6 days til we meet Paige.
I AM FREEKING OUT!!!!!!!
The first high anxiety item is those SQUATTY POTTIES. Come on people. Those of you that know me, kmow that I have bathroom phobia as it is... if it is not clean I won't use it( although having to use porta potties on ball fields has kind of given me practice not to puke when I need to go use one), and I have bathrooms scoped everywhere I go so that I won't have to pee my pants. I am just so not gonna like this due to the nature of the whole squatting- hold your pants- put toilet paper in the waste basket thing.
The second anxiety: THE FOOD.....Another phobia... will not eat in restaurants that smell to me, or are in any shape or form dirty. AHHHHHH Hmmmmmm. Maybe I can lose more weight in Taiwan.. And I mean by not pooping it out in massive quatities. UGGGh.Ok Joanne, Michelle, and Melissa if you made it throught 2 weeks in China I can do this too.
The biggest anxiety of all: THAT PAIGE WILL GRIEVE LIKE CRAZY AND CRY THE WHOLE TIME. I know this varies by child, but I don't want her to be sad. I really have anxiety that she will not transition well. We do expect her to cry and not sleep well.. heck my 2 boys still don't sleep well at night and one is almost 19 (Ha).
And yes I am almost done: We are very anxious about being parents to a baby again. The reality has started to hit us and we are a little worried that we forgot what it was like having an 8 month old.
There you have it: All my anxieties- for today anyway- written for all to see.
On yea: Wait, I want to give some anxiety to some of my friends and family( You will know who you are):
We leave in 2 days and WE DONT HAVE A SINGLE THING PACKED.
7 comments:
Lisa,
You will be fine, You are staying at the best hotel with EXCELLENT restaurants, so don't worry!!! There should be no squatty potties for you to worry about (we didn't run into them in Taiwan at all...only in China). You will do well, and whatever Paige needs, will be what it will be and she will know you are her Mom the minute she meets you. You will exhude (not sure if that word is right) but she will know. She may grieve, and that is ok, too! You will have an amazing trip....now when you get home....the sleepless nights and things are a whole other thing...:0) You will be good. I will send you a seperate email tomorrow, I cannot tell you how excited I am for you!!! I am also SO looking forward getting together in the fall when you are settled...or as close to it is you can be!
Don't try to avoid the iffy restaurants and squatty potties! Embrace this time to have new experiences. Yes yes of course it is a time to get your daughter but enjoy the fact that you are not in America. The squatties are NOT THAT BAD -- you can do it. If you expect everything to be like it is here and constantly compare, you will not have fun. Good luck to you.
First off, if I can use a squatty potty anyone can :) It's gross, but you'll be amazed at the things you can & will do to be with your daughter! It will be an experience, that's for sure ~ but you will survive and really appreciate the porta potties when you get home!
Secondly, the food, may throw you off a bit; but just be selective & eat plain...
I know you will be fine and you will be learning & experiencing your daughter birth country, which is PRICELESS!
Just make sure you BLOG!!!!
So excited for you!!!
OK you sound like me. Advise: use the bathroom before leaving the hotel. Most places we visted also offered reg toliets. Usually there is a picture of which kind it is on the door. Food: go back and visit my blog from Dec 08. Pizza Hut, Mcdonalds, and KY Fried Chicken tasted the same as in the US. YOu can purchase American snacks like pringles and snickers at local stores. We took some snacks and the Beenie Wennies (sp?) where a life saver!!
Yes she will cry, but you will get through it. Buy a musical CD while in Taiwan as well as a baby DVD or take a Barney DVD. ALso Earplugs for others trying to sleep!
Feel free to email me with any travel questions!
Can't wait to follow along!
Michelle C, AL
home 12/08
www.teamcouey.blogspot.com
yes I did not get a good night sleep last night after you told me you had not packed a thing!!! girl you were suppose to start packing a few weeks ago....remember??
You are going to be fine. I have that same bathroom issue, and I go about every 20 min, but for some reason in China and Taiwan my bladder just shut off while we were out and about...THANK GOD!!! I didn't consume a lot of liquids either!! Make sure and go before you leave TWCA for the ride home.
Paige is going to cry, but I am proof that it all works out in the end. She will sleep again too. Remember I wanted the kid who was screaming the loudest and I got her!!! and I would say that I think she and I have attached beautifully and I thank her foster mom for that gift!!
Hayden and I can't wait for our trip to the island to visit. It will be some kind of fun girls weekend!!!
Hugs, call me or email me with any last minute questions. Please know I will be jumping out of bed first thing Friday morning to check out the first shots of Miss Paige with her lovely family:)
We will be here sending you our love, good thoughts, and lots of hugs and rooting you all the way there and back!!
love
jules and hayden
Lisa-
I have many of the same thoughts running through my head, minus the squatty potty. But now that you brought it up I will have to think about that too:) All your feelings are completely normal. The not knowing what to expect casues such anxiety. Whatever comes your way you will rise to the occasion. You can do this!!! You will be in my thoughts an prayers while you are on your journey.
Lisa,
You are going to be fine -- don't worry!
We were in Taiwan for 6 days, and I didn't use a squatty potty while we were there (and I have pretty bad food allergies and stomach issues)! I have friends who lived in China for 2 years and just planned their trips for potty breaks where there were Western-style toilets, so it can be done. Hint: When you arrive at your hotel, get a map that lists out where the other hotels are in Taipei, and then plan accordingly -- for instance: Going to Shilin Night Market? Stop by the Golden China Hotel first.
Food honestly is not that bad. I do not recommend eating a lot at US restaurants, as there are a lot of options that are great and relatively "safe" -- make sure you eat dumplings... they're just like dumplings you can get at local Chinese food restaurants, but about 10,000 times more tasty. Din Tai Fung is the place to go for these, if you can, but you can always ask at the hotel where they recommend you go. In the Taipei 101 building (I think you're staying very close to there?), there is a HUGE food court, and a lot of the places have plastic food meal "mock-ups" that you can look at and chose what you want. You can also print out pictures of various food items -- e.g., chicken, cow, pig, etc. that you can use when you order if no one speaks English.
Paige will grieve, but you won't know how or when... Elli had about an hour of all-out crying and that was it, but she needed to be walked around for about an hour until she fell asleep... every time she went to sleep (which was about 5 times a day for us). Other kids cry in country, and I had a friend whose children were fine for about 3 days, but grieved for a week once they were home. It just depends. Regardless, let people take care of you and Paige -- it seems that everyone gets some sort of support if they need it in Taiwan -- Heather got a stroller lent to her this week, we got hotel managers making sure that we were fed / had a place to walk around / had my birthday recognized, the family in Taiwan when we were there had a hotel manager that could magically get their son to sleep when they were at their wit's end, etc. If you need help, it will be there for you -- you don't know what it will look like when it comes, but it will be some small kindness that you will realize immediately upon recieving it that you desperately needed.
We are all thinking of you and wishing you a wonderful trip. I can't wait to see pictures of Paige in your arms!
Heather F.
Post a Comment