We Are Finally Home

Saying goodbye to China                                           

Becoming an American

First Bath at Home

We are finally home with Anna. It is 2:15 AM on Sunday morning and the girls are up and wired…and not the slightest bit interested in sleep. They are still on China time. Mom and Dad are hanging on by a thread. Sleep deprivation over the last three weeks is taking its toll.

It was a grueling trip home starting at 4:30 AM on Friday in China, and then traveling for over 20 hours. The flights were very easy for Lily as she slept most of the way. Anna, on the other hand, struggled with her inability to sleep the entire trip. John and Pamela have achieved a level of exhaustion that is hard to describe.

Along the way we fought with the airline to allow us to go home earlier than originally planned, due to Anna’s delicate condition, and with security to allow us to take Anna’s medicines on the planes. Pamela took the lead and fought for us so valiantly every step of the way …using her persuasive skills and the emotional tears flowing down her cheeks in desperate attempts to protect her darling daughters. Due to Pamela’s efforts we were treated like VIPS at some points during the trip, especially in Guangzhou where airline employees helped us through the ticketing process, got us through security and onto our plane…even putting us in First Class to Beijing. They seemed to understand and value the fact that we were helping these little girls.

But in Beijing we were totally stymied by airline and security employees who, in spite of our pleas for understanding, Pamela’s sobbing, and doctor’s reports on Anna’s condition, held firm that we would not take the liquid medicine aboard. They seeming cared less about this little Chinese girl who needed help as soon as possible.

In a final desperate act, John laid Anna on the floor and pulled down her diaper and showed the airline and security employees the seriousness of Anna’s condition…an exposed bladder surrounded with red and infected tissue. As Pamela sobbed uncontrollable, one of the security people let out a screamed gasp and nearly fainted. Almost immediately the others thrust the medicine into our hands and gestured for us to go through to the plane as soon as possible.

Upon our arrival in Seattle we took a taxi straight to Children's hospital where Anna was thoroughly checked out. She was seen by an internationally known surgeon who will reconstruct her bladder and her female organs, and the orthopedic surgeon who will reconstruct her pelvic bones. We were provided with a much better understanding of the difficult months ahead for Anna and for us. But we were also given a great deal of hope by these dedicated professionals who are committed to giving Anna as normal a life as possible.

Just as Lily’s life has been saved, Anna’s will be dramatically improved. Just as Lily has blossomed into an extraordinary person, so too does Anna have that same opportunity.

Today Anna suffered another setback as she became ill and dehydrated. It turned into another trip to Children’s Hospital and 3 hours of evaluation and treatment. She was successfully hydrated and we were able to get her back home tonight. She is feeling much better tonight…almost too good. It will be difficult getting our Chinese girls settled down tonight. They will probably end up in our bed, snoring and kicking and tossing to and fro. But they will be close to Momma and Baba, and feel safe and at home. Our loss of sleep is a small price to pay as we bond with our precious little daughters.