This afternoon we are taking our train to Hong Kong for the last leg of our trip. Connor woke up VERY SICK...fever, couldn't catch his breath...just ill. Thank goodness, his pediatrician had prescribed me an emergency dosage of Azithromycin (just in case this happened), and we started that this morning. He seems to be doing better. Now the trick is for Amelia not to get this virus. Should make for an interesting ride home. Keep your fingers crossed!
The river cruise was beautiful, and you can see from the pictures. Yesterday we went to the American Consulate to take our adoption oath, that we will always love Amelia and never abandon her. We celebrated by shopping and Thai food for dinner.
We have had the most wonderful trip, and feel like we have all grown (physically - eating McDonalds all the time),culturally, and emtionally.
I must admit that I wondered how I would actually feel once I met Amelia. Would we bond instantly, would it take time? I have to tell you that I adore that child, and she is every bit ours as Connor and Callum. It makes my heart ache to think of my sweet baby spending her first year in an orphanage. We are looking forward to a life as a family of 5, and I see her flourishing more every day.
There were so many times over the last 4 years that I wanted to give up. The wait was so hard and almost drove me crazy at times. I am so glad that I DID NOT give up and waited for THIS CHILD. I LOVE her...and she was definitely worth the wait.
Lisa
So yesterday we did some shopping and took the infamous red couch photo. For those of you not familiar with Chinese adoption, this is a rite of passage for babies about to be adopted. We went with our group to the White Swan Hotel and lined up all the babies in traditional Chinese dress for the photo shoot. (Yes...Nida...I will get you an outfit)! It is a wonderful momento for the girls to have of this trip, and quite an adventure for everyone to pose.
We just received word that all of our paperwork has gone through at the Consulate here, so Amelia will be getting her Visa in 48 hours. We will be taking a high speed train to Hong Kong on Thursday and flying to O'hare on Friday. We are spending the night at my Mom's in Chicago and returning to Peoria on Saturday. We have had a great time, but we are all ready to come home. It is hard being gone this long and living out of a suitcase with a baby.
Got to go...my girl is crying...
Lisa
Well yes...my sports crazed boys found the SuperBowl, only to be commentated in Chinese! They didn't care, and woke up at 6:30 in the morning to watch it.
We got to Guangzhou 3 days ago, but this is my first Internet access. It is sunny and about 70 Degrees today. This area is very pretty and more tropical than I expected. You are still supposed to keep your babies bundled up in snow suits though, which I just can't do. David was walking around the lobby with Amelia yesterday, with just a onesie on. He handed her over to me, and walked away, and about 5 men came up and yelled at me saying she should be covered. Interesting that no one said a word to him!
Since arriving here we have been very busy. Our suite in the hotel is beautiful and the Hotel is quite elegant. We have had a medical exam for Amelia, and finished up the paperwork for her Visa and adoption. We ate at a restaurant where you can pick live snake, rabbit, turtles etc. for dinner. We opted for the rice and noodles.
Yesterday, we went to an animal park that they call a safari. There is nothing like this in the US. They let you get REALLY close up to the animals, and some of them were sticking their heads in people's cars. Connor got to feed a giraffe and we were feet away from the pandas.
We have posted some new pictures. I have to laugh because Amelia is so good natured and happy, but you go to take a picture she becomes very serious. Hopefully we can get some smiling shots today. She took 2 steps on her own this morning. I think we are on our way to walking very soon...just hoping it doesn't happen before the 14 hour plane ride!
Thanks so much for all of your kind words and e-mails. Connor loves seeing which families are following along and hearing about how much he is missed.
Speaking of miss...we miss Callum so much and can't wait to see him. We talk about him all the time and can't wait for him to meet his new sister.
All Our Love,
Lisa, David, Connor, and Amelia
Hi All,
Just checking in to give you an update. We have spent 5 nights in Nanchang and will be flying to Guangzhou this afternoon. It has been cold and rainy during our stay, making it rather hard to venture out with a baby, but we have had a blast. It still blows my mind that there are 3 million people in this city and that the Hotel is the only place that takes credit cards! Yesterday we went to a museum, and had a fantastic dinner with our travel group. There are a total of 5 families with us and it is great to see the babies just flourishing.
Amelia continues to be just a joy, and loves to play with her big brother. She walked around the restaurant with me holding her hands 5 times last night! She didn't want to stop. It is as if she has just realized what her legs can do. She has no idea how to crawl though, but I have a feeling she will just go straight to walking. We were also sitting at the table and she banged her hand down and yelled "MaMa." That got my attention. I am not sure if it was for me, or if she is just getting more comfortable listening to English vs Chinese. I'll take it though.
I also think we are going to need to buy another suitcase before coming home. There are so many things I want to buy and the prices are really reasonable. Connor has purchased LOTS of souvenirs with his money, and the baby clothes are just adorable. Her winter coat is huge on her so I will have to buy another. Oh Well!
Will write tomorrow about Guangzhou.
Lisa
48 hours ago, I couldn't lay Amelia down on her back or front because she would just cry. This afternoon we sat on the bed and played for a long time. All of the sudden she just started rolling and hasn't stopped. She never learned how to do this. We have been told that in our province the orphanages don't have air conditioning in the summer, or heat in the winter. This time of year the babies are so bundled that they can barely move. It is amazing what a little love, attention, and stripping off clothes will do.
She has been such a joy over the last few days, and we are having lots of fun with her. To see her smile at certain things, or giggle at Connor just warms my heart. I wanted to go to her orphanage but is a 4 hour car ride in good weather so that is out. The village she comes from is very remote and we would have needed a guide to take us.
