An amazing adventure

What to say, after going through such an amazing time and seeing God work in an amazing way.  I am almost at a loss for words, but I will power on and try to put down what this experience has been like for us.  When we started the process, I don't think we understood the impact it would have on us and on our family.  I don't think we realized, because we were so busy doing paperwork and having meetings, and obsessing over dates and everything else,  but we didn't realize how amazing the process of adoption is.  We arrived in China after a couple of days in Hong Kong, feeling more like tourists.  The guides gave us a quick tour and told us about local attractions, but truly we were not there for local attractions, we were there to adopt a child.  When we got to the facility where we were receiving Grace, we were with about 10-15 other couples also waiting for their children.  There was a sense of excited anticipation in the room.  It was chaotic, and we just sat back and watched as each of the families was united with their child.  We were told Grace hadn't arrived yet, so we just enjoyed other people's moments.  It was amazing to see the excitement so many had for their new child.  These were orphans. Children abandoned by the ones that are supposed to love them most on this earth.  I am so glad my father in heaven is not like a parent on earth, and he will not abandon us.  After what seemed like an eternity, we saw this tiny little peanut carried into the room.  We didn't think it was Grace because she was so tiny.  When they came and got us, and told us that was our daughter, I was overcome.  I had the exact same feelings with her, that I had with each of my biological children.  I was instantly in love and awe of this precious little thing in my arms.  She was screaming.  Scared and absolutely overcome with the craziness of the moment.  She was removed from the only thing she had ever known.  It doesn't matter that she was sleeping in a crib with a wood bottom and metal bars, with no blankets and no cushions, or that she had never really been held and cuddled.  She didn't know what she was missing, and wanted what was familiar.  Does that sound similar to a person who has not yet accepted the gift of Jesus Christ and salvation?  You cling to what you know and what is comfortable, not understanding how amazing it is when you surrender your life to God.  We know Grace's life will never be the same and will be so much better, but she didn't know that.  She would startle every time I would move with her.  Holding her was so foreign, she was scared by it.  She was so tiny, I just felt I needed to protect her.  I was changed in a drastic way that day.  I knew what it was to see someone that was not loved and what that does to them.  Love is powerful and it completes us.  It is what makes a person a person.  We just surrounded her and talked to her and calmed her, and if we sat in one place and didn't move, she would calm down and just look.  She has the biggest eyes.  She is constantly just studying people.  That first day was a shock to me.  It was a shock to see how small and neglected our daughter was.  It was a shock to feel such emotion for a person we had just met.  It was a shock to realize she was no longer an orphan.  I am a different person inside, and I will never be the same.  I am thankful.  I will get into the story more next post, but it is late and I am tired.  I am back on solo duty as Mike is back to work.  He is enjoying a quiet hotel room, (just kidding honey, I know you are lonely and miss us too), and the kiddos are all asleep.  Grace has settled into our little family and is just another Kelly.  She sleeps very well now that she has adjusted to our time zone.  She is healthy and eating pretty well.  She is learning how to eat solids.  We are seeing a surgeon soon to discuss her cleft lip and palate and what our plan of action is.  She loves her siblings and she is learning to like the cat and dog.  She loves to be held and played with.  We love having her in our family.

A walk in the park

Daddy caught Grace staring into mama's eyes.  What a great feeling to have this little person we loved from afar, now in our arms.  It is the most amazing thing.

The Chinese people play a version of hacky sack.  It uses a bundle of feathers with a weight on the end.  It is done by people of all ages.  Mike joined in a couple of times.  

We also saw the all American game of basketball going on.

The park is huge and beautiful and peaceful and friendly, but right outside the gates is a street so busy, we can't even cross it.  We have to use the subway tunnels beneath the streets to get to the park, but the reality of the city just melts away when you start wandering the park's paths. We spent quite a bit of time there.  The hotel began to feel claustrophobic after the first week there.

More pictures

We caught a grin.  We have seen more and more personality emerging.  She is such a sweetie.  We can't wait to watch her become the little person she is.

I decided to take some progressive pictures while she is eating.  She has a good appetite, but it takes quite awhile to feed her.  She is learning how to keep food in, but we still lose a lot through her cleft lip.

Pictures

This post will just be a collection of the photos we have taken the last few day.  Just two more nights here in China, then one in Hong Kong and then we begin our long trek home.  I can not wait!

This is the pagota in the middle of the Buddhist temple we visited.  What a sad place.  There were many people there making offerings to this dead god Buddha.  We are so thankful we serve a living God, who we have seen working through this entire process.

We visited then Chen house.  It is a historic house that displays the art forms the region is famous for, ivory carving, jade carving, embroidery and the fourth I can't seem to remember, so I must have missed it.  The house, pictured in part below, was beautiful and ornate inside and out.  In the back,we were given a view of some Guangzhou housing, which is pictured above.

She smiled!!!

