Traditional Chinese Clothes

Here is Hannah in her traditional Chinese clothing. 

 

Sunday- Touring Day

We had an early start today. We met our group at 9:30 to tour a temple and a museum. I'm over the temples. I appreciate the history and the culture, but they all look the same and I have no desire to enter another temple again! The museum was OK, but I could've done without that one, too. We went to the pearl market where we bought Hannah some earrings and a necklace for her wedding. We did the same for Emma, so we felt like we needed to be fair. I have no idea if what we bought was quality pearls, but we sure did pay a lot for them. I guess the sentimental value makes it worth it. After the pearl market, a group of us decided to go to Shaiman Island to do some shopping and eat at Lucy's. We actually stayed on the Island when we adopted Emma and boy do we miss it! It is so pretty and everything is so close. You could shop and walk around all day! We enjoyed our visit and we really enjoyed our lunch/dinner at Lucy's. The food was delicious and it was fun to eat with so many families. We got a few dresses for the girls and a few other items but Hannah started to get tired. We hope to go back before we leave. I really want to get a chess set for my classroom and something for each of my boys. I also want to get the girls some Chinese dresses for when they are older. We didn't get back to the hotel until 5:15 so it was a long day. I love these busy days because it makes the time pass by quickly. We have 3 more full days and then we fly out. We are so anxious to get home!!

 

My happy girl is not so happy when it is time to go to bed or take a bath! It is awful trying to get her to go to sleep!

She had fun being out on the town today.

Our group at dinner. We love Lucy's... western food and it is all so good!

She was acting silly and wouldn't walk :)

When she is doing something naughty, or trying to get away with something, she points her finger at me and says NO. It is really cute now but only because we have known her for 10 days. It won't be so cute when we get home.

She was walking around like she owned the place.

Here we are in front of the Pearl River. It was so nice to see this everyday when we stayed here with Emma.

I love this picture. We have the same one with Emma. Hannah was even smiling for me! She played with the statue like it was a real kid.  

 

Goodbye Hohhot, Hello Guangzhou

We left Hohhot early Friday morning and arrived safely in Guangzhou. I'm glad we got out when we did... we actually woke up to snow on Friday! Every flight after us was delayed and some did not get into Guangzhou until 3 am. Oh my, that would have been tough! We have 2 guides here, Lee and Shirley. We met Shirley in 2010 when we adopted Emma Grace and she remembered us. We have a group of 9 families here from our agency!

 

We got in late in the afternoon. Our 3 hour flight was fine and Hannah did better than expected. She was restless, didn't sleep, but was overall pretty content. The Chinese lady behind us kept feeding her cherry tomatoes and that made her pretty happy. With this type of trip you have to be flexible- normally I would cringe if someone I didn't know was feeding my child. I figure she has survived through this much, eating from a stranger can't be that bad!

 

We didn't really do anything on Friday night. Lee got us checked into our room and we just hung out for the rest of the night. We found a 7-11 store and picked up some snacks for the room and had dinner at McDonalds. Yuck! My old body just can't handle that disgusting food anymore. Hannah went all day without napping so we thought for sure she would go to bed early. Nope- she was up until 8:30 (she got up at 5:45 that morning...) and only slept until 5:15 this morning. She is not sleeping enough.

 

Today was my least favorite part of the adoption trip. We had to do the medical exam. This is necessary for the US side of the adoption. We had to bring her medical information and they compare it to what they see on the child. Hannah has 11 special needs listed on her file and has had 5 major operations. Her case is complicated and her file is incredibly thick. The doctor was really frustrating me. It took her forever to go through Hannah's file. Then she was asking me

questions as if I have mothered this child from the beginning. I don't read mandarin and I have no idea what all of the medical reports say. Then she was questioning why she has two plugs with her colostomy. I researched Hannah's condition for 10 minutes one day and I found her exact type of colostomy... and this is a doctor who is clueless about what it is!?!? I was so frustrated. Then she asked me how many scars she has. She counted and measured them and couldn't figure out if one mark was a scar or not. She looked at me for answers and of course I had no clue. She pointed to every birth mark and asked me what it was. Really???? She was trying to count how many operations she had documented and then compare them to her scars. I had to fill out a paper with how many operations and all of her needs. I could write down the needs from her referral paper work, but I don't have every single operation memorized. It took forever, the office was so hot, and there was a huge line of adoptive families waiting on us. It was awful. Then the nurses took her away from us to get her TB blood test done. Hannah was fine until they shut the door and then she lost it. They don't let parents go back for that. We survived but it was so stressful! Then I worried that maybe I wrote down the wrong operation, or didn't include all of her needs. If the medical exam is going to require all of the information, then I think the orphanage should provide a summary sheet for the doctors. 

