Homecoming 01/19/12

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Leaving Guangzhou*

Leaving their homeland, oblivious to the trappings of love that await them.

(Guangzhou, China to Hong Kong - 1/18/12)

We packed up our new lives in three suitcases and two baby carriers and made our way through a labyrinth of emotions, from exhausted exuberance to anxious anticipation, and arrived at the Guangzhou airport. My heart was sad to be taking these two little Chinese babies from their world of familiar to a universe of unlimited possibilities. They know not of my hopes for them, which for now will rest gently in my heart, where they will grow along with my love, immeasurable and constant.

*Posted 1/22/12- but dated 1/18/12 for documentary purposes

Wheels Up - Homeward Bound - Can't Post - waiting to board Hong Kong

Consulate - Day 12*

Pay no attention to the bedraggled parents holding the babies. They are thankful they are standing upright and their clothes match.

Today we went to the US Consulate to apply for the girls' immigrant Visa. We dressed them in their Sunday best and headed out at a very early 7:40 am. The main event took less time than it took us to pack for it. The girls were their usual easy going selves and enjoyed the social hour. From there it was back to home base for some giggle time during which we are total goofballs and laugh at ourselves almost as much as they laugh at us.

We did our rendition of a photo shoot and got some fabulous pictures. obviously they are very comfortable in front of the camera.

Zoe cracks me up

obviously, the camera loves them.

Red Couch - China Day 11*

Zoe and Poppi- Red Couch 1-16-12

It is a tradition among adoptive families to have their children dress in traditional Chinese outfits and have their photos taken while sitting on the red couch. This typically done both those families staying at the White Swan (on Shamian Island) , but since the White Swan is closing for renovations, adoptive families no longer stay there. But undeterred by this minor detail, a group of us got together and made the trip back to the Island and became a part of this long standing tradition. I am glad that we did because the girls looking so sweet in their traditional outfits.

They took it all in stride, as they do most things. The only thing that seems to rock their boat is a daddy that is too slow on the draw when it comes to bottle prep or a mommy that doesn't always get wind of a dirty diaper until it's right next to her ;(

*backdated for documentary purposes.

winding down - China Day 10

On Saturday, we ventured out of our hovel and found our way to a, well an excellently managed scenic spot. it was a park with a beautiful lake and a foot path winding along it. There were trees just like the ones from the Wizard of Oz, scraggly and old; I was so distracted by the beauty of my surroundings (-and by the fact that I was with Driveby tourist Dan, no time for absorption, must only get superficial glance and move on :)) that I was unable to read the markers for the trees and plants, so we will be going back tomorrow and I will do just that.
There was a group of older men and women doing some type of exercise (tai chi?) and it was mezmerizing to watch. The girls enjoyed every minute of their outing and contine to enjoy riding along in their carriers.

Later I tried my hand at bargaining with the people in some local shops by the hotel. I am sure they snicker as I leave their shop because bargaining is not my forte and they can spot me coming a mile away. Each person that I have dealt with has been so kind and helpful (yes, I know why wouldn't they be they know they are getting a bargain, and not me). But I enjoyed myself nonetheless.

Sunday brought with another shopping misadventure to the jade pearl market. It was overwhleming and intimidating because they give you the outrageous price on a calculator and then ask you to name your price which is also outrageous because I wouldn't pay anywhere close to the asking price for the beautiful blue jade necklace so I left empty handed and settled on another store in the pearl market where I got the girls pearl earrings, again making my wallet lighter and the shopkeeper happier.

The girls continue to flourish and we have learned the importance of sticking to a schedule with military precision. We are there lady and gentleman in waiting and it brings us great joy to cater to their every whim.

Zoe has gaines so much strength in these few days and has begun crawling with lightning speed. Poppi is growing more confident and her two-tooth grins make our days.

Inwill close for now as tomorrow comes early. We will be up at 5 and out the door at 7:40 on our way to our final hoop - the Consulate.


This how we all feel, tired and ready to come home. (Poppi)

Nothing more beautiful...

Times They are a Changin' - China Day 8

today was a welcome reprieve from being jostled around to and fro, hither and yon as there was absolutely nothing scheduled for us today and it was nice to settle into a much needed routine. and whilst I was whiling away the hours conferrin with my flower (Poppi, for those of you who didn't catch that) I had time to reflect on the last eight topsy turvy days.

A little about my girls:

• It occurred to me that I never formally introduced my girls by name to my legions of loyal followers. in the picture in the previous post Poppi is on the left and Zoe is on the right.
• When they were placed in our arms neither of them made a sound and were very quiet the entire time we were at the civil affairs office.
• When we arrived back at the hotel clearly they were in shock but slowly little bits of their personalities began to emerge.
• Zoe has the attention span of a rocket scientist. she will sit for quite a long time and study a toy, a shoe, a partially painted red toenail, whatever catches her eye; she fascinates me. she is so tiny; some call babies peanuts, she's more like a pistachio. it took her all of 1 second to capture our hearts; she is easy going and is happy laughing at her goofy, helicopter parents. She likes to fold herself in half and fall asleep. She also likes to have her face caressed. everyday we see her gaining strength and hitting milestone after milestone. she is beautiful.
  
• Poppi likes to hold our hands when she plays she is very sensitive and mild mannered. She was the first to show us her skills as a crawler and has improved mightily from the first time she wobbled her way to Daddy crying all the while. she loves her Daddy and mommy is an added bonus for now. She is very quiet but loves a good belly laugh. she is most likely to be affected if our schedule is off; she is the Queen and we are her subjects. her eyes are even more beautiful in person.
  