We had a busy day yesterday.  I don't have the patience right now to deal with my pictures, so this will just be a brief narrative of our day.  The canton trade fair is in town and I think it is severely slowing the Internet here at the hotel.  So, I will try and add pictures later possibly.  We have some neat pictures to share because we visited a Buddhist temple, a historic house, then of course a place to shop, but it was also a very beautiful display of Chinese arts and crafts.  Grace did fine during all of the tours, but screamed on the bus.  We are continuing to pray she gets used to being in a vehicle before we start our trip home Wednesday night with a four hour van ride.  We imagine her first ride in a vehicle a week ago, when she was being brought to us, wasn't a super experience.  We can only guess how it went, but it would have been 5 and 1/2 hours with people that told us the only way to calm her was to lay her down (thankfully not true, she loves being cuddled).  Big news from our day though, is that Grace finally smiled at us.  Daddy has a way of finding a kid's tickle spot.  I didn't think she had any, because she has been so somber since we got her, but last night at dinner, she was really relaxed and dad found the spot under her arm.  Her smile is gorgeous.  I had given up on seeing her smile for awhile because she is so serious, so it was a wonderful surprise to see.  God is amazing and he is showing us the huge impact love has on a person.
 We only have two more nights here in Guangzhou, then one in Hong Kong, then we get to come home.  I miss home so much.  I miss my babies most of all, but I also miss my life.  I have a much more global perspective on things now, so I will never be the same.  I want to see the result of my changed perspective.

Life as we know it

So, I apologize for previous grammatical errors and oddities with my blog.  It is near impossible to edit.  Fun times.  We are getting a bit stir crazy.  The trip is beginning to drag and we all want to come home to our family.  We miss the kids so much.  We have been seeing different parts of the city.  Grace hates riding in the car.  She screams every time we get in one.  She cried so hard last night, she threw up all over me.  Unfortunately it was on the way to a very fancy dinner with some of Mike's Chinese co workers.  We had a very nice time, but I stunk.  We are praying, and maybe you could too, that she gets used to traveling before we head for home, starting with a 3 1/2 hour van ride to Hong Kong on Wednesday.  It will be a very long drive if she isn't used to the car by then.

 So, the big news is, Grace is letting us hold her when she eats.  She would lie flat on her back and hold her own bottle, but she has started allowing us to hold her, and this evening, she allowed me to hold the bottle.  It is amazing to see the progress she is making.  She is not the scared little peanut we picked up 6 days ago.  She is beginning to see us as friendly ;)

We visited Shamian Island.  It used to be the hub of Chinese adoption.  Since the government offices that used to be there have moved, the island is much quieter. We enjoyed walking through the quiet streets.  We found a Starbucks, of course, and enjoyed a little coffee boost.  Grace didn't seem overly interested.  Oh well, some day.  

The island was full of people taking pictures.  I guess there are a lot of brides that come to the island for pictures before their wedding day.  Gorgeous brides everywhere.  The picture below was of what looked like a fashion shoot.  They were working on the girls hair and make up.  We enjoyed seeing different portions of Chinese culture.  In the park, we saw people dancing and singing.  It was really cool.  We also saw people swimming in the Pearl river.  Brave.  People really do life together and it is a stark contrast to our culture.  I am impressed with it.  

Yay it is Friday already

I am enjoying having alone time with Grace, but I am missing my sweet babies at home so much.  I am so excited we will be home in less than a week. Today we are missing the big rivalry cross country meet at St. George's. I know the boys will do their best, but them running is one of my favorite things to watch.  
Here is China, we have a day free of meetings and paperwork, so we are heading to the island famous in adoption circles, Shamian Island.  Adoption trips used to center on the island because the medical exam and consulate was located there.  Well, they are now in other parts of the city, so the island is quieter.  I am kind of craving quieter, so we are going to head there.  The hustle and bustle of the city is amazing and interesting, but I crave quiet.
The little miss is changing so much.  I look at her gotcha day pictures and can't quite believe how far she has come.  She was so scared and overwhelmed.  It just makes a mom's heart ache when she can't comfort her precious child.  All baby Grace saw was strangers.  She also was sick in the car ride in, and she was coming down with a cold.  Needless to say, she was not happy.  Now she will sit quietly and just look around.  She enjoys being touch and is learning how to be held.  Initially her arms and legs would flail like a newborn, but now she grabs me around the neck like she doesn't want to let go.  I love it.

There are a couple of beautiful parks we have enjoyed walking in.  We are next to a koi pond full of hundreds of large koi.

The goat statue is the symbol of the city and at the center of the park.  It was quite a hike up a lot of stairs, but it was pretty cool when we got there.  

This is a man in the park playing a hand saw.  He played Jingle bells for us.  The picture below looks like Grace was wondering where her daddy went.  Silly girl.

Well enough rambling.  Now I will get to the part I know you all enjoy. The pictures.