Sis ain't so bad

I think Will is finally beginning to like his little sister Ava. She has adored him since the day we brought them both home but her adoration has been returned with pops in the head with his stacking cups or slaps on her legs and arms. Today we saw a bit of a change. The attention he's given her today has been more caring and sweet. And most importantly, she seemed to enjoy it.

8,790 minutes to go

This time next week we'll be on the flight from Dallas to Austin (if you can't tell from my posts, we're really ready to come home). We haven't heard the date of our visa interview so hopefully we'll hear something tomorrow. I guess the earliest we could conceivably come home would be Wednesday night, but there would be a rush on plane tickets from everyone else in our group so I guess we'll just wait for Saturday.

Today we took the kids out swimming and it wasn't quite the raging success that we had hoped. They were both very nervous about being in the water, and I don't know that they could really tell the difference between a pool and a bath. We'll try it again tomorrow or the next day, but our initial impression is that Ava is going to be the swimmer of the family.




We'll probably go out shopping again tomorrow. We still haven't been able to see the Hamoi Hilton, so we'll probably go there first.

I can't believe that UT lost.

Under a week to go

This time next week we'll be almost to Hong Kong on our way home, and I don't think it can come soon enough.

Today we went on a short excursion outside the city with several of the other World Child families that are here in Vietnam. We went to a village called Bat Trang, which is also called Ceramic Villiage. Much like the streets in the old quarter being named after the product they sell, this village is named after the product that it makes (I don't know if there are other villages like this or not). In this case the only industry in the city of 6,000 is making ceramic vases, statues, bowls, plates, etc. They make them and paint them by hand. It's pretty amazing.



On the way back in we went by the Tran Quoc Pagoda, which was originally built in the 6th century and was the Buddhist center of Hanoi. We got several pictures of it, and saw a couple of monks walking around (they looked like the monks in Myanmarr / Burma that are protesting at the moment). It was pretty cool. The whole place was amazing.





We even saw a monk pull out a can of whoop ass on a bunch of guys fishing off the side of the grounds. We inconspicuously got a pic. Didn't want him turning that can in our direction.


The pic below is a shrine with an actual coffin sitting there. The man inside was a very important monk when he was alive. It was a bit weird to tell the truth but still fascinating.


I did realize that the cough / sore throat that Tami and I have been dealing with is directly related to where we are. I felt good for the first time in almost two weeks, and the moment that we reentered the old quarter, the throat started to hurt again.

It took a while to get the kids calmed down tonight since they missed their afternoon naps, but they're down now and we're going to bed. It makes me wonder if i'm ever going to stay up until 9:00 ever again.

We're starting to have trouble with the camera so most of the pictures we take end up too dark to see, but Tami will post any pictures she took today later tomorrow.

Dennis

Picture time

Playground & Playroom at the Somerset

The playroom is located on the 5th floor. We couldn't get in but took a pic through the window.


The playground is around the corner from the pool. Will & Daddy thought it looked like a pretty fun place.

A good day

Today turned into quite the good day. Will woke up at 5:30 this morning (which along with 1:30 am are his usual morning times) and decided that he wanted to take an early nap. I went back to bed and we slept until almost 9:00 this morning (Ava always sleeps at least 12 hours at night, usually 7 - 7, but she's so quiet you wouldn't necessarily know if she was up anyway). That's the latest we've slept in weeks.

We woke up, had breakfast, then finally left the building. We spent about 4 hours out shopping in the old quarter of Hanoi. I can't say where we went (some of the gifts might be for you), but we went all over. Took a taxi from the hotel and walked 90% of the way back (we hired another taxi for the other 10% - it was brutally hot and we were pooped).

The streets here in the old quarter are named for the items that are sold on that street. Way way back (~1100 years ago) groups of people (I want to say clan but that isn't the right word) built their shops outside the walls of the Citadel of the city of Hanoi. The groupings back then were by trade, and that grouping has held for more than 1,100 years. There is a silk street, toy street, art street, baby street, automotive street, etc. The names of the actual street can change each block (much like 2222, koenig, northland, 290 in Austin). it's pretty cool.

