Hoan Kiem Lake (AKA #3 lake)

We checked out Hoan Kiem Lake, in Hanoi's heart. It's surrounded by serpentine shady pathways, and despite the nearly 30 degree temp, a cool breeze kept the heat at bay. We walked all around it, snapping photos of a temple, a bridge, and a number of brides (Tuesdays must be marriage licence day). Bought Savannah a taro and coconut creamsicle - didn't like it, but Rick did.

 Surprisingly, Sass didn't want her photo taken. Hmmm!

 Bridge to an island temple

 Shrine at island temple entrance

 Entrance to island temple

 Joss sticks at temple entrance

Tanje's got a bit of fever and her lungs sound like garbage, with coarse crackles all over and wheezy bases. Think she's also having some dental pain, which the tylenol seems to be helping a bit. She has more life in her eyes today, but still spends a lot of time in her own mind, just looking blankly around. At least she's not as teary today, and we did manage to pull a couple of very brief smiles from her. She's eating well, but not that interested in her formula, maybe because we don't serve it as warm as at the orphanage. She didn't mind taking a bath. Savannah was right there to tell her not to cry, and it worked!

Hope Tanje's feeling better soon!

Gotcha!

November 8th will forever be known as 'Gotcha Day' in our family! Just 5 days from Savannah's November 3rd special day! We bussed to Hai Duong in the morning, and Rick met with the orphanage director (his office was too small for him to meet with all of us). We then went over to pick up Tanje. Poor Savannah ran right to her as soon as she saw her, as she couldn't wait to give Tanje her new blanket. Unfortunately, she got knocked down by a passerby in the process, and it broke her heart. Didn't take her long to get her chance though, and she proudly was right there as the nanny rapidly dressed Tanje in the diaper and clothes we'd brought her (Theresa, you must recognize the little dress you gave us!). Tanje howled the whole time!

Then, it was off to the Department of Justice, where they didn't like the difference in dates on Rick's old and new passports (he's had to renew to ensure he had the requisite 6 months left for travel), so there were a few anxious moments there. Then, back to Hanoi to apply for a Vietnamese passport to allow travel to Canada. Tanje saved the day by starting to cry - I'm pretty sure she got the whole group bumped nearer to the front of the very long line! Thanks!

It was a really sad and difficult day for Tanje. She either zoned out, or cried, or, mostly, just breathed in those long, sad, hitching breaths one gets after a big cry. Didn't know one could do that for so long. What saved the day? Papa's brilliant idea (yeah, that does happen!): he decided to try to give her some of our spaghetti noodles (we ate in tonight). And guess what? Her face started showing life, and she started making good eye contact with us! And, she chewed happily at half a bowl of them! Best yet, when Savannah got right into her face and smiled (as she's been proudly doing most of the day), Tanje actually momentarily, for a split second, smiled back! Yay, grande soeur!

As I blog this on Tuesday morning, Tanje's been fast asleep in her bed since about 2030 last night (it's now 0625). Wow! Hope the night sleeps continue like that! And hope today's a happier day for her!

Precious and Priceless

We got up early and left the hotel by 0900 today on a bus to Hai Duong (pronouced Hi Zong), a 60 some km trip. To our surprise, it felt like we never left Hanoi, in that there were wall to wall buildings and businesses all the way. There were some fields here and there, but relatively small, and never on both sides of the road at once. Not at all what we'd expected. Traffic was heavy, although it was Sunday, so bet it'll be busier tomorrow.

We arrived in an hour and a quarter, and drove into the orphanage compound. It's huge. Yellow 3 or 4 storey buildings surrounding a large tiled square. In the square was a large round lily pond, a painted elephant about 5 feet tall, swings upon which were draped assorted coloured blankets, a corrugated metal roofed area, and clothelines festooned with kids' clothes. There were children of all ages, some kicking the bus, some watching, some following us in. The younger ones smiling, as were many but not all of the older ones.

We were brought into a room in which it felt like we waited forever, listening to our guide speak to the orphanage staff. Then, the babies were brought in, one by one, by the nannies. Tanje was the second of the four to arrive. She watched the scene with big eyes, quietly taking it in, that is, until the nanny tried to hand her over to us. Wah! She wasn't impressed, or having any of it! So the nanny heroically saved the day by giving Tanje a bottle of formula, and gently easing her over once she'd shown me how Tanje likes her back patted, and once she was sure all would be well. Can't imagine what must have been going through Tanje's mind! It sure was fab to finally give her a (gentle) big, long awaited (for us, anyway!) hug! Savannah was right in there too, wanting to touch her hair, rub her back, and tell her she was her sister. She looked so proud, and all the way back on the bus, she'd say "ca c'est ma soeur!" and singing a little song with Tanje's name in it, and that she was very happy about her.

