Guides in Chinese Adoption
The CCAI Adoption Reunion is coming up in June, and it got me thinking about our guides for our two adoption trips. Three of them will be at the reunion. They aren't going to remember us because they have helped over 11,000 children meet their forever families. But I'm so excited to see them again. This is a biased opinion because I haven't used any other agency but CCAI has the best guides in the adoption process. They shepherd worried parents through every step; they hand feed babies; they change diapers; they carry bags; they argue with the Chinese equivalent of TSA. In a word, they are AWESOME. And I mean that in the true definition of the word.
Our first trip started in Hong Kong. We had Joann and Matthew. Joann picked us up from the airport with several other families, handed out water bottles, loaded us onto a bus, counted heads, made sure our bags were stowed on the bus, counted heads again, double checked water and we were off. She checked us all into our hotel rooms. All we had to do was sit in the lobby and wait for our keys. She was also there to take us back to the airport 2 days later and wish us well on our journey to our babies. Matthew was our tour guide in Hong Kong. We were all nervous parents on our first adoption trip and he told a few jokes, gave us some local history, fed us the most fabulous dumplings, and delivered us right back to our hotel.
Our next stop was Nanchang in Jiangxi Province. Our guides were Evelyn and Karen. Evelyn greeted us as we were coming through customs. She had one foot into the customs area not giving an inch to the security person trying to shove her back over. She just grabbed each of us, literally, and pushed us through into the waiting area of the airport counting heads as she did it. Once loaded onto the bus, she got out the microphone and thus began our daily habit: on the bus with the beautiful Evelyn giving us history and information and as we rode along. She stood at the front of that bus facing backwards into the bus chatting away, while the driver navigated the scariest traffic I have ever seen. Two lane road. Trucks coming at us taking up both lanes. Felt like a dangerous game of chicken. Rickshaws on the shoulder in both directions. Overloaded bicycles battling the rickshaws. Pedestrians. Animals. One truck moved in front of the other with barely an inch to give. It was like that the whole way into the city.
Evelyn gave us all a rundown on what our babies had experienced in their short lives. She prepared us for babies who might be catatonic, babies who might scream for days, babies who might only want one parent, babies who were happy but weren't really. In a word, she terrified us. But it was all for the good. Being a parent is a terrifying experience. Then she handed us our babies one by one. Evelyn delivered my first baby into my world. Her words after she called our daughter's Chinese name were "Oooo, chubby baby." And just like that, I was a mom holding my chubby baby who made no sound but looked at everything. When our baby wouldn't eat, Evelyn fed her steamed egg with chopsticks. When our baby pooped at a group dinner, Evelyn took me to another room full of tableclothed tables and chairs and instructed me to change her right on the table. I couldn't do it. I moved two chairs together and changed her there. Evelyn carried my backpack when we were on a walk in a nearby park because husband was touring baby's orphanage that day. Evelyn won't remember me, but I can't wait to see the woman who delivered my first baby.
In Guangzhou, that adoption trip, our guides were Jason and Kathy. Jason helped us with a nerve-wracking paperwork debacle. The U.S. Consulate told us they didn't have our paperwork. For days, Jason worked on it and gave us daily updates. Somehow, he solved it. I don't know how, but he did. This meant we could return home with our baby. Kathy took us on personal shopping trips. We went on one to find fabric and another to find some high quality, authentic Chinese items we could later share with our daughter. Our guides gave and gave the entire trip.
Our second adoption trip started in Beijing. I have very little memory of how we got from the airport to the hotel, but I'm confident that Alice and Ceecee were the ones who managed it. Prima fell in love with Alice. Alice willingly doted on Prima. Whenever Prima spotted her, she wanted to be near her. Alice is my favorite guide from that trip simply because she is Prima's favorite guide. Alice and Ceecee took us to Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, and the Great Wall. Alice and Ceecee took us to the airport with little time to spare and shoved us through security to our plane. Our group were the last ones to get on the plane. Imagine the surprise for all of these mostly Chinese men when a group of white people (we weren't all white, but mostly) about 30 strong come trouping onto the plane.
