So once she came home from the hospital we had a week to prepare for Christmas. This year it was pretty low key for us. We wanted to stay home for the holiday and enjoy the kids and allow us some time to settle back in with Marley. We had a wonderful time. Lily got a drum kit from Santa and Grayson a new bed. Marley was happy just opening the wrapping and playing with the boxes. The one gift we all got was a new sister and daughter and one amazing journey to China.

It was a time to reflect so much on this past year and to remember all the good and bad times we have had together as a family. I for one am most thankful for my family and for making it through my Thyroid Cancer diagnosis, surgery and treatment as well as I did. That alone has changed my perspective on things so much this year.

Waiting for Marley was a difficult wait but in the end it seems such a distant memory. She is really doing so well and we are so blessed to have her. What a light she is. She has an amazing ability to make it all just go away and for us to just be present in that moment of her smile.

The kids are adjusting well to life as three. The parents…are still adjusting but it seems easier than we thought. The past few weeks of being home from China have been a whirlwind of emotion and stress. So our hope for the New Year is to have things calm a bit. Also I am putting my word out there for this year…BALANCE. I want and need to find balance. I am hoping that this year I can set some goals in place that can be accomplished within the year. I am not going to make myself silly New Years promises that come crashing down in a few weeks. I am going to set these intentions and create a vision of myself and know that this self is possible.

Well wishing you all a happy holiday and new year…enjoy it all. I am taking it all in this year and loving every minute of it.

HUGS

XOC

So the blog has become a distant memory for the time being and will definitely get back on board once we are all healthy. Todays 3 Dr’s appointments have me wiped out and all I want to do is nap. Hoping we are all recovered for Christmas.

Marley is adjusting really well and is really starting to get used to Mommy. She even asks for me now which is really nice. Of course when Eric is in the room I am chopped liver but hey I get what I can! LOL! Grayson and Lily are happy to be home, but Lily keeps asking when we are going back to China. She misses it!

Well better go we have baths and medications to administer…ugh!

HUGS

:)C

:)Christy

Eric has really been doing a fantastic job with Marley.  She still prefers daddy but has warmed enough to play, smile and even go to Mommy for short snippets of time.  Her smiles are definitely more frequent these days and she really is starting to show us her fiery personality (as described by her caretakers at the orphanage).

We have shopped until we have dropped almost every day.  We have had some appointments but always left enough time for food and shopping.  Eric’s cousin Max who lives in Guangzhou visited with us here on Shamian Island for a few hours.  We took the kids to a playground and then hit Lucy’s, our new home away from home, for lunch.  Lucy’s has become a hot spot for us because of their western food at reasonable prices.

Shamian Island where the White Swan Hotel is located can only be described as very laid back and a really relaxed and pleasant shopping environment.  They have many restaurants and lots of shops selling anything and everything that can target an adoptive family.  Our hotel is on the banks of the Pearl River.  It is really an amazing view in the evening.

Last night we were all taken on a dragon boat cruise of the Pearl River.  We ordered in for Papa Johns Pizza and had a pizza party on the boat.  The view was really amazing on the Pearl River.  The lights on the buildings were like Times Square or Picadilly Circus times ten.  An amazing amount of money must have been spent on this display all along the river side.

Today we went to the Six Banyan Temple and received a Buddhist baby blessing for the children.  It was really very touching and a great experience to see an active temple with REAL LIVE monks (I am being sarcastic) .  The pagoda is just an outstanding building, together with the smell of incense and the chanting and bell chimes I was in heaven!

We had Marley’s visa appointment and medical checks today and tomorrow we visit the consulate for her to be sworn in as a citizen.  So as soon as she touches down in Newark she is a citizen of the USA.  The medical check was less traumatic than I remembered it being with Lily.  Speaking of things medical… Grayson should be getting his stitches out tomorrow as well.

Tonight we went out for our last group dinner with friends and tried local Guangdong style cuisine.  We had some laughs trying to place the order without a guide.

As you can probably tell from this post the experience in Guangzhou is much more relaxed than Yunnan and Beijing.  We have had time to play in the playroom and on the playground with the kids, shop, eat and shop some more.  Did I mention we have been shopping?  LOL!

OK well off to bed I must rest for some more shopping tomorrow! 

See Images for all the pics we dont have time to insert into blog today…sorry!

Tomorrow is our last day in Guangzhou and we will more than likely be busy and not post again from China.  Will send one once we get home.