 

When we got back we found a little noodle shop for lunch. Again, we have to be flexible! I would never (under normal circumstances) eat a place like this, but we are hungry and there aren't many options. Thankfully they had part of the menu in English so at least we knew what we were ordering.

I didn't pay attention to the sweaty cook standing 5 feet in front of me and I tried not to visualize how filthy the kitchen was and I ignored the fact that I didn't see anywhere to wash dishes.

We did paper work in the afternoon for her visa, went on a walk in the park and had a small dinner in the room. Our biggest struggle right now is bathing her and putting her to bed. It is so difficult to give a screaming, kicking child a bath. She hits and screams until she gags. It is not a pretty sight! Going to bed is horrible. I end up just going to bed with her so she won't get out of bed. She is really comfortable with me. She likes to sit as close to me as possible and hold my hands. She likes for me to rub her back and will sometimes pick up my hand to place it on her back or leg and motions for me to rub her. She really is so sweet. I can't wait to get her home to show her what her normal life will look like. It is so hard to parent in a hotel room!

 



 

 This was our local guide in Hohhot, Sandra

We are trying to get her used to the water. We let her splash in the sink and she loves it. But as soon as she finds out she is getting scrubbed down, a little demon child appears.

 

She is so happy during the day.

She found this outfit in her suitcase this morning and started shaking her head up and down. She really likes it!

At the medical exam- never a pleasant experience!

Rough morning at the exam, she actually fell asleep for 30 minutes in the van.

 

This was our restaurant and below is a picture of my meal.

Of course Hannah loved it-it's food!

She was acting silly in the hotel lobby. She is a happy girl!

There is a famous singer staying in our hotel. The girls were lined up to get a picture of him. We never saw him, but not sure we would know if we did!

Thursday- Finding Spot

It was a cold and windy day in Hohhot!! We couldn't do much because of the weather, but we wanted to make sure we saw her finding spot since this was our last day. It took us about 30 minutes to walk to the hotel where Hannah was found on February 25, 2010. We knew the general location and once we got close we asked a man on the street where it was (our guide had written it down in Mandarin.) It is directly next door to the train station and it is a very busy area! It seems like a nice hotel, much better than we were expecting. We took pictures out front and then went inside to check it out. We showed the people working the desk her finding ad so they wouldn't ask us why we were there. They seemed confused by it, but let us take pictures and walk around. Hannah was found in a bathroom and sure enough there was one small bathroom off the side of the lobby. That makes sense- if she was found in a room, there would have been a name associated with it. The hallway with the bathroom was dark, dirty and small. The door was actually locked so we couldn't get into the bathroom, but we took a picture right outside of it. It is a crazy feeling being in the same spot where her birth mother last held her. I just can't explain it. Hannah was very unsettled while we were there. She was estimated to be 5 months old when she was found, so there is no way she remembers it. Part of me wonders though if she can sense that this was not a good place for her. She clung to me and would not get down. She would not sit in the stroller AT ALL and just wanted me to hold her. That made picture taking a little difficult, but that is OK. I am glad we went... and I am glad that this time Hannah had a mommy with her that will never leave her.

 

Rick decided it would be fun to take a motorcycle/cab/piece of junk/hand built thingy back to the hotel room. I have never felt so unsafe in my entire life. I think this guy built it in his backyard with a lawn mower motor and put up a few board to hold everything together. It shook like crazy when you were in it and at every stoplight he cut off the engine. It was crazy!!! Have you ever seen drivers in China? They are crazy! If someone had hit us we would've been smashed for sure. Rick and I decided to get out a few blocks from our hotel. We were too embarrased to ride this thing into our hotel. The guy kept looking back at Hannah like he just couldn't figure out why these white people had this Chinese baby. He saw me wipe her nose with a tissue and motioned for me to give it to him. I thought maybe he had a little garbage bag... but he just tossed it out the window and started laughing. It was pretty funny.

