Well, he's been crawling quite a bit but he seems to have been a little camera shy here.
Today, we are on our way to Hanoi. We went to the Reunification Hall in HCMC yesterday. The English tour consisted of a welcome greeting in English and an informational tour in Vietnamese. Oh well, they tried. Kieran did really well - he enjoys being in the Baby Born but of course when he faces out, we cannot see him and he gets into all kinds of trouble. At the airport today, he ate a good portion of Santosh's airline ticket as I was loading some of the bags.
Hopefully we will have better internet access in Hanoi at the Horison Hotel.
Here's some video and I'll try to get photos posted but Kieran doesn't give us much time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67c0BEZvk8A
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Monday, July 30, 2007
"Careful - he bites"
We only have two more days left in Ho Chi Minh City before we head to Hanoi. We are just waiting for Kieran's Vietnamese passport to be ready. Everyone told me to do my shopping here rather than in Hanoi. So far, I haven't bought much as far as gifts or items for Kieran. I really have to focus on that tonight. I do wish I realized how easy it was to buy necessities here though. I might not have packed less but I would not have stressed about making sure I had everything. They may not have an extensive selection of everything - but they have enough that we would certainly get by just fine. Almost all the pajamas I brought with me were too small but I've been able to find pajamas here for under $2 (really plan cotton pajamas that are probably equivalent to Carters brand.) Paying $2 a night for new pjs is cheaper than having the hotel wash them too.
I do want to get some things for Kieran's room and they have very nice embroidered wall art at many shops but I cannot find exactly what I want. Today we headed to a market that is not as touristy as where we usually go- I knew I wouldn't get decorative items but I wanted to see if I could get some small toys or other authentic Vietnamese items for Kieran or for gifts. It is very hot in these markets and extremely crowded. I think it would be OK by myself but with a huge backpack and Santosh carrying Kieran, it is tough. I'm definitely getting used to the heat.
Most people think (as I did) that the Vietnamese babies can tolerate the heat. This isn't the case at all actually. They all seem to sweat quite a bit and develop heat rash regularly. We have to continually bathe Kieran as soon as we get home or wipe him down when outside.
For the most part, he likes being in the carrier. He should like it - we cannot see him and he gets into all kinds of trouble. He grabs things in the market or right off the shelf. He's doing really well and is extremely active and a pretty tough little guy.
So today we went to the market and some women stopped Santosh (as usual) to yell "Baby, Baby, Baby" and run right over to kiss Kieran and rub his face or feet. Santosh had about enough of that and today he said, "CAREFUL - he bites!" as he made a chomping motion with his teeth and hands but pointed to Kieran. As you know, Santosh keeps a straight face through this kind of stuff and people backed off a bit. The people mean well but it becomes overwhelming and when Kieran is sleeping, it can be frustrating to have people come up and kiss him or touch him so much. Kieran really doesn't like it either so we are mostly trying to protect him. It's OK most of the time but in the crowded markets - it is tough.
After leaving the market, some old man wearing a mask (as many people here wear) ran up to me and stared at me - putting his face as close to me as possible (tough to do since he was about a foot shorter than I am.) I just kind of looked confused and walked around him. A second or two later, I feel something hit my backpack and he had thrown the peel from his fruit at me. When I turned around and looked rather angry, he ran off. People around me tried to motion that he was crazy. I guess he was - but it was still kind of funny.
We had to come home after only an hour of shopping because the rain was really coming down. Not that I'd recommend a trip to Vietnam in the July/August heat but because it is monsoon season, it rains extremely heavily each afternoon too. If you have a choice, come at another time of year. We have our anoraks which are really great. Santosh can wear Kieran in the Bjorn on his chest and then have Kieran poking his head out of the opening by his chest/neck. I'll see if I can post the photo o that. When Santosh tried this for the first time - I just couldn't stop laughing. I knew we'd get a lot of strange looks on the street with just this baby head sticking out of the raincoat while his body is entirely hidden.
When we walk around - we often walk one behind the other because of the crowds. If there is a little distance between Santosh and Kieran and myself, I can really notice the comments and stares that they get. If we stop near a crowd, they all point and yell "Baby, Baby" and then I think they make a comment about Santosh carrying Kieran. I guess they don't see 6'2" Indian guys carrying Vietnamese babies too often. And they don't know what to make of me as part of this either. I guess they don't think we are all together - that would just be too strange.
Yesterday on our tour of the Cu Chi Tunnels, a Veitnamese man asked our tour guide to tell Santosh that men should not carry babies - this is a woman's job. (I was inside watching the documentary and Santosh was feeding and walking Kieran around.) This guy never saw me at all so Santosh's response was, "What woman is supposed to take care of him? What if I was raising him by myself?" The tour guide was not about to translate any response from Santosh though - despite being in her 20's, she seemed to also think it should be me who carried Kieran around. Kieran was with me most of the tour so Santosh could explore the tunnels and shooting ranges (clearly something Kieran had to sit out and I didn't mind skipping it either.)
At one point, they showed us some of the torture devices and traps the Vietnamese used during the Vietnam War. The tour guide said sometimes people in the group ask to try them out. Well, of course Santosh told her that he'd like to volunteer that nosy old man who made the comments about him earlier in the tour.
The videos they show about the American War (as they call it here rather than the Vietnam War) are all clearly biased. They talk about the ruthless Americans who dropped bombs indiscriminately. Santosh said they peg it as a war between the mean Americans and innocent Vietnamese children eating rice.
We are enjoying our time here and it's great to have the change to really focus on Kieran. We don't have to worry about cooking, cleaning or other every day issues. It's still so much work though so I'm kind of wondering how I will do it when we get back. Kieran (or Durban) will have to pitch in a bit.
