Ear Aches...

We had an interesting night last night. We were watching TV & the girls were in the bedroom. Alison came running into the living room screaming “my ear, my ear”. I think she burst her ear drum. We didn’t even know she was having ear problems. She settled down after awhile & I gave her a Tylenol Sinus pill to help with the congestion and she finally fell asleep.

Today she has complained all day w/ periods of seeming to be fine. Breakfast was normal & then we took a bus to a Lantern festival / park. The flowers were very beautiful. I have pictures of the girls sitting on cow statues… you don’t see that every day. There was a lion dance that was very good. The park was gorgeous but a lot of people and so hot. We got the girls ice cream which helps and bought some bubbles to keep them quiet.

Next we went to a Buddhist temple. There were three very large bronze Buddhas in a building. There also pagoda which was 17 stories inside and was called the 9 Banyan tower. Lots of people celebrating today & offering prayers. We could have had the girls blessed by a monk but chose not to. Everyone complained of the smoke from the incense but it really was quite colorful and festive although so empty of true meaning in my faith.

Back to the hotel… Sarah arranged for us to go to a doctor this afternoon. He couldn’t really find anything in Alison’s ears but he gave us Penicillin anyway. I made her come back to the room and nap this afternoon. At 5:30 we met in the lobby for a group picture then on to a local Chinese restaurant as a group. The food was good. There was a chicken / potato soup in a dark yellow sauce that was excellent. The chicken was very good and I don’t normally like the chicken in most dishes… bones & all usually but not this time. Anyway, Alison complained and cried the first half hour until I finally left & we walked back by ourselves. We made a stop at Starbucks for hot chocolate for her and a latte for me. I gave her Tylenol when we got back. She laid on the couch for sometime but is now lying on her bed playing Uno with Dad and seems to be better.

Emma is still not made up with Lynn. She waved goodbye to me at the restaurant as she was not done eating but still didn’t want to walk back with Dad. She does hold a grudge.

We are hoping the antibiotic w/ Tylenol for pain will get Alison feeling better. She is crabby when tired but she is a nightmare when she is in pain. I am so ready to be home. We may need to stay in tomorrow and that may be worse… I don’t know. So not a bad day but a stressful day with a whining, sick kid.

Xrays / Itchy arm & SHOPPING

The other families from WACAP are now here. One family is adopting now a 5 year old & will be back this summer to adopt another son from Madison. They say the special needs kids are easy to get "waives". Met a family today that waited 6 months for an 11 month old w/ a birthmark that disappeared when she was 2 months old (the fear is that another might come back). She is gorgeous. So many children and so many stories.

At 9:30 we met to go back to the clinic. As I suspected, Emma is positive so she had to have an x-ray. They looked at it for a long time & called others to look at it & then finally said it was clean. They suspect her heart problem was showing some distortion on the x-ray. Anyway, we have clearance to come home & we can take care of anything there.

We were then free to shop Shamian Island. Yeah! I went to Starbucks for a latte (so good) then on to as many stores as I could fit in. Jennifer's has moved next to the new Subway which is by the Victory Annex. We had lunch at Lucy's. Emma got her feelings hurt when Dad had to tell her "no" very sternly & boy did she let us know she wasn't happy. She pouted w/ her head down almost all through lunch. Finally the corn on the cob won her over plus her soda didn't hurt. We took the french fries with us & headed to the White Swan. We got one picture on the red couch but only w/ Alison & I. Boy did we add to the economy on Shamian Island. It is our American duty.

It is in the 80s today. We were pretty hot but most shops are air conditioned so we got relief. It is so awesome to talk to the other parents. Not many older kids being adopted. I have only seen maybe 4 this week out of the maybe 20 plus kids we have seen. Don't get me wrong, I love to see families being formed. I just wish more kids were finding families.

We took our laundry to Sarah's room. The girls are chattering in Chinese to each other. Alison is talking more to Emma today. Alison asked me today if I was glad that we adopted her and Emma. She also told everyone that she had a great day yesterday. Her face sure didn't show it! Alison talked to the baby on the bus ride back. Alison must have told the dad a dozen times that his baby was adorable. Now Alison is saying... when we adopt again. We aren't even home yet & she is talking like we are coming back to get another child.

