Hannah update

Well another year has come and gone and I haven't gotten any better at
keeping up with the posts. I am making this post via my iPhone and if
successful maybe I will start doing it again with some frequency.

Hannah is really turning into a lovely little lady. Mind you she has
plenty of age appropriate attitude, but that is to be expected right?

She turned 3 just a few weeks ago and started preschool last
Wednesday. Our baby is growing up too fast!

I took her to her ballet class yesterday and she loved following the
teacher's directions and trying to point her toes. She talks about
ballet all the time now since starting the class and even wants to sleep in her
tutu. Angelina Balletina is moving in on Thomas the Train and Bob the
Builder for her affections.

.a

Gotcha Day—First Anniversary

Well it has been awhile since I last posted. In fact it has been almost a year. I would feel bad about it if I didn't have a good excuse and someone to blame.

Hannah has been keeping us busy since we first met her exactly one year ago today. It has been a wonderful year full of indescribable memories and experiences. So many people who meet Hannah tell us what a luck girl she is. If only they knew the truth of the matter—we are the lucky ones. Michelle and I feel very blessed.

Both Michelle and I took the day off today to spend it with Hannah. I have included a picture here of us together from today to show how much she has changed over the course of the past 365 days.

Hopefully, future posts will be more frequent.

andrew

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

First, I must apologize that there are no pictures to be posted for today. We spent the day traveling from Guangzhou to Hong Kong. Deceivingly, the flight is only 40 minutes but... we left the hotel at 9am, the plane was delayed and we didn't land until 2ish. It took about an hour to go through entry to the country (there was a form we didn't know we needed to fill out), get our baggage, go through customs, change money to Hong Kong dollars, arrange the shuttle to the hotel and then drive to the hotel. By the time we got there we had been traveling for 7.5 hours! And all for one night in Hong Kong since we couldn't get a connection home today. The most important thing is that Hannah was a trooper and smiled or slept through a good part of our adventure.

It is overcast in Hong Kong so no trip to Victoria's peak or ride on the ferry. Next time...
We were really exhausted anyway and it took all the energy Trish, Jason, Andrew or myself had to go out to dinner (or linner- lunch and dinner combo since we didn't eat lunch today).
Sitting at dinner we realized that all 7.5 hours were worth it. We went to a little neighborhood hole in the wall that was recommended by the Lonely Planet guide book. The owner/waiter ordered for us- his top recommendations- and then he and his wife (the cashier), the waitresses and the cook fussed over Hannah and Elizabeth. They were very interested in the girls and asked a lot of questions. The owner, the "dumpling king" (and those pot stickers were delicious), told us how lucky he thought the girls were and how he, as a Chinese citizen, was very happy and very proud and glad that the girls were coming home with us. Of course, we all said in unison that we are the lucky ones!

The weather has cleared a bit and are able to look out over Victoria Harbor from our 28th story room with a view. It is full of neon and cars and cityscape and boats. What a way to end our journey here in China. We will miss it but look forward to bringing Hannah back someday so she can experience all her birth country has to offer.

Thanks to all of you who have "tuned in" for our (almost) daily reports. We love all of you and know that the second you see Hannah, you will understand why this whole trip has been so wonderful.

Michelle

Do You Solemnly Swear

All trips must slowly come to an end and ours is certainly reaching that point. While we have loved our time here in China, we both miss everyone and the pets back home. Of course, getting back means I have to return to work in a week and this is certainly the downside of leaving.

Today we experienced the last official milestone in the whole adoption process, our interview and oath ceremony at the US Consulate to get Hannah's visa. It was a teary moment despite the fact that it lasted all of 15 seconds once the consulate official asked us over the loudspeaker to stand, raise our right hand and solemnly swear that all the answers we gave on our forms were true. We collectively said yes and our daughter was free to enter the US of A on an IR3 class visa. This basically means that she can become a US citizen as soon as we touch down in the states.

Don't look for any pictures of the ceremony because we were not allowed to bring any electronic equipment of any kind into the consulate. Our bottles of water were even taken. What they didn't take was Hannah's bottle of formula. I imagine they must have learned a lesson sometime in the past after confiscating the bottles of dozens of hungry babies.

After breakfast, we took a cab to the fabric market to find backing for Hannah's 100 wishes quilt. Michelle planned all along to buy something here for it to add that special touch.

