Trip to China
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Tuesday,
September 2, 2008
ADOPTION DAY AND
VISIT TO YIWU
“Nobody has ever
measured, not even poets, how much the heart can hold.”
~Zelda Fitzgerald
Sophie had a great first night with us! She fell asleep quickly
and easily and slept for about 10 hours. We gave her a bath
(which is not her favorite thing) and took her to the breakfast
buffet. I really think she ate more than we did! After every
bite she would look at us and smile so big her eyes would
completely disappear! So sweet! We learned that she can drink an
entire yogurt from a straw without even stopping. She has loved
everything we have offered her. She is very dainty when she
eats, and I love it when she bites the tail off her goldfish
crackers before putting the rest in her mouth : )
Today was adoption day! Our guide, Rebecca, met us at 8:30 a.m.
and took us back to the conference room at the Civil Affairs
Bureau where we first met Sophie. One of the women who was
present the day before was there. I believe she was the notary.
It was a short, private ceremony. Rebecca told us that this was
a very special moment. They had Ian, Sophie and I stand at the
front of the conference room in front of a Chinese flag. The
woman read a short statement about the adoption and that after a
review conducted by the People’s Republic of China they had
determined that we have met all the adoption requirements and
legally named Ni Lu Qian our daughter. The woman presented us
with Sophie’s adoption decree which is the document which
officially makes the adoption final in the eyes of China . They
had placed it in a small red folder. Sophie was given a small
stuffed panda bear to congratulate her on finding her forever
family. We took some pictures of Sophie holding her adoption
decree in front of the Chinese flag. It was short but very, very
special!
Following our visit to the Civil
Affairs Bureau, we left the city of Hangzhou to visit Yiwu (the
city where Sophie is from). It was about a two to three hour
drive each way. Even though it made for a long day, it was a
very important, yet difficult and emotional, trip for us to
take. Ian and I tried to soak in and remember as much detail and
information as we could. We took pictures as we were allowed to
do so. As we approach Yiwu Social Welfare Institute, I was
surprised at its location. The entrance/gate to the facility was
right on a very busy, bustling street. There were small
businesses lining the street…automotive repair shops, leather
belt shops, and other various family owned shops and businesses.
The street was crowded with cars, bicycles, motorcycles and
people. We even saw a man delivering a very large flat screened
television on a bicycle. When we arrived at the orphanage, we
were taken to a conference room and asked to sit around a large
table. The director offered us fruit and bottled water, and we
were given the opportunity to ask any questions that we had
about Sophie and her time in the orphanage. We had many
questions prepared and Rebecca asked the director some of them
for us. However, in the end, I’m not sure we learned anything
new about her time there. The director was gracious towards us
and beautifully wrote a message for Sophie in Chinese
calligraphy in our signing book. He wished her a happy and
healthy life with her new family. He asked permission to take
the book to his office to sign it as he wanted to use a special
pen he had.
Following our time to ask questions, Rebecca told us that the
director had arranged to take us to lunch at a very nice,
extremely large local restaurant. Rebecca ordered food for all
of us and we were served family style around small table. Ian
claims it is the best Chinese food he has ever had! Sophie tried
everything and really seemed to like the egg custard that
Rebecca ordered just for her! The waitresses were very
interested in Sophie and one in particular, I noticed several
times, was taking pictures of Sophie with her cell phone from
behind a pillar. Our van driver, who is always laughing and
smiling, likes to talk to Sophie. He thinks it is funny that she
is so serious and said that she will probably grow up to be the
President of the United States : ) He is pretty entertaining to
be around and reminds me of Kramer on Seinfeld : ) |





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After lunch with the director, we
were able to go to a store with him, and because of a very
generous donation given to us, were able to purchase a new air
conditioning unit for the orphanage. We were told while there
that the orphanage is soon to be remodeled. Apparently, the new
air conditioning unit will be installed as part of that project.
To the person who made this donation, we thank you for making
such a difference for these children!
Upon returning to the orphanage, we were taken to see the
children’s outside play area, as well as, the area of the
orphanage where Sophie had lived for just over the last year of
her life. The orphanage facility itself was much smaller than I
thought it would be. It was a sobering experience to be there
and even though it was difficult to see the lack of resources
they have, I was impressed with the love the nannies seem to
have for the children. We were greeted warmly by Sophie’s nanny
who clearly loved Sophie very, very much. Sophie reached for
her, and I let her go. Her nanny kissed her face over and over
and hugged her for a long time. By her smiles, it was easy to
see that Sophie loved her very much too and was very comfortable
with her. I believe that this special nanny is the answer to
many, many prayers. While we waited to bring Sophie home, I
prayed that there would be someone who would take special
interest in Sophie and love her until we were allowed to bring
her home. Her nanny told Rebecca to tell us that she took Sophie
home with her a couple of times a week. I will always be
grateful to her for loving our daughter the way that she did.
Sophie didn’t cry when I took her back from her nanny; although,
I know she was confused and initially, she didn’t want to come
back to me. I know it was important for Sophie to say goodbye
and to leave one final time with us. Her special nanny kept
pointing at us and telling Sophie that we are her mama and baba.
She congratulated Sophie that she found her forever family. She
blew kisses to her and waved goodbye. I hugged her nanny and
thanked her. She kept bowing her head as if to say your welcome
and with tears in both of our eyes, we said goodbye. |
“Learn something
about yourself from everyone who touches your life.”
~author unknown
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myadoptionwebsite.com
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