Sophie and Lily Halloween 2007 in Hanoi Vietnam.
Halloween 2008
Lily and Sophie as little witches.
Morgan Creek Park
Fairy Lily at her Preschool Halloween Party.
Princess Sophie's Preschool Halloween Party.
We are waiting to go into the officials office for the G&R ceremony. 
I can't believe it has been a year! They have grown so much!
Lily loves preschool, princesses, dresses, swinging and to color.
Sophie
Lily and Sophie
Sophie
Lily
After the I-600 approval, we had to rush to the embassy again to drop off the sealed medical reports from the SOS clinic, the girls’ passports and our application for their VISAs to enter the United States. We dropped the paperwork off on Wednesday and had our VISA interview on Thursday. The VISA “interview” took a total of 10 minutes. We just had to confirm all the data was correct and sign the application in front of a U.S. government official. As soon as we signed it he said we could come back on Friday after 4:00 to pick up the VISAs and two sealed envelopes we needed to give to the immigration officer when we reached the United States.
When we went back on Friday all we had to do was pick up the girls’ passports and make sure the right VISA was glued into the correct passport. It was great to see the VISA in place making it a reality that we could bring the girls home. After we picked up the VISAs, we were able to meet with the Chief of the unit handling all of the adoption issues. We had a nice visit about policy issues and he had some great ideas about making the adoption process better and more ethical throughout Vietnam.
The weekend was my last power shopping event. On Saturday morning, we got a linen suit for P and some more keepsake items for the girls. In the afternoon, we went on a tour of a traditional silk making village. They showed us the silkworm cocoons, the way they got the individual strands of silk and how they weaved it into cloth. It was very interesting and very loud. The village, of course, had numerous shops for buying silk ties, shirts and other items. P bought a number of new ties. I think some of his last bargain silk ties from Korea will be replaced. One of the interesting things we saw and experienced was the silk worm wine. Yes, after the silk worms have produced all they can, they are “retired” to a jug, where they are covered with high grade alcohol and allowed to ferment. The wine was strong smelling and tasting. P was the first to volunteer. He described it like a strong whiskey that warms you all the way down. Even I had a taste. T. had the camera and took photos of my reaction. The tour guide gave us a nice history of Hanoi as we drove to the village.
Sunday was set aside as P’s packing day. I went shopping with one of the other moms and we left the men to watch the children. After I left, P told me Sophie was a little upset Mom left without her. That is either a good sign of attachment, or that she really likes to shop. P packed all morning, with the help from the girls. We will need to go through all the empty plastic bags to make sure his helpers did not help him by putting things in the bags he thought were empty. After they had lunch, it was naptime. Lily decided she had to fold their pajamas from last night before they could lie down. Of course, as Lily was folding, Sophie was unfolding and laughing. Eventually, P distracted Sophie long enough for Lily to finish straightening up so they could take their naps. Lily had to tuck her doll in under a fuzzy blanket before going to sleep. She slept curled up next to the doll, with her hand on it. Very cute!
Sunday night we were invited to a dinner hosted by the hotel for the families staying here while our adoptions are being processed in Hanoi. It should be an interesting event. This will probably be our last post until we get home. We leave Monday morning at 9:00 for the airport. Our flight to Taipei leaves at 12:30. After a short lay over in Taipei, we board our flight to San Francisco. We land about 2:00 local time in San Francisco. We will then go through customs and immigration. Once the girls go through immigration, they are officially U.S. citizens. To make it easier on the girls, we are going to spend the night in San Francisco. We will also be able to see my sister and niece. On Tuesday we finish the journey to Cedar Rapids. The little, southern country girls may find it a bit colder weather outside their new home, but they will find their home is filled with the everlasting warmth of family and friends.
When we did our I-600 interview last week on October 31, we were told it would take 4-6 business days to get it approved. When we called on Monday to check on the status, the embassy said it may be at least another week, because of a backlog in the CIS office. Needless to say, we were not excited of the potential that we would have to delay our homecoming, but took it in stride and emailed our travel agent with the news.
After checking on the I-600, we hung out in Hanoi and let the girls take it easy. The trip was tough on the girls’ schedules so Monday was a good recovery day. M went shopping during nap time. The girls made out well.
