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In Honor of the 'Gotcha' Days of our 2 Girls....7/15/02 Piper in Vietnam, and 7/15/05, Zoie, in China

 

18 years ago, minus 18 days, I had a miscarriage. That was the start of a LONG journey for DH & I. We went through many tests & procedures, and never got pregnant again. THEN, after finally deciding to enjoy life without kids (and believe me, it CAN be done!) I was introduced to a lady with….Oh you’ll find Kim fun to talk to, she just got back from Vietnam with a tiny little baby girl. Rolling my eyes, I asked what Vietnam was like. Oh, and is the baby nice too? Little did I know then, that conversation was the start of a fabulous journey that led to July 15, 2001. My husband and I found ourselves being handed this incredible little bundle of energy (and later discovered attitude) that neither one of us knew what to do with. We held her a lot, fed her and tried to keep her on a schedule. She didn’t like the gruel they fed her, and she wouldn’t drink from her bottle. We found out later that her caregivers had been spoon-feeding her so that she would be healthy and ready for her family. Piper was staying at our facilitator’s home due to an injury in the orphanage. There were 3 Vietnamese women taking care of her….can you say round the clock spoiling??!?!?!? Piper was (and still is) a VERY friendly child. She didn’t sleep hardly at all on the trip home; there was TOO MUCH going on! She didn’t want to miss a thing! And she is still like that. Friendly and outgoing, and intense.

3 years later, to the day, we found ourselves in China, being handed another little bundle of energy, with less attitude and lots more hair. Zoie was just the opposite. It took her about 24 hours to get use to us. But once she did, things went very well. We went all over the city of Guan Zhou with her (I KNOW I spelled that wrong!) China was a very different experience. We stayed at the White Swan, which is a BEAUTIFUL hotel. It is near the US consulate, so EVERYONE from the US who adopts, stays there for at least 2-3 days for paperwork. Zoie was from that province, so we got to stay there the WHOLE 2 WEEKS!!! And the dining room was FILLED with Caucasian families with cute little Asian babies. It was rather sad. And rather strange; like a well-oiled machine.

The trips themselves, were life-changing, and I encourage anyone who can, to visit a 3rd world or emerging country. Seeing how we live compared to the rest of the world is absolutely incredible. And getting a baby on top of it…..WOW!!!

Our path to parenthood was not quite as romantic as some (nor as cheap!!!!) but just as rewarding. We have 2 beautiful daughters, who, most of the time, I could just eat up. Then there are days when I understand why some animals eat their young. ;)

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