Please follow our Tribe...

Well, since our adoption journey has come to an end...(there is only one more step left and that is to get Asia-Faith's South African citizenship...but that could still be a long time coming)....so there won't be all that much to post here with regards to adoption, although I will still update here from time to time...

So, please follow along with our regular blog...where you can see what our Tribe is up to in Taiwan...

You can find us here: http://tonkin-tribe.blogspot.com

Enjoy the pics...

Rag Rolling...

So I decided to try rag rolling Asia-Faith's hair (and mine too)...it is quite a nifty little technique that usually is done with rags, I on the other hand found a use for the cotton wool strips that I bought!

Asia-Faith sat very still during the whole process, and then went to sleep with them in and I took them out the next morning! She looked too cute! (Nothing new....she is always cute!)...

She has this little saying that she says lately to us that is too adorable...she says "I love you so so so so much 10 dollars" (or sometimes it is 20 dollars!)....very precious....

Here are some more pics...enjoy!

Documents done....Well almost!

So on Friday our dear sweet landlord took me and the kids back to the Household Registry Department. We had been there a week before to fill in documents and such to get Asia-Faith removed from the Household Registry in Taitung and moved to one here in Hsinchu...

Anyway, there were a bunch more forms to fill out, but they were able to change her "birth" name to our family name and her new Chinese name...Mei Ya...and then they even asked if I wanted an English version of the document (for NT$ 150), so I said definitely, and then they said well for an extra NT$20 I can get 2 :) Although the English version will only be available in a weeks time...

However I did get the Chinese version so we were able to head straight from the Household Registry Department to a travel agency (I was told by my landlord this is the way it is done, so who am I to question...), anyway, we went to the travel agency to apply for Asia-Faith's Taiwanese passport! That will be ready in about 2 weeks time (because of the Double Ten day coming up it will delay the paperwork a bit), but we will have her Taiwanese passport soon!!! Then after the travel agency...we headed to the Hospital, to the Health Insurance Department and were able to change her Medical card name to her "new" name (took about 10 minutes if that!), and they will send the new card in about a weeks time!!!

Wow, I have to say...Taiwan is efficient!!!

Our next step, once we have all these documents and passport in hand is to send it off to our South African liaison office and they will then start paperwork for her to become a South African citizen and get her South African passport!!! Although this part of the journey could take a good few months!!!!

Enjoy the pics.....

This is her new helmut...

Our Fairy Princess in all her cuteness...

WE HAVE OUR FINAL DECREE!!!!

Did you hear me?????

Asia-Faith is now officially, finally, without a question... OURS!!!!


Jason called me at lunchtime to let me know our landlord in Yilan had called him to say some documents had arrived yesterday and she was forwarding them on to us in Hsinchu.

I called Deana (http://mlchome.org) to let her know that I should be receiving them at least by Friday....and then shortly after that our new landlord knocked on my door with some mail for us...I immediately opened it up and since it was in Chinese asked her to read it for me...just to make sure it was the final decree and not a letter saying they need more info...and true enough...IT IS OUR FINAL DECREE!!!

So one year, 6 months, 2 weeks and 3 days later...she is ours, although she has always been ours in our hearts and in our minds...but it is just great to know that legally, on paper, she is ours!

The paper chase is not yet over....there are still a few things to be done, such as remove her from her current household registry, apply for her Taiwanese passport, and then apply for South African citizenship and passport....let the fun begin!

For Doodlebug ~ 3 April 2008 - 8 August 2008

Well, on Friday, 8 August...we had to say goodbye to Doodlebug...he is now with his forever family...

It was a very sad day, well, actually a sad week, for our family as we had all grown very attached to him.

It was the first time I had been a foster mom, and honestly, I don't know if I could do it again.

For 4 months I rocked him to sleep, sang to him, tended to him as if he were my own, loved him as if he were my own, and tried to protect my heart...but before long he had crept in and now I know he will always have a special little place.

Our family still miss him lots, I miss his warm little body in my bed next to me (where he used to sleep), I finish doing dishes and think to myself I need to get Doodlebug's bottles ready for the night...only to remember he is no longer here...he was such a tiny little boy, but he has left such a big void....

