The Last Box!

The Last Box has been taken down! For Christmas last year I purchased a whole bunch of small brown craft paper boxes and decorated them all with the various steps that we'd need to go through in order to bring home Violet. We started with DTC and went all the way through Travel approval. Inside each box was a special surprise for Jeremy and Madeline- a little rhyme and a little something- one box had a paper telling us to go out to Chinese food for dinner, another box had a gift certificate to a book store and a note telling us to buy a book for Violet, another was a "last date night for awhile" for Jeremy and I. And then came TA.

We decided to tell Maddie together that we had gotten TA. She has been waiting anxiously for her sister so we have been explaining the steps as best we can so she knew along the way what we were waiting for- at least by name. She also knew very clearly that "TA" meant "we're going to China."

She had been checking the last several days in the mailbox for our TA, convinced it would come by US post. Jeremy typed up a letter saying "To Jeremy, Kelli and Madeline from CHINA, This is your TA", and put it in an envelope and addressed it and put it in our mailbox.

When we got home from School that day we told Maddie to check the mailbox...She found it!

All the while saying "nothing behind my back....there is nothing behind my back...." When she opened it, she could recognize the letters "T" and "A", and as soon as she realized what it was, she started dancing around the living room singing "we're going to China! Travel approval!! We're going to China!"

Now all the boxes are done, all that is left is to finish getting ready for Travel!

The big prize this time around, a new suitcase for Maddie- a little hard sided one painted like a ladybut, with wheels that she can ride on in the aiprort if she gets tired!