special needs adoption

May 16, 2012

six percent

*update: Jude did great in the MRI. no results until our docs have a look, but so glad this is behind us now. Thank you so much for your prayers.* Jude came home from China five years ago. He was 16 months and had bilateral, unrepaired clubfoot. We took him to Iowa for casting and we followed the bracing protocol to the letter. And all went well until we took Jude out of his night-time boots, right before his sixth birthday. He began to relapse on his right foot. The relapse rate for kids who are treated properly and braced properly is only about six … [Read more...]

50 Comments
Posted Under: clubfoot, Jude, special needs adoption

March 27, 2012

because I should be packing…

or organizing... or cleaning. I thought it would be the perfect time for some fun. Instead. You ready? How about a really-fun-super-fanastic quiz? I thought it would be fun to compile some answers to the following questions about your China adoption travel experience. After I asked y'all for help with special needs blogs links a few weeks ago (and y'all completely blew the doors off) I thought y'all might have some wise and wonderful tips to share with me, and with other folks who will follow in our footsteps in the future. What? Y'all think I don't … [Read more...]

18 Comments
Posted Under: china travel tips, special needs adoption, Tallula China trip

March 20, 2012

and… exhale.

We have travel dates. April 8 – Arrive in Wuhan April 9 – GOTCHA DAY April 10 – ADOPTION DAY April 11 – Fly to Guangzhou April 12 – Medical April 14 – Medical/TB skin test read April 16 – CA April 17 – Get Visa April 18 - Fly HOME Can not wait to squeeze you, little one. … [Read more...]

55 Comments
Posted Under: special needs adoption, Tallula, Tallula China trip

March 7, 2012

“possible travel dates”

That was the subject line of the email in my inbox this morning. The rest of the day has been a blur. Excitement? Absolutely. Anxiety? Yes. Complete confusion? Well... yes, that too. You see, we're still waiting on Dalton's passport. I say still, but really it's only been a bit over a week. And thankfully, after a few frantic phone calls that I don't rightly recall, I've surmised that it should be in my hot little hands by the end of the week. Whew. The other conundrum is which of us, Chris or I, will travel for Tallula. Initially it was going … [Read more...]

37 Comments
Posted Under: special needs adoption, Tallula, Tallula China trip

February 29, 2012

a little help from my friends

My head is pounding. And I can't quite see straight. And no, I have not been drinking. You see, I've spent the morning - and the bulk of the afternoon - hovered over my laptop trying to re-organize some things over on No Hands But Ours. Since we migrated six blog sites into one WordPress site in the recent overhaul, I've run into a few *ahem* navigational challenges. And well, I'm navigationally challenged to begin with. So it's been pretty ugly. But I am committed to getting it all tidied up before I head off to China to bring Miss Tallula home. And so … [Read more...]

229 Comments
Posted Under: no hands but ours, special needs adoption

February 23, 2012

Wuhan. Been there?

I've been to China a couple o' times, but this will be my first time to Hubei Province. If you've been to Hubei, specifically Wuhan, I'd love to hear about your time there. Where did you stay? Did you tour? Where did you shop for groceries? Baby supplies? How was the weather (if you traveled in March or April)? Where did you eat? What did you love (or not love) about your time there? I'm not gonna lie. I'm a homebody. And I really have a hard time traveling anywhere, much less halfway around the world to a place I've never been. So it's … [Read more...]

41 Comments
Posted Under: China, special needs adoption, Tallula

February 22, 2012

news. great news.

Our Article 5 has been picked up from the Consulate and has been dropped off with the CCCW@. Which probably sounds incredibly confusing, if not totally boring, to any non-adoption folks. But to us? It's spectacular news. The Article 5 letter is issued by the Consulate after all the necessary paperwork has been received and reviewed. This process usually takes two weeks from the time the Consulate receives the cabled information from the NVC, and ours was issued right on schedule. So as of today, we are one big step closer to bringing Tallula Mae … [Read more...]

46 Comments
Posted Under: special needs adoption, Tallula

February 17, 2012

Oh my.

We sent a care package to Tallula and her foster family for Chinese New Year. And we sent a list of questions, with no idea if or when they might be answered. We didn't have to wonder too long, though. We received not only answers to our questions, but two new pictures of our little robust girlie... (1) Who chose her name and why? Does she have a nickname? The orphanage staff picked that name for her, Juan means beautiful and pretty. Her nickname is Juan Juan. (2) Has she had any health problems or allergies? She does not have any kind of … [Read more...]

29 Comments
Posted Under: special needs adoption, Tallula

February 13, 2012

All About Tallula

Since we shared our news about Tallula, some of y'all have asked a few questions... 1. When did all this happen? How are you so close to being able to bring her home? Well, a lot has been going on behind the scenes. We chose to keep it to ourselves so we could focus on Poppy. And so we could keep our sanity. And, honestly, during the homestudy, and the wait for USCIS to complete our paperwork, our sanity was in short supply. But now that things are finally moving again, and travel is on the horizon... well, we are so happy to be able share our joyful news with … [Read more...]

60 Comments
Posted Under: special needs adoption, Tallula

February 10, 2012

the road to Tallula

Tallula Mae. She came to us as a surprise. A big surprise. In mid-May of last year, we were still reeling from the passing of our beautiful Esther when our agency contacted us to broach an incredibly painful subject. What exactly did we want to do with our dossier for Esther? It took us days to even be able to consider *thinking* about it. How could we? All we wanted was Esther. Our hearts ached for her. Thinking of anything else seemed to minimize who Esther was to us. And the place she would always hold in our hearts. But we prayed for - more than … [Read more...]

57 Comments
Posted Under: my faith, special needs adoption, Tallula