Santa

Merry Christmas to all!

We cannot possibly sum up this past year.

It brought love, wonder, and joy to our family.

Thank you all for joining us here on our journeys.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year,

The Conant Family

Chrissy & Gerry

Grace & Lila

Daphne, Harry, Oscar, Snakey, and Raymond

Lila's Surgery

Snuggling with Grace after surgery on Wednesday.

In her hospital jammies shortly after arriving on Monday.

I was very surprised this morning when the surgery team did rounds.

Dr C's partner says, "So, my question for you is, when do you want to go home?"

I say, "Today." thinking he'll say that we should wait until tomorrow but he agreed!

So we were released about 12:30 and got home about 1:00 pm. Lila got a big smile on her face when we walked in the door. We were only there Monday through Thursday but it seemed like a long stay.

When we checked in on Monday they started an over-night clean out process for the surgery Tuesday afternoon. It was a long night, up every couple hours with the nurses checking on her, putting her on the potty, poking and prodding, etc. Tuesday's surgery was about an hour earlier than planned. It was done in about 2 hours, everything looked good, and Dr C was very happy with the results. That evening we had a complication that required going back to the OR Wednesday morning. He did an excellent job fixing it, Lila spent the rest of the day drugged and sleeping. She started eating a little last night and a lot this morning. The eating provided the desired results in the tummy and the ostomy bag. The nurse practitioner trained me on how to care for the ostomy. We signed some papers and came home.

I'm relieved this first part of the surgery is over. The next round will be in June (5-7 months from now).

We had a blizzard this week while Lila and I were tucked away in the hospital. Grace had 3 days off of school because of the cold and snow. She and Gerry were able to come visit in spite of the awful weather. It did Lila and me both a world of good to get to see them.

Getting Caught Up

It's been so hectic around here that I haven't posted so here are pictures from Lila's baptism, Thanksgiving, and a few early Christmas pictures. Enjoy!

The first ornament that was hung on the tree this year.

Another one of Mama's silly poses!

Pilgrim and turkey, Grace made both costumes this year in Kindergarten.

Tony presenting Lila to our congregation. Our wonderful congregation is just crazy about our new Little Miss.

Family portrait on baptism day.


We check into the hospital tomorrow for colostomy surgery. I hope we're home by Thursday, Friday at the latest. I have a schedule for Grace and Gerry next week that includes coming to visit us at Children's. Luckily, it's only a 20 minute drive. I will post Tuesday when surgery is over.

Jesus's Christmas List

I received this list today in an email. I edited it a little to share with you here. I try to teach my Sunday school class how to live in the real world as Christians so this really spoke to me and I hope it will inspire someone else.

If you want to give Me a present in remembrance of My birth here is my wish list. Choose something from it:

1. Write letters of love and hope to soldiers away from home. They are terribly afraid and lonely this time of year. I know, for they tell Me all the time.

2. Visit someone in a nursing home. You don't have to know them personally. They just need to know that someone cares about them.

3.Write the president and tell him that you'll be praying for him and his family this year. Then follow up. It will be nice hearing from you again.

4. Instead of giving your children a lot of gifts you can't afford and they don't need, spend time with them. Tell them the story of My birth, and why I came to live with you down here. Hold them in your arms and remind them that I love them.

5. Pick someone that has hurt you in the past and forgive him or her.

6. Did you know that someone in your town will attempt to take their own life this season because they feel so alone and hopeless? Since you don't know who that person is, try giving everyone you meet a warm smile; it could make the difference.

7. Be patient with the people who work in retail during this season. Give them a warm smile and a kind word. Even if they aren't allowed to wish you a "Merry Christ mas" that doesn't keep you from wishing them one. Stop shopping on Sunday. If the stores didn't make so much money on that day they'd close and let their employees spend the day at home with their families

8. If you really want to make a difference, support a missionary-- especially one who takes My love and Good News to those who have never heard My name.

9. Here's a good one. There are individuals and whole families in your town who not only will have no Christmas tree, but neither will they have any presents to give or receive. If you don't know them, buy some food and a few gifts and give them to the Salvation Army or some other charity which believes in Me and they will make the delivery for you.

10. Behave like a Christian. Don't do things in secret that you wouldn't do in My presence. Let people know by your actions that you are one of mine.

Baptism

Today was Lila's baptism. It was also confirmation at our church. It was a busy happy service with lots to celebrate! We waited until now for the baptism so my sister, Becky, could be here. Her kids have all week off school so they were able to fly up for Lila's special day. 2 of my sisters, Becky and Jennifer, are Lila's godparents. Our whole family joined us at home for brunch following the service.

Grace had a rough week. A week ago today her fever returned and went up to 104 degreess. I called the doctor Monday morning. He was able to see her late in the day. He was concerened about her, even saying he "was a little freaked out" because her fever was gone for a couple days then returned. He did a chest xray and some bloodwork. It was the beginning of pneumonia so shot in the little butt and 10 days of antibiotics have her on the mend. She returned to Kindergarten on Friday feeling much more like her normal self.

Lila's next surgery is scheduled for December 8. We check into the hospital on the 7th and will stay about 3 days. I hope they have wireless internet!

Update

This was one of those weeks.

