Thailand to Texas

She's Officially A George!

2008-06-28T18:16:00.000-07:00

Well, it's final. Maya is now Maya Sunisa George according to the United States government. The court hearing in San Antonio was no big deal, however I know that can vary from state to state. Ours was painless and almost anticlimatic. I think the whole process lasted less than 10 minutes. Still, it is so nice to have her seen by all as our daughter now.

Our family with the judge that finalized it all!

Our little Marilyn Monroe

Proud Momma

Four Months Here!

2008-03-31T15:02:00.001-07:00

Well, Maya has been here four months now and it seems as if she's always been in our family. She continues to thrive in language and in her relational development. Now, don't get me wrong. She has her sibling rivalry with Kora and Jackson that may result in biting or hair pulling, but nothing that's not typical. We celebrate what's typical in this house.
Maya's 19 months and is starting to have some attitude. She tells us "no" on a regular basis and has started stomping her foot at us when she says it. It makes Jason and I laugh, but we try to discourage the behavior(but it's pretty cute).
Our pediatrician said Maya has the language of a 2 year old. I'm tellin' you, she is one smart little cookie. And so much fun to watch grow.
Since my last post, Maya has experienced her first snow and trip to KC. There she met some of her cousins and extended family including three great grandma's and great aunts and uncles. Everyone seems to love her. She does have those chubby cheeks that just make you want to pick her up and squeeze her and kiss her all over. We will be attending my cousin's wedding in a few weeks, where the rest of the Sutherland family will finally get to meet Little Miss.
Here are some pics to update ya'll with. Thanks for checking in with us. I know...I need to post a little more often than every three months. I'll try my best.

Fun at the zoo

Ya'll are crazy

Maya in a dress from Thailand

The girls in their Thai dresses

Love those pigtails!

Kora in her Easter dress

Happy New Year!

2008-01-02T08:00:00.000-08:00

Wow. I saw our last post was on Dec. 11th. I'm so sorry. You know how it is this time of year. Christmas, company, and now three kids...I guess I've been a little busy. Well, as I catch my breath and begin a new year, I wanted to share some pictures with everyone. Maya is doing fabulous. Jason and I think she has adjusted the best out of all of us. The older two kids, Jason and I are still trying to get ourselves transitioned into a family of five. The honeymoon is over for Kora and Jackson. They do not want Maya touching their toys. And they've gotten really good at telling Maya "no, no." But they definitely still love her; looking so forward to seeing her each morning. It's sweet.

We are amazed by how well Maya is communicating and picking up English. She says close to 20 words to date, signs about 6 words, makes animal noises(imitates), and points and nods her head in appropriate situations. And she understands everything we say! I can't believe she wasn't exposed to English until she met us. Amazing isn't it?!

Here are some highlights from the past few weeks. Enjoy!

Maya in her Christmas dress

This was our Christmas card pic

Miss Personality

Looking all warm and snuggly

Pigtails!

Maya loves her brother!

And sister!

Daddy and his kiddos

Christmas morning

Maya loving her babydoll from Coco and Papa Jack

Our little stinker!

Kora has always wanted a sister to match

Our first family photo...okay so it's not perfect...Jackson!, but at least we're all facing the camera :)

Together in Texas

2007-12-10T17:32:00.000-08:00

Maya liked the plane

Our good friend Kathy picked us up at the airport. Notice Maya is sleeping. She was real excited about being in Houston:)

Well, after 17 hours on planes and 7 hours in airports and a short overnight stay in LA, we made it home to Texas on Friday. Boy, is it good to be home! Jason and I could hardly contain ourselves when we saw Kora and Jackson. Man, did we miss them.
It was such a precious moment for us to finally have all three of our kids together.

