4 days left

I just got an email saying that our G&R (the Giving and Receiving ceremony, or official Vietnamese adoption ceremony from which we take custody of the baby) is on "Monday, Tuesday, or maybe Wednesday, but most likely one of the other two days." Of course the sooner the better, but we won't be devastated if we have a couple days to sightsee and catch up on sleep, since once we have Beatrice everything will take a lot more planning and effort. We are staying at the Hong Ngoc hotel and I just had fun looking at the tours that are available from there. The travel lover in me is tempted to start planning some side trips, but the realist in me knows that's not what this trip is about. As one international adoption pediatrician told our friends, this is not a vacation, it's a journey whose purpose is "to get to know your child's soul."

By the way, this picture above is of Ha Long Bay, perhaps the most popular tourist site in all of Vietnam, and the origin of the words on Bizou's shirt in her last photographs.

FAQ's

Click here for Hanoi forecast

Vietnam time:  11 hours AHEAD of East Coast, U.S.

Currency:  17,715 DONG per U.S. dollar as of 3/28

Read here about Hanoi's Old Quarter and the 36 Streets, the section of the city in which we'll be staying.

Travel Plans

We've got our itinerary and tickets!  Here's the scoop:

-We depart Friday, 4/3 and arrive in Hanoi late Sunday night 4/4

BOSTON to JFK to Seoul, Korea to HANOI (25 hours of travel)

-leave Hanoi late at night 4/16 and arrive back home Fri. evening 4/17

HAN to SEOUL to CHICAGO to PROVIDENCE (19 hours of travel)

We anticipate having Beatrice in our arms on 4/6 or 4/7, but we won't know that for sure until next week.  It may be later, but should at least be the same week.   

So, in the next 6 days we have to pack, have a travel meeting with our pediatrician, make appointments for when we return, fill the oil tank, pay bills ahead, do the official paperwork for my leave of absence, vacuum the cars, clean the house, get a haircut, go over "house stuff" with my sister who is dog-sitting while we're gone, bring down and clean the car seats and toys that have been waiting in the attic for far too long, and TRY to stay healthy and get some sleep, which has eluded me the past 2 nights. I know I should get it while I can, but right now my brain is on overdrive!

Yup, THE EMAIL has finally come!

Hanoi Adoptions Unit 
United States Embassy Vietnam

Dear Mr./ Mrs. Foronda:

Greetings from the Hanoi Adoptions Unit at US Embassy Hanoi.

As you can see in the attachment, based on a preliminary determination of orphan status by the US Citizenship and Immigration Service you are now authorized to travel to Vietnam to complete the adoption of N*** M*** H***.

March Madness

There's really nothing to say, but blogging about Beatrice reminds me that she really exists and makes me feel like there's at least something I can do. Today marks Day 51 since acknowledgment came from the US embassy, and that letter stated that "most cases will be processed within 60 days." Of course, in times when it goes beyond, they conveniently tell people that they meant 60 WORKING days, which doesn't come for us until, gulp, April 15th. No cases in her province have gone more than 60 days in ages and none have ever been denied, so we have no idea what the holdup is. Our agency has contacted the USCIS office in DC and they're supposedly looking into it, so we'll see what, if anything, next week brings. Beatrice is nearing ten months old. What we've missed in her life could fill several books and reduce me to tears if given more than two seconds pondering; instead, I'm trying to focus on the benefits of bringing home an older infant/near-toddler. Here's the list...

-shortened bottle cleaning time
-less formula expense
-less diaper expense
-better sleeping habits (in theory)
-less big equipment (swing, jumperoo, plastic tub, etc.)
-less teething time (?)
-stronger immune system (?)

My quest to stay positive is more successful some days/moments than others.