It's Official!

Well, now she is stuck with us. Today we returned to the Civil Affairs Office and made it official, at least on the China side. Lian Jing Jun became Mae Kathleen. We were asked a few questions about our backgrounds and why we wanted to adopt this baby, a family picture of Mae, Rich, and me was taken, we were given an official document with our photo on it, and then taken to apply for her passport to bring her home. Mae was such a trooper, she just goes with the flow and crashes on daddy's shoulder when she is tired. Henry stayed behind with Valerie and had a great time going to the supermarket, building a fort in the suite, and taking a swim at the hotel pool. Apparently the pool is pretty great and we are hoping to take Mae for her first dip tomorrow sometime.

We have only known our precious girl for a little over a day and it is such fun to see her personality emerging. She is loving her toys, especially the red ones, and once she has decided she likes one she does not put it down. She is not eating as much as she should be and we are hoping to get some more liquids in her tomorrow. We were told this is a normal reaction to the huge change she is experiencing.

We just can't believe what a perfect match she is for this family. She is truly the missing puzzle piece of our family and we feel incredibly honored to be able to call her our own.

Tomorrow is finally a mostly free day. We are going to venture out by taxis with some other families to a department store and later in the afternoon is Mae's official medical check, required for her visa.

We have loved the emails from everyone. It is so great to hear from you and feel that connection to home. Thanks so much...and keep them coming! Here's the link to today's set of photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/caira/sets/736494/

Much love,
Melissa, Rich, Henry and Mae