I hear Durban (our dog) has been very good for my mom. This is of course except for him rolling around in fox droppings. That just cannot be helped though - way too tempting.
Well, the rain has stopped so we will set out once again to go shopping. Our hotel is so centrally located and cabs to most places are $1 if it is too far or too rainy to walk so we go in an out a lot in a day.
Jennifer
I do want to get some things for Kieran's room and they have very nice embroidered wall art at many shops but I cannot find exactly what I want. Today we headed to a market that is not as touristy as where we usually go- I knew I wouldn't get decorative items but I wanted to see if I could get some small toys or other authentic Vietnamese items for Kieran or for gifts. It is very hot in these markets and extremely crowded. I think it would be OK by myself but with a huge backpack and Santosh carrying Kieran, it is tough. I'm definitely getting used to the heat.
Most people think (as I did) that the Vietnamese babies can tolerate the heat. This isn't the case at all actually. They all seem to sweat quite a bit and develop heat rash regularly. We have to continually bathe Kieran as soon as we get home or wipe him down when outside.
For the most part, he likes being in the carrier. He should like it - we cannot see him and he gets into all kinds of trouble. He grabs things in the market or right off the shelf. He's doing really well and is extremely active and a pretty tough little guy.
So today we went to the market and some women stopped Santosh (as usual) to yell "Baby, Baby, Baby" and run right over to kiss Kieran and rub his face or feet. Santosh had about enough of that and today he said, "CAREFUL - he bites!" as he made a chomping motion with his teeth and hands but pointed to Kieran. As you know, Santosh keeps a straight face through this kind of stuff and people backed off a bit. The people mean well but it becomes overwhelming and when Kieran is sleeping, it can be frustrating to have people come up and kiss him or touch him so much. Kieran really doesn't like it either so we are mostly trying to protect him. It's OK most of the time but in the crowded markets - it is tough.
After leaving the market, some old man wearing a mask (as many people here wear) ran up to me and stared at me - putting his face as close to me as possible (tough to do since he was about a foot shorter than I am.) I just kind of looked confused and walked around him. A second or two later, I feel something hit my backpack and he had thrown the peel from his fruit at me. When I turned around and looked rather angry, he ran off. People around me tried to motion that he was crazy. I guess he was - but it was still kind of funny.
We had to come home after only an hour of shopping because the rain was really coming down. Not that I'd recommend a trip to Vietnam in the July/August heat but because it is monsoon season, it rains extremely heavily each afternoon too. If you have a choice, come at another time of year. We have our anoraks which are really great. Santosh can wear Kieran in the Bjorn on his chest and then have Kieran poking his head out of the opening by his chest/neck. I'll see if I can post the photo o that. When Santosh tried this for the first time - I just couldn't stop laughing. I knew we'd get a lot of strange looks on the street with just this baby head sticking out of the raincoat while his body is entirely hidden.
When we walk around - we often walk one behind the other because of the crowds. If there is a little distance between Santosh and Kieran and myself, I can really notice the comments and stares that they get. If we stop near a crowd, they all point and yell "Baby, Baby" and then I think they make a comment about Santosh carrying Kieran. I guess they don't see 6'2" Indian guys carrying Vietnamese babies too often. And they don't know what to make of me as part of this either. I guess they don't think we are all together - that would just be too strange.
Yesterday on our tour of the Cu Chi Tunnels, a Veitnamese man asked our tour guide to tell Santosh that men should not carry babies - this is a woman's job. (I was inside watching the documentary and Santosh was feeding and walking Kieran around.) This guy never saw me at all so Santosh's response was, "What woman is supposed to take care of him? What if I was raising him by myself?" The tour guide was not about to translate any response from Santosh though - despite being in her 20's, she seemed to also think it should be me who carried Kieran around. Kieran was with me most of the tour so Santosh could explore the tunnels and shooting ranges (clearly something Kieran had to sit out and I didn't mind skipping it either.)
At one point, they showed us some of the torture devices and traps the Vietnamese used during the Vietnam War. The tour guide said sometimes people in the group ask to try them out. Well, of course Santosh told her that he'd like to volunteer that nosy old man who made the comments about him earlier in the tour.
The videos they show about the American War (as they call it here rather than the Vietnam War) are all clearly biased. They talk about the ruthless Americans who dropped bombs indiscriminately. Santosh said they peg it as a war between the mean Americans and innocent Vietnamese children eating rice.
We are enjoying our time here and it's great to have the change to really focus on Kieran. We don't have to worry about cooking, cleaning or other every day issues. It's still so much work though so I'm kind of wondering how I will do it when we get back. Kieran (or Durban) will have to pitch in a bit.
I hear Durban (our dog) has been very good for my mom. This is of course except for him rolling around in fox droppings. That just cannot be helped though - way too tempting.
Well, the rain has stopped so we will set out once again to go shopping. Our hotel is so centrally located and cabs to most places are $1 if it is too far or too rainy to walk so we go in an out a lot in a day.
Jennifer
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Kieran's settling in
Three of the four babies in our group are pretty easy going. Guess which of the four babies we have? Was it Sesame Street that had the four photos on the screen that read, "Which one of these is not like the others?" Well for us, that would have three babies laughing and calmly sitting on their parent's lap and Kieran would be the fourth child banging on whatever is in front of him.
Well, each day is so different from the one before. Kieran is learning so much (and I guess we are learning a lot about him too.) We are so in love with this little guy and are amazed at how perfect he is for us (he is a head strong kid just like his mom and dad.)
