Happy Easter From Guangzhou

Happy Easter!  HE is Alive!  I must share my all-time favorite song/video.  My poor Sunday School students are forced to watch this at least twice each year.  :)

"He's Alive" by Dolly Parton

Yes, the Easter Bunny found us in China.  That bunny knew just what I like - Cadbury Eggs. 
For those of you who have the luxury of visiting the WalMart/Target Easter candy clearance this week, just remember that those eggs keep very well in the refrigerator. Just saying....


Today, we visited the Chimelong Safari Park. We found out about it and decided it sounded worth the hour drive each way. First of all we have had a climate shock as after a 2.5 hour flight last night we went from jacket weather to the tropics here in Guangzhou. Let's just say it - It is HOT! And... everyone and their brother decided today was a great day to visit the Safari Park. You would have had to be here to fully appreciate the experience, but I will try to summarize.  (I am laughing already.)

So, you can drive your car through the park.  Or you can take a park tram.  We opted for the tram so that we could be up close and personal with the animals.  (Haha)  First of all, the line (more like a stampede) to get to the tram was an experience in itself.  Have a mentioned it was hot?!  We were pushed and shoved and squeezed together with the other 5,000 people waiting in line.  Ok - maybe 4,000 people. 

Finally, we got on the tram and took off.  Literally, we took - off.  Like a bullet.  We were instantly laughing.  We flew by the animals.  No chance for a steady photo and certainly no time to focus.  Remember the cars that I mentioned earlier?  Well, the tram shared the road/lane with the cars.  So, we were in the tram (open air - great for up close encounters)  and ... then... there were three rows of cars to our right and the animals were beyond the cars. To get the full picture, let me share some of our best photos:
 

Check out the camels.

Uh-oh. Traffic jam.

Perfect expression.

Lucky shot.

Zooming by the giraffes again. We were cracking up!

The tram ride came to an end and we were on foot. We saw more giraffes and had the opportunity to feed them.

You would have had to be there to appreciate the amount of 长颈鹿口水 (giraffe drool).

We didn't quite make it to the panda exhibit because one of us was not feeling well.

It was a hoot! The whole experience. We continue to laugh about it. It was worth the drive and money. Until tomorrow....

Finally - Pics (And A Video) From Xi'An

Gotcha Day Crosse wrote us many notes in Chinese the first few days. Our interpreter/photographer, Lin-Ley, was a huge help with initial communications.
Adoption Day lunch with our guide, Anthony.
Brothers and their video games.

New clothes. Crosse was not interested in any clothes other than the ones he was wearing (day-after-day). Finally, we convinced him this store was from America. That was all it took. Keeping with the American theme. By far, Crosse's favorite thing is his new Kindle and everything electronic. If we would let him, he would stay on it all day. He has already downloaded software that allows him to video chat with his friends back at the orphanage. He gets so happy to see his friends!

I will attempt to add a video of Crosse video-chatting with his friend.  You will see Crosse introduce Dallas as his dad and tell his friend he is American.  You can see his friend give Dallas a thumbs-up (he approves) then he loses the connection.

 

Things are moving right along.  Just not fast enough.  We are ready to go home.

Next stop, Guangzhou.

Does He Or Doesn't He?

The first medical report we received indicated he had no hearing.  We knew that and we were/are prepared to communicate via American Sign Language.

Six months later we received a report stating "he learns well wearing a hearing aid". 

A week before our travel, after we asked for clarification, the orphanage director wrote that, indeed, Crosse had no hearing.

On Gotcha Day, the teachers had written a note about what Crosse's preferences were.  They indicated he enjoyed music.    (huh?)

The first night we were together, Crosse indicated that he had a hearing aid previously but had lost it.

The following day, as the adoption was finalized, we asked Crosse's teacher if he had a hearing aid.  She adamantly shook her head and hands that he had no hearing at all.  He never had a hearing aid.

So........  Does he or doesn't he hear?

It seemed as if he sometimes heard loud noises.  We thought he had some hearing based on the way he turned at appropriate times to look at something.

Well, last night he asked to see Dallas' ipod.  He cranked it up and was holding the speaker to his ear.  He smiled.  He heard it!  We do not know to what extent, but he heard the music.  And what was the first song he heard you ask?  I regret to say, it was.... Waylon Jennings.  Oh my!

Later, he found my ipod and I let him listen to some songs from Glee which he really liked.  He wrote me a note in Chinese:  我喜欢   I like!

Crosse has some hearing.  We cannot wait to get him to the doctors to find out how they can help him!!  What an awesome journey it will be. 

(Still no pics due to the ridiculous wifi availability.)

Day 3 With Crosse

Day 3 as a family of 5. This was a busy one. Tomorrow we will struggle to keep the kids occupied as it is a free day with no guide.

Today, we visited the Terracota Warriors. As most of us, we had seen it on television and in pictures. It was awesome to see it up close and personal and have our private guide give us the history. Of course Dallas and I were they only ones really interested. :) This trip took most of the day. It was an hour drive each way. We had a great meal there as well.

