Isabella Part II

Isabella continues to bond with us each day. She has such a sweet personality and her smiles and laughter come so easily now. We have completed all of the requirements from the Chinese Government for our adoption and now await our appointment Wednesday at the US Consulate for the final step in our adoption process. We have received approval from our agency to visit Isabella's orphanage located about 4 hours away from Guangzhou in a town called Zhilong Town near the South China Sea in Yangxi County, Guangdong Province. We are scheduled to leave early Tuesday morning for the orphanage tour and are so excited to see where Isabella spent the first 10 months of her life and her finding spot as well. As you can see from the new pictures, Isabella is an absolute joy. Our time in Guangzhou has gone by fast and we have been fortunate enough to get to spend time with 2 other families who have been a lot of fun to hang out with during our week here. They both have other children with them on the trip and we have enjoyed our time exploring Guangzhou with them. We would like to thank those who have sent emails and words of encouragement throughout our journey and look forward to seeing everyone when we return.

Isabella!!!!

At 3:30 yesterday afternoon, we finally held Isabella in our arms for the first time! Along with two other couples adopting through our agency, we went to the local Civil Affairs Office and in an exciting, inspirational, chaotic and unforgettable scene, we entered a 3rd story room full of adoptive parents from other agencies waiting for their children. We were blessed with the opportunity to observe several other families receiving their children as part of their forever family and then heard the name "Hill" being called out. One of the prettiest, tiniest girls we have ever seen came into our room with the orphanage director and Mom had the fortune of holding her first. Isabella instantly melted all of our hearts as we took turns holding her. Her transition to us was very smooth and soon after she was comfortably in Ellen & Sophia's arms taking a nap. Isabella slept through the entire night for us and her personality is really coming out today with plenty of smiles and laughter. Sophia has been fantastic throughout the trip and is great with Isabella. It's as if they were always part of God's plan to be together. As you can see from her pictures, she is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!.


Mom getting ready to hold Isabella for the first time!

A very happy Mom & Dad moments after seeing Isabella in person for the first time

Daddy's little girl!

Seeing her big sissy for the first time

Happy and snug with Mommy & Sophia

Beijing

After a wonderful 13 hour train trip on an overnight sleeper train from Changsha to Beijing, we arrived at the Beijing Railway Station at 7:10 a.m. Thursday morning. The train trip allowed us to see the beauty of China's countryside and experience travel the way most Chinese do throughout the country. We were fortunate enough to share our 4 bed compartment with a female University student from Changsha who we enjoyed speaking to during our trip (In China each train compartment has 2 bunk beds that sleep four people per room. You are not allowed to purchase extra tickets and thus a group of 3 will usually end up sharing their compartment with a stranger). It was truly an adventure we will never forget.

Sophia & Mom in Tiananmen Square

Sophia and Mom in Forbidden City

Sophia and Dad inside the Forbidden City

Sophia and Dad in front of marble carving in Forbidden City

Mom and Sophia in Forbidden City

Karate Kid Part IV

Sophia & Dad on top of the Summer Palace

Sophia and Mom in front of the famous 17 arch bridge at the Summer Palace

The Chaoyang Acrobat Troupe

Beijing has changed so much in the 9 years since we were last here. The tens of thousands of bicycles we saw in 2003 have been replaced by thousands of vehicles as the standard of living has drastically improved under the "Great Opening Up" of the economy in China. The dour gray buildings we saw in 2003 have been replaced by some spectacular high rises that light up with striking colors at night. What hasn’t changed is the smog that permeates the city during most of the day. During our 3 days in Beijing for our orientation, we were able to see the Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Olympic Park, Chaoyang Acrobatic Troupe and the wonderful Great Wall section of Mutianyu that was definitely our favorite of the sightseeing we have been on so far. While the weather has been gray and rainy for some of our trip, the day we went to the Great Wall was a beautiful day with blue sky and the sun we have been missing for the past several days. As you can see from our pictures, it was absolutely beautiful. With Beijing and our orientation now complete, we are headed to Guangzhou and Isabella!!!!!





Near the top of the Mutianyu Section of the Great Wall



Sophia and Mom outside of a guard tower on the Wall

Changsha

We’re Back! We’ve been on an internet blackout since Sunday. Our visit to Changsha is now complete and we are in Beijing for orientation with our agency for adoption of Isabella. We wrote up our Changsha highlights in Word format in our Changsha hotel and can now post our memorable visit to our blog!

