Journey To Jackson

Jackson Playing in Our Backyard

2008-11-20T19:50:00.003-06:00

Below are a few pictures of Jackson that my sister took at our house on 10/19/08. I'm a little embarrassed since Jackson was dressed pretty crappy that day, but, you would know that's day she brought her camera and snapped about two thousand pictures... I think he liked it though. He poses like he's a celebrity. Sha baby.

Raegan

Jackson's Birthday Bash

2007-10-01T20:44:00.000-05:00

As most of you know, Jackson's birthday party was Saturday, 9/22/07. We had such a good turnout and for the most part the weather was perfect. Jackson got so many great gifts; our toy room is now busting at the seams! He's loves playing with all his new toys and we've already bought him some cute winter clothes with the money he was given. I hope everyone had a good time; we sure did.

We finally got in to see Jackson's ENT last Thursday. He has a bad ear infection. We've scheduled a procedure to have tubes put in and his adnoids taken out for next Friday. Hopefully, this surgery goes smoother than the last. Other than that he's the picture of health. He's always so happy. As a matter of fact, I couldn't even tell that he had the ear infection. He just isn't a cry baby at all.

When I got home from work today Brad was pulling Jackson down the street in his new-to-us wagon (hand-me-down from D. Collin Carrier). It was so cute. He sat so still and held on like a big boy. I should have taken a picture. He looked like a little man, especially since he was wearing his cool Levi's jeans.

Thanks to everyone who came to the party. We hated that some of you out of towners couldn't be there. Maybe next year... Enjoy the pictures.

Raegan

Jackson's Birthday Party

2007-10-01T20:40:00.001-05:00

Baptism Pictures

2007-03-27T20:39:00.001-05:00

The Jackson Chronicle

2007-03-27T19:40:00.000-05:00

So much has been going on with Jackson these last few weeks. Let me start by saying that he is perfect in every way and that Brad and I couldn't be any happier. With that, though, comes a bit of bad news. Kosmo moved out last week. We were getting freaked out by Jackson's suspected medical problems (asthma, allergies, exzema) and felt that we couldn't continue to have a house dog. Anyone who knows Kos knows he is no "outside" dog so we felt that placing him with another family would be our best option. A very nice family from Rayne took him. I spoke with them again tonight and they said how awesome he was doing. They said that he follows them everywhere and loves to ride in the car with them. It's so good for us to hear that. It was really, really hard for us to give him up.

Now for the good part... Jackson went to his pediatrician two weeks ago for tons of blood work, a urine analysis, three stool samples, and a chest x-ray. All in all, everything came back really good. He was put on breathing treatments for his asthma and an antibiotic for his bronchitis. He went back for his follow up on Friday and apparently the meds did their job; he was taken off of both. We were referred to a ENT specialist for the remaining noise in his throat. We had that appointment today - the Dr. said that she suspects that he has a little reflux that is irritating and causing swelling to his vocal cords. She put him on Zantac for the next six weeks. The ENT also examined Brad. He, on the other hand, didn't fare so well. He has a pollup in the left nostril, an obstruction in the right nostril, and swollen tonsils. She couldn't even see his adnoids so he had to do a CAT scan. I think we'll get the results tomorrow. I'm no psychic, but I see surgery in his future!

I had the cutest adoption announcements printed up. I handed some out at the baptism and will be delivering the rest shortly.

Above are pictures of the baptism, the after party, and a few miscellaneous shots. Enjoy.

Raegan

Pictures At Home

2007-03-07T06:47:00.001-06:00

Getting Settled In

2007-03-07T05:57:00.000-06:00

We're home and boy are we glad! We loved our stay in Vietnam. We appreciate the experience more that anyone will ever know but it's still so good to be home.

The flights went so smoothly. Jackson was an angel. We didn't have any problems or any delays. We were nervous about going through immigration with Jackson but the process took maybe 7 minutes and we didn't have to answer any questions. We didn't have to go through customs since we had nothing to declare. The only hard part was being in the air or in an airport for 30 hours straight.

We arrived in Lafayette at 10:15am on Wednesday as planned. Several family members met us at the airport with signs and posters. It was too cool. They all came back to our house for a couple of hours to visit and eat. It was so weird walking into our house. It is so nice and fancy. It's really not a fancy house but compared to the homes in VN, ours is a mansion.

Jackson took a couple of days to get used to the time difference but I would say that even that was a success. We slept a lot during the day Wednesday through Friday but on Saturday and Sunday we kept him so busy during the day that he pretty much slept through the night both nights. He's such a good baby. He rarely cries. He's more of a complainer than a crier. It's so cute the way he talks all the time. He gets shy around new people so not many people have seen his true colors. We've slowly transitioned him from the formula he was on in VN to an american brand without any gliches. He just doesn't vomit at all - it's great. He still has a little trouble pooping some time but we are seeing his pediatrician today so hopefully she'll address that for us.

Kosmo is so in love with the baby. It's cute. When Jackson is on the sofa, Kosmo will sit next to him and put his paw on Jackson's leg. Yesterday, I had Jackson in his bumbo so Kosmo went lay in front of him for Jackson to rub his belly with his little foot. It was too funny. Kosmo even goes check on Jackson in his room when he starts to complain.

