Trip to China
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Tuesday, August 17, 2010 THE END OF THE ROAD Today Harper officially becomes a US citizen and we end a long journey – the adoption process! I can hardly believe this is our final step in order for us to leave China and start making our way back to the United States. I am not quite sure how to feel today. We are just so exhausted, a bit overwhelmed and nervous. Yes, I have to stop and pause to remember this is her day. It doesn't matter how we are feeling. Today Harper has a whole new story that is about to unfold for her. She will become a product of a completely different society. I am beginning to think about how we will raise her, not just teaching her right from wrong, but how we will instill in her the same values we were raised with. I feel like the current modern world is a completely different place then when we grew up. I guess every generation feels that way. It just seems less simplistic. Todd and I have tried to create a life helping others and live more holistically then our prior years before we moved. We made choices that ultimately would bring us to our little girl and a world of happiness that at times seemed unattainable. As some would say we took the road less traveled and that has made all the difference! We decided awhile ago that we would change our daughter’s Chinese name unless her biological mother had given it to her. Today we not only are picking her citizenship but we would be solidifying her English name. “Xia Xia” is what her foster mother nicknamed her and I can see that lasting for awhile. Today picking a name, which we did 7 months ago, after reviewing her file seems like a fuzzy memory that has no real consequence. Today is much more serious. We are changing our daughter's citizenship. I know Harper will be much more than her birthplace and country of citizenship, but still it is a very big deal. She is and will be a product of us now. It is pretty powerful to know that you are shaping and molding another human being. It brings us back to why we wanted to adopt and be parents. Todd and I always knew we wanted to wait some time before having children. We made the huge decision to become parents not just to have kids but we did it to make our little world a better place – a place where we can share a lifetime of traditions, celebrations, daily story times, and of course, dress up and make believe! Moreover, and most importantly to us, we decided to become first time parents specifically to a child that desperately needs parents in order to survive. In just this past week all our ideals of parenthood have changed. As we waited to travel to Harper everyone would comment about how lucky this little girl is but really we are the lucky ones! Harper has filled us with so much joy and love that can not be measured. There is no more perfect child for us in the whole world then Little Miss Harper and God picked the perfect moment to bring us all together. As we were dressing Harper today we decided that Chinese traditional clothing would be very appropriate. We just barely made it to the breakfast buffet this morning but we try with all our might to get out the door in time. It really is the only meal we have been eating. If people are looking to go on a diet, adopt or go to China! Todd and I are barely fitting into any of our clothes and Harper is actually much smaller then I expected. She is wearing 3 months in pants and 6-9 month tops! She only weighs 18.6 lbs. We are wishing we brought smaller clothing sizes for her and us on this trip! You would think looking at all our luggage I brought our entire wardrobe! After breakfast we decided to finally make a visit to the doctor that resides at the White Swan Hotel – if we can find him! I have not had much luck finding anything in this hotel. It is like a maze! Eventually we did find him on the 3rd floor in a back closed door. We knocked a few times and I was expecting a wizard like man to appear. There was no receptionist just an older Asian man in doctor’s clothing. It was set up like a mini clinic in a hotel room. We explained to him that Harper has been covered in hives the past week. We went into detail that no matter what we feed her she still gets them. He paused, looked at her legs, thought to himself for a few minutes and I was thinking wow he must have some big explanation for all of this. As I sat their panicked for his big revelation he said, “It is an allergy!” (well, we figured that much I thought to myself). I guess we just expected the doctor to give us some more information so that we could feel like we were doing something to help her. We are so nervous that they are going to get worse and we really wanted the doctor to point us in the right direction. I am wishing we were home now so that I could have the doctors tell me what is wrong. The doctor told us to keeping giving her Benadryl. The problem with that though is that every time I give Harper a medicine, she sweats profusely. I am guessing it has to do with her heart condition. The doctor fussed over Harper and it was the first time she picked us over an Asian person. I am guessing the lab coat scared her off after getting the shots two days prior. Through his broken English the doctor kept saying how beautiful Harper is and how happy she seems. He said he couldn't believe that we have only been with her for a week as she seems so content. We acknowledged that we realize how lucky we are to have her already be clinging to us. So in China, as is in the states, people that are good looking seem to get favored. Everyone thinks it is more apparent here though. I guess here favoritism can mean the difference between life or death, so being pretty can honestly be a lifesaver. We tried to pay for our visit but the doctor declined any from of payment since Harper, in his eyes very cute and pretty! Well, at least we left one doctor’s visit laughing! Now if we can just figured out what is causing the hives.