On Tuesday, we went to the Temple of Literature, which is the oldest university in Vietnam. It was founded by four of the original students of Confucius. It was a beautiful setting with ponds filled with water lilies. We took a cab ride over which cost us 30,000 dong (about $1.75). The cab ride over was an adventure. The cars in Vietnam all honk their horns when they pass another car. The cab honked its horn as it passed a car trying to pull away from the curb. The car came out and they brushed fenders. Our cab driver said something, that we are sure was unkind, but kept driving. The other driver just pulled out. The ride back was eventful in a different way. Although the cab was metered, the meter was spinning like a Las Vegas slot machine. By the time we reached our hotel the meter was at 85,000 dong, almost three times the fare over. P was livid. He was not going to pay it, so he gave the driver 30,000 dong and started to walk away. The driver explained it was a different route. P said the driver chose the route just to increase the fare. P gave the driver an additional 2000 dong (12 cents) and said that was it. The driver left, I am sure not very happy. The moral to the story is stick with the Hanoi Taxi company. Their fares are reasonable and always consistent.
On Wednesday, we started the day straightening up the room before we left. We had not seen the remote control for the TV for a couple of days, so finding that was part of the goal. We looked and looked, until we finally found it in the freezer compartment of our refrigerator. I guess the girls thought it needed to stay fresh. After breakfast, we spent the morning in a different part of the Old Quarter. We went over to the travel agent to pay for our hotel stay and then decided to walk back to the hotel. Along the way was the prison where U.S. prisoners of war were kept which was nicknamed the Hanoi Hilton. When we got there, they were closing for lunch, maybe tomorrow. We walked back to the lake. I went shopping and P and T room the girls back for their naps. The girls were great until they got back to the room. Then it was a tag team on who wanted to be cranky, happy, or just refusing to sleep. By about 3:00 P received a call from Thuy, a woman who works for a different agency, but was helping when we first got to Hanoi. She said the I-600 was approved and we had to go immediately to the embassy and drop off the visa paperwork for the girls. She said she would be at the hotel in 5 minutes. P woke Lily up and convinced Sophie that it was O.K. to go. He grabbed the paperwork and filled his pockets with goldfish crackers, dum dum suckers and the crackers the girls like. Thuy had a cab downstairs. She put P in the cab with the girls and said her assistant, Hao, would meet him at the embassy. Hao met P at the embassy and first took him to a photo place because they thought they needed more photos, but they later found out they did not. After the trip to the photo shop, they went to the embassy and turned in all the visa paperwork. The appointment is set for 2:00 on Thursday. When we got back, P called Hein to tell him of the developments and also ask that Hein accompany them to the appointment. It would be good to have an employee of our adoption agency with us. The girls had a long, long day and everyone was very tired by the time P got back with the girls. We had supper in the room. P slipped out with T to go to the French bakery on the corner and get some sandwiches. After supper it was bath time. The girls love their baths and getting lotion rubbed on before bed. It was all splashing and giggles. Another thing the girls love to do is brush their teeth. They ask to do this and are good at brushing all by themselves. The girls allowed P to finish up the brushing just to make sure they didn’t miss a spot. The girls are very accustomed to brushing their teeth. The night we stayed in Phan Thiet with the nanny I got to observe the bathing and teeth brushing ritual. All done by the nanny, but I’m sure they have done this many times before. I think this has helped to the easy transition to bathing and teeth brushing.
