Red Thread To China 2007

Here are a couple of pictures we had made of Levi the other day. We were shopping and just decided to pop into the studio for a quick fall picture of him and they turned out so well I bought all of them. He was a big ham for the camera!!! Not crying at all. He is doing better and better each day. The sleep issues are getting better also. He has changed so much since we came home 1 week ago, coming out of his shell(the good part), starting to throw fits(the not so good part)when he doesn't get his way. But each day he shows us something new, or says something new that just amazes us. He is just the cutest and everyone adores him, everywhere we go. That's all for now.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!

The infamous red couch photo!! This is just a few of the children adopted by our group. The other half of the group took there own pictures. I would have liked for our whole travel group to have had a photo taken together but that didn't happen. I have another photo to download off the camera with one more of the kids in our group that we could not find that day, I will upload it tomorrow.

That's all for now.

We are home at last. The flight was not too bad if you don't mind sitting next to a chinese man who insisted on taking over your arm rest with your TV controls on it, so that every time you wanted to change the channel you had to say excuse me can i get to the controls or needed to turn on the light. And why do airlines insist on sitting the couple with a young child in the middle seats? Our plane from Beijing was huge and had 11 seats across 3 on one side 5 in the middle and then 3 on the opposite side. we were sitting right in the middle of the 5 seats, so every time we had to change Levi which was often we had to bother someone on the end. And believe me he did #2 alot on the ride home, not fun on a plane. But we are home and that's al that counts now. Not something I want to look forward to next time around when we bring home Mylie if that ever happens. It seems to get further out of reach with each month that goes by and life happens around us. Right before we left the engine in Jerry's truck blew up, so now we have to fix that too among other things. So where in the world are we going to get he money to bring her home? I so want to have another daughter and it hurts to think that may never happen now. Charla is all grown up and on her own and I miss the closeness that we shared when she was a little girl. We are still close, but not as much since she has her own life now and doesn't need her mommy that much anymore.

Levi has done so great since getting home. Way better than expected. We thought we would cry at the drop of a hat and be afraid of everything and everyone. But he has taken well to his brothers and sister and grandma. Granted he won't let them pick him up yet, but at least he isn't screaming every time they walk in the room, or come near him. Now bigger crowds that may take a while longer. He doesn't like things to be very loud or alot of people. He did well at the market today. We also thought he would not like the carseat, but he got in it like a champ and did not cry once. He even smiled. I know there will be bad days, but at least we are home.

Stay tuned for more photos of our trip.

Boy am I glad to be back on US soil. We are waiting on our plane to board and we will be back home in Texas. We are at O'Hare in Chicago right now. And they are starting to board right now so I really need to go. We will be back home around 11pm. Talk to you later.

We are getting ready for our consulate appointment today and the adoption will be finally complete. Sorry to those of you who have been following the blog I have not been able to get on the computer. Every time we have been out we have forgotten the computer to get on the net. We can from our room but I am not sure how that works. We can go down to Starbucks and buy Jerry a latte and get on for free. So here we are the day before we leave and I am updating my blog. We have run out of minutes on our panda phone also and we haven't gotten with our guide to buy additional minutes either. Way to busy shopping and such, and now we really don't need to.

Here is a cute piture of the new member of the Maxwell family. Enjoy!! I will post more pictures of the whole trip at a later time maybe tonight. Tommorow we are headed to the airport early in the am for the very long trip home. We have plenty of snacks for Levi, so we should be ok.

Wish us luck.

Today Levi woke up very happy and bubbly. After getting ready we went downstairs for breakfast. He eat great as usual, he loves noodles and steamed buns. He will also eat fruit and rice, he basically will eat anything you put in front of him. Behind the hotel is some sort of waterway with a walkway along it. There were some older people playing some type of musical instrument and alot of people just walking around. They have a exercise park along this same walkway with all types of equipment to use, there were alot of people there. We walked all the way down to the main street and back. Then we decided to walk around to see the hotel pool, it is very big and they had some ping pong tables in there also. Levi had fun watching mommy & daddy play ping pong, laughing loudly when mommy had to run for the ball so it wouldn't go into the pool.