His teething issues and heat rash are subsiding so we are seeing so many more smiles now. He is obsessed with pulling himself up and if we grab his hands - he pulls himself up to sit and then stands - with very little help. He is a handful to say the least - we are shocked by how strong he is. We feel so lucky that he is doing so well developmentally. We never thought he'd be crawling and standing up already. The orphanage definitely gave him a lot of attention. That said, he's a very in your face kind of kid. He will NOT be ignored and he will NOT be still if he is awake. If the waitresses here didn't offer to carry him when we eat, it would be nearly impossible to eat anything at all. He is getting slightly better about us sitting down once in a while.
He still doesn't sleep through the night so we are very sleep deprived. We also don't have internet access regularly so posting to the blog is tough at times.
Tonight all the families (except for Molly who is very sick) went to Brenda's daughter's birthday party. Raven was five years old today and we had ice cream and cake after dinner which was really nice. During the day, Santosh, Kieran and I went to see the Cu Chi tunnels today with Brenda's husband Jeff and son Ryker. Her kids are doing really well on the trip and so are Molly's. I'm amazed at how patient and mature they all are - there is a lot of waiting around and they handle it so well.
After the party, we went to the store buy yet another 5 liter bottle of water for Kieran - yes he went through 5 liters in just under 3 days - you can figure out how many diapers we have gone through if he's drinking so much. It was pouring as usual so we had the very large gold umbrella that the hotel lent us on our way out. Santosh was holding Kieran in the Baby Bjorn and Kieran was holding the umbrella with both hands as they walked - he always has to do what we do.
When we got to the store, Santosh closed up the umbrella and Kieran grabbed it. Santosh must have lost track of what had happened and a few minutes later, we realized that Kieran had been carrying this huge umbrella for quite a long time in the store. This little guy is very strong for a 7 month old - that umbrella was very big and bulky - about 36 inches long and it was no problem for him. Of course when we saw this and thought it was so cute - we tried to get him to do it again. He refused to do it again and I'm sure everyone around us thought we were nuts for trying to get this infant to carry a family size umbrella for us.
Well, I'm far behind on the blog - lots of stories to catch up on but when Kieran falls asleep - we hit the deck. We fall asleep immediately knowing it will be a very short time until he's up again and running around.
More info to follow tomorrow.
Jen
Well, each day is so different from the one before. Kieran is learning so much (and I guess we are learning a lot about him too.) We are so in love with this little guy and are amazed at how perfect he is for us (he is a head strong kid just like his mom and dad.)
His teething issues and heat rash are subsiding so we are seeing so many more smiles now. He is obsessed with pulling himself up and if we grab his hands - he pulls himself up to sit and then stands - with very little help. He is a handful to say the least - we are shocked by how strong he is. We feel so lucky that he is doing so well developmentally. We never thought he'd be crawling and standing up already. The orphanage definitely gave him a lot of attention. That said, he's a very in your face kind of kid. He will NOT be ignored and he will NOT be still if he is awake. If the waitresses here didn't offer to carry him when we eat, it would be nearly impossible to eat anything at all. He is getting slightly better about us sitting down once in a while.
He still doesn't sleep through the night so we are very sleep deprived. We also don't have internet access regularly so posting to the blog is tough at times.
Tonight all the families (except for Molly who is very sick) went to Brenda's daughter's birthday party. Raven was five years old today and we had ice cream and cake after dinner which was really nice. During the day, Santosh, Kieran and I went to see the Cu Chi tunnels today with Brenda's husband Jeff and son Ryker. Her kids are doing really well on the trip and so are Molly's. I'm amazed at how patient and mature they all are - there is a lot of waiting around and they handle it so well.
After the party, we went to the store buy yet another 5 liter bottle of water for Kieran - yes he went through 5 liters in just under 3 days - you can figure out how many diapers we have gone through if he's drinking so much. It was pouring as usual so we had the very large gold umbrella that the hotel lent us on our way out. Santosh was holding Kieran in the Baby Bjorn and Kieran was holding the umbrella with both hands as they walked - he always has to do what we do.
When we got to the store, Santosh closed up the umbrella and Kieran grabbed it. Santosh must have lost track of what had happened and a few minutes later, we realized that Kieran had been carrying this huge umbrella for quite a long time in the store. This little guy is very strong for a 7 month old - that umbrella was very big and bulky - about 36 inches long and it was no problem for him. Of course when we saw this and thought it was so cute - we tried to get him to do it again. He refused to do it again and I'm sure everyone around us thought we were nuts for trying to get this infant to carry a family size umbrella for us.
Well, I'm far behind on the blog - lots of stories to catch up on but when Kieran falls asleep - we hit the deck. We fall asleep immediately knowing it will be a very short time until he's up again and running around.
More info to follow tomorrow.
Jen
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Quick post
Hey,
Well, we found a cafe with wi-fi. Kind of in a rush (story of our lives now.) Just wanted to say all is well. Kieran is a wonderful little guy. Very inquisitive and energetic. He is reaching for everything - almost took out the lamp at the concierge desk and picked up loose candy at the market. When he's in the carrier, we can't see him well but we'll find odd things in his hand that he's picked up along the way.
He's eating every 2-3 hours. Someone who traveled a month ago said her daughter was always hungry and Kieran is definitely the same. He cannot get enough food!!! Actually he only likes to eat a little at a time. So that's a lot of bottles and a lot of diaper changes since everything is a little at a time. Still sleeps only a few hours at a time. We hope when we can get him on a schedule, it will get a bit easier.
So we will have to share our amusing stories with our next post.
All is well here in Ho Chi Minh City and we had our Immigration Interview with the woman who is notorious for being tough. She actually wasn't too tough on us and we are happy it is behind us. The medical exam is also over and the dr was great - he spent time in Atlanta at the CDC so we had a lot to talk about.
