tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78106609970296773732024-03-20T04:23:58.802-07:00Quotes of a Boy MomBetsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.comBlogger148125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-64616642897083369382017-10-21T08:15:00.000-07:002017-10-21T08:15:06.343-07:00Saturday 10/21: Medical Appointment<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Today was Lydia's medical appointment. This is a required appointment in order to qualify for a US visa. Lydia slept well last night, only whimpering 1-2 times in the night and not truly waking up. We had breakfast in the hotel and were able to meet more US families who recently arrived in GZ from other provinces to finish their adoption steps here. After breakfast we met our guide and 2 other families in the lobby. Little Miss was ready to go! She loves to go, go, go in that little red stroller.</div>
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At the medical appointment each child has to go through four stations: ENT, measurements, general physical exam and TB blood draw (if the child is over 2). We knew what to expect since it is our third time to do it. Lydia handled the ENT station fine so our next step was measurements. They took her height and weight and then her temperature. She's around 25 lbs-- bigger than we expected her to be but still a peanut. She's wearing size 18 month clothes and a size 3-4 shoe. It was at the measurement station that we were informed that Lydia had a low grade fever. At first they said they would retake her temperature before we left but we couldn't get her to drink any water and weren't convinced that her temp would go down that quickly. It was decided that we would return on Monday to recheck her temperature before our visa appointment on Tuesday. At the general physical exam Lydia was cooperative and the doctor asked us about her transfusion requirements and when her last transfusion was. Lydia refused to show the doctor that she can stand and bear weight on her legs--- something Hannah also refused to do at her visa medical appointment! The last station was the TB blood draw. Sadly they do not let the parents go in the room with the children for this part of the appointment. When Samuel went in for his blood draw, he was in there screaming for at least 10-15 minutes while they tried to find a vein (likely foreshadowing to him needing a port!). Thankfully when they took Lydia back (screaming!) she was out in 3-4 minutes and they had completed the blood draw successfully. We chose to pay an extra 23 RMB (about $4!) to have a CBC run so we can check her hemoglobin before we fly home on Friday.<br />
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With the ENT doctor</div>
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Cuddle + play time in the room while we waited for lunch to be delivered</div>
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Lydia has become quite opinionated about HER things and how to play with them. She wanted to read Brown Bear Brown Bear but *I* turned the page instead of her which was deemed highly offensive! Hence the temper tantrum Bryan documented below. Clue #1 that Lydia was ready for her nap!! ;)<br />
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We ordered room service. I was lame and got pizza and Bryan got a soup dish with chicken, rice and vegetables that he shared with Lydia. She loved it. After lunch Lydia and I both took naps. Bryan attended a meeting with our guide to prepare all of Lydia's paperwork for her visa appointment on Tuesday. After Lydia's nap, we decided to walk about 10 minutes to Liahuahu Park. Lydia was excited to be out and about and was fever free and feeling good! The park has a large lake in the middle with a pathway that goes all the way around. The weather was great so it was nice to be out! We ran into another US family and visited with them for a bit before heading back to the hotel for dinner in the executive lounge. <br />
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Horrible backlight on this pic-- but there was a large building at the park near the lake. We are not sure what the purpose of the building is but it was really pretty!</div>
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We sat with other adoptive families during dinner and enjoyed visiting with them. After dinner, Lydia was in a great mood back in the hotel. She got brave enough to start taking a few baby steps while holding our hands. She is so proud of herself when she accomplishes these things! She also crawled maybe 1.5-2 feet to Bryan today. This is huge considering she did not want to move her body at all a few days ago! We are so thankful to see her making such quick progress. She also continues to do lots of imaginative play and tonight was pretending to collect something from under the table, mix it up and feed it to herself and to me. It was so cute to watch! <br />
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We are kind of at the stage of the trip where you are just ready to be DONE and go home. We've had a good trip that has been relatively easy compared to other trips, so we are thankful for that. I'm trying to focus on enjoying this time with Lydia and enjoying China because we truly do love our time here. We just miss our kids and the ease of being at home. I'm trying to remember that in the early days of being home with us, Lydia may have moments when she is just DONE and ready to go back to China where things feel familiar. She is about to experience some huge changes in the next week once we are home, and many of those changes will not be easy for her.<br />
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Me trying to stay warm in our cold hotel room. We have no extra blankets so I am making do with a bath towel! </div>
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Tomorrow we have plans to attend a church on Shamian Island with another adoptive family. It is a different church from the one we went to last week. The church tomorrow can be attended by people from Mainland China unlike the church last week. We are excited to visit there and then enjoy the island a little bit - a trademark destination for all adoptive families. </div>
<br />Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-43695159998289773382017-10-20T08:14:00.001-07:002017-10-20T08:14:33.619-07:00Friday 10/20: Baiyun Mountain <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Today was another 'free day' with no adoption related appointments for us. The appointments start up again on Saturday. Our sweet girl continues to go to sleep relatively easily at both nap time and bedtime. She does whimper a few times in the night but doesn't seem to truly wake up. Bryan and I have been taking turns going to the pack n play to rub or pat her back until she quiets which doesn't take long. She seems to choose different toys to cling to each day-- last night it was a baby doll bottle and baby doll spoon which she clung to all night while she slept.</div>
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Sweet sleeping princess</div>
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After breakfast we made plans to go to Baiyun Mountain with our guide. We have seen many of the sights of Guangzhou before on our previous two adoption trips so we are trying to go to places we haven't seen before. We took the Chinese version of Uber to the mountain park and purchased tickets to go to the top. You can hike, take a golf cart/tram or take a cable car. We elected to take the tram up and the cable car on the way down. Once we arrived at the top it was so green and pretty! The weather in Guangzhou was gorgeous today. It is not common to see such blue skies in most parts of China so this was a real treat!! Our guide said people were going to think we had photoshopped our pictures of China ;)<br />
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Heading to the observation area overlooking Guangzhou</div>
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It was a really pretty view of the city. Guangzhou has 14 million people! Our guide, John, was pointing out 'downtown' to us when the whole thing looks like 'downtown' to us! The climate here is similar to Houston although slightly more tropical. There is a lot of lush vegetation and flowering plants that remind us of bougainvillea we have seen in Mexico. It was really pretty and a view of Guangzhou that we haven't seen before!</div>
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Before we left the hotel our guide showed us a picture of a local dessert he said we must have at the top of the mountain. He said it was only available there and a local treat! We had told him about some of our eating adventures in Zhengzhou (the capital of Hannah's province) so I think this inspired him to give us a good story from this trip! We soon found out that the desserts he wanted us to try were gelatin desserts: tofu ginger flavor and another made with brown sugar and TURTLE SHELL. Nope. Just no. I told Bryan I would be an observer not a participant in this dining adventure! </div>
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Bryan & John studying the menu. </div>
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John gave Bryan 3 choices: pickled pigs feet, chicken feet or turtle shell jello.</div>
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Bryan thought the turtle shell jello sounded the least offensive.</div>
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A picture of the menu</div>
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Lydia and I awaiting our fate</div>
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Lydia LOVED the tofu ginger dessert. </div>
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Bryan eating the turtle shell jello. He said it was definitely not the worst thing he's ever eaten but he wouldn't order it again. He is such a good sport!</div>
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Happy girl in her stroller after some tofu jello!</div>
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We rode the cable car down to the bottom of the mountain where our guide had another Chinese Uber driver waiting for us. The views from the cable car were pretty although I have to admit I'm not a huge cable car fan!<br />
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Getting tired and being a bit wiggly and wild</div>
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We ate take out from the Cantonese restaurant in our room for lunch and Lydia took a nice long nap. Bryan and I enjoyed the downtime watching movies (or in my case a series I downloaded before we came here). After nap, Lydia played some in the room. She is starting to move more and try to cruise around the coffee table and even squat down to pick up toys she drops. We also saw her maneuver over to the coffee table and pull herself up on her knees. All of these things may not seem like a big deal but we are thrilled to see her moving and strengthening her muscles which just haven't had the opportunity to be used much. We suspect she spent a lot of time in her crib and didn't have the chance to get down and play on the floor and master those gross motor milestones. <br />
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There are no cute pictures from dinner as Little Miss was being a bit ornery :/ We are thankful for another good day in Guangzhou and that Lydia is adjusting so well to life with her new Mama and Baba. We are officially halfway done with our time here in China (hang in there, grandparents!!!!!) We wish we could speed up the other appointments we have here but it is what it is. We are going to try to savor this time bonding with Lydia and enjoying China with her. <br />
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Tomorrow is Lydia's medical appointment to qualify for a visa. After that, we only have one more appointment left (her US consulate appointment) on Tuesday! Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-81825357119592802172017-10-20T07:40:00.000-07:002017-10-20T07:40:24.474-07:00Thursday, 10/19: Shopping with Ann<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Thursday was a free day for us in terms of adoption appointments, sso we had breakfast and then made plans to go shopping at the local wholesale markets.</div>
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Happiest when food is involved!</div>
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We have noticed that Lydia does not close her mouth around a spoon when being fed. Based on how she acts when we do spoon feed her, we suspect that the food was kind of poured into her mouth maybe to help things go faster. :( She also does not understand how to drink from a straw or an open cup. </div>
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We made plans to shop with a local woman named Ann. Her business is to take adoptive families shopping at wholesale markets in China to help them get better prices on souvenirs and jewelry. I went shopping with her in 2014 and knew she helped me save a lot of money compared to prices we saw in other stores. I definitely wanted to shop with her again! We met her in our hotel lobby at 9:30 after breakfast. Ann has an amazing, bubbly personality and is also one of the fastest walking people I have ever met in my life. We trailed behind her to catch a cab to our first stop, a large wholesale market pictured below:<br />
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She took us to a number of shops to get traditional Chinese clothing for our kids as well as other souvenirs on my list. It was fun to watch her bargain with the shop owners when she felt we were not getting a good deal!<br />
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This shop looked like I was in the wholesale Chinese version of Hobby Lobby...</div>
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...and this one was like the Chinese version of Pier 1!</div>
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Our next stop was the jewelry markets. We stopped at a couple of jade dealers first and then went to two different pearl vendors. The pictures and video below are from the vendor that sells 'wedding quality pearls' as Ann calls them. I got Lydia a baby sized bracelet and necklace that will be a keepsake for her. Hannah also has a set that we bought for her in 2014. They are so much cheaper than US prices and SO pretty! It was amazing to watch the ladies hand string the pearls after I chose the strand I wanted.<br />
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Happy girl while we were buying her pearls! Bryan was so helpful keeping Lydia happy while I shopped. She seemed to really enjoy being out and about. </div>
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We shopped with Ann for 3 hours and then came back to our hotel. We ate take out from the Cantonese restaurant downstairs in our room and then put Lydia down for a nap. Before her nap we tried to get her to crawl or scoot around to get to snacks or toys and girlfriend was not having it! She did enjoy playing with the bracelets we brought though! :)<br />
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After her nap we went to eat dinner in the executive lounge. Lydia sported one of her new bracelets and was thrilled to eat and eat. We made the mistake of letting her eat a ton of dragon fruit which subsequently ended in a horrific diaper the next morning. #lessonlearned<br />
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I also realized you can get wine in a to go cup from the executive lounge and enjoy it upstairs in your room! #winning<br />
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Thursday was a great day in Guangzhou with lots of great shopping deals and time out in the city. Lydia continues to be more and more comfortable with us. She's shown us that she enjoys being out and about and going for rides in her stroller. Being able to get out and do things is a blessing and helps pass the time as we wait for our next set of appointments.<br />
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Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-44006666005241438862017-10-20T07:11:00.000-07:002017-10-20T07:11:28.441-07:00Wednesday 10/18: A trip to Aeon, Passport office appointment and Hot Pot<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I've gotten a little behind on blogging about our daily activities so I'm going to try to play catch up! </div>
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On Wednesday our only adoption related appointment was in the afternoon so our morning was free. Lydia slept well the night before which we are SO thankful for. We got her dressed and ready for the day and headed down to breakfast. She gets so excited to ride in her stroller and when she realizes our destination involves FOOD! </div>
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Ready for the day</div>
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Time to drink my juice... Bottoms up!</div>
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We went to our hotel's taxi stand after breakfast and took a taxi to Aeon, which is a multi level store that is a combination grocery store/department store. Lydia did great in the store. We got more diapers and wipes, some gifts for the kids at home and some hair bows for Lydia. She was so excited when I let her hold the things we were buying!! <br />
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As we left the store she had been holding a laundry soap bar that I decided not to purchase once I saw how long the lines were in the first floor check out stands. I took it out of her hands and she started to throw a fit in the stroller. Cue many people staring at us as we tried to exit the very crowded store with a sad, screaming baby in the stroller. I reached in Lydia's backpack and grabbed one of her favorite treats-- a traditional rice cracker -- and she instantly stopped crying. Several older Chinese women immediately started laughing at her because it was clear the fit was all drama!!! :)<br />
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Enjoying her post-tantrum rice cracker in the taxi </div>
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After shopping and lunch, Lydia played in our room for a little bit before her nap. Bryan has been putting her down for nap and I have been putting her to bed at night. She is drinking a bottle both times, primarily for bonding purposes but also so she stays hydrated prior to her blood draw on Saturday and prior to transfusion once we get home. <br />
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Sweet baby feet!</div>
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We had to wake Lydia up from her nap to go meet our guide for our passport office appointment. We took a van to the main police station in Guangzhou. Lydia's passport photo and application had already been submitted, but for whatever reason she needed to appear in person in Guangzhou and have her picture taken by a web cam. We don't always understand what the processes are here, so we just go along and do as we are told. We also received a copy of Lydia's adoption certificate while we were there. Lydia did well at the passport office and it was a relatively easy and quick appointment.<br />
