Oma Rocks!!!!

So, Oma sent a new blanket for Caleb to welcome him into the fam. It is great to see this longstanding tradition carry on. Abbie has one, Collin somehow managed to get two, and now Caleb has one. Both Abbie and Collin still treasure theirs, though neither will actually admit to still "using" their Oma Blanket anymore. In this picture you can see Collin posing with Caleb's new blanket. We'll be bringing it for him to carry and cuddle.

On a separate note, we are getting down to the wire. Last night we went to Target to stock up on miscelaneous medical supplies. It seems like we are bringing enough pharmaceuticals to supply a small country. I know China is perfectly civilized and very advanced country. Yet, our philosophy on bringing meds is plan for the worst, hope for the best. There is nothing worse than trying to find some Immodium, Tylenol, etc. in a foreign country when you really, really need it. Trust me, I know. Trust me, you're happy I'm sparing you the details on why I know.

In any event, we are now moving into the final stages of our departure. Mer just asked, "Is there any other laundry you need done before the trip?" Basically she means, "I'm ready to go now. I'm not doing any more laundry until we come home. Choose wisely what you wear from here on out." She is so organized. No wonder I love her so much.

On another note, as I go through all of our preparations in preparing for Caleb, I cannot help but wonder what must be going through the minds and hearts of his foster parents, and of Caleb. Having witnessed two children grow through the one year old stage, I'm fairly certain Caleb doesn't have a comprehension of how drastically his life is about to change. If anything, he can sense his foster parents may be getting a bit antsy. At most, he is getting to recognize us through the pictures that we have sent. Only time will tell. Those foster parents, though; we will be forever in their debt for the love and care that they have shown Caleb over this past year. What must they be thinking and feeling at this time? In eight or nine days they will say goodbye to the boy that they have loved and prepared for our family. In eight or nine days we will welcome the boy that we have waited for for nearly a year. Their hearts will be sad with their loss and lightened by ours and Caleb's gain. Our hearts will be rejoicing at our gain and saddened with their loss. In it all Caleb is just along for the ride at this point. It gets complicated quickly, doesn't it?

On this Easter weekend, I am given some new insight into the tremendous depth and vastness of God's love. First he gives away his beloved Son as an act of love - complicated, profound, and yet still love. Second, he adopts us as his children and takes us in as his very own. May you have a blessed Easter.

Please keep Caleb, his foster family, and us in your prayers

Testing Technology

So far, I am continuing to move through my to do list. Since "learn Chinese" is a bit overwhelming at this stage of the game, I have opted for some more manageable tasks. Let me explain.

If you are a baseball fan, you will be thrilled about this picture, and you should read on. If you're not a baseball fan, skip to the next paragraph. Opportunities like this are one of the reasons I love Vero Beach - two rows behind home plate, spring training, sun shinning, breeze blowing, good company, refreshing beverages in hand, and less than 30 feet from the man who so gracefully told George Steinbrenner "where to go and how to get there." Imagine what tickets like this would cost you in LA. For that matter, i don't even think there are tickets this close to the dugout at Dogder Stadium in LA. Not a bad way to spend the afternoon is it.

An any event, i'm testing some of the technology to see how to post pictures quickly and easily. I hope this works. In a short bit I'll try a video.

Any advice/experience you want to share on blogging while traveling would be very appreciated at this point. I just changed my "comments" settings so that anyone can leave a comment. So if you've tried commenting before but were denied, I do apologize. You will need to verify your comment by typing the word you are given when you are ready to send your comment to me. Sorry for any inconvenience, but it will keep spam and other junk out of the comments section.

So far, I've already learned that posting directly from Picassa is bitter sweet: easy to post pics, a total bear to edit any comments.

One "Last" Thing

Today, at the dinner table, Collin informed us that we are leaving for China in nine days. In the hurry of the moment – and the utter shock of 9 DAYS – it never dawned on me to check the young lad’s math. So, it’s not nine days, it is twelve days. (I guess I know what school work we’ll be doing on in China.) Never the less, our departure is now being measured in days; not years, months, or even weeks. Wow.

In another blog I was reading a while back the author was talking about all of her pending “lasts”: her “last weekend,” her “last day at work,” her “last time walking the dog,” her last moment of this, that or the other, before her life would utterly change. At the time of reading I couldn’t quite understand what on earth she was talking about. I thought to myself, “Your adoption is such an exciting thing, how can you be so worried about all of these ‘lasts’?” But, now that our departure is so close, I am beginning to understand what she was feeling with her pending departure, and I appreciate her candor.

