Still no new pictures, but here are the highlights from Wednesday.
I didn't bother with the stroller on the walking tour for 2 1/2 hours because I knew she'd want to be carried most of the way and then I'd have to deal with the stroller and her in my arms. We saw all the disgusting things that the boys wanted me to see except for chocolate covered bugs.
We saw turtles on a stick, dried snake skins, buckets of live scorpions people would buy to make a soup. There were blocks and blocks like this and then we saw the shopping areas that were huge. Everything was very crowded. Meggie and I were sweating up a storm. She carried a water bottle in her arms the entire time and took little dainty sips along the way. I dehydrated.
We then went to the consulate for the paperwork and oath taking. Pictures were not allowed and cameras were taken away. I knew this ahead of time from other people and so I left it behind. At the end we took pictures down stairs to mark the moment. Hopefully I'll get an emailed copy.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Monday, March 29, 2010
Monday News
Megan passed her TB test, although it was touch and go for a moment. Another little friend was subjected to a chest X-ray because of the positive skin test, but she was fine too. Apparently they give the kids 5x the serum they do here so a lot test positive. I don't understand the reason, but there's a lot I don't understand - like why we have to test these kids when doctors have said 3 year olds can't cough hard enough to infect others. And we don't test adults traveling from TB hot spots.
Keith and Megan and a lot of the families toured the Chen Family Temple and saw some monks in action. No pictures yet.
The last bit of news is taken right from one of Keith's emails. We were impressed. But here we go again with kids smarter than we are.
Every time she asks "cesuar" (Ce Suo)(toilet) I say "you have to go to the bathroom, Cesuar?" Today in the park she said Cesuar and I started for the the hotel and she stopped me and pointed towards the restroom. I don't know how she knew, but I said Ok. It wasn't too bad in there, but still I was a little skeeved. I held her about 10 inches above the toilet. She thought it was funny. Later, she had to go again, but I wanted to take her back to the hotel and not use the public restroom. She kept saying cesuar and I just kept rollin the stroller towards the hotel saying yes, yes. She turned her head towards me and said "I have to go the bathroom" as plain as day. She's one smart cookie.
Keith and Megan and a lot of the families toured the Chen Family Temple and saw some monks in action. No pictures yet.
The last bit of news is taken right from one of Keith's emails. We were impressed. But here we go again with kids smarter than we are.
Every time she asks "cesuar" (Ce Suo)(toilet) I say "you have to go to the bathroom, Cesuar?" Today in the park she said Cesuar and I started for the the hotel and she stopped me and pointed towards the restroom. I don't know how she knew, but I said Ok. It wasn't too bad in there, but still I was a little skeeved. I held her about 10 inches above the toilet. She thought it was funny. Later, she had to go again, but I wanted to take her back to the hotel and not use the public restroom. She kept saying cesuar and I just kept rollin the stroller towards the hotel saying yes, yes. She turned her head towards me and said "I have to go the bathroom" as plain as day. She's one smart cookie.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Day 6 - Guangzhou
Last leg of the trip has begun. Now the US immigration processing takes place. Megan had a physical Saturday morning and a TB test. Some rough moments for Keith during the exam but all ended well.
Friday night Keith and Megan flew from Kunming to Guangzhou. She's quite a screamer, as noted before and he said she screamed (not cried) for 75 minutes. She also did not want to wear the seat belt. It was a business-type flight with mostly men but most were very kind to him and gave sympathetic looks. The few that tried to soothe her were swatted away.
Saturday they had a good day together. After the medical they ended up in the hotel's toy room, specifically setup for all of the adoptive families that pass through here. Another little girl tried to befriend Megan, but Megan was very cautious and just took it all in. There's a bridge in the hotel (or outside of the hotel) and Megan loves looking at the fish. Maybe she is a Pisces after all. Keith has decided that no way is she a Taurus girl. We joked that since she seems SO much like Ryan, that maybe her birthday is really June 8 and someone wrote the wrong date down. Either way - Keith is certain she is NOT a Taurus.
Hoping that the last week is easier on Keith. Now he is with several other families - 2 that he met in Beijing, and some others. All will do the US paperwork processing together. Guangzhou is also geared for adoptive families and there is less traffic so Keith feels more comfortable in this city.
Here she is and it's the first smile I've seen in a picture.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Today at the civil affairs office the Nannies told Keith she wasn't dressed warmly enough. Anyone who has adopted from China knows that strangers on the street will stop the new parents and scold them for not having the babies dressed warmly enough. Keith said it was pretty warm, but that didn't stop them from putting another jacket on her. They went shopping too and she picked out lolipops.
