Yum, Yum-You've Heard Of Frog Eye Salad

How about Fish Eye Salad...Look real close. We were all starving before this but after seeing it we lost our appetites. We also lost the commitment to eat Korean at this point. Outback and Subway here we come.

A Little Bit On Korea

This trip is very overwhelming.
I though I was prepared, but the poverty is absolutely eye opening.
The Korean people on a whole are very friendly and helpful.
They love little white children.
The food is not my favorite.
The are awake at all hours of the day and night.
It seems like 10 hour work days are typical.

Hello World-Meet Princess Isabella Eun Jin!

Karen-We Have The Same Social Worker

Here she is. She was so happy that I wanted to take her picture.
She now has Aspen's care packages.

Spending Wonderful Time With OUR DAUGHTER

Hello All!
We are on our way to breakfast, I will try and stop by this internet cafe later today and tell you all about it. (Our hotel does not have internet...)
She is adorable and has such a fun personality. She only gave us one moment of not being sure if she would let us hold her. After that she let us all hold her freely. She obviously loves her foster family. When she saw her foster sisters she would give them HUGE happy grins. I am so happy that she has had them. They have taken such good care of her. It turns out that our foster mother actually has two older daughters, both seem to be in the 25ish range.

How Many Priceless Moments Will You Have

Korea Adoption Costs
Application and Home Study Fees
Pre-Application / Formal Application Fee $25 / $100
Adoption Training classes $200
AAC Program Fee Phase One $2,000
Home Study
Original $2,000 Submitted with formal application

Total $3,300 to $4,325

Upon Assignment
Korean Fee $12,000
Communication Fee $100
A.A.C. Program Fee Phase Two $2,000
Special Donation - ESWS $2,400
Post Placement Fees (Out of State Families) $300

Post Placement Retainer Fee (Refunded at Finalization) $500

Total
$19,500 to $20,200
Other Fees
I.C.P.C. (out of state families) $300
USCIS Fees** $750 includes one adult fingerprint
Fingerprints per person** $80
Court processing Fee$162
Birth Certificate Fee $37

Meeting My Daughter For The First Time In South Korea-PRICELESS

Tell everybody I'm on my way

Tell everybody I'm on my way
New friends and new places to see
With blue skies ahead, yes I'm on my way
And there's no where else that I'd rather be

Tell everybody I'm on my way
And I'm loving every step I take
With the sun beatin' down, yes I'm on my way
And I can't keep this smile off my face

Guess Who Is Wide Awake At This Hideous Hour

That would be me!!!! Getting ready to go to South Korea!
We get to meet Isabella for the first time on Korea's Tuesday morning at 10 AM.
Karen you will have to figure out the time difference!
It is better than Christmas, I was awake all night...

We Leave Bright And Early Sunday Morning...

Did I mention that I HATE flying? I may end up living in Korea. I know I can manage the flight from here to SFO. I will be able to get on the flight leaving SFO for ICN but once I have endured the long flight over the OCEAN I am not able to convince myself at this point that I can willingly and knowingly get back on the airplane...
AGHHH!
Why didn't I learn the Korean language...

Thanks Lucky Mama!

Yes, I am leaving in 5 days. I still can't believe it.

Could There Be A Boy In Our Future?

So recently my son has been saying that I am getting a baby girl and he wants a baby boy.
When we watched the AAC adoption videos, the couple got twins. He saw them and told me that one was my girl and the other was his boy...
He is so cute.
I have told my husband a few times that I would like to have a boy. He says NO...
Today when we were eating I asked Jackson if he had told his dad that he wanted a brother. He said yes he had.
Usually my husband would say, No-we are not having another one.
Today he did not say that.
Although right now at this moment I cannot say I could/would want to adopt again, who knows what will happen in the future.
This adoption has been so emotional but we shall see...
I would love to have a little boy, just wish someone would put him on my doorstep.

Foster Family Gifts

I will have to post this picture when we get to Korea. I have the things distributed between three different bags and at my moms house. I don't want to unpack to get a photo...
So sorry.

Thank You Chocolates

Sometimes in the middle of an ordinary life
love gives you a fairy tale

oh how happy i will be
when i adopt you
and you adopt me

Some babies are delivered by storks-Some by miracles-And some are delivered by love.

These are the boxes of chocolates that we are giving as thank yous to those along our journey.
The boxes each have a picture of Isabella and one of the above quotes on the back side.

Cute Things From Grandma

It's Been A While Since I Posted Swimsuits...Here Are Some New Ones

Karen, What Do You Think Of The Hat!

Thank You to a dear friend for some very wonderful gifts!

What do you think of my handsome model!!! He is ever so helpful.

Just In Case

We don't know if Isabella uses a binki in Korea or not, but decided to have some on hand just in case.
We don't know what will soothe her so rather be prepared with anything and everything that might provide her some comfort, especially for the long plane ride home.

