I cannot even begin to explain how totally thrilled we are to be home. I have been in a "zombie" like state for a few days, but we are starting to come out of the fog to reality. Things have been busy, busy or lazy, lazy around our house and this is the first time that I had the time and energy to post...sorry for those who have been checking daily for "coming home" pictures :-)
I woke up Friday, June 15th, around 4:00 am to start getting ready to leave and to make sure that everything was packed. I obsess about forgetting something important. I got up, got showered, did a final check and I fixed Anna a bottle and Rodney got her ready to leave. We left the hotel around 5:45 am and headed for the airport.
Anna was wide awake all the way to the airport and did so well. It was about a 45 minute drive and there was no fussing all the way. I had the same anxious anticipation feeling in the pit of my stomach as I did when we left for China. I didn't know what to expect, how Anna would react to the plane ride, nervous about everything going smoothly, and so excited to see my boys I was just beside myself.
We got out at the airport and began the "herding" process. We checked in our baggage and then went through customs and security. After going through security, I was the first one out and this man stopped me and said, "Honolulu?" I said, "no". He said, "yes, Northwest, Honolulu. Boarding, no time. Get on car, no time, boarding, no time." Unknown to me, we were on the connecting flight from Guangzhou to Honolulu with a stop in Tokyo.
Okay, I knew that we should have had an hour before leaving, but the screen was saying boarding and this guy was had such an urgency about him, we hopped on the car, waiting for Angela, Karen and Olivia and said, "Go." "Money," he said. We should have gotten off the car then, but we didn't. We paid him what he wanted. He zoomed us through the airport to our gate and we got off...only to sit on the plane for at least 30 minutes. He must have thought, "suckers!" I told Rodney when we were going through the airport that I thought we were getting ripped off, but he said it was well worth the money to not have to pack those bags.
I had Anna in the carrier and a backpack on my back. Poor Rodney looked like a beaten down, overloaded mule. He had a rather large duffel bag, a smaller carry on, the laptop bag and the camcorder/digital camera bag. I had all the bags totally stuffed and they weighed probably 2x more than when we were going to China. People would joke me about him carrying all the stuff...but I had Anna, what could I do??? ;-)
We boarded the first plane to Tokyo and had a seat between us. We were pretty packed in, even with the extra seat. It really made me dread the upcoming flight that was booked. I was trying to figure out how we could organize better...but small airplane seats, no foot room, a baby and a backpack...there was no solution. Anna loved to sit on my lap and look out the window of the plane. The flight from Guangzhou to Tokyo only took about 4 hours and she did awesome.
We got to Tokyo, bid farewell to our China traveling buddies as they boarded the plane for Detroit and we boarded for Minneapolis. Thankfully, we sat beside a really nice man, who was very understanding of our situation. He never huffed or puffed when one or both of us had to get up. Anna did well on the flight. Considering that she got up really early and we were shuffling her from "pillar to post", she acted like an experienced world traveler.
There were times that she got pretty fussy, but she was tired, I am sure her ears felt weird (mine did), and we were uncomfortable the majority of the flight. She slept probably 5 hours combined of the flight, which I think was pretty good. I was next to the window, so I had her the entire time, except for a few minutes here and there when I was trying to fix a bottle or get a diaper. At one point, she was really sleeping good, so we did lay her across our legs so she could stretch out and my arms could rest.
We hit some turbulence and I got some motion sickness. Thankfully Anna had fallen asleep and I could concentrate on trying not to throw up. I put the air directly on my face and focused on breathing in and out. I finally fell asleep for about 45 minutes and was better when I woke up. After about 11 hours we were finally in Minneapolis and the United States of America - Thank God!
We unboarded the plane and had to go through Immigration. Because Anna was not a citizen we had to go through the "non-resident" line, which was really short. We stepped up to the window and the CIS officer was super nice. He asked about our trip and then said, "so she has a cleft lip and palate?" I answered yes and he said, "so do I". After he said that, I could see his scar. So Anna was welcomed to the United States by someone with the exact same special need as herself. He congratulated us and wished Anna well.
