CHINA - XIAN

So Amanda & I have had two days of shopping buying loads of stuff. Yesterday we bought 16 pieces of furniture from secondhand markets (which gives 17 in total as we bought one earlier in the week) as well as material for new curtains, covers & sheets & paint to match.

Today we organized some of the curtains & covers to be made & what a trial that was getting them to understand what we wanted - & that was with Amanda speaking Chinese. It's a bizzare system where there are seamstresses lined up against a wall outside all sewing their little hearts out. Maybe it actually makes common sense as you can buy the material & get it made up straight away - although we brought ours home to wash & dry it first in case it was going to shrink. I wish Mum was here as we could have them made ourselves - & made them properly! We also bought more paint - another strange system where you pick the paint you want mixed up, go & pay for it, take your receipt to the mixers, wait for them to make it up & then go back & pay for your other items. I guess it's so you don't get paint made up & then change your mind.

Today six people Amanda knows have here for about 4 or 5 days to help paint & basically do whatever needs to be done to get the apartment ready. As I write this they are still painting & it's 11.30pm. I am going to be doing the furniture restoration - we picked up a nice little Dewalt sander today - so tomorrow it's Ipod in & the first day of sanding, sanding, sanding, varnishing, varnishing & more varnishing.

However the most amazing & moving thing that has happened in the last few days is this. When we were at one of the second hand markets yesterday I noticed a little boy of about 7 or 8 years old who eyes were big, blue & very cloudy. (The people actually live at the markets - they have a tiny area to sleep in & a bit of space to prepare food - when you are looking at the furniture you can see where & how they live, it is very humbling). I thought he was blind so I told Amanda & she asked to speak to his mother & look at the little boy. Although he basically is blind it looks like it's something like glaucoma or cataracts which can possibly be treated. The mother said she had taken him to a doctor & surgery would cost 10,000 Chinese dollars. The average wage in China is apparently 500 dollars a month so surgery is completely out of their reach. So Amanda gave the mother her card & asked her to come & see her as she is going to do whatever she can to help this little boy -even pay for it. She has already been talking to people to track down an Opthamologist. I wish I had my camera with me so I could have taken a photo of this little boy & where he lived. Let me tell you, we live like Kings!

CHINA - XIAN

This little bruiser (contradiction of terms I know) is named Tim. Actually little is not a word I would use to describe him. He's a big solid boy & very strong. He has quite a large bi-lateral cleft which you should be able to tell from the photo & some of his teeth have come through. I imagine that may make his surgery more difficult (although truth be told I really have no idea so could be completely wrong about that). He loves to scoot around in this walker & check out what is going on. The other thing he loves is his nanny - he has only been here since February but he certainly knows who she is & lights up when he sees her.

CHINA - XIAN

Today Lila & I went shopping with Amanda because............she has taken another apartment (3 in total now) & is expanding again. We were looking for material today for curtains, doona covers etc. Tomorrow we will organise the paint, buy the material, get curtains made & the list goes on. There are a bunch of Amanda's friends coming for a few days at the end of the week to help get the apartment ready. I am only sorry that I am leaving on Monday as I would love to go to the Orphanage to get the new babies (about 7 or 8 I think) & I don't imagine everything will be ready by then - the main problem really being finding more nannies.

We have also gone to several markets looking for second hand furniture that we can fix up. We are such a novelty there - 3 foreign women in a part of China most people don't get to see. They are all very surprised to see us & even more surprised when Amanda starts speaking to them in Chinese about the price of things. You see, there is one price for the Chinese & one price for foreigners but Amanda knows how to handle them. Eleven years in China & you learn lots of new & interesting skills.

Anyway the photo of Lila was taken in a place selling lots of furniture, Jade & Terracotta Warriors. We weren't looking to buy here, we just got a bit distracted (long story & not really news worthy). The one of me is at the market buying some new aprons for the nannies & I was the model. Maybe that could be my new career?

Actually, maybe not.

CHINA - XIAN

Today we have Sadie who was happy to pose for us both asleep & awake. Her outfit is by Bonds, blanket by Baby Bunting, make up thanks to A la naturale & the "I have lots of crazy black hair" is all her own creation. She is one of our very small cleft babies & cries very quietly so often gets overlooked. I just can't seem to get over her name though. Not because I don't like but all I keep thinking of is "Sadie The Cleaning Lady". The thing is that no-one here gets it because they have never heard of the song. They don't even know who John Farnham is.