Grace had to stay home from school 4 days with a fever. She went to the doctor, they thought it might be strep but it wasn't so they think it was viral. They never said H1N1 but I'm guessing that's what it was.

Meanwhile Lila had surgery on Tuesday. It was a biopsy that confirmed that she has a condition called Hirschprung's Disease in which part of the colon does not have the nerve cells required for normal function. She will have 2 for sure, possibly 3 surgeries in the next 6-8 months. The first will be after Thanksgiving, probably early December.

My babies are sick! Luckily we have a big fat cat to keep them warm. Isn't Oscar the sweetest little guy to take care of his Grace when she's sick on the couch?

BOOOOO

Scooby and the Fuzzy Pink Unicorn waiting for the trick-0r-treaters to arrive!

Fall Slide Show

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Just some pictures (for Aunt Becky especially)

Note to Travel Group

Here's a note I sent to our travel group. I thought I would share it here too to bring my blog buddies up to date.

I am glad to hear from everyone too. I have been following the few blogs that I know, Jadyn is one of those so I have been seeing all of her great pictures. Melissa and Alyssa both look very healthy and happy. I can tell they have both gained weight and their hair is growing out! I can finally get a little ponytail holder in Lila's to attach a bow so it will stay in.

Lila is doing really well. People keep commenting on how well adjusted she seems. She STILL wants Daddy when she's tired or scared but she knows she has to put up with me too! We really have a great bond now. She's funny and goofy and we were just saying again how she's the perfect match for us.

Gerry's still on family leave, he goes back next Monday. That will be a big change for all of us but we're ready.

Lila and Grace are sisters so we have a lot of drama but a lot of love, hugs, and giggles too.

We had x-rays of her colon on Friday, it was awful. They strapped her to a board so they could position her during the process so she was terrified. I can only imagine the memories of having the same x-rays done in China coming back to her. I was so thankful that I was there with her this time so she didn't have to go through it alone. They said our next step in the diagnostic/treatment process will be a biopsy of the lining of her colon. I have to talk to the doctor's office in a couple days about that.

TTYS
Chrissy

One giant leap...

The tiny things are so important in this adoption journey. She came running to me today with her arms up to be picked up. I was filled with joy that she has come so far from the scared child in China who only wanted Gerry. I looked at her today and said "Lila" she then put her hand on her chest and said "yiya". She said her name! She has only said mama and tai jien up to this point. She also said "yummy" this week when it was time to eat. This all sounds like normal developmental steps for children but when you've only been together only 8 weeks you are struck with each little moment how amazing this little person is.

Megacolon

I just responded to a comment from a family considering a child from China with megacolon. I hope adding what I told her might help others looking for some basic, first-hand, information.

Our information said Lila was found at 2 days old with a swollen abdomen so she has had problems since birth. The research I originally did led me to some sites about Hirschprung's disease. It was hard to find any definite information on-line with the limited info we received from China. Even so, we decided right away to accept our referral because my sister has worked for a colon-rectal specialist for over 30 years. They referred us to a pediatric internist.

When we got Lila the orphanage said the only treatment they have been using is glycerin suppositories. That's what we used (sometimes twice a day) in China and until we had her doctor's appointment after we got home. I felt so bad having to give a child that didn't even know me a suppository (no wonder she bonded with my husband first, poor baby..) If she doesn't go she gets uncomfortable, cranky, her tummy gets swollen, and I can feel hardness on her right side if it's bad.

We were given the xrays that had been done in China. From what she could see, our specialist here does not think Lila has Hirschprung's disease. Hirschprung's is surgically treated by removing the section of the colon where the nerves are not functioning. During the healing stage they have to have an ostomy to give the colon time to heal. Lucklily Lila won't have to have surgery. We use Miralax which is a stool softener daily. I adjust the dose depending on if she went the day before, what we ate, activity level, how much liquids she drank, etc. Usually 2 1/2 to 3 teaspoons mixed into a little juice or milk. It's a flavorless powder so she doesn't even know she's getting anything.

Our doctor here also said if babies are constipated when they are very little they learn that it hurts to poop so they don't. This holding it in causes the colon to stretch then the muscles can't contract properly which adds to the already existing congenital problem.

We didn't know for sure how severe her condition was until we got there, I guess we're still learning. If you are not afraid of a lot of poop coming out of a little child, I would go for it! We had colic/constipation problems wtih our bio daughter when she was an infant so it's not much worse than that was. We have added a lot more whole grains, fruit, veggies, to our diet that we all should be eating anyway.

Only in the midwest...

We took a day trip to Des Moines to get Lila's birth certificate. Somewhere in the middle of Iowa this passes us, just driving down the freeway to her next destination like it's totally a normal vehicle. So Grace asks, "Is that a real cow head?"

Sisters

A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost.

Marion C Garretty

Our first doctor appointment

Lila had her first appointment today with the pediatric internist. She agrees with the megacolon diagnosis from China. She does not at this point think it is the more serious Hirschprung's disease that would require surgery. They did x-rays in China that we took along today, from what the doctor could see she doesn't want to do any more x-rays or biopsies at this point. She will have a radiologist review the x-rays also. We have started a stool softener, 3 times a day for the next 3 days, to get everything cleaned out. Then only once a day for 4 weeks. We will go back to reevaluate at that time. When we accepted Lila's referral there were a lot of unknowns about her medical condition. We weren't sure if she would require surgery or medication or dietary management. We feel really lucky and very relieved that she won't be having surgery at this point.

