Made it home--Amen!

It was great to get home. She flew like a dream, slept probably 9-10hrs of the 13hr flight. Of course, she only knows business class now, so that will be a problem later. The flight attendants could not have been more, well..."attendant" to both Audrey (Choo-Choo) and Emma. No issues at the border crossing other than me. I snapped a photo of Kath and Audrey in front of the welcome to the US sign. The customs' officer busted us. They made me delete the picture. But we did get advanced in the line, not sure why, but it was smooth sailing after that.
The grandparents brought our kids to greet us. It was very cute to see their excitement. Hugh was so sweet, he cried when he saw his momma and hugged her. They love their little sister. They overwhelm her with hugs and toys to play with. The dogs would like to love her, but she isn't use to seeing them up this close (or alive!, ha ha, just kidding, it's not like we saw a "dog farm" in China or anything like that...nope, no sirree, no dog farms in China, i mean that would be sick! oh wait, i have Audrey home i don't have to pretend anymore. We gol darn did see dog farms, dogs tied to trees, struggling to get loose. Sick!). While i am at it, hey, China?! What's with the staring and the pushing and shoving in airplanes and at KFC. I get staring at the white family with the Chinese baby. But battle the other 4 billion Chinese, leave my tall, white arse out of it I was just looking for a double Cappuccino. We Americans take a lot of grief world wide for being rude and obnoxious. I encourage people to go to India or China, as I have this past year. Other than the serial killers and the population of the entire state of Florida, we aren't bad people to visit. Come visit Ashburn, we promise not to stare back!
As you can tell from the time of this post, we are still very much on China time. Exhausted at 4pm, awake at 4am. Emma has adjusted quicker and is sleeping soundly. She made it too school the next day and through her activities. We were glad to find out her cough the whole time in China was just a minor irritation from her sinus and she should be clear by the time the big red man arrives.

What a Christmas it will be. For 15mos, Audrey sat in an orphanage, had heart surgery, recovered in foster care and just like that she's a U.S. citizen and more importantly, our daughter, back home two miles in any direction from 3 Starbucks, 1 Caribou coffee and countless other absolutely necessary amenities. God Bless America!

Our little shepherd Hoo-B (or is that Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn?)

Last Post From China

A little bling for the swearing in!

Our final day in China . . . no questions from the US Consulate yesterday so we're good today. This afternoon @ 4PM is her official swearing in ceremony . . . no photos allowed. We'll get her passport back with the visa for the US. Then just packing and get ready for our flight out of Guangzhou tomorrow morning. We'll see you all back in the US.

We did manage one more site seeing in G-zho--a folkart musuem.  The most interesting creation were these ivory sculptures.  Look closely at the ivory ball, that is 43 layers of balls carved from the one piece of ivory.  Pretty amazing detail carving from the smallest one out, through successive holes the artisan makes.

Mark--1 week in China, 3 days to go

We have had a really relaxed Sunday walking around the parks and shopping area of Shamian Island.  Fun to watch the people of Guangzhou chill on a Sunday morning.  Playing badminton in the parks is huge here! Again, who knew? There is also a tradition for the young Chinese couples to have their "formal or western style" picture taken.  They later will have their picture taken in traditional Chinese garments and during the wedding ceremony they will wear a third more casual outfit--to party in.  The Chinese reception is an 8+ course meal with much drinking, think of it as wedding meets bachelor party w/o some of the more risque invitees. 

Emma had a fever last night, but has since recovered and feeling fine.  She still has a cough and I still have a cold but we are having fun and looking forward to obtaining Audrey's visa and coming home.

God bless

Good Saturday from Guangzhou, China

First and most important:  Alena, I hope your Mema reads this to you:  Emma misses you more than she can describe, she is so homesick and most of all can't wait to get home and play dolls with you and your new little sister.