And Rick? Let's just say he held her the most, and when you see her photo, you'll see that..... yes......she looks like his mini-me! Totally! Even the nannies kept saying so - we didn't get the words, but the gestures and their laughs said it all! They'd point to their eyebrows, then to Rick and Tanje, to their eyes, cheeks, and forehead, and say the same. There's no missing it! 

Little Tanje held onto her bottle for dear life, sometimes with a few tears in her eyes, but mostly pretty quietly. She fell asleep for a bit in Rick's arms. We got to see her sleeping quarters. There were 2 more babies there, and we think at least one of the babies of our group also slept here. There was a big 'party pen', a low to the ground playpen about 12 by 12 feet, lined with straw mats, and a similar non-fenced-in raised area on the opposite side of the room. A cupboard held supplies, and a small table held a thermos, bottles, formula and such. In the corners of the party pen were some tiny green hammocks for rocking sleepy babies. The room was one of many many, and it was on the second storey of the building, opening onto a hallway that ran the length of the front, and that was filled with all kinds of clothes and hangers and assorted stuff. The place was reasonably clean. The nanny had us sit down in the room for a bit, and a beautiful young girl of maybe 10 or 12 seemed to be used to picking up Tanje and helping care for her. Older orphans often do work here, and our guess is that this was her story. Here, we discovered that Tanje can walk, albeit a bit unstably. So, that should make things at home a mite more interesting (as if they won't already be!)!

Tanje felt almost as heavy as Savannah's 25lbs, and we fear we may not have brought sufficiently large clothes for her! I feel a shopping trip coming on for us girlz! Papa had better get used to it - ha!  Can't wait for today, to finally bring her home with us!

And now, without further ado, her's our priceless, precious little Tanje Nguyen Thi Tiep!

 No, that's not a beauty mark. Just a little scratch on her forehead.

 Mini and big Ricks!

 A proud and so happy grande soeur!

 Guardian big sister watching over her new little sister

 Tanje's care providers in their sleep quarters

Doesn't this remind you of a photo we have on Savannah's blog, from the first day we were with her?

Stay tuned! Will blog some more when we can (only seems to work in middle of night or early morning here - blogspot not accessible in evenings). Cheers matantes Elaine, Josee, Tania, Kim, Denise, Shirley, mononcles Mike, Mars, Luc, Ray, Roger, Grandpapas, Grandmamans, Poppa, Nanna, Vanessa, David, Chris, Ryan, Michel, Nicky, Joanne, Marcus, Jenna, Franco, Christy, Tessa, Debbie, Dominique, Germ, Chris!

Good Morning Viet Nam!

And a good morning this should be! At 0900, we meet our travel group (total of 4 families) to set off for Hai Duong, to meet our daughters!Yay! It's about 0230 here, and Savannah's up and at them. Thought since she fell asleep at 1730 last night that we'd get a few more hours out of her, but alas, not yet! Probably was hungry, as she'd had no supper. Because she was tired and a bit moody at end of day, we only walked 1 block. Spent the afternoon at the pool (water very cold, very refreshing!) and at a nice little hotel playground. Also bought a beautiful Vietnamese embroidered picture for our walls. 

Hope all's well with y'all. Poppa Dave, we're thinking of you and hoping you're feeling much better.

Viet Nam!

We"re here in Ha Noi, settled into our little hotel-apartment (2 bedrooms, 2 baths - ! - a kitchenette, dining and small living room). It's 0500 in the morning (your time 1800) and she's dancing wildly in front of the TV, listening to music videos. She slept well, from about 1600 yesterday to 0200. Not bad at all, considering her days and nights are to be completely reversed. We're well on our way. And since I fell asleep at 2100, we're just fine. Anyway, more than enough of that!

