Day 5, July 30, 2014

Day 5, July 30, 2014

Today we got the opportunity to visit Miley’s orphanage and meet her foster mother.  It was a very big and pretty nice place.  Our guide said they have anywhere from 600 to 800 orphans there right now.   Kind of a big range, but he’s probably guessing since he doesn’t work there directly.  Her foster mother seemed very kind and wanted to hold Miley.  Miley smiled at her while she was being held.  It was sweet to see that her first caregiver really seemed to care about her.  Her first question through the interpreter was if she was crying a lot while away from the orphanage.  She hasn’t cried much at all!  Maybe she just isn’t use to us yet and can’t relax enough to cry (it’s only been 2 days right) or maybe God has been working on her little heart and preparing her for us and she knows she is home.   She did cry a few short minutes this evening because she was overly tired.  (She did eat 1 piece of Papa Johns pepperoni pizza before crying though…hehe.  Yes we are already tired of Chinese food and it’s only day 5!)

The orphanage is about an hour outside of the busy part of the city Jinan.  It is in a very beautiful location.  It seems peaceful and I am thankful that Miley hasn’t lived her first 3 years of life listening to horns honking in the city.  The outside of the orphanage is painted pastel pink, blue, and green.  It is very cheerful in an 80’s kind of way…hehe.  There are small playgrounds and even large sandboxes scattered in different areas of the campus.  I did see animal footprints in the sandbox…here’s to hoping it was a pet dog.  Miley’s foster family lived in an apartment on the orphanage campus very close to the classrooms and other kids rooms.  It has simple, but very cheerful and nice.  It has “L” shaped couch that was very low to the ground.  I’m sure it was very child friendly.  Her foster mother showed me the room and bed where Miley slept.  She put Miley in the bed and talked to her a little bit and Miley seemed very comfortable there.  We didn’t get much time in her foster home.  I would have loved to stay for a while and try to get to know her first family, but we were rushed out by our guide after about 10 minutes.  Before we left, I tried to show her the photo album that we brought for her.  I tired to explain to her that Miley has 3 siblings who are so excited about her and that I included our address incase she ever wanted to write us, but our translator had already left and everything was lost.  As I walked out Miley looked over my shoulder and waved bye to her foster mother, Mrs. Chin.   If I hadn’t already been crying, I probable would have started then for sure! 

I’m extremely thankful that Miley didn’t cry or get upset during the visit.  It just makes me feel that they must have taken good care of her and not harmed her.  She is such a relaxed and cheerful child.  I feel very lucky to be her mama!

Miley rode on my back in our baby carrier most of the time and there were so many orphanage workers that kept coming up and talking sweetly to Miley.  It was fun to see.  Apparently in China (or atleast in Jinan) parent’s don’t use baby carriers.  They only use strollers so we have gotten some pretty crazy looks from people on the street and in the stores, but we didn’t get those reactions at the orphanage.  I think very highly of those caregivers.  In a country that sometimes seems to not care about children especially those who have special needs, these orphanage workers seemed different. 

Tonight we while waiting for our pizzas, a lady walked over to us and asked if we were from Australian.  (So now Jeff and I have been mistaken for Hispanics and now Auzies!)  She didn’t realize that Miley and our friends baby are Chinese (Miley was sleep in the carrier so I guess she couldn’t see her well).  When she found out she asked why we wanted to adopt a Chinese baby and especially a girl.  She said that she and everyone else only wants boys (she says this while holding her 2.5 year old son).  That is a loaded question and one so difficult to answer to a person that does not know the Lord and of His love and how He adopted me!  We first told her that we saw Miley’s photo on our agencies waiting child list and fell in love with her.  Later on in the conversation I told her that God had told us to adopt a little girl who has Down syndrome from China.   She said she had no idea what that meant, but that it moved her.  She left the restaurant for a few minutes and later told us it was because she had to go hide her face while she cried.  Oh Lord Jesus, please touch that woman’s heart tonight as she rests.  Send your Holy Spirit to show her your love.  I know adopting a special needs child makes no since to a non-Christian, but I have all kinds of special needs myself and God still adopted me as his daughter.  I love my Miley girl with everything in me!  She is a Bostrom all the way through right down to the way she loves sweets like her mama and laughs (and sweats) like her daddy!

It was really hard seeing all the kids in the orphanage.  We didn’t get to see many rooms but when we went to see her “classroom” we passed a couple of rooms filled with cribs.  We also saw about 10 babies in cribs outside on a veranda.  It was much cooler outside, but we also think those babies must be sick right now.  One of them was hooked up to an IV.  It was heartbreaking!   Jeff and I did get the chance to hand deliver a care package to a little boy from another Knoxville family.  That was very special.  He was so happy and all the caregivers wanted to hold him and kiss him.  I can’t wait for Miley to have a Jinan cousin in Knoxville! 

Today was a good day.  One I hope I don’t forget and can share with Miley one day.  I am beyond excited that we didn’t have to leave her in that pastel painted room with all the other cribs.  She is going to get on a big plane in a few days and start her new life full of happy memories and a chance at life!