It has now been 3 months or so since we have been home from Vietnam. It has been a busy and crazy couple of months too…between two weddings in New Orleans, a birthday, a baptism, and one big family trip.

We went back and forth to New Orleans for the showers and weddings that I was in for Jenny and Natalie (who were married a week apart). Hannah and David were great travelers on the 3 hr drive (especially when a movie was put in for them). The kids loved staying at Baba’s house for a week and 1/2, seeing the cousins and being with grandparents. I enjoyed having someone to watch the kids while I got to go celebrate with my friends and do my bridesmaid duties.

Jesse and David playing at Baba’s house.

Hannah was recently baptized at church on David’s 2nd birthday- June 24. Family from New Orleans and Birmingham came to celebrate both the baptism and birthday with us. Saturday June 23 we had David’s 2nd birthday party with friends and family at our house. After church on Sunday we celebrated her baptism by taking in food from our local Vietnamese restaurant. I wish I could say that was exactly what we ate while in Vietnam, but I think this restaurant is more authentic to the South Vietnam cuisine…although we experienced some of it.

Isabella Joy (Christina Brock’s baby) and Hannah Leigh baptized on June 24 at Redeemer Church.
Daddy, friends and family singing “Happy Birthday” to David, who turned 2.
On the 4th of July the four of us (Patrick, David, Hannah and I) drove up to Gatlinburg, with a stop before and after in Birmingham to see Grandparents and family. This was our first family trip. The kids did great on the way up there (stopping for a night in Birmingham really helped). We went swimming a lot, drove through the National Park and walked up to the Dome, went up the tram to Over Gatlinburg, visited the Aquarium, and walked around the town a bit. It was a lot of fun spending time together. We stayed in a wonderful cabin up on a mountain, with a beautiful view off of the deck. As short as the visit was with family, David really enjoyed his time with Seth and the rest.

Celebrating the 4th in Gatlinburg.
Family trip to the Ripley’s Aquarium in Gatlinburg (at the end…the kids are exhausted and overstimulated!)
Playing with cousin Seth in Birmingham on the way home from Gatlinburg. Seth was making a funny face where as David was just drinking. Funny picture!

Hannah is now 7 1/2 months and is growing at rapid rates. We have our next checkup at the doctor early next week (for her next round of shots, booo…) and I’m sure we’ll get a report of how much her weight status has increased. Hannah is not yet crawling, although she will get up on her knees and rock before pushing herself backwards. She will end up across the room in a minute by rolling or moving backwards. I don’t think it will really take her long to figure it out though. She is a quick learner.

David loves his sister. He is still very affectionate towards her. We are working with him on not throwing things at her, however. It seems to be a new phase we are working through. He will throw at us, the dogs, Hannah…and I’m pretty sure all in fun. He just has to learn his new skill and put it to good use.

Hannah has been eating solids since 6 months but has yet to get attached to anything she eats, other than bananas. She doesn’t like many veggies and makes a funny sour face with most other fruits (apples, pears, peaches). The last two days she slept from 6:30-9 basically. So I think she is getting her energy up for crawling or something to that affect. She has one tooth and another about to pop.

Next week we will be finalizing all of the re-adoption stuff in front of a judge on Monday. Hannah’s name has been officially changed from Binh Thi Nguyen to Hannah Leigh Norman. She will then receive a Mississippi birth certificate instead of the Vietnam one. She will always know what her given name was by the original birth certificate and also by the citizenship certificate.

[ Side note: I plan on moving from this blog to a family blog…since in my mind the adoption has been complete and we are now the Normans…

For more family and favorite Veitnam pictures: photallery.com

Photallery.com

Check out the folder under Elise and look at the folders under “people” and “vietnam”. Or Simple go to “last uploads” and see all the latest.
Leave a comment if you feel so inclined.

Thanks!

Elise

Up until this point we thought it was either she still had her days and nights mixed up or it was allergies. She was always clogged up when we went into her room at night. We have been pumping that cool humidity into her room, giving her Tylenol cold medicine to open her up, and even adding a little bit of baby vicks after a warm and soothing bath. None of that seemed to work until we forced her to stay up a couple hours. She was waking up every 2 hours and having a hard time going back to sleep for over an hour each time. We were both exhausted.

