Here is what we have been up to...

Willow's first experience with stage 1 solids.
Squash is the first food she tried. Yum! 7-24-08
















Look how wide awake and happy Luc and
Willow are. Dad are you okay??




Luc, Willow and cousin Scarlett playing at
Nibbles Cafe in Wheeling. 7-25-08





















The 2nd biggest White Sox fan!
7-28-08




















Tummy time over by friend Dana's house. She looks like a little model in this picture. One of my favorites. 7-29-08


Hi All,

I have been trying to update this blog for almost 2 weeks and every time I sit down to do it, I have to step away to do something else. I have so much to write and I am most likely going to have to do two separate posts.

As you can tell we have been very busy! Dr.'s appointments, visiting friends, church functions, family gatherings etc.. Even thought things have been busy Willow has been doing great. She is always smiling and eager to see something new.

She is scooting her way across the ground really well. She gets those knees right under her but and moves herself. Once she gets her coordination down I think she will be crawling like crazy. She is very curious about everything and wants to learn. She can sit up for about 2 min. unassisted and then falls over onto her tummy. She loves to stand on our legs when we are holding her. She will bob up and down. Her leg strength is getting better.

As far as stage 1 solids go she has tried squash, sweet pea, carrot, green bean, apple sauce, prune and pear. Her favorite veggie is sweet pea and her least favorite is green beans. She enjoys eating her solids and gets really excited when she sees them come out.

She has fallen into a routine nicely and is sleeping through the night. She enjoys her crib and loves to be rocked by Mommy or Daddy before falling off to sleep on occasion. It has been wonderful seeing her transition from detached to attached.

We are in love and I can't begin to tell you how incredible and rewarding it is when we look into her eyes and see her love for us. She is such a blessing in our lives.

Luc and Willow seem to be adjusting to one another nicely. It cracks me up how much Willow will take of Luc's loud voice and craziness. She seems to enjoy it and is always looking for his attention. When she is drinking her bottle and he says one word she will stop everything and search the room for him. She finds Luc to be comical and is a great source of entertainment for her. Luc is sort of the same way. He can't wait for her to wake up from her naps and will check on her 10 times in 20 min. He can't wait for the next moment to practice his routine. lol

Don't get me wrong Luc has his moments with her. They tend to be when other people are around. Overall I am pleased with his adjustment thus far. It is still early yet. We have only been home now for 2.5 weeks, and it is a process.

We have a very busy weekend. Our church benefit concert and pig roast is on Saturday and Sunday is Luc's 7th birthday and family party. So lots to come!

I look forward to sharing more pictures and information soon. Still to come are pictures of Willow with great Grandma and her sitting up. Stay tuned....

Hugs and blessings to all!

Andrea

P.S. The first t-shirt order is in. Yeah!!

What's new today..

Willow slept 9.5 hrs. last night. Wow! Here are some pictures of her room. My friends Mom made the bedding while we were in Taiwan. Thank you Marsha for sharing your gift with us!

This morning Willow tried squash for the first time and did pretty good. It was funny because once it was in her mouth she was not sure what to do. She understands the concept of opening her mouth so I can get the food in.

She is also very close to crawling. Today she worked her way toward a toy and did really well. She put those knees right under her butt and pushed off. She will be crusing before we know it.

We made it home and are settling in...

Willow and new friend Katie.

Joe, Michelle, Katie, Me, Paul and Willow

Fion (our guide), Me, Paul and Willow

Willow sleeping on Eva Air Flight home.

Hello Everyone,

Hope this update finds you all well!

We are finally settling in and getting back on track. We returned home on Friday early morning. The last leg of the flight from Portland to Chicago was challenging. Willow did great for most of the flight! In the last hour of the flight we were all at the end of our rope. We are happy the travel part is over and we are home.