Shopping in this country is certainly a unique experience. The markets are overwhelming. There are dedicated markets here for jade, pearl, electronics, toys, fabric, etc. Walk in and you immediately suffer from choice paralysis. Multi-floor buildings teaming with small stalls, each overflowing with merchandise and people browsing, bargaining, and buying.

Since we wanted to walk home from the market, we put Hannah in a carrier on Michelle's back. It was loaned to us by friends that made the trip to China last November to pick up their daughter. It worked great. She loved it and eventually fell asleep.

On the way back to the hotel we stopped in a traditional tea shop and were treated to a sampling by the proprietor. His table was very fascinating and he had a little ceremony that he performed in order to prepare the sample serving. We walked out of there with some very aromatic jasmine tea.

Further along on our walk we stumbled upon the toy market. This was unintended, but we couldn't resist taking a detour and walking through. We managed to get out of there without buying any toys. All we got was a little Chinese knot that hangs from your door during the New Year celebration to symbolize good luck.

After dinner with the group we whisked Hannah off to the room to give her a bath and get her to bed. Despite the rush I couldn't help having some fun with her in her makeshift bathtub. The accompanying picture tells all.

We have been trying to get her to sleep earlier than when we first got her and she seems to appreciate it. We leave early tomorrow for our flight to Hong Kong and we need her to be well rested.

Andrew

Group Shot

Today was a quiet day...full of shopping. Since it was raining on and off we stayed close to the hotel. Thankfully, the area around the White Swan caters quite well to the Americans here to complete their adoption at the US Consulate. Gift shops galore. Every imaginable trinket and Chinese souvenir to tug at the new mother's (and occasionally father's) heart. "Look at this traditional Chinese outfit. Sooooo cute. My daughter simply must have this in all available sizes so she can wear it to every special event from now through high school." All kidding aside the dresses are very cute and we have it on good authority that the girls love them for a long time.

The only real highlight of the day was dressing the girls up in their traditional outfits and taking a group picture on the red couch in the lobby of the White Swan. Families have made a custom of doing this and the whole process just wouldn't seem complete without it. Of course, it is the hardest photo to stage because the tots are squirmy and fussy and easily distracted. Oh well, so much for my art direction skills. You just have to love the shot for its realism.

Michelle got a good candid shot of me showing Hannah a little affection. It was a rare moment. Not. I can't help myself. I've fallen hard.

Tomorrow we have our appointment at the US Consulate to pick up Hannah's visa. The end of this part of our journey is almost over. Friday we leave for Hong Kong. I am not permitted to take any photos at the consulate so the post tomorrow may be text only. Unless, of course, Michelle can catch another candid. ;)

Andrew

Shop 'Til You Drop

We left Changsha yesterday evening. We spent our last day walking around the city and eating at the Food Street one more time (Andrew just could not get enough of the place!).

We survived our first plane ride (much to my relief). I was quite anxious about how it would go, but Hannah could not have been better. She tried desperately to get the man sitting next to us to play with her, but, to no avail. She even grabbed his magazine at one point and he simply moved it further away from her. The lack of attention from a complete stranger is a new experience for her and she wasn't quite sure what to do! The best part of the flight was the snack, which was a tube of Ritz-like crackers individually wrapped in crinkly wrapping. She spent the 50 minutes playing with the unwrapped cracker package- banging them, throwing them on the floor, playing with the wrapping. She had such fun that we saved the pack for the plane ride home. Hopefully it will provide several more hours of entertainment. Despite the fact that she has an ear infection (which I am not treating since it does not seem to bother her in the least), she only cried on the plane when we landed and that was because she had pooped just as the plane was touching ground. Great timing!

We made it to the White Swan Hotel in Guangzhou about 8:30 pm. This hotel is full of Americans adopting Chinese children. We all have to come to Guangzhou because this is where the US Consulate that deals with adoptions is located. The White Swan is legendary in Chinese adoption lore in the US. Practically everyone stays here. We are in good company (or at least famous company) since Queen Elizabeth, International Olympic Committee chairman J. A. Samaranch, Deng Xiaoping and President Nixon have all been guests here. It is quite something to walk around and see so many Chinese children with American parents.

