Visiting the Orphanage

Yesterday we had the very special opportunity to visit Hailey's orphanage.  She spent the first 16 months of her life in this place and it is a very important part of her story.  We were not able to visit Chloe's orphanage so it is a special event that you don't always get to see.   

We started the day very tired.  Hailey has been sick with a cold and was up all night coughing.  We headed to breakfast then we needed to be at the bank early to exchange money for the orphanage donation.  It is quite an event when you need to exchange so much but we were able to navigate it with the help of the bank staff.  Then we meet our guide for the drive to the orphanage.  When we got there and walked around the grounds a bit.  Then met with the director (?) she was the one that brought Hailey to us the day before.  Then we headed to the the part of the orphanage Hailey was in. We came up to the room where all of the Nannies that took care of the babies Hailey's age were and all of her little friends.  

They were all so happy to see her.  Her Chinese name is Jing and they all started calling Jing Jing.  It was so sweet.  One Nanny inparticular had a special connection with our girl.  She wanted to hold her so I handed Hailey over to this sweet lady and the look on Hailey's face was priceless.  It was all I could do not to cry.  She was so happy to see her nanny agian.  You could just feel the love for the kids in that room.  Hailey did not want to leave that room that was her place for her whole life and I could not blame her at all.  Everyone knows that a family is the best place for a child but knowing that these children are loved is so important.  They were all very happy that she seemed to like us, since she is usually not very happy with strangers.  

After I finally got Hailey back they showed us the crib that she slept in.   There were a couple of link toys in it and it was one of only 2 that had a mobile above it.  We meet with the nurse and she explained a little bit more about her procedure or rather the issue after.  She said that she gets congested easily and that that is probably what we are seeing.  That her body just needs to get used to the changes in her face.  That is also thee reason that she has more trouble closing her eyes.  I can't wait to get her back to the US and have a doctor explain things with out any language barrier.  

The Nanny that was her primary caretaker and the one she was the closest to came in to the sleeping room to see her one more time.  It was very sweet.  We asked her name and got a picture eventually she had to leave, she was in tears walking away and I again had to struggle to hold it together.  I can't even imagine the hearts of these women that get so attached to these children and then have to either let them go or see them grow up in an institution.  They give big pieces of their hearts away to these kids it is the most touching thing I have ever seen.