Our first visit with Han-han

Great week! We had a video chat with the older kids on Monday for the first time (after 2 failed attempts). They were bouncing off the walls with excitement, laughing and happy. I didn’t expect such fun; it seems clear that they have been prepared to become part of a family, from the names they called us to their enthusiasm to us being asked what their English names were. That was unexpected, so now we are feeling like we need to hurry along with that.

On Wednesday, we were able to finally visit Han-han in person. Many times while we’ve been in Taipei, I looked around at little boys thinking… he could be around somewhere, so it was ironic to meet the social workers at the train station and be taken LITERALLY one block from Taipei Main Station to where he lives. We have passed through there 20 times at least; at one point, I even considered spending a whole day IN the train station just to learn my way around and not get lost(I didn’t though…still confusing and disorienting…there are 4 underground “malls” and at least 3 different types of trains.)

When we arrived, he had just gotten up from a nap, and I was talking with a care provider and just watched and waited. I decided to hang back and see what would happen instead of the grand hellos and here I am. Within a few minutes, he pulled out his little bike and everyone laughed, sure he was showing off for us. After a time, we threw a ball around; I got out a few tops I had gotten in Daxi and he went back to those again and again trying to spin them like Sam. (NOTE: wish the pictures were better, but the video is fun...it's hard to live and record at the same time,haha). GOTOVIDEO

A few little hiccups with the language barrier, but he warmed up a lot and at one point came and sat beside me, sharing his crackers with me. He was a typical three year old in lots of ways…taking toys from Sam, getting frustrated when things didn’t work right, but he was charming and adorable, happy and curious. I knew we had a few hours, so I was asking questions while trying to play and interact.

Toward the end of our visit, we talked about his bedtime routine and went to his room to see how that went. There was a crib and a single bed, and after a few minutes of chatting, Han-han motioned for Sam and I to lay down on the bed. He turned the lights off, locked the door, and scrambled up and got right in the middle, pulling a mickey mouse blanket up over all 3 of us. He rearranged the blanket over and over and whispered happily, saying good night and laughing. It was some good family bonding! I can’t imagine how the visit could have gone any better.