Mia's Gotcha Day!

January 30, 2010      Xian, China,  Shaanxi Province

Mia has been home three years today!  I thought it might be fun to record her thoughts on this day, so I asked her a few questions.

1.  What do you remember about the day you were brought to your mom and dad?
I was very, very sad and I didn't really know who you were.  I didn't know where I was going.  I thought I was going to your house that day.  I woke up that morning and Nai Nai (foster grandmother) fixed me noodles for breakfast.  She gave me a red grocery bag with cookies in it.  She gave me those so I wouldn't get hungry on the long drive to meet you.  I was really sad that morning.  I didn't want to leave Nai Nai.  I got dressed and my  clothes were not neat.  They didn't look like what a person should wear.  I had boys shoes on  that someone had passed down to me.  Nai Nai and I walked to the orphanage.  She gave me her phone number on a piece of paper.  She told me to call her whenever I wanted to call. The  people from the orphanage came out to meet us.  I said goodbye to Nai Nai and they put me in the car.  Nai Nai and I were both crying.  We drove a long way.  I was very car sick.  I had never, ever ridden in a car before.  Nai Nai and I walked everywhere.  The orphanage took me to get new clothes because my clothes needed to be nicer to meet you.  They also took the paper Nai Nai had written her phone number on.  It was all wrinkled because I had been holding on to it so tight.  They wrote it on another piece of paper for me.  I was very upset because they changed the  paper.  I wanted to keep the one that Nai Nai had given me.  She also gave me a book with some pictures in it.  The pictures were from a day that Nai Nai had taken me to the orphanage to get my picture taken.  Nai Nai told me to be sure to eat good. 

2.  What did you think when you first saw us?
I was scared of Daddy because he was bald and very tall.  I thought his blue eyes were scary.  I thought I did not want to be with you.  I wanted to go back with Nai Nai.  I was crying because I didn't want to stay with y'all.  I was glad that Sherry (our guide) was there so that I had someone to talk to that could understand me.

3.  What do you remember about your time in China with us?
I really liked the watercolor paint and the playdough that you brought me.  I did NOT like taking a bath in the tub because I had never done that before.  At Nai Nai's house we only took a bath in a bucket.  I had never seen a potty before either. (note from mom - I left details about the bathroom conditions out - Mia thought she might be embarrassed if anyone knew what their bathroom was like), The floor in the house was cement like the floor in our garage. There was not a sink.  Nai Nai got the water from outside.  She heated it up on a little fire in the house.  We had a table where Nai Nai, her husband and her real granddaughter sat.  BoBo (another foster child) and I sat at a small table on the floor.  There were two beds.  Nai Nai, her husband, their granddaughter, and Bobo and me all slept in the same bed.  There was another teenager girl who was part of the family that slept in another bed.  Nai Nai's granddaughter lived with us because her mom needed to work.  We were in the same class at school.  Nai Nai treated her differently than she treated me.  She got better stuff than me. 

5.  What was school like in China?
We learned some of the same math.  We learned how to add and subtract.  My teacher was a woman.  I didn't get to tell her goodbye.  I left during winter break.  We had nap time. I didn't have any friends there.  I don't know why.  We played on the playground after naps.  We learned how to write Chinese characters but I didn't learn how to read.  If we got in trouble the teacher would spank your hand with a ruler.  I got my hand spanked sometimes.  I don't remember why.  We always walked to school.  Nai Nai walked us there.

6.  What did you do to have fun?
We used sticks as phones.  We played with dirt.  We didn't have any toys outside or in the house.  We played outside a lot.  We got very dirty.  We only took a bath every seven days.  We took baths outside.  We had a TV.  We watched a cartoon called The Pleasant Sheep.  There was a bad wolf that tried to get the sheep.  We did our homework.

7.  Did you celebrate any holidays?
 Only Chinese New Year.  We put red signs on the door.  All of Nai Nai's family came.  Some boy, maybe my cousin, played with us.  We played with his toys.  His mom was a real mom.  She brought him stuff.  He even had a jade necklace.  We could see fireworks.  We built a fire and jumped over it.  Now I think that is dangerous.  We didn't get any presents.  We ate eggs, and chicken and noodles.  There was not any cake or pie like at Mamaw's house. 
We didn't celebrate birthdays either.  I didn't even know what day my birthday was on.

8.  What is the first thing you remember about coming home?
I was really surprised  how many people came to see  me when I got home. I thought my house was very big.  I couldn't even find my way out the door.  I thought my room looked really nice.  At first I was scared to sleep in my room because I never had a room with windows.  I was used to everyone sleeping in the same room.  I didn't tell you that because I didn't know how to say it.  Once I learned English - like maybe at the end of the school year (June), I started to really like being here.  Then I saw how much fun it was to have a big family.  I was so excited to have my first birthday when I was  8.   I never had a birthday before.  I really cried a lot at first because I didn't really know that it was going to turn out to be this good.

9.  When you think about being adopted now, how do you feel?
I feel like I really love y'all because y'all have done great things for me.  I have learned a lot of things and I am in a better place than still in China. 

10.  What would you tell a little girl in China that is about to be adopted and come to the United States?  I would tell her that you are going to be in a really good place.  They will love you.  If she is scared I would tell her that it would be okay.  You can learn English by listening to people.  That is what I did.

11.  Do you miss China?
Well, now that I am here, I would like to see the people I knew there.  I think about them once in awhile.  Sometimes I look at their pictures.  I miss them, but I am not sad anymore.  I am happy.  If I had the chance to go back to Nai Nai's house I would not go.  She can't send me to college.  I am happier here.  Nai Nai wasn't my real family, but I still loved her.  Now I have real family.  I wouldn't want to leave here.

Mia with the picture of she and Nai Nai that she keeps in her room.

We love you Mia and we feel so honored and blessed to be your family.  You are the strongest, bravest, most loving girl we have ever known.  We love you FOREVER!
Mom and Dad