We stopped for a cold drink at a lakeside restaurant (orange ice for tami, peppermint ice for me -- quite tasty), and continued to walk around the city. It was wonderful to be out and about after being stuck inside for 10+ days.


Either this weekend or next week we're going to rent a car for a day and drive to all the museums here in Hanoi. Tomorrow we're going to the "Hanoi Hilton" where the American servicemen were held captive during the war. As it turns out, our hotel is built on 2/3 of the old prison. The remaining 1/3, which can be seen from our window, is now a museum about its role in the war. It's apparently highly propagandized, but it should be interesting.



Thanks for reading.
Will & Daddy

We're almost done

We got the kids medical checkups this morning, and they're cleared to come back with us to the US. Now all we do is wait for our embassy to call us in for the second visa interview. I keep hoping that it will happen soon (like today), but the reality is that we won't leave until next Saturday. We just really really really want to go home.

We think that the kids are starting to go through the greiving process for leaving the orphanage. On Tuesday and so far today, Will has been the fussiest thing known to man. If he's not in your arms, he's crying. Yesterday it was his sister doing the same thing. Tami had read something before about babies going through a grieving process, and we think this might be it.

For anyone planning to stay at the Smmerset Grand, bring plenty of electrical adapters if you hope to plug in more than one thing at a time. The Melia was set up to accept any type of plug, so most electronics could plug right into the wall. Not so at the Sommerset. The plugs here look alot like washer or dryer plugs in the States, and we only brought one adapter, so we can either use the computer, charge the camera, charge the Ipod, or charge the other camera. Additional adapters would be nice.

I think we are going to go out shopping a little this afternoon. We gave up waiting to feel better before heading out -- it just isn't going to happen.

Dennis

We're halfway done

We've been here 10 days and we come home in 10 days. It's also Will's 6-month birthday (happy birthday Will!).

We got the kids passports this morning, and tomorrow we take them to the clinic for their official adoption medical checkup. After that all we're waiting on is the US to finish up their paperwork and send us home.

We're both feeling much better (still coughing, still sore throats), but better than we have been in a long time. Tomorrow we're going to start shopping for all the gifts we need to buy for everyone (whether we feel up to it or not). We're both tired of being stuck in this apartment.

That's about it for today.

Dennis

Another day down

Big day, got a lot done.

Almost went back to the clinic today (for me this time), decided not to at the last minute -- I'm tired of doctors and just decided to tough it out.

We watched a "traditional Chinese dragon dance" (whatever it's called) out in the tennis court today. It was/is in honor of the Moon Festival which takes place either tonight or tomorrow night. I'm sure Google would have more info about what I'm talking about.

We also had the first visit with the consulate today. I guess this is a really big step, but it really wasn't that difficult. They asked several questions about the kids then told us what was going to happen next. (For anyone who's coming to Vietnam to adopt 2 kids, if you didn't pay the 2 kid fee with the I-600 when you filled it out in the states, you're going to have to pay the 2nd kid fee when you're here ($700)). We should be free to leave here in 7-10 days, which would be somewhere around October 4th, which is when we were planning on leaving anyway. It could go faster, but probably won't.

We should hear back from the consulate either Friday or Monday, when we would schedule our next meeting with them.

Tonight 4 of the 5 families went out to dinner at a French/Vietnamese restaurant (supposed to be one of the best in the city?) called the Green Tangerine. It was quite good food, but I bet we looked funny to the locals who were eating there: 18 Americans, 9 adults and 9 children (7 babies, 2 under 12). It was fun, and nice to be around other people going through the same thing that we are.

We're going to get the kids passports in the morning, and I think we're all going to go out shoping after. The kids Adoption Medical exam will either be tomorrow afternoon or Thursday morning.

Lastly, the remnants of a Typhoon are on their way to Vietnam. I think it's been downgraded to a tropical storm or tropical depression, but its supposed to rain here until next week sometime. The breeze today has been fantastic due to the storm.

I think that's everything. We might have some pics / vids of today's events posted tomorrow.

