Emmy in the foster village.

So these are the pictures that we got of Emmy, by pure luck, from a woman who went on a reunion trip with her son. She traveled with a group of families who adopted children from Kunming in the same year. Another thing I didn't mention in my previous posts. This is the very first time that anyone had been granted the right to travel to this village. They got to tour the orphanage and spend the day in the village with the families. From these picture we have received so much peace. We are so lucky to have an actual picture of Emmy with her foster mother. (Something we wouldn't likely get.) We can obviously tell that she is in a happy place where she is being cared for. We couldn't ask for anymore while we wait to travel. Could she be any cuter?

Travel plan update

O-kay so we originally thought we were going to leave on July 23rd. So I had 12 days to figure everything out at that point. I was running around like crazy and excited as could be. Then 4 days later we were informed that the agency couldn't get the appointment that they wanted sooo we thought we were going to leave on July 30th. Then we received our itinerary only to find out flight prices had skyrocketed to $1,000 more per person. If we waited one more week we would be more in a normal range for prices so we had to make the decision to wait one more week. That was not an easy choice for us to make. Let me tell you. Hang on Emmy were comin' for ya !

Let the sunshine in!

So I have been waiting for the right time to recount this incredible journey that we have gone through to get to this very place. Yesterday we received a call letting us know that we finally got our travel approval. It looks like we will be leaving on June 30th. That is in 16 days!!!! So now seems like the time for me to do this.
We started our process in July 2009 and were very surprised at how quickly we were matched with a child. December 3, 2009 was the first day we saw our second daughter, unbeknown to us. Since we chose to go down the adoption road, this time using the " special need " program we again had NO idea what we were getting into. again. This is a long story but it is a good one. :)
So December 3rd we got Emmy's medical information with 4 pictures of her. We immediately fell in love with the little cutie. Since there were numerous medical concerns we needed to look for medical advice. We sent the info. we had to 3 different doctors. The first Dr. opinion that came back was just concerned about her vision. The second was the international specialist who's opinion we had put the most weight on. He was concerned about numerous things and felt that we didn't have enough info. to be positive what level she would ever be able to function at. We spoke to this Dr. at 10:30 pm and needed to make a decision by morning. After talking to each other for a few hours we decided that this may be more than we could handle. So we sent the e-mail off to Faith International saying that we were going to need to pass on adopting this child. We went to bed and I woke up at 4:00am with this dread that we had made a huge mistake. I really felt that the 2nd Dr's opinion was weighing heavily on the negative side. I woke up Scott and cried to him that morning about how I was feeling. He said that he knew I would fall in love with any child that we had the opportunity to bring home but that we needed to make a decision based on what we knew we had signed up for. He's the voice of reason so, I realized that any cute face that needed a home I would probably be willing to sign up for . He told me to tell the agency that the next time we were matched witha child to not send us pictures until we decided to go through with it. So hours later Lucy woke up and I started to feel like I needed to make sure the decision we made to add to our family had every ones best interest in mind. Lucy is home with us and she was this Godsend to us. Do we really need to ask for any more? Maybe we should just stick with one child?
It was a beautiful snowy morning and I decided we needed to take Bucky to the dog park, get some fresh air and clear my head. So that we did. It was later that day that I received a call from the 3rd doctor that we sent the medical info. to. She said that she had taken the medical info. to some other collegues of hers. They all felt that this child (Emmy) would develop at a natural rate. Their main concern was mostly about her vision also. I panicked because that was what I was feeling all along. I called Myriam at Faith International and asked her if it was common to get such opposing medical opinions. She said yes. As I sobbed to her on the phone about how I felt, she said that we could move forward without really making a solid commitment. It is an extremely confusing process but the bottom line is we could literally get all the way to China and decide that we could not go through with he adoption. Not likely to get that far but it's a possibility. So we decided to hang on and try to get more medical information about her. This could take weeks, and we would need to do tons of paperwork along the way but it was what I needed to do to feel like we were making the right decision. Scott just appeased me so I could get to a place where I felt like I had a definite answer about what to do. Little did I know that it wouldn't be just 2-3 weeks.
