Andrew will post photos when he wakes up from his (all 3 of them) daily siesta. It was a pretty restless night. Kaylee woke a few times crying, but she settled down quickly once I held her a bit. Her crib is by my side of the bed and I could reach my hand over and touch her. I tried to hold her hand, but she usually only let me rub her arm. Progress has been made since then however as later in the morning on the bus back to the hotel she was actually holding my fingers and playing with them.
Kaylee is pretty sedate overall. She'll whine if she wants comfort, but she barely opens her mouth. I think only once have I been able to see how many teeth she has. Looks like 4 on top and bottom front and at least one molar on the bottom. I am just dying to get a toothbrush to them, too. They look like they need a good tarter cleaning. She's not a big eater so far. Just 4 ounces of formula for breakfast and maybe 3 for lunch. I don't know if that's her norm or if it's just part of the adjustment.
Kaylee is a special needs child and has been diagnosed with imperforate anus and vaginal fistula. This is unrepaired and will be fixed soon once we get back home. She has constant smears of runny stool, however her skin looks fantastic. The orphanage must have been diligent with keeping her clean. She really hates diaper changes and will cry throughout being wiped. I know she doesn't like them cold, but maybe it's just really sensitive too. I've been in touch with a specialist in OH who we would like to do Kaylee's surgery. We have emailed him photos of her and he's very optimistic from what he can see on the picture. He has also given us instructions on how to care for her. The internet never ceases to amaze me at what we can do with it.
Sydney has been a wonderful big sister to Kaylee. She jumps right in and plays alongside her and hasn't shown jealousy at all. She is very helpful and wants to do everything for Kaylee including feeding her.
This morning we spent 2 hours signing things and paying the fees to make Kaylee officially ours. Kaylee was a trooper, never cried and just was quiet and watching the whole time. This afternoon we have plans to visit a pearl shop and then have supper out as a group. Tomorrow I believe is some touring. We leave Friday night for Guangzhou.
We've seen several families, mostly from the US, but also from Holland, Finland, and Germany who have been here adopting. Lots of kids age 3-5. I haven't seen any boys yet. Many of the girls have been in foster care because they come in with their hair done so pretty and in lovely clothes. All the kids seem to react to grief in different ways. Some somber, some screaming loudly. Some crying and trying to run away. They are too young to really understand and it's heartbreaking to watch. One family we saw today had 3 girls from China and this trip was for the middle girl. She was 5 and seemed to be doing well. All 3 girls were dressed alike and had lots of girly jewelry on. So cute. One little girl about 2 1/2 came running at Sydney in the lobby and started hitting her! Not sure what that was about, but the Dad just stood there and I had to grab the top of the girl's head to move her away from Sydney. Of course, Sydney looked at her and said "No hitting!", but the child couldn't understand that!
We're learning more and more about the 1 child policy in China. It's not so cut and dried anymore. Lots of exceptions depending on where you live, your ethnic background, even your income. It's also legal to use fertility drugs although not encouraged obviously! That way you may get twins or even more. Ususally, the girls we're adopting are second daughters in the family. Some families that have a girl first are allowed to try for a boy. If it's also a girl then they may abandon and try a third time.
Before I end, we did get some things back from the orphanage today. I had sent a care package to Kaylee when we were chosen for her and it all was returned--unused. The disposable camera did have about 5 photos taken, but the blanket,doll,
and photo album looked pristine. The orphanage did give us about 20 loose photos. About half were of Kalee in taken about once a month as she grew (which is fantastic to see as Sydney has nothing like that) and the other half were of various sites in the city. It will be a good thing for her to have as she gets older and wants to see where she was born.
Jennifer
