Meeting Our Daughter

Our last picture as a family of 3!

This picture was sent to us by Lady Fu as Johanna was on her way to us!
This lady is her foster mother, and they are outside of the Fuzhou orphanage.

At about 4:15pm on Sunday, January 15, we headed downstairs to the lobby of the Sheraton Nanchang Hotel. Johanna (Wan Yue) was waiting for us there with our guide Shirley, the orphanage director Lady Fu, and some other director-type man. Morgan took pictures while the rest of us met our new family member.



At first, Johanna looked at us very curiously. She accepted the stuffed dog and ring pop we brought her. Within a few minutes though, she had buried her head in Lady Fu's lap, and she pretty much stayed that way for the rest of the time we were downstairs. She was in total shut-down mode, which was not abnormal or unexpected.








We got the chance to ask some of our unanswered questions about our daughter, and we got some important paperwork to keep, including her "finding ad," which is the newspaper ad orphanages are required to run with the child's picture and information about when and where she was found. Unfortunately, our daughter was not left with any note or items, so when she was found near the orphanage grounds on January 5, 2013, they guessed she was about a week old. We'll never know her real birthdate, but she was given one of December 28, 2012.


Wan Yue was the name given to her by Lady Fu. Wan, according to our guide, means "beautiful" or having a good figure. Yue means "happiness," and she was given this name in hopes that she would be happy and have a happy life. Our daughter's nickname was Yue Yue. We find it very difficult to pronounce, but we try. At this point, we're kind of alternating between that and Johanna. Wanyue will be her middle name. She lived in a foster home with a foster brother and five foster sisters, and was particularly close with one of the sisters and her brother.



Johanna came to us wearing several layers of shirts and pants, along with a new red coat and shoes bought for her by her foster mother for the Chinese New Year. She is yet to let us remove any of those clothes, including her coat, which she slept in last night! In her hands she carried a bag of snacks, a little red box of treats, and another bag with items we had sent in her care package (minus the photo book-still need to ask about that!). She was (and still is) even wearing some silly little bead necklaces I had put in her package on a whim.

After asking our questions, we headed up to our hotel room. Zack held her in the elevator, and the tears started. When we got to the room, Johanna played for a little bit with tears streaming down her face. We tried bubbles, stacking cups, and other toys. At one point she handed us a little folded-up paper she had clearly been instructed to give to us. It has her foster mother's contact information! Soon after, the poor sweetie had a full-on meltdown. She went to the door, clutching her bags, and tried to escape. She was screaming and crying, and nothing could console her. Zack and I alternated sitting near her and trying to calm her in between signing paperwork with our guide.










Things only started to get better when we headed upstairs to the lounge to eat dinner. Girl has an appetite! She ate rice, fruit, and vegetables, and she was very proud to show us what she could pick up with her chopsticks. There was even a giggle from her at one point!

Back in the room after dinner, things went pretty smoothly for the rest of the evening. Other than not letting us put her in pajamas, Johanna played a bit, danced and smiled along with videos I had of her from the orphanage, and brushed her teeth along with Jonas. She went to bed (in her coat) with no problem at all. Poor thing was probably exhausted. She slept through the night without any issues, even though she fell out of bed once!

We knew this transition would not be easy for Johanna. It was nice to see her smile a few times and even laugh once, and we're hoping more and more of that happiness starts to come through as the days go on. We'll never forget the special day we met our daughter!