Today's lesson in opposites (aka the camera dilemma)

We have not done much preparation for our trip to China, but one thing that has become clear to me over the past year or so is that I will not be able to carry my beloved digital SLR every place we go. It's a great camera, but it's big and it's heavy. Too big. Too heavy.

So, for Christmas, Rob got me a teeny little camera. It is so teeny that I can carry it in my pocket ... and it's 10 megapixel so the images are really quite good. It can also take short video, which will be nice for our first days with Nora. There are a couple of tradeoffs though. The big camera has better optics and it's MUCH faster; it powers up instantly and takes some crazy number of shots per second. The little one, you push the button and wait for what feels like an eternity. I took it with us to the dog park once and came away with a bunch of pictures of Maddie's tail (the rest of her was out of the frame).

I'm determined to learn to use the little one, though, because there is no way I'm going to schlep the giant camera and a baby and a boatload of baby stuff all across China. Now what I wonder about is video. Is it worth it or will we never watch? Is a video camera something we'll want or can we get by with video clips from the Elph? What about those one-use video cameras from CVS?

Xin Nian Kuai Le!

Happy Chinese New Year!!

The photo above is a picture of the CNY greeting cards that I ordered from our local FCC group. If my secret pal is seeing this, it will probably give away who I am, but oh well, there was only one month left anyway!

Our original plan was to make a Chinese dinner and watch A Chinese Tall Story on dvd. Unfortunately, Maddie came down with a stomach bug on Friday night and threw a bit of a wrench in our weekend plans. Poor thing threw up at least 10 times between 10:30 pm and 3:30 am. We took her to the vet the first thing Saturday, then spent the rest of the day watching her and trying to get her to drink Pedialyte. She's better today, so we spent the afternoon doing all the things we didn't get done yesterday. We'll probably still watch the movie, but Chinese food isn't going to happen unless it's take out.

... pink knitted booties topped off with bling, these are a few of my favorite things

Wendy from the Dec DTC group has an Etsy store called The HeiWen Way where she and her friend sell all kinds of neat soaps and stationery and stuff. My favorite item was these baby booties -- I just had to order them for Nora! They are so cute with the "bling" at the top. They must look suspiciously like a dog toy, though; Maddie is fascinated (or maybe she just likes the bling?). I hope that she doesn't try to steal them off Nora's feet!

Do you ever wonder if it's a test?

We received our home study update in the mail yesterday, so we have everything we need to apply for our I-171H extension. Knowing that our local USCIS office has been known to experience periods of slowness (our first I-171H took 11-1/2 weeks!), I want to be sure to get it all ready and sent off this weekend. I've read every bit of instruction we've received - messages from our home study agency, messages from our placement agency, a mailing we received from an adoption support network that I must have subscribed to at some point. Of course, all were different. Here's what I think we need to send:

• Cover letter
• Completed I-600A application
• Photocopy of our previous I-171H approval
• Photocopy of previous fingerprint expiration information
• Photocopy of each of our birth certificates
• Photocopy of our marriage certificate
• Two photocopies of our original home study
• Original + 1 copy of our home study update
• Original + 1 copy of our home study addendum
• Check for $685, payable to "Department of Homeland Security"

At the top of the cover letter it is supposed to say either "EXTENSION" or "ORPHAN". I'm not sure which is right, so ours will say both. Apparently "EXTENSION" needs to be highlighted and "ORPHAN" needs to be green.

As I am so carefully following every instruction, I have to wonder is this real? Does it really make things easier for the USCIS? ~or~ Is it some sort of test by which they weed out the lazy or uncommitted? ~or~ Is it purely for entertainment and they just laugh when we do this?

Really?? Why??

So, I was catching up on my email backlog this evening and came across Tuesday's email newsletter from Cookie magazine. First, I want to say that I love Cookie magazine and one of the things I like best is recommendations for kid-friendly playlists of real music. So when I read "... listen to Rockabye Baby's lullaby versions of Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Nirvana, The Ramones or the Pixies" I got all excited and clicked on the link.

It is not nearly as cool as it sounds. It is all that great music (and more - U2, The Cure, Smashing Pumpkins...) on what sounds like a xylophone or something. WHY??? Is there some reason that kids can't listen to the original music as long as you keep them away from questionable lyrical content? And why is there a need to adapt the Beach Boys for children - does that really need cleaning up? It was practically children's music to begin with!

This is one for the mini-van list probably (i.e. things I say that we'll never do, but will probably renege on once there's a baby in our lives).

Thoughts of Spring

As cold as it has been the past couple of weeks, it was really fun to receive something Springish in the mail!

Danielle sent Nora this cute kitty cat bucket hat and gardening gloves - hot pink and apple green, our favorite colors! I sure hope that Nora likes hot pink and apple green. Those two colors account for about 80% of her stuff.

Bedtime for baby

Thank you to our Dec DTC secret pal for the great box of bedtime goodies! She sent a lavender ladybug fleece blanket, Johnson's bedtime lotion, a baby toothbrush with mixed fruit toothpaste and a sweet board book called Mommy Always Loves You.

I really wanted to smell the lotion, but was foiled by a safety seal that I decided that I should leave alone so that the lotion is kept fresh for Nora. I'm sure it is soothing and wonderful, though. In my imagination, it smells either like babies or lavender.

It's never to early to start the brainwashing

This week I had the opportunity to go on a recruiting trip to our alma mater, the University of Illinois. Traveling there is sort of crummy -- it involves two flights, one on a prop plane -- but it was great to visit for a little while. I also got Nora her very first Illini-wear, in two sizes so that she is never without some Illini orange!

This breaks my heart - please help

...but I know that I am a good dog and I just want to go home.

I'm sure by now everyone has seen the Pedigree adoption drive commercial. If you haven't, you can view it here. This is a truly outstanding commercial - I cry every time I see it (Rob would tell you that "cry" is an understatement, I SOB), but more importantly it has moved me to action.

I went to Pedigree's website and donated food to a shelter near our home (only $9.99 for each 22lb bag of Pedigree and they match donations if you order through their site!). And now I'm telling you, so you can do the same. Or, if you'd prefer, you can also donate to the ASPCA or the Humane Society of the United States. I wanted to adopt a shelter dog, but have been told that three pets is enough for now.

I should probably add that Maddie does not eat commercial kibble. We lost our two previous dogs to cancer and after doing some research I concluded that it was not the most healthful choice for Maddie. It is a convenient, economical option for a shelter situation, though, and I give Pedigree a lot of credit for their efforts in this area.