Well, two of our last milestones completed today.  Audrey along with our entire group of babies, now that the other families who travelled to other provinces are in Guangzhou (Gwan-Jo) together, passed their physical exam w flying colors.  Her heart seems to have recovered very well, after having heart surgery for her atrial and ventrical septal defects back in April. We have appt.s already scheduled w a pediatric cardiologist in NoVA, but have already had counsel w two in the states and after today's exam w two Chinese Drs. we received further confirmation that there does not appear to be a "heart murmur" any longer, which is very good news. 

We haven't talked about it much on this journal, unless you go way back, primarily b/c her special need while potentially serious was something we accepted and after accepting, we let go and let God.  So far that wisdom, which has proven itself through out both Kath's and my life, is persisting at every turn of this process.  And in the end--getting back to Audrey--all of these babies in China have special needs, so the line btwn normal and special (no family v. no family and some physical anomaly) is blurred for us--we don't want to get in the habit of making this a "big" deal until it has to be.  We have learned very early, this little girl is not only special, but she's ALL heart, from her crinkle-nosed smile to her many maneuvers around the various hotel room obstacles.  Her heart pumps strong, and with every passing moment our hearts too pump even stronger.

The second hurdle was the final paperwork here in China to take to the American Consulate Monday to obtain her U. S. Visa to travel home.  Audrey is automatically a U. S. citizen by adoption and entry into the U. S. of A, but she has a Chinese passport and thus the visa.  On Tuesday we will attend a "swearing in ceremony" as a U. S. citizen, but again it's U. S. soil that makes it official.

BTW: Starbucks was awesome and yes Kirsten, they made the Mochar to a tea (Chinese pun intended)

Minority (Peasant) Dinner

Emma and I went to a traditional "minority" dinner.  There are 65 or so minority or peasant groups in the Yunnan province.  Audrey is likely from one of those groups and would have been biked, walked, mo-peded into the city and then dropped off.  We learned that she was left at the First Affiliated Hospital of Kumning Medical College.  Turns out that is where most of the babies are left v. a marketplace.  Kathie and Audrey stayed behind as Audrey was really tired.

Well, it was an amazing dinner.  We were brought 15 different items to our table...all at once!!!!  A giant Dali beer (fantastic local lager) and a giant Sprite.  I am sorry about the pics, but i don't have a professional flash.  The building was fashioned as on old village community gathering place.  We sat in a little, cave like room with three other tables.  Next to us was a group from the Chinese National Military...3 star officer.  They were toasting what looked like a Chinese vodka, which you could bring w you or buy on your way in.  

Halfway through our meal a minority show began w dancers in traditional dress.  One of the dances was a demonstration of man first meeting and mating w woman.  I knew we were in trouble b/c the back of the stage was bordered by two huge, crude wooden carvings, 17ft tall, of a women w huge wooden breasts and other huge wooden parts and a man with...well, let's just say there were flowers hanging off of his most prominent feature, which must have totaled about 12 rows of "lays" to the...well, tip as it were.  There are so many one-liners available here, i believe may brain is shutting down.  So let me just say Emma was laughing so hard she was shaking the table!

Menu:

• Traditional local rice noodle soup w beef, pork, chicken, duck with cabbage and herbs made from Chinese medicines like ginseng, catepillar skin, etc.  The broth is cooked for 8hrs, brought to the table in a huge bowl, where the ingredients are added all at once.  The best Chinese meal, we have been having a version at breakfast, but this was clearly superior.
  
• Steamed chicken.
• Beef kabob
• Salted, fried fish (like perch) on a bed of Chinese broccoli
• Hard boiled egg, that is infused with cheese and other herbs--delicious
• Chicken on flat noodle w local mushrooms (Yunnan mushroom capital of China)
• Chinese pancake w duck and chocolate sauce (you roll the duck and chocolate in the pancake), can you say rich?
• A plate of PEAS!!!!! corn and carrots! (i just found the line i would not cross)
• Chinese broc, sauteed.
• Another broth with noodle, very light, w a hint of flower blossum
• Three deserts and watermelon
• Peurh tea (aids digestion if you know what i mean...and i think you do if you happen to be related to me)

We later hit a Wal-Mart.  Holy Cow! do they love Wal-Mart and KFC.  Buses and cabs dropping off hundreds of Chinese.  The store was a sea of dark haired people, who all stopped to look when Emma and I entered.  A great evening, our last in Kunming.  We leave for Guanzhou (Gwan-Jo) this afternoon, about 90min plane ride.  G-zo is 45min outside Hong Kong (i hope to take a train one day).  But much more western....Starbucks next to our hotel.  Score! 

