Meeting Naveen

Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry to leave you all hanging. Does anyone still read this blog? Have you all taken it off your google reader in disgust? I know that I was able to blog and Facebook practically every day while in India and now there are just crickets chirping over here. Goes to show how chaotic everything is at home. ha!

LOADS has been happening and, believe me, I'm certainly finding ways to fill up the next 7 weeks. Or, rather, 6 weeks and 3 days. But who's counting?  Anyway, if I go into everything that's been happening here then I will never get around to blogging about meeting Naveen and I really need to get it down on paper. So, here's the story....

Okay, if you read my last post then you know this adoption has been really emotional. Things were great in Mumbai. We were having a wonderful time sightseeing and kicking back for a few days while waiting until we could go to Pune.  But as soon as we actually got to Pune, my emotions started flaring up. Big time.

I had an appt to meet Naveen on a Thursday at 2.30pm - which meant Sandwich and Daisy had to somehow find a way to keep me from driving myself (and them!) crazy all morning and half the afternoon long. We went to breakfast, where I started to get teary-eyed. Then we decided to check out the local mall... where I also started to get teary-eyed (and it was not due to the fact that it was the lamest mall I've been to... it was mostly a food court with a movie theater and half a dozen closed shops).  Then, we went next door and ate at McDonald's. Hey don't judge me. Those Paneer Burgers are to die for. And spicy.  So  I started to get teary-eyed. (By the way, the music they played in the McDonald's was filthy! Man, they were dropping f-bombs everywhere! I was shocked. Do you think they realized what the music was actually saying?).  Anyway, then we sort of walked around... and I got teary-eyed. It was probably good because only one old lady and two young kids asked for money. I gave the elderly lady a few rupees because... hey, I was emotional and I have a soft spot for old people. Help the aged, folks! But we were getting into the rickshaw when the kids asked - and, darnit, don't you know I wish I could've run into McDonald's and bought them something really quickly? I know you're not supposed to do that and it's a big no-no on every tourism advice site, but dadgumit, I was emotional. What are ya gonna do?

Anyway, it was probably good that I was all weepy because people generally left us alone. I think all it took was watching one white woman walk down the street with red eyes and fanning both hands in front of her face while sniffling for everyone around to think, "Dang, that woman is batsh*t crazy. She might lose it any second and push me in front of a speeding car. It might be better for me to just walk on the opposite side of the road and ask one of the Germans from the yoga ashram to give me some money. They practice peace and all that shiz." 


Eventually, slowly, after 7 Christmases had already come and gone, and the ticking of the clock in the hotel room was starting to sound like Chinese torture, the van from the orphanage pulled up, we piled in, and made our way.... and I got all teary eyed.

I know this is going to turn into the blog post that spawned 1500 pages and takes you longer to read than a Harry Potter novel if I don't get on with it, so I'll skip the next hour (in which Sandwich & Daisy lucked out and got to spend the whole afternoon in the nursery with the babies... can I get a collective "ahhh"? Dude, brown babies rock. Don't hate me. I just speak the truth. They are ca-yute!) Anyway, they went to the nursery and I went down the stairs and....

There he was! He was with his group walking up the stairs, just as I was coming down and his ayah said in Marathi,

"Naveen! See that gawgeous woman right there walking down the stairs with her hair flouncing behind her and a chorus of angels accompanying her every step? That's your new mommy!"

Actually, I think she said,

"Um Naveen, that crazy white woman who's all teary eyed with red eyes who's fanning her face with her hands while sniffling is the woman who is going to kidnap you and take you away from me. And you'll never see me again. Now go give her a big hug and kiss!"

Because he took one look at me with those big, gorgeous brown eyes, slowly shook his head and started walking backyards down the stairs. Nothing and I mean nothing could get him to look at me. We tried playing in the playroom, but nope. He'd look at me out of the corner of his eyes and sadly shake his head as if he were saying, "Nope. I'm sorry. I don't accept this."

We tried sitting him next to me while I read a book to him, but he just looked at me and shook his head to let me know that, no, he did not approve.

I sat him on the table in front of me and handed him legoes to stack into towers, which he accepted one-by-one until he built a tower taller than he was (developmentally delayed, my rear end!). And then when he finished, I smiled at him and he just  solemnly shook his head while thinking, "You need just get on a plane and fly  back to where you came from. Because this? It's not gonna happen."

But, then, by the grace of God, and all that is filed in my brain under "Pre-K activities that work", I tried the one thing that actually got Eli to smile for me the first time and the one trick that got  Nandi to smile for me when I first brought her back to the hotel 4 1/2 years ago.

 This Little Piggy

And, let me tell you, this little piggy went wee wee wee all the way into a fit of giggles. Oh, he still wasn't happy with me, but he was intrigued enough to let me me tickle his (oh so stinkin' adorable) little toes and wee wee wee all the up his belly, under his arms, and under his chin.

Then, it was time to go outside and play and he took me by the hand (!!!) and led me to the courtyard, where he continued to impress me with how coordinated and clever and imaginative he is. I know I was supposed to play with him, but all I wanted to do was just watch him and soak up every single thing he did.  To be able to finally see him, after having his referral for a year? I can't even tell you how amazing that was.

I was starting to get paranoid that his ayahs would think I was some sort of horrible mother because I was just watching him, so I put him on my lap (where he immediately froze) and then I did the one thing that my dad has done with each of my kids  that they love....

Ride Little Horsey

Do you know that one? You have the child straddle your lap/legs while facing you and you say...