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We made plans to meet up with our guide John for dinner. We took his suggestion and went to a new hot pot restaurant that recently opened near our hotel. I was a little leery but it ended up being really good! As you walk up the stairs at the restaurant all the meat is hanging there on display.<br />
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Once seated, you select which cuts of meet, noodles/dumplings and vegetables you want to eat and which broth you want to cook them in. They put a large pot in the center of the table that has a heating element in it and your selected broth is poured inside. Once it is boiling, you cook the food you ordered in the broth. There is also a buffet where you can mix your own dipping sauce. Bryan made one with soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, etc. Lydia and I mostly stuck to beef dumplings :) She figured out how to sign for 'more' while at the restaurant and was so proud of herself that she clapped each time she did it!<br />
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After dinner, Lydia was amazed to see herself on video!! :)</div>
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She played a bit more, then took her bath and was ready for bed. All in all, a good and rather uneventful day in GZ!</div>
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Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-48372098427955153532017-10-17T16:07:00.001-07:002017-10-17T16:07:26.769-07:00Tuesday, October 17: Adoption Finalization <div class="" data-block="true" data-editor="fe1mv" data-offset-key="5gidv-0-0" style="color: #1d2129; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">
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<span data-offset-key="5gidv-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">Lydia slept amazing the first night we had her. We had to wake her at 7:30am so we could get her dressed and fed before our appointments. She seemed very pleased with her new shoes! :) She is also very attached to the soft stuffed panda that we brought for her and carries it with her everywhere we go. </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">We ate breakfast in the executive lounge and she mostly ate dumplings and scrambled eggs. We have noticed that she will not pick up her cup to drink. She will only eat when we suggest to eat and drink when we suggest to drink. :( We don't think she's had many choices during her time in the orphanage and was used to a very structured and small life. When we suggested drinking the orange juice she guzzled it!!</span></div>
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We met a new guide in the lobby and went back to the civil affairs office where we met her the day before. Tuesday's pictures were much happier in that place! We went through a short formal interview with a civil affairs official and signed our name many times to finalize her adoption. We also posed for our official adoption decree picture! Our next stop was to drive to the notary office where we had to wait for a bit and then go through another short interview in order for our documents to be official. The notary asked many questions (a lot which seemed out of curiosity) about our family size, meeting our children's special needs, why we are adopting again. It was nice to be able to share with him about our love for China, our honor in raising all of our kids and our willingness to provide medical care for our children. We are so thankful to have the resources we need in America to give them a life of happiness and HOPE. Life in China with thalassemia is not a life of hope due to limited medical resources. <br />
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After the meetings we drove back to the hotel and then ate lunch in the Cantonese restaurant in our hotel. This is the first time we really saw Lydia start to use imaginary play! A waitress gave her a plastic bowl and spoon to use while we waited for the food. Lydia was pretending to mix food and then feed multiple imaginary people near her. Honestly, she was most likely mimicking how the nannies in the orphanage feed all the babies and go down the line giving them bites. Kind of sad if you think about it, but we are choosing to be thankful that she knew how to use her imagination and mimick things she has experienced in her life. <br />
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After lunch Bryan put Lydia down for a nap. She drank a small bottle and he laid her in the pack in play. She fussed a little but he patted her back and held her hand and she quickly went to sleep. I took a nap also, and she and I both slept for over 3 hours!</div>
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<span data-offset-key="ehgo8-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">When Lydia woke up she was so thrilled to sit on the couch and play with all of her little toys. She can be very possessive of her new belongings like any other two year old-- but we also suspect she has not had many things that were truly HERS. She happily played on the couch for 45 minutes. I've never seen a child her age sit still for that long. Bryan then moved her to standing up next to the couch and she stood there for at least 25 minutes. We have noticed that when we put her in a position it does not occur to her to move. She can move her arms and legs normally like any other child- but it's almost like she hasn't had the chance to explore and play. We suspect (and our guide also confirmed) that she likely spent most of her time in her crib at the orphanage, both because of the sheer volume of kids there and because they viewed her as fragile due to her thalassemia. When standing she didn't know how to bend down to pick up something she dropped or transition to a sitting position. We are hopeful that with time, experience and maybe a little physical therapy she will make great strides. </span></div>
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<span data-offset-key="lek1-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">We loved watching her feed her baby, pretend to distribute food into different little cups and talk on the phone. When we FaceTimed my mom she pretended to talk on the phone to her! I even taught my mom how to say "wei" when she would 'answer' her phone because that is what they say in China! :) </span></div>
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Bryan in total 'Dad mode' protecting her from hitting the corner of the table while she plays and he watched football!!! </div>
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Daddy listening to her lungs and heart- she is still battling a bit of congestion and sounds like a purring kitten. </div>
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I gave Lydia her first bath with us and thankfully she did not cry. Again - she mostly sat still and clung to the new stacking cups I gave her. She tried to play with them a little but she was mostly concerned with not losing them. You can see in the bath pictures and when I got her out of the tub just how distended her belly is. This is from her untreated thalassemia (her spleen and liver are enlarged) and should get better with time as she gets more regular transfusions. It could take up to a year or more to get completely better, though. It is hard to see some of the physical characteristics of untreated thalassemia in her and know that all of those things could have been avoided :( <br />
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<span data-offset-key="96lnf-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">Baby girl played more after bath and repeated the previous nights routine of happily drinking her bottle in my arms, then laying in her pack n play and peacefully falling asleep! She slept all night except for a small whimper or two, and is still sleeping now as I write this. It's almost 7am here. </span></div>
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<span data-offset-key="5ousc-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">Today (Wednesday) we are free all morning and only have to go to the passport office at 3pm to apply for her passport. </span></div>
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<span data-offset-key="2qs90-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">Thank you for reading along as I document our time here (mostly for my benefit and the benefit of Lydia's grandparents!). We appreciate your prayers and support for us and feel so encouraged to know how many people care about our family and our new daughter. <3 </span></div>
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Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-63483793554899455072017-10-17T08:21:00.000-07:002017-10-17T08:21:30.407-07:00October 16, 2017: Lydia's Gotcha Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Yesterday was Lydia's long-awaited Gotcha Day. I have already shared most of these pictures but I wanted to document the details here so I can look back and remember this day clearly. </div>
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Bryan and I slept decent although we were both up in the early morning hours (Bryan at 2:30 and me at 4 or so). Thanks, jet lag! We relaxed in our room and joked that this was like a vacation! We paid for executive lounge access at the Marriott on this trip so we went to eat breakfast once it was open and we had showered. For the first time ever in 5 adoptions, I was not too nervous to eat on gotcha day! At this stage in Samuel's adoption I was so nervous I was vomiting, so eating some bacon and eggs and pork dumplings is a huge improvement! I was thankful to feel calm and ready which I know is a result of so many people praying for us.</div>
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We met with our guide around 10:30 to talk about the logistics of the day. He is so kind and easy to talk with; we enjoyed visiting with him and felt ready for the day. Unfortunately we had to wait until 1:50 to meet him again to go get Lydia! The time went by so slowly waiting for it to be time! Finally it was time to go; the room was ready, Lydia's bag was packed and we had our bag and camera ready to go. </div>
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We rode in the van to the civil affairs office. It was about a 15 minute drive. As we walked up the steps to the lobby our guide noticed that Lydia was there with her nurse and nanny! We ended up riding up the elevator with them! Not at all what we expected but it was a fun surprise. They took Lydia to a playroom while we did some paperwork. Then it was time to officially meet! She was ok looking at us but did not want me to take her from the nanny. I tried a couple times and she as not having it, so finally the nanny just handed her to me and disappeared into the background. I can't imagine being a nanny in one of these situations! At that point Lydia basically lost it, and who can blame her? She is too little to understand all that is happening to her. She desperately needed comfort but the only people available to offer it were strangers who look unfamiliar, speak a different language and who she doesn't find comforting at.all. It was hard. <br />
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We took her over towards the purple couches where our bags were and quickly unwrapped a sucker. It is hard for kids to cry when they have a lollipop in their mouth ;) She immediately calmed and went to town on that sucker! We were able to have a few peaceful moments holding her, taking pictures, looking at her photo book, etc. <br />
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Soon it was time to take our official photo with the orphanage staff. When they came close to Lydia she lost it again, especially when she realized we were still holding her and not them. She calmed a little once she saw them leave and they were out of sight. <br />
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Leaving the civil affairs office in Baba's (Daddy's) arms</div>
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On the way back to the hotel we stopped at a local store called Aeon (think HEB + Target combined on 3-4 different levels). We picked up formula, rice cereal, eczema cream, baby wash, lotion, and some snacks for her. Lydia stayed surprisingly calm as Bryan carried her through the store which was very crowded and chaotic. She remained calm the whole way into the hotel until we got to our room and then when Bryan set her down on the bed she just lost it. I mean really lost it :( She cried and cried. She didn't really want to be held. Throughout all of this she had been clinging to her toy firetruck that she brought with her from the orphanage and 2-3 Gerber puffs we had given her. Even in all her anger and distress, she still didn't let go of her things. We eventually laid her down on the bed and laid on either side of her while she raged and cried. It is such a helpless feeling as a parent yet we totally understand where the behavior is coming from. There wasn't much we could DO in a situation where all you want is to DO something. I finally started patting her back slowly and rhythmically while gently telling her she was safe, it's ok to be afraid, etc. Times like this I wish I spoke Cantonese and that she could understand me! In moments like that we just have to hope that our tone of voice, our actions, our slow and gentle movements feel peaceful to her. She eventually cried herself to sleep and continued to sleep for 1.5 hours on the bed clutching her toy. At one point her body relaxed enough to let go of the things she was clinging too.<br />
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On top of the distress and fear that came with the day, she is also battling a cold. Her breathing sounds like a little purring kitten and she has had a cough and you can tell the congestion is in her chest. The orphanage staff gave us some over the counter medication to give her which seems to be helping thus far but she's certainly not 100%. <br />
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We finally decided to wake her up by opening the blinds, turning on lights and the TV. She would barely open her eyes, see that we were still there and then close her eyes and shake her head no and go back to sleep. I'm sure it all felt like a bad dream to her at this point. We finally sat her up and she began to wake up while some little Chinese cartoons/songs played on the TV. She was rocking some serious bed head from sweating and crying and thrashing on the bed! She stayed calm while Bryan changed her diaper and also felt her very distended belly (a common issue in kids with poorly managed thalassemia).<br />
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Since she was calm, we decided to go eat dinner in the executive lounge. She ate 3-4 pork dumplings, some noodles and rice and tried to drink from a cup but the concept seemed unfamiliar to her. She also did not understand how to drink from a straw, either. At this point she was definitely preferring Bryan over me and I was following her lead and letting him carry and hold her the most. She would sometimes accept food from me, and other times only accept it from Bryan. <br />
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When we got back to the room she got upset again. We were both exhausted and I felt like it was easier on Lydia to just let Bryan comfort her. My mother's instincts kept telling me to try different things with her, so finally I scooped her up as she cried and carried her to the other room and she quickly settled as I rubbed her back and spoke to her. We quickly face timed the kids before school (it was Monday morning in the US at that point) so they could see their new sister while she was calm. From that point on, Lydia really turned a corner. I am so thankful I trusted my instinct and just kept pursuing her and not giving up. <br />
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We sat her on the bed and began playing with the stuffed panda we brought for her. I made the panda tickle her and kiss her and give her hugs and she thought that was so funny! We began to get lots of smiles and belly laughs from our previously terrified little girl. We were both so encouraged!!<br />
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Pretty soon it was time for bed. Because she took a later nap, her bedtime was later as well. She took her medicine for congestion and Bryan fixed her bottle. I held her in the bedroom and kept the lights dim. She let me hold her and sing to her while she guzzled the bottle and clutched her stuffed panda. It was sweet time where she made lots of eye contact with me and let me gently stroke her hair and cheek. Unfortunately she didn't seem the least bit tired!! I had asked the orphanage (through our guide) if she slept in a dark room, with a nightlight, did they rock her etc so I'd have some clues about what she was used to. I decided to keep that routine the same for her but knew I didn't want to let her cry or feel afraid as she went to sleep. I put her in the pack n play, turned off the light and sat nearby playing Chinese lullabies on my phone so she knew I was near. She rolled around in the pack n play, chattering away in baby talk and at one point even said "Mama" although I don't know if it was directed at me or not. She never cried or acted upset and soon enough she went to sleep! She slept all night and we had to wake her the next day. We are SO SO thankful for good rest that first night and a relatively easy bedtime routine! This is a HUGE praise. I don't know if it will continue during the rest of our time in China or at home, but we will choose to be thankful for that first night of rest no matter what happens. <br />
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Today was full of some hard, heartbreaking moments and some sweet, redeeming moments as well. It was truly a depiction of beauty from ashes as we watched our new daughter transition away from her old life and into her new one. I'll never understand all that she has been through or the courage she's had to display-- but we do understand that God is at work here and that He is redeeming the hard parts of her life bit by bit. We are so honored to be a part of this precious little girl's life! </div>
<br />Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-52317887854413851192017-10-15T20:34:00.000-07:002017-10-15T20:34:18.871-07:00A Letter to Lydia<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Dear Lydia,<br />
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Today is the big day that we and so many people back at home have been anticipating: your family day, your 'gotcha day' as some call it. Many will say you are so lucky and that what we are doing for you is amazing-- but the reality is that today is going to be very hard for you. It will not feel lucky or amazing to you at all; it will likely feel scary, uncertain and unknown to your tender heart. We are praying with all that we have that the Lord would comfort you and bring you peace as you make this huge transition. We are praying that He would give us a supernatural ability to anticipate your needs and bring you comfort. We are praying that when you look into our unfamiliar eyes you will see love and feel safe. There is nothing amazing or special about us on our own-- but with God's help we feel equipped and called to be your parents. <br />
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We have fought hard to get to this day, to make you our own, to seek out the very best for you. We are honored to be a part of the story God is writing with your life and to see Him bring beauty from ashes. We are praying that through adoption, you will have the opportunity to experience a forever family, to lead a healthy life with excellent medical care, and to know the love of Jesus Christ in your life. We are not naive to the fact that your adoption is borne from loss; we will never minimize all that you have given up to join our family. We hope that how we parent you will honor your beginnings and in some way honor your birth parents and the life we know they want you to have. <br />
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You are precious to us and we cannot wait to make you our daughter forever. Without knowing you, we love you. Without doing anything for us, we long to be in relationship with you and to weave your life into our family. What an honor that God would see us fit to participate in this process and to bring a daughter from the other side of the world into our hearts and homes!<br />
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We pray that from this day forward, you will never know what it means to have unmet needs- whether they be physical, emotional, or medical. We promise to give you our very best and to love you forever, no matter what. <br />
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We love you with all our hearts and are thankful today is the day you become our daughter. <br />
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Love,<br />
Mommy and DaddyBetsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-83194209308382437642015-08-26T07:07:00.003-07:002015-08-26T07:08:36.100-07:008/26: Our last day in China<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Today was our last day in China. We spent the day doing a whole lot of waiting around for Samuel's visa to be ready... so a whole lot of nothing all the live long day. We initially planned to go to Shamian Island but lacked the motivation and had no desire to sweat profusely for yet another day. Instead we went to the hotel playroom with the McDonalds. The boys enjoyed playing and then we decided to go to Pizza Hut for lunch where we had the slowest, most pitiful service. Samuel slept in his stroller throughout the meal (nap ruined!). Our general feeling about the day of waiting + Pizza Hut is best summarized below:</div>
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Ready to blow this joint</div>
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When we got back from Pizza Hut Samuel ate his take-out at the coffee table. We tried to get him to nap again but failed. By this point, our will to parent was greatly diminished. We let him call the shots this afternoon which meant this anti pant-ite played around the hotel room in his pull-up all afternoon. And who doesn't love the look of a pull-up with athletic shoes??</div>
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We played balloons, colored, wiped crayon off the carpet, ripped up toilet paper, flushed the potty a lot, threw a few fits...<br />
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Then Samuel asked to take a bath. Mind you it was 4pm but with nothing else to do (and because we had to stay in the room to wait for our guide to bring Samuel's visa) we said OH SURE, KID! Go ahead and play in the tub! Samuel splashed and played for an hour. He had a great time and it made for some easy parenting since we could just raise the bathtub curtain and watch him play. In most Chinese hotels the bathtub/shower area is visible from the bedroom but can be hidden by a powered curtain. Woo hoo, fancy!<br />
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Once we got Samuel's visa and immigration paperwork from our guide, we decided to go to dinner with the McDonald's at the Irish Pub. Mexican food & Irish food in China -- what an international experience we've had this week! We struggled to keep Samuel awake in the restaurant but Bryan fought the good fight and managed to perk him up enough to last through the meal.<br />
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We are now packing up our things while Samuel sleeps and getting pumped up to start the long trek home. Tomorrow morning we will go to the train station and take a train ride to Hong Kong. It takes about 1 hour 45 minutes. From there, we will take a cab to our hotel in Hong Kong. We won't actually spend the night there but need a place to crash/freshen up before our flight at midnight. The hotel is attached to the airport so it will be very convenient to take sleepy kids straight into the terminal from our hotel. The McDonalds will join us there and we will be on the same flights home along with another family from Texas. <br />
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We take off from Hong Kong at 12:45am on Friday 8/28 and fly for about 4 hours to Seoul. We land in Seoul a little after 5 am, have a 4 hour layover then fly from Seoul to Houston for a little over 13 hours. We'll take Samuel through immigration where he will officially become a US citizen-- and then we will walk out of baggage claim and see the faces of our sweet children and parents who we miss so much!!<br />
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We will likely not be able to update the blog any more as we begin the marathon journey back to our home. We appreciate prayers for safe and easy travel, for sleep on the plane, and for Samuel's heart to be prepared for the many changes he is about to experience. The adoption story may appear to be over, but for him the biggest changes are still ahead. He will leave his incredible birth culture behind, his language, his familiar foods and smells and join an entirely different culture, home and environment. Pray that he would continue to find comfort in Bryan and me as he makes these huge transitions, and for our children at home as we experience the growing pains of becoming a family of 6. <br />
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We are so grateful for the support, prayers, emails, comments and encouragement during this adoption journey. We can't wait to be home and introduce you to the precious son God chose for us-- our Samuel. Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-56937213350604796702015-08-25T07:38:00.000-07:002015-08-25T07:38:01.999-07:00Tuesday 8/25: Consulate Appointment<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Today was our consulate appointment the US Consulate in Guangzhou. We left the hotel at 9am for our 10am consulate appointment. Our guide had meticulously prepared our paperwork ahead of time so all we needed to do was show up and follow instructions! </div>
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Outside of the consulate there are hundreds of Chinese people waiting in line so they can try to get a visa to come to the US. As American citizens, we immediately go to the front of the line and walk straight in for our appointment. The privilege of being an American and living in our amazing nation is not lost on us as we are abroad in China. Once inside the consulate we could not bring in any electronics so we don't have any pictures. During the appointment, each family takes an oath that the information they have provided on their child's visa application is truthful. Then each family is called up one by one to be interviewed by the officer. The female officer that interviewed us recognized Samuel's Chinese name. She is the same officer I spoke with on the phone at midnight in Texas one night, trying to find out if our paperwork had been expedited and was ready for pick up. I was able to thank her personally for the work she did to help Samuel join our family so quickly. </div>
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Ready to head to the US Consulate!</div>
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Standing outside the US Consulate in Guangzhou. Many families dress their children in red, white and blue for this appointment. Samuel got lots of compliments on his shorts with a belt! He looked like a little man :)</div>
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They had a little tikes playhouse and some small toys in the waiting area. Samuel played nicely with the other kids while we waited our turn at the appointment. He was not happy when we picked him up to leave, and even more unhappy that Mama was carrying him instead of Baba. He turned into total limp dead weight and yelled for Daddy while I carried him out. I walked on out of there with the hundreds of chinese people lined up outside staring as our son yelled for his Daddy who was walking right beside me. It would have made less of a scene to hand him to Bryan but we are trying to help him learn that a) Mama and Baba are both good and b) Mama and Baba run the show! <br />
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We met up with our guide in the lobby of the medical building (the guides/drivers cannot park in front of the consulate). Bryan took Samuel to the bathroom. When they were done, Bryan wanted Samuel to walk out into the lobby but Samuel was not having it. He wanted to be carried. Cue the temper tantrum in the lobby of the medical building. Our guide had to come over and explain to Samuel in Cantonese that sometimes he needs to walk and it was time to stand up and go. He then proceeded to do the slowest, most deliberate process of going from laying down to standing that I have ever seen. Classic toddler move. Somethings are just universal, ya know?? It was actually really hard not to laugh!!! We've continued to have those kinds of moments throughout the day (and have had them consistently for about 5-6 days now). The fits are over horrible injustices like getting out of the bathtub, not being allowed to lay on the floor of a restaurant under the table, and being asked to put on pants. Luckily these instances really aren't frustrating us-- we are just trying to be consistent, pick our battles and set some boundaries.<br />
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Back at the hotel, our guide took us to a shop to buy an inexpensive stroller. I am glad she showed us how to get there since it was a few blocks back in a Chinese neighborhood. There's no way we could have found it on our own. Unfortunately I started to get a migraine at this point. We grabbed a quick lunch and came back to the hotel so I could nap. Bryan played with Samuel and eventually took him down to the kiddie pool to swim while I rested and started packing our stuff. </div>
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Tonight we went to dinner at the same noodle house with the McDonalds again. Bryan and I ordered pork dumplings, bok choy, a large noodle bowl with vegetables and meat, a pork dish and 2 cokes. Our total was less than $20! The restaurant makes the noodles and dumplings fresh in an open kitchen that you can see from your seat. The boys ate a TON just like the night before. We continue to be impressed with Samuel's attempt at using chopsticks!</div>
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On the way back from dinner we saw this bike. The little seat in the front is meant for your small child to sit on.</div>
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The boys were jabbering about a dog they saw on the street and were not amused with my photo shoot. They were also not amused by the moon cakes we bought from a bakery on the way back. Can't say that I blame them-- we tasted them and thought they were kinda yucky. </div>
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At this point all of our paperwork is finished. We are just waiting on Samuel's visa which should be in our hands by 4:30 pm tomorrow. We plan to go to Shamian Island tomorrow and may try to find our way to the toy market also. We stay here on Wednesday night then take a train to Hong Kong on Thursday morning. Our flights leave Hong Kong a little after midnight on Thursday night (so basically Friday morning here). We are really on the home stretch now and can't wait to bring Samuel home to meet the rest of his family! </div>
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<span id="goog_1595460262"></span><span id="goog_1595460263"></span><br />Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-86501112940757741672015-08-24T08:16:00.001-07:002015-08-24T08:20:59.356-07:00Monday 8/24: Safari Park<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Another day down in Guangzhou, just a few more to go! Today was a free day so our agency arranged for our group of 3 families to go to the Safari Park. It was about a 45 minute drive from our hotel and we left after breakfast. We were able to stay for 4 hours and enjoyed the drive thru safari and the many animal exhibits. It was a cross between Disney's Animal Kingdom and a great zoo. The animals were all very active and visible so we really enjoyed that. We had noticed that Samuel likes animals so he really loved it too! </div>
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In our hotel lobby before leaving for the safari park. I have no idea what the 30 means but I love my boy's sweet smile in this pic!</div>
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Killing time riding the escalator up and down, up and down</div>
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Samuel slept on the way to the safari park. He tends to pass out every time we drive for more than 5 minutes. Our guide helped us get tickets then let us explore on our own while she went back to the city to handle paperwork for our adoptions.</div>
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We went to the safari train ride first. Bryan and I both love the beautiful trees that filled the park. Here's the lovely view while we waited in line for the train.</div>
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All aboard! Poor Samuel wasn't sure what to think. I can't imagine what he thinks is going on with us. Which hotel do we live in? Why are they taking me to a doctor? Why are we on a train? What is going on??? He sure is a good sport!</div>
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Once on the train Samuel LOVED seeing the animals. He was so excited. It gave me a lump in my throat to see his joy at experiencing something like this. He spent the entire ride pointing his finger and chattering away in Cantonese about the animals. </div>
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Love the excitement on his face!</div>
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And this one, just because he is precious. He loved seeing the lions and then realizing he had a lion on his shirt. </div>
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Lions!</div>
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Giraffes chilling in the giraffe house</div>
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After the tour our next stop was to feed the giraffes! Samuel was a little uncertain at first but still enjoyed it.</div>
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We then walked up on some kind of elephant show. The elephants were so close to us! There were at least 10 of them.</div>
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We made our way to the Panda exhibit. This safari park is famous for having panda triplets that were born a little over a year ago.</div>
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An adult panda just chillin'</div>
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The playroom for the panda triplets</div>
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The baby pandas were all playing with their toys. This one was swinging in a little basket swing! So cute!</div>
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Just like Disney, you walk through a zoo gift shop as you leave each major exhibit. Wonder what this Chinese lady in the background thinks of me in the Panda Triplet headband???</div>
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We then went to the children's area where they had free rides. Samuel liked the carousel a lot and didn't want to get off the ride when it was over, even though he looks solemn in every picture!</div>
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Checking out a giant circus ball with Daddy after the carousel</div>
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It was almost time to go so we made our way out via the primate section. Love the meditation pose on this monkey.</div>
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Just to give you an idea of how beautiful the safari park was... this is the sidewalk leading through the primate area. The canopy of trees was pretty and helpful on a very hot day! We were so sweaty by the end of our time there. I am not sure what we would have done without the stroller we borrowed from the hotel. </div>
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Monkeys playing on spinning hamster wheel contraptions! This was fun to watch.</div>
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A video of the playful monkeys </div>
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Love this mother with her tiny baby!</div>
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On our way out we saw a concession stand called "Mr. Sleeve-fish". Don't worry, we resisted the urge and did not eat here.</div>
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Samuel was pooped from the long day at the safari park. He napped in the stroller and for a little while in the van on the way back.</div>
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Once back in the room, Samuel was in rare form. It was 4:30 so too late for a real nap. He busied himself with all kinds of things, including pushing the buttons so rapidly on the room safe that he broke it. It set off the alarm on it for a good 10 minutes then couldn't be re-locked. Bryan had to call the front desk and they sent 2 staff members up to fix it. He is living up to his nickname of "tornado".</div>
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We went to dinner with the McDonalds again. We managed to find a noodle restaurant that our guides told us about. We ordered dumplings, noodle dishes, sautéed greens (none of us are sure what vegetable it was but it was certainly delicious!) and they brought an egg dish for the kids. The food was very good and cheap, and the boys both ate and ate and ate. I was proud of myself for eating my entire meal with chopsticks!</div>
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After dinner Samuel took a bath and is now fast asleep in our bed!</div>
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We are going to bed with grateful hearts for many reasons: Samuel's Tb test came back negative and his blood counts look great for our travel in just a few days! Caleb had a great start to second grade today! We are on the home stretch of our trip and ready to have all 4 of our kids together under one roof. </div>
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Tomorrow is our consulate appointment for Samuel's visa interview. The appointment is at 10am and we hope to receive Samuel's visa on Wednesday. </div>
<br />Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-60504687424110673792015-08-23T07:50:00.001-07:002015-08-23T07:54:32.552-07:00Sunday 8/23: Guangzhou church & fun with the McDonalds<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Today we spent the majority of the day in Guangzhou with our friends the McDonalds. We had a great and very full day!</div>
