Monday in Hanoi

We began the next phase of the process. PAPERWORK. It's still a bit of a mystery to us, but we led off the week with a trip to Vietnamese Immigration to apply for a passport for Miss Molly. It was busy, being a Monday morning, and Kenny took Cindy and me to the Immigration office: a hot, sticky, crowded room. Kenny basically took care of everything while we waited to finally just show our passports and pay 200,000 dong (sounds like a lot, but it's just about $12.50). That was it for today. Now we wait for an word on an appointment from the US Embassy for our I-600 interview #1. Hopefully tomorrow or Wednesday. Then we get Molly's passport next Monday, hopefully the second interview after that, then a medical exam for Molly (the one she got didn't count towards her visa (???), and then we get her visa and head HOME!! I think that's how it works, anyway. Our guides here, Kenny, Martin, and Nancy all speak differing amounts of English, but that's what we've come to understand anyway. Just go with the flow.

Today has been hazy and muggy (the usual weather... although most days have had more sunshine break through). Emma and I ventured out to a nearby... well about a 20 minute walk anyway.... park... Reunification Park, while Kate and Molly napped. Molly is a pretty good napper, and a very good sleeper at night ... at least 5+ hours at a shot at night, with maybe some bottle-time late night/early morning. Emma and I had a lot of fun... we entered the park at a small entrance, not knowing there was an entry fee until people started shouting "Hallo... Hallo!!!".... we went back and found out we each had to pay 2000 Dong (a grand entry fee of 25cents for the two of us). We walked through the park.... there were rides set up, like a carousel, etc.. very old looking rides, but they were not open. There was even a train ride for kids through the park, but it was not running.




We finally found some things Em could climb and found a huge lake where one guy was catching fish every minute, small ones,and Emma loved watching them flapping on the dock. He put them all in a net he had set up. There were a lot of people walking and sitting around in the park, several men and teens playing games with small little balls, soccer, and badminton. We stayed by the lake for a while, watching the fish, and watching the people walking by.


typical scene by the lake... Hey!! that's Emma's hat!!!!



We did finally find a nice playground where Emma played, loving this one cute little spinning ride that you can see below (I hope). She and some slightly older school kids who were playing there eyed each other curiously. Some of the kids said "hello", but it was clearly the only English they knew. We finally headed back to the hotel and got caught in the rain, getting SOAKED along the way. Emma was such a great trooper about it and didn't complain one bit!! We're very proud of how well she has behaved in this strange environment for her. And she has been so great with Molly, always wanting to help out.
Molly has been great today, doing alot more smiling and cooing... Kate even set up a homemade mobile for her. Enjoy the pics and video!!! Keep the comments coming! By hearing comments from you helps US through our own homesickness!!! We miss all of you SO much!!!



Happy sisters at play

Meet Molly !!!!

Well it's taken a little while to realize that we can put VIDEO on here as well!!!! What a world! Hope this works and you can all enjoy!

Now THIS is MOTHERS DAY!!

First of all, I have to apologize for not posting yesterday (not that we'll be able to post every day). It seems the adrenaline that's been keeping us going despite the 11 hour time difference and the 19 hours of flying has finally been depleted. After returning from the SOS medical clinic (staffed by international MD's... Molly was examined by an Australian Pediatrician, Dr. Jane Standish), we came back to our hotel room and proceeded to nap, and then sleep, and sleep. Emma and Kate slept for about 15 hours each, and Molly slept from 3pm-10:30pm, had a bottle and diaper change, and slept until around 6am!!!! Molly was the only one who had any food after breakfast yesterday!

Emma looking stylish in her Vietnamese Hat

So we awoke today for a most special Mothers Day and after our usual buffet breakfast (the waitresses are so nice, always offering to hold Molly to give us a chance to eat), we headed out to the Old Quarter of Hanoi for some shopping with our friends, Cindy & Jerry Maust and their twin girls, Lindsey and Lydia. What an experience that was!!!

Shopping the streets of the Old Quarter

The people are so nice, but they are RELENTLESS in trying to sell you things. One woman literally followed me up and down the street to sell me a t-shirt, her price dropping every few steps .... "please... special price for you... first sale of the day... please help me... 80,000 dong ... 70,000 ... 60... 50.. 45... 40 ... please.. you can bargain"... I wish I wanted it at that point... we're talking $2.50!! Well we finally escaped the chaos, after several small purchases, and headed back along the lake to our hotel for some peace, rest, and AIR CONDITIONING!!!

