House Most Recent

http://picasaweb.google.com/jfblackert/NewHousePictures - more pictures

Back from Las Vegas

Picture of the Bellagio from the Paris, Vegas Eiffel Tower.

New York, New York in Vegas.

My friends and business associates -- Bill, (yours truly), Star

Inside at Paris, Vegas

The view from the plane in before we touched down in Vegas.

Update Pictures for the New House

View from the sun room (my yoga room). Imagine lots and lots of rose and landscaping :)

Our New Home

For those that don't know we are building a 5000 sq. foot home in Austin, Texas. The foundation is poured on the 2nd of January. Here are a few pictures before the pouring of the foundation.

Happy New Year

I have had a wonderful holiday with family. I wanted to share a few photos with you.

Daddy & Julia playing

Granddad & Julia at the coffee shop.

Granddad is eating black licorice candy again :)

Jen & Julia at the Christmas Tree near Santa on Christmas Eve.

Thanksgiving

Today we stayed home and ate turkey, stuffing and fruit salad. All organic :)

Julia is now saying 9 - 10 words -- uh-oh, hello, hi, ball, dadda, bubba, mamma, yeah, boo and "ee-bah" -- which means "more".

Soccer Tournament

We spent the weekend at a soccer tournament in San Antonio. They didn't win but we had a ton of fun.

Halloween

Wow. Halloween is always a blast we went to a neighborhood party. We really enjoyed it.

We had a little Pooh bear again this year. I love Winnie The Pooh. I married my hubby in 1993 and he loved reading Winnie The Pooh stories to me. I always loved the "being" nature of Pooh. When I read, The Tao Of Pooh and learned The Pooh Way -- I was hooked. The Pooh Way means without egotistical effort. It means flowing like water and with natural rhythm.

Julia's First Cold Day

Brrrr... It got down to 47 degrees today! Check Julia out in her new coat.

Julia now says her name, dadda, bubba, & mmmmm.

New Pics from My iPhone

Sorry these are sideways, I need to remember to turn my phone. Julia is now saying "hi" and "kitty". She has started climbing, running and playing dress up.

Great Grandmom Feeds Julia Cake

We spent last week with Grand folks in Virginia and Maryland. Here's a small highlight of Julia eating cake out of her Great Grandmom's hands.

Julia Does Yoga

Tadasana - Mountain Pose

Hmmm... Not sure what this is called.

Upavistha Konasana -Seated Wide Legged Straddle.

We'll work on her form!

Happy August. Julia is 17th months now!

Love,

Jeneth

Julia Brushes Her Teeth

Julia has been introduced to a toothbrush. She loves brushing her teeth. I also got a cool nubby brush to help.

Kitty meets Julia

Check out this meet and greet!

Julia has been home nearly a week now and doing very well. She is now eating! I mean she is EATING lots and lots. We are very happy to see her eat solid foods. She has put on a 1 lb of weight since our first day - July 2nd.

She is playing with her new toys and loves to go for a stroller ride.

Happy Weekend.

Jen

Julia Smiles

Wow, it has been a long two weeks in the hot China sun. We are happy to be home, but very jet lagged. Julia has taken very well to her new room and her new toys.

Thank you for all your support. I will keep you updated - hopefully weekly.

All pictures from our adoption journey can be viewed at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jfblackert/TripToChina

Shopping Day 2

Chanel, Prada, Coach -- oh my!

Oh, you want an update on Julia! Julia loves her new stroller as we took her all over the largest department store in the city.

She is warming up a little more each day. She is now taking Cherrios out of Daddy's hands and a few licks of her first ice cream.

Yesterday, we met a crib mate of Julia's from her same orphanage in Xiushan. This was one of her crib mates, Sarah. See picture above.

Last night, she ate some rice noodles and a few slices of chicken -- which made us very happy.

We made it to Guangzhou

Yesterday we spent a long boring day in the hotel and then flew to Guangzhou.

The beds here are very small and I slept on the floor while Jason and Joe each had a twin size bed. I am getting a cot for Jason tonight. This is a very beautiful hotel and we have a view of a lake. I hope to take pictures later today and will post them tomorrow.

Julia had her doctor's visit and visa photos taken this a.m. She wasn't very happy about either. She has found her true love in a box on Cherrios! We, now, can't get her to drink formula or eat anything else.