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We started off by attending church at the Guangzhou International Christian Fellowship. We took a taxi from our hotel to a Hilton a few miles away. We started seeing Americans carrying bibles go inside and up the elevators and knew we were in the right place! Those of you who are my Facebook friends may have already seen what I wrote about our experience at church. I want to document it here, as well. </div>
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<i>To our friends in America who are waking up on Sunday morning---<br /><br />Today we were able to attend the Guangzhou International Christian Fellowship church which meets at a local hotel. Many nations were represented there to hear the Gospel proclaimed-- but not China. From the church website: "Please Note - In accordance with local government regulations, Guangzhou International Christian Fellowshi<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">p is open to foreign passport and foreign residence permit holders from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan."<br /><br />That's right-- the local government regulates who can attend this church. There is a Christian church in Guangzhou, but it is state-run, meaning their message and practices are influenced (controlled?) by the Chinese government.<br /><br />As you wake up this morning, please don't waste the amazing privilege you have to attend the church of your choosing, worship the God of your choosing, sing the songs of your choosing. To know that billions of people in the beautiful nation of China are not given this opportunity was sobering.<br /><br />All that being said, we were so encouraged by our time in worship there today. We were given a warm welcome and our sweet Chinese son was able to attend church for the first time in his life.</span></i></div>
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The service was completely full- an entire banquet room at the Hilton- by the end of the service. It was so encouraging to be surrounded by fellow believers today and to spend time in worship.</div>
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After the service we took a cab back to our hotel and chose to walk with the McDonalds to find something to eat. We were originally looking for a noodle/dumpling place that our guide told us about but didn't find it. We spotted Tekila's, a Mexican restaurant that Bryan and I ate at during our last visit to Guangzhou. We all had low expectations for Mexican food in China but it ended up being a great spot for lunch. They have added a children's play area that Samuel and Christian enjoyed and our food was pretty good too!</div>
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Bryan ordered table-side guacamole, forgetting it would have many fresh, raw vegetables in it (not safe to eat if they've been washed in Chinese tap water). We all decided to roll the dice and eat it, knowing we could just take some Cipro if we got sick. 10 hours later and none of us are sick yet!</div>
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The new play area at Tekila's</div>
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Samuel loved playing. He was definitely in his element and it was a great, safe place for him to burn some energy while we visited with Jess & Mike. </div>
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Who do you think he is smiling at?? His Daddy!! This boy loves his Baba.</div>
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Sharing with Christian</div>
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After lunch we came back to the room and Samuel took a nice, long nap while we enjoyed the quiet. When he woke up we decided to try out the hotel pool. He was happy to bring along a beach ball that we brought. Once at the pool, he was very solemn. He didn't cry but I wouldn't say he enjoyed it either. I think he was a little overwhelmed by the experience but I'm sure he will grow to love it! We only stayed in for a little bit before deciding to try out the hotel playground instead.<br />
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This picture cracks me up. Have you ever seen such long legs going down a kid slide?!? Bryan is such a fun, involved Daddy. Samuel adores him</div>
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This is the face Samuel makes right before he's about to get wild. It's kind of a crazed underbite. This was just before he started rocking like a wild man on this toy on the playground.</div>
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We changed out of our swimsuits and walked with the McDonalds to eat at McDonalds. Bryan and I rarely if ever eat at McDonalds in the states, but desperate times call for desperate measures. After our meal we bought some mosquito spray at the drug store in anticipation of our day tomorrow and then headed back to the hotel.<br />
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Samuel is attaching really well to both of us: he accepts care and comfort from us, will play/engage with both of us, is not seeking out attention or comfort from other adults, etc. He calls us "Ma" and "Ba" short for Baba which is Chinese for Daddy. He wants to hold our hands every where we go. At nap and bedtime he will hold our hands as he falls asleep. His sleeping is SO much better in Guangzhou and I think it is because our hotel room is so much cooler. In Nanning the room felt balmy many nights as the 3 of us laid in the king sized bed. It is chilly here so I think he is a lot more comfortable. The ninja bed moves have basically stopped. <br />
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We are also seeing another sign of being attached and comfortable with us-- tantrums. They aren't horrible but are definitely happening more! Today's tantrums were over things like using or not using a fork, not being able to play with Mommy's phone anymore (after somehow changing the language to Russian), not being carried from the elevator to the room, being taken out of the bathtub, being forced to put on pants. The struggle is real, y'all. He is a typical toddler who wants his way and we are carefully choosing our battles while also trying to establish who runs the show. It's a delicate balance between building trust and attachment and also establishing the parent/child relationship. Let me tell you-- discipline and establishing a parent/child relationship is not fun when most of it is being done in public with a toddler who does not speak the same language as you! We are hanging in there and SO encouraged by how well he is doing. We know his trust and attachment to us will only continue to improve as the weeks go by. <br />
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Tomorrow we will go to the Safari Park with our guide. We are really looking forward to it since we did not go on our last trip to China. Samuel seems to love animals so it should be a blast!Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-24172088999683087132015-08-22T06:56:00.002-07:002015-08-22T07:04:02.325-07:00Friday 8/21 and Saturday 8/22<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Yesterday afternoon we checked out of our hotel around 2:30pm. Our guide picked us up at 3pm and we went to pick up Samuel’s passport. We then drove to the train station in Nanning so we could catch our 5pm train. We went through security at the train station and then made our way to our waiting area for the train. Thankfully our guide was able to stay with us the entire time. He even came onto the train with us to load our luggage and get us situated. We really liked riding the bullet train— more leg room than plane, we got to see the country side plus it was a new experience. It may have been difficult to navigate without the help of our guide, though. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Outside the Nanning train station</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">With our guide in Nanning, Amby</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Walking to get to the train platform</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The bullet train</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">A view inside the train</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">On the train Samuel was a busy little guy.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">We went through every entertainment option that we had for him several times and he never did fall asleep despite our best efforts. We could tell he was exhausted as he got busier and busier and more rowdy. We were pretty beat by the time t</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">he train arrived in Guangzhou at 9:30pm! </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Another guide and driver were waiting there for us and helped us take our bags to the van.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Samuel fell asleep immediately in the van and slept during the entire 45 minute ride to the hotel.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">He continued to sleep as we got checked in, went up to the room and laid him on the bed in his clothes.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span></span><br />
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Samuel insisted on feeding himself this Chinese train food with chopsticks</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Isn't China beautiful?? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">We’ve had a great trip so far but it still has things about it that are difficult— being away from our other children, familiar foods, our familiar home, traveling all the time, not speaking the language plus the stresses of adding a new toddler to our family. We were by no means at the end of our rope as we arrived in Guangzhou but we were a little ragged. When we arrived at The Garden hotel in Guangzhou I literally thought to myself, IAM GOING TO MAKE IT! I AM GOING TO BE OK! I wish I wasn’t so shallow but having more space to spread out, a hotel with a nice pool, great breakfast buffet, children’s play area, great location in the city near restaurants and supermarkets PLUS familiar faces of our friends and other adoptive families all was a huge encouragement to us. I am trying to remember that when I miss the comforts of home that our Samuel will </span></span>likely<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"> feel this way as he settles into life in our family-- he may have days or weeks </span></span>where he just longs for some familiar food or his foster family or to hear someone speak Cantonese. <br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The front desk check in area of The Garden Hotel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">We all slept ok and enjoyed the breakfast buffet on Saturday morning in the hotel. We saw our friends the McDonalds and also met several other families who are here from our agency and other agencies. At 9am we met our guide for the rest of the trip, Lucia. We loaded up to go to the medical exam that is required for Samuel to get a visa. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The exam consisted of 4 different rooms: general screening, height/weight/temperature, ENT and Tb test. Samuel did fine for the first 3 rooms and allowed the doctors to examine him. We tried to communicate to our guide and the doctors that we wanted a CBC done with his Tb blood draw because we do not know what his hemoglobin was after his transfusion on the 12th. Our last room was the Tb room. After explaining several times about the CBC and getting permission from the head doctor, they agreed to take an extra vial of blood so a CBC can be done. This incremental test cost is 30 RMB, or $5! We will not get the </span>results of the CBC until Tuesday morning. Please pray that Samuel's hemoglobin levels are in an acceptable range to get home safely.</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">At </span>the<span style="font-family: inherit;"> general screening</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">With the ENT</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">After this step we did the blood draw station. For whatever reason </span>the<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Chinese clinic feels that it is best </span>of<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span>the<span style="font-family: inherit;"> newly adopted children to be separated from </span>their<span style="font-family: inherit;"> parents and </span>taken to do the scary blood draw alone with the medical staff. We did not have a choice in the matter so we had to comply. Samuel was in there for a long time and he was screaming very very loud for a long time. They even called in a third nurse who is supposedly the best one to help hold him or stick him, we aren't sure which. It was very difficult to listen to him scream and not be able to do anything during the process. We know asking for the CBC may have made it take longer, but if we hadn't done it then we would have needed to go to another clinic and have it done. It seemed better to get it all over with at once. <br />
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When Samuel finally came out he was upset but quickly calmed down in Bryan's arms once we gave him a sucker. We went down to the lobby to get a good laugh at the wine and liquor vending machine they have downstairs! I'm pretty sure most parents feel like they would like a drink after the stress of the appointment! We sat with our group in a restaurant area that was closed to prepare all our documents for our last official adoption step, the consulate appointment, which takes place on Tuesday morning.<br />
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Scotch anyone?</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Bryan with his coworker and friend Mike McDonald. We are so happy to spend time with them on this trip!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Samuel quickly passed out </span>in the van on the way back to the hotel. He seems to fall asleep anytime we ride in the car. We laid him on the bed and he took a nice nap in the room. </div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">When Samuel woke up we snuggled for a bit and then he enjoyed watching a show about puppies on TV! So far he loves vehicles, balls, animals and being rowdy! ALL BOY! :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Snuggling with Mommy after nap</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHMiFkyp24rb-W2dwrN8VciMgbAi0XMzm2YxZNyY4aQ8CIsLmY1vAKefXHN7hggxYyds-uZHjnX-xUsZiAK7jJ8SwuhmctYHVLcgsqZVRR6GATZyWRD2bN6aoehI1d9Dupn2EbkKoOlBI/s1600/IMG_3989.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHMiFkyp24rb-W2dwrN8VciMgbAi0XMzm2YxZNyY4aQ8CIsLmY1vAKefXHN7hggxYyds-uZHjnX-xUsZiAK7jJ8SwuhmctYHVLcgsqZVRR6GATZyWRD2bN6aoehI1d9Dupn2EbkKoOlBI/s320/IMG_3989.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Talking about the puppies in Cantonese</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnlBluf8u4yrDzcqJB2SS7iWDE5jJP7fD7qqqVO73T0JTeZ6MkzfscCrHyZ7VOIKOqZzHMIqbKsH6tyHoVeNHsQ6V0HPjxWCohZ9aY169mTlpweSlfJqekP2KaowvU_C0z3zcijvXDxBk/s1600/IMG_3990.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnlBluf8u4yrDzcqJB2SS7iWDE5jJP7fD7qqqVO73T0JTeZ6MkzfscCrHyZ7VOIKOqZzHMIqbKsH6tyHoVeNHsQ6V0HPjxWCohZ9aY169mTlpweSlfJqekP2KaowvU_C0z3zcijvXDxBk/s320/IMG_3990.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">After puppy TV was over, we decided to walk to McDonalds for a little snack. There was Minion stuff everywhere. It was very </span>similar<span style="font-family: inherit;"> (maybe nicer??) that McDonalds back at home. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC334o5E8ubNPVXpVKiClv0iHJK48beOA1l_52RGSIAjfAxMjlcMmE_CITnJGio4ThxiNtUpCVj-05EG37u4LlEFPYNyf1JIHdtmkvQLcsU_N6YX2geEE95ZvxS6Mdedi6KWKAHdog39s/s1600/IMG_3994.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC334o5E8ubNPVXpVKiClv0iHJK48beOA1l_52RGSIAjfAxMjlcMmE_CITnJGio4ThxiNtUpCVj-05EG37u4LlEFPYNyf1JIHdtmkvQLcsU_N6YX2geEE95ZvxS6Mdedi6KWKAHdog39s/s320/IMG_3994.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Samuel eating his first Happy Meal. Little guy knew what to do with those fries and was </span>dipping<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span>them<span style="font-family: inherit;"> in </span>the<span style="font-family: inherit;"> ketchup and in the Mango Sweet and Sour </span>sauce<span style="font-family: inherit;"> that came with his nuggets.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">After McDonalds we walked </span>about<span style="font-family: inherit;"> 10 minutes to a </span>department<span style="font-family: inherit;"> store called Aeon. It is 5 floors </span>that<span style="font-family: inherit;"> includes a supermarket, </span>housewares<span style="font-family: inherit;">, children's floor, </span>adult clothing, and restaurants up top. I decided it is kind of like China Target! </div>
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Outside of Aeon</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk5xwuSx3D-lZn1Xya4FHdena5Q8GDHbR2mGg7KCNfpZfkVzn1ftNVlF6EPtP0Vah0XBdtta98bF5Nc1MYW78I75T-3JA6ZyP4SVw2en3yHv5X_3mO8o9h84fEtJdbBfLBTeWMnFliLnc/s1600/DSC01094.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk5xwuSx3D-lZn1Xya4FHdena5Q8GDHbR2mGg7KCNfpZfkVzn1ftNVlF6EPtP0Vah0XBdtta98bF5Nc1MYW78I75T-3JA6ZyP4SVw2en3yHv5X_3mO8o9h84fEtJdbBfLBTeWMnFliLnc/s400/DSC01094.JPG" width="266" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Food in Aeon</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC49gOfzNg_-cbOFFoxoRfcwuqa30R1bYiSYEB7dEKS25SkGpvmrEsjG1QCWtKXFXrvS6SVact8ORZmc2Qurx8LfoAB42ptNfB2DEEk-kd0Sbnyis1LvVMrDRr-oui5Lk8N9c28TpG67U/s1600/DSC01095.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC49gOfzNg_-cbOFFoxoRfcwuqa30R1bYiSYEB7dEKS25SkGpvmrEsjG1QCWtKXFXrvS6SVact8ORZmc2Qurx8LfoAB42ptNfB2DEEk-kd0Sbnyis1LvVMrDRr-oui5Lk8N9c28TpG67U/s400/DSC01095.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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And now for a segment I will call: "LOST IN TRANSLATION". We have gotten some good laughs out of clothing we see people wearing that has English phrases that just don't make sense. I imagine this is similar to the laughs Chinese people have over the tattoos that Americans get thinking that the characters mean "love and faith" when really they mean something entirely different. Here are a few favorites:<br />
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Outside of Aeon on our walk home-- Samuel found large concrete balls (again... just like Target!) and in true boy fashion, needed to see them up close and personal.<br />
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Once back at the hotel, we explored the garden outside that includes a large coy pond and a three story waterfall. Samuel loved looking at the fish. We would have stayed out longer but it is so hot.<br />
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Tonight we went to dinner at a pizza/Italian restaurant with 3 other families. We enjoyed great food and great conversation, and Bryan got to have the adventure of taking Samuel to the squatty potty around the corner to use the bathroom!</div>
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Tomorrow our guide is taking some other families to shop for pearls and embroidery-- things we bought a lot of on our trip for Hannah. We are going to try to go to the Guangzhou International Christian Fellowship church that is held in a local hotel. The rest of the day is a free day so we hope to explore Shamian Island and maybe take Samuel swimming in the hotel pool! </div>
