Zhengzhou Day 5

This morning we visited the Zhengzhou city aquarium. It was nice, but not as nice as the large aquariums we're used to back home. There was one floor dedicated for fresh water fish and another floor for salt water fish. There was a sea lion show and a mermaid show. The divers were swimming with sharks and stingrays and actually doing tricks with them. John seemed to enjoy himself, although he didn't like to get up very close to the fish tanks, especially with the larger, stranger-looking fish. I don't blame him. :)


We came back to the hotel for lunch and we all took a good nap. I think we were all still pretty worn out from yesterday. After the nap, our guide brought us our translated adoption certificate and the notarized copies of John's birth and abandonment certificates. We will get his passport tomorrow and then we'll be off to Guangzhou for the last leg of the trip! Plus maybe we will get less stares in Guangzhou.

We walked to McDonald's for dinner. John enjoyed his chicken mcnugget happy meal. We have been eating Chinese food. It's just a treat when we make the long treks to American restaurants. John has actually slowed down just a bit on his eating although he still wants everything that we're eating along with his, even if we are having the same thing. He expressed his distaste for steamed Chinese buns, fried Chinese dough, and dragon fruit this morning at breakfast. Don't worry, buddy, we won't be having any of that at home anyway!

We stopped by another park on the way back. There was a pigeon house there with lots of white pigeons everywhere.

Bedtime was fun. We taught him to say "Roll Tide" and he kept saying it over and over. Good boy! We were also talking about the English names of body parts, like ear, nose, eyes, etc. He will usually imitate us when we try to teach him an English word. But he was adamant that we were wrong. He kept telling us the Chinese word very sternly!

He did much better with Billy today. He let Billy carry him some and would sit in his lap just a little. He's having so much fun with Billy though. He has never been around any males (except children). He's learning what it means to have a daddy!

 At the aquarium

 This was a first for me...you could bottle feed these fish!

 Pigeons at the park

 Noodles for lunch

This one says it ALL!!!

Zhengzhou Day 4--Orphanage Visit

Visiting the orphanage was important to us, as it is the only chance we'll have to see where John lived and how he was cared for during those first years. We were able to visit Rebecca's orphanage also, and it was an eye-opening experience. Not every family gets the opportunity, so we are grateful to have been able to get some glimpses into our children's pasts.


I was nervous about today because I knew it would not be easy for John. I prayed that it would not be too traumatic for him. He had a tough time on Gotcha Day with just a couple of members from the orphanage staff, so seeing his caregiver(s) again would likely be pretty emotional. It took us a little over an hour to drive to Kaifeng. We were able to travel with another family that adopted a child from Kaifeng this week as well. When we arrived, we were greeted by the orphanage's adoption coordinator. She was one of the ladies that brought John to the adoption registration office on Monday. He clung to me when he saw her. I thought that was progress because he certainly wanted her on Monday! We were led into the office and met some of the other staff. The adoption coordinator told us a little about the orphanage, that it housed 230 children and what services they were able to provide for the children.

We then walked back outside and were led across the driveway to the gate of the children's homes and courtyard. We were quickly greeted by John's nanny. He went immediately to her and he was so happy to see her. He didn't want anything to do with me after that. We visited the first room on the right, which was the room of the other child whose family was with us. There were several children in this room. I wish I would have counted, somewhere around 10-15. There was also a small room with very tiny premature babies. One was getting an IV. There was one just inside the larger room, lying in a small crib, covered with layers of quilts. It couldn't have weighed more than 2 lbs, if that. No oxygen, no IV's. It was in some respiratory distress, just from what I could gather from looking at its neck. I wouldn't expect this little one to survive. I had to fight back the tears. I wanted to whisk it away and take it to the nearest hospital for care.

We then walked back outside in the small courtyard and walked a few steps across to John's room. There were many children and babies here as well. I would say the average age was a little higher in this room but there were still some small babies here. Overall, this was a "healthier" room. There was a little girl in a walker with cerebral palsy, a little boy with Down's Syndrome sitting in a chair, a child with albinism, a girl with scoliosis, and a little girl with a scar on her chest (I assumed to have a repaired heart defect), among some of them. I gave John's nanny some lollipops to pass out to the children. They all seemed to enjoy them. John had been "sharing" his food and candy with me until now. Now he refused to even look at me.