We then had to claim our baggage, go through customs and re-check our bags. That was a site. I had Anna again in the carrier, the backpack, two wheeled suitcases and our paperwork, while Rodney had all the carry ons and two wheeled suitcases. We were anxious to get our stuff checked back in and Anna was wanting a bottle. Thankfully, they didn't give us any grief in customs or security and we made our way to the gate to wait for our FINAL FLIGHT!!!
Our first American meal, was nothing else, but McDonalds. I had a cheeseburger Happy Meal and Rodney had a Big Mac Meal. Anna ate her bottle and we had about 45 minutes before boarding, so I took Anna to the restroom to get her cleaned up and changed.
I am surprised someone didn't call security on me. She screamed from the moment I laid her on the changing table until I picked her back up...well, except for the moments that she was silent because she had to catch her breath from crying so hard. She hates hygiene! I just changed her diaper, washed her off from head to toe and then put on clean clothes. She was furious. But, she was clean and cute :-)
Finally, it was time to start our flight to Nashville. We boarded the plane, dreading yet another flight, but so ready to be home. Anna fell asleep on Rodney and slept the majority of the flight. I think the bathroom scene totally wiped her out. The flight lasted about 2 hours and we were finally at the Nashville Airport!!!
Biggest brother Carter
My niece Caroline, aka Superman
Big Brother Parker
Friend Heather, Sister-in-law Amy, Big Brother Jacob and my OLDER sister Stephanie
Rodney's parents, Ronald and Faye, my sister's husband, Rick, and their son, my nephew Jack
We grabbed our carry ons, walked off the plane, out of the gate and I was almost in tears. I knew that somewhere in this building my boys were waiting for me....well, Rodney and Anna too, but I was going to get to touch them and kiss them and hug them...I was seriously about to have a breakdown.
ALL the Boys waiting for our arrival. Carter, Jacob and Parker, along with cousin Jack and Harris.
I gathered myself and Rodney and I were in a sprint to get pass the security checkpoint where we knew they would be waiting. As we started rounding the corner, I could see my father-in-law standing. I told Rodney and he was jerking his head from side to side trying to see someone, all while we were speed walking. When we turned the final corner to the opening, Carter, Jacob and Parker come running towards us. There couldn't have been a more beautiful sight to come home to.
We hugged and kissed and laughed and they were totally enthralled with Anna. Parker looked like he had grown a foot and was talking in more structured, adult like sentences. Carter and Jacob were so sweet to us and to Anna. Anna, still in the front carrier, was kicking her legs and didn't act upset at all.
I don't like "spotlight" attention. I knew that we were being watched by many, many people, but I didn't care. I had the "ugly cry" face, felt really nasty, been traveling for over 22 hours and was thoroughly enjoying the uniting of my family.
We were then greeted by other family members. Anna was taking it all in. She would look up to make sure that I was still behind her, but she let people touch her and talk to her without one fuss. They helped us get our luggage, get it loaded and we were ready for our drive home.
My little brother, Jonathan, giving Anna kisses
It takes us about 1 hour to get home from the Nashville airport and Rodney and I were expecting the worst about putting Anna in a car seat. She screamed the whole time I was putting her in and fastening the buckle and harness. Carter and Jacob were begging to sit next to her, so I told Rodney, she is going to scream whoever sits by her, so we let them. She screamed until we pulled out of the parking space and then she was done. She looked around, played with a couple of toys and scratched at the material on the car seat. She whined a couple of times, but I turned around, rubbed her leg and she was fine again.
I sat next to Parker and we "snuggled" the majority of the way home. He was so sweet and I was enjoying every little kiss and giggle. Carter and Jacob were telling us how that they and Anna were bonding. After about 20 minutes in the car with them, I felt that maybe I had over-emphasized the "bonding" and "adjustment" process with them. If they said it once, they said it 30 times in every tense of the words. "Anna is bonding, Anna has bonded, We are bonding, I think she has already bonding, Anna is adjusting, I bet she has already adjusted....".
I prepped them for 'worst case scenario' and they picked up on all the lingo. I wanted them to understand before we left that she might not "like" any of us for a while, but how that we would have to be patient while she adjusted and it might take her a while to bond. Well, they ran with it. It was sweet, but they were talking like psychologist back there.
We get home, I walk inside and there were signs made by the kids everywhere. They had painted welcome home, welcome to the family, we love you...it was sweet. I walked Anna through the kitchen and then to the living room. I sat her in the floor and she walked around like she owned the place. She covered the living room exploring everything in sight. She wouldn't go to the kitchen by herself, but she would walk from the living room to her bedroom.