 

We had lunch at pizza hut and played in the room all day since it was too cold to go out. Rick went to the store to get yogurt and noodles for dinner. Hannah has been much easier to put to bed lately. She curls up next to me and holds my hands until she falls asleep, which takes about 5 minutes. I love the way she is starting to trust me more and more. She is attaching to me quickly but really doesn't want anything to do with Rick. We figured out that if he is not near her when she is changed, she won't scream. We thought maybe if just I give her a shower she wouldn't scream... but we were wrong! She is terrified of the water. Not sure what we will do about that when we get home!

 

Tomorrow morning we leave for Guangzhou and we are ready! We have 6 nights there and then HOME!! We will meet up with 8 other families from our agency. It will be nice to have people to talk to and more things to do. 

 

The Wangfu hotel where Hannah was found.

We are guessing she was found behind this door. It was locked, so we couldn't get into the bathroom. This was in a tiny, dark hallway off the lobby of the hotel.

Rick inside the homemade cab.

Here I am outside of the cab. This picture makes it look nice.

Hannah was enjoying her bowl of noodles on the bed! She even smiled for me when I asked her.

Wednesday April 17

We had a long boring day today!! We met our guide at 9 to go get her passport. First, we had to stop by the notary office to get our paper work. She told us to wait in the car, that it would just take a minute. It took about 30 minutes! Our driver in Hohhot is a little smitten with Hannah. He went in a store and got her a yogurt drink while we were waiting. Then he got her out of the car to walk around with her. It was really cute, and surprisingly... she seemed to like him!

 

We went to what seemed like a police station for the passport. China does not disappoint when it comes to craziness... crowded office, impatient people, complete chaos. I would have so much anxiety if I lived here. I am way too big of a control freak for a life like this! We got what we needed, but in the middle of everything I had to change Hannah's diaper. She had a belly ache and if I didn't change it, we would have a big mess! Our guide took me to a back hallway into a bathroom where I could change her on a windowsill. When we finished, she took me back to the hallway and told me to wait there while she went upstairs to have something signed. Hmmmmm, not feeling good about this one! Long, dark hallway in a police station by myself with Hannah. I asked if I could go back out with Rick but she told me no. We only waited a few minutes but I was so afraid someone was going to ask me why I was there and I would have no way to respond! We had to walk all the way around the building to get back to Rick, which is why she didn't want me to do it without her.

 

On the way back to the hotel, we found a medical supply store where Rick bought some more gauze for Hannah's wrap. Her colostomy site is now completely raw and bleeding. I am so worried about it. We soak it in desitin and now I am using a neosporin cream on it. Tonight before bed she was whimpering and patting her belly. She just cringes when I use a wipe on it. Breaks my heart! We couldn't use a bag now if we wanted to because her skin is so raw. I wish we could just let it air out. She isn't patient enough to just sit and let it air out, so we constantly have to keep it bandaged.

 

We didn't do anything all afternoon. We took one little walk around the park but the wind was so bad we had to come back to the hotel. We just played with our perfect little girl! She fell asleep at 6:15 tonight and we are praying for a clean, full night of sleep!

 

 

Here we are in the car on the way to get her passport.

 Here she is with the yogurt drink our driver got her. She loved it!! I have been showing her how to smile for the camera and this time she actually did it!

We got McD's for lunch and it was pretty disgusting... no one finished their food. Rick bought a box of noodles at the store and Hannah loved them.

We played peek a boo in the bathroom today. She was cracking up!

We ordered her fried rice for dinner. She holds the bowl right under her mouth and shovels it in. If there is any liquid left in the bowl, she drinks it.

This girl is impossible to get to bed. She never wants to sleep! It is a relief when she finally settles in! We have the onesie on tonight with the hope her diaper does not come loose again!!

 

One funny thing I want to remember about Hannah is that she puts everything inside her water bottle. She puts cheerios, fruit snacks, M&Ms... you name it. I wonder what that is all about???

 

She also likes to pretend to talk on the phone. She must mimick her ayis. Have you ever heard a Chinese person talk on the phone? They make a lot of sounds like mmmm, mmmm, mmmm in different tones. She does that and it is hysterical!!! I need to get a video of it!

 

Although we are trying to enjoy our time here, we are counting down the days until we are home. 8 more sleeps, and we can't wait! We have nothing to do on Thursday, so we decided to visit her finding spot tomorrow. We fly out for Guangzhou on Friday morning.

