JENNA LIN'S CHINA STORY

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Picture of me at referral

(ie. when my parents first got to see what I looked like)

STATISTICS:

	Born 03/20/97 (Year of the Ox).
	Adopted from Zhanjiang City Orphanage, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China.
	Adopted 03/02/98 and traveled with my Mommy & Daddy from China to New Jersey.
	At 12 months old was 18 pounds, 29 inches long and had 8 teeth.
	Was 11 1/2 months when I met my Mommy & Daddy.

Chinese Name: Guo ZhiDi ( ) - (Pronounced "Gwo Zhuh Dee")

My Chop: chopname.gif (7167 bytes)

What my name means:

Guo = Nation, country, kingdom (all babies in Chinese Orphanages have this last name).

Zhi = Purpose, will, determination (all babies in Zhanjiang Orphanage in 1997 have this name).

Di = A flower stalk or stem of plants. I look sort of like a flower stem, long and thin, and think maybe that's why this name was chosen for me.

My parents kept my entire Chinese name. They liked how the entire name sounded, and it is such an important part of my Chinese history.

Jenna Lin Guo ZhiDi

ADOPTION TIMELINE (17 months total):

	Started adoption process on 10/10/96.
	INS paperwork submitted on 12/12/96 (with fingerprints).
	INS approval received on 03/05/97.
	Dossier (paperwork) to China on 04/16/97.
	Received Referral on 01/27/98.
	Travel dates were 02/26/98 through 03/11/98 (13 Days).
	Adoption date was 03/02/98.

ADOPTION AGENCIES:

Homestudy done by Better Living Services, Westfield, New Jersey.

Adoption agency was CCAI (Chinese Children's Adoption International - The Best)!! Their staff was the best, both in Colorado and in China. We were very lucky to have Jeri Kharas, from the Colorado staff, join us on our trip and she was so knowledgable about China and just loved the babies. And the CCAI China staff was just wonderful, which included Mr. Gu (he's unbelievable), Alice, Raymond (in Guangzhou), and Tommy (in Hong Kong). We think of them often.

THOUGHTS FROM OUR TRIP TO CHINA:

Had the best time of our lives.

Everything went very smoothly (thanks to CCAI agency).

Jenna was pretty healthy, except for her cough, which all the babies had. You could really tell that she was well-cared for and very loved. She was the most beautiful little baby we ever saw. She had these long eye-lashes; she'll never need false eye-lashes!!

We traveled with 10 other families, and had a great time with everyone. We went through this incredible experience together, and feel a special connection to these friends. Although, the other families are scattered through-out the US, we've tried to keep in touch by exchanging letters and pictures. It's so nice to see how well all the kids are doing.

Really enjoyed walking around with Jenna Lin and seeing the people. The people were very interested in the babies and really made a fuss over them. They really love the babies and are so excited that they have found a wonderful and loving home in the USA. They would give us the "thumbs up" and/or say "lucky baby".

From day-one, Jenna only wanted her Mommy and no-one else. She needed to be held most of the time by her. She had no problem bonding. Once we got home, she quickly warmed up to her Daddy.

Number of flights we were on:

Flight #1 - Newark,NJ to LosAngeles,CA

Flight #2 - LosAngeles,CA to HongKong

(Bus Ride from HongKong to Guangzhou,Guangdong)

Flight #3 - Guangzhou,Guangdong to Zhanjiang,Guangdong

Flight #4-Zhanjiang,Guangdong to Guangzhou,Guangdong (Jenna)

Flight #5 - Guangzhou,Guangdong to HongKong    (with Jenna)

Flight #6 - HongKong to LosAngeles,CA                (with Jenna)

Flight #7 - LosAngeles,CA to Newark,NJ               (with Jenna)

Our best experience (besides meeting Jenna) was when we took a taxi by ourselves into the center of Zhanjiang and walked around with Jenna. We attracted so many people. At one point the crowd got so large, the police broke it up.

MY PHOTO GALLERY (click to see larger):


Met Richard Simmons at Newark Airport (at start of trip).	He hugged us after hearing of our Adoption Plans.	Waiting for the babies at the Zhanjiang Orphanage. That's Jenna's "Mom-to-Be" in the grey sweatshirt.


Zhanjiang Orphanage	which we were lucky	enough to visit!!


Meeting Jenna Lin for the 1st time.	Our 1st family portrait.	A tearful goodbye from her loving Nanny.


Dongshan Town,	the village where Jenna may	have been born.


Her first night with us.	First outing in China. She really loved the stroller & we were glad we brought it.	Picture of all 10 babies in our group. Jenna Lin (2nd from the left) is crying hysterically because she wanted to be in her Mommy's arms.


Some rare early smiles from Jenna.	More smiles (there's that bottle cap).	Jenna's favorite toys were "tags" and "bottle caps".


We loved this "Big Budha"!! We are on far left.	At the White Swan Hotel with "Budha".	Family posing at White Swan Hotel.


Meeting the ladies.	I'm so very, very tired!!	I'm standing!!


Daddy & Jenna make a friend.	Jenna in her "Sara's ride" carrier, a must have on this trip.	Even the guys were interested in the babies.


So many friendly people.	We caused quite a commotion wherever we went.	Jenna liked being on Daddy's shoulders.


It's so hot in here. My cheeks are on fire!!	Visiting "Shop on the Stairs" in Guangzhou, where we bought a lot of stuff.	Toilets used in local restaurants in China. Hotels all had modern facilities.

Last Updated: 01/15/01

You can email my Mommy at: koliveri@worldnet.att.net

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