~* For Doodlebug *~

I knew from the start this day would come,
And I thought I’d be prepared to send you on
I never knew it would be so hard,
You see, you have crept into our hearts.

Your beautiful smile, your precious grin,
The void you are leaving you can’t even imagine
I would do it all again, you bet I would,
For the memories you have left us are so very good!

Now my precious Doodlebug,
We need to send you on,
But please remember we love you,
And forever stay strong!

~* Starr *~
08/08/08



~* Follow Your Path *~

As I sit here holding you,
Tears streaming down my face
You are smiling and gurgling,
Oblivious to the changing pace

Your are a delight and a joy,
And you are one special boy
Filled with love and laughter,
Your memory will linger long after
Your journey with us has come to an end,
But your life is just beginning my little friend
You have a new path, Follow it well
Maybe one day our paths will cross, who can tell?

~* Starr *~
08/08/08

WE HAVE OUR FIRST RULING ~ PART 1 OF FINAL DECREE!!!

WOOHOOOO!!!!! CAN YOU HEAR ME SHOUTING FROM TAIWAN???

This afternoon a mailman arrived with two envelopes that I had to sign for....

I knew it could ONLY be something about the adoption!

I opened them up and it was 4 pages long...all in Chinese!!! It did have our names and Asia-Faith's birth date on them, so I knew it had to be something regarding the adoption.

I quickly called Deana (mlchome.org), and she told me to scan and email them to her....and then I waited....

Finally a little later in the afternoon I got a call back from Deana to say......it is the first part of our Final Decree!!!!

I cannot believe it....we are almost at the finish line.....

Basically what this means is....

FIRST RULING (Part 1 of first decree)

Once the District Court hearing has been completed and the judge has had time to make a decision to finalize the adoption, he/she issues the first part of the Final Decree.

This is a short statement signed by the judge that is forwarded to the parties involved (social services organization on behalf of the adoptive family and the birth family) notifying everyone of his/her decision to finalize the adoption.

This first part of the Final Decree must go to each party and there is a waiting period of 10 days before any more can happen to ensure everyone has been notified of the judge's decision.

The First Ruling generally comes about a month after the Hearing. (although in our case it has been 8 months...buy hey, who's counting!) LOL

So the document was dated 24th July...so hopefully they count the 10 days from that date and not the date that we signed for the document....(wishful thinking?)...

After the 10 day waiting period is up, the second part of the Final Decree is forwarded to all parties. When the second part of the decree is received....the court process is DONE!!!

Then the last process will be to have her name removed from the Household registry

The household registration is a file located at local government offices in Taiwan that contains certificates and information about each person in Taiwan.

The child's household registration is attached to his/her guardian's file until the adoption has been finalized by the Taiwan courts.

Once the child has been legally adopted in Taiwan, you file with the government office to remove the file from the guardian and create a new file showing that the adoptive parent(s) are the new legal guardians.

Anyway, we are just sooooo excited right now....I had to call Jason right away, as he is already living in Hsinchu to give him the great news - and he was so excited and couldn't wait to go and tell all his work colleagues!

The boys kept shouting "She is ours!", too precious...and then Asia-Faith was running around saying "I am Asia-Faith MeiYa Tonkin" ~ Got to love them!!!

Now just to get through these next few days!!!!!


Sorry, for some reason I can't upload pics today...will try again tomorrow:(

Still waiting for final decree...and moving west!

Well, the documents that we needed to sign arrived on Monday morning (21 July), and Jason and I signed them and sent them back off in the mail, and Deana (http://mlchome.org) called on Tuesday to say she received them and had taken them to the courts!

So now we wait, again,.......hopefully we will get our final decree SOON!!!!!

On another note...we are moving again!

This time we are heading to the west of the island to a place called Hsinchu - also known as the "windy city"! So from the wettest part of the island to the windiest!

Jason will be leaving on Sunday, and then he will look for an apartment for us, and then myself and the kids will probably move across around August - fun times ahead!