She's Cute & Sweet & Smart & Obstinate. Uh-oh
All things considered, Keith said things went really well. He met her at the Civil Affairs Office. She was fine in the office, and had traveled 14 hours to get there. She speaks a dialect and the Mandarin tapes Keith has been listening to aren't helping him communicate with her, although the guide/interpreter can understand him and said he's doing a good job. She screamed leaving the office and the Nannies, but the two of them were able to calm her down. The guide told her he was going for water and she said it was ok for him to go. After he came back and was leaving again, he must have said he was getting water again and she told him he already got that. She ate half a banana and then fed Keith a piece (this is truly amazing and a great sign) and then she threw the rest on the floor. He just told me she threw anything she didn't like at breakfast (Day 2) on the floor. I guess that will be MY problem when they get back! Then when they were going to dinner she was confused because she thought the banana and animal crackers was a meal. She's covered in mosquito bites and I forgot to ask Keith if she let him put anything on it. He could not get her to put her pajamas on and had to get Jerry the guide back to negotiate with her. for every article she took off she wanted a replacement. Even the jacket and she wanted to sleep with shoes so Keith gave her the pair I packed. I had no idea of size but my guess must have been close. She did like the backpack, baby doll and magna doodle. And today she let Keith hold her hand and brush her teeth. But they had to go back to the civil affairs office and that set her back and started the screaming all over again. But, she's officially ours now! Back at the room she tucked her baby into bed, and got in next to her and was playing with the magna doodle again. She also watched Curious George yesterday - not sure of her reaction though.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
We've Been Matched!
Just when we were ready to give up, we were matched! After about 3 1/2 years and ready to give up, a little girl's file found it's way to us and our hearts. As far as I can remember, I have never in my life said to God that I've had enough and to please not send me anything else to deal with, that I was too tired and couldn't even deal with a broken nail. That was the morning of November 13th, 2009.... that night I got the call from our agency to look at a file. I just thought, "Are you kidding me?" Little by little I started peaking at her file and grew to love her. Keith was traveling and I didn't even mention her to him at first. He was hooked when he read that her birthday was 5/8/2007.... one day after his. Alex liked that one of her favorite toys was balls. Ryan liked that she likes blocks. Look at her socks - I wouldn't be caught dead in something that didn't match my outfit, but not my Mom, she is always looking for odd socks... it must skip a generation. I was looking for something that connected her to me and I didn't find it right away.
Our timeline:
Submitted LOI (letter of intent) December 1, 2009
Received PA (pre-approval) December 16, 2009
On December 21st I got a call from our agency. As I saw the number flash on the caller ID I thought we lost her. But, "S", the woman who "matched" us was calling to tell us that we received our LSC (letter seeking confirmation). I got my sign. December 21st, 1988 I was supposed to be on PA 103, the flight that blew up over Lockerbie Scotland. I have spent the last 20 + years dealing with survivor's guilt and trying to find the reason. I can't say that I've found the reason, but I have come to peace with it. Up until "S" called, it was not something I spoke about often. But I just had to tell her what the 21st meant to me. She knew right away what I was talking about, which surprised me, because most people don't remember or in "S"'s case, I thought was too young to immediately know. The next day "S" told me that she lived as an exchange student with the family in Lockerbie where the plane crashed. I'm not quite sure what this means, but I somehow felt as a big loop was closed with our confirmation by the CCAA that we were the parents to this little girl, on a day that had haunted me for years, and to be told (and matched) by someone who lived there was somehow significant, and healing.
TA received January 21, 2010 - normally this means you can travel in a few weeks, but we had the misfortune of having our US paperwork expire for the third time, and needed to renew it before we could travel.
January 5th - mailed docs to US CIS
Febraury 5th - fingerprinted for the 6th time
March 4th - a woman on the RQ adoption forum responded to a post I wrote complaining about NJ immigrations. She replied that in 2007 she too waited 2 months for a renewal while her child waited and she went up the the building in Newark, found the adoption officer (who happened to be the same as mine) and got the officer to complete her paperwork and promise to mail it out. The adoption community is amazing and filled with strangers who help one another. She coached me and told me how to get into the building and how to get on the adoption floor, and how to get in... and I did it, and it unfolded exactly as it did for her, and after a short wait I found myself sitting in the adoption officer's office while she completed my paperwork and I walked out with my approval. Later that day we had tentative travel scheduled for March 18. . Tentative became definitive, and Keith is heading towards the Great Wall probably within a few hours. Yes, on my birthday. But that's ok... he's bringing me home a pretty great gift.
