This past week we had the honor of visiting Bangkok to represent the Child Adoption Center at a national press conference! The government adoption agency that we went through to adopt Oak invited us to come back and share at a press conference promoting both adoption in Thailand and the return of internationally-adopted Thai children to visit Thailand.
True to form, we knew about this press conference but didn’t have a date until just a few days before. We booked tickets somewhat last minute and pulled together our plans to make it work. Either way, we felt it was a great opportunity to help them and continue to build relationships within the agency. We also loved the opportunity to promote adoption, in Thailand or anywhere!
But first, Oak’s first flight! He did great on the short flight from Mae Sot to Bangkok. He loved the snacks and books and a nap.
For the observant folks, you’ll be noticing the bandage on Oak’s left hand in this photo and every single one following. So I’ll interrupt my own story to explain that he grabbed a soldering iron last week and has two blisters. They should be healed up soon, and he’s been a complete champ: he cried for about an hour, calmed down with some Pez & went to sleep. Since then he hasn’t even said it hurt; he hasn’t cried again or whined over it. He faithfully holds his hand out to the side and protects it! We’re hoping the bandage will be off later this week.
He loved that you could see the BTS trains from most any place in our hotel. It’s also helpful that they continue to come every three to six minutes.
On Tuesday, we were all ready with our yellow outfits to honor the newest government leaders. We had shopped over the weekend, since our wardrobes held absolutely no yellow.
Upon arriving, they had yellow polos for us to wear to match everyone. It was…bright. Brighter than I’ve ever warn. But we also looked more Thai than we ever have! And I’m just not sure how to describe it, except to say it was all yellow. It was ALL YELLOW.
This is how Oak felt about most of the day. As the only foreigners in the room, holding an adorable Thai toddler who was sometimes screaming, we drew a whole lot of attention! It wasn’t easy for any of us to be on camera all day. 😆
Oak did get to see his two favorite caregivers from the children’s home, both of whom he remembered! They came with a group of children doing a performance at the press conference.
We were interviewed by both a major news station and in the press conference. I’d link them except a) they are 98% in Thai and b) it’s embarrassing. It was hard to know what they were wanting, and how to carefully honor all parties involved. We were nervous; and the results are mixed.
Either way, we are so thankful for the Child Adoption Center and all they do in Thailand. We are so excited to promote more adoption in Thailand.
We also love the idea behind program they host every three years: The Nativeland Visit Program, which welcomes back Thai children that have been internationally adopted to visit Thailand with their parents and families. Together, the social workers and families learn about Thai history and culture, participating in many traditional activities. We hope to participate in the future!
After the press conference, our social worker helped us to submit the paperwork for Oak’s passport. It was easier than we expected, and we picked it up at the end of the week!
Otherwise, we spent the week enjoying Bangkok. Since we do have a communal home and many, many aunties and sisters and brothers and grandmas and uncles and friends, we are trying to be intentional with some of our family-of-three time. We took this week to enjoy swimming at the hotel, train trips, ice cream trips, and playing together.
He was protesting photos for most of the week, though, often smiling just as we put the camera away. He did smile most of the time, even if we struggled to capture it!
We also did a bit of shopping for Oak and found a cardigan. I wasn’t sure he’d wear it, but on sale for $5? I had to try.
He decided to wear it on our way home and loved it. I melted. He looks just like Mister Rogers!
{Also, shout out to H&M, which puts sweet little inspirations on the buttons of their kids clothes! His shorts buttons say “Be Kind Be Brave” and his cardigan buttons say “I like you a lot.”😍}
We said our goodbyes to the hotel staff, who LOVED Oak’s regular & loud thank yous and byes in the lobby. One of the staff told us, “I will miss my boy!”
And then we hopped in our Grab, which was unique enough to be worth noting. She really loved Hello Kitty. And Pink Panther. And sweets. Oak’s face says what Stephen and I were thinking.
Oak using his passport for the first time to return to Mae Sot!
{Confession: I only sort our laundry by color when we get back from a trip and we have enough to make that worth my energy. I think it’s beautiful to see all the color schemes; but just impractical every other day of my life. And while we usually have a red|pink|purple collection and a blue|black|green assortment, this was the first time I’ve ever had to do a yellow load!}
Leave a Reply