After today’s appointments, as far as China is concerned, Thea is ours!
Today started out good and it got better with every minute (with only one exception :(). Kam and Thea both slept completely through the night, until 7a. Kam popped up out of sleep, looked over at Thea and said to me “Mom, isn’t it great that she felt comfortable enough to go to sleep in her bed?”
Soon Thea woke up and looked over at us with a “you’re still here” look on her face (Mark’s description). She didn’t cry, just sat there for a bit. I pulled out a new outfit for her and she seemed to love it. She got a big smile on her face and put it on without any fuss. We headed out for a quick breakfast. The restaurant was full of all the parents who had received their children yesterday. It was so much fun to look around at all the smiling faces and precious children. Thea walked me around the buffet to show me what she would like to eat and gobbled it down. She liked the congee, bokchoy (sp?), tomatoes and watermelon.
Our group met in the lobby to head over to a government building for our interviews and paperwork. We were asked the typical questions – are you happy with this child?(YES!) Do you still want to adopt her? (YES!) What is your level of education? Do you promise never to abandon or abuse your daughter?(YES!)
Due to Thea’s age, she also had to be interviewed alone. She was in there for quite a while. We asked David what she said and he said that when she was asked if she is happy with her parents, she said “yes”.
Next was a visit back to the Civil Affairs office to meet with the orphanage staff. David asked that Thea’s nanny not be present so she wouldn’t get upset again. We had another interview as a family, with the orphanage Director, Asst. Director and Head Nanny present. When the interview was over, they presented us with gifts (red envelope with special Chinese money and a sterling silver baby bracelet), a small book of photos and more items that belonged to Thea. They also gave us her nanny’s home address so that Thea could write her! They DID have her digital photobook and she was really, really happy when she saw it! They gave it to me, along with the sundress I mailed and a few more of her drawings. We were able to ask the orphanage more questions. We found out:
. There are only approximately 30 children in the orphanage and Thea was the oldest
. All of the children loved her very much and will miss her. She loved to take care of them.
. She went to school every day from 7:30a – 12p, then again from 3-5:30, after lunch and a nap. All the children at the orphanage were in the same classroom.
. She was very respectful in school.
. Her favorite subject is Chinese Culture!
. When she is upset, she is quiet. She does not act out physically.
. When she was abandoned at age 7, she was carrying a plastic bag with 2kg of rice.
Things WE WITNESSED and found about Thea today:
. She is SMART AS A WHIP!!! Several times she drew us pictures, wrote her ABC’s, sang the ABC song, wrote her numbers 1-100, wanted to know English words for things and repeated them and taught us Chinese words.
. She doesn’t mind a bit having her fingernails and toenails cut (mom, I know you are laughing because you knew I’d attempt this right away!)
. She loves to have her fingernails painted
. She loves the television
. She loves the pool! As soon as she saw Kam go in, she wanted to. We put her suit on and she jumped right in! At first she didn’t like her face wet, but then decided to show off by dunking her head. I’m quite sure she will love Grandma Linda’s pool.
. She is very, very good at drawing flowers and pictures. To my niece, Elli - I think she would love to take art class with you!
. She loves Pizza Hut, we went there again. She ate pizza and a mango smoothie.
. She loves beef jerky and chocolate.
. She knows how to make lots of different things out of folding paper – a boat, a lantern and a hat, so far.
. She doesn’t have a preference over Mark or I. She held each of our hands several times today. No hugs yet. I asked for one and she said NO :)
. She knows how to use a Western toilet! For those that don’t know, I wondered about this because they use “squatty potties” in China, not toilets like us. The squatty potty is just basically a hole in the ground and you “squat” over it! Three times in China and something I cannot get used to :)
. She needs to be taught manners!! I think that burping at the table must have been funny in the orphanage, ha, ha! Anyone who knows what I am like with my kids and manners is getting a kick out of this one. When I tell her to “say thank you”, she repeats “say thank you”, so at least she is compliant.
