Home Sweet Home!

I am happy to report that our trip home was very uneventful. From the train to Hong Kong to the last leg of our flights, Gracie was amazing! She was calmer than we thought she would be and never fussed about anything. She slept a couple of hours on our long flight and fell asleep on me as we were going through customs in Detroit. That girl is HEAVY!! Carrying her through customs and the Detroit airport was not easy and my arms are sore today from it!!

Giving Baba a kiss on the train.


Finding a new friend on the train.


Looking out at the plane that will bring her away from her home country and into a whole new world.


The last picture of just the 3 of us.


I am at a loss of words to describe just how happy I am to be home! Walking off that plane might be the happiest moment of my life! I can honestly say, I think my kiddos were just as happy to see us as we were them!

Finally together!


The girls were so cute. I was holding Gracie because she was very tired and cranky. Of course Wesleigh jumped straight into my arms too. I carried happily carried 65 lbs of sweet girls through the New Orleans airport :) They were intrigued with each other and even reached for the other's hand a few times. It was very sweet to see them together.




It didn't take Wesleigh long to start showing Gracie how great brothers are. Soon, they were both climbing all over all those sweet brothers. (These pics are awful. I put the camera in "auto" so I could had it off. I guess the good news is that I am now smarter than my camera :)




Cade dressed up for the occasion :) So cute!!


Gracie did much better in the carseat than Wesleigh did when she came home. Cade and Braden had them laughing the whole way home. Can you tell I'm tired in this picture? 24 hours of travel and 2 hours of head-b0bbing sleep. I'm also wondering how we're all going to fit in my big 'ole bus :) Every seat in my Suburban is filled and the seat I'm in is pretty tight :) Good thing I'm skinny right now :)


Gracie spent some time just soaking in everything. She was most excited when she saw the tub full of toys :) She opened every drawer and door. When she opened their closet door, she said "waaaaaa" which means "awesome". Wesleigh followed her around wondering what in the world she was doing. Wesleigh has continually looked at Gracie and then up at me and shrugged her shoulders. They are definitely trying to figure out their new lives :)




They were both hesitant to get in the tub with each other. Neither of them is used to sharing their lives with a sister. Once in the tub, they had fun, but Wesleigh is definitely feeling threatened.


I slept in the room with the girls, snuggled up to my sweet Wesleigh who I have missed greatly :) Gracie woke up at 4:30 and laid in bed with me until 5:30. It was evident that we weren't going back to sleep so we got up and the exploring began. She is in awe of everything. From the different bathroom choices, to where each door leads, to the noises of the ice maker, to the washing machine spinning. It is amazing to see things through her eyes for the first time.

Gracie is spending the morning checking out all the toys, and Wesleigh is spending the morning claiming all of her toys :) Actually, they are doing exactly what I expected. It will just take some time for everyone to adjust. I am so thankful the boys are not jetlagged. They are such a huge help!

My poor Bryce is so sick though! My mom had to take him to the dr. this week, who did not run a mono test before he put him on penicillin. We now know that when you put someone with mono on penicillin, they break out in a horrible body rash that makes you unbelievably miserable!! He has mono, strep and a rash over his entire body. He got a cortizone shot and is on another antibiotic and an oral steroid pack. He is pitiful, but so sweet :( It is slowly getting better.

Pray for me.....the energy this heavenly coffee is giving me right now is going to wear off eventually!!!

USA Bound!!

These pics were taken Wed. on the balcony of our hotel room. We were dressed in our patriotic colors for the consulate. I'm not sure if they appreciated the colors or not, but I did have half the office huddled around our window to get a glimpse of our beauty. I'm sure it was completely because of her stiking good looks...and not because she's an absolute clown (and a loud one at that!!) lol... Either way, they seemed to enjoy her and we should get her Visa today! I wish I had a dollar for everytime someone has called my girl a "spicy girl" this trip :) Yep...she is very spicy!!







