Today was the day that our whole trip centered around….our American Consulate appointment. While we were in Changsha, we finalized the Chinese portion of things and got her passport. While we are in Guangzhou, we finalize the U.S. side of things. The only thing standing in our way right this second is getting her Visa. We should receive it tomorrow afternoon around 4:15 pm. Once we have that, we are ready to come home, and once she steps foot on American soil, she is an American citizen.
We had to leave the hotel at 7:40am this morning in order to make our Consulate Appointment time, so we had to get up early to get everyone ready and have breakfast. It takes a little more time getting and extra kiddo ready in the morning, and Little Miss likes to take her time eating!
In this picture, Olivia is carrying the photo album that I made and sent to her a few months ago while she was still in the orphanage. I never knew if they received it, or what they did with it. The orphanage workers said that they "prepared" her for this, but who knows. She sits and looks at the pictures, so maybe she has seen it before. I think today I heard her say, "Mama," but it may have been wishful thinking. The disposable camera that I sent had not been opened. :(
This is drinkable yogurt that Olivia has here. You put a straw in it, and drink. The first day, I was feeding it to her with a spoon, and an older Chinese woman stopped and said, "Need straw; no spoon." So, from then on out, we've gotten the little straw. The yogurt is much more liquidy than ours. Olivia loves it! She also had watermelon, noodles, and rice this morning.
This little girl has impressive noodle-eating skills already. I can't explain it to you, but the Chinese can eat noodles like nobody's business. Most of the restaurants here don't have napkins, except for the small box on the tables (and some of those are Kleenex material)…..that's how good they are. Clearly, Olivia inherited that gene. She is also showing quite a bit of interest in feeding herself.
She's quite messy, but that's okay.
U-S-A! U-S-A!
We were all dressed in our red, white, & blue today! Look at that cute little dimple on her left cheek.
They are very strict at the American Consulate and for good reason. We were only able to take a clear Ziploc bag with us. No backpacks, no phones, no cameras. The only place we could take pictures was outside the building; then, we had to give our cameras to our guide, Simon.
Unfortunately, Olivia got car sick on the way to the Consulate appointment and threw up in the van. I did have some wipes with me, but no extra outfit since I could only have a Ziploc bag. Thankfully, it wasn't too bad. We first went back to the medical clinic to pick up the medical tests. We waited outside while our guide went in to get everything. We had to leave the envelope sealed and place with our other paperwork for the Consulate. Here we are waiting for Simon.
I forgot to mention that we got Olivia some light up shoes while we were at Shamian Island yesterday. She is fascinated by them! That's what she is doing here.
The Consulate was an interesting experience. Before this appointment, we had to double and triple check our paperwork. If anything, and I mean anything was askew, it could delay us days. That is why we met earlier in the week to go over everything with our guide. He also reviewed everything again last night.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, the Consulate moved recently to this new building, and it is nice. There were basically 3 lines: one for adoptions, one for immigration visas (people wanting to move to the US), and travel visas (people wanting to travel to the US). The line for the immigration visas was by far the longest. I wish I had thought to get a picture, but it was so crazy that I didn't get a chance. The Chinese people were dressed very nicely to enter the Consulate. I imagine they had to be interviewed. Here are the only pictures we could take outside the building:
Olivia is uninterested in being photographed here.
We went through our special line, through a metal detector, into a courtyard, and into another door. Then, we went up to the 2nd floor and had to get a number from window #7. We were number C507. There were 10 windows. I have no idea what all of the other windows were for; we only used about 3 of them while we were in there. It would remind you of a bank with different teller stations with chairs set up theater style in front of the windows. The officers/workers are behind glass with microphones. Most of them were Chinese that also spoke English, but the head lady was American. There was also a little play area for the kids. Again, an awesome experience seeing these children from all walks of life play together, even though they all don't speak the same language. There were probably 10 other families in the room with us. The head lady (American) had us all stand and take an oath that basically said that all of our paperwork was filled out by us and was true to the best of our knowledge. Then, they started calling families up one by one. Only one parent had to go up, so Philip went up for us. They confirmed my maiden name, looked through our paperwork, took a fingerprint from him, and he sat down. Very painless and anti-climactic, considering how important the day was in the big picture.
While we were waiting, I got to know a couple from Cincinnati. This was their 2nd adoption from China. Their newest little girl (aka "newbie") is also 2 years old, and just a few days younger than Olivia. Their little girl had a cleft lip, but it was very minor. She was definitely stockier than Olivia, but about the same height. I have met so many wonderful people on this trip, and everyone and every child has a story. They aren't just a number like sometimes I feel they are treated. Each one is special in his/her own way and deserves a loving family.
