Home » Adoption Shmoption
Family Day- We Have Catherine!
17 March 2008
43 Comments
Family Day was a long day for all of us and we knew it would be. It began at 8:45 on Sunday morning when we met up with our facilitator at the White Swan Hotel in Guanzhou. We headed off to the airport to take a very crowded and bumpy flight from Guangzhou to Chongqing. I was pretty nervous on that flight because I couldn't understand the pilots or the attendants. And the people on the flight were so loud, it pretty much freaked me out. Luckily it was only less than two hours.
From there we quickly loaded into a van that had been hired to drive us to Fengdu where we would pick Catherine up at the social welfare institute. Again, vans in China are not made to Westerners or their luggage. The drive was a horrendous 3 hours long. While the scenery and the sights were intriguing, John and I will never again complain about road work, construction, or pot holes.The roads were awful and bumpy the whole way there and then back. A bird also hit the the windshield which scared the heck out of us and was also pretty sad. We drove through some of the most deprived areas we have ever seen and I have spent some time in some pretty poor areas in Mexico; it was very moving and made every one on this trip appreciate how fortunate we are and how good we have it in America. My heart breaks for the people here in China.
Three long hours later we arrived into the city of Fengdu. Fengdu is a pretty large city. I was actually surprised by the buildings and the surroundings. We met up with the orphanagedirector, who drove us to the orphanage. It's a large, multi-story building that houses both children and the elderly and special needs adults. I was so excited to be there but I wanted to take it all in. I felt like I had been there already because of the videos and photographs that the missionaries shared with us. We went to the directors office to sign paperwork and get some basic instructions. We then waited about 10 minutes while the nannies finished feeding the babies. During that time we took pictures of the orphanage. All of a sudden the babies were ready and we were ushered up to the third floor and into the nursery. The orphanage director was holding Catherine and I recognized her right away. It was almost like everything else faded away and all I saw was her. He asked who her parents were and I shouted me, me! And he handed her over to me. At 4:51 we became a family of three. She looked at me, put her hands in my mouth and when I kissed her fingersshe screamed for dear life. After that she cried for nearly 2 hours. She cried big crocodile tears. We weren't able to stay, so we had to leave within 10 minutes of getting the babies. We were rushed back into the van to head back on our three hour journey to Chongqing. It was a long, long trip since Catherine was not a happy camper.I have never been so relieved to see a hotel in my life!
Luckily we are in a very nice hotel that has everything we could need. We pretty much crashed. We changed her, bathed her(which she loves), gave her a bottle, and worked on putting her to sleep. She had a hard time going to sleep. She was so tired but so full of anxiety that she cried for about an hour. She finally fell asleep and slept through the entire night.
It was a wonderful day but so very, very long. I am glad that we were able to do it this way because I would not have been able to experience the sites and smells of so many areas of China.
Congratulations!
but what a trial by fire. A long bus journey with a baby is never an easy experience, but within an hour of meeting your daughter, I can totally imagine that was a testing time for you all.
I hope you and Catherine are enjoying getting to know each other. I also have a Catherine (known as Katie) and if your Catherine brings you half as much joy as mine has brought me, you will be very lucky parents.
Best wishes,
Bev
Ugh, I’m with you on the bumpy flight anxiety. Sounds like a pretty stressful day all around, but how worth it to finally be with Catherine!
She’s just beautiful.
Jennifer
What a Forever Day for the new Forever Family!!! We are so happy for you guys!
Fantastic…
peace
fm
Congratulations! What a beautiful daughter you have! Yesterday was such a long day but one I know you’ll remember forever. Your daughter is in your arms! Glad she was able to sleep through the night. As hard as her cries were to hear it’s such a good thing that she began grieving. So glad she began that grieving safe in the arms of mommy and daddy.
She is even more beautiful than I could ever imagine. She is extra extra beautiful. Those eyes are so beautiful.
I am so very happy for you. Can not wait to see her back at home. We have some spoilin to do.
Love Ken and Lisa
At long last!!!! So very happy that you FINALLY have your daughter in your arms … life will never be the same … it is ALL good! Savour every moment. Congratulations mom & dad … oh, don’t you just love the sound of that?!
What a gorgeous baby she is! Your first day together sounds stressful, but a day you will never forget for sure! I hope the next few days with Catherine go well and she attaches quickly to the both of you. Enjoy your first few days as a family of three!!
I am so happy you are all together!
I hope for an experience much like yours. I want the real China…not a touristy exposure.
We are so, so happy for you!!!! She is beautiful & so fortunate that she has parents that truly went to the ends of the earth for her! You have waited a long time & deserve all the happiness that Catherine will bring!!
We are so, so happy for you!!!! She is beautiful & so fortunate that she has parents that truly went to the ends of the earth for her! You have waited a long time & deserve all the happiness that Catherine will bring!!
We are so, so happy for you!!!! She is beautiful & so fortunate that she has parents that truly went to the ends of the earth for her! You have waited a long time & deserve all the happiness that Catherine will bring!!
Congratulations on your new daughter. She is beautiful! As you both settle in, you will see the precious personality that your daughter has.
Karen (your IFS friend)
Congratulations on your new daughter. She is beautiful! As you both settle in, you will see the precious personality that your daughter has.
Karen (your IFS friend)
Congratulations!