Keiran's teething issue is still a problem but the high fever is gone. He has suffered from heat rash but we are trying to work on that as well. It is just unbelievably hot and these babies sweat so much. I'm handling the heat a lot better than I thought I would but it is tough on us - very tiring and a bit frustrating that we always look and feel sweaty.
Kieran is really an incredible kid. So much bigger and smarter than we expected. I cannot say enough about the Red Cross Orphanage. Obviously they took very good care of him (I think they held him TOO much - he refuses to be let down unless two of his favorite toys are around. Those "toys" are electrical cords or plastic bags. Obviously we don't keep them around but if he sees them, he just freaks and starts grabbing. I'm amazed at what trouble he can already get into. He tore the official paperwork from the gov't officials at the ceremony, tore up the receipts from the hotel as soon as they were handed to us and eats any paper product he sees.
We changed from a regular room to a suite - Kieran needed more space - what a good move. There is a swivel chair in the room and this was worth the cost of the suite on its own. Santosh and I are both struggling with sore backs since we can never sit down while Kieran is awake (so that would be about 18 -20 hours a day). So we are taking turns pushing each other around the room with him or swinging it around. This seems to satisfy the urge to keep moving AND has the added bonus of preventing him from getting into mischief at the same time.
Ok, off to hotel since my mom is online and said she can call us soon.
More later
Well, we found a cafe with wi-fi. Kind of in a rush (story of our lives now.) Just wanted to say all is well. Kieran is a wonderful little guy. Very inquisitive and energetic. He is reaching for everything - almost took out the lamp at the concierge desk and picked up loose candy at the market. When he's in the carrier, we can't see him well but we'll find odd things in his hand that he's picked up along the way.
He's eating every 2-3 hours. Someone who traveled a month ago said her daughter was always hungry and Kieran is definitely the same. He cannot get enough food!!! Actually he only likes to eat a little at a time. So that's a lot of bottles and a lot of diaper changes since everything is a little at a time. Still sleeps only a few hours at a time. We hope when we can get him on a schedule, it will get a bit easier.
So we will have to share our amusing stories with our next post.
All is well here in Ho Chi Minh City and we had our Immigration Interview with the woman who is notorious for being tough. She actually wasn't too tough on us and we are happy it is behind us. The medical exam is also over and the dr was great - he spent time in Atlanta at the CDC so we had a lot to talk about.
Keiran's teething issue is still a problem but the high fever is gone. He has suffered from heat rash but we are trying to work on that as well. It is just unbelievably hot and these babies sweat so much. I'm handling the heat a lot better than I thought I would but it is tough on us - very tiring and a bit frustrating that we always look and feel sweaty.
Kieran is really an incredible kid. So much bigger and smarter than we expected. I cannot say enough about the Red Cross Orphanage. Obviously they took very good care of him (I think they held him TOO much - he refuses to be let down unless two of his favorite toys are around. Those "toys" are electrical cords or plastic bags. Obviously we don't keep them around but if he sees them, he just freaks and starts grabbing. I'm amazed at what trouble he can already get into. He tore the official paperwork from the gov't officials at the ceremony, tore up the receipts from the hotel as soon as they were handed to us and eats any paper product he sees.
We changed from a regular room to a suite - Kieran needed more space - what a good move. There is a swivel chair in the room and this was worth the cost of the suite on its own. Santosh and I are both struggling with sore backs since we can never sit down while Kieran is awake (so that would be about 18 -20 hours a day). So we are taking turns pushing each other around the room with him or swinging it around. This seems to satisfy the urge to keep moving AND has the added bonus of preventing him from getting into mischief at the same time.
Ok, off to hotel since my mom is online and said she can call us soon.
More later
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
He's Finally Ours!
Well, it's been a wonderful 24 hours (and of course - very exhausting too.) What a great way to spend our 3rd wedding anniversary.
Yesterday, we left around 1pm for the Giving and Receiving ceremony. It was held at a government office in a pretty small room. There were 4 families (16 people total with the babies), plus two gov't officials, a judge, the orphanage director and Quoc from VORF. It was a very tight squeeze.
It was essentially just lots of paperwork we needed to sign to complete the process and make everything official. The nannies from the orphanage brought the babies in and we could see it was tough for them. They've been caring for the babies for 6-7 months so they have really bonded with these babies.
I'm so glad we were able to meet Kieran the day before - it would have been nearly impossible to concentrate if this had been the first time we met him. Luckily all the babies were really easy going. Kieran loved the toys we brought and Santosh secured the teething toy to Kieran with the strap from the camera (so we didn't have to keep washing everything he threw or dropped.)
The ceremony ended with us all sitting around for a long time staring at each other and eating fruit. Not really what I expected but the language barrier makes it a bit tough to do much more than that. It's hard not being able to ask the nannies what they fed Kieran or what his routine is. We just didn't have anyone to translate for us. Lots of pointing and smiling. Quoc is way too busy handling the paperwork and he was serving as the official translator. We do have one person on our trip who is Vietnamese and she is a great help to us since very few of the people we encouner at the hotel or orphanage speak English.
Santosh and Kieran both snoozed on the way back. Kieran fell asleep again as soon as we got to the hotel. We went for a swim after Kieran's nap yesterday and Kieran really loved the pool. It is heated (to the point of being too warm) and is very relaxing. So far, Kieran seemed fine and all was going well. He was even excited for his bath. Soon after, it became obvious that his teething problems were more serious than we thought. (I'm still wondering what the heck the nannies gave Kieran to keep him so calm during the G&R. He was clearly suffering.) He had a high fever and was in a lot of pain last night. We gave him teething gel and Motrin and it helped a bit but he was just so miserable. He had these sad little cries and just wouldn't settle down unless we were carrying him around the room.
