Monday,
February 13, 2012
DAY
TEN
"God
sets the lonely in families." Psalm 68:6
"My family is all things unconventional. But it is
real. Real because God has knit our hearts together in a
way that only He can and real because no matter what
anyone says or thinks, I am their Mommy, and they are
mine." (Kisses From Katie pg.179)
Consulate Day/Oath Ceremony
Yes, that was the agenda for this morning. Things are done
a little differently than when we were here in the summer
of 2010. Now families attend their own CA's instead of the
guides going. The room is different. The process is a
little different, but it is still such fun a time to meet
up with other adoptive families while the final paperwork
is being processed. How fun to meet up again with the
other family from our town. What a small world!
We went into a rather small room, and we all first took
the oath, promising that everything in our paperwork was
true and accurate. The families then were seated while we
waited for our names to be called, and ours was actually
the first called! All was going along smoothly....until.
Yes, the one form that I had touched, that our guide felt
like could be a problem, was a problem. (note to self~
when filling out the vaccination waiver, write the child's
Chinese name, NOT their English name) No trouble. Bill had
an extra form with us, which we were able to fill out
right there. But. We had to have it notarized. Not a big
deal, one would think, since the woman doing our paperwork
was a notary. But no. We had to go to a different area to
have our form notarized before we could finish our
process. "Well, how long can it take to have a form
notarized?" we foolishly thought. Ummm it would take
approximately 90 MORE minutes. Of waiting. We watched as
every other adoptive family in the group finished their
paperwork and left. We watched the cleaning crews come in.
And all the while we sat. And sat. And sat. We could see
plenty of workers, pushing quite a few papers around. But
we, along with a roomful of Chinese people trying to
obtain visas, just waited and waited. Finally our name was
called, and we went up with our form. Oh, but wait. We had
to get a receipt of payment. Even though we didn't have to
pay anything. Yes, it must be the Chinese way in the
American Consulate. Bill was directed to another room to
obtain a receipt. Ellie and I waited for him in the
original room and after a short time, in comes Bill with a
receipt showing an amount paid of, you guessed it, $0.00.
Really? Once we had that all important receipt, they were
able have our form notarized, which took all of 2 seconds.
Plus the 90 minutes of waiting. Sigh.... Such joy to
witness our government inefficiency, even here in China.
We then headed back to the hotel to feed Ellie and nap
her, and then we were off again to Shamian Island. I HAD
to get the rest of the "gift" shopping done. Our first
stop was at the White Swan for the infamous "red couch"
photos. No smiles from our girl, though I think she is
just beautiful anyway. After that we were able to finish
getting Ellie's gotcha anniversary gifts. We also ran into
several adoptive families and spent quite a bit of time
chatting with them, which was fun. We planned to have
dinner on the island, but nothing really struck our fancy
so we headed back to the hotel and ate upstairs on the
executive floor. After dinner Bill ran to the McD's next
door and brought home some sundaes, and Ellie loved her
first tastes of ice cream! Then it was bath and bed for
our worn out little princess.
Little bits about Ellie~ She is a LOVE. She snuggles and
cuddles, but is fiercely loyal to only one. And that is
ME. She is such a cute little thing, that when we're out,
everyone talks to her and tries to engage her and get her
to smile. But for now, her smiles are only for one, and
that is ME. She is SUCH a content little thing. When it
fits our schedule to feed her, she eats. When we lay her
down for a nap, she sleeps. If we are out and she gets
tired, she'll rub her eyes, lay her head on my chest and
go to sleep. At bedtime when I lay her down for the night,
she goes to sleep. So far, we've had to wake her from all
her naps and also wake her almost every morning. This
morning we woke her at 8:00 AM. (am REALLY hoping this
continues) Today was the first day we heard some little
protests when she had to sit still on my lap for a length
of time. (of course this was during our 90 minute wait,
and I was feeling mighty impatient myself) Normally, she
is so patient, it's hard to believe she's almost 2. If
she's in the carrier, she loves it. If I let her walk and
hold my hand (not daddy's hand) she walks nicely and never
lets go. If we stop and wait for something, she stands
holding my hand and waits. Really, it's unbelievable. If
it looks like she's only smiling in photos where she's
standing, yes, that's the case. The ONLY way we can get
her to flash that big grin is if I stand next to where
Bill is with the camera and clap my hands and call her to
me. Then her whole little face lights up in a smile, and
she comes running to me with arms outstretched. It is so
darn cute! Ellie is quiet, though she's starting to
chatter a little when she plays or is on my lap. She's an
observer. Her eyes are deep and soulful. She's very brave.
She loves to "help." She loves the tub. She has one clear
word, and yes, it's mama! We've had our baby girl for one
week today. Honestly, though, it seems like forever. It's
just that comfortable. That natural.
She melts my heart,
she brings tears to my eyes. She is the PERFECT Mei Mei
for our family. She's a child of God. And Jesus loves her.
And so do mommy and daddy. She is precious beyond words.
She's a priceless treasure, and I cannot believe she is
OURS. We are indeed BLESSED. |
Finally Finished with the Consulate
Not a Daddy's Girl Yet!
Ellie With Her Favorite Toy
Smiles!
Hunan Beauty
Sweet Girl
|