In Zhengzhou in Henan Province we were greeted at the airport by Yisha, Rita and Vivian and once again loaded onto a bus to the hotel. The next day we were taken to the Civil Affairs Office to meet our babies. They came in vans in ones and twos depending on where in the province they were coming from. When we arrived two of the babies were already there and the tears from all of us began to flow and the cameras started clicking. Segunda came somewhere in the middle. This baby cried the quietest, saddest tears I have ever seen. Broke my heart right there in the Civil Affairs office. Prima had some playmates in older siblings who were close to her age and once distracted with them, I could finally hold my sad sad baby. Rita and Vivian took each family through the paperwork and picture taking process and then we were loaded back up for the hotel.
Vivian took us and another family to our children's "hometown" to apply for their passports. She handled the whole process and had infinite patience for angry and upset babies. Segunda would not cooperate for her passport picture and cried every time we tried to get her to pose the right way. After many tries, we finally got it right. Vivian made sure we were fed. She instructed the driver to stop when we needed a potty/refreshment break. Rita is coming to the Reunion in a few weeks, and I'm eager to say hello, but I didn't get to know the Zhengzhou guides as well because the children were from so many different parts of Henan that they were kept very busy with logistics. Nonetheless, what they accomplished for our families is immeasurable.
After a few days, we were all given our babies's passports and then raced to the airport and with lots of shouting and gesturing these three women shepherded us through security and we sprinted to the bus that took us to the plane and now were about 30 people strong with 12 Chinese babies trouping onto the plane ... last.
When we landed in Guangzhou, Raymond and Jocelyn greeted us. Jocelyn cheerfully and laughingly assured us that in China they hold planes for people, so we didn't need to worry. Once again they took us through the paperwork process and our U.S. Consulate appointments. We got to see Jason again, as he had another group in Guangzhou, which was a delight to us - although I'm certain he had no idea who we were other than we had clearly been there before. We were out of formula and Raymond went on a journey to get us more. We asked him the best way to get to a WalMart or Carefour and he asked us how old our baby was and what she was using. He disappeared and returned with a different formula telling us that he would never buy what she was used to as it was "no good."
Jocelyn did most of the talking on our tours in Guangzhou and she has an adorable hiccup in her speech that is "okay yeah." I tend to get annoyed when people pepper their speech with "you know" or "umm," but there was nothing annoying about Jocelyn's "okay yeah." I smiled every time and looked forward to her constant, never wavering smile. I get to see her again in about a month also. She won't remember me, but I can't wait to see her smile once again.
Thank you CCAI for finding the best of the best to guide your families through the process in China.
Our first trip started in Hong Kong. We had Joann and Matthew. Joann picked us up from the airport with several other families, handed out water bottles, loaded us onto a bus, counted heads, made sure our bags were stowed on the bus, counted heads again, double checked water and we were off. She checked us all into our hotel rooms. All we had to do was sit in the lobby and wait for our keys. She was also there to take us back to the airport 2 days later and wish us well on our journey to our babies. Matthew was our tour guide in Hong Kong. We were all nervous parents on our first adoption trip and he told a few jokes, gave us some local history, fed us the most fabulous dumplings, and delivered us right back to our hotel.
Our next stop was Nanchang in Jiangxi Province. Our guides were Evelyn and Karen. Evelyn greeted us as we were coming through customs. She had one foot into the customs area not giving an inch to the security person trying to shove her back over. She just grabbed each of us, literally, and pushed us through into the waiting area of the airport counting heads as she did it. Once loaded onto the bus, she got out the microphone and thus began our daily habit: on the bus with the beautiful Evelyn giving us history and information and as we rode along. She stood at the front of that bus facing backwards into the bus chatting away, while the driver navigated the scariest traffic I have ever seen. Two lane road. Trucks coming at us taking up both lanes. Felt like a dangerous game of chicken. Rickshaws on the shoulder in both directions. Overloaded bicycles battling the rickshaws. Pedestrians. Animals. One truck moved in front of the other with barely an inch to give. It was like that the whole way into the city.
