A HEARTWARMING STORY
Over the last few years one of our Sales and Marketing managers ,Therese Mullane and her husband Andrew have been working on adopting a baby from Vietnam . All of us in the PREM head office have been following this story and were delighted to get the news on the 19th of September that Therese and Andrew had got the call to travel to Hanoi . Through our contacts in Intercontinental Hotel Group we were able to get them accommodation in the Intercontinental Hanoi and all we asked them to do was to keep us up to date on how they were getting on . The following are extracts from Therese’s regular email updates which are so uplifting and heartwarming that I thought that they were worth sharing . With all the doom and gloom in the world at the moment maybe we should take time to reflect on what really is important in all our lives .
“News at last 19/09/2008
We finally got our call Friday afternoon to say the Vietnamese authorities have finished compiling our paperwork & we have to be in Vietnam by Monday 22nd September !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Friday afternoon was hectic trying to book flights, contact hotel etc. Flights have been confirmed & we are departing Dublin Sunday 21st September (next weekend) for Hanoi.
Arrival in Hanoi 22/09/2008
As you are aware they had advised notice could be as little as a week & in our case they weren’t messing : ) We have waited 4.5 years for this & now we have a week its going to be hectic but great.
Just to let you know we have arrived in Hanoi : ) Its very hot, 7.20pm & still 30 degrees !
The hotel is amazing we are being treated like royalty, we organised transfer from the airport via the hotel & rather than standard minibus they sent a chauffeur driven Mercedes. Upon arrival we were greeted at the front door & whisked straight to our room (no checking in with the riff raff for us : )) which is beautiful, overlooks the West Lake & Hanoi City Centre.
Thanks again all of you for your help & support, now we are here & I have time to think (first time since we got the call to travel a week ago) I realise how much everyone has done for us & how good / supportive you have all been.
We finally met our daughter 25/09/2008
The agency contacted us today & have confirmed we are being collected 7am Thursday morning (12pm Wednesday night Irish time) for our first visit to Hana, its approx 2 hours away. I promise to let you all know how that goes, please god that day they will be able to tell us the dates for visits after & also the official Giving & Receiving date & they wont be too far away.
We finally met Hana this morning, I didn’t sleep a wink last night my stomach was sick with excitement, worry, stress you name it I have felt it last night & since we got the call to come & get her.
We need not have worried she is obviously so well cared for & spent the time with us giggling, laughing & chewing (she has two bottom teeth which she loves to show off when smiling :)) & then for the last few minutes fell fast asleep in Daddy’s arms. She has not changed too much since her photo, big brown eyes, lovely chubby cheeks & a load of spiky black hair.
We are going back again tomorrow morning to spend more time with her & there is a possibility we will have the G&R ceremony early next week. Then a few weeks of getting used to each other before we head on the long journey home.
I thought leaving her would be awful but it wasn’t we were so relieved she was so well & they have done such a good job looking after her for us for the last 7.5 months we are the ones who have not got a clue !!!! We went shopping yesterday for bottles, buggy, nappies etc etc, it was a scene we hadn’t a clue & doubled with the language barrier you can imagine how long it took us but we eventually got there. At one stage Andrew was trying to fold / unfold the buggy & had an audience of about six girls watching him
Anyway as promised some photos of the long awaited little lady herself
Take care all & when were home & settled you will all get to meet her in person.
Therese”
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