So why did it take us only 5 days to get I 600 approval? On Monday, the embassy told us there were some people waiting over 2 weeks for approval. My personal opinion is that we have an ethical agency because of the Hue, the program director. Our agency has had fewer referrals than other agencies and longer waiting periods for a referral, but I know that I will be able to look my girls in the eyes one day and say your adoption was ethical. No bribes were paid, no moving children from province to province to hide the identity of the children and where they came from, children are not warehoused in holding centers then sent to feeding centers to add weight before G&R, children are not bought in China and brought over the border to be sold to the highest bidder to unethical agencies. Our agency has had no NOIDs (notice of intent to deny an I-600) and I don’t foresee this in the future. The paperwork is clean and the embassy knows this. The orphanages are in good condition with 2 to 3 kids per nanny and the kids are in general healthy. It is very rare to see lice or scabies in our agency’s orphanages. Another reason for our paperwork going so smoothly is that we are adopting older children who have been in the orphanage for years. As I recall, the youngest referral coming out of our agency is at least 6 months old much older than the very young infants coming out of some provinces with less ethical agencies who are getting NOIDs. The embassy takes all this into consideration when giving approval. If your paperwork is in order and you work with an ethical agency you should not have a problem. I realize this is not what some of you want to hear but it is the truth whether you like it or not. So check your agency before you sign with them. The quickest, youngest referral maybe more trouble than what it appears to be.
We had a 2:00 p.m. appointment to pick up the girls’ Vietnamese passports to be immediately followed by a trip to the SOS clinic for their doctor’s appointments. We had to have the passports before we could go to the clinic.
We arrived at 1:45 and waited until 2:00 when lunch was over. Soon Hein (our new guide from the agency) went up and asked about the passports. They said yes they had it. “It” Hein asked. Yes they had one passport done. They saw that the birth date and all the identifying information was the same (except the names which is only 2 letters difference in the entire name) and just made one not thinking there could be twins. Hein convinced them to make the other passport while we waited. About 2:45, Hein took all of us over to the SOS clinic and Hein convinced them to see both girls even though we had only one passport. The clinic was great and took them both in for their scheduled appointments. P and Hein then dashed back to the immigration office to wait for the new passport. One gentleman kept going up to the desk and asking about his passport. Hein told P the clerk was getting upset and the more he asked, the longer he would have to wait. Sure enough, about 3:30 a clerk came running up to the desk with a shiny new, green Vietnamese passport in her hand. It was open and she was blowing on the ink to get it to dry. It was our second passport. As soon as the desk clerk got it, she asked P and Hein to come up and sign for the new passport. The impatient gentleman was still waiting and asking about his documents. I wonder how long he waited.
P and Hein sprinted back to the SOS clinic in time for P to sit through and help get Sophie examined. The clinic was great and the girls took P’s absence pretty well. Hein would pick up the health reports for us on Monday. The doctor told us they were in excellent health, although just a little under weight.
We just love Hein he is a soft spoken man who knows the adoption process like the back of his hand. He understands most all of our English and speaks better English than I do Vietnamese. He is defiantly a plus for this agency.
On Saturday, we had arranged to go to Ha Long Bay, which is on the coast north of Hanoi. We got up early to leave by 8:00. It was a 3 hour bus ride to the coast. On the way up we stopped at a store/work shop for handicapped individuals. The hand-stitched embroidered paintings and made beautiful silk clothing. After our break, we finished the ride to Ha Long Bay. We had lunch at a tourist restaurant. Sophie had had enough of traveling and was not a happy camper in the restaurant. We were seated in a large room with about 8 other tables. Another missed meal for P. After lunch, we checked into a 3 star hotel to rest before we took a tour of one of the islands in the bay. P said the 3 star rating was awarded by the Baghdad Gazette. The rooms were nice, with one peculiar feature. In the bedroom P and I shared with the girls, the wall separating us from another room did not go completely to the exterior wall. When you pulled our curtain back, you could see about a 4 inch gap, and the curtain in the other room. We later learned (through sound and smell) the room on the other side of our wall was the other room’s bathroom. As our neighbors were going through their evening and morning bathroom rituals, all we could do was laugh. What a story! We would not believe it unless we saw it.
After our nap, we went to the island that is the convention center and high end beach area. It had a dolphin show, a laser light show and beautiful beaches and gardens. Since it was after season (we did not know this) the laser show and dolphin shows were closed. We did get to walk on the beach and around the gardens. It was a little overcast and foggy, so it was too cold to get into the water, at least for us. We did see some Russian tourists in the water though. After the tour, we went back to the same restaurant for supper. I guess in response to Sophie’s hard morning, we had a private dining room.
