Side trip to Heaven

After a near death experience driving for over two hours we reached the top of Mt, Hengshan.
It's one of 5 most spiritual mountains in all of China.
A one lane road for two lane traffic goes up the side of the mountain along with motorbikes hikers and even 90 year old men carrying very wide loads on their back!
Arriving at the top Billy and Sophie were a little car sick.
We stopped on the way up and bought tons of incense and firecrackers to throw into the furnace.
Climbing the steps to the Temple we watched as the 90 yr. old men and women just strolled to the while we were huffing and puffing?
ALl that Tai Chi really works.
Inside the Temple I had my fortune for future read. I was told that there are three different prices depending on the one you pick and guess what I picked the most expensive one! WHat a surprise...it seems I have the golden touch in China.
It was intriguing that's all I can say.
We bought Jade from a two hundred year old Monk and he blessed us and all our purchases. (ithink he was a little upset that I didn't choose the most expensive one)
A very special time there. I am truly a JewBU.
The veiws were incredible of all the scattered temples-you can spend weeks traveling from one to another.
We stopped at the Laughing Buddha it is a Giant Golden Buddha smiling.
I think it was 50 feet tall. and wide.

After the descend with our eyes closed, we reached Ruby's Orphanage. Very emotional for us. Next stop we arrived at her abandonment spot a clinic with 5-6 mean chinese women who could not have cared why we were there. I wanted a bag with the name and address for a keepsake and they yelled at Eve. we ended buying something weird so we could just have the bag. Looking across the street we spotted HAPPY LIFE MALL. I think that says it all.
On the street around the clinic we did meet some very friendly faces and it was all thumbs up (which means we are happy)

Ruby was counting to ten by the way home sitting on Billy's lap.
Onea two thabee.....
She has mastered wheels on the bus and moving on to itsy bitsy spider.

Off to breakfast with our little Monkey (she is year of the monkey)
xox

Passport!

5pm we received Ruby Dongjin's Passport!
Well, it's 9 pm and we just celebrated the arrival of Ruby's passport.
They are not easy to come by here. One would think it would be cheap fast and a no brainer but this is for real.
Loads of Red Tape.
China.
After a lovely dinner at JOy where the decor is Suzy wong meets the SHeraton-Loved that. great vibe.
We each had are own waitress and we were offered free peanuts and watermelon to start!
After glancing over the menu with Billy we skipped or the steamed tongue. sliced raw pigs ears and decided we would be happy to move on to the main course.
Our choices included Bird's nest soup or salad-maybe just on the brach would be best? Ruby would love to throw the eggs at waitress and Billy.
With a huge smile of course!
The shark fin interested Billy but when we saw they offered raw white dolphin we weren't clear if that was tuna or illegal?
By the way Sophie opted out of the whole night. She is the only one with a head on her shoulders at this point.
Eve was very excited about her jelly fish. I think it was raw not sure she couldn't talk for the rest of the meal because her mouth was completely on FIRE. (as was Billy's he did enjoy some of her dish)
I on the other hand just wanted to take home the menu. I am still trying to pull some strings to get one. It's just very interesting the types of things we are missing out on in our diets.
Ruby had her first giant ice cream bar and managed to eat it with pure delight and not spill a drop!
A girl after her Daddy's heart. "Neat as a pin" We figured out that everyone is so in awe of her because she is so fair skinned. Thank god for her body guards Billy Sophie and now Clara. THey have all learned to say Do not touch Please in 3-4 different dialects so far. She is a magnet. THere is something unique and so lovable about her. She continues to amaze us each and every minute.
Thank god for Passports that allow us to experience turtle soup,sliced toungue,centipede on a stick and so much (oh and lunch today there were black cubes) Shit? it's all so good

Magic of Cipro!

Sophie is back!!! three doses of Cipro and she is good to go for the moment.
I have a feeling I might be next?

