Settling in Just Fine

Julia discovered the food pantry ... she literally spent half an hour pulling food off of the shelves :)

We've been having adventures in pediatric care ... We took julia for her first check-up with the same Peds office we take Brynn too. What a difference though! This doctor seemed to have no idea about issues with adopted children. She didn't understand that children in institutionalized care would be delayed in fine and gross motor skills, including speech. Don't even get me started about the nurse there ... let's just sum her up this way, she was going to stick Julia with 2 shots at one time. One in each hand. At the same time!!! The doctor had to stop her ... geesh. Anyway, we've switched Peds and are very happy with our new Ped. If you're in York, PA and want the name just email me. We also took Julia to the Johns Hopkins cleft clinic. I can't say enough wonderful things about them. In one (long) afternoon, she was seen by an audiologist, an ENT, a speech therapist, a pediatric dentist and the plastic surgeon. All her testing has come out fine so far and it looks like her repair in China was done well. We'll know for sure in a few months wether or not a revision will be necessary. She did test positive for TB exposure (positive PPD) so unfortunately, we will have to do a year of Isonaiazid as a precaution.

She is adjusting great, I wish I was doing so well :) I am not sure what the future holds for my school career right now. I am still behind in my classes from the trip and today I totally bombed 2 tests. Also, I missed 2 classes to take Julia to the new Ped. Maybe this is why most people chose to complete college before they have children? I don't know, I know if I withdraw I am not going back ... and I am having a really hard time accepting that I may never get that BA. On the other hand, my kids (and DH) deserve to have me not being insane and stressed 24/7.

Words to the wise ... college and kids don't mix :)

They're Creepy and They're Kooky ...

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The Old Bait and Switch!!!

We are finally home!!!! And what a grueling journey home it was. In summation:

• The 11 hour trip from Narita to Detroit stinks.

• The 11 hour trip from Narita to Detroit sucks when your baby has explosive diarrhea.

• The 11 hour trip from Narita to Detroit becomes comical when your baby's cute butt shoots said explosive diarrhea across the plane bathroom and it bounces off the mirror onto every conceivable surface in said bathroom.

Seriously though, (not that explosive diarrhea isn't very, very serious!) Northwest airlines totally sucks!!! They cancelled our trip home from Detroit and couldn't book us on another flight until 6 hours later. They were really nasty about it at the rebooking counter too! By the time we finally got home, poor Julia was in just a diaper as she had soiled every piece of clothing I'd brought on the plane for her.

The adjustment has been a little rough. Our baby who never cried in China is certainly making up for it now. She is scared of her older sister, the dog, the cat, the sheer size of her house and I am assuming her own shadow. She is still eating like a horse, which has resulted in the unpleasant side effect of massive stinky diapers that seem to come like clockwork at 3:30AM.

Tomorrow, we have our first doctor appointment and first trip to hang out at Starbucks with Aunt Julie. Which will be more traumatic, we'll see.

A huge congrats to Deb who just celebrated the Gotcha Day of their new daughter Ellarie!!!! She has such a beautiful bunch of girls :)

And as if having 2 kids didn't make me feel old enough .... Morrissey is coming in concert!!!!!!! Oh melodrama!

The Red Couch

please pardon my typos ... julia is helping me type :) This must be why there's 2 shift keys on each side of the keyboard ....

We did our red couch shot, quite the momentous occasion! That's Elessar sleeping on the left, lil miss Julia in the middle and Bethany on the right. We're missing Mindy from our group as they had birthday party excitement to attend to. The group shot is from left to right .... Aunt Patty, The Chan Clan, The Martins and us.

We have our consulate appointment today and then we can travel home tomorrow!!!!! Congrats again to Deb who will be leaving to get her little Ellarie the same day we leave to go home!!! I will be following your site closely .... because it's not like I'll have just come home with a new baby and have nothing better to do :)

This will be my last post until we're back in the states. This has been an awesome trip and if I can offer any advice, it's to come into this with no expectations. The little girl who never smiled in any of her pictures is a bubbly, happy, head-banging wonder. I expected our child would be small and underweight ... nope, size 18-24 mo clothes, 23 lbs! I figured we wouldn't really start bonding until we were home ... we've been together for a week and I can't go pee without her wondering where I am :)

Everything has been a wonderful surprise, and it's just so freakin' cool! For all my A-moms in waiting, I really can't wait for your turn!!! Love to you all, and see you back in the states!!!!!

Happy Monday!