On Sunday, we started the day with a cruise of Ha Long Bay. We arrived at the dock and saw cruise boats 3 deep at the pier. We boarded one and followed our tour guide as he crawled from the first boat to the second boat back. The girls were not excited about the climbing over the ship rails and hung on for dear life. Once we settled into our boat, the girls sat at the table with P. It took a good 15 minutes of pushing and maneuvering to get out of the pack of boats at the dock. It was like Hanoi traffic with fewer rules of the road. After we were under way the girls had a great time watching the hawks hunting for fish and the other boats. Our first stop was an island with a large cave. When we thought cave, we though cool temperature. Not this cave. The girls needed to be carried. They both wanted to be carried by P. He got his work out that day! By the time we finished the cave, he was exhausted and ready to sit on the boat with the girls. After the cave, we went to the floating houses of the fishermen in the Bay. They catch fish, squid, clams, shrimp, etc. and put them in live wells on their floating house boats. All you do is pick out what you want and they give it to you live. We did not buy anything special. For lunch on the boat, we had clams, shrimp, hard shell crab, fish (yes, the whole fish, head and all) rice and fruit for desert. The girls ate well, and snacked a lot as well.
After the cruise, it was back on the bus for the drive back to Hanoi. On the way back we again stopped at a workshop/store run to support people with handicaps. Sophie and Lily both were very tired and fell asleep in the van. We hoped they would sleep, but as soon as we stopped they were awake and Sophie was not happy. P ended up sitting with the girls while I shopped. He was helped by a number of store employees who came to play with the babies. Eventually, Sophie calmed down and drank some juice. After we were again under way, the girls finished their naps. We arrived at our hotel at about 4:00 p.m. It was an interesting weekend.
Today we are free to do as we please. We do not have any appointments to take care of so we decided to go to the Museum of Ethnology. The museum has a wonderful display of all the 54 ethnic groups in Vietnam from costumes, housing, to weaving designs to tombs. It must be a very popular place for wedding photos because we saw at least twenty if not more brides and grooms taking photos in wedding dresses and tuxedos. It was such a delight to learn about our girl’s heritage.
The girls are such good troopers Van sitting in her stroller and Vy holding P’s finger never leaving his side. Not one complaint out of them. I’m sure that will change soon but for now we are enjoying it.
We spent the rest of the day in the hotel room just playing and napping. The girls are starting to relax and showing their personally more and more each day. When we are out in public they are very reserved with not many smiles but in the hotel room smiles and laughs are abundant. They are both calling me Mama on a regular basis and tonight an English “no” instead of a VN “no” and “hi” were both added to the vocabulary. Vy is trying to feed me some and in return she is letting me feed her. When they are well rested they are opening up to me more and more but when they are tired it is all Ba or Dad. It is so nice to see them responding to P in this way. I just love seeing them bond with him.
Tonight was the fist time T needed some time alone without the girls as they are opening up they are becoming silly and loud at times. Thank goodness we have two rooms a sitting room where T is making his bedroom and a bedroom where P, the girls and I sleep, play and eat. This allows T to have some down time from being a big brother.
For supper we ordered pizza and had it delivered it was quite the challenge to place an order, but we got it done and the pizza was delivered without a problem.
The real estate in Hanoi is very expensive and all the buildings are long and narrow in the old quarter of Hanoi. This means, if you don’t have a room at the front of the hotel, your room will not have any windows. Our hotel room has no windows, so we did not have to sun to help wake us up. At one point, when everyone was stirring, we looked at P’s alarm clock and saw it was 1:30 in the morning. Remembering that the girls had been playing with it, we checked P’s watch and saw it was 9:00 in the morning. We had slept a much needed 12 hours.
By the time everyone was ready to leave the hotel it was 11 AM so we decided to walk to a nice restaurant called Sesame. When we arrived we were asked if we had reservations and we said no. They did not have room in the inside of the restaurant but did in the court yard outside. So we ate our lunch listening to the sounds of Hanoi. What a great Vietnamese experience. I highly recommend this restaurant for anyone coming to Hanoi. We will be back before we leave to go home.
After lunch we walked back to the hotel Vy holding P hand and Van holding T’s hand I was leading the way. The side walks are narrow and often there are scooters parked on the sidewalks and people sitting talking and eating making the area to walk very narrow if it exists at all. Many times we found ourselves walking on the street dodging scooters.