Really what kind of world do we live in where Whispering Jack is not a household name??????

CHINA - XIAN

This little guy is James & I would say that he is my favorite boy here. When I got here he was not doing well at all & the nannies could not get him to drink from a bottle. They would kind of squirt the milk down his throat to get it into him but he would get so distressed that he would end up bringing it all back up. Amanda tried to spoon milk into him with a teaspoon which seemed to work so it may be that he had never been fed with a bottle & just didn't know how. So with a bit of patience & practise his nanny now has him drinking really well out of a bottle. He has such a sweet personality & a very gentle nature compared to some of the other boys here. He has quite a large bi-lateral cleft & when he cries he sounds like a cat. I think the sound just echoes around his mouth because his cleft is so large but when he smiles it's a huge smile. He seems to really really look at you (almost seems like he is looking into you) when he is watching you but he is very responsive when you talk to him & play with him.

This morning I went to the doctor with one of the nannies with James & one of the other babies. Part of the building looked very dodgy but there were other areas that seemed similar to what we have a home. Anyway the doctor was away sick & we have to go back on Wednesday. God forbid someone could have called us & let us know rather than us having to waste the time & money on a taxi there & back.

But this is China!

CHINA - XIAN

Today was Gigi's last day at Starfish. She has been volunteering here for about 7 months so is really part of the family. Gigi is Chinese/Canadian & is in the fortunate position that she can talk to everyone. She will be missed in so many ways, not the least of which is translating between those of us who speak English & those who speak Chinese.

Half an hour ago she left for the airport & there was barely a dry eye in the place. Now you all know that I am not one for getting teary in front of other people (if I can possibly help it) but watching the nannies crying it was all I could do to not join in. Let's just say I semi succeeded. Honestly the older I get the less I can hold that kind of thing in. What's the story with that? I am definitely not impressed!

Another reason for the emotion was that Gigi is taking Thomas (he is the blue baby I told you about) for his first heart surgery. She has a two & a half hour flight tonight & tomorrow they will do tests & get things ready for his surgery on Tuesday. This surgery is the first of many & naturally carries complications so any prayers you can send his way will definitely be appreciated. Gigi will then stay with him in the hospital & once he is in the NICU will then go home to Canada (after a visit to her Grandmother in China).

We went out for dinner last night as it was her last night here & in the photo from left to right is Gigi, Lila, yours truly, Amanda & Mark (a friend from Amanda's church).

CHINA - XIAN

Have I mentioned Julia before????? Here she is asleep (obviously) & with me (obviously again). Look at that face, she's hilarious! And adorable.

CHINA - XIAN

This little girl is Carmen (do you like that name Nicole?) & she is a heart baby. When I first got here she was really sick & seemed to constantly be in pain. She struggles to breathe & has had a cold so coughing has made her breathing even more difficult. As well as medication she has a nebuliser & oxygen which is helping & she is much more alert than she was a few weeks ago. The second photo is with one of the day nannies.

CHINA - XIAN

So I finally got my Baskin Robbins but wouldn't you know it they didn't have any cookie dough! What's the story with that? I can't tell you the amount of times I have been to Baskin Robbins at home & they have run out (well naturally I can't tell you how many times, cause let's face it, if I had kept track that would just be a bit weird, don't you think?) so I was hoping here in China it would be different. But no. So I went for my second favorite which is cookies & cream. Bit of a cookie theme there I know. As a kid I loved to break biscuits up into a bowl of icecream (I scream, you scream, we all scream for icecream - that was for Josh, Owen & Bridget) & mix it all up into one big mushy mess.

Anyway Baskin Robbins was yesterday & today we happened to go past a Haagen-Dazs (or however you spell it - that looks wrong but it's what's printed on the receipt) so what choice did we have? I had a waffle cone with chocolate & nuts & a scoop of cookies & cream & one of butter pecan. Total pig I know but I had Subway for lunch & that's low fat so they kind of cancel each other out, right? But it was sooooo expensive. So many things are cheap here once you convert Chinese dollars (RMB) into Aussie dollars & realize how little you are paying. For my icecream & one for Amanda which was only a baby cone with chocolate, nuts & one scoop it was a total of 90RMB. Divide that by about 4.7 & that's how much it cost for the two! Shameful I know.