He refused to take a bottle but was very excited for some baby food that I had so I guess that's his introduction to baby food. So far - it's a hit.
Today was also pretty tough - Kieran napped a bit but has been pretty sick. Motrin, Tylenol and teething gel just wasn't enough and his fever was very high.
When we decided to add the Tylenol, we realized that we didn't know how much to give without his weight. Santosh ran out to weigh him and I stayed here to find a dosage chart online. Thank God for Google.
Santosh came back 20 minutes later. Apparently 7 people from the hotel were running around with him trying to help. People from the spa found people from the bar who brought people from the gift shop to translate and then someone had a vegetable scale!
So he's 16.5 pounds - a bit bigger than we thought. As far as length - he seems to be OK but he definitely needs to gain some weight. I think he lost some weight in the hospital last month and probably more during these teething episodes.
In the end, the fever just wouldn't break and he was screaming way too much. A doctor came to the hotel to examine him and it appears it probably is just teething and he'll have to tough it out with what we've been giving him. Strangely, his fever didn't go down until we went in the pool today for a little while (even though the pool is very heated!) He of course wouldn't sleep in the room but was out like a light once he hit the pool. Trust me - we are ready to go back at 3am to the pool if necessary to get him to sleep tonight too.
Well, we are leaving the Sandy Beach Hotel tomorrow. I will miss the pool and the beach but not the hotel (more on that later and why I think the South Beach diet is dead. The Sandy Beach diet is where it's at. Four days here and our clothes are falling off of us. Luckily, Kieran distracts us from the hunger. The hotel is the ONLY game in town it seems so we can eat their stale food or go without. We've mostly gone without.)
I'm trying to post photos but since my view of all of this is only in Vietnamese - I don't know if I can figure it out. Last time we guessed, we deleted our posts.
Tomorrow we head to the Duxton in Ho Chi Minh. We hear it's pretty average BUT is the best location. I'll do anything right now just to be able to eat something. We hear Vietnamese food is great but the Sandy Beach hotel is desperately trying to keep that a secret.
Yesterday, we left around 1pm for the Giving and Receiving ceremony. It was held at a government office in a pretty small room. There were 4 families (16 people total with the babies), plus two gov't officials, a judge, the orphanage director and Quoc from VORF. It was a very tight squeeze.
It was essentially just lots of paperwork we needed to sign to complete the process and make everything official. The nannies from the orphanage brought the babies in and we could see it was tough for them. They've been caring for the babies for 6-7 months so they have really bonded with these babies.
I'm so glad we were able to meet Kieran the day before - it would have been nearly impossible to concentrate if this had been the first time we met him. Luckily all the babies were really easy going. Kieran loved the toys we brought and Santosh secured the teething toy to Kieran with the strap from the camera (so we didn't have to keep washing everything he threw or dropped.)
The ceremony ended with us all sitting around for a long time staring at each other and eating fruit. Not really what I expected but the language barrier makes it a bit tough to do much more than that. It's hard not being able to ask the nannies what they fed Kieran or what his routine is. We just didn't have anyone to translate for us. Lots of pointing and smiling. Quoc is way too busy handling the paperwork and he was serving as the official translator. We do have one person on our trip who is Vietnamese and she is a great help to us since very few of the people we encouner at the hotel or orphanage speak English.
Santosh and Kieran both snoozed on the way back. Kieran fell asleep again as soon as we got to the hotel. We went for a swim after Kieran's nap yesterday and Kieran really loved the pool. It is heated (to the point of being too warm) and is very relaxing. So far, Kieran seemed fine and all was going well. He was even excited for his bath. Soon after, it became obvious that his teething problems were more serious than we thought. (I'm still wondering what the heck the nannies gave Kieran to keep him so calm during the G&R. He was clearly suffering.) He had a high fever and was in a lot of pain last night. We gave him teething gel and Motrin and it helped a bit but he was just so miserable. He had these sad little cries and just wouldn't settle down unless we were carrying him around the room.
He refused to take a bottle but was very excited for some baby food that I had so I guess that's his introduction to baby food. So far - it's a hit.
Today was also pretty tough - Kieran napped a bit but has been pretty sick. Motrin, Tylenol and teething gel just wasn't enough and his fever was very high.
When we decided to add the Tylenol, we realized that we didn't know how much to give without his weight. Santosh ran out to weigh him and I stayed here to find a dosage chart online. Thank God for Google.
Santosh came back 20 minutes later. Apparently 7 people from the hotel were running around with him trying to help. People from the spa found people from the bar who brought people from the gift shop to translate and then someone had a vegetable scale!
So he's 16.5 pounds - a bit bigger than we thought. As far as length - he seems to be OK but he definitely needs to gain some weight. I think he lost some weight in the hospital last month and probably more during these teething episodes.
In the end, the fever just wouldn't break and he was screaming way too much. A doctor came to the hotel to examine him and it appears it probably is just teething and he'll have to tough it out with what we've been giving him. Strangely, his fever didn't go down until we went in the pool today for a little while (even though the pool is very heated!) He of course wouldn't sleep in the room but was out like a light once he hit the pool. Trust me - we are ready to go back at 3am to the pool if necessary to get him to sleep tonight too.
Well, we are leaving the Sandy Beach Hotel tomorrow. I will miss the pool and the beach but not the hotel (more on that later and why I think the South Beach diet is dead. The Sandy Beach diet is where it's at. Four days here and our clothes are falling off of us. Luckily, Kieran distracts us from the hunger. The hotel is the ONLY game in town it seems so we can eat their stale food or go without. We've mostly gone without.)
I'm trying to post photos but since my view of all of this is only in Vietnamese - I don't know if I can figure it out. Last time we guessed, we deleted our posts.
