A Bundle of Love!

December the 1oth definitely brought to full circle the realization that we have another boy in the house now! I have a feeling that the girls aren't going to be so lucky in picking on Colin anymore. He is now blessed with having a buff baby on his side. Already, Cory and Colin share some unspoken manly bond between them. He is very affectionate with his older brother and the affection is mutual between them.

Cory is adjusting quite well and is quickly becoming acclimated to our family! The Bickfords did an amazing job preparing him for the entrance into our family. We wouldn't have had such a smooth transition without their complete devotion to Cory! Since he was familiar with our family to a certain extent, he is very comfortable going, "hey..." then finishing out his commands (which we delight in attending to!)
He still drinks from a bottle and has an appetite likening him to a bear, although, when he doesn't want to eat the food that is in front of him, his stomach quickly becomes like that of a mouse! When an undesirable food is in front of him, he places his hands across his chest and tells us, "no," while grinning from ear to ear. It is very difficult to deny him of what he most wants, especially when he looks at you with his little brown eyes and angelic features. Through and through, Cory has already become a valuable addition to the family and adds frosting to the top of the cake!

Today, Mom, Dad, and Cory went and took care of some official paperwork that had to be done, while the rest of us just chilled at the hotel. According to them, a baby couldn't have behaved any better while sitting through hours of dull waiting. He really is a bundle of joy sent from heaven!

Merriella has gathered him under her wings and really embraced him as her younger brother. She plays the role of firstborn quite well for never experiencing that position. Cory on the other hand thinks he is older and insists that she is his younger sister by calling her Me-Me (Chinese name for little sister!) He hates letting her out of his sight and squeals excitedly whenever she comes into the room! They really are amazing siblings and they bring a smile to my face just at the mere entrance they make into a room. I couldn't be prouder of them! The Vazquez 7 family has big plans for tomorrow! We are going to see the Terracotta Warriors and walk the city wall that encloses Xi'an! The weather isn't looking to promising, but rain or shine, we are going to complete the mission!

Gotcha Day 2007!

December 9, 2007
The day we have all been awaiting with eager anticipation has finally arrived. Gotcha Day! All of us share mixed emotions of happiness and sorrow on this special day. The addition of Cory into our family will be a joyous one, but we all sympathize with the loss of his foster parents. For the past 18 months of Cory’s life, he has been nurtured and grown up by Dave and Susie Bickford – a family that truly loves him.

We spent the morning with the Bickfords, Cory and many friends before the formal and official adoption in the evening. There were praise songs, hymns and a great message. Many of Cory’s friends told us that they have longed prayed for a family of believers to adopt him. Cory was very receptive to all members of the Vazquez family. He called mom ”ma-ma” and dad “da-da”! Colin is “gir-gir” (chinese for “older brother”); Hannah and I are “jie-jie” (“older sister”); but he calls Merriella by the term for younger sister: “mei-mei” (he’s bigger than she). All morning, he was open to us holding him and feeding him. When he retired to take a nap, we departed till we would receive him later that evening.

At 5 o’clock Xi’an time, we quickly dashed over to the location where we were to pick up little Cory. He was already there when we arrived and immediately recognized us as we entered the main doors. All of us were greeted by warm and tender hugs from this sweet little smiling boy. The handover was smooth and relaxed. A few joyous tears were shed and many hugs were exchanged. Cory didn’t cry at all. The truth of the matter is, we wouldn’t have had such a smooth transition with Cory had it not been for the time and dedication that his foster parents put into preparing Cory for joining our family. Our family has truly seen the Hand of God working in this little boy’s life. An adoptive family is often called an orphan’s “forever family”. But Cory’s forever family includes the Bickfords and all his friends that have prayed so fervently for him since he was abandoned shortly after his birth. He will see this extended “forever family” once again in the presence of God.

We had a slight problem though…what do you do when you need a bottle and a potty chair but have neither? As soon as we left the building, dad, our adoption guide and I started our crazy night walking to find our necessities. The local WalMart didn’t have what we needed, so we kept looking… Along the way, we realized we needed dinner, so we began searching for the nearest McDonalds. After some frequent stops to question passers-by and get our bearings, we arrived at the Golden Arches within 20 minutes (dad did everyone concerned a favor by NOT attempting to speak Chinese! He let our guide to place he take-out order).

Already, Cory has especially taken to Colin and takes pleasure in running around requesting Gir-Gir (Colin) to attend to his every need. Of course, Colin eagerly rushes to his side and dedicates his full attention to Cory. He is quite the big brother and I already see the older more mature side of him dominating the “used to be youngest son.” Merriella is doing quite well and plays the part of the big sister fantastically. Cory calls her little sister and insists that he is older than her. They both require a large amount of attention and I feel as if we have twins now. Cory is a whopping 35 lbs. and feels like lead weights, but he has been a most joyous addition to our family! We couldn’t have hoped for a smoother transition – it has been amazing!

Which Way to Beijing?

December 6th started bright and early with much humor when we loaded up in Denanne Heil’s Durango for the trip to St. Louis airport: as dad climbed in, he sat on his yogurt cup, causing it to burst and making a mess of the seat of his pants. Considering the fact that we were already behind schedule, he didn't have time to change. We all got a kick out of that! Before we had even crossed the Mississippi, Merriella had already begun her long and perpetual question that would be asked over the next twenty four hours seemingly every five minutes; "Mommy, are we to China?!?

Pop Quiz: Does anyone know how long it takes to get a family of 6 and a grandma through airport security? Hint: A LONG time!

Even though we boarded the plane on time, our flight was delayed by over an hour. Safe arrival in Chicago. We made it through and boarded the flight to Beijing. Now, for the really tricky question... "When leaving Chicago, which way do you fly to reach destination Beijing?" WRONG! You fly north-north west. Then, take a plunge south west. The earth is a ball that rotates!

6pm, St. Louis time: Just above Queen Elizabeth Islands, just 8 hours and 8 minutes to go. Ground speed of 514 mph, 3,987 miles to destination! When the fourth movie was over, (yes, the 4th one!) we were flying over Siberia and still had 5 hours to go! I'll spare you all the details, but as we landed in Beijing, we could see the famous Great Wall of China. Through aisle walking, we learned that there were 28 other adoptive families on our same flight. In the airport in Xi'an, we aquired many stares and fingers, due to our large luggage train and enough people to start an army. Not many people in China have a family with 4 children, 3 of which are girls. We all arrived at the hotel cold, aching, and lacking sleep.

Just the Facts!

Captain Morgan here from the bridge again.
Travel dates set: Depart from Saint Louis 9:35 am. December 6th. Arrive in Beijing. Take flight to Xi'an. Sleep. Rest. Recover. Eat exotic food. Attempt to sleep again. Welcome Cory to the family, Saturday, December 9th. Adoption documents completed the 10th.
Presently: Packing suitcases. Making lists. Checking them twice. Scrambling to finish last minute details before the trip. Trying to find meds, munchies, and milk chocolate (chocolate has energy. We need energy). Oliver is beginning male bonding time with his pet, Matt. Preparing warmer clothes for abnormal temperatures. During the trip, we will visit Xi'an, Beijing, and Guangzhou-temperatures may vary as drastically as 30 degrees between locations. Above is my little brother, who already has decided to follow after his sister and work on improving his blogging skills! Finally, we are anxiously awaiting Departure Day: D-Day! Looking forward to keeping y'all posted. We will read all posted comments, I can't guarantee individual responses.