China - Day 12

Today was our US Consulate appointment - the final step in completing the adoption process here in China.  My girl looked so stinkin cute in her green dress from one of our favorite neighbors, The Gellerts!!  It's a size 9 months and is still quite big on my little peanut :-)

At the consulate appointment I had to take an oath that all the information that I provided was true and that I will love and protect my beautiful daughter from this day forward.  I got a little teary eyed as I held up my right hand and took the oath.  It is the final step on the Chinese side and tomorrow we will get her visa and passport, pack our bags and start the long journey home on Friday morning.

We went out to celebrate (aka as more shopping) with another trip to Shamian Island and then to Lucy's for lunch.  I had a grilled chicken wrap that my dad kept insisting was probably pigeon!!  Either way, it was good.

When I told Maggie we were heading to the USA on Friday, she got VERY excited!!!

I also had my first "squatty potty" experience!

We went to the pool to cool off after all the shopping and once again my girl LOVED it!!!

Tonight we had our farewell dinner as the other family in our group is leaving on Thursday night.  We ate at a Japanese restaurant and all had to take off our shoes and sit on the floor - not so easy for Dad but it seemed like the more rice wine he drank, the easier it was to get comfy :-)

It was actually a great set up because Maggie and her friend June could crawl all around us and play together as we ate!  We love June and are going to miss her and her family so much.  She and Maggie are from the same orphanage so they will always have a special bond.

We also celebrated my birthday with a delicious cake that tasted like it had seaweed frosting on it!!

It was actually disgusting with blobs of jello like things inside!

Tomorrow we will get Maggie's passport and visa and then say goodbye to the Tenney family.  Dad and I are so anxious to get home to our family and friends!!

China - Day 11

Today was my birthday and I got to share it with the most amazing and precious gift I've ever received!  Waking up to her beautiful face makes everything right in my world.  I cannot believe how lucky I am to have been chosen to be her mother.

I had to complete a lot of paperwork today in order for Maggie to get her passport, visa and for her to travel with me back to the United States.  Once we step off the plane at JFK on Friday night she will officially be a US Citizen!!!  Since we had some time to kill I thought I'd take her to the pool to see if she liked it.  She loves the bath so I had a hunch that she would love the pool.  I'm happy to say that my girl did not let me down!!  Not only did she look adorable in her little pineapple swimsuit but she LOVED the pool.  She was squealing so loud that people came out of the building to see what was going on :-)

Tonight we went on a dinner cruise down the Pearl River in Guangzhou.  The Pearl River is the 3rd largest river in China, over 1200 miles long, with 10 bridges in the city of Guangzhou.  All of the bridges come alive at night decorated in different colored bright neon lights.  We were seated at a table with this cute family who didn't speak a word of English.  They were from north eastern China and are Muslims.  Their little girl was adorable and they were in Guangzhou celebrating her just finishing kindergarten.  Dad and I had a great conversation with them thanks to our guide/interpreter Martin.  They loved Maggie and were so happy for her to be with a loving family.

The whole city is lit up at night

It seems as if almost every building is colored in bright neon lights

Entertainment on board :-)

Guess who finally ate something other than a bottle??

Turns out that my girl really likes Hagen Dazs cookies and cream ice cream!

  I can't wait to take her to The Creamery this summer!!

And finally...just because she looks so cute after a bath...

I must be the luckiest the girl in the world!!

China - Day 10

Last night was a rough night.  Maggie is not feeling well and was very restless and woke up crying several times throughout the night.  There were several times where she was completely inconsolable. I'm not sure if it's because she is not feeling well or because if in some way she knows that her life has changed and she is grieving for the loss of all that she has known in her short little life.  Either way, this mama's heart breaks when she cries and cannot be comforted.  She finally did fall into a deep sleep and slept until about 9:30am this morning.  As usual, when she woke up she was her sweet, happy little self!

 

We had a free day today so Dad, Maggie and I decided to check out the Museum of the Mausoleum of the Nanyue King.  It's a very cool place with exhibits of a tomb that was discovered in 1983 right around the corner from our hotel.  In addition to the Nanyue King there were 15 sacrificial victims found buried with the emperor.

