Tips on Travel

Since I have been getting this question a lot, here's what I either brought with me and was thankful, or forgot and had to find.

hope it helps some of you on your way...

1. Bottle nipples -- glad I brought a selection. It took about 4 different nipples for Quynh to settle in on one she liked. Bottles -- Q likes the ventaire and A likes nuk, so who knows.

2. Infant Tylenol Cold/Cough -- Quynh had a cough that this cleared right up. I brought some, so haven't looked to see if you can find it hear. (In Hong Kong, the brand is Panadol, so maybe look for that.)

3. There is plenty of baby bath stuff here, don't waste space to bring it.

4. Spoons -- I didn't bring these and had to find them, so might be worth it to throw a couple in, especially if your child is around that age.

5. Formula -- the formula our girls was on was very grainy and smelly. We switched to Enfamil with Iron and have had no problems. There are plenty of selections to choose from, just may not be what you can get in the States.

6. Our girls became extremely constipated when we brought them home. So much so that we had to find infant suppositories, which was interesting. We did find them and they helped tremendously, but you may want to bring a couple just in case.

7. Diapers are just ok. The brand that is the best I have found and not so plastic-y are the Bobby Soft (teal green package). You can bring your own and they will be better, but you can get by on what's available here.

8. Big C is a wal-mart type store that we bought a lot of supplies from. Most taxi drivers no it by name, just make sure you ask them to wait for you. Ours waited for about 45 minutes and it was about $3 extra.

9. I brought way too many clothes for the girls. I found that with the heat, you might as well keep them in cool, cotton stuff. Save the cutesy outfits for home. You need to have them covered when you go out too, and most of my outfits don't cover appropriately. :-)

10. I have had sitters come and stay with my girls while I run errands. If any of you need one, please email me. We have a couple that are WONDERFUL! Would love to give you their numbers.

11. Hanoi is HOT in these months. I am accustomed to hot from living in Hong Kong, but be prepared for HOT and HUMIDITY! I can't stress this enough. Bring comfortable shoes, and clothes that can be washed and dried easily. Meaning, if it is thrown in the dryer, you don't mind. I brought all bermuda shorts and tees. I wore capris and ballet flats to the G&R.

12. Might be good to bring hand fans or those little battery operated ones. They will come in handy when you are sitting outside at restaurants and stuff.

13. A friend recommended that we do a bleach water dip after washing the bottles to help with diarrhea. We haven't had a diarrhea problem yet.

14. Shopping -- clothes are really cute here, so save room and buy some outfits.

15. Bjorns -- it is the only way we get around, but they are hot, so be prepared.

16. We are staying at Somerset Grand, which has been spectacular. There is a grocery store on the ground floor that has been very helpful and easy.

17. ATMs seem to only dispense VND 1,750,000 at a time, but you can use your card a few times. I seem to be using more Dong than Dollars, but always good to have cash.

18. If any of you are bag ladies, make sure to go to Ipanima or Tina Sparkle (sister of Ipanima) for some funky totes.

19. Lan Ong street is baby street, where you can find everything you need for supplies. Just walk around the area and you will find a ton of stuff. it's in the Old Quarter.

20. Toys -- throw some in, as well as teethers. They have been a big hit.

21. Teething gel has been a good thing too.

New Pics and Updates

Thanks for all the nice comments and emails! We love reading them.

I just posted some pics from the ceremony day and in the process of adding some we took today. They officially smell like baby lotion now after their baths.

We have our first visa interview appointment on Friday, so that has been our good news. I actually thought with Memorial Day this week that we wouldn't be able to get in, but we did. I went to apply for passports this morning which was a pretty funny experience. A lot of stares, which I am ok with. But the pointing and talking and staring all at once was pretty funny. Then, I go up to the window where everyone is crowding around trying to get their number processed when all of a sudden some kind of argument broke out between a guy behind me and the lady behind the window. I am in the middle, but taller than him so he is basically yelling at my neck. I almost decided to move, but then didn't want to lose my place, so I held strong. We can pick up the passports next week.

Wit will post in a little bit about his funny experiences during his visit to the province a little bit later.

We did venture out tonight and actually went to a restaurant. No problems other than the waitresses kept whisking them away from sight. Literally, they were serving other people while holding them. It was pretty funny.

More soon!

Bittersweet

We woke up this morning thinking today was the day and today became the day...sort of. We saw our baby girls for the first time and got to hold and cuddle and snuggle and coo and kiss and everything else, but it seems that the suspense hasn't ended. Our ceremony wasn't today. We are hopeful for tomorrow. While being a very disappointing day from not reaching a conclusion, we did get to finally meet our two girls. And, they were everything we wanted and MORE!

The orphanage is situated about 2.5 hours outside of Hanoi in an agricultural community. When we arrived, the front of the orphanage was a "smoke salon" where people can come and get their hair washed/cut, smoke cigs, and get coffee. The orphanage is for disabled people as well. The front was ran by deaf girls. It was great fun for me to sign mine and Wit's name to them and meet them through signing. They very much enjoyed feeling a part of "our" world. In the rear is a dorm room sized building that contained 20-25 babies all <6 months old. It was both a wonderful sight and a sad sight, which left us fixed with many different emotions. The caretakers truly loved each child. They were wonderfully loving and provided the best care they can for all the babies. It was HOT. Let me say that again. It was HOT in the room. Luckily, the babies weren't bundled up, but in tees and pants, no socks and no hats. They were sweating. The caretakers were fanning away to keep them cool, flies away and beetles the size of my fist fell from the ceiling!!

Being at the orphanage brought a HUGE mix of emotions. We were terribly thrilled, but also saddened given that these babies were in need. It was way too quiet to be among 25 babies, there were no cries for 1.5 hours. The caretakers were 4 of the most caring, loving women I could have ever hoped for. At one point, she asked for Quynh back because she was hating to see her taken away from her. This made me happy. I totally respect her feelings and am very thankful for them. Our babies were well cared for.

We are hopeful for tomorrow. Not worried about it happening, just wondering when it will finally happen!

I am posting some pics in the Photo Album soon. Click on the link on the right hand side. It is password protected. If I haven't given you the password, give me a shout and I will send it, just don't want to share with the "entire" world.

More soon. B&W

Hello Hanoi!

We've both arrived and just had a short meeting with our agency's facilitator. We don't know for certain what time our ceremony will be, but we do know for certain that we get to see our girls tomorrow!! We are making a trip to the orphanage tomorrow around noon and hopefully will have our ceremony that afternoon, otherwise on Thursday.

I will post pictures when we return.

We had a great Vietnamese dinner tonight. Mai, if you are reading, we went to the same outdoor place you and I went to, and surprisingly I remembered all the yummy things you ordered. Tomorrow is definitely pho.

Have a good night/day.