XO Christy

Elevator button games -   The kids love to get on the elevators and push every button they can possibly reach without dislocating their shoulders to reach it.  We and all the passengers involved just LOVE this as you can imagine… being as it means a visit to every floor on the way down.

Lily and her sister -   Lily has this way of talking about and to Marley that is just so cute.  “My Sister”…as she reaches in for a kiss.  Lily had been talking to anyone and everyone about Marley.

Weather -   We have had some great weather.  Not one day of rain.  Beijing was abnormally warm…60’s-70’s.  Kunming was perfect spring like weather and even warmer than usual as well…70’s.  Guangzhou so far hot and humid in the 80’s.

Travel group -   We have Karl and Sarah from Illinois and their son Reed (17 months).  Dylan and Kelly from D.C. and their daughter Mckenna (2.5).

Hotels -   Beijing great.  Kunming even better.  Guangzhou…TOP NOTCH!

Food - Yunnan traditional dinner was the best so far.  Western food has been ok and much needed from time to time.  Kids are sustaining on rice, noodles, fries and huge breakfasts.  None of the meat dishes here have appealed to the kids.  Marley is eating allot of rice, noodles and egg, but trying new things daily…tater tots was the new one today…her intro to junk food!  LOL!

We lost a few of our group to a haggle session for a $1.50 curling iron.  We then hit the handcrafts which, by the weight of our suitcases on the way to Guangzhou, we did pretty well!  We had to get back or we could have spent at least another 3 hours just browsing and doing price comparisons.  It is AMAZING just how much they raise the price just so you will get them down to the 20% of what they originally asked for it.  It is entertaining and always a win win for everyone involved.

We walked back to hotel as quickly as we could because we had a deadline of 2:00pm to check out and nothing had been packed and we needed lunch.  Eric picked up takeout pizza and fries (healthy) and we packed as quickly as we could.  We all made the deadline in time to check out the view from the 21st floor of the hotel one last time before we checked out.

Once checked out we still had an hour or so to kill before we had to board the bus to the airport.  We decided to stroll around the lake near the hotel and get some walking in before our afternoon and evening of sitting.

Eric, the kids and I were only within a few steps of the entrance of the park when we realized this would probably be the most crowds we would draw yet on this trip.  Many looks and double takes, lots of thumbs ups and “lucky baby”, and the word “san” (chinese for the number 3) in exclamatory fashion from everyone’s mouths.  At one point we were surrounded.  We could not walk any further and the kids were falling asleep in the stroller and we just wanted to get back to the hotel.  We started hinting by saying “zaijian” and waving politely but it was not until we started to push the stroller into the people that were blocking us that they would move and allow us passage.  It was really overwhelming.

Once back at the hotel we decided to just sit and wait for the bus.  We were sad to be leaving the place of Marley’s birth and excited to be going to Guangzhou. At the airport we started to get nervous about how Marley would be on the plane, but our anxiety was unjustified, she did smashingly!  The guy sitting next to Lily, Marley and Eric looked terrified at the thought of spending 1.5 hours next to a potential time bomb.  Just look at his face.  LOL!

So we arrived in Guangzhou at about 9pm and by the time we were back and settled in the room it was 10:30pm or so.  All 3 kids were asleep well before check in and woke early this morning with a confused look on their faces as if to say…what happened to the plane ride?

Today we started the morning with an amazing breakfast at the White Swan Hotel.  Our last stop to get Marley’s visa and citizenship clearances to come back home.  This place caters to adoptive families and the area surrounding the hotel is a shopping Mecca.  The weather here is balmy and in the 80’s.  We were breaking out our summer clothes today and it felt almost strange.  We had a paperwork meeting today and then we had the rest of the day free to explore the area and the hotel.  The kids had fun looking at the massive Koi ponds in the hotel as well as playing in the playroom.

We went straight out this afternoon to get some laundry done and ordered the chops (name stamps) for Grayson and Marley all in one place.  Did I mention it is awesome shopping.  LOL!  At 3pm we had an afternoon tea with the Holt group and then headed up early for bed.

Once the kids were down, me and my Mom headed out for some shopping sans kids.  I stayed out alone even later to just comparison shop so I knew where I could get the best deals on the things we had on our list to get for Marley and gifts to bring home.  Stopped off and got me and Eric some beer from 7-Eleven to buffer Eric’s excitement over my purchases this evening…IT WORKED!!!!  So here I am typing away and Eric, Marley and Grayson are all snoring up a symphony.

