March 29/05 ~ Adoption Day

Sophie woke up at 4:30am because she was startled by a sound, otherwise I think she would have slept longer. We tried to give her formula but she refused and the same with her rice cereal. I rocked her back to sleep and she slept from 5:30 to 6:30. We again tried to feed her but she wouldn’t take anything. Jamie brought one of the experienced moms to our room to check Sophie out. Everything is okay, she is just adjusting to everything new. She had her first bath and, by the sounds she let out, I don’t think she had ever been in a baby bathtub before. It was a quick bath and we both struggled to hold on to her slippery body when we lifted her out. It was also a quick dressing session and we found out that she is definitely a petite baby for a 10 month old. All of the 12 month clothes I brought are way too big. I had to roll up her pant legs and sleeves. At the restaurant breakfast I felt a bit bad because all the other parents had their babies in cute outfits that fit well and here was Sophie in a hand-me-down that didn’t fit. We had been told to bring only one good outfit for the arrival home and all the others could be hand-me-downs in case the sizing was wrong and then we could swap with the others. I think we may be making a trip to Walmart and getting a few things that do fit. Today was paperwork day at the Civil Affairs Office. We spent about 2 hours finalizing things. But the best news is...Sophie is now officially and legally our daughter! There were a lot of adoptions taking place and more families from other countries were receiving their daughters for the first time. It was a very noisy place. I was getting concerned because Sophie hadn’t eaten or drank anything since yesterday afternoon. We arrived back at the hotel at noon and we tried to feed her again and this time she ate! We gave her mixed vegetables and she even drank some apple juice. Immediately after eating, she started to fall asleep so we put her in the crib. She slept for 1½ hours and we took advantage of it by having a nap also. We had another very poopy diaper to change after she woke and, as I was changing her, she decided that she would continue to go and then do a pee as well. I had Jamie run and grab some toilet paper as the flow kept coming! We are now becoming experts in the #2 department. We had her all cleaned up and then about an hour later she did another load. She’s all smiles after I clean her bottom. Sophie is such a sweet girl. Right now she seems to be a quiet baby but I don’t think we have seen her full personality yet. Jamie has put her in the umbrella stroller and has taken her for a stroll down the hall while I type this. We have the rest of the day to ourselves and might get room service again for dinner. It’s nice just to have her to ourselves so that she can get used to us. We have most definitely fallen in love with this beautiful baby and it still seems surreal that she is all ours. We can’t wait for her to meet our church family. Thank you again to our family and friends that have made this all possible! It’s more wonderful that I had even imagined it would be.
First breakfast with us.
On our way to the Civil Affairs Office.
Waiting to finalize adoption.
Stroller time.