Gotcha Day

What a day! We were up early to get to the airport and fly to Nanjing. We arrived here at 10ish got to the hotel 11:30ish and then we waited until 1:30 to board the bus to go get our children. That was a hard two hours. The kids were so excited, I was so nervous, but we made it through.

When we pulled up to the civil affairs building there were 2 nannies and 2 children waiting. We saw him right away and knew it was Wu ChunAn--our Luke. We tried to make friends with him in the lobby but he wanted nothing to do with us. We went into the office with 5 or 6 other families getting their children. When the nanny was finally able to hand over Luke he was mad. He cried and cried and squirmed and tried to get back to her. He wanted nothing to do with the kids or the toys--he only had eyes for his nanny. It was very difficult--no one wants to take a child from everything he knows. It breaks your heart. Craig and I took turns holding him but Craig was the one who finally got the crying to stop. It felt like a small victory. from Craig - He was the second to last one to stop crying and going after his nannie. I took that to be a good sign. I thought if he wasn't upset it would be an indication of the level of attachments he had. The fact that he was really upset and wanted to go back told me that he was loved. I wish I could express my gratitude to the nanny.

He would still seek out his nanny and keep his eye on her. We took some pictures and then headed to the bus. He zonked out on the bus after that huge emotional situation. When we got back to our room he was unresponsive and wouldn't eat, drink, reach for anything. He was pretty much a limp rag. He started crying again once. Another heartbreaking moment. But soon that changed--he had a drink. Another small victory. Then he tried some crackers. Soon he was showing Ben and Amanda his toy we sent in the care package.

We had our guide take us to a local store to buy water and other supplies and we decided we would all go. Luke LOVED it! He was all smiles and thought it was a grand time. Craig held him while we walked there. We came back and went to dinner. Luke was great and ate and ate and ate. He tried the dropsie game, laughed with Ben and Amanda, and sat in his chair really well.

We celebrated with Hagen Daaz ice cream. Came home to the hotel and put on pajamas. With a little crying he was asleep and now I am blogging. My main feeling right now is relief. I had no idea what to expect today but it has been good. Amanda and Ben were real troopers and have done a great job of being patient and waiting for Luke to warm to them--it didn't take long. Craig - I am so proud of Amanda and Ben through this whole trip. They have been stellar. Amanda doesn't care for much of the out of the ordinary food that we are eating, but I don't think I have heard her complain once. Ben gets tired of waiting and we wait a lot. Sometimes he gets a little wild, but overall he has been awesome. They were incredible with Luke today. They were patient and helpful as he threw his two hour fit.

Hope you aren't wanting to hear more about China because our focus has changed! Actually we are in a really cool spot and hope to explore some in the next few days. We are across the street from a mall and next door to a huge outdoor market. Craig - It's pretty hard not to eat the food in the outdoor market. It looks and smells as good as any fair. If it weren't that I had eaten enough Chinese food to last the next two years I would have a harder time. I would like a PB and J right about now. We got breakfast on the plane today. It was a Western breakfast and I ate mine, and most of Amanda and Ben's because I wasn't sure when I would get my next Western meal. This will be a real shocker to most of you. When we got to the hotel we discovered that there was a Burger King right in the hotel. We went there for lunch and I enjoyed it! At home I could do without Burger King for a good year, but something that tasted almost like home was nice.

As I write this in silence, the xcreaming from the next room is a reminder that not everyone had it as easy as we have so far. Thanks for your regular prayer for our little guy. The initial transition was hard and I expect some ongoing rough patches.