The girls have eaten more of their hot fries snack that Alison bought yesterday. They each have had soy milk (who knew) and a fruit snack. Now they are going through the things we just bought. They each have a yo-yo and the grins are never ending.

I find it interesting that most of the cartoons here are in English. Isn't that odd? Tom & Jerry mostly on one station. Oh Cartoon Network is almost all English. I just heard the commercial for what we are watching.

We have one English phrase "oh no". More to come.

Trip to Zhu Hai

For those families who are waiting for pictures of their children, we loaded a bunch to the Yahoo Group Picture album. The boys look healthy. We went to their room and they were each carried to us and we were told who they were. They were never put down on the floor. We went to the room with about five adults and maybe 15 kids in our parade through the halls. There were either 2 or 3 caregivers in the room. Most of the kids were in cribs, one or two were running free and a couple were being fed in seats. We totally interrupted the routine. There was only one child to a small crib and the cribs were head to toe w/ aisles between maybe three rows. Most of the awake babies stood in their cribs when we came into the room. Several older girls were with us and they felt quite at home going to a crib and picking up a baby. We were told not to take pictures of the other children but that was after I had taken a few. There were three rooms to the nursery with glass windows separating each one so you could see from one to the next. The first room was the feeding (and probably changing room). The next two were filled with beds. There were so many people milling around I couldn’t take it all in. I couldn’t take pictures & hold one of the boys so I opted to take pictures.

Reagan is taller than I thought and her shoes were bigger than I expected. They were bigger than mine but they wear shoes too big & the style of tennis shoe would make anyone’s feet look big. She is so very pretty. She was at school when we first got there and we went back to the office/meeting room from our baby visit she was coming in the front door. Our guide was wonderful and translated everything. A room full of us went into the meeting room, I gave Reagan her gift. Another caregiver helped her open it & they went through the bag very quickly. When I could get back to Reagan, I asked for her bag and we went through every item. I showed her each picture & told her who each person was. The guide was beside me and told her in Chinese. We got out the shirt & explained what Indiana is (but what do you tell a Chinese what a Hoosier is?... we said it was a nickname for our state). We looked at the bracelet. When she pulled out the disposable cameras, she said she had two of them already. She has a sweet smile & our guide said she was very happy. She has a deep voice for a child… kind of like Emma’s. I told her that you would probably come in June to get her & the guide translated that too. There were some rowdy, pushy kids there but Reagan was sweet & yet not shy.

Now that I have told the new parents about their kids, I will back up & tell you about our trip. We had a new guide for today, Jennifer. Sarah has other WACAP families coming in from other provinces today (yesterday) & has to go to the notary for us all. They rented a van for us. We put the girls in the middle seats & I gave Alison a nausea pill right away. They both slept the almost two hours to Zhu Hai. The fog/smog is very bad as we go. We cannot see more than a mile. You cross many rivers / bridges & we could tell there were some large boats in the water but that was it. The air cleared by the end of the day & on the drive back we could see farther / better.

We arrived at Zhu Hai at about 11:30. They don’t have a large courtyard entrance. There is the road, trees, the gate, the entrance and a parking lot to the left of the entrance. It was difficult to get a real good picture of the front. The lobby had a programmable sign that read “welcome parents of Zhu Mei Xin and Zhu Ai Zhen to Zhu Hai”. We were told to go into a meeting room to the left of the lobby. There was a leather couch and several chairs around the room. They brought us water. They brought the girls soy milk (which Alison loves & Emma hates) and packaged cookies. Several directors came in to meet us. Several women and men that we have seen in pictures with the girls. They told us that Reagan (sorry, it is 6:00 AM & the girls are asleep & I can’t see my purse to look up Reagan’s Chinese name) was in school & would be here shortly. Adults & kids kept coming in to see Mei Xin & Ai Zhen. Emma started to cry & cried off/on for about an hour. Alison never tear-ed up but had a stern look on her face & would barely talk. She didn’t come to me for comfort but clung to the director (I have to look up her name… I will edit this later).

