Cats and toys and boys.... Oh my!

We're home!

I'm sorry that it has taken me a few days to post, but between jet lag and getting settled in as a family of five, we've been a little busy.

The flights home went very well. The first flight from Guangzhou to Hong Kong was probably the bumpiest and had the most upset babies. It arrived late to Hong Kong because of really bad weather there. The 5 other familes on the flight from our group had a much tighter connection to their United flight to San Francisco, so followed them as they sped across the airport to connect to their plane. Our flight to Chicago left an hour or so later, so we had enough time.

The Hong Kong to Chicago leg was about 13-14 hours long, but Elena did really well. She slept, albeit restlessly, for a good chunk of the time. The staff on the flight were all very helpful, getting us hot water for bottles when we needed it as well as telling us how beautiful our little girl is. We landed in Chicago about 2pm, and upon touchdown the pilot announced that seven new US citizens had just arrived in the US. The entire plane applauded for us. It was very sweet.

Going through immigration was no problem at all, and Elena's passport stamp on her U.S. visa did make her a United States citizen. We collected our bags, were waved through customs, and rechecked our bags for the final flight.

The flight to St Louis was very smooth and arrived early, so we ended up surprising Grandma, Grandpa, and the boys as we passed the security checkpoint. Elena and the boys had a very sweet greeting, and they have been in a mutual admiration society ever since. Both Nathan and Alex really love their new little sister, and she follows them around the house all day long.

We were also met at the airport by our friends Alexis, Brooke, and Blake, who dropped us off at the airport when we left and watched our van during our stay in China. Blake and the boys have been friends since they were babies, and it is always great when the boys can see one another. All of us had a nice dinner together, and we slept as much as we could at the airport hotel that night. (By far the worst hotel we stayed at during our entire trip)

We drove the next morning, and when we arrived there we found that our friends Chris, Jody, Sophie and Ben (who had been watching Bijou and Summer for the entire trip) had decorated our house in the flags of China and the United States, left the boys new t-shirts (which Nathan is wearing in the picture below), and left us dinner for the next few days! Thanks so much!!!!

Elena really seems to love the new house, all of the toys, and especially the cats and boys. She spends most of her day crawling after them with a smile on her face. We are all slowly readjusting to Central Daylight time and getting back into the rythym of our lives.

It has been a great, unforgetable jouney. Thanks to all of you for your thoughts, prayers and kind words.

It is good to have the entire family home.

Love,
Paul

Nathan and Elena are truly fascinated with one another. 

Alex says, "She's MY sister!" 

Our friends decorated our house with dual flags for our arrival home! 

Nathan, Alex, and our friend Blake meet Elena in St Louis! 

Last post from China

Our consulate appointment is in a couple of hours. We spend about three hours on the bus and in the office, during which we are not allowed to bring any food or drink for the baby. There will be a lot of frustrated babies there! I guess that for security reasons they don't want to have to search all the backpacks and diaper bags.

We are all packed up and ready to go. Many families are leaving today or tomorrow. We leave the hotel before 6 tomorrow. What's funny is that the hotel is packed now with Amway conventioneers! When they get out of their meetings it can be hard to get an elevator.

We also had a funny experience with a 20 something male in the elevator on Wednesday. He asked us "What's with all the babies?" I guess he didn't expect to see so many in a five star hotel. He seemed a little concerned that they might be some sort of a complimentary gift. We explained to him the whole visa process for the US ends in Guangzhou and many of the families stay in the White Swan.

We have had a great time here, but are ready to come home. We'll post once we get home with a complete family photo.

Much love,
Paul

No phone call, whew!

We waited in our room this morning in case our reps had any problems with our paperwork, but they did not call. So all is well. Tomorrow we ride the bus to the consluate to raise our hand. Security is tight there. We are allowed to take one clear plastic folder with us, and that is it. We are going to be stuffing our pockets with a baby bottle, food and diaper, cause we have heard that it does take a while.

We've spent the rest of the day shopping, and have enjoyed our meals here as well. We've eaten fairly western versions of Chinese food, but last night had turtle soup, which was surprisingly bland and bony. But it is good luck.

Just two more days to go. We cannot wait to get home.

Paul

Filled out visa forms

I spent a couple of hours yesterday filling out the many pages of forms needed to apply for Elena's US visa. There were six different forms, all with similar information requests, but each requiring a different format. On one, I had to list the date of her birth 11 18 2004, on another 18 NOV 2004. Some listed the family name last, some family name first. The CCAI representatives walked us through the forms line by line and box by box. Then we had to supply all of the supporting documentation and visa fees. I was one of the few dads who did not need to use white out.

The CCAI reps will go over our packets to make sure that we did not make any mistakes, and then they will take our paperwork to the consulate tomorrow. We need to hang by the phone during their trip in case any surprises come up. Keep your fingers crossed!

If all goes well, we will get her papers when we go to the office and swear that we did not lie when filling them out.

Earlier today we went to the Guangzhou zoo. Elena especially liked seeing the panda that they have here, as well as monkeys. It was pleasantly mild today, which is a change from the hot and humid weather that we have been having. Just a few days more, and we can head home!

Love,
Paul

Medical exam today.

Things are going well here today. Elena had her required medical exam for the
US visa. She is 17 pounds heavy and 27 inches tall. She had her vitals checked and her vision and eyesight. She is on track as a normal, healthy, 9 month old baby. Yea!

I am about to fill out the visa paperwork, and then we jus wait 'til Friday.

Been doing a lot of shopping here. There are a lot of shops that cater to the adoptive traveller here, and despite the recent readjustment, the dollar goes quite a ways here.

