On Monday, at about 3:30pm china time, we met our new daughter Katherine Hui Seabolt. It was an incredible experience in so many ways. After a lengthy process with lots of curve balls, waiting periods, and uncertainty, there we were in the Guangzhou adoption center. We were jammed into one big room, maybe 600 square feet, with about 20 other families, all awaiting our new family members. The scene would have been a bit unnerving for almost any kid, let alone one that just left everything familiar and took the longest [and perhaps first] car ride of her life. Thankfully our rock-star guide was there to translate and help us. After filling out some final paperwork and hanging out for a bit, he said “ok, Stephen & dawn, come stand here in the middle of the room.” Someone said her name, “Hui Cheng Ru”, and there she comes. One of the orphanage workers was carrying her like a baby, and then they gave her to Dawn while whispering “bu ku, bu ku” [don’t cry].
It felt very surreal. When our son Sam was born, that was also surreal for me, but this was a different flavor of surreal. Kate sat with us for a while as other children came out and others around us played and cried. She was pretty stressed out, which seemed pretty appropriate in that environment. With the help of our guide, I quizzed kate's orphanage director who brought her about her daily habits, likes & dislikes, and any other tips. They seemed to care a lot for Kate, and we both exchanged thanks for caring for her, past & future.
There is one other family in our travel group who is also adopting from the Guangdong province, so after they met their daughter, we all got back in the van and came back to the hotel. [The art of navigating a vehicle through the city is simply an amazing thing to watch! Probably like an air traffic control screen at Atlanta’s airport, except it’s all crammed into a few over-crowded lanes and of course there’s no traffic controller.] Once we got to the car, Kate calmed down a good bit and was pretty chill throughout the evening.
It was simply an unforgettable and amazing day! We feel so blessed to have Kate in our family, and can’t wait to introduce her to her “di-di” [little brother] Sam.
Her nickname is “Mao-Mao”. Our guide told us that the meaning is somewhat connected to her fair hair color, but it’s also a common, sweet nickname. “Mao” rhymes with cow, and I believe it’s just a coincidence that it’s the name of the legendary Chinese leader.
She speaks Mandarin, not Cantonese! This really surprised me, just because I didn’t expect orphanage workers in a non-major city to speak the ‘official’ language of mandarin. But this is probably a good thing in the long run.
It felt very surreal. When our son Sam was born, that was also surreal for me, but this was a different flavor of surreal. Kate sat with us for a while as other children came out and others around us played and cried. She was pretty stressed out, which seemed pretty appropriate in that environment. With the help of our guide, I quizzed kate's orphanage director who brought her about her daily habits, likes & dislikes, and any other tips. They seemed to care a lot for Kate, and we both exchanged thanks for caring for her, past & future.
There is one other family in our travel group who is also adopting from the Guangdong province, so after they met their daughter, we all got back in the van and came back to the hotel. [The art of navigating a vehicle through the city is simply an amazing thing to watch! Probably like an air traffic control screen at Atlanta’s airport, except it’s all crammed into a few over-crowded lanes and of course there’s no traffic controller.] Once we got to the car, Kate calmed down a good bit and was pretty chill throughout the evening.
It was simply an unforgettable and amazing day! We feel so blessed to have Kate in our family, and can’t wait to introduce her to her “di-di” [little brother] Sam.
Her nickname is “Mao-Mao”. Our guide told us that the meaning is somewhat connected to her fair hair color, but it’s also a common, sweet nickname. “Mao” rhymes with cow, and I believe it’s just a coincidence that it’s the name of the legendary Chinese leader.
She speaks Mandarin, not Cantonese! This really surprised me, just because I didn’t expect orphanage workers in a non-major city to speak the ‘official’ language of mandarin. But this is probably a good thing in the long run.
When dawn said “bao bao mao mao” [can I hold you, mao mao], Kate put up her hands. ‘Twas a very sweet moment.
Stephen
Congrats you 2! (or should I say 3)
ReplyDeleteWhat a cutie. Thanks for letting us follow along
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