretty well but the class should be great. Funny, when I graduated from law school I said I would never again be a student because I was so sick of school but here I go again!!

Just thinking... it seems as though the referral ages have gotten younger with about 10 mos being average. So, if we get a referral in 11/06 that means that our little princess will be born in about 2/06. It is possible that she's been born already and that the little girl that will be joining our family is already in existence somewhere. I hope if she that she's safe, warm, and well-fed.