Beijing: April 6th

Saturday, April 6th

After finally getting to bed around 10:30pm last night before...we were wide awake at 5:00am today.  But we did feel well rested, so not too bad in regards to jet lag.  Around 7:00am we headed down to breakfast.  First we stopped in the lobby and we were able to get through with Face Time to the kids back home.  It was great to see their faces!  But emotional too...as it is hard to believe we are actually half a world away from them.

After breakfast we headed off with our guide for some sightseeing.  Traffic was terrible due to the holiday and it took us 2 hours to get from our hotel to the Great Wall.  On the way we passed many of the stadiums and buildings from the 2008 Olympics...and some other interesting things:

 

In front of the hotel and our van

 





The Great Wall:

 

 

 

 

 Some steps were 2 inches apart and others were 14 inches apart...and very uneven:

 

Taking a break

 

The view from the top was so worth the effort to make it there!

 

 

The Wall is lined with a chain link that is filled with engraved locks.  There is a story that once a newly married couple engraved a lock with their names and placed it at the Great Wall, then threw the key away symbolizing that their love was forever and could never be broken.

We placed locks on the Wall for Audra and Charlotte...

symbolizing that our love for them is forever and can never be broken! 

And a piece of them will always remain in China.

 

 

 Their locks are located on the bar of the second to last window opening on the left,

on the second flat walkway from the right side entrance...forever and ever!

 

 

The Summer Palace:

In the evening we met our agency's in-country rep, Ms. Li.  She wanted to take us out for the famous Peking Duck dinner, but due to the current bird flu in China she made other plans.  Instead we went out for an authentic Chinese hot pot dinner.  We sat at a counter with a boiling pot of water in front of each of us.  Then they bring all your food out raw and you cook it yourself in the boiling water.  We had lamb, vegetables, noodles, potatoes, lotus. 

 

 

After dinner Ms. Li walked us around famous Wang Fu Jing Street, which is quite similar to Times Square...lots of tall building with bright signs and lights.  She had us try a very yummy treat...small fruit similar to apples on a stick with a thick sugary coating.

 

Lucky for us she did not ask us to try this "treat"...

Scorpions, seahorses and starfish on a stick!

 



 

We're HERE!!!

I have finally managed to make my way through the "Great Firewall" of China and can now access my blog...so let me catch you up to speed:

On Thursday, April 4th, we left home at 5:00am in a rental car headed for JFK International Airport.  My nerves were getting the best of me the whole ride.  We arrived at the airport around 7:30am and were able to get checked in and get through security without any problem.  Here is how the rest of our travel day went:

10:05am    Take off from JFK
11:30am    brunch is served
6:30pm      dinner is served
11:00pm    snack bag (water, fruit and granola bar)
2:15pm      arrived at Hong Kong International airport, local time was 2:15pm but it felt like 2:15am
(we had just finished the first 16 hour leg of  our journey)
4:30pm      depart Hong Kong for Beijing
7:30pm      arrive in Beijing
9:00pm      check in at hotel........28 hours after we left home!!!

 

Ready for take-off!

 

"brunch" on the plane

 

Landing in Beijing

 

The long 16 hour flight was very smooth, it really never even felt as though we were flying.  Each seat had it's own touch screen monitor, and we were able to watch many movies and t.v. shows...I watched 11 episodes of the show Up All Night.  Towards the end I was definitely getting a bit antsy...I wasn't able to sleep at all on the flight, and I was starting to get uncomfortable.  We were careful to drink plenty and get up to walk in the the aisle often, but still...you can only take so long in economy class! 

The Beijing Hotel lobby...love the lanterns!

 

 

The view from our 14th floor room

 

Our room

 

 

John 14:18

Tomorrow we will board a plane in New York about 10:00am...

2 flights and 21 hours later we will land half way around the world,

in the birthplace of our daughters. 

Then... 

In 5 days we will have our daughters in our arms...finally...and FOREVER!! 

 

Ironically, exactly one year ago today was my very first blog post, "The Journey Begins...".  And here we are now, one year later, having experienced quite a journey so far and on the cusp of beginning a whole new journey.  What an amazing blessing this past year has been. 

We are grateful, thankful and in awe of the future that is in front of us...starting tomorrow.

 

Please keep both the girls in your prayers. 

 In just a few days their whole worlds will be turned upside down. 

We have had a whole year to prepare ourselves for this huge event...all the while loving and anxiously awaiting these two beautiful little girls who know nothing about us.  We hope and pray that the orphanage staff has prepared the girls for what is about to happen.  And while we know that all of this is for their benefit...in that moment the girls will most likely be scared, sad and grieving at the loss of the only place they have known as "home" and the only people they have known as "family".  We pray that the Lord will ease their grief and allow their hearts to be open to our unconditional love for them. 

