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Eating in my room
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Talking with my brother on the phone
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Meeting my doggie (who I think is hilarious)
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Being happy
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Playing with my toys
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Trying bananas for the first time - they're my favorite so far
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This is my new pacifier. Mommy and Daddy call it my 'baby bling'. It makes Mommy and Daddy cringe that this is the only pacifier I will use except for the one that I brought home from Taiwan - none of the others are the right shape, size or length.
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Watching Mommy fold the laundry is exhausting
Here she goes - it's hard to be a lady and crawl in a dress.
Today is the day we head home. We got about half of our stuff packed last night and the rest is almost packed or ready to be packed. I remembered to take pictures of our room and our breakfast buffet that we have looked forward to each morning. Please don't ask what most of the stuff is because I don't know. I usually eat rice, eggs, ham, toast, fruit and coffee. I'm sure the other stuff is very good, but I just haven't tried most of it.
The ladies in the breakfast room loved Myah
After breakfast we went back to the Flower and Jade Markets where we met up with Kerry. I actually bought stuff this time instead of just looking. Once our shopping was done, we headed back to the hotel to finish packing our things. All the suitcases were stuffed! Thank goodness I had packed an extra suitcase inside one of the other ones for the trip over.
At 1:00 our send off crew showed up - Kerry, Toby, Heidi, Evan, Kevin and Ivan. It was great to see them again and a wonderful surprise to have them take us to the airport. I was joking with the boys that they're such great helpers, I might need to take them home with me. Actually, if I pulled out a ticket for them, it wouldn't have surprised me if they took me up on that offer. We will miss them all a lot, but hopefully will see them if they come to the US next year (or whenever we make it back to Taiwan).
Our fantastic helpers
Myah sleeping in her bassinet on the plane
As we were checking in, there was another couple in line in front of us that had just completed an adoption too. Amazingly, they were also using the same agency we were using. It was nice to compare notes, exchange e-mail addresses and commiserate with someone else about how long of a flight this was going to be with a baby.
Myah did really good on the flight. Of course she chose take-off as the opportune time to request a new diaper - thankfully the fasten seatbelt light went off fairly quickly. We had a decent flight, although at the time, it seemed to last forever. After going through customs at LAX (congrats on becoming a citizen Myah) we hiked over to the Southwest terminal and checked-in for our next flight which was three and a half hours away. After arriving in Phoenix, we were surprised with balloons, treats and a sign from Alex, Katie and Leo (friends who recently adopted from Taiwan). Katie also did some grocery shopping for us so we wouldn't go home empty handed - I can't even begin to tell you how thankful we are for that. It was so nice to not have to worry about running to the store first thing next morning.
Myah thought it was funny to be buckled into her carseat (they don't use them in Taiwan) until she realized she had to stay there by herself. Then the tears started, but quickly gave way to sleep. We arrived at our house around 10:30pm exhausted, but thankful to be home.
We used the hotel shuttle to go visit the Grand Hotel this morning. It has become somewhat of a tradition for families adopting from Taiwan to have their picture taken in front of the 100 year old brass dragon that survived a fire during World War 2. The Grand Hotel is beautiful and very richly decorated. We enjoyed looking around at all the different items on display as well as visiting the gift shops.
After the Grand Hotel, we walked to a subway station and headed up to Beitou again. On the way to the subway, we passed a Taiwanese bowling alley and had to take a picture for Caleb (who loves bowling). 
We had originally planned to go to Lion's Head Mountain via the high-speed rail, but decided we'd rather have a relaxing day doing things around Taipei before we leave tomorrow. Of course you can't relax with out a visit to the hot springs again! We came up with an interesting system for visiting the hot springs this time (obviously Myah couldn't go in them). While Rob relaxed in the hot water, Myah and I went to the hot springs museum which was closed on our previous visit. Then after we were done at the museum, we went back to the hot springs where Rob and I switched. He took care of the baby while I relaxed in the water. Myah enjoyed splashing her hands in a little tub of water while I soaked so we have hope that she will like swimming in Arizona. After finishing up in the hot springs, we walked about five minutes down the road to the Ketagalan Culture Center. It is a museum that is dedicated to showing all the different aboriginal tribes in Taiwan. We got to see where each tribe is located, their dress and what they are known for. We also got the chance to see hand crafted items by local tribes.
After the museum we decided to head back to the Danshui Night Market (our favorite night market) for last minute souvenirs and foot long ice cream for $10 (33 cents US). I'm not kidding about the ice cream - it is literally over a foot tall. Rob had chocolate and vanilla and I had green tea mixed with some kind of something else that was purple - probably should have taken a picture. So we're walking around the night market with a baby strapped on us, sweating profusely and dripping ice cream all over. I'm sure the locals got a kick out of that.
