There's No Place Like Home

We are all so thankful to be home. Our first night back in our own beds, complete with pillowtop mattresses, down comforters and soft pillows, felt like heaven compared to the cement slab twin beds at the White Swan Hotel (I'm still puzzeled by their 5 star ranking). Aubrey has been adjusting very well to her new surrounding and addition of 2 more brothers. She smiles most of the time, is playful and mischievious. She is still not a fan of Daisy and has recently caused me to have back spasms with the constant holding and picking her up. She now has to cope with the dog because I am in too much pain to continue toting her around. Dave, Chris and Nate have been wonderful with helping me.

In the last week she has learned over 60 words in English and is using phrases correctly. Her favorites are "find shoes", "brush your teeth", "find ge ge", and "I love you". She is no longer afraid of the grass and is running all over the place. She loves being outside with the boys and has proved to be fearless. She loves going down the slides on Nate and Chris' laps and will blow me kisses as she runs to follow them for another ride.

She will scream "Ma" if I'm not giving her my undivided attention just as any 3 year old would. Her smiles of discovery and joy have made the entire 2 and a half year wait and 14 days in Guangzhou worth every second. China may have some distressing customs, but without them we would not have our little girl.

Just a Few More Signs

After 17 hours on airplanes and another 2 standing in lines at security check points and immigrations we finally got to our van. We braced ourselves for Aubrey's displeasure at being buckled into a carseat for the first time. She did not dissapoint. She cried on and off for the entire 3 hour drive from Detroit to our house. As Dave and I thought we would not be able to stay awake in the last 30 minutes it began to rain. As we approached the final few miles the sun came out and we were blessed with a brilliant rainbow for the final leg of our journey home.

A few days after being home I recieved an email from a stranger. A friend had shared our blog with her, as both had adopted from China in the past few years. This person, Connie, was very disappointed that the orphanage had denied us Aubrey's memory book. Connie has become involved with the Half the Sky charity since her return from China, and she made calls on our behalf to her contacts over there. Currently, Aubrey's memory book has left the orphanage and been sent to the Civil Affairs office. We are praying for GWCA to have our guide Kelley pick up the book and have it sent to us. GWCA representatives have stated they need to clear it through the CCAA. I don't know why the memory book would be important to the CCAA, but it would mean the world to Aubrey some day when she begins to ask questions about where she came from.

We're Coming to America

Yes!!! We have finally made it back home. The journey was long and trying but we made it. Aubrey only cried for a few minutes on the plane. She needed to go to the bathroom but the "lavatories" on the plane were too frightening. We passed immigrations with no problems, as soon as we stepped beyond their center Aubrey became a US citizen. It took along time to get through all the lines in Detroit but as we finally made our way to the exit, we all braced ourselves for the 58 degree weather.

Instead, we were still in the airport at a receiving area. I could not believe my eyes to see both of my sisters, and niece Emma, waiting there for us. At the sight of my sisters, my closest friends and confidants, I finally broke down and began to cry. Tears of happiness and relief to be back on American soil. All of the following photos are because they both took off work to greet their new niece, and welcome their family back home. I love you two more than words can express. ( Notice that Aubrey is 3 years old, Emma is 18 months).

Aubrey was thrilled to see our car, but did not approve of the car seat. We have since taken many short car trips that have gotten her used to "Aubrey's seat". She now points to the front door and the van, ready to go at any time.

We are adjusting to Daisy. Each day we hear new screams as Aubrey is completely terrified of the dog. Poor Daisy lopes off with her ears down and tail between her legs, I'm sure Daisy is thinking "I am not an animal". All of your prayers have worked in the past 3 weeks, how about a few more. I need for Aubrey to come to terms with Daisy, that great big dog is part of our family too. I can't return phone calls, get the luggage out of the dining room or pay bills as Aubrey needs me to hold her constantly. Of course I will not put her down, God knows I've waited 2 1/2 years for her. So be warned any visitors, my house is a mess! I'm a mess! But we are home safely and that is all that counts.

