Wednesday, February 28, 2007
January 22nd - It's Adoption Day!
It was almost hard to believe that the day had finally come. We were finally going to meet our littlest angel, Anne Min Mei. I looked at the clock every 15 minutes after midnight...and finally got up at 2:00 a.m. and started writing in my journal. Oh, how I wish we brought a laptop; although I know Annie will appreciate the journal someday. I wondered how she was feeling, what she could be thinking, and praying that she was not too awfully frightened. Xiulan came to pick us up at the hotel at 8:30. We got to the notarial office around 9:15 or so. It has moved since we were there four years ago. It used to be in a building with a photo shop on the first floor, and the office on the second floor. It is now in an apartment in a building, down an alley, through a gate. We walked in the door and took a left and there she was! Standing holding onto Director Wang's hands. She looked scared and Emma and I went over to her on our knees and started talking to her in the few words of Chinese we knew "Wo ai nin - I Love You :) ". She started crying and held onto Director Wang for dear life. I started pulling stuff out of the Mommy Bag; toys, the baby doll we brought, Cheerios...As always, the food talks with this little girl. Daddy was trying too but she seemed more afraid of him and so he kept clicking the pictures and filming the video. After a few minutes, she let me hold her, and I had one daughter in each arm in a big chair and Daddy got in for our first family photo. All the while, they were trying to get us started on the paperwork, which I knew everything about, and Barry knew a little about. Emma was such a Daddy's girl from the start, I was almost surprised that Annie was going to be a Mommy's girl instead. I changed her, and fed her a bottle. Of course, Xiulan was trying to tell me that the hole was not big enough in the nipple, and I was not holding her right, blah blah blah. I said "Xiulan, I have done this before. She's fine". She did have a bloody nose however. The Director said that she had a cold...Xiulan was very displeased...She said that she thought they gave her too much cold medicine and it gave her the bloody nose. It stopped fairly quickly. Emma was having a hard time and was crying near the end of the meeting. We finished up the paperwork, and headed back to the hotel. Emma continued crying all the way back. She is so not used to having to share Mommy and Daddy. All the preparation in the world could not really make her understand what was going to happen there. Xiulan was very concerned about her, about how emotional she is, and gave Daddy some words of wisdom about girls...I know in her own time she will fit right into the Big Sister role. It really gets better every day. We got to the hotel, and went up to the room. Anne was one tired little girl, and she passed out on the big bed for a few hours. After she got up, we had some lunch in the room. Emma and Daddy had been out and about for a few minutes by themselves. Annie just loves to watch her sister, and watches wherever she goes. I hope they will become great friends -sooooon pleeease...
We are so very happy to be "The Final-ly Four LaMottes" forever and always.
We are so very happy to be "The Final-ly Four LaMottes" forever and always.
Monday, February 19, 2007
Friday, February 9, 2007
Kunming, Yunnan!
OK, so to my friends that said I would not have time for this blog...yes, I guess you were right! So much has happened in the last couple of weeks, that it would take that long to describe properly the rest of our trip.
We arrived in Kunming on Saturday, January 20th. Grandma Xiulan was there to greet us. Emma ran and gave her a big hug, and Xiulan was equally happy to see her. Of course, her first comment "Too much luggage!" was completely expected. Try though I may have, I could not get it any smaller than 3 suitcases. We all squeezed into her husband's car, and drove to Kunming Hotel. The hotel was nicer than the New Nanjiang, I think. There were more English-speaking staff members which made it a lot easier. We had a king-size bed for Mama, Daddy, and Emma, and a crib for Annie which came on day three. Not a lot of room left to walk through, but cozy for our family unit. We met another of Xiulan's families in the lobby upon our arrival, The O'Briens, who had received their daughter, Kiera, a few days prior. We wound up making a date for dinner with them at a restaurant with a show, that we knew would serve the infamous "Over-the-Bridge Noodle Soup". This is a must taste for Kunming. They serve you a bowl of hot broth and then you dump all kinds of things into it and it basically cooks in the hot broth. Most of the "things" are vegetables and noodles. The show was great and the costumes were beautiful. We ordered a bunch of other interesting items...pig's ear salad - both Daddies tried, and said it just wasn't a good consistency...the Mamas skipped it. There was a really good dish that had shrimp and pineapple. Kiera is a happy, beautiful, little girl, who was living at Kunming SWI/foster care. She was about 9 months old. She has a biological brother and sister who were waiting for her at home.
The next morning, Sunday, we went to The Stone Forest with Xiulan's assistant, Cho Yu (spelling?). Kathleen O'Brien came with us, and Will stayed at the hotel with Kiera. We missed The Stone Forest on our last trip, and I am very glad that we went. It is an awesome place with huge pillar stones, that was once under water. There is a fish fossil there that is estimated to be 230 million years old. If you look at our Kodak Easy-Share Gallery, you will see many cool pics. The weather in Kunming was in the 60's. They call it the "Eternal Spring City". Part of our tour included lunch, which they served us about 10 different things. Zhou Yu (sp.?) came and described each one for us, but did not eat with us. He ate in another room. I think the guides are not allowed to join us?
We were kind of wiped out, and getting very anxious about meeting Anne Min Mei the next morning. We wound up eating at KFC - that's right, Kentucky Fried Chicken - across the street from the hotel. They have a menu in English that you can point to what you want. Emma enjoyed her kid's meal that came complete with a toy elephant squirt gun. Sleep was hard to come by...the jetlag helped us to a certain degree...
The next post - Most Important Post!! - to be completed at next naptime...
Nancy
We arrived in Kunming on Saturday, January 20th. Grandma Xiulan was there to greet us. Emma ran and gave her a big hug, and Xiulan was equally happy to see her. Of course, her first comment "Too much luggage!" was completely expected. Try though I may have, I could not get it any smaller than 3 suitcases. We all squeezed into her husband's car, and drove to Kunming Hotel. The hotel was nicer than the New Nanjiang, I think. There were more English-speaking staff members which made it a lot easier. We had a king-size bed for Mama, Daddy, and Emma, and a crib for Annie which came on day three. Not a lot of room left to walk through, but cozy for our family unit. We met another of Xiulan's families in the lobby upon our arrival, The O'Briens, who had received their daughter, Kiera, a few days prior. We wound up making a date for dinner with them at a restaurant with a show, that we knew would serve the infamous "Over-the-Bridge Noodle Soup". This is a must taste for Kunming. They serve you a bowl of hot broth and then you dump all kinds of things into it and it basically cooks in the hot broth. Most of the "things" are vegetables and noodles. The show was great and the costumes were beautiful. We ordered a bunch of other interesting items...pig's ear salad - both Daddies tried, and said it just wasn't a good consistency...the Mamas skipped it. There was a really good dish that had shrimp and pineapple. Kiera is a happy, beautiful, little girl, who was living at Kunming SWI/foster care. She was about 9 months old. She has a biological brother and sister who were waiting for her at home.
The next morning, Sunday, we went to The Stone Forest with Xiulan's assistant, Cho Yu (spelling?). Kathleen O'Brien came with us, and Will stayed at the hotel with Kiera. We missed The Stone Forest on our last trip, and I am very glad that we went. It is an awesome place with huge pillar stones, that was once under water. There is a fish fossil there that is estimated to be 230 million years old. If you look at our Kodak Easy-Share Gallery, you will see many cool pics. The weather in Kunming was in the 60's. They call it the "Eternal Spring City". Part of our tour included lunch, which they served us about 10 different things. Zhou Yu (sp.?) came and described each one for us, but did not eat with us. He ate in another room. I think the guides are not allowed to join us?
We were kind of wiped out, and getting very anxious about meeting Anne Min Mei the next morning. We wound up eating at KFC - that's right, Kentucky Fried Chicken - across the street from the hotel. They have a menu in English that you can point to what you want. Emma enjoyed her kid's meal that came complete with a toy elephant squirt gun. Sleep was hard to come by...the jetlag helped us to a certain degree...
The next post - Most Important Post!! - to be completed at next naptime...
Nancy
Friday, January 19, 2007
Beijing, China!
Hello from the other side of the world!
We arrived in beautiful Beijing on Thursday afternoon. It is pretty chilly here - kind of the same as home. When we stepped off the plane, I could smell that spicy scent of the air that brought back so many memories. Emma did pretty well on the flight. We all started to get itchy during the last 3 or 4 hours. Barry wound up with a sinus headache all the way from Boston to Beijing and was not a happy camper as you can imagine...He is feeling much better now. We are getting used to the time change now.
Yesterday, our tour guide, Huang Guan Ri (sp?)- American name "Tom", took us to The Great Wall at Badaling. It is as awesome as we've ever seen in pictures and so much more. We climbed pretty high up, up, up! there were quite a few people visiting there. We took many photos. Shy Miss Emma made great friends with Tom, and held his hand all the way up. He is the 4th child in his family from rural Hubei Province. His siblings were all born before family planning went into effect in his home in the countryside. He is 24, and only gets to see his family twice a year. It takes him 30 hours to get there from here; by train, then bus, and then three wheeled bicycle. He is extremely knowledgeable about the history of China, and knows many interesting stories and facts. He will be picking us up soon to take us to the airport! They are really in full force here getting ready for the 2008 Olympics. The little characters which are the symbols of the games are really cute.
Emma is very excited to finally meet Grandma Xiulan who will hopefully be the one picking us up in Kunming. We are staying at the Kunming Hotel on Dongfeng Dong Rd. I tried to find it on the travel websites before we left, but didn't find it. I think it is on the same road we stayed on our last trip. Can't wait to find out when our Anne Min Mei will arrive from JianShui. The red thread is getting shorter by the minute. Pretty soon, our littlest darlin' will be in our arms forever!
I will try to update here after we receive her, or maybe tomorrow if we won't meet her until Monday morning...I will definitely have to look into the picture sharing situation when we get to the hotel.
You are all in our thoughts and prayers. We appreciate your support ever so much.
Love,
Nancy, Barry, Emma, and almost Annie!!!
We arrived in beautiful Beijing on Thursday afternoon. It is pretty chilly here - kind of the same as home. When we stepped off the plane, I could smell that spicy scent of the air that brought back so many memories. Emma did pretty well on the flight. We all started to get itchy during the last 3 or 4 hours. Barry wound up with a sinus headache all the way from Boston to Beijing and was not a happy camper as you can imagine...He is feeling much better now. We are getting used to the time change now.
Yesterday, our tour guide, Huang Guan Ri (sp?)- American name "Tom", took us to The Great Wall at Badaling. It is as awesome as we've ever seen in pictures and so much more. We climbed pretty high up, up, up! there were quite a few people visiting there. We took many photos. Shy Miss Emma made great friends with Tom, and held his hand all the way up. He is the 4th child in his family from rural Hubei Province. His siblings were all born before family planning went into effect in his home in the countryside. He is 24, and only gets to see his family twice a year. It takes him 30 hours to get there from here; by train, then bus, and then three wheeled bicycle. He is extremely knowledgeable about the history of China, and knows many interesting stories and facts. He will be picking us up soon to take us to the airport! They are really in full force here getting ready for the 2008 Olympics. The little characters which are the symbols of the games are really cute.
Emma is very excited to finally meet Grandma Xiulan who will hopefully be the one picking us up in Kunming. We are staying at the Kunming Hotel on Dongfeng Dong Rd. I tried to find it on the travel websites before we left, but didn't find it. I think it is on the same road we stayed on our last trip. Can't wait to find out when our Anne Min Mei will arrive from JianShui. The red thread is getting shorter by the minute. Pretty soon, our littlest darlin' will be in our arms forever!
I will try to update here after we receive her, or maybe tomorrow if we won't meet her until Monday morning...I will definitely have to look into the picture sharing situation when we get to the hotel.
You are all in our thoughts and prayers. We appreciate your support ever so much.
Love,
Nancy, Barry, Emma, and almost Annie!!!
Sunday, January 7, 2007
We're On Our Way!
Yeah!!!! TA!!!!!
We received our Travel Approval/Notice of Coming from China!! Our appointment date at the Consulate is January 29th. We will be meeting our little Anne Min Mei the morning of the 22nd! It is almost hard to believe that it is finally happening.
We are booking our tickets tomorrow with Lotus Travel. We hope to leave the morning of the 17th, and arrive in Beijing in the afternoon on the 18th. There are two tours I am actually interested in; 1) The Great Wall and Temple of Heaven, 2)Summer Palace, Lama Temple, and Panda Zoo. Now, those of you who know me, know how torn I am between the Wall and the pandas...I will ask if there is any way we can combine the Great Wall and the Panda Zoo tour into one day. I know that we will be visiting other temples - not so famous, but still beautiful - in Kunming, and around the Yunnan Province.
We will leave Beijing and fly to Kunming on the 20th. Our meeting date - the date we are requested to be in Kunming - is the 21st. Although we are not scheduled to receive Annie until the morning of the 22nd, history tells us that they may bring her to us on the 21st if they know we are arriving early. We will finalize the adoption in the Notarial Office in Kunming the day after we meet her. Then, we will spend the rest of the week in Kunming waiting for her passport and paperwork to be ready. During this time, our facilitator, "Grandma" Xiulan will visit us every day - she has to see the babies every day to be sure they're all doing well - and probably hire a driver/bus to take us sightseeing, shopping, etc. We did not get to the Stone Forest in Kunming on our last trip, and will definitely do that this time. Of course, it all depends on how Miss Anne Min Mei is feeling and bonding with her new forever family...
Then, not sure what day, we will fly to Guangzhou, in the Guangdong Province where the U.S. Consulate is located. There, hopefully, we will be staying at the beautiful White Swan Hotel. Xiulan will take our paperwork to the appointment at the Consulate on the 29th. We will go to the Consulate the following day, along with many other families, and swear to take very good care of Anne Min Mei, and get her visa to come home! We are going to stay over one more night in Guangzhou, and travel the morning of the 31st to Beijing, and then on to Newark, where Annie will become an American citizen (same place as Emma did), and then home to Boston! We are shooting for a flight that will arrive at Logan at around 8:00 p.m. on the 31st.
And then, the real fun will begin!! We will try to broadcast from the other side of the world to all of you. If you don't hear from us, check back here at the blog and see if I was able to at least update here. I hope we will be able to download our pictures to the Kodak Share website, so that you can view our journey while we are still there. Modern technology is a wonderful thing!
When I last heard from our connection in Gejiu, he said that they were having a hard time with e-mail due to earthquake in Taiwan. He did manage to let me know that he went to see Anne Min Mei in JianShui, and took pictures of her and the orphanage. He said that she is an adorable little princess, and that he thinks we will be the perfect family. He is sending his parents home to the U.S. with a picture CD to mail to us. I can't even begin to tell you how thankful we are to have him there, and how comforting it is for my heart. He is such a nice man!!
It won't be long now...10 days to departure!!! We're packing today!!!
Love to All,
Nancy & Barry & Emma & Annie :)
We received our Travel Approval/Notice of Coming from China!! Our appointment date at the Consulate is January 29th. We will be meeting our little Anne Min Mei the morning of the 22nd! It is almost hard to believe that it is finally happening.
We are booking our tickets tomorrow with Lotus Travel. We hope to leave the morning of the 17th, and arrive in Beijing in the afternoon on the 18th. There are two tours I am actually interested in; 1) The Great Wall and Temple of Heaven, 2)Summer Palace, Lama Temple, and Panda Zoo. Now, those of you who know me, know how torn I am between the Wall and the pandas...I will ask if there is any way we can combine the Great Wall and the Panda Zoo tour into one day. I know that we will be visiting other temples - not so famous, but still beautiful - in Kunming, and around the Yunnan Province.
We will leave Beijing and fly to Kunming on the 20th. Our meeting date - the date we are requested to be in Kunming - is the 21st. Although we are not scheduled to receive Annie until the morning of the 22nd, history tells us that they may bring her to us on the 21st if they know we are arriving early. We will finalize the adoption in the Notarial Office in Kunming the day after we meet her. Then, we will spend the rest of the week in Kunming waiting for her passport and paperwork to be ready. During this time, our facilitator, "Grandma" Xiulan will visit us every day - she has to see the babies every day to be sure they're all doing well - and probably hire a driver/bus to take us sightseeing, shopping, etc. We did not get to the Stone Forest in Kunming on our last trip, and will definitely do that this time. Of course, it all depends on how Miss Anne Min Mei is feeling and bonding with her new forever family...
Then, not sure what day, we will fly to Guangzhou, in the Guangdong Province where the U.S. Consulate is located. There, hopefully, we will be staying at the beautiful White Swan Hotel. Xiulan will take our paperwork to the appointment at the Consulate on the 29th. We will go to the Consulate the following day, along with many other families, and swear to take very good care of Anne Min Mei, and get her visa to come home! We are going to stay over one more night in Guangzhou, and travel the morning of the 31st to Beijing, and then on to Newark, where Annie will become an American citizen (same place as Emma did), and then home to Boston! We are shooting for a flight that will arrive at Logan at around 8:00 p.m. on the 31st.
And then, the real fun will begin!! We will try to broadcast from the other side of the world to all of you. If you don't hear from us, check back here at the blog and see if I was able to at least update here. I hope we will be able to download our pictures to the Kodak Share website, so that you can view our journey while we are still there. Modern technology is a wonderful thing!
When I last heard from our connection in Gejiu, he said that they were having a hard time with e-mail due to earthquake in Taiwan. He did manage to let me know that he went to see Anne Min Mei in JianShui, and took pictures of her and the orphanage. He said that she is an adorable little princess, and that he thinks we will be the perfect family. He is sending his parents home to the U.S. with a picture CD to mail to us. I can't even begin to tell you how thankful we are to have him there, and how comforting it is for my heart. He is such a nice man!!
It won't be long now...10 days to departure!!! We're packing today!!!
Love to All,
Nancy & Barry & Emma & Annie :)
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