Christmas Party

Iris is enjoying a night out at Tom and KP's, along with Granny, who arrived for a nice visit through the holidays. Note the improvised bib. Also note Tom's fingers in the last photo as he directs Iris' attention to the camera.

Ready for Christmas

Christmas tree is safely behind the safety gate (along w/ the cast iron wood burning stove).

Self-feeding

Iris is learning to self-feed and does quite well now w/ finger foods. She especially likes pasta although the sauce can make quite a mess!

Ready for a Walk

Iris bundled up and "hanging out" in her Kelty backpack waiting for Dad to get ready. She still enjoys wandering about on Dad's shoulders but it is getting to be a bit of work!!

Night Out

In December we escorted Iris to many a social occasion for the holidays. This photo is before a University event. Iris is a bit shy at first in a crowded room, but once we find a corner to settle into with a few friends, she loves the attention.

We've also been out without Iris twice. On the first night with a sitter (the UI Dinner/Dance), Mom shed more tears than Iris!

Welcome to Winter

The Palouse saw a good dumping of snow in the past week, and so we are trying to introduce Iris to winter fun. This is not easy - it took some shopping to find warm and practical clothes for her, and then we needed to find appropriate activities. Charles has pulled her around in a sled in the yard, and we've taken her on occasional walks in the backpack/carrier. She seemed to like both, as long as it wasn't too windy.

This is a good place to show off our remodeled house. It looks great in the snow because the lack of landscaping isn't obvious.

Iris FAQs: 4) Health/Pooping [*Disclaimer: those not interested in pooping stories may wish to skip this entry]

Iris visited the pediatrician last Monday. She weighed in at 17.6 lbs and is 28 inches tall. I had planned to provide the doc with a growth chart for Southern Chinese girls but it really didn't matter - Iris is pretty close to the 50% for both weight and height even compared to big American babies. She has a nice, round, Buddha-esce belly.

She has a record of many immunizations in China, but we are considering repeating those - this is recommended by international adoption specialists. Iris has had no major illnesses, and even since we met her has only had the occasional runny nose. She has a scar of unkown origin on one leg.

And yes, she still does poop in the toilet. The photo here is one that I took when we were in China, and Charles was first trying to coax her into making a Ba-Ba. The word "Baba," by the way, can mean either "Daddy" or "Baby" or "Poopy" depending upon the tone and inflection used in pronunciation. I have not been able to hold her quite right for this, myself. But there may be no need anymore; this morning she actually made a Ba-Ba in a child's potty seat! Remarkable. This is not necessarily the same as actual potty training - she still makes Ba-Bas in her diapers if we don't notice that she has some business to take care of.

Iris had a nice Thanksgiving visit with her Uncle Jim and Aunt Susie, and then we observed her 10-month birthday and our 1-month anniversary as a family with some Chinese carry-out.

Deb

Iris FAQs: 3) Communication

Iris is highly vocal around us. Most of it is a language of her own, but a few words do resemble words in English. Her first word appears to be "Yeah," which is generally accompanied by vigorous nodding of the head and is frequently context-dependent. She has also used a word that sounds a lot like "Daddy," (it figures), and a word that sounds like "Kitty-Cat" - "Ah-Gee-Gee-Gah!" Our cats, by the way, give her a wide berth. When eating, she makes noises that sound like the 'yummy sound' from the movie Young Frankenstein.

Charles and I have made regular attempts to teach her sign language, since that can help her communicate with us before her vocal abilities are sufficiently developed. Looks like she MAY understand the sign for "drink" - but it does not have the same effect as if we say "bottle."

Deb

Iris FAQs: 2) Sleeping and Activity

"Is she on a schedule?" "Does she sleep through the night?"

"Sort of," and "No."

Well, it's really not as bad as all that. She kind of has a schedule, now that we're all in the right time zone. We can generally get her to sleep around 8:30. She wakes up at least once per night wanting a bottle (and some nights wakes up again with teething pain -??). She sleeps until 6:30 or 7:00 and enjoys a brief morning nap. She sleeps more during her afternoon nap, but lately has had such fun practicing walking that this one can be difficult to initiate, too.