Stone Forest--the Joshua Tree Nat'l Monument of China

We are a day behind on posting.  It's 5:30am, Dec. 13th as I write this.  We drove about 2hrs into the Mts., for those who have been to San Diego it was like going past Escondido. My brother and I used to play golf in an area called Silver Valley outside San Diego, the hills look almost exact, when you add the rock formations of the Stone Forest. The weather was spectacular, about 68, piercing blue sky at about 7500ft above sea level.  (Kunming is about 6200ft, i went running yesterday morning, i couldn't figure why i was sucking wind after the first 5min, i figured it out!). 

Many pictures, tried to select some of the best.  One of the members of our traveling show (yes, given the way they love to watch us and talk about us), is a professional photographer and has been giving all sorts of great tips, that's what led to the really great portrait shots of Audrey the other day when she was laughing at the sound of her given Chinese name Qiu Hong (pronounce Chew-hong [soft C and soft G).

We had a wonderful traditional lunch afterwards and then got back to the city around 3pm (btw, both Kath and I have had Rice Noodle soup for breakfast w traditional ingredients--not cold pizza and not pancakes). 

I did a walk around the shopping areas, Kunming has 3 of everything, on one street i passed 3 nike stores, then an Addidas, then a Converse, then Puma, then another Addidas, then two of their own Nike/Puma brands--all on the same block.  One thing you notice when you are 6.2 and have blue eyes in Asia--you are a freak of nature and people like to stare.  I finally saw two German Nat'ls later that evening after dinner, but this goes beyond being a minority. We are officially novelties, as you will see from the pictures below taken of our 9yr old Emma Montana!  

Enjoy the pics.

Day 2 Pics--Temple and Hotel

Today we visited a Temple and a Tea house.  Hoping to hit the opium den tonight. Ate at the nicest Pizza Hut I have ever scene, although the salad bar had unidentifiable items on it.  

I have been trying to eat traditional Chinese, but our group of three couples + Emma needed Pizza bigtime!  We have the afternoon to shop, play w/ our new baby and sleep. 

I am heading out for a run as my three girls are sound asleep.  The weather here is spectacular, 65 and sunny all week.  The air is clean, the city is spotless...Kathie mentioned we haven't heard a siren. Tomorrow, which will be your today, we visit the Stone Forest (no it's not down the street from the opium den!).  Very popular attraction, stone pillars rising from the ground through trees and brush.  Google it you''ll see. 

 Oh yeah, did we mention Audrey is darn cute (and so is Emma).

Gotcha Day 2!!!

She slept through the night. She eats like nobody's business. We have noticed some things that we won't post, but safe to say we got her not a moment too soon. Turns out she was in foster care for awhile, not the orphanage, hence then dark skin--they don't use sunblock. Her cheeks already are looking better w lotion caked on. She is much more "baby" like than most 15mos olds we would be use too, so we are kind of happy we haven't missed the total baby stage.


Her spirit and disposition are unreal. Just the sweetest little person. We weighed her at 9.7kg, approx. 21lbs, but it's all packed into a "pug-dog" like package. I am thinking professional Mt. Biker, strong quads and shoulders! She has about eight, pearly white teeth. She has thin layer of black hair, but her cheeks have outraced her hairline--so damn cute.

Well back to loving the heck out of her...she is currently cooing w Emma who is totally smitten w her new sister. We asked Emma if she wanted to do some shopping, but she said she doesn't want anything from China, just bring Audrey home--it doesn't get any better than this.