Everything was still a little wet from the morning cleaning and the dampness of the humidity. The walls, floors, ceilings are all white. We took an elevator to the third floor and then walked the hallways to the room. I was surprised to be taken to the nursery instead of them bringing the boys to us. It was a mad house as our troop descended on that room. They brought the boys to us right away and told us who was who. The babies in the next room began to cry and stand up in their cribs and since I was at the door, I walked in & talked to a few of them. I got some big smiles and some giggles. These babies are pretty happy in their surroundings. The one little boy on the loose, held up his arms for me to hold him and I did. Several adults and teens picked up babies. That is heart warming to see babies being held & talked to.

We walked a ways around the corridors to Emma’s room. More tears. Her room was rather large with only two twin beds in it. There was a closet unit as you come in. The night bedding was neatly rolled / folded at the top of each bed. No decorations, no curtains to the large windows. There were a few small stickers on the wall beside her bed. One was of a group of girls that are in a combo power rangers and Barbie adventure group. I recognize the blond because Emma bought that DVD the day before and we watched the movie. The rooms are arranged kind of like dorm rooms with adjoining baths to other rooms so she didn’t have far to walk to the restroom. I asked who Emma shared a room with & they answered but didn’t say… here she is and it wasn’t a name I remembered. Emma was too upset to want a picture with anyone in particular. She didn’t gravitate toward anyone friend in particular.

When we were in the hallway starting toward Emma’s room, Mrs. Zhong showed up. She came in on her day off to see us. Her hair is different and at first I wasn’t sure it was her. She said we hadn’t changed at all. She hugged Alison and talked to her as we walked the halls to Emma’s room. She was with us maybe 15 minutes. Most of the time was talking to Alison. Again, Alison was just so withdrawn and overwhelmed. She reverts to becoming very introverted with stressed. Mrs. Zhong looks good. She said good bye to the girls as we greeting Reagan.

We were ushered back to the meeting room. A mad frenzy of Chinese adults & kids talking and wanting to see what Reagan’s parents had sent her. A Chinese adult lady the kids call something Ping helped her open the bag and look at the contents. We had brought a bag of candy (M&M’s and small Snickers) and I gave that to a director and she began passing it out. That helped clear the chaos so I could talk to Reagan and show her what her Mamma has packed for her. Our translator told her every picture in Chinese and I said what it was in English. Everyone who was looking at the pictures knew the word “cow”. Her eyes are so beautiful and she just soaked it all in as I told her she lived on a farm not far away from Mei Xin. With each picture, she saw her family with four siblings and they said she was #5.

Our time with the kids was shorten as the director wanted to take us to lunch. So four male directors and Mrs Yuan (I don’t know how to spell her name but I will) went to lunch with us. The men drove in their van and we went in ours w/ Mrs. Yuan. Lunch was a feast. We were in a gold decorated private dining room with the large round table. There must have been 15 or so dishes of food (mostly meat). The rice always comes last in a Chinese feast! We had duck, beef, chicken, toufou, small oysters, fried fish and we could have had snake! Lunch was awesome. I don’t like duck, toufou or oysters but I tried many of the dishes. They asked us if we needed a fork when the meal began. We told them no and then I was put to the test right away and I passed. Good to practice chop sticks.

The men had to leave us and go to a meeting but it was almost 2PM! Mrs Yuan went with us and we went to the old orphanage. The gate was locked but the guard let us go in and look around. Nothing of the old place exists but the buildings. We took a picture by a tree w/ the ceramic tile around the base. We went to the store on the corner and Mrs Yuan bought Alison some snacks that she likes. Mrs. Yuan is concerned that Alison did not eat enough at lunch… it is just emotions.

Then we go to Alison’s school. The gatekeeper there also let us in so we walked up to the buildings. The kids were out playing. Three girls were watching us closely and Alison said she knew them that they were in her class but that they were mean to her and kicked her so she didn’t want to go talk to them. Emma saw one of her teachers as we came in and we got a picture of them together. The school is very nice and they say has about a thousand students.