So as we waited I started to go into various yahoo groups and search for info. on Rumor Queen (an adoption website). I was astounded at how much info. I could get on the specific orphanage that Emmy is from. I started to get more and more info. on the likely hood that we would get more medical info. The lookout was grim but there were a few people who had received the info. that had waited it out. It took them 3 months to get info.. After a few weeks waiting and getting nothing it was time to make a decision again. We were reaching a point of saying no again. That very week I ran into a woman at Walmart who stopped me in the children's department to ask if Lucy was from China. I said yes and she told me that she was leaving in 2 days to bring their daughter home from China. Through tears I gave this woman a huge hug and congratulated her. After talking for awhile she gave the name of a friend who adopted a little boy from China who had some similar health concerns as Emmy. Coincidence I think not! So 2 days later I was speaking with a woman in Kentucky about her experience and felt the need to move forward.......and persuade Scott to trust my womanly intuition.
On December 24, 2009 we received the most grim news ever. I really had to make a conscious decision to snap out of it because I really just felt like laying in bed and crying all day. Faith International sent us an e-mail telling us that the agency had been put on suspension from China. The suspension was put in place because back in 2000 Faith had helped this couple adopt a little girl from China. This family had just been sentenced for raping that girl who was now 9 years old. I was just sick. Sick for the little girl, sick for all the couples trying to adopt from China who are now left in limbo, sick for all the children that will be sitting in China longer than they should. I wondered what this all meant for us also. But after sleeping on it and getting a grip I knew there was nothing we could do. This was Lucy's first Christmas that she would understand what was going on. We needed to celebrate with her....so here's to living in the present moment.
So again came the questions. Was this the sign I had been looking for that we needed to bow out? I thought it was, but after a many heartfelt discussions we again just decided to wait it out. At this point it was all we could do. We couldn't move forward unless we decided to switch agencies at this point. SO we waited. All along we needed to continue processing paperwork as if we were going to proceed.
We again reached a point where we needed to make a decision, we had been waiting it out too long and we didn't want to hinder the chance of this little girl ever getting adopted. ( Her profile was being held exclusively for us and often times once children reach the age of 2 they get caught in a loop of being unadoptable .......this is the very short explanation). I thought I'd take one last shot at trying to get updated medical info. on her. One person on a yahoo group had suggested trying to get the direct phone number for the orphanage and to find someone who spoke Mandarin to call directly. I was desperate so I thought what the heck. I googled Kunming SWI and what do you know the phone number and address came up on a website for a woman who does this as a business. I called her immediately and she told me that had I called 2 weeks earlier she would have told me there was no way she could have gotten medical info. for us. But the orphanage had gone under changes and there was a new director. So within the past 2 weeks she helped 4 families get updates!!!!! Again a coincidence I think not.
So about 2 weeks later we had the answer to our questions and he answer to our prayers. The medical updates all were great news. To keep this short everything we had prayed for happened. We got pictures, all the medical info. looked great and she looked incredibly healthy.
After getting her pictures I was curious to know if they were from the orphanage, because I had been told that she was in foster care. The pictures show her.....as you can see in a building, with hardwood floors. And there were children behind her so I was thinking it didn't look like a foster care setting to me. I sent a message out on the yahoo group asking the people who had traveled if they knew what the orphanage looked like. I described where Emmy was and inquired if anyone knew more. One day later I received a response from a woman who had recently traveled to Kunming with her son (now 9) on a reunion trip. She shared 100's of pictures with me from their trip. Some from the orphanage and some from the foster village. That was where Emmy was. So I was feeling so blessed to have a piece of information showing us where Emmy was and where she had spent time. I continued to look through pictures, when I spotted a picture of a woman holding a little girl. I enlarged the picture to take a closer look and right before my eye were pictures of Emmy in her Foster mother's arms!!! Incredible! Coincidence? I think not again. As I continued further I found a short video that this woman had of Emmy also. It just so happened that her sons foster mother lives right next store to Emmy's foster mother. They were all out in the court yard talking together. So we got to see a piece of our daughters life. It was a gift I could have never imagined for ourselves. It has been a huge comfort to know that she is in a loving environment while we wait to bring her home.
SO there is my very long story. We have been blessed in so many ways already that it hard to describe in words the feelings we have gone through. For about a month after we received the pictures I walked around barely able to speak about the fact that we got these pictures. I feel so lucky that our lives have brought us down this road. I felt it in China once we met Lucy for the first time., and now with Emmy too. This process really is such a miracle. God working His magic into our lives.

