Our Joy Filled Journey: Gotcha Day

Since we've already been in Asia for a week, we woke up at a normal time and got a decent night's sleep unlike our neighbors, the McCarthy's. They were still adjusting to the time change. That's one advantage of starting the trip earlier.

Meeting Luke

We started the morning off with a spectacular breakfast in the hotel restaurant. Breakfast is included with our room so we weren't going to miss out. The breakfast reminds me of the expansive selection we enjoyed at the Seoul Millennium Hilton when we traveled to get Alex. There were western options like pancakes, waffles, omelets, and Asian selections like noodles, soups, rice, etc.

After breakfast, we met our guide Kelly in the lobby to go to the bank. Little did we know, the bank was right next door to our hotel. We needed to go to the bank to convert US dollars into Chinese Yuan for an orphanage donation/fee. It's a rather large amount and having to carry that amount in cash has been a bit stressful. At the bank, we had to provide a bunch of information to complete the transaction and between our three families (the McCarthy's and the Raczkowskis -- adopting three year old Sylvia), it took almost two hours. China has recently implemented some new banking regulations that limit currency exchange transactions to $5,000 USD per day. So we converted the max amount at the bank, which has the best exchange rate, and converted the remaining amount with an automated currency exchange machine in the hotel at as slightly less attractive exchange rate. But if you consider the time cost of money, the currency exchanger was probably the better deal although each individual transaction was limited to $300 so it took a few turns to get the proper amount.

The "gotcha" day room

At 2pm, our three families met in the lobby to go to the Civil Affairs office where we would meet our kids. This gotcha day was going to be different than our other gotcha days since several families would be getting their children that day. Because of the multiple gotchas, we were warned it can be a loud, chaotic atmosphere.

Cami took a short video of Luke's entrance

Shortly after arriving, we were taken up to the eight floor where we were asked to wait while our new children were in a play room. One at a time, a caretaker would bring out a child and unite him with their family. I got a peek at Wen De behind the curtain, standing nervously with a roller suite case. I was glad I at least recognized him from the photos. One of my fears was that I wouldn't recognize him. I can't imagine the feelings and emotions going on in his mind. Alex had fallen asleep on the way, and he was occupying Dana's shoulder so I was the first to greet Wen De. We greeted each other in English and I introduced him to the family. He knows some conversational English so that was helpful since I haven't learned much in the way of Chinese. After a few pictures and greetings, we went over to a couch while other families met their children.

During our time, we asked his caretaker a few basic questions about his life in the orphanage and his schedule. We also asked Wen De if he liked the name Luke - the name we had picked out for him. He said yes, so we've calling him Luke.

Soon it was time to go. I went into a room and did a little paperwork and handed over the orphanage donation. It was awkward to sit there while they counted the money to verify the correct amount. It seems like there has to be a better way to handle that transaction, such as a wire transfer.

Then it was back to the hotel where we started living as a family of seven. We had brought some remote controlled cars for him and the kids to play with so they opened those and started playing.

For dinner that evening, we went to a nearby Irish pub - the Paddy field. Luke said he liked hamburgers so that's what he ordered. It was a nice way to celebrate.

After dinner, we went over to Trust-mart, a Chinese department store owned by Wal-mart. We were in search of an air mattress since we didn't have any luck at AEON. Luckily, the McCarthy's had gone about an hour earlier and told us exactly where to find the mattresses. That saved us some needless wandering and awkward question asking. We found the mattress quickly and since it was right next to the toys, we let the kids pick out something. Luke picked out a pack of matchbox cars.

By the time we headed back to the hotel, we were all tired out so we got the air mattress pumped up and put everyone to bed. It was a long, exhausting and emotional day, but it feels like we're in the place where God wants us at this time.