So I am guessing that this could well be Sarah's favorite post so far!

CHINA - XIAN

The excitement today was that it was Bryan's first birthday. Although nothing was mentioned about it until after lunch so how excited everyone was, I'm not sure. Of course lunch here is at the ungodly hour of 11.30 so it wasn't too late in the day that it was mentioned.

Bryan was happy enough to sit there for a round of birthday photos with the birthday boy hat on but a bit later when we wanted to take photos with the cake & sing happy birthday, he was not impressed (as you can see in the video - & this was before we had even started singing). Strangely enough happy birthday, while sung in Chinese, is the same tune we use in English. Actually I don't know if that's strange at all really, it's just that I presumed they would have a whole different song!

CHINA - XIAN

Here is my girl & Lila's (or Grandma as we call her - well actually she calls herself that with the babies so it's okay if we do too) having a crying competition. Julia looks huge next to Noa - probably because she is (well most of the babies are, as Noa is teeny tiny).

I think Julia wins hands down.

CHINA - XIAN

My little girl fell asleep in her bouncer walker thingy. You can't get much cuter than that!

CHINA - XIAN

I know I have already shown you a photo of Antonia after surgery but her face was all bandaged up. So I wanted to show you a before an after photo now that she is home. She looks completely different (the fact that she had to have her head shaved - something to do with the IV line - also adds to it). I actually thought this operation was to repair the whole thing - cleft & lip - but it was only for the lip & the cleft will get done later. She may also need a little more work on the nose area but that is really cosmetic & will probably be done by her parents when she is adopted. We think she may be a little bit of a high maintenance girl as she can be a real lala if she doesn't get her nanny's full attention. Gigi put her in another room yesterday for a bit of "time out" for being a bit too bratty!

CHINA - XIAN

Gigi & I just went over the road to the Optometrist as apparently contact lenses here are much cheaper than at home. Which they are - at home I pay about $230 for 6 pairs & here they are about $125. We didn't get them as we have heard of another place to go to that may be even cheaper.

So we went to the bakery instead. As you do.

I feel like I am eating lots of bad stuff & doing no exercise, so all that work I did in the last 18 months may go down the toilet. Although I am not sitting in front of a desk all day everyday so maybe that will be my saving grace.

CHINA - XIAN

This is Clara (like my dear friend Joyce she will be about 70 when she grows into her name - although chances are her adoptive parents will change it - maybe to something worse, that has happened) & she is a cleft baby. She is also one well covered chubby baby which is great to see with these little ones. She is also a very happy girl but for some reason as soon as you put a camera in front of these kids they go all serious. When you get them to laugh they move around a lot so the photo ends up being fuzzy!

CHINA - XIAN

And here she is again - this time playing the part of Little Miss Happy.

I would give up the rest of my trip to be able to take this little girl home. But don't worry I'm not getting too attached. One of the skills I have learnt in the last several years is how to disassociate (not sure how good I am at it - if at all) so I will be FINE when I have to leave her.

You can't have your heart broken twice, right?

CHINA - XIAN

Here is a video of Julia - Little Miss Cranky!

CHINA - XIAN

Today you get to meet Stewart (not that keen on his name either but you get that) & he is one of Lila's favorites. Both Stewart & Noa (who you will meet later) spend an awful lot of time with Grandma - as the babies call her, at least they would if they could talk - in her room on her bed. I think Lila is starting up her own foster home in her room. They are sooooo spoilt! But they deserve it & I can hardly talk. As soon as I hear Julia I race to get her. God forbid she should love anyone better than me!

CHINA - XIAN

We have a new volunteer - her name is Anna & she is from the U.K. She is here with the organization called Eye to Eye (no idea if that's the way it is written) which is the same group that Elise was here with. So she just comes to us during the day. In the photo she is holding Karl (I have no idea who named him but .....Karl????......I mean, really!!!! - my apologies to anyone named Karl but it just doesn't work for me especially for a little baby) but you can't really see him so I put in another of him with our resident princess Libby. I think this is really cute cause it kind of looks like they are a couple. I know she doesn't look happy about being "an item" but believe me she was quite happy with him on the couch for ages until she decided she had had enough. I know I could have put a happy snap in but I like this one so much better.

