Milestones at every corner

Well, we're just sitting her in balmy SC enjoying time with friends.  Tomorrow will be our 6 year wedding anniversary.  There seem to be many milestones coming at us. First Thanksgiving and Sophie's second birthday, Sophie's first Christmas and Hanukkah, and the anniversary that ends our wait for a family.  Anniversaries have been pretty hard because they've marked each year we've wanted to build our family.  I'm happy to report that after six twisting and turning years, we've accomplished what we set out to do!  Albeit, it may not have been what we expected, but I think we'd both have to say we wouldn't want it any other way.  Sophie is the most amazing thing that could have ever happened to our family and is bringing us more and more joy everyday.  She is amazing in so many ways and I'm ecstatic that she's with us.  There will be much to celebrate tomorrow! 

P.S.  Sophie is now saying a few new words.  She says "stop" complete with hand gestures, "GO!", "right there", and she said "eel" at the aquarium today.  She is babbling away with great intent at being understood.  It won't be long before she is speaking in complete sentences.

Happy Thanksgiving and 2nd Birthday!

We celebrated Sophie's second birthday on Tuesday evening before heading down to Miami.  We did a quiet dinner with ourselves, Patti and Grammie.  We then went home to open presents.  How fun!  I can say hands down this was my best birthday ever.  Hopefully it was Sophie's too.  I don't mind sharing with this special little girl one bit.  After lots of present time we went right to sleep to be prepared for our 4AM waking and trip to Miami.

Wow!  All I can say is that I'm amazed by how quickly this little girl of ours is adapting to new situations.  She has seen my parents before but had never come to their house.  She made herself at home in no time.  In fact, it took seconds for her to want to jump into the pool.  Scary!  Is this the same little girl to pitched a fit and didn't want to go swimming in Guangzhou?  Yep!  She played all day Wednesday, minus nap time, and met the neighbors I grew up with...well, those not out of town.  She LOVED Robert who lives next door.  He's sixteen and probably could have cared less about a two year-old, that is until he realized he was being idolized.  He pushed her on her tricycle, helped her find her special dollar weeds from the grass, and let her inspect all of their mail.  They were so cute together.  After going inside it wasn't long before he and his mom Vilma were coming over to bring birthday gifts and Vilma's famous cake.  Try two of blowing out candles, still no luck.  While Sophie took control of Robert's phone, we chatted some more and then did our second birthday celebration.  Yes, we lit the candles on the cake before eating dinner!  Oh well!  Bedtime rolled around early as we prepared for an even bigger day, relatives being met for the first time, pool, ocean, and LOTS of breakables. 

Thanksgiving day we traveled up to Fort Lauderdale to Aunt Debbie and Uncle Pete's house.  We arrived first which was perfect for Sophie.  She got to meet her great aunt and uncle as well as her cousin Melinda before everyone else arrived.  She seemed a little apprehensive at first but then her cousins Casey, Dylan, and Drake arrived as she was in heaven.  They are all of my younger cousins and therefore I think Sophie knew they'd be fun right away.  She hung out with her cousin Casey, who is nine, all day long!  Casey was amazing with her and also enjoyed being idolized.  Actually, Dylan joined in at one point and won her heart too.  They were both so good with a little child.  They made sure to consider her safety and tended to her needs.  Casey even taught Sophie three new words, cheese, up, and down.  Amazing!  Needless to say, Sophie was feeling super comfortable and didn't attempt to pick up a single breakable.  She also met her cousins David and Carl, Jim and Lori, and several family friends.  She had a blast!  At dinner time she ate very well, minus the yams...not a hit.  However, she LOVED Lori's cranberry sauce filled with fruit.  We also had our THIRD birthday celebration.  Attempt three at blowing out candles was another failure...but hey, there is always next year! 

A month of being home, meeting countless new friends and relatives, taking her first road trip since coming home, and having a birthday.  A lot is changing and she's taking it all in stride.  Amazing!

And in preparation of Black Friday.... comfy heels and biggest purse!

And...WE'RRREEE BACK!

I know you all have missed us so much!  I'm very sorry for the lengthy delay in getting back of the swing of things here.  To be honest, to say I didn't know what I was in for would be an understatement.

You know, I know parenthood is a lot of work.  However, being the first time mom of a TODDLER...whew!  Nap time has been my only restful time and unfortunately they have gotten shorter and shorter and shorter every today.  It's tough work keeping up with a toddler, keeping the house clean, doing laundry, figuring out what child proofing you neglected, and trying to making sure everyone gets decent meals.