Thanks to everyone who supported us throughout this journey. It's been such a roller coaster ride but things couldn't have turned out any better. Jackson has fit right in to our family without missing a beat. We feel so truely blessed to have him and you all in our lives.

Raegan

We're coming home!!!

2007-02-26T18:18:00.000-06:00

Well, today's the big day. We are packing like crazy right now. I didn't realize how much stuff we had bought until we started trying to fit it all in our bags. And that's including the new bag we bought here!

We're ready to be home but are dreading the flights. I hope Jackson doesn't cry to much on the plane. Hopefully he sleeps okay. He's usually not a good sleeper when not in his bed so I brought some Tylenol Cold just incase.

We'll arrive in Lafayette at 10:15am Wednesday on an American flight from Dallas.

Can't wait to see you all.

Raegan

Visa Interview Today!

2007-02-25T19:25:00.000-06:00

Our stay is already almost over. The past two weeks have flown by. On one hand it feels like we just got here but on the other it feels like Jackson has always been a part of our family. He is such a good baby and has just fit right in. As much as we've learned to really appreciate Hanoi we are still ready to be home. I can't wait for you all to meet "Super Baby", that's what he's going by these days. And I can't wait to be in some sort of routine again.

Today we are having lunch at the Horison Hotel with the other two couples then we are going to our Visa Interview at the embassy. Jackson's visa should be ready for pickup at 4:00pm tomorrow. Hopefully, it's ready on time since we will be flying out at 7:10pm.

Enjoy the pictures.

Raegan

New Pictures

2007-02-25T19:18:00.001-06:00

Big, Strong Boy

2007-02-23T17:57:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was a success. The men picked up the babies passports while the women and babies went to the International SOS Clinic for their physicals. The passports were ready right away so the men showed up just 5 minutes after us. Jackson's passport is so cute. It's funny to see an infant picture on a passport.

Jackson is big and healthy. He gained over a pound this week. At last check he weighed 12.2 and at yesterday's visit he weighed 13.5! What a chunker! He's continueing his pattern of eating every 3-4 hours during the day and only once during the night. I asked the doctor if he was eating too much but he said to feed him as much as he wants to eat.

I think we'll do some more walking and shopping this weekend since our trip is coming to an end soon. Monday we have the Visa Interview and then we pick up the Visa and fly out on Tuesday afternoon. I'll post our exact arrival time as soon as I get it but it will surely be Wednesday instead of Thursday.

Raegan

Random Thoughts

2007-02-22T18:39:00.000-06:00

We had a fun day yesterday. We went back to the Old Quarter and did some shopping and walked around Hoan Kiem Lake. Some of the pictures below are from a few days before when we went to the park for the Tet celebration. That particular day of Tet was for the children. So instead of visiting family and friends, the locals took their children to the park for some fun in the sun.

It was nice to finally go walk around the lake yesterday. We've been wanting to go but Jackson usually dies out before we make it there. We shopped at the shops closest to the lake then visited the Temple. All very interesting. Jackson did really well and didn't cry at all. We went back to Ciao Cafe for lunch. They have good American food there. The first time we went I had a grilled cheese and Brad had a fillet. Yesterday I had chicken and Brad had a cheeseburger. Each time our bill was under $10.00. It's crazy how cheap everything is here.

Jackson is doing good these days. He still wheezes some but Rob, our doctor friend, still attributes it to the air quality here. He's thinking that as soon as we take the babies back to the states that it will clear right up. It's not bad enough to mess with his appitite though. He eats 8 ounces every 3-4 hours. He woke up once last night around 3am for a bottle and is still sleeping as of 8am our time.

Today we are going to pick up the babies' passports and will take them in for their physicals at the SOS Clinic. Our Visa appointment is scheduled for Monday. We are hoping to be able to pick up the Visas on Tuesday afternoon so we can fly out one day early. We'll see how that all works out.

Raegan

Tet & Hoan Kiem Lake Pics

2007-02-22T18:37:00.000-06:00

Spoiled?

2007-02-21T00:35:00.000-06:00

Yes, he is spoiled. It sure didn't take him long to figure out that he has the control in most situations. Yesterday we went back to the old quarter to do some more shopping. It was hot outside and Jack wasn't having it. After a couple of hours he starting whining constantly. The second we got back to our room and put him on the bed he started smiling. That's how pretty much all of our outings end. We just went down to the dining room to have some lunch. Of course, he started crying as soon as we put him in the basinett. We were saved by one of the hotel workers though, she came scoop him up and held him while we ate. The staff here have been so wonderful.

We found out today that we won't be able to rush the babies' passports. So, we'll pick up his passport on the 23rd. We'll take him to the SOS Clinic for his physical that same afternoon. Our Visa interview will be on Monday and we should be able to pick it up the following morning. I've emailed our travel agent to see if we can fly out one day early but I haven't heard back from him yet. I'll keep you all posted. It would be nice if he could get us earlier flights, even though it's just one day. We're getting pretty homesick.

