Fourth of July

Despite the fact that we are not in the USA, I still dressed up Hope for the holiday. It's a little outfit I bought for Mary Kate two summers ago. I was nervous it wouldn't fit Hope because she is such a chunky monkey, but it does.

Last night we went out for dinner with another couple and their baby. We stumbled across a French restaurant in a train car. It was really quaint and the food was great. It was nice to take a break from Chinese food.

This morning we took an optional tour to a Buddhist Temple and some other sites in Guangzhou. Hope did great until the end. She was ready to get back to the hotel and sleep. She has been sleeping like a rock since. Later this afternoon, I will be spending about 1 1/2 hours with my travel group filling out all of the documents necessary for Hope's visa. I am looking forward to the day when I am finished with all of the crazy paperwork!!!

Guangzhou

After a very rough day yesterday, my parents and Hope and I have arrived in Guangzhou. We have learned that Hope doesn't travel well and yesterday was a travel day. The airplane ride was unbelievably difficult, but we arrived. Our guide met us at the airport and we traveled by van for 40 minutes to the hotel. Hope did OK at first, but then she started screaming again. Our poor guide had just met me and all I could do was cry. It had been a stressful day.

On a bright note, I felt an overwhelming sense of relief upon entering Guangzhou. We are staying in the famous White Swan hotel, which is the hotel almost every adopting family in China stays. The entire area caters to adopting families and there is so much to do and see. We are also back with the other families whom we haven't seen since Beijing. I don't think I realized how isolated I felt in Wuhan until I was able to reconnect with families. It has been a relief.

This morning Hope had her physical. The experience was similar to the airplane ride. Not good. Boy, can that girl scream. It was so bad, that they actually took us out of line and put us in our own room so that her physical could be over. She fell asleep after that and she's been much better since. We took her to the playroom in the White Swan Hotel and she had a great time!!!

Leaving Wuhan

It is Friday morning in China and today we are leaving Wuhan. Sadly, Mike has already left to go back to the States. I know that our older three children are thrilled that they will be seeing daddy again soon. Also, Mike will be able to work next week so that he can take off of work our first week home with Hope. I really wish that Hope and I could just leave with him and reunite with our children together. As I'm sure you can imagine, spending 18 days away from the older children is very hard on me. Thank goodness for Skype!

Today, my parents, Hope and I will go back to the Civil Affairs office to pick up Hope's passport. Then we will fly to Guangzhou, which is in southern China. That is where the U.S. Consulate is located. Hope will receive a physical examination and we will apply for her U.S. visa. At that point we will need to wait for our consulate appointment and for Hope's visa before we are free to leave. Hope will become a U.S. citizen the moment our airplane touches American soil.

I am attaching pictures from our last full day in Wuhan. We went to a museum and saw a traditional bell concert. Then we went to a river walk along the Yangtze River, which is the third longest river in the world. Only the Amazon and Nile rivers are longer.

The next time you hear from me will be from Guangzhou. Hope and I will be one step closer to coming home!!

Swimming Time

We decided to take Hope to the hotel swimming pool to see what she thought. She has really enjoyed her baths, so we thought perhaps she would enjoy swimming too. According to Mike, the pool water was freezing, but he still went in. I married a wonderful man who is always willing to go in the water with the kids, no matter how cold. Hope was not sure what she thought of the pool at first. We didn't push it. Mike jumped in and Hope and I sat at the side. Mike and Hope rolled a ball back and forth until Hope felt brave enough to sit with her feet dangling in the water. Eventually, she let Mike pick her up and swim around with her. It didn't last too long, but we still thought it was great to see how Hope is learning to trust us.