How do I describe the bit I've seen of Viet Nam so far? Oh! It'll be hard to convey the feel of it in mere words. It's not the kind of place which leaves one indifferent. I'm sure I was slack jawed all the way from the airport, an hour away, to here. Ok, well not too slack, as Rick and my fellow passengers heard my constant running commentary oohing and ahhing. The first thing was the damp heat (sorry fellow Northerners - I hear you're getting snow, and for a bit I was so warm I actually envied you!). Palm trees, cememt buildings, some vibrantly and very stylishly painted, others right beside them decaying from humidity or neglect, or in various stages of construction, the latter, and some of the corrugated metal shanties a bit reminiscent of Jamaica or Cuba, but the architecture much different with tall very very skinny 3-4 story buildings. All 3 styles in same neighbourhoods, walls touching, build on gentle slopes and shallow valleys. All this interspersed with lush fields in which numerous water buffalo and people are working the land (well, at least the people were, while the buffaloes looked to be on break). Picture this, right in the capital city. AND, I finally finally saw tons of people with the traditional asian pointed hats I think are so totally cool' and that I wouldn't mind wearing myself! Never saw a one in China. Turns out I was looking at the wrong place! Here, they shaded many hardworking souls as they toiled arduously in their fields.

Palms and other tropical plants are the rule, and even the densely populated downtown has a lot of trees, and some absolutely gorgeous green spaces, in which throngs of people play hackeysack, some kind of soccer, badminton, something that looks like tai chi and so on.

People people people everywhere. I don't remember Beijing or Chongqing being quite as full of life. And motorcyles. Ubiquitous. More than even all the reading and photos I'd perused could ever convey. It's literally like a rapidly rushing stream, or blood coursing through various tributaries, especially when seen from our 22nd floor abode. The roads snake in 's' fashion throughout the city, with countless intersections at which traffic lights seem like a mere suggestion rather than a command. All braided through with rapidly swerving amalgamations of these minute motorcycles which seem at first glace to move as, one, but on closer inspection, are more like electrons around the atoms which are cars, zooming perilously between and in front of them and each other. One can't help but acknowledge the skill and sang froid it takes to do what these often masked intrepids likely can do mindlessly from experience.

Today, our mission is to take photos so I can share a bit of this incredible piece of the world with you. And, most importantly, we prepare to go meet our little treasure tomorrow! Cheers!

Hong Kong!

Well, we made it this far! One more 9 hour wait for our next flight, and we're off to Hanoi! The flight from North Bay, then Toronto, was uneventful. Poor Savannah was soooo good, until the last 30 minutes before our 0130 boarding: she started crying in the saddest way, saying she wanted to get on the plane to go to sleep. She only slept a 4 1/2 hours, then another hour, but she's running around the Hong Kong airport and being as energetic as could be! An amazing traveller, as always. She was surprised when I told her we were flying over China. She looked out the window and said "Bonjour ma Chine! Bye! On s'en va au Viet Nam!" (hello my China! Bye! We're going to Viet Nam!). What a character. Rick slept for about 6 hours (one advantage of shiftwork: he's much more adaptable to the jetlag, although, that doesn't change the fact that I don't ask him for big chores and such when he's in 'night shift mood' (all you night shifters know about that, eh? and if not, I can guarantee you your partners do - ha!). I slept all of one hour, soooo, this could be an interesting day!

I'm writing this at 0400 Hong Kong time, Friday morning. The airport's pretty empty - all we need are the crickets. We met 2 other families with whom we're travelling. Very nice. We'd met them previously in Ottawa. One has a 3rd grade daughter who's most friendly. That's the family from Ottawa, who say 'hi' to all their fans also : )

Anyway, as promised, thanks to the wired world we live in, we were able to blog even sooner than expected!  Cheers!

Generosity and Kind Wishes

I walked into my office yesterday to find one of my team members, Rhonda, had unexpectedly dropped in from another of our work sites. We chatted, and then I got called to Cindy's, another team member's office, to find a whole group of well wishers: Lori, Michael, Lucie, Shawn, Anne. Then, Karin, our resident cake decorator extraordinaire, pops in with this masterpiece! Note the plane, the Viet and Canadian flags, the pointed hat, the baby hat, and the puffy white clouds. Incredible! Glad she likes working with us, because we might lose her to a bakery or high falutin' restaurant or something. What talent!

The generosity of my OD/E/EE team, and our HR friends, allowed us to buy a comfy and safe new carseat for Tanje. Check it out! Also, Anna and Tanje (our daughter's namesake) have prepared supplies to help us on the trip. And Danielle and Rhonda gave her some nice new outfits. We so appreciate the kind generosity (again!) of our friends. Wow! Thank you thank you thank you! We hope we can repay these gestures in kind, or pay them forward.

This is starting to feel real now, like, yes, we're really really travelling, like we're really really going to have Tanje join our little family. We got our passports, travel visas and tickets today. Only 5 more sleeps until we're on that plane. Yippee!