Dontations For Eastern

One Week From Today

I will be on my way to meet my little girl! It will be nice to have our missing piece home!

8 More Days

I can't believe that tomorrow we will be one week from travel!

Congratulations

to my two adoption buddies! T and K you are both on your way!!!

Only

10 more days until we leave for Korea!
I will try and post while we are there. My sister also has my blog info in case I can't figure it out so I will email her so that there are some type of updates!

3 Moms-A Letter For Isabella Eun Jin

If there is ever a tomorrow when we are not together there is something you must always remember: you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think, but most important of all, even if we are apart, I'll always be with you.

(Christopher Robin to Pooh)

Dear Isabella Eun Jin,
Not every girl has 3 mothers that love her.
Your story is an adoption story.
A story about true love and heartache.
So many people will love you throughout your life but I want you to always remember your three moms and the complete love that each of us has for you.
Your birth mother. What a sweet soul she must have had to create a birth plan that included finding a loving family that could care for you when she could not. She spent a few short days with you. I am sure not enough to take away the pain of giving her daughter to another family. She will wonder about you and how you are growing. We may never know how many times in her life that she will stop what she is doing and think about you. The love a mother has for her daughter is in your heart. She will love you in her heart even if she does not have the opportunity to see you again. Some adopted children do have the opportunity to later meet their biological mother or father, sometimes though they know that it is going to be to painful and they are unable emotionally to meet with the child that they had to let go. Pain and grief can be so great that it damages a soul and a mother or father may seem unfeeling or indifferent. We are traveling down a difficult path and sometimes we do not heal from the things we have experienced. Walk softly with your mother, learn acceptance and love for her. I have a great respect for your first mother. Without her love for you we would not have you in our lives. I hope you do have the chance to meet her someday, I hope to meet her with you so that I can thank her for allowing us the honor of raising you. There are so many different cultures and values in this world, I hope you will not judge your birth mother and understand that she made the best decisions that she could for you based on her beliefs, values and resources. Your Korean name was taken from your mother's family. Eun Jin Lee. We will talk about her throughout your life, from the time you are small, and as you continue to grow. Some of the things we tell you about her are personal and we will not share with anyone else outside our family. We will honor her and give her respect for being your first mother. My heart hurts for her and I wish that I could also take her in my arms and love her. Remember through life that some decisions we make last a lifetime.
Your foster mother. You were given to your foster mom when you were a very tiny baby. She has taken care of you for about 11 months. We have pictures of her with you. You can see in her face the love and adoration she has for you. She smiles at you with pride. She loves you so much, she was heartbroken when she found out that your little body may need surgery for your heart. You can see that she takes time and care in dressing you. She dresses you like a little girl. She gets up in the night to feed you. She wants you to be part of a loving family and is teaching you about love by taking wonderful care of you. She will be devastated when we come to pick you up. She has given you affection. She comforts you when you are sad. She encourages you as you grow. She has fed you, bathed you, taken care of all your needs. She has given up sleep to take care of you in the middle of the night and early in the morning. She will miss you when she has turned you over to us. She will think of you throughout her life and wonder how you are doing. We will be able to send her photos and life updates about you, she will at least know that you are being taken care of.
Your adoptive mother-Oh how I love you... I love you like a mother loves her newborn. You coming to me has truly been a labor of love. I cannot wait to meet you and discover the little girl that you are. I hope to give you a happy and secure life. I hope you will feel how much we love you.
I will continue this letter after you have been with us for a time so that I can tell you all the things I love about you.
Until I have you in my arms, I trust your foster mother to keep you safe.
Love,
Your Mama

Give me the strength, knowledge and compassion to raise this little girl. Help me to understand how to give her happiness and joy.

It's Official

We got our travel call...

Katherine Heigl & Husband Adopting a Girl

Almost exactly a year ago, musician Josh Kelley said he and wife Katherine Heigl weren't talking about starting a family.

Looks like somebody changed the subject.

"It is a little girl and she'll be 10 months at the end this month," Heigl said on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in an episode to air Friday, announcing her impending adoption. "She was actually born the day before me in November, which I thought was really serendipitous and just kind of like a sign. I realized just recently that I basically forfeited my birthday for the rest of my life."

The couple are adopting a special-needs girl from Korea; Heigl's sister also was adopted from Korea.

Heigl, 30, who married Kelly in December 2007, recently hosted a baby shower for Ellen Pompeo. And last week, Heigl got a leave of absence from Grey's Anatomy to film the movie Life As We Know It.

"Her name is Naleigh," Heigl said. "Well, I am naming her after my mother and sister Nancy, Leigh. So we call her Naleigh."

Heigl's new daughter will be coming "real soon," she said.

" I wanted to tell everybody so you don't think I stole a Korean baby," she said, laughing.

Travel Time!