It could be a snapshot of their future life. She's not happy & he has no idea why or what to do about it!

CHINA - XIAN

This is Thomas & he probably has the most complications of all the babies here. He has a cleft in his backbone, kidney problems, an exposed bladder & a heart problem. Because of the heart problem he has very poor circulation & consequently he is what is called a blue baby. Basically because his skin has a blueish tone to it (just thought I'd add that in case it wasn't obvious). These photos don't show how blue he actually is - his extremities like his fingers show his condition better. Think of the girl in Willy Wonka (Veruka Salt???) that ate all the blueberry bubble gum - he's kind of like a toned down version of her. Thomas will need a lot of surgery over a period of time - we were hoping he was going in for his first one tomorrow but it has been delayed.

CHINA - XIAN

Okay, so I lied, there is never no news here.

One of my little girls has the chicken pox. Poor Nadia is not a happy camper! A bunch of the other kids had it just before I got here but she is the only one at the moment.

We also had some visitors today from Melbourne - around the Glen Waverley area - small world huh? There was a doctor, his wife & their four grown children (one of whom is also a doctor) - they are Australian Chinese - & three of their friends. They brought some medication as a donation that Amanda had been having trouble getting hold of which was greatly appreciated.

CHINA - XIAN

So here it is! The fantastic shelving unit I put together to store the formula.

Okay, so it's a slow news day.

Although I did want to say that I have changed the settings in the blog so you can make a comment if you want to (at least I hope I have done it right). Thanks to "my person" Joyce for pointing out that she couldn't - which now means I naturally expect comments all the time Joyce!

CHINA - XIAN

Sarah sent me an email today asking all sorts of questions. She wanted more Tracey & less babies. So here are a few photos of my room just for Sarah (& anyone else interested in "me lodgings". I'm in the pink room. Obviously.

Okay, so Baskin Robbins & the much desired cookie dough icecream did not eventuate today. But. It. Will. Happen. And believe me you will hear about it when it does.

I did however go to McDonalds again for breakfast. I wanted hotcakes. No syrup. So there was no point. I wanted a milkshake (they either don't have thickshakes here or they just call them milkshakes). No luck there either. I was beginning to think it was a sign that I wasn't meant to have McDonalds today. Anyway I didn't listen & had hash browns. The sky didn't cave in on me so maybe I was way off with the "it's a sign" idea.

I also went to a hardware/homewares shop (kind of like Bunnings except the staff at the exit who check your receipt - they have them at the supermarket too - are dressed like soldiers) with Amanda & bought some shelves which I put together to store formula etc. so it doesn't have to all sit in boxes. I probably should have taken a photo I guess but really how exciting is a photo of shelves stacked with formula?

CHINA - XIAN

This little guy is Nick. He has a hair lip but not a cleft palette. He can be a serious little man but loves to smile. He has such a smooth head with barely a wisp of hair - I think of him as the Buddah baby. There is something about his face that seems old & wise. A few of the babies look like that - it's as though they have a huge depth to them, almost as though they have been here before & know a lot more than us.

Today we had a few visitors - one of them was Helen who is from England & is here teaching English at a middle school. For those of us that don't know what a middle school is (which includes yours truly) it's apparently children - or rather teenagers - from about 15 - 18 years old.

Amanda called before with some exciting news. She was out at the bank & was dropping by the new Baskin Robbins & wanted to know what she could get me. Over the moon I was until she went into the store & said they weren't actually open until tomorrow!

So tomorrow I'm gonna get me some cookie dough icecream!!!!!

CHINA - XIAN

This is Bryan who is obviously a cleft baby. It was so hard to get a photo of this little guy because most of the time he is so happy he is just bouncing all over the place. Every time I took a photo he would move & it would come out blurry. Yes I do understand that there is probably a function on my camera that does action shots but I don't know that I've ever used it & I didn't bring the book with me. So 10 shots later I finally got an okay one!