Anyway, I figured now was the best time to "get back on the wagon" so to speak because it is our ONE MONTH ANNIVERSARY OF GOTCHA DAY!  In celebration of this we ate...well...you guessed it, CAKE!  It wasn't just any cake though.  It was a giant panda head which had been frozen after our baby shower.  You would have thought it was our first wedding anniversary.  It was also a first for Sophie, first taste of cake!  It went over very well as you could imagine.  Here is evidence of the event.

In the past month, particularly since we've been home, we've had tons of firsts.  In fact, Jason and I sometimes wonder what Sophie has seen and what she hasn't.  We know she's taken her first plane ride, had her first encounter with dogs (A.K.A Woof Woof's), first wagon ride, first bike ride, first good sleep in a grown up bed, first car seat experience, and many, many, many more.  I'm not too sure about baths but it sure seems like that has been a first also.  Out of these firsts, most did not go well on the first time around.  In fact, I think the only one that did was the sleeping in a grown up bed.  However, she's coming right along.  She runs in the house to hug Sandy (our dog) and has been trying to trick me to get into the bath tub the past two days.  She is also improving on her social skills.  She has not been anti-social, but she has been very slow to warm to people.  After having some repeat visits with a few people and also seeing so many people she is not waving to strangers and approaching familiar adults without any hesitation.  The hardest challenge with bonding with BaBa but even that is tremendous, thank goodness!  Sophie and her daddy go for bike rides, stick hunts (yep, the girl loves a good fallen branch or two), and play outside.  In fact, this is where she'd love to spend the majority of her day.  After seeing the orphanage I can understand why.  She hasn't had a ton of exposure to all of these wonderful outdoor elements.  We can't wait to see what she does at the beach or springs.

As for the trip home and first few days, they were tough.  She did well on the flight home after the first couple of hours of on and off crying.  She settled in and slept, ate, played, ate, went potty, and ate some more.  It was exhausting though!  We were also making our way around typhoon Megi at the time, and it made for a pretty bumpy ride.  My two favorite things, hurricanes (or typhoons in this case) and planes!  Yikes!  We made it home safely without a glitch in the travel plans.  The most amazing part was touching down in San Francisco and knowing that we were HOME and that Sophie was officially a citizen of the United States.  I know I made a big fuss about the Fourth of July, but seriously, what a big deal!  It definitely brings new meaning for me.  Anywho, it took a loooong time for us to adjust to the new time zone.  I really think that this week is the first week we're all feeling normal.  I would literally crawl in bed right after Sophie because I couldn't keep my eye lids open any longer.  Poor Jason who had to actually go to work and couldn't sleep in.  Bless him because I don't know how he did it.  There must have been a ton of Red Bull involved!

All in all, what an amazing experience.  Everyday there is something new, a new word, experience, or joy.  Today I got something daddy has been getting for a couple of weeks...a "mommy, mommy, mommy" chant.  It was great!  Sophie has also said puppy, baby, daddy, and many expressions like wow.  She is trying to say night night also.  Her receptive language amazes me everyday.  I can't believe the things she understands sometimes.  After being told how to do "nosey nosey" or Eskimo kisses as some say, only a couple times by Aunt Patti, she dove right in and scrunched up her little nose by the third time.  She is also using some sign language and I continue to add a new sign each day.  What a little sponge.

Today she had a good play session with a buddy.  She actually has met her friend Brady a couple of times already, and has initiated lots of kisses (YIKES!), but today they got to really PLAY!  She was chasing him around everywhere.  It was so cute to see her interact with another child her age. 

Anyway, I know I'm making up for lost time here but I won't bore you any longer with all of my proud mama stories.  Here are a couple of pics of the firsts she's had and with her friend Brady teaching her to turn on a lamp.

Of course they are all taken with my phone so they are not too hot.  Sorry!  I will update Shutterfly soon too!

Thanks for the amazing wishes from everyone.  I am looking forward to catching up with all of my Inner Mongolia friends and seeing how your trips went too!

BTW...I'm now VERY sleepy and will not be proofreading this!  LOL  Sorry in advance!

Stacy S added pictures to the site "Shine Family in China"

Welcome to the "Shine Family in China" site

I've added pictures to the “Shine Family in China” site. Come check it out at http://shinefamilychina.shutterfly.com/pictures#%3aemid%3dsite_addedpictures%26cid%3dSHARE3SXXXX.