Emmy's updates

So we waited for months to get our updates and to get the answer to so many prayers.
Along with additional picture we received medical updates that confirmed that she is doing extremely well. We now know that she is in a safe home and with people who are caring for her and loving her. Amen to that. These are pictures of her in the foster village close to Kunming.

Were going to China for Lucy's sister Emmy

So on December 3, 2009 we got the news about Xi Han Yu. We received four adorable pictures and a lot of medical information that took us down a winding bumpy road that we hadn't planned for. After experiencing the adoption path we had with Lucy, we didn't quite understand how different the process would be for Emmy. When making a decision to add a second child to our family we had so much to consider. What would we be able to handle, emotionally, financially and physically (since we ain't gettin' no younger). The thought of 2 toddlers excited us and scared us at the same time. :) We again needed to do a lot of soul searching and tried to remain open to the path that has been put out before us. After many doors closing and then reopening again we are happy to say that on March 10, 2010 we decided to move forward and become a family of four. We are waiting to find out when we can travel to bring our second daughter home. We are hoping for early June as Emmy's birthday is June 13, 2008. It would be nice to share her 2nd birthday together as a family.

Playing Catch Up

So this is one of my favorite pictures of Lucy. I wish she'd let me keep her hair in pig tails but she usually pulls them out within the first 5 minutes of me putting them in. I all of a sudden have had this urge to catch up with all of my journaling and blogging over the past year. I have so many funny stories about this past year I almost don't know where to start so I will start with this one. Lucy has just graduated to a BIG GIRL bed. It has been going pretty well, however the other night she woke up and I let her come to bed with us for about 10 minutes and then took her back to her bed. I thought she went to sleep because I didn't hear a peep. At 3:30 am approximately 1/2 hour after she was placed back into her bed she came sneaking back into our room. I woke up from Bucky growling and her giggling. I turned over to reach for her and she said very loudly "HI". Soon I realized our little monkey was NAKED. She was pretty proud of herself. I'm sure my burst of laughter really helped also. I hope this does not become a habit!

The past year with Lucy

O-kay so we have been home over 1 year and I can hardly believe that I am planning for Lucy's birthday party in 2 weeks. When people say the time flies it really does. She has been such a joy for our entire family and friends. I can hardly express it into words. She is so funny and at times I wonder how at almost 2 years old she can have the advanced sense of humor that she does. I wanted to post some updated pictures for all to see. I have to go start making a Dorothy pinata. Lucy is having an Elmo themed party. Pretty typical 2 year old stuff. :)

Lucy 2009

Home Sweet Home

So our trip home was a bit brutal. I thought that I would be able to keep up with the blog all along but it turned out after traveling for practically 2 days and then staying up another 6 hours after we got home we were beyond sleep deprived. You can tell how tired we were at the airport we both had our eyes closed.......half falling asleep. Then with the holidays following we had a difficult time keeping up with everything. So blah blah blah I will now update everyone on Lucy's transition and how fun it has been to have her home. Thanks for everyones support so far we really do appreciate it.

Lucy is an American Citizen and is blessed.

