Taiwan - Day Two

Not a lot to report today; lots of rain and very overcast. We did some shopping at the Handicraft market (very large - four floors) which sells only things made locally. We got caught up on some sleep... we laid down for a few minutes this afternoon AFTER each drinking a Latte and we still slept for over four hours, so I'd say that we needed the rest. It is time to get caught up on sleep now, before we get baby sister!

Our hotel is beautifully decorated for Christmas:


Out and about in the rain:

This was pretty neat, a living wall surrounding a building that had thousands of plants, providing some nice greenery:

We stopped by a huge department store, which was all decked out for the holidays:
All hail the new master of the chopstick!

Taiwan - Day One!

It was great to return to the Hotel where we stayed the last time, the Agora Garden:


Today, we visited Longshan Temple - a very old temple in the middle of the city where a many people stop to pray and make offerings:


Next, it was on to the Botanical Gardens, which were beautiful:


Then, we visited the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, which was truly impressive:

Did I mention how large this building is?!?!


Across the way is the beautiful Natural Cultural Center:


Tired from sightseeing, it was time for some dumplings!

Taipei just would not be Taipei without scooters everywhere!

Lastly, Taipei 101 is a beautiful sight all lit up at night:

New Kyri Pictures

Cuter than ever!

Final Ruling!

We received Kyri's final ruling this week, on November 8th! Momma and Daddy were at Homeland Security being re-fingerprinted for the adoption when the call came! We are all very excited and Momma and Daddy are waiting for their travel dates. They think they may be there the first week in December. They are leaving me with Gammy, because someone needs to keep an eye on her while they are gone! I don't mind...

One thing I don't understand is that, for all this good news, all of a sudden Momma and Daddy seem to be a little frantic these days...adults!

Happy Birthday, Momma

Momma celebrated a birthday recently. Daddy and I sang to her....

Updated Photos of Baby Sister

We received new pictures of Kyri yesterday. Momma and Daddy think she looks healthy and happy...I think she is pretty cute, too.





Kyri is crawling, too! Momma said she remembers when I first started crawling! We are a little sad we can't watch her crawl in person, but this is a close second.

As a refresher, here is a video of me when I learned to crawl...and I am every bit as cute as Kyri!

FINALLY - Our first ruling!

Momma and Daddy are very happy today. We FINALLY received baby sister's first ruling. The agency told us that it will be another 6-8 weeks for the final ruling and then another month before they travel (I keep telling them I want to go to Taiwan, too, but they said I should stay home and hold down the fort)!

Still waiting for updated photos but Momma said Kyri is eating well. We received measurements last week and she is in the 90th percentile for weight and the 10th percentile for height. And the parents said I had big cheeks...