We have travel dates!

Well, our consulate appointment is finally set for February 12! The consulate said it would take 48 hours to confirm the request, and it took all 48 of those hours, plus the MLK holiday, to get back to us!

It looks like we will arrive in Beijing on February 1 for a couple of days of sightseeing, and then we will fly to Kunming on February 4. We should meet Melissa on Monday, February 5, although we have heard that our agency often goes ahead and schedules the meeting for the day you arrive, but doesn't tell you that until you land in Kunming! But we will be ready: Suzanne will use the diaper bag as her purse during the entire trip, which will be quite an adjustment for someone who has been carrying around half the house in her purse since she was fifteen! But we'll wait to put the diaper stuff in until we're actually on our way to Kunming so that we're not carrying diapers (but no baby) to The Great Wall.

Meanwhile, we've been packing, and packing, and packing. We've never taken three weeks to pack for a trip, not even when Suzanne had to ship fifteen cases of equipment across the country for work. We have been warned that it's difficult to find any over-the-counter medications, as well as disposible bibs and bottle liners, in China, so we have been advised to take ANYTHING we think we might need, including antibiotics and healthy snacks. Everyone we know who has traveled to China to adopt has come down with some sort of cold, bronchitis, flu, or stomach ailment, so we are bringing stuff to treat ourselves and the baby for all of these conditions. When you add that to the two sizes of clothing we're bringing for Melissa, the winter coats for the freezing cold weather in Beijing, and the normal stuff needed to travel with a baby, well, that adds up to A LOT OF STUFF! But WHO CARES?!!! It just means it's almost time to go get Melissa!!!!!