We arrived back at the hotel and it was time for the girls to take a nap and P to fill out the I 600 paperwork. P left and T and I tried to put the girls down for a nap. They would lie down and snuggle with T and soon fell fast asleep. T is a wonderful big brother or Ahn as the girls call him in Vietnamese. The girls just adore him as they soon will adore the two Ahns waiting at home to meet them.
When the twins woke up and P returned we decided to head out and see the Doug Xuan Market in the Old Quarter. It was a short distant from the hotel but again hard to maneuver the streets not only because of the scooters and people but because it was now approaching 5:30 PM and the streets were beginning to bustle with people coming home from work. When we arrived at the market, we discovered venders packing up their goods for the evening. We made a quick walk through and left to discover the streets of the Old Quarter. We would return during the weekday to see the market. On our excursion through the streets we happened upon a little grocery store that would sell YoMost and yogurt for the girls and drinks and treats for us. Our outing was done and we headed back to the Hotel and to find a place for supper. We decided to try the R&R restaurant. It is owned by an American man and his Vietnamese wife. They served western food in a bar like setting. The food was ok and the service was good but if you are craving hamburgers and Mexican cuisine it was an ok place to go but I would not go out of your way to eat there.
We took a taxi to the hotel with a driver that took no mercy on anyone or anything in his way going down the wrong way on streets and flashing his lights to have drivers get out of his way. We were very glad it was a short ride from the restaurant and that we made it to the hotel safely.
Our day ended with showers for the girls and to bed. It had been a very successful day. The girls are warming up to me one step at a time. We started to call them by their American names and they are catching on very quickly to responding to their new names. Both of them are calling Mama instead of Me (May). I think it is less confusing for them. They both have been successful in staying potty trained and letting us know in their own way when they have to go and have staying dry all the time. Let’s hope this continues. Every day is full of new discoveries and adventures for them and us. Both girls catch on very quickly to routines and understand quite a bit of what we say to them.
The night in HCMC and the flight to Hanoi on Day 7.
We finished the long bus trip to HCMC and went to our hotel. The girls were still clinging to N. for support. The next few hours were going to be rough. We had two rooms, one for me and the girls and one for T and P. We had the entire luggage sent up in T and P’s room. N took the girls to our room and quickly left. Needless to say, the girls freaked out and got very upset. They were crying and rocking. It was very sad. Eventually, Van went to P and grabbed on with all her might. Vy soon followed and P was not going any where without the girls.
I pulled out my bag of toys with added new ones and the girls settled down and started to play. The smiles and laughs once again appeared. It was so nice to see. This time the new toy was stacking cups. The girls love them. Van was the first to start tacking the cups. She was able to stack 8 out of 10 cups right away. Of course Vy could not let her sister bask in the light to much and she knocked all the cups down and they both giggled. The airplane and little people were again a big hit.
When it came time to go to sleep P and the girls sat on the edge of the bed and rocked for about an hour and they started to get sleepy. P slowly moved back so the group could lie down. They were reluctant to let me even touch them. Van was very insistent in pointing to the floor. I picked up many items and she would say no in Vietnamese. Finally, I picked up the purple crocs and that is what she wanted to sleep with. The girl loves her shoes and knows the purple ones are hers and the pick crocs are Vy’s. P, Van and Vy cuddled up and slept for then night. P wished he had brought some clothes and brushed his teeth before the action started, but he could not leave their sides now.
The next morning Y, P, T, Vy, Van and I would fly to Hanoi. This was their first plane trip and another ride in the taxi. The girls woke up promptly at 4:30 in the morning. We had some Yo Most (a yogurt drink) with us. They drank in the morning, and we could give them a sponge bath. A shower seemed like too much for them at this point. We went down for breakfast. The girls ate a little, but would only take food from P. If I offered them food they would say no, in Vietnamese, but P could take the spoon from me and they would just open their little mouths and eat. They each had French bread and yogurt. They followed P around like little ducklings. Very cute. They played a little in the morning, but were still just coming out of their shells. Van went to the suitcase to find her clothes. She likes to pick out her clothes and gets upset when she gets dirty.