To the Consulate

Yesterday we made our long awaited trip to the American Consulate. All of our papers were in order. I'm still not sure what all the fuss was with the USCIS before we left Granger, but I'm happy to have Aubrey's immigration papers in hand.

When we arrived at the Consulate Aubrey became very anxious and started to panic. I wish I knew what was going through her head. I think, she thought we were going back to the orphanage. Someday soon she may tell us. She is already saying some words in English.

Her favorite words are flower, car, light and water. Yesterday she said her first complete sentence, "Where'd Gege(brother in Chinese) go? Chris said she also told him "Get Baba". She has a bit of mischief in her. Nate and Gabe she bit a fork at the table, you both know how much your Dad loves that.

We have stayed so long at the hotel, I have noticed Aubrey points to the stroller every time she is hungry. Wait til she sees the kitchen in our house and begins to realize that food is always available. The last few days she has been doing very well. She played in the Swan Room (a large playroom with Mattel toys) for almost 30-40 minutes last night. Anytime we took her there during the first 9 days she wanted to leave almost immediately. I'll try to include some video but we are having difficulty with the laptop incorporating the clips so it may be only pictures.

In the morning we leave here - Yeah!!!!! So back there in the USA, on Tues. night at 8:20 we fly to Tokyo, then to Detroit to land at 1:20 pm wed. I'm not sure how long it will take to get through immigrations but then we drive home. We should be home around 6pm Wed. night.
I see local temperatures are in the 70's, I can't wait. We are all so ready for Fall!!!

The Heat has Broken

Praise God, you can finally walk outside without melting. Last night was blessedly cooler and with a breeze. Our guide took us to the Qingping market, the largest herbal market in China.

Kelley said that pharmacists from all over China come to this market for their herbs to make their medicines. We saw dried seahorses, starfish, deer legs and more. There were alot of animals and even tubs full of live scorpions. Chris was thrilled with the market.

Then we walked into the down town area, like a Chinese Times Square. We ate at a Dim Sum restaurant. Aubrey ate a huge bowl of noodle soup. She looked like a tick ready to pop. When we got back to our room, she ate her first chocolate. She loved it! As you can see in the picture.

I think, and hope we have crossed the bridge, turned the corner with her. Today she has been pleasant and her eyes look bright. She was happy to see us all this morning. We decided to skip the tours today since we already went to pearl and jade markets in Beijing.

Tomorrow we get her visa at the consulate, Tuesday we pack! I'm so happy we are almost done here. Thanks for the kind comments, it's wonderful to have the support from home! Love you all. Kelley(sister) Happy Birthday! I have a wonderful present for you, another playmate for Emma.

Four More Days

I don't think either Dave or myself thought it would be this hard. Aubrey is having a very difficult time. Imagine living in a hotel room with 2 twin beds and a crib with 4 people. All we want is to get out of the room, once outside we want back in the room because of the unbearable heat.



I liken it to throwing a birthday party for ten 6 year olds. The games have all been played, the gifts opened and the cake and ice cream eaten, and there is another whole hour before the parents come back to claim their children. I have done everything I can think of to calm her and nothing helps for very long.



We do have windows of time where she is engaging and alot of fun. I am just feeling tapped and drained of patience. Please send prayers for Dave and I as patience is not a talent either of us possess.



We are both dreaming of our 2 boys at home, Hi Nate and Gabe, we miss you terribly. Sorry, can't get the pictures to work today.

Four more days

Visit to Shenzhen

Today we were lucky to visit the orphanage that Aubrey lived in for the last 3 years. It was about 2 and a half hours from Guangzhou. The typhoon was coming inward on the South China Sea so we had some rain on the way but overall the increased wind and slight drop in temperature was appreciated.

The orphanage was dreary and bleak from the outside. Once inside we found the heat unbearable. I now understand why Aubrey will not sleep with a blanket covering her. There is only 1 other family with our group. We visited their 4 year olds living quarters first. There were large rooms with row upon row of cribs with babies up to maybe 5 years old. After that age they are sent to kindergarten.