This afternoon I hired Ann from Red Thread China to take us shopping at the pearl and jade markets as well as the silk market for traditional Chinese dresses for Maggie.  Ann is who I used to send a care package to Maggie shortly after I received her referral.  She is awesome and got us amazing deals on so many things!!  The jewelery market was a huge building full of vendors selling every kind of jewelery you could imagine.  Ann knew all the right places to go and was able to get us wholesale pricing on everything.  I bought some beautiful gifts to give to Maggie as she grows up!!

 Ann and the women in the store stringing pearl necklaces and bracelets for me

The jewelery market was HUGE!!!

Still smiling after buying lots and lots of jewelery :-)

Next was the jade market where we bought tons of things for Maggie at ridiculously low prices!!

Dad was chatting it up with all the ladies at the market

 These men were huddled in the street checking out a new selection of jade bangle bracelets

Ann was AWESOME and totally worth it to shop with!!  She loves working with adoptive families!!

 My love...

Maggie has been doing so great with her crawling and standing skills.  She absolutely LOVES this ball that her cousin Liam bought for her and will chase it all over our room to get her hands on it!!

Lion dancers in our hotel lobby celebrating the release of a new brand of wine!!

Although it was a happy day for us, it was also filled with sadness.  Today is Mom's birthday and she would have been 70 years old.  She was as excited as me for Maggie to join our family and she couldn't wait to travel to China.  I'm so sad that she isn't with us and that Maggie will never know the amazing Nana who loved her before she was even born.  Happy Birthday Mom - I miss you!

China - Day 9

It finally stopped raining!!  Unfortunately, both Maggie and I are under the weather with runny noses and colds.  We've taken a few steam baths, are using lots of tissues but still having the time of our lives!  We spent some down time in the room this morning as last night was rough for both of us.  We caught up on some much needed sleep and Maggie spent some time learning to love her Grandpa.

LOVE this picture of my Dad and my baby girl - such a tender moment <3

We met up with our guide Martin and our friends, Sheila, Robert, Hannah and June and went to The Temple Of The Six Banyan Trees.  It is an ancient Buddhist temple right in the middle of the city and it was beautiful.  We were hoping to have the girls blessed by a Buddhist monk but none were available during our visit. 

 The Chinese believe that if you toss a coin and it goes into the hole at the top then you will have good fortune for the coming year.  The only one of us that was successful at it was Martin but Hannah sure did give it her best!

There are three copper Buddhas inside the temple that represent present, past and future.  Many come here to be blessed and there was a blessing ceremony going on while we were there today.

Inside this hall they were having a ceremony where many people were chanting and praying to Buddha.  The chants were mesmerizing and it was beautiful to watch and to listen to.  I found myself getting very emotional listening to it.  As I stood in the back listening to the beautiful chanting I couldn't help but wonder what Maggie's life would have been like if her family had been able to keep her.  Would she partake in ceremonies like this?  What kind of life would she have had?  The tears came and I cried silently for her and the life that she would never know.

 Dad in front of one of the Banyan trees

Burning joss sticks, or incense, is a ritual at the temple.  You are supposed to burn an odd number of sticks, dip them in oil and light them, hold them with both hands and bow three times as you wish for good fortune and to be blessed by the Gods in the coming year.  You then place them in the urn.

A modern day monk checking his email on his iPhone!!!

After the temple we went to the Chen Family Academy.  It was originally built as an ancestral temple for the Chen family and was later donated by 72 Chen clans to provide a school to study for the provincial exams.  It was amazing.  There was ornate detail in clay, stone, wood, brick and ceramic. Each section told a story the detail was incredible.  These photos don't do it justice.

 Once again it was stifling hot and Maggie was a happy camper once we found a fan to stand in front of.  It did wonders for her Mohawk :-)

Dinner tonight was at a Brazilian buffet and it did not disappoint.  As soon as we sat down the waiters came over with giant skewers filled with beef, pork. chicken, etc. and would carve it right off onto our plates.  Something about loud Brazilian music blaring while Chinese waiters in cowboy hats made me love everything about this place!!

And finally...just because she's cute!

Maggie and I are both loading up on medicine and we are hoping that tomorrow will have us both feeling better.  We have a big shopping day planned at the pearl and jade markets!!!