I have been calling her Mei Yang, and Connor told me I need to stop. He said, "Mom, her name is Amelia and you are confusing her!"
When we went to pool yesterday, Amelia and I sat on the side while the boys swam. Connor started doing Cannon Balls, and the pool attendant did not like that. You also have to wear swimming caps in the pool here, and unfortunately I did not get a picture. We also went to the Tengwang Pavillion which was very beautiful.
The language and cultural differences continue to amaze us. We have seen children riding backwards on motorcycles with their parents. Cars driving up on the sidewalk just to get through traffic. You also must have your child completely bundled up when outside or the people become angry and say things to you. None of it is bad, just different from what we are used to.
We have added a bunch of new pictures so take a look.
Lisa
Happy Mom of 3
So I wanted to give you all an update of the last couple of days. Yesterday, we flew to Nanchang at 7:00 AM from Beijing. It's like flying from Chicago to Denver. Only Nanchang looks nothing like Denver. From what we can tell, it is a very industrial city, but the countryside surrounding it is agricultural. We are staying at the city's only 5 star hotel, and there are about 20 different American families with Chinese babies here.
So as I posted, yesterday was our Gotcha Day and we began our new life with Amelia. I must say the moment we met her, was just amazing. Having two biological children, I was really wondering how I would feel and it was every bit as exciting as giving birth. The great thing was that there was no pain though, and she really seemed to take to ALL 3 of us. She is really enjoying being cuddled and playing. She slept 11 hours last night and woke in the morning ready to go.
We started our paperwork for her Visa and Passport, and she was smiling and laughing. David and I keep waiting for a bomb to drop, but thus far, all seems great. Actually, all of the babies who came from her orphanage seem extremely well cared for. I wanted to visit her orphanage and village, but they said it was a 4 hour drive in good weather.
We just gave her a bath and it was evident that was the first time she was ever bathed. She seemed terrified, and it took all 3 of us to do it. Connor is sitting on the bed with her right now and she is laughing out loud for the first time.
We are on our way down to the pool....yes, it is Connor's turn for some fun. He is a tremendous help with her.
Love To All,
Lisa
We have a daughter!
Right now it is 8:30 at night and I am exhausted because I think I have slept 10 hours in 3 days, but I had to update the blog. Amelia is doing great. Better than I expected actually, and we are just over the moon with our girl. She has played with us, hardly cried, can sit up, and walk if we hold her hands. She seems to have been very well taken care of. She got a bit fussy before going to bed, and wouldn't let go of her toy rattle. I am bracing myself for tomorrow, but thus far she has been an angel. We have posted pictures and I will write more later with girl/Mom details, but for now, I need to get some sleep.
Love you all and what a Happy Day!!
Lisa
Another wonderful day in China. We are having a blast! Good weather. Great families in our traveling group. Fascinating sites. What more could you ask for?
Today we went to TianAnMen Square, The Forbidden City and of course the Great Wall. Connor is an absolute hit. No less than seven people came up to us to take pictures with him today. He finds it all very amusing. He is also sleeping on a cot which is about as comfortable as a wooden box. He is so tired at the end of the day though, he just passes out. The sites were all fantastic, but my favorite was the Great Wall. It is really something to see, and climb. We climbed up to the top, and were absolutely exhausted by the end of the day. I have added some really neat pictures under the picture section for your viewing pleasure.
David bought a suit from a tailor yesterday. The guy showed up at 10:00 PM last night to do alterations. Then he came back at 4:30 AM to bring it back! I am not kidding. It's not a big deal to me, because I can't seem to sleep anyway. I have been waking up at 2:00 AM and go read my books in the bathroom so I don't wake the boys up.
Oh...the bathroom. That is another story. I had my first chance at using a squat toilet today. It is just like it sounds....a hole in the ground, and then you do your business. These squat toilets are all over the place, at nice restaurants, shopping centers, parks. Very different than what we are used to.
We are enjoying every minute that we are here, and our next post will be "Gotcha Day."
Hope all is well at home.
Lisa
Today was a fantastic day. We did a tour with the CHI guide, Cindy and were gone all day. We started at the Temple of Heaven, went on a Hutong Tour, rode rickshaws, and went to the Chinese Acrobat show. Our weather was around 35 Degrees but it was sunny and the sky was completely clear. We ended the day at an authentic Chinese restaurant where no one spoke English, and we apparantly ordered enough food for 6 adults. They had no forks so Connor had to eat with chopsticks, and when we left the waitress a tip, she ran down the street to give it back to us. We are so glad that we came a day early to tour Beijing a bit more. The city is huge and there is so much to see. We seem to be doing better with our jet lap, and will go to the Great Wall tomorrow. Gearing up for "Gotcha Day" on Sunday.
Having a blast and will post more tomorrow.
Lisa
After a 14 hour flight, we have landed in Beijing. Everything went very smoothly, with the exception of sitting on an airplane for 14 hours. We met other families on the plane also coming to adopt. We all kind of look the same, carrying around stocked baby bags with no baby. There were several crying babies on the flight, and I kept thinking, "that will be me in two weeks,".....YIKES!
We had a guide to meet us at the gate and take us directly to our hotel. We arrived around 6:00 PM and had a light dinner and went straight to bed. The problem with that is the jet lag. We have all been up since 3:30. Connor was bouncing off the walls by 4:00 AM ,and wanting to wrestle with his Dad, so it was time to get up. He has been a real trooper, and hoping to have "American Chinese Food" for lunch. We are all feeling healthy and can't wait to tour around Beijing for the next couple of days.
2 More Days Unitl Amelia!!!
Lisa