Well, we are off to the pool! Happy Saturday!

CiqiKou Ancient Village & Shopping

Today we went to a small village with many small craft shops. It was very interesting to see how people live on the other side of the globe. I bought some Julia a silk dress for about $5 and Jason got a magic trick and a handmade dart gun.

Julia did much better both bonding and eating today. She is very intrigued with animal crackers! I think we even caught her first smile today.

Happy 4th Of July From Julia

Today we went to the local museum and E'ling Park in Chongqing, China. E'ling Park is a top the highest mountain in Chongqing. You can see the whole city from there. My favorite part was the tea houses. We were taught how to see, smell and drink tea. I ended up buying a very small clay tea pot and loose tea leaves. The tea is laced with white ginseng, which is great for weight loss and blood pressure.

Julia cried and slept less today. She really enjoyed moving around the stroller. We feel positive as she ate a little more today. I am hoping we can soon get her to smile or laugh.

Jason was our photographer and took many many pictures for you to enjoy.

Julia Saw Pandas

We went to the zoo in Chongqing and saw about 6 pandas and one 8-month baby panda. Julia seemed less than thrilled, but I thought they were very, very cute. She did enjoy the motor boat ride with me and Jason.
After a long nap, she had a brief half bath -- she was a little scared or terrified of the tub or me -- not sure which. I guess it would be scary being stripped down naked and put into a tub of water with a bunch of strangers that don't speak your language.

Then we noticed that she was just trying to sleep us away. She really didn't want to eat or have us near her for the most part of the day. She only drank about 6 oz of formula yesterday. I don't know if they had ever really tried to get her to eat solid foods. She just wanted to be left alone in the crib. Apparently, she is not use to attention :(

She did finally bond a little with Daddy after he stood her up on the side of the bed and sat next to her for about two hours. Her only steps were just a few to walk away from him. She can stand great and looks like she can walk with some balancing help.

- Jen

And then there were 4

Well, we just got back from the adoption center. The whole experience was very surreal. I'm not sure what we expected, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't that. As soon as we got off the elevator, we were wisked into a room w/ many other families and their newly adopted children. We blew right by them into a room where Julia was w/ her nanny. And it was done.

We had to stay around for about an hour to finalize paperwork and chat w/ the nanny about Julia's eating and sleeping habits, etc. But it was pretty much done as soon as we entered the room. The nanny handed her over to Jeneth. Julia cried a little but soon calmed down. She didn't want anything to do with us boys. In fact she cried quite a bit when I tried to hold her. I guess she didn't see many boys in the orphanage, although my friends would probably claim I have that affect on all women.

She seemed pretty curious on the ride back to the hotel. Very calm once we got her away from the hustle and bustle of the adoption agency. We're all sitting around the hotel room now, just trying to relax and get to know each other. Mainly I think Julia is just tired and quite a bit overwhelmed. Maybe we all are. I'm uploading pics now. Go check them out.

http://picasaweb.google.com/jfblackert/TripToChina

- Joe

Today's the big day

Joe here, posting this morning. Forgive me if I duplicate anything. I have no idea what Jen has posted so far and I can't read it b/c of the net censorship.

We get Julia this afternoon at 4:30. Very excited. We went shopping today to get some stuff for her to get through the night. We were told not to buy or bring a lot for her until after we get her so we can go over w/ her caregiver what sorts of foods, etc she has been eating and likes. Plus it's important not to just dump western food on her immediately b/c her stomach won't be used to that at all.

It's always fun going out shopping b/c for one, things are a lot cheaper here, and more importantly, w/ the exchange rate you walk around w/ like 1000 yuen and feel like a rock star even though that's only about 135 USD. :)

Chongqing is very big by the way. Beijing was a little overwhelming b/c it was 13 million people. But Chongqing is even bigger at 35 million. Largest city in China. Our guide said it might be the largest in Asia. Who knew? Beautiful city though. Our hotel overlooks the Yangtze river, which separates downtown from our district. It's set in the mountains so on a clear day (not many of those unfortunately) it's quite beautiful. The city is beautifully landscaped though and they have gone a long way to improve the smog levels here. Our guide was telling us that all of the mass transit uses natural gas now instead of gas and that has cut the pollution level down by about 1/3. Even before that though, it's not nearly as bad as say, LA.