This morning we had the interview with the U.S. Consulate that made it official. Lucy is an American citizen! We are free to come home. We all hugged and congratulated each other. Just another thing to be thankful for on this journey. Later we took the children to a Buddhist temple where they did a blessing to send the babies off. After that we took them back to the hotel for the famous red couch pictures. We can hardly believe our journey is almost over. But really this is just the beginning.

Rest and Recuperation and Shopping

The next few days we had to our own to catch up on rest and experience the city. I really love Guangzhou. Through out the day people are fishing in the Pearl River, (not that I would eat anything that came out of it) but it's fun to watch. The scenery is beautiful I shared a few pictures above. People take their pets with them everywhere. If they have a bird they hang the cage in a tree. Dogs are unleashed and well behaved. It was fun to see some playing in the park. Made me wonder how Bucky was back home. People are in the parks exercising all day long. And the trees are unbelievable. That's me standing next to one and roots are coming from about 20 feet up and are 12 feet out from the main part of the tree. Very weird.

Medical Check Up and Visa Picture

So today was another big day for Lucy. She needed to pass the Medical exam in order for us to be able to leave the country with her. She passed with flying colors. They were all impressed with her thighs. They are pretty darn cute. Then we went to get her visa picture taken. Progress in the right direction. The rest of the day we had to ourselves so we walked around Guangzhou. They have many statues around the city so we got Lucy with one. :)

Our trip back from Maoming City

Today we started out our day at 10:00 am and didn't get back to the hotel in Guangzhou until 7:00 pm. As a new parent this was a true test. We stopped at a beach before we got on the road and also stopped for lunch but it was a LONG bus ride. Amazingly these babies did extremely well. Lucy napped, ate and played like it was no big deal. In fact the babies kept the adults from going insane. We hit a traffic jam towards the end of our trip which added another 2 hours so I was getting a little concerned we were going to run out of formula. Luckily our little trooper just kept playing and laughing reminding us all it's all about the attitude and she has a great one. Still, I hope we never have to do that again. :)

The orphanage

This is a picture in front of the orphanage with the directors and nannies. We were not allowed to take pictures inside. I think today was a really confusing day for Lucy. Having her return to this building only a few days after we had gotten her was hard as a mother. I kept looking at her face and she didn't smile once. Which once you meet her you will know how odd that is. All in all it was an experience I feel blessed to have had. It was much more difficult to witness the all of the children and lack of nannies than I had prepared myself for. From what we have been told this orphanage is considered a rich one in comparison to many. This really isn't saying too much. I can not imagine what the less fortunate orphanages are like. We walked from room to room witnessing what little they have to offer the children. I was trying to hold it together for Lucy's sake because you could tell she was scared enough. It was when I turned the corner and saw the room of children with special needs that I lost it. I spent a few minutes sobbing in the corner. There really is no words to describe everything we witnessed. I've seen many documentaries thinking it would give me perspective and there is nothing but being in the presence of these children that will provide you with that. I try not to think too much about what Lucy's first 10 months were like. We really do give thanks so many times a day I begin to loose count. Everyone who lives here keeps saying how lucky she is. It really is us who are the lucky ones.

Everything is official. She's our daughter.

This was the day we needed to make everything official. We went back to the building where we received Lucy to sign some documents, pay some fees and swear that we will love her and never miss-treat her. Pretty simple stuff. We have had her less than 24 hours at this point and it feels like we have had her all along. I hope she is feeling the same. Her personality is hysterical. I gave her a bath and she LOVES water. She splashes around, sticks her face in the water and screeches with joy. If I would have let her she would have swam around for 2 hours. For bottle time when she is being burped she pats her own back. To funny! She also loves to be upside down. She constantly swings her head back and giggles once she is hanging upside down. Also her flexibility is kind of amazing. While sleeping last night she kept doing a back bend while lying on her side. I kept trying to adjust her back to what seemed like a more comfortable position and in less than 5 minutes she would be right back. I see yoga will be in her future.

