Gotcha Day

Okay, now that we've had some time to hang out with Eden and absorb the events of the day, let me tell you a little bit of what happened. We went to breakfast about 7:15, but had been up for a while before that. At 8:30 we left for the Civil Affairs Office and arrived about 9:00 a.m.

It was very "matter of fact"--we walked in, walked up a flight of stairs, down a hall, and into a room. The babies and their caregivers were already there. We spotted Eden after a few seconds. All the adoptive parents and families sat on one side of the room and the children on the other. There were three families including us, and each set of parents had to fill out a few papers. We were the third family in line, so we sat for about 15 minutes making faces at Eden and smiling and laughing to her across the aisle.

We signed the forms and then the director announced that the parents could claim the children. Some cried immediately, but Eden held off while we were in the room. Her big brown eyes were taking us in, looking at her new mom and dad and tried to decide what to make of us. Right before we left the room I think she realized what was happening and that her caregiver was not around and we were not going back to where she came from.

Then the tears started from both of us. Eden definitely has some healthy lungs. By the time we got down the stairs to the waiting bus she was in full-on grief-stricken sky-is-falling wailing and crying, which lasted the entire 20 minute trip back to the hotel. Once we got to the room, she continued crying for another 30 minutes or so. Finally after about an hour, I think she had enough for now and stopped. The next little while she explored her new toys and we played with her. We gave her some noodles and chicken for lunch along with a bottle of milk. She also has an affection for cookies and Cheereos. Then she took a long nap.

The orphanage provided a schedule of her day, and she normally naps in the afternoon, so we let her fall asleep on mom's tummy and we watching a DVD on the laptop while she slept. She just got up a little bit ago and is collecting all her toys in a big pile around her on the bed. She's especially fond of a Winnie The Poo cell phone (all girls like to talk! I can now say that is universal from culture to culture).

Keri and I would describe her mood as mellow. She's engaged, but not smiling quite yet and we expect some more tears of grief before the night is up. When the room service lady came in at lunch time she started up again briefly--any sign of an Asian woman sets her off right now. We expect that will continue for a few days at least. Tomorrow morning we go back to the Civil Affairs Office for more papers, and so we know that will be another hard time for her.

Eden is smaller than we expected (much of the information we were given was wrong, which is not unusual). She's 21 pounds and really needs 12-18 month clothes versus the 18-24 month clothes we brought with us. She's walking rather well, and independent with her play. She's quite the explorer. She has a determined little face and likes to try out stuff for herself versus us handing it to her. Right now she's slurping down some apple juice for the first time and seems to like it.

She's wearing diapers but really reacted badly when Keri changed her. We've been talking to her throughout so she can begin to get used to the sound of our voices. Keri's mom went shopping for us with the other families and brought back some of her favorite Chinese foods and some clothes to try on.




I could describe her in detail from her amazingly cute little nose to her deep, dark brown eyes to her soft yellow skin and her rugged, chubby feet. I could go on and on about her thoughtful, perplexed and anxious looks on her intriguingly expressive face. I think I am safe in saying she is the cutest child ever (sorry to all other parents reading this--but I know it's true). She's making some fun noises and is good at pointing at what she wants.

Obviously more difficult hours are ahead as she gets to know us, as she's kinda been thrown into this whole thing. She's got great eye contact with us which is a good sign. She's death-gripped mommy a few times this afternoon which is a good sign of bonding and she will have to build up to letting daddy hold her for long periods of time. Seeing as I stand a good 8 inches to a foot taller than every other guy in this city and my head is gray and balding instead of black and full, I may just scare her a bit.

It's been an inspiring day. We're so grateful for God's provision and grace. All the families prayed together on the way to the Office this morning that God would be glorified in all that transpired today. This afternoon Keri and I prayed over Eden as she feel asleep. And she has also been covered in the prayers of our friends (thank you!). God's hand has been so clearly evident throughout and we're enjoying the hours today even as we look forward to coming home to Birmingham.