Adjusting to the time change has been the biggest challenge. Paul and I are still finding that we are tired during the day. Willow seems to be getting on a schedule and doing better then us. She is a pure joy! Luc is adjusting well too. The road was a bit rocky when we first came home and now he absolutely loves when she is awake. They interact very well together and Willow just stares at Luc watching every move he makes. They are really cute together.

Friday, Saturday and Sunday seem like a dream to me. The only clear thing that took place this past weekend was us venturing out to church on Sunday. We found ourselves up early and motivated to go to church. It was great to see everyone and it provide Luc with some normalcy.

Visitors have been trickling in slowly, which has made things less stressful for Willow. Thanks to all who have been waiting patiently to see her. We are trying not to overwhelm her with to many people at one time.

Paul goes back to work on Friday. It will be strange for me to be with both Luc and Willow on my own, but I am up for the challenge. I think we are going to try and visit the Morton Arboretum for their Asian Celebration. It sounds great! We will see how we do getting out of the house. Lol!

Willow had her first Dr. visit yesterday and things went well. I love our Dr.! We are new at his practice and each visit he continues to build trust with me. He said Willow is doing well. She can begin stage 1 foods 3 times a day. She will only need to be on formula until she is 10 months old and then switch over to whole milk . He wants to see her on whole milk and drinking from a sippy cup by 1 year of age. She did receive one vaccination, the Hep B, and handled it well. I thought she would be exhausted and cranky, and she was so funny! We played on the floor and laughed for a good hour and a half. She was so stinkin cute! I just wanted to eat her up.

Dr. Mehdi recommends that we have her head checked out due to it being rather flat in the back. She may need band therapy (the little helmet) to help reshape her head. It seems that she was on her back a lot. Which is shocking because she loves tummy time. We watch her and do our best to keep her off her back. She sleeps on her side most of the time except when she is really out like a light, then she is on her back with her arms straight out to the side. Most times her head is turned to the side. Tomorrow is a new day with new experiences. The first time she will try Sage 1 food. YEAH!!

Blessings to all!

Andrea

P.S. If you purchased raffle tickets, there are now 3 items donated for the raffle. The stained glass piece and 2 beautiful knitted scarves. The scarves were donated by Suzie Shaddle, Paul's co-workers wife. Thanks Suzie they are beautiful!!

Leaving to come home today..

Hi Everyone,

Well, today is our last day in Taiwan. Our flight leaves this evening at 7:50pm. It is going to be a long journey home, and we are ready. I am feeling a bit sad today knowing that we are saying goodbye, for now, to Willow's homeland. We are planning on returning when she is older and feel blessed to have had this time here to appreciate were she is from. It is sort of a bittersweet feeling.

Yesterday was our AIT appointment and everything went well. After AIT we came back to the hotel and put Willow down for a nap. Then later in the day we took a cab to the Taiwan Handycraft Promotion Center. This place is amazing! We spent about 3 hrs. in there. It is 4 floors and there is so much to look at. Willow did great! She took two naps yesterday in the Ergo Carrier with Paul. Her morning nap and early evening nap. After the Handycraft Center we came back to the hotel, went to dinner, and then got Willow ready for bed and did some packing.

Willow has been doing really well. So far there have been no adjustment issues. I'm sure all of the doting and kisses can take its toll on any baby, and she seems to enjoy it.

Our plan for today is to go get breakfast, finish packing up, check out by 12:00pm and head to Taipei 101. They are calling for a small typhoon to hit the island today, so prayers that our plane is able to take off and we can begin our journey home. Fion will be picking us up at 4:20pm to head to the airport.

Thank to everyone who has sent emails to my Outlook account. Regrettably, I cannot send emails out from either of those accounts so I will do my best to reply once we return home. Also, thanks to everyone for your support, love and patience during this journey. We feel so blessed to have each and everyone of you in our lives.

Okay, enough with me getting all mushy. I am off to the shower while Paul loves up Willow. Can't wait to see everyone when we get home. We are going to take the weekend to begin the bonding with Luc and Willow. Please feel free to contact us next week sometime.