Packed! and Some Thoughts on Adoption...

Our stuff is finally all packed, except for a few little last minute things. We're ready to roll! We plan to keep this blog going while we're in Viet Nam, and I've changed the settings to make it a lot easier for you, our cherished followers, to add comments, as we sooooooooooooooo enjoy them, and will especially when we're overseas!

Saw a friend today who is still waiting for her first little one from China. She'll be such an amazing maman, and her spouse an awesome papa, if fate can only move its tail and let them! She was part of a group of 3 couples awaiting adoption at the same time we were waiting for Savannah, and it makes no sense that we're travelling for our second before she goes for her first. Adoption, whether local or international, has a lot to do with luck and timing and which way the wind is blowing. It is the most unpredictable, uncontrollable, inexplicable process I've ever lived through, and to ask those of us who have been through it to explain it is asking us to justify mysterious decisions for which we know not the basis, the logic, or even the origins. All one can do is be there and empathize about the challenges inherent to the wait.  Please think about my patiently waiting friends today, and all those in that situation, and hope with me for them to get through this difficult journey and have the happiest of happy outcomes at the end.

The Countdown is On!

We're one day closer to travel! Every day, Savannah pulls off another link from our countdown chain. It's getting shorter in a hurry: already 1/3 of our time between the letter of invitation to travel and our travel date has elapsed!  Wow! We've started packing: all the girls' (girls! not just one anymore!) stuff is in the suitcases, as is a lot of our gadgetry, just-in-case meds, and assorted junk. The hardest part of the packing is finito! Yesss!

One Day Closer...

We're one day and a few steps closer to Tanje. Our passports and visa appliations have been sent to the Bridge, and we're getting our flight itinerary tomorrow. Looks like it might be a night flight (to Venus - ha, remember that old LP, anyone?) from Toronto. That's probably good, as Sass will sleep, and because we'd be leaving around midnight, it would mean her bed time is already moved by 3 or so hours at minimum, so it should (theoretically) help her get her nights and days on the path to reversal (12 whole hours, so 9 more to go). Sounds simple, eh?

Key Dates

Some people might say hell is a place of fire and brimstone (Sorry Tanje for using a mildly bad word on your blog! really needed to though!). I say it's a place of paperwork. Infernal, repetitious, pointless, boring, repetitious (did I just repeat myself? Oops! Just staying in the mood of things!) paperwork! Yes, it will be well well worth it, but really, there's enough paper to account for a whole forest. I think the immigration paperwork (the Canadian stuff, not the Vietnamese) is by far the worst. So, advice to you: don't immigrate unless you love scratching your pen across miles of white boxes and fill-in-the-blanks and other inane frontiers.

Anywhoo, on to the great stuff: we have some provisional dates! Here they are:

• Meet Tanje: November 7.
• Our 'Gotcha Day': November 8
• 5 glorious days of paperwork
• trip to Halong Bay (look it up online - it's gorgeous)
• probably more paperwork (I'm sure somebody's cooking it up as I write)
• return to Canada: early December

So, that means we have 18 days from here to seeing our little gem!

Happy Birthday, Little Tanje...

Today is Tanje's very first birthday. How we wish she was here with us, so we could celebrate it together. Our consolation is that we're getting very close to travelling. We've decided we'll celebrate at Tet (Vietnamese New Year), as birthdays are traditionally celebrated in Viet Nam.

I've packed the kids' clothes, toys, and snacks, and a few things for Rick and I. I'll feel much more organized when that's done! I can't believe how much I have to do yet at work. It's as much work prepping for 6 weeks off as it was for 6 months. Strange, but true...

Wonder what Tanje's doing right now... Can't wait to see she and Savannah giggling together (at me?), reading together (to us?), playing together (with us?), even fighting together (but just a little!). Soon soon soon!

November!

Got an urgent page from Rick at work, in the middle of a meeting. He added 911 to our phone number, so I knew I had to call right away. He asked if i was sitting down. I said 'no', and my heart started pounding as his tone was so serious. I thought 'what's happened to Savannah?', he asked me again, and my next thought was, ok, she must be alright, he's not rushing her to Emerg. Did the adoption fall through? I said no again, that i wasn't in a place where i could sit down. Then, the news: a call from Children's Bridge saying our letters of invitation are in! And we're likely to travel November 4 or 5th. I wanted to jump for joy! What did i do? I said that was fantastic, rang off, and went right back to my meeting. Inside, my heart soared, and when the time came to talk about who was to cover me during my absence, I announced my happy news! And on my way home, I called everybody I could think to call. Yippee!