Iris is a very active baby. When we met her less than a month ago, she was still struggling to roll over. She can now crawl and has learned to handle our various floor surfaces with minimal faceplants. She can get herself into a sitting position with no problems. Iris can pull up to a stand and move about (cruise) grasping furniture or our body parts. She has stood on her own for a few seconds, and knows how to fall on her bottom rather than her head. I think we'd better finish babyproofing!!

She likes fancy toys as well as simple toys. She will 'dance' to kids' music and to our favorite artists. Musical toys are great fun, so are mirrors, cups, and rattles. She also greatly enjoys colorful magazines, the TV remote control, anything with a tag, and anything she can chew (this last category covers all things, so she is not picky about toys).

We took Iris to Hell'sgate State Park on the Snake River today and did a field test of the backpack/carrier. She loved it!!! Daddy makes an excellent horsie.

Deb

Iris FAQs: 1) Eating and Drinking

We've been able to introduce Iris to many friends and family members either in person, or by phone, email, or this Blog. Most of the questions we get are in the following four categories: 1) Eating and Drinking; 2) Sleeping and Activity; 3) Communication; and 4) Health/Pooping. In the next four Blog entries we'll address these in that sequence.

Iris was on a milk-based formula at her orphanage, and we continued to provide this same formula while in China. We supplemented this with solids as best we could, given that a) many foods were unfamiliar to us; b) we ate at restaurants; and c) we had no idea what we were doing. Iris was most helpful, as were our local adoption agency representatives. Some of the foods she had in China, we still feed her, including noodles (which she slurps with gusto), steamed or scrambled egg, tofu, oat or rice cereal, and all sorts of mashed or diced fruits.

She now also eats all types of babyfood fruits or vegetables, and some of the meaty concoctions. She will eat cubed mozzarella, turkey, and ham if they are mixed with the baby food, and likes nearly all forms of complex carbohydrates, including breads, crackers and cereals. She LOVES yogurt. In brief, she is generally easy to feed! Critical readers may note that we have violated several recommendations for things to avoid the first year including dairy and egg whites. Too late now!!!

We have switched her to a soy-based formula and this went over OK, though she still prefers it warm. She can drink from a cup with assistance. The sippy-cup has not been well-received, so she uses a small bottle for water/juice.

Iris has three teeth, and more are certainly on the way soon. She is very fond of Teething Biscuits, and drools constantly.

Deb

Happy Baby

Iris playing w/ Ma Ma in the living room (in her smart denim shirt from Goodwill). 

Out and about

Thursday evening we did our weekly dinner outing to our local funky mediteranean eatery. They have one very nice high chair so we should be able to continue with this tradition! We also visited our local book store next door where this picturer was taken. 

Neighborhood walk

Our first walk around the neighborhood. It's been chilly, windy, and rainy here so a bit of a shock for all of us (the low we experienced on our trip to China was ~65 F and often it was much warmer). Early winter has arrived here on the Palouse since we left on Oct. 24. We have to get acclimatized (and still need to get some winter clothes for Iris!). 

Voting

Although a U.S. citizen, Iris will not get to vote for about 17 years. But she can still accompany us to the polls as we did last Tuesday - our first time out of the house w/ Iris since getting home. It was strange being a room full of white folks (as opposed to a room full of Chinese as we have been for the past couple of weeks!). Iris seemed to enjoy her first outing. 

Hello from the high chair

It's not as bad as it looks - probably recently woken and ready for a meal. The high chair and a pile of o's keep Iris happy and under control while we get the meal ready. 

Welcome Home Iris!

Boy are we all happy to be done with air travel for a while!! The canceled flight put us on a redeye to Seattle, and Iris spent the first half of the flight totally wired by all of the activity going on....all the different people having conversations and watching their movies, the food service, etc. When she finally calmed down we all discovered that there was no way to make her comfortable enough for sleep. We each spent much of the flight carrying her around the plane, so of course we didn't get to sleep either!