Thanks to all of our family and friends for your prayers and kind wishes.

Gotcha!!!!!

We have her, we love her, we can't believe it is happening. Back at our hotel. She is a total chunk. Totally lovable and sweet. Smiles, plays and loves her big sister. We had no crying she took to us immediately. She has a bit of a cold and some congestion. She has been in foster care so her skin has been tanned from being outside. It's very dry here so her poor chunky monkey cheeks are chapped. But God blessed us once again, we can't believe how darn lovable she is. What a day.

Oh My Gosh, We Leave Today

Let's just say, I'm border line panic . . . just over 3 hours and we head to the airport.  One bag is packed, all else is lined up ready to go.  We have more meds to take with us than we've had our entire lives.  Emma isn't as healthy as we would like, by the doc says she's fine to travel.  I've double checked our documents, but still worried I forgot something.  Catch you on the other side of the world!

Game Time!!!!

To put a fine point on a finer point, I am a horrible "pregnancy" husband.  I wasn't always, but by number 3 and 4 it was like, "yes i got it, heartburn check!, sore feet yep, got it, tired...okay yes...got it, let me guess, sore lower back ga-i-it!, and every other orifice either clogged or not clogged enough....got it, got it, okay got it, please no more....it's uncomfortable, you're uncomfortable, but crimeney sakes it's the 4th child, have any of these been a picnic?

I said i was horrible, self awareness is 90% of the trip to a cure--darn the last 10% hurts.  Anyway, the day the good Lord said "and let there be rain" i was on it like the Wolf in Pulp Fiction.  I was ready, more than ready.

Well, it's game time! again.  Get me to that baby and let's get her home and let's have Christmas w our new family and let's never look back on what was frustrating or seemingly unfair (they lost our file?????), or too easy for others but hard for us, or all those people pulling for us with yet another "sooooo, what's the latest on the adoption?" (we know you really cared and we so appreciate you doing so)....it won't matter the moment we have her in our arms.

Just like the moment Emma, Alena, Owen and Hugh arrived.  All that other stuff slipped away.  We were fast in love and never looked back and we were ready to take on the whole damn process one more time!

CU in China

ITINERARY FOR CHINA

Sat, December 8:          Depart for Beijing

Sun,December 9:          Arrive in Beijing

Mon, December 10:      Early morning flight to Kunming.

                   Afternoon - Meet Audrey!!!!!

Tues, December 11:        Morning- Civil Affairs Appointment

Wed-Thurs, December 12-13:  Sight-seeing & Shopping

Fri, December 14:       Pick up Passport and flight to Guangzhou 

Sat, December 15:        Medical appt. and filling out consulate forms (yea more forms)

Sun, December 16:       Church and shopping

Mon, December 17:       Consulate Appointments @ 11:00AM

Tues, December 18:       Pick up Audrey's Visa

Wed, December 19:       Morning flight back up to Beijing and then flight to Dulles @ 7:00PM

Wed, December 19:       Arrive Dulles @ 7:21PM

Travel Dates Finalized!!!

Hard to believe we are actually writing this . . . We fly out of Dulles to Beijing on Saturday, December 8, 2007 and will return on Wednesday December 19, 2007 @ 7:21PM. We will stay in Beijing Sunday night and fly into Kunming Monday morning and we'll have Audrey later that day! Please keep Tom, Emma, Audrey and I in your prayers while we are in China and Alena, Owen, Hugh, their grandparents, friends and neighbors who will be keeping things going in Ashburn.

WE ARE GOING TO CHINA!!!

We received a consulate appointment (CA) for December 17th @ 11:00AM which means we actually have concrete travel dates. We will leave for China 12/6/07 and return 12/19/07 . . . the only thing tentative about it for us is the departure date. This will be finalized later today or tomorrow at the latest. We will have Audrey in our arms Monday, December 10th!!!!!! Remember China is 13 hours ahead of us, so it will be Sunday night here. Can't believe we will be on a plane in just a little over a week. More details to follow!