Raegan

Jackson Talking - Take 1

2007-02-18T20:24:00.000-06:00

Sunday's Pictures

2007-02-18T15:04:00.001-06:00

Our Sunday Outing

2007-02-18T14:20:00.000-06:00

Yesterday we went out and did some walking and shopping. Well, more walking than shopping. Most shops were still closed for the new year. One lady told us that they should open back up in four days. I look forward to going back then. We left our hotel at about 10:30am. It was so nice outside; there was a nice cool breeze. After about 30 minutes of walking it was just plain old hot.

I did find one store though that was open and had the Ao Dais (traditional dresses) that I wanted to get for the kids. We got one for all the neices and nephews. We got just the shirts for Mor and Jade (not the full dress with pants). They are all so pretty. We also got Jackson one in a size three for in a few years. We got him one of those conicle hats too. I can't wait to take his picture in his new things.

He was such a trooper yesterday. We thought he would have gotten cranky after a little while but he just hung in there. We stopped on a bench to change his diaper and he was soaking wet, not with pee but with sweat. It's already very hot here then when we wear him in the Baby Bjorn it makes us all even hotter. He didn't cry though until we got in the taxi to come back. And then he stopped the minute we got to our room. I think he just needed some AC. I know because I was about to cry too!

We'll take pictures of town the next time we go, when everything is open and the traffic is back to normal.

Raegan

First Smile & Laugh!!!

2007-02-16T23:53:00.000-06:00

Random Pics

2007-02-16T15:40:00.001-06:00

A Walk in the Park

2007-02-16T14:57:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was a good day here in Hanoi. After noon we went for a walk in the park and around the lake. It was so nice to get out and stretch our legs. The streets were so much less crowded than they normally are due to everyone being home with their family to bring in the New Year. The park was decoratored for the Tet celebration that must have been last night. I'm pretty sure of this since the owner of our hotel called our room three times between 9pm and midnight to invite us to see the fireworks then to go to the New Years Party. I politely declined each time.

When we got back to our room after our walk I started feeling horrible again. I'm starting to think it's not the outdoors making me sick but the indoors. The AC in our room blows right on our bed so maybe that's what is irritating my allergies so much. Brad went with Angie and Jacob to Rob and Mary Beth's hotel for dinner. Jack and I stayed here and chilled out. Ha, the owner of the Hotel, says that today (Saturday) the streets will be even more bare. I'm looking forward to it so we can get out again and have the city to ourselves.

Jackson does better and better every day. It's amazing how quickly they pick up on things (ie. crying). He has no problem now letting us know when he's hungry. He's also holding up his head a lot better. He even grabbed and held his wrist rattle.

He peed on our bed again. It's starting to be an every day occurance. We noticed it right away this time but Brad tried to cover him with the plastic part of the diaper instead of the absorbant part; go figure?!?

I told Brad that he would have to take some pictures of me and Jackson today (I am usually the photographer). At the rate we're going, Jackson won't even believe that I was here when we show him these pictures in a few years. Brad said he was going to just take a picture of me sleeping so he could tell Jack that he did everything for him while I just slept. Boy, that sounds just like Brad!

Raegan

Pictures from 2/14/07

2007-02-14T09:07:00.001-06:00

French Hospital Visit

2007-02-14T08:25:00.000-06:00

Today was a chill out day. We stayed in our room almost all day. At 4pm we took a taxi to the French Hospital for our appointment at 4:50pm (odd time huh?). The doctor said not to worry about the baby not laughing. He attributes it to him only being with us for three days. He gave us a medicine for his chest congestion, one for his nose, a cold cream for his skin, a standby medicine incase he gets fever, and a laxitive. He also ordered blood work to make sure there's no infection. If there is, we will go back to the hospital tomorrow to pick up an antibiotic. It's crazy how cheap things are here. For the visit, blood work, and five prescriptions it was $75.00! Brad says it's probably cheaper for us just to fly back here when we need medical attention instead of going in the states. HaHa Jackson weighs 12.2 lbs, is 24 inches tall, and his head is 16.9 inches around. What a man!

I can tell he's feeling better today and/or getting more used to Brad and I by the way he is so much more animated. He stares and talkes and even cries now. I'm curious to see how he does tonight. He actually cried for a bottle every three hours today and took 4 to 5 ounces each time. I wonder if he'll cry during the night or still sleep through. Above are a few pictures I took today in our hotel room. If the baby is doing better tomorrow will we venture out and do some shopping.

We went eat at a fancy restaurant tonight. Brad was treating since it's Valentines day, or so he says, but the couple with us ended up picking up the tab. I had a steak and mashed potatoes and Brad had a seafood rice dish. It looked similar to a seafood jambalaya.

I'll try to take pictures of the city if we actually leave the hotel tomorrow.

Raegan

A Few Pictures

2007-02-13T15:02:00.001-06:00

Second Day with Baby

2007-02-13T13:44:00.000-06:00

Jackson was better today. I think he wasn't eating because he didn't like the bottles that I brought. I borrowed a different style from Angie (the other mom that's here in the same hotel) and he's been eating ever since. Also, he doesn't cry to let me know when he's hungry so we've been having to just offer the bottle every few hours. Yesterday it was noon before he ate. That's before Rob told me that he may not cry when hungry. I thought it was because he wasn't feeling well; turns out I was starving him. We have an appointment at the French Hospital here later today to have him looked at. He is still wheezing pretty bad. The doctor that is with us (one of the dads) says that he suspects that lots of the babies have asthma due to the dirty air here. It's crazy how dirty, by the way, from the 10th floor of the doctors hotel you can see the smog - it's like a constant fog. We'll still take him in though just to make sure he's okay.

Yesterday both times we changed his diaper in the morning he peed on us (and the bedding and the floor and himself)! It was gross. He seems to be doing better in that department though since we had more than one messy diaper yesterday.

Our first embassy appointment (with US immigration) was yesterday at 3pm. I won't post details here but it didn't go as well as suspected. Please pray that we are not held up due to this. The office is closed for one week now due to Tet so we won't know if we were approved for several more days.

We didn't take any pictures outdoors yesterday but I'll post a few we have of us and the baby.

Jackson has the cutest cry. It's that sweet "I'm just a little baby and I need help darnit!" cry. [Oh my gosh, he just rolled from his back to his side! I got a picture for you guys. My baby's growing up so fast!] He has very little head control at this point. Hopefully, after some tummy time play this week he will start getting stronger.

After our appointment yesterday we had dinner at Rob and Mary Beth's hotel. It's a fancy, more Americanized hotel. The other two couples had the Italian Buffet and Brad and I had good 'ole cheeseburgers and fries. They had ketchup there AND ice in the coke! It was great.

I spoke too soon about his clothes fitting him perfectly. The first outfit he wore must have just run small. All the outfits since then have been big for him. The hats, they're a joke, they cover his head and all of his face! I should have gotten a picture of that too. It was funny.

Shaa, Jack and Brad are talking up a storm right now. The baby hasn't smiled or laughed yet (which we are concerned about) but he sure does look around and talk alot. Rob's baby that's about one month older than Jackson laughs. I wonder if it's a health concern or if he's just so used to chilling out without much stimulation that he really doesn't know to laugh or smile?

Alright, I'm going to sign off now so I can go play with them. Enjoy the pics.

PS. I am able to read all the comments. Blogger automatically forwards them to my email address. It was so nice yesterday when I opened my email and we had 16 messages from blog readers. Keep 'em coming.

Raegan

Pictures from Yesterday!

2007-02-12T16:20:00.001-06:00

Our First Day as a Family of Three

2007-02-12T14:55:00.000-06:00

Our first day as a family of three was wonderful. Jackson slept through the entire G&R and all the way back to Hanoi (2 hours). We got back to our hotel around 1pm and the men immediatly left to go apply for the baby's passports. We had lunch around 3pm then took naps. Our facilitators came back to our hotel around 10pm for us to fill out a few more forms that had to be turned in this morning (it's 2:58am here on Tuesday). This morning we will go have the babies' Visa photos taken then at 2:30pm today we will go for our first embassy appointment.

Now for the good stuff, Jackson is perfect. He's so cute and so good. Every now and then he will let out one little cry, only a seconds worth then he's fine. Brad said that he is warning us of what he could do if he didn't get his way, like cry all night long. He does still have the scabies but it's not as bad as in the photos we got a few weeks ago. His face isn't really that broken out but it is really bad on one of his hands. That hand is covered in bumps and what looks like tiny blisters. I put his medicine yesterday afternoon though and washed it off last night so hopefully it kills it all the first time. Last night he had a hard time falling asleep. We were ready to go to sleep around 12pm but he wasn't feeling it. We each held him for about 30 minutes before he quit crying. I don't know what was wrong. He was clean, fed, clean diaper, I had given him Tylenol Cold and Mylicon. I was clueless. I think maybe his tummy was hurting though because it sounded like a cry of pain. He didn't have a bm all day yesterday so I'm thinking that maybe the formula I'm using has him constipated. We'll see what happens this morning and take it from there.

His 3-6 month clothes fit him just fine. He looked so cute yesterday, all dressed up for the G&R. Today we will probably go for a more relaxed, casual look. Brad says he's wearing his LSU outfit but we'll see. I don't know if that is appropriate for his Visa photo.

He's not fat and not skinny, just right. I'm sure we'll get official measurements at his medical appt. though. He is taken really well to both Brad and I. He's alert; he likes to try to hold his head up and look around the room. He also likes to check us out. We haven't seen him laugh yet. Maybe today.

He has such bad congestion. When he takes his bottle especially, you can hear him wheezing really bad. I've given him several doses of Tylenol Cold & Cough but as of last night it wasn't phasing his illness. I wish I had an antihistimine incase it's his allergies. If it's not better today we'll see if we can get our hands on some Benedryl. One of the fathers traveling with us is a family physician so I may have to get some help from him.

For all of you who were worried about the "speech". It went perfectly, without a hitch. There were no ummms, no pauses, and it was intelligently worded. Of course Brad had nothing to do with it. Only one father was asked to speak on behalf of the group. Obviously Brad bowed out graciously without looking back.

The orphanage let me keep the outfit that Jackson was wearing when we picked him up. And guess what; it was that same red sweater that he was wearing in his pictures. I was so so fortunate to be able to keep it.

The other two babies are so cute too. They all seem to be really good and happy babies. They don't cry much and have just fit right into our families'.