Tomorrow we head to the Duxton in Ho Chi Minh. We hear it's pretty average BUT is the best location. I'll do anything right now just to be able to eat something. We hear Vietnamese food is great but the Sandy Beach hotel is desperately trying to keep that a secret.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
We met Kieran yesterday
What a cutie he is! When we walked into the room, he was sitting by himself with his nanny. Of course I was trying to play it cool and not hold him right away. I wanted him to get used to us first. Well, that lasted all of 15 seconds. As soon as Santosh came in, he scooped him right up. He was very easy going and happy to play with the few toys we brought or just to gab my hair (Santosh encouraged that since hair pulling is clearly not something Kieran can do to Santosh!)
Kieran was bigger than I thought he'd be but it seems he's probably going to fit into most 6 month clothes. Now as far as shoes are concerned, we are going to have a problem. I've never seen baby feet like his before. We always noticed that he had long toes in photos but in person we noticed that his feet in general are just huge. He should definitely be able to balance on those things fairly soon.
At one point, the nanny handed Santosh a bottle for Kieran. He grabbed the bottle from Santosh and started gulping down that bottle as fast as he could. We'll definitely have to work on that. He shouldn't be so self sufficient at that age. It was kind of sad seeing the really young babies feed themselves or have bottle propped up for them rather than having someone feed them. Overall, the nannies seem to do their best and seem to really care about the babies. I think the G&R ceremony today will be very sad for them when they have to hand over the 4 babies.
We left while the babies napped so we could buy more donations for the orphanage and some food for the nannies. Now I know why they are so desperate for chocolate. I searched every corner of the store for chocolate. Lots of other candy but not one single chocolate bar. I guess when I saw all the same candy I lugged over from the US in the stores in Ho Chi Minh City, I thought it was easy to get. Definitely not the case in Danang so I'm glad I have some to give them. I wish I had more for them and I'm definitely in withdrawal myself.
We snuck back into the orphanage for a few minutes after we returned from the store. We dropped off some diapers for him and an outfit for the ceremony. I also wanted to get some Benadryl cream on his bug bites. His skin looks pretty good overall but he seems to have some heat rash and bug bites that hopefully will get better soon. We just switched hotel rooms to one that has working air conditioning. The hotel is not air conditioned except for the bedrooms. Our first room was very hot and I didn't realize the unit was broken. I thought all the rooms were like that - equipped with an AC unit that made it slightly cooler but still uncomfortably hot.
All I can say is that the AC unit we had compares to a real AC unit like an EZ bake oven compares to a real oven. It makes an effort and lots of lights went on but not much happened. Kieran will hopefully be a lot more comfortable in the new room. He has a crib that the hotel just delivered for us too.
Well, we are off to the G&R. We will finally be able to post his photo later today.
Kieran was bigger than I thought he'd be but it seems he's probably going to fit into most 6 month clothes. Now as far as shoes are concerned, we are going to have a problem. I've never seen baby feet like his before. We always noticed that he had long toes in photos but in person we noticed that his feet in general are just huge. He should definitely be able to balance on those things fairly soon.
At one point, the nanny handed Santosh a bottle for Kieran. He grabbed the bottle from Santosh and started gulping down that bottle as fast as he could. We'll definitely have to work on that. He shouldn't be so self sufficient at that age. It was kind of sad seeing the really young babies feed themselves or have bottle propped up for them rather than having someone feed them. Overall, the nannies seem to do their best and seem to really care about the babies. I think the G&R ceremony today will be very sad for them when they have to hand over the 4 babies.
We left while the babies napped so we could buy more donations for the orphanage and some food for the nannies. Now I know why they are so desperate for chocolate. I searched every corner of the store for chocolate. Lots of other candy but not one single chocolate bar. I guess when I saw all the same candy I lugged over from the US in the stores in Ho Chi Minh City, I thought it was easy to get. Definitely not the case in Danang so I'm glad I have some to give them. I wish I had more for them and I'm definitely in withdrawal myself.
We snuck back into the orphanage for a few minutes after we returned from the store. We dropped off some diapers for him and an outfit for the ceremony. I also wanted to get some Benadryl cream on his bug bites. His skin looks pretty good overall but he seems to have some heat rash and bug bites that hopefully will get better soon. We just switched hotel rooms to one that has working air conditioning. The hotel is not air conditioned except for the bedrooms. Our first room was very hot and I didn't realize the unit was broken. I thought all the rooms were like that - equipped with an AC unit that made it slightly cooler but still uncomfortably hot.
All I can say is that the AC unit we had compares to a real AC unit like an EZ bake oven compares to a real oven. It makes an effort and lots of lights went on but not much happened. Kieran will hopefully be a lot more comfortable in the new room. He has a crib that the hotel just delivered for us too.
Well, we are off to the G&R. We will finally be able to post his photo later today.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
On our way to Danang
Well, the Novatel wasn't exactly luxurious, but since it was only one night, it was tolerable. It's supposed to be a 4 star hotel but any hotel that has those hangers where the hook stays on the rod (so you won't steal them) gets one star taken away in my book. Add to that, the hair dryer that is attached to the drawer under the TV and I'm taking another star away for that too.
Santosh had to remove the drawer so I could get to a mirror but then the drawer was dangling from the hairdryer. In the end, I blew out all the fuses with my American hairdryer so none of it mattered anyway.
So we are on our way to the Sandy Beach hotel near the orphanage and hopefully we will get to see Kieran in the morning. Lots of gifts and donations to sort out but then we will be one suitcase lighter (but one baby heavier of course!)
So, hopefully we have internet access there but we may also be a bit busy so we'll see how our communication goes.