Finally for two nights in a row she slept her long stretches again (usually 5-7 hours stretches before requiring some food or a diaper change). What wonderful nights they have been!

We had a wonderful (and still very sleepy) time with my Mom, Dad and Grandma this past weekend. I’m so glad Dad and Grandma decided to come up this weekend. They all seemed surprised at how strong Hannah is. She cooed and smiled at them. I was surprised that she never had any meltdowns meeting all the new people. She was held by everyone and never once seemed to get scared or upset being in someone else’s arms. That is good news to me.

David is still being such a sweet boy. I don’t know how I can be so lucky to have such a good-natured boy, that is so considerate and gentle. He likes to call Hannah “baby”. Yesterday I put Hannah in his lap so he could try to hold her and he kept leaning in and giving her kiss after kiss. It was really precious! He likes to entertain her and play near her. One aspect that may help David in this transition is that we introduced a baby to him (who is now 5 months!!) that can respond by laughs, coos, and cries. If we came home from the hospital with a baby that requires much more constant attention and only cries all the time, he may have struggled more I’m sure. I think having Grandma (my Mom) here has also helped to get him adjusted. She is his buddy. She has probably helped him to feel he has someone special around just for him.

We are surprised at how polite he has become (saying “Thank You”, “Sorry”) and how affectionate he has remained. He gives Patrick hugs and kisses before he leaves for work and will just grab me around the neck and squeeze sometimes when I don’t ask. We are so lucky to have David as our little man, and Hannah is also very lucky to have him as her big brother!

I could not feel more blessed by our new little addition and by the time I’ve had so far to reacquaint myself with David. I am also extremely moved by all the support we have received coming home. I’ve been amazed to learn just how many people have been following our blog and checking on our progress. It really warms me to know that so many people are concerned by our welfare and by our happiness. It has been incredible to have so much support of friends who have organized things like having dinner brought to our home and for all the hands that actually prepare the incredible meals. God couldn’t have blessed us any more in any aspect of our life. He is so good and has established this family for His good purpose- that I am sure! Thanks for being part of our journey and our story. Without you, nothing would have been the same!!

–Once I figure out the picture thing from home, I’ll post some of our latest!–

The other flights seemed much quicker compared to the last. Hannah did well from LA to Dallas, but not so well from Dallas to Jackson. By then it was considered “late” for her even though it was early morning for everyone else. We tried to let her sleep but she just couldn’t, making her pretty restless and fussy.

The reunion at the airport was really sweet! I didn’t expect a crowd, but were surprised to see our best friends (McNeills and Brocks) and their kids, and my Mom and David waiting for us with balloons and flowers. I was so thrilled and overwhelmed to see everyone, but totally lost it when I saw David and how big he looked. Mom traded Hannah for David for me and I was blown away at how heavy and HUGE he seemed! I know I’ve been used to holding only a 13 lb baby, but he looked so much larger. I’ve learned since that he has grown broader and little larger, but weighs only a couple pounds more than when we left. My arms aren’t used to holding a big boy anymore!

I asked David if he missed me and he just turned and gave me a kiss on the lips. He gave us kisses and hugs and got so excited to see Daddy too! Hannah did surprisingly well with everyone’s attention on her and being in Grandma’s arms. She never once got upset (except being strapped into the car seat for the ride home).
When we got home we saw what Rebecca and Christina had done: balloons, welcome home sign, and the Asian dragon decoration on the door that was such a personal touch! Inside we were welcomed with flowers from Nonna and Papa for Hannah and bags and bags of gifts from our friends at Patrick’s office. We still haven’t gone through them all but were so overwhelmed with the love that we have received coming back!

It is so nice to be home!!! The air is nice and clean, you can hear lots of birds chirping, and there are no honking horns outside. I didn’t even break a sweat yesterday! The food has been wonderful and fresh. And I was so excited to be able to brush my teeth using tap water again and not have to use bottle water! Though, I have grown accustomed to people approaching and talking to us constantly that I almost felt rejected when people only stare (and not always smile) when they see us with a baby. There are things I know will take some getting adjusted to, but it is far worth being home to even complain!