She started posing for me....twisting and turning in different directions. SO funny!




She wasn't mad...just giving me another angle to photograph :) Very impressive cutting of the eyes though!


Gracie has done great. We haven't had any grieving at all, which concerns me a little. She has been happy ever since the "flip" in Walmart on the first day. She has seemed to settle a little, although I never expect her to be completely calm. I can't wait for the two girls to meet! I am a little concerned for the adjustment period, but after that, I think we'll be great! Wesleigh went to pre-school orientation Wed!! I hated to miss it!
Here's a pic my mom sent me:

Boy do I miss that little teacup!!!

They are both supposed to start Monday, but I'm going to give them a week or two to bond with each other before I send them. I am already so thrilled that I made the call to register them both!! Those 3 mornings a week are going to be HEAVEN!! Wesleigh has done so great while we've been gone! She loves to skype and if one of us is missing when the call starts, she immediately asks where we are. She loves to see Gracie on skype too.

Wesleigh looks so small when I see her in pics and on skype! Gracie outweighs her by about 5 lbs! While we were at the consulate, our guide picked her up (I think just to see how much she weighs!). She could not believe it! Then this random older woman who had been standing there watching us picked her up because she wanted to see :) She groaned and put her down! lol...Gracie didn't mind one bit that some random woman was lifting her.

I can definitely see signs of attachment to us. When she was playing on the playground the last time, she kept looking for us and waving...making sure we were still there. (Funny, since we're the ones having to make sure SHE is still there!) If Richard hugs and/or kisses me, she has to get one for herself. Wesleigh does the same thing...so cute! Last night, Richard popped a "blemish" on my nose and Gracie thought he was being ugly to me. She immediately came to my side and started staring him down. When he gave me a kiss, she started smiling and wanted one for herself.

She is understanding more English, for sure. She knows her English name, she knows the word "sit", and she knows "pick your feet up" (as in, stop dragging them on the dang ground when you're in the stroller!!). I am sure there is alot more, I just haven't seen absolute proof of it. She can count to 3 on her own and repeat the rest. She has started learning the ABC song, and loves for me to sing the "Itsy bitsy Spider" (she does the hand motions). Honestly, I think she will be easier to understand than Wesleigh pretty quick!

Alright...since I'm the only one awake this morning, I'm rambling. I just woke up for the last time in Guangzhou!! As much as I love this city...I am SO ready to leave it!!! I can't get on that plane soon enough! We will take the train to Hong Kong tonight and stay the night there. We then get up the next morning and head for home!!! I can't believe I have only 1 more night in China!! Whoo Hoo!!

We have spent a total of a month in China over the past 2 years! What an experience! One that I never expected to have in my lifetime. We feel so blessed to have been called to add these two sweet girls to our family. I cannot wait to see how everything settles into place. Never in my life did I expect to be the mother of 5!! That number is still overwhelming to me...but I am so blessed!!

I don't think I will be posting again from China, so this is it!! The end of journey #2. Thank you for all of your support and kind comments throughout this trip....they mean so much! I get a huge kick out of sharing our journey with you.

I leave you with this:
If you have ever thought to yourself "I think I would like to adopt" or "I wish I could do that"...DO IT. Nothing worth having in this life is easy. There is nothing more worthwhile that you could do with you resources of time and money. Nothing more rewarding than having another child call you Mama. This journey to Gracie Joy was a journey of faith. It did not make sense in the physical...money was tight...time was tight...I already had four children. I cannot imagine, however, the blessings and joy we would have missed out on had we not listened to the call!

I never want to live my life and at the end of it look back and say "I missed it. I missed the one thing I was supposed to do with my life". If you have not seen the video Richard and I made on adoption for our church, please watch it (It's on my sidebar). It is our heart.

Love you all...Goodbye from China!! See you in the USA!!

