catching up

Well I see it's been awhile since I posted so here goes. School started today, all 7 girls are in school all day so that is a blessing. We spent our summer coping with a horribly hot summer, so hot that the pool usually was not even used! All of the girls attended home schooled summer school and we heard no complaints this year so all went very well! We ended the summer with a trip to Myrtle Beach by way of Lexington horse park, a boot shop advertising 10,000 pair of boots in stock!, the beach, a over night in Charlotte for Penny to visit her China foster sister, a stop a few hours from there to meet long time internet friends, then through Atlanta, GA to see a company that I work with, then thank goodness we drove straight through that Saturday and got home.

Our school year has started, it will be a fall of starts - our son gets married to a lovely young lady Chelsea who will bring us a cute as a bug grand-daughter Gabbie. Oct. 20th Judy will enter The Children's Hospital in St. Louis to have a halo set and we will take her that same day to The Shriners Hospital where she will be a patient for a month having traction to lengthen the spine and relax the muscles to make the Scoliosis surgery easier which takes place back at the Children's Hospital on or around Nov 15th. One of us will always be with her during this time so i will use the term long distance parenting .... After the surgery she will be in the hospital for another 5-7 days and then return home to recover for a couple months before returning to school. The Dr. said we should expect her to gain almost 6 inches in height.

We are also adopting again, a girl nicknamed Cloud. She is 12 and from Loudi China. We hope to have her home before summer 2012.

Claude and I decided to have a pond put in to the south of the house. They are here tomorrow to hopefully finish it up in about 5-7 days. This will be a great compliment to our property we feel and give us hours of enjoyment fishing for "that big one". Alex and I walked the creek last Sunday searching for great treasure, the weather was fantastic, and we enjoyed each others company talking the whole time we were wading thru about a mile. No treasures except the time we spent together. We plan on starting next time where the Spoon river and Indian Creek join about a mile farther down.

Hopefully we will have just the same sort of a wonderful day.

We are asked constantly about adoption-we are going to put another tab on this blog so we can have adoption explained, and to offer advise of situations we have went through...hopefully this will help any and all that are even thinking of adoption. That will happen soon I hope. Thanks for checking in, The Coats Family

Home one week

We arrived home a healthy bunch-had overnighted in the Beijing International Airport where we experienced a bustling huge airport sleeping. Literally, there were people sprawled everywhere, already on the benches that Carrie and I had assumed we would take. We circled the luggage carts, got out the blankets we had and bunked the three girls on the floor. Carrie sat a lot of the next hours with her chin propped in her hands, I think I laid down on the floor...already a distant memory. They opened the check in counter at 4 am and we checked in, went thru customs, and found our gate, I thought. Thank God Carrie was still propping her chin in her hands and was awake, checked the tickets to find I had brought us to the wrong gate, she got us all awake and we trekked back about 18 gates to the right one. By this time the girls had been up almost 24 hours with just the little cat naps and they were really dragging to get there. We got on the plane for home and pretty well crashed off and on the next 13 hours. We arrived into Chicago with a nice enough lay over to get through customs and to our gate before boarding the plane to Peoria. All on time!

The whole trip was good. I pretty well can sum it up by saying thank you to God for this child. I feel great sorrow for the approx 90 children left at the orphanage as I feel we have taken the heart from there and that they are still there. This child snuggled in the first night in China looked at me and said good night mama I love you. Sigh.....and it hasn't stopped...When we arrived into Peoria her and I were first through the door and there were all the girls, a proud Baba, a new grandma and grandpa, a uncle Randy, cousin Jodi and friends....at first Vicky and Judy weren't real sure what to do or say, then they hugged and started talking (Vicky really had lost all her Chinese language yet while we were gone it pretty well returned to her and the girls have been talking in Chinese a lot)

Judy starts school tomorrow. We have her placed in 6th grade "sort of" as she will really be with the ELL teacher most of the time, then getting worked into class's as the language comes but I think it will be really fast the way the last week has gone. She has seen the pediatrician, (she is 49 inches tall!) the dentist (the first cleaning ever and she really hung in there thru it all and has no cavaties), and several stores to get clothes and shoes (this time American Express did not call after Claude's shopping spree so either they realize we have 7 girls or are just used to it).