We asked our facilitator last night for her best guess of when we might go home and she thinks that we should be able to leave by the 28th as planned, assuming everything goes well. Please keep us in your thoughts. We are nervous about our upcoming embassy appointments. That's usually where things go wrong, so we're not out of the woods yet.

PS Our skype still isn't working. We've emailed skype customer service and our adoption agency for help. Hopefully, we'll be able to call home soon.

Raegan

G&R Day!

2007-02-11T14:31:00.001-06:00

It's here, G&R day! I can't believe it. We're so nervous. We've been up since about 2:30am. After dinner last night we packed the baby's bag since we'll be leaving so early this morning for his province. We had so much stuff that we had to use the duffel bag instead of his diaper bag! Can you tell we're first time parents or what??? We'll have breakfast at 5:30am and will leave the hotel at 6:00am. It's about a 2 hour drive to Thai Nguyen province. Our facilitator said that the ceremony will only last about 30 minutes so we should have plenty of time to get back to Hanoi and apply for Jackson's passport this afternoon. Then the wait starts. It should take about 1 week to get his passport then we can move on to the next step.

The food is good here at the hotel. The best we've had in VN so far. Last night Brad had fried rice with pork and I had mushroom & ham pizza. Both were really, really good. And they have Coke everywhere here. It sounds trivial but it's so nice to have something familiar.

I'm so nervous about not being able to comfort Jackson today. I know once we get back to our hotel and have time to get to know each other things will be just fine but I'm worried about today, in front of the officials at the ceremony. Hopefully, Jackson doesn't fuss too much so we don't look like complete idiots.

We're moving hotel rooms today. We were offered a bigger room. It's a twin room but they put the two twin beds together to make a king sized bed. We'll have much more floor space too to move around and to store all our luggage. While we are at the G&R, the staff here will move our things to the new room for us. They really spoil their guests here. When we first arrived here yesterday the staff met us at the front door and carried our bags to our room. I felt bad having them do that for us. They were each about 18 years old and weighed about 90 lbs. I felt like I should be carrying them and our bags! They are all very nice girls who speek good english.

The money here is crazy. We had to convert some yesterday to bring for our appointments today. It converted to three million dong. We're rich!! (For about three weeks anyway!)

The country (terrain, people, architecture) is so different here. I never imagined it would be like this. I would equate it to being just across the border in Mexico. Only no beggers and add about 1 million motorbikes.

Time for me to go. I want to try to rest again before having to get ready. I'm not able to log into blogger so I'm posting this via Mobile Post. Hopefully it works.

Raegan

We made it; almost...

2007-02-10T16:48:00.000-06:00

We arrived in Ho Chi Minh City without a hitch. We were so confident that we even checked in our carry-on that had our extra outfits for the last leg of the trip. And you would know that right after we did that our flight was canceled! Our flight was originally scheduled to leave HCMC at 7pm, then 9pm, then 5am (so they put us up in a Hotel), now it's scheduled for 9am. It still would work out fine since we would arrive in Hanoi around 11am (Sunday) and would have time to get settled in and go buy a few essentials like bottled water, diapers, and formula before bed time.

The 15 hour flight from Los Angelos to Hong Kong that we were so nervous about was pretty dreadful. I was hoping that we would sleep several hours but it didn't work out like that. We were packed like sardines and were not very comfortable (read miserable). I really, really dread that leg of the trip on our return. 15 hours felt like 3 days.

Just think, in like 24 hours we will be holding our son and all of these trivial complaints will seem like a distant memory. I can't wait to hold him. I've already broke the news to Brad that I'm holding the baby first. It's important to start that maternal bonding ASAP, right?!?

Oh, I forgot to tell you all about the traffic. It's really as crazy as what people have described. When we took our Hotel bus from the airport last night we got to experience it first hand. There were motorcycles everywhere. Literally, about 10 across on the highway and a few on the sidewalks. It's like everyone just yields to whatever vehicle is closest and biggest. I saw one motorcycle with a mom and toddler do a U-turn in front of a truck. The truck almost hit them. I can't imagine driving like that, much less with my child on board. And of course no one wears helmets.

I'll post the pictures that we've taken so far when we get to Hanoi.

Raegan

The Travel Prep Continues

2007-02-01T20:27:00.000-06:00

I think we've remembered everything we needed to get done in the past few days. We have our flight tickets, our visas, we've purchased the cutest (and supposedly one of the safest) infant seat, we wired our foreign fee to VN, I brought our clothes to the cleaners, we bought me a fake name brand purse (not really travel prep but...), and I just finished e-filing our taxes.

Brad's right here and wants me to mention that he didn't get to buy himself anything new "as usual". He must have forgotten about all the money he spent this past week on football pools!

Please forward any last minute parenting tips this week as I never did finish reading those 10,000 parenting books I got!

Thanks!

Raegan

I'm a mommy on February 12th!

2007-01-23T18:55:00.000-06:00

We got our final travel plans today. Our G&R Ceremony is scheduled for Monday, 2/12/07 so we have to be in Hanoi for Sunday, 2/11/07. That will probably put us flying out on Friday, 2/9/07, if there are available flights. If not, it may be a day or two sooner. We are scheduled to fly out of Hanoi on Wednesday, 2/28/07. It sounds awefully quick to me but hopefully things really do go that well and there are no problems to keep us any longer. I know that we will be very anxious to get home and show off our baby.