Site Name: Shine Family in China
Site URL: http://shinefamilychina.shutterfly.com/#%26emid%3dsite_addmembers%26cid%3dSHARE3SXXXX

 

Orphanage visit

Yesterday was a big day!  We went down for an early breakfast where Sophie demonstrated the use of her hollow leg...again!  She ate about 3 hard boiled eggs plus ham, etc.  She sat in a high chair for the first time also.  It was great!

 

After breakfast we came up to the room to gather our belongings for the adventure of a lifetime.  We knew we would need snacks, maybe a blanket, water, and more snacks!  It is two to two and a half hours away depending on traffic.  Sophie grabbed her little lady bug bag I packed and happily wheeled i down the hallway.  We loaded in up the van and she was asleep in seconds. 

 

We had to stop about 15 minutes into the ride for the driver to get gas.  That was interesting.  First thought, I don't think the have enough gas stations.  Second though, they all lift their hoods to get gas even though they have a gas flap.  Third though, I guess it's okay to pee wherever you want because there was a man relieving himself in the corner of the parking lot without nothing blocking his view.  We were told to get out while the vehicle was getting gas.  Sophie was not too cranky about this. 

 

After getting gas we took off down the highway.  It was only moments before we saw all of the beautiful mountain ranges.  We followed the mountains the whole car ride.  Sophie of course went back to sleep.  There are no car seats here so Jason and I sat in the middle seat of the van with Sophie laying across our laps. 

 

As we traveled I was filled with so many emotions.  First I was angry.  Angry that as I looked at this sweet little baby sleeping on my lap someone could have left her abandoned.  Then I felt sad.  I was sad that her birth mom could not afford to keep her or care for her needs.  Then came happiness.  I was so happy that I could be the one to offer her health and happiness and all of the love in the world.  It just seemed meant to be for Jason and I to be her parents.  Soon we'd find out that she felt that too.

 

We arrived to orphanage and pulled right up to the gate that Sophie was left at, at only six days old.  Immediately inside the gate were the director, other office staff, and a family who is also adopting.  We took pictures with everyone and the staff showed Sophie a small picture album.  They were pointing to one picture and saying "Pan Shu."  That is a little boy being adopting later this month to Puerto Rico.  I recognized the name and felt so happy about that.

 

After taking more pictures I showed the director a list of names of children who I knew were being adopted.  I was wondering if I'd be able to take pictures or if Sophie playing with any of the children.  I was not able to take pictures but they did say that Sierra, being adopted to San Francisco, is one of Sophie's good friends.  It seems that many of her besties are younger than her. 

 

We went into the orphanage and first stopped at the cafeteria.  It was not the same large room I'd seen in previous pictures.  It was much smaller and was filled with a ton of hungry little people.  The children looked to be older and sadly, looked to have very severe needs.  My heart broke a little as one little guy kept happily waving to us and I realized he'd likely never be adopted.

 

After the lunch room we were able to take pictures of the play room since no kids were using it.  It was very clean but left a little to be desired.  Next door was the crib room that Sophie used.  Each crib was filled with a sleeping bath.  This is where we got to see baby Sierra.  She looked so relaxed, almost like she knew her ma ma and ba ba were on the way.  I asked where Sophie slept and they pointed out a crib.  There  was a little boy sound asleep.

 

We then went right across the hall to the potty room.  There were two small O2B sized western potties and several baby potties.  One of the nannies took Sophie in and sat her on a baby potty but she didn't go.  She's using the big girl potty...she doesn't want that stinky baby potty!

 

We walked down the hallway and saw the playground from the window.  All the while nannies were coming up and asking to hold Sophie.  She willingly obliged but was very quick to reach back for ma ma.  This was exactly the way I wished it.  Happy and at peace.  Willing to say her good-byes but pleased to leave with ma ma and ba ba.  It was a huge change from gotcha day when she screamed out ma ma but was talking about the nanny.

 

At one point I heard a nanny refer to herself as ma ma and another nanny quickly correcting her and pointed and me and said "ma ma."  Another nanny picked her up and walked to the window, pointed to the apartments across the yard, and suggested she stay with her.  She probably didn't think I understood...but my motherly instincts are in full effect.  It kind of ticked me off but then I realized that was an indication of how well loved and nurtured she'd been here.  It was a good sign.

 

Sarah, our guide, was taking pictures of some of the children in the lunch room as hopes to maybe get them into the Journey of Hope Project.  Maybe there will hope for them after all.  Meanwhile, Sophie was grabbing her lady bug bag and wheeling it towards the stairs.  She was ready to go...with us. 

 

We walked downstairs to go visit the playground but by then Sophie was done. She saw the exit and she wanted to use it.  The director invited us to have lunch with them but I had to regretfully decline.  It would have been wonderful but I don't think it was best for Sophie.

