We are home!

Well we have been home since the 21st. Not gonna lie there have been some moments. Overall we are doing quite well. I went back to work on the 23rd. (I am lucky enough to work from home). Chandler and Carter started school on the 25th and Christian started pre-school on the 30th. I feel like we are into more of a routine, at least this week. I can tell that each day gets a little bit better.

Mia is doing so good. The boys adore her and she likes them! This girl is a smart little cookie. She watches and then she tries it. She is definately feeling more comfortable here and acting like a typical 19 month old. (playing in the toliet water, unrolling the toliet paper, trying to climb in the dryer, etc...)

Almost time.....

I pick up Mia's visa at 5:20 today in our guide's room. Some people in our group are heading out tonight, most of us leave tomorrow. We leave The White Swan at 5:30pm and head to the airport. I am hopeful that Mia will do well on the long plane ride. Shoot, I am hopeful all 3 of us do well on the long plane ride! We fly Guangzhou to LAX; LAX to Detroit. My ride will be waiting for me in Detroit. We are ready.

We went back to the Pearl Market today. I finished up my shopping there. I did buy Mia a pearl necklace for later; wedding day or college graduation--a big event.

We explored the hotel grounds more today. We saw the lap pool, and had heard about a pool with a waterfall. That waterfall pool was really nice. I would love to have the trees and landscaping in my backyard!

I think that re-entry will be a doozey. At least until we get a routine down. Please be patient with us. ;)

Consulate

Today we went to the US Consulate in Guangzhou and took our oath. Pretty painless, Mia's visa gets issued tomorrow and we leave on Friday night. She was feeling really good today. She even played with Maw Maw (that is a first).

Squeezing in a bit more shopping tomorrow before we leave. ;)

Tuesday the 17th

Today was visa day. We had to hang out in our rooms until 11:30 in case something was wrong. Turns out I missed filling out a paper. Not a big deal, took a whole 3 seconds to fill it out. We did some shopping today. Let me just say that it is a good thing Guangzhou is far from Ohio at Christmas time. Good prices on nice stuff.

We also had the infamous Red Couch photos today. We were running behind--shocking right? Mia was not thrilled, and cried. We also did a group shot of all the families.

The waterfall picture is what is in our hotel lobby. It is pretty.

My brain feels foggy. I am sure I need rest. Mia is still feeling the effects of her shots. We also confirmed our flight outta here today. China has been nice, but I am ready to see my fellas. ;) (we have been using Skype, and that has helped.)

Pearl Market and Shots

Today Mia got 5 shots. She did fuss, but did very well. She settled down right afterward. She is a good eater, and has even started giving me kisses on the cheek. :)

As a group we went to the Pearl Market. Not really a pearl kinda girl, but the prices were right. The market is 2 buildings that are 4 stories tall, with shops everywhere. The one picture is of the inside of the pearl shop the other is the inside of the shopping center.

Guangzhou

We made it to Guangzhou on Friday night. We saw the active and lively girl on the plane that was described in the paperwork from the orphanage! She did very well on that short flight. So far we have had her physical; she weighs 23 pounds and is 31 inches tall. She will get 5 shots on Monday. She will not be a happy camper.

Today we visited a Buddhist temple, Old Chen House and went to a small shopping center. Monday morning we head to the Pearl Market. Per our guide the prices are 1/6th or 1/7th the price we pay back home.

Sleepy....

Low key day

We decided to hang out in the room today and take it easy. I think each day is getting better. She did cry today, but had more smiles and giggles. Momma is going to the orphange tomorrow. I thought about it, but I am sure Mia would want her nanny. It would bring more sadness. Momma will take pictures and ask questions for me.

Mia and I will hang out here, play and take walks.

Tuesday -day 2 with Mia

Today was busy, we went to the registration office (she is officially in China's eyes ours--I have more to do when I get home since I was the only parent that traveled). We also went to the notary office and the Lotus Center. Lotus is a giant shopping area. It was overwhelming to say the least. Our group was the quite the show there.

Mia is grieving, she has cried for about 2 hours today. There were bright spots and snippets where we saw her personality come through. She is very observant and likes to copy what you do. She walked for us for the first time today. Her legs were a bit wobbly, but it was good to see.

Tomorrow we plan to lay low and hang out in our room.

Presenting Rui Rui

I won't be too wordy, because I know you really just want to see her. ;) Mia was there when we arrived at the government building to get the children. I walked up the steps and there she was! In the pictures there are two nannies. The girl in the white top (with long hair) and the girl in the purple top were her nannies. Both ladies were very sad to see her go. The one in purple is the one she called Mama.She had been her nanny since she came to the orphanage. I cried, they cried, some daddies in the group cried. We feel so lucky that she was loved and cared for so well.

Mia has been grieving. We did get a glimpse of her personality later this evening. We played and sang songs. She is bigger than I thought she would be. My hip and back think she's about 30 pounds. (She is 19 months)

Today is THE day

Right now it is 6:32 in the morning. I woke up at 5:30, nervous. I have butterflies in my tummy. We meet at 9:30 in the lobby and get our children at 10. Please pray for this transition for Mia. Her world is about to be turned upside down.

Aug 8th and 9th

It has been a busy busy time so far. I have used several squatty potties (I would have taken a picture, but was afraid of dropping something in it), visited a jade factory, the Bird's Nest and The Cube where the Olympics took place, watched an AMAZING acrobat show, and climbed the Great Wall. Momma went all the way up, I on the other hand said no way, and sat and waited for her. The steps are very uneven and steep. The 2 days of tours in Beijing were great. It cost us about $75 U.S. each --not bad at all. We also had 2 Chinese lunches. (The fish picture was from one of our lunches.) I was not brave enough to try it.

We flew today into Zhengzhou, Henan. We exchanged money at a bank and went to Wal-Mart for supplies. Let me tell ya, it is a mile there and a mile back to good ole WM. I told mom that if I had to walk to our Wal-Mart I certainly wouldn't buy as much stuff! (the chicken picture is from Wal-Mart)

Our guide Yisha gave us a paper today that had little snippits about our children. I found out that Mia likes little dogs and cats and likes to chase them. She also claps her hands and shakes her body while listening to music. She is afraid of seeing lots of strangers--That one will be a big one- especially tomorrow. She is walking now.

We came back from Wal-Mart to find the crib in the room. It seems very real now. We get our children at 10 am tomorrow.
(I can get email at my woh.rr.com account).

Tours Today

Today was a busy day. We saw the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, a silk factory, and took a Rickshaw ride. We definitely saw things that we had never seen before. Tomorrow is the Great Wall, a jade factory, the Bird's Nest, and an acrobat show. Hopefully the pictures show that I am attaching.

(I am blogging through email and I cannot see the finished product. Please forgive misspellings.)

In Beijing

We made it to Beijing. Blogger and Facebook are blocked here. Adapter is giving me fits, will keep working on that.

The LA to Guangzhou flight was not that bad, we slept most of the flight.
I will try to post more later....