First Christmas Tree...

for Matteo....

Welcome home shower for Matteo...

Maybe a breakthrough in sleeping in Canada....

....and not Vietnam....Matteo seems to have, for today, made a switch to sleep more like his Vietnam timelines but with Canadian times, so we are up at 6, and so far a short little nap...but hopefully good....He's in his exersaucer and watching a Christmas show...his first television allowed by me, and now I can definitely understand how tired parents use television for some R&R themselves!!....anyhow Samantha yes, the playpen (with baby) is the best Christmas tree ever (maybe I can just hang some ornaments on it?? )...anyhow as a woman who I met while waiting for our Ottawa flight said, just put a bow on Matteo's head and you have all the decorations you need for a great Christmas....so yes am definitely not in decoration mode...Sandra I did only look at some decorations yesterday but none came upstairs with me so will see if any appear.....Meg, yes I did get all the messages about the cookie party and exchange and would love to join everyone however am not sure I may get myself organized to make some cookies, so if it is alright to drop in without cookies and just for a visit!! (of course if I can, I will definitely contribute cookies!!)...anyhow do let me know with an address as well, off list of course....

...It has been a full week for sure, most of Matteo's aunties and uncles came to visit and each cousin got to hold Matteo even for a short time. Everyone ooed and awed at how tiny he is...of course all his photos have him the focus of the shot and there is usually not a person to reference him by, so yes he is tiny but he is a bit bigger than when I first met him as he is definitely a good eater now and eating and drinking more ....

...Anyhow we may head out this morning after his mid-morning nap, for a walk as it is milder out today...yesterday we managed to walk to the post-office to mail off the form so that we will get his Citizenship card....next week we'll return the temporary Canadian passport for a more permanent one....so still more paperwork to do....

....Tomorrow my three sisters Maria, Natalina and Rosalba are hosting a welcome home shower for Matteo, so hoping the storm stays at bay enough for us to get to that and enjoy it too!! I will end with one of my recent favourite pictures...

So so glad to be home...

but of course Matteo is on Vietnam time so he sleeps lots during the day and at night requires his play time!!...finally got our bags unpacked but am still working on laundry....helping three cats to adjust to a new child and help them understand he is not another cat, has been fun...two of them have accepted him totally and are a bit protective of him, while the third, Micio, sometimes seems quite relaxed and at other times still not sure what to make of this little moving "thing"....anyhow I do and will get back to the blog, do want to record our travel experience for Matteo to read one day and also update some blogs that were started in Vietnam, as I have lots and lots of photos to upload....tomorrow if all goes well, want to get some Christmas ornaments up through the house, no energy for all of my usual decorating and the playpen is in the spot where the tree usually sits, so will probably not put the tree up but do have a smaller one that will satisfy.....so all in all, I'm back to trying to sleep when I can, but a few too many things to do, so the sleep deprivation is the main adjustment....as for Matteo, other than a rash that he has on his face, from the rubbing around in the bassinet on the plane, (hope that is what it is) as when the lights went on, his face was all red...he doesn't seem to be bothered by it, only mommy is....so am trying to put cream on to keep it moist while waiting to hear back from the doctor...oh and the best news, as of last Tuesday morning, Matteo and I, our first solo excursion, got him an Ohip number....they accepted his passport, but wanted proof of my adoption,....I had my file and started to give him every document I had!!....and finally the Letter of no objection did the trick!!....so we have a new little boy registered with Ontario health...and speaking of little boys, he is crying so gotta go......

Home safe and sound...but...

a more difficult trip especially for poor Matteo...he is now asleep in his crib...and I am heading to bed....wil write more if I can tomorrow...

Travel Day...

In about an hour we are heading to the airport and our journey back to Canada begins...now packing and organizing with a little one has been very stressful....now if I compare it to the adoption journey, probably a needle in a haystack compared to some of that stress...but in the past two weeks, getting to know Matteo without this stress has been good, but of course, I am worried about what will confront us and of course how he will deal with it...he loves being out and about so that is good, but when there is too much going on he gets so wound up and mommy isn't always so patient....I know he senses when I'm feeling tense so will try to stay calm...I am not the first nor will I be the last person to travel with a baby and as well I'm sure in many ways travelling with a baby is easier than travelling with a toddler....do you think I have myself convinced to stay calm...probably not....as long as we make it to the cathay agent, get our luggage sent off, get our boarding passes and then get through customs...I will be much more relaxed...I hope!!...so hopefully I will be able to update at each stop as I did not this Viaggio a Vietnam, now it will be Viaggio da Vietnam....so if there are not updates the next one will be from Canada!!....so looking forward to being home and continuing our lives together there....and of course enjoying the Christmas season too.....

Second last night in Vietnam....

...still all feels a bit like a dream...Matteo asleep in the other room, having a so so night...we were going to try to get to the market but it was not to be....it is so hot out there, and we are definitely not enjoying Ho Chi Minh city as much as we enjoyed vung tau....it is so congested, so loud, and noisy...not to say it was noisy in vung tau but there were special perks that aren't here....now the Somerset is wonderful, like the special door man who greets Matteo Bao with such a lovely smile and joy at seeing usnand calls out "Matteo Bao" and sometimes gets a smile from Matteo......and we've had some lovely experiences, visiting Vietnam quilts for christmas decorations was great but so was meeting a fellow Canadian who was from Calgary but who has been living in Vietnam with her husband for the past 4 years...she offered us a drive back to the hotel, and Matteo loved it, he talked to her all the way home, cooed and even sang...the driver was even impressed...of course they haven't witnessed or heard Matteo's other kind of singing...when he is screaming so loud, all because I'm not getting his milk fast enough....note to Somerset staff, maybe you should add small fridges to the bedrooms so little boys will be happier sooner..

...anyhow Matteo and I are still getting to know each other...he has already seen my short patience when I'm tired, and I am starting to decifer which he is screaming about, his diaper, his stomach, or plain, he's bored....anyhow I am writing this as I am awaiting Loan to come up later to deliver Matteo's Vietnamese passport and his adoption documents...as I really don't have any of these at the moment!!...only his Canadian passport...so tomorrow I will pack our final bag, and then make arrangements to transfer us to the airport Monday morning....

....alright Loan just left and I now have all the remaining documents, his Vietnamese passport, his adoption documents etc... so final preparations to get the the airport will be made tomorrow.... and D. is here at the Somerset hoping to see her tomorrow, our final day..

....so I still can't believe it....just an update on Matteo Bao, my little boy....his two front bottom teeth have burst through his gums, so that is good, he is sleeping better through the night...still wants to drink his formula, but drinking more of it and eating some rice cereal so he is sleeping better, without as many small cries that he was making at first...he is now enjoying bath time and loves playing a little in the water but as I don't have bath toys he still isn't playing much but at least he is not screaming with being near water....he does still love to be out and about but definitely as I mentioned there is some much going on here that it is sensory overload for him at times and he gets wound up and harder to calm him...so while we will be sad to leave Vietnam, we aren't sad to leave Ho Chi Minh, and will definitely come back to stay in Vung Tau and enjoy more of its beauty....so one more day and then we will make our journey to the next phase of our lives and a new path of two....