After that we met our guide and driver downstairs to leave for the Peoples park. It is a very large park with all kinds of kids rides and such. Michelle tried to get Levi to ride some of the rides but he kept saying boo ya,which means no in english. He would not let me pick him up out of the stroller either, he was content to just look at the toys and watch all the other kids play on them. Michelle talked to him in Chinese but he still would not let her pick him up either. In the car going back to the hotel he feel asleep and we decided to put him down for a nap. He slept for about 3 hours and so did I. I was very tired. I guess the jet lag is finally catching up with me. We went to eat dinner at The Island Coffee House which is right next door to the hotel, they serve some american food also. Jerry got spaghetti with meat sauce and I got a spicy sausage pizza. It was very good. Levi had some french fries and some of my pizza. He loves french fries!! We came back to the hotel and gave Levi a bath, which he was not too happy about this time for some reason. And we think his tummy is a little upset, probably from the difference in food. I think tomorrow we will ask to go to the store and get something for upset tummy and we need more diapers and wipes also. The director at the orphanage said he only goes poopoo once a day, but he has been going 3 or 4 times a day with us. Again probably from the change in foods. Well I guess thats all for today. Tomorrow is another day of sightseeing.

Here are a few pictures of Levi from yesterday. He is getting used to us more and more each day. He still is very apprehensive of strangers. When we are in the hotel room he crawls around, laughs, plays with both of us, and opens up and shows his personality. But when we venture out it is a different story, he is shy and doesn't talk much. He doesn't do very well in crowds. And he definitely won't let anyone touch him except us. We will work with him through this issue and give him all the time he needs. He is a wonderful boy and I can't wait for him to meet the rest of the family after he has adjusted to us. We love him very much.

At 2:30pm our guide and driver were at the hotel to pick us up. In the lobby when we came down there was another couple there that had adopted a 6 year old little girl. She seemed very happy and already was attaching to her mom and dad. They were on there way to notarize their adoption papers. Our guide and the driver decided it was better if we walk to the Civil Affairs office because we would have to drive along way out of the way to get there because our hotel is on a one way street. On our way there we got alot of stares from the locals. We only had to wait a few minutes until the nanny's arrived with Levi. He looked so frightened. When they tried to hand him to me he started to cry. I felt so bad for him because I know that he feels something is different. I couldn't help but start to cry also, not because he is rejecting me but because I don't want him to hurt. I know that this is normal and I have prepared for this, but it still hurts to know that he is grieving the loss of his nanny. We brought some toys and snacks with us to try to comfort him, so we got out the goldfish. I started to give them to him, he would take them from me and eat them. He seemed to really like them. He ate a whole bag of them. While we were doing this Jerry and the guide, Michelle did some paperwork and tried to videotape as much as he could. When it was time for the nanny's to leave he again started to cry. I tried to console him and again gave him some of the goldfish crackers. After awhile he let me pick him up and put him on my lap. He has a teddy bear that he got to bring with him, he will not let go of it. They said he has to sleep with it. After a few more minutes we were off to get his passport picture taken. He did well, not crying much but still would not put the bear down. I must say that when he does cry it isn't very loud and is more like a whine than anything else. On the way back to the hotel I tried to let Jerry take him because he is very heavy!! I must say he is alot bigger than I originally thought. He is also very healthy other than his foot issue. He would not let me give him to Jerry and would cry out the name of his nanny. Our guide decided that since he was so big that buying a stroller would be a good idea. We had already planned on it, and it seemed like a good idea to me. The driver took us to a market where Michelle and I bought a lightweight stroller for 170 yuan. After coming back to the hotel we signed some more paperwork and Michelle translated his schedule for us. It says he likes cookies, cakes, and meat but that he would probably eat anything we did. Oh and I forgot to say that on the way back to the hotel Levi had an accident and peed on Jerry's leg. The babies here wear what is called split pants, although he did have a diaper on it was too small and it had shifted to the back. He told me not to tell anyone. I should say that the diapers here are not as absorbent as american diapers. And that was one of the things we forgot to pack along with a sippy cup. I can't believe of all things those were what we forgot. Luckily Michelle said that they should have some at the grocery store we are going to after we sign the final adoption decree tomorrow morning.
We tried to give Levi a bath but he didn't want any part of that, so I held him while Jerry used the wash cloth to wash him off. That seemed to work better for him. He ate some more and drank some water, which he still uses a bottle for. We could tell he was getting tired because he kept rubbing his eyes, so I laid him down on my chest and he resisted at first but finally fell asleep. That is what he is doing right now, sleeping. I am not too far behind him either. I should say that while waiting for Levi to fall asleep Jerry fell asleep too and is snoring very loudly right now. Boy I hope he doesn't wake Levi up. Thats all for now will try to post more later.

