Catching up

Best intentions are sometimes just that. Our intention was to write on this blog daily. We have found ourselves very busy between the set itinerary with our adoption travel group and the time we spend getting acquainted with Binbin. So I will attempt to catch up.


Wednesday was a free day to wander around Nanning and relax. Behind our hotel was this wonderful public park with a nice lake and an amusement park surrounded by luscious tropical vegetation. Nanning is a city of about six million, which is considered a medium size city in China. Almost everyone either lives in a small hutog or a high rise apartment. Very few have private yards. These parks are very important to the people as a place to hang out and express themselves. We saw groups of people or just individuals dancing, exercising, singing and playing board games. We found that the Chinese people do not have the inhibitions that we process. It was very relaxing to walk along the lake and then spend some time in the amusement park with Binbin watching the people and riding the merry-go-round and train. Actually our group was people watched more than we watched them. Anglos with Chinese babies attract a lot of attention and curiosity. We were videotaped and asked if our picture could be taken by several of the park patrons. They were all very nice and friendly and complimented us on our daughter. It is such a small world as the family we were with from Holt is from Osseo, WI which is about one hour away from where Kari's sister lives.

Thursday we took a bus ride along with the other Holt family up to Yiling, a traditional Chinese village about one hour from our hotel. Yiling is surrounded by beautiful steep and jagged limestone mountains. Poor by our standards yet rich in culture and tradition. The people were very friendly and out and about the village on their daily routines. We saw cows and calves in front yards of the homes. In the afternoon our family took a short cab ride to the flower market which was more of an outdoor bazaar. We walked around and purchased a few small items for Binbin as keepsakes from her home Provence.

Friday was our last day in Nanning and the Guangxi Provence. At around 6 pm, Binbin's Chinese passport was delivered to the hotel which allowed us to leave her home Provence for the Guangdong Provence and Ghounzho. This is the home of the US Embassy that processes Visas to Chinese citizens. With this we will be free to bring Binbin home. Our time in Nanning was all about bonding and getting to know our new daughter and her getting to know us. It is a wonder seeing her get more comfortable with us and open up. But the process is an emotional roller coaster. At times we have her laughing and playing and then she will start crying when she sees or hears something that reminds her of her foster family. We think that the first two days she must have really had her defenses up. She neither cried or laughed. Now she is being more expressive on both ends of the emotions. We see this as very positive and that she is working through this in a healthy way.

The plane descent into Ghounzho was a bit traumatic as Binbin's ears must have hurt and she would not take any sips of water or chew on a cracker. She screamed (and I mean screamed) kicked and clung to Kari.

Our first full day as a family

Yesterday was our first full day with our new daughter. That is the last time I will write "our new daughter." Even though her name is now officially Katelyn (Katie) we cannot yet refer to her as that yet. Her foster family nicknamed her "Bin Bin." We are choosing to keep this nickname at least for the time being since she speaks no English so "Katie would get no response. Mostly we are keeping it because it is so darn cute and fits her perfect.
About our day; we started off the day very well. Bin Bin woke up in seemingly good spirits. She is potty trained for the most part. This part amazes us. She goes potty when we want her to. In China, they train these little kids to go on demand. They hold them over the pot and then whistle in their ear which is rewarded with a little tinkle sound. It works! She is very cooperative with getting dressed and going places. She was obviously well cared for and taught discipline by her foster mother. We were told that the foster mother called the orphanage in the morning because she was so worried about how Bin Bin was doing. After getting dressed and fed, we took a short bus ride back to the Welfare hotel to complete the Chinese adoption paperwork with the welfare department. While there, we were able to talk to Bin Bin's caretaker with her orphanage who has know her since she was found in May of 2008. Bin Bin lit up when she saw her. (see picture) From this meeting, we gathered invaluable background information that we can share with Bin Bin when she is older and curious about her history. Two items that we were not expecting but are grateful to have are; a photo album chronicling her life at Yulin First Social Institute and the clothes and blanket she was found wrapped in when they discovered her alone in the marketplace. We will cherish and preserve these two items for her to have when she is an adult. After the Welfare hotel we took another short bus ride to the notary office. When we left there to go back to the hotel, we held in our laps our officially adopted child. The last step is to get her a Visa through US immigrations then we can bring her home. That process will occur next week in Goungzho. Back at the hotel, we ate some lunch and just hung out with Bin Bin for a couple of hours. At about 3 pm, the bus came back and we took another short ride to Walmart. Yes, I said Walmart. I wanted to go, not necessarily to shop, but to see firsthand what a Chinese Walmart was like. The one in Nanning is in an indoor shopping mall and is three stories tall. It pretty much had anything that you would want. It was extremely busy as we have found most places in China. We were told that one of Bin Bin's favorite activities was to go to the supermarket with her foster mom. At the end of the trip we think that she must have seen something or someone that reminded her of her foster mom because she became withdrawn and started pushing us away. We could tell she was grieving the separation from her foster family, but this was the first time she physically shut us out. We let her have her moment and she came back around. The rest of the day we spent hanging out at the hotel getting to know each other better. However, Bin Bin seemed sad all evening. I think she is tired of playing with us and wants to go to the comfort and security of her own home. We are so grateful to the foster family for loving and caring for her so well yet it breaks our hearts to see this little girl so obviously sad to be away her foster Mamma and Babba. In time we know she will feel the same way about us. We just need to let her work it all out.