Bridge in Hoan Kiem Lake (Near the Hotel)

The weather today isn't so bad... no rain, a slight hint of a breeze, but still very VERY HUMID! The air conditioning is SO nice to come back to, and especially for Molly who is getting topical treatment for fungal rashes several places on her body, face and scalp. They seem to be responding to the ointment, frequent bathing, and the cooler air of the hotel. The pediatrician wasn't concerned about them, just thought it would take a while to clear up. This seems to be very common in the orphanage. At least there is no sign of scabies or anything else too funky.

SOME IMAGES FROM MOTHERS DAY 2007 :

Been a LONG DAY!! Best Mothers Day in a LONG TIME!!!

By the way, in case you weren't aware, you can click on any of the pictures to enlarge them. Also, thanks for submitting comments. It's always fun for us to read and know that you are sharing this journey with us!!

AT LONG LAST!!!!!!!!!!

I'm the only one left awake in this hotel suite. Molly was the first to fall asleep (at the restaurant downstairs, just after 8:30pm, her regular bedtime at the orphanage. Emma and Kate are also exhausted from the travel and the emotions of today. I was falling asleep at the computer while trying to send some pics to a couple of other adoptive parents with babies at our orphanage, but I REALLY wanted to get something out before crashing tonight.

We got a phone call from Martin last night telling us the G&R ceremony WAS indeed moved up to this afternoon (out of thoughtfullness to try to get Molly to us, and twin girls to the Maust family who are with us here now, in time for Mother's Day on Sunday!!). We broke the news to Emma this morning (who, thanks to the jetlag, was wide awake at 5AM!!), and she was just too excited.

We ventured out into Hanoi for a long walk to the lake, and then to the old quarter. What a different world here! We heard about it, you expect it, but still the overwhelming number of motorbikes and bicycles is an incredible sight to behold. And then to become part of it as you take that leap of faith and cross the streets... Kate's technique is don't look, just go.... talk about extreme sports!! Makes bungee jumping seem boring! Add to that the INCREDIBLE HUMIDITY, the heat, and the exhaust fumes, so you can add oxygen deprivation to the experience. The people in the city are very friendly and they are enamored with Emma!!! She turns heads everywhere she goes.

Well, anyway, we got back to the hotel and enjoyed the pool and excercise center, when one of the World Child people, Kenny, found us there and said the G&R was now moved up and we would have to leave by 12:30!!! Meanwhile, the Mausts were just arriving in Hanoi around 11AM and didn't even know they were going to get their twins in a matter of hours! So we showered, got dressed, and got our gifts in order and met Cindy and Jerry Maust in the lobby and packed into the van for a ride to Thai Nguyen, approximately 2 hours north of Hanoi. Another fascinating ride, seeing the sights along the way, constantly coming across surreal sights, like a family of 3 kids with dad on a motorbike, and people carrying all sorts of things on their bikes or motorbikes (one guy with about 10 tires and rims stacked high and strapped to his motorbike) and weaving through this traffic in a van on narrow roads, filled with crazy two-way traffic, with constant honking of horns and narrow misses that just seem a part of the fabric here.

Entrance to the Orphanage

We arrive at Thai Nguyen orphanage and wait in a hot room with one of the caretakers who spoke about as much English as I speak Vietnamese! This went on for about 30 minutes or so, until I ran out to the van to get something we forgot. Of course, I come back 60 seconds later and Kate now has Molly in her arms as Emma is doting on her !!!! I live to see, cause or just be a part of Kate's emotional moments, and I miss this one by seconds!! Oh well....

The Mausts have their hands full with twin girls and it's just quite the scene! We all scramble to take pictures, Em is in LOVE with her baby sister, and of course Kate is in heaven with her adoring new daughter! She is so sweet and only suffers from rashes and a partially treated skin infection. (we are taking all of the babies to the SOS Clinic tomorrow morning, which is the nearby medical clinic that we have heard great things about, with western MD's). After spending some time there at the orphanage, Two families have just added loved ones!

we say good-bye to several caretakers who wave from the outdoor balcony as they see us leave with the little girls they have loved for the past several months. We load in the van and head over to the Justice Department where there is a brief ceremony where we sign papers and exchange thanks with the Director there as the adoption is completed.

Checking the fine print at the G&R

More photo opportunities, more waiting in a very hot and humid room, and we are off in the van for the ride back to Hanoi. I'm not sure why, but we don't give a second thought to riding without carseats for Emma, much less the 3 infants in the van as we head back to the chaos of Friday evening traffic in Hanoi! We stop to buy formula and head back to the hotel. We have finally reached this point in the journey that began more than 2 YEARS ago! Emma just wants to hold Molly, feed her, and even helped to bathe her and change her diaper! QUITE THE DAY!!!!!!!!!!