 

With that, we walked back out the door, down the long walkway, and out through the gate for the last time.

--
Stacy Shine
O2b Kids - Preschool Director
(352)371-4202
stacy@o2bkids.com

Second full day with Sophie!

Last night after Sophie woke up from her nap we headed off to dinner.  We walked down the street to Pizza Hut of all places.  It was unlike any Pizza Hut I've ever been to.  The menu was definitely a little more complex!  We had a regular old pizza to make things simple.  Our guide Sarah was going to sit at another table but we convinced her to sit with us.  She was so helpful at dinner.  Sophie is a little wild at meals and was wanting to get her hands on EVERYTHING!  By the way, who puts small pebbles in a planter right behind a booth at a restaurant?   Yeah, not a great idea!  I was on super stalker mode to make sure Sophie didn't get any.

 

After dinner we walked down to the grocery store, which was under a mall.  It was very clean and organized.  They had pretty much anything you'd ever want.  We picked up some bottled water and diapers and formula for the orphanage (that's what they said they'd like when we asked).  Oh, and for those traveling soon, they use Nestle formula for ages 1-3.  After shopping we walked back to hotel to have bath time, bottle time, and most importantly, BED TIME!  We all got to bed early.

 

This morning we woke up just after 7:30.  Actually, Jason woke up at 4:00 after being kicked out of bed by a squirming child.  I had her feet in my face but managed to sleep anyway.  We were running later than planned because my phone battery died during the night and my alarm didn't go off.  As we woke Sophie we realized how alike she and I are.  She hates being awoken and LOVES to sleep!  We finally got going and were able to make two grumpy video calls.  (Another note to families traveling soon, Yahoo video calls work GREAT!!!  It was also very easy to setup.  Everyone just makes a Yahoo account and then you do video call just like you would instant message)

 

We then headed down to breakfast which was a little less messy than the previous meals.  I'm still happy to report that Sophie is NOT a picky eater.  She definitely has preferences, like eggs, but will try just about everything.  She is also very persistent in using her big girl cup herself, and managed to do so with minimal spilling.

After breakfast we met Sarah in the lobby and then took a cab to the museum.  You would be surprised to see how pretty this city is.  The buildings at night all light up like Las Vegas and it seems mostly very modern.  The museum was beautiful.  The architecture was amazing.  We stayed for a couple of hours touring the different rooms.  Sophie liked the outer space exhibit the best.  She kept looking up at the stars.  She wasn't very fond of the dinosaurs, especially the ones that started moving and roaring.  However, she didn't cry so Epcot may be able to be in her future.  She carried a small bath fish squirter with her all day.  She seems to take a liking to some odd items.  She also pulled a leaf from a tree in one exhibit (embarrassing) and then carried it with her all morning.  She tried making a game out of bonking her head against some of the windows in the exhibits.  She knew I didn't like it so every time we got close to a window or wall she'd fake me out and then smile.  What a stinker!  She also made a friend on the way into the museum; the chunkiest little boy with split pants I've ever seen.  He has chunky cheeks...and cheeks, if you know what I mean! She was happy to hold his hand but as soon as he tried to give her a kiss she turned away.  Good girl!

 

As Sophie began to suck her thumb we knew it was time to go.  We loaded back into a taxi to head back to the hotel.  She fell asleep in the car.  She had also slept in the car on the way to the museum (just like her mom would have).  When we got back Sophie and I went upstairs so ba ba and Sarah could go get lunch.  I fed her a bottle and some Cheerios while we waited.  When Jason got back we laid a towel on the floor and had a Chinese hotel picnic.  She was happy to accept food from Jason and ate very well.  After lunch we both crawled into bed and took a nap while Jason did some work.  Again, girl LOVES her sleep!  I think it is partly because of the change.  Not just the fact that we are new to her, but EVERYTHING is new to her.  She watched everything that we pass by and takes it all in.

 

Tonight we are laying low.  Tomorrow we visit the orphanage.  Kim, I'll email you some pictures if you want.  Tracey or Millie, I will email you too if you email me with your addresses (stacy@o2bkids.com).  It is about a two hour car ride and Sophie got sick on the way here so this should be an adventure!  I can't wait to see where she has spent the majority of her life!!!

 

Thank you to everyone posting comments.  I can see them all through my email.  I'm so sorry that I cannot respond to them though!  YOU MAY BE SEEING A SPECIAL GUEST POSTER, MY FRIEND LIEBA.  She may try to post some pictures for me as she is a BTDT expert! 

 

Until tomorrow!