Parker making signs for Anna at his Nanny and Pa's house
We had some visitors that night that wanted to take a peek at Anna. She let them hold her and played in the floor with the boys. She acted content and didn't act scared at all. I thought that it might be a repeat of the first time in the hotel room with her being clingy and not wanting to be sat down, but it wasn't. She would come to Rodney or myself occasionally for us to pick her up, but then she wanted right back down to play. We were so thankful.
The boys would pack her around or hold her constantly if I would let them.
Anna with her Nanny, Rodney's mom
Anna with her Pa Ronald, Rodney's dad. Can you see the goatee on his chin that wasn't there until he learned that Anna loved Rodney's? Anna also loves her Pa's facial hair :-)
Aunt Shanda, Rodney's sister, totally thrilled that Anna fell asleep on her
She fell asleep around midnight. Rodney and I were still pretty wired, so we watched some tv and I fell asleep. We got up and went to bed. I got in the bed around 3:00 am and Anna woke up around 4:00 am. Parker apparently woke up crying, woke Anna up and it was on. Parker got in bed with Rodney and I got in Parker's bed with Anna.
Anna's first night in her bed
She sat up in the bed and would smack my face, play with her toes, pull my hair...she was awake! Finally around 5:30 she wanted down in the floor. I put her down and she laid down and went to sleep. I went to sleep and slept for about 2 hours before everyone else was up and ready to go.
I forced myself to stay up and do something productive. I got all our luggage unpacked, clothes washed and somehow managed to stay awake during a real bad sluggish stage. Around 3:00 pm, I was so tired, I couldn't focus on anything. But I got a second wind and was good for the remainder of the evening. We had some more visitors and Anna again surprised everyone. A family friend brought us dinner and it was awesome. I love roast, potatoes and carrots...love it. I had told Rodney while we were in China how that I couldn't wait for my favorite meal, well, I didn't have to wait long. I made myself sick. I ate way, way too much.
I lost about 10 lbs while in China. On my second plate of roast Rodney, the super sweet guy that he is, asked me if I left my Chinese figure in China and was going to pick back up my American figure since I was home. I guess I am :-)
Parker may be a big brother, but he is still a baby too. He is doing really good with the shift of attention the past couple of days. We make sure we take time to show him extra attention and make him even more rotten than he is now.
It is natural to want to be so gentle and easy with her, but she is a rough and tough player. She looks like a 6 month old baby, but plays like linebacker. People laugh and comment about how little she is and her walking around just looks funny. She will get so excited she will take off running and tumble to the floor and roll around squealing with excitement. She acts like she has been here forever. We are so thankful that she is adjusting so well. I know that it may still be a long road, but as for now, everything is 500 times better than I had expected.
Grandma and Pa meeting Anna for the first time. My parents were out of town until late Sunday night. They came over to meet Anna.
Anna fell asleep around 2:30 am Monday morning and we got up around 7:30 am. She was awake, but hadn't cried. She stayed up until around 1:00 pm, when I put her down for a nap and she slept for about 3 1/2 hours until I woke her up again. She played really good and went to sleep again a little after 9:00 pm. I am hoping that she will sleep tonight somewhat "normal", for central standard time that is :-)
Today I had my first real day with four kids solo. Rodney worked and I was home alone with the whole slew of kids. It went really well. The boys played good with Anna and she was content. I got to do a couple loads of laundry, cleaned up the kitchen, vacuumed and picked up the downstairs. I ran the vacuum and Anna wasn't scared at all. She followed me around watching me. She also ventured into the kitchen by herself. That was the first time she had done that. She is definitely getting more and more comfortable as time passes. She is so sweet and good.
I still have to do a reality check from time to time. It is hard to believe that she is really with us and we are really home. God continues to be so good to us in every aspect of this adoption. It is almost unreal how well she seems to be doing and is just a perfect addition to our family. The boys love her to pieces and all of our family is so thrilled that she is finally here.
Thankful for things getting back to a "new" normal and sending love from Rodney, Marcy, Carter, Jacob, Parker and Anna
The first picture of Hai Zhi Yi, "Novie"