Congratulations.Isn’t it wonderful…all those months of waiting and all for your Catherine. Definately worth the wait..but you won’t forget the wait thats for sure..These next few days will fuse in your mind as the most wonderfully stressful and happy days of your life….days that you will savour in your long term memory. So wonderful. Congrats again.
Take care. CTG from RQ…mother to the most fabulous Catherine in the world (sorry I am biased): my five year old…
Take care.
Congratulations.Isn’t it wonderful…all those months of waiting and all for your Catherine. Definately worth the wait..but you won’t forget the wait thats for sure..These next few days will fuse in your mind as the most wonderfully stressful and happy days of your life….days that you will savour in your long term memory. So wonderful. Congrats again.
Take care. CTG from RQ…mother to the most fabulous Catherine in the world (sorry I am biased): my five year old…
Take care.
Awww…so worth the wait!
Congratulations! She’s such a gorgeous baby. Can’t wait to read more about your journey!
Brandi
LID 11-14-06
Yay! She is sooo beautiful! I am so pleased for you guys. I can’t wait to hear more about your adorably beautiful daughter.
Congrats on your Family Day!
I love the pictures of you guys with your precious Catherine!
It might just me…but your words on the blog don’t wrap, which means we can only read part of the story! And I want to see the whole thing…when you get the chance….
She is soooo gorgeous! I can see the exhaustion and stress in your faces in the pictures, but also lots and lots of love for that little girl. My computer is cutting off a lot of your comments, so can’t wait to hear the whole story and see the pictures of the “real China” when you get home.
YAY!! You’re a family!! I’m so excited and happy for all 3 of you! It’s been a long wait for you but it’s going to be great. I send you a big hug and a wave hello from Emily. Congratulations!!
OH,so happy for you!! Enjoy getting to know your daughter!!!!
Congratulations to you and your husband. She is beautiful.
yes!! such wonderful pictures. a family finally together. safe trip home ok
CONGRATS!!!! I’m so thrilled for you guys! For some reason, I’m not able to read all of your post that you wrote. But the pictures….they say it all!
God bless
Congrats!! How wonderful despite the tears. It is very hard to see your child whom you have loved from afar and for so long go through all of that. {{hugs}} to you all. In about 3 days you will see a totally different child if you haven’t already. Then after being back at your home for a while there will be another child. They go through so much that sometimes their little personalities take a long time to come. Give her patience and both of you too. It is def. an exciting, heartwrenching time.
Beverly
Congratulations on your Family Day!
Oh I am so happy you finally have your daughter in your arms! It is the most wonderful feeling and then you just don’t ever want to let them go. She is so beautiful and I know that she is going to be sooooo loved.
Becky
I didn’t realize your from Texas too! We live north of Fort Worth. So a big Texas hug to Catherine from us!
give me an email if you need help or to vent You guys look so well together : )
xxx
s
I am so glad you finally have her. She will settle in soon. When you see her first smile, all the tears will be worth it.
Lisa
Congratulations! I was on the Church trip from OMPC and am so thrilled to know that you have your new daughter in your arms! Do you know if Jake and Cathy Simpson have a blog going for their new boy? He was the one I had really attached with and would love to hear about their journey. If you know of it can you email it me me? jcesgraham@msn.com
Thanks so much and we are all praying for you and the babies that all of you have just gotten!!
Cathy G.
Oh I am so happy for you. I have been a lurker on your website for about one year. She is beautiful and wonderful. Enjoy every single moment.
Lauren
I can’t believe you finally have her and that photo of with a big tear on her face… ohhh… I wanted to wipe it off… I am so happy for you all…take care…
So wonderful to see you and your little one. Hopefully that will be the last little tear of sadness you see. Can’t wait for more post’s and pictures. linda
Yay!! Finally. She’s beautiful!
Congratulations… you’re a mom now!
Wow, we are so happy for you!! Congratulations!! She is adorable! We are soooooooo envious! Take care & enjoy being Mommy and Daddy.
Alyson LID 01/27/06
I am so excited for you and I had to write. We celebrated our 6 months “Gotcha Day” today. Our dear daughter Jessa was Feng Fu Mao from the Fengdu SWI. We did not have the option of going to the orphanage and would love to talk to you sometime once life settles down to a dull roar (if that ever happens once you get your sweet child.) If you are interested, you can contact us. CONGRATULATIONS. Jessa had almost as much hair as Catherine, they almost look as if they could be related. Anyway – take a deep breath and hang on!!
Oh my goodness I’m so crazy excited for you!!! You have your baby! I can’t wait for her to meet her future boyfriend(j/k)
Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Congratulations, you two! Oh, that sweet little face, and that huge tear on her cheek. She’s so beautiful. Enjoy!
Ditto what others have said; seems that the area allowed on the site for the lines of text is less wide than the area you’re typing it in. Hope the next few days go smoothly and as expected.
For the commenters having trouble with the words wrapping.
I was able to cut and paste the text into Word and then I could read all of it, so you might try that if you are losing the ends of the lines.
Congrats on your little girl. So happy for oyu guys to finally have her in your arms. You look great as a family
This comment is my thanks for your hard work. Very interesting site!
Leave your response!
Blogs I love
Our Adoption Story
Categories
Archives
Follow Me On Facebook
Create Your Badge
Follow Me
Twitter
Flickr
You Tube Videos
Tags
Most Commented
Recent Posts