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Saturday, March 6, 2004
Ni hao from Beijing! We arrived in China at 9:30 PM local time
Friday
night. We were exhausted but excited. By the time we made it
through customs and picked up baggage, and then shuttled to
the
airport, it was 11:00. I slept in my travel clothes instead of
waiting up for our luggage to make it to the room!
We awoke at 6:30
AM fairly well rested and ready to tour. There are about 19 families
in our group and they are wonderful.
Our local guides are terrific
as well.
This morning we went to Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and the
Summer
Palace. We also had a nice group lunch and visited a pearl
market. I really enjoyed shopping! The Summer Palace grounds
were
beautiful, but after about an hour and a half, Ryan broke out in
hives and we asked if we could take a taxi back
to the hotel for
benedryl. Ryan also had quite a bit of ear pain since he has had a
bad cold and an unpleasant few plane
landings. The guide suggested
that he might be allergic to the trees at the palace grounds, but we
thought it was more
likely something at lunch. However, by the time
we arrived at the hotel, his hives had all but disappeared. His
throat
still was sore so we gave benedryl and advil and he is asleep
now. He is having a blast dispite these few unpleasantries.
Tomorrow
we go to church in the morning, and to the Great Wall in the
afternoon. On Monday we fly to Guiyang where we will finally
meet
our daughter! Hang in there Mia, we are coming!
Tina
Sunday, March 7, 2004
We had another busy but amazing day in China today. We were up early
and
to church at the Beijing International Christian Fellowship
Church. The worship experience was wonderful. From there we
went to a
jade market, to lunch, and then the Great Wall. Let me assure you
that pictures do not do it justice. Ryan
climbed to the top of the
area we were touring. Only a few people in our group did this. We
had a great dinner tonight
of Beijing Duck. We arrived back at the
hotel in time to pack up for the big day tomorrow. We will leave
here at 10
am to catch the noon flight to Guiyang. We will receive
Mia late tomorrow afternoon.
Tomorrow will most likely be
emotionally
exhausting. This is the day we have been waiting for for almost a
year and a half. I pray that we would
be healthy and safe and that Mia
would adjust to us quickly.
Tuesday, March 9, 2004
Wonderful Greetings from Guiyang!
We are sorry for not posting yesterday.
We had a great day meeting
Mia and were busy the entire day. She is absolutely wonderful! We flew in from Beijing
around 3:00 PM and were told that we
would meet the babies around 4:00 PM. When we arrived at the hotel,
they were already
in the lobby! We had to check in and get our
baggage in before we could actually go across the lobby and get to
hold
our babies. My Mom and Dad were already in the lobby when we
had arrived since they flew in the day before. As soon as
we saw
them, they told us that they had already picked out Mia and had
conversed with the orphanage staff. When we first
got to see her up
close, we found out that her foster parents were the ones holding
her! We had wanted to get a chance
to meet them, but had been told
that was unlikely. We had a wonderful visit with them and received a
picture book of
several photos of Mia over the previous months. It
is amazing! We traded gifts with the family and asked some questions
through
an interpreter. It was such a wonderful surprise to meet the
foster parents. Mia was mostly happy through the whole process.
A
few of the babies really grieved as they left their foster parents.
Mia's foster parents had raised 10 other babies
over the past few
years. Most of these babies had been adopted into the US and Holland.
She was bundled tight in
several layers as is traditional for Chinese
babies. We were soon bused down the street as a group to a photo
shop for
pictures needed for official paperwork. Then, we got to
experience the N-Mart. It was a 3 story Walmart type store with
everything
you might need. We bought Chinese formula and rice
cereal. As well, we stocked up on American soft drinks and bottled
water.
One
of the day's highlights was our dinner in the hotel
restaurant
with my parents. Mia made the biggest mess, but loved
the noodles
suggested by the waiter. She "slurped" them right in like she knew
what she was doing. She ate and ate as
well as covering Tina with
food! Watching her eat the noodles was very entertaining. She slept
most of the night in
her crib and the last few hours next to Tina in
the bed. All in all, a pretty good first night. When she first
awoke
this morning, she just seemed to quietly study us all for a
while. I am sure she is confused, but seems to be doing very
well.
This morning, we went to a meeting room and signed some papers toward
the official adoption. She seems to
be a very calm baby with mostly
a serious expression. However, we have been able to get a bunch of
great smiles. She
seems to like us all and she loves Cheerios! She
is not walking, but will stand with some help. We haven't really
given
her the chance to crawl much, so we don't know about that. She
loves to sit up straight and play with toys in front of
her on the
floor.
Please pray that the tip will continue to go so well. As well, Mia
coughs occasionally, but
seems to have no other cold symptoms. We
hope that maybe she is just getting over a cold. Please pray that
she stays
healthy. Also, remember to pray for Ryan as he continues
to fight a cough himself. He is some better already. And lastly,
please
pray that we all stay healthy through the rest of the trip.