Dennis

Another day in 'Nam

It took the AC guy about 3 hours to fix the AC last night, and he finally left about 9:00 or so. Tami and I were sound asleep at 9:01. 4 solid hours of sleep until Will's 1:00 wakeup, then 4 more hours until 6 am. We woke up feeling pretty good...unfortunately not everyone got the memo.

At about 8:00 this morning we carried on with our usual morning routine. I went down to the coffee shop in the lobby and got us some latte's while Tami changed/fed the kids. About 20 minutes after I got back Ava decided that it was her day to be sick, and started throwing up something besides the usual spit-up that she does. She also had a very raspy sounding cough, so it was back to the clinic for us (we're going to have to go back at least 2 more times before we leave, so by then we should all be on a first name basis).

Ava has the beginnings of an ear infection (which we had seen no symptoms of), so she's now on antibiotics for that. Both kids are now off the cough syrup that they got earlier in the week.

We did make an effort to get out of the room for fun -- we went and had lunch down in the restaurant rather than order it as roomservice, which is what we're going to do for dinner.

Tomorrow we have the 1st interview with the embassy, and we should get the kids' passports on Wednesday. In theory we could get the call for the 2nd interview anytime after the first, and we would be able to come home the next day (although we will end up staying until the 6th anyway if we can't get a bassinet on an earlier flight).

One rumor that we did hear this morning is that in the very near future the US Embassy is going to change the immigration process here in Vietnam. Instead of there being two required interviews there will be only one, which should cut the process down by a week or so. Unfortunately that process won't be in place for us.

Maybe we'll have some pictures tomorrow.

Dennis

What a day (and it ain't over yet)

Between the two of us Tami and I probably got about 5 hours of sleep last night. Will and Ava weren't that bad (Ava continues to sleep through the night, and will likes to wake up for an hour at 1:00 am), but Tami and I were horrible. Between the coughing, sneezing, nose blowing, coughing, and more coughing, we ended up staying up most of the night.

At about 6 this morning Tami finally decided she had had enough and we went down to the clinic. Turns out that Tami has a fever (probably bronchitis) and I'm having real bad allergy problems. Ava still has crap in her lungs, and Will seems to be the healthiest of the bunch.

Tami got 4 perscriptions and I got 2, and we came back and have been trying to get some sleep during the day today but now neither Will nor Ava are cooperating.

We can still lay around the apartment tomorrow, but on Tuesday we have to go to the 1st visa interview whether we're feeling better or not. Here's to hoping we're feeling better.

Around 5:00 today we lost power in the apartment. It took them about an hour to turn everything back on, but the AC in the bedroom is now broken (the AC's here are kind of like window units, but they're not in windows). It's going to take them another 3 hours to fix that unit.

We can't wait to go home.

Dennis

Everyone is sick

We're all sick. Will and Ava are on drugs from the clinic and getting better. Tami still hasn't been to the clinic and now I'm getting sick and don't feel like going either. The funny thing is that we have every drug under the sun for the kids, but don't anything for us. Even the only thermometer we have is rectal, and that's not going anywhere near me.

Dennis

Somerset Grand

We moved to our suite at the Somerset Grand on Thursday. This place is fantastic and as close to home as you can get. We have two bedroom, two baths, living room, dining room, kitchen, and small outdoor patio. The outside walls in the living room and both bedrooms are wall-to-wall windows.

Our living and dining rooms


Our kitchen


Our second bedroom


Bedroom with Dennis, Will, and Ava


Love,
Tami

Ho Hoan Kiem

When we first got here (aka pre-babies) Dennis and I walked around Hoan Kiem Lake almost every morning. We were never early enough to catch the Tai Chi-ers but there was always a lot of people sitting on the benches, gathering in groups talking, and just generally hanging out.

Ho Hoan Kiem (Lake of the Restored Swords) took its name from a legend about King Le Loi. The King, while boating on the lake, was given a sword by a giant tortoise, which helped him repel Chinese invaders. After the battles, the sword was restored to the tortoise in the lake.