WE HAVE OUR TA!!!!!!!

We just received the phone call and we have our TA . . . finally!!!! Now only one more hurdle, we need a consulate appointment (CA) before we have our finalized travel dates, but the plan is to leave 12/6. This means we will all be together for Christmas. We should know in the next 3 days or so.

Uniquely Ours

Dear Audrey,

It's your Dad here. With the news of our TA we can't wait to head to China and bring you to your new home. How is it that we found you, uniquely you in a country of Billions. I can't wait to meet you, I can't wait to see your mom hold you for the first time. You will never know how hard she has worked and loved to bring you to us. She is truly the rock of this family and without her you would not be possible. Thanksgiving passed this week, a major holiday here in the US where families gather to give thanks for all they have. We have lots to be thankful for, dear daughter, and now we will soon have you to add to our prayers of thanks. I am so truly humbled to be your Dad. I don't even know whether I can express how important you are to us. Like you, I was adopted as was your Aunt Diane--who just had her first baby, Ava, the two of you are going to be "best" cousins. You are a few months older than her. Here she is and there's your Aunt Diane (don't let the giant freak in the red hat scare you, it's your Uncle Scott, he's a teddy bear):



I wasn't abandoned, I was brought to the Sara Fisher home a Catholic Social Services adoption agency and orphanage in Franklin, MI. Two wonderful people, who had a son, your Uncle Brian (I don't have a picture of him, but he wasn't that cute of a baby), were matched with me, like we were matched to you. They didn't have to travel to another country, but like us, they were ready to love their new baby no matter where he or she were from. Audrey, I have never felt "adopted", in fact, I am not conscious of it most of the time. My parents are incredibly loving, giving people--they too can't wait to meet you. They provided me with an amazing childhood that was my foundation for becoming an adult, a husband, father, professional...I don't know what I am good at as a father, when you understand the enormity of the undertaking--raising another human being. Those who don't understand it are unfortunate parents, but that's another topic. Half the time it is all happening so fast I feel like I am winging it (your mother thinks I am winging it too, so best to spend lots of time w her!). But I can promise you, you will never feel adopted, at least not in your heart. There a characteristics that people will point out and as you get older we will share your adoption history with you. And at some point you will wonder what that country was like from where we adopted you. And at some point you may want to travel there and see where you were born. You may even want to know who your birth mother is. Many, many little girls just as beautiful as you are left to be found, not bc their mother's didn't love them. Quite the contrary, the circumstances in your home country are such that mothers who have a baby daughter want a better life for them. They love these little babies so much that they are faced with what must be an agonizing decision. We here in America can't even guess what it must be like, but thankfully many people around the world, want to bring these babies to a new home, where they can be nurtured and loved.

I know your birth mom loved you. She probably set you safely somewhere in Kunming City, where you wait for us to this day, somewhere you could be found. She probably waited from a distance to watch you be discovered and taken to the right authorities where you would be given a chance to be adopted, at least that's what someone told her would happen or someone she knew did the same thing or God forbid she had to do this before. We simply don't know. She was probably in a great deal of pain to watch you go, knowing that after weeks of holding you as her own--she would never see you again--and believe me Audrey it takes all of a half second to fall in love with a newborn baby and feel so utterly responsible to love that tiny little being, and I expect the same experience when holding my adopted daughter for the first time. She put herself through that, all in the hopes that you might find a better life.

I don't know if your mom and I are special people, but we hope to be that "better life". As I said, many people are adopting babies from Russia, Africa, Central America and Asia. Your birth mom is a special person, you are a special person. We are just two people who love their kids and their dogs and we have room, more than enough for you. And for me personally Audrey, this is a circle completing for me: from my parents to me, from me to you. It's not more complex than that--we want you in our family and you deserve a family.


Love,

Dad