Hannah slept a long time yesterday on and off (was more asleep than awake it seemed) and wanted to stay up longer last night. Patrick was able to get some rest in the afternoon and helped me by doing most of the night duty. Hannah was still tired at night but had a hard time going back to sleep when she woke at her normal times. So far today she has been on her regular schedule. I am hoping that since she slept so much on the way home and yesterday afternoon, that her routine might get worked out by tonight. We’ll see though. Don’t know if it ever that easy.

David is going to take a little while to get adjusted to his new sister. I’ve noticed he likes to imitate Hannah and cry like her. He also has a real fascination with her bottle. He’s only tried once to put it in his mouth, but he likes to play with it. I know it will take some training to get him to understand he needs to be gentle with the baby. He tries to squeeze her hand and step on her feet. He doesn’t seem to do anything out of anger, more just curiosity. He never woke once last night even with Hannah’s screaming, so that is a good sign. I am trying my hardest to cuddle and play with him. I know right now is our learning stage and it will take some time to figure out having two kids. I am very thankful my Mom is planning on staying with us as long as we need her (and as long as my Dad can stand to live without her…ha!). She knows David’s patterns better than I do now and it is helpful that she can take care of his needs while I tend to Hannah’s.

We have really appreciated all the prayers that went with us and protected us during our time in Vietnam. We have had so many ups and downs, but I know it could have been much worse. God was our protector and our comfort. We loved all the comments everyone left us and the encouragement we were given. I wish there was a special way to really thank you all (and I wish I knew everyone to thank that lifted up prayers on our behalf). But I hope you are encouraged to see the grace that was given to us as a family and to one sweet little girl. She is our miracle. We want her to know her story and to know how loved she is by us, by God and by God’s people. For she is what this whole experience has been all about! Thank you!!!

(Pictures coming soon…)

When we arrived in Hong Kong we were dirt dog tired.  We were hoping to catch a quick flight, thinking they postponed their flight since they were missing so many passengers.  No such luck.  The next flight won’t leave until 11pm.  Patrick was able to speak with a woman who looked at all other routes we could take, but decided we should wait in Hong Kong.  The flight we could get on would put us in Dallas much sooner, but we would have to wait a long time there and we would still get back to Jackson almost exactly the same time as our scheduled flight.  Even though we could stay in a hotel in Dalls, we figured we have so many benefits to staying in the lounge here in Hong Kong that we decided to stick with it.

The problem was that in Hong Kong we could not leave the airport due to Hannah’s visa/passport.  It is only valid I believe for US soil.  We could go out,  but not with her.  At first I thought the upgrade from economy to business class was going to be more for luxury and space.  But now that we have been spending most of our time in the airports in Vietnam and Hong Kong, I know now that it was by the grace of God we switched seats. 

We have been given internet and phone access (not to US), complimentary food and drinks, places to sleep and wonderful service.  The lounge here in Hong Kong is much nicer than in Vietnam, with comfy leather sofas.  We set up our living space in the back corner and have been able to catch up on some much needed rest.

Hannah screamed almost the entire first flight (that got turned around) but by the second one, she had already been sleeping many hours and just cruised through it unaware. When we got to Hong Kong we found her a comfy spot and let her sleep well into the morning.  Whenever she takes naps today, we join her. 

I was dreading the flights before we left Vietnam, but now there isn’t anything I think will be more pleasant.

The schedule at this point is basically that we are going the exact same route and the exact same times, just one day later.  So we will finally arrive hopefully in Jackson at 9am. 

Keep us in your prayers still for safe travel and for patience.  Also, there have been other families that we knew from our ceremony and time at the embassy that are also stuck here with no schedule set as far as we know.  They were traveling economy which I guess makes it harder to find seats in situations like these.  They were already delayed by the embassy one day and are very intent to get home.  Please pray for these two families as well. 