There is a temple called Den Ngoc Son (Jade Mound Temple) on the north side of the lake. A beautiful red bridge crosses from the lake shore to the island where the temple is located. We haven't been inside yet but plan to go back and take the kids. We bought Ava a Vietnamese Barbie doll in a cute little shop right outside.



In the middle of Ho Hoan Kiem is Thap Rua (Tortoise Tower). I need to go back and get a pic of it at night when it's lit up and absolutely beautiful.



Kid News:

We tried our first outing today with Will & Ava. We missed the shuttle to the C-Mart (a Walmart-like grocery store) so we decided to go get a bite to eat. (We can't really do much yet with the kids still under dr. ordered "house arrest.") We barely got out of the elevator when Ava spewed all over me. The milk was running down my chest and into my shorts when she spewed again. It looked like one of those double fountains people have in their backyards -- a stream from her nose and one from her mouth. Needless to say, we went back upstairs and ate in. We haven't had the guts to attempt it again. New rule: Always bring a dry clean shirt on any outings.

More Ava news: She now lets us know when her nappy is dirty. The sweetie used to sit complacently until we checked her. I like that she feels comfortable enough to tell us she needs something and also that she knows something will be done about it.

I just keep wondering what I did in my life to deserve these two. Dennis and I are so blessed.

Love,
Tami

1st Visa interview

The date of the 1st Visa interview has been set for next Tuesday afternoon. My understanding is that the 2nd interview can take place at any time after the 1st, usually about a week (but it can be earlier). We can leave the country one day after the 2nd interview (assuming all goes well),

Next Wednesday we pick up the kids' passports.

First week

Our first week in country is almost over, and it's been quite a week. After being out of the hotel for hours at a time at the beginning of the week, we've spent the last 3 days cocooning in our hotel room.

A recap of events and key learnings:

1) getting them on a schedule is going to be difficult. Since Tuesday, they've gotten farther and farther apart. Whenever one is awake the other is asleep, which then leads to two different wake-up times during the night. The longest sleep that we've had since Tuesday is about 4 hours.

2) They definately have different personalities.

Will-- We first noticed at the G&R ceremony, but William is used to a lot of attention. The caregivers kept coming around and taking him back from us while we were waiting to leave. He cries a lot when he doesn't get his way, and likes to be held a lot. Since Tuesday he's gotten better about being by himself (not held all the time), but he's still really vocal when he isn't happy. We're pretty sure that he's about as normal of a baby that there is.



He's now pretty good about rolling around, and he sat up for the first time today.

Ava-- She's quiet. Really quiet. She pretty much sleeps the entire time. If she's awake she's quietly laying around waiting for someone to notice her. We think that this is the self-pacifying that we've heard about that kids from orphanages do. We're making an extra point to pick her up every time we hear a peep out of her -- we really want her to understand that we're going to be here for her and she doesn't need to hold back. She's super sweet and the sounds that she does make when she's happy will melt your heart.





She's learned how to roll over, but isn't really able to roll back yet. She really likes to nap on her side.

3) the kids still have a little cough. If they didn't spit the cough syrup out when we gave it to them, they'd probably be better by now. The dr told us to leave them indoors for 5 days and we're on day 3 of that. I'm starting to get some cabin fever, but maybe we can get out this weekend.

4) Tami is still sick and getting worse and refuses to go to the clinic. I'm going to have to make her go -- she's about to lose her voice.

5) The italian food in Vientam is pretty good. We're having Mexican tonight.

6) It feels weird to walk around with 1.6 million Dong (the equvialent of about $100 USD). It's a huge wad of cash, even if it's mostly 100,000 Dong bills.

7) It's not that hot here if you're from Texas.

8) Japanese tv is very strange, but Sumo wrestling rocks.

9) The Melia hotel executive lounge has the best coffee in the world.

Some pics starting with the trip to Thai Nguyen in reverse chronological order because i'm too tired to put them in the right order. The picture of the building is the orphanage, but not the building where the babies live. The Vietnamese woman holding Will is one of his caregivers (that kept taking him back every chance she got). The picture of Tami and I signing documents was the actual G&R ceremony. That's the point they became ours.