Blessings to all and Zai Jian (goodbye) for now !

Love,

Andrea

Meeting Willow for the first time...

I am going to bye pass Sunday's activities and come back to that later. Let's talk about the best part of this trip, meeting Willow for the first time.

It is now officially 24 hrs. since we met Willow and I am here to tell you she is amazing!

Let me start at the beginning, it is Monday morning and Paul and I did our usual morning thing. Wake up, get ready, go to breakfast and back to the room. Fion was due to pick us up at 11:30am to head to Taichung. It is about a 2 hr. drive on the freeway. The views of the thick green mountains were beautiful. I did my best to ask Fion all of the questions that started to pile up in my head since we have been in Taiwan. I was determined to keep conversation going. For those who know me well, I am a talker and find it challenging to stay awake in a moving car with no conversation. Things started to get quiet as we got closer to TWCA (Program III). Before we arrived Fion let us know that we would not be meeting the birth Mom. On one hand I was sad because I wanted the opportunity to meet her for Willow and on the other hand I felt far less stressed about the whole process.

When we arrived at TWCA we picked up Charidy (sp?) the representative for program III. She was very sweet. Then we headed over to the foster families home. It was a very short drive. We parked in an underground parking garage and headed up a flight of stairs. It looked like they lived in an apartment complex. The courtyard was beautiful! Fion and Charidy knocked on the door and the foster Mom, Mrs. Chang, opened the door. We all walked in and sat on the couch. That was if for me. I had not even seen Willow yet and I was already welling up. Mrs. Chang went to another room to let her daughter know we were there. She walked out of the room with Willow and brought her right to me. She put her in my arms and I lost it. Willow just looked up at me and I was in heaven. The tears just seemed to flow down my face with happiness and a sense of peace. I hugged her and kissed under her cheeks and she keep smiling and looking at us. I handed her to Paul and she just stared into Paul's blue eyes. That was it, Paul was smitten. It was so cute. Willow gets a kick out of him. He makes her laugh with ease. Then Paul handed her back to me and we asked the Mrs. Chang our questions. Over all she said that Willow is a good baby. Fion and Charidy were taking pictures like mad. The flash was going off left and right. It was so funny! My camera just sat on the table. I asked if Fion would take some pictures with my camera and she said she would give me copies of the ones she took. I was so happy to hear that because they were getting great shots.

We then took a picture with Mrs. Chang and her daughter. They said goodbye to Willow and I reached out to give them a hug. They didn't quit get what I was doing but that is okay. For me thank you and a hug was just not enough for the love and care they had provided Willow with for the past 6 months. We then left and went back to TWCA to get all of Willow's belongings and the paperwork needed for AIT tomorrow. Program III provided us with a sheet of paper with some details about her care (eating, sleeping, likes etc..). Then we left and were off to the Baby Store right down the street. We bought formula, rice cereal, a cute pair of shoes she can wear when she gets bigger, rice crackers and that's about it. Then we were headed back to Taipei.

Fion drove for 2 hrs and we didn't say one word to her. Paul, Willow and I sat in the back seat and just enjoyed every second of each other. Fion did give us the option to put her in a car seat and I opted not to. I just didn't want to let her go. Paul would hold her, then I would hold her, then back to Paul and back to me. It was like this for two hours. We had her laughing and smiling and cooing. I don't think I will ever forget it. Our hearts were over flowing with love and adoration after just a few moments. We were already in love with a picture of Willow and a dream of being with her, but to hold her in our arms, look directly into her eye and kiss her little cheeks. Wow, truly a blessing and dream come true!

