We made it home!!!

Three weeks ago today we landed in Taiwan full of anxiety, and today we are sitting on our couch with two little boys laying in their beds fast asleep. I can't explain the joy that has filled our home. Although I know that there is still a long road ahead, I also know that Jahsin was meant for our family and God is always leading the way!
Our flight last night was a little rough. We had a 4 1/2hour flight to Atlanta,n and at first Jahsin was very content with looking out the window and watching a movie. About an hour into the flight both boys feel asleep and I had a huge sigh of relief. A half hour later Jahsin starts screaming and kicking and nothing calms him down. So Matt spent the rest of the flight either walking him up and down the isle or sitting in the bathroom with him screaming. The flight from Atlanta went much better. All three of my boys slept till we landed! The kulp family was at the airport to pick us up. It was good to see them again, and Jahsin was excited to meet them all.
Our first day at home has gone well, except that Jahsin absolutely does not like dogs. We are hoping he will get use to them soon. We can't wait to introduce Jahsin to all of you, and of course Jaxon can't wait to see you all again.

Love,
The Kulps

10 hours and counting

So we are 10 hours away from the last leg of our journey. We are starting to pack and get ready to head home. It was nice to relax this week and visit with family and old friends. Matt and I went out last night with one of my oldest best friends for a child free night out and then this morning got to hang out with another childhood friend and her family. It was nice to be able to catch up with them and introduce Jahsin It has been a great vacation and it has been very nice visiting family but Im ready to get home and get the boys in to a normal routine. We are hoping that the flight will go a little smoother then the first one with Jahsin. So our next post will be from PA!

Little Brothers Big Day!

It has been non stop craziness since we got to California. We helped my brother finish getting the last minute things done, like the programs, table seating chart and helped my mom with the flowers. Friday night was the rehearsal and the boys did really well meeting new people. We got home really late so on Saturday I left early to pick Melissa up to get our nails done and to get her to the wedding site. So matt had the two boys for the day to get them up and ready for the wedding. He was very excited about this. So the boys slept till noon yes I said noon. He got them up and bathed tried to feed them breakfast/lunch but jahsin wouldn't eat anything. This was really weird because the kid loves to eat. They needed to leave at 1:30 to get to the place in time for me to dress them. Ten minutes on the road and Jahsin got sick. He vomited for the whole 2hour ride to the site. Of course they got stuck in traffic and matt was trying to catch vomit as he drove. Needless to say he was not very happy when he arrived. Poor Jahsin slept till 4:55pm on a couch wrapped in matts undershirt. The wedding was to start at 5pm so I got him up and dressed in his suit. He was a little clingy but did not vomit again, praise God! The wedding went well, besides my moms dress zipper ripping when she was getting dressed, flowers dying due to the heat, jahsin vomiting, wedding crashers at the reception, everything was perfect! It was nice to see all my family even some Ive never met.
On Sunday we had melissas siblings and my family over to my parents for dinner. It was nice to say good bye to everyone. We then took Josh and Melissa to the airport because they were headed to Italy for their honeymoon.

In California!

Jahsin putting his foot down with Jaxon even while they sleep




We made it! Tuesday was a very long day for us. We took the kids to the Taipei zoo. It was so hot and humid out that most of the animals were not very active. But we had fun anyway. We spent a lot of time at the penguin house and panda house cause they were the two air conditioned places. We also found out that Jahsin does not like animals of any size. He would scream when ever we got close to a cage.
We got to the airport 4 hours before our flight and luckily found a playground close to our gate so the kids could run around. We were meeting my parents there because they had flew up from the south part if the island. We got a little nervous when we went to board and they weren't there. Their plane was an hour late so we sat on our plane for over an hour waiting for people from their flight. We were very nervous they weren't going to make it. We were excited to see them walk on till Jahsin saw my mom and freaked out! Luckily Jaxon had fallen asleep already but Jahsin then wanted nothing to do with us or sleeping. He spent the next 9 hours screaming on and off. Matt and mom walked him up and down the aisle. He would sleep for about 20 minutes then wake up screaming for 20 minutes. We finally laid him on the floor by our feet and he slept for about a straight hour then they turned the lights on for breakfast. He woke up as a happy boy wanting to talk to everyone. Jaxon was wonderful! He slept, woke up watched a movie and ate. He was excited to have a tv to himself that he was able to control. But after all that we made it! Got through customs and immigration with out a problem.
We got to my parents house around 1in the morning. We stayed up till 6am, then crashed, even the kids. Wendsday and Thursday were very long days. Our bodies were having a hard time adjusting to the jet lag. With my brothers wedding on Saturday we were very busy every day helping them get things done. We are looking forward to next week when we can rest and relax.

