BRINGING "E" HOME: April 2011

She had her phone so she could take pix and call Grampa. She had kleenex because she has been sneezing all day long. Everyone is jealous of her flat little tummy.... I had one of those - when I was six, like her. NEVER AGAIN, DANG IT!

ElleAnna Suo - What Does Her Name Mean?

She must have an "E" name because she is the fifth grandchild. The other four are boys - she is the only girl. The boys' names each start with A, B, C, and D.

"Elle" are the last four letters of both my name and my sister's name. It means "God is my Light". My boys intend to call her Elle most of the time - pronounced Ellee.

"ElleAnna" means "The Lord has Answered" - which is true as there have been many prayers about this sweet little girl. It is pronounced Ellee-Awnuh.

"Anna" is part of Hannah and Johanna which were the names of three very special people in my family's history.

"Suo" was the name given to her by the orphanage. It was her first name there. It is pronounced Swoh. It means "lock".

Our Adoption Timeline

Began Paperchase - January 2006
Did Homestudy - February 2006
Fingerprinted/USCIS Application Submitted - March 27, 2006
USCIS Approval - June 12, 2006
Our Dossier Mailed to China (DTC) - June 28, 2006
Logged into China System (LID) - July 12, 2006
Had to Re-Do Fingerprints at USCIS - Expiring - April 9, 2007
Found E on Our Agency's Newest Special Needs (SN) List - June 15, 2007
Letter of Intent (LOI) and Updated Paperwork Sent to China - July 13, 2007
Learned that our LOI is Lost in the CCAA Somewhere - Devastating - September 4, 2007
Letter of Approval/Acceptance (LOA) Arrived - October 2, 2007
Travel Approval - October 22, 2007
Reserved Our Plane Tickets - October 31, 2007
Arrived in China - November 15, 2007
Family Day - November 19, 2007
Consulate Appointment - November 26, 2007
Home with Elle - November 28, 2007
Citizenship Certificate Arrived - January 7, 2008

BRINGING "E" HOME

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Cartwheels While Waiting

Elle - Waiting for the Red Carpet to Begin

Olivia's Prom - 2011

Alex and Olivia - Her Prom 2011

On The Road (As Usual) 04/01/2011