They showed us his bed and told us a little about his daily life. While an orphanage is no place for a child to grow up, I felt like the staff here truly cared for the children. I know that John was loved. He was cared for. Because of that, he will love us back some day. Several times I even noticed tears in his nanny's eyes.

Now came the really hard part. The parting. The nanny led him out of the courtyard back to the driveway area. She told him what was happening, that I was his mama, and Billy was his baba, and he was to go with us again. Not what he wanted to hear, I'm sure. I was motioned to take him. Screams, lots of screams. Lots of tears. A way more visceral reaction than he had on Gotcha Day. He fought with all his might to be released from me so he could go back to his home. I went ahead and got on the bus so he could at least be out of sight from everything. Nothing would calm him. Not a drink, not a toy, not candy or food. He wanted nothing from me. It was heartbreaking to watch him grieve so. The loss he was feeling was immense, more than I ever imagined. To keep myself calm I had to keep reminding myself that I was not the one who abandoned him. I did not put him in this orphanage. He cannot stay here. He needs a family.

After what seemed like an eternity, the others boarded the bus, and our guide came back to help me. She spoke to him in Mandarin, and offered him some of the food that the nanny sent with us. He was able to calm down some after this and the crying subsided. Before long he was laughing with us on the way back to Zhengzhou. This evening has gone well also. I thought we might have to start over, but he still seems comfortable with us. He's even letting Billy holding him more.

I write this to remember this time. But my fervent prayer is for others' hearts to be opened to helping the hopeless of this world. We ARE responsible. We ARE called. We live a LAVISH lifestyle while many suffer. Maybe it IS my fault that John was abandoned. Maybe his family could not bear the financial hardship of caring for a special needs child. Maybe they loved him and wanted a future for him. If we continue to do nothing, nothing will be done.


View as we entered Kaifeng--so much smog

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Sleeping on the way to the orphanage

 Road to the orphanage


Main gate to the orphanage

 inner gate to the orphanage


not happy to see the orphanage adoption coordinator (right). Our guide (left) is explaining to him why we are here.

 
Entrance to the courtyard where the children's rooms are.

So happy to see his nanny again.

John's picture on the wall in the first children's room.



John's room

 giving kisses to his friend

 Walking out of the courtyard with his nanny, for the last time.

Zhengzhou Day 3--It's official, he's ours!

John went to sleep around 8:30 all by himself after I laid him in the crib. He sucks his left thumb to go to sleep. Thumb suckers are adorable, but horrible to break the habit! :) Vivian still likes hers at bedtime sometimes. He slept all night, and we had to wake him at 7 am so we could get to breakfast because we were leaving to go back to the adoption registration office at 8 am. We were having some trouble with too many stinky diapers, so we have had to ease off of the junk food. He had eaten gummies, lollipops, M&M's, and KFC the day before. For breakfast we stuck with eggs, fruit, and yogurt.


When we arrived at the registration office, he played in the little (nasty) play area while we waited on the other families to arrive. When our guide was gathering us up to get our certificates of adoption, I assumed that we would be going into another office and I didn't know how long it would take. John had a very full stinky diaper, so he had to be changed pretty quickly, so I asked if they could wait a minute while I changed him. Well, all that had to be done was the registration officer gave everyone their adoption certificates and said a nice "congratulations" and that was it. So, we had to be given special treatment and she did it all over again for us. ha ha If I had known that was it, I really would have waited on the diaper! But what a moment! We are officially and legally his parents!

After the registration office, we drove to the notary office for more official paperwork. Since John was only wanting me to hold him at this time I got to be the one to carry him up 6 flights of stairs as there is no elevator in that building. I was more out of breath carrying over 30 lbs. up those stairs than climbing the Great Wall!

We got back to the hotel and stayed in our room for the bulk of the day. John was a little upset when we got back to our room. His tummy was still bothering him and we went through a few more diapers. We fed him a banana, yogurt and Cheerios for lunch, and then when he got up from his nap he had some congee. His tummy has been much better since. We're going to ease him into the American fare. There is nothing he won't eat, and he eats a lot! That's really the only orphanage-type behavior that we're seeing: overeating. He's OK when something is all gone, but if there is more to eat, well, he wants to eat it.