. She is an awesome sleeper. 5 kids, 5 great sleepers, am I blessed, or what?
About Mark, Kam and I . . . Mark is doing great, don’t anyone worry, he won’t starve! He has, however, been complaining all day that he’s lost 3 lbs., poor baby. He has been on the hunt for a good watch, because we all know he needs another one! Kam is so happy. He has tried all day again to make Thea comfortable. As for me, I’m good too. Other than missing the kids and feeling like a truck hit me by 6pm, everything is fine! The jet lag is still just awful. I had high hopes of running every day, but the tired feeling is not even explainable. I couldn’t run if I was bribed.
The final story of our day is, unfortunately, not a good one. By 6pm Mark was hungry and wanted to get something to eat before bed. We decided to just head out to the hotel restaurant for some fried rice. We showed Thea pictures of her food choices and she picked some type of noodle. When it arrived, she became visibly upset. We asked the waitress to see what the problem was. Apparently, the green vegetable in the picture was not on the pasta (she’s detail-oriented, ya think?). The waitress laughed and fixed it. Once she tried it, it must not have tasted the way she thought it would and she didn’t want it. I offered her my rice and she took it. She was gobbling it down and all of a sudden, acted like she couldn’t breath, kind of like gagging. Tears started rolling down her face. She was breathing fine, but every few minutes would act like she was choking. She didn’t know how to tell us, which I know made things much worse. The waitress came by and she just started crying and holding her tummy. I felt completely helpless and Mark and I were overwhelmed. The waitress told us that Thea wanted to go to the hospital. Fortunately, an adoptive mother, who is also a doctor, was sitting nearby, watching the whole incidence. She told us that she had been watching Thea and was sure that she was not having an allergic reaction (I was worried that maybe she was allergic to the shrimp in the rice). She thought she just had to throw up. I was wondering the same thing, since Benjamin acts that way when he needs to throw up – gagging, but doing everything humanly possible not to actually “let it come up” :) - gross, I know, sorry.
By this time, we had waitresses and hotel staff pulling up a taxi for us, wanting to take Thea to the hospital. I told them no thank you and we went back to our room.
Let me say first - I KNOW this is not going to be a great visual, but I tried to show Thea that it was okay to throw up. I was imitating throwing up and saying “it’s okay” over and over. She kept saying no. Are all of my friends laughing by now? Ha, ha, what a mother does for her children! I washed Thea’s face, had her brush her teeth and put on her pajamas. We gave her Children’s Pepto and tucked her into bed. She wanted to watch “Alvin & the Chipmunks”, so I propped up the DVD player. For the next hour and a half, I heard her giggle over and over and over. She LOVES that movie.
Which brings me to a close. As she was watching the movie, I was typing this summary. I just turned off the video player and I’m off to bed. I checked on her and asked if her tummy was okay. She smiled and said “goodnight Mama” in Chinese.
THANK YOU to the Grandmas and Papas for the wonderful care they are giving our little ones at home. The e-mails and photos are awesome to receive! We love you guys and appreciate you so much.
A final word from Mark – I asked him how to describe Thea. His response was “She is GREAT”!
Good night,
Warmest wishes,
Kari
Today started out good and it got better with every minute (with only one exception :(). Kam and Thea both slept completely through the night, until 7a. Kam popped up out of sleep, looked over at Thea and said to me “Mom, isn’t it great that she felt comfortable enough to go to sleep in her bed?”
Soon Thea woke up and looked over at us with a “you’re still here” look on her face (Mark’s description). She didn’t cry, just sat there for a bit. I pulled out a new outfit for her and she seemed to love it. She got a big smile on her face and put it on without any fuss. We headed out for a quick breakfast. The restaurant was full of all the parents who had received their children yesterday. It was so much fun to look around at all the smiling faces and precious children. Thea walked me around the buffet to show me what she would like to eat and gobbled it down. She liked the congee, bokchoy (sp?), tomatoes and watermelon.
