We found out today that our Giving and Receiving Ceremony (the actual adoption) will take place on Thursday morning!! That means we get to see our little girl the day after we get there (we get there at 10:35 pm). Just wanted to share the good news!

Pitt & Jolie Visit Vietnamese Orphanage

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Pitt, Jolie spend Thanksgiving in Vietnam


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WE GOT IT!!!

I just wanted to let everyone know that we got our travel visas (which is just a large sticker in our passports) and our plane tickets yesterday!!!! Everything is moving along! Wish us luck on our journey to our little angel!

Time Zones and Flight Times

OK, after looking at some time zone maps and some really odd math (I really don't like math that has to do with hours, minutes, or any other type of time) I think I have an idea of how long our flights are going to be. Springfield is GMT/UTS -6, Seoul is GMT/UTS +9 & Hanoi is GMT/UTS +7. This means that if it is 12pm on Saturday here, then it is 3pm on Sunday in Seoul and 1pm on Sunday in Hanoi. Since all times on our schedule are in local time, Seth and I were confused as to how long we would actually be in flight.

So here it is (I think). . .

St. Louis to Chicago: 1 hour
Chicago layover: 3 hours
Chicago to Seoul: 14 hours
Seoul layover: 3 hours
Seoul to Hanoi: 5 hours

Total travel time: 26 hours
Total time in flight: 20 hours

Return trip:

Hanoi to Seoul: 5 hours
Seoul layover: 6 hours 10 min
Seoul to Chicago: 14 hours
Chicago layover: 2 hours 35 min
Chicago to St. Louis: 1 hour

Total travel time: 28 hours 45 min
Total flight time: 20 hours
All that WITH a BABY!!!

We had our travel meeting last night and we were told what paperwork we needed to take and that we will be able to meet Jane (an adoptive mother whose baby is in the same orphanage as Sienna) at the airport in Seoul! I'm sure we will have a lot to talk about during our 3 hour layover. We were also told about different excursions that we can go on during the weekend in and around Hanoi that seemed pretty interesting. We were also told that maybe it wasn't the best idea to take Sienna with us when we go out in Hanoi (not sure why) but that we can if we really want. We found that kind of odd b/c I know that I am not going to want to let her go!!! We were also told that we are hoping to have our trip to Bac Giang to pick her up on Thursday of that week so we should have one night to rest and then be able to go pick her up! Let's all hope that this is how it happens!!!

FLIGHT SCHEDULE:

Departing St. Louis on Tuesday 11/28 @7:30am

Arriving Chicago @ 8:35am

Departing Chicago @11:40am

Arriving Seoul on Wednesday 11/29 @4:35pm

Departing Seoul @7:25pm

Arriving in Hanoi @10:25pm

Tentative Departure Itinerary:

Departing Hanoi on Friday 12/15 @11:55pm

Arriving Seoul on Saturday 12/16 @ 5:50am

Departing Seoul @12 noon

Arriving Chicago @9:35am

Departing Chicago @12:10pm

Arriving St. Louis @1:20pm

We just got an e-mail from our program coordinator and it said that we have a confirmed travel date for Nov 28!!! And we do get to leave from St. Louis so that really helps! We'll have a travel meeting over the phone soon so we know we have every piece of paperwork that we will need to take with us!

New Stats:

Well, Sienna has gained some weight, but not exactly any height. She is currently 5.6 kg which is 12.3 lbs and is still 55 cm (21.65 in). I had to take back her two Chirstmas outfits and exchange them for a smaller size!! She is just so tiny. Which just means she has longer to wear her extensive wardrobe!!

Travel Packet!!

We got our travel packet today with our visa applications and other things we need to get out so we can get plane tickets! It unfortunately also came with our invoice (yuck). But I got an e-mail this evening from our program director. It says that we need to send everything in ASAP so it can be processed!! I hope this means that we'll be going on the first set of trips!! Let's all hope!