Yesterday-Gotcha Day

Snacks with dad a.k.a. crazy hair picture

With the orphanage director

First family breakfast

Happy day after gotcha day!

Thank you all for your positive thoughts regarding our wild day yesterday.  I think it would have been better if we were not ALL sleep deprived.  Today has proved to be MUCH, MUCH, MUCH better.  As I'm typing here I'm watching (in the mirror) my little angel nap and squirm from one side of the king sized bed to the other. 

 

We woke her up at about 6AM.  We were not crazy about trying to get her undressed last night since she was so miserable so we wanted to change her and give her a bath this morning.  We also wanted to make a video call (would have liked to do more...hint, hint Patti).  We also were not sure about the potty issue.  Sophie did not go potty last night but we were here only a short time before putting her to bed.  She did go right away on the little potty/gigantic teapot thing provided to us.  We then gave her a bath in the tub they left here.  There is only a shower in our room.  She wasn't crazy about this idea but it had to be done.  She spit up on herself yesterday on the way to the city. 

 

After showering we put her in her new duds and played a while.  She LOVES her two toy cell phones!  She wasn't sure about the baby doll we brought and even smacked it's face a couple of times.  I even got a small glimpse or two of a smile.

 

As we then headed to breakfast she began to tear up.  I think it was the uncertainty of where we might be heading.  By this time the front runner was me.  Sorry Jason!  We went downstairs and she sat on my lap.  It was a very interesting buffet.  There was every imaginable DINNER item you'd find, but very few breakfast items.  I guess that's how they eat here.  I tried to leave Sophie at the table to make a plate...nope, wouldn't happen.  We walked hand-in-hand to pick some yummy treats of rice, green beans, hard boiled egg (still in the shell), and doughnuts.  All I can say is that THIS GIRL CAN EAT!  She had both hands full the entire time and even attempted to egg piggy style a few times.  At one point I had to remove the plate because she was picking it up and bringing to her face!  Guess she was hungry!  We had some VERY smiley times at breakfast.  She was trying to feed me egg and beans and thought it was hilarious when she demonstrated bad manners like nose picking.  Oh jeez!

 

After breakfast we went back to the room to play for another thirty minutes.  However, we got a call that we could come down right away for paperwork.  Back down we went.  I was nervous to see how Sophie would react to the orphanage director but it was GREAT!  She sat with me the entire time.  At some points she looked really sleepy and I believe convinced the director she was depressed, but then she began smiling as the director snapped some shots of her.  I'm sure the nanny from yesterday will be relieved to see those!

 

Here are some things we learned:

 

We will be able to visit the orphanage and if we want to bring a gift they'd love diapers and formula. 

 

Sophie WAS part of Half the Sky!!!  Because of this we have A LOT of extra info about her!  We have drawings the nannies made for her, extra photographs, and more medical info.  They were also the organization that funded her heart surgery in Beijing.

 

She was in Beijing for about 7 months during the time of her surgery but was never in foster care.  She was only in the orphanage.  The director said when she left she was so small and they could hardly recognize her when she came back.

 

She has a friend who was already adopted, was also a part of Half the Sky, and lives in Australia.  Apparently they were very close and the parents of the little boy provided their email for us to contact them.  I'm going to ask about other children already adopted (like Keaton) and children getting ready to be adopted when we visit the orphanage. 

 

Sophie is ticklish.  She likes to make games out of just about anything.  I kissed one of her feet earlier and then of course she gave me the other.  And then the other.  And then the other.  You see where I'm going with this!  She also played a game with raisins with Jason.  She loved shaking her head no whenever he asked for her to put one in his mouth.

 

We are going to visit a drugstore later with Sarah to pickup some of the donations and maybe look for some cute Chinese accessories or clothes.  She came with some adorable hair clips but I kid you not that two of them look exactly like the playboy bunny logo.  I'll have to post pictures later.

 

Best of all, Sophie went pee and poop on the potty!  They said she'll tell me but I just sat her on it and voila! 

 

Okay, I'm going to FINALLLLLLY post pics.  Everyone keep your fingers crossed that this works because I still can't figure out why the VPN isn't working and whenever I email it gets rejected.  Here we go..........

 

 

Gotcha Day!

Well...I must say, the moments leading up to "gotcha" were not the highlights of yesterday.  We were scheduled to take a plane from the main airport at 10:50 AM yesterday morning.  We left the hotel at 8 AM to be sure to arrive in time.  Our regular guide wasn't able to come with us so a new guide named Amelia came instead.

 

We had such a great car ride talking to Amelia.  I definitely made a new friend! 