Our group met in the lobby to head over to a government building for our interviews and paperwork. We were asked the typical questions – are you happy with this child?(YES!) Do you still want to adopt her? (YES!) What is your level of education? Do you promise never to abandon or abuse your daughter?(YES!)
Due to Thea’s age, she also had to be interviewed alone. She was in there for quite a while. We asked David what she said and he said that when she was asked if she is happy with her parents, she said “yes”.
Next was a visit back to the Civil Affairs office to meet with the orphanage staff. David asked that Thea’s nanny not be present so she wouldn’t get upset again. We had another interview as a family, with the orphanage Director, Asst. Director and Head Nanny present. When the interview was over, they presented us with gifts (red envelope with special Chinese money and a sterling silver baby bracelet), a small book of photos and more items that belonged to Thea. They also gave us her nanny’s home address so that Thea could write her! They DID have her digital photobook and she was really, really happy when she saw it! They gave it to me, along with the sundress I mailed and a few more of her drawings. We were able to ask the orphanage more questions. We found out:
. There are only approximately 30 children in the orphanage and Thea was the oldest
. All of the children loved her very much and will miss her. She loved to take care of them.
. She went to school every day from 7:30a – 12p, then again from 3-5:30, after lunch and a nap. All the children at the orphanage were in the same classroom.
. She was very respectful in school.
. Her favorite subject is Chinese Culture!
. When she is upset, she is quiet. She does not act out physically.
. When she was abandoned at age 7, she was carrying a plastic bag with 2kg of rice.
Things WE WITNESSED and found about Thea today:
. She is SMART AS A WHIP!!! Several times she drew us pictures, wrote her ABC’s, sang the ABC song, wrote her numbers 1-100, wanted to know English words for things and repeated them and taught us Chinese words.
. She doesn’t mind a bit having her fingernails and toenails cut (mom, I know you are laughing because you knew I’d attempt this right away!)
. She loves to have her fingernails painted
. She loves the television
. She loves the pool! As soon as she saw Kam go in, she wanted to. We put her suit on and she jumped right in! At first she didn’t like her face wet, but then decided to show off by dunking her head. I’m quite sure she will love Grandma Linda’s pool.
. She is very, very good at drawing flowers and pictures. To my niece, Elli - I think she would love to take art class with you!
. She loves Pizza Hut, we went there again. She ate pizza and a mango smoothie.
. She loves beef jerky and chocolate.
. She knows how to make lots of different things out of folding paper – a boat, a lantern and a hat, so far.
. She doesn’t have a preference over Mark or I. She held each of our hands several times today. No hugs yet. I asked for one and she said NO :)
. She knows how to use a Western toilet! For those that don’t know, I wondered about this because they use “squatty potties” in China, not toilets like us. The squatty potty is just basically a hole in the ground and you “squat” over it! Three times in China and something I cannot get used to :)
. She needs to be taught manners!! I think that burping at the table must have been funny in the orphanage, ha, ha! Anyone who knows what I am like with my kids and manners is getting a kick out of this one. When I tell her to “say thank you”, she repeats “say thank you”, so at least she is compliant.
. She is an awesome sleeper. 5 kids, 5 great sleepers, am I blessed, or what?
About Mark, Kam and I . . . Mark is doing great, don’t anyone worry, he won’t starve! He has, however, been complaining all day that he’s lost 3 lbs., poor baby. He has been on the hunt for a good watch, because we all know he needs another one! Kam is so happy. He has tried all day again to make Thea comfortable. As for me, I’m good too. Other than missing the kids and feeling like a truck hit me by 6pm, everything is fine! The jet lag is still just awful. I had high hopes of running every day, but the tired feeling is not even explainable. I couldn’t run if I was bribed.