Keith called me from Beijing around 430 this morning. Pretty uneventful. Just a slight glitch going through US security. I packed for Megan. And I had to pack clothes, and grooming products, and an arsenal of meds, and a baby doll for her to play with and a backpack with some little toys - crayons, book, and some snacks. Most adoptive parents of older children get "in" with their children through food. The bag was pretty full before Keith even put his stuff in it. It was just ridiculous once he was done. Last night I removed some of Megan's clothes, some of Keith's snacks and some of his clothes. (The man took about 600 pairs of socks.) And the bag weighed 60 pounds... He refused to take a second carry on. Thursday morning he decided to take a second carry on (finally). So I take out Megan's backpack and move it to the small duffel bag. He must have asked me 10 times 'no liquids?' "No Keith. No liquids. The meds are in the big bag, and the shampoo and soap are in the big bag, and the 3 pack of apple juice is in the big bag. Don't worry. You're fine." Fast forward a few hours. He gets stopped going through security because I forgot I packed bubbles in her backpack! They practically strip-searched him after that. I am still laughing when I think about it. Totally forgot!
Our timeline:
Submitted LOI (letter of intent) December 1, 2009
Received PA (pre-approval) December 16, 2009
On December 21st I got a call from our agency. As I saw the number flash on the caller ID I thought we lost her. But, "S", the woman who "matched" us was calling to tell us that we received our LSC (letter seeking confirmation). I got my sign. December 21st, 1988 I was supposed to be on PA 103, the flight that blew up over Lockerbie Scotland. I have spent the last 20 + years dealing with survivor's guilt and trying to find the reason. I can't say that I've found the reason, but I have come to peace with it. Up until "S" called, it was not something I spoke about often. But I just had to tell her what the 21st meant to me. She knew right away what I was talking about, which surprised me, because most people don't remember or in "S"'s case, I thought was too young to immediately know. The next day "S" told me that she lived as an exchange student with the family in Lockerbie where the plane crashed. I'm not quite sure what this means, but I somehow felt as a big loop was closed with our confirmation by the CCAA that we were the parents to this little girl, on a day that had haunted me for years, and to be told (and matched) by someone who lived there was somehow significant, and healing.
TA received January 21, 2010 - normally this means you can travel in a few weeks, but we had the misfortune of having our US paperwork expire for the third time, and needed to renew it before we could travel.
January 5th - mailed docs to US CIS
Febraury 5th - fingerprinted for the 6th time
March 4th - a woman on the RQ adoption forum responded to a post I wrote complaining about NJ immigrations. She replied that in 2007 she too waited 2 months for a renewal while her child waited and she went up the the building in Newark, found the adoption officer (who happened to be the same as mine) and got the officer to complete her paperwork and promise to mail it out. The adoption community is amazing and filled with strangers who help one another. She coached me and told me how to get into the building and how to get on the adoption floor, and how to get in... and I did it, and it unfolded exactly as it did for her, and after a short wait I found myself sitting in the adoption officer's office while she completed my paperwork and I walked out with my approval. Later that day we had tentative travel scheduled for March 18. . Tentative became definitive, and Keith is heading towards the Great Wall probably within a few hours. Yes, on my birthday. But that's ok... he's bringing me home a pretty great gift.
Keith called me from Beijing around 430 this morning. Pretty uneventful. Just a slight glitch going through US security. I packed for Megan. And I had to pack clothes, and grooming products, and an arsenal of meds, and a baby doll for her to play with and a backpack with some little toys - crayons, book, and some snacks. Most adoptive parents of older children get "in" with their children through food. The bag was pretty full before Keith even put his stuff in it. It was just ridiculous once he was done. Last night I removed some of Megan's clothes, some of Keith's snacks and some of his clothes. (The man took about 600 pairs of socks.) And the bag weighed 60 pounds... He refused to take a second carry on. Thursday morning he decided to take a second carry on (finally). So I take out Megan's backpack and move it to the small duffel bag. He must have asked me 10 times 'no liquids?' "No Keith. No liquids. The meds are in the big bag, and the shampoo and soap are in the big bag, and the 3 pack of apple juice is in the big bag. Don't worry. You're fine." Fast forward a few hours. He gets stopped going through security because I forgot I packed bubbles in her backpack! They practically strip-searched him after that. I am still laughing when I think about it. Totally forgot!
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