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Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-19451439688029847842015-08-20T20:36:00.000-07:002015-08-20T20:36:08.008-07:00Thursday 8/21: Guangxi Museum of Nationalities<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Thursday was another good day in Nanning, although we are ready for a change of scenery and to get home to our kids. We begin and end each day FaceTiming our parents and the kids. We are so thankful that every time we call the kids seem happy and to be having lots of fun. Hannah is a little quiet in the mornings as she is slow to wake up, but overall everyone is doing great. I'm sure our parents are tired! We could not be more grateful for their help while we are here getting Samuel. </div>
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On this particular call, Hannah introduced Sam to Sophie :)</div>
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This picture is very blurry but gives you an idea of what we are up against in the sleep department. Bryan woke up first this morning and documented multiple ninja moves. In this particular move, Sam spins wildly while kicking and ends with his feet on the pillow. </div>
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After breakfast at the buffet (rice, noodles, fruit, yogurt... same story different day!) our guide picked us up to go to the Guangxi Museum of Nationalities. There are many different ethnic groups in China, and Sam's province has a larger percentage of minorities than some other provinces. It was about a 15 minute drive from our hotel to this museum which opened in 2008.</div>
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The center of the museum is designed to look like the shape of a traditional copper drum. Many of the ethnic groups play these large drums for celebrations.</div>
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Inside the museum - it was very beautiful!</div>
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Today was Chinese Valentine's Day. Our tickets both had 7's on them so we won a prize (???) and got to hit the gong with the big mallet. The museum had a stroller we could borrow for Sam which was GREAT.</div>
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Beautiful flower display in the main corridor of the museum</div>
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There were various exhibits about the different Chinese minority groups: drums they used, their type of housing, food, marriage customs, etc. It was very interesting. Our guide even sang a traditional marriage/courting song from the ethnic group that he belongs to!</div>
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This sweet little buddy had amazing behavior. It is hard to be 2 and be at a museum in a stroller but he was awesome! We have noticed he loves to point at animals, and our guide tells us that he is saying the names of the animals in Cantonese. At one point he was yelling out "There's a chicken!" in Cantonese. Oh how I wish we could understand all the cute things he is saying!</div>
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Riding the elevator- a favorite 2 year old pastime. </div>
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On our way out there were several school field trips coming in. These students were all around 13 years old and were giggling and smiling at us, wanting to take a picture. They were thrilled when we agreed. I had our guide take a picture of our moment of fame in the museum! Most of them have not seen many (or any) Americans, especially one as tall as Bryan.</div>
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Sam fell asleep in the van on the way back to the hotel. He stayed asleep when we laid him on the bed and took a nice little nap while we enjoyed snacks in the room and some quiet time. When he woke up, we decided to have some adventures downstairs and outside to pass the time. The hotel room is starting to feel smaller and smaller after so many days here! We are ready for a change of scenery and different things to do. <br />
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Riding the escalator with Daddy</div>
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Next we went outside to a grassy area in front of our hotel. We found a shady spot to blow bubbles. Sam loved it and was fast and furious, blowing bubbles all on his own!</div>
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Love this pic that Bryan took. We only brought one pair of shoes for Sam and he came to us wearing a very cute pair of sandals. We have been giving him the choice between 2 outfits each day and letting him choose his shoes. He seems to prefer the new ones we brought as they fit a little better, and we think he looks precious!! :)</div>
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Let's all stop for a minute and enjoy just how adorable and delicious his cheeks are. He has the cutest, pudgiest little body! He is solid as a rock, a huge eater and goes full speed most of the time in our room-- yet walks as slow as a tortoise when we are out in public!</div>
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While we were outside we noticed this man using a very long stick to get dead leaves and branches out of the other trees. These pictures are not edited at all-- it is so green and lush here!</div>
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A beautiful tree in front of the hotel</div>
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After playing outside we met up with the other American family who is here to adopt. Our guide wrote down the address of Pizza Hut in the city center so we could show it to a cab driver. We piled into a tiny cab with Bryan in the front seat and 3 adults and 2 babies in the back. This car is probably the size of a Honda Civic at best. It was nice and cozy!! :) I just tried not to look as we drove through the crazy traffic and held onto Sam as tight as I could. Pizza Hut here is more like a nice restaurant with a full menu, like Chili's or something similar at home. We ordered several dishes by pointing and gesturing and nodding our heads and smiling! It was a huge victory that we got coke without ice. The food was decent and we enjoyed spending time with the Davis family. Afterwards we walked several blocks trying to figure out how to hail a cab. There is a large, very crowded lane of Mopeds in between the curb and the cars so we didn't know how to hail one. I was praying over and over, Lord please help us find a cab! as we walked through the streets of Nanning. Thankfully we finally spotted one that was not occupied (it was rush hour) and we piled in and made the trek home. It was a great Nanning adventure!</div>
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The sunset last night in Nanning - our last night here</div>
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This morning (Friday) we woke up not feeling as rested. Some joker next door to us was talking so loud well past midnight. I tried to call the front desk several times to tell them but I am pretty sure something did not translate. This morning I stayed in the room to shower and rest while Bryan took Sam down for the breakfast buffet. <br />
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After breakfast we FaceTimed the kids who were about to go to bed at Gran Jan and Pop Pop's. Sam started to be a little wild in the room and also seemed sad/worried when I started to pack up his clothes. Bryan decided to take Sam downstairs for a walk and more bubbles in case the packing upset him. We realize he does not understand what is happening. Will he think we are taking him back when we get on the same train he came here on? <br />
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Downstairs Bryan & Sam took a walk by the lake and saw a man giving haircuts. You know, because that's totally normal. </div>
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Pictures from their walk by the lake</div>
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Last night we sent out some of our dirty, sweaty clothes to be washed. They came back neatly folded by a local man that our guide hires to do laundry. Much cheaper than having the hotel do it, and nice to not pack stinky clothes right next to the clean ones on our way to Guangzhou!<br />
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We are planning on an early lunch in our room and a nap for Sam. At 2:00pm we check out of our hotel and will meet our guide and head to pick up Samuel's passport. From there, we go to the Nanning train station where we already have tickets and reserved seats on the bullet train. We will ride for about 4-4.5 hours from Nanning to Guangzhou. It will take about the same time total that it would take us to fly by the time you add in arriving early at the airport to go through security, etc. We have never been on a bullet train so we are excited for a new experience. Apparently there is a restaurant car and toilets so we will be able to get up and move around some if Sam is restless. The best thing is that the train will go through Wuzhou, the city where Samuel is from. It is very far east in this province, almost before you go into Guangdong (province where Guangzhou is located). <br />
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At this point, we will have completed all the Chinese requirements for the adoption here in Sam's province. The next week spent in Guangzhou allows us to finish all the US requirements for him to come to America: his medical appointment and visa appointment. We look forward to a new location, new things to see and do and most of all seeing more families in Guangzhou, especially our friends the McDonalds from home. <br />
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Thank you for following along our journey here in China with Sam. Please pray that our travel to Guangzhou is safe and smooth, and that he would feel confident as he boards that train with us that he is staying with us forever and not going back. Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-73418278858899226192015-08-19T07:52:00.000-07:002015-08-19T07:52:39.547-07:00Wednesday, 8/19: Qingxiu Mountain<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span id="goog_353978187"></span><span id="goog_353978188"></span>We had a great day today. Sam (as he is now starting to call himself!) is a great sleeper but not the best bedmate. He tends to spin and kick and lay perpendicular between us most of the night. We switched sides last night so Bryan got the kicking and I got the head butting. We think the victim of the kicking gets less sleep :/ Sam woke up on his own around 7:30 and was happy! I keep wondering if he will wake up and be sad or surprised that it is still us looking back at him as we start the day. </div>
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We started the day with some selfies before heading down to breakfast. He has a huge appetite at meal times and also wants to snack a lot in between meals, yet it doesn't seem to impact how much he eats when we truly sit down for a meal. </div>
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After breakfast we met our guide and rode about 20 minutes to Qingxiu Mountain, the tallest mountain in Nanning and a very popular tourist spot. We paid 20 RMB per adult to enter the park (about $3) and then paid an additional 5 RMB (less than $1/each) to take the bus up the mountain. BEST $1 spent all day long folks, because it was muggy and the mountain was no molehill. This was our view from the bus as we rode up the mountain which was covered in palm trees, lush landscape, flowers. It was really very beautiful and well cared for.<br />
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At our first stop we saw a large grassy area that looked a lot like a very nice resort. There were rock formations and carvings of Kung Fu men doing different poses. Behind this large grassy area was a unique pool that our guide said is used for filming a popular Chinese sports tv show.</div>
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Our next stop was to walk to a beautiful pond. There are no filters on these pictures! It is really and truly that green and lush. It was very very pretty. We have enjoyed seeing another region in China that is very different from Hannah's region. <br />
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Checking things out</div>
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Next we stopped at a smaller pond that was full of hundreds, maybe thousands of large coy fish. For 5 RMB you could buy a cup of fish food and feed the fish. Sam wasn't sure at first but quickly got the hang of it. The area to feed the fish was covered which was convenient since there was a short shower while we were there. We quickly went through 4 containers of fish food and enjoyed visiting with another American family we met on Sam's adoption day.<br />
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A quick video of all the fish waiting to be fed. It kind of grossed me out to see this many fish so close together!</div>
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Our final stop at Qingxiu Mountain was to climb the many many steps up to the pagoda. This was right after it stopped raining so you can imagine how muggy and soupy the air felt. We forged ahead, wanting to take advantage of the opportunity to see and appreciate this part of China and also because the rain had cleared the skies to make for a good view up top.<br />
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The pagoda. The original was built 500+ years ago but this was a replica built in 1985.</div>
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After climbing many flights of stairs, we made it to a level with a great view. We didn't go all the way to the top.</div>
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One of the views from the pagoda</div>
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At that point we got on the bus and rode back down the mountain with our guide. Our driver was waiting and Sam was worn out from being carried all over that mountain in the heat!! ;)</div>
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We came back to the room and had a picnic of fried rice from room service. Samuel especially loved the complimentary soup that came with the meal. Even though he took a short nap in the van, we felt like he needed more of a nap. When he gets tired he starts getting really wild. We have found that he is very subdued and obedient in public but once in our hotel room things get a little wild. He is very active and a physical little kid-- not mean or naughty, just excitable and 100% BOY! When we got him on Monday he was able to say "hello" and "bye bye" in English. His first English word since being with us is "gentle" if that tells you anything! :)<br />
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We laid down with him for nap and he was pretty disgusted with the idea. He tried to get wound up and fuss at us but really lacked sincerity. Ha! He was rubbing his eyes so we knew he was tired, but he kept kicking his feet against the covers and raising his legs up and letting them fall dramatically down on the mattress. It was kind of like a mini tantrum just for show. We stayed by him and I rubbed his back. If I stopped, he would pull my hand back to rub it again. Within 5 minutes he was asleep and enjoyed a 1.5 hour nap. We tried positioning him without a pillow but his legs still started to ninja their way over to the side of the bed :/ <br />
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After Sam woke up Bryan was trying to palpate his belly to make sure his spleen was not enlarged (a side effect of not being transfused often enough). Samuel was more ticklish than cooperative, so it basically turned into a tickle fight instead of a medical exam!<br />
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We played in the room and Sam enjoyed some Chinese cartoons and lots of snacks. I hope we don't run out of Puffs before the trip is up! We walked with the other American family at our hotel to a western restaurant we saw the night before. We had walked to a restaurant recommended by our guide last night and it was ok at best. The new one we tried tonight was actually very good! I ordered spaghetti with meat sauce for Samuel and I to share and he loved it. He also polished off some fries with ketchup and a milk box with sweet milk in it. He still wanted more snacks when we got back to the room, too! That boy can EAT!<br />
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Outside the new restaurant we tried. Take note, future Guangxi families. It is about a 15 minute walk in the sweltering heat from the Wharton hotel.</div>
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Our view as we walked back from the hotel at one of the less busy intersections. The city we are in is the capital of Guangxi and has approximately 3 million people so it is the smallest Chinese city that Bryan and I have been to. It has grown rapidly over the past 10 years and continues to grow now.</div>
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After dinner we all needed baths and showers after a long sweaty day. We FaceTimed with my parents and the kids and also with Gran Jan. Sam laid in bed between us while Bryan read him a book. He drank his bottle (which is purely for comfort and bonding right now, not for nutrition since he eats plenty!!) and went right to sleep. </div>
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Tomorrow is our last full day in Nanning. We will go to a museum in the morning and finalize some paperwork in the afternoon. </div>
Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-36515325006686471992015-08-18T06:49:00.000-07:002015-08-18T06:49:20.116-07:00Tuesday, August 18: Adoption Finalization Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Last night Samuel slept really well in bed with us. We were told in our updates (and again on gotcha day) that he does not sleep in a crib. It sounded like he was used to sleeping in a toddler or twin sized bed in his foster family. That works out great since we have a toddler bed set up in our room and a twin bed set up in his room with Joshua at home. We did not request a crib from the hotel but instead decided to let him co-sleep for bonding purposes. He slept really well from about 9pm-7:30am when we had to wake him to go get breakfast. In true toddler fashion, he was a bed hog and I seemed to lose more and more of my king-sized bed real estate as the night went on. Our room is very nice but like most buildings in China, we wish we could crank the a/c a little more and turn on a ceiling fan. It is hot!</div>
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Samuel ate great at breakfast: eggs, noodles, fruit, 2 yogurts and some juice (most of which spilled from an open cup onto my lap when he tried to grab it!). He didn't stuff as much food this time which was great. He loves the aquarium at the buffet which we suspect is not for decorative purposes but instead holds the next day's buffet items. <br />
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We met our guide at 9am and the first stop was the notary office. It was very busy. Luckily we had an appointment and were able to sign our official documents and answer questions affirming that we want to adopt Samuel. We paid the notary fee and the next stop was to head back to Civil Affairs where we had gotcha day the day before.<br />