I guess that's about all for now. Only 6.5 more hours to go.... What's a few hours after 2 and 1/2 years?

The Great Rain

Hi Everybody,

We have arrived at the Province today - Chongqing, China! It was about a 2 hour flight from Beijing. It's like a little New York City - size is 34 million. It's called the Foggy City because of all the smog. It's very hot and humid.

Baby Julia/Fu Shu's home is an 8-hour drive from here. We saw an updated picture and were told she is in good health. She is gorgeous - I would share if I could, but don't have a scanner. We are meeting her tomorrow after a long drive to Civil Affairs. We were told that Julia is of a minority culture and there is only about 14,000 of that minority.

Once we arrived at the Holiday Inn in Chongqing our new guide, Sophia took us shopping for water at the local grocery store. Wholy cow! Things are cheap here. I bought some new sandals for about $12 US dollars. They are very nice with leather straps.

And then the WINE -- luckily Sophia was with us, because I grabbed the wine as I thought it was water -- and the price of our bottle water. Ah, water into wine! What can I say?

Please add a comment - I would love to hear who is visiting.


The Great Wall - Yesterday!
Wow. The Great Wall is a steep hike. See the upward road behind us in the picture? I stopped way before Joe and Jason suddenly became afraid of heights! I was much more gorgeous than I ever thought possible. You could see for miles - well if it wasn't pouring with rain.

I was afraid I would slip coming back down and that's the last thing I need before we go into labor tomorrow!

AND then came the SQUATTY POTTY - You see... interesting thing -- all the toilets are like holes in the ground. You literally have to squat down towards the ground to go. Well, on this particular occasion with wet shoes, I slipped. Yes. Pretty gross, but I wanted to share all our adventures!



We meet Julia tomorrow - I can't wait to share.

Forbidden Adventures

Hi Everybody,

I wanted to share our adventures from yesterday at the the Forbidden City.

It went something like this... We (two other couples and us) took a bus to the Forbidden City. It is where the emperor used to reside. The reason it is called the Forbidden City is because only the emperial family and their servants were allowed to enter. There were two main entrances - the yin and the yang entrance, for females and males, respectively. This was a popular theme throughout. The city is heavily decorated with statues of dragons (males) and phoenixes (females).

We entered through the yang entrance from Tiananmen square and walked through the various courtyards and buildings until we exited through the yin entrance. We learned about various emperors and empresses from our guide, Michelle, along the way. Unfortunately it started to rain pretty heavily about halfway through and even more through the remainder of the day. One thing we all thought was odd was that there was a Starbucks about halfway through the tour. I guess STARBUCKS really are everywhere! Michelle remarked that they had cut some sort of deal to get in there, but that no other corporate presence like that was allowed by the Chinese government now.

All our pictures of the Forbidden City -- well all the pictures can be view at: http://picasaweb.google.com/jfblackert/TripToChina

We have landed!

Well after 3 flights and 24 hours of travel time -- we have arrived in Beijing.

Our adventures included:

- TRYING to sleep on a plane (I think I managed to get about 4 hours in -- Great for me!)
- Meeting about five other families that are adopting in China
- Learning how to grocery shopping - this can get a little tricky. You must know how to convert currency. Where to find a grocery store - of course. And how to say thank you!
- EEK - trying to figure out how to change blogspot to english again.


Our mishaps included ended becoming motion sick on the 14 hour flight from L.A to Hong Kong.

Hopefully, I will have some pictures for tomorrow.

Julia Fushu's History

She was abandoned at Zhonghe Town Middle School. She was found wrapped in a blanket and lying in a basket. The only belonging with her was a bottle. Her estimated her DOB is 3-9-2006. She was named her Xiu Fushu, Xiu stands for Xiushan, Fu means luck and Shu means pretty! <-- As she is Pretty Luck - eh?

Her height was 18.91inchs, weight was 5.94 lbs, head size was 12.21 inches and chest size was 11.43 inches.

One more day until we leave :)

Baby Shower Pictures

Click Here To See My Baby Shower Pictures :)

Our Referral Pictures

Hello All,

Are you ready to go to China? I can't wait to share our China adventures with you. We will be leaving Texas Wednesday June 27 and after our long flight -- our adventure begins in Beijing, China!