I can hardly believe this day has come. Almost 2 years to the day from our travel for Savannah. We're coming, Tanje! with open arms and open hearts. I looked at the calendar, thinking ok, we still have over 3 weeks at work, and 4 weekends between now and our trip. NOT! 3 weeks, on the dot! Wow! Lots to do between now and then, but oh, so exciting! Viet Nam, here we come! Little Tanje, we'll be there soon!

November?

Our agency is starting to tell us that maybe, maybe, they hope, we'll receive a letter of invitation to travel at the end of this month. That would mean travel within 2 weeks, so early November. Yes! and Yikes! (but mostly yes!). I spent 1 1/2 hours tonight photocopying the paperwork we'll need to bring, and will likely spend as long organizing it so it's easy to retrieve each item when we get there. Just looking at it is a bit like re-living the whole process of preparing it. Ugh! Could be worse I suppose: I could be the person stuck reading it at the other end. Bo-oring!

Savannah's really talking about Tanje. I asked her how I would manage to carry her in my arms when Tanje arrives. Of course, she had a quick answer: one arm for Savannah, the other for Tanje, as she points to both sides, and grins ear to ear like a little pumpkin. What a character. Watch out Tanje! I'm sure you'll catch on quick however. Wonder who'll outfox who soon enough!

Tanje's room is now full of stuff, waiting to be packed. As for our trip to China, I'm feeling a bit disorganized at this stage, and feeling like the fix is to start putting things into suitcases. So that's the plan for this week and weekend. Even if I end up unpacking and reorganizing (which I likely will, to ensure things are distributed in a way that a lost suitcase won't matter), it'll still feel much better to have stuff in suitcases. So that's the plan! Any takers who want to help? : )

I just noticed today is 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days from the day we first saw Tanje's photo, and learned that we'd be her family (but who's counting, eh? Me!). Neat!

Scabies Please!

We went and bought almost all the leftover items on our travel list today, to be ready for the big trek to 'Nam. Fun! Savannah picked out a pink (!) apron for Tanje (it took every ounce of care and willpower for me not to put it back and talk her into a more respectable colour - ugh! Hope Tanje's a tomboy, 'cause it looks like Sassy'll be a girly girl). Got a red netbook so we can keep up our blog and hopefully Skype home without hauling a ton of laptop 'puter, and also some toys for both our girlz, to keep 'em happy during the looooong plane trip. Or at least, 30 minutes of it. And not least, some scabicide. Just in case. At 23 bucks for one treatment, all I have to say is since I don't like wasting cash, somebody'd better get scabies! Yikes!

Another Photo! Surprise! Surprise!

I opened my email on Sunday night and was pleasantly surprised to receive not only Tanje's medical report which was brief, but all normal), but this photo! Man, does she look like her Bo (papa, in Vietnamese)! Veeeeerrryyyy interesting! I finally feel like yes, she's on her way to us, and am starting to feel a little excited (ok, more than a little). I've started buying a few things for the trip, and her room is ready, clothes, blankets and all. Wonder how we'll receive the invitation to travel? And how much lead time we'll have. I've a feeling it'll be wait...wait...wait... then freak out! : )

Halfway There?

Three months today since we've received the exciting news that a little girl named Nguyen Thi Tiep was destined to a little chick in our nest. Wonder if that means we're halfway between that day, and the day where we finally finally can say 'gotcha'!?

I've started purchasing a few little things for Tanje, and for the trip.  Some medications (which we likely won't need, right?), and small snacks, diapers, a carseat (yup, this is getting serious now - we're into the big ticket items) and the cutest pair of ladybug jammies. And have updated the packing list we used for our China journey (it was pretty bang-on, so very little to change, except of course, to add a whole list of things for an older sister!). Also looked online for little gift ideas for the orphanage director and nannies. Most Vietnam adoption sites seem to recommend perfumes, fine wine, or chocolate (mmm!). I can feel another shopping excursion coming on.

I wonder what Tanje's doing right now, and what she'll think of us...

Getting Closer...

Ahh, fall is in the air. I love fall. It's in my top 3 favourite seasons! The multicoloured trees' jackets, the crisp air, the earthy olfactory delights, the starry nights (ok, ok, I wax optimistic on the latter!). AND, this year (again!), fall means we're closer to be coming parents (again!).

