Sunday March 20th - Single digits!

We are into the single digits now - 9 sleeps to departure -- hooray!

This week seems to have gone by very quickly. Thursday brought about my last day of work. It feels like just yesterday that I was planning my return and here I am on leave again. It still seems a bit surreal as I drive down the road no longer anticipating my cell phone ringing.

Packing for the trip has started and I've got one suitcase ready to go with orphanage gifts, donations, meds and food. We're packing a little heavier on the food side this time around only because I anticipate that it will be easier on Naomi if we have some of her comfort foods around. Up until two months ago, Naomi would eat almost anything you put infront of her. Recently however, she's decided that she prefers her food to not touch and not be mixed together. Ketchup is now a regular side dish to our meals as well. I've been hitting all the fast food joints lately and scamming packages of ketchup. I thought about bringing a small bottle of the stuff, but the smallest size I could find at this time of year was either packaged in glass, or not really very small. I'm sure that once we get there, we'll be able to track some down.

Everything seems to be coming together quite well. I'm less stressed about how Naomi is going to cope during the trip now that we have our itinerary and can anticipate the trouble spots. I'm certain that she will be an amazing big sister and I'm becoming more confident that she will fare well on this trip. I'm really looking forward to meeting Lilah and exploring who this little person is. I suspect that she will find it an easier transition into our family with her big sister to greet her too!

For those of you who are still trying to view the Go Magazine article -- I contacted the publisher this week to find out when they will be updating their webpage. They anticipate the date being April 1st, so those who don't live here will have to be patient just a few weeks longer.

I've also added a new "Links" section to the webblog. From it, you can directly access the three hotels we are planning to stay in, our adoption agency's website, Go Magazine and the weather in China.

Speaking of weather, seems that Ontario is not alone in unseasonably cold weather this year. Those following the weather in Changsha would note that while it should be warmer than Beijing, it's actually been colder as of late. It's making our packing a little challenging. Not so much for the girls, but more for the adults who would have more difficulty shopping for clothing in China. Joel's last foray into shopping at Silk Alley produced several XXXL shirts that were still small on me (much to his chagrin). Anyhow, I think the word in packing will be layers.

I have posted a few photos of the girls' rooms below this post. Naomi's fascinated with her stars and moons and reminds us that "Linda (painted) purple like Sydney". What would we do without our terrific friends!

Naomi and I visited a sugarbush yesterday morning with our friends Sara and Gavin. Naomi tried her first bite of maple snow taffy and liked it. She also had her first "horsie ride with a sleigh and jingle bells". She must have really loved it because she's still talking about the "sugarbush" today. Yesterday afternoon we travelled to Stratford and helped cousin Andrew celebrate his first birthday. It's fun to see Naomi and other kids together - I love to imagine the relationship that she and her sister will share.

Our Letter of No Objection from the Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services, along with our tickets and passports should arrive tomorrow. One more milestone surmounted!

Lilah's mama