Maya has become very comfortable in the house and with everyone around here. She loves following her brother and sister around and getting into everything that she shouldn't. She's quite the curious one. She may think her name is "no, Maya" instead of just Maya. :) We've had fun showing her new things and the kids think she is so funny. She does have quite a cute personality. We look so forward to all of you meeting her.
Speaking of all of you...I can not explain in words how blessed and extremely fortunate Jason and I feel for all the support and love ya'll have given us. Your prayers and calls and just interest in this journey have meant so much to us. Thank you. This experience would not have been as amazing as it was without all of you and your involvement. Praise God for the friends He has given us and the love He has shown us through this adoption.

The first time Kora saw Maya

Finally all my kids together

Jackson loves feeding Maya

Sisters

Maya actually fell asleep during dinner the second night home

That face:)

I hope to keep posting updates on this blog of little Miss Maya and all her new experiences. So please check in every once and awhile.
**By the way, Maya is loving her Daddy now. Thanks for asking.

We're Coming Home!

2007-12-05T23:49:00.000-08:00

Sorry I didn't get around to posting yesterday...I wasn't feeling my best. But I woke up refreshed after another great night sleep for Maya. Yay Maya! We headed to the US Embassy with the other two American families and all of us were able to get our children's visas right then and there. So, that means we can come home now!
We hurried back to the hotel and changed our flight to leave tonight. We will get into LA Thursday night around 7pm and have to stay the night in LA. We will then take a Southwest flight to Houston on Friday morning and should be home in time to pick Kora up from kindergarten.(a big surprise for her!) We are so excited to bring this little Thai bundle of energy home for everyone to meet. She has been great today...really opening up to Jason. He's thrilled of course. So, the next time I get on here we should all be in our own beds and enjoying American foods.
Thank you everyone for all your prayers. We are so blessed to call you family and friend.

Government Meeting Day

2007-12-04T06:55:00.000-08:00

The morning started great today. Maya slept 11 hours straight in her crib last night and woke up a very happy camper. Let's hope that's going to be her regular sleeping habit. A mother can hope...
All four families and our social worker, Pat, headed to the Thai government building where they host these interviews with all international adopting families. Jason and I were nervous, more I think because we didn't know what to expect. We were the first to go and it went very smoothly. We had an answer to every question and they seemed awfully grateful for us adopting Maya into our, what they called, "complete" family. They were very sweet. Maya was perfect, waving on que as we said goodbye and thank you. It was very cute. We had to wait for all the other families to interview and then for some paperwork to be completed. It was a long wait. All the babies were getting fussy. By the time we were able to head back to the hotel, three of the four children were sound asleep. It was a quiet ride back to the Amari.

The rest of the day was spent relaxing, napping, shopping and just continuing to get to know our daughter. It's so exciting to discover her. Her little features, her babbling, her attitude! :), her sweet personality. We are loving her and loving getting to know her.
Tomorrow will be a free day for us. It is the King's 80th birthday here in Thailand and a national holiday. All will be shut down in the city for the big celebration. We will go to the US Embassy Thursday morning and apply for Maya's visa. Hopefully we will be done with our adoption process here in Thailand on Thursday. But that remains to be seen.

Here are a few pictures from the day. Enjoy...And we'll "see" everyone tomorrow.

All dolled up for the board meeting

We're a family now in the eyes of the Thai government(besides a little more paperwork)

Our future movie star

Waiting...

Exploring the fountain

That smile!

Maya is Ours!

2007-12-03T03:29:00.000-08:00

Well, its official. As of today, Maya is ours! She was brought to the hotel right around 11:30am and was "placed" with her new family - US! There are certainly still some tears showing up every now and then but for the most part she is doing very well. She has especially taken to Jennifer. It is very endearing to see her reach for Jennifer and snuggle with her. She hasn't been very independent yet as she mostly enjoys the arms of her momma. As for me (Jason), not so much. She and I haven't exactly bonded. I certainly am smitten for her but it appears she has chosen to be a momma's girl for the time being.

