1st Day in Beijing!

We made it! We arrived Beijing at 9:30 p.m. Thursday night, local time. The Beijing Airport international terminal just opened last month. We arrived to a gorgeous airport ready for the Olympics. And the best thing was there was not a single line for immigration. We really feel covered in prayer as this first leg of the journey has been just about picture perfect. Our BLAS (Bridge of Love Adoption Services) guide, Vivian, met us at the airport has not left our side. She's wonderful! We're staying at the Capital Hotel of Beijing. It's been newly renovated and, well, it's just the best here. We feel very spoiled! We got a good night's rest and got ready for our first big day in China, Friday.

We awoke to a great breakfast buffet and ran in to the other family joining us in adoption, James and Amy. Together, with our guide Vivian, we set out for a VERY full day. We started at the local jade factory. We learned about the origination and hand-made production of jade and jade products. We toured their showroom and I got to buy a beautiful jade carved bracelet. :o)

The next stop was on to see the Great Wall that morning. It was overcast with light rain, but it was perfect weather for climbing this monumental Wall. It's crazy steep and it's steps are so varied in height. It's a hike for the most seasoned athlete! Randy, Elizabeth, and I made it to what they call a Hero Card. That means we climbed enough to get some credit! Wow. Elizabeth got lots of applause from the locals. She and two other little boys made the hike. We enjoyed this gorgeous mountainous part of Beijing.

After the Great Wall expedition, we toured a Cloissone Factory where they handmake the elaborate Cloisonne enamal vases. This work is incredibly intricate from the pounding out of vase structure to complicated iron art, paining, and firing of the final product. We enjoyed a wonderful lunch upstairs of local Beijing cuisine. Yum-o on the lazy susan of dishes!

After touring the Cloissone Factory, we traveled to tour the Summer Palace. Words and pictures can't begin to detail the expansion of these palacial properties. We tourned the entire palace area and even took a dragon boat ride back to the front gate at the end. The Summer Palace has the world's longest..."outdoor hall" for lack of better word at this point. We seem to walk for miles.


When we finished the Summer Palace, we then toured the Heaven Sent Silk Factory. This is where they handmake the silk products (scarves, linens, apparel) from the tiniest of silkworms. We got to wet and tear apart silkworm cocoons and see how strong and substantial the fabric is. We were walked thru the entire process and sure have a new perspective on silk!

We finished the day at 7 p.m. and returned to the hotel after 2-hours in traffic. The commute was long, but did get to see a lot of the Olympics venues being built. Jet lag had set in and all three of us were asleep by 8:30 p.m. Day two was to be equally filled with excitement and awe!

Almost There...3/4 Of The Way!

Well, we just arrived Tokyo, Japan. The flight was great. Long, but very smooth. Our section was full of families with small children, so we settled in real well. We got a glimpse of what it's going to be like traveling with a 15-month old for 13-hours! On the other hand, Elizabeth has been super. It's her first plane ride, so it's exciting to listen to her say things like "I'm ready for take off!" and "Wow, look at that". She's really experiencing everything through those expressive brown eyes. It's 4:15 p.m. local time and we're waiting in the lobby of American Airlines' Admiral's Club. Boy, is this nice. No bottled water, but all the tea and soda you could ask for. We board our final flight to Beijing in about 2-hours. We're flying Japan Airlines and arrive Beijing at 9:00 p.m. local time, Thursday. We haven't slept too much, so we'll be ready for that hotel room! It's amazing how time seems to stand still while you're flying across the planet. Well, time to board the tram to the other terminal.

Getting Ready To Fly!

Wow, it's crazy now! Been a very busy week of getting our house ready for the boys' stay here with Papatoe and Nana. I'm staring at 3 empty suitcases for us. It will get done! We fly out Wednesday, May 7. We're flying American to Tokyo then connecting to Japan Air to Beijing. That puts us in Beijing at 9:05 p.m. May 8. The next two days, we get to see the Great Wall, Tian'an men Square, Summer Palace, and the Forbidden City. That's so we get over that jet lag! On May 11, Mother's Day, we travel south to Guangzhou where we will remain until we leave. On May 12, Monday, our little XiaoMei will be delivered to us. That's technically Mother's Day in the United States. Wow, what a gift. We will remain in Guangzhou until May 23. We will have a one-night layover in Tokyo. We arrive back to Texas May 24!

As exciting as this is, it's still seriously tugs at my heart on leaving my boys. We will Skype almost everyday. We have web cams. So, hopefully this will ease our missing each other. Thankfully they will also be in school to pass their days. They will have lots of fun. We just can't wait for the day when we return to China as a family of 6. Love!

