China - Day 11

Sunday, November 11th, 2018

We did some sightseeing today but who cares about that when Cabot let me hold him?!

We went to "Chen House" or Chen Clan Ancestral Hall which is an academic temple in Guangzhou. It was built by the 72 Chen clans for their juniors' accommodation and preparation for the imperial examinations in 1894 Qing Dynasty. Later it was changed to be the Chen Clan’s Industry College, and then middle schools afterward. Now it houses the Guangdong Folk Art Museum. Basically there's tons of AMAZING art - pottery, carved wood, shell art, and so much more. 

Next we went to a market that was like a giant mall with hundreds of little shops selling jade, pearls, amber, turquoise, silver and other jewelry type things. By the time we were done there we were all ready for some lunch and rest and we've enjoyed a quiet afternoon and evening at the hotel.

More adventures tomorrow!

China - Day 9

Today we visited Renmin Park, also called People's Park. It was the first park in Zhengzhou and opened in 1952. But most importantly...it's gorgeous!

A couple gentlemen were practicing calligraphy with water. 

I made everyone pose on this bridge - haha! Except Ben who I think was mad at us at the time.

Then our guide brought us Cabot's passport so we could catch our next flight to Guangzhou. This is when things went a little sideways. We left in plenty of time to get to the airport but it took FOR.EV.ER to get checked in and through security. The kids were whiny and irritable and the adult's patience were wearing thin too. We had to walk approximately 400 miles to our gate and our plane was already boarding. There was no time to get any water and everyone was thirsty after the ultramarathon through the airport. Oh and I forgot to mention not only were we not seated together on the flight, they actually assigned the six of us to six different rows all throughout the plane. We were able to adjust seats so Ainsley could sit by my mom and then Jeremy had to sit with Ben and Cab because they couldn't find two seats together for me to sit with a kid. Cabot made it through most of his first plane ride pretty well but the last 35 minutes were pretty rough.

Cabot's first plane ride!

Then we finally got off the plane, which was 1000 degrees, and Cabot screamed bloody murder ALL through the airport. I mean SCREAMED. I was completely sure someone was going to call security about us kidnapping a child. We were very thankful to get out of the airport and take an air-conditioned van ride to our hotel.

 It took SO long to get checked in and they initially told us there was only one room ready but then they decided to upgrade us to a gigantic suite so we could get into both rooms. #blessed

Ben and Ainsley had to take a bath in the huge tub before bed.

Then when Baba had to take a shower Cabot had to stay RIGHT outside and wait for him to be done. Ultimately he just couldn't stay away from Baba and walked into the shower with his pajamas on. Hahaha.

We all got a GREAT night of sleep. Our beds at our last hotel were VERY hard - we have bruises on our hips from side-sleeping on them - so these soft, comfy beds were ah-mazing.

Thanks everyone for following along on our journey and for all the comments and support. We truly appreciate it!

Family Day!

Today - November 5th, 2018 - was Family Day (aka Gotcha Day)!

We headed out about 9am and arrived at the Civil Affairs office just before 9:30. We did a little paperwork and then waited for Cabot to arrive. The orphanage director and her daughter (who was off school for the day) arrived with him at about 10:35am.

The feeling of seeing him in person for the first time was indescribable. 

He walked in smiling and the orphanage director and our guide told him we are his mom and dad and he immediately came over and hugged Jeremy.

He let me pick him up but he wasn't super psyched about it.

We signed lots of papers and agreed to always love him and take care of him and never abandon him (you actually have to sign a paper saying you won't abandon the child you're adopting). Then the orphanage director told him they were leaving and he was going with us and he was not happy. He made it out to the van with us.

Then he got car sick and stayed glued to Jeremy's side.

We made it home and had to change him right away because of the car sick incident and that upset him so much. I think it just set off his grieving and sadness and he cried so hard. It made momma cry too. I held him and tried to soothe him for probably close to 30 minutes. Finally I gave him to Jeremy to hold and he settled right down.

Eventually they took a little nap together.

My mom and I ventured to the mall/Wal-Mart (Wal-Mart is in the basement of the mall) and got some snacks and then picked up dinner. Cabot was apparently very sad for awhile when we were gone and when we got back he and Jeremy were snuggled up. Jeremy fed him some dinner like a little bird.

He perked up later and had tons of fun running around the room and gathering up things to put in his backpack.

Things we know about Cabot so far:

• He LOVES Jeremy - he'll put up his arms for Jeremy to pick him up but no one else. 
• He's got "Baba" down which means Dad in Mandarin
• He loves water
• He likes to carry around his sippy cup in his mouth
• He likes to carry ALL his toys in his hands
• He's so good at zipping and unzipping his backpack
• He's super good at picking up trash and putting it in the trash can
• He pretend eats with a spoon that was in the room
• He likes to watch cartoons
• He is over all a REALLY happy boy and is quick with a smile
• We love him SO MUCH

A couple side notes. Cabot's Chinese name is Duo Jun so we're calling him both Cabot and Duo Jun at this time. Also, I didn't really proof read this post so I apologize for any grammatical or spelling errors.  Thanks everyone for following along!

A (Non-) Update

Currently our update is that we don't really have an update.

We're on day 52 of our wait for LOA/LSC (Letter of Approval/Letter Seeking Confirmation) which is our approval from China to adopt OUR son. The LSC is literally a letter China sends to our agency after they've approved us, then our agency sends it to us, and by signing it we are saying we confirm we want to adopt this child.

We're hoping for not more than about 2 more weeks of waiting but you just.never.know with China. A couple months ago LOAs were only taking forty-something days but now they're more between 60 and 70 and you'll occasionally see over 90 days.

Once we get our LOA we have a few more steps to complete and no, we don't know when we'll be going to China. Our best case scenario (which I think is pretty unlikely but a girl can dream) would be to be on the short end for all the remaining steps and leave for China at the end of September. October is more likely and November is a possibility if things are slow.

As you probably know we did a tshirt fundraiser through One Mission and we've been so humbled by everyone that has contributed and is helping us bring Cabot home. It's so amazing to have the support of family and friends (and some complete strangers)!

DTC!

We're DTC!

Are you asking, "Huh?"

Well let me tell you. DTC = Dossier To China. And it's kind of a big deal (in Ron Burgandy voice).

In fact it's such a big deal I made a meme.

This marks the end of our "paper chase." We gathered birth and marriage certificates, medical forms, psychological evaluations, verification of employment, financial statements, and our completed/approved home study. We had police reports ran, wrote an application letter, and included our I800a approval. Then we had ALL those documents notarized. Then we had the notarizations certified by the Secretary of State. Then we had the Secretary of State certifications certified by the United States Department of State. Then we had the state and national certifications authenticated by the Chinese Consulate in Washington D.C. Then all the documents went to our agency, they looked everything over, and FINALLY they sent it to China today. Finally. 

In about a week we'll receive a LID - Log-In Date. That's the day China logs in our dossier and we start counting days until we receive LSC - Letter Seeking Confirmation. The LSC means our dossier has been reviewed, approved, and they are asking us to confirm we want to adopt Cabot.  Currently the average wait from LID to LSC is about 2 months. And of course that's not the end. There are more steps and more waiting after that.

We're currently hoping to travel in September though I sadly have to acknowledge that it could be October. Either way, we're ALL so excited to bring Cab home. 

We're coming for you Cabot! You are so loved!