Calling all BTDTers
On Referral Day, what else do I need to do???…
Everyday this week and next…
Have camcorder ready
Have camera ready
My call sheet ready
Print out Asian Growth Charts (thanks Sharon)
On Referral Day, what else do I need to do???…
Everyday this week and next…
Have camcorder ready
Have camera ready
My call sheet ready
Print out Asian Growth Charts (thanks Sharon)
Make cue cards (thanks timandkim)
I only have them for the "southern girls" anyone have them for the northern girls?
Pen
I only have them for the "southern girls" anyone have them for the northern girls?
Pen
Have nails done.(thanks timandkim)
Make sure hair looks good. LOL.
Get the call…
Breathe (thanks Deb)
Make sure hair looks good. LOL.
Get the call…
Breathe (thanks Deb)
Call immediate Friends & Family
Email immediate Friends & Family
Call daycare asap with birthdate
Call more Friends
Post to blog
Crack open some Pink Champagne (Panda Punch)
Join orphanage group
Copy Photos (thanks Susan)
Make all kinds of stuff with photo/logo
Post to all groups about orphanage
Have Care package ready to send
Make announcement for referral
Have decided on IA dr and get stuff ready to be emailed and email it.
Call ped for consult
Get name properly translated/meaning
Install carseat..oops don't have one...note to self: buy carseat.
Contact people about Finding Ad! Taking Suggestions.
Email immediate Friends & Family
Call daycare asap with birthdate
Call more Friends
Post to blog
Crack open some Pink Champagne (Panda Punch)
Join orphanage group
Copy Photos (thanks Susan)
Make all kinds of stuff with photo/logo
Post to all groups about orphanage
Have Care package ready to send
Make announcement for referral
Have decided on IA dr and get stuff ready to be emailed and email it.
Call ped for consult
Get name properly translated/meaning
Install carseat..oops don't have one...note to self: buy carseat.
Contact people about Finding Ad! Taking Suggestions.
Scan in character name for labels(thanks timandkim)
make sure you have right size clothes (thanks agmoma)
finish photos for care package album
finish photos for care package album
I know I’m forgetting a bunch!!!
21 comments:
Please don't forget to breathe and taking a potty break now and then is helpful as well! :)
Make sure your nails look good. I remember looking at our video and thinking, "darn, my nails sure did look good didn't they?" LOL
Seriously, one thing I did was make a "cue card." It had a heart border and then I just typed something like
The Call
(enter date)
I proped it up in front of the recorder and taped a few seconds of it first so that it would be the first thing you see. Then I placed the cordless phone with caller ID window by it. So when the phone rang, I could see the telephone # and "Colorado" on the phone. I used the speaker phone during the entire call.
Thanksfully my husband walked in the door right as they called.
Man, that was an exciting day! I can't wait for this to happen for you!
Oh yeah, scan the pinyin name once you received your documents. Then make little sticky labels (use address labels) to make name stickers with her picture on it to stick on things you send in the care package. I did this on the disposable cameras so they would not get mixed up.
One that can be done over the next few days would be to go through the closet and see what else you need to buy for size and season specifics. I thought I had that all covered, until we were referred a 6 1/2 month old that weighed 11 pounds. I had plenty of clothes until I realized that I now needed 3-6 month sizes...so more shopping is probably inevitable-but maybe not, since you seem to have things SO much more together than I did. If you do get to go shopping for more clothes, have fun!!
Can't wait to see her!
Okay,
Deb, okay, you'll have to remind me to breathe again. Potty, not a problem, anxiety and excitment brings on potty issues...LOL, won't need to be reminded for that one except stay close to one. Sorry, TMI.
TimAndKim, Thanks for ALL those tips!!! I definately have some cue cards but I forgot the obvious one, oh, and my nails. I will add all to the list.
AG'sMoma, Clothes!!! This is one area I DON'T have to worry about but thanks for the tip! I will keep up with the sorting and organizing.