Marley is really starting to share herself with us now and her sweet smile is just beautiful.  She is quick to cry but also quick to stop.  She is very playful and very curious.

We are planning some shopping at the Jade and Pearl market tomorrow and must be well rested to shop some more.  We miss you all and can’t wait to come home now…only a few more days.

Cheers,

Christy

She was left by her birth family in hopes of being taken into the orphanage and finding a better life.  As we passed through I could only imagine the heartache that was felt on that day, when they had to make a choice for their daughter that would take them away from her for the rest of their lives.

I am crying now just thinking about this so you can only imagine the intensity of actually being there.  You may wonder why this is so important to see.  It is because Marley has so little of her early history to hold as her own.  What we are able to give Marley by visiting this site and her orphanage is a piece of the puzzle that is her past.  It is something we can say, we were there and this is what it looked like.  Any little bit of information will be invaluable to her in the future.

So as we entered those gates we saw what we can only describe as a cheerful building of multiple colors and turrets much like something you may see in Disneyland!

We were taken to a visitors meeting room where we were offered refreshments and were addressed by the Director of the orphanage.  This is the time when we were able to ask specific questions about our little ones.  We were told that her foster family lives in a foster village outside of Kunming.  She had foster brothers and sisters.  She is described as being very smart.  We also found out that she was born premature… something we assumed by her size but had no solid info on.  The Director (she is a woman) at one point came up and put her arm around me and said in Chinese that she was so grateful for our family and she is so happy that Pan Li Yuan has found her family.  This was water works time #2.  I tried so hard to stop from crying being as we have been told that crying in public is not done in China and certainly never in front of children.  However, she looked at me with full understanding of the emotion and gave me a really big hug.

Once we pulled ourselves together we were taken on a tour of the orphanage where we were able to take some pictures.  We saw some children in the playrooms that made my heart break.  Seeing this in real life was something I will never forget.  You have no idea just how fortunate we all are.

I must say also that the award that was given to this orphanage as one of the top 10 orphanages in China was definitely warranted.  This place was so clean and organized.  We had a chance to meet with some of Marley’s nannies and they were so warm towards her.  One tried to take her for a hug but Marley clung tightly to Daddy which is another great sign that she is bonding to us.  The nannies were so happy to see us and really demonstrated so much love for these children.  You can tell that this is not just a job for them.  They love these kids.

Once through the tour our family walked down to the gates to take some pictures of the finding site and at this moment I could not stop myself from sobbing.  I was feeling the pain and the heartache, and mostly I was hoping that her birth mother knows that Marley is safe and she will be loved and cared for forever.  I can not put into words how this day felt to us.  So much emotion… we will never forget this.

Once back at the hotel we headed to the Blue Bird for some lunch and then it was nap time.  This is when I, feeling extremely brave and in much need of some “me” time, went shopping … ALONE.  Yup I ventured out into the streets of Kunming armed with a map of the hotel and some cash to spend.  I went to a bookstore hoping to find a book on Yunnan in English.  Not happening!  Although I did find some nice music CD’s.  Not a single person on my 2 hour shopping event spoke a word of English and I was the only non-Chinese person that I saw.  It was such a weird feeling…but also very eye opening.  I made a few purchases and feeling very proud of myself headed back to the hotel to meet up with the rest of the group for a group dinner.

Our last dinner in Yunnan.  Sad…but happy to head to another city.  The restaurant was amazing.  Traditional Yunnan food was brought by the platters to us.  The beer was flowing as well…we all needed it after this day!  What a great dinner.

Tomorrow we prepare to head to Guangzhou as well as visit a Market in the morning and the park in the afternoon.  Our flight is at 6:00pm-ish.  So we have a full day tomorrow so must get some sleep.

Marley is starting to smile more and more and is really enjoying her new siblings.  Lily is quite the big sista and is looking after her Mei Mei all the time.

WHAT A DAY…

LOVE,

Christy

Today (actually yesterday but we are usually running about a day behind on posting), we were taken to a large “theme park” about an hour from the hotel.  The drive was interesting in itself because we drove through some pretty poor looking city neighborhoods before we got to a whole stretch of the highway where the landscaping was really very pretty and lush. We asked if this was the “rich” part of the city and our guide said, “No, this is the tourist part of the city.” Kunming is a very large city, we drove for a long time and it just kept going, much like Beijing. Yunnan is one of the poorest provinces and you can see the culture in the city of Kunming struggling to keep up with the pace of progress in the rest of China. We drove past essentially dirt floor single room housing with holes in the roofs and a Mercedes Benz dealership next door to it. The hotel we are staying is top notch, 5 star, but taking a walk a few blocks to Wal-Mart shows many people and businesses just barely eaking out a living.