Traffic

Now that we have video ability, we're going to start posting several of the videos that we've made so far. The first is of the traffic outside our hotel. This is what every intersection in the city is like (maybe not quite as bad, but close).



At about 10 seconds you can see a couple of people crossing the street. Picture this with two kids.

Some intersections have traffic signals, but they are completely ignored by everyone. There are 5 million people in this city, and 2 million motorbikes and 200,000 cars. Each month there are more than 1,000 accidents, and in August almost 1,000 people were killed in those accidents, with another 1,000 injured. September is "National Safety Month" where the rules are being reinforced, but apparently the numbers are worse so far this month than last.

More vids to come (of things more interesting than traffic).

Dennis

Morning with the Terror

This morning around 7, I looked over at Will in his crib and he was scooting around on his tummy and grinning at me. I expected a wail of some kind but all I got was the gummy grin. So he and I decided to go ahead and get up and let Dennis and Ava sleep. I put him down on the blanket in the living room and he immediately launched himself into his toys. --Hold on a second. He just spit up on the floor and now he's playing in it. - Okay, I'm back.-- While I made some coffee, he quietly played by himself without me having to be right with him or hold him. And now Ava & Dennis are up and we haven't had a single temper tantrum! Either I'm getting the hang of this or the Terror of Thai Nguyen is taking pity on me.

I think Dennis mentioned that I managed to get sick a few days after we got here. The pollution is awful and I guess I'm probably just going to have some form of a chest cold the whole time we're here. It's very frustrating because I'd like to be out doing some shopping. Nicole -- I took notes from your blog re the places to get the teddy bears with the conical hats and the handmade clothes. I want to SHOP! But the dr. said to keep the kids in for the next 3-5 days so next week, "Silk Street, here I come."

Thank you so much to everyone who has commented or emailed. Those of you who have been through this before know exactly how much it means when you're here. A connection to home. I'm going to start going back through the blog and adding my comments and details about each day. I want to start that tonight.

Also, to those of you who haven't traveled yet -- Stay at the Somerset! It's awesome! More later.

Love, Tami

Another milestone

Ava decided that today was the day that she was going to learn to roll-over. The first time she did it, she really freaked herself out. Now she's done it 4 times and it's pretty much second nature.

We have a lot of room In our new apartment so we've put the kids on the carpet. Will has shown himself to be quite mobile when he wants to -- he's been scooting all over the place (and almost pulled the laptop off the table when we turned our back).

A day full of firsts. We should have some more pictures up in the next day or so (since they're so darn cute), and hopefully we'll get some movies up soon as well.

Dennis

They aren't being nice anymore

Since Tuesday we've changed about 2 dozen diapers. We were both a little intimidated at first, but we got the hang of it pretty quick. We knew going into it that the babies wouldn't poop for several (up to 5) days from the time we got them, so we were looking forward to the grace period to learn how to handle everything.

I guess they've decided that they like us and they're going to keep us, because they certainly didn't wait 5 days to share the joys of parenthood.

In the past 3 hours we have changed 3 dirty (like really dirty) diapers. We didn't know that smells and colors like those were even possible.

Poop pics to follow.


















just kidding about the pics.

Dennis

Day 1 is almost over

This morning all the men went to Vietnamese immigration to apply for passports for the little ones. It'll take a week to get them back, then we start the US immigration process.

We took the kids to the clinic when I got done for a check-up (we were nervous), got tons of medicine for their cough, then spent the rest of the day (since around noon) trying to get Will to take a nap. It didn't work.

Tomorrow we're going to move to a different hotel (with two bedrooms) which will help with the space crunch that we're experiencing at the moment (two adults, two babies, two cribs, 8 suitcases in a smallish standard sized hotel room). I'm also going to make Tami go to the Dr -- she's got the same cough as the kids, and she's miserable.

I'll post more if I get some time, and at some point Tami will get on and post much more detail about what's going on.

Dennis

The Results of a Long But Amazing Day...

From the beginning of my life
I have been looking for your face
but today I have seen it
----------------Rumi