Hopefully next time I write it will be with the highest pleasure of seeing David and our family and friends! Let’s hope so anyway…

Patrick and I are very ready to get home. We are told that David is less of a little boy and more like a little man now. I don’t doubt it. I can’t imagine how much he has changed. I am slightly nervous about seeing him for the first time since we’ve left him. I’m sure he is too young to become resentful that we left him to bring back a baby sister. I know our reunion will be sweet. I am excited about getting a big neck hug and fish kiss from my boy!

Neither of us slept very well last night, which isn’t usually a good start for a long journey. But I hope that Hannah will be easily put to sleep on the plane and that we are able to really get some rest.

It has been so amazing to have such an awesome group of people to share this experience with. Even though we will take away many incredible memories of a very interesting and friendly culture in Vietnam, it will never compare to the friendships and bonds that we will take away from our time here. I thank God that He put us with these exact individuals: Charmin, Jim, Rob, Sondra, Paul, Kristen, Jason, Kevin and Alison. We had each other to lean on, have fun with, learn from, vent our frustrations to, and share one of the most amazing experiences of meeting and getting to know our new little ones together. I hope with all my heart that our girls will know who their “sisters” (or Ya-Ya sisters as Sondra says) are as they get older.

We are as David says- “All Done.”  We look forward to seeing all you, our friends and family again.  We need that sweet taste of home!! Here we come…

The music they had was great and the instruments themselves were even more interesting.

“Dragon Dance”, start of the show.

“Catching frogs” Some of their little stories were just cute…he caught the girl by accident.

“Harvest festival- returning to the native land after college graduation”

Harvest festival as well.

“Phoenix dance” (Phoenix, lion, dragon, turtle, unicorn- all cultural symbols you may see in Vietnam). The phoenix dance was one of my favorites. They found each other, fell in love, birthed an egg, then hatched a little one.

“King Le Loi on boat four or the legend about ‘Restored Sword’ lake. Legend-King Le Loi after triumphing over invaders Ming, gave the magic sword back to a giant turtle”

“Fairy dance”

“Dance of four Holy Animals” (Lion, Dragon, Unicorn, Phoenix)/ Finale

The chocolate fountain with fruit like strawberries, kiwi, pineapples, oranges, and also marshmallows was one of my favorites treats. My top was probably the bread pudding.

For just a few dollars more than the buffet you can get the high tea, which includes this 3 tier tray of fruits, sandwhiches, and more sweets (plus tea).

With the high tea you are also provided a plate full of breads and jams.

Jim and Charmin

Our table was next to the open doors which filled our table with exotic flower smells and a pretty cool breeze.

The atmosphere would not be complete without gorgeous arrangements of fresh cut flowers.

With barely a blink of an eye Charmin and Jim were signing up to go to Sapa- to leave last night at 8:30 to catch an overnight train ride. They got a personal cabin on the train which will get them there early this morning. They will have 2 days there before they come back here by 5 am Tuesday morning. It sounds like an incredible experience but Patrick and I wanted to decline since we are leaving to go home Tuesday evening.

So we parted ways after lunch so Charmin and Jim could go back and pack. Patrick and I walked in a couple shops but it was so hot we decided to head to the Sofitel early to sit by the pool and drink some refreshing drinks. We enjoyed having that one on one time with each other and with Hannah. By 3 we headed up to Paul’s room and visited for almost an hour. Paul called in the baby sitting army of 4 sitters to watch all 4 girls: Lily, Sara, Hannah and Lorrell. I explained how to care for Hannah and passed her off to one of the girls. I was very nervous to leave her , since I didn’t know what she would think. She almost instantly started to cry. The sitter got the binky out and things were fine, so I had to stiffen up and just go.

We immensely enjoyed our time with just adults the rest of the evening. We enjoyed the buffet, but couldn’t overdo it like last time. We sat, talked and ate until almost 6. Then we walked over to the water puppet theater. The water puppets were great! I got lots of pictures and found everything very entertaining. Now that we’ve seen the puppets we pretty content. That was a great original show, with very distinctive Vietnamese music and with stories that covered a lot of their folk stories and stories about their culture.

We rushed back to the hotel about 7:30 to get the kids so Charmin could run to meet Jim, who went back for the luggage, at the Kangaroo Cafe. The worst was realized when we got back. Hannah’s nose was runny and her cry was at the point where she was only hiccuping and whimpering. They said she basically cried most of the night. She took only a short nap. But Hannah’s stuff was spread all over the room and it didn’t even look like her bottle, except one that Lorrell was drinking out of, was used. I really enjoyed the night, but felt terribly guilty for leaving her.