Last day in Taipei

It is 11am and we are finishing our packing and getting ready to check out of the hotel. We have to check out by noon but our flight isn't till 11:50pm. We aren't sure what we will do for the afternoon before we head to the airport. Maybe a museum or the zoo depends on how hot it is outside. We are excited to be one step closer to home and of course the last step to finalize the adoption! As soon as the plane touches the ground Jahsin is a US citizen!! We are hoping they will both sleep the night away till we get to CA but we will be happy with just happy boys playing quietly. ;)

The weekend

We had a wonderful weekend. We needed diapers for Jahsin on Saturday, and it took us over 2 hours and many, many stores later to find them. I was very thankful to have my mom with us to ask people for information. Apparently they don't use his size diapers around here. WE had to get size 2, luckily he is small. My parents left Saturday afternoon on the train to head down south to where my moms family lives. So we were on our own. We walked around Taipei a lot. On Saturday we went to the 101 Building. It is the tallest building in the world. We did not go up to the top because I had no desire to hyperventilate, however we walked around the inside and outside of the building shopping, and had lunch. It is a magnificent building. We then walked around looking for something to eat for dinner. It was a little more challenging then we thought. We had a hard time finding a restaurant with good pictures so we could just point to order, but we eventually found one after an hour of walking. During the past week, we have eaten lots of dumplings and beef noodles. I'm in heaven but Matt can't wait to have a hamburger or steak! Sunday is also Father's day here in Taiwan. So we celebrated with a trip to Starbucks and slurpee's from 7 Eleven for the boys!
Jahsin is adjusting well with us. He has his moments but for the most part he is a very happy child. He loves to snuggle with his daddy at night and he is following his brother around copying his every move. This tends to drive Jaxon crazy.

visa paperwork

NIGHT MARKET






ROASTED SQUID ON A STICK





CHICKEN FEET AND PIG SNOUT





OUTSIDE PARKING

On Friday we had an appointment with the AIT office to file the paperwork for Jahsins visa. We were told that it could take up to 6 hours of waiting, so we packed up all the toys for the boys(Jaxons DS and Ipod and the computers) and off we went. We got to the security door and we had to check everything in because you can't take any electronics in. Jaxon was bummed!!! So we sat and waited an hour till our name was called to go over the paperwork. Once we reviewed the paperwork, we then had to wait for an interview from a US rep. From beginning to end we were there for 1 1/2 hours! When we left, the room was full of families waiting to file their paperwork. We were glad to have an early appointment. We thought we would have to wait until Monday to pick up the paperwork, but our caseworker Grace told us we could use their courier service and have it delivered to the hotel. To our surprise we received the package Saturday afternoon!!!! We were a little nervous, because this was when things went haywire with Jaxons adoption. SO now we are just waiting to leave on the 10th. We are ready to be on US soil again. Don't get me wrong I love Chinese food and the people are nice, but we are ready to get into a routine at home. That said the time we have spent as a family of four alone has been beneficial, but I am ready to send Matt back to work :).

That night we went to an authentic Taiwanese restaurant, it was very good! We then went shopping at the Night market. Boy was that an experience. It's kinda like Green dragon but filled with Asians, fried animals of all kinds and cockroaches crawling around our feet. It had a very interesting smell that we didn't want to know what the source was. It was probably the size of 4-5 Green Dragons and was mixed within the downtown Taipei streets. The most frustrating thing for us is that everyone feels they have a right to come up and touch Jaxons hair like an animal. We can handle the stares, but the touching is getting old. Anyway, here are a couple of bad pictures of the night market.

Day 3 as a foursome

Thursday we decided to walk around Taipei with my parents and try to find some low key attractions. We came across a memorial for the late Taiwanese President Chiang Kai-Shek, and learned a lot about the Chinese/Taiwanese history and feud. We were able to catch the changing of the guards ceremony, and the boys loved it. They started marching around like little soldiers afterward. They had a beautiful garden park area and the kids got to feed the fish and birds. We had a great day touring this site and spending time as a family. It is still extremely hot and humid out all the time. It's been 96 with very high humidity. I have never sweat so much before! We ended the day early and spent the evening playing with the boys. Here are a couple pictures from the day.

A Family of four!!!