Ride a little horsey

Down to town

Ride a little horsey

Don't fall down!

And then you open your legs, while holding the child under his/her arms and they drop down a bit and then you fling them back on your lap and shut your legs together. And then you repeat it approximately 137 times and your thighs start to burn and your back starts to hurt and you wonder what idiot invented this nursery rhyme in the first place? But it's great for bonding. =)

At this point, Naveen was starting to warm up to me, but was still distant. I gave him a pack of Kleenex to play with. Nandi loved playing with travel-size Kleenex and it kept her occupied on one whole leg of the flight home. Naveen seemed curious, but quickly grew bored.

Really? You come from the land of Toys R Us and all you brought me was this stinkin' pack of Kleenex?

So I pulled out the last trick I could think of... I quickly knelt down beside him and took our picture together. And then I showed him.

Oh my word, I've never seen a kid's face light up like that. He wanted me to do it over and over again. So we did.

Here

And here

And here

And here's one more

And here's another one

More? Really? Okay, since you asked...

Awww, and here

Around this time, Sandwich and Daisy came down and played with the older kids. Daisy is soooo good with the kids. I want her to move in with me and help raise my children and play with them for hours while I sit back and watch and tell myself how lucky I am to have someone who is so good with my kids.

The kids at the orphanage loved her! And Sandwich was on photo duty and took tons of pictures of all the children and how much you wanna bet that she gets the adoption bug again? (I'm calling dibs on being your travel buddy, Sandwich!)

Anyway, by this point, Naveen and I were best buds.  He wanted to see everything in my little bag. I showed him my pen and he proceeded to show me that he knew exactly what to do with it by marking all over his hands and the arms of all his friends.

 Oooh! A pen! The ayahs never let me play with pens...

I can't wait to use these all over your walls, Mommy!

Then, the staff brought me some bottled water and I offered him a drink. Suddenly, he grabbed it and couldn't get enough.

 Oh, you want some of Mommy's water? Sure, baby.

 Here you go....

 Oh. You're gonna put your whole mouth on the bottle, aren't you? Uh, that's okay. We're family!

Mental Note. Cold water = Happy Baby. The plane better have cold water on it...

And I was so cool with it. Even though we had only just met and he totally covered the entire opening of the bottle with his whole mouth and completely back washed into the bottle, I had no problem with drinking after him. He's my son!  But, by golly, when the other kids came and grabbed the bottle and put their germy mouths on it and backwashed who knows what into it, well, I was done. Stick a fork in me. That's just nasty.

I later found out that the kids were clamoring for the water bottle because they'd never tasted ice cold water before. Their water is always tepid. Oh my gosh, don't you know I can't wait for that little boy to come home and never have tepid water again.  And his own cup. Because I might get tired of that backwash after awhile...

Anyway, pretty soon it was time to go. We knew we'd be back the next day, but I still got teary-eyed. By this point, every time I walked anywhere, Naveen would stop what he was doing and follow me.

Are you about to die from his cuteness?

Are you? Are you?

When they told him it was time for me to go, he ran to me and wrapped his arms around my legs. Oh. My. Breaking. Heart.  The workers were stunned because they said he takes a really long time to warm up to people. So I picked him up and promised I'd be back (all the while dying inside).  And then I passed him on to one of the Directors and he just looked so sad. I had to leave right away or they would've had to carry me out in a sobbing heap - and I know the rickshaw driver would've charged extra for that.  So we left.

 It's okay, baby. Mommy's coming back tomorrow. 

Oh, crap. You mean I have to leave him. Seriously? What kind of cruel joke is this? Why don't you just rip out my heart and stomp on it?  Sniff. I think I'm getting teary-eyed. 

And then we headed to Pizza Hut because you can get a personal cheese pizza for about 3 bucks and nothing cheers me up like a good pizza, and don't you know, the best pizzas in the world are made in India? That's not a joke. You have to try the Pizza Huts in India. They're incredible. Oh. And you can order paneer on it! Yes, it's called the "We Just Made Leslie's Day Pizza".  So we ate some pizza and got a potato vada for about 5 rupees from a little street stand and then we stopped at a chocolate shop and Sandwich bought me some Toblerone. (She totally speaks my Love Language). And then we went back to the hotel and I ate all the chocolate from the little basket that they put out in the hotel room (because my heart was hurting and my heart needed more chocolate) and I tried to sleep. My heart was breaking at the end, but it was pretty much the best day ever.

It was the day I got to meet my son!

P.S. The reason I'm able to post pictures is because we passed court! We passed court! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! Do the Happy Dance! Slap yo' mamma and beat me with a wet noodle! (Or whatever it is that people say when they are exuberantly happy.)  Anyway, that's why I can post pictures, but I had to crop a lot and leave a lot out b/c I can't post pictures that have other children in them or ayahs or identifying features, etc.

P.P.S. Okay, so I know in the beginning of my trip I harped on and on about dressing appropriately. And I think I'm dressed appropriately. Sleeveless (not tight camisoles/spaghetti strap tanks that show off what the good Lord gave ya and 7 inches of accompanying cleavage) is okay in India (maybe not rural India), but you gotta keep the legs covered. As for the scarf, there was just no use in wearing it while playing with Naveen. Tip #310. If you plan on wearing a scarf, bring some safety pins to pin it to your shoulders or you'll be dragging it on the ground and fussing with it the whole time.

P.P.P.S. Should I do the countdown one more time? Okay, here it is...

6 weeks and 3 days.

Man, I'm getting all teary-eyed.