So on to the day trip…The park’s aim was to highlight the cultures of some of the different ethnic minorities found in Yunnan. Apparently Yunnan is home to more distinct ethnic groups than any other province (don’t quote me on that but that’s what I remember being said). The park had different areas dedicated to each culture with people dressed in traditional costumes and buildings in the typical style. The whole experience was really illuminating. We very much appreciated the opportunity to see more of the people and culture of Marley’s home but could not shake the Disneyland/Epcot Center feeling.

In any case this place was huge and after we contracted a colorfully dressed guide we boarded little electric cars to zoom around to the first stop. I am sorry to say I did not take notes so I can’t tell you what each of the groups were named or all of the details but we took pictures and I remember some of the facts we were told. Many of the cultures were Buddhist but with strong ancestor worship practices. Sometimes the village would have their own “god” who was essentially an amalgam of the Buddha, the ancestors of the village and nature itself. There would be a shrine with a tree, a rock, the Buddha and a totem representing the common ancestor. Another group we visited was actually Christian. Apparently Buddhist missionaries had introduced Christianity to these people about 100 years ago. Now, I don’t know if that was a mis-translation from our guide or what but it’s interesting. What I was more interested in was what religion did these people practice before the missionaries came in? 100 years is not a very long time. There seems to be a predilection for large colorful hats in most of these cultures.

After we finished touring the “villages” we went to a restaurant located in the theme park. The food was very good and the local beer was really high-tech.

Since I am currently Marley’s favorite person, I get to change her frequent poopy diapers. Which is fine in the hotel room but out in the field that is no picnic. China is not known for its nice bathrooms. And don’t even think about diaper changing facilities… So I asked our guide Andy where the bathroom in the restaurant was. He said they don’t have one, the nearest one was outside about 100 feet away. Goody. So I walked outside, down the road and into the men’s room, and promptly turned around and left. Not going to change my baby girl in there. So I set up shop on a low brick ledge skirting the edge of the bathroom entrance. I got a few looks, but one grandma stopped and smiling, said “You good daddy!” Oh, did I mention Marley was wailing her head off this whole time? With the job done we hiked back to lunch where Marley refused to eat anything until we got the staff to just give us a bowl of plain white rice.

We completed our tour of the Yunnan theme park by hitting the vendor stalls where Christy received some  lessons in bargaining by one of our travel mates.  She is now addicted to haggling for the best deals.  Something we have not felt overly comfortable with until now. After making a few purchases we boarded the bus and waved goodbye to the Yunnan ethnic peeps and headed back to the hotel.

Oh did I mention that once again we were swarmed by crowds of people trying to take our pictures?  Yes mostly of Grayson and he is now really starting to get annoyed with the attention…the chinese onlookers think it is cute that he screams at them.  LOL!

This evening we headed back out to the Blue Bird, our new home away for home.  Tomorrow will be a difficult day emotionally for all of us so we have to get ourselves prepared for the orphange and finding site visit.

Marley is starting to come into her own in our family and is getting more comfortable with Christy feeding her.  She still prefers daddy though.  Her personality is showing itself to be fiery and we like that!  She loves playing with Lily and Grayson.  She has also developed this squeal that sounds so much like a seagull that we have nicknamed her “Hai Ou” (Hi oh) which means seagull in Chinese.

Peace,

Eric

After our trip to the museum we all ate as a group at a really terrific restaurant right across from the hotel called the Blue Bird.  They have a wide selection of dishes including Chinese, Thai, Indian and western food.  The kids were happy to have some chicken nugget like food with fries and we discovered a dish that Marley loves.  It was a dish filled with rice, veggies, meat and broth…a congee of sorts but REALLY yummy.

After lunch Grayson and Marley went for a nap in the hotel room and me, Lily and Grandma hit the shops in the hotel.  Girlie shopping is one of Lily’s favorite pass times.  After naps we all geared up and headed to Walmart.  Grayson on my back, Marley on Eric’s front and Lily in hand.  We were armed with a small map of the hotel area and an X marked the spot of Walmart…how hard could it be right?  The walk was only a few city blocks but what a maze of traffic.  There is one spot where we have to walk under an overpass and it has  4 different directions to choose from with a sea of motorcycles and bicycles coming at you at breakneck speeds.  You basically have no cross walks and you take your life into your hands to cross the street.  We finally made it and what a place.  The Walmart here is much like a bazaar.  It is super crowded and really unorganized.  We had some trouble even figuring out how to enter the building.