Our flight to Hanoi was at 9:30, so we had to leave the hotel by 7:30. We went with Y to the airport in two taxis, since we had luggage and so many people. The girls were still following P and would not go with me to the airport, so Y and I rode in one taxi with the luggage, and P, T and the girls rode in the other. As with the bus, Van got sick in the taxi. Vy, however, did not. The first order of business when we got to the airport was to change Van into some clean clothes and wipe down P’s pants as much as we could. Using the Vietnamese documents we had to prove we were the parents of Vy and Van, we had no problem checking in at the airport. Since the plane was full when we wanted to travel, we had to fly business class. It was not much more, but very much worth the expense. We had to purchase a ticket for each of the girls, but they would not sit in them. They both wanted to sit on P’s lap, but the flight attendant said only one child could sit there. I sat next to P, and we had the flight attendant tell them that they had to sit on either my or P’s lap. Vy was quick to scramble onto P’s lap. Van stood there. When the flight attendant tried to pick her up, she cried and pulled back. I reach down and put her on my lap. She was not happy, but also did not cry for more than a couple of minutes. P and I each had air sickness bags open and ready for use.
The flight was great. Both girls fell asleep on our laps for almost the whole 2 hour flight. This was the first time I held my baby girl Van. It felt so good to finally hold her. The only time they woke up was when Van pointed at the overhead bin where her potty chair was and told us in no uncertain terms that she needed it. We quickly got up, took the potty chair and the girls to the toilet. Thank goodness Vietnam Airlines has big toilet facilities. We put the chair down and both girls went. Their Pull Ups were both dry. It was nice that P and I also got some rest since we had been up since 4:30.
When we got to Hanoi, we took a large shuttle van to the hotel. It is about an hour drive. The girls sat next to P. The driver was great, he would slow down whenever there was something interesting for T to photograph, like 10 piglets in little cages on the back of a scooter. T had a great time. The girls did well in the van and did not get sick. In public they are pretty shy and reserved. When we got to the room, it was a different story.
As soon as we got into the room, we started to pull out the toys to play and also pulled out the potty chairs we brought with us. The girls went potty and then got silly. We decided to start introducing their American names to them more frequently, so we started calling Sophie “Sophie Vy” and Lilly was “Lily Van.” They started chattering (N and Y told us they were saying a few Vietnamese words, but were generally just making sounds to make noise) and playing with the toys. Soon it was time for P to leave and go to the Vietnamese immigration office to apply for the girl’s passports. When he left, it was tough on the girls. It was also naptime, but the girls would not lay down with me, but they were happy to lay down with T and were soon fast asleep. P was only gone a couple of hours. We would be able to pick up the girls’ passports next Friday.
When the girls woke up from their naps, it was time for supper but before we would do that we would drop off our laundry across the street at a little laundry shop. Y met us in the lobby and showed us where the shop was and helped us with translation. As the shop lady was counting the laundry Van noticed that her pink love was in the wash. These are the loveys we sent to them when H made her last trip to VN. It was apparent that the nannies gave them the pink loveys because it was very important to them. Van kept pointing to the loveys and them to her head to the loveys and then head and speaking in Vietnamese. Yen translated for us and said she was asking for a hat. Vietnamese keep their head and skin covered from the sun at all times. Van had remembered when we did not have a hat when we got off the bus in Phan Thiet the nanny covered her head with the small pick blanket and that is what Van wanted to do. She wanted us to cover her head like nanny instructed. Show this kid once and she never forgets. We could not retrieve the pink loveys because it had gotten thrown up on during the travels so for the next 30 minutes while we walked the streets of the Old Quarter looking for a hat. Van would ask for a hat and point to her head. Finally we made it to a Vietnamese type mall that maybe we could buy two hats and two strollers. We found hats and as we were leaving we found two strollers. Vy would have nothing to do with the stroller she was still stuck to P like glue but Van would again be the first to ride in the stroller and enjoyed it.