 

When we arrived at the airport she quickly shuffled us to the check in desk where she talked to the ticket agent.  She handed our passports over and then they were quickly handed back with a concerning look from the ticket agent.  We knew there was a problem.  Amelia quickly got on the phone and starting making calls.  One thing lead to another and we learned that the travel agency made a mistake and we were not booked on our flight.  Amelia told us that they were trying to get us on a flight, by the next day.  That was not okay!!! 

 

After lots of scurrying around we learned that we had two options.  One was to take a 10PM flight or the other to take a 7PM flight from another airport.  Either way, we wouldn't need to sit around the airport all day.  Amelia loaded us up and off we went.

 

We went back to our hotel, dropped off our luggage, and then went to eat lunch.  This time at lunch we were the only foreigners in the place.  It was obvious we were going to get AUTHENTIC Chinese food.  Amelia asked if we liked sheep...uh...chicken please?  Our table was soon filled with goodies.  As I began to eat some veggies from the huge skillet on our table I noticed Jason fishing out an octopus tentacle from the same pot.  WOW!  I wish he hadn't shown me that...but those veggies were delicious.

 

After lunch we did some sightseeing and then heading back for our luggage.  We were able to take the 7PM flight so off to the new airport we went.  When we arrived we couldn't check in for another hour!  Then when we finally checked in at 5:30 and went through the somewhat suspicious security area, after saying good-bye to our new friend, we heard an announcement.  It was in Chinese of course since we were now in an all Chinese airport.  However, I was able to make Hohhot...yep, that's where we were heading.  An announcement an hour and a half before the flight couldn't be that it was boarding time...so it couldn't be good.  You guessed it...DELAYED!  Grrrr!!!  Now we were sitting in an airport with no guide, no English, and no plane!  We knew we'd be missing gotcha day because our arrival would be so late.  After lots of crying throughout the day I think we'd succumb to the fact it wasn't going to happen.

 

As we finally boarded our plane at 8PM we discussed how now we'd have plenty of time to get to the room, unpack, prepare, and relax.  Well...as you probably guessed, that's NOT how it happened.

 

We finally arrived in Hohhot about 9PM and met our guide Sarah.  She didn't carry a sign to find us.  No, she didn't need a sign because we stuck out like a sore thumb.  I joked with her about how she knew we were Stacy and Jason.  She immediately told us that we were going to head to the hotel, a thirty minute car ride, and that she had already spoke to the orphanage director and they would be meeting us there.  Shocked, I asked "tonight?"  She said "unless you want to wait until tomorrow" followed by a mischievous laugh.  "Of course not.  Let's go!"

 

No sooner than we arrived to the hotel and walked to the front desk to check-in it occurred.  Two well dressed ladies were coming through the door with a baby.  I looked at Jason and asked "is that her?"  They knew us right away and walked straight towards us.  Sophie wasted no time...tears.  I wish I could say we ended with tears but it only went down hill from there.  Sophie screamed and cried and called mama.  Only she wasn't referring to me.  She was talking about her nanny.  Heartbreak.  Tears.  I hate to say it...and I'm sure I'll catch flack from Jason...but even he was crying.  To see the hurt on this baby's face was gut wrenching.  I wished right at that moment that I could take away any pain that she was going through.  I couldn't.  Instead, she was forced to take pictures, sit with us, and only wanted one thing...her nanny!

 

As soon as we were done filling out our temporary custody paperwork we were advised to take the crying child upstairs.  Sarah followed and gave us instructions on the day ahead.  Talk about overwhelming!  We hadn't even settled our baby down and now we had to think about the next day.  WOW!  I offered Sophie snacks and she ate one and then hoarded the rest.  It didn't settle her.  I quickly fixed a bottle and the Jason took over.  It was already obvious from that time that there would not be room for me for a little while.  She wanted her baba. 

 

She took her bottle in Jason's arms while clinging on to the photo album we'd sent.  I think she attributed to album to her nanny, not us.  She wouldn't let Jason remove it from her hand, and then she finally fell asleep.

 

We placed her in the center of our bed and after several more task complete we joined her.

 

Lots of twisting and turning throughout the night.  One faint short cry.  And now we sit here waiting for our little baby to wake up.

 

I'm sorry to say there are no worthy pictures to post.  I only heart breaking sad pictures as of right now.  I'll hope to post some today...if we've overcome out technical difficulties.

 

To be continued...

