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The girls are playing much better together and Carly looks out for Claire often. We took a walk last night with their strollers and Carly said "Mom, you need to watch Claire." I thought it was so cute.

Claire loves daycare and is very happy to kiss me good bye in the morning there.

Surgery

Last Friday Claire had surgery in Boston. She needed ear tubes but also the cleft doctor wanted to see why her nose was so irritated. The surgery went well and he found what appeared to be a bean up her nose! She has a return appointment on Thursday but she is doing great.

Happy Fourth of July!

Home one month!

We are home for a month! Claire can say about a dozen words now. She seems very bright to me. I cannot understand why one of her foster moms said she is slow to learn. She had her first early intervention session this week and the person who came said she was a joy to work with.
This week Carly was in time out and crying of course. Claire walked over to her and patted her on the shoulder while giving her a kiss on the cheeks. It was so sweet.

Home for two weeks

We have been home for two weeks. Yesterday, I was ready to tear my hair out due to all the temper tantrums early in the morning. Today was great though. We went to a local playground with Uncle Mike and also to see my aunt in the nursing home. Claire loves to go places now. Last week when we took her to a playground she was afraid and would only sit on my lap. Today, she was off and running. She must have gone down the slide 25 times. I think Uncle Mike was getting tired.

Claire's test results from last week were all fine. No intestinal parasites I am happy to say. I was sure we all had giardia by now. This little one has peed on the floor twice in anger since arriving home. She has quite the temper. This morning she hit Carly so I made her sit in time out from where she threw her bowl of cereal. It's a good thing there was no milk in it. She picked it all up within five minutes which is great progress from last week.

We have an appointment this Tuesday with early intervention to see where she is at developmentally. I am curious as although I know she is a little behind there has been much progress in two weeks. She is walking much steadier and also trying to say some words. The temper tantrums are diminishing also especially after teaching her sign language for the word "potty".

I have also have an appointment with an excellent cleft doctor this July. He saw her photos and wants to do her nose revision this Fall.

Home for 9 days

We have been home for nine days and Claire is feeling much better. Her cold is almost gone and she seems happier. She loves "Uncle Mike". He took care of her today while I went to have my hair cut. She did not cry at all while I was gone. She has her second doctor's appointment on Monday for her shots and also hopefully they will have all the test results from tests this week. The doctor is checking for lead, a urinary tract infection and parasites. Her tummy seems much better than in China. I am not letting her woof down so much food. Here are some current photos of the girls and their grandparents.

local photos

Here are some more photos of the local Guangzhou area. I loved the market and the park where the adult exercise area was right next to the playground. They have the right idea in China about keeping fit. I walked by the park the night before we left China while returning a borrowed stroller to the "Home of Love" store. The park was alive with folks playing hacky sack and exercising.

Sight Seeing

During our trip, we went to the zoo in Guangzhou. It was quite large and we enjoyed it except for the mosquitoes and the humidity. Both of the girls were bit even with repellent on. Our guide took us to a pharmacy so I could buy a prescription and it helped greatly. We also went to a temple with beautiful architecture. Our guide for the adoption, David is pictured above. He is very dedicated to helping the adoptive families and has told me he is my friend always. Carly wants to write to him and he has said he will respond. I hope we have a long friendship.

Enough said

I thought I would post a photo or two to show how stressful an adoption trip can be!

More photos

The girls are asleep early and it's a good time to post more photos.

Home

We arrived home last night. It is so good to be back! My family was at the airport and Kathay's family came also. Uncle Mike took us home and Claire did well for the first time in a car seat. She only cried a little when we were almost home. The girls and I went to bed at 11:00 last night and slept until 7:00. I was concerned they would be up all night due to the time difference plus they both slept on the plane. Today was nice and quiet. The trip home was like an endurance test. We had the girls with their Princess luggage and our own carry on's. Claire was not feeling well and also scared so at times she refused to walk or pull her bag. We must have really looked comical at times. WE kept trying to get Claire to walk and follow us and sometimes she just refused. I will never forget her just sitting on the floor in the Detroit airport in front of the McDonald's. When we arrived in the U.S. I thought it best to check those carry on's.

Claire has a cough and a she had diarrhea in the Guangzhou Airport and on the plane. Today, she had one incident. She does not have a fever so I think it may just be the travel. I spoke with a nurse at my pediatrician's office and she thought the same. So, she has been eating banana’s and soup and drinking pediatric electrolytes.

She played with Carly this morning while I took my shower. Also, this afternoon she took a nap easily unlike Carly. She seems much more independent. I will post some more photos. It was not easy to post from China as I had a hard time accessing my blog.

