[private] Blog
Hannah Rose WenRong Sieferman, b. 9/26/96, adopted 3/16/99
Mother's Love Orphanage, Nanning
Linnea Kai Sieferman, b 2/17/97, adopted 9/15/2003
Now with mom Sylvia in Roseville, Minnesota
4/5/2005 Well, it's been a little while. Hannah has a sister, Linnea Kai. Both are wonderful, smart, and loving. More on Linnea soon.
2/8/2001 Hannah is 4 1/2 now. Sometimes I miss my almost-baby, but she still loves cuddling. It's so interesting to watch her active mind at work--she's always thinking. She's very much into imaginative play--at least half the time at home, we're in some drama or other, either borrowed from a video or made up. She knows much of "Kiki's Delivery Service" by heart. She's always been a great mimic--she gets the tone of voice absolutely right. Her "Littlefoot talking to his dying mom" would bring you to tears. Her preschool is still fantastic. Her enthusiasm for just about anything life has to offer is undimmed. She can skate, slowly, on single blades. Her language is at least up to age level, and her memory is phenomenal. Recently she saw a Christmas photo of two girls from our travel group and recalled instantly that their family gave her a teddy bear on our first day together--something we haven't talked about since that day, two years ago.
3/16/2000 Today is the first anniversary of our becoming a family. We're still having a wonderful time together. Hannah's got an active imagination--we were whales for weeks. She's very physical and strong, and runs with the 5-year-olds on the playground. She's a really happy child with an infectious laugh. She manages to be strong-willed and sweet-tempered at the same time. She learned to write "H" in time for Grandma's birthday card--though she insists it stands for WenRong, as S stands for Mama.
10/26/99 Hannah's now in preschool, as opposed to the toddler room. Her school is really terrific. She's speaking much more English (though still short sentences) and has a great imagination. She loves to ride her indoor trike to "Grandma's house," and always remembers to bring back cookies for me.
I suppose my adoption journey really started 25 years ago, when I used to dream of adopting an Asian girl someday. But in November 1997 I read a New York Times article on adoption from China (on the 'net, of course) and started off to explore exactly what would prevent me, then nearly 50 and single, from becoming a mom. I quickly got some great news--no hard age limit, no objection to singles, mostly healthy children--and, even better, met some great people. My most precious resource has been a local (St. Paul, MN) group of single China adoptive moms who have a babysitting co-op. Meeting them, hearing about their lives, and most of all getting to know their delightful daughters spurred me on through the complex paperwork process. My application had all its U.S. approvals by late spring and reached China on June 3, 1998. Then it was just (!) a matter of waiting. I learned who and where Hannah was in January, 1999. I knew she was nearly 2 1/2 years old and healthy, and I got a few pictures of a lovely but not very happy looking child, my daughter.
Hannah's from Nanning, in southeastern China. I traveled with my friend Dara Berman to get her in March of 1999--we met on March 16th. Our agency,
CCAI,was just tremendous and the trip went very smoothly. After a few getting-acquainted days in Nanning, our group traveled to Guilin, a very scenic, mountainous area. Hannah did well with all the sightseeing--we got cozy as she sat on my lap through all the long bus, train, and boat rides. She soon got very good at communicating her many wants to us, and we lived to serve her. She's such a treat--exuberant, bright, and lots of fun!
On March 21 we flew to Guangzhou to complete documentation so Hannah could come to the states. We stayed at the elegant White Swan Hotel and loved it. Now was the time for shopping, too! Dara was a tremendous help all through the trip, and a great pleasure to be with.
Home to the states on March 26. We stayed in LA for 3 days with our friends Mariette and Sandy, sleeping and enjoying non-Chinese food once more! Then home. Hannah latched onto our dachshund Charlie immediately--she loves to pat him and say "good boy!" She also says this to her dolls.
She's making progress so quickly--it's a joy to see. New words and phrases every day. She loves to snuggle in the evening, which melts my heart. One recent evening we watched Swan Lake together and imitated the dancers. She's doing well in a fine day care setting--tickled to see me at the end of the day, but ok when I leave her. I'm a lucky and grateful mom.