Crosse continues to be a good eater. He understands the sign for "more" and is eager to help himself in the buffet line. He continues to look after Lin-Ley and Tru - he holds the elevator door for them, keeps an eye on them, makes a warning voice to get their attention.

While Tru, sometimes, still does not get Dallas' sense of humor, Crosse is definately beginning to catch on. He is smiling more, occassionally laughing and looking for Dallas' approval often.

Today, our guide asked (using writing - Chinese characters) how Crosse was feeling. Crosse's only comment was that he wanted to see his friend in America. We found out on his first night with us that Crosse had a good friend, from his orphanage, that was recently adopted by a family in America. When we mentioned this to the orphanage director, he instantly knew the child of which Crosse was speaking. He opened his little black book (literally) and gave us the name and address of his friend's new family. Surely, he was not supposed to share that information. However, we will certainly be contacting his friend who now lives in North Carolina. Won't that be a reunion to see!

So far, we have been a number of places where we sign to Crosse, "you want?". He has said no to most things. Today, we wanted to buy him some special keepsakes from his province. He chose a very nice Terracota Warrior replica. He tried to talk us into a sword! Later, we went into a bakery and he brought us an ice cream indicating "I want". Yes, he is our kids. "i want". But the funniest "want" by far was when we passed by a street vendor and he stopped to look at their wares. He pointed to the chicken feet. "That." "You want?" "Yes. That." So... after much laughter, including his, we walked back to the hotel with a small bag of grilled chicken feet. Later, he laughed out loud as he ate them and Lin-Ley and Tru watched in dismay.

So, if Crosse's biggest concern is that he wants to see his friend in America - which we have assured him will happen - we are on a good path here!

It's Official - Herpin Family - Party of 5

** Just for the record - the wi-fi here is unbelievably awful. We have to sit in the lobby to get two bars and that does not allow for photo uploads. Getting wi-fi connected and trying to post the following took over two hours.**  So, no photos for now.

It is official.  Crosse is our new son/brother!!  Finally.

Gotcha Day was a tough afternoon.  As soon as we walked into the government building, Crosse became upset.  Understandably so!  He was there with his orphanage director and two teachers.  It did not seem that he was clear on what was happening.

We pulled out some photos and picture books we brought along.  When he saw that we had many Chinese friends including many Chinese children at home, that seemed to help.  Thank you CBCHC friends!!  Also we brought along a bilingual picture dictionary which also sparked his interest.

It was very difficult for him as he realized that he was going to leave his teachers behind and come back to the hotel with us.  His eyes were brimming with tears but his teachers kept telling him that boys don't cry.  They are strong.  He wiped his eyes and followed us to the waiting van.  Personally, I just wanted to hold him and tell him it was ok to cry. 

Immediately, he began taking a big brother role.  He helped Tru and Lin-Ley with their seatbelts in the van.  We returned to the hotel and he began trying to sign to us.  Many of the signs he has learned in Chinese are very similar to American Sign Language.  That has been very helpful.

Back at the hotel, we gave Crosse his new Kindle almost immediately because we knew he loved computers.  This was just the right ice breaker. 
We soon went to dinner.  Again, Crosse showed his caring toward Lin-Ley, Tru and myself.  When I showed him where the plates were (at the buffet) he handed us each a plate first before getting one for himself.  The first thing on Crosse's plate - M&M's and gummy sharks.  Then a hamburger.

That evening, while at dinner the hostess was kind enough to help us write notes back and forth to Crosse.  He was very interested to know, if we were all hearing, why we knew so much sign language.  We told him that we learned it just for him.  He just looked at us - perhaps not understanding why we would do that.  Perhaps the most amusing thing that passed across his paper was an exchange between Lin-Ley and Crosse.  He asked how old Dallas and I were.  She wrote the appropriate character for my age, 四十三 .  Crosse looked at it and jumped in his chair and he stared at me with wide eyes.  While Lin-Ley wrote the characters for 43, he read it as 413!  That took a minute to clear up.  Haha!

Back to the room and ready for bed.  Crosse was very easy.  I signed "brush your teeth", "take a shower", "pajamas on", "time for bed".  He literally jumped into the bed.  As I left the room I gave Lin-Ley a kiss, Tru a kiss, and as he watched with great anticipation as I came toward him, I gave Crosse a kiss on his forehead.  He just turned over and went right to sleep.

Crosse is a smart boy!  He reads and writes Chinese at record speed.  He is fast!  I assume that is rather normal considering that is his first language.  Or is sign language his first language?  I was pondering - Once he gets to America, and begins school, he will be quad-lingual (if that is a proper term).  That's impressive.

We have to give Lin-Ley a BIG shout-out!!  She has been impressing us with her Chinese skills.  She has been constantly bridging the language gap with Crosse.  He likes to write us notes in Chinese that she helps decipher.  We give her sentences to write and she does it!  I love seeing her use her Chinese!  Crosse is already correcting her characters.  Haha.  She is taking it all in stride and communication with her new brother with great pride.

Tru and Crosse are bonding over their Kindle games.  They lay together on the bed comparing their progress.  It is clear that Crosse is looking up to Dallas.  He looks to his new Dad to point out policemen, motorcycles, how high he can jump, and anything sports related.  Guy stuff.  As I type, Dallas has all the kids in the pool.

