Go ahead...scroll down and see the photos and then come back and read about Bailey's Gotcha Day!
It has been a long day for everyone! We got Bailey this morning at 11:00 am. She didn't cry at all. The orphanage director brought her to the adoption office and she was carrying the little photo album that we sent to her in her care package. After signing a temporary custody agreement we had lunch with our attorney and the Scott family at the hotel. After a very short 20 minute nap we had to meet with our attorney to sign more paperwork and then it was back to the adoption office for our interviews with the court officials. Afterwards we decided to take Bailey for her first swim. She was terrified so we came back to our room where we played with the stacking cups and beach ball.
Slowly but surely her personality is starting to emerge. Danny got the first laugh and smiles at lunch today when he pretended to eat her noodles. She thinks he is a riot! She is a very good eater and ate a small plate of noodles and almost an entire bowl of congee. I do believe she is only a couple of pounds lighter than Brea and maybe 2 or 3 inches shorter. She has been very well cared for and she has chuncky little thighs and feet. When we go for a walk she holds on tight to Danny's thumb and my hand. She is totally potty trained and told me when she had to go potty. I am so glad that I knew how to saw pee pee in Chinese! When we come back into the hotel room she takes her shoes off immediately and hands them to me. One less thing we have to teach her since we do not wear shoes in our home. This afternoon Danny was flipping through the TV channels looking for something in English and one of the stations had a cartoon on. When she saw it she started talking quickly in Chinese so he backed up. It was a little lamb cartoon and she was totally glued to the tv for an entire 10 mintues or so. It is obvious that she has watched this before because she said several things along with the characters as they talked. We are going to try to find it on DVD for her so she can watch it at home.
Bailey's foster mother wanted us to know what her favorite snacks are so she packed a bag FULL of snack foods and sent it with her along with the camera, photo album and bunny lovie that we sent to her in her care package. So far we have figured out a few of the items but some are still are mystery. It looks like she is a fan of veggie crackers, some kind of meat sticks, bananas, apples, rice cakes and an assortment of other crackers and jelly type chewy things. Many of the items I recognize from our local Asian market but the ones that I do not I have taken pictures of so I can show them at the market and buy them for her at home.
In the morning we will head out bright and early for the notary office (much like our courthouses in the USA). Afterwards we will be visiting the spot where Bailey was found. The rest of the week our attorney will be doing behind the scenes paperwork to get Bailey's Chinese passport. We will be visiting her orphanage and meeting her foster family on Wednesday and then doing a little sight seeing so we can learn more about her home town.
Before I go I want to ask for your prayers for a family from the UK that we met at the airport in Nanchang. They received their baby on Sunday. She is just under a year and very tiny and pale (she actually remind me of Brea when we got her). The parents are both doctors so they have a good understnading of what institutionalized care can do to these children but they suspect something physical is going on. The UK is very different than America and because they have socialized medicine there they are NOT ALLOWED to bring home a sick child or a child with special needs. They were scheduled to sign the adoption paperwork yesterday afternoon but postponed it so the baby could be seen by a local pediatrician. The baby has not taken in any fluids since they got her and she has lost weight since their last update. The doctor did see her and they sent her back to the orphanage to see if the nanny could get her to take a bottle. She will spend the night there and they will talk with the officials again in the morning. I know they must be devastated, worried and very confused right now. They have their parents and their beautiful 6 year old daughter with them so they have a lot of emotional support but I know they could use all of our prayers for answers to their questions, direction in their decision making and peace in their hearts for whatever decision has to be made.
Bailey is now fast asleep in her crib and it is time for mommy and daddy to get some shut eye to. We miss you Brooke, Baker and Brea VERY, VERY much. The only thing that could have made today better is if you guys could have been here to. You are going to LOVE your little sister! We are showing her photos of you guys on the computer and telling her all about you. She had FIVE foster siblings at her foster home so she will feel much more comfortable when we get her home and she sees that she is going to have siblings to play with every single day! We hope you are enjoying your treats. We love you. Hugs and kisses from mommy and daddy.