After the Consulate visit, we rode back to the hotel, freshened up, and went on another adventure…..to the zoo! The subway system is only 2 years old here and is very clean and nice (and has English!). We only had to go 2 stops, but it was a big deal for us to get there and back on our own. Simon went with us but did not go into the zoo, so we had to find our way back. The subway station is right outside our hotel, so that is so nice and convenient.
The zoo was pretty nice. Again, they charge by height, so our kiddos were free once again…..for the zoo and the subway. The zoo had a lot of different animals that we don't have in our zoos: pigs, deer, peacocks, and panda bears (except for a couple of zoos in the US), just to name a few. It wasn't as nice as the Nashville Zoo or the National Zoo in DC, but it was pretty good. Olivia slept through most of it, but that's okay. She woke up at the end and got to see a few animals. (Many of you have asked how big she is; she's wearing a Carter's 18 month dress in these zoo pictures.)
I love that Ansley has made a new friend. This is Emily from Arkansas. She is 8 and was adopted a few years ago. She came to get a little sister, age 6, I believe.
This is where we bought the subway tickets.
Outside the zoo….they are decorated for May 1st. It is their "Labor Day" and a holiday.
Most workers get 2-3 days off to celebrate.
Snoozing away...
Some people dress up to come to the zoo, and here in China, I've seen many of the men carrying the wife/girlfriend's purse….interesting….
Oh, and neck bibs were out in force again today, just no pictures to show.
Peacock
The elephant was hot and inside his "house." All you can see here is his trunk and tusks.
This is the panda habitat.
Unfortunately, they were inside their house having lunch while we were there.
Ice Cream Break!
After we got off the subway, we walked to a store called Aeon. It is basically a Super Target that is about 5 stories high. The bottom level is the supermarket, and the upper levels have baby supplies, clothes, toys, adult clothes, shoes, housewares, etc. We needed some diapers and a new sippy cup. (Unfortunately, we left Olivia's favorite cup at the Chinese restaurant the other night, and she is not happy with the others that I brought.)
We then walked a couple of blocks to McDonald's. Let me tell you how excited I was for a hamburger and french fries!!! I cannot even begin to tell you!! We had a great time there and then walked back to the hotel. The girls then napped. It was a busy day yesterday and today, so it was nice to get some rest. After that, I took the girls to the indoor playroom here at the hotel, and Philip walked to Pizza Hut to get pizza. We had a pizza party in our room. Definitely not a healthy diet for us today, but after many days eating what we've been eating, I didn't mind to splurge! After dinner, it was bath time. Olivia will now sit down in a regular bath tub and has so much fun with Ansley. It is such a blessing to hear their giggles while playing together. I never really thought that day would come, and I can't ever imagine growing tired of hearing it.
It's hard to believe, but tomorrow is our last full day in China and then we start the trek back. We have a free day until around 4:15pm, when we meet our guide in the lobby to get the kids' visas. Our plan is to take our time in the morning with breakfast, possibly take the girls to the pool, and then pack…..we basically have no plans, which is nice. We have to leave the hotel bright and early on Thursday morning, so it will be an early night for us tomorrow night as well. We will be taking a van to Hong Kong to catch our flight. We fly to Chicago and then on to NashVegas!!!
It has definitely been the trip of a lifetime. For all of you parents in the process, or getting ready to travel, it is true what you hear: if you can make it the week in the province, it will feel like a mini-vacation once you get to Guangzhou! Trust me! This 2nd week has flown by!! Granted, they've kept us pretty busy, but the hotel and surroundings are just so much nicer!
You know, it is so amazing how you immediately bond with these families, and when someone asks, "How are you doing?" it means so much more….it means, "How is your newbie doing?" "How are you sleeping?" "How's the transition going?" "How are the siblings bonding?" "How are you bonding with the newbie?" And, since Olivia is seriously the only healthy one that I've seen this trip, I don't mind asking what the special need is….if I can't tell. Everyone is so open about sharing their journey and their story. We are so blessed that God chose us to be in this special circle of wonderful people.
We understand that the weather has been bad in the Southeast. We pray that all of you are safe.
Until next time,
Jill
1 comment:
Thank you for allowing all of us to share in your joy and journey. We are so blessed to experience your special "newbie" enter your family circle. Can't wait for a visit to Camden.
Much love,
Betty Jordan
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