The Countdown begins

Two weeks! It's amazing to think that two weeks from now, we'll be flying to Guangzhou, China to begin our travels to Lanzhou, where we'll meet Iris for the first time. Our lives will transform in numerous ways! We continue to make final arrangements and more decisions about what to bring (or not), prepare Iris's room and arrange for care of the household, especially our dog Ho Gao. We are trying to imagine our house overrun with children's toys, clothes and smells.

There are so many wonderful people giving Iris special gifts. If you are one of the many, xie xie! The clothes are adorable, but we can't take them all with us to China. We're overwhelmed! Yet the anticipation of nearly two years will culminate in September. September 15 is the mid-Autumn Moon Festival in China. By then, we will have been parents to Iris about a week and will have the chance to share that day and years of festivals to come with Iris. We just wonder how she's changed since her cute picture was taken in late April. We would love an update on her size and development, but our agency can only request it; no guarantees.

I think she'll enjoy next spring and summer in the sandbox that Brian built for her. Take a look: