Visit to our Sponsored Child

Since we were going to Vietnam, we asked our agency, CHI if we could go see the girl that we sponsor through them. They were nice enough to arrange this. They drove us four hours south then when the path became to narrow, we walked into the village. Callahan and I received a scooter ride in! Scary and exhilarating at the same time! I have never seen poverty like this! No running water. No stove, bathtub, toilet.... They had to rely on rain water for everything. I will never forget what I saw!

We are back!

I finally have the orphange pictures onto Picasa. http://picasaweb.google.com/papin.laila/Vietnam

Will write more later, we have severe jetlag!!

Packed and Tickets in Hand!

We are all ready to go.  Monday at 4:30 pm, we leave for the airport. Our route is as follows: Phoenix to LA, LA to Tai Pai, Taiwan, then on to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Including layovers, we calculated the  total number of hours traveled will be 29!!!. I wonder who will handle this the best, myself, husband or my seven year old, Madison. Thank goodness for Dramamine !!!!!!

If anyone has any ideas of how to knock us out for 29 hours, please let us know:)

The First Time I Saw Your Face!

Here is the very first picture I saw of Callahan. At the time, I knew it was a baby picture. From this cute picture, I knew she was for us!

Needless to say, we are excited! Just a  little too much this morning. I awoke at 3:45  am to find Jerry awake as well. I then walked down the hallway to make sure Madison was covered up, when she popped out around the corner! Scared me to death as she did it so quietly. "Mom, how many more days until we go to Vietnam?" she asks. Now, I am really awake! It's so funny counting down the days with a seven year old. I can tell the week is going by to slowly for her as well.

A birthday video was passed along to me from another adopting Mom. Callahan is in it. She is sitting across from the cake, wearing yellow shorts and holding a yellow balloon. She is also the one taking frosting from the cake! www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZsEDyXrmOM

Here she is again in orange. I received this picture from the Mom of the little girl in pink when she came to bring her home! Since then Callahan got a haircut. She then cut a large chunk out of her bangs.  To fix this, most of her bangs were cut off.

This is a picture of Callahan's mealtime. She is in orange. I have been told they eat a rice soup with a little ground pork on the side.

Here Madison is painting a beautiful fairy for her new sister.

Callahan is 4.10. Four years, ten months old. She will be 5 this June. Her twin bed is waiting for her here. Yes, Madison is thrilled to have a sister and they are sharing a room!!!! Let's hope all goes well:)

Callahan had climbed over to her neighbor's crib. I wonder does she have a mischievous spirit?

Callahan's Chronicle

We are Vietnam bound in one week. It is surreal! A family of three becomes four. Actually I feel in my heart that we are already a family of four.  I have a love and longing for a sweet girl who I have never met, only seen by pictures. Yet I miss her. Love sure is amazing.