I think I left off when Eve and Clara arrived after a 7 hour lay over in Shnaghai!
Somehow in those 7 hours Eve's Chinese came back to her in full force!


While we were nursing Sophie back to health the men in our group went to visit the Orphanage.
31/2hours later they arrived. They took millions of photos for us and of where our RUby was left on the steps of the hospital when she was 2 days old. THey also managed to get her outfit that she was left in. I wish I could have gone but we needed to be with Sophie. I look forward to bringing Ruby back when she wants to go .
She hasn't been in the Orphanage for the last 6 months. I think it would of been traumatic and confusing to have taken her .
We did mange to pool our money and buy them a washing machine, air conditioner and water heater.
They sent us other meaningful gifts that I will cherish forever!

Ordering breakfast to the room is always fun if you have an hour of absolutely nothing to do and nothing on your mind.
I left the job to Billy this am. I will say nothing else on the matter except for 3 carts of food just arrived.

Sophie and Ruby are sitting on the couch looking at all of Sophie's photos on her camera. They are both in their PJ's and of course Ruby is wearing her Ruby Red Slippers and Hello Kitty Back Pack! Every few minutes she runs over to the mirror to look at herself in it! She is so proud!

Time for Breakfast! Soup with egg and noodles!!!!! Ruby's favorite (and she knows how to get just the broth on the spoon)

waiting for ruby's passport...

thursday- Nona left for Shanghai on her own!
(Robert orgabized her adventure)
She was so sad to leave us but I know she will enjoy it so much!
We are stuck here in Times square/tijuana/anything goes...
Our outing today was a private room at Hunan Chinese restaurant. Tv blasting and two old recliners plus a table for 10.
A lovely environment for lunch combined with nice florecent lighting.
Billy and I looked at each other and the group of parents with us?
Where are we?
As we spin the lazyy susan we feel so at home for some reason.
All the strange smeels and flavors are somehow comforting?
WHere are we?
Back to the hotel for a two hour nap Ruby style, Billy worked on his homework , Sophie threw up and all is well in Changsha!!!!!!!
Billy Ruby and I went out for an afternoon stroll in search of a small roll away bag.
Dirty Dirty Dirty......
Love it...spitting,eating,shoe shine,yams cooking.fresh bettlenut ,cigerettes, flied rice, garbage,squatters,spit, cars running you over and driving on the sidewalk, and dirt.
All in a 3 block stroll.
We did manage to purchase a Hello Kitty back pack for 2 dollars.
Ruby loves it and Eve just arrived!!!!!!
GTG
Lots of Love....
Still waiting for passpaort!

Bon Voyage Robert!

Just as Robert left for the airport Sophie started puking. I guess she held it in until he left because he really doesn't like a mess!
As I stood in the middle of our room which looks like an amusement park/tenament covered in barf I realized that the journey has just begun!
Not two minutes later the phone rang -Billy had tripped over the glass table in his room and cut open his leg which he told me was
broken!
I took a deep breath and ran down the hall throw up and all to find him lying on the floor screaming.
Back to the room, Ruby woke up with her usual smile and Sophie was smiling back at her. THe calm......
101.5 not too bad for soph-schocked that she was smiling. The magic of Motrin.

Our afternnon was spent shopping in Changsha. Intersting. Not sure what is real and what isn't here.
We bought a pair of Nike high tops for 20 dollars-they came in the box and everything? They look and feel like Nike?
Billy still hasn't found his size yet. After a few hours in search for Billy's size, we found out that Yao Ming's shoes are from the good old USA!

This City is a combo of mexico/tijuana/las vegas/tijuana/tijuana/atlantic city/tijuana/chop suey?

