And then there were FOUR!!!

Jake is doing great!! He cried VERY hard for about 20 minutes (he is VERY strong - throws his head back, and pushes hard with his legs and arms!!!) but stopped as soon as we entered the hotel lobby. He ate a little lunch (squash dumplings, pineapple and shrimp) and has been napping for about 1 hour+.

Ryan got the first smile within 5 minutes of being in the room and Jake has smiled a couple more times since.

They brought the babies in 1 by 1 starting at 9:30 am. There was a traffic jam due to the wet weather and Jake was the last to arrive - after 11:30 !!!! Anyway, all is well now and I am heading out to do some paperwork while Jake finishes his nap.

God is great !!!!




It is 2am in China now and I am downloading pictures with a flashlight! We had an amazing day yesterday and I pray that today will be the same. Chun Jiang had a bath last night and he splashed and smiled the entire time! He has five teeth - three on top and two on the bottom. He sings and smiles and seems to be generally happy. He lets ALL of us hold him and went to sleep in the crib without a sound last night (ok, I let him fall asleep on me first - I COULDN'T put him down).

The adoption becomes final this morning after our trip to the Registration Office. We are going to Walmart this afternoon.

Ryan is doing great. I am SO proud of him. He loves Jake, too.

All the other babies/toddlers are doing well. Everyone looked so cute all cleaned up and dressed last night when we walked to have pictures made for something official.

Jake has a severe soy allergy so I am reading labels and staying alert. Gerber Puffs list soy on the label so they are out but Cherrios are in.

Well, I need to get back to sleep. God is great! He knew and made it so.

Tomorrow is Gotcha Day!

We are in Zhenghouz and will leave the hotel at 9:15 am to get our babies at 9:30 am just down the street at the Registration Office. There are a total of six families, including us, adopting three girls and three boys ages 13 months - 32 months.

Yesterday was an extremely busy day. We climbed the Great Wall, toured a jade factory, attended a tea ceremony, toured the Olympic Village and went to an acrobatic show. We were TOTALLY wiped out at the end of the day. We flew to Zhenghouz this morning arriving around 12 pm. We have already been to the bank, the laundry, a convenient store and the pool and are now ready for bed. Ryan is already asleep.

I just packed Chun Jiang's diaper bag and the crib is next to our bed. The camera batteries are all charging and the paper work is packed and ready to go. Now, the morning just needs to get here!!!

Day 2 in China

All is well in Beijing today. It was very hot as we toured the Forbidden City and Tianamen Square. We had a nice traditional Chinese lunch with our tour group and spent an amazing afternoon with Helen.

Tomorrow we go to the Great Wall, a jade factory and an acrobatic show.

Monday is "GotchA Day" and it is the only thing ALL of us have on our mind.

"If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast."

Psalm 139: 9, 10

We are in China!

We made it! The flight was not too bad - we landed at 1:15 pm. We slept about 2-3 hours and are VERY tired right now. We just came back from dinner on our own. Ryan is happy with his first China Coke can and Glenn and I are pretty happy after tasting the local brew.

In the morning we are going to the Forbidden City. The driver from Amazing Hands is picking us up for our visit to the foster home at 1:45 pm. We cannot wait!!

Getting ready to go!

We will begin posting to "Our China Trip" section when we begin our journey! Hope you can follow along!