Tuesday April 16

Today was a laid back day. Hannah went to bed at 6 pm Monday night and slept until 6:30 am Tuesday. She needed it! We had breakfast and then met our guide at 9 am to go to a museum. She said it was a great museum to show Mongolian history, but there really wasn't much history. There was a section on dinosaurs because apparently many dinosaur bones and fossils have been found on the border of inner and outer Mongolia. The rest of it just showed the different regions of Inner Mongolia. Mongolia is known for their grasslands, but a large section is also home to the Gobi desert. In the north eastern part there are many forests. The museum really didn't have anything about Mongolian history. Our guide told us that 80 years ago Inner Mongolia became part of China and Outer Mongolia became an independent country. I know the Great Wall was built to keep the Mongolians out, so I wonder if people in China have a prejudice even towards people living in Inner Mongolia. Our guide is a local, and she refers to herself as Mongolian. 

 

We hung out in the hotel room most of the day and had pizza hut for lunch. We met our guide at 3:00 to finish up adoption paperwork. This time, all 4 families and the orphanage officials were all together. The notary and a government official were also there. I guess the purpose was to pay the notary to notarize all of the documents and to do an interview with the government official. We filled out all the papers yesterday, but today everything was made official. Her orphanage gave her a traditional Mongolian dress and hat. They also gave her a certificate wishing her happiness. It was sweet and we are thankful to have this keepsake.

 

By this time of day, Hannah was a mess. She didn't have a nap and was very cranky. We went on a walk at the park behind us and she started to fall asleep. We brought her back to the hotel for a bath and bed... but that didn't go over so well! She screamed in the shower (of course!) and would not fall asleep. It was a rough hour or so!! We finally got her to fall asleep at 6:15. I woke up to change her at 10 and we set the alarm for 3. At some point in that 5 hour stretch, her diapers came loose. We woke up to a huge mess and a screaming child who would not go back to sleep. Normally I would freak out that my child was up for the day at 3 am, but this time next week she will be almost home where it is 3:00 in the afternoon. What's the difference? Hopefully she will fall asleep early this morning and go to bed early tonight.

 

Today we have to meet our guide at 9 to get her passport. We don't have anything else planned, so we might go to her finding spot. We decided not to visit her orphanage. It is 1 hour away and it was only her home for 5 months. We consider SFCV to be her home and we are thankful we have so much insight into her life there. We understand that the orphanage took her in and provided her care as a baby, but for some reason we don't feel very connected to this place.

 

We looked up the hotel where Hannah was abandoned and we found that it is next to the train station. I think that is interesting. Who knows where Hannah is really from. Her birth mom (or whoever left her) probably hopped a train to get as far away as possible. There is a good chance she is still from Inner Mongolia, but we will never know for sure. The hotel is only a few miles down the road, probably a 30 minute walk. We are going to do that this afternoon. We will never know what room she was found in, but we can still take pictures of the hotel. I think one reason I am having a hard time connecting to this place is because Hannah didn't have a happy story. She was an older baby and she was described as being in "poor physical state, pale and vomitting." She was living with a weak heart, intestinal issues, kidney problems and hydrocephalus. Who knows why her parents decided to leave her, but I have a hard time believing they left her to be found. From the moment she was born, she has suffered. She has spent half of her life in a hospital. Yet she still smiles, is strong as can be, and developmentally on track. She has quite a story to tell and I can't wait to get it all documented. People will be amazed when they see just how special our little girl is. She really is a miracle child!

 



 

 She loves yogurt! She is a great eater!!

 All the families with the orphanage officials. I believe there were 2 orphanages and 4 families.

 This is Hannah with the assistant director and the secretary. She is wearing her hat :) 

We bought Hannah this toy in the park. It is a piece of junk, but she loves it. 

Monday- Adoption day and Temple

Oh my, what a day!! This post is not for people with weak stomachs. So just stop reading now. We woke up at 6 am to a bed full of poop. The poor girl, the sheets and the comforter were covered in it. Her colostomy bag stayed on, but the adhesive came loose from her skin and it oozed out. It was a great wake up call. So, we woke her up and stuck her in the shower which led to a lot of screaming. We decided to go back to the diaper method the ayis use. The bag is not the right size, and although it is easier to change, it is not working out so well. We managed to keep her clean all day today... until about 5:45 tonight. We went out to eat and when we got back to the room, I picked her up to put her in my lap, and her entire shirt and jacket were covered. Back in the shower.... more screaming baby. Rick and I are over it, and so ready to get her back home to have this taken care of. I am hoping we made the right decision to not do this surgery in China. It is not fair to her to have to live like this, but I am hoping in the end it will all be worth it.