After the placement, we went directly to our hotel room for some alone time. At one point she began to cry and Jennifer looked in her mouth and said, "her gums look really swollen." So I stuck my fingers in to feel her gums and sure enough she is teething. Not one, not two, not three, but four molars are coming in. Poor sweetie! She is obviously in some pain. So I immediately picked up some baby oragel and children's tylenol (the Thai versions). After rubbing the oragel on her gums, you could tell she was a new gal. We gave her some tylenol as well for the pain and within minutes she was out for her nap. She slept for 1 hour and 40 minutes which was great because she really needed the rest.

We then headed to the pool area for a late lunch / early dinner. Some of the other adopting families were there and Maya really enjoyed watching the other kids play in the pool. She let her feet get wet but that was about it. Shortly after that, we headed back to the room to give Maya her long awaited bath (I will explain later when we get home). She didn't like the bathtub at all but it was really good to get her cleaned up, brush her hair, and into her new jammies.

That's about it for now. We are so incredibly excited that she is ours now. We feel so blessed to be involved in such a wonderful experience. Below are a few more pics from today. Enjoy!

Tears of joy, right?

The only thing that comforts Maya right now...Mommy's arms!

Proud Papa

Maya's first feeding with us

Our Second Day with Maya

2007-12-02T02:53:00.000-08:00

The children arrived at 10:30 this morning, and although Maya started crying when Jason and I approached her, she had a much better day with us. She cried some, but no sobbing like yesterday and the crying was pretty short lived. All four families and the social workers headed to Central Market, a local department store. We bought Maya a little sweater to wear back on the plane and a children's Thai music CD and a popular Thai cartoon DVD. She seemed to be a little overwhelmed by all the people and stuff. And I can't say I blame her. That's exactly how I feel everytime I go into a mall.
After shopping, we all went to lunch right there in the mall. Maya finally ate for us for the first time. She shared my thai dish of rice, pork and veggies. It was great to get to feed her and show her that we will take care of her and be there to meet all her needs. After the first few bites, she quickly grabbed the spoon and dug right in. She made a huge mess, but she was oh so cute. That girl loves rice!

After lunch, we returned to the hotel and got to spend an hour with Maya in our room, just the three of us. That went great. Guess what, she loves Cheerios. And Jason and I are learning that the way to her heart may be through her stomach. :) Sounds like some other kids I know named Kora and Jackson.

We said goodbye at 2:30pm for the last time today. Tomorrow she is ours forever!

Please be praying for all the foster families tomorrow as they say goodbye to these babes. I can't imagine their grief and the tears that will be shed. It takes such a special person to foster these kids. May God richly bless them for taking in the orphans and caring for them so lovingly.

Maya enjoyed playing music

We just need Kora and Jackson

First time Maya heard some bible stories. She seemed very interested. That's promising :)

Maya's first steps...to Texas

2007-12-01T03:44:00.000-08:00

Wow! What a day. There is so much to tell and honestly, my energy level is not at its highest. So I will let the pictures tell the story for now. We'll try to write about the whole experience later. Just know that it was an amazing day and one we will never forget.

Maya first enters the room and is a little unsure about everything

Mommy finally gets to hold her baby

You know I couldn't wait to kiss those cheeks!

Daddy's turn...she's doing great!

And then the crying began...

...and lasted over an hour

Until...

She finally wore herself out

So sweet

A little less traumatized in the room

Then we headed to the foster family's home

Jackson, notice the two french fries in her hands. She loves fries like you!

This is the foster family's home...right off a very busy street

Maya's true personality comes out in her familiar surroundings

She has a beautiful smile!

We're told she "wai's" when given her bottle

This is everyone who lives in and around Maya. All are family and extended family.
Devra, she should love the chaos of our crew :)

Maya's foster mother and father...they really love her. This was so evident as we visited with them.

We can hardly wait!

2007-11-30T06:07:00.000-08:00

The streets of Bangkok-packed with vendors. Seriouly, vendors everywhere.

You thought Houston was bad. You should see the traffic in Bangkok!

All the traffic police and tuk tuk drivers wear these masks because the smog is so bad here.

