So, The Travel Is Beginning To Catch Up With Us

It’s Monday around 2.30p and we’re beat. The last few days have been a whirlwind. We traveled 8061 miles on Friday / Saturday, and arrived in Hong Kong around 8pm (ish). By the time we got settled and had a group meeting, it was nearly 9.30p by the time we got into our room. Back downstairs at 7.30a, ran back over to the airport (connected to the hotel) to blog, then breakfast, another meeting, running and almost missing the connecting flight to Nanchang. We arrived yesterday (yesterday??? it seems like a lifetime ago…) at 1.45p. 2pm we were met by De, our most excellent guide, then a 45minute bus ride to the hotel. 3pm we were back in De’s room to drop off the fee to the orphanage, 4.30pm yesterday we officially became parents. Gracie was sleeping by 8.30p and we were by 9p. Matt and I were both up at 4.30am, and I did manage to fall back asleep for an hour before Gracie was up. Then, breakfast, meeting, snack, nap, our first outing to a store together, now we’re back. Gracie has just had lunch, and I am ready to crash. Tomorrow we continue paperwork, but at the various Chinese governmental offices, so, it will be an early day. We meet at 8am sharp, no strollers, and it’s off to the three governmental offices to get Gracie officially a part of the Donadio family and then get her exit Visa…

It’s cold and rainy out, and there are definitely two schools of thought by the locals on the girls being adopted by outsiders. Some have been very sweet, coming up to Gracie, talking with her, telling us how beautiful she is. Others just scowl. We’ve had several groups stop talking as we walk by and then we hear them talking as we pass. Gracie and I smile as we go by, and we have already figured out how to make her giggle and smile, so when most of the folks see that, they “turn that frown upside down…”. I really wish we had more toys for Gracie here, but in a few days we’ll be in warm Guangzhou for a few days, then back to Hong Kong, then the long, long flight home!

Filed under Day 04, The Trip |

So, More Paperwork

Gracie woke up around 7:30 this morning. She pretty much slept through the night. She stirred a few times, but she fell right back asleep.

No poopy diaper yet.

We had breakfast with a bunch of the other families this morning in the hotel. The Chinese don’t really distinguish breakfast from other meals, so there were breakfast foods as well as food that we would associate with dinner.

Gracie at a lot at breakfast this morning. Note to self: the highchair both holds a child in one place and also keeps the dropped food from hitting the floor. Get a highchair at the next meal.

We had a meeting this morning and did more paperwork in preparation for three appointments we have tomorrow. Mainly, it was filling in our names and signing papers, but we also have to put our thumbprint next to each signature.

Tomorrow, the are appointments are:

1. We go to the Adoption Center and do the registration formalities for the adoption.

2. We then go to the notary office to notarize the adoption.

3. We go to the public security department to apply for Gracie’s passport.

We were told that all of the appointments will take up about three hours.

On Thursday we will get the notary papers back, and then on Friday we will get the passport. Once we have those we can travel to Guangzhou to start the process for the American side of the adoption.

Filed under Day 04, The Trip |