After arriving back at the hotel, Paul and Fion filled out paperwork for AIT and I worked on feeding Willow. As I would give Willow the bottle the formula would just poor out of her mouth. All I can say is good thing I brought bottles from home because the hole in the nipple of the bottle was huge and it pored out faster then she could drink it. After Fion left I changed bottles and she has been eating well and very efficient. She is drinking about 5 to 6 oz. every 4 hrs. It is a combination of formula and rice cereal. She takes 2 to 3 naps a day. So far today it has been two naps. She falls asleep on her own. She is a thumb sucker so she does not need a pacifier. Yeah! She is very lovable. We gave her a bottle last night at 9:00pm and we all went to sleep. She woke up at 4:00am for a bottle, we were up with her for a short time and then back to sleep she went until 8:00am. When she gets tired she is really quiet and will actually whimper a bit. She just wants to be laid down with a blanket, her bunny and she starts to suck her thumb. Boom she is out in 2 min. Each time this happens I look to the sky and thank God for small blessings. She currently does not have any teeth, but she is drooling like crazy. I am thinking that something will be happening soon.

Okay, off to play with Willow. She just work up from her 2nd nap and Daddy is feeding her. We went to do laundry between naps and will probably go for a little walk to the store around the corner for a few things. She likes going out and looking around.

Hope everyone is going well!

Hugs,

Andrea

What we have been doing...Saturday

Good Morning from us and Good evening to you! It is actually Monday morning here in Taiwan and today is the big day. Fion will be picking us up at 11:30am to go get Willow Hsin-Yi. I am feeling a bit anxious so I thought I would write a post with more details of what we have been up to.

Saturday we woke up, got ready and headed down for breakfast. Paul and I were still not adjusted to the time change and did find ourselves napping quit a bit on this day.

The hotel offers a complimentary breakfast daily. It is not a very large buffet and there are very limited options when it comes to Western Style foods. I had scrambled eggs, and alfalfa salad with an interesting vinegar and oil dressing (not as good as mine), a steamed roll (delicious and so soft), noodles with chicken, and dim sum. To drink I had iced coffee which was excellent and finally a slice of Taiwanese Cheesecake (very light and airy). Paul was a bit more adventurous. He had a few more unique stir fries (not sure what was in them) and pretty much the same thing as me. He did try the sausage link and ham (tasted like spam) . He also tried a brown yolked egg. Paul said it is an acquired taste. To drink Paul had two frozen slushy type drinks one called FROZEN YOGURT (tasted like a dream sickle, very yummy) and the other was called FROZEN ROSE (a mix of raspberries and rose petals). They were both good, but the Frozen Yogurt was the best.

After breakfast Paul and I went for a very long walk (about two hours) and came back to the hotel and waited for our tour guide to come and take us to Yangmingshan National Park. This area is a volcanic area. The pictures above are from their. The first picture is of the fumerals which is sulfuric steam rising out of the earth. This is what provides the heat for the hot springs. The smell of sulfur is thick in the air but if you can get past the smell you will be awed by the beauty.

The second picture is of a clock made with seasonal flowers. Taiwan has 4 seasons just like we do. Right now is the summer season (HOT) which provide different flowers then fall, spring, and winter. Their winter is not like ours, it gets to about 60 f. for about a week or two. Wish that was how our winters were! This national park is famous for its botanical gardens, mountain views and hot springs. It is about 20 to 30 min. from Taipei.

The highlight of the visit was having the opportunity to take a bath in the hot springs. Hot springs are known for their detoxifying, energizing, and relaxing abilities. The hot springs are piped into various spas that are attached to restaurants. They are separated by sex, so the men go to one area and the women go to another. Paul and I brought our bathing suits, but were not allowed to wear them in the hot spring. You must shower before entering and shower when exiting the area. They provide shampoo and shower gel for you. We purchased towels. There are a few pools with different temperatures some are extremely hot, a few medium heat and one really cold. Paul remembers the temps on his and they were 45 c. (like boiling water) 39c. (medium hot) and 18 c. (very cold). It is very organic and beautiful. There are trees surrounding the area, rock walls, chairs to sit on. You can't be in the higher temps for longer then 15 min. or you will pass out. So you go from hot to cool to cold. Then there is a pool with high strength shower falls. I felt this was painful!