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On the way to Civil Affairs Samuel fell asleep. Now keep in mind he had a solid night sleep and has had no issues with energy related to his blood levels. We suspect this was a coping mechanism a lot like what we saw in Hannah. He slept through 90% of the civil affairs appointment, even when they did his official footprint on documents. He did wake up for the finalization ceremony and pictures, though. <br />
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The orphanage director and our guide using the money counting machine to count our orphanage donation fee.</div>
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Samuel asleep in the play room where he had waited for us the day before.</div>
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Sleeping as Mommy and Daddy sign their names a hundred times and do many red thumbprints on documents</div>
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Still sleeping as we took off his shoe and did the official red footprint. </div>
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The lady in blue is the director of Civil Affairs (or at least in charge of adoption proceedings). She was very kind and personable. She asked us quite a few questions about our desire to adopt Samuel, why we were adopting from China and how prepared we were to meet his medical needs. She seemed satisfied with our answers and enjoyed hearing about all of our children, especially that they were all adopted.</div>
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Posing for an official photo after we did the finalization ceremony. The civil affairs director gave as short speech wishing the children well and thanking us for adopting them. We were each presented with our official adoption certificate.</div>
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Samuel's adoption was the 100th adoption in Guangxi this year. Our guide says this is good luck!</div>
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Our next stop was the supermarket to get this guy a different sippy cup, some underwear, pull ups and snacks!<br />
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We struggled to find underwear small enough for Samuel (maybe because all little kids go commando??). On the underwear aisle there were hundreds of packages of different sizes all featuring Chinese models.... except for the size they call "FAT" which clearly showed a large American business man! We got a real kick out of that.</div>
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Also seen at the supermarket: frogs and turtles for purchase in the deli! </div>
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It is not uncommon to see 3-4 people, including young children, riding on mopeds in China</div>
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Mr. Cool Guy trying on Daddy's sunglasses</div>
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Love the way he looks at his Daddy... and that he accepts care and comfort from both of us! </div>
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Back in the room, we played with toys. Samuel loved the toy phone that makes noise and sings songs. </div>
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Working a major deal on this phone</div>
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For lunch we ordered room service - fried rice with meat and fried rice noodles. It cost about 1/4 the price of us all eating at restaurant buffet where we cannot eat most of the food (sushi, raw oysters, salad etc). Samuel loved having a picnic and does a great job feeding himself. He has a big appetite.</div>
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Samuel took turns scooting close to Bryan for a bit and then close to me. It amazes us that he already clearly thinks of us as his parents. Any adult who went through the changes he has experienced in his life, let alone the past 24 hours, would likely be in turmoil. </div>
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Finishing off his food China style :) </div>
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In the afternoon we laid down for a nap. Samuel let me rub his back to help him settle down. If I stopped, he would grab my hand and put it back on his back. We are so thankful that he will accept comfort from us. We were expecting a short nap since he slept this morning at Civil Affairs. 3.5 hours later we all woke up!! We decided to walk to a "western" restaurant our guide told us about with another couple who is here adopting as well. <br />
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Samuel taking a water break while Daddy exchanged money in the lobby</div>
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Riding on Daddy's shoulders as we walked 15 minutes to the restaurant</div>
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At the restaurant we ordered beef with rice, french fries and pizza. There was no bottled water so the other Dad went to get us some. Samuel loved the soup they brought to the table and ate lots of french fries too. Bryan's beef dish was good but spicy, and my pizza was pretty mediocre. During the meal Samuel whimpered and let us know he needed to potty. Bryan took one for the team yet again and took him to the potty--- a squatty potty. Samuel knew just what to do and even knew how to flush the potty with the foot pedal. <br />
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You know you are jealous of this! </div>
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We have enjoyed more play time in the room, FaceTimed with the kids and Bryan gave Samuel a bath. He enjoyed his bath a little more tonight and was splashing and even sitting down a bit. He seems to get mad when we put pajamas on him at night, so I'm not sure if he is just tired or if he was used to sleeping in a diaper or something. <br />
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Tomorrow is a free day and our guide is taking us to a local mountain and park to sightsee. It will certainly be hot, humid and sweaty but we are looking forward to it. We are basically killing time in this province until Samuel's passport is ready on Friday, and then we will take a bullet train to our next stop-- Guangzhou-- for Samuel's medical exam and visa appointment. Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-52265432283218829792015-08-18T05:27:00.002-07:002015-08-18T05:29:53.366-07:00Gotcha Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I am a little behind on blogging but want to catch up as quick as I can. </div>
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Monday, August 17 was Samuel's gotcha day. I had been feeling so nauseated on Sunday and all day Monday. I was praying the feeling would go away before we had to go get Samuel. We woke up to this view that morning and ate breakfast in the hotel restaurant. I could barely eat anything. </div>
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At 9:30 we met our guide, Amby, in the lobby. By that point I felt a little better after sleeping a little after breakfast. We walked to the Bank of China so we could exchange money. Our guide is very nice, knowledgable and easy to talk to. He brought us back to the hotel with plans to meet at 2:15 to go get Samuel. We rested in the room and just ate lunch from food and snacks we brought with us. We decided to walk around the hotel to kill some time.<br />
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Bryan minding his head as we go downstairs at the hotel</div>
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Our hotel, Wharton International Hotel in Nanning, Guangxi</div>
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The hotel pool which looks very nice and would be SO much fun... if it had WATER in it!</div>
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After our walk we laid down to rest yet again (jet lag + sick + stress = sleep!) and then did final things to get ready for Samuel, like pack his backpack and set out his blanket and some toys.</div>
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It was finally time to go! I was nervous as we waited in the lobby, but once we got in the van and started talking with our guide I felt so calm and ready. </div>
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We arrived at the Civil Affairs office (large government building) and went to sit in some chairs to the left to finalize and double check paperwork. There was a play room to the left with several children and orphanage staff waiting. Three other American families were there for adoptions as well. We could see all of their children but not Samuel. Finally, it was our turn to go to the Civil Affairs director's office to meet Samuel. We saw his nanny and orphanage director walk him to the office before we could follow behind and he just looked up at us, bewildered. He was wearing little Paul Frank monkey shorts and a minion shirt :)<br />
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Once inside the office, they brought him in to us. Here is our first meeting! He did not cry but also did not want to go to us at first. The orphanage director was so sweet and he seemed familiar with her. She is the one kneeling down in the skirt in the photos.<br />
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When he hesitated, she quickly pulled out the album we had sent with our care package back in May. She pointed to our pictures, reminding him that we are his Mommy and Daddy and showing him that we were holding his picture in the photos. The album looked worn. It was clearly not the first time he had seen it.<br />
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I finally decided it as time to just pick him up and quickly grabbed sucker from his backpack. I unwrapped it as fast as I could to keep him from crying. He gladly took it and began to eat it and drip blue juice all over my shirt and his chin :)<br />
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Our first picture together. The sucker really saved the day!</div>
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We left the office so the next family could meet their child and came out to the lobby. Yet another sucker to save the day and keep him from crying. He was ok being held by us but didn't make a lot of eye contact. Can you even imagine how frightening this would be for a 2 year old??</div>
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Sweet buddy in his Daddy's arms. The scab on his forehead is from his blood transfusion last week. In China it is common to transfuse through a vein in the head and the adhesive or whatever they used seems to irritate his skin and he has been scratching it.</div>
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Posing with the orphanage director. It was clear that she loved him and that he had been well prepared for adoption which we are so thankful for.</div>
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Samuel kind of shut down in the van and fell asleep. We arrived at a super market to buy more water, formula, and a bottle. He started to whimper as I got out of the car because it woke him up. Bryan kept him in the van and gave him a third sucker. We were afraid the supermarket may overwhelm him.</div>
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Once we were back in the room we tried not to come on too strong and give him time to adjust to us. We started playing cars and I would put my hand over his to show him how to pull them back and let them go across the tile floor. I loved that he was willing to sit in my lap. He loved playing cars!</div>
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The orphanage staff told us that he was potty trained and told us the Cantonese word he would say for potty. I'm not sure how to spell it but it sounds like "new new". Well let me tell you, this boy know how to "new new" in both a Western and a squatty potty! He has done amazing at potty training, much to our surprise! We were even more surprised to find that he had on NO UNDERPANTS! Commando all the way on gotcha day! LOL We have since gotten him some pull ups to wear, especially when out in public but he is still doing great.<br />
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Eating a cookie on the sofa in our room</div>
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Because he was doing so well and didn't seem overwhelmed, we decided to go downstairs to the hotel restaurant. He ate and ate and ate, almost stuffing his mouth to the point of choking. We had to pace him and put small amounts of food on his plate once we saw what he was doing. He even put a piece of chicken in his mouth that had a bone in it, and I never did see him spit that bone out! He ate chicken, rice, noodles, and fruit. He drinks a ton of water from a sippy or open cup which is great to keep him hydrated for transfusions. <br />
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After dinner we came upstairs to play some more and then Facetimed Bryan's mom since she was up. Then he had bath time. He was a little unsure in the tub and wouldn't sit down, but did not cry. Bryan bathed him and we put on pajamas and then Facetimed with my parents and the kids since they were all awake at that point. Samuel enjoyed saying "hello" and "bye bye " to them. It was great to introduce him to everyone although phone calls can get a little hectic with 3 little ones at home who all want to talk to Mommy and Daddy. <br />
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Bryan and I were BEAT and struggling to stay awake. We fixed Samuel a bottle and laid him on the bed with us with the lights off. We read a book and he drank his bottle which unfortunately leaked everywhere. I changed his pajama shirt and laid a towel under him on the bed. He laid there quietly between us, held his bear and went right to sleep. <br />
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We are in awe of this precious little boy who has so quickly transitioned into our family and sees us as his forever Mama and Baba. We are amazed by the courage he has shown and also by the ENERGY he has!! He is very active, all boy, so smiley and happy almost all of the time. He jabbers in Cantonese and we wish we knew all the precious things he is saying! We are so in love with him already and can't wait for everyone to meet him!<br />
<a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blogger.com%2Fblogger.g%3FblogID%3D7810660997029677373%23editor&media=https%3A%2F%2F2.bp.blogspot.com%2F-VY0xVgzDwXo%2FVdJuB3Az0pI%2FAAAAAAAAHWU%2FI88NxHRT4aw%2Fs400%2FDSC00871.jpg&xm=h&xv=sa1.37.01&xuid=LVkPcKNf_oXF&description=" style="background-color: transparent; background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; left: 153px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; top: 6686px; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a><a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blogger.com%2Fblogger.g%3FblogID%3D7810660997029677373%23editor&media=https%3A%2F%2F2.bp.blogspot.com%2F-VY0xVgzDwXo%2FVdJuB3Az0pI%2FAAAAAAAAHWU%2FI88NxHRT4aw%2Fs400%2FDSC00871.jpg&xm=h&xv=sa1.37.01&xuid=LVkPcKNf_oXF&description=" style="background-color: transparent; background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; left: 153px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; top: 6686px; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a>Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-5025234711733838312015-08-16T14:07:00.000-07:002015-08-16T14:07:16.758-07:00A Letter to SamuelDear Samuel,<br />
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Today is the big day. We have worked tirelessly over the past four months to get to this point, and now it hardly seems real! There were days it seemed like we would never be finished with the paperwork and now we sit in Nanning, only hours away from meeting you. <br />
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Last night you slept in your familiar bed with your foster family for the last time. You were surrounded by children you recognize, adults who have cared for you, a language you understand and speak, and food that is familiar and comforting. Today you will come by van or train with an orphanage official (or perhaps your favorite <i>ayi</i> if we are lucky), they will carry you into the Civil Affairs office and hand you to two strangers. We cannot begin to imagine how terrifying this will be for you and the courage it will take to go with us. In those first few moments or days you will not know how we love you, how we have longed for you and how the Lord placed you in our hearts and gave us a confidence that you are our son. <br />
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We are praying that God would help you to feel safe with us and see love in our eyes and our actions. We are praying that He would give you the opportunity to feel you have said goodbye to the people who have cared for you and stood in the gap until we could get here. We are praying that you would know with all your heart that this is forever, that you will never be left again or alone. <br />
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You are about to step into a world of uncertainty, and we pray that by being in our family you will come to know these things as certain: Our Father in Heaven loves you unconditionally and without ceasing. Your Daddy and I love you wholeheartedly and believe you are worth all the paperwork, all the traveling and hardship. We would do it again and again to make you our son. You have hundreds of friends and family praying for you today and we believe that their prayers will get us through these difficult first days together. You have 3 precious siblings who were hand picked by God to be in our family just like you. They are silly, fun, and so excited to have you join them. We can't wait to see the fun you will have together. <br />
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We are praying that Lord would give us words, wisdom and vision of what you will need in our first moments together and in the days to come. We love you dearly, our sweet baby boy! We cannot wait to know you and call you our own.<br />
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Love,<br />
MommyBetsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-10555835191807727682015-08-08T20:41:00.001-07:002015-08-08T20:44:48.253-07:00Full Speed Ahead<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Here we are, just 6 days away from leaving for China and Samuel's adoption process is only getting its fourth post. I guess that may be fitting for the 4th child and truly represents the chaos of managing a household with 3 young children while also managing a medically expedited adoption process.</div>
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On March 25th I saw this sweet little boy's face for the first time. </div>
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With Bryan's permission, I asked to see his file and we were put on a waiting list of families who were interested in him. It wasn't until April 1 that our agency notified us that we were next in line to review the file of Wu Chi Le. By April 10, we made the decision that this little guy was our next son and submitted our letter of intent to the Chinese government to adopt him. A week later on April 17 we received pre-approval and things have not slowed down since. </div>