The other photo is Elise - a volunteer from Holland. This was taken the day we took some of the babies out for a walk. As you can see Bryan was having a ball enjoying the great outdoors - Antonia on the other hand was not. Today was the last day for Elise - she went out & bought tea & cakes & we had a bit of a farewell party with the nannies. Elise has been trying to teach me to say Happy Birthday in Dutch so I can say it to my friend Ingrid's little girl when I am there in May. Man it's a hard language - lots of noises at the back of the throat, that kind of thing. I have written it down phonetically so lets hope for the best. I am going to practise it every day but it could be a bit like chinese whispers & every time I say it, it gets further from the truth.

CHINA - XIAN

Last night Amanda took Lila & I out to see a light & water show. I guess that's the best way to describe it. Imagine a football field set up with lights & water fountains that are syncronized to music. Like Crown Casino on a mammoth scale. Kind of. Sort of. Maybe I should have called them dancing water fountains as that's what the water seems to do - dance in time with the music. You know, similar to what they do with the fireworks on the Sydney Harbour bridge at New Years eve?

Yep? Nup?

Okay........so moving on.

The next photo is a shot taken with one of the many statues near the big water thingy show. I am sure there is some meaning to the statue but I have absolutely no idea what it is.

Right then. This is looking like my most informative post ever.

So after the water thingy & statue photo shoot we went to an Indian restaurant for dinner (even though it was about 9pm by this time) where we met Amanda's friend Michael (God what is it with that name? - they're everywhere - they're like a plague - if I had a dollar for every Michael I met........). Any hoo he runs a program in an orphanage in a place I can't remember the name of (I probably can't even pronounce it) that is in another province from Xian, so he was just visiting. His parents Susan & Anthony were visiting him so they came too & my goodness what lovely people. We got to talking about stuff - as you do with complete strangers - & they want me to visit them when I am in the U.S. How nice is that????? They live in New Jersey not far from my friend Sybil (aka Ruthie) - Michael even went to school in the town that Sybil lives in. I wouldn't be surprised if they know each other. Small world & all that.

CHINA - XIAN

Two of the cleft babies had surgery the night before last which was a huge surprise. We thought they were going in to be assessed & have some tests & the next thing we know the first one is being operated on by 7pm.

The first after surgery photo is Antonia. She came here approx. two months ago at about 11 months old & could not even sit up. Thanks to the attention of a volunteer & her nanny she can sit up, play & so many other things. In the photo she is drinking from a special feeding tube that Donna (a volunteer I mentioned in a previous post) left specifically for after surgery feeding. The idea was to use it prior to the surgery so the babies got used to it. In this case we had no time to prepare but luckily Antonia is a fast learner & picked it up straight away.

The second photo is Hosea & he is from upstairs so I don't know him. As Amanda said the poor kid looks like he's been hit by a truck. He has a bi-lateral cleft (I hope that is the correct term) so his surgery was more complicated - hence the Egyptian mummy look!

CHINA - XIAN

This is one of the nannies - her name is Shau Whey (I have no idea how to spell her name but that's how it sounds to me). In the first photo of her she has all the bouncers hooked together so she can rock them all at once with her feet - shortly before I took this photo she also had several babies in her arms - it's amazing how many they can pick up at once. As you can see I can do two & at a stretch I can do three (as long as they aren't three of the big ones).

The nannies work 8 hour shifts - 8am to 8pm & then the night nannies do 8pm - 8am & one nanny comes at 5pm so there is a bit of an overlap. They work a six day week but they take their days off in one go. So they work 24 days & then have 4 days off. Many of these women live in the country so they go home to their husbands & children for the 4 days. Sounds rough? This is life here for many people in China - I know of nannies that live with families to cook, clean, look after the children etc. & go home to their own family for 2 weeks holiday a year. It's just the way it is - different culture, different way of doing things.

So let's not complain that we have it tough!