It will certainly be hard for us to watch the girls in so much distress...so please also pray for us, that our hearts may be strong during their grieving period.



Today we could feel the love, support and prayers of so many of you. 

Thank you for the calls, emails and texts expressing your well wishes for us and the girls. 

 Each of them meant so much to us and helped us get through this crazy, amazing day! 

 

Sean & Shannon    and    Tim & Dawn

Thank YOU

(xie xie..."thank you")

Everyday I continue to be humbly reminded of the extraordinary amount of love and support that has been showered upon us during this entire process.  Honestly, there really are no words to fully express our gratitude for everything that has been done for us, and the girls.

You listened to us
You supported us
You believed in us
You prayed for us
You prayed for our girls
You attended one of our events
You attended ALL of our events
You bought a ticket even though you couldn't attend
You donated a door prize
You donated a raffle basket
You donated at handmade item
You bought 50/50 tickets
You cooked a fabulous meal for our event
You made a delicious dessert for our event
You wrote a reference letter for us
You sold Pampered Chef for us
You bought Pampered Chef for us
You made a random donation

We love Audra and Charlotte so much already...without ever having laid eyes or hands on them.  And having the support of family and friends who also love these girls already means more to us than you can ever know. 

Absolutely the best gift ever! 
We are so very blessed. 
Xie Xie

10:44pm

It was a very long and emotional weekend after finding out first thing Friday morning that our Consulate Appointment requests had been denied and needed to be re-submitted. 

Finally...at 10:44 pm last night we received an email from our agency stating that our Consulate Appointment had been confirmed for April 17th.  Which means we will be leaving for China THIS WEEK!!! 

The last 16 hours have been a whirlwind of booking flights, packing, laundry and getting things ready for the kids at home. Only about 60 more hours to get everything done.

Our flight to China departs from JFK in New York on Thursday, April 4th at 10:00am.  After a 16 hour flight to Hong Kong we will have a short layover, then a 3 hour flight to Beijing.  When all is said and done we will arrive in Beijing on what is Friday, April 5th at 7:00pm.

One week from today we will have Audra in our arms...with us forever and ever!

Only 7 days...

Room for a Sister

In anticipation of Audra's arrival Maura's bedroom needed some sprucing up.  Not only to make room for Audra, but to make more room for Maura herself!  She was still in a toddler bed, actually the crib converted to a daybed style toddler bed.  That crib has served us well...all three of our kids used it as a baby and then we converted it to a toddler bed for Maura. 

So, we got the girls a new bed...a twin size daybed with trundle. It is h-u-g-e!!! I am sure the two little peanuts will both sleep together and the trundle won't be used for quite some time...except for sleepovers with Charlotte!

 

 

Shirts for the sisters!

Even though Audra will be much smaller than Maura

she will be the Jie Jie (big sister)

since she is actually 4 months older than Maura.

 

 

A few of the gifts that are waiting for Audra at home:

 

On Thursday, when I got home from work, there was a package sitting on the kitchen counter.  I couldn't imagine what it could be...everything I had recently ordered had already arrived.  When I opened the package I immediately knew it was a gift for our sweet little girl....a stuffed panda and the book "Panda Bear, Panda Bear What Do You See" by Eric Carle.

 

 

At the bottom of the package was the note from the sender:

 

 "Audra, Here is a new friend for you to cuddle and love!  Welcome to America.  Ask your mommy for some caramel corn.  It's my favorite!  Love, Indigo"

 

Indigo is my friend Alisa's 2 year old daughter. 

What a wonderful surprise!

 

 

 

A set back

Ok, I have calmed down enough to talk about it...

By now we SHOULD have our flights booked and everything set to leave for China next Thursday.

EXCEPT...there was a bit of a problem with the way our agency requested our Consulate Appointments (the girls' visa appointments in China).  So, we woke up this morning to an email from our agency that said our appointment requests need to be re-submitted.  The problem is... 7:30am on Friday in the U.S. is 7:30pm in China.  The work week is now done in China.  And that means nothing will happen until Monday morning at the earliest. 

We are still holding onto hope that we will be able to leave on April 4th, but now we will be booking flights only 3 days prior to travel...which will not be very economical!

It is often said that the process of adoption is not for the faint of heart.  We have lived and learned this.  But we have also learned that you can't let the frustration, set backs and emotions get to you.  Because there is a sweet, beautiful little one waiting for you, depending on you.  Time to push on, move forward and get there. 
No.matter.what!