Below are the last pictures of Fu Shu/Julia Emma (American Name). She was born Mar. 9, 2006. She will be a year and four months when we meet her.

We have been out shopping all weekend for baby supplies and tomorrow that will all be packed. Geesh I hope that's not going to make my luggage over 44 pounds!

Magic! Our Adventures In Magic

Here's The Online Article! Click Here!!!


We have been taking magic classes and the newspaper wants to talk about it.

- Jen
Don't forget to read my 1st 70 Days Of An Online Start Up

More Fun In Texas

Horse shoes and other fun throwing activities -- for family weekend fun!

Springtime Fun In Texas

A tree of fun. Live oaks are so fun to climb.



A monkey at the Houston Zoo

Art by JB

Also : Here are my business blogs

Nutrition : nutritionblog.jenevice.com
Internet Biz : www.ibrandweb.com

2005-2006 School Year

My Marathon Kid and The Gold Medal

Jason had a chance today to wear a REAL olympic gold medalist's Gold Medal. Tommy Hannan won it in Sydney in the 2000 Olympics. Read more about Tommy here.

Jason ran in the Marathon Kids race and he even received his very own gold medal the Tommy Hannan autographed.



See both gold medals!

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

Happy New Year in this the Year of the Red Dog!

Did you know that there are three ways to name a Chinese year? The first is by an animal. This year is known as the Year of the Dog. There are 12 animal names; so by this system, year names are re-cycled every 12 years. Another way to name the year is by its formal name or the Stem-Branch system. This New Year is the year of bingxu. In the 'Stem-Branch' system, the years are named in 60-year cycles, and the Name of the Year is repeated every 60 years. 2006 is the 7th year in the current 60-year cycle. And finally, this is the Year 4703 by the Chinese calendar.

But let’s go back to the Year of the Dog. You also fall into this category if you were born in the year: 1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, or 1994. People born in the Year of the Dog possess the best traits of human nature. They have a deep sense of loyalty, are honest, and inspire other people’s confidence because they know how to keep secrets. But Dog People can be somewhat selfish, terribly stubborn, and eccentric. They care little for wealth, yet somehow always seem to have money. They can be cold emotionally and sometimes distant at parties. They can find fault with many things and are noted for their sharp tongues. Dog people make good leaders. They are compatible with those born in the Years of the Horse, Tiger, and Rabbit.

Pirates of the Caribbean

Pictures from the Cayman Islands! They had amazing ships there that looked like pirate ships. And then when we got ashore there were PIRATES! Enjoy!

Cruise Pictures : First Formal Night

Just a couple pictures from our holiday cruise. We had a great trip and we are now ready to start our new year.

Following Our Heart

I heard this poem in yoga today, I thought I would share. It makes you wonder if you are really following your truth sacred path. I like to think our new daughter was previously planned and just another delight along our path :)

God, is my soul asleep?
Have those beehives who labor by night stopped, and
the water wheel of thought, is it dry?
The cup's empty, wheeling out carrying only shadows?
No! My soul is not asleep! My soul is not asleep!
It neither sleeps nor dreams, but watches, its clear eyes open,
far off things, and listens, and listens
at the shores of the great silence.
It listens at the shores of the great silence.

~ Antonio Machado ~

2005 Christmas

I thought I would share a few pictures. Jason's big gift this year was an ipod nano. You can get a small glimpse of it here.

I hope you had a great Holiday.

About the One Child Law

I thought this was a good blurb of information about China's one child law and why 95% of the children abandon are girls. Enjoy! http://www.gwca.org/adoption/

The Monkey King : A Chinese Legend

Sunday, I met a woman (at a craft fair) creating yarn from dog hair. She was showing me how. Though very interesting, I explained to her that I already had too many hobbies and I was not able to take on another one. When asked what my hobbies were I told her: yoga, pilates, starting up two businesses and oh yeah I am writing a novel.

Turns out she was a writer too. She writes about maya lords. Which isn't that interesting to me, but she has done some extensive research. One of the subjects that came up was the monkey king. So being that I am trying to learn more about the Chinese culture, I had to go back and read the story. Here's the basic story:

Monkey King is based on a true story of a famous monk, Xuan Zang of the Chinese Tang Dynasty (602-664). After a decade of trials and tribulations, he arrived on foot to what is today India, the birthplace of Buddhism. He was there for the true Buddhist holy books. When he returned, Xuan Zang translated the Sutras into Chinese, thus making a great contribution to the development of Buddhism in China.