Just (already?) 2 years ago, we'd just found out we were going to China by November 2008 to meet our delightful Liang Xiao Ling. We never ever imagined we'd be in a similar place again so soon, especially after our last loooong wait! But it's looking like we may be packing our bags to travel to our little Nguyen Thi Tiap by Christmas. Cool!  We're making our list, and checking it thrice....

2 Months Since...

It's been 2 months since we've seen Tanje's sweet face for the 1st time. By this time after Savannah's referral, we were in China, hardly able to sleep because of all the excitement. And that felt like forever. This time around, we may be halfway, a third of the way, a quarter of the way, ??? between referral and THE BIG DAY! Anybody know where I can buy a crystal ball out there? Hmm... wonder what the cost would be... Somewhere in the neighbourhood of oh, say, a jillion bucks?  An enterprising inventor could make a mint, no doubt!

Here's the second of the 2 latest photos the agency was kind enough to send us. She's gotta be teething, for sure! Hope she's got some nice chewy things to chomp on over there!

What if? Is Tanje part of the Group of 7?

Another intriguing, verrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry, intriguing development today: seems we might have found a photo of Tanje at one month of age. Someone who adopted through the same agency and same orphanage we did said her best friend also did same, in November 2009.  She had many photos of the orphanage, including two her friend shared, of a group of seven newborns. Since Tanje would have been there by the end of October 2009, pretty much since birth (so we're told), it's certainly possible that she's in that photo. And...... we think she is!

Out of respect for this unknown little one, we won't post her (or his?) photo, but the resemblance to Tanje  is remarkable: same lips, philtrum (go look that one up in your dictionary! and nope, you can't cheat by checking on the MS Word thesaurus. Nice try, but y'ain't gonna find it there!), very similar nose and eyebrows. Her eyes are closed, and I had to photoshop and fiddle with the photo a bit to clean it up. But I'm over 90% certain this little bundle, at the end of a row of 3 babes sharing the same blanket, head to head with another row of 3 and a 7th babe at the end, is our little Tanje.  Way cool!

Another Pleasant Surprise!

We just got this photo late last week, unexpectedly!  Tanje is at her health assessment appointment, one of the next necessary steps towards immigration.  She sure looks happy and healthy - hope the lab tests will confirm the same! We're told that piece will take a few weeks.  Guess she must be teething: both photos show her with her fingers in her mouth!  Unfun!

I've started drafting our packing list for the trip, and will gather things like medications and small clothes. Hard to say exactly what size she'll need: it all depends on when we travel. Luckily, we have Sassy's old list, and it was pretty bang-on, so not much to add or delete this time around!

Here's another photo of our beloved little peanut! Wonder what she did today.  We just found out today that Viet Nam is not going to be accepting new families into its program for a bit, as they are ratifying the Hague agreement (international conventions relating to adoption). We will be 'grandfathered' in, but don't know whether or not this will translate into a delay. Time will tell! 
 Meanwhile, I got Tanje a nice Canada T shirt, and we're in the process of kicking (gently, gently!) Savannah out of the nursery (ok, ok, it's much gentler than that!), so Tanje's nest will be ready. And a fine nest it will be, fit for our precious new arrival!

A Feeling of Progress

Yesterday, I got the very strong feeling a few times during the day that something had moved forward with us getting closer to finally meeting our little chickie. I'd gotten a similar feeling for Savannah around the time her Chinese mother might have discovered she was expecting her. Could our paperwork have hopped from one crucial desk to another? Could we have reached an unknown milestone? Don't know! Just know that I felt encouraged and somehow closer.

I got an amazing email a this week, from a very nice Sudbury area family we'd met when we started with Children's Bridge. They'd completed their homestudy, and were about 6 months ahead of us in the process of getting their file to China. They adopted a little one 2 years before we did, and her birthday is the same day as Savannah's, 2 years before to the day! They've since gone to Vietnam in March of this year, adopting an adorable little boy. His birthday is one day before Tanje's, same year! How about that?! He was referred at the age of 1 month, and adopted less than 5 months later. 

CB is telling us the wait time between referral and invitation to travel is now 5 1/2 months, which would mean if things stay the way they are, we might travel 6 months from referral, taking us to January 2011. The kink in this is that Vietnam is currently ratifying The Hague agreement (relating to rules around adoption), so that may slow us down. We'll just see how accurate my positive vibe was!