What we realized was this: Hannah must have really grown attached to us in particular. She has singled us out as her parents already. Whenever someone here just grabs her out of our arms or tries to hold her, she just loses it. When we were getting out of the cab, the guy at the front desk (who is always trying to hold Hannah) came down to help and took Hannah from my arms so I could get all our bags. She was fine with him holding her, until he tried to look real close and get in her face. She started screaming. I think this might be one of those areas where we need to be real sensitive. We need to protect and help heal these scars. So just a note for friends and family: when we come in, it is okay to hold her but not to get in her face until she knows you and are comfortable with you. Hopefully this phase won’t last long. I am glad she has no attachment issues to us as parents, but we really need to guard our little one.

Right now, Patrick and I are sitting in our hotel room trying to cool off. We ate at a little restaurant near a lake by the park not too far from the hotel. Then we took a long stroll around the park. It was wonderful seeing all the families out with their little kids riding rides, playing on the playground, or walking together. We saw many people fishing or cute little couples cuddling on a park benches. It was a very relaxing way to spend our afternoon.

Here are some adorable pictures of the girls from last night:

Paul and sweet Lily.

Cute Sara in Daddy’s lap.

Best buds, Hannah and Lorrell, sharing secrets and stories from the past.

The usual suspects: Lily, Hannah, Lorrell, Sara

If you have two babies, you have to be prepared! Impressive!

Thankfully Rob and Sondra were able to find a flight out of here around midnight last night on Korean Air. It was a last minute thing, but Mr. Dat had their visa in hand and all the necessary paperwork, so they were home free. This means they will be able to meet with their doctor for Ella at the beginning of the week!

At this point, Patrick and I are going to be leaving at our regular time Tuesday evening. We get the visa Monday and will be ready to leave the next day. Charmin and Jim are going leaving the day after on their scheduled flights as well. Patrick bumped our seats from coach to business class so we would have more room and a guaranteed bassinet on the long flight. They will also provide as much bottle water we need for formula and may even clean our bottles for us. I was skeptical at first about paying more for these seats, but now that we have them I am excited we can get home (hopefully) well rested.

Unfortunately we never got to take Rob and Sondra to the chocolate buffet to experience a little taste of heaven. So, our plan is to go again today in their behalf, sort of as a celebration of the end of all of our journeys here. Last night Charmin, Jim, Paul and Patrick and I went to Ami, the wonderful restaurant next to our hotel. We went their once before and enjoyed dinner so much we wanted to introduce it to Paul; although we strategically went earlier this time, seeing how Hannah tends to explode with emotion too close to her bed time. The dinner last night was great…and a little entertaining. Paul ordered the small chicken which was fried and very tasty (according to Paul and Jim). But after seeing the chicken claw, Patrick and I politely refused a bite. ;o)

One reason we are seriously ready to be home is because of the lack of sleep we have been experiencing lately. You may think: well, the baby is coming with you, right? Hannah has her schedule down pretty well. She wakes once in the middle of the night, then around 4-5 and sleeps until 7 or later. Not so bad, especially since we take turns with the feedings. But what we can’t stand is how loud this hotel seems to get after 10:00 in the evening. It wasn’t this bad during the first part of our stay, maybe because we weren’t waking in the middle of the night and trying to go back to sleep. But two nights ago we had a couple of guys watching football and drinking beers in the room above us: banging furniture around and dropping things. That probably went on until about 2. Last night either the staff kept coming in and out of rooms, going up and down the elevators or there was restless crowd in the hotel. At 3 Hannah woke and we heard it. She woke again at 4:30 and still the doors were being slammed. Last night was the first time it really annoyed Charmin and Jim even, two floors below us. This hotel has been great this whole time. They have wonderful service, an amazing staff that is very attentive to our needs, room service, free breakfast, a daily laundry service, clean rooms… But night times are the worst!

Good thing is, we only have to stay here 3 more nights…