So, that's why 3 out of the 4 are asleep now, and once I get a few pics up, I will make 4!! unless Molly wakes up, of course, but that wouldn't happen now, would it? Stay tuned for the next installment :-)

SAFE AND SOUND AND IN ANOTHER WORLD!!!

our first view of Hanoi from the Melia Hotel

Well, I'll keep this a little brief as we are just settling in and trying to figure out what time and what day it is. I will tell you that the trip was smooth as Thai Silk, and Emma was as big a trooper as we could have ever hoped for. Thai Airways has the most incredible service you could imagine, and we had no delays or problems at all (Once we got past the Staten Island Expressway, that is!!).

After a flight plan that took us OVER the North Pole, Greenland, Iceland, Kazakstan (no Borat sitings) Afghanistan and India, we landed in Bangkok and made a quick connecting flight to Hanoi. We were met at the Hanoi Airport by Martin, the super-guide from our agency, World Child International. He accompanied us to our hotel which is as nice as could be. Interesting ride here, but we'll leave that for another blog entry. Martin actually hinted that they are attempting to move our G&R date up to TOMORROW, but are waiting to hear back from the orphanage first. So we could actually meet Molly in a matter of HOURS!!!!!!!!! or days, depending on how things go. We'll just go with the flow... that seems to be the way to keep sanity in this process. It'll be interesting to see how Cindy and Jerry Maust react (another family adopting from the same orphanage) if we do indeed go to the orphanage tomorrow afternoon, as they arrive in Hanoi late in the morning and may get the news that they'll be heading right up with us to the Thai Nguyen!!!

Well, now it's time to get Emma to bed (we think) and try to adjust to Hanoi time. By the way, although we had a little pool going as to how soon Emma would whine "It's TAKING TOO LONG!!" on the plane, and how often she would make reference to "are we there yet" type of comments, the ONLY time she really asked about that was in the car on the way to the airport!!! Sorry to Casey and Ryan whose guesses were as way off as mine !!

We're leavin' on a jet plane.....

That's right! We're packin' up and setting our sites on the other side of the world! Look out Molly! We're comin' to bring you home! Sweet Molly is most likely just waking up on her little bamboo mat, stretching out and yawning with her little baby breath....she has no idea how much her world is going to be rocked! Her big sister and big brothers are anxious to hold her! (As are we!) We've been packing, unpacking, and re-packing (mostly taking out the gazillion amounts of stuffed animals Emma absolutely MUST have on this trip!) I'll try to finish the "girls" suitcases tonight & Howie will be on his own tomorrow! After these 2+ years of paperchasing, homestudy interviews, fingerprinting, notarizing, certifying, authenticating....I'm taking the day off tomorrow! I'm spending it w/my dear friend Gordo. We'll find ourselves in a massaging chair w/our feet soaking getting ready for long overdue pedicures! Both Howie & I truly appreciate all the phone calls & messages...it's nearly impossible to call or talk w/ each & every one of our dear friends / family who are trying to contact us. It's easier for us to communicate through this blog, through email. We will have access to the internet & will email, keep up this journaling blog, as well as have the ability to phone home using our laptop computer. (Skype).

In these last few minutes of peace & quiet...I'd better get started on unpacking the packing that Emma's done within the last hour before her bedtime!
Love to all!
kate

Cinco de Mayo!

We got THE call! Yes...THE call! Our adoption agency coordinator called early this afternoon. She said "Run, don't walk, get your airplane tickets". Our long awaited G&R (Giving & Receiving Ceremony) date will be either 5/14 or 5/15! Did anyone hear a blood curling scream coming out of Central NJ? It was me, and I'm not afraid to admit it! This has been an incredible, amazing journey. And now to think that we are just over a week away from holding our newest daughter in our arms is...simply put in the words of our precious Emma "our dream come true, our wish upon a star!"

Howie is working closely w/ the travel agent and we will finalize our flights by later today or tomorrow. We hope to fly out of JFK on Wed the 9th (as in FOUR days away). We will have a connecting flight in Bangkok and then hop onto a plane that will take us into Hanoi, Vietnam on Thursday evening! We hope to adjust to the 12 hour time difference over the weekend and have time to play the role of a tourist before officially meeting our new daughter! That's the scoop for now....stay tuned for more adventure to come!

We are most grateful to a certain FL lady who guided us in the VN direction! Because of this wonderful friend she has not only guided us away from the long slow wait of a China referral to the Express lane to our Molly in VN. Poka and my dear VNE family we want you to know that we will blaze quite the trail in VN! You guys are right behind us and we'd better hurry so that you don't bite at our heels!

That's the scoop for now...stay tuned for more adventure to come! Please feel free to leave comments on this blog.