We did meet up with our other family from New Life at the Syracuse Airport while waiting to board our first flight. Jan is adopting a little girl from Mongolia with a cleft lip cleft palette, she is a single Mom, her little girl's name is Sage, and her sister Jodi is traveling with her. We shared a lot of stories while waiting in the airports on the way to China, and Jan came over quite a few times and sat next to me & Gary on the long 14 hour flight and we talked quite a bit. We traveled together until Beijing, we all got through customs, and baggage check, and security at Beijing, and then had to split up to go to our different provinces where our daughters were. We have talked to them quite a few times via email while we have been in our provinces. We will meet up with them again in Guangzhou on Saturday and will be in the same hotel until we all leave next Thursday to come home. We will be on all the same flights coming home, so it will be nice to spend some time with them again. We can't wait to meet Sage, and for them to meet Avery. We can't wait to compare stories about our week in province, and for the girls to play together. They are about the same age, Avery will be 14 months on Wednesday and Sage just turned 15 months a week ago.
We have also met 5 couples here in Changsha, in this hotel. One couple is from Montreal, they adopted a little boy with club feet he is 2 years old. We were sharing our stories about how their son, Jean, and Avery hadn't had a bm yet. So it made us feel a little better to know they were in the same boat as us. Very nice people and they are first time parents also.
Two other couples are from Italy. Very nice people a little hard to talk to because of the language barrier. But we would say hello, and chow to them and ask how things were going and they would do the same to us. They had actually just received their son probably 20 minutes before we arrived to get Avery on Monday. He is 2 years old. Another couple is from Spain, they adopted a son with a cleft lip and cleft palette. Another couple is from France, they too adopted a little boy age 2. We seem to be the only one with a little girl. We have heard many inconsolable screaming coming from the other rooms at various times, so it makes us feel better to know that other people are also having a hard time every once in awhile. We are all in the same boat- :)
Today at breakfast we were seated at a table between a group of families here on a heritage tour. That's when families bring their adopted children back to tour their province, their orphanage etc. They were so nice, they asked when we received her, where she was from, how old she was, what was her name, how things were going...very understanding, and very gracious. One of the Moms actually lived in Binghamton for about 15 years, so when she heard us say NY, and then Upstate NY, she chimed right in. They congratulated us time after time, and said what a magical journey it was, and that it just keeps getting better and better. There is a bond in the adoption world of parents. A certain understanding of how different it is, and a certain camaraderie...that is so comforting.
So we have been able to connect with some of the families on this leg of the journey.
We have also been skyping with both sets of our parents, Tom and Liz and the girls, and Steve & Beth and the boys. We have been able to do that at least 2 times a day with everyone mostly. It has been nice to talk to our families face to face and they have also been able to see Avery. She is quite the little entertainer when we are skyping. She is a big ham!! :)
It is hard to put this journey into words, at least all the feelings we are going through. Our connection to eachother has deepened through becoming parents, and the love we feel for Avery is overwhelming, and words don't do it justice.
Gary gets the Daddy/Husband of the year award. He has had to be the waiter, and go getter this week. He has been great, and it has been hard to watch him have to wait to hold his little girl, but any day now I know it's going to happen. Avery is really quite enthralled with him, and Daddy is over the moon in love with her. I'm sure when it happens it will be fast, and that will be that. You know what they say about Daddies and their little girls-inseperable!! :)
Love to all~
Allison, Gary & Avery :)
PS~
Just a side note!!
We went to the "Western " buffet the other day for lunch because we didn't want chinese food for once. I sit at the table with Avery and Gary goes to get the food for everyone. He comes back and says to me, "I don't want you to go up to the buffet". I said "why?". He says, "just don't". I look at him and say, "are there snakes up there?", and he says, " yes, and eels, and turtles"!!!!!!!!!
Snakes , and eels, and turtles-OH MY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm so glad I didn't see it on anyones plate. I miss real American food.
~Alli
1 comment:
There has to be a McDonald's or something in China right? I thought they were all over the place, but maybe you're in too much of a remote area? It's bad food, but at least it's American and I guess you would know what's in it... I can't imagine that the recipes change all that much. i guess there were turtles on the buffet though.
Nice to hear that there are other parents there for you to talk to or at least see. It always makes a trip to a foreign place seem a little bit less intense.
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