It's A Girl!

We have finally met our precious little girl and have her in our arms after our long journey. We have to say that it was worth every minute of the wait. At 3:00 PM Monday afternoon, we met in the lobby of our hotel with another couple that is here with us from Holt to adopt their second little girl for a short bus ride to a welfare hotel to meet Katie Xuebin. She is everything we hoped for and more. We can't believe that we get to take this sweet little ladybug home with us. Now it is Tuesday morning and we are off to the Office of Civil Affairs to finalize the adoption. I have uploaded a few pictures and will post more detail later.

The first few days in China

We have finally have found a quiet moment to update our blog. We left San Francisco Wednesday afternoon and arrived in Beijing Thursday evening. The flight in all was pretty good. As we followed the sun around the globe, we slept, read and ate our way to the other side of the world arriving fairly fresh and in good spirits. We were met at the Beijing airport by Sandy one of our Holt guides. She led us on what was an adventurous drive to our hotel with a very experienced driver. To drive in this city is a very chaotic yet well orchestrated dance of weaving and bobbing around cars, bikes, buses and pedestrians. We were constantly inches from hitting something or someone. It is one of those times were you just need to sit back, let go and have faith that the person behind the wheel will get you there in one piece.


Friday morning we met up with our new guide Sally along with eight other Holt families for an hour long ride to the Great Wall. We trekked our way up the very steep, well worn ancient stairs. At the top, we were breathless and tired but well rewarded with spectacular views of the jagged mountainous landscape. After that adventure, we made our way to a Ming vase factory for a tour followed by a family style Chinese lunch. We ended our tour for the day with a pedicab ride through an old Hutong (ally or side street) where we visited a traditional Chinese home.

Saturday we attended our adoption orientation in the morning. Here we received updates on our beautiful soon to be daughter. She seems to be a very happy healthy little girl. I uploaded the recent pictures they gave us. I had to take pictures of them so the quality is poor. After orientation, we ate lunch at the hotel with our group and then headed out on a trip to the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square and a tour of a silk factory in the afternoon. Beijing is a lovely city and the people here are very friendly. We have felt very safe, except you have to be careful crossing the street as cars have the right of way.

The last two nights we had dinner with Steve and Kristine, a couple from Kansas who are adopting a little boy. It is a small world; Steve grew up in the Quad Cities where Kari is from. It was fun to venture out with them and try some authentic Chinese food. The food was delicious but ordering was interesting; we basically pointed at pictures and held up our fingers for how many of each item we wanted. We kept forgetting to take our translation book with us. We leave for Guangxi Sunday morning at 11:30. We are very excited as we meet Katie Xuebin on Monday afternoon.

Her room is ready! We decided on a nature theme. The hanging quilt is a 100 good wishes baby quilt, a Chinese tradition. Given to us by Kari's cousins.

The countdown is on!

We are now one week from travel to China. Both Kari and myself are excited and nervous at the same time. I have never lived a period that took so long to get here happen so fast. We are frantically trying to wrap up our work so that we can leave for it all behind for awhile. In less than two weeks our lives will be forever changed. We have her room all ready with little girly stuff. Packing is the challenge. We both get to check one 44 lb max bag each with one carry on each not to exceed 11 lbs. We are packing for three so we have to anticipate our daughter’s needs before we know what they are. We are bringing several small toys to keep her occupied on our plane trips, medical and consulate appointments. We have Sippy cups, Cheerios, Goldfish, Clothes, (We have to guess on the clothes size), pull-ups, medications, etc... By the time we pack for her and Kari, I hope that I will get at least 5 lbs for my stuff. What we don't bring we will either buy in China if we need so or better yet, live without! My biggest concern is that we bring all the right forms filled out correctly along with all the other required items. Lastly, we have finally decided on a name. Naming is an interesting process because everyone has an opinion good and bad on every name. In the end we choose the name that both of us liked the best because that is what matters in the end. What is it you ask? Katelyn Xuebin Owings!