We visited the Grand Palace today

Everything was very shiney!

Tomorrow is the big day! The whole reason we traveled halfway around the world...to meet and bring our daughter home. We will meet in the lobby with the other 3 families adopting through Holt and watch a quick video about the Holt agency here in Thailand. Then at 10:30am, the children arrive! We've charged our camera batteries and gifts are wrapped for the foster family(whom we get to meet tomorrow also). I sure hope I'm able to sleep tonight. So back there in the United States, we will have Maya in our arms around 9:30pm(central time). Thank you in advance for all your prayers for a smooth transition for Maya.

Kora and Jackson...we will give hugs and kisses to Maya from you both. We miss you and love you very much.

By the way, we are having a lot of problems posting pics, so I will try to add more as I'm able. We're hoping to see the hotel I.T. guy tomorrow morning so no one back home misses any of the photos of tomorrow. Wish us luck...

"Compassion" for the poor

2007-11-29T16:54:00.000-08:00

Nernkebak Project staff

Sompit's home

They eat on the floor here

The kitchen

Thai toilet

Sompit sleeps on a thin floor mat under this mosquito net

We finally meet after 9 years of sponsoring her

Hotel room in Phitsanulok...450 baht
Lunch for 9 people at local streetside restaurant...500 baht
White guy wearing a pink scarf in the middle of a small Thai village...Priceless!

Wow, where do I begin. Jason and I are back in Bangkok after an overwhelming and exhausting trip to the Nankerbak Compassion Project, a 5 hour train ride from Bangkok to Phitsanulok and an hour car ride from Phitsanulok. We were met by our interpreter, Tong, and the project's director who drove us to the project. Everyone was extremely nice and were more than willing to answer all our questions. After touring the project(we'll post those pics later) we went to Sompit's home. This was the highlight of our visit. Sompit was so excited to meet us. Her mom said she couldn't sleep the night before. We were able to meet Sompit, her mom, a niece, grandmother and about 5 other friends. We were quite the entertainment I think. Sompit was extremely shy but I could tell she, like we were, was just soaking it all in. They were very appreciative of all the gifts we brought them and in return Sompit gave us two crocheted scarves she had made over the past month. She said she found out we were coming to visit 1 month ago and that day bought the yarn to make our gifts. Very thoughtful and meaningful gifts for us. She presented them to us and wrapped them around our necks with such pride. Jason and I couldn't bear to take them off the rest of the day. So sweet.
Sompit and her mom showed us around their home. It was so difficult to not gasp and show our sadness for their living conditions. My heart was breaking. And they had such pride for all they had. This family has had a bigger impact on us then I think we ever will on them.
We saw pictures of Sompit's father, who was out working, and found out Sompit has a 27 year old brother, who happens to be a monk. Very interesting. I wonder how that plays out at home with all of the Christain influence and teachings Sompit is getting from Compassion? We thought that was interesting.

After visiting their home, we went to lunch with Sompit, her mom and 5 Compassion staff members. We went to a local joint and experienced authentic Thai food for the first time while we've been in Thailand. (Everyone remember Jason's allergies) We knew before we came here that this was not going to be a cultural culinary experience for us. Okay, I digress. No trips to the hospital were needed. We ate a very delicious meal of fried egg, rice(of course), waterweed soup, beef spicy! soup, and a vegetable combination for the rice. So no epi pens needed and we enjoyed the company of all our new friends tremendously. It was sad to say goodbye to everyone after such a meaningful day. Jason and I were ready to stay on staff there and be a part of this amazing ministry that these people run. We will most definitely continue supporting Compassion and will passionately encourage others to join in their mission.

We're Here!

2007-11-27T03:51:00.000-08:00

Did we pack enough? Yikes!

This is the view from our hotel room.

