This is the 26^th and final installment in a series of columns I am devoting to the adoption journey my wife, Claudette, and I started in 2005. Hank Bond, publisher and editor of the Greenup Beacon, asked that we share our story with you. Maybe you have an interest in adoption or know someone who does. If so, I hope this information is helpful. We adopted our daughter, Josie Claire Siyan, from China in 2007.

While in China, we communicated with our friends and family members via a blog we set up prior to leaving for our two-week journey throughout China.

In a post titled “Josie Siyan’s second day at home” on Feb. 11, 2007:

“Josie Siyan (we're still calling her Siyan a great deal of the time; I think it's caught on!  Everyone loves that name) had a good first half of her second day at home yesterday and then started feeling under the weather during the latter part of the day.  Welcome to allergy valley, Josie!”

“We had many visitors to our home yesterday, including Mamaw and Papaw Browning, Aunt Michelle, Nana and Papaw Hapney, Aunt Jolinda, Cousin Josh, Cousins Jasun and Amanda, Aunt Paulette, Cousin Hunter, Cousin Tanner, Uncle Brian (Miller), Aunt Denise, Cousin Emily, Papaw Ray (Siyan's great-grandfather; my grandfather), Aunt Bonnie and Uncle Bob, and Renee, Jordan, and Luke.  We also received quite a few phone calls.  Siyan is the little star of the family right now, as well she should be!”

“Siyan started coughing quite a bit during the second half of yesterday, and started running a bit of a high temperature yesterday evening.  We were able to reach our pediatrician who told us a course of action; Siyan also has an appointment with her doctor tomorrow.  She's been a strong little lady, though, not crying very much (just every now and then).  She's been somewhat better today (lower temp but still high, but has been drinking lots of liquids and even ate a bit of lunch).  Please keep Siyan in your prayers.  Also remember Claudette and me in your prayers as well, as we recuperate from the past three weeks.  It's been a whirlwind!  Claudette doesn't seem to have too many jet-lag symptoms.  I have had some, but feel much better this afternoon.”

“I go back to SSU tomorrow to resume teaching my classes.  I want to thank Sam McKibbin, news director at WNXT/WZZZ in Portsmouth, for teaching my Introduction to Mass Communications class for me during the past three weeks.  I also want to thank Jason Lovins of the Community Relations Department at Southern Ohio Medical Center for teaching my News Writing and Reporting class, in addition to my Composition and Research class while I was away.  It was nice being able to leave the boys and our home in great hands (Mamaw and Papaw, and Nana and Papaw) and my classes in great hands and leave the country for two weeks without hesitation.  I plan to take this summer off to spend time with Claudette, Brock, Blake, and Siyan, in addition to writing my dissertation (that's all that's left) and getting my Ph.D. completed.  Claudette has some time off prior to resuming her work as a medical transcriptionist  for King's Daughters Medical Center.”

“Today we've taken it easy and cared for Siyan.  We've received phone calls from Aunt Michelle, Aunt Paulette, Nana, Papaw Terry, and Aunt Melanie (all checking on Siyan), in addition to visits by Mamaw and Papaw Larry.  Mamaw picked up Brock and Blake for church this morning, and Papaw Larry picked them up for a church Valentine's dinner this afternoon and church following that.  We plan to be back at church next Sunday.  We've really missed our church family.”

This brings us to today, Jan. 28, 2014! Tomorrow is the eighth celebration of “Gotcha Day”—the day we first saw our daughter, Siyan, face to face. It’s hard to believe it was seven years ago this week! After the Feb. 11, 2007, entry I wrote in this column, we held a big party for her at our church, enjoyed articles about our adoption in the Ironton Tribune, Portsmouth Daily Times, Portsmouth Community Common, and a Shawnee State University article.

Siyan filled an important void in our lives, filling it with lots of love. My wife Claudette, our boys Brock and Blake, and I are thankful for Siyan as she completed our family. People have said she is a lucky little girl. It’s all of us who are lucky. We needed her as much as she needed us. God gives us our children in different ways. Our “Journey to Josie” was an amazing, life-changing experience brought about by God’s love. We are thankful He chose us as Siyan’s, Brock’s, and Blake’s parents. We’re blessed beyond measure.
A lot has changed since we arrived back in the U.S. after spending two weeks in China back in early 2007. Two of Siyan’s great-grandparents have made their journey to Heaven. We moved from Ironton (Claudette’s hometown) to Worthington (my hometown). Siyan had cleft-lip and cleft-palate surgeries at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus and Children’s Hospital in Cincinnati. Today, Siyan is a very active 9-year-old girl who is in the 3^rd grade. She’s come a very long way from the quiet 2-year-old we first saw in person on Jan. 29, 2007, in Nanjing, China. She seldom smiled then. She has a smile on her face all the time now. She was quiet and reserved then. She laughs, enjoys life, and is a very energetic girl. She has lots of friends and enjoys playing basketball. In fact, she’s a great ball player.
We never dreamed after our two biological sons were born in 2000 and 2001 that God would lead us across the globe in 2007 to China—Beijing, Nanjing, Suzhou, Guangzhou, and Hong Kong—to add our beautiful adopted daughter to our family. We are thankful He did.
That, my friends, is “Our Journey to Josie.”

Terry L. Hapney, Jr., Ph.D., is a professor in the W. Page Pitt School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Marshall University, and an eastern Greenup County native. He may be reached at hapney@marshall.edu.



Photo by Claudette Hapney

(Clockwise) Terry (top), Brock (age 6), Blake (5), and Siyan (2)--at Terry's faculty office when he was a professor at Shawnee State University--in 2007.

The Hapney's--(Front Row) Siyan (age 9) and Terry; (Back Row) Claudette, Brock (13), and Blake (11)--in fall 2013 at Greenbo Lake State Resort Park .