We bought a few snacks for the room and some M&M’s.  As usual we were a spectacle of great proportions with onlookers at every move.  We were a sight though with the 3 kids all strapped to us and cruising around with a cart not knowing which end was  up.  Grayson in his head piece is comical to see anyway.  Which by the way is healing nicely.  Once back to the hotel we felt a great sense of accomplishment and had worked up a hunger.  The safest bet was once again the Blue Bird where we all had western food.  The pizza was yummy and Grayson and Lily were very excited to have spaghetti and meatballs.  Off to Yunnan Minority Village tomorrow.  This is a good place for visitors to appreciate Yunnan culture and traditions of all the ethnic groups in the province.  We are hoping to visit Marley’s orphanage on Thursday as well as her finding site.

Hugs to all and can’t wait to get back home…hotel life with 3 kids is starting to get old!

So to describe seeing our daughter for the 1st time ….AMAZING! She is adorable, teeny tiny, and has a fierce crying voice.

After about an hour of paperwork there we were able to leave with Marley and head back to the hotel. She settled in ok…just a bit scared and seemed to take a liking to Eric way more than Mommy, so he was thrilled to be the one to feed her and put her to bed. We ordered some room service that night and then after all were asleep Eric headed out to Walmart with the guys to buy yet more gifts for the people in the Civil Affairs office. What a day! To finally hold her and say I love you was the most amazing moment…ranks right up there with Lily’s Gotcha, Grayson’s birth and our wedding day. She is beautiful and bright eyed and just darn cute!

We have posted some pictures from this day in the images gallery but more to follow once we download my Moms pictures as well, being as she was the main photographer that day.

Adoption day - One of the most stressful and beautiful days of my life. We officially became parents to Marley today.

That is after hours of paperwork and shleping around on a bus from office to office. With 3 kids this proves a bit more challenging. Not to mention that Lily and Grayson are starting to notice that Marley is permanently attached to Eric. Marley has warmed a bit to Mommy but we are taking baby steps. Lily and Grayson are not understanding their roles in all of this just now and seem to want some much needed down time. Down time is coming this week soon but we had to get this day over with first. Tensions were high, a diaper bag split open with a broken zipper mid shlep, and …oh did I mention that Marley is sick….explosive diaper kinda sick. 4 outfits in 3 hours with no changing facilities. You would think us seasoned parents would have this handled no problem….but I only brought with me 2 extra outfits! She has a fever, but we have been given antibiotics and some Chinese herbals for her cold. Poor thing. So back to the explosive diaper scene….I could not do a thing being as she only wants Eric…convenient! LOL! So after the running around like mad people and feeling the need for some rest we went back to the hotel and ordered, once again, room service. Shortly thereafter Grayson takes a really bad trip into a bed side table and cracks his head open. Yup…a perfect ending to a chaotic day. After almost passing out from the sight of an amazing amount of blood, I frantically called the reception (who barely spoke English) and screamed EMERGENCY…she understood that and called for the emergency doctor whom decided he needed to go to the hospital and get stitches. So off I went with our guide and my Mom, leaving Eric behind to man the fort and calm Lily who was very upset about the whole thing. We had a very quick and eye opening experience at a Chinese emergency room and left with 2 stitches and Grayson having to wear a bandage and a head net for the next 7 days.

UGH! But the kicker was this visit with no insurance cost us 105 yuan which is approx $15. YES $15.00 can you believe that? We paid more for 2 bottles of water from the minibar than Grayson’s hospital visit! Amazing! So he was a trooper and very brave and after we were back in the taxi he says, ” I am sorry I fell Mama..can I have some M&M’s?” What a sweetpea!

So, as a summary we have had 2 amazing, beautiful and stressful days. Marley is doing great and is transitioning nicely and is getting better health wise it seems. We have a few more days here and they are probably going to be so much more relaxing so we are going to take it all in and enjoy our new sweet Girlie and her hometown. We hope to be posting daily from here on out, but again if we get stressed like we have been there may be some silence so bear with us.

Going to bed now…it’s late and everyone in this room is snoring but me!
:)Christy XO