Thanks, Keep 'em coming! Stephe
I think you must have it all covered. I don't see anything missing, in fact I did almost NONE of these things! You are so much more organized than I ever was. I have been lurking and quietly watching your blog for some time now, and getting very excited that you are getting so close!
Can't wait to see that beautiful baby with her happy mama!
Kiy
This is something I did...each morning when I woke up I videod what I was feeling and in some cases I wrote or journaled...in retrospect the video and poems are priceless...I also made note of songs or music that came to me...I also photographed everything that was blooming in the yard the view from her window and basically what my world looked like the day I became a mother....someday I think these will be very special momentos for us all.
Emily
Funny (or not so funny), your blog was the one I came to just before we got our call in June 2006 to get "the call" sheet. I printed it off and scribbled some gibberish all over it when I got the call. I was off on cloud 9 at hello, everything after that was a blur for 3 day! Camcorder, camera, hair, nails, ha! I was lucky to remember how to say hello. I've been a pretty quiet lurker for, well, seems like forever, I'm so excited for you. Can't wait to see GiGi!!!
BTW Target has the most adorable Britax Marathon in the store- brown and pink! My daughter loves her Britax, she's a great traveler in that bugger- still out like a light bulb within 10-15 minutes and she's almost 2 1/2.
You have a link to where you find most of the orphanage yahoo groups listed, right? They can sometimes be hard to track down otherwise, well they used to be anyway.
Best wishes!
Michelle J.
Hi, Stephe!!
"Contact people about Finding Ad!"
IMO, this can wait. Both my daughters' orphanages gave me copies of the Finding Ads. That said, I still paid Brian Stuy for copies of the ads, because his were much more clear!
"Scan in character name for labels"
I suggest you use http://www.mandarintools.com/ once you know the meaning of your daughter's name's. It's easy to use this site to look up pinyin, or characters, or English words. Then you can copy the characters and put them in a word document, blow them up as large as you like, change the font style, etc. Go to the site SOON and check to see if your computer can see the characters; if not, you'll need to install the Chinese font set (easy to do).
As for car seats: I cannot recommend the Britax Marathon enough - I wouldn't use anything else. DO BE SURE IT WILL FIT IN YOUR CAR, however! I bought mine from a vendor I found on eBay - they were brand new, but considerably less than what you'd pay at Babies R Us - even with shipping.
Breathe, Breathe!!
:)
Sheri
Oh, and use this site to look up your daughter's Orphanage group and Province group; you'll want to join both!!:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RaisingChinaChildren/links
Sheri
Ive not hear of having cue cards. What's on them?
I am soooo excited for you. How are you holding up?
Stephe,
I think you've got things pretty much covered! I got the call while at lunch at work, my coworkers were surrounding me and got to see her picture just as both Ron and I did (our agency emailed it as soon as the call was over)
I might suggest moving up the blog posting if this is an ordered list *grin* You have blog friends that are waiting here with you!
I'd also ask your agency if you could get an update (photos and height/weight) because likely what you will be given is a couple of months old.
