November 16th - An end to an emotional day

Today turned out to be the most emotional day for us yet. We traveled to the orphanage where Sofia stayed from November 1, 2005 until we were able to get here to her. The orphanage had several little ones just waiting for a new mommy and daddy.

When we arrived, we were first met by several care givers of the orphanage (dressed as nurses), the Director of the orphanage (the lady in the dark suit clothes in the picture below) and all the kids. Sofia immediately recognized where she was and reacted with screaming and fear (I believe the fear was she was going to be left there again - not in how she was treated as she was treated as good as she could be). Again, the comfort for us was the comfort she had with mommy (and the rest of her family) holding her every step of the way.

Sofia had left her mark on the people who cared for her. The director of the orphanage was very happy to see Sofia and how happy we and she were with each other. The care givers also took special interest in Sofia and were happy we brought her back to say goodbye one last time. There was only one care giver (nurse in above picture) that Sofia had a positive reaction to and would allow to hold her. Sofia seemed ok with being back there once she realized that mommy and daddy weren't going anywhere and that Dawn wasn't putting her down or allowing anyone else to hold her from that point.

We were able to walk through the orphanage and that 's where we saw all the little kids. There were a couple of kids that recognized Sofia and ran to her to kiss and hug her. She responded to all the kids with apparent happiness. It was when we got to the room where the beds/cribs are that was the peak of the emotional roller coaster we were on today. When we walked in the room, Sofia immediately recognized her friend in the crib next to where she had been for over a year.

Sofia's name tag was still on the crib and the director let us take it with us. I / we couldn't hold back the tears when we saw the children just waiting for someone to take them home and to know that this is the very spot where our precious Sofi had been for so long. If the law allowed for it, the Newsome family would have grown by every kid in the orphanage today. (Several of the kids were in another room today thus the empty cribs. Sofia's crib -where she spent so many days /and time for the past year- was the blue one in the picture below).

I am thankful for all the orphanage did for Sofia and all the little children. With the limited resources they have , they do the best they can. We then left the orphanage for a trip into Foshan, where Sofia was abandoned.

After a short drive, we arrived at the location where Sofia's birth mother and father left her on November 1, 2005 . They left her at the door of the women's and children center. The pictures below show the very spot she was found (this to was a tearful occasion. To know that a mother and father loved their little one so much and knew that they couldn't care for her and that the only way for her survival was to give her up. Little did they know that on that day they were our angels who with their courage and faith along with God's blessing would deliver our precious Sofia to us.

Through the tears and emotions I told Dawn that Sofia was found once at this very spot by strangers passing by as an abandoned child and on this day she was found again by strangers passing by as a member of our family to never be left alone again.

As we headed back to Guangzhou, I again thanked God for Sofia. I looked up and saw this beautiful little face looking at me as to say, " Daddy - it's ok because we're together now".