Next we went to the school which is across the street from the new orphanage. Again the gatekeeper let us in when Mrs Yuan explained why we wanted in. Emma’s said her classroom was on the fourth floor and in.

Finally it was time to say goodbye to Mrs. Yuan. Alison said it was so sad to say goodbye to friends.

We had a terrible drive back to Guangzhou with the interstate closed for some reason. It took us three hours to get back & only two to get there. Guangzhou is a city of 10 million and Zhu Hai is a city of 1 million.

Dinner was snacks for the girls. Alison can really pick out an assortment. Lynn and I had McDonalds. The hamburger w/ cheese was good but tastes NOTHING like home. The fries tasted good this time. The grease must have been old the other day.

The girls had a pillow fight last night. They are starting to act like sisters and not just people who knew each other. Well, I better go. I have to get laundry ready, breakfast and be ready to go back to the doctor by 9:30. Emma keeps rubbing her TB test and it is a little red. GREAT!

Sightseeing...

Today is in the 70s & I see sun and shadows. Lynn took the girls out w/ our group sightseeing. I decided to stay in and rest. The heat / smog don't agree with me. From our room, I hear a musician playing a Chinese string instrument or maybe it is the construction crew across the street playing a CD. What do I know? But I hear Chinese music coming up to the 14th floor of our hotel. I can see farther today but the smog is still very heavy. Maybe being on Shaiman Island you don’t notice the smog because the buildings are lower stories and there are so many trees. Being so high, it is obvious that you can’t see so far.

The picture I have of Emma and a small boy is of Zhu Aoxing. Alison said Emma always played & held babies. This picture is outside. Erica, I will send it to you when we get home. Reagan is the same size as Alison according to the picture of Emma & Reagan together. The height difference is about the same as Alison & Emma. Emma isn’t quite a skinny as Alison so today instead of size 8, I put her in size 10 pants. Alison has heard all of the hype about “skinny jeans” so she doesn’t want to move up to 12s since she can still get into the 10s. Girls!

I see more interaction between the girls. Emma picked up a Chinese CD/DVD today & as the girls watched it they were giggling back & forth and talking just a bit about the movie. Last night at dinner they were both giggling over their antics. Alison is very helpful at shower time. The shower here is the size of a small walk in closet & there is a soaking tub in there too…so more than enough room for two girls to shower. Plus the shower head is a detachable, hand held so they take turns spraying. Alison knows which one is shampoo & which is conditioner and the order to use them.

Emma is just very happy. She will just come up to either of us and want a hug or lie beside us. Too cute. I think when she knows what to say she will be loud because when she is excited, she uses a loud voice.

Every day Lynn downloads the camera to the computer. She has taken so many pictures. There are pictures of the two bears, the two Barbies in bed & on the couch. There are a couple dozen pictures of her where she has held the camera out and taken her own picture. Actually, I think she has taken more pictures of herself than of anyone or anything else. And yes, she did take several pictures of her boots while she had them on.

Emma came in pants, shirt, a new coat and new tennis shoes. They sent a set of books for her (Chinese story books… nice set but all Chinese), a Chinese dress, one extra pair of underwear and socks, some drinks, snacks, a small photo album, a map of Zhu Hai and a wall picture for our home. All of the items I sent her were returned with her.

Wednesday…No one wants to see a doctor

Emma has the breakfast drill down pretty good. She likes an omelet but without anything in it (isn’t that just scrambled eggs?). She does not like apple juice but orange and watermelon juice are fine. She doesn’t like the yogurt that Alison likes. She is a noodle / chicken girl. I can see that cooking is going to be interesting at our house.

Our morning is free so we go back to the room. I have Alison work on homework & Lynn takes Emma for a walk. Emma has a head cold with a nose full and Alison has a cough that is even worse. Guess who might be complaining just a bit? It is getting better.