THe hotel-well, it says it's a Sheraton but that must mean something else in Chinese. It says it's 5 star but not sure they know what that means? I am not sure about anything here? It shoud be called Ripleys belive it Or not. Nothing really is what it seems?
Not sure that makes sense and don't get me wrong the accomadations are very nice but it's almost like a facade. My guide who took us shopping yesterday helped me buy some cream at the pharmacy-he negotiated the price and then asked me for 20 yuan-I gladly handed it to him and then the cashier handed back a ten to him but he gave it back to her? Dunb american tourist I guess?

Ruby is string 3 words together now. I put her on antiboitics and suddenly her hair is getting darken and her cheeks are rosey! When she arrived she had a giant cough and a green nose.

3rd day with Ruby

My day started on the right foot.
standing in the shower enjoying the steam to try to clear my stuffy nose the door to the bathroom opens and it's my smiling jewel Ruby waving at me!

She already has a large vocab in 3 days-
I love you Sophie
I Love you Billy
I love you Mama
I love you Daddy (baba)
and so on
Pee pee
poopoo
one two

Went shopping for clothes yesterday and she picked out on her own ruby Red patent shoes!
Is this really happening?

I put her down for a nap and she smiles at us plays a little and goes right to sleep?

gtg -Sophie is throwing up!

Our Jewel has arrived!!!!

Not sure where we left off, but I will try to catch up....
Today is Wed. am around 10.
Where do I start....We arrived at the the government bldg on Monday am.
We were shuttled into a giant waiting room. It wasn't Cedars thank god!
Big beautiful bamboo loveseats and plenty of room to just hang!
About 5 minutes later a little boy was carried in to meet his new mommy!
He laughed and gurgled at her cleft lip and all!!!
What a lucky buddha.
Next, a large man in a red shirt followed by 2 squeaky girls jumping around by his side!
There she was our Ruby!!!!!! Our hearts stopped and our eyes filled with tears of JOY!!!
Ruby Dong Jin Offer. SHe was placed in my arms forever. SHe sat quietly in my lap and studied our white ghost like faces.
10 minutes later she was fast asleep in my arms. Off to the hotel we put her down for the first time.
SHe woke up screaming her head off-not for long ...Billy stuck a red vine in her hand and that was it!
A girl after his own heart. (if you know Billy and sugar)
The rest of the day wnet as smooth as can be!
She is truly meant to be ours (sorry if I keep repeating that)
So much more to say but we are off to tour the city of Changsha.
We will try send photos around through email.
You can reply to us through my email.
Xie Xie
Ruby Offer's new family!!!

Monday Morning ?????

Good morning. Good morning. 7 am in Chang Sha. The hotel has no air conditioning because they decided it is getting a little cold outside. So you can open the window, as long as you wear your gas mask to prevent smoke inhalation. That is the bad. The good is that we are going to get Ruby in 4 hours. Wow. Nervous but excited and ready. It has been over two years and two home study's and two fbi clearances and two finger print sessions since we started this process. If we were blue whales we could have had two sets of two ton twins by now and swam from Hawaii to Alaska and back twice more easily.

24 hours and counting

Blogger bob here for first time. We really made the most of our last day as the parents of adult children. Daryl and I woke up early and went to some famous park where all the people do their thai chi in the morning. Daryl joined in and was complimented on her natural grace. Back to the hotel, grabbed the kids and our other kid - Daryl's mom - and off to the dirt market, where they sell dirt and other shit that daryl loved. fun and eclectic and dirty. Back to the hotel and then off to 798 - - the artist's community. Think Bergomont station with incredible architecture and great restaurants and very hip chineese people. Really really cool. Highlight of the trip. Then off the the airport to come to Ruby's provence. I'm sure we all got SARS on the plane, but if we don't die by tomorrow we get her in the morning. We met the rest of our group.. Checked into our hotel, where smoking is mandatory and the room has no place to put your clothes. but basically pretty good and i get blackberry service, so it works for me. Tomorrow is very exciting and they told us that she will cry for two or three days and since i leave in two, it shoud be great. The kids are being great, and handling the stress much better than I. All good. Love and miss.