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We will have Samuel in our arms on August 17-- exactly four months after receiving pre-approval from China. The speed of this adoption, the amount of work required to make it move along quickly and the amount of information I have had to learn and manage has been mind boggling. There hasn't been much time to update the blog with each step -- and if I had, it would have required daily posts because it seemed there was always a step being started or completed, a document being notarized or overnighted, or another phone call being made to keep the ball rolling.</div>
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In addition to stacks of paperwork and government approvals, we have done lots of other things to prepare for Samuel to join our family:</div>
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Bought new bunk beds for the room that Joshua & Samuel will share</div>
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New spiderman sheets + bedding in their Super Hero/Super Brothers room</div>
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Cleaned out drawers to make room for more cute little boy clothes</div>
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Tested the Beco toddler carrier that is on loan to us from my friend Stephanie</div>
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Set up a toddler bed in our room for Samuel. He will sleep here when he comes home for as long as he needs to so he can be close to us.</div>
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Added a 4th car seat to my sexy minivan!</div>
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Caleb talks at least once a day about how many kids we could adopt if we had a 12-passenger van!!!</div>
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And this week we finally started packing the giant piles of stuff that had been accumulating on Samuel's toddler bed in our room</div>
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I'm working to cross more things off my To Do list before we travel. We've got 3 kids and 2 dogs to make plans for, and thankfully have 4 amazing parents who are willing to step in at a moment's notice to take care of the kids-- and they do so with giving, supportive and joyful attitudes that many adoptive families do not experience when they are growing their family. We are blessed. I have realized that having a short time to prepare before we travel is helping me prioritize the things that truly need to get done (print out all relevant adoption paperwork!) versus the things that are not important (clean out the playroom!). </div>
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We are eager to get to China and meet the new son that God placed in our hearts. We are ready for him to be more than just a name on a page and pictures that we show people on our phones. We are ready to know what he likes to eat, what his voice sounds like, hear him giggle and see him play. It is hard to imagine what he will be like and if (and when?) he will like us. If I spend too much time thinking about the 'what ifs' I lose sight of what is true about this process and about our life. </div>
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We can say with confidence that God has called us to adoption, equipped us for adoption, and walks alongside us in this and every other adoption. We are grateful to have the enthusiastic support of our family and friends. We would be honored to have you follow along this journey to our sweet Samuel.</div>
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We would appreciate prayers in the days and weeks to come:</div>
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-for the days we have left at home with our 3 precious kids-- that it would be quality, stress free family time that would bless them and us</div>
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-for Caleb, Joshua & Hannah-- for God to prepare their hearts for us to be gone for 2 weeks</div>
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-for Samuel-- that he would receive a blood transfusion next week in China in preparation for his adoption, for his heart to be prepared to leave his foster family and beloved nanny, and for him to trust us and bond to us quickly</div>
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-for our parents at home as they care for our kids, which is no small undertaking!</div>
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Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-15881872996875549092015-05-31T16:42:00.004-07:002015-05-31T16:42:59.200-07:00Samuel Adoption UpdateIn case you haven't noticed, being mom to 3 little ones apparently doesn't leave much time for regular blog updates. I am going to try to do a better job so that Samuel can look back at my posts here and read about the steps we made to add him to our family. <br />
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A lot has happened since my last update:<br />
5/5/15: First home study visit<br />
5/12/15: Second home study visit<br />
5/13/15: Completed 12 hours of online training<br />
5/19/15: Home Study sent to our primary agency (Madison) for review<br />
5/22/15: 10 of 12 dossier documents sealed at the Secretary of State in Austin<br />
5/26/15: I-800A mailed to USCIS Lockbox<br />
5/27/15: Dossier documents arrive at Houston courier<br />
5/28/15: Home Study approved<br />
Dossier documents dropped off at Chinese Consulate in Embassy to be sealed<br />
5/29/15: Home Study mailed to us<br />
USCIS email/text receipt received<br />
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This probably looks like a bunch of confusing details to most of you. Basically it means that we are on our last lap of this stage of the paper chase. We are getting so close to sending our dossier to China, where we hope for quick processing, followed by more quick processing back in the US, and then a quick opportunity to travel to get Samuel. <br />
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Today I emailed USCIS (immigration) to officially request medical expedite status for Samuel's case. They only grant expedites in life or death situations for medical reasons and thalassemia generally qualifies as an expedite for children being adopted from China. <b>As we start this next step, please pray that we are assigned a gracious officer who is able to work quickly and turn our application around ASAP. </b><br />
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So what is left to do in the near future?<br />
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<li>receive a fingerprint appointment with USCIS (immigration) in Houston </li>
<li>get those fingerprints done</li>
<li>receive I-800A approval from USCIS</li>
<li>have our home study and I-800A sealed by the state of Texas</li>
<li>have our home study and I-800A sealed by the Chinese Consulate</li>
<li>mail all of those documents to Madison so they can be sent to China</li>
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My goal is to have all of the above steps done in the next 2-3 weeks max. Once we finish these steps we will reach the huge milestone of being DTC (Dossier to China). That will start our wait for our LOA (letter of approval) that confirms that the Chinese government approves of us adopting Samuel. <br />
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I am hoping for the following:<br />
DTC by June 20<br />
LOA by July 24<br />
I-800 approval by August 7<br />
NVC process (GUZ and PDF) done by August 12<br />
Article 5 drop off/pick up by August 13/17<br />
TA by August 28<br />
Travel ASAP in September to get our boy!<br />
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We have requested an update on Samuel since his pictures and video are somewhat dated. We also asked that a photo album of and other care package items be delivered to his orphanage/foster family. I was hoping to receive an update by my birthday but it did not come yet. I am hoping that this week will be the week we hear about our sweet boy and receive new pictures of him!<br />
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Thank you all for your support and encouragement as we go through this process of adding Samuel to our family. <br />
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<br />Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-41283058338696753372015-05-05T19:36:00.000-07:002015-05-05T19:36:02.348-07:00Home Study Visit #1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Today we had our first of two home study visits. The visit was scheduled for 11am and all of the kids were required to be present, so we pulled them all out of school to come talk about baby Samuel. This is our fourth home study in 7 years and we counted and between home studies and post placement reports, this agency has been in our home nearly 20 times. Soooo.... we were not nervous at all since it is clearly not our first rodeo. Bryan and I chuckled about our first home study for Caleb's adoption. I cleaned the silverware organizer in the drawer and made Bryan vacuum the walls of our little rent house. We scrubbed grout and planted flowers. Lord have mercy. Now I always make sure the house is picked up but certainly don't obsess like I used to. We know what is important-- showing that we have a happy, healthy home and hearts ready to care for another child. Our kids act like, well, kids while they are here. I think they had at least one fight over toys and Hannah threw a small fit in the floor. What can I say, we like to keep it real. </div>
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Once the social workers got here they were immediately apologetic that they have to come at all. We appreciate that they realize we have experience with adoption but also respect the process and the state laws that regulate what they are expected to do as a home study agency. The social workers sat at the kitchen table while the kids ate lunch. They told them about seeing turtles at the park yesterday, and Joshua filled them in on the dead turtle who "had a SKELETON and his legs were stuck like THIS" (insert awkward leg pose demonstration by Joshua). Ha! We chatted for about 45 minutes and they took the obligatory tour of the house, led by Joshua. In his room he showed them his Frozen alarm clock and quipped, "I never even hear it go off and sing 'Let It Go.' I'm a pretty good sleeper." </div>
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After the visit was over we took the kids back to school for a couple hours. We have one more required visit next week that just involves Bryan and me. I don't even know what we have left to talk about at this point. We are hopeful that the home study will be finalized quickly. Lucky for our agency, they have our previous China home study on file that they can literally copy/paste and just update various sections. </div>
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Once the home study is done, we will submit our I-800A application to USCIS (Immigration). This step gets us provisional approval from the US government to bring Samuel home. We will be requesting a medical expedite for this process. It usually takes 45-60 days and we are hoping to have our approval in just a matter of days or weeks. It will all depend on which USCIS officer is assigned to our case. </div>
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We are glad to cross one more thing off the list today and will keep working towards completing our dossier as soon as possible! We are hurrying, sweet Samuel! </div>
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<span id="goog_451777909"></span><span id="goog_451777910"></span>Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-89690767502458159352015-05-04T20:52:00.001-07:002015-05-04T20:52:11.879-07:00Samuel Luke ChiLe Pickett<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I've decided it is time to resuscitate the ol' blog. It has been clear that for me, parenting 3 young children has not been conducive to regular blog posts. Now that a new adoption journey has started for our family, I want to be sure to document the story of Samuel joining our family. </div>
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To be quite honest, about 5-6 weeks ago the idea of a fourth child was not really on our radar. On any given day, at least half of my news feed on Facebook is about children in China who need families or about other adoptive families who are in the process of growing their families through adoption. It is hard not to have it at the front of my mind on a regular basis. In all of our adoptions, I've always been the 'gas' and Bryan is the 'brake'. We have always been unified in our decision to adopt but God seems to prepare our hearts at different times and at different speeds. This time, my heart was ready first and Bryan had agreed to have an open heart. </div>
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In March, a fellow adoptive mama (and thalassemia mama) posted about a little boy being called "Wyatt" whose file would be ready soon. I noticed how precious he was and began to research thalassemia to better understand what his needs would be. I spoke to Bryan about what I learned and about what life would look like managing this medical need. Bryan and I discuss medical needs (most often with him fielding questions from me) on a regular basis. He always knows I'm looking at a child's profile or researching when I ask him what something means and I butcher the pronunciation of the word ;) </div>
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By the end of March, advocates for "Wyatt's" adoption agency posted that his file was ready. I asked Bryan if I could ask to see his file. He agreed and I emailed to inquire about seeing the medical file of this sweet boy. I quickly heard back from the agency that several other families who were already signed up with the agency were in line in front of us. I assumed one of them would be matched with him and that we had no chance. I chose not to get my hopes up and put it in the back of my mind.</div>
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Imagine my surprise when a few weeks later I checked my email and see an email from the agency sitting in my Inbox. Included was a message saying we were next in line to review the file for "Wyatt" -- and his file and photos were attached. I was floored. This was the picture included with his advocacy posts and medical file:</div>
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We reviewed the medical file and while it was clear that this sweet baby boy had thalassemia, his development and health were otherwise on target. We had agreed that *if* we were to adopt a fourth child, it would be best if the medical needs were relatively clear cut. Based on our research of thalassemia, his needs would be significant in that they are life-long and frequent, but we felt like it was fairly clear what kind of care he would need.<br />
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It took us almost 2 weeks of thinking, talking, and praying about what to do. As we considered what to do, we could see many reasons to say yes and only one possible reason to say no-- and that all revolved around if we thought we were "ready" or not. This process felt so different from previous adoptions, where we decided to adopt, filled out paperwork and waited to be matched with our child (or birth mom in Joshua's case). To find our child first and then begin the paper chase caught us off guard. <br />
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We gave ourselves a deadline to make a decision and decided to seek out medical opinions. In the past we have paid big bucks for international adoption clinics to review medical files for us. This time, other thalassemia parents told us the Chief of Pediatrics at Johns Hopkins was a hematologist who would review the file for free. On a whim, I emailed it to him and to the top pediatric hematologist at Texas Children's on a Wednesday afternoon. Within 30 minutes, the Texas Children's physician had replied back with his (free!) assessment. I received a similar (free!) response from the doctor at Johns Hopkins within 2 hours. Unbelievable. Both physicians agreed that this little boy had beta thalassemia major, would need blood transfusions for life, and needed regular medical care from a hematologist. While the medical file didn't include every piece of information we wanted to have, it had enough information to determine his needs.<br />
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We prayed, talked, and prayed some more over the next few days. That weekend, we let our families know we were considering saying YES to this little boy. Our parents were surprised but, as usual, incredibly supportive of us. We are so blessed to always have their support and encouragement. At this point, I chose to give Bryan some time to think over the decision and feel certain without me talking his ear off. This took a lot of self control on my part but I did it! On Monday of that week (April 13) I realized I was preparing my heart to have to say no. I told Bryan that I respected his leadership in our family and would be ok with whatever decision he felt we should make. <br />
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When we had our final conversation and decided what to do, we both realized that adding a fourth child through adoption will certainly not be easy. We are not naive to the challenges that come with adoption, specifically special needs adoption of a toddler from a foreign country. But at the end of our days, we know with confidence that we will never regret giving this beautiful little boy a family. We know that the medical care we are able to provide will literally save his life. We feel confident that he will bless our family and are hopeful that he will form a strong bond to both us and his siblings. <br />
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We know that even at times when there is uncertainty, God always shows up in our adoption journeys. He shows us again and again that He is faithful to the fatherless, that He sets the lonely in families. <br />
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We are racing to complete our necessary paperwork to bring Samuel home. He desperately needs regular blood transfusions that he is not receiving in China. Our home study will hopefully be finalized by the end of May and we are setting our sights on bringing him home in September if all goes well.<br />
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We covet your prayers for Samuel- for his physical health, for his emotional well-being and for God to prepare his heart to join our family. We ask that you pray for us as we complete piles of paperwork and prepare for the joy and challenge of adding another child to our family. We ask that you pray for our 3 children at home, that God would continue to help them feel secure in our family as we grow yet again. <br />
