10 questions

1. Why a baby girl from China?
We came to the decision to adopt through international adoption quickly. There really was no other option for us once we looked into adoption to start our family. The reason this was our only option is because of the guarantee of a baby at the end. We wanted a baby so badly; we didn’t want to take the risk of going the domestic route as the birth mother could change her mind. Riz and I both
Knew that it would be China. We have a lot of connections to China we looked at each other and said “China” and that was it. It felt right, more right than anything ever before. A weight was lifted from our hearts and we were glowing...finally. Our baby was going to become a reality!

2. Do we know who she is yet?
We will not know who Sophia is until we receive her referral and picture at the beginning of May 2008.

3. Will we know who her biological parents were or how she was found?
It is illegal to abandon a baby in China, so the biological parents will not leave their names. They
will, however, sometimes leave a note with the baby’s date of birth. If not, the orphanage will
estimate her birthday, according to whether the umbilical cord is still attached or not along with
other medical information. We will be told where she was found, along with as much information
as is available. A friend was able to make a personal connection with her daughter’s caretaker from
the orphanage. They stay in touch with each other through e-mail and even spent time together
when our friend went to China to adopt her second daughter, this is really special.

4. What about Sophia’s Chinese name? Will she already have a name?
Sophia will have been given a Chinese name by her care-takers. Typically a portion of her name is
derived from the orphanage or town where she lives, allowing babies from the same orphanage to
connect online as they grow up. The rest of her name will have something to do with her personality
or physical characteristics. When we find out her name there will be three names the first will be
her given name and will be the one shared by all of the babies from that SWI. We know that all of
the babies in our travel group will have this same name as they will all be from the same SWI. The
other two names what we would consider her first and middle name. We plan on using part of this
name in Sophia’s American name, for example if her name is Fu (for Fuling a province in China)
Xiao Qiao (means Beautiful morning in the forest) then her name will be Sophia Joy (Xiao Qiao)
Rizzo

5. How do they match us up with a particular baby?
Many people say they match bone structure, birthdays, personalities, etc. Others believe there is
no official process...whichever baby they choose to match with us, will be our Sophia! Click HERE to read a post from Rumor Queen about how Matching is done.

6. How old will Sophia be when we get her?
We think between 6 and 12 months. Chinese law does not allow a child to be adopted until after
they are legal orphans for 6 months.

7. How long does the adoption process take?
When we started the process we anticipated 4 months for paperwork and 6 to 8 months for the
wait. Unfortunately the process has slowed down considerably. By the time we finally go to China
It will be roughly 34 months from the start of our process. This whole process has been a lesson
patience!

8. How much does international adoption cost?
A lot. but worth every penny. International adoption varies from country to country, however,
The travel portion is significant.. The cost is equivalent to a biological pregnancy and the birth of a
Biological child; however it is not covered by health insurance. Luckily the IRS allows for an
Adoption tax deduction to make it easier on the families.

9. Will we be traveling to China to get her?
We will be in China for at least 2 weeks. We start our China journey in Beijing, touring for a few
days, getting acquainted with the customs and adjusting to the time change. We then travel to the
province where Sophia is living and then head to Guangzhou, in the South, to wait for our
immigration paperwork to be finalized.

10. Do we like Chinese food?
Do you even have to ask? Ha just take one look at our bank account.