I can't believe that I am now a mother of two very active little boys! On Aug 3, we woke up for the final time as a family of three. At 9am we walked into the orphanage for the final time to say goodbye to the caregivers. Jahsin also gave us a tour of the place and said his goodbyes to his friends. He introduced his big brother to everyone. He loved riding in the taxi and looking out the window at all the trucks. He was talking up a storm and we didn't have a clue what he was talking about but he was happy!!!! The family took us to a museum that afternoon.
We stick out like a sore thumb everywhere we go. With Jaxons blond hair and Jahsin yelling and screaming plus the Philly hats, every one is staring and looking at us. Everyone here is a Yankee fan. Everything went very smooth the first day and night. He went right to sleep and slept through the night till 8am!! Wednesday now is a whole different story. The family left to go back home in the afternoon so that night we were on our own with my parents. We decided to walk around and look for something to eat. We found a little place to eat and just as we were finishing Jahsin lost it!!! and I mean LOST it. He was screaming so loud as I carried him down the street, Matt and my mom stayed to pay and my dad and I started back to the hotel. Two blocks we walked as he screamed and yelled, then all the way through the hotel lobby. AS we got off the elevator towards our room he stopped, we put him down and he ran into the room laughing and started playing. so since then around 7pm every night he has a melt down. We walk around and then 20 minutes later he's a different child. He is very strong willed and has a temper to match it! Matt thinks he's just like mamma :)
We were prepared for the struggles with Jahsin, but we were so unprepared for the struggles with Jaxon. He is having a hard time adjusting to the attention that has been given to Jahsin. I know its expected and normal, I just didn't think he would act out this soon. Please keep him in your prayers that he won't feel so neglected and replaced but will feel the joy of having a little brother!

Taipei Day One

Day one in Taipei was HOT!!!! You lift a finger,you sweat. You take a shower you sweat! You dry off with a towel, and you start sweating in the areas you already dried! That said, we were also blessed with a great visit with Jashin. We were able to meet with him for about 2 hours in the orphanage, then we took him out for the evening with us and the family. Jaxon and Jashin hit it off, and we were extremely thankful that Jaxon was able to share in the experience with us. We spent the afternoon playing and just getting acquainted with each other.

When we left the orphanage we went to a very famous alley with shops and restaurants. The alley is especially famous for its "stinky Tofu". This dish has earned its name. The Tofu ferments for weeks prior to cooking. I don't know what it ferments in, but it smells like rotten garbage to say the least. Well...the theory is that it smells very bad, but it taste incredible. We have learned first hand, that it is a LIE!!! At least to me anyway. It taste as bad as it smells, but at least we can say we tried it.

After the Stinky Tofu, we met the family and got him acclimated to everyone. We spent a number of hours shopping at some outdoor markets and took him for probably his first slice of Pizza. After the Pizza, we had to have him back at the orphanage by 8 pm. Wednesday is the day we were able to take him out of the orphanage for good! Here are some pictures of our first day in Taipei.

3 days into our Journey

We are currently sitting on the train from the southern part of Taiwan to Taipei. We are 4 1/2 hours away from meeting Jahsin!!!
It has been a whirlwind couple of days. The flight was very long and Jaxon only slept for 5 hours. I think he would have slept the rest of the way but they turned all the lights on 5 hours before landing to feed us breakfast. When we landed my mom and uncle met us at the airport because we were unable to get a connecting flight to the south where my moms family lives and so they met us and we had to drive 5 hours to get to my aunts farm. Poor Jaxon was so tired of being couped up but he did very well. He was very confused because here they do not use car seats so he got to sit up front on my moms lap. We have done a lot of visiting and of course a lot of eating. We were staying at my Aunts house till Monday, and sleeping in her master room. It is very nice but they sleep on a very old fashion bed that was built by her husband. Basically it is a wooden box with a sheet on it. Every bone in my body is hurting! but we appreciate the fact that we have somewhere to stay for the weekend.
I have some many stories to share to with all of you, I hope I don't forget them.
For all my Guatemala "Girlfriends" I never thought I would be doing this again but I am throwing my toilet paper in the trash can! Jaxon thinks this is to funny :)
There are a lot bugs around, and for anyone who knows me, knows what a huge fan of reptiles I am. They are everywhere!!! I was taking a shower the other night and one decided decided to join me in the bathroom. Matt thought I was hurt when I screamed and came running in worried just to find me in the corner and wanting him to turn off the water so I wouldn't have to get close to it. We have also eaten a lot of interesting foods, such as goats meat, baby octopus , and chicken with its head still on. Jaxon thinks its funny its watching us eat.
I will hopefully be able to post some pictures tomorrow. For now I will go, I can't wait to post some pics tomorrow!!!