Santosh had to remove the drawer so I could get to a mirror but then the drawer was dangling from the hairdryer. In the end, I blew out all the fuses with my American hairdryer so none of it mattered anyway.
So we are on our way to the Sandy Beach hotel near the orphanage and hopefully we will get to see Kieran in the morning. Lots of gifts and donations to sort out but then we will be one suitcase lighter (but one baby heavier of course!)
So, hopefully we have internet access there but we may also be a bit busy so we'll see how our communication goes.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
We are in Ho Chi Minh City
We are in Vietnam !!
Landed in Ho Chi Minh City tonight. We are staying at a hotel close to the airport in anticipation of our trip to Da Nang tomorrow afternoon. Unfortunately we will only arrive in Da Nang tomorrow evening. This will prevent us from seeing Kieran until Monday. Being that close to him but not being able to see him will be extremely difficult.
The hotel is ok but a huge adjustment from the Sheraton in Bangkok. Anyway we had no problems getting through customs and passport control. What was surprising for us was the number of people waiting at international arrivals. There must have been about 250 people in a huge semi-circle outside of the arrivals door. The semi-circle of people was four to five people deep at times and walking out to a mob of that scale was pretty intimidating.
More soon.
Landed in Ho Chi Minh City tonight. We are staying at a hotel close to the airport in anticipation of our trip to Da Nang tomorrow afternoon. Unfortunately we will only arrive in Da Nang tomorrow evening. This will prevent us from seeing Kieran until Monday. Being that close to him but not being able to see him will be extremely difficult.
The hotel is ok but a huge adjustment from the Sheraton in Bangkok. Anyway we had no problems getting through customs and passport control. What was surprising for us was the number of people waiting at international arrivals. There must have been about 250 people in a huge semi-circle outside of the arrivals door. The semi-circle of people was four to five people deep at times and walking out to a mob of that scale was pretty intimidating.
More soon.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
We're in Bangkok!!!
Well, after a scary trip to the airport through serious flooding, we are finally here. Four hours on the runway waiting to take off didn't seem that bad because we felt we were on our way. (Of course add that to the almost 18 hour flight and it becomes frustrating but Thai Airways was pretty good and I was so grateful we upgraded and had a bit more space)
We're really exhausted but hopefully will have a productive day tomorrow and see as much of Bangkok as we can.
We see Kieran in 3 days!
We're really exhausted but hopefully will have a productive day tomorrow and see as much of Bangkok as we can.
We see Kieran in 3 days!
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
On our way to somewhere in Vietnam
We head out tomorrow morning. Still handling lots of last minute things. It never seems to end. We always need one more thing. The suitcases are not full so at least we have space for any purchases made during our three day layover in Bangkok.
We gave Durban a bath on Sunday hoping he'd be all set and of course he's rolled around in deer or fox droppings every time I've let him out. So that's three baths in three days for a dog who really despises them. . . I guess I am no longer worried that he's going to miss me all that much while we're away. He definitely senses that we are up to something and has been on his best behavior (other than his rolling around in a variety of droppings but that's just too hard to resist I guess.)
No word from our agency on where we will be staying, so for anyone who needs to reach us -
our contact info for the next month is:
Jennifer, Santosh (and Kieran too)
Vietnam
We gave Durban a bath on Sunday hoping he'd be all set and of course he's rolled around in deer or fox droppings every time I've let him out. So that's three baths in three days for a dog who really despises them. . . I guess I am no longer worried that he's going to miss me all that much while we're away. He definitely senses that we are up to something and has been on his best behavior (other than his rolling around in a variety of droppings but that's just too hard to resist I guess.)
No word from our agency on where we will be staying, so for anyone who needs to reach us -
our contact info for the next month is:
Jennifer, Santosh (and Kieran too)
Vietnam
Hopefully we'll get some info soon but it's likely we'll just have to try to find someone from our agency at the airport and figure it out (that seems to be what most people have had to do.)
Monday, July 16, 2007
Almost on our way
Well, we will be on our way to the airport in 48 hours. I'm enjoying reading the blogs of others who are over in Vietnam and we are getting really excited to finally go and meet our little guy.
I'm also planning some fun things to do during our brief layover in Bangkok. We'll have only a few days to check it out so we will have to be efficient. Anyone who has every been to Disney World with me (where I really kick it into high gear) knows my motto that vacations are for the mind, not the body. Santosh may mock my drill sergeant act, but he's very good at going along with it. (Kieran, on the other hand, may not appreciate it so we'll have to tone it down once we get to Vietnam. We won't get to see as much as we'd like but that's not the point of the trip anyway.)
Santosh and Durban spent the weekend getting the toys ready for Kieran - particularly the inflatable toys like the bathtub duck and the baby pool. We needed to use the pool to give Durban a bath outside after he jumped in the bay on Sunday. This morning, Durban had some choice words (non dog owners call these barks) for the pool. Though Durban seems to love water, bath time is definitely not his favorite activity. I'm glad to see that he's only holding a grudge against the pool and not me.
Santosh also installed the car seat Saturday. Durban, of course, was of no help. He occasionally jumped up to see what was going on since he considers the car (and especially the back seat) to be his. He stretched out across the entire back seat on the drive up to New York so I think he's going to be a little frustrated that he has to share on the way back.
Durban is not yet grasping that the baby toys aren't for him. I showed him a toy last week that had a large mirror on it. Once he positioned himself in front of the mirror, his tail started to wag like crazy. I guess he considers himself to be rather handsome. Durban also watched where we put the toys and goes back to get them later when we are distracted. He almost destroyed Kieran's boo boo bunny ice pack just moments after it was put away.