We were able to enjoy the hot springs for an hour. On the tour we met a man from California, a couple from Singapore and another man from South Korea. It was a unique experience that I would be willing to do again.

After we left the national part we went to the Handicraft store. We did not stay there very long to much pressure to purchase. I was starving, we had not eaten since breakfast and did all of that walking, this was putting me over the edge of no longer happy.

After arriving back at the Hotel we came to our room and took a long nap. We woke up at about 8:00pm and went out for dinner. We wanted to try a restaurant that was recommended but are not sure it was the correct place. No one spoke English, nor did they have an English menu. The waitress found a man that spoke some English and he helped us order. We had the pork and beef dumplings. They were excellent! Not nearly enough food, seeing as we did not eat lunch. I was hungry and frustrated with the communication barrier and found it difficult to eat. Paul and I walked around some more and we stopped at Starbucks. This was nice because it gave me a sense of familiarity. I purchased a Vanilla Bean Frappachino and Chocolate muffin. Paul got a Blueberry muffin and shared my drink with me. It was refreshing with the hot heat of the night! Still not having eaten enough we were back at the hotel and off to sleep.

A few side notes I am not sure I mentioned. 99% of the women wear a heel or dressy shoe of some sort, even if they are not dressed up. The first day we went walking around, I wore gym shoes and received many looks. From that point on, I've been wearing flip-flops while walking around.

I have a theory regarding restaurant signs, if the sign has its name in Chinese characters and in English, it is likely that the menu will also be that way. This way if the waitress doesn't speak English, you can point on the menu.

Sunday's details to come.... Have to get ready to pick up Willow. xoxo

We made it to Taipei, Taiwan

This is a picture of Hsing Tien Kong (Temple). This is 2 blocks from our hotel.

We arrived at 5:40am Friday morning Taiwan time. It is 13 hours ahead of those who live in Illinois. Our travel from Chicago to San Francisco was very stressful. Our Chicago to Denver flight was delayed 3.5 hrs. which would put us into Denver late for our connecting flight to San Francisco. That would have been the last flight going out of Denver to San Fran that night so we would have had to stay in Denver and catch an AM flight to San Fransisco and then catch a 6:30pm flight on Eva Air to Taiwan. When we got off the plane we went right to the departure board to see if by some strange chance our 9:20pm flight was delayed. It was not on the board, however the 8:15pm flight from Denver to San Fran was delayed and was to depart at 10:27pm.

Well God heard our prayers because the plane we were on was the plane that would have been going out to San Fran at 8:15pm. So, due to the delay in Chicago it was like a domino effect and delayed the Denver to San Fran flight. WOW! Do you think United Airlines would have seen that while we were scrambling around to find a flight to get us to San Fransisco by 1:40am to catch the EVA Air flight? Urggg. There were open seats on the plane and we made it to San Francisco with one hour to spare before boarding EVA Air at 1:40am. I am quit disappointed in United Airlines and will do my best in the future not to fly with them after this trip. They have no idea what they are doing and their customer service is horrible. On a positive note, we made it and the trip has been great so far.

EVA Air is an amazing, top notch airlines. It is so comfortable! You can recline your chair and there is a foot rest. You have your own personal touch screen TV in the back of the seat in front of you. You can watch a movie, listen to music, watch the flight information on navigation and you can play video games. I had a blast playing a game called ZUMA. I would play until my eyes got really tired and then take a nap. They provide you with a nice blanket and pillow. We also ate dinner at about 2:30am San Fran time and then at breakfast at about 4:30am Taiwan time. The food was surprisingly very good. Great flight!