While there is this tremendous sense of joy in the new chapter we are starting as a family, at the same time there is also a keen awareness that life in the Harris household is about to be very different. In this sense I think we are all aware of our “lasts.”

Yet, as I write this I have to wonder what the big deal is. It is not that any of us have the impression that our “lasts” will never happen again. Mer and I will still read to the kids as we tuck them in; we will still go for walks around the block, and practice doing the perfect cannon ball into the pool. We’ll still cook burgers on the grill, and tell silly stories around the dinner table. In fact, in hindsight, every addition to our family has made our “lasts” seem just a glimmer when compared to the brightness of the new blessing we received. Every new addition to our family has made our current moments far better that the “lasts” we clung to.

Point is, I am again reminded that life just keeps getting better. A new addition to our family doesn’t mean that our limited supply of love is now going to be divided into smaller portions – and more “lasts.” Rather, a new addition to our family means that more love will be multiplied – and we will discover new “firsts.” Maybe, it's Dad who needs to remember to check his own math when it comes love.

Two Weeks and Counting

In two weeks we will be on the way – literally on the way to China. For all the planning, researching, and coordinating that we did ahead of time, it still seems like there is so much to do before we leave. First there are the basic to do items like pack, get immunized, arrange for someone to drive us to the airport and pick us up.

Second, though, are the larger things that I’m not sure we’ll ever get totally done. We will just do the best we can when we have to. I’m talking about things like learn Chinese (I have a whopping two Chinese phrases in my arsenal, Hello, and I love you.), prepare to help a one year old boy adapt to a new family and life, prepare a nine year old girl and a five year old boy to adapt to a new younger brother and a new life. The feeling is very similar to taking Mer to the hospital for Abbie’s birth. On one hand there was so much more to be done. On the other hand I was completely ready to be a dad. That’s how it is now – there is so much unfinished work to be done, yet I am totally ready for this new chapter in our lives.

On a totally lighter note, packing for a trip like this is certainly presenting its challenges for me. In a nut shell, here is the scoop. I can check one bag that weighs no more than 44 pounds. Plus I am allotted one carry on… for three weeks. For some of you reading this, that is no big deal. But, I have to admit, when it comes to packing, I pack like a girl. Yes, when the family goes on vacation, there is the family’s luggage, and then there is Tom’s luggage. If I might need it, I pack it. I know full well that much of what I bring will never even be touched, but it’s worked so far… until now.

So, here is what I have figured weighs forty four pounds: two pairs of long pants, three pairs of shorts, three tee-shirts, two polo/Hawaiian shirts, one long sleeved cotton shirt, a Gortex rain coat, one pair of flip flops, swim-trunks, a week’s worth of under-britches and socks, a ball cap, and some miscellaneous toiletries they won’t let me carry on the plane. (Keep in mind heavier items like the laptop, iPod, bible, camera, connection cables, etc., adoption documentation will all be in my carry on.) It seems like that will work, but I just can’t get me head around only bringing forty four pounds of stuff. Oh well, if I need to bring more stuff, I’ll just put it in Mer’s bag – she’s bound to have lots of extra room.

We’re going to China!!!

Late last week we received our Travel Approval. Monday we received our US Consulate Appointment. What all this basically means is that we can now make our travel arrangements to bring Caleb home.

Our itinerary will look something like this.

Leave Orlando on March 25 and arrive in Beijing on March 26. We will be traveling for close to 30 hours. One cool thing about this leg of the trip is that we get to fly over the North Pole (or somewhere close to it), and we will experience our very own, on board movie marathon.

March 26 – March 29 we will recover from jet-lag, see as much of Beijing and surrounding countryside as humanly feasible, and take care of some adoption paperwork and orientation. Collin is most excited to walk on the Great Wall, though he assures me that he is even more excited to get his new brother. We'll see about that when the big day arrives.

March 30 fly to Nanchang to get Caleb!!! We will spend several days in Nanchang doing “official” stuff, getting to know the lay of the land where Caleb was born and spent the first year of his life, and most importantly bonding as a new family. This will be an important time for us and we will greatly appreciate your prayers.