I spent the weekend trying to figure out what to pack for Kieran. Luckily I can only select from the clothes that I brought to New York so my options are limited. It's so hard to tell what size he will be. Kieran was 7 months old yesterday but many of the babies from his orphanage are his age or older and still wearing 3-6 month size clothing. We hear he is fairly chubby but it doesn't really seem that way in his photos. (By the way, we will be posting lots of photos of Kieran after the Giving and Receiving (G&R) ceremony on July 23rd or 24th.)
As far as packing for us, Santosh and I have acquired new wardrobes for the trip - none of it coming close to stylish. (Much of it ironically with "Made in Vietnam" tags.) We needed clothes that were light weight and washable in the hotel sinks. Footwear is limited to what is comfortable to wear when we go out and walk all day. Therefore, I'm formally requesting that photos of me only start from the ankles up. All other shots are at risk of being confiscated (pay attention Molly and Brenda.) Everyone should pretend I'm wearing something cute on my feet until maybe I can Photoshop a nice sandal onto the photo later on and erase all visual evidence that there were ever Tevas on my feet.
Well, back to packing. Santosh is making one last minute trip to Detroit before we leave - he arrives back in NY about 14 hours before we head back to the airport and start our adventure!
I'm also planning some fun things to do during our brief layover in Bangkok. We'll have only a few days to check it out so we will have to be efficient. Anyone who has every been to Disney World with me (where I really kick it into high gear) knows my motto that vacations are for the mind, not the body. Santosh may mock my drill sergeant act, but he's very good at going along with it. (Kieran, on the other hand, may not appreciate it so we'll have to tone it down once we get to Vietnam. We won't get to see as much as we'd like but that's not the point of the trip anyway.)
Santosh and Durban spent the weekend getting the toys ready for Kieran - particularly the inflatable toys like the bathtub duck and the baby pool. We needed to use the pool to give Durban a bath outside after he jumped in the bay on Sunday. This morning, Durban had some choice words (non dog owners call these barks) for the pool. Though Durban seems to love water, bath time is definitely not his favorite activity. I'm glad to see that he's only holding a grudge against the pool and not me.
Santosh also installed the car seat Saturday. Durban, of course, was of no help. He occasionally jumped up to see what was going on since he considers the car (and especially the back seat) to be his. He stretched out across the entire back seat on the drive up to New York so I think he's going to be a little frustrated that he has to share on the way back.
Durban is not yet grasping that the baby toys aren't for him. I showed him a toy last week that had a large mirror on it. Once he positioned himself in front of the mirror, his tail started to wag like crazy. I guess he considers himself to be rather handsome. Durban also watched where we put the toys and goes back to get them later when we are distracted. He almost destroyed Kieran's boo boo bunny ice pack just moments after it was put away.
I spent the weekend trying to figure out what to pack for Kieran. Luckily I can only select from the clothes that I brought to New York so my options are limited. It's so hard to tell what size he will be. Kieran was 7 months old yesterday but many of the babies from his orphanage are his age or older and still wearing 3-6 month size clothing. We hear he is fairly chubby but it doesn't really seem that way in his photos. (By the way, we will be posting lots of photos of Kieran after the Giving and Receiving (G&R) ceremony on July 23rd or 24th.)
As far as packing for us, Santosh and I have acquired new wardrobes for the trip - none of it coming close to stylish. (Much of it ironically with "Made in Vietnam" tags.) We needed clothes that were light weight and washable in the hotel sinks. Footwear is limited to what is comfortable to wear when we go out and walk all day. Therefore, I'm formally requesting that photos of me only start from the ankles up. All other shots are at risk of being confiscated (pay attention Molly and Brenda.) Everyone should pretend I'm wearing something cute on my feet until maybe I can Photoshop a nice sandal onto the photo later on and erase all visual evidence that there were ever Tevas on my feet.
Well, back to packing. Santosh is making one last minute trip to Detroit before we leave - he arrives back in NY about 14 hours before we head back to the airport and start our adventure!
Saturday, July 14, 2007
The journey begins
(Updated post to add photo of Kieran from May. Taken by another adoptive parent during her visit to Danang to pick up her daughter.)
Santosh thinks Kieran is making a fist here and punching it into the palm of the other hand. I saw it as something somewhat angelic. . . . turns out I think Santosh was right.
After 16 hours of driving, we are finally in New York. We are one step closer to bringing Kieran home.
We did not want to leave Durban, our Wheaten Terrier, in a pet resort. So we drove through the night so that he can stay with his unsuspecting grandparents while we are in Vietnam. I expect that Durban is also very excited about Kieran's arrival, but he is acting rather nonchalant for now. He has shown a keen interest in the steady stream of new toys arriving at the house. However, this is very much in keeping with his "I own all toys and can chew them whenever I want" attitude, which only until recently has gone pretty much unchecked.
The days cannot go by fast enough. We leave on Wednesday and have much to do before then. We have the tickets, visas, adoption documents and 90% of everything we own packed and ready to go. Not sure that Jen believes that she has packed enough.
-Santosh-
After 16 hours of driving, we are finally in New York. We are one step closer to bringing Kieran home.
We did not want to leave Durban, our Wheaten Terrier, in a pet resort. So we drove through the night so that he can stay with his unsuspecting grandparents while we are in Vietnam. I expect that Durban is also very excited about Kieran's arrival, but he is acting rather nonchalant for now. He has shown a keen interest in the steady stream of new toys arriving at the house. However, this is very much in keeping with his "I own all toys and can chew them whenever I want" attitude, which only until recently has gone pretty much unchecked.
The days cannot go by fast enough. We leave on Wednesday and have much to do before then. We have the tickets, visas, adoption documents and 90% of everything we own packed and ready to go. Not sure that Jen believes that she has packed enough.
-Santosh-
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