I've just emailed the three travel agents that we are getting quotes from and I'll mail out our Visa Applications tomorrow morning. We're hoping that since we have more than a two week notice that we will get decent rates for our flights. Oh, and our agency found a nice new hotel for us to stay in. It sounds really great and it's $10 cheaper per night!

I'm off to fill in the dates on our Visa Applications and to read the instructions once more. I'd hate to mess anything up at this point.

(Poor Kosmo. He has no idea that we are about to leave him for almost three weeks and even worse that we're leaving him with Uncle Josh. If any of you are in our area while we are away, please come over and hang out with him; maybe give him some lovin' or treats. I wish we could take him with us but I think they eat dog there.)

Raegan

New Pictures of Jackson

2007-01-15T18:53:00.000-06:00

Our agency sent us these pictures of Jackson from their visit at his orphanage this morning. He is so darn cute! We are so ready to go get him.

Raegan

Travel Dates!!!!!

2007-01-13T09:31:00.000-06:00

I just received an email from our agency saying that we will tentatively be leaving on Friday, 2/2/07 to be in Hanoi for Sunday, 2/4/07. Our G&R will be a day or two after that!!!! She said for us to fill out our Visa Applications so they can be mailed out as soon as she gives me the go ahead. We also need to get with a few travel agents to start pricing and scheduling flights and to book our hotel room. How exciting is that?!? Man, now I feel like we have so much to do in so little time. In less than 3 weeks we will be boarding a plane for VN! Baby Jackson, mommy and daddy's coming to get you!

Please pray this week that our dates are firmed up soon, that we have safe travels, and that our stay in VN is not extended by Tet.

Thanks,
Raegan

A New Referral

2007-01-09T19:13:00.000-06:00

So much has changed in the last 24 hours. We found out yesterday that our original referral was pulled due to medical issues. The baby was taken in for a follow up medical visit when it was discovered that he was not healthy. I don't know exactly what the problem was but we were issued a new referral because of it.

It didn't take us long to fall in love with the picture of our new referral. He is an abundantly healthy baby boy to say the least. He looks so different from the other baby. He was born on 9/26/06. I giggle every time I look at his picture...all I see are those cheeks!

Our agency isn't expecting this change to delay us much at all. Apparently this baby was already "paper ready" so they'll just have to match our paperwork with his and then issue our G&R (Giving & Receiving) date. We'll hopefully travel the first week in February. Our social worker will be in VN for the next month so we're praying that she will be able to make things happen while there. We are really, really hoping to be there and back before Tet, the VN New Year. This year it falls on Feb. 18th. We are really cutting it close though.

We've already packed Jackson's suitcase. We did some last minute shopping this weekend for a LSU outfit for him (that Brad just had to have) but other than that his bag has actually been packed for about three weeks now. I can't wait to dress him in all his cute clothes. My brother is loaning us his laptop and we've set it up already with our digital camera software and Skype. We'll be able to use Skype to call home from our computer to any phone number using a headset and microphone. I think it will be nice to be able to call home often. Of course, I'll post here as often as possible too. Now, we just sit and wait on our travel dates so we can order our Visas and make our flight arrangements.

We've decided on a name too - Jackson Van. Van is pronounced Von, like Don and was recycled from his given name, Thuc Van. Brad's cousin Tammy is already working on getting his first personalized gift, an adorable handmade diaper bag.

My dad said that we could call him "JD" but I objected immediatly! I new he was going to come up with some crazy, hick nickname. It could have been worse though, like "T-JD".

I better go now, my dog is staring at me and putting the pressure on...I think he's ready for a treat. Hopefully, I'll be writing soon about travel dates.

Raegan

Will we ever travel???

2006-12-21T07:37:00.000-06:00

Brad and I were pretty bummed about not getting our travel invitation earlier this month. Eventually it became very clear to us that there was no way we were going to be spending Christmas with our son. So, being the good wife that I am, I rented us a cabin at Chicot State Park this past weekend. I thought it would be great for us to get away and just not think about the adoption for a few days. And it was; we had a great time. We fished (can you still call it fishing if you don't even catch one fish, not even a nibble?), hiked, and had dinner with a family of racoons. It was nice. I got some really good pictures. I'll try to post them tonight.

Well, I might need to book another one of those weekends since we got even more bad news on Monday. My agency called me to advise that they had finally gotten word on the status of our paperwork. It turns out that one form was missing so nothing has been processed yet! Can you believe that - I still can't. One stupid form and the government there sits on our paperwork for a whole month before telling anyone. Who would have thought it would be late January before we get to travel? And that's IF we don't have any more setbacks. Sometimes it feels like this is just a pretend adoption. The kind where you do all the paperwork and fork over thousands of dollars but never actually get the child.

Hopefully, things will move quickly now and we can travel in January. It would be terrible if we get delayed anymore and have to travel during Tet, the VN new year. From what I understand they shut the whole country down for several days, which would obviously mean a much longer stay for us.

