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Monday,
August 6, 2012
EMMECLAIRE DAY!
So any guesses how much I slept last night? Well, let’s
just say I have a WHOLE NEW understanding of the sports of
weightlifting (that I really did not need or want) as well
as badminton and table tennis.
So finally at 5 till 6:00 am, sick of me pacing, Jim got
up and we went to…..workout. Funniest treadmill ever…..and
elliptical was worse. But due to the fact that air
conditioning is not used much here and when it is, not
very high (yes, some of you that have been in our freezer
like house know how that is going over with the two of us)
it was quite a workout. I will make one observation based
solely on what I have seen so far – Chinese people make a
very good effort to be energy conscientious and not
wasteful of electricity. The hotel rooms in both places so
far, you have to put your key card in a slot to work the
lights. This helps so people do not leave the lights on!
Genius! (There is NO MOTEL 6 here – probably since they
will “leave the light on for you”….Super 8 I did see,…..)
Our current hotel the key card also regulates the use of
the ac. You leave, the ac turns off. Smart if you ask me!
And I love that to unlock our current hotel room you have
to wave your card in front of the door and ta-da it
unlocks! I sat outside the door last night just waving it
back and forth a few hours…..just kidding.
I digress…. After the workout we got ready and headed to
the breakfast bar with the other family from our agency.
Pleasantly surprised but still…NO BANANAS! There was
French toast, some tasty rolls with a cream cheese
something inside (yeah, I had 2….) watermelon (there is
always LOTS of this around….Adam would be very happy about
this), bacon, pastries, eggs, toast, juice, etc. Really
quite a lot of “western” options.
We had to make copies of our visas for paperwork and Cindy
was there to pick us up at 9:30 for the 15 min drive to
the adoption center. This is where things got interesting.
When we arrived there was one other couple in the large
room. That quickly changed as 2-3 van/bus loads of people
arrived. There was also another group of people, and not
to be disrespectful but I am guessing they were not under
the 55 year old age limit to adopt, appeared and stood off
to the side….basically watching. At first I thought maybe
it was some tv show and extended families of adoptive
parents had arrived to surprise the parents but the group
stood off to the side the whole time watching….and since I
did not see anyone I knew… Man I would have been ticked at
a few of you if that was what it was and you had not shown
up! We waited….and waited….and waited…AND SERIOUSLY other
kids had started arriving and we still WAITED. I think
Cindy sensed our impatience growing and called the
orphanage. They told her they should be arriving in 5
minutes.
Almost exactly five minutes later they arrived. I had a
clear shot to see the door when we first had arrived but
by this time people were in my way! I saw the other
couples little boy first (he is 4) and then saw EmmeClaire.
Cindy quickly grabbed the orphanage workers and pushed
them our way. We got a few tears from EmmeClaire. There
was so much going on in this room by this point. It was
loud and busy and I am pretty sure all the kids were
having a hard time. EmmeClaire would start to fall asleep
and then wake up again from a noise or sudden movement. We
had to sign some paperwork (no way REALLY??) and were
loaded back in the van.
Once in the van, Dave (other adoptive dad) said what I
think ALL of us were thinking: It must be very difficult
to be a nanny in an orphanage and watch your kids leave
you. Ugh. It was rough. Their little boy had a harder time
– obviously as he is 4.
We headed to Lotus (grocery store) for some groceries.
Cindy, Jim, and Laura (other adoptive mom) went inside
while Dave and I stayed in the van with the kids. I was
giving EmmeClaire the international food of toddlers,
Cheerios, and their little boy tapped me on the shoulder
and help up 2 fingers. He pointed to himself and held up 1
finger and then the same to EmmeClaire. He then proceeded
to feed her one Cheerio and take one for himself. So
sweet. Oh and good news…BANANAS!!!!
Finally made it back to the hotel and got hungry girl a
bottle. Once we got her going on that Jim went downstairs
and through a series of pointing at the lunch buffet was
able to get some congee, noodles, and vegetables ordered.
We ended up with enough noodles for an army but Little
Miss LOVES the noodles. She seemed to be ok with the
congee – will need to see if we can switch her to Cream of
Wheat or oatmeal at home OR find a place that sells
congee. (We are offering a reward to the first person and
find congee in a store in c-bus!) The vegetables were a
bust….just like Mommy! She spit the carrots out pdq so
will try again later.