April 4 we fly to Guangzhou (I still don't know how to pronounce it) for more “official” work from the US Govt. We will have two visits to the US Consulate: one for the visa appointment and the other to pick up Caleb’s visa the next day. There will be much to do and see here. That is a good thing as we basically have five full days to accomplish two appointments. More time to bond and connect. This is good. What is also good is some odd Chinese regulation that prohibits more than four people occupying one hotel room. Since we are now a family of five, that means two rooms. This is one of those dark clouds with a silver lining. Let's do some travel math here: two adults, a nine year old, a five year old, and a new one year old. Add in a dash of ten plus days on the road, living out of one - yes one - suitcase each, clothes and an assortment of travel gear that miraculously multiply each time the suitcase is opened or closed or touched or left alone or placed in the dark or left in sunlight, the excitement of experiencing a new culture and place, and the tremendous joy of discovering who Caleb is and what he is like. I'm not sure if two rooms will contain all of this goodnes.

We then fly home on April 10 – a trip that I’m certain will involve several buses, three airplanes, numerous airport trams, sleep deprivation, no meltdowns (think positive), and the start of a whole new chapter in the life of the Harris’.

All in all, this is awesome, and we are so ready to go!!!

Q & A

This past Sunday (2/10) was a great day in our adoption journey. Tim and Stephanie, the Sr. Pastor and his wife, hosted an Adoption Encouragement Group at their home. In addition to their great hospitality, it was an awesome time to be in close company with many in our congregation who have been touched by adoption. Some had adopted children, some have friends or children who have adopted, some were adopted, and some were there because of a desire to learn more about what we are up to. The amazing common thread was the encouragement and support.

What we came to discover was the breadth of adoption experiences right in our own congregation. It was amazing. Both Mer and I feel that no matter what we run into we can go to someone who has “been there, done that” and lived to tell about it. Even better, there is a great core group that is soooo ready to celebrate this great event with us. We are thankful for each of them.

The other great thing to come out of this was all of our recognition that the face of adoption in America is changing. Adoption is coming out of the shadows as more and more people are adopting out of a call to care for the orphan. As Vero – and First Pres – grows, there will be more people who follow in this path. It was awesome as the group came to the collective realization that together we are paving the way for the next family to start on this journey. What a great privilege.

During our afternoon, a great many questions were asked and answered. Today, I received an email with several more questions from one family. I thought this would be a great place to answer those questions and to open the door for other questions that people might have.

Q: Is it difficult to insure this new baby from China on your health policy?
A: No. While it varies from policy to policy, our policy will cover Caleb from the moment he becomes ours. He is treated as a “newborn” in the sense that there is no waiting period, etc.

Q: Who will cover for your absence?
A: The great staff and dedicated members at First Pres will cover for me in my absence. While from a professional standpoint I hope that we do not leave until after Easter, from a personal perspective, I cannot wait to go and get our new son. Being a minister and missing Easter is kind of like being a CPA and missing the week before taxes are due. However, when our travel orders come, we will go. The dates are not “negotiable.” Those of you who have ever dealt with MediCare will know what I am talking about. Now imagine trying to do it in Chinese!!

Q: How will Mer work it out while at work to care for the baby at home once you bring him home? Right now the schedule works out while the kids are in school.
A: We are fortunate that Mer works part time at Port St. Lucie Medical Center as a Lactation Consultant. This does allow her some flexibility in the use and scheduling of her hours. More than likely, she will continue to log a good bit of hours on my day off, and she will work more evenings and weekends. With some planning and flexibility, we will do our best to work it out.

One Step Closer

The pace of our adoption is picking up. Monday we received our LOA (Letter of Acceptance) from China. This is basically an official letter and certificate from China that says they have received and "accepted" our letter of intent to adopt Caleb. Today we sent it back to Holt, our adoption agency, and can now expect to wait "an average of two to five weeks" for our travel notice. Once our travel notice arrives we will be given "an average of two to four weeks" to get to China to meet Caleb. This means we could have Caleb in our arms in as soon as one month. Wow!!! More realistically, though, we still have to wait about two to three months.

The one thing we have learned about this entire process is that God has his own timing: what began as a three (plus) year journey has turned into a journey to a new son that could be complete in less than one year. Every step has been met with a completely different time line than we originally anticipated. In this we are learning to be both thankful and flexible - we do love to plan (especially Meredith). But if we had stuck to our "plan" we would not be blessed with this awesome new little guy. We've finally stopped trying to figure out God's timing and started jumping through the doors when he opens them. As usual, his plans are better than ours, and we are sooooo thankful for that - and for Caleb.