Yellow Crane Tower and Finding Spot

Today we had a free day. Hope's passport won't be ready until Friday, so we have a couple of days to spend in Wuhan without much of a schedule. Our guide took us to the biggest tourist spot in Wuhan. It is called the Yellow Crane Tower. It was originally built in the year 223 as a look out tower to protect the local people in times of war. It is built along the Yangtze River. The tower has been destroyed and re-built many times. The current structure was built in the 1880's. We climbed to the top of the tower in some of the hottest weather I have ever experienced. We were able to get some nice views of the city and we were even able to see the orphanage where Hope was originally brought. Our guide told us that Hope's orphanage is the nicest one in the province and that most of the children are special needs children. It is much less common to abandon a child simply because she's a girl, but if a child is born with a medical condition, it is considered a great burden and it is very difficult for families to take care of the children. The orphanages are filled with these children. Of course, we feel blessed that Hope only spent 3 days in the orphanage and spent the rest of her time in foster care where she was apparently taken very good care of.

After we finished touring the Yellow Crane Tower, we went to Hope's finding spot. She was found on the 5th floor of a local hospital. We were able to go inside and take some pictures. A nurse stopped and talked to us for a bit. She said that most babies who are abandoned at the hospital are left on the first floor and it is highly unusual for a baby to be left on the fifth floor, which also happens to be the top floor of the hospital. I imagine that Hope's birth mom was trying to buy herself time. The higher she went in the hospital, the longer she could hold her baby before she had to say goodbye. I can only imagine that it was one of the hardest days of her life. Adoption always comes at a cost. Someone has to experience great loss in order for someone else to experience gain. It is very bittersweet.

It's Official

Our first overnight with Hope went very well. I wasn't sure what to expect, as we have heard of other families who have had very difficult times. I followed the nanny's instructions and everything went great. I fed her a bottle at 9pm and laid her down to bed in between Mike and I. It took her about an hour to fall asleep. She only woke up once in the night and cried for about 10 minutes. It made me so sad because I know she's confused and missing her foster family. After that, she slept straight until 8am!!! Those of you who know our family, know that our boys are very early risers, so 8am felt miraculous. We headed to breakfast and then our guide picked us up and drove us back to the Civil Affairs office. Hope cried for a good portion of the hour long car ride, but she was fine once we arrived. The trip to Civil Affairs was very significant because we signed the paperwork which makes Hope legally our daughter. I included the picture of Hope marking the paperwork with her footprint. Although she is legally ours, we need to remain in China for another 12 days in order to get her passport and visa. I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Beautiful Day!

Today was the day we have been anticipating for so long. We finally got to meet Hope. Thanks to all of you who sent kind words of prayers and encouragement. Your prayers were felt today. I can't imagine today having gone any smoother.

We were picked up by our guide at 9am and we traveled about 45 minutes to a different part of town to the Civil Affairs building. We arrived before Hope did, so they had us fill out some paperwork in an office. While we were in the office, I heard a small commotion. I looked out and saw a woman carrying a baby and I immediately knew it was Hope. Of course, I started crying. We went out to meet her, but did not try to hold her right away. She was being held by one of the orphanage nannies and I stood by her and rubbed her back while she got used to looking at me. The nanny answered many questions for us about Hope's schedule, preferred foods and sleeping patterns. I was able to ask questions and our guide translated for us. One of the questions I asked was whether or not Hope could walk. The nanny put Hope down to demonstrate her ability to walk. After that, I picked her up and she has been glued to Mike and I since. What a beautiful moment!!

I am in awe of how wonderfully the orphanage has prepared for today. They gave us a photo album with pictures of Hope. They gave us a little care package of snacks for her along with the disposable camera that we sent in our care package a while back. Hope's foster mother also put together a little package for Hope, which included her favorite bottle (phew). We were given a typed out copy of her daily routine and it is obvious that they took care to dress her in a special outfit and new shoes. We feel very blessed because we know that not all orphanages provide so much for the adopting families.

Hope's transition has gone really well. She started crying at the office of Civil Affiars and it got worse when the nanny left. We got on the car to head back to our hotel and that's when she really started crying. She cried pretty hard for about 20 minutes and then she fell asleep. She woke up when we arrived at the hotel and she has been playing ever since. Her skills are amazing. She can walk and talk. She also is a wonderful imitator. She was scared of Mike at first, but he used Cheerios to wiggle his way into her heart. She is full of smiles and giggles. We have not been able to get her to eat much of substance today, but maybe she'll be famished by dinner.

We are so blessed. God granted us a beautiful meeting day with our daughter.