Say a prayer for little Jadyn from our travel group, she undergoes open-heart surgery on Wednesday. http://ourjadynpanda.blogspot.com/

Chrissy

My little girl

I am watching a miracle every day. To watch Lila change from a confused and scared child to a laughing, snuggling, happy child is amazing. We still have a long way to go until we are completely bonded together as a family but there is now love where before there was fear. She is giving kisses, calling me Mama and calling Gerry Baba. To hear that babbling little voice say it over and over gives all of us big smiles. Hearing my girls laugh together and play together is a gift.

Slide show

I added a slide show of when we got Lila. It was one of the most emotional afternoons of my entire life. It's almost impossible to express.

It's dated August 3 which is our Family Day!

Working on it

I now have the text for the blog all updated. I have added several journal entries about the trip, see earlier posts.

I'll be adding videos & pictures in the next few days.

Keep checking back!

Sleep baby sleep...

I am awestruck. I am content. I love my family. The most precious thing happened this evening. Lila let me rock her to sleep for the first time since August 5. The girls had their bath together, Lila looked at Grace a little perplexed like, "Why aren't you crying??" then was quiet for about a minute. I think it was the first time she had ever stopped crying during a bath. So I got her out and into jammies. Grace stayed in and splashed around then Lila joined us in Grace's room while Grace got into jammies. We went down for a snack, Lila doesn't like pear yogurt so she started screaming, I wouldn't give in so we switched to grapes, she ate one but still wasn't happy. On a whim I picked her up and took her outside. She quieted down. We went back into the kitchen, picked up her grapes, and her drink, and headed out to the porch swing. She loved it!! We ate all her grapes then sat and swang and rocked. She was out pretty quickly. I tried to take her inside but she woke up so we continued to rock in the rocking chair in her room. I tried to lay her down but she woke up so I went back to the swing. She woke up when I tried to come back in. I had to finish a couple things before going to bed so I gave her to Gerry who was asleep in our bed with Grace. They are all asleep now. I feel so blessed that she let me have this precious quiet snuggly time with her. Every day brings us closer.

I added the slide show to our first post from Beijing. Enjoy it!!

Chrissy

We're Home

Hi, I'm so sorry I didn't post. It was so difficult from China that I gave up. I journaled while we were there and will be posting those with pictures in the next few days. Keep checking back!

We had a once-in-a-lifetime journey!

Chrissy

The flight home

It's midnight in China but 11:00 am at home. I have already moved my watch ahead to home time so I know how much longer until we get there. Lila is sleeping on Gerry while he watches the in-flight movies and tv. Right now, it's Mythbusters. Lila has slept a lot on the flight, both her nap and bedtime. She had a happy, awake, playing & eating time for a couple hours. She and Gerry also walked up and down the aisles a few times.

We still have to have lunch, land in Chicago, go through immigration, customs, and then wait for our evening flight to Omaha. I wish we were on an earlier flight. I want to get home to my Gracie. I miss her so much.

It was hard to say goodbye to all our friends when we left Guangzhou. Mary promised to organize a reunion, if she doesn't I will. Hopefully we will all stay members of our travel group Yahoo group and can keep in touch and keep the kids in touch. We will especially miss the 4 families in our Chongqing group since we were together the entire time.

I hope all goes smoothly with immigration. All they really have to do is stamp her paperwork and she's home so I don't foresee any issues. I was surprised that I had to show it at check-in this morning and the airport in Hong Kong, I hadn't heard of anyone having to do that before.

Have I mentioned how much I miss Grace? I cannot wait to hold her close and give her a thousand kisses, all the kisses we didn't get to share while we were apart. I miss her smile, her laugh, and the joy that she spreads.

This flight seems eternal, I originally thought we arrived in Chicago at 12:30 then realized it's 2:30 so I have an extra 2 hours that I had forgotten about. With those 2 sleeping in the aisle seat, I'm trapped in the window seat. Creepy guy in front of me actually reached back and closed MY window. You know I immediately opened it back up and gave him one of those looks when he looked back at me. GET OUT OF MY SPACE! Somebody else smells like chewing tobacco which is totally making me want to gag. It's probably him or the chick next to him who has her purse under her seat so it's where my bag should be...can you tell I'm in one of those moods??

I need to mail my left-over yuan to Stacey and have her buy the girls a couple more qipaos or chongsams or whatever they're called I would like a few more ornaments too. I loved my little shop. I hope Stacey enjoys her time in China. They should have a great trip but I know she will desperately miss Lily. I can't wait for her to experience the joys of those first days with Ella.

Chris, Mike, and Meilyn left Hong Kong this morning through SFO to Chicago. We thought we were on the same flight but we're not. They were so much fun. The similarities were hysterical, she was a travel agent, I worked in travel, Mike was in the Navy stationed in Norfolk, so was Gerry, they are now both electronics technicians, our names are almost the same, we both have polka dotted glasses, we have beautiful little girls from China, and she is my SEASTAR! (insert hysterical laughter that nobody else will even kinda understand here) I wonder if she's on Facebook...