Once we had our fill of ice cream and sight-seeing, we decided to take the subway home since we were pretty tired and needed to get started on our packing for tomorrow. This is where the day gets really interesting. Let me back up to explain... Myah hasn't enjoyed going to the bathroom (number 2) since we got her. In fact I would say she flat out hates it - screaming, wailing and gnashing of teeth hates it. Which means we don't exactly enjoy it either. So, we get on the subway (40 minute ride) and we notice she is passing a little gas. At about the fourth or fifth stop she is turning red - we are definitely concerned at this point and wondering if we should get off the train. Before we reach a decision, the doors close - confining us, and everyone else in the subway car, to 3 minutes of hysterics. As soon as the doors open, we bolt out and head for the stairs. Once we get to the top, I ask the first person in a uniform where the bathroom is (keep in mind I'm holding a very red, very rigid, very loud baby in my arms). Question completely understood, he points in the direction of the restrooms which are down a different flight of stairs. We go down the stairs, into the bathroom (Myah now has tears streaming down her face and I'm about to follow) and I whip out everything I need to change her diaper. I have her diaper off and about to wipe her when two female subway employees come into the bathroom to make sure everything is okay. They are asking 'Is she hot? Is she cold? Does she want something to eat? Is she sick?' How do you explain that your daughter just hates to poop when you don't speak Chinese? I'm sure the three of us running through the subway station were quite a sight to see. I was afraid I was going to have to pull out her visa and explain that she's our daughter and we didn't just steal her from someone, but then I realized the ladies were just truly concerned about poor Myah - the Taiwanese people really love their children. As soon as the clean diaper was on she stopped crying and looked around at everyone like 'Hey, what's the big deal?'. So... that was our big adventure for the day. We got back on the subway, went to the hotel, ordered real Chinese take-out, put Myah to bed and started to prepare to go home tomorrow.
The End.
Myah loves to dance. Here are a few of her moves. It even looks like she takes a bow at the end.
Today we headed out to Youth Park (the park they visited during The Amazing Race) so we could walk on the path of jagged rocks that the teams walked on during a challenge. This has been one of the top things that Rob has wanted to do while we were in Taiwan. We were impressed with how pretty the park was. The picture above was taken on "The Bridge of Nine Turns" that crossed a lake in the middle of the park. The water lilies and other flowers were beautiful and very colorful.
We have re-watched the portion of The Amazing Race where the teams walk down this path and it is so cool to be able to see the bench where we sat with Myah. This was definitely something different to do, and our feet did feel good afterwards, but it really hurt while we were walking. I don't think we expected the rocks to be set in the cement on their side. Needless to say we both went the entire length of the path (which is pretty long) but walked back on the side where the rocks aren't sticking up. By the way - you walk barefoot on the rocks - no shoes allowed.
After we finished visiting the different sites in Youth Park, we hopped in a taxi and went to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. We love to walk whenever we are able to, but today it was way too hot to walk the mile or so to get there. Of course, we picked the perfect day to go to a national landmark made entirely of stone which, in case you forgot, absorbs heat and, because it was painted white, it also reflected the heat back up onto us. This was also a place that they visited on The Amazing Race, but we wanted to go see it even before we saw that show. It is an amazing structure built to honor Taiwan's late President. In a way, it reminded us of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. Everything was pristine and extraordinarily detailed and well kept. Words cannot adequately describe the way things are created using such intricate detail here. By the time we got there, Myah was ready for a bottle so we decided to feed her in the park off to the side of the main building. It was beautiful and while Rob fed Myah, I decided to feed the fish. It only cost $10 (about 33 cents US). I love the vending machines that they use to dispense the tubes of fish food. I think the fish were pretty grateful for some food too. Once Myah was done eating (and I made her and Daddy pose for a few pictures in the park) we decided to tackle the main attraction. After climbing to the top of the steps (Rob sang the 'Rocky Theme' for part of it) we looked around the inside of the memorial, traded cameras with some Dutch tourists (they took our picture, we took theirs) then climbed back down.
We tried to find the Taiwanese Handi-craft Market next but, being unable to communicate well and being on a tight schedule, we had to forgo that store and headed to AIT to pick up Myah's visa. We decided to walk since it didn't look that far on the map. By the time we got there, we were very, very happy to have an excuse to sit in the air conditioning for a few minutes. After being handed Myah's passport and visa and a package inside a large yellow envelope (which you must never, ever, ever open before handing it over to customs upon entry into the USA) we hopped on the subway (no more walking today -please) and went back to our room to change for dinner with Kerry and Toby and his family. On the way back to the hotel we saw these guys hanging up this sign - glad I don't have this job.