Y went with us to supper at a Vietnamese buffet. On the drive to the restaurant I asked Y what the children at the orphanage called the nannies. I always thought it would be the Vietnamese word for nanny. I was wrong. The children all call the nannies Me (It is pronounced “May” and is the word for Mom). The more I thought about this them more I thought this must be confusing for the girls and all the older children in the orphanage. Going from 7 Me to one Me. Would they think I would disappear too? So we talked it over and decided Mama would be what they are to call me from now on. P would still be Ba (Vietnamese for Daddy).
The restaurant was a drive from where we were staying, but the food was great, and not expensive. When we pulled up at about 6:00, they asked us if we had reservations. We didn’t, but they still seated us right away. The girls were still glued to P. When we sat down, we pulled two chairs together for P, Vy and Van. Vy (Sophie) would not sit anywhere but on P’s lap. Van (Lily) sat next to P on the chair. P stayed with the girls and fed them. They ate fruit, bread, yogurt, and soup. Van ate well, but Vy needed some coaxing to eat. They both drank fruit juice and water. Since P was busy, I fixed him a plate. It was a great family restaurant.
After an uneventful trip back to the hotel, it was time to try to get the girls in the shower. They were still glued to P, so we decided to use that to our advantage. P put on his swimsuit and sat in the shower. He turned on the shower and soon the girls were in the shower laughing and playing in the water. The shower time was great fun. I was able to bathe them and P just had to play. At bedtime, each girl got on a side of P and went to sleep. It had been an eventful day.
Today was the big day. We were going to become parents again!
We got up about 6:00 to get ready for the day. It was hot outside. Immediately after getting out of the shower, you started to perspire so much, you felt like you needed another shower. The girls were up early and ate some slices of tangerine and drank some milk. About 7:30 P. and T. came to get us to go to breakfast. It was a really good buffet with a wide selection of western and Vietnamese food. The fruit was amazing. The girls’ ate well and seemed to be doing well. The nanny was reserved and appeared to be contemplating what was about to happen. She raised the girls since they were 1 day old. Since she had the twins, she did not have any other children to care for. She loves the girls as she was their mother and in a way she is the only mother they have known.
After breakfast, we loaded up in the bus for a short trip to the DMOJ (Ministry of Justice) office downtown. We arrived at 8:30 for our 9:00 appointment. We were told to sit on the benches in the lobby and wait. Although we could bring cameras and photograph inside the building, we were prohibited from photographing the exterior of the building. The building was like any government office building, people shuffling paper, people coming in to have appointments and being told to wait. T. and P. (the men) each wore slacks and short-sleeved shirts. The women had to wear long-sleeved shirts and pants to the ceremony.
About 8:50, we were invited up for the ceremony. The only people who could come were the family and L., who served as our interpreter. The room was a small office with a conference table. In the office was the head of the committee that approved our adoption and two other committee members. The head of the committee began to read the adoption decree and tell us of the importance of adopting these girls. She asked us to make sure the girls understood their heritage. She also asked us to raise them as good citizens and to bring them back to Vietnam to visit. After here speech, we started signing documents. Each of these documents had to be signed in blue ink, sealed with a red seal and was notarized. The last document we had to sign was the adoption ledger. It is a huge book, like an old banker’s ledger, with a line for each child adopted from the province. The ledger was all hand-written. We then took photos with the girls, the nanny and the committee members. We were officially parents again. Next, we went to the office of another government official. She asked us to raise the girls to become good citizens and asked us to ensure they understood their heritage. Then it came our turn to talk. They asked us to make a few comments to the committee and thank them for allowing us to adopt the girls. I let P. handle this. By 9:20 we were leaving the building and going back to the shopping center across the street to wait for all the certified, notarized documents we would need to take to the embassy to get the girls’ visas.
While we were there, the nanny fed the girls and we waited. When we boarded the bus, she came with us as far as the bus station. When we dropped her off the girls began to cry and get upset. Y., Ms. H, and Ms. N., were great at calming the girls down. Since N. was a frequent visitor to the orphanage, the girls climbed up next to her. After about 15 minutes (it seemed longer at the time), the girls began to settle down; they ate a little and fell asleep.