Today we sat as a family and had the girls translate for us to make sure that Judy understood adoption. At first there was some concern as the girls had translated it as Foster Care and she answered yes she understood, that she got to be here for awhile to play and have fun and then would go back to the orphange. I am sure Claude and I had looks on our faces that need to never be recreated! Then they realized what they had said and got it fixed. Yes she understood adoption. We went on to make sure that she has what she needs, explaining if there is other items she needs to tell us....Addie asked what if Judy asked for a cell phone. It seems at this time all is well, that with the last 6 girls we gained enough experiance to pretty well cover the bases except for a night stand and a desk for her. Easily taken care of!

Claude is on family leave for 2-3 weeks to help get her situated and that really helps. Our house is running smooth, we have gotten Gracie moved upstairs so it is just Judy and Vicky in the one bedroom, I just am not sure yet how everything will play out as far as who is best sister to who...the girls are pretty well paired up it seems...so far it seems it is Judy and Addie...not because of any reason other than Addie just idolizes her and Judy is eating it up. She also seems to be one to like to be alone a little bit, play big sister or mom, and Addie is the same so they may be the ones that are best sisters together. All of the girls have agreed that Judy is a perfect sister. Claude and I agree that we have a 7th perfect daughter. Thank you God.

2/26/2011 Update from Ruthi

Sorry no new photos yet, maybe later....but first of all great news!!!! As usual rules change in China daily or even minute by minute and we are allowed to pick up the visa a day earlier!!! So am going to try to change flights so we can get home Friday instead of Saturday!!! sweet!!! TMZ had her medical exam today. I hope she gained even more trust in me when I got her in the cubicle with the one female Dr. there, when I explained that she WAS keeping on her cami and panti's and when I handed her the tissue thin gauze "sheet" to cover with....all the while holding her hand saying it is ok....the Dr. was quick, examed her nicely and said ok... I quickly helped her dress, all the while letting her hold the sheet against herself...what 12 year old wants to expose herself so soon to a new mom? Let alone on the other side of the flimsy curtian is many more people waiting for her spot? Then thru to the eye exam, to the ent exam, then to the horror chamber...I mean the shot stable...I mean the little area where they give the tb test. That was shot #1-then expose the left arm, shot # 2 and # 3-expose the right arm, shot #4 and #5 then pull down the pants and expose the thigh for #6....what can you do? Administer Tylenol...say I am sorry, hug her. We waited 20 minutes to make sure she was ok and then left....have met the rest of the maa group...great friends! Filled out paper work, got our agenda and now are off to shop! Love to all....will take camera so we can supply some more photos....

Later that day: YES I AM SHOUTING!!!! TOAST AND COFFEE FOR ALL!!! MINUTE BY MINUTE CHANGES HAPPEN IN CHINA AND WE GET TO GO HOME A DAY EARLY!!!! We will arrive, God willing , in Peoria on Friday March 4th at 9:20 am!!!! American Airlines #508 coming from Chicago. Be ready for a tired group.....but we are going to get home early....S-W-E-E-T...I cannot wait to get home...this trip was different from the start that I was already missing home before I left.

Friday, February 25 Update

Just got back from the park where the monkeys are. We saw lots of them...I don't like things like that -- so kept my distance The girls did well. TMZ slept terrible last night. She woke Carrie and I up a couple of times having dreams, and she had a cold when she came and still does. S between the two she is tired. TMZ, Penny and I are in the hotel room and they are both laying down together to nap now. TMZ seemed sad to me, so I had our guide Richard ask her if she was ok, or maybe sad. Se says she is sad today, also missing her friends. We told her we understood and it would be ok. I think rest, good food and taking it easy is best...as we will. We leave in about 3 hours for the airport to go to GZ. Richard said it is 90 degrees there now....hmmm, winter clothes packed...may have to strip dwn to a tshirt.... I have to find TMZ some clothes...her waist is really a bit larger than any length of pant. Maybe capris will work best as jeans...will find her something. Penny let her use a tshirt today as most of the ones I bought are way small. It was very long so I used velcro dots to hem it and she was really pleased....Penny agrees she will be a nice sister.