Hurry up daddy I want my bottle! Harper and her straws! It is the only thing that will keepher entertained at mealtime! (Notice all the fingerprints and kissing face marks on the door window!) Harper on the red couch The red couch family shot! Watch out America here comes Little Miss Harper! Harper's travel buddy, Hadley, sitting pretty on the red couch! A very happy day at the US Consulate in Guangzhou

After the doctor’s visit Harper would not go down for a nap. She was way more interested in the housekeepers. She follows them around as they tuck in the corners of the bed then she checks it out and pats it down. She is so funny! It is like she is the grand inspector! She is a very picky for a little girl! We finally got her down for a nap but had to wake her up 30 minutes later to make our way downstairs to meet our guide. This guide has not been my favorite and then when I realized that she had us arrive thirty minutes early so that we would not be late to meet the rest of the group, I was not too happy. Harper could have been sleeping and we need every minute we can to get ourselves ready these days. Well Harper just pranced around the lobby crying because she was so overtired. Eventually all the other families from various agencies staying at our hotel met and we boarded the big bus to the US Consulate. I really felt like I was going on our first field trip with Harper. I can not believe how big this city is. We were quite impressed how modern the buildings are as well. We are staying on Shamian island but more and more adoptive parents are staying off the island to be closer to the US Consulate. I personally like being on the island. It felt more like being away in some tropical place. If you stay off the island there are plenty of parks and things to do but it is definitely more of a booming, bustling atmosphere. Harper was super interested in all the other babies on the bus and I of course was staring out the window trying to guess the speed our bus was traveling at! Those turns were quick and sharp over the bridges! Oh what a ride! In my head I know this is the big moment and the big day! We are almost at the Consulate and yet I keep waiting for the ball to drop. Could it really have been this easy? Many people that adopt wait years to get a referral or there is a ton of paperwork glitches. Don’t get me wrong – we had our fair share of ups ands downs, but really all said and done it was one full year of being dedicated to finding and bringing home our daughter. Harper would enter this building a Chinese citizen and leave a US citizen. Nobody, not even her biological mother or father can take her back now and China will no longer consider her one of their own. This whole process has taken a huge emotional toll on us but it was worth every sleepless (and I do mean sleepless) night to have our little girl in our arms. The government building was like any other government building back home. To our delight this place even had air conditioning! We had to pass security and they collected cameras and cell phones. Then we entered another large room where they would call one baby's Chinese name at a time to appear before the man at the desk. He would then verify all of Harper's information. I kept telling Todd I hope we recognize the pronunciation of her name. Apparently they get upset if you don’t! There were about thirty families in the room and most of them have been here before finalizing the adoption of their other children. Luckily we did recognize Harper's name and then we saw the cute Gerber face picture that would be on her Visa. She has such a gorgeous profile and those cheeks-oh so sweet! The man behind the desk looked at Harper and said, “Oh wow she is even cuter in person.” We were so filled with pride when we turned around and saw all the other families. Before the oath began a speech was given by the Director of the consulate, an Asian American woman, who explained how she has seen the Chinese adoption program change throughout the years. She gave us some interesting facts, one being that now 66% of all adoptions are special medical needs. Whereas 8 years ago it was only 10%! It was amazing to hear that so many children that were once hidden in the orphanages are now being adopted. It is only through God's grace and loving people that these children are being saved a lifetime of misery. As we stood, holding Harper in our arms, we said our final oath and all the worries and fears that I had about Harper's safety, our travel to and from China and the whole adoption process disappeared. The only thing that mattered now was my husband and my perfect baby girl. Since I even cry at commercials you can imagine how overjoyed and tearful I was at this point! We did not have to worry about anymore paperwork! It felt like a huge massive weight had been lifted off my shoulders! Nothing was stopping us now! Praise the lord! He has done great work today making this a very landmark day in our lives. We gave each other and Harper a huge hug and kiss as the newly appointed American family! We left the building and I just kept saying to Todd, "We are done!” Until you go through this process you have no clue the loops and jumps you have to go through in order to make this all happen. It was a full time job and now it will be a full time job caring for my girl everyday. I don't think my life can get any better then it is at this very moment. We officially have clearance to leave the country with Harper! Oh wait we have clearance but we can’t officially leave until we get her Visa which will be issued tomorrow afternoon! The fun never stops! We endured the bumpy ride home and as every other child fell asleep Harper was wide awake enjoying her celebratory day! Considering she did not have much of a nap she surprisingly sat well for her red couch photos. We then decided to celebrate at Lucy's once again! This time our traveling buddies, now our dear friends, would be joining us. This would be their last night in China as they are flying out as fast as they can to get home to their son tomorrow night. We leave Thursday morning to start making our way to Hong Kong and now I am wishing we were just taking the quicker way back and leaving right away. We thought taking the scenic route and exploring Hong Kong would be fun. You can tell I made these plans before I was with a toddler all day long! We enjoyed our dinner even though Harper was all over the place. I was amazed to see the other children sitting nicely in their high chairs. Apparently, Harper does have high octane energy! We left dinner and did some strolling through the shops and then Harper decided she had enough for one day and at the end of the road she stopped walking, sat on the ground and looked at us. She pointed her little finger up to us and signaled to be carried. So we picked her up and cradled her in our arms. Our little American girl wanted to be home and so did we!

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