I almost forgot to tell the best story. On one of the group day trips we went to a temple/museum. Claire wet her pants so the bus driver took us myself, Carly and Claire back to our hotel. He carried the strollers into the lobby and just as I walked in with Claire she decided to strip. My daughter dropped her drawers and ran butt naked across the lobby to the elevator with me chasing her. All the Americans in the lobby laughed. I am not sure what the Chinese thought. Another family helped me get the girls and the strollers to the room. Also, there was Chinese man who helped. I did not realize he was a shop owner until I saw him later in the week while in his shop. He certainly remembered us though!

Here is a clip of the girls in their hats.

Today

Claire is asleep and I walked over to drop off our laundry at Home of Love. I spent the day alone with her and she has some tantrums but overall it was better than previously. I think she needs some quiet time. She has been through so much. I found out today she was in two foster homes here. I cannot imagine how she feels. She definitley knows I am Mom though. She can say "mama", "here" and "roll it" in English. I have taught her the sign for "eat" and "more". She is very bright. However, it will take some time for her to feel safe.

Carly has really stepped up to the plate and helps me often. She picks up toys and brings things I need. She also can be a little jealous but overall she is doing great. The two girls have a rivalry going but Claire is showing it more often.

Kathay has been a great help. Claire listens to her as she can be quite stern with the school mom look! Last night we met some families from the hotel by coincidence in a very nice Italian restuarant. We sat together and had a good time once Claire stopped yelling. Kathay took her out of the room for awhile so she could calm down and I could relax.

Yesterday was Claire's medical exam. She weighs 28.7 lbs and is 35.4 inches tall. She is quite the eater once she stops crying.

More photos

This was taken yesterday when we taught Claire to blow bubbles in the park. Claire is having a hard time expressing herself due to her history of cleft palate. She has many temper tantrums due to frustration. She also laughs alot and eats like a trucker. Breakfast in the hotel has been interesting to say the least. She throws a tamtrum every time we enter the restaurant. Once she stops she then eats alot. Today our guide took us to the zoo. Carly had a ball but Claire was frightened of the animals.

We have her and she is doing great. Carly helped yesterday when we met her by running to get treats from my bag. She did not like M&M's but loved the puffs. She is funny, happy and also stubborn. She and Carly are had lots of fun runnng around the Civil Affairs today. We returned there to finalize Claire's adoption today. She slept through the night and is eating well. She is an Active child. I am going to lose some weight chasing her! Carly stopped her from running out the hotel lobby door last night. She grabbed her arm and Claire was pointing and explaining to me as she did not like that. She is quick.

These photo's were taken yesterday when we got her.

Monday

Today we meet Claire at 2:30. It is 10:30 in the morning and I have been awake since 3:00. Carly woke at 5:00 today and her first words were "Is it Monday." We had a nice whispered chat in bed while Kathay was still sleeping. Carly told me she will help Claire if she is scared. She will talk with her and play with her. We have met some families here and made new friends. I may not be able to post photos as I forgot my camera cable at home. I purchased a card reader but it does not fit the hotel computer cable. I hope I can find another place to try it. I am going to go see Stella at her store. I met her when I adopted Carly in 2005. Her shop has internet access.

Our travel

Tomorrow our flight leaves in the morning. We fly to Detroit then to Tokyo and Guangzhou.

We arrive on Saturday evening and meet Claire on Monday.

Things have been a bit crazy lately! I am one who loves everything even keel and life has take some interesting twists.

Carly broke her clavicle this weekend playing at McDonald's playground with a six year old girl. The girl gave her a piggy back ride and she flipped her over her shoulders by mistake. We spent a few hours at the children's hospital ER on Sunday. She is a real trooper and doing fine. The doctor gave her travel approval. She is still eager to go and very happy to be home this week with Uncle Mike instead of going to daycare. I don't know what I would do without him. China here we come! We cannot wait to meet Claire.

My friend Kathay will travel with us

Kathay is a great friend who is coming to help with the girls. We are both starting to pack light of course. The great thing is we don't have to adhere to the 44 lb weight limit for checked bags as we fly from Tokyo to Guangzhou. I will post our itineray soon. Kathay has been a huge help since I came home with Carly. Carly adores her and calls her "wacky Kathay" at times.

Carly is so excited.

Carly is so excited she started packing her princess suitcase last night.


She knows we leave three Fridays from now and keeps telling me about it.

Referral Photo's

Claire

It is with great joy that we head for China soon for Claire. Claire is in Guangdong and is a beautiful little girl. Carly is so excited to have a sister! She tells me all the time she will help her. Yesterday, she told me she wanted to leave for China now. We have TA and hope to leave on May 23rd!