This morning we went for visa pictures and for Hannah's medical exam, which are required by the consulate. The exam lasted all of 2 minutes (if you add up all the components). She weighed in a 16# 6 oz and was 69 cm. The best part of the exam was the doctor who pinched Hannah's thighs and said she was fine and sent us off to the next part of the exam!

After she had her "medical" done, Anli showed us the lay of the land. The hotel is on Shaiman Island. It did not take long to discover that the island is chock full of souvenir shops filled to the brim with Chinese clothes, baby clothes, shoes and much more. Most of the stores have very similar, if not the same, things and they are eager to make us a "good deal". They clearly know who their clientele is as it seems things are geared towards Americans who are ready to spend, spend, spend on their newly adopted Chinese babies!

It was eye opening when we left the island to walk around other parts of Guangzhou this afternoon. We walked through a HUGE traditional Chinese medicine market. Scorpions, anyone? If you fry them and eat them, they help with arthritis. Traditional Chinese medicine does not believe in curing as much as they do preventing illness. They believe that the body is all connected and basically, if you are sick, your connections are out of whack. They spend most of their time trying to keep the connections aligned, if you will, with daily doses of Chinese medicines either as soup, wine or tea.

We also went to an unbelievable pearl and jade markets. There were pearls everywhere. We splurged and bought Hannah a strand of pearls with matching bracelet and earrings for a future gift. So all you grandparents out there, you are on notice. No pearls as gifts! Other jewels are fine, but pearls are covered.

Tomorrow is a free day for us. Anli has to go to the consulate to get the paperwork started, but we get to spend our day oooohing and aaaaahing over Hannah.

Michelle

All Things Good To Eat

This trip is turning out to be as much a culinary experience as it is a cultural and adoption one. We took a morning trip to Hunan University's campus to walk around and explore their Confucius temple. It is the oldest university in China. One of the buildings was built in 976 AD. On the sides of the entry way are 2 quotes from eminent Chinese scholars that basically say that all the best people go to the school and all the best people are from Hunan Province. Of course, we know that already since Hannah is from here. Oh, by the way, Mao once taught at the school.

We had lunch again at our favorite restaurant off the hotel lobby. We continue to explore the many options from throughout the country plus order some of our favorites. Hannah gets to sample almost everything that we try. She is such a good eater. We are very excited. So far she has tried pumpkin, egg plant, spicy noodles (maybe too spicy), fermented soy beans, steamed egg, smoked tofu, watermelon, grapes, and yogurt. We even gave her shad roe at the Japanese restaurant we ate at the other night. It was a big hit.

Lunch was followed by a meeting to go over the paperwork we will need for our meeting at the US Consulate. We are flying to Guangzhou tomorrow for the next to last leg of our journey. Hannah needs to get a visa in order to enter the States. The process includes a medical examine, an interview and a few pictures. The whole process will be complete by Thursday.

For dinner tonight we ate again at the Japanese restaurant, only this time we had a feast. Anli, our Chinese coordinator, accompanied us and whenever she is around the ordering improves tremendously. We must have had about 8 courses. The meal started off with the table side chef preparing really large shrimp. She meticulously cut, peeled and cleaned each one and carefully set the heads off to one side. They were seasoned and cooked throughout the whole meal, at which point she delicately served one to each of us. I told her eating shrimp heads was against my religion, but she wasn't buying it (maybe if she spoke English I would have gotten off the hook). The instructions were to eat them shell and all. I could only bring my self to try a few bites from the neck side. There was no way I was downing the whole thing. As the saying goes 'When in China'. They were very crunchy and tasted a little like overcooked popcorn.

After dinner, we all rushed up to Anli's hotel room where we were met by the lovely ladies from the photo studio with our albums. For those of you not following the blog religiously, you need to know we all went to have our girls photographed at a local place that was recommended to Anli by another guide. The experience was a bit kitschy, but fun nonetheless. Hannah got to try on many different traditional outfits and she was a hit with her big smile and happy disposition. We ordered a package deal that included a book, a small folding screen, book marks, and wallet cards. We look forward to sharing some of the items with the grandparents.

Michelle has done a great job of packing up all our stuff, which has unexplainably grown since we arrived almost beyond the capacity of our available luggage space. I foresee another suitcase in our future for the trip home.

In closing, I have to mention that Hannah is saying Da Da. Michelle claims that she doesn't associate the words with me yet, but my head and heart are swelling regardless.

Andrew