Well–it looks like it will be sooner than later that we will travel. 🙂
Our Article 5 is being picked up tomorrow and then we will be waiting for our travel approval. YAY!!!!!
So now I know why I have been feeling that urge to buy, wash and dry clothes for Sara and Hannah.
Here’s a few things we have been doing to get ready . . .
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| Purchased Sara’s clothes |
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| 5 pair of pants |
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| 3 polo type shirts |
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| 5 pajama pants and cami’s (yes–I love pajama pants) |
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| 10 short sleeve shirts |
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| 3 long sleeve shirts and a sweater |
In addition to these items today I finished her list with a bathing suit, undies, and a couple of pair of shorts. Buying for Sara was a big challenge for me. I don’t have any clue what she likes, and I am having to go on measurements to figure out sizes. I’m sure some of my purchases will cause much humor in China, but we just might need a moment to laugh.
Great story about the purchases. I was in Walmart looking for a cami for me, when one of the workers says to me, “Do you need any shirts because I’m getting ready to mark this whole shelf down to $1.00. YES! I bought her 5 shirts for $5.00. Can you believe it?
God IS in the details! He cares about the LITTLE and the BIG . To the best of my knowledge I spent around $125 so far for all of Sara’s clothes. God is all over this!
We’ve only have a few more things to do to complete Sara’s room.
Then it’ll be ready for her.
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| Her room is almost decorated. |
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| Needs to be hung on the wall behind the bed |
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| And Yes–the suitcases are ready to begin packing |
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| Can you say Organized Chore Chart in Pictures? |
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| Getting ready for Non-English speaking girlies. Pictures are going up around the house. |
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| Who’s turn to wash the dishes?–Check it out! |
If anyone has any other ideas to help transition our girls –we would greatly appreciate ideas.
Thanks to Jackie in Tennessee–I have the Mp3 players ready to load with christian music for the trip.
Thanks to Joli in Georgia–Every child now has their own cup color.
Anymore ideas?
So, how excited are YOU??? Can't wait for you to have these precious girls home! Hannah is such a cutie and Sara is oh-so-beautiful. Some women would pay a fortune striving for lips like hers! And, I'm certain she's going to love her new clothes and bedroom; everything looks great. BTW, super-smart idea for the chore chart. Love to you all!
Very exciting!!! One thing that threw me for a HUGE loop on the swimsuit was that Rachel likes to have running shorts on top of her swimsuit. The swimsuit she's used to in China is more like what we would wear for a cover-up. In fact, she even thinks wearing the running shorts is a bit on the "exposed" side, but she wears them. So, hopefully the swimsuit is VERY conservative. Ours is a speedo one piece, but she wanted the bottom to go about mid-thigh. If you are thinking she might want to swim in China, you may want to be prepared to have something like that for on top. Oh, and one family in travel group was NOT allowed to swim in shorts/tees.
Still praying for your family!!!!
Oh, and one other thing…I guessed on the based on measurements too…and I don't know where they measured Rachel's waist, but it wasn't really right. I guessed girls size 10/12…and she's definitely a 12. I was thinking she probably needed slims…nope. In fact, I only took 3 pairs of pants (2 knit pants & 1 jeans). The knit pants fit, the jeans did not (they were skinny pants). Neither did the capris I took (that were skinnier 12s). Oh, and in China, I noticed that the more colors you can put together (as in pink, orange, green, yellow, etc.) and patterns in ONE outfit the "better". And it wasn't just teens…it was adults, too! Consequently, the kwaki capris I brought (that go with everything) were nixed early on! 🙂 And she LOVED the kelly green capris she got in China (can we say YUCK?). Yeah. It was interesting!!!! So, take the bare minimum for her…and plan to purchase some things there (especially in GZ…I got really cheap clothes at the Carifour store that she will probably NEVER wear again when she gets home…Rachel sleeps in hers!).
I really wished I had clothes at home when we had gotten home, though. I had to go shopping the day we got back…and I was exhausted…and she didn't understand "trying on". It was a frustrating disaster for both of us.
I am so excited for you and looking forward to the next chapter in the adventure God has before you!
Wow! So glad I found your blog! That is wonderful adopting these two young ladies! Congratulations. Just wanted to offer, since I couldn't find a private e-mail for you…I do fundraising and have wanted to do some for some adoptive families needs to earn a little extra for their trip. If you are interested you can learn more about it at http://www.thesweetscentshop.com and my personal blog is http://www.stinkerpinker.com If you're interested or know any other families that are interested in doing a fundraiser for their adoption they can e-mail at thesweetscentshop@gmail.com for more information!
Wishing you all the best on your adoptions!
~Kimberly
We bought the extra large 3M hooks and put each child's name on one. They each have their own color towels too. That way there is no excuse for towels on the floor (because they have the 3M towel hook) and if there is a towel on the floor we know who it belongs to (and who will get laundry duty for a week) by the color. We also keep the children's clean towels under their bathroom sink. That way there is never any hollering for a towel or embarrassing streaks to the linen closet. We also put suction hooks in the shower and everybody has their individual color loofah. We found any shampoo or body wash with a pump lasts tons longer then the kind you squeeze into your hand. And lastly (and this is extreme) we all only have one type of socks (except Jason because the military issues certain socks). I buy each child 2 packs of the same style socks twice a year and throw out any old socks. We all know if it says 'hanes' in black letters it's marks, pink letters it's Sam's etc. We don't roll them together nor pair them. We just lay them in flat stacks in their drawers. We don't even know when we are missing a sock since all the socks match there is always a pair.
Anyways, these are the things we find helpful. Please tell Ben that I miss him and all the guys at work! Congrats on your adoption journey Your family is just great!