Now Playing: On our way home
I never thought this could happen, but I am starting to wonder if I have done the right thing. Hopefully after I get home and get a routine started things will straighten themselves out and Kayleigh will be a little more independant and trustworthy. Throughout this trip she has managed to break a tv, flush a comb down the toilet and also money. As I said before, she is very much interested in buttons and switches. Right now I feel as if I have to put locks on the bathroom doors, and the computer room.

Yesterday we visited the Beijing zoo. Kayleigh seemed more interested in the people around rather than the animals. She did enjoy the birds, because she could get rather close to them. When our guide asked her what animals she saw she could not tell her. I know this all very new to her and overwelming. As time goes on she will make adjustments - I am very excited to see if she will eat better when there are not so many people around for her to watch. Following the zoo, Kayleigh and I came back to the room and she ate lunch - noodles - and then she took a nap - not much to her liking but she is exhausted.

This afternoon, we head for the airport for our 13 hour plane ride. She did great on the trip from Guanghzou to Beijing - she still does not like to be strapped in. This will have to change when it comes time for the car seat. She has yet to be in her seat during take-offs and landings. She has been either on my lap or my sisters.

It has been an incredibly long two weeks. I feel like we have been in China for a year. We have actually gotten tired of the food and found Pizza Hut yesterday for lunch. I do not know how people want to come back and do this for a second, third, or even fourth time - it is way too much for me to deal with. I have had my fits of exhaustion and tears.

Kayleigh is still too attached to my sister, but I think that will change as she leaves the airport Sunday afternoon, and Kayleigh and I go with my other sister.

Well, I want to thank all of you who emailed me and boosted my spirits and I was really struggling and reading email brought a little bit of Indiana to China - I usually get very emotional as I read those emails - so that has been a great release.

This is it until I am back home again in Indiana.

Now Playing: Southern China
Well, we are getting close to the time to come home. We finished up in Guanghzou a day early, and we tried hard to get an earlier flight, but everthing was booked.

We spent yesterday doing medical exam, pictures for the American Visa, and finally taking the oath. All is complete, except for getting the Visa back for Kayleigh.

Kayleigh has developed a little bit of an attitude. I have nicknamed her my little attitude. No one can understand how tired she must be - her little brain is constantly on the go - trying to take in all the new things.

The three hour + plane ride to Southern China was an experience - she did not want to wear the seatbelt. It is really going to be a struggle from O'hare to my other sister's house with the carseat. Hopefully we can find enough things to distract her from the seatbelt. She knows how to scream loudly and make a scene.

The thirteen hour flight home should be very interesting. We are trying hard to get her to go to bed between 6 and 7 so that she might sleep most of the flight home.

We leave this afternoon for Beijing where tomorrow we will be going to the zoo and to the temple of heaven. All of us are tired and wanting to come home. It has been a very long and frustrating couple of weeks. To top everything off, it is very hot and humid in southern China. All I have to do is walk outside and I start sweating.

I have added a couple of pictures at the bottom - one is a little out of focus. I have been having some issues with my camera. I will try for one more entry following the zoo, and then we will be home and starting our own routine, just the two of us. Hopefully I can get the pinching, hitting and kicking under control before school starts in
August. I am very hopeful that this is her way of dealing with the great stress she must be feeling.

Enjoy the pictures of little miss attitude. The bathtub has been a great sanity saver.



     
kayleigh little attitude

Now Playing: Getting closer to home
It is now Tuesday morning, and we have kind of a down day today. It is going to be a struggle to keep Miao very busy. She is very stubborn and when she does not get her way it is not a pretty sight. She can also be very aggressive. I don't know how many times I have been pinched and hit over the last few days, but I do have some marks to prove that it has occurred.

Yesterday we went to the orphanage and it was an extremely difficult day for all of us. Miao got to see some of her friends and her favorit Nanny. She really did not want to leave but she also did not want to stay. It was a very difficult thing for her to understand. When we got back to the hotel, I took her kicking and screaming to the hotel room and after 30 minutes got here to go to sleep, and she pretty much slept through the night.

The orphanage was not a too bad a place, but I am glad she is no longer there. I do understand her aggressiveness, since it was mostly boys in her group, and these boys for the most part had some mental problems as well. Most all the kids in the orphanage are special needs kids, but not too many severly. Linda told me that yesterday was probably one of the hardest days I would face as a mother - there will be more I am sure.

She is a very good girl when it is just my sister and I. When more people get in the picture she starts acting out and making a scene.

Today we are planning on taking Miao to the city park again - where she will be able to ride the Merry-Go-Round again and do whatever she wants to. It will be her day. We are also going to try and take her swimming for the first time. This may be a trick. She loves the bath tub, and screams when she has to get out. This morning it was 3:30 in the morning when she woke and took a bath.

Tomorrow we will be leaving for the south of China - Guangzhou. I hope moving hotel rooms will be helpful with the screaming on the elevator. One more night here two in south china, and then two more in Beijing and we are on our way home. The plane rides I am sure are going to be very interesting - since Miao does not like to be strapped in - I also think the car ride home from the airport could be very loud - bring your earplugs Lorene and Bill.