He had a hard time going to sleep at naptime. He didn't want to lie in his crib, so I laid him between Billy and me on the bed. He did not want to have anything to do with Billy at that time, so John and I moved to the other bed. He went to sleep pretty quickly but he woke up a couple of times fretting. I guess he slept around an hour.

After nap and his snack, he was happy again and we went for a walk in the nearby park. He really enjoys riding in the stroller. We walked down to Pizza Hut for dinner. No pizza for him! He had fried rice, although he wanted our pizza too. :)

Bathtime is such fun. He just loves it! Lots of splashing and giggles.

Bedtime tonight was a breeze. Hope he sleeps all night again!

Tomorrow we visit his orphanage. I know it's important to see where he's been all his life, but I just hope it's not too traumatic for him. I'm praying that he wants to stay with us and not reach for his nanny.

 French fries at KFC

 I love mealtime!

 Taking a walk in the park and blowing bubbles!

With his orphanage mate at the adoption registration office

Gotcha!!!

We slept pretty well last night. I think we made it to 4:30 this time. I was afraid I wouldn't sleep at all so I ensured that with a little melatonin and a little Benadryl. We ate breakfast around 8 am in the hotel. I didn't think my stomach would handle fish and noodles for breakfast, so I stuck to mostly bread and jam. We left for the Adoption Registration Office at 9:20, arriving there shortly after 9:30.


The large room just kept getting noisier and noisier as anxious families arrived and then one by one the children started coming in. John arrived a little after 10:00 am. There were two ladies there with him from the orphanage. When I took him in my arms, he started crying and really didn't let up for a good hour. He loved the Dum-Dum pops I brought, and he would stop crying for a little while when he had one of those in his mouth. We had to take a family photo for the adoption paperwork, but each time we tried to get the lollipop out he would cry. Every time he saw the ladies from the orphanage, he would cry and reach for them. He held onto a little giraffe rattle toy that he came with, and he also liked the little toy cell phone I brought him. He also held onto a cup of Cheerios that I gave him. So, for a good while, he wouldn't let go of any of these things! It was so cute. He would let me feed him Cheerios or fruit gummies and would let me give him sips of water. I found that walking around helped him not be so upset and we even took a little walk outside. Next to the building there was a little pond with a waterfall and he seemed to like that. It got heavy carrying him! He is a chunk! He has definitely been well-fed.

After signing the adoption paperwork and putting our thumbprints to our signatures, we were ready to go around 11:30 am. When we got back to the hotel, Billy went to get some lunch to bring back to the room. While he was gone, I took him to the bathroom and he tinkled! I then put him on a Pull-up thinking that he might be potty-trained. I had taken his pants off because he had sweated so much and thought he would be much cooler in the room, but he wanted them and his shoe and socks back on. We played some in the hotel room, and he started to really warm up. He devoured 2 cups of congee, some spicy marinated vegetables, a half cup of Cheerios, and some crackers. He also had an entire yogurt drink. He was much happier after he got his tummy full. I got a few smiles, and then Billy had him laughing in no time. They were stacking cups and knocking them over.

Well, the Pull-up wasn't such a great idea because he leaked everywhere. So much for a potty-trained kid! We decided to give him a bath and he LOVED it! He had definitely had one before because he was splashing and playing and washing himself with a washcloth almost instantly. He kept taking his stacking cups and pouring the water out of the bathtub, and laugh and laugh. He is the cutest thing you have ever seen!

After getting on some clean clothes, I sat down with him and rocked and sang him to sleep. He sucks his thumb, and he is the most angelic little thing when he is sleeping. He woke up just a little when I lay him down in the crib, but soon he was fast asleep with his arms above his head.

God is good, all the time!

 The crib is waiting!

 Waiting for John to arrive.

 Tears all around.

 The orphanage gave us an album full of priceless photos!

 Signing official paperwork-yea!

 On the way back to the hotel.

 At least they gave me candy!

 Who are these people?

 Lollipops are a good thing!

Taking a stroll outside.

 A little eye contact with lunch!

 Feeding Mommy Cheerios!