Dinner was such an incredible treat tonight. We have never felt more honored to share dinner with friends than we did tonight. You have to understand, we had never met Kerry or Toby or his family before June 13th - and we have been spoiled rotten by them ever since we set foot in Taiwan - Toby arranged transportation to and from the airport for us, checked on the hotel for us, gave us one of his own cell phones to use in Taiwan and Kerry spent all day Saturday with us. We have truly been blessed while on this trip and have made friends that we will keep forever. Anyway, back to dinner - we ate at a very nice restaurant with Kerry, Toby, his wife and his three wonderful boys. Toby ordered everything (in Taiwan you don't order separate dishes for each person - several dishes are ordered and are placed on a large lazy-suzanne style device and passed (spun) around the table) and boy did he order a lot! The food just kept coming and coming. Some things I had never tasted before (drunken chicken) and other things I was more familiar with (beef dumplings). It was all fantastic - and then to top it all off, they brought out a Peking Duck (this is a huge deal because the ducks take days to prepare). I was happily eating my food when I looked over at Rob and noticed that he didn't look so good (his stomach had been bothering him all day). He accidentally ate some squid the day before (we didn't know it was squid until after he ate a few pieces - don't ask) and it was doing a number on his stomach. Turns out, he was absolutely sick to his stomach and was feeling horrible because he couldn't eat very much at all. As we understand it (correct me if I'm wrong) not eating something that you are offered is considered extremely rude in Asian cultures so Rob was really worried that Toby would be offended that he couldn't eat much (especially with them having ordered a duck). We asked Kerry to explain the whole squid/upset stomach thing to Toby and his wife, so hopefully it is all okay.
(l-r: Kerry, Evan, Ivan, Toby, Kevin, Heidi)
(l-r: Kevin, Myah, Ivan, Evan)
(This is Rob getting beat at thumb wrestling by an eight year old)
After dinner we sat around and talked for a bit and played some games with the boys. I love those kids! They are the sweetest, kindest little boys and they sure loved showing off and posing for pictures! They are learning English in school and tried out a bit of it on us. They could speak very well and, we are sad to say, even the eight year old knows more English than we know Chinese. :-) After about two and a half hours at the restaurant, we headed back to the hotel - Myah was ready to sleep and the boys had to study for their final school exams the next day. I don't think I've enjoyed dining out as much as I did last night - the food was fantastic but the company was even better.
Myah is extremely content unless she's tired, hungry or getting changed. This was the trifecta.
The child has a good set of lungs - just ask our neighbors - better make that the entire hotel.
Today was our appointment at AIT (the equivalent of an American Embassy in Taiwan) for Myah's visa to the US. After breakfast we got her all dressed up (she looks great in purple) and at 8:30am off we went. Our appointment lasted less than an hour and was much easier than I anticipated. The guy who interviewed us was great - very friendly - and everything went smoothly.
After the AIT appointment, we went back to the hotel to drop off all the paperwork then headed out to the Maokong Tea Plantations in southeastern Taipei. We rode the subway then took the Muzha cable car (gondola) to the top of the mountain to see the tea plantations. I never knew there was so much to know about the art of making and pouring tea. It is amazing and really makes you feel guilty about dunking a Lipton's tea bag in hot water then guzzling it down. In Taiwan, drinking tea is as much about observing, smelling and appreciating the dried and brewed tea as it is about drinking it. After touring the tea museum and plantation, we headed back to the cable car station where we enjoyed a few cups of tea ourselves. We would have loved to drink some at the traditional tea houses that lined the road, but we were out of our element and since we don't speak or read Chinese, decided we needed to wait and find a place that had a menu we could understand. I had Empress Beauty Tea (served hot, very good flavor and nice aftertaste) and Rob had a Green Flower Tea (served cold, very sweet and very refreshing).
At the Tea Museum and Plantation - someone was tired
Instructions on how to purchase good tea
Hoping to get down the mountain before the storm
Next we hopped on the subway and headed over to Gongguan Night Market (the one on The Amazing Race where they had to find the 'happy clown'). Needless to say, we were a little disappointed (maybe we just missed the main area or something) so we headed over to Snake Alley to see what that was like. It was pretty neat but by that time we were pretty tired and just wanted to find the booth where they paint the scrolls and find a traditional Taiwanese outfit for Myah for when she gets older. After accomplishing both of those things, we headed back to the hotel and soon went to bed. We have never walked so much in our lives - my feet are killing me! lol
Getting ready for bed
Eating in my room
Talking with my brother on the phone
Meeting my doggie (who I think is hilarious)
Being happy
Playing with my toys
Trying bananas for the first time - they're my favorite so far
This is my new pacifier. Mommy and Daddy call it my 'baby bling'. It makes Mommy and Daddy cringe that this is the only pacifier I will use except for the one that I brought home from Taiwan - none of the others are the right shape, size or length.
Watching Mommy fold the laundry is exhausting 