 

After our little incident this morning, we had breakfast in the hotel. It was pretty good! Hannah ate a ton. She had a bowl of congee, a bowl of fried rice, a yogurt and a bowl of watermelon. She is so independent. I was trying to feed her because the congee was hot. She took the bowl and spoon from me and shook her head no. Then she picked up the spoon, felt the bottom of it, blew on it, then took a bite. Hmmmm, guess she has done this before. She is an excellent eater. She even takes the spoon to get the leftovers off her face.

 

Rick met our guide at 9 to exchange money for the adoption and Hannah and I hung out and took pictures. We met the orphanage people at 10 to get our family picture taken. Then we signed all of the paperwork in our room. A little different experience compared to Emma's adoption! Tomorrow we meet with everyone again, but I am not sure of the purpose of that meeting.

 

We found a grocery store and picked up a few things. That is always an adventure! It is not so fun to be the center of attention everywhere we go. I know we look like a bunch of idiots trying to figure out what to buy. We just got enough stuff for lunch today and then hung out in the hotel for several hours. We met our guide at 3:00 to go to a temple. It was interesting, but once you have seen one temple you have seen them all. Especially when you are a Christian, the whole idea of worshipping buddhas seems so strange. Thankfully that visit did not take long. Our guide told us that the Hot Pot restaurant next to our hotel was excellent and they speak a little English so we decided to check it out. We found out that they don't speak any English and it was pretty entertaining trying to figure out what to order and how to cook the food. Hannah and Rick loved it, but I was not a fan. I needed a Big Mac after that meal.

 

Hannah's evening explosion led to another shower. When she got out, I just held her in the towel to give her skin a break from all of the bandages. She fell asleep in my arms. I was able to get her diaper on and put her in bed without her waking up. I plan on getting up 2 times tonight to change her. If we wake up with a poopy bed again, I don't think I will be able to hold my head up when I walk through the lobby. They will probably say... "There is the poopy American family!" 

 

 

I am trying to let Hannah explore and be curious because I know she has not had many opportunities. She was really quiet in the corner (she always gets quiet when she is doing something naughty) and I noticed she was pulling all the wipes out of the bag. I told her NO and took them away and she pouted. I had to take the "first pout" picture. She kept looking up to see if I was paying attention.

Today was her adoption day. She looked so pretty!

I let Hannah hold the desitin bottle when I was changing her. She put it on her face like lotion. Earlier I caught her with the cortizone cream rubbing it on her hands like lotion.

This was a sweet moment. She loves this kitty we brought her. She kisses her and likes to make her walk. She was rocking her back and forth in this picture.

Making it official!

We had peanut butter for lunch. She didn't like the sandwich, so I put it on a cracker and she liked to lick it off.

Our hot pot meal... the raw meat is lamb and beef. We didn't know what to do, so the lady was explaining it to us in Chinese. We looked at her like she was crazy, so she picked up the meat and veggies and threw it in. I guess we did it right, but who knows. Rick and Hannah were full when finished but not me!

Hannah did not let me feed her this meal either. I gave her the bowl and she asked for the chopsticks. She used them to test how hot the food was. When she knew it was OK, she gave me the chopsticks and ate with her hands. When she finished everything in the bowl, she said mama, mama and handed it to me for more. She had 4 bowls of food (which is maybe why she exploded everywhere!) We have noticed Hannah has a hard time understanding when to stop eating. If it is there, she wants to eat it. I know this is normal orphan behavior. She was obviously well fed at SF, but I also know they run on a tight schedule. You eat at certain times and you eat what is in front of you. If you don't, you wait until the next feeding time. Hannah needs to learn that food will be available at all times with us and you should stop eating when you are full. I know this will come with time and it is a different way of thinking for her.

She loved her food!

Here she is at the end of a long day. I feel like she is starting to trust me more. In the middle of the night she reached for me to cuddle her which she has not done yet. I am noticing that when I hold her, she is leaning into me a little more and not staying so tense. She was perfectly content to cuddle in my arms tonight after her shower and she fell right to sleep. I hope this is a turning point for her!

 

She likes it when I push her stroller, not Rick. Also, she calls me mama all the time now to get my attention. It is the cutest thing ever! This sweet girl has waited so long for a mama. I am glad that it is me!!