The final story of our day is, unfortunately, not a good one. By 6pm Mark was hungry and wanted to get something to eat before bed. We decided to just head out to the hotel restaurant for some fried rice. We showed Thea pictures of her food choices and she picked some type of noodle. When it arrived, she became visibly upset. We asked the waitress to see what the problem was. Apparently, the green vegetable in the picture was not on the pasta (she’s detail-oriented, ya think?). The waitress laughed and fixed it. Once she tried it, it must not have tasted the way she thought it would and she didn’t want it. I offered her my rice and she took it. She was gobbling it down and all of a sudden, acted like she couldn’t breath, kind of like gagging. Tears started rolling down her face. She was breathing fine, but every few minutes would act like she was choking. She didn’t know how to tell us, which I know made things much worse. The waitress came by and she just started crying and holding her tummy. I felt completely helpless and Mark and I were overwhelmed. The waitress told us that Thea wanted to go to the hospital. Fortunately, an adoptive mother, who is also a doctor, was sitting nearby, watching the whole incidence. She told us that she had been watching Thea and was sure that she was not having an allergic reaction (I was worried that maybe she was allergic to the shrimp in the rice). She thought she just had to throw up. I was wondering the same thing, since Benjamin acts that way when he needs to throw up – gagging, but doing everything humanly possible not to actually “let it come up” :) - gross, I know, sorry.
By this time, we had waitresses and hotel staff pulling up a taxi for us, wanting to take Thea to the hospital. I told them no thank you and we went back to our room.
Let me say first - I KNOW this is not going to be a great visual, but I tried to show Thea that it was okay to throw up. I was imitating throwing up and saying “it’s okay” over and over. She kept saying no. Are all of my friends laughing by now? Ha, ha, what a mother does for her children! I washed Thea’s face, had her brush her teeth and put on her pajamas. We gave her Children’s Pepto and tucked her into bed. She wanted to watch “Alvin & the Chipmunks”, so I propped up the DVD player. For the next hour and a half, I heard her giggle over and over and over. She LOVES that movie.
Which brings me to a close. As she was watching the movie, I was typing this summary. I just turned off the video player and I’m off to bed. I checked on her and asked if her tummy was okay. She smiled and said “goodnight Mama” in Chinese.
THANK YOU to the Grandmas and Papas for the wonderful care they are giving our little ones at home. The e-mails and photos are awesome to receive! We love you guys and appreciate you so much.
A final word from Mark – I asked him how to describe Thea. His response was “She is GREAT”!
Good night,
Warmest wishes,
Kari
PS - Note to self - Don't let your daughter eat a big breakfast, Pizza Hut, beef jerky, a smoothie, and M&M's on the first day away from a normal diet of rice and congee!
The kids drawing while at the Civil Affairs office.
All four families, waiting for their interview.
Mark, the kids and I with the orphanage director, asst. director and head nanny.
Thea loved playing with the calculator on Mark's cell phone. She is showing me how to add and subtract. Notice Kam's arm around her :)
4 comments:
I feel like I'm following a reality show. Being new to watching this evolve for you Ottenbreits, it is both heart-warming and educational. Glad to hear you are all surviving. Thea seems like a champion. She's beautiful.
Can you get a webcam for home? I will have withdrawls. Also, Thea is probably going to be so addicted to Kam's attention! How lucky is she? Can you rent Kam out? My girls would love someone to worship them when Daddy isn't around! Tell Kam we are very impressed and we prayed for you guys again last night and we're so excited. Lexi said "It's like Aunt Kari and Mark plus five"--citing the "John and Kate plus eight" show. She thinks you deserve your own show---hence my webcam idea! (: Ok keep the pictures coming! We are anxious to meet her!
Dear Family,
This is Grandma Scott sending her best wishes to the family and my new great-granddaughter! Have a safe and good journey home.
Love,
Grandma
Dear Mark, Kari,and family,
Thea is beautiful. Welcome to the family! We are very blessed to have you as part of our family and look forward to meeting you.
Love,
Uncle Joel and Aunt Sharon
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