Some of Iris' immigration information had reached Seattle before we did, and so we went through customs very efficiently. Iris became a U.S. citizen yesterday. We arrived in Pullman exhausted and frazzled, but very happy to be home (even though one of our bags didn't make it). We are grateful to John Peltz for relaying our delay to Rufus, and grateful to Rufus for picking us up! Rufus was the first of our friends to meet Iris, and the first thing Iris said to him was, "goo!" We also thank Judy for taking care of the cats and the house, all of which were in great shape when we returned. Finally, to whoever made the banner welcoming Iris.... thanks very much, it was the perfect sight for three pairs of weary eyes.

We all slept well and for a nice long time and are enjoying our first day at home. No appointments with officials, no buses, and no planes!

Deb

The Oath - We're Finished!!

Two days ago our group gathered for the requisite 'Red Couch Photo' session, on the second floor of the White Swan Hotel, a traditional photo op for the little girls and their new families. Everyone else in their group had purchased a nice girly/traditional Chinese dress for their daughter - but we hadn't managed to find anything suitable until AFTER the picture. So our Iris is wearing a puffy red shirt that we bought in Nanchang that says "I am the King of Afric" (sic). The girly/traditional stuff we bought won't fit her for another 6 months or more, anyway.

In the afternoon we went to the U.S. Consulate for the final round of paperwork for Iris' U.S. Visa. At the end of this, several adoptive groups collectively took "The Oath" which simply states that all of the information we have provided is correct to the best of our knowledge. Now Iris will be a U.S. Citizen, as well as our daughter, when we enter the U.S. in Seattle!

In the evening we again enjoyed dinner by the Pearl River, accompanied by the laser light show. Music for this show has lately included The Beer Barrel Polka, and the theme song from 'Dallas.'

Yesterday we took a very short flight to Hong Kong, and we are staying one night there before our early flight today. Iris has so far handled the short flights like a champ. Let's see how she handles the extra-special surprise marathon travel session. We are in Tokyo Narita Airport right now. Our flight from Tokyo to Seattle was canceled. We have been re-booked on a later flight and anticipate arrival into Moscow-Pullman later in the afternoon of the 5th. We've set up camp in the airport and Iris is happily playing on the carpet.

We are looking forward to coming home so we can get to know each other in our familiar surroundings, and so we can introduce Iris Lingyue to our friends and families.

Deb

"The Bureaucracy"

Many of you sending us emails have wished us luck dealing with 'the bureaucracy' that we must be encountering during the adoption process. That part of the trip, thankfully, has been VERY EASY. The bulk of the approvals paperwork was done far in advance. During our visit, the local representatives of our adoption agency, CCAI, have handled everything and made sure we knew exactly the documents that we needed in advance, have made all of our appointments, and ushered us through all of the interviews, photos, and paperwork. Iris needed a Chinese passport to board the plane from Nanchang to Guangzhou, and so the main reason we stayed in Nanchang for five days was to apply for this passport in her Chinese name, and then wait.

In Guangzhou, we are applying for, and waiting for, her US Visa, among other things. Iris had another photo taken, and another physical. Her photo unfortunately has her with big crocodile tears coming out of her eyes. She has begun to show some stranger anxiety for people other than us (which is mostly a good thing!), and one of the CCAI reps helped her out of the carrier for the photo, and she was not pleased with this in the slightest.

The crib in this room is tiny, and Iris is now able to do some 'pulling up' in the crib, to peer at us over the top. She is getting stronger every day, and she now has two teeth. She is still a healthy eater. She got a little face rash (hives) in Nanchang, that is now clearing up, and daddy had to do some serious booger removal yesterday.

Today (Nov. 2) we visited the (Buddhist) Temple of the Six Banyans, and Charles earned our family some good luck by tossing a one yuan coin into a small target of an exterior pagoda. One of the monks did a 'blessing of the babies.' We also saw the Chen Clan Pavilion, now turned into a state museum.

Deb

Hello from Guangzhou

We are now in Guangzhou (formerly Canton) for the U.S. immigration process before heading home later this week. It is Tuesday evening here and we have had a long day but Iris is sleeping soundly in her crib. She had been sleeping between us on a king bed in Nanchang but we have twin beds here so the crib is necessity. We were not sure how she would do, but she fell asleep so easily after her bottle that I just put her in the crib and all is well.