Ben, Becca and Kailani

Well, after a long 17 hour,bumpy flight over the Pacific Ocean, we made it to Bangkok. It's amazing to be here and I'm still pinching myself...it seems so unreal to me. It still hasn't hit me yet.
The Thai people are breathtaking. These beautiful and gracious people leave me in awe. Thailand is known as the "land of smiles." And Bangkok is very much living up to this name.

We were so excited to find out when we checked-in to our hotel that the couple who's been here this past week getting their daughter Kailani, were still checked-in. We were told they were leaving today, but were still here. I quickly called their room and we arranged to meet for lunch at the poolside restaurant in the hotel. What a treat that was!!! I feel like I've known these people forever when in actuality we've only communicated via email or through the Holt web forum. But we've followed each others journey of adoption and to get to meet them in person with their new beautiful daughter....I was ecstatic. Kailani is absolutely precious and she even took my hand during lunch and wanted me to walk with her. Do you think I hesitated?! :) We walked around the pool area and then she even let me hold her! I was soaking it all in and just thinking that in 4 days I would be holding my Thai daughter. I can't wait!

Ben and Becca, we're so blessed to have met you in person. Amazing that God brought us together on the other side of the world to meet and journey together. It was great getting insider traveler's tips and advice. Blessings to you and your beautiful family as you continue your vacation in Chang Mai.

Jason and I leave in the morning on a train to Phitsanulok. We will spend the night there and meet with Compassion staff in the morning and travel to meet Sompit and her family. I will take lots of pics and video for everyone. I don't expect to have internet capabilities there, so look for our next post some time Thursday night(Thai time).

Thanks for all your prayers for our travels to Thailand. I felt very peaceful as we flew and I know that was because of all of you. Do remember Jason, as his stomach is acting up and he's hoping to not let that keep him down.

We'll keep you all posted....

LAX

2007-11-25T16:43:00.000-08:00

Jason and I made it to LAX. We're half way there right?:) We are killing time while we wait for our flight to Bangkok(about 5 hours from now). The kids did well this morning when we left. Jackson asked my mom as soon as we pulled away, "Coco, do you know how to take care of us?" Obviously he's a little worried about our separation. But all reports at how say everyone is doing well and no tears have been shed. But it is only day 1.

So just wanted to check in with everyone. The next time we'll "see" ya'll, we'll be on the other side of the world! That's crazy!!!

Giving Thanks!

2007-11-24T12:37:00.000-08:00

We have so much to be thankful for during this Thanksgiving weekend.

God is amazing! Ever since Jason and I married in 1997, God has been preparing our hearts for adoption. The first time I can remember Him really shaking things up for us, was when He brought Sompit to our attention through Compassion International. A sweet 5 year old, with brown eyes you could lose yourself in, she tugged at our hearts to become her sponsor. We learned much about Thailand over the next few years and suddenly began the conversation about possibly adopting a little girl from Thailand one day. We talked about it, but you never think something that huge might actually happen. Right!?! Well, last year in February, the Lord put it on our hearts...it was time. We had a beautiful biological girl and boy, and now we were being called to go get that girl we talked about 9 years ago.

Which brings us to this moment. We are leaving for Thailand tomorrow to adopt our daughter, Maya Sunisa. And we get to meet Sompit while we're there. Isn't God good! It is so cool to see His plans coming together. We feel so fortunate to have been chosen for this journey and can't wait to begin our new life as a family of five. Praise God and may He receive all the glory.
See you in Bangkok!

Chaos...

2007-11-16T13:28:00.000-08:00

Things are crazy around here. The house is destroyed trying to get everything up for Christmas. I have piles of "stuff" for our trip stacked in our bedroom. All the christmas presents have been bought and hidden(well enough I hope). And then there's the regular dishes in the sink and laundry piled high. I'm not complaining. I'm just realizing I haven't given much thought to the fact that we are leaving in 8 days for Thailand! To adopt a daughter! We'll have three kids! Yikes, am I ready for that? No time to think about it now. The Christmas tree must get lit. :)

The Countdown Has Begun

2007-11-04T10:15:00.000-08:00

Well, as of today, we are three weeks away from traveling. We are so excited! Yet there is so much that needs to be done before we can sit back and relax on the plane(for 18 hours...yikes).