--
Stacy Shine
O2b Kids - Preschool Director
(352)371-4202
stacy@o2bkids.com

Adventures in Beijing (Delay from 10-9-10)

My VPN has not worked and apparently my email that includes pics is too large to send.  I'm going to try to send this in two posts...words only...following by pictures.  You'll have to play the game of what pictures match to what text.  Good luck! 

Up bright and early again.  Yesterday was such an adventure.  We started off by doing the Hutong tour on a rickshaw.  Hutong is a small area around the Forbidden City where many older people live.  It is famous for the small narrow streets. This area was very exciting because we were able to see more of "real" China then what we saw from the car on the way home from the airport.  We were also able to visit the home of one family.  The dad was very proud to tell us that his older son lives in Texas and is a Kung Fu Master, trained by Jet Li and teaching others now.  He gave us his sons business card so we'll have to email him!  His wife served us Jasmine tea and we sat and listened to his stories (translated by George of course).  We also saw tons of people walking dogs...as pets!  What a sigh of relief!

 

 

 

After the tour we headed to the silk factory.  We saw the whole process for making silk including the silk worms making their cocoons, pulling thread from the cocoon, stretching the thread to form a blanket and so on.  We even got to participate a little bit.  At the silk market we picked out a cute outfit for Sophie and got her name stamp made. 

 

 

 

 

 

After leaving the market we went to lunch.  George asked what we wanted, assuming we'd want Pizza Hut or something familiar.  We told him we liked spicy foods and that Jason was a little more brave to try to new things.  We explained that he is allergic to shellfish and that I prefer pork, beef and chicken.  George took the liberty to order for us and chose an authentic Chinese restaurant.  He referred to this restaurant as a minority restaurant.  There was a stage with performers and dancers for us to watch as we ate.  We were sitting up in the balcony on the restaurant which was pretty neat.  We also had the dancers bring us necklaces and tie red yarn to our wrists. It is lucky for a woman to have it tied to her right wrist, and a man to his left.  We tried all of the dishes that arrived and they were delicious.  I operated under the don't ask, don't tell policy.  It was explained to us that we were having Kung Pao chicken, fish, beef, vegetables, rice, and mushroom soup.  I'm not sure what kind of beef, but I'm probably glad I didn't know.  We were also served tea. 

 

 

Next up was Tianammen Square and Forbidden City.  What an amazing sight.  There were still beautiful flowers planted from the National Day last week.  We walked, and walked, and walked and every time we thought we were coming to the end there was an opening to another building.  We learned where the Emperor stayed, where he let his concubines stay, and where they held morning meetings.  While we were walking I had two young girls ask to have their picture taken with me.  I have to be honest, I totally felt like a celebrity!  George also took us to the Emperor's garden where he would "play games" with his concubines and spend his free time. We took a picture in front of a lucky tree that was actually two trees joined as one.  The funniest thing was that the vendors were selling children's hats that were supposedly "concubine hats."  Who would want their little girl dresses as a concubine?  Hmmm

 

Okay, my computer is not loving me right now so I'll try to post more pics later.  Today we are going to the Great Wall and the Olympic Stadium.  George volunteered during the 2008 Olympics so I think he wants to show off the Bird's Nest.  He's funny!

We're in Beijing!

Well, we made it here with no hiccups.  I hope our trip home is as smooth.  On the way from Orlando to San Fran I sat next to a guy with a mammoth Yankees Championship ring.  I felt really bad for him because he was so super tall and looked terribly uncomfortable.

 

When we arrived in San Fran I thought I was already in China.  I don't know if it was just the terminal we were in or what but almost everyone was Asian.  It was pretty cool.

 

The flight from San Fran to Beijing was...well...LONG.  However, we made the best of it.  We caught a couple of cat naps but no major sleep.

 

Once we arrived to Beijing, cleared immigration, and hunted for our baggage we met our guide George (although he wrote his name down as Josh???).  He is super nice and talked to us on our way to the hotel.  He said that many families ask his thoughts on Americans adopting from China and stated "he feels very luck for us to adopt Chinese baby."  Of course we reminded him we feel pretty lucky too.

 

We are staying at the downtown Holiday Inn and were so pooped by the time we got our room we showed and went to bed.  It was about 6:00 PM.  We then woke up at 2:00 AM so that should make for an interesting day.

 

As far as our room goes, not what you'd picture for a US Holiday Inn.  The hotel is pretty fancy (4 stars) and definitely high tech. You have to place your key card in a little slot to us be able to use the electricity.  It's actually pretty smart when you think about it.  You have to take your key when you leave, which means there is no power running when the room is unoccupied.  I guess that what you need when you are the second most populated Chinese city of 18 million people!

