Gotcha Day!!

“There is no such thing as chance; and what seem to us merest accident springs from the deepest source of destiny.”
- Schiller

Okay, it is official…He is ours!!!!!!! And, hey, guess what...it has been smooth! No problems so far (although have all only been together for about 4 hours)…Here is how the day unfolded…

Neither of us could really sleep last night for obvious reasons. …. So we got up (or out of bed in this case) at 5:15am…got ready and headed down to the lobby for breakfast. We brought all of the orphanage gifts, etc, down to the lobby by 7:15 for our 7:30 am departure. Our driver was a little late which we fell into a slight panic, but he soon got there. We then headed into rush hour traffic for the drive to the orphanage…and we got there a little late.

The scene initially was difficult…Anthony’s foster mother and father were at the orphanage and they were naturally very emotional. He was initially a little upset, but responded very well to both of us. This was probably the most difficult time of the day…We can’t imagine the grief of this foster family…And we can’t describe the absolute gratitude that we have towards them for taking care of our son during these early, important stages of his life. We will not forget them, and we will try to make sure he does not as well.

Since we were running late…They quickly ran us to the Department of Justice for the Giving and Receiving Ceremony. We were basically in and out of there in less than an hour. It consisted of a little waiting, then signing a lot of paperwork, some words from the director, etc... That was it…he was legally ours!

We then went back to the orphanage to finalize some arrangements and for a tour. It was truly an amazing experience to see this great place of hope and caring to many children..The orphanage and holt staff are absolutely pros...No other word for it, but professionals. Professionals that are caring and doing important, great work. Everything was amazingly smooth...No problems, no confusion, no surprises, they had there act completely together. We can't say enough about that.

Little Anthony has been an angel so far…very comfortable with us playing, eating cheerios, cookies, etc…We are still prepared for grieving and transition issues with him, but so far, so good. We are taking it minute by minute at this point…but he is great, smiling, laughing and having a good time….He is currently taking a nap...After eating rice, cookies and cheerios. We are still nervous and prepared for the other shoe to drop.

Tomorrow we leave first thing in the morning taking a flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi....this is where we will complete the process. We need to get Anthony his Vietnamese Passport and after that, get his visa from the US embassy...So tomorrow so-long to Ho Chi Minh City and hello Hanoi.

Now for what you all have been waiting for…Pictures….Stayed tuned for more info as we post it...Thanks for all of your continuing e-mails and comments on our blog...they are really appreciated...Keep them coming...

Meeting our son for the first time...His very emotional foster mother in front of Becki.

In the car on the way to the Department of Justice


Having fun with Daddy while waiting at the department of justice.

Feeding Daddy a cookie while waiting at the department of justice.

Waiting with Mommy at the DOJ.

The giving and receiving ceremony...He is legally our son.

Taking a nap with mommy in the car on the way back to the hotel.

Styling with his shades in the hotel room.