At the moment, we have a group of 6 families preparing to travel to the ChangSha Social Welfare Institute to be united with their children. We wish them the happiest and safest of travels, and look forward to hearing about their adventures in China when they return.
Here's a message from one of the families:
"Dear family and friends:
Sorry for the mass e-mail, but we wanted to quickly let you know that on Sunday afternoon, here in the Chinese metropolis of Chongqing, we received our second daughter, Jolie Mei-Xia (see attached pictures). She's a cutie who is pretty advanced for having spent all of her 15 months in an orphanage. She talks a few baby words, has good motor skills, is very active, eats as if every bite were her last one, and enthusiastically waddles across the hotel room with just a whisper of encouragement. She looked concerned and a bit intimidated the first day, but has warmed up to us surprisingly well and now even cracks a smile every so often. So far, she's cried very little, and we're pleased to say that she goes to bed at 9 p.m. and wakes up at 8 a.m. with just one quick feeding in the middle of the night. Jialan, who's traveling with us, kisses her baby sister's hands a lot and calls her 'angel.' Clearly, all is well. We're thrilled to have completed our family, and grateful to the Chinese for having given us two beautiful daughters.
We will be traveling to Guangzhou, where the American consulate is located, by the weekend, to take care of Jolie's immigration papers. Six days later, we'll fly back home.
Thanks for your love, support and good wishes. It means a lot. We're not quite sure when we'll be able to access the Internet again, but please know that we will read any messages you care to send, either while we're still in China or upon our return to Maine.
All the best,
Rogier
Debe
Anna Belle (Nana)
Jialan
Jolie"