Our Lovely Tanje

Our lovely little Tanje is 91/2 months already! We sure hope we can get more photos before long, as she's probably already changed so much (the photo above came with her referral information). We sure do think about her a lot, andwhen I do I get a warm feeling in my chest, right where she'll rest her little head when I finally get to rock her and comfort her!

Yesterday, Savannah jumped onto her new trampoline, and immediately said "partager avec Tanje!". She's planning to share it with her little sister! We're preparing Savannah a new room so she can leave her crib for her petite soeur. And she picked out a 'tat' (blanket) especially for her (prob'ly so Tanje doesn't steal hers...).  Wonder if she has one now, or another little comfort object...

What do Nguyen Thi Tiep's Names Mean?

Our little Tanje's Vietnamese name is Nguyen (pronounced something like n'WIN) Thi Tiep. We're told she goes by the name Tiep, which is a little different than the Chinese convention of having surname written first, given 'everyday use' name second and middle name' last.

Here's what Tanje's names mean:

Nguyen: Revert to the original state (by the way, Nguyen is by far the most common surname in Vietnam, kind of like Tremblay in French Canada, or Smith in English

Thi: poetry, or, to compete, to race to take an examination

Tiep: to procede to receive to transfuse to help, to lend a hand

Stay tuned for a future instalment on the meaning of the name Tanje...

Meanwhile, happy 9 month birthday, little Tanje!

Wondering...

We often wonder what little Tanje is doing as we wait for her and think of her. Savannah talks about her often, and is pretty excited about becoming a big sister. She's even conceded (once, and once only!) that she'd share her maman and papa, as well as her toys. That's progress! She still always adds that she'll share her books. Here's a link to a map of Hai Duong http://www.maplandia.com/vietnam/hai-hung/hai-duong/ - neat to think we can see where Tanje lives from a bird's eye perspective. And here's another interesting link about Hai Duong Orphanage http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/vol/1831538680.html/ .

We received a package from immigration Canada - part 2 of a slew of forms. I can't even understand whether we're supposed to complete these now, or once we're in Vietnam (or, as Savannah calls it, "Vee-eetnam"). I can't imagine how an aspiring immigrant, whose first language may not be French or English, can make heads or tails of this stuff, which makes me feel like a dunce every time I look at it. Hmm! Not to welcoming, that's for sure!

Little Chicklet

Every day we think of our little chickie. We wonder what new things she's doing, who's holding her when she cries, what she likes and doesn't like, how often she smiles, where she sleeps, what her voice sounds like, what makes her giggle, and who she's becoming. Twelve hours and half a world away. But we're already just a little bit closer...

Here's some neat information: Ha Noi weather on October 19 2009 (the day on or before the day Tanje was found)

Temperature:

Mean Temperature 28 °C -

Max Temperature 32 °C 25 °C 33 °C (2002)

Min Temperature 24 °C 19 °C 17 °C (1999)

Cooling Degree Days 18

Growing Degree Days 33 (Base 50)

Moisture:

Dew Point 23 °C

Average Humidity 74

Maximum Humidity 94

Minimum Humidity 44

Precipitation:

Precipitation 0.0 cm - - ()

Sea Level Pressure:

Sea Level Pressure 1008.95 hPa

Wind:

Wind Speed 3 km/h ()

Max Wind Speed 15 km/h

Max Gust Speed -

Visibility 6.3 kilometers

Events

One Step Closer...

We had a very pleasant meeting with our Adoption Practitioner tonight. She helped us complete the acceptance of referral paperwork. Rick spent hours completing other paperwork tonight. What a papery week!

Wonder what Tanje's doing now? We're gladly spreading our good news, and still can't believe we've already seen her cute little face! One day less to wait!

Jump Around... Some More!

rgh! Today, I thought I'd better take another look at what I sent for immigration (and what I didn't), because it just felt suspiciously too easy. And right I was! &$^#% paperwork! What a genius am I to have discovered this surprising find! : )  Ouh! Filled out a bunch more forms, and photocopied tons more. Now we have to chase a notice of assessment (tied to last year's income tax return) for Rick. Doesn't really make sense: we're asking for a paper from the federal government to give back to the federal government. Ya'd think they know everything about us by now (and I've no doubt they do!). Viva bureaucracy - NOT! Is it just me who feels a little like I'm running in circles, chasing my tail? Woof! Good think it'll be all worth it in the end!

We'll meet with Valerie, our Adoption Practitioner, tomorrow. She's always so pleasant, and such a joy. We're so fortunate to have her 'on our case'! Also told my 2 VPs this week about our exciting news. They were so super in sharing our happiness! Yahoo!