We'll be home soon, my family will be complete!

We're on Our Way Home

We're ready to go and waiting for our in-room breakfast to arrive. It's 8:45 now, we leave for the airport at 10:20. This room has a beautiful view of the harbor, Lila and Gerry liked to watch the ships and boats sailing by. There are a few fishing boats lazily floating by in the grey drizzly morning. The clouds hang low over the mountains in the background.

Lila is enjoying watching Disney channel with her daddy. It's nice to be back to normal children's tv too. The popular show for little ones in China is Xu Yang Yang, the main character is a goat. The orphanage told us Lila really likes the show but she showed little interest in watching it or playing with any of the toys. She really loves her soft dolly we got at Jordon's on Shamian Island and her Legos. She is very intelligent and wants to know how things work. Gerry is incredibly excited about that trait!

Just a quick note to say we're on our way home.

Chrissy
Aug 14
Gerry's 42nd birthday

Hong Kong, Train Ride, Consulate Appointment, Shopping, and so on...

We just arrived in Hong Kong. We are checked into the hotel. Lila is supposed to be napping but she appears to be wide awake. It's about 3:30 pm and we haven't eaten since breakfast so we had a Toblerone from the mini-bar. Lila is a chocaholic in training. We all know I already am...


The train ride was an adventure. We had to drag all our luggage up 2 escalators, through chinese immigration, down an escalator, onto the train, and then into the overhead luggage racks. It was a lot of work! Other than that the ride was interesting. I expected more countryside than city between Guangzhou and HK. There was a small section that was rural but not much. The train went close to 100 mph so it was only a 2 hour ride. Hong Kong is just what I expected. It is a beautiful modern city fabulous views of the mountains and harbor surrounded by lush greenery.

Yesterday we went to the American Consulate in Guangzhou. Lila received her visa to travel to the USA. She will become a citizen as soon as her immigration paperwork is stamped in Chicago. It was a very emotional moment for me (all of us) when the consulate employee announced that this was the last step in our adoption. Our little girl is OURS. She has stolen both our hearts and has a big sister waiting to love just as much. She is amazingly happy. Just 10 days have changed her from a shy, scared, little girl to a silly, laughing, ticklish imp. I'm watching her now play with the remote and trying as hard as she can to NOT give it back to Daddy. Those huge brown eyes are sparkly with mischief and silliness! The lines of chinese citizens lined up to try to become US citizens made me realize how lucky we are to be born into it, how lucky Lila is to be adopted into it, and how hard it is for them to go through the process.

The three of us returned to Shamian Island last night to pick up the chops I ordered for the girls, buy a few more gifts, and have a final dinner together in China. We had American food but it was really a good meal. The food in Guangzhou was much more what we consider Chinese back home. The dishes were much milder than in Chongqing with sauces such as sweet-and-sour and barbecue versus the spicy szechuan and kungpao sauces. The shop we went to last night was my favorite, Craft and Artist shop. I bought most of the things I wanted from China there, tea set, dresses for the girls, a blouse for me, bracelets for gifts, assorted silk gifts, chops (the chops are a stamp with the girls english and chinese names, these are commonly used in China for stamping documents instead of signing), tea, teapots, squeaky shoes, chinese zodiac figures, cloissone Christmas ornaments, and t-shirts, basically if you wanted it, they had it and they were really nice, bargained well, and gave me lots of free stuff too! If you're going soon, you need to stop there. They will give you the price of $8.00 per pair of squeakies which was about the best anyone could find. They are across the street from Starbucks, right on the corner.

We did have to buy another suitcase to get all the souvenirs home. The suitcase is also a souvenir for Hillary since she'll need it soon for college.

Tuesday we had breakfast then had to stay in our rooms from 10:00 to 11:30. Elsie and Simon took our paperwork to the consulate, we had to be in our rooms in case they had any questions. The last group from CHI had 4 people who did not have the correct information to obtain their child's visa. We only had 1 close call but it was a consulate error that they caught so our little Jadyn was able to leave with the rest of us. We went to the island with Jenny and Anna on the subway. It was fun, it had been a while since any of us had been on a subway so we had fun swapping stories about our previous rides. It was very clean and very safe. We shopped a little and then returned to the hotel in time for Jenny and Anna to go on the river cruise. We decided not to go. Those that did go, wished they hadn't. The food was horrible but the views of Guangzhou were beautiful. We ordered Papa John's which Lila LOVED! She also made skipping the cruise very worthwhile. She was laughing and laughing while we tickled her. It was the most beautiful sound I had heard in a long time. I can't wait to get home and hear both my little ones' silly, happy, laughter.

Grace had a birthday party Monday. She, Emma, and Steph had a blast being princesses for a day to celebrate Emma turning 5! The only problem was that Emma had just come down with foot and mouth disease but her mom didn't know. She now has it so has to miss the first 2 days of Kindergarten. I'm not too upset about it since I can now take her for her first day on Monday. It's far more important for her to be healthy and not risk it spreading to the other kids than to be there for that first day. So my Boo-Boo is sick and I'm not there to take care of her. I really really want to go home.