Thursday February 24 Update

The candy that Morgan and Penny are holding is honey...you spin a dial and it picks a character for you, then the lady had a pot of honey with a spoon, a hot plate of sorts that was about 18" inch square, and she took the spoon with honey in it and made this wonderful piece of art that you then ate...crazy talent! The honey tasted a bit heavier in flavor than ours. Morgan had a rooster and TMZ had a bird form. We ate supper at Pizza Hut..crazy that you could order everything from ice cream desserts to soups to fried rice and other Chinese food. We even ventured to the pharmacy with our botle of cold meds and secured a bottle that matched it, except in Chinese writing. TMZ told me how much the dose is for her...all the while saying no thank you...she really does not like the taste but hey. We understand home is to get 6-8 inches of snow...about the same time we will be on the plane going to GZ to hopefully see 70 degree weather...hopefully the snow stays away from GZ.

Thursday February 24 - What do you want to be when you grow up?

Today we went to an ancient village turned tourist trap :) But it was truly great. TMZ was game to put on the traditional Mao garb and get her photo taken. The other girls said no. Penny was forced to use the squatty potty and I seriously do not know how she managed since I am certian she was holding her nose with one hand :) We also saw tons of water buffalo along the highway walking. Carrie wonders how many mph they walk. We saw so much that really to describe it is so difficult. In all the people that we saw today we saw only 3 women expecting. Did you know that silver turning colors can tell you if water is safe to drink or not, the villagers use silver to tell them. We ate lunch at the ancient village...not too bad but Carrie and I agree we are trying Pizza Hut tonight. Yesterday on the way to Zunyi I asked the guide to ask TMZ what she wanted to do when she grew up. Her answer? (tissue moment) She said that until now she never had any dreams and now she can have them. That she might want to be a scientist, or a teacher, or a jewelry designer. I am so glad this child can have a dream now. And a family...now we just have to figure out the English name issue...she uses Judy. She thinks Callie Jo sounds like a boys name. hmmm...

2/23/2011 Update - Visit to Orphanage

Today we did a 2 hour drive to Zunyi City. We met our friends Zoe's mom there. It was great meeting a lady that can email me from China with concerns about her daughter and I in a matter hours can email her back and say she is fine, she just left her phone in the bottom of her purse. I told her today that she has a wonderful daughter and that she is a wonderful mother.

We went to a walking street. It was peaceful and had shops. Morgan got a fan and some earrings. We tested a few bites of different food items for sale and resisted buying baskets that are too large for our suitcases. We ate a lunch that was great...didn't bother my stomach. And then we headed to the orphanage. It took several tries to get there. We even ended up stopping and the guide, Richard, caught a motorcycle taxi and had them lead us for a ways.

We finally pulled in….what words do you use to describe a place that amazes me has children thriving in it? It is difficult to fathom that our daughters, and others daughters, have came from here and are as beautiful as they are? The blue two-doored metal gate with a padlock...a concrete courtyard with concrete playground things...even the slide was concrete. Metal framed windows that had to leak as if they had only screens in them...all the while the kids wanting to see us and see what we had, etc. TMZ’s room that slept 6 girls had bunk beds...two desks, wash tubs under the beds...no closet, and nothing on the walls. There were no Justin Bieber posters, no mirrors, no thick mattresses, no bed spreads with matching pillows...but lots of quilts bundled on them. Two blind girls were there at the desks and got the radios that TMZ had wanted to give them as gifts. Another girl was brought in, the third girl there in the room that is also blind and she got her radio. They all said thank you and I made sure to hold each of their hands when saying you're welcome... Then the other 3 girls that she gave pens to...then she handed out some hair items, a brush, etc. We had the apples for the other children....

TMZ was so excited to share her gifts, the guide summed it up well saying that she is so excited to be adopted and yet so sad to leave her friends that it evens out a bit. The smile has not left her face...maybe one does outweigh the other??

Then we drove to the girls school...to imagine our daughters walking to school on the road that we traveled was just not a good feeling. We said goodbye to Zoe's mom after we left the school and started the 2 hour drive back. Thank goodness that since 2007 there is a road put in that is passable. Before this drive had been 4 hours or more. We are back in the hotel now...tomorrow we go to an Ethnic Village and hope to just spend a bit of time walking, the last full day here in Guiyang. Now we have to figure out how to pack the suitcases!