Monkey King is an allegorical rendition of the journey, mingled with Chinese fables, fairy tales, legends, superstitions, popular beliefs, monster stories, and whatever the author could find in the Taoist, Buddhist, and Chinese popular religions.

Baby Girl Blackert's Big Brother

He's reaching for the stars! Jason is having some fun the holiday season with climbing near Marble Falls TX.

God is in the breath inside the breath

God is in the breath inside the breath, said Kabir. He showed that anyone can become illumined from within. Osho once explained a sutra from Kabir’s song: “Student, tell me what is God?” he asks. He provides the answer. “He is the breath inside the breath.”

I heard this in yoga class last Monday. I love it and began really listening to my breath and noticing the gaps.

So what does that have to do with adoption you ask? During mediation, I being to use those gaps ask a time of prayer for our new arrival. In the gap, I see my self really connecting with God. So in a gap, I will pray that she is content. I will pray that she is well fed and as well loved as possible. I pray for all her vital energy. I pray for her peace of mind. I pray for her care taker or her birth mother. All kinds of things. For some reason when those words...the breath inside the breath were spoken I really connected and embraced them. So easy and so powerful.

I thought I would share with you.

Red for Luck

The chinese wear red for luck. This is one reason that their wedding dresses are usually red. I have never been one to buy in to superstition, but I think it is good to know about other culture's traditions.

We spent Thankgiving dessert with friends. Interesting enough most of our friends are from all over the world. While we were over there, I was talking with Julie (she is from Taiwan). We got on the subject of colors. Turns out black is death and white is purity (got figure).

In yoga, some of us wear all white, white in yoga is all colors. I've noticed when I wear all white I feel clean, fresh and renewed and when I wear black I feel more closed to the the world. It is so amazing how color can slightly change us.

I find it interesting that American's only are concerned with white and black. This country does seem to be an all or nothing kind of place. Nothing is really in moderation any more. From food to electronics. We live in abundance of stuff. We live in abundance of waste. Most other cultures practice moderation in their lives. The Japanese use Feng Shui (declutter), The French eat in moderation... just food for thought.

Anyway, I thought it is interesting as to how cultures view colors and how we feel when we wear different colors. I would love to hear your comments about colors!

A Long Wait Ahead

We learned today that adoption referrals for the October DTC group probably won't be received until 10 months after the date. That means August 2006! Hmmm... Guess we will wait :)

How To Get A Book Published

Well I bought a book from amazon last nite about how to publish a children's book. I am completely clueless on how to get this book published. I am also considering changing it for the 7 and up range so I don't have to get drawings .. I would like to hold all the power!

My Adoption Children's Book

I wrote a children's book on adoption. I am working on getting pictures drawn for it. I am sure after months, I will finally get it published. I hope it will turn into a wonderful series as my daughter grows.

Gathering The Paper Work : What have we done...

December '04: Mail initial application to the Great Wall Of China Agency.
One week later: We were accepted!
January 05 Mail signed contract with the first 1/3 the agency fee.
End of January 05 Three Homestudy visits.
February 05 Received complete Homestudy.
March 05 This month we had our medical exams. Started to get certifications and seals for birth certificates, criminal records, marriage licenses, family photos... We also applied for our passports.
June 05 Mail in I-600A
June 05 Receive receipt from Homeland Security, my I-600A in system!
July 05 Received information that our home study needed corrections
July 05 Received notification of appointment to be fingerprinted.
July 05 Fingerprinting in San Antonio, then off to Sea World we went to celebrate
Aug 05 Receive 171H Approval WOO HOO!
Aug 05 Major Freak Out!! We only had Sec of State certifications we needed authenications for the US Dept of State and Chinese Consolates!
Aug 05 Dossier review with Great Wall of China Adoption
Late Aug 05 2nd Major Freak Out!
Had to get med exam redone because vision and hearing was not checked.
Sept 05 Dossier was put together and mailed to China -- Woo Hoo!
Oct 05 Received notification that Dossier was received in China