Hope everyone is ready for Christmas...ready or not! Brad and I originally intended to only buy for the kids but this week we decided to do some more shopping. We are in the "Seize the Day" kind of mood. Can't wait to see everyone. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Raegan

Quick Update

2006-12-08T07:27:00.000-06:00

Well, the quick update is that there is no update :( I'm really bummed that we still haven't heard anything - no travel dates and still no sign of the medical report. I read online yesterday that some families who were just 4 days ahead of us have already received their travel dates. So, I'm hoping that this is a sign that we'll get ours next week. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers since we would really, really like to travel around Christmas time.

Maybe next time I post we'll have decided on a full name for the baby too. I'm having trouble deciding and of course Brad is no help - he just agrees with whatever I say! (I guess that isn't such a bad thing huh?)

Me, Brad, and Coby are going to see John Conley in concert tonight. We saw him a few years ago and his show was great so I'm expecting nothing less tonight. My allergies have been kinda kicking my butt lately so hopefully I'll be able to hang with the guys - I'd hate to be the reason they have to leave at 10pm because I don't feel well!

I know, it's a boring post; but I feel like I have an obligation to "my readers" to send updates every few days...

Raegan

Travel Delays

2006-11-23T16:14:00.000-06:00

We are pretty bummed to say the least. We found out this week that our travel has been delayed; instead of traveling the first or second week in December it will probably be the last week in December or the first week in January. We are so ready to go get our little guy that any delay in travel, even though just a few weeks, just breaks our hearts. Please keep us in your prayers that we can still travel this year. Wouldn't that be an awesome Christmas gift?!?

On a more positive note - we did find out that the baby's paperwork has been officially all approved and we are just waiting on travel approval. We will be getting copies of his birth certificate and medical this week. And as most of you already know, we got his picture last week. Isn't he just the cutest thing you ever did see?!? I can't wait to finally get his little birth certificate. I also can't wait to find out what his Vietnamese name is. We've been itching to find out since we are planning on using at least part of it as his new middle name. I wanted to use a Saint name too so we'll have to see how that all works out.

PS. Hope you all are having a wonderfull Thanksgiving!

Raegan

*Edited on 1/14/07 to remove photo of lost referral. RD

The Baby Shower

2006-11-23T15:37:00.000-06:00

I want to start off by thanking everyone who attended. We had such a good turnout. I also want to apologize if I didn't get to visit one on one with anyone. I tried to make my rounds but there were so many people there - and all at the same time. I had a great time though; everything looked great and the food was awesome! We got so many good things. Brad and I are still working on finding place for it all. I don't think that there is one single thing that we needed and didn't get. We are so fortunate to have such great friends and family. Here are some of the pictures taken.

Thanks again!
Raegan

Good news or bad news first?

2006-11-15T17:39:00.000-06:00

The good news is that we got a picture of our baby this week. We are soooo excited! He is the cutest thing we've ever seen. He looks so sweet. He looks like he'd be a good baby, like, maybe one who sleeps through the night - but that might just be my wishful thinking! It's crazy how much your feelings change once you see your child for the first time. It seems so real now. Now we really can't wait to travel. We were anxious before, but now we really have this sense of urgency, like our baby needs his mommy and daddy NOW. Brad wants to just take the first flight out of Lafayette and wait it out in Vietnam; and I'd put money on it that if we could afford the extra time there he would!

The bad news is that I'm not posting a picture here until after the baby shower. I'm sort of holding it hostage. I'll bring it to the shower for those who attend to see. I'll email copies to those who can't attend, but only if you have a really, really good reason for not coming! HaHa

Hope to see you all this weekend...

Raegan

Good News

2006-11-06T18:45:00.000-06:00

We just got an email update from our adoption agency that the family ahead of us (that is in Vietnam right now) was approved by US Immigration and are free to come home with their new baby girl. This is great news. The first family that traveled had some trouble with Immigration and ended up staying in Vietnam for about two months trying to get it worked out. Though, in the end they were able to return to the states with their baby it was still making us very nervous. We kept thinking about how scary it would be to be stuck in country for that long - not to mention having to foot the bill for room and board plus an attorney. We have a whole new confidence now that things went so smoothly for the second family. Please keep us in your prayers that everything will go that well for us.

On another note; we have scheduled the baby shower for November 18th so we are keeping pretty busy with that. I think we're about done now. Mom is in charge of decorations and Tiff is in charge of the cake. I have so many other folks helping out with the refreshments. We're having it at Tiff's house - I think it will be nice. I hope everyone shows up! I had Brad sealing the envelopes last night so I could mail out the invitations today. I think they came out really cute. Let me know what you all think.

I still haven't done anything in the nursery. I need to at least start washing the outfits that I want to take with us. I guess I need to wash his bedding too while I'm at it. Brad and I bought a Baby Bjorn on ebay this weekend that came in today. It's in really good condition - it looks brand new. We also bought a LSU windsuit from a lady in New Iberia that we picked up this weekend. Brad says it's "tight". That lady was so nice; she even gave me two little Ralph Lauren shirts for Jackson.

We keep trying to imagine what life will be like once the baby is here. It's so weird to think about how much things will change. Brad is freaking out because "we will have to take him everywhere we go". I didn't ask him if this was a new revelation or if it's something he's been thinking about for a while. I wonder what Kos will think about Jackson. I need to get him a "I'm the big brother" shirt. Do they make those for dogs???

