Hello Friends and Family,
Thank you for rejoicing and celebrating with us as Lily joined our family on Monday! Dave and I are both so encouraged by your replies and your prayers. We feel like Lily is so loved already by people who have not even met her yet. Blessed blessed girl! I really do read each and every reply, and love to hear from all of you. It makes us feel like you are right here with us - which is huge, because it can feel so isolating being in a faraway place.
Yesterday we had to meet Jian downstairs at 8:30. After a breakfast buffet, the driver took us and John and Judy's family to the Civil Affairs Office for our government appointments. Basically, we had to take a family photo, then sign and thumbprint with red ink some documents, and Lily had to do a handprint of both of her hands on the document, too. This made her legally ours! Then we had to be interviewed (it was an easy one! Questions like: When were you married? (Of course, Dave got the date wrong in his answer and I had to correct him!) How many biological kids do you have? Did you know your daughter had cleft lip and palate? Do you mind that she does? Etc.). Oh yes, and pay some fees :-). Lily girl was into everything at the Civil Affairs office - pens, wrappers, paper. Makes this mama's heart smile to see her doing some typical 18 month old stuff.
Then we went back to the hotel to rest. Lily was starting to throw herself backwards, which seemed to me like she was getting tired. The orphanage staff had mentioned that she usually takes a nap at 11am. I slung her and walked around and sung to her, and she fell asleep. I laid her down and she slept for about 2 hours! In the meantime, Dave took the older 2 for a swim in our hotel pool. That was a fiasco. There was no shallow end, and when they got there, Dave didn't quite understand that the attendant there was telling them to use the footbath first, and then that they needed a swim cap. When they came back about 20 minutes later - I was wondering why it was such a quick dip. When Dave filled me in, I kind of felt like laughing. This is the kind of stuff that has been happening to us every day here.
After baths and showers, we met our guide, Jian, and John and Judy's family for dinner. We walked a couple of blocks to eat at the restaurant at the Dolton Hotel. We had some pizza and dumplings and spaghetti. It was so great to be able to eat with this other family. I told you before that they are believers, and we were able to share and fellowship about our adoption journeys and how the Lord has been speaking to each of us. If you remember, please also pray for their new daughter who is also named Lily (!). Her special need is hemangiomas on her face that are associated with something called PHACES syndrome. She is a doll and Dave has looked at her and feels that she has the milder kind. However, of course, you never know, and they could use your prayers. It was funny because Judy keeps telling us that the Lord arranged for them to be in the same group as a dermatologist when their daughter's special need has dermatological findings! We feel like the Lord gave us their company to keep us encouraged, too. As I mentioned in my last e-mail, there are so many things that concern and could cause lots of worry for us about Lily - but she has been so reassuring, having done it before 3 years ago with their older daughter, Grace.
Lily, again, was into everything at dinner. She only stopped when I started feeding her dumplings and fries. All the boys fight to sit next to her on the bus and at mealtimes. We are getting to know her better. She is very lively! She actually spent a lot of yesterday walking with us holding her hands. She likes to play "catch" by rolling a toy to you and then you rolling it back. She was even kicking our blow up balloon we brought. So perhaps she is not as delayed as I thought originally. She really cannot make many different sounds (yet). I am trying to teach her sign language for basic things. She spent the day at my side again, and did not want to go to Dada. Dave is used to this, thank goodness, and actually sees it as a great thing. We had heard about one person being the primary caregiver at the beginning. That way Lily can get attached to someone firmly before widening her circle.
Lily amazes me. It is amazing to me that she is ok with us. It is amazing that she lets me feed her and bathe her and hold her and sleep with her. After just one day of meeting! My bio kids would scream bloody murder at this age being left in the nursery for 10 minutes. So I guess it is amazing to me because it is so foreign to me, but also kind of sad that she never had this. She has laughed a lot, gone through half a box of raisins, loves rice crackers, and bathtime! She splashes and laughs and tosses her bath toys.
Nathan is so cute. He just crept in again and is lying next to sleeping Lily. My men were playing UNO next door, but Nathan has come in twice to see if Lily is still sleeping. I know that God blessed me with such a nurturer of little people for this reason. Nathan has ALWAYS loved babies - even when he was practically a baby himself.
Aaron is doing superbly well! He is very protective of Lily. I know that sometimes you get a honeymoon period before the true emotions come out (that has been the case with each time we had an addition to our family), but I will enjoy it as long as it lasts!
Today - we are sightseeing. I think we are going to Yuelu Academy. We have to wait 2 days until our daughter's documents are processed before we can head to Guangzhou.
The photos! First one is of my 4 kids waiting in the waiting room at the Civil Affairs Office while we were waiting for our turn. The second one is of Dave and I signing the documents - making Lily officially and legally ours! The third one is of me holding Lily after her handprint - notice the red ink. The last one is after naptime when Lily was devouring a box if raisins.
The verse on the back of my Wild Olive tee shirt I am wearing in the photo (Lily is wearing a matching one under her hoodie): "The Lord your God is with you. He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you. He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing." Zephaniah 3:17
Love,
Chenning
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