Michelle's update of DAY 1

I should be sleeping because I'll be up early for Sabian's medical exam at 8AM, but before I go to sleep I want to write a few things down so I don't forget even a tiny portion of these memories.

We flew from LAX to Thailand w/ who Jeff thought was some high ranked poker player. The dude borrowed my pen and sat by us waiting at LAX and we could tell by the way he looked and acted that he probably was. When we got to Thailand and saw him again waiting for the same flight to HCMC, Jeff asked him, and sure enough, it was Menh (sp?) the master (leave it to Jeff to know this guy).
long story short
.....we spent our first night with him showing us the town and some real Vietnamese food, as in, we looked at the seafood in the water buckets, picked it out, had it cooked, and ate it all up. We could see them preparing the food in the back. The restaurant workers kneel/sit on the ground to prepare meals. It was a memorable night in the most amazing city I have ever been to.

millions of scooters
babies on scooters
families of four on one scooter
weaving in and around traffic to dodge scooters
face mask- wearing scooter riders
carrying huge loads of cargo on tiny decrepit scooters
honking to tell scooters you're about to run over them
honking to tell pedestrians they're about to get hit

I could not ever fathom the incredible sight of this city and the sheer volume of scooters and people who hang out in this district Christmas time (district 1 is like the Sunset Strip or Rodeo Drive of HCMC) Thousands of locals throng here to look at all the lights and Christmas decorations set up in all the stores, restaurants, and hotels. Parents dress their kids up in costumes to take pictures of them all over this district, and in front of our hotel there are throngs of these Christmas revelers each night. We seem to be a novelty, as they ask to take pictures with us. Complete strangers. It is the most interesting experience we have ever had. Words cannot explain.

Today was a dream! I woke up on my own, with no alarm, at 5:45 to be ready at 7AM to meet Mr. Tom and Thao in the lobby. They're our agency's HCMC facilitators.

I must go to sleep but I'll just say that Sabian is a dream child and the entire day was the best dream come true one could ever imagine. It can't be possible. This is just too good to be true. He is perfection, and from the moment I saw him being carried to me by his nanny, he was mine completely. I was in love with this child of mine. There was not one moment of hesitation or feeling inadequate or lack of a mother to child bond. I can barely believe it myself because I prepared for the worst and knew I might not bond to him immediately, but from moment one he was the light of my life.

Jeff is the most amazingly doting father I could ever imagine (shhhh...don't tell him I let his secret out!) He is absolutely in love and sweet talks to Sabian like you can't imagine. It is the sweetest discovery to see Jeff transformed into this protective, lovable, and completely involved daddy. When I'm holding Sabian, he constantly asks me if he can hold him. He wants to give him baths and make his bottles/ cereal, and basically everything that I also want to do! We are sooo in the baby honeymoon phase it's not even funny!

okay, I've gotta go to sleep but we'll update tomorrow.