Cover that up!

No, this isn't a dirty post. Well, not in the way you think. When we packed up our stuff in Beijing, I finally noticed how very ratty our ironing board looked. It was so dirty and torn that the ayi had been ironing on top of a towel for months. Oops. So, now that we are in Taipei and without an ayi (doing our own ironing - yikes!), I had to do something about that cover.

The fabric is a piece that I bought in a remnant pile at a great fabric store in Chicago. It was ridiculously cheap, and I loved it so. Still do, in fact, and I have loads left.

I still haven't quite gotten the hang of making these covers yet, but this one is functional and not at all ratty - all good things.

Miss G's Nursery

All is nearly ready. With the exception of window treatments (a blackout shade and some curtains), the nursery is ready for our baby girl.

She has colorful art...


Squishy things to play and snuggle with...


Books to read, pop up creatures to discover...


Oh wait, how about a little tour?


Are you ready to come home baby G?

The Family Way

During my crazy layover in Hong Kong Monday, I picked up this book - a killing time in the airport book, a 'life's too hard for non-fiction right now' book. This chick lit was all about babies - getting pregnant, not getting pregnant. It was light enjoyable reading, until I got to nearly the end. One of the couples in the book (who were having troubles conceiving) took a buisness trip to Hong Kong and decided to "go visit China" on a lark. Once there, they somewhow made their way to an orphanage where they spied a little girl, whom they decided to adopt. But they had to stay in China for two extra months to get all of the paperwork done, and it was oh so cumbersome, with all of those "security checks" and everything.

As the Brits say, bollucks.

What kind of crappy ass research did this author do before he plunged headfirst into the world of international adoption? We have friends considering adoption who are British citizens. From what they say, it it even harder and takes longer to get approved for international adoption in Great Britain than in the United States, and it certainly could not be done while touring China. And what is this picking out your baby business? Ridiculous.

The reality is one full year of paperwork: home studies, and police clearances, financial records, testimonies from everyone you have ever known, personal statements, birth certificates, marriage certificates, fingerprints, child abuse clearances... Then when you finally submit your application, it is another 13 months (if you are expedited, MUCH longer if not) of waiting for a match made for you by the China Center for Adoption Affairs.

As you wait for your referral, you gather all of the books and supplies, you buy a crib and decorate the nursery. You child-proof your house so she will be safe. You get it all ready (but never truly ready). Even after all that is done, she is still not here. And your husband gets anxious and says, wow, this is crazy. And your family stops even asking when she is coming because it is too long of a time to sustain the anticipation. Your friend comes over for dinner and says - this is too big of a house for only two of you. And your husband says - soon it will be four of us though, when Gioia and Frankie arrive! And your heart leaps a bit at that, but then constricts with worry as you think about how long until then, how much we must get through until then.

The one year anniversary of our log in date is tomorrow.

^$%$#%@#$ China

I have been stuck in Hong Kong for four hours now because China decided to hold military demonstrations over Shanghai. It could be worse. I could be sitting on the runway.*

But now I will not get to my hotel until 3 am, then up for an early client meeting.

YAAAARGH.

*That happened this summer. I was stuck on a Air China flight for six hours after landing en route for a weather delay. At 1:30 a.m., just before I stormed off and tried to hitchhike to Beijing, the plane took off.

Funny Things

We are much more settled. The (new) washing machine and dryer work great. The internet is on; we have the web AND our beloved Vonage phone up and running. So, we now have had more time to experience normal life in Taipei. Here are some snipits from the past few days.

* While ordering baozi from a neighborhood stall, we turned around to see a motor scooter with two women and a medium-sized pig standing in the floorboard. This was two blocks from the Taipei 101 building.

* Bought a chicken from the grocery store and took it home to roast, only to find that it still had its head and feet. I made Chris chop off the head, but then I overcame my squeamishness, picked it up and helped it to sing a ballad. Chris was not amused.

* Chris was walking home on Friday and saw a line of little kindergarten kids crossing the street in neat little rows (like Madeline). They were diligently following their teacher. The very last one in the line caught sight of him, however, and immediately burst out laughing. Bwa ha ha! You silly looking man. How funny are you? So many little kids here are fascinated by us. Pointing and commenting while their parents turn away in embarrassment.

* Tried to take a taxi to IKEA. The first cabbie did not understand. At all. For the second cab, we stood at the window to make sure we had someone who could get us there. While we were talking, a lady came out of Starbucks, came us to us and said - can I help? She talked to the cab driver for us, made sure he knew the streets, and then went back inside to her latte with a wave. If you haven't lived in China, perhaps you don't know how astounding this is. But it was BIG. Bottom line is that Taiwan people are unbelievably nice and helpful.

That's all for now folks. Have a lovely weekend.

Yarn-a-holic

It seems that I do, indeed, have a problem. We have carried my *sizeable* yarn stash though two moves now. Each time, I try to pare it down, to remove the skeins that I know will never be knit. Yet I still have enough materials to clothe a small army.

But these skeins, these balls of angora and sari silk, are so lovely. It hurts me to give them away. Surely one day I will work through it all, right?


We bought this great antique pharmacy chest in Beijing. It is a massive piece of furniture, so big that it had to be craned up the side of our new apartment building and brought in through the window.


The chest has tons of little draws with compartments inside - to separate the herbs from the roots in Chinese medicine you see. Except we have to herbs, no roots. All we have is a tremendous pile of yarn.


And so, my friends, if you come to visit, you will not see my towering pile o' yarn. It will all be safely hidden away, disguised as Chinese powders and potions. But if you peek inside...

Tai Bei Ren

We are now officially in Taiwan. Chris arrived last week, and we are settling into our new apartment in Taipei. We have had some minor hiccups. The washing machine died, for example. Chris tried valiantly to fix it, but it seems that we may need to make a trip to Costco tomorrow for a new machine. Speaking of Costco, that place is the bomb diggety if you are homesick for a taste of the US of A.

In other news, the social worker came to visit on Saturday. Once we get our Taiwan police clearances and FBI fingerprints updated, we are ready for our referral. Only two (?) months away! Yipes!

Taipei is going to be a great city for our family. It is way less polluted and stressful than Beijing. And it is so dog friendly! Everyone is walking a dog here - big ones, little ones, yippy ones (see picture), silent ones. Frankie will fit in just fine when he is allowed to come over. For now, an empty dog bed and a crib await our babies who are far away.