Most folks experience some level of stomach upsets on this
trip. So
far so good for us
Thanks for your prayers!
Steve
Thursday, March11, 2004
Yesterday was another busy but amazing day. We boarded a tour bus
once
again, 5 sets of parents, 2 siblings, one set of grandparents
(ours!) and 5 babies....and headed 3 hours west of Guiyang
to the
largest water fall in China. It was beautiful, but an awefully long
trip with babies. The trip back was unforgettable.
We stopped in a
Miao village. The Miao are a minority people group mainly in
southern China. Mia is quite possibly from
one of these villages.
The village was very primative and the people amazing. When they see
a tour group coming they
set of three fire works to notify the
village. They are dressed in traditional Mia costumes. As you enter
the village,
you must sip from a horn to taste their homemade rice
wine. You then are treated to a sample of dance, song and customs.
They
invite you to participate in their dance and mock Miao wedding
as well. So, 14 year old Ryan is now married. =0) As we
are leaving,
we gave candy to the little Miao children who were thrilled with a
single M&M. Steve gave a 5 year
old his cap, so there is now an
Auburn baseball cap being worn in a small Chinese village! We arrived
back at the hotel
exhausted and all slept well.
Mia continues to delight us. She seems to come out of her shell more
and more each
day. We have gotten lots of smiles today especially.
Tomorrow we leave for Guangzhou.
We have several great photos
posted now and hope to continue to post
more during our final week on this amazing journey. Continue to pray
for us,
for good health, and no "stomach issues".
Saturday, March 13, 2004
Greeting from Guangzhou!
I can't believe we are on the final leg of our
journey. Thursday and
Friday in Guiyang were great as Mia began to warm up to her new
family. She is smiling more and
more and settling into a schedule
(when we aren't touring!) Friday was a bit stressful as we were to
leave the hotel
at 3 PM and do some final sight seeing and shopping
before heading to the airport. Our guide was 3 hours late (while we
waited
in the lobby) because of a computer problem at the civil
affairs office. We finally made it to the airport with no time
to
spare. Mia did well on the flight. We had medical check ups this
morning (trust me when I say that this was a formality
and hardly an
exam). The babies are precious. Will post more later!
Sunday, March 14, 2004
We had another great day with Mia. She is so much fun. She can't
wait
to meet her other two brothers!
Today we visited a folk art museum. It was very nice with beautiful
courtyards and
art. We then went to a tea shop and tasted jasmine,
ginseng, oolong and rose tea. It was a unique experience. The
shopping
here is great, wonderful quality, amazing prices. Late this
afternoon we went to a park. There were hundreds of pigeons
who
would eat bird seed right out of your hands. Mia loved that. Tonight
we had a pizza party in the hall with our travel
group. It was so
much fun to see all of the babies happy with their new families.
This has been such an amazing experience.
Monday, March 15, 2004
We spent time shopping on Monday after our consulate
appointment.
This was so much fun! Squeaky shoes are the greatest!
We also bought Mia several silk dresses for the years to come...each
for
about $6. The hotel we were at was very nice and the surrounding
area safe and easy to kill time. The babies in our group
continue to
delight us all. They are beautiful and it is so much fun watching
them become more and more comfortable
with their new families.
Monday night we had a group dinner at a Thai restaurant. I believe it
was the Banana Leaf.
The food was spicy but enjoyable, and the
atmosphere great. Ryan and some others got to dance with the "entertainers" during
our meal. It was great fun. Our guide Linekar is actually a great dancer!
Tuesday, March 16, 2004
Today was mostly at leisure. We ate breakfast at the hotel buffet as usual. We then
gathered for group pictures in the lobby. The babies were so cute in their little Chinese silk dresses and pant sets!
But they sure are hard to hold on to when they are all slippery! We rested and packed the rest of the afternoon and
had our last group meal at a Cantonese restaurant near our hotel. This was by far the most interesting meal with items
such as squid, seaweed, chicken kidneys and jellyfish on the turntable before us. Most of us stuck with the noodles.
Thursday, March 18, 2004
Yea! We arrived back in Birmingham last night at
about 10 PM. The
trip home was excruciatingly long. Mia did not sleep on the 12 hour flight
from Hong Kong to San Francisco,
but did sleep a few hours between
San Francisco and Atlanta. We were met at the airport by Steve's
sister and her family,
who have been keeping the little boys. They
were so excited to see us! They loved Mia instantly of course. We
were finally
all in bed asleep by midnight. Mia's clock is messed up
as she is still living on China time. She was up by 3:30 AM and
did
not go back to sleep until about 10:30 AM. We are all exhausted,
but excited about introducing everyone to our girl!
Welcome Home Baby Girl! We love you!
Click here for our web photo album !!
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