Lorene - Miao is eating noodles, noodles, and more noodles. Hopefully when we get home we can get her interested in something different.

Check out the pictures below. They are in the hotel room trying to keep an active girl involved in something besides crying.

More to you all later - not tomorrow, but Thursday if there is time - I know it will be a very busy day.


       
pictures of Kayleigh 2 mode="link">

Now Playing: Kayleigh (Miao) is all mine
It is now the morning of April 22. It has been a very busy couple of days. Very tiring and emotional, but not having the ability to show that emotion is very hard. Kayleigh has made a very good transition. Today when I came to the business center and left her with Linda for the first time - she began to cry. It made feel good.

The last two days in a nut shell.

We arrived in Shenyang and proceeded to the hotel and checked in, got all the gifts together and made a special bag for Miao. From there we proceeded to the Central Affairs office and the kids were already there. Miao walked straight to my bag and was digging in before I knew it - my coordinator told me that she recognized me from the photo. It was very difficult because she if very fluent in Chinese - not too much English. She now knows NO and UtOh. At this time we proceeded to sign the guardianship papers - it is a 24 hour guardianship procedure here. Once that was completed we all went back to the hotel to do more paperwork for the orphanage - giving up the 3000 dollars plus much more. When the director and Nanny left Miao started to cry - all I could do was pick her up and console her - it was difficult.

We survived the night - I got her to go to sleep in about 30 minutes and she slept in bed with me and slept through the night. The most important Chinese words I know translate to Pea Pea, and we go a lot.

The next morning we went to breakfast in the hotel. Miao is a very picky eater - she had apple juice and tangerine slices. I wish I would have known the words for Poo at this time. She began talking to me and pulling her pants down - we did make it to the bathroom - what an experience - not everyone can say their child hs done this.

We went to the Central Affairs office and met the director and Nanny again. Neither of the kids ran up to her which was a very good thing. Miao slept in her clothes and shoes so when the director checked to make sure she had enough layers on we were fine. Signed a bunch of papers, played with Miao in the hallway and then it was on to the police station for a passport picture. Took a little bit of time - but the kids were very well behaved. Finally to the Notary - they gave us a conference room to keep the kids in - signed more papers and then it was back to the hotel.

My sister went for lunch and Miao and I had to quickly get out of the van and go to the bathroom. As we were walking out the director and her Nanny came in the Nanny said goodbye and Miao responded with bye bye and wave of the hand. Up to the room to play - she loves buttons, so the tv is the best toy we could ever have.

She had an excellent lunch of soup and rice and then it was time for a nap - a lot more difficult this time. I finally sat in a chair and held her in my arms until she finally fell asleep. About 21/2 hours of a nap and I napped right along with her.

We woke up and it was snack time - the coordinator helped Linda pick out the snacks, and they were perfect. Miao loved the puff french fries. She then had ramen noodles like for her dinner.

I got her to undress before she took her nap and man you could not believe the number of layers. Three pairs of pants and long sleeve t-shirt and a heavy sweater. It is chilly here, but not that cold. Once I got her dressed in some new clothes, all of which are too big - she refused to wear a shirt all afternoon. This morning it was very difficult to get a shirt on her.

Gave her her first bath last night as well - what an experience that she just loved until she had to get out and was very cold. Put pjs on and off we were to try and go to bed. Took a little longer than I expected - a couple of interruptions and then finally off to sleep until 6:00 this morning.

We all got dressed and went to breakfast - again not much for her to eat, but I think that will change when we get home. Linda and I both said this morning that we are ready to come home, but the red tape takes some time.

Well, hopefully that has given you an update and maybe next time I can get some pictures with the camera and down load them - not sure if this computer has a usb port. Just asked and it does.

So got to go and spend some time with Miao. To all of you who emailed me at swansolo@surf-ici.com thank you it means the world to me. More later.

Now Playing: One Incredible Busy Day
It is now Tuesday morning and the countdown begins until Kayleigh is in my arms. 3:00 pm tomorrow afternoon.

Monday was very busy by 4:00pm we all were so very exhausted that we could not even finish everything that our agency had planned for us to do.

We started the day in Tieneman Square - where they have a countdown clock until the Summer Olympics - below is a picture of the four of us in front of the clock. They evacuated the square while we were there for some special event - we still do not exactly know what that event was. From there
we visited Forbidden City and spent the entire morning learning about the history of China's emperors and much more. From there we went to a tourist Chinese restaurant - and of course all of us were disappointed with the food - to typical American. Then we went to Summer Palace where the Emperor and his clan spent the Summer months. Inside this area is a huge Lake surrounded by pagodas and much more. At this point we were so exhausted that we had to cut the visit short so we could get some rest before the acrobat show.

At this point Kelly is very sick with a cold and having lost her voice that she decides to stay back and enjoy the evening in her room.

The acrobat show was very good. Unfortunately I did not take my camera and have no pictures from the event. I am not sure I would have been able to get the flash to work anyways. The three of us who attended the show really struggled to stay awake and could not wait to get back to the room to go to bed.

