A Christmas Video...receive the greatest blessing...adoption

I'm posting a video that was put together by one of my cyber-sisters...she used pictures from several blogs and family within our adoption community and then sent us an invitation to "open" our Christmas present...

Imagine my joy seeing 3 of my blessings appearing in the slides!

Couldn't you use a little more blessing? These are children who at one time the world said were "unwanted"...but just see how they've changed the world...where might your child be waiting for you to find him/her?

Open your heart and mind to the greatest blessing I've ever known...adoption!

Home Two Months Today...

Where do I start? This young man has amazed us so...he is so easy going, happy and generally just likes to "be."

I think this picture may demonstrate his adjustment...this was taken after his dedication at our church...he gave this huge, "hammy" smile to the entire congregation then nodded in approval when everyone smiled back...he stole the show...no one heard a word that the Pastor said!

Speaking of words...his vocabulary is astounding...he told his sister the other day..."Sit Down Jie Jie!" ...sit down, of course, the English element of the sentence...Jie Jie, meaning big sister in Mandarin! He doesn't turn 2 until Dec 26th...so with a vocab of about 20 new English words...I'm impressed...

He love to kiss his Momma...he likes to sit on my lap when I'm on the computer, such as now...and he's a riot when he plays with anything that resembles a cell phone. He goes on and on with his imaginary conversation...some in Chinese, some in English.

However, nothing takes the cake on the cute factor like him walking around the house singing "Tomorrow, tomorrow...I luz you tomorrow..." in a sort of Elmer Fudd voice!

We finally get to go to the eye specialists on New Year's Eve and we'll get the plan of action for his prosthetic eye...I'll post more pictures through the holidays...

Thanks for checking on this darling boy and his adoring family!

Home...I like it...

It would seem that Isaiah is settling in well to his home...he feels free to eat well, smile a lot and spend time on musical pursuits...as all great artists do...

Re-entry...we've nearly ground our feet off...

When the plane comes down...it hits hard and bounces around a bit...

When you return from foreign travels after nearly 3 weeks...your dream is to "hit the ground running..." Once again...we have the sensation that we've nearly ground our feet off trying to get back into the rhythm.

These are the images of jet lag...when you come in the door to warm food, a full refrigerator stocked with love and welcome signs...you're so happy...but all you can do is crash onto anything that will hold your weight...shoes and all...

Isaiah is doing very well. We had our first public outing tonight, though we were exhausted...we forced ourselves to carry on and break the power of jet lag that is reigning over us!

A few more days and we should be nearly back to our old selves again...funny thing is...seems like he's always been with us...being spectators to another miracle...how blessed we are...

I'm going to try to continue to blog weekly, so keep checking on us...

And there is love...

As we leave China...this picture says it all...Busy Bee and the little boy we came all this way for...her brother...

Riding on the bus...easy together...in love...

................FAMILY.....................

Shopping...Sailing and wet pants...oh, my!

Pictures of the market where we've spent a couple of days shopping...you CANNOT imagine how much stuff is in this place...stall after stall for endless hallways...we could shop here for weeks!
Isaiah's dinner on the Pearl River Cruise...
This is our travel group! Wow...what an awesome group of people...and then our kids....ALL the kids on our tour group...split over the couples represented in the adult picture...

Sorry for the delay in posting...we've been in a whirlwind of activity finishing our visit here to China...we're sad to leave...yet thankful to come home!

We've spent most of our time shopping these past two days in Guangzhou...had a great time at the Haizhu Square Market...and yes...it's September, and I believe I have my Christmas shopping done!

We took the Pearl River Cruise last night...it was enjoyable...but there were lots of laughs when the word reached me on the top deck that Isaiah had wet his pants and that it had gone all over our Chinese Family friend who is traveling with us here...

I quickly came downstairs, somewhat puzzled, because Isaiah is for all intents and purposes...potty trained. He does wear a pull up usually until I can be clear on his language for "potty." But...the report was so strange...that he would have wet THROUGH his pull-ups?

Sure enough, our friend's pants were soaked...a significant puddle on the floor and Isaiah's pants were very wet in a spot. So, I quickly undid the snaps between his legs, lifted his pants up and away and I received my first reminder/lesson...."Boys are Different from Girls"...

I nearly fell over laughing as it was clear that whomever had last pulled up Isaiah's diaper had not gotten his equipment securely stowed. In fact, it was trapped, along the waist band, in a directly upward facing position...an unobstructed, perfect fountain...