After arriving in Taipei, Fion picked us up at the airport and took us to our hotel. We are staying at the Golden China Hotel in downtown Taipei. It is a very comfortable hotel. Paul and I were able to check in right away; which was great! We went up to our room and unpacked and took a long nap. At about 1:00pm we cleaned up and went down to the restaurant in the Hotel and had lunch. Except for in the Hotel most restaurants close from 2:00pm to 5:00pm every afternoon. After lunch we took a long walk around the block. Their blocks are not like our city blocks. There are a lot of little streets between each major street. There are open air food places and stores down every little street. There are scooters parked on the sidewalks and they just drive anywhere. It is crazy! I have to say I am amazed at how trusting everyone is. I'm not sure how to explain it, but the people are kind and there is a respect that everyone has for each other and for their belongings. The people who ride the scooters (there are a lot all over) they park and leave their helmets on the handles or the seat. If it is raining out and they have umbrellas they leave them in a little rack provided on the outside of the store. All of the open air restaurants that close in the afternoon are completely open. This is just not something we would see or do in the states. Here I walk into this new country so cautious and guarded to find such kind people. Don't get me wrong, I will continue to be cautious, and it is refreshing to feel safe. Hope that makes sense.

Downtown Taipei is an old city, and there is lots of construction and growth. You can tell they are working to make it look newer. The climate is HOT! When you think an 85 degree day is hot in Illinois, let me tell you it is like 3 times hotter here due to the humidity. When you walk outside the heat hits you in the face like a brick wall. While walking there is the beautiful smell of Primrose. Made me think of Hawaii. I actually picked up one of the flowers that fell off of a tree and put it in water in the room. I love the smell! It is so lush with greenery and their is mountains in the distance. So beautiful.

Back to Friday. After taking a long walk around the block we went to the Hsing Tien Temple. It is amazing there. Then we went to a bakery right by the hotel, picked up a few items and went back to our room. We watched some TV, fell asleep and woke up at 12:00am Saturday morning. We watched a few movies and went back to sleep at 3:00am and work up at 8:00am and got ready for breakfast.

This post is so long so I will fill you in on what we did on Saturday a bit later. It is now 3:15am on Sunday morning and I am wide awake. I am glad that we have HBO in the room so I have something to watch. I am going to go watch the Producers now. lol

Today (Sunday) Michelle and her husband will be in from Seattle. They are picking up their precious daughter Katie on Tuesday. We are staying in the hotel so we will be hanging out with them a little later today. Paul and I are going to go to Taipei 101 (tallest building in the world) and in the evening we are going to one of the largest night markets in Taipei. I believe Michelle and her husband are going to go with us. Things are rather reasonable here. I will talk more about the exchange rate in a later post.

One more day before we meet our Willow!!

Blessings to all,

Andrea

Getting ready to leave for Taiwan..

Wow, time has passed so quickly since we found out about our final ruling. Paul and I are leaving tomorrow afternoon for Taiwan. I have lots to do so I am going to try and keep this post short. We will arrive in Taiwan on Friday morning at 5:20 am. Here is some information to help you figure out the time difference. Taiwan is 13 hours ahead of us. This means that it will be 4:20pm on Thursday night when we arrive in Taiwan. We will be picking up Willow on Monday the 14th in the afternoon. Please keep us in your thoughts as we take this long journey. I will do my best to update the blog as often as I can. We will return home next Friday in the very early AM.

Thank you to everyone who has purchased raffle tickets and ordered t-shirts. I placed the first t-shirt order today and they will be ready in about two in a half weeks. Very exciting!

Okay, off to continue packing.

Blessings,
Andrea

THE FINAL RULING IS IN!!!!!

Dear Family and Friends,

What a great day July 2nd has turned out to be. Not only is it my Dad's birthday, but it is the day we received that long awaited email from Tien letting us know our Final Ruling is in, and we will be picking up our daughter in less then 12 days. Yes, you read that right 12 days!!! We need to be in Taiwan no later then July 13th.

More details to follow...

If you are interested in ordering a t-shirt please drop me an email or call me. My friend Tracey will be ordering the t-shirts most likely before we leave. I would like to have them when we get back with Willow Hsin-Yi Hedstrom. As of yesterday she is officially our daughter. Yeahhhhh!

Blessings,
Andrea