I don't remember when I journaled last. I think I'm caught up. I truly at this point don't remember what we did Monday without looking at the schedule. The past few days have been a whirlwind!

The map shows our train route from Guangzhou to Kowloon.

Monday in Guangzhou

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Today is Monday. Sunday was a slow day. We walked to a nearby park in the morning, it was unbelievably hot but a beautiful park.

We had a group dinner last night for the families that wanted to go. We walked to a Cantonese restaurant near the hotel. The food was wonderful, the Chinese beer was refreshing, and Lila was really funny. She decided to feed herself so she & Daddy were covered with noddles and fried rice. She was trying to feed him and that smile was melting the whole table. This is a wonderful group of families all with beautiful babies.

This morning we slept until about 8 and took our time getting ready. Lila and I went to breakfast about 9:15. Gerry came down about 1/2 an hour later. We have been doing this the past few days to give him a break and so she & I can spend some calm time together. She cries when we leave and all the way down in the elevator (we're on the 15th floor) but once we get off, she's quiet and we have a nice breakfast. I have switched her from congee made with white rice to Raisin Bran hoping that the whole grains will help with the constipation caused by her megacolon. I really really am anxious to get her to Dr Prestridge, our pediatric gastroenterologist. She has her appointment in September.

After breakfast we went with Jenny and Mary to the nearby grocery store. We needed some water, juice, and pop. Lila is crazy about pop. Grace won't touch it so we're not used to keeping it out of reach of little hands. She's good at grabbing things. This afternoon we go back to the clinic to have her TB test checked then to the pearl & jade markets. I already told Gerry I plan to spend a lot of money. I love the cool, smooth, feeling of jade and want to get something fabulous for me, my girls,and for some gifts.

We were able to rent a stroller from the hotel for 20 yuan (about 3 dollars) per day from the front desk. Lila enjoyed her ride with no fussing at all. We were both scared it would bring on a tantrum. She is really warming up each day. I even got a big laugh and smile from tickles this morning instead of her cringing when I tickled. I am getting smiles and eye contact more and more unless she's tired then it's all about her Daddy. I am so relieved to be seeing the happy side of her personality bloom.

TTYS
Chrissy

Saturday August 8

We are now in Guangzhou. We're happy to be one step closer to getting our little one home. I will miss China. It is still a little unreal to actually be here.

We went to Shamian Island this morning to have the Visa photos taken and have the kids' medical exams. There were 10 families in the group this morning. After the exams we were free to shop for a couple hours. We went in groups and kept running into others, switching groups. trying out different shops, and really enjoying the island. I bought a pair of silk pajamas for Lila, matching squeaky shoes, and a beautiful chongsam for Grace. We browsed some more and then got 2 green marble pigs, 1 for Lila, 1 for Jessica and a tshirt for Gerry. Jessica has always collected pigs and Lila was born in the year of the pig. Lila is now asleep with Gerry clutching her little green pig in her hand.

She is doing better today. I am slowly getting some eye contact and a few smiles. I have been taking her to breakfast without Gerry to give him some time without her clinging to him and to give she & I some time together. She is very calm and lets me feed her breakfast. We actually enjoy our time together but as soon as she sees Daddy she's DONE with Mama. I'm cherishing the little moments when she does connect with me and continuing to be there for her needs. She will soon learn how much I love her and that I will never leave her.

I'm including the email I sent to Becky to show how we were doing a few days ago which was not good...

> She still wants nothing to do with me. Yesterday sucked. She screams whenever Gerry is out of sight. I know it's a waiting game but it still hurts. I am getting more smiles and more eye contact today. >

I also emailed Stacey. She is an amazing friend and sent me some excellent advice given to her when she was going through the same thing with Lily. Christina, our SW from CHI, traveled with her and told her, "She told me I should be the only one to full fill her needs, Eating, bathing, diapers. Sometimes it was ugly. Eating out was the worst. Really embarrassing sometimes. Have Gerry encourage her to look to you for those needs. If it causes more problems him being there have him leave. Marvin would get Lily to sleep in/by my bed (we always had twin beds?) and then we would switch so Lily would wake up to me. Lila is older than Lily was so she can be a bit stronger. There was someone else in our group with a 2 year old and the mom pretty much gave up and stayed away. That is NO good. I told her to talk to Christina. Not sure what Christina told her. I'm sure the same as me. Within 2 days - HUGE change.

Take Grace down to the lobby for some one on one time. Gerry is probably spent and needs a break. At least my husband did. It's really hard on a person when you can't go to the bathroom without a screaming baby. Lily did better with me alone if were out of the room than alone in the room. I remember spending the 2 or the 3? night in the lobby for with a crying baby. Did you get a stoller? Start taking her for a walk around the hotel to give Gerry a break and for you and Lila time. Lily like that better I think because she didn't have to look at me the whole time."

At first it seemed really cruel to have Lily so upset with me full filling her needs but I was at my wits end and took the advice from Christina. You do what you have to do and what seems to work for you. Lila WILL be coming around soon. Tomorrow (it's 10:00pm there now) could even be the day it clicks for her.

So it is a trying time but she is so worth it. Each little smile and each little peek into what her personality really is, is precious.


The flight from CQ to GZ was short and it is nice to be here. Chongqing is Lila's birthplace and will always hold a special place in our hearts. Guangzhou is more enjoyable because it's a much more western and much cleaner city. Also the rest of the group is here and it has been so much fun to see everyone from Beijing with their new little ones.

Wednesday August 5

Sorry for the delay in posting, it's a pain to blog from here. You have to find a site that will allow you access to Blogger then find one that will allow you to post what you write to your blog. I decided to type it in word first then I at least have a copy when doing the rest of the steps. It's even more impossible to post pictures and videos.

We had a kind of rough day. Lila decided she wants to be with Gerry and that I need to stay away. This is very normal and very expected but it's so hard to love this little one so much and she doesn't realize the depth of a mother's love. I know I need to be patient and continue to be there for her every need but it's hard when she's just not cooperating. It will improve as she learns that I'm here, no matter what, and NEVER GOING ANYWHERE...She's already lost her birth mother and her nanny from the orphange, it's hard to trust another woman when you're only 2 and they seem to keep leaving you. It also got worse after seeing the adoption coordinator from her orphanage at the adoption center yesterday.

Whlie at the adoption center we took our oath to become Lila's parents. We signed all the papers and then the 4 families went into a different room where we each went through a short ceremony in turn. Mary took pictures and video for us then Gerry did the same for them, we were all snapping pictures for eachother! We didn't realize it would be such a formal event but it is something I will never forget, a laughing, teary, moment.

We had a great time sightseeing. Today was supposed to be the zoo. If anyone has been following Chongqing weather on-line, it has rained almost non-stop since we got here. Since the pandas don't like the rain and the old town area is flooded we went to some Chongqing historic sites, the Great Hall of the People and a home from the Qing dynasty. The Qinq dynasty was the final Chinese dynasty, ending in 1911. Much more beautiful chinese architecure and intricate decor. The state run gift shop at the Qing museum is the only place where you can purchase banyan leaf paintings. These are a local art form from Chongqing. The Banyan tree is the city tree. There are only 2 artists in China, a father and son, that can do this type of painting at any given time. I bought 1 painting for each of my daughters and 4 others (can anyone guess who those are for??) So tomorrow morning we will go to the zoo to see the pandas, yeah. For some reason several of our guides put yeah and at the end of all their sentences, yeah. I got interrupted posting this. It's now Aug 17 and we are home. I'll post what I have along with some of the Chongqing pictures and the panda video. It was so exciting to see the pandas, in China, eating bamboo, I have never seen ours in the US so the first time was amazing!

The day we became a family

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Today's the Day!!!!!!!!!!!

It's 7:00 am. We will meet Lila this afternoon at 3:00. I cannot believe she will be in my arms. The past few days have been a whirlwind of unforgettable events. Saturday was a full day of sightseeing at Tiananmen Square and the Great Wall. The square is immense with the smiling face of Chairman Mao always watching you from the front of the Forbidden City. As soon as you enter the gates to the Forbidden City you can see the grandeur of China's imperial era. The size of the forbidden city was a surprise to me. You go through one set of gates to a huge courtyard, then another, another, another, another, another, keep in mind there are 9,999 rooms in the palace. We at last saw the "Way Out" signs in the gardens. We were all getting a little grumpy, hot, hungry, thirsty, and whiny. Ok, I was...but you guys that were with me know what I mean. It was beautiful and I shouldn't complain. It was like the Temple of Heaven in that it showed the intricacy and grandeur of the era.

We had Peking Duck for lunch, I took a video of the chef carving. I can barely hack up a turkey at Thanksgiving so I was impressed by his skill. Each piece is carved to include meat and skin and be uniform in shape and size. I hope to find a recipe to try it at home.

The final stop of the day was the Great Wall. Gerry climbed from where we started to 3 high towers. I stopped at the first low tower. I did it, but I'm scared of heights. Jenny and I looked around the lower areas and had a great time while Gerry and Joe and Anna climbed to the higher towers. He took some amazing pictures of the scenery however it was a dreary day so the view was not spectacular. It POURED down rain as we were on the way back to the bus, we were soaked. Truly as amazing an experience as the pyramids in Mexico. We also drove by the Bird's Nest and Water Cube and took pictures

Make a Smilebox slideshow

We were up EARLY yesterday morning and all 33 people headed to the airport. 2 families got to sleep in as they had afternoon flights. We arrived in Chongqing about 10. Jessi called the local guide and he picked us up out front. Andy told us the history and trivia of Chongqing. We all got checked in, had a break, and met back at Jessi's room to do our first round of paperwork in preparation for today. We had another short break then headed to Walmart to get necessities, a great toy for Lila, and we were running low on chocolate. When we returned we were exhausted and ready to relax. We decided on room service. I had my first taste of spicy Chongqing food. Fabulous fried noodles, lots of chili paste, and a little friend. One of the prawns on my plate still had his eyes attached. We took a picture together. He was kinda cute and tasted great! We woke up early this morning and are taking it easy until we leave to get our new little one.

Mama's here my little one, mama's here.

We're here

I just typed this, clicked a link and lost it all...aaaauuuugggghhh

Ok, here it goes again...

We are here. It is truly amazing to finally, actually be IN China. I haven't been able to post until now because there are restrictions on what sites you can access in China. We thought we had a site that can be used to avoid the restrictions but it didn't work. Gerry chatted with his brother who found a new site for us. Thank you Uncle Jim!!!!

3 of my previous coworkers were on our flight from Omaha. I heard someone calling my name at the airport gate in Omaha. It was Jane Johnson! She, Tad, Stephanie, and a new guy named Eric were headed to Summer AAD in Boston. They were even seated behind us on the plane.

The flight was long and we were both too excited to really sleep so we were exhausted when we got here. We arrived in Bejing, found our guide, got to the hotel, met Tom & Rebecca in the lobby, came up to the room about 4:30 pm (3:30 am at home) and took a 4 hour nap. We woke up, had room service, called home, and went back to bed. The only problem with that was we were wide awake at 4:00 am.

Yesterday was a full day of sight-seeing in Beijing. There are only 2 couples that came early so we had an enjoyable day with the Lazars. They are adopting an 8 year-old from Anhui province.

Our fist destination was the Temple of Heaven. This park was built by the Ming emperor 500 years ago. It has 2 main areas for worshipping the gods of heaven and the gods of harbest. The intricate, delicate, architecture is preserved as it was when built. The area for worshipping the gods of heaven burned in the 80's but has been rebuilt exactly as it originally was. There are Juniper trees in the park over 500 years old planted at the time it was built. It is now a gathering place for the residents of Beijing. We saw them playing many games, dancing, ethnic dancing, and greatly enjoying themselves.

We had lunch at a restaurant with ethnic performers. We enjoyed dancing and musical instruments while dining on traditional Chinese foods. It reminded me a little of Tazo in Kansas City for those of you who have been there.

Our next stop was the traditional hutong neighborhood of Beijing. These areas have been mostly destroyed to accommodate the growth of Bejing. They have been replaced by office buildings and high-rise apartment buildings. The remaining hutongs are now privately owned but preserved as a historical area. They are small residences in sets of 4 surrounding a central courtyard. We were allowed to tour a home to see how the residents of this area live. We took a rickshaw ride around the hutongs because the streets are too narrow for cars. The narrow, winding streets are as they were when built during the Ming era. The hutongs were residences of the government officials of the time. The home we visited has been in this man's family for 4 generations (anyone see why I liked this area yet). The biggest problem for the residents now is public toilets. There is no sewer system so no private flush toilets.

There is a drum tower and bell tower in the hutong that orginally told the residents the time. The bell tower has 62 steps straight up at about an 80 degree angle. The guides told us it was practice for Great Wall climbing today. We all made it but it was hot and stuffy in there. The view and breeze from the top along with the drum performance was well worth it. We also visited an area nearby that is preserved as it was during empirical times. It is now filled with tiny shops selling souvenirs, and lots of bars.

The final destination of the day was the chinese acrobat show. The performers' skill, strength, and flexibility were awe-inspiring. It was a first of many incredible days in beautiful China.

Gerry took over 100 pictures so I selected a few of the best for the slide show. (It's not working, I don't know why, giving up for now.)

TTYS,
Chrissy
(Stacey, email me, I don't have your address along. OMG OMG OMG, I'm gonna get her in a couple days, yep, you KNOW I'm crying again)

OK FINALLY I THINK THE SLIDE SHOW WILL WORK!!!!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Packing

I have one suitcase officially packed, zipped shut, and ready to go. The wonderful ladies from our church quilting group donated their latest batch of quilts to us to take to China. The Holmes girls, Mikayla and Melissa, were adopted from China. They and their parents are in China on a homeland tour. We hope to return some day with Lila too and Grace so they can see where Lila is from. Ok, I know I'm rambling again...So Kayla got 1/3 of the quilts, Meliss got 1/3, and Lila got 1/3 to take along as donations. We will give ours to our Children's Hope International coordinator in China. Children's Hope has a foster home where children with special needs can stay after surgery. It's important to us to help the other special needs children because our Lila was one of them. Thanks to our sweet church ladies we can do a little something to make them feel safe & warm. The quilts and Lila's clothes and couple of the gifts we are taking along are packed in our smaller suitcase. It's even under the 44 pound weight limit! YEAH!

We're Going to China!

We received our Travel Approval today. Here's our travel schedule.

Thurs, July 30-leave the US
Fri, July 31-arrive in BeiJing-Renaissance Beijing Hotel
Sat, August 1- sightseeing in BeiJing TianAnMen Square, Forbidden City and the Great Wall, lunch is included; CHI orientation
Sun, August 2- Travel to province (Chongqing)
Mon, August 3-receive children at the adoption center (you will not be permitted to visit your child’s orphanage due the H1N1 flu)
Tues, August 4-adoption process
Wed-Fri, August 5-7-sightseeing and free days
Fri, August 7-fly to Guangzhou in the evening – China Hotel in Guangzhou
Sat: August 8-Medical exam for children in Guangzhou
Sun: August 9 – free day
Mon: August 10-free day
Tues, August 11-visa appt
Wed, August 12- take oath at the US Consulate and get child’s visa late in the day
Thurs, August 13, families can return to the US
Fri, August 14, home at last!!

I can't believe it's finally happening. I feel a little like I did the day they told me when they would induce labor with Grace, overwhelmed, awestruck, but a feeling of joy that can't be explained.

New PIctures!!

I logged into my email this morning to find quite a surprise. 3 new pictures and new height & weight for Lila. She is now 31.5 inches tall and 21 pounds. Can you believe how much my new little miss has changed since her last pictures? Isn't she the cutest little thing?!?!

Our agency told me yesterday that they are working on our appointments with the consulate and orphange and the estimate travel in late July.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOO exciting!

Chongqing Videos

This is a series of videos shot from a helicopter in Chongqing. It has given me an idea of the area we will be in and where our little one is.

http://chongqing.spicycity.cn/index.php/nkxcq2008series/

SCL arrived today

Christina from our agency called this afternoon. I was sitting by the phone and didn't even check caller id so had no idea who it was. I was happily surprised that it was her with very good news. Our packet with all of Lila's official information and the letter we will sign saying "Yes, we want to adopt her" will arrive tomorrow. We sign that & send it back to our agency then start waiting for them to tell us when we can travel. Hoping, hoping, hoping, it's July. I have a major birthday in July so it would be amazing to get my little girl for my birthday. This is another big milestone and it's a huge relief to have reached it.

Our Girls

I have been waiting over 2 years to take a picture of Grace holding Lila's referral picture. What a blessing to finally be able to take that picture. Don't you love that posed look on Grace's face? She is my drama queen.

Details

I was so excited to post Lila's pictures that I forgot to add any details.

In December she was 29 inches tall and 17.6 lbs

She is in the Bishan County Social Welfare Institute in the province of Chongqing. Chongqing is the largest city in China, so large that it is a province in itself. This wikipedia link gives a lot of information about the area.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chongqing

Her birthday is May 25, 2007 so she is 3 years younger than Grace. I wanted my girls to be close in age like Carol Ann and I so they can be as close as we are, we're almost 2 years apart.

Her Chinese name Bi Si Shi means she is a beautiful cute girl and full of oriental temperament. Her nannies at the orphange wrote that when asked to make another little girl stop crying, Sishi would pat her back or hold her hands. Sishi is clever and has a ready smile. she has white skin and long eyelash which make her adorable. We all love this beautiful little angel. I know they are caring for her as best they can until we can start caring for OUR newest little angel.

Here she is!

We got our preapproval (PA) late last night which was early this morning in China!! We are very excited & relieved to have reached this step. Our next step is the official approval called the seeking confirmation letter (SCL) after that we receive travel approval (TA)then we go get her!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We were slightly delayed getting our PA but Christina (our social worker) kept reassuring me that it would come. She said there is truly no rhyme or reason as to how quickly approvals are coming right now, it's different for every case. ANYWAY we are incredibly happy, totally in love, and more impatient than I have ever been to get my baby!

We found her!

What an amazing, exciting, overwhelming day! I took Grace to the eye doctor this morning, as we were getting ready to leave Gerry called to tell me that Christina with CHI had just called and they had a baby for us to review. As soon as I got home Gerry & I sat down with her paperwork, without a doubt we decided that THIS IS LILA! We immediately called Christina back, left a message, she called, then we told her YES! We then sent in our Letter of Intent to Adopt. Now we wait for China to respond with our Seeking Confirmation Letter. At that point I can offically post her name, location in China, and pictures on the blog.

Snoopy totally sums up our feelings!!

Penguins

We went to the zoo today with Lisa & Hudson for a class about penguins. When we arrived the teacher told Grace that there was also a Gracie in the class. We all laughed about that then got seated. I had to ask Gracie's mom, "I'm sorry, I'm going to be horribly rude, but is she from China?" I quickly followed that with "we're a waiting family." It was a great experience to talk to another local mom with a daughter from China. We had a nice chat about their experiences, the wait, and the overall joys of adoption.

Grace & Hudson had a great time. They learned all kinds of penguin facts, learned how to balance eggs on their feet like penguins do when hatching, went to the aquarium to watch the penguins in their habitat, then came back to the classroom for a snack, craft, and story. The best part by far was getting to meet & pet a real penguin. One of the zoo keepers brought in a small, South African, penguin to meet the kids. The adults got to pet her too! Her name is Louis, yes, Louis is a girl. Her boyfriend's name is Lisa. I guess the only way to find out a penguin's sex is an exam by a veterinarian. They had already been named before their keepers knew their sex. They differentiate the sexes of the birds for zoo purposes with a black wingband for boys & a white wingband for the girls. Grace & I will have fun on our next zoo visit finding the girl & boy penguins.

There is an adorable children's book about penguins. The title is "And Tango Makes Three." It's the story of 2 male penguins at the Central Park Zoo that fall in love. They try to hatch a rock so the zookeepers decide to give them a fertilized egg. They proceed to hatch the egg and are wonderful parents to their little chick Tango.

A bright spot in a long week

This was one of those weeks then today brought a couple tidbits of exciting news. We have at long last received our immigration reapproval. It took over 6 months but it finally came today. What a truly wonderful surprise in the mailbox!! This afternoon we received an email from Children's Hope that they have received their official accreditation & submitted it to CCAA. We should know soon when we will be able to review waiting children again. It feels like we are back on track!