We are in front of Tian'an men Square.

We have about 5 hours to go until we meet our son. Emotions are very high, and a part of me still can't believe that it is finally happening. We slept in this morning because we stayed up until about 3am. I just can't seem to sleep much, partly because of the time change and partly because I am so excited and wound up about meeting our son. I will post pictures as soon as possible.

The hotel is very nice. Today I will ask Michelle if there are any places to shop. I want to buy some things for Levi from his province since we wil not be going to the orphanage. I think tonight we will just see how it goes with Levi and go from there. We may just end up ordering room service. I would also like to buy him some toys that he may be familiar with. I can't imagine how he must feel, being taken away from all the he knows to live with strangers. We will give him all the time he needs but at the same time show him that we do love him.

More to come......

On the way to the hotel this morning our guide told us that she had spoken to the director of the orphanage where Levi is and that 10am is too early for them since they have to drive by bus or train for at least 4 hours and would have to get up way to early. While I am very disapointed, I do understand and want them to do what is best for everyone including Levi. So instead of geting him at 10am, we will get him around 3pm tomorrow. I am very nervous and scared of his reaction to us. Our guide also told us that he had been in foster care, which we were not aware of. He was returned to the orphanage prior to us getting here. I know he will miss his foster mom, and I am very grateful of all the love and care she has given our son. This area is very different from Beijing. We will keep everyone posted as things happen.

Take care,
Sandi

We are here
We got here on Friday at around 3pm. We met our guide and then went to the hotel. Our panda phone was not waiting for us at the hotel so we could not call anyone to let them know we arrived safely. We got the phone yesterday but it does not work for some reason. It tells us to check the network. It is 2:15am, and I cannot sleep. We leave for the airport to fly to Zhengzhou at 5:30am. We fly out at 7:20 am and arrive at 8:40am. We met some other nice families here in Beijing that did the tour with us yesterday. The Great Wall was such an awesome thing to see. I will post pictures when I can. Tomorrow we will meet our son for the first time and we just couldn't be any happier. Our whole group are adopting older SN children, and each and every one of the families are very excited and can't wait to get back to Guangzhou to see all the children together. We are very blessed to have met such nice people here. Our guide Grace is great, she is very sweet. I guess that is all for now, I need to try to sleep for at least another hour or so. Wish us luck!!!

Sandi& Jerry

We are at the hotel waiting to leave in the morning for China. We leave so early in the morning, around 4:30am that we decided to stay at a hotel in Irving. Our plane leaves at 7:30am. 3 hours early seems a bit much but that's what the airlines says so that's what we will do. I just thought I would send a little note to everyone that has given us good advice, great support, and help with this long journey to our son. We are truely thankful to all of you. This is the moment we have waited for since November 2006. We will try to post often, but with the internet in China were not sure how that will go. The internet here at the hotel is not the greatest either. As soon as we get to China we will post more. Take care and stay tuned for more.


Sandi & Jerry

Today was a day of running around getting last minute things done for the trip. Making sure we have everything. We also got a call from Great Wall today with a small surprise. The last day we are in Guangzhou, the 22nd the rate for the room at the White Swan changes because of the Trade Fair and they only charged us the regular price. So we have to pay the difference for that one night, which happens to be only $212.00. Making the total for that one night $354.00, ouch. But what can we do? All the hotels are booked because of the Trade Fair, so we are stuck. I hope everything else goes more smoothly for us from here on out.

Can this really be happening? Are we really leaving in 3 days? I have been doing so well in the past couple of weeks as the time grew nearer, or at least that's what I thought. But today it has hit me full force! We will meet our son in about 7 days. I am starting to have more dreams of him. Last night was a crazy one. There we were in the hotel waiting for them to bring Levi to us and when they finally got there, they handed him to me and he turned to me and said "hi mommy, I love you" and then just put his head on my shoulder and snuggled in close. Then I turned to him and said "you can speak english?" He said to me "yes they have been teaching me" Then I woke up. I have no idea what this means, or why I would have such a dream. I know that this will not be the case, he probably will not be very happy and cry alot.

So today I have been worrying about everything. Do we have all the paperwork we need? Everything for Levi? For us? Before this is over I know I will be driving my husband crazy. I still need to pack, but I have everything ready to put in there. All Levi's clothes are washed and ready to go. These last 3 days will be so crazy with alot of running around and last minute craziness. Wish us luck.