wow time flies

Here is Katie at 5 and a half months. It has been pure joy getting to know her. She is starting solid foods, rolling over on her own, telling stories, smiling all the time(unless she is hungry) is sleeping around 8 hours a night plus a couple naps during the day, is the center of attention anywhere we go.

We spent a week at family and getting them to have their Katie fix, that was awesome, although our girl got a little too used to the attention and on the drive home and for a couple days after that she demanded face to face attention all her waking hours, but she is normalized now, heh, if I didn't know better I would be tempted to say you can be "loved too much" LOL.

On the China front they have finished March 22, we are speculating that by April 2010 we should be close. I think we can safely say that Julia is conceived and is being carried by her birthmom at this point, so we are praying she will feel loved, nourished, and guarded during this time. When we get her, it will seem almost like having twins as their ages should only be 4-5 months apart, we think!

We are still awaiting court date times to zip back down to South Carolina to finalize the adoption of Katie. We have been told to NOT bring her, due to passport regulations changing, and the risk we might not be able to re-enter Canada.

We are still thinking through whether we should(or will even be able) to bring Katie to China. Her passport and citizenship stuff may not be done, so it could be a moot point, and there are pros and cons on either side. It would be great for Katie to meet her sister right away, and her presence could be a soothing thing for Julia, on the other hand it is a trip and a half and to have a baby one way and 2 on the way back is intimidating. Having Julia just have us for the first 2 weeks will be good for us to be able to handle whatever issues may come attachment wise without having to worry about caring for Katie. Keeping Katie away from extra germs etc. while in a foreign country isn't a bad thing either. Then it seems sad to not have Katie in pics with us in China,back and forth, back and forth LOL!

On a dad front, it is sooo wonderful to be a dad, I can't wait each day to have that spot of drool or little bit of spit up on my shirt, to me it is a badge I proudly wear...to get that smile when she first wakes up and sees me, is indescribable, or when she hugs or reaches out and touches my face(that moment is often broken with her making a grab for the glasses, or at the least wiping a drool covered finger across the lenses). It was tough being at camp and not seeing her each day(and yes I missed you too Cara :) )but camp was awesome, and it will be great when she is able to be out there.

My goal had been to post at least once a month on the blog, but summer camp, and work and holidays has limited that, but hopefully remedy that here on in.