Lauren hates the car seat! So needless to say it was a very horrible trip home from the airport. But as soon as she saw everyone she cheered right up. She was very cautious at first and then starting coming out of her shell. She is still unsure about the dogs but she has really taken an interest in the cats. She has bonded with everyone very well especially her daddy whom she has wrapped around her little finger. She has been sleeping very well but we are still on Vietnam time zone. We are taking it day by day and it is a wonderful adventure. I'll post more and download photos when I get rested up.

Home

Well, it was a long trip home but Lauren was a real trooper through the entire trip. She slept the entire trip from Hanoi to Taipei and then the long flight from Taipei to Los Angeles she slept around 8 hours of that. She was only fussy around 45 minutes of that entire flight. We had a 7 hour layover in LA so we rented a room and ate pizza, showered, and got a little shut eye before traveling on a red eye flight to Dallas. Let me just say that it was the best sleep that I have had in several weeks. The Dallas flight was pretty uneventful except for the fact that we all were wide awake at 1am but of course we were on a different time zone than everyone else. She wanted to screech at the top of her lungs and giggle loudly while everyone was trying to sleep. Lauren and I decided that it was best that we go and keep the flight attendants company for a while. Then comes the drama from Dallas to Little Rock.....the flight was canceled due to bad fog in Little Rock and in Dallas. They delayed it and delayed it and finally canceled it. Unfortunately, I didn't think that I would have enough diapers to make it through the trip so the American airlines lady sent me to the Travelers Aid office to get some. Well, when I got a little lost and asked a guy in charge where I could find this office he said to go through the revolving doors and scoffed. I asked him if I would be able to get back with no problems and again he chuckled and said yeah. By the way he was lying. When I tried to get back I realized that I would have to go back through the checkpoint security point and of course I just had my passport on me and not my boarding pass. Lauren was trying to eat it so I left it with Mom at the gate. All in all I almost had a nice little meltdown because I thought that I had missed the plane and Lauren was getting fussy. Did I mention that I had her strapped to me in her sling? We were actually able to make it back through with a little finagling but I was so stressed that I could have got down in the floor and had me a great little crying fit. My poor Daddy and Step Dad had been waiting at the airport since 7:30 that morning. We managed to make it in around 12:30pm. That is when we found out that my paintings that were done by a really talented Vietnamese artist had not arrived from Hanoi and that since they didn't give us a ticket for it that there was no way that they were going to be able to track them. I guess on Monday I will be trying to get a hold of Eva Airways to see if there is something that can be done. At this point we were just so glad that we finally were home and made it safely.

More from Hanoi

I'm very sorry that I have not been up to date on this blog. So, from the beginning.....We actually didn't get Lauren until Tuesday. We were supposed to have our G&R on Monday but that didn't work out for me. Ended up there was another paperwork snafu. My passport had to be corrected in the beginning due to the fact that my birth month was not correct well....the orphanage put on all the paperwork my old passport number. So, here I am signing all the paperwork until they catch the fact that my passport number didn't match my paperwork. They deliberated back and forth and decided I would have to come back another day to finish my G&R. That also meant that I couldn't take Lauren with me that day. Needless to say I was shell shocked and upset. It was a very trying day but the very next day we were able to get her with no more problems.
Now...on to Lauren. She is a tiny, tiny little girl. She is in size 1 diapers and is wearing 0-3 months clothes and some 3-6 months. She has had some separation anxiety so she is very clingy and God forbid you to try and put her down. She will scream like a little banshee. She has bonded with me very well and with my Mom. She is getting better about the putting her down thing. She sleeps through the night and has about 2 to 3 naps per day. She is observant of her surroundings. She doesn't crack a smile when we go out shopping she just stares at everyone. She is ticklish on her feet and belly and will die laughing when tickled. She has 2 dimples, 2 top teeth, 2 bottom teeth, and 2 more that are coming in up top. She says Momma, bye bye, and hi and is so good natured about everything. We couldn't ask for a better baby. I love being here in Hanoi but I am missing home. I can't wait to see my husband, my boys, my dad, my sister, my step-dad, and my phone so that I can call my best friend and talk to her. Thanks for all the nice comments and well wishes. It is much appreciated.