Our First Day

Kirsten here, Byron and Emma are napping at the moment so I thought it might be a great time to make a post. We all slept pretty well last night, yay! We got to start the day by seeing and talking to our family at home! That was such a huge treat especially since we weren't positive all the technilogical kinks had been worked out. What a blessing to be able to see Benjamin and Katie! I think I can make it through the trip if I can see them everyday. Next was the infamous White Swan breakfast buffet and I have to say that it puts the one at the Victory to shame!! No runny eggs here! Emma ate waffles so she was in heaven. When Emma saw her Daddy's plate piled high with food, she said it was just like Grandpa! We walked around a bit after breakfast and, of course, all the shop owners swarmed on us. Emma is getting very used to people asking about her and she loves the attention. I know...you're shocked! :-) All the shop owners want to know where Emma was born, how old she is, etc. At one point we were stopped by a man with his nephew who was wanting to practice his English. We chatted with him for a few moments, it was really sweet. He was quite good and his uncle was really coaching him on the proper things to say. When we moved on, Emma wanted to know why we didn't tell him about her!

Next we moved on to the pool which was very nice since it's so hot right now. We've met a couple of nice families so far and will meet the rest of our group tomorrow. But, it really seems empty compared to how many families were here when we adopted Emma. There are many shops that were here then that are now out of business because of fewer families being able to adopt. Out of the other families in our group, 3 are adopting babies around the same age as Claire and one is adopting an older child, about 9 if I remember correctly. Our guide, Rebecca, filled us in on those details last night. We're looking forward to meeting them and, of coures, our Claire! We are scheduled to receive her at about 2:30pm tomorrow! Rebecca said that in her experience seeing so many families, children of Claire's age tend to cry very much at the first meeting, but calm down by the time the parents get back to the hotel. She said that Emma's presence will be a tremendous help. We knew that, of course, but it was nice to hear her say it! So, please be praying for a smooth transition for little Claire. We can't wait to see her!

We miss everyone at home, especially Benjamin and Katie! We love you very much and can't wait to show you your little sister!

Sorry for no pictures yet, but don't worry! We'll have plenty to post when we get to the important stuff!

Much love,
Kirsten, and the sleeping Byron and Emma