I printed out our baby registries for Ms. Peggy today and noticed that a couple of things have already been purchased...how exciting! It's still sinking in that we are really going to be parents and we'll really need all of this baby stuff.

Raegan

Finally...

2006-10-30T12:20:00.000-06:00

We finally got some good news regarding the adoption. Our agency has matched us with a potential referral. It's a boy! He's about two months old. His paperwork is in the last stage of approval, which normally takes about 30 days. I'm not sure how long his paperwork has been there but we expect to have a firm referral (name, picture, medical, birth certificate) within the next two to four weeks. Our agency is guessing that we will travel at the beginning of December. How awesome is that! Now I really need to get my butt in gear and get organized - I could be traveling in just four weeks!

Please keep us in your prayers. We need all we can get since Brad nor I knows anything about international travel or parenting! (I know I'm using too many exclamation points but I'm just very excited!!!)

Raegan

My Little Helper

2006-10-28T17:42:00.000-05:00

Still no news on a referral so I thought I'd just post more photos. Poor Kosmo has been helping me out so much with all of this baby madness. He could get a job with "Consumer Reports" with all the product testing he's done in the past few months. And all he needs to unwind is his pillow and a big truck. Enjoy the pictures.

PS. My case worker was supposed to call me Friday but ended up out of town on business so she emailed and said that she'd call me Monday. Please pray that she tells us something good. I'm dying to know anything about my baby and travel timeline.

Raegan

Get Your Own! | View Slideshow

Fantasy Team

2006-10-27T07:53:00.000-05:00

I forgot to give a shout-out to Brad's fantasy football team this week. They won their first game of the season so they're now 1-6. Could this be the start of a winning streak? I think so... Go team!

Raegan

Comments...

2006-10-25T14:41:00.000-05:00

Please feel free to leave a comment after reading our blog. We would love to see who's checking in. You don't have to sign up - all you have to do is click "Other" and sign your name there. Unless you're leaving an ugly comment and don't want to sign; it's totally optional, although we don't encourage it!

Raegan

Baby stuff...

2006-10-25T11:08:00.000-05:00

Here's some of the stuff that I've already gotten. I'm trying to be frugal while still getting good quality - let me know what you think.

I bought this Chicco C5 stroller months ago at Babies-R-Us and I just love it. It's really nice but still lightweight. I originally intended on traveling with it but everyone says that in VN a carrier (Snugli/Baby Bjorn) is the way to go. If worse comes to worse and I do need a stroller while there I'll just buy one of those $10 umbrella strollers.

This is the walker I bought at our subdivision garage sale for $11! This is probably my best garage sale find ever. It's in perfect condition and cute as can be. I put Kosmo in it the other day and he seemed to like it so hopefully Jackson will too.

I don't have this yet but I'm thinking of getting one since I don't have a changing table. I'll have to think about it some more though since they're so expensive. If I'd have any sewing talent at all I could make one of those liners and just buy any basket with a handle.

Oh, my Mom bought this and I thought it was sooo cute. Yes, we do realize he won't need a backpack right away but it was just one of those things we had to get (well, I had to get and she had to pay!).

Ms. Peggy bought us these two carseats (except ours has the black surround and the khaki inside material). They are the Cosco Scenara - when I was researching car seats I read that these were rated among the top ten. Pretty much all the others were Britax, which were way to pricey to fit into our budget (and apparently Ms. Peggy's too).

This is the bedding set we got, well, not yet since Mom is holding all of this stuff hostage until the baby shower. I think it's cute and boyish without being too busy.

That's all I can think of now... I can't wait to have everything set up. I'll post pictures of the nursery then.

Raegan

Adoption summary...

2006-10-24T20:16:00.000-05:00

for those of you who aren't up to speed. Brad and I are trying to adopt an infant boy from Vietnam. We first applied in April, I think it was April. Anyway, we were so lucky that everything went so quickly for us. Our homestudy, medicals, police clearances, and immigration paperwork was completed in record breaking time. We sent our dossier (completed paperwork) to Vietnam at the end of July. Now we are just waiting for the referral - the picture, medical report, and birth certificate for our baby. In July our agency told us that we should receive a referral in two to four months but that it would probably be closer to two. Well, here we are three months later and still no baby. Every week we think that this will be THE week. We are getting so impatient. I'm sure our agency is tired of getting email from me every few days looking for updates. I know they'll call or email as soon as they know something but I like to keep in touch almost daily just to remind them that we're still here! Atleast if we had our referral we would know how old the baby is. I'd like to finish getting the nursery ready but it's kinda hard when you don't know if he'll be three months old or eleven months old or somewhere in between. Of course, Brad isn't making this any easier since he's just a ball of nerves. Oh well, enough complaining. Maybe tomorrow will be the day...

Raegan

Wedding Photos...

2006-10-24T19:41:00.000-05:00

Get Your Own! | View Slideshow

These are pictures that I took at Nick and Faith's wedding on 10/7/06.

And, by the way, who said that white men can't dance?!? Brad and Nick sure do have some fancy moves.

Raegan

Introducing...

2006-10-23T21:01:00.000-05:00

our brand spanking new blog. I'm anticipating using this space to chronical our adoption journey. Keep checking back for updates. Hopefully we'll have some good news soon.

Raegan