Tuesday, November 28, 2006
IT'S OFFICIAL!

We now have the official adoption certificate that says she is ours! We started our day with all five families eating breakfast together and sharing their experiences of the first night with their angels! Most slept well and are working towards creating “the bond” but one couple was up and down a few times. Miss Kristen slept through the night and was awesome! We went from the hotel for a 20 minute bus ride back to the “Jiangsu Registration Service Centre for Foreign-related Marriage and Foreign-related Adoption” office. It was in front of a fairly “no nonsense” officer that Suzanne & I had to answer several questions about ourselves, health, income and state that we would in-fact care for Kristen XinYue and not ever forsake her. (we passed - just in case you were wondering) We signed some documents, imprinted our thumb prints, paid some fees and WA-LA… It’s Done! WOW!! We even have a have some paperwork to prove it! The previous 24 hours was a trial period and we could have given her back had we chosen to…I DON’T THINK SO!!!

Probably the hardest part was that a couple of the children’s primary care givers were there and seeing them re-opened the whole “separation thing” that the kids had worked past since yesterday. Seems like a messed up way to do it, but that is what they do.

We went from there to a shopping center to get some necessities and food. It was a VERY UPSCALE store, so not many people bought too much. Kristen tried out the “BabyBjorn” carrier (shown in photo 3). As you might be able to surmise, Daddy was rejected as carrier and baby had to be close to her mama. It is probably a good thing, she would be more likely to catch my cold. (a bit hard on the mama’s back – but as you can see, she is working through it!)

rt Back to the hotel and free time the rest of the day. I felt worn out so while Suz & Kristen played and laughed together, it was great! We did get out fetching our laundry from across the street and stopping by the market for some more bananas and 15 bottles of water. (Lots of Fluids… That’s what the doctors say!) We ordered room service and I chose for Suzanne & Kristen what I thought to be a perfect dish – Pork ribs in herbal soup with steamed rice! Hey – something was SERIOUSLY lost in translation because it looked nothing like any rib meet I had ever seen! I don’t think it was dog, but it looked like and had the texture of the “beef stomach” that Steve Eberhard had me taste in Honduras. (we pretty much passed on the meet portion of the meal) I shared the “non-contaminated” portion of my always popular Chinese dish – Spaghetti Bolognaise. That didn’t go so well either with Miss Kristen, so she finally got her fill with Congee and Rice cereal. Have we mentioned that the girl can EAT?!

After a bath and quiet time, both Mama and Baby are down for the night – and I will follow soon.

Our whole trip has gone so smoothly - thank you so much for the prayers and comments on the guest book! We look forward every morning to read what you have said, just like you wait for our update! And if you think that you get teary-eyed reading this – we just weep with joy at all the love that you have shared with us along the Journey!

I am planning on visiting her orphanage and delivering some gifts while meeting people and seeing Kristen’s home for the past 16 months.

We Love You and will have an update again tomorrow.

Monte, Suzanne and Miss Kristen