So what else can I tell you after a few hours with our
girl? She is a thumb sucker when she is tired. She is
skinny and is really more the size of an 8 month old. You
can tell by the 12 month pink onsie she is wearing (Thanks
Aunt Jill, Uncle Mike, and Beans – who bought it many
years ago and kept it as a surprise) that she is tiny tiny
tiny. She has the longest and skinniest fingers I have
ever seen on a kid. She has 5 teeth – 3 on top and 2 on
the bottom. She thinks my singing is hilarious – as in I
got belly laughs during my rendition of Old MacDonald (if
she thinks MY singing is funny…wait until she hears her
FATHER ‘s singing). She will shake her head back and
forth, back and forth and giggle. Her feet are SKINNY –
welcome to the club kid! Her little Robeez shoes, again
from her aunt and uncle and cousin Beans, are too big for
her and they are 6-12 mo (which is a good thing because I
was afraid they might be too small and she would never get
to wear her cute ladybug shoes!!)
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We got her!
Still a little unsure
My doll from Nana (it tastes good)
The shirt & quilt say it all
Starting to show off a little of what I can do
Seriously? This is the hardest book you brought me?
Holding down the home front (Looks like there is a little
space between Nana and Adam for a little girl) |
And in case
you are really observant and wondering IF her quilt is
different than the one posted on the other page of the
website…it is. It seems that the quilt team led by Nana P
started worrying that in fact the travel quilt was too big
for our limited luggage space. So she began a covert
operation that I was not privy to be involved in. She made
yet ANOTHER quilt. She had an accomplice known by her
undercover name of “Ruthie Goose” to help her. The two
devious duo hatched (no pun intended) a plan where Nana
cut, sewed and assembled. It was then sent to Ruthie
Goose’s location where she added EmmeClaire’s name and the
“Red Thread Legend” around the outside. She then quilted
it before sending it back to C-bus. Sneaky little sewers
aren’t they? Need to keep a closer eye on those two…though
I later found out Nana was involved in another undercover
operation with one known only as Mrs. H. Must remember not
to leave those 3 alone….see what I mean about some of the
special things people have done for us over the last 6
years?!
Right now EmmeClaire is sleeping. Here’s hoping it
lasts!!! We tried rice tonight and that went over with her
about as good as it goes over with me. She ate non-stop
today so hopefully she will make it until morning…. We are
out of here at 8:30 am (ouch) to head to Sanmenxia City
(where her orphanage is located). We will not be permitted
to visit her orphanage, which is a big bummer for ME. That
is one of the things on my mental list that I really
wanted to do. I really feel like being able to talk to
Adam about his baby house has helped him – and will
probably more so in the future. Unfortunately having the
families visit the orphanages is very disruptive to the
usual flow of the day – which makes sense. Also it would
be very upsetting to the children, especially the older
ones, to go back to the orphanages only a day after
leaving it. Anyways we have to go to the city 3 hours away
to apply for her passport. So 3 hours there….3 hours
back…..this should be a treat! Baptism under fire? Lots of
snacks….for all of us. I am not exactly sure how I am
going to make her bottles since I do not have a thermos
for hot water and food is a whole other story since we are
still feeling our way through it. Apologize ahead of time
if you hear her crying…..And speaking of bed, I think I
will attempt that as well. I too am hoping to sleep
through the night…though I can not be sure that will
happen until BOTH my babies are under one roof.
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Why wouldn’t I travel so far
to where you are to call you my own?
Why wouldn’t I when you were so lost,
nameless and all alone?
When I saw your face,
when I heard you cry,
when I held you in my arms,
I said to myself,
Why wouldn’t I?
-Peder Eide Why Wouldn’t I? |
Adam: Pete Pan took the day off today as he was still
pretty tired from “walking” the Great Wall – personally I
think he stayed back to watch tv and eat from the minibar
with Tinkerbell. I hope you have a great first day at
Bible School!! I know it will be super fun! I can not wait
to hear all about it when we talk to you next. I hope you
are behaving – not that your Aunt or Uncle would tell me
if you weren’t but I bet Beans will….! EmmeClaire is doing
very well. We are anxious for you to meet her. You have A
LOT to teach her and she is going to have to catch on
quick to keep up with you!! XOXOX - Mommy |
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myadoptionwebsite.com
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