Zhengzhou Day 1

The flight from Beijing to Zhengzhou was less than an hour and a half. We could see the Great Wall from the plane and it was amazing how it meandered across the rocky peaks of the mountains.


The smog in Zhengzhou is much worse than in Beijing. We actually had very good visibility in Beijing, which is not usually the case. The hotel is fancy but HOT and there is no Wi-fi in the room so we're having to camp out in the lobby or the business center to use the internet. That's not going to be fun when we want to Skype with the family. Oh well.

We ventured out with the other family in our group and ate at Pizza Hut. We're so adventurous. We then went to Wal-Mart, which occupies 2 floors of a shopping mall. It was an experience. If you need any whole small dried pigs, I know where you can find that.

Tomorrow morning we leave at 9:20 am to get John!! Will update as quickly as I can! We're so anxious! Can't wait!

Beijing Day 3

We first went to Tiannamen Square, the largest public square in the world. It is surrounded by government buildings and museums, including the mausoleum of Mao Tse-tung, which is enormous. There were 2 lines to people waiting to get in that rivaled any lines I've ever seen, even at Disney World! :)


We were celebrities here as at least 10 different groups of people asked to have their pictures taken with us. Around Beijing we have seen many western tourists, but I guess here many of the Chinese tourists from other provinces don't see Caucasian people that much. We were an oddity for sure.

We then walked over to the Forbidden City, a huge complex of different towers and structures used by the emperor. We only visited a third of it but we saw plenty. We were able to meet the last emperor's nephew here--he is only here about 2 times per month. He is a painter and calligrapher and we had him to do a small calligraphy painting for us--the Chinese symbol for love along with our names in Chinese.

After a delicious lunch (lots of different Chinese dishes on a lazy susan), we went to the Summer Palace, which was 4 times larger than the Forbidden City. There was a man-made lake, Lake Kunming, and many, many towers, pavillions,and other structures surrounding the lake. We walked the long corridor, a huge covered walkway with seemingly endless paintings and decorations. It was built by one of the emperors for his mother. We took a boat to the other side of the lake before returning back to our hotel.

 Tiannamen Square

 Forbidden City--Yu Fu, nephew of China's last emperor

 Summer Palace--The Long Corridor

 Summer Palace

Forbidden City

Beijing Day 2

We met Vicky Simpson in the lobby of our hotel, a fellow Lifeline mom, who will be adopting 2 girls during her trip. She also had along with her her sister and niece. They were staying at our same hotel. It was nice to see someone from home.

I'm glad I got a good night's sleep because this was a busy day! On our way to the Great Wall we stopped at a jade-carving factory. All of the pieces were beautiful and expensive! We did purchase a small "Happy Family" ball made from jade found in Henan province, which is where John is from. The mountains on the way to the Great Wall reminded us of the Rocky Mountains except there was no snow. The Great Wall was something to see, truly a great feat of engineering and strength. The section of the wall that we visited was called Badaling. The climb was very steep and a great work-out for the legs! My legs felt like jello by the time we came down. We had lunch nearby, and we then headed back to Beijing. We stopped at the Olympic Complex and snapped some pictures of the Bird's Nest and the Cube.

We then went to a tea house for a tea ceremony. The teas we tried were all really good and surprisingly to me, hot tea was refreshing on a hot day! We walked around the nearby hutong called Wudaoling for a while and then our guide dropped us off at a theater for an acrobatics show which we really enjoyed. I had never seen anything like it before--it was amazing!! At the show we also met another Lifeline family, the Rosboroughs. They are adopting a little boy from the same province as John so we will be with them from Sunday to the end of the trip. Small world, huh?

Now the adventure really began. We tried to hail a taxi back to our hotel but the few taxis we saw that weren't already taken would not stop for us! We gave it a good try by walking up and down a very busy street for about 45 minutes before calling our guide for advice. Luckily she had given us her number! She told us the lines and stops to take on the subway. It was extremely crowded on a Friday evening but we somehow made it back to the hotel without getting trampled. It is definitely a lonely feeling to be in a city of 19 million people that you can't communicate with!

 Great Wall

 Olympic Cube

 Olympic Bird's Nest stadium

 Great Wall

Tea Ceremony