We may need to buy another suitcase to haul everything home. :-)

I'm having trouble posting pics. Hopefully I can send some to family in email.

Love,
Paul

Greetings from Guangzhou

Hello!

We arrived in Guangzhou yesterday. Everything is going well. We were just informed that the paperwork we were waiting on from the state of Illinois has arrived at the consulate, just in time! That's a big relief. We did a tour of the city this morning. Our first stop was at a Buddhist temple, where the babies were all blessed. We did a little shopping at a goverment store, and then went to a old traditional residence used by the ruling class, that is now a museum.

Tomorrow we start the US visa paperwork and get the babies looked over by a doctor. On Thursday our paperwork is filed, and on Friday we have our consulate appointment. All is going well and we are very happy to be at the next step in our journey.

I am sorry that I do not have pictures to post right now, I will try again later. It is hard to upload pictures to blogger, or to web based email from here. I get lots of web timeouts. I think time of day matters.

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to go to Tonggu and visit the area where Elena was found and raised. It was a 3 1/2 hour bus ride from Nanchang, over some fairly treacharous driving conditions. It was just 9 fathers that made the trip, as it was too long of a day for the babies.

The area around Tonggu is a national park, filled with bamboo forests, moutains, lakes, and rivers. It was breathtakingly beautiful. The orphanange director treated us to a lunch with his staff, and gave us a tour of the newly rebuilt orphanage. 5 babies are kept in a room with a nanny on duty 24 hours a day. Because of the remodeling, our babies were all in foster care. They do not want us to contact directly to the foster mothers.

After that, the director took us around Tonggu to all of the places where the babies were found so that we could take pictures and video. The sight of 9 American dads sporting cameras in local markets and streets brought a lot of laughter and curiousity from many of the locals. I'm very glad that we were able to make the trip, and I will try to post more pictures later.

Love,
Paul

Picture!

Busy in Nanchang!

I'm sorry that it has taken me so long to post again. We have been very busy here in Nanchang. On Monday we did all of the paperwork in the provincial capital to finalize the adoption according to Chinese law. We also met with the orphanage director from Tongu, who came to Nanchange with the babies on Sunday night. We found out that Elena had been in the same foster care home with another of the babies until 2 months ago. At that time, that foster family was no longer able to watch babies, so they were each placed into new foster homes.

On Tuesday she saw a doctor who perscribed some antibiotics and ointments for a rash that ahe has on her back and for a few sores on the back of her head. They seem to be noticably improved after two days.

Yesterday we visited the main tourist attraction in Nanchang, which is a 7 story Chinese pavillions, where we saw musicians and performers put on a traditional play. It wasy really very interesting.

Today we went to an open market for some shopping and walked through a very beautiful city park. We should get our notarized papers today, and then tomorrow we will go to the police station to get the baby's Chinese passport.

On Saturday we will make the 3-4 hour (one way) trip to Tongu to see the orphanage and the city where Elena was raised. She really likes walking out in the city which makes me think that she did this in Tongu, and there will probably be a good chance that other people will recongnize her in the market there.

We found out that her nickname is Qi-Qi, or "Chi Chi" in phonetic english. She does respond to that, especially if a local says it with the proper pronunciation. She is still very bonded to Laura but is starting to trust me a little more, especially since I have been the one feeding her. She seems to like women much better than men overall. Every day she becomes a little more comfortable with us and shows us a little more personaity and is taking more risks. We found out yesterday that she can crawl a little and can stand if we hold her hands.

We are thrilled to have her and can't wait to bring her home to meet all of you.

Love,
Paul

Elena is in our arms

Greetings from Nanchang!

We flew into Nanchang yesterday and Elena was brought to the hotel later that evening. She bonded to Laura immediately, and still can't let her out of an arm's length without fussing. While Laura is her source of comfort, I seem to be her source of entertainment. I've been able to get her to smile and laugh by acting silly. It's been a joy getting to know here.

We started the official paperwork today, and as far as the Chinese government is concerned she is our baby now! I hope to be able to post some pictures as soon as I can find an internet cafe that can read the card that my camera uses.

Tomorrow she gets a check up from a doctor and then we get to see more of Nanchang. Later in the week, a tour of her village (4 hours away) has been planned, and we hope to go.

Love,
Paul

Hong Kong has been great!

We are in Hong Kong now. We arrived Friday night and have been spending our time site seeing, eating, shopping, and getting to know our travel group. It's been a lot of fun, but today we leave Hong Kong for Nanchang, and our world changes. We will get to meet Elena today!

We are not able to upload pictures here today, but hope to do so soon. We will keep you all updated as soon as we can.

Love,
Paul

Packed and ready to go!

We are flying out on Aug 4th, arriving the afternoon of Aug 5 in Hong Kong.

Here's our hotel schedule.

Night of Aug 5, Hotel NikkoHong Kong 852-27391111
Night of Aug 6, Hotel Kowloon Shangri-LaHong Kong 852 2721 2111
Aug 7 - Aug 13, Jiangxi HotelNanchang 86-791-6206666
Aug 14 - Aug 19, White Swan HotelGuangzhao (86) (20) 8188 6968

Fly back on Aug 20, Guangzhao->Hong Kong->Chicago->St Louis

We should be able to post to this site, but not be able to read it, so I won't be able to read any of your comments. You can email me at paulpoulosky@hotmail.com, though.

We are also not bringing a laptop, but expect to find internet cafes for us to use.

Next post will hopefully be from China!

Love,
Paul