Happy cows come from California, Happy babies come from Vietnam

Everyone remarks at how happy Maddie is, and they are so right! She belly laughs all the time and she is very ticklish around her neck and tummy and her little tush.

Well, Madison Hope Gregg is OFFICIALLY ours! We received her passport and Visa today and we are free to leave Vietnam with our little pumpkin. John tried to change our tickets to allow us to come home early, but the airline only flies out on certain days – so we will arrive home on Friday evening as planned. We said good-bye to our guide, Anna, tonight. I started crying when I realized this was it – the last time we would see her and the last piece of the puzzle.

Here are some photos of Maddie with her Vietnamese passport. Hopefully Customs won’t mind the slobbery pages.

John and I have decided we enjoyed Ho Chi Minh much more than Hanoi. It’s overcast and rainy here and the people are not as friendly. Also the shopping was much better in HCMC. Our hotel is roomier, but John hates hearing all of the traffic outside our window. It’s like New York City times 10. Coincidently, for you history buffs, our hotel was built on the actual site of the Hanoi Hilton where John McCain was held captive. There is a memorial somewhere outside the building and I will look for it tomorrow.

John had another run in with crazy Vietnamese food tonight. He saw a special for a meatball sub, so he ordered it for dinner. One bite and I thought he was going to hurl! I’m going to guess it was not beef and maybe “con cho” instead. (Translation: dog.) Why can’t this man to stick to the safe stuff? My spring rolls and spaghetti were great.

I haven’t really expressed what’s been running through my head through all of this – and I want to be able to let Maddie read this someday, so…

Madison, from the moment I laid eyes on your baby picture I knew I could love you. You were so tiny and perfect and I felt my heart swell up every time I looked at that picture. Then the day finally arrived and the Director of the orphanage laid you in my arms and I truly did FALL IN LOVE. I love your tiny fingers and thin feet; I love your small, perfect lips and your big almond eyes. I love how you light up when your Daddy comes in the room and how you play coy and flirt with all Vietnamese people who want to touch you and kiss you. I love the Angel Kisses on your foot, side and butt. I love your crazy Shaolin monk piece of hair. I love you little girl and I can’t imagine my life without you now. Okay...I'm crying again.

I haven’t mentioned it yet, so I want to clear something up before we get home and people start asking questions – Maddie has several Mongolian spots – one on her foot, a small one on her side and her entire buttocks area. They look like bruises – but they are actually areas of dark pigmentation and will hopefully fade in a few years. I choose to call them Angel Kisses and we will not be making a big deal about them. She is also covered with scabies scars – hopefully we’ve treated all of us well enough so we will not be bringing home any new “pets.” Maddie also has a lot of hair on her shoulders, back, ears and forehead – again, not a big deal and it just makes her even more loveable – so it would be great if we could refrain from drawing attention to this too. Thanks for your understanding.

Hope everyone is doing well back in the U.S. (even though our stock market is in desperate need of help) – we will be home VERY SOON! Can’t wait to see everyone. Love and kisses from Hanoi!