Guangzhou is a very large city (3rd largest in China) which was evident as we came in to land at the airport. The year-round population is 6 million which swells to 10 million from factory workers from elsewhere. It is located on the Pearl River delta and our hotel (the White Swan) is right on the river (which we have a view of out our window). Yesterday evening we were pleasantly surprised by a laser light show on the river while we were enjoying dinner near our hotel. The show was accompanied by a mix of very British-sounding music and Cantonese opera.

The U.S. Consulate offices are here and so all U.S. citizens adopting in China have to come through to obtain the U.S. Visa and immigration approvals to bring their adopted child back into the U.S. The White Swan is very popular with adopting familes and we are seeing many new parents in addition to our group. The White Swan is something you hear a lot about during the adoption process from the familes that have gone before.

Guangzhou is also much more of a tourist and business destination than Nanchang and so Westerners are a common sight here (as they are in Hong Kong). We really feel fortunate to have spent the last week in Nanchang which still has much of its distincitive Chinese personality. It is really humbling to be in a place that has such a long history and with people that have such a sense of pride in their history and distinctiveness. This was quite evident from our 2 local guides in Nanchang who could easily leave for the U.S. or Europe if they wanted to. Hopefully we can instill at least a small sense of this in Iris when she is old enough to appreciate that. We will also look forward to returning at some point in the future.

We should have some pictures of Guangzhou to post tomorrow after hopefully a good night's rest!

Charles.

Nanchang update

Hello again from Nanchang. We have been busy passing the time waiting for Iris's passport and other paperwork to be completed. We have one more day here and then we fly to Guanzhou on Tuesday to start the U.S. immigration process (which takes several days).

We continue to have some problems posting updates to our blog (http://irischina.blogspot.com/) but check it anyway (and please let us know the latest update). I have been able to upload a bunch of photos to flickr ( http://www.flickr.com/photos/15142220@N00/) although I still need to add some description which I'll try to do tomorrow sometime (Monday).

Iris continues to do well and we are adjusting to each other and figuring out how to do this parenting thing! She is eating and sleeping well and is mostly happy when she is awake. We have made some food mistakes and paid the consequences for that but no damage done. She seems very interested in whatever is going on around here and the daily trips out and about Nanchang seem to be most stimulating for her (and of course for us). We are enjoying the time here but I think are also starting to look forward to getting home and establishing a routine.

Nanchang continues to amaze and we learn more about it and the Chinese people daily. Today we took a trip just outside of Nanchang to a somewhat rural village. The living conditions are very poor but the people seem relatively happy and were very friendly toward us (especially the older women present). At this small village (photos on flicks site) there were mostly kids and older people. Apparently all the working age people are away from the village in the city working. Some of the people in our group took candy for the kids which was a bit of a scene! Also driving just outside the city we have seen what a toll the large population has taken on the environment. The land has been severely damaged near the city. I have been very surprised to see very few birds anywhere except just a few in the People's Park. It would be interesting to see what it like farther outside the city. (Also as I think I mentioned before the smog is quite bad here, ironically the increasing standard of living has much to do with this as there are many more cars on the road now.) Some others of our group went to Yujiang today, the rural town several hours from Nanchang where the orphanage is located, and we are interested to hear what there experience was.

A few other items of interest. Today is October 29 and yesterday the 28th, both lucky numbers in China and so there have been many marriages going on around town. The are often announced by large strings of firecrackers being lit off and we have seen many wedding groups around (including in our hotel). Also Nanchang sees relatively few westerners and so we draw crowds many places that we go. Some people want to practice their English and others just want to take pictures or have their pictures takes with us. In general they are very friendly although we do get some odd looks (perhaps of disapproval) and occasional clucks from older women if any of the babies in our group have any exposed skin. Also they think it odd for some of us to be wearing shorts in "winter" although the highs have been in the mid 70's the past few days!

Well I guess that is all for now. We'll try to post more photos as we can. Deb's email is not working well - send messages to Charles' gmail account below.

chaetura@gmail.com