I talked to Christie today, she said that it will take Eastern 24-48 hours to pick up our babe's visa.
She said I can plan our travel! Nothing is holding us up now!
We are leaving for Korea on Sunday, September 27. We will arrive early evening on Monday, September 28.
We will be leaving for home on Friday, October 2 to arrive early afternoon on Saturday, October 3!
Now I've got to find a hotel as the Eastern Guest House is not available for the dates of travel we have chosen.

I Can Almost Breathe Again!

Hooray, Hooray, our baby girl's visa was issued "yesterday" in Korea!
This is sooo fantastic as it means everything is done and all we do now is wait for our travel call.
I am beside myself. I cannot think about it to much or I get emotional.
I cannot imagine that I am going to be meeting my baby very soon!

Not Issued Yet

I called this morning and spoke with a gentleman about Isabella Eun Jin's visa. He said it has not been issued yet. He went on to say that the computer system had not been updated yet so to call tomorrow morning as "generally" they are not denied...
Here's hoping for tomorrow!

Visa Interview Set For Tomorrow! (Wednesday Sept . 9)

This is so exciting! I wasn't going to call today to check because I called the Embassy in Korea last night and they had not set the interview yet. They were still waiting for the file to be returned from Eastern.
I did call at the "beginning" of Korea's business day so it looks like they must have returned it sometime during our last night!
It's funny the Visa Interview is set for 1:00 same time that I am having a new job interview!

The Hardest Letter I Think I Will Ever Write

How do you write a letter to your daughter's birth mother. What can you say? There is no way to put into words how grateful you are for her decision to place her daughter for adoption. I would never be able to convey just how lucky we are to take this baby into our home and raise her. There is not enough words to show your compassion for the difficult decision she had to make.
I feel inadequate to write such a letter, although I will have to. I want to have the letter put in our daughter's file at Eastern so that if by chance her mother does inquire about her she will have comfort in knowing that we absolutely love this daughter that is tied to us both, by birth, by adoption, by love.

I hope my husband feels this way...

This is a letter that I found on another mom's blog. It really touched my heart.

The other day hubby looked over at me and said “Thank you”. While that’s always nice to hear I honestly wasn’t sure what he was thanking me for. He went on to tell me this.

I was cleaning up my office and found all the paperwork we had from the adoption. It really hit me how much work you did to make this all happen. You were the one who had the idea and knew it was what we needed to do and then you went after it. You did all the research, filled out all the forms and gathered the documents, you interviewed the agencies and set up all the appointments. You pushed hard to make the adoption happen and you pushed me and it was a lot of work. Anyway while I was looking at the huge pile of paperwork I heard baby girl in the other room giggling and playing with the kids and I realized how much we needed her and how happy I am that she is ours. So I just wanted to say thank you. Thank you for giving me my daughter.

A Conversation With Jackson

Jackson was sitting eating his breakfast, he got a frustrated look on his face and said,
"Amber, when are those DAMN people going to give us our baby?"
I said, "I don't know, I sure wish they would."
Jackson said, "They need to call us and give her to us."
I said, "I know, you are right."

(He obviously watches to much of That 70s Show...) Although he asks me everyday when we can go to Korea to get our baby.

We Are So Lucky

Last week Jackson and I were waiting at Joelee's school to pick her up. The flag was at half mast or is it called half staff for Senator Ted Kennedy. Jackson was looking at it and said, "Why is the flag broken?" I told him it was probably old and from the weather. The entire edge of the flag was tattered and the flag was faded with age. I told him it would be nice if the school had a new one.
Fast forward to today. We got to the school early to wait for Joelee. While we were sitting there, Mr Miller came out with his class in tow. They stopped at the flag pole, and made a circle around it. He started bringing the flag down. We watched at he put up a brand new beautiful flag. After he put it up he showed the 6th grade class how to fold the old flag correctly. Once it was folded he had them all put their right hands over their hearts and he led them in the Pledge of Allegiance. I tell you I was bawling...I could not stop the tears. I love this teacher and am so glad that he is teaching our children to have respect for our country and our flag. It was an awesome sight seeing the class around the flag. They all had to look up to see the flag as it was directly overhead. I am glad I did not have my camera as this is a picture I would rather save in my heart.
We are so lucky to live in this country and have the right to freedom, to have the opportunity and choices that so many others do not have.

It's Time

I have considered going private for quite some time. I feel that now is the time. We are going to be posting in the near future a bunch of pictures with family and also about where we are going and things we are doing. My other two kids each have blogs that are private to protect them and allow them to keep a record that they can choose who and when to share it.
Although I do want everyone to see my joy at finally getting Isabella, I feel that for her sake, her life should be protected and shared as she chooses. Adoption is a personal thing for each person. I want her to know her story and if she decides she wants everyone to see it from here on out at a later date that will be her decision. I need to respect her feelings and allow the privacy that she is not able to voice an opinion on at this time.

I will be sending out blog invitations to those of you that I know or have contact with.
If you would like an invitation leave a comment on this post...
Thanks,
Amber
P.S. If you want an invite leave your email address in the comments, I will not publish comments from this post.