Sophia being greeted at the new SWI 2 by her Chinese name

Sophia inside of her orphanage room at the old SWI 2

2nd floor hallway outside Sophia's orphanage room

Mural still on the walls of the old orphanage building at old SWI 2

Sophia pointing to her orphanage room-2nd floor left

Sophia's nanny picking her up upon seeing her for the first time since 2003

Sophia outside of the 1500 year old Taoist Temple in Langli Town

Posing for picture with the 3rd grade class and their teacher and principal

Sophia and parents taking a picture with the 3rd grade class in Langli Town

Changsha Day 1

We arrived in Changsha, China on Sunday evening at around 5:00 p.m. to begin Sophia’s heritage tour. Changsha has always had a special place in our hearts as this is the city where we first held Sophia in our arms at the Huatian Hotel on November 2, 2003 (“Gotcha Day”). On Monday morning, we were met at our hotel by our guide, Chris and a woman who had one of the biggest smiles on her face that we had seen in a long time. Her name was Ping Huang, the supervisor at the new Changsha Social Welfare Institute (SWI) 2 who was one of the workers at Sophia’s orphanage in the Langli Town where Sophia spent the first 10 months of her life. The joy on her face in seeing Sophia (who she still refers to by her Chinese name of Gui (pronounced “Gway”) Dong Ling) was so genuine that it touched us all. As we drove to the location of the new SWI 2 located outside of Changsha, Supervisor Huang held Sophia’s hand throughout the drive and spoke non-stop through our interpreter about Sophia’s life in the orphanage. She brought copies of Sophia’s file and a precious photograph of Sophia in the arms of her nanny at the old orphanage in Langli Town that we had never seen before. We learned a lot about Sophia’s first months of life that we had not learned before and were so grateful that we had this opportunity to fill the pages of Sophia’s life book. When we arrived at the new SWI 2, Sophia was treated like a movie star. A big welcome sign greeted her in the front lobby and the director greeted the three of us with a large bouquet of flowers. In the conference room, two of the ladies who handed Sophia over to us in 2003 came in to visit with Sophia along with the director and Supervisor Huang. We were so glad that we brought pictures of Gotcha Day in 2003 with us, as the ladies really enjoyed seeing pictures of themselves from this special day 9 years ago. We were then allowed to photograph Sophia’s orphanage file and were given a tour of the new SWI 2 which now serves special needs kids and the elderly in nice new buildings funded by China’s new lottery (a far cry from the old dilapidated building that the orphanage was located in 2003). Throughout the day, workers who worked at the old SWI 2 came by for a visit and expressed their joy that “Gui Dong Ling” had come back for a visit. Visits by adoptees who were cared for in the old SWI 2 are rare and the staff are overjoyed any time someone comes back for a visit. We were then given a tour of the grounds and Sophia met two girls who were with her on the second floor of the orphanage at old SWI 2 who were not adopted due to their disabilities—very, very heartbreaking but touching to see them hold Sophia’s hand and interact with her. A day of highlights ended when one of Sophia’s two main nannies heard that we were on the grounds and came running towards us to give Sophia a hug. On the way back to our hotel, we stopped by the Huatian Hotel and ate dinner and went down memory lane from the special time we spent there with Sophia, Calvin and the rest of the Hunan 10 (group of parents in our adoption group in 2003 who travelled together-many of us who have formed life long bonds), And to Stephen Gaulke-the Tsingtao Beer at the convenience store next to the Huatian is still ice cold and goes for under 50 cents a 600 ml bottle!

