Riding on her own

Friends of ours generously gave us their daughters old bike. With a little tweaking and a new basket, compliments of our Bicycle Link friends, it looks brand new! The night we got home, the bike was sitting by the door, ready to go. As soon as I put down Alanna, she went straight over to the bike and got on. I had to push her around the house for awhile, as she refused to get off.

After a little help from ba ba and her brothers yesterday, she has learned how to pedal all by herself (with training wheels of course)! I can't say she's the best driver though. She looks at her feet, trying to concentrate on the pedaling part, so she doesn't pay attention to where she is going. Everytime I try to turn the bike to get her going the right direction, she says "mei you", which means "no". After a little practice, she learned how to pedal pretty fast, which is a little scary for me!

Walking in daddy's shoes

Alanna loves to dress up in ma ma's and ba ba's clothes. She's been parading around in Rob's shoes. She then came up to me with her sweet self "gulla gulla gulla" while trying to tickle me. (That's her version of saying "tickle tickle") How cute is she!?

As you can see, her hair braids only made it half the day. She loves to wear her hair down all wild and crazy looking.

My little helper

Bedtime has still been a struggle with many tears. If only I could understand what she was saying! Most of the time, it's "I want up!" or "No bedtime", but other than that, we're not making the connection. Fortunately, she stays in her bed, even though she's crying out. But, it's hard to know what the right reaction should be. Is she just afraid and need comforting? or is she just being a toddler that doesn't want to go to bed? Ma ma can't lay in her bed every night to get her to go to sleep. Definately an area we need to work on.

We ventured out for our first grocery shopping trip today. I was expecting Alanna to beg for everything she saw, especially on the candy isle, but she did pretty well. I did keep it pretty brief though. When we got home, she chipped right in with carrying in all the groceries, and not just one bag at a time. Wish my boys were as eager. Her foster family definately trained her well. A big THANK YOU!

First day at church

I must say this is a day to remember. We actually made it to church early! I'm sure the fact that we are still suffering from jetlag and woke up at 5 am helped with that.

We decided that I would sit in Alanna's preschool class the first day, just to see how she reacted. She definately suprised me! She walked right into the class like she owned the place, sat down and dove right into the activities. I could see her concentrating on what was going on. She LOVED the praise music and joined in all the motions and jumped around. When her group sat down to play a game, a little boy in the group was misbehaving and kept stealing the game piece. She rattled off something in Chinese and shook her finger at him. She was also quick to put all the toys away when they were finished. (This will be very helpful at home!) She did better than some of the regular attenders! During the prayer, she even mimicked a few of the words. Guess ma ma gets to go to big church next weekend. YIPEE!

WE'RE HOME!

After about 28 hours of traveling, including 3 flights, we made it home to Savannah at 10:15 pm on Thursday. SO GLAD TO BE HOME!!!

Alanna did very well on the 13 hr flight. She slept most of the time. She did not like being seat belted in during landing and screamed on two of the flights. She also did not like being strapped in the stoller while we waited in line to go through customs...and again, screamed. We got a lot of stares, but at that point, I didn't really care. We were both tired and kind of used to being gaulked at.

The trip home was very exhausting. We left the hotel at 6am (6pm Wed eastern time), flew out of Guangzhou around 9am. It took us 30 minutes to get to the airport and all of the rest to just check in. Of course we had to pay luggage overage fees. We arrived in Beijing around noon, reclaimed our luggage, loaded it on a shuttle to travel to the international flight area, rechecked our luggage, passed security and boarded our flight to Newark. Thankfully they didn't charge us any fees this time. Once in Newark, