The 100 Good Wishes Quilt

Family and Friends:

With the 20 more months of waiting that we are expecting, those who know me know that I need to keep busy. (If anything, God is teaching me patience in this adoption!) When I learned of this Chinese tradition, I knew I wanted to do it... it's just taken me a little longer than expected to sit down and explain. Hopefully with my complete lack of knowledge of quilting, I can still figure out how to make a quilt for our daughter by the time she arrives to show her how excited we are to have her in our lives and how many people prayed for her and thought about her long before she ever arrived.

To welcome and celebrate a new life, there is a tradition in the northern part of China to make a Bai Jia Bei, or 100 Good Wishes Quilt. It is a custom to invite friends and family to contribute a patch of cloth with a wish for the baby. Most of the square is sewn into the quilt, while a smaller piece goes into a creative memory notebook with the wish for the child. The quilt contains the luck, energy, and good wishes from all the families and friends who contributed a square of fabric. The quilt is then passed down from generation to generation. We would love very much for our family and friends to be a part of this tradition with us. Please contribute to the Bai Jia Bei for our little China doll.

Please send:
(1) One 8"x8" square (or larger) of prewashed washable fabric that could work for a little girl. It can be new or "used and meaningful" fabric. Consider your interests or what may work for a young Chinese girl. Please pre-wash the fabric to prevent any shrinking when it becomes part of the Bai Jia Bei... or send it to us in a much larger size (10"x10") unwashed with a note that it needs to be washed.
(2) Your "wish". Please attach a scrap of the same fabric onto a 5"x7" card (or smaller) with a wish dedicated to our child. Your wish can be simple or elaborate, handwritten or typed. It can be something original you wrote, a prayer or a favorite poem, lyric, or quote that has special meaning to you. Please remember to sign your wish and include your city and state. Your wish-card can be elegantly simple or colorfully decorated with stickers and photographs… or whatever else that tickles your fancy. Anything goes. If you are a scrapbooker, be creative and have fun! All wishes will be compiled into a scrapbook so that she can see where each quilt square came from and the wishes that came with that square.

Please note that the finished size of the squares in the quilt will be smaller than 6"x6".

We are asking that if you decide to send a square and wish, that you send it soon as possible so we will be able to get started making the quilt.

And in the process of doing this, wish ME luck in learning how to quilt! :-)

You can email me at onlinechristy@gmail.com for our address.

Latest Update on Timing

Well, the last I heard, I believe that the most recent referrals were through the end of November of 2005. We are May 2007, so ... still a long way off. Apparently there were a lot of November 2005 dossiers submitted. The guess is that within a few months, we may see a slight increase in the speed. Currently they are at approximately 22 months waiting for those that just received referrals. Let's hope that timing speeds up a lot after this hurdle.

Arthur Episode Coming

My good friend Joanna (and recent adoptive mom of an adorably sweet Korean girl) sent me this information. On Friday, September 7, a 2 part episode of Arthur will focus on the adoption of Binky's new little sister from China! I have my Tivo set to record! In Northern VA, it will air on Ch 22 at 4:30, and WETA Ch. 26 at 5:30... I believe. It sounds as if it's perfect for our kids to watch and learn a little about the process we'll be going through.

Here is a review of the episodes.
http://www.adoptivefamilies.com/articles.php?aid=1310

Everyone loves Arthur (it's Mike's favorite cartoon!) so it's nice to hear they are approaching a topic close to our hearts, and in an accurate portrayal as well.