Hugs
Kim
You are too funny. They called me at work, I found out she had a lot of hair, was smiling in her pictures and her birthday. They said once they called everyone they'd scan pictures and email them. I told them that I'd just talk to them later on, I just wanted my pictures :)
Make a list of everything you will need to do to leave the country and get to China. I was so excited the first time I felt like I lost my mind. I had a list of about 40 things to do when I received TA for my younger daughter. A lot had to do with taking a leave from my job, notifying health insurance about my adoption, travel tasks, obtaining the phone number for the birth to three resource for our state, making tentative doctor appointments for my daughter for when we returned (she had medical needs), make sure you notify your VISA or MC company you'll be travelling so they don't freeze your card, preparing meals and freezing them, making a good run to the store for staples to decrease the shopping upon return, buy what your daughter will need for colds/flu/fever and have it ready at home, take care of upcoming birthday/holiday gifts now before you're a new mom, have your photos taken for when you need to obtain your visa for China, make contact with your bank so you will be able to obtain necessary new currency for your trip, download Skype if you'll be taking a computer with you, get the adapter for electricity if you'll take your computer with you, sign up for INTERNET bill paying, if you don't already do it, get a check-up for your precious little Yorkie (I'm the mom who is crazy for Yorkies!!!), get a pap, mammagram, haircut, dental check-up, car tune-up, oil change, anything that you know needs to be done in the months following your trip home, and do it before you go because life is going to change, and it will be far easier to do it now than when you come home with your daughter. Also, regarding the carseat, some police departments will install it for you. I would also suggest going to a movie, because the last adult movie I saw at a movie theater was Titanic, right before I adopted my first daughter. Enjoy!
Jeana in Illinois
PRACTICE using the carseat--they are tricky. You'll need to be an expert at getting the baby in and out, and adjusting the straps. When you attempt to have the "right" sized clothing, take some on the small side, especially if your baby girl is from Guangdong province. :) I'm so excited for you!!!
Sounds like a great list! I'd like to add one thing about the name translation. Most names can have many meanings depending on slight differences in the way the character is wrtitten but you may only find one on the internet. When you get your child be sure to ask who named her and what the meaning is. Olivia's name meaning was very different than what I found online. Her character had about 20 different meanings so it is important to know which one is used.
Also ask if there is a reason she was given that particular name. We have a beautiful story behind Ming Qing that I would never have known if I hadn't asked.
~Lynn
I should probably add that the information about the name is best asked in China. Your agency will probably not know.
~Lynn
WOW! I am soo excited to see your little Giorgia's photo and I'm sure you are jumping everytime the phone rings! LOL! :) It is such a thrilling time and I'm sure you have everything you need ready to go! After all this time waiting - it is finally here! and this precious baby girl has the most wonderful mommy who has already giving so much of herself to bringing her home! We can't wait to see her adorable face!!!! The only other thing we did was to immediately ask for an update to get more photos of course! and her updated sizes for clothes and shoes. I was so glad we got the new photos of her with her foster family - they are priceless!
hugs!
Shelly & Jessa "Li Li" :)
Hey Stephe,
My first post didn't go through yesterday.
My advice would be to make sure and ask someone from the orphanage staff how to pronounce Giorgia's Chinese name, and if she had a nickname. Your guide can help you prounounce it properly, but really the best person to ask is someone from her orphanage as there are so many dialects in China they would be the ones to know just how Giorgia heard her name pronounced.
And if you can get them sayig her name on video, even better, because them you'll never forget. I have Charlotte's name being said on video, and that's how I know the tones that are used.
Bernadette
Some things wish I had done:
Get a copy of your hometown paper the day you get the call. Also get a copy of the paper in China the day that meet your daughter. Those are things I wish I had done - just for memory sake.
Ask your agency to request the orphanage bring a copy of the orphanage file for you when you meet your daughter.
Journal, journal, journal!
As Deb said - BREATHE!
Take a few minutes before you go to bed the night you get the call and write down everything you remember about the day - the weather, the time of the call, what you were doing before the call, everyone's reaction, etc. You think you will never forget, and some things will remain etched forever in your brain, but other things will fade away.
Are you camera batteries charged?
I am a little late checking in....
Check out our blog as we sent an award your way..
For referral day, we actually drvoe to our agency's office and had a flat tire on the way (not cool!). All turned out well in the end. We did bring homemade cheesecake for the celebration and champagne. Do you have someone who will be in your home helping you video tape? Someone who can watch your expressions and record their observations... also help with camera, extra batteries?
We also took pictures of the sunrise, sunset, saved newspaper from that day, etc. Just go crazy!! Enjoy!!
Alyson
Mommy to Alyzabeth for Seven Weeks!
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