Changsha Day 2

We met our guide and Supervisor Huang at 8:00 and headed for Langli Town for a visit to the grounds of Sophia’s orphanage at old SWI 2.The Chinese government did not authorize visits to Changsha SWI 2 when we were here in 2003 and we were really looking forward to our visit to the site of SWI 2 and Sophia’s finding spot. When we arrived, we immediately recognized the front gate from our earlier pictures of what we were told was Sophia’s finding spot (but were not told it was the front gate of her orphanage) and were led to the second floor of the building which used to house the orphanage where Sophia spent the first 10 months of her life. While the building now houses the elderly, old murals of Mickey Mouse and other cartoon characters still grace the walls of the four floors of the old orphanage building containing 6 small rooms per floor. We were allowed to take several photographs of the grounds where Sophia and her friend Rachel Gaulke lived. Sophia enjoyed hearing stories from the supervisor about her life at the orphanage and you could see the sparkle in the supervisor’s eyes as she went down memory lane and told us about the play room, walks on the grounds, how the rooms were set up etc. The visit to the grounds was a special opportunity we will never forget! We then were shown Sophia’s exact finding spot just inside the front gate of the orphanage. After our visit to old SWI 2, we went to an area primary school where Sophia was once again treated like a movie star by the children and staff at the school. We spent part of the day in a 3rd grade classroom and the kids put on a special program for us and asked us questions about life in the United States. The kids in the school were so sweet and our time at the school, while totaling 2 ½ hours, ended much sooner than any of us wanted. We could have definitely spent a whole day there and the smiles would have never left our faces. After lunch with staff, we then visited a 1,500 year old Taoist temple located next to the old SWI 2 and capped the day off by visiting the Langli Police Station where all children are required to be processed when found. The Chief of Police and his assistants were very nice and welcomed us to their office, gave us fruit and tea and took plenty of pictures of us, since our guide explained that the police feel good about their role in helping babies to the orphanage and are overjoyed on the rare occasions that adoptees return for a visit and they see how well they are doing in the US. Day 2 was such a wonderful, joyful and rewarding day! Definitely a day we will never forget!!! 

Shanghai

Sophia in front of the Pearl Tower and other buildings by the Huangpu River

Sophia and Dad in front of the Maglev. What a ride!

Sophia and Mom on The Bund in front of the Pearl Tower

View of the Bund at Night.

After a 14 1/2 hour plane trip from Chicago, we finally arrived in Shanghai at 1:15 p.m. local time (12:15 a.m. Hiawatha time). After arrival we took the Maglev (magnetic levitation train) from the Shanghai Airport to the city center. It is listed as the fastest commercial train in the world and reaches speeds up to 268 mph. It was quite a ride! We set our clocks to Shanghai time as soon as we left Chicago and tried not to think of what time it is back home to aid with jetlag, but here it is 3:00 a.m. Shanghai time and Ellen and I are wide awake. What a beautiful city! We went to the famous "Bund" area last night (which is where Western countries such as England and the US set up banks and trading houses after the Opium War of 1842). As you can see from the pictures, the views from the Huangpu River are wonderful! Sophia is doing great. She is such a wonderful traveler. We will be in Shanghai just 2 nights as a stopping point before heading to her hometown of Langli Village outside of Changsha on Sunday. While Shanghai is beautiful, we can't wait for her heritage trip to begin and especially can't wait until our Gotcha date of July 2nd when we get to hold Isabella in our arms for the first time!!

Travel Dates Confirmed- June 7, 2012

Today, we officially received word from our agency that we made the June travel cutoff and that we will be leaving for China on June 21! Hard to believe that we'll be on a plane to Shanghai in two weeks and that Isabella will be in our arms shortly thereafter. Sophia will be making the trip with us and we are all so excited not only to hold Isabella for the first time, but for Sophia to see her birth country for the first time since her adoption at the age of 10 months. We are going a few days early so that Sophia can travel to her home province of Hunan along with the village in which her finding spot was located. We will be taking a train from Shanghai to Changsha, followed by an overnight train trip from Changsha to Beijing to meet up with our adoption group after our visit to Hunan Province. I am sure it will be an adventure that we will never forget!

Travel Approvals Have Arrived!!! June 5, 2012

What a great day! Holt just emailed us that our travel approval has been issued and received from China authorizing us to travel to China! Steve Hejna, the travel coordinator from Holt who has assisted us now on all three adoptions called and told me that it is looking good for a June travel date! We should officially find out by the end of the week. It was only last week that we were geting discouraged and starting to prepare for a July travel date and now it looks like we will be traveling in just a few weeks to have Isabella join our forever family! Words cannot adequately explain the multitude of feelings going though our minds right now: Absolute Unbridled Joy, Relief, Anxiety for all of the things on our "to do" list.......Hard to wrap our heads around the realization that our adoption dossier that was submitted to China almost 6 years ago on August 4, 2006, has now come to fruition.