Five days ago he was in Haiti, and a day ago he was in Florida.

One can only imagine what was going through little Geoffrey Lancer's mind when the

3-year-old got off the plane at Buffalo Niagara International Airport during a bitter cold

snap today.

The wind chill was below zero, which is cold even for natives, let alone a child used to a

climate with average lows of about 72 degrees.

"It's like he landed on a new planet and everything is white now," Michael Lancer said of

his son.

It was a little too cold to play outside, Lancer added.

The trip home to Buffalo this morning for Lancer and his wife, Erin, and their children,

Geoffrey, Waverly and Nick, marked the end of a two-year quest to adopt Geoffrey from Haiti.

Erin Lancer was in Haiti visiting Geoffrey when the devastating earthquake shook the

impoverished nation Jan. 12. Neither was injured. She was evacuated, but Geoffrey had to stay

behind at his orphanage because the paperwork allowing him to leave Haiti and come to the

United States was not completed.

The Lancers appealed to the U.S. government and elected officials, including Sen. Charles

E. Schumer, D-N.Y.

Geoffrey flew from Haiti to Miami on Monday, where the Lancers picked him up. He entered

the United States on a humanitarian visa, and the family will have to work to make his status

permanent.

"This is one of the most gratifying things that a public servant can do — helping to

unite a family, seeing their love, and hoping and praying that they will have a long and good

life together," Schumer said in a statement.

The first order of business today was to get Geoffrey to a local pediatrician for a

complete physical to address any medical issues. Lancer said the tyke had an ear infection

that was treated in Florida before the family flew home to Buffalo.

Medical care in Haiti was weak before the earthquake. Since the disaster, it has been

difficult to treat even severely injured Haitians, while others have had to cope with living

outdoors and sometimes a lack of food and water.

"He was living on the ground in the post-earthquake environment for two weeks," Lancer

noted.

Meanwhile, the Lancers are getting Geoffrey acclimated to his new home.

"It's a whole new world," Lancer said.