Gotcha Day

So this was the big day! I was up early and went for a stroll down by the river with my dad. Scott was tring to make up for major loss of sleep. Guangzhou is my favorite place that we have been to in China so far. The people are nice the pace is calm and peaceful, and the environment is serene. There is a park by the Pearl River that people are playing in all day. In the morning several different groups of people are doing Thai Chi and there is beautiful music playing. Oh yeah the birds in the early morning are like something you would expect to hear in the jungle or something, loud and beautiful.

So our nervousness during the morning was uncontrollable and I felt like I didn't know what to do with myself. I kept thinking I need to get myself together for Lucy's sake. We got everything together that we could imagine we would need for a 10 month old and all piled onto the bus around 2:30 in the afternoon. All of us were quiet and jittery. When we got there we went up on the elevator to the 8th floor and once we hit about the 6th floor you could hear the crying of babies. That pretty much did all of us in and what we walked into wasn't quite what we had pictured. There were numerous families from Spain and Italy who had just received their children. Most of the babies were about 2-3 years old. Since they knew a little more what was going on than a 10 month old, they were screaming. So there we stood for about 45 minutes with about 30 other parents and 15 toddlers stressed out and screaming. UUUGGG! I pulled myself together and went to the bathroom since we had been told that our daughters were being fed on the bus. When I came out of the bathroom Scott was all teary eyed and told me that Lucy had just gone by with the nanny and that she was wearing the dress that we sent. Yay! It was 10 minutes later and we were the second family up. All of a sudden I felt very calm. We walked to the nanny and next thing you know I was holding my daughter. The entire day was very surreal. I think back now and feel as if I were on autopilot until she was sleeping at the end of the day. As I was watching her sleep that was when everything hit me. I can't begin to explain the amount of joy bursting in my heart. She did exceptionally well her first night. It took her about 2 hours to warm up to us in the room. Lucy never really cried that night. She was crawling around on the floor with me and every so often she would get a pouty bottom lip and a look of fear in her eyes. As soon as I would pick her up she would take a few deep breaths and seem fine. Then she would go back to playing. Oh yeah during this time Scott had to finish up the official documents for the next day......which took about 2 hours. So I was all by myself. Oh darn again. Ha Ha.

The Great Wall

Day 1 & 2

We arrived in Beijing at 4:00pm (China's time). 3:00 am USA time. I hadn't slept at all on the plane I was WIDE awake the whole time. Scott and dad dozed a little but we all were exhausted the first night we arrived. Charlotte or Du Yong, is our guide and she met us at the airport. You can see her is the pictures holding the Faith International sign. Joanie is is the picture with her she is here to bring her sister home wither her mom and grandparents. We all loaded onto a bus and had about another hour ride to the hotel due to traffic. Du Yong taught us a few Chinese words and then suggested taking us to a local grocery store to get anything we still needed. Scott and dad went and picked up some snacks and McDonald's Teehee, yes all the way to China for MceeDee's. We all had a great night sleep and were ready to do some sight seeing the next day. Du Yong is like a living encyclopedia. The amount of information we got from her on the first day alone is AMAZING. The pictures above are of the Olympic grounds,The Forbidden City (now called The Palace Museum) and Tian'an men Square. We went out for an authentic Chinese lunch and had a wonderful selection. The food here is unbelievable! I really do wish I could come home with some recipes. I am also amazed that there are so many foods I have never seen before. The fruits we have encountered already on the first day is just incredible. We also went to a silk factory and learned a lot about the process. Then we got to SHOP! Yeay. We ended our day with a 90 minute, yes 90 minute foot massage. What more could we ask for, other than to receive our daughter,on our first day here.

Oh yeah. We have met a lot of wonderful people. Our group has been a lot of fun to be with. Also, we have all realized how our group is drawing a lot of attention by the locals. There are 3 women taller than me so you can only imagine. I almost feel as if we have reached celebrity status. People are trying to get us into their pictures all of the time. If you smile and they realize that you are o-kay with them taking your picture you get mobbed. We'll try not to let this go to our heads.