Enjoy the pics...

Finally we are moving forward!!!!

I got a call from Deana today (Morning Light Children's Home), to tell me there were some documents that needed our Chinese names and signatures on so she will be sending them off to us in the mail tomorrow (Thursday)!

This is looks like the final step to our final decree!!!

We are so happy that it looks like we are getting closer to the finish line!

Well, this month of June marks the 2nd anniversary of us living in Taiwan!

If you would like a walk down memory lane with the Tonkin Tribe...go take a look at http://tonkin-tribe.blogspot.com/

Enjoy the pics....

Having a bad hair day....

Looking pretty.....

The boys had their hair cut....they were SO excited to get mohawks!

Adoption update.....

So it turns out the judge required MORE from us....

A few weeks ago we were told the judge needed further information from South Africa regarding our adoption, so we finally got these, had them translated and delivered, only to be told they NOW needed the "classification of an orphan" from South Africa.

Well, we managed to get a hold of these, had them translated and sent off in the mail to Deana (Morning Light Children's Home), she received the documents on Saturday, and delivered it to the courts, Monday, 16th June....

So now we wait.....we are hoping this is all the judge needs and will now sign that final decree already!!!

Enjoy the pics...

Asia-Faith......our Rock Star!!!

Here are a few videos of Asia-Faith taken last month....she loves to sing and dance - she is part Ami (an aborigine tribe in Taiwan, and they are known for their singing and dancing)..... and did I mention that she loves music???













Just a little info about Ami:

Ami
The Ami, with a population of 123,000--the largest of all of Taiwan's aborigine tribes--are mainly plains dwellers, living in the valleys and coastal plains of eastern Taiwan. The Ami are divided into five groups based on geography, custom, and language.

The Ami began to use oxen in cultivating paddies relatively early. Fishing is an important part of their economy, but hunting is now solely recreational. In Ami society, kinship is matrilineal, but men's clubs are well organized. Ami villages are relatively large, each with a population of between 200 and more than 1,000. The Ami are the only aboriginal tribe on the island of Taiwan to practice the art of pottery making.

The Ami harvest festivals have evolved from warrior training. Nowadays sports, symbolic fishing in the open seas, and singing and dancing are observed throughout the villages in a series of celebrations in July and August.

Other information

Family affairs including finance of the family are decided by the female householder, in the Ami tradition. Not many people may have seen the Ami, but many people may have heard the Ami. The musical project Enigma used an Ami chant in their song "Return to Innocence" in their second album, The Cross of Changes. This song was the theme song of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. The main chorus of it was sung by Difang (Chinese name Kuo Ying-nan) and his wife, Igay (Chinese name Kuo Hsiu-chu), part of a Taiwanese aboriginal cultural performance group. An unauthorized recording was made while they were on tour.

Famous people of Ami ancestry include baseball player Chin-hui Tsao, and singers Chang Chen-yue and Tank.

The most important traditional ceremony is the Harvest Festival. The Ami's Harvest festival is to show the people's thanks and appreciations to the gods and to pray for harvest in the next coming year. It takes place every July to September

Shower time...

Last time she was in the bath....now she is in the shower (or should I say the bucket!) LOL

Enjoy the pics.....

Outing to a kindy....

Our friends Thomas and Wendy go to her brother's kindy once a week in Suao and they invited us along for the ride. The kids had a great time....

Enjoy the pics...

Playing in the park

We haven't had rain for a while, so we have been spending a lot of our time at the park...

Enjoy the pics...

New Shoes...

We went to buy the kids new shoes....and I saw these shoes with the little ladybirds and couldn't resist them for Asia-Faith.

I didn't realise when I first showed them to Asia-Faith that they were squeaky shoes! And then she stood up and walked in them.....it was too late to take them away from her - she loves them...fortunately the sales lady saw the look of horror on my face, and so she showed me that the "squeak" is removable! (Thank goodnes!) LOL

Take a look...aren't they gorgeous???

Bathtime...

Having fun in the bath...

Enjoy the pics...