Answers to Your Questions

Now that we've let the big news settle a bit, allow me to share a bit more information with you.

Q: Did Dave get in on the Economic or Political track?
A: Dave was invited in the Economic track, making him slightly less likely to eventually become an Ambassador in the future. But only slightly. Don't worry - this will be a good fit for him, and many jobs are cross-posted. That is, many positions posted for Political Officers are also listed for Economic Officers.

Q: With Mandarin points, will you be returning to China?
A: Dave did not pass the Mandarin phone test, and so we are under no contractual obligation to ever return to China. However, as Dave does have a base in Mandarin, State may still choose to place us in China sometime soon.

Q: When will you leave?
A: This is still in flux, relying on coordination with a number of people. But at this point, we expect to leave China for Chicago around March 19th. After spending about a week in Chicago, Dave will go to D.C. and the girls and I will drive to St. Louis. I'll settle a bunch of business in St. Louis while Dave gets us settled into D.C., and then the girls and I will join him soon after.

Q: Where will you go?
A: Every Foreign Service Officer begins their job undergoing training in Washington, D.C.; so that's where we will head initially. Dave will receive a Bid List during the first week of training, essentially a list of all Entry Level Positions worldwide. We will pore over the list, do loads of quick research, and rank each post on the list. After 5 weeks of training, we'll learn where we're going for our first post - so check back at the beginning of May. Language training will follow in D.C., so we expect to be there for about 6 months in all.

Q: Will they move the family for you?
A: Yes, to a reasonable level. That is, they'll pay to fly us all to DC. If we choose to fly to Chicago instead, the rest of the travel will be on our dime. They will also pack two houses for us - so we'll get one shipment from St. Louis, and another shipment from Shenzhen. It will be on us to get all of our stuff to one of those two cities, though.

Interestingly, they will send the Shenzhen shipment in two packages. One will go via air - in government-ese this is called UAB. The UAB will meet us in D.C., and is limited to about 500 pounds for the whole family. The other shipment will go via boat - the government calls this one HHE. The weight limit is high on this one, but we don't get to access it until we're in our first post. So, we won't have The Red Chair until we're moving into our first post.

Needless to say, packing the UAB is full of big choices. How many toys and books are necessary for 3-15 months? Do we pack the clothes Annika has already outgrown, knowing that we may or may not receive Mei Mei while we're in D.C.? What pieces of our household can we live without for up to 18 months? And if we can live without them for so long, do we really need them in the first place?

Q: Where will you live?
A: While the State Department does not pay particularly well, they do take care of their officers and families. While on training, they provide a per diem that covers housing and food. They have contracted with a serviced apartment company called Oakwood to direct bill that housing. This not only saves the employee and their family loads of trouble with leases and expense reports, but also creates an immediate community within this one housing complex. So, assuming they have space available, we expect to be living in a Temporary Furnished Apartment in Falls Church, Virginia.

Q: Will the girls go to school in D.C.?
A: We're still thinking this one through. One option is to soak them in family in the Midwest for a few weeks before they even arrive in D.C., and then to keep them busy with libraries, parks and the Smithsonian for a few months. But we are also connected to two amazing early childhood programs in Northern Virginia. They each come with a steep price tag, but would help the girls transition tremendously.

We have friends who moved to Shanghai from only March through July, and they put their kids into school with Lilly and Sophia. Their kids adjusted quickly to Shanghai and had a really great experience. This anecdote makes me think the girls will transition a lot better if we enroll them immediately into school. And I sure do love the two options we're looking into. Stay posted.

Q: How long is your To Do List these days?
A: Growing at an astounding rate - and I've got no complaints.