I'm currently packing a bag for Maya and having so much fun remembering Kora in all the dresses and outfits. How time has flown with her! Now Kora's my big kindergartner who wants to do everything by herself.
Thailand is so tropical that I'm packing sleeveless dresses, shirts and a bathing suit for Maya for our time there in December. Crazy isn't it?
There's still the house that needs to be decorated for Christmas, but I can't seem to bring myself to do that until at least the weekend before Thanksgiving. And I'm working on completing most, if not all, of my Christmas shopping before we leave. We just have no idea what life will look like when we return with a third child. We want to be able to devote as much of ourselves to Maya as possible during the first few weeks. And with Christmas just around the corner when we return, that could be challenging. So we're trying to plan ahead.

I've been talking with many of you and receiving a ton of comments and emails about this journey we are in the middle of, and I have to tell you how encouraged and blessed Jason and I feel. All of your prayers mean so much to us. And the specific prayers for the foster family and Maya's birth mom that some of you have told me about are so touching. One of my friends here in the neighborhood told me she has been praying that the moment our feet hit the ground in Thailand, that Maya's birth mother would have an overwhelming sense of peace come over her and know that her baby girl was going to be okay and taken care of. Isn't that great. I will be praying for the same thing.
I just want all of you to know that this is not a journey that we are going on alone. You all are very much a part of this. And I'm so grateful for that.

Here's to three weeks and counting...

New Pictures!

2007-10-19T19:53:00.000-07:00

Here is our latest update. What a big girl Maya is becoming. She is walking now and has 5 teeth accounted for. The social worker in her report describes Maya as "a cheerful, healthy, plump, active, attractive little toddler." I love it...my little chunky monkey will fit right into our family. Both my other kiddos were chunkers! And I just love to squeeze those cheeks. Her development seems to be on target and she's saying a few words including "Mae" which means Mommy in Thai. And get this, it says her "toilet training is in process." That is hilarious. Thai people will give their toddlers bottles for what seems like forever, but they'll be potty trained very early on. It's so amazing how differently cultures raise their children. By the way, the green and white dress is one we sent Maya that used to be Kora's. It's so familiar to us, yet it looks totally different on our black headed baby vs. our blonde headed baby. It's so fun to see her in the dress. We're glad to know she's getting all our packages.

Well, of course now that we've gotten this update, we're really anxious to get over there. Just four and a half weeks until we leave...it's gonna fly.(I hope)

Thailand Here We Come

2007-10-06T22:52:00.000-07:00

Well, after 18 long months, we are finally planning our trip to get our daughter in Thailand. We'll leave Sunday, November 25th and return Saturday, December 8th. We get home just in time for Christmas with our two other kids...and Maya will be the perfect gift. We have been so anxious in these last few months of this adoption process. You begin to think you'll never get "the call," just like at the end of my pregnancies when I thought I'd be pregnant forever. Of course that never happens, and the call always comes, but in that moment, why is it so hard to be still and know that He is God? And all things will be done according to His timing and not my own. Which is a very good thing. I know His timing is always perfect.

But the wait is over! Now the fun part. While in Thailand, Jason and I will get to meet our Compassion child that we've sponsored for the past 9 years. Her name is Sompit and she will soon be 15. We are so excited about this part of the trip. To meet her in person, give her a great big hug and tell her we love her and believe in her....that is a once in a lifetime opportunity.

The planning part of all this is making the time fly by. Hotels to book, trains to book; I've got the airplane tickets. Gifts to buy, packing to do and that's just the Thailand end of our trip. The list seems endless for the stuff that needs to get done here at the house before Coco and Grandma can take over the "mothering" duties.
It's all so exciting. Thanks to all who will be following our journey to our daughter and for your prayers for our travel, health and safety. We love you all.