Blessings Abound

Wow, we are humbled with hearts full this week. Sunday, our friends gave us a wonderful baby shower for Rachel. It's hard to describe the feeling of it all. The greatest thing is that the room was filled with amazing friends, family, and even our neighbors (who are great friends, too!). To see the room filled with moms, dads, grandparents, children galore, it was bliss. The Benekes, Cantwells, Lunas, Sassers and more roasted hot dogs, brought loads of food, arranged the official baby cake, and decorated in beaucoups of pink complete with ladybugs! It's about impossible to thank everyone and to even know all they have done. It was something to write all those thank-you notes this week and get to go back to each gift looking at the thought and sentiment sent in each one. I can say we are truly overwhelmed and find ourselves lacking in the proper vocabulary to really verbalize this experience. I was reminded that this shower was not about us, but about Rachel and all about God's great love and provision. Wow, this little girl is about to have her world turned around!

We Have Our Visas!

It's official, we received our Chinese Visas today! Another big milestone. FedEx showed up at the exact time this afternoon that I was sending a document to our adoption agency. Seeing lots of God's fingerprints lately! He is so in this journey, it's just bliss. So with visas in hand for all three of us, we now await our full itinerary from our China adoption facilitator. We will have a guide with us the whole way who will literally walk us through the 2-week process. On a side note, I got a haircut today to get the "new-mommy-do"...short and easy (if anyone needs the best hairstylist, it's Melanie!) Guangzhou is hot and humid....THINK MIAMI!

Airline Tickets Are Booked!

This morning we received confirmation that our date with the US Embassy in Guangzhou is May 22! That means we're ready to travel. We booked our tickets with American Airlines today. We fly out May 07 and return May 24. We are thrilled to have our tickets booked. The added bonus, or rather, added 'jet lag' element is that we will connect through Tokyo. So I told Elizabeth today, you get to see China AND Japan! Coming back we must spend the night in Tokyo. I'm already praying that this connection will not cause too much pain; that we'll have some super energy! On the flip side, I am so sad to leave my boys behind. I feel like I have the pregnancy emotions now! Delighted one moment, tearful the next. I plan on leaving the boys a 'surprise bag' for each day we are gone. Once they finish their day's homework, they are allowed to open one sack with a treat inside. So I better hit the store and candy shop soon! Lots to pack to take and lots to 'pack' to stay.

An Unexpected Baby Shower

Friday brought an overwhelming shower of gifts at Denise's office. I have had the rare priviledge of working for the same company for 19 years now. So, a lot of it is indeed an extended family. So, this extended family of mine surprised us with a shower. I got the blessing of sharing this celebration with another co-worker, Mandi who's expecting in May. She and I took turns opening up A LOT of thoughtful gifts. Honestly, for me, just seeing how so many people are just excited about the thought of bringing a new life into the world (and country!) is something I wish I could take a picture of. I take a lot of joy from that. Everything from crocheted shoes to a luggage set will be put to great use! Since Randy was in Malaysia at the time, I brought all the goodies home in their wrappings so he could have a shower of his own when he got home. The kiddos loved doing that! I am forever grateful for the amazing people God has placed in my life...and that's NO cliche.

A Surprise From Rachel's Orphanage

Unexpectedly, we received another update from Rachel's orphanage. They gave us a one-page document detailing her growth and progress! Wow, sweet Jesus is so wonderful to bestow even the smallest things to greaten our hearts. Rachel since 10 months old is progressing nicely. She is now 14 months old. She now weighs over 16 pounds and is 28 inches tall. That means she is two pounds heavier and 3 inches taller. She likes to play with rag dolls, cars, and building blocks. She smiles, claps, watches TV, and dances. She goes to bed at 8:30 and wakes up at 6:30. Our adoption agency China director told us "When I look out and see all the trees budding and the daffodils blooming, I think God is tossing His confetti and celebrating with your family." I agree!

Easter Turned Out Pretty!

Well once the morning chill wore away, it turned out to be a pretty day. We celebrated Resurrection Day with Denise's Dad and Mom (aka Papa & Grammy). We then came home to play in the sun where the kids drew a chalk 'crosswalk' in front of our home. I couldn't resist taking an 'Abby Road' shot! Fun day!

Spring Break!

While we're waiting for Rachel, we find ourselves having as much fun as possible this spring break at home. Yesterday we found out the weather for Easter Sunday is more like winter! So we made the most of it yesterday and today!

Spring Cleaing from the outside in! Riding our bikes and scooters. Having a great egg hunt at the Frisco Roughriders Dr. Pepper Ballpark. And ending the day with a 3-mile walk to Bahama Buck's and Hollywood Video!