So, we have been together 24 hours now.  The adoption was complete at 10:30am this morning.  Again, Crosse's teachers were there which made his transition back to us difficult.  But, a trip to Walmart (we got a kick out of that) and a huge, traditional Chinese meal with our guide quickly got his mind off of his sadness.  At least for a while.

And here we go....  Party of 5.

Tomorrow, we are going to see the Terracotta Warriors. 

8 Hours Till Crosse

We are in Xi'An, China.     *What. A. Long. Flight.*

First Snafu - Luggage
When we checked in at Dulles, we were told our luggage was checked all the way to Xi'An.  No worries.
20 hours later - in Beijing - after a 25 minute shuttle ride from Terminal 3 to Terminal 2 - we were told that was not true.  We were  to have collected our luggage at the first terminal and would have to go back and get it.  No way!  We would miss our flight  We were fortunate enough to have some nice young ladies help us and were assured our luggage would follow us on the next flight.  On a different airline.

Arrived in Xi'An - The Photographer
We arrived and went to the customer service desk in baggage claim in inquire about our luggage.  We were promptly greeted by a photographer and airline staff.  He said to me (Jody), "Excuse me, we are working on our foreign customer relations and we were wondering if you would allow us to take your photo as our agents help you."  I said "sure" and began explaining our problem.  It became clear fairly quickly this was just a photo op with the blonde - nothing more.  After he snapped the photos, they quickly prompted us to go to the next desk for help - where the staff spoke no English.

Our Hero - Anthony
Our guide, Anthony, was outside luggage claim to greet us.  He wasted no time making sure our luggage was not only found, but that it was delivered to us at our hotel.  Without delay, it arrived.

Reflections To Date -
There is always humor to be found around here.  As we talked about the oddity that the photographer chose someone for his photos that has just been traveling for over 24 hours, I commented that he could have found someone that looked better than I did.  To that, Lin-Ley said, "Well Mom, I guess he thought you were pretty enough for what they needed."  Thanks, oh so much, Lin-Ley!  Haha!!

Now we wait for Anthony to bring us to Crosse.  Only eight more hours.  Please pray for Crosse and our family as we come together.  Thank you everyone for your well wishes!

12 Years of Loving Lin-Ley

Happy Gotcha Day to all those Spicy Hunan Girls out there!

It was 12 years ago we held our baby girl for the first time.
WE LOVE YOU LIN-LEY!!  XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO
Gotcha!!

TA + CA = Book The Flights!

Travel Authorization - Check!

Consulate Appointment - Check!

After a devastating two month delay involving his U.S. immigration paperwork, things are finally moving along very quickly in our journey to Crosse. The travel agent is on the case and we should have our travel dates this week.

Prayer requests:
Pray for Crosse's acceptance.
Pray for Crosse's emotional well-being.
Pray for our family during travel as well as our transition to a family of five.

Tru is 9 !

 
 
 

Tru is 9 today. He got just what he wanted. Noodles for dinner, cheesecake for dessert and for his gift - a dictionary! You would have thought we gave him a million dollars. He already got in trouble for reading it when he should have already had his bath and been in the bed for tuck-in. Oh, Tru! Happy Birthday Tru Tru!!! XOX

Letter Seeking Confirmation

We are one step closer to Crosse. We received our Letter Seeking Confirmation from Adopter today. This begins another round of paperwork - although much less intense than the beginning of this process. Finally we feel that we are making progress!

Do we accept?
Yes we do!











With this, we know we are approximately 2 1/2 months away from being a family of five!

Tru's New Leg (#8) !!

It's New Leg Day!

Tru received his 8th prosthetic leg today. If only his legs stayed so nice and shiny-new like this!

This is the line-up of legs 1-7 beginning with Baby Red Leg. Here's a link to our post when Tru received his first leg at two years old: Tru's First Steps

Keep growing Tru-Tru!

7th Grade & 3rd Grade

Back to school today!

 
 

Bad Horse!

Today, we were to have an exciting horse-back riding adventure to send summer out with a bang. Well... it was a little too exciting and someone got a little banged up!

Lin-Ley enjoyed the whole experience.

Dallas enjoyed it too.

Tru - not so much!! Just a few minutes into the trail ride, my horse ran over to Tru's horse to bite it. It missed! Instead, it bit Tru on the leg. Obviously, this was very traumatic. Tru was very upset and I had to hold it together so he would be brave enough to at least ride back to the barn.

My poor, poor baby. Tru and I agree that our horse riding days(day)are over!

So long summer!  

Dossier To China - Finally!

After many delays...
After having our paperwork denied at the Chinese Embassy last week...
Today... as we checked into our hotel for the 11th annual China Girl Reunion, we received the amazing news that our paperwork was finally approved, finalized and shipped to China today!  Now we wait. We cannot wait to write Crosse to let him know of our progress!

China Girls, we are ready to celebrate!!

7 Years Of Tru Love!

It was 7 years ago today that we held Tru for the first time. Time has flown and he has grown! We love you Tru-Tru!!!