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Thank you for the overwhelming support and encouragement we have received as we announced this big decision for our family. We are honored to share Samuel's Story with you and to have you be a part of what God is doing in our family. Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-6063328352149051842014-08-29T20:19:00.001-07:002014-08-29T20:19:49.652-07:00Hannah's First Casting Appointment<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Yesterday was Hannah's first casting appointment at Texas Children's. We have six casting appointments scheduled over the next seven weeks. All of them are located in Sugar Land except for this first one which was held in the Medical Center. Hannah's doctor was in surgery all day at that location and managed to squeeze in her appointment that afternoon. </div>
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We arrived at our 3pm appointment and began our long wait in the waiting area! Luckily I was anticipating this and brought books, snacks, a baby doll + accessories and more. Hannah loved looking at the fish, telling other children not to touch her chair or her baby and of course, taking care of her doll. We let her walk and explore as much as she wanted, knowing it would be her last chance to walk for at least 2 months. </div>
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At 4pm Bryan spoke with the front desk and they finally called us back. Hannah's doctor arrived soon after and met us in the casting room. <br />
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Sweet baby waiting to get started</div>
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A before picture of Hannah's feet. We plan to take the same picture each week when they remove her casts and get ready to put a new pair on.</div>
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Hannah's casting was done by her doctor and a casting tech. It was clear this was not their first rodeo putting casts on feet like Hannah's! Hannah watched as they wrapped her feet and legs and let the plaster set. The physician held the wet plaster on her foot in place as it dried. The theory is to stretch the foot and slowly train it to have correct placement. </div>
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Hannah was so very brave and stoic during this process. She was fine through most of it but at one point as she leaned against her Daddy, her bottom lip began to quiver. She turned to me and said in a little voice, "Mama". I held her hand and told her she was doing a good job... and then gave her M&M's!! She was happy to have a treat and that kept the tears away while the doctor and tech finished the job.</div>
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The finished product</div>
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Bryan took detailed pictures of Hannah's toes so we would remember their initial appearance and placement in the cast. Changes in color or not being able to see her toes could indicate circulation issues or that the cast is slipping. </div>
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Almost immediately after leaving the casting room Hannah began to cry. I think reality set in that these things were stuck on her legs and they did not feel good at all. She screamed through all the hospital lobbies, the elevators and the parking garage. She continued to scream for most of our drive home through rush hour traffic. We tried positioning pillows under her feet for comfort, offering her snacks, drinks or toys, turning on a movie in the car.... nothing helped. She screamed and thrashed around and dry heaved for what felt like forever. It was a horrible, helpless feeling for me and I know she was so upset and frustrated. Hannah would drift off to sleep only to start screaming again after 5 minutes because of the pressure and discomfort from her casts. Like I said, the casts are slowly stretching her foot and that can be uncomfortable the first couple of days.<br />
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Mad, sad baby girl :( </div>
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Asleep for a few moments</div>
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Finally awake, and very angry.</div>
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Hannah wanted to hold my hand so I sat twisted around in the front seat for the last hour of the drive.</div>
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As we got close to home she agreed to have a drink and wanted some Cheetos. If Cheetos and M&M's make this process tolerable for her, then that is what we will do!</div>
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At this point she still wanted to hold my hand but didn't want to eat anymore, so she kept her hand in the chip bag and held my hand through the bag.</div>
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As we pulled into our driveway, Hannah yelled out "HOME!". She was so excited to come in and see her brothers, Granny, and her dogs. She enjoyed sitting in her little chair and yelling "GO!" at the Aggies. We were glad to see her enjoy her first football game in spite of the circumstances with her legs. <br />
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That night Bryan (who keep in mind had driven 5 hours that day on top of the casting appointment!) went to work from midnight to 6am. Hannah slept in bed with me and it was a pretty rough night. She could not get comfortable so I was constantly helping her reposition herself and wedge pillows around her to provide support. She would get so frustrated and randomly swing her heavy, casted legs around. I was afraid I would wake up missing some teeth if I wasn't careful!<br />
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Thankfully as the day went on, she handled the casts pretty well as long as I kept Motrin and Tylenol in her. She enjoyed playing with some toys, riding in her wagon and was even able to take a 3 hour nap in her room! Unfortunately Hannah is battling an ear infection and some sinus junk all while getting used to casts, so this is just not a fun week for her! She went to sleep without problems in her crib tonight and I am hopeful that I will get more sleep tonight. Regardless of the sleepless nights or difficult days, Hannah is worth every challenging moment. <br />
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While this casting process is certainly not easy or fun, I have been reassured by many mamas who have 'been there done that' that the first 24-48 hours is the worst part. We are hopeful Hannah will become used to her casts and figure out ways to be mobile with them on. Most of all, we have great hope that these casts will provide drastic changes for her feet. We feel confident in her treatment as we move forward and are excited to see what she will be able to accomplish once she has flat, straight feet. Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-52137813561527833192014-08-14T19:32:00.000-07:002014-08-14T19:32:23.809-07:00Another PerspectiveToday was Hannah's appointment with Texas Children's orthopedics department. I am thankful that we were able to get an appointment so close to the Shriner's appointment while all the information is still fresh on our minds. The appointment was @ 2pm in Sugar Land so we took the boys to Bryan's parents' house around lunch time. We were then able to get on the new Grand Parkway toll road that took us all the way from Cypress to Sugar Land in around 45 minutes with no traffic. It was fantastic and so much less stressful than driving to the Medical Center!<br />
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We were taken back to an exam room at 2pm but unfortunately the doctor did not come in until around 3:15. Luckily we had "bee bee" aka Hannah's baby, snacks and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on YouTube. <br />
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Waiting in the exam room with Daddy</div>
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A pretty sweet set up for our little 2 year old:</div>
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"bee bee", a snack cup, and Mickey Mouse on YouTube</div>
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Tired of waiting- trying to escape!</div>
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Coloring on the exam table paper to pass the time</div>
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Of course bee bee had to be sitting next to her</div>
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When the doctor came in we were up front about the evaluation she already had at Shriners and that we had also sought out the opinion of Dr. Van Bosse in Philadelphia. This new doctor agreed wholeheartedly that the surgeries planned at Shriners were not the correct path of treatment. In fact, he mentioned that the surgeries planned for Hannah have been proven to yield 'fair' and 'good' results-- but never 'excellent' results. His suggestion for Hannah was to do serial casting: weekly casts for 5-7 weeks. This would help to get her foot/ankle into a straight position. However, there is a lot of tension in her foot coming from her Achilles tendon that is keeping it from being flat. He recommended a minor procedure to release the tension in both tendons. The goal of all of this would be a flat, brace-able foot which is exactly what we are hoping for. <br />
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This new surgeon's plan is perfectly in line with the recommendations of Dr. van Bosse in Philadelphia and with what most people agree is the best approach for club foot caused by arthrogryposis. While Hannah's feet may look like a typical presentation of club foot, the underlying issues in her anatomy will mean that her feet will always fight to go back to this position. She will likely always need some kind of orthotic or bracing at night to keep her feet corrected. <br />
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We felt like the surgeon today was optimistic about Hannah's prognosis and realized that we were there to make a decision for our daughter. He encouraged us to think over his plan and do what we felt was best for her. We were not surprised to hear that we are not the first patients who have come to him after having a less than pleasant experience with the other surgeon. This new doctor also emphasized that casting is a great way to start because it is essentially 'no harm, no foul'. We can't do any harm by casting her feet, but we could do lots of harm by rushing to the OR and cutting up the structure of her foot! At the end of her exam the doctor dictated his note for her chart in front of us. This was a good way for us to listen again and get the full recap of his assessment of Hannah. Hannah was less than interested in what he had to say and whined to get Bryan to let her use the hand sanitizer mounted on the wall. He gave in just to keep her quiet and she proceeded to sanitize her hands at least 20 times while the doctor spoke 90 to nothing doing his dictation. I had a hard time not laughing.<br />
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Leaving these kind of appointments is tough because it is like drinking from a fire hydrant. It takes me awhile to process everything and I'm always so thankful I have Bryan to talk through everything. Bryan and I discussed our experience today and have decided to pursue treatment at Texas Children's. We want to research the specific tendon release this doctor suggested to make sure we are comfortable with it, but other than that this feels like a good fit for us. The scheduler is supposed to call me tomorrow morning to set up Hannah's 5-7 consecutive appointments for casting. We are not sure how soon they will fit us in but trust God is sovereign over the timing of Hannah's treatment. <br />
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We feel so much better about the plan for Hannah now that we have another opinion and new opportunity for treatment! While wearing double leg casts is going to be no fun, we are hopeful and excited to see the results of this treatment. It's our hope that Hannah will make great progress towards walking after she's received treatment from Texas Children's!<br />
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Wiped out after a long appointment & missing her nap</div>
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<br />Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-43863914292142308402014-08-11T19:58:00.000-07:002014-08-11T20:31:36.412-07:00A Change of PlansIn late June, Hannah was seen for the second time at Shriners to evaluate her feet and develop a treatment plan. From our first visit to the second visit, the doctor's approach to treating her feet changed significantly. We went from planning to do weeks of serial casting with a heel cord release (a minor surgery) to doing a short period of casting followed by a 'full release' to cut tendons and muscle and place external pins on both feet. We went along with this plan, scheduled all the surgeries and appointments and began to pump ourselves up for the challenges ahead.<br />
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About 3 weeks ago I started to feel unsettled about her treatment plan. Nothing specific happened to make me question it- I just began to feel like maybe it wasn't the right approach. Looking back now, I truly believe it was the Lord prompting me to research and ask questions so we could protect our daughter and make the best decisions for her. I voiced my concerns to Bryan and he encouraged me to contact other physicians for second opinions. <br />
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I contacted a physician in Philadelphia who is considered the nation's specialist in AMC. I have emailed him twice and heard back the first time in 16 hours and the second time in 1.5 hours. He shared his philosophy on treating children with feet like Hannah's and gave some clear direction on what we should and should not do for her. He also believes, based on pictures I sent, that Hannah's feet are mild and straightforward to correct. <br />
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I also asked for experiences and opinions from other AMC families. Across the board, everyone encouraged us to get a second opinion and not settle for going straight to the OR to fix Hannah's feet. I am so thankful that the Lord prompted me to start asking questions. <br />
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When we shared our concerns with the doctor in Houston, he was obviously less than thrilled that we didn't agree with him on what was best for our daughter. I am thankful for my articulate, intelligent and calm husband who did most of the talking. Bryan thought it would be best for him to talk more and told me so before the appointment since I was a little too "passionate" about the subject :) The doctor in Houston agreed to try serial casting on Hannah but not until mid September. He seems confident that it will <i>not</i> work although family after family tells me that the physician in Philadelphia corrects their child's feet with casting only and no major surgery other than the minor heel cord release. <br />
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In the meantime, we have an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon at Texas Children's on Thursday. We will see if that physician shares our desire to take a conservative, gentle approach over surgery as a first attempt. He was recommended by another AMC family so we are anxious to hear what he thinks about our daughter's sweet feet. <br />
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We also have an appointment in Philadelphia with the top notch doctor! Unfortunately he has a loooong wait for new patient appointments so we will see him on June 29.... of 2015! We will continue to seek out opinions here, and potentially do a series of casts with Shriners or Texas Children's, until we can be seen in Philadelphia. <br />
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I had spent a lot of time preparing myself emotionally for casting- thinking about what it will be like for us and for Hannah, how I would bathe her, will she fit in the shopping cart, what clothes will she be able to wear, and on and on. While the change of plans today is the best decision for Hannah, it feels a little like an emotional roller coaster for all of us. <br />
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We want the very best for Hannah and don't want to put her through unnecessary surgeries that could cause lifelong pain from resulting scar tissue and stiffness. I'm thankful that while we of course need to address her condition - we are not in a life or death situation here. Most of all I'm thankful that we have the ability to seek out the best medical care for her and make decisions for her well-being, all while trusting that God is sovereign over all of it!Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7810660997029677373.post-91524514251406997592014-08-10T10:16:00.000-07:002014-08-10T10:16:12.542-07:00Six Months Gotcha-versary <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Today marks six months since Hannah was placed in our arms in the Civil Affairs office in Zhengzhou. It feels like ages ago that we were saying goodbye to our boys, boarding a flight to China and anxiously waiting for our daughter to arrive at the office. I went back and re-read <a href="http://quotesofaboymom.blogspot.com/2014/02/today-was-hannahs-gotcha-day-we-are.html" target="_blank">my post</a> to describe that day. When I reflect back on that day, on our time of preparation and on the past 6 months I am overwhelmed by God's faithfulness. He has continued to show up and be faithful to us and to Hannah in very tangible ways. <div>
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Before we were matched with Hannah and in the months after we were matched with her, our biggest prayer was that God would keep her heart soft and open to love. We were of course praying for her health and safety-- but we knew that medicine could treat her physical needs, but that the scars of emotional trauma can run much deeper. It was our greatest hope that she would be held and loved while there and that she would be open to us as her parents and bond well to us. <br /><div>
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Those prayers have been answered with abundance. Hannah is doing incredible. It sounds so cliche, but it feels like she has been in our family forever. Hannah is securely attached to us as her parents and to her brothers. Hannah seems to find a lot of joy in the regular routines of our family - praying before meals, going places together in the van, our nightly bedtime routine and saying "Night night, ayoo (love you) and 'morrow (see you tomorrow)" to her brothers. She gives and receives affection within our family well, seeks us out for comfort, has an appropriate fear of strangers, and is confident enough to play independently and do well in the church nursery. Hannah is eating well, growing, speaking more, playing in age appropriate ways and showing many typical 2 year old behaviors including some small moments of drama ;). To say that so many things with her are 'normal' or 'typical' is an incredible blessing and testimony to God's faithfulness to Hannah and to us. We are grateful!</div>
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Hannah, we love you more than words can say. You are adored, treasured, and a representation of God's love and faithfulness. We are so proud of the progress you have made over the past 6 months and cannot wait to see how you continue to grow and change in the months and years to come! </div>
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Betsyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16626578863532524793noreply@blogger.com0