Evelyn gave us all a rundown on what our babies had experienced in their short lives. She prepared us for babies who might be catatonic, babies who might scream for days, babies who might only want one parent, babies who were happy but weren't really. In a word, she terrified us. But it was all for the good. Being a parent is a terrifying experience. Then she handed us our babies one by one. Evelyn delivered my first baby into my world. Her words after she called our daughter's Chinese name were "Oooo, chubby baby." And just like that, I was a mom holding my chubby baby who made no sound but looked at everything. When our baby wouldn't eat, Evelyn fed her steamed egg with chopsticks. When our baby pooped at a group dinner, Evelyn took me to another room full of tableclothed tables and chairs and instructed me to change her right on the table. I couldn't do it. I moved two chairs together and changed her there. Evelyn carried my backpack when we were on a walk in a nearby park because husband was touring baby's orphanage that day. Evelyn won't remember me, but I can't wait to see the woman who delivered my first baby.
In Guangzhou, that adoption trip, our guides were Jason and Kathy. Jason helped us with a nerve-wracking paperwork debacle. The U.S. Consulate told us they didn't have our paperwork. For days, Jason worked on it and gave us daily updates. Somehow, he solved it. I don't know how, but he did. This meant we could return home with our baby. Kathy took us on personal shopping trips. We went on one to find fabric and another to find some high quality, authentic Chinese items we could later share with our daughter. Our guides gave and gave the entire trip.
Our second adoption trip started in Beijing. I have very little memory of how we got from the airport to the hotel, but I'm confident that Alice and Ceecee were the ones who managed it. Prima fell in love with Alice. Alice willingly doted on Prima. Whenever Prima spotted her, she wanted to be near her. Alice is my favorite guide from that trip simply because she is Prima's favorite guide. Alice and Ceecee took us to Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, and the Great Wall. Alice and Ceecee took us to the airport with little time to spare and shoved us through security to our plane. Our group were the last ones to get on the plane. Imagine the surprise for all of these mostly Chinese men when a group of white people (we weren't all white, but mostly) about 30 strong come trouping onto the plane.
In Zhengzhou in Henan Province we were greeted at the airport by Yisha, Rita and Vivian and once again loaded onto a bus to the hotel. The next day we were taken to the Civil Affairs Office to meet our babies. They came in vans in ones and twos depending on where in the province they were coming from. When we arrived two of the babies were already there and the tears from all of us began to flow and the cameras started clicking. Segunda came somewhere in the middle. This baby cried the quietest, saddest tears I have ever seen. Broke my heart right there in the Civil Affairs office. Prima had some playmates in older siblings who were close to her age and once distracted with them, I could finally hold my sad sad baby. Rita and Vivian took each family through the paperwork and picture taking process and then we were loaded back up for the hotel.
Vivian took us and another family to our children's "hometown" to apply for their passports. She handled the whole process and had infinite patience for angry and upset babies. Segunda would not cooperate for her passport picture and cried every time we tried to get her to pose the right way. After many tries, we finally got it right. Vivian made sure we were fed. She instructed the driver to stop when we needed a potty/refreshment break. Rita is coming to the Reunion in a few weeks, and I'm eager to say hello, but I didn't get to know the Zhengzhou guides as well because the children were from so many different parts of Henan that they were kept very busy with logistics. Nonetheless, what they accomplished for our families is immeasurable.
After a few days, we were all given our babies's passports and then raced to the airport and with lots of shouting and gesturing these three women shepherded us through security and we sprinted to the bus that took us to the plane and now were about 30 people strong with 12 Chinese babies trouping onto the plane ... last.
When we landed in Guangzhou, Raymond and Jocelyn greeted us. Jocelyn cheerfully and laughingly assured us that in China they hold planes for people, so we didn't need to worry. Once again they took us through the paperwork process and our U.S. Consulate appointments. We got to see Jason again, as he had another group in Guangzhou, which was a delight to us - although I'm certain he had no idea who we were other than we had clearly been there before. We were out of formula and Raymond went on a journey to get us more. We asked him the best way to get to a WalMart or Carefour and he asked us how old our baby was and what she was using. He disappeared and returned with a different formula telling us that he would never buy what she was used to as it was "no good."
Jocelyn did most of the talking on our tours in Guangzhou and she has an adorable hiccup in her speech that is "okay yeah." I tend to get annoyed when people pepper their speech with "you know" or "umm," but there was nothing annoying about Jocelyn's "okay yeah." I smiled every time and looked forward to her constant, never wavering smile. I get to see her again in about a month also. She won't remember me, but I can't wait to see her smile once again.
Thank you CCAI for finding the best of the best to guide your families through the process in China.
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