We are enjoying ourselves immensely here at the White Swan. Julia continues to do great ... lots of smiles, high-fives and lots of babbling. She says ma-ma, but I am pretty sure it just means "give me some food ... now!" The pace of shopping has picked up and I am confident I can break the bank before we leave Thursday morning :)

Today we visited the Jade and Pearl markets, which was very overwhelming. Bought more squeeky shoes and lots of other useless crap :) We had the joyous experience of hailing our own taxi home from Carrefour (where we did not find a car seat ... so word to the wise, if you really want to make sure you have a car seat for the plane, bring it from home!) At this point, I don't think we're going to find one and I am having panic attacks about the idea of flying with an unrestrained toddler for 17 hours. Ahhhh, the joys of parenthood. (My childless friends should insert hearty belly laugh here)

Julia's latest game is head butting and head shaking. The head butting hurts ... big time. But she laughs and laughs each time she knocks mommy in the nose with her forehead. The head shaking ... I have not a clue. All we can surmise is that our child likes jostling her brains about.

Anyhoo, the princess is sleeping so it is time for the hubby and I to watch some exciting TV .... maybe CNN, maybe Chinese Badminton ... oh, I can't wait!

High Five!!!

Little Miss Sicky-Poo is no more! Julia is 100% better .... and last night we got the smiles and giggles to prove it. It seems like everyday she comes more and more out of her shell! Yesterday at lunch, she discovered the joy which is high-fiving .... and I discovered the joy of her finding a new game to replace "let's throw this on the floor and make mom pick it up!" :)

We're at the White Swan now, which is fabulous, and having a really good time. For all my internet friends, I met Amy from Seoul (in person!!!! not on a list!!!!) She's here too, bringing home her sweet little boy Elessar. The brave woman has her 3 other beautiful children with her too, making her an official goddess :)

Mnady, if you're reading, I wrote you back and I am sooooooooooooooooo happy to hear from you!!!!!!

We're off to sight see and shop tody. I seriously have bought nothing since we've arrived ... so it's time to do some damage :)

Taking a Sick Day

My poor baby woke up fine and then started scratching her neck really hard .... she even had big welts from the scratching. Then almost as soon as she stopped scratching she threw up twice :( Hence the clothes drying over the tub (you'll notice my pants in the back there too!) The hotel floor and bed are feeling quite violated. She's had the sniffles since gotcha day, but I think the cold is getting worse. Our guide, Kelly, is bringing us some cold medicine as I type. I would swear this was an allergy to the bottle, since it all happened right after she ate ... but she's been taking the formula fine for the past 2 days ... any suggestions from the btdt crowd are highly welcomed.

Hanging in Hangzhou

Today we received our "red book" from Civil Affairs. From what I understand, this is basically the document from the province that approves us to adopt. There's actually a little ceremony when you receive it, the director comes out and reads the proclamation from the red book ... very cool, very official :)

we drove around the West Lake today, which is absolutely gorgeous. Tomorrow it is supposed to be a little warmer, so we'll actual get to walk around it then. For my Maryland friends, this place puts Centennial to shame. We've also been exploring the city a little on our own. I had no idea how modern it would be! It's like a mini New York. Lots of upscale shops and department stores, restaurants etc. We took Julia for baby's first Starbucks today :)

She is doing fantastic. We got her to smile and even play a little game with us ... evidently it is extremely amusing to hand each other toys back and forth while saying "Thank You!" She has an appetite not to be believed. I did get yelled at by one of the Chinese ladies on the street because her pant leg came up and there was about one inch of exposed leg :)

She's cooing away in her crib right now, guess that means she doesn't want that nap after all!

Note to Deb: The officials we buy gifts for are women, not men as GW said, so you may want to get them something a little more appropriate than the Zippo and Marlboros I gave them :)

Julie: I hope Ryan is feeling better!

We Got Her!!!!

She's beautiful beyond words!

Baby in 10 ...9 ....8 ....7

We are in Hangzhou! It's beautiful and VERY modern .... there's lots of shopping, so let's hope Julia likes to shop like her mommy :)

It's 4:40 in the afternoon on Sunday here, so I'll be holding Julia for the first time in just 17 hours!!!! I can't believe it! We are trying to make arrangements to visit Wenzhou, we just need to get final approval.

A note for my fellow GW Wenzhou moms to be ... the info they give us about gifts is wrong, you only need 2 for the nannies and 2 for the officials. So, Deb stop that shopping! :) Are you really leaving for China they same day we head home?

Anyhoo, I need to get everything ready and then get some sleep ... I am a mommy again tomorrow!!!!!!

We're Here!

We made it!! We arrived in Beijing yesterday at 9:30pm local time. We spent the day doing tours of the Forbidden City, Tianemen Square and the Great Wall. We have been eating lots of YUMMY food :) There are fireworks going off all night long ... the Chinese New Year is still in full swing here, and the big lantern festival is tomorrow. We're leaving for Hangzhou first thing in the am and then the next morning (Monday) we'll meet Julia for the first time!

I saw a group at our hotel today who had just received their babies ... oh my god, the jealousy!!! Soon :)

By the way a huge CONGRATS to Deb ... you can stop doing the snoopy dance now (you know you've been doing it since the second you found out about your TA ;)