We've been busy! I know you guys have been asking us how we are doing, and I don't even know where to begin, so I'm just going to give some random thoughts on what we've been up to the last couple of days. Pictures will have to come tomorrow because the internet is being a little wonky...
-I wish I could wear a banner that says, "Yes, We are Americans. We are carrying an Asian baby. and she has a 'marking' on her. Keep walking, please." More on that later.
-It's very difficult to remember all of the 'eating/drinking' rules while dealing with jet lag. Don't drink the water. Don't have ice. Don't eat fruit that you cannot peel. Don't eat uncooked vegetables. Don't even brush your teeth with the water.
-In Chongqing, our hotel internet stopped working. We left on Friday evening for Guangzhou, the city where we are working on getting Vivi Cate's visa. Our flight had a gate change, and it was delayed. Neither one of these was announced on the gate screen, and no one spoke any English... I still can't believe we made it out of there.
-Guangzhou is near Hong Kong, so it's a lot more westernized. I just about hugged the first English speaking person I saw at the Guangzhou airport. It was the first time we had heard clear English in almost a week, and it was so that someone understood what we were saying! We got in very late and did not get a lot of sleep, but I didn't care. I was just happy to be in Gunagzhou.
-Our agency sets us up with a room here at The Garden Hotel where a lot of adopting families stay while waiting for their child's Visa. It's an amazing hotel, and our suite includes a living room and office area. It's so nice to have an extra space while Vivi naps. We no longer have to eat our lunch in the bathroom when she is napping. It's the little things we appreciate right now. The breakfast buffet is great, and it was so much fun to meet the other families. Vivi loves playing with all of the other kids.
-We had Vivi's medical appointment first thing on Saturday morning. The kids have to be checked out before they can have a US visa issued to them. Vivi is under two years old, so our medical appointment was rather fast. Our main concern was that she appear healthy; otherwise, things would get very complicated. She passed. Thankfully, she was screaming so much there was no way he could do a thorough exam. Way to go, Vivi!
-On Saturday night, we ate at a Mexican restaurant. Odd I know, but it is actually quite tasty. Unfortunately, I failed on the 'banned food' rule and had shredded cabbage on my fish tacos. I didn't realize what I had done until I was finishing my last taco. Again... it's hard to remember the important things. I'm still waiting to see if I will pay dearly for my mistake. I should know by tomorrow evening, and the Cipro is out and ready to be used.
-We are feeling out Miss Vivi's personality right now. It was difficult to tell when she was sick. Now that she is feeling better, I'm realizing her screaming fits when she doesn't get her way aren't necessarily attachment or grieving issues, she is just very strong-willed and doesn't like to be told 'No'. We are slowing setting up boundaries now, and it has helped. She does have some institutionalized behaviors, which are expected. She has a very bad case of ezcema on her hands, and she soothes herself by literally tearing at her hands. She does this when she goes to sleep or gets upset about something. I've kept enough lotion on them, so the deep scratches are starting to heal...it's still a struggle though. She also does not cry when she gets hurt. This is typical for institutionalized children. Nannies can't comfort every child with every boo-boo, so children just learn to not even show emotion when hurt. We are working on making a big deal out of boo-boos, she will learn that she can be comforted when she's hurt. She is very affectionate, but she is also affectionate to strangers (trying to give them a kiss). This is why we are setting up strict boundaries when we get home, and then we can slowly ease up on them as she learns what is/is not appropriate when showing affection.
-She does not hold her own bottle. I'm fairly certain that nanny held the bottle for her up until the day she left. This is NOT typical. I'm grateful Miss Vivi was loved, but I'm shocked that an 18 month old does not know how to hold a bottle or sippy cup.
-I'm TERRIFIED of the 15 hour flight back to Chicago. TERRIFIED.
-Vivi will only let me hold her. This began on Day Two. She will play with Aaron and tease him, but she does not like it when he tries to reach for her. She screams. Up until today, she wouldn't even let me put her down, even in the hotel room. She screamed while I showered, got dressed, tried to write a blog post, etc. Today we have had a breakthrough! She played with her toys on her own when I needed to do something around the hotel room. She let me leave the room without screaming, and she even let Aaron put his arms around her to give her a hug. Progress!!!!
-At times I feel like I have a newborn... who weighs 25 pounds... and I'm pretty sure she is swearing at me in Chinese sometimes.
-Both Camden and Caroline have been sick, but I think they are feeling much better now. I miss them like crazy.
-Vivi is still sleeping through the night, and its amazing. I'm enjoying every second of it because I know all of our sleep cycles will be completely off once we come home.
-Have I mentioned that I come home on THURSDAY? Because I do! I just need to survive the flight. Have I also mentioned Aaron and I aren't even sitting together on the long flight? It could get ugly. REALLY ugly.
-I fell asleep at 8pm last night and could not wake myself up. I slept most of the night, and it was amazing.
That will have to be it for now because it's late. Pics tomorrow! Goodnight!
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