Long Way From Petco :)

It's naptime! yay!! I'm at the computer downloading pics from the past couple of days and chowing down on some of the most amazing sweet and sour chicken from Cow and Bridge!! I had it the other night when we ate there and my hubby was kind enough to go pick some up for me today again!! Yummo!!

Yesterday we ended up at the pet market TWICE! We went with some new friends in the morning and then again with our group in the afternoon. What else do we have to do? And Gracie is usually pretty good in the stroller. Here are some pics from our two adventures today:




Braden, this picture of the chipmunks are for you. No, we did not buy you a pet!!


This was so cute! Gracie loves all the animals. There was an old grandmother standing to the side watching them. She would wince and make noises when Richard would let the puppies bite on his fingers. It was so cute. I should have taken a picture of her :)


The medicinal market is right by the pets. There are blocks and blocks of stores selling crazy stuff like this:
dried snake...anyone?


lizzard on a stick?


How about dried seahorses or fish stomaches? Our guide told us the dried frogs are used in desserts!!!! UGH!!! So thankful I haven't ordered dessert anywhere!!


So...what could these two pretty girls be doing on this street?


sorting LIVE scorpions with chopsticks!!


This is someone's apartment. There were lots of literal "hole in the wall" homes like this.


I love the little China cups in these bird houses.




Right next to the pets and medicine is the "food" street. The smell on this street was unbelievable! I do not care to go there again!! Anyone hungry????


These are across the street from the meat. Awaiting their fate!


Here are some...ready to eat. These were actually in a very busy shopping area.


I just had to take a shot of this store. It is in a mall of sorts. Can you imagine trying to buy anything in there? Some of you think Marshalls is bad!!!!




We have taken Gracie to this park 3 different times. She loves to play and is so coordinated...much better than Wesleigh. We have to guard both exits because you never know when she'll make a run for it!! Yesterday, though, she seemed to do much better. She can be sweet but she'll also pinch the fire out of the kids if you're not careful!


We finished up at Lucy's with a big glass of iced tea!! It comes with a little container of simple syrup so you can make it sweet!!! Boy was it good!!!!!!!!!! I'm so sad I didn't know about it until now!!

And...to finish the pics...a funny of Richard. She can actually put a small ponytail in his hair :) So funny!!


I am about shopped out and also out of money! One thing I have really enjoyed this trip is talking to the people here more. I think with 4 kids here last time, I didn't really have a chance. I was also never by myself. This trip, I have gotten to know some of the shop owners...met their children, and enjoyed giving them some business. It has been fun.

We had out consulate appointment today. It was good. Miss G is all decked out in her red, white and blue! I have pics...but will have to post them tomorrow. We check out of the hotel at 2:00 and are on our way at 3:00. We will ride the train to HongKong and spend the night there. Friday morning we will be on our way to the US!!! I am so ready to be home. Living out of suitcases for 2 weeks is getting old...and I miss my other kids in a bad way!!! Almost there!!!

Holla!

Have I shared what my favorite Chinese word is? "holla"...as in the slang of holler :) It means "ok", and Gracie Joy says it all the time.

These pictures are from yesterday. We actually found the pet market today and I have some pics, but have a headache and don't see me downloading pics right now.

I love all these different faces of Gracie:








You have to keep a firm grip on this chick at all times! She has gotten away from us a few times and we have had to run to catch up with her! This time, she hopped up on this bench with this random guy!! He just looked down at her and laughed.


Another favorite Chinese word is "lala". It means "look". I also hear this about a million times a day :) When Richard isn't around she says "baba Lai?" Which means "where's baba?".






My last favorite Chinese word is "waaaaa" You'd have to hear it to get the intonation right. It means "awesome".


Yes, Richard has officially lost his mind. He spends his evenings coloring...not really with Gracie!!! He gets frustrated because she doesn't color in the lines and she messes up his pictures :) lol..... God, help me!!! Have I mentioned that it's really time for him to go back to work!!!


2 more sleeps in Guangzhou, then 1 in Hong Kong, then 28 hours of travel, then HOME!!