At 1PM we are off to the medical exam. They take us to Shaiman island. There is a lot of construction but many of the shops are open. First we went a few doors down from the clinic for pictures then into the clinic. It was pretty busy but not with adoptees. All told we were there about two hours. First was the height/weight/temperature/ eye exam. Both girls wanted to do the eye exam. She can see. Even I could tell that from how far down she got on the chart.

Next blood pressure and then E&T. The universal tickle to get your ears checked. With her cold, I was afraid they would stamp her as “sick” but she passed w/ no fever & no sickness. Onto the physical. Because of her VSD, the nurse & doctor listened but even then she got a good report. They asked if she ever had blue lips & I say no. She can be very active & have no slow down.

Well, the time arrived for the dreaded shots. She had to get six shots plus a Polio pill. Sarah told her it wouldn’t hurt. She sat on a small stool as they did the TB-test, then two in one arm, then two in the other & one in the leg. She did the Chinese equivalent of “YEOW, YEOW” and she squirmed a bit but did not cry. She did yell at Sarah that she said it wouldn’t hurt.

We ate at a Malaysian restaurant tonight for dinner. It was great. I ordered three dishes plus rice. The girls (ok, the adults too) chowed down. The dishes are served family style so we each got rice & then ate the Chinese way by picking the food from the dishes we wanted. Can’t continue that habit when we get home but it works so well here in China.

Alison is getting used to being “big sister” and is doing very well. This is all so new to her. She struggles with the surroundings, the smells, the food, the strangeness of it all and then the sharing us with another is so different for her. We need shoes for Emma. Her shoes are too big & she walks funny in them. As we left the restaurant, I spotted a shoe store (of sorts). They had shoes of various kinds but no shoes with a range of sizes. The girls spotted one really cute pair of boots. First Emma tried them on and then Alison. They fit both of them but we bought them for Emma. Oh my she was so pleased. We got back to the room & she wore them all night. Alison wanted those boots but she let her sister have them without fuss.

We have two TVs in our room. If Alison is watching something in the living room, Emma gets bored & comes into the bedroom where I am reading & turns on the TV (after asking). Soon enough Alison has joined us & Lynn is in the living room with a show on TV that he cares nothing about.

We go to Zhu Hai on Friday. Emma has a picture of her and Reagan in an album she brought with her. She also has a picture of the son of the Loop’s. The orphanage administrator kept my photos of the kids so except for Reagan, I don’t know who goes with whom. We only have Lynn’s computer & not mine so I don’t have my saved emails. If you sent me a photo, please resend what you sent me to lcrooks@indy.rr.com. The internet is too unreliable here. I was on our Yahoo group site trying to decide which two kids I was getting pictures for & I lost connection so Kendra & Erica if you can resend your photos that would help me a lot. Emma loves babies so I have a picture with her and one of the boys. Emma is very excited to see Reagan’s family (I did get to show her your pictures on Yahoo).

Well, going back to bed. We went to bed at 8PM no wonder I am up at 5 writing. But a few more hours sleep will help me quite a bit.

Thursday is sight seeing in the afternoon.

Pictures

Happy 11th Birthday on her adoption day.

MaMa and Emma wait in the doctor's office.

MaMa and Emma

The Doctor Is In

It is 5 a.m and I can't sleep. The others are still asleep. Brenda does such a good job of capturing the essense of the day. She should be a professional blogger.

I can't believe I am now the proud father of 5 daughters! You can't imagine how honored and blessed I am. God has been good to me with each and every one.

Brenda describes Monday when we first got Emma. There was a lot of hubbub and confusion but there was no doubting who Emma was. When I first stood beside her and she looked at me I pointed at myself and said "Ba Ba". You wouldn't believe the smile of happiness that came across her face. It is moments like that which make the whole effort and cost worth every bit of it!

Emma is very active and going from thing to thing here in the room. I gave her one of our cameras and she started taking pictures of everything. I bet she took at least 25 of herself. She quickly figured out by herself how to go back and look at the pictures too. She is smart. I love digital cameras.

Yesterday I was laying down on my bed watching TV and almost falling asleep. Emma came in and laid down beside me and cuddled close. She only stayed about 30 seconds but it is another memory that will last forever. God is good.