On the 24th we got up early to pick up the girls and the nanny at the orphanage to travel to Phan Thiet, which is the capital of the province of Binh Thuan. We were given permission to take the girls early to Phan Thiet so we would not have to get up at 4:00 a.m. to make it our 9:00 G & R ceremony. This was going to be a big day for the girls. The nanny told us that they were so healthy that they never had to leave the orphanage to go to the doctor. This was going to be their first time on a bus, the first time leaving the orphanage, the first time to go shopping, the first time to eat at a restaurant, and the first time to see the ocean or step on a beach.
We arrived at the orphanage at 9:30. We were again greeted by the children at the gate. Vy and Van were holding back a bit. They were with their nanny, who was tearful. The girl’s leaving was also hard on many of the other nannies and the older children that live at the orphanage. The nanny would accompany us to Phan Thiet. We arranged for two rooms when we got there. T. and P. were to be in one in one and I was to be in another one with the nanny and the girls.
It took about 2 hours to drive to Phan Thiet. When we arrived we stopped at the shopping center to pick up some familiar food items for the girls, water and other items. One thing (really two things) we did not get was potty chairs. The girls had not used western facilities and needed training chairs. The bus driver later went out shopping for us and got the chairs. After shopping, we went to the hotel. The hotel was located on the beach and was very nice. The only surprise we had was in the bathroom. Each bathroom was open to the outside. Although it was shielded from view by a brick fence, it was interesting to experience that. After lunch the girls went down for a nap. It was very hot outside, so everyone rested in their rooms until later in the day. About 4:00 T., L. and N. went down to the beach. When nap time was over, P., I, the nanny and the girls also went to the beach. They did not want to go near the water, but were content to sit and watch T. play in the water.
In the evening the plan was to have P. and I spend some time with the girls. We started with the nanny there. We started playing games and throwing a beach ball back and forth. They had a great time. During the game the nanny slipped out, leaving P. and I with the girls. They were fine until the noticed the nanny was gone. The both got very sad and began to cry. It breaks your heart, because they can’t find comfort from your touch. The push your hand away and continue to cry. P. and I sat near them and talked in soothing tones to them, and stroked each of the girls’ hair as they would let us. Pretty soon the uncontrollable crying was over. They were very tired and began to cuddle together while they were sitting and started rocking back and forth. Van rocked herself to sleep. Vy was determined and kept rocking and rocking.
After a couple of hours the nanny came back. They both woke up and changed into pajamas. They were still tired, but we got some smiles out of them before P. left. I and the nanny put the girls down to bed.
Day 4 at the orphanage
This morning will be our last time visiting the orphanage. Tomorrow we will pack our bags and travel to the orphanage to pick up the girls and their nanny and travel to a resort near Phan Teit. Our G&R will be Thursday morning at 9 am. Since it is a long drive to the city we will travel on Wednesday stay the night, have the G&R on Thursday and return to Saigon that same day. Friday, we will rise early and fly to Hanoi to start out paperwork. Many new adventures will be in store for the girls since they have never been out of the orphanage or traveled in a vehicle.
As we entered the orphanage the children came running to meet all of us. Vy and Van were next to their nanny as they have been for all our visits. Soon we got smiles and we headed in the entryway of the center. First we pulled out the airplane which is always a big hit and the people to go with it. Vy had some interest in the people but Van only wanted to listen to the song. Today we brought a long a beach ball for the girls to play with. They were quite interested in P blowing up this ball and how it expanded. It took them just a few minutes to warm up to the idea and then the fun began. At one point we had as many as 5 children in the room with only us so I asked T to get the staff to remove some of the kids in which they promptly did. Having to many children around can make the girls worry about losing their possessions and our attention. The only child that remained was X and she was so sweet and quiet. We handed her a color and a page and she was content coloring on her own. This was a big step for her because she has not wanted anything to do with us before now. She is shy like the girls.
The morning continued with more bubbles and beach ball play. Soon it was time for the girls to eat. They rushed off to the nanny but kept peeking through the doorway to make sure we were still there. We slowly made our way into the room as they finished their lunch and started a good game of peek a boo and beach ball throwing.
All around a very good day with the girls with more progress.
Playing with Ba at the orphanage. 