CHINA - XIAN

Yesterday Gigi & I decided to go to the supermarket (when I say supermarket it is like Coles, Target, Big W etc all in one - you can buy practically anything there) & take a baby each for an outing. So we strapped them into a carrier (which was a huge production in itself - I think everyone thought we were crazy to take them) & off we went. It was a bit of a walk & quite a warm day so we were glad to finally get there. The amount of people who stopped to stare on the way & at the shop was amazing. I guess you don't see people like me carrying around a Chinese baby everyday. Gigi is Cantonese & speaks Chinese so she blends in much better than I did. We were pretty exhausted by the end of it as we had picked two of the well fed babies to take (who just so happen to be my favorites) & they got kind of heavy, so we took a taxi home. The girls were so well behaved though - Nadia slept a lot of the time but Julia was looking all around & taking it all in. She only fell asleep at the end. So maybe we've given them a taste of shopping & they'll love it as they grow up.

The second photo is of Tina - she is the cleft baby I mentioned the other day who went to the dentist. Well last night after her milk (we take the plate out to feed her as it's easier for her) I put her plate back in, she gagged & it all came back up in one big whoosh. Partly over me but mostly over herself. It looked like someone had poured a carton of milk all over her head - not an inch was missed! This photo of her is getting a bath in a bucket - when all the babies get done they take out the baby bath & have a big production line but Elise wanted to give her a bath & the tiny babies seem to like the bucket better.

CHINA - XIAN

Lila & I had been talking about the fact that the babies don't get to go outside (unless it's to the Doctor, Dentist etc.) as there is too much for the nannies to do to find the time, so I asked Amanda if we could take them. Naturally she said yes - we can pretty much do what we want with them (even take them to bed if they are not well & we want to have them close by) because as she said she doesn't believe you can ever spoil these little ones enough. So off we went with Elise as well - each with two babies in a pusher. As you can see both of my girls were enjoying the outing to begin with but by the end of it Julia was not a happy chappy. I was soon to work out why. She wasn't that intersted in her milk, was really cranky, a bit clammy, slept for 3 hours in my room on my stomach (they just don't sleep that long here in the day - too much noise), kept sucking on her fingers & chomping on mine. My powers of deduction told me that my little girl was getting her first tooth! They grow up so fast don't they?

So lucky Julia (more correctly lucky me) spent until about 8.30 tonight with me being cuddled, kissed, fed & anything I could think of to calm her down. There was a lot of bum patting going on let me assure you. I was able to get some teething tablets from one of the nannies which helped a bit & then I reluctantly handed her over to one of the night nannies. I will be of no use to her tomorrow if I get no sleep.

That's if she is still downstairs tomorrow. Because downstairs where the volunteers stay is the cleft home & they want to move the heart babies upstairs & get some more cleft babies from the orphanage. Naturally my three little girls are all heart babies & I may lose them to the 5th floor! Not happy Jan! I did drop my lip a bit & sulk while asking Amanda can't they go up after I leave in 3 weeks? I mean surely she can leave me one of them? Julia???? Pleeeeeease??????

CHINA - XIAN

On Sunday morning I went out with Amanda & Gigi to take photos of the toddlers in their Easter outfits. There were only 6 of them but as you can imagine they are full of energy & liable to run off in all sorts of directions. We have from left to right (with their manny & nannies behind them) Heather, Rose, Emily, Breanna, Cailean & Sean. A few hundred photos later of this raggedy bunch & Amanda was over the whole Easter photo shoot & rightly so.

CHINA - XIAN

This is my other little princess, her name is Libby & she has a hole in her heart which luckily the doctor thinks she will outgrow - so she should not need surgery. She is the sweetest & prettiest baby you can imagine & as with the others the photos don't do her justice as you can't capture her personality. Libby reminds me so much of my friend Cindy's little girl Annabelle. Her size & prettiness for a start but she also goos & gahs like she is trying to tell you something & she does that gorgeous little baby face where she smiles & crinkles her eyes with her head a bit to the side as though she is being all coy. She also has the most lovely temperament & is so easy to look after. Does that sound like someone you know Cindy????? You just know she's going to have everyone wrapped around her liitle finger.

Saturday was the day that all the babies (18 with us & I think about 12 from upstairs) got dressed up in Easter outfits & a mini photography studio was set up complete with props of bunnies, eggs, easter baskets etc. The Easter photo is of Joseph the little baby I took to the dentist. To have a look at all the other babies go to the Starfish website. They are adorable.

Needless to say it was a long day for everyone - particularly Amanda & Gigi who were taking the photos, not to mention the babies - & I think there were about 800 photos taken!