 

Today we are doing some tours and can't wait to post pictures.  Tomorrow is the Great Wall and Monday is Gotcha Day!!

 

I haven't been able to get the VPN up and use blogger so hopefully this looks right!

 

--
Stacy Shine
O2b Kids - Preschool Director
(352)371-4202
stacy@o2bkids.com

We're out!

Jason is ready to go! We'll catch you all on the other side of the
globe!

In labor, getting ready to head to the "hospital"

Well...the time has come.  We are sitting here in our hotel room in Orlando getting ready for our big departure in the morning.  I truly feel like I'm in labor!  I have been extra emotional today and poor Jason is a hot mess.  Up until the last minute we both felt like we didn't have everything together.  I'm sure we'll still think of things we'd wished we packed.  However, Jason is right...as long as we have passports, adoption paperwork, and ID we can buy anything else we need.  Hopefully we won't need to go that route since we already FOUR suitcases!  We are unloading some items in China because they are gifts and we can also donate any items we don't need.  Anyway, we are finally just relaxing in our room.  I am downloading some Grey's Anatomy to my iPhone so that I can catch up.  I got WAYYYY off track a year and a half ago when I traveled to Chicago for a treatment and haven't got caught up since.  I guess we've come full circle!  My contractions are getting pretty intense, I think I'll sign off for now and get some sleep.  Three o'clock in the morning is going to come fast!

P.S. I won't be using Facebook but I am going to try to email updates here.  It the posts look a little funny, that's why.

2 more days, but who's counting?

I cannot even believe that in two days we'll be boarding a plane to China.  It seems to surreal.  I honestly haven't been thinking too much about the actual trip.  I've spent so much time running around town, gathering last minute items, packing, completing work, and cleaning house that I haven't had time to think.  Tomorrow we're heading to Orlando so that we can spend the night and take a shuttle to the airport early in the morning.  I think by then it will REALLY hit me!  I am still working out all of the kinks on my computer so that we'll be able to use blogger via a VPN.  Fingers crossed everyone!

Okay, back to work I go!

12 More Days!

Wow!  We're getting much closer (12 more days) and this has been a VERRRRY busy past two weeks.  I'm actually glad things have been hectic because it's minimized the time I've had to dwell on things!  Last weekend was our baby shower.  It was a very special day.  I enjoyed having my aunts and cousin visit...some of who have not visited Gainesville before.  It was a great girls weekend.  The only downside was that I was staying up past my normal bedtime and then had to get up early all this week for parent conferences.  I don't think I've ever been so exhausted!

I only have one week of work left before I take off.  I'd debated on whether or not I would plan on working the first couple of days of the following week but I'm glad I chose to leave the option open for me to not work.  Most of next week is going to be spent on parent conferences as well, which means I'll only have Thursday and Friday to spend with my staff.  Therefore, I'm thrilled that I can spend Monday and Tuesday of the week we leave playing catch-up, working from home, popping into work when I want, and tending to last minute priorities...like getting my hair done.  Hey, a girl has to get her priorities straight!

This weekend I'm collecting documents and updating our packing list...and of course packing more!  We received a lot of items last weekend that we'll want to take with us.  I can't wait to give Sophie her first bath, read to her, and feed her!  We met with Yu Ping over the phone of Thursday and she gave us some ideas of what to bring to China as gifts, as well as how many.  She told us that we should not use white tissue or paper or give clocks as those are both bad luck.  One of our tasks this weekend will be to get red and gold paper or bags and some small gifts.  I'm going to check out TJ Maxx and see if I can find some pretty stationary, not made in China.  Yu Ping wished me much luck on that!  LOL  We'll also be making one last stop at the mall.  Jason is in need of some new shorts and pants and I'd like to get new sneakers.  The Great Wall is calling my name and I don't think I need sneakers with the soles coming loose!  Finally, I need to do one last Target run and pick up a few remaining items.  I need to get child locks for our lever door handles and a thermometer.  I'm sure I'll think of other things too...and probably end up running to Target again next weekend, but one can dream! 

Here are some pictures from last weekend.  I'll post the rest on my FB page.

 My favorite nurse!

 My cute husband is getting into this girly stuff I think!

 Twas' two nights before the shower.  Everyone ate, and laughed, and played.  Not a belly was empty, nor a relative who misbehaved.  We enjoyed ones company, and then off to bed.  We had lots of plans to unfold and a busy weekend ahead.

 All of my aunts!

 We had visitors drop in at the end of the shower.

Okay, off to write thank you notes!  I think I'm going to need a bigger mail box!