• both girls were given washcloths as security blankets (a debt of gratitude to Shannon for letting me in on this very important factor as i am sure the transition would have been much more traumatic without them). The second they were placed in their tiny little frightened grip their angst was eased and the trust began. sometimes they share their lovies and sometimes they steal them from one another and other times they hold the same one at both ends they are tender with each other.
• Daddy is a cirque du soleil for their senses. He teaches them songs from his repertoire which includes Stayin Alive, Chittibang Bang, and the very popular Rock Me I'm a Danish (sung to the tune of rock me ammadeus) he makes them giggles, gives them warm baths and makes sure the poop patrol is always on duty.
• Mommy is their soother of scared awakenings, caresser and wiper of drool.
  

We both know we have miles to go before we sleep, but that's ok. We are grateful for the chance to be in the presence of such priceless gifts.

Love's Pure Light

There are no words, just pure love.
January 9th, 2012

Hitting our stride - Visa Pictures Day Seven and Eight

Well I'm not sure how our girlies feel but Dan and I think we are getting the hang of this parenting gig

We had two more successful deployments; the first was on Wednesday to what looked like the eqivalent of our DMV, the only difference being the ones crying about the long wait were babies. The second was a bit longer trip to Shamian Island for medical checks.

The girls got the first part of their tickets to ride on Wednesday in the form of passport photos and in true rock star fashion they took it all in stride and would have happily stayed for a longer photo shoot but the crowd was getting unruly and they were wisked away to avoid further mayhem.

Upon arrival to the command center all went in comunicado in favor of much need naptime.

Thursday brought a trip to Shamian Island for another photo shoot and the dreaded walk through the giant petrie Dish that is the Clinic. In true germaphobe fashion I tried to hold my breath while walking through to the back of the building but alas resigned myself to my catching cold over Dan having to catch me if I passed out from lack of oxygen.

Once again the girls were the envy of all. Poppi was nonplussed while the usually docile Zoe had only minor irritation with having to drop trou in front of a man other than her Daddy.

Friday promises much rest and relaxation.

Field Trip and the Civil Affairs Office - Day Six in Chin@

today we were scheduled for a short trip to Chin@'s equivilent to walmart followed by the final Chin@ part of the adoption. The preparation for these outings is nothing short of a reconizance mission, everything must be thought out, strategized and carried out with the precision of a midnight raid on dirty diapers. General Patton pales in comparison to Dan's emergency preparedness.

We packed up our precious cargo in the Boba carriers (that were a gift from God) and set off in our chauffered tank er uh I mean bus and arrived a short time later at what would later be characterized as a full out assault on every one of the five senses; lots of new smells and bright colors. We bought the necessities (including peanut butter and jelly and cokes for me) and were then wisked away to the next stop which was the Civil Affairs Office where we reiterated many facts about ourselves that were given many times before and upon notarization of the oath that we would not abandon the two gifts currently under our care (as if!) we moved on to the final step which were pictures of the newly formed family. Finally after so many years spent preparing, wishing and hoping we were given Chin@'s blessings to proceed to finalize the US part of this spectacular journey.



we went back to the office where we first met our tiny little wonders. it was far le

They are beautiful

I know what you have all been waiting for, but i am having trouble getting photos to blogger. I will continue to work on finding a way to do it.

We received the girls at around 2:30. There were about twenty other families in the room with us. We were called first from our group The girls were too exhausted to cry because they had just been driven 3 and a half hours to the office building where we met them and this was most likely their first trip away from the only home they have ever known. i was immediately struck by how tiny Zoe was. The rest of the day was spent getting know them and fretting over how to prepare their bottles. They went to bed very easily and the rest of the night was spent lurking near their cribs to make sure they were ok.

i will elaborate more on the days events but wanted everyone to know we are doing ok and are amazed how long one can go on such a large sleep deficit.


P.S. I have dated this post on the day it happened so that i could document everything on the day it happened.

Eyes wide shut...

that's what it feels like when you travel the world, arrive at your destination and then try to sleep.
Circadian rhythm has lost its beat. In an effort to lull myself to sleep I review my soundtrack of favorite songs and try to come up with the words to "Chevy Van," but alas I am left with only the chorus on perpetual rewind. And so the beat goes on and hopefully my rhythm will return.

As we wait for the ever elusive shut eye, we have been enjoying the sights and sounds of Guangzhou. It is a bustling city full of contradictions, modern technology abounds yet police officers patrol streets on bicycles with battery powered lights blinking out their red and blue warnings. I am struck by what looks like to me a city full of individual pursuits and my husband's perception of faces full of sadness.

I am trying to strike a balance between wanting to squeeze in every bit of seeing this and doing that and preserving my strength for the goodness that is yet to come. I am very much at peace here in this foreign land where the only language I know how to speak is love and the only ones who will understand the words of my heart are the two little ones who are now just hours closer instead of worlds away.

Hard Day's Night

That was the most BRUTAL travel i have ever experienced!

I am grateful that we have arrived safely. Flight was looong but mercifully uneventful.

We are running on empty so i will close for now. All is well will post tomorrow with greater attention to detail.

One wish closer!

Soon, very soon...

My heart sleeps and will awaken only to the beauty of you in my arms.

Longingly,

Glinda (aka Mommy)

One Day Closer - Travel Jan. 6 - Jan. 19, 2010

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