Note to self...confirm that essential parts are well covered by diapers in the future.... :)

Recent Daddy Funny: We were on the elevator today with several Chinese...one man received a phone call and he answered it in the typical Chinese fashion "Wey?" (pronounced just like "way")...Then another "Wey?"...."Wey?"...."Wey?" (at this point it was clear that there was a problem with the connection)...frustrated he folds up his phone and grunts....Daddy...without missing a beat, looks at him and says..."No Wey?"....lots of laughter ensued...

We leave for home in 5 hours...so I need to try to get a little sleep...please pray for our safe and SANE travel...we came with 5 "binkys"...at this point...we can only find one and we have 2 binky dependent souls on the trip!

We'll be home Wednesday morning...can't wait to see all of you!

1 Bicycle wreck, 2 white tigers, 3 hours of meltdown...

Picture 1 - The Bug...with our guide Connie...she loves to hang with her wherever we go... it really helps that Connie remembered her from last year and always comments on how well behaved she is!

Picture 2: Is of Daddy, er, I mean...a Giant Panda chillin' for my camera


Picture 3: This little guy was just peeking out at me as I walked by...it's a Red Panda...cute!




Picture 4: Daddy, Magpie and Busy Bee

Picture 5: Is Daddy, er...no, just an effigy of him at the park today (this guy is a trash can)...many comments were made by our traveling party about him and of course his likeness to Daddy... :)




Picture 6: The little man, honkin' on a bean Popsicle...not a mung bean, for those of you who know of our appreciation for them...just a plain old...very YUMMY bean Popsicle (I've forgotten to tell you that at Mc Donalds instead of Cherry and Apple pies...they have "Green Pea" Pies...YUM!


Picture 7: Potato...and ice cream

Picture 8: Busy Bee...and ice cream (Daddy said they looked like the "Dutch Masters" today when he saw them at the park)






Picture 9: This guy just stared and stared at me...

Picture 10: We fed this dude by hand...the kids went wild!
Picture 11: Busy Bee on the train ride through the safari park

Picture 12: Magpie and Isaiah...he was squealing and talking very quickly in Chinese at every animal we saw!



Picture 13: These two rhinos were having a dispute...but they of course made us think about our own Rhino...back in "fish-ville"


Picture 14: Sadly, though we saw several White Tigers...not a single spotting of Seigfried and Roy :(

Picture 15: The man team...just hanging out on the bench...thinkin' man-type thoughts...













Today we hit the wall...really. It's been a fantastic trip...but we just had a meltdown today. This morning we woke up and everyone was off..grumpy...easily disturbed...


We spilled orange juice all over the bed...we lost and subsequently found my purse...we wept at the breakfast table (others among us gnashed their teeth)...and while walking home from our meal...The Bug fell off a planter she was walking along and was run over by a bike in front of a crowd of 45 or so gasping, horrified, Spanish tourists!

Needless to say...it was a day that needed prayer...(The Bug by the way, sustained no lasting injury...only her pride remains bruised)...so we stopped and prayed as a family asking God to help us and redeem the day...and immediately, things began to improve!


At one pm we left for the Chime-Long Safari Park...THIS was a tour event WELL WORTH it...by far the coolest open zoo I've ever been to...excellent! The pictures well tell the story of the day so I'm going to devote most of the space to them...


On the way home in the bus, we nearly laughed ourselves silly as the children (keep in mind that there are 13 of them in our local group of 4 families)....got a hold of the microphone that our guide Connie uses on the bus and it was Karaoke time! Each of the kids sang a few tunes...it was a great day...

The weather is absolutely sauna-like! We were wringing wet most of the day but the outing to the safari park was well worth it. Our guide explained that the park is owned by one VERY wealthy man who is in his 50's...he was first a butcher, then owned a small restaurant, then a big restaurant, then a 4 star hotel...making more and more money...then he opened the safari park, a circus, water park and an amusement park...but the only part of this guys story that everyone talked about all day was that this guy has 8 wives! More specifically, 1 wife and 7 concubines! Even the kids were trying to figure out how that worked! Lots of jokes were made between our traveling companions about such a lifestyle...but Connie, our guide said that this was why she makes certain that her husband does not get too wealthy...with money comes concubines! IN THE YEAR 2007!


Tonight we had a pizza picnic in the hallway of our hotel...then a swim before bed...everyone ended the day on a very "up" note.


Tomorrow we hope to have our Visa approval in place for Isaiah to come home, then a huge shopping afternoon at a major street market that we've heard rumor of...we plan to take it by storm!

More from Guangzhou tomorrow....we'll be home soon now!