Next we saw Aubrey's wing on the 4th floor. I was appalled. The conditions on her wing were grim at best. It was all I could do to keep my emotions in check to ask the caregiver questions I had written in advance. Dave was the fortunate one. Aubrey clung to him like glue as soon as we arrived in the area where she had a preschool class. As soon as we began to climb the stairs to the 4th floor she panicked. Dave took her outside to wait while Chris and I finished the tour. If you can picture the images of the Romanian orphanages years ago as shown on tv, that is what our little girl lived in for 3 years. There were children from a few months to 16-17 years old on her wing. I didn't believe her nanny about the scratches on her face when we got Aubrey, after seeing the older children in varying degrees of mental and physical capabilities it became crystal clear how it happened.

The assistant director refused to allow us the memory books made by her teachers in the Half the Sky program. We were allowed to take pictures of the book, in pics of Aubrey as early as 9 months her little face is scratched up. She has quite the temper and will slap all of us if she doesn't get her way. Tonight when she was refusing to go to bed and Dave walked over to pick her up she cowered and covered her head with her arms as if he were about to strike her. We do not know what has been done to her but by her reactions and behaviors we are sure it wasn't always good. Please keep her in your prayers that she will heal with love and forget the traumas she experienced here. Dave and I both saw caregivers who loved and cared for her deeply so we know she did have some wonderful care here too. They do the best they can do. When there are 40 children and 2 nannies a lot can happen that shouldn't.

Altough smelling strongly of urine and being way to hot, the childrens indoor play areas were cheery. Dave and I were both impressed that all the classrooms had pianos in them. Pictured above is the actual crib Aubrey slept in.

On Monday I took Aubrey to her medical examination. She is running a temperature, and the docs found a heart murmur that was not previously documented. Thank God I have brought Motrin and antibiotics from home.

Tonight Miss Aubrey was feeling better. I think the trip to the orphanage helped her to be okay with us. She definitely did not want to stay there! She is Daddies girl for now, not wanting much to do with Chris or me. As long as she is attaching to one of us I am thrilled. Each day seems to get a tiny tiny bit easier. I never thought it possible to find a child more stubborn that Nate, but we managed to do just that. When I told Nate "She's more persistent than you", he just laughed.

For all the naysayers, Chris has done us proud, he has eaten: crayfish, herring ( whole, with head and eggs inside), dragonfruit, dried seaweed, fried pumpkin, chicken satay, possibly duck or pigeon(I know that it was not chicken!), and the list grows daily. He has only used the peanut butter 2 times on this trip so far!

Mandarin Lessons

Trying to learn Chinese on the fly. Should have done the Rosetta Stone program. Anyway, we are slowly finding ways to communicate. I was previously told that my daughter was going to have me wrapped around her little pinky. Guess what. That is exactly what has happened. When she has hold of something, she will not let it go. She can only point with her pinky finger for what she wants. Baba (me) is her servant.

She loves bacon, tomatoes, eggs, and congee (still not sure what that stuff is - rice gruel?) She has a temper! And she hates bath time!

We are definitely bonding very well. She is mostly smiles today. Especially when hitting Baba upside the head with a ball!

Hot is not a good word for the weather. Take the humidity from FL and put it in AZ then turn up the temp. Uhhgg! We did get to visit a temple and were allowed to take a few pics.

Table for Six Please

It's final. We are now a family of 6. In Chinese tradition, the number 6 means "smooth and easy." The only thing smooth yesterday was the floor in the room where she was handed over to us. It was a cold, isolating place in which Aubrey was terrified.

She cried for 3 hours straight, which we were hoping for. This was a great sign that she was able to form attachments and be able to form more in her future. It was very surreal. It was nothing as I would have imagined. Right now she is a mama's girl. At rare moments, Aubrey will let baba (me) hold her until mama gets her shoes on. Then it's back to mama. That's ok. She will get used to me eventually. She is starting to smile a little today. Last night, she laughed after she burped. I guess she will fit in perfectly with three boys.

Thank you all for such supportive and thoughtful comments. They have meant alot!

I tried to add a few extra pics for you to enjoy. Tomorrow I will try some video.

Welcome To Family Day

Aubrey Jian Hua Haghiri

No time to write. Here she is. A real Doll!!