Today we are heading to the Great Wall and Ming's Tomb. We are very tired and really want to see the shopping mall and more of some of the typical day to day stuff.

Our hotel has a great location with a supermarket within walking distance to purchase water - since we can not drink the water here.

I am hopeful that the day will go fast today and we will be on our way early tomorrow morning to get Kayleigh - and the real adventure begins. It still is very hard to believe that I will have a daughter tomorrow - it still seems like a dream.

Enjoy the pictures below.

               
Busy Day seeing everything

Now Playing: What's up today
Just wanted to let everyone know that Linda and I arrived safely. The plane trip was very uneventful, but very long. The agency has planned a very busy day for us, so I am sure we will be very tired.

There has been a very exciting change in our plans. We will be picking up Kayleigh on Wednesday afternoon (of course that will be Wednesday morning for you) instead of Thursday. Linda and I both are very excited to meet Kayleigh and make her a part of the Swanson family. We will then do all of the paperwork on Thursday for the adoption.

When Kathy met us at the airport the first thing she said was that my daughter is very excited. We also found out that since they received the information about both Dylan and Kayleigh being adopted the kids have had their schedules combined and have been spending lots of time together.

Linda and I met Brian and Kelly (from Alaska) and they are the couple that is adopting Dylan. We actually stayed up until 10 last night just talking. We will be doing all of our sight seeing together today and until they leave on the 30th of April.

Lorene, thanks for the eye mask for the plane trip. It worked so well, that during our flight a women had a heart attack and was lying on the floor close to my seat - and I did not even realize it. I guess that I slept more than I thought.

It is really hard to believe that we are in China. Our hotel room is very westernized and the only way you know you are in China is by looking out the window. Breakfast was very interesting. Linda finally found the omelet bar.

Mom, everything here is fine and we will be buying Kayleigh some snacks tomorrow afternoon. I will give you a hint as to what types of things they are, so I can have them in the house when we get home.

I will put another post in this afternoon, if I have time with pictures from the events of the day. It is very easy to come in to the business center and hop on the computer. It is about 4 dollars for 30 minutes.

Well, I will add more later

Now Playing: Night before Travel
It is the night before I travel to China to pick up Kayleigh. I am traveling with my sister who we will pick up in the morning on the way to the airport. Tonight, I am spending the evening with my other sister and brother-in-law.

It really does not seem that this can be real. It is really hard to believe that this whole process started back in October and is finally coming to an end - or maybe it is really a beginning. I am really trying hard to stay awake late into the evening to try and adjust a little bit to the change in time - however, I don't know how much longer I can last and it is only 9:30.

It was a really busy day trying to make sure everything was packed and everything was done around the house for the next two weeks. The next time that I step foot in my house again, I will have my new daughter and a new life will be starting. As of tomorrow, the next time I am in the USA I will have my new daughter and the best part of my life is yet to come.

Looking forward to the next entry, hopefully with pictures from our first day of travel. This will probably be the last entry until Monday afternoon.

Now Playing: Where is Lois ????
This is what I will be doing while in China - not just picking up my daughter.

April 17 - Arrive Beijing
April 18 - Seeing Forbiden City, Tian Anmen Square and Summer palace. That evening watching Acrobatics show.
April 19 - Seeing the Great Wall and Ming Tombs
April 20 - Travel to Shenyang
April 21 - Pick up Kayleigh
April 22 - Paper work
April 23 - Shenyang
April 24 - Visiting a local park
April 25 - Visit Kayleigh's orphanage
April 26 - Paper work and Shenyang
April 27 - Travel to Guangzhou
April 28 - Paper work and shopping
April 29 - Take oath - travle to Beijing
April 30 - Seeing LaMa Temple and Beijing Zoo
May 1 - Leave for Chicago
May 3 - Come home to Indy

Historical Information
Now Playing: The Adoption Story Begins
Back early in October I had decided to go ahead with the adoption process. I contacted an adoption agency and found out what to do next.

I got on-line and searched different agencies waiting child lists until I found Fu Miao. I contacted the agency and the paper chasing began.
.

By November I had my preliminary approval to adopt Fu Miao and had decided to call her Kayleigh Fu Miao Swanson. The paper chase continues beyond this point.

Finally in December, I had the last piece of the puzzle put togheter. The INS form came, and I immediately sent to my agency. They then had all of the documents authenticated and sent to China.

My complete dossier reached the CCAA on January 26 and now the waiting game started.

Finally as time was getting long I got an email on March 23rd saying my Travel Approval would be coming soon. Then on March 29th, my Travel Approval was sitting on my agencies desk. I got an email on March 30th giving me the consulate appointment date and time and realized that in about 2 weeks I would be heading to China to pick up my daughter.

Now all of the packing and traveling plans had to be taken care of and time was not on my side. Having faith and understanding, I knew it would all work out and everything would be completed on time.

Today April 2, 2005, I am just looking forward to traveling to China. All the other stuff will fall in place just as it should. Until my next entry