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 : )

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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