Tanje's 8 months old by now, having achieved that milestone 4 days ago. She looks like a little character. Wonder what she's like, and what little things will make her unique. We have photos of her everywhere, and talk about her every day - her little ears must be ringing! I'm sure we'll have tons of fun together!

Heatwave!

Poor little Tanje must be roasting in this heat. Check out this website article: http://english.vietnamnet.vn/photogal/201006/Hanoians-prove-to-be-creative-in-fighting-heat-wave-917454/ Whew! Well, by next summer (OMG!!!), she'll be here (!!!still can't believe it!!!), and you can bet we'll do all we can to keep her cool and comfy!

We sent our immigration paperwork yesterday (hoop jumping hoop jumping) and chased Purolator for the package of info that was supposed to come to our door yesterday. Got a bit more information on Tanje, including a letter from the security guard who found her, as well as some scant medical information (healthy!).

Four less days to wait. Six months sure seems like a long time, and I feel so sad that Tanje Tiep is over there while we wait for the wheels of bureaucracy to grind forward (can'tcha just hear them creaking?). We'll get there, and meanwhile, we'll stay as busy as we can to help the time fly faster. Can't wait to see our little peanut in person!!!

A Huge Surprise! Unbelievably so!

After well over a year of hoop jumping, chasing changing government rules, paperwork and so on and so on, our file finally got to Vietnam 3 weeks ago. Phew! A couple of days later, we got a call telling us our little one would hail from Hai Duong orphanage, Hai Duong city, Hai Duong province, in northern Vietnam. Amazingly, she's almost directly south from where big sister Savannah lived. And only about 1000 km at that! So different a process from China's.

Today, we got a voicemail message from Children's Bridge (actually, it was from YESTERDAY, and we only picked it up today, both at home and at work - d'oh!). The message was tantalizing: "I have great news for you". Hmmmmm! could it be? no way, not possible, but yet.....  

I called immediately, and got a voicemail. Oh!  Left my pager number, and was driving from one hospital site to the other and the pager vibed. Hurried up, pulled over, and and and and and........YES!!!!! A referral! A little girl (Savannah got her wish - yay!), born in October 2009 (oh my! so young!), healthy (cool!) and not much more information.  Called Rick, caught him (he's working days, how will we wait that long to see the photos that are already burning up my email box?!?!?!?), I think the news blew him away. He told everybody at work, and I mean everybody, including a few whom he didn't tell but dropped some pretty huge hints, with his ear to ear smile (Joanne, Cindy). Guess he's pretty excited.

Drove home, asked Savannah again if she would prefer a brother or sister (same answer as always: "soeur" - no hesitation, no debate), checked the internet, didn't work! Luckily, Elaine was kind enough to download the pix to a jump drive which Rick picked up on the way home. It was a sight to see when he showed the photos to Savannah - she grinned ear to ear! And she's already warned us that she's not sharing the following: her 'tat' (security blanket), her bed, her high chair, her Maman and her Papa. What a girl!

So yes, we will be parents to a positively adorable little girl! Welcome dearest little Tanje Nguyen Thi Tiep LeBeau! Born October 19 2009, lives in Hai Duong, Viet Nam. CAN'T WAIT TO HOLD HER IN OUR ARMS! We'll travel in 5-6 months. Hurry hurry time, fly by!!! : )  We love you, Tanje!

Here We Go Again

It is with excitement and trepidation that we start yet another journey towards adoption. Excitement, as our first experience, despite being sooooo long, was sooooo rewarding. Trepidation, as in the 5 years since we've started on this route, the world of international adoption has gotten so much more difficult and uncertain...

On February 20th, 2009, Rick's birthday, we started making the calls and organizing the paperwork to adopt a 2nd little one. Same hoops as last time, but easier as we knew what to expect. Got our homestudy and all associated paperwork out of the way by July. Then, the ridiculousness began: the wait from the ministry of child and youth services took UNTIL NOVEMBER to approve our request. So much for making adoption easier for Canadian families!  NOT!  By then, the Ethiopia program in which we'd started had seen its timelines increase exponentially, and the increase was continuing. So we opted to switch to Vietnam. Now, we're not so sure that wasn't a mistake, as although the ministry itself recommended Vietnam, now they're saying that to 'rubber stamp' our change is going to take a minimum of 4 weeks, instead of the originally predicted two or less.  Here we go again!!!