Great Wall

Just sitting here in our hotel room at 5:30am wondering why I am wide awake. So far it has been an amazing journey. We have toured the Great Wall, driven by the Olympic complex, and today we are off to see the Forbidden City. But the real delight awaits us tomorrow. Three and a half years of waiting and praying...and we are a little more than 24 hours away from meeting Emily Love. Excited, nervous, overwhelmed, blessed...are just a few of the feelings that are falling on us right now. We can't wait to share the moment with you and we will as soon as we can! Until tomorrow....

Orientation, Acrobats, & Roasted Duck

Hello everyone!! We are doing great and getting ready to head out to see the Great Wall today. We seem to be adjusting well to the time zone and can't wait to see our little Emily. We are just a few days away! Yesterday we met everyone who is with our group and had a chance to hear all the different stories. What an amazing Father we serve! Conversations are flowing, hearts are excited and anxious and everyone is cheering each other on. Truly a life-changing experience. After sharing our stories, we ate lunch at a local dive called McDonald's and then went to an acrobat show. It was a great experience. Then last night we shared a wonderful meal complete with stir-fried pork, rice dumplings and roasted peking duck. We will check in later with you and can't wait to share all that we are learning.

"Boarding Zone 3"

That's us! We are in Seattle, Washington getting ready to board our flight to Beijing. We cannot wait to get there! I was trying to download some photos but I'm having technical difficulties (surprise, surprise). We will update as soon as possible. Please keep praying!

Travel Itinerary

We only have 3 1/2 days left until it's time to go get our girl! My mind has been going nonstop with "to do" lists and at times I find myself just pacing, not knowing where to begin. "Nesting" has definitely set in...to the point of making it a priority to have my blinds all clean (unfortunately, I don't think I'm going to reach my goal-Ha,ha)! Tomorrow, we will officially start packing...I cannot believe it!


Our Travel Itinerary
July 29, 2010 Arrive in Beijing
July 30, 2010 Orientation meeting in the morning. Exhange money. Acrobatic show in the afternoon.
July 31, 2010 Visit Great Wall and Cloisonne Factory. Lunch included.
August 1, 2010 Visit Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and Hutong Tour.
August 2, 2010 Arrive in Wuhan City. Receive your child in the afternoon.
August 3, 2010 Adoption registration and notarization.
August 4, 2010 Free ("Happy Anniversary"...celebrate 9 years of marriage)
August 5, 2010 Visit Hubei Provincial Museum.
August 6, 2010 Receive all the documents. Fly to Guangzhou. White Swan Hotel airport pickup.
August 7, 2010 Medical exam at 9:00 a.m. A meeting to prepare consulate documents in the afternoon.
August 8, 2010 Visit Guangzhou Folk Art Museum and Yuexiu Park.
August 9, 2010 Visa appointment
August 10, 2010 Go to the consulate to take the oath at 2:15 p.m.
August 11, 2010 Go to the consulate to pick up child’s visa at 2:15 p.m. Fly to Hong Kong.
August 12, 2010 Fly Home! :)

The "Nesting" begins!

Today we started to physically get things ready for our baby girl. Cleaned out closets, cleaned under beds, rearranged furniture, set up Emily's bed, got the highchair down from the attic, and of course, filled out more paper work. I think this has been the first day that I have felt "butterflies in my stomach" (what does that mean anyway?)! I have already mentioned that I am so excited that I can hardly focus on anything else right now...but today my excitement has been mixed with some nervous feelings too. I have felt the weight of knowing we are getting ready to uproot this precious life from everything she has ever known and bring her home...yet for awhile, home will be so unfamiliar to her. My heart hurts to think about her being afraid! I'm praying that God is preparing her for us, her forever family! For the 17 months that she has been alive, she has not known what it's like to be in a family that loves her, to have a Dad & Mom, a brother & sister, a wild fluffy dog. I pray she wants us as much as we want her! My thoughts on adoption have changed in the past 4 years. At the beginning, I viewed the story as if a family is rescuing a child that "needs" them, "needs" their love. And while I still believe that is part of the story, I see it so differently now. Our family is at a point now that we not only want her, we "need" her! Brandon and I have desired another baby for a long time, and Caleb & Karis have wanted a little sibling for a long time too! I praise God for bringing Emily Love to us, and bringing us to her!
I'm reminded of a verse in one of my favorite chapters of the Bible, Psalm 139. Verse 16 says, "All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be".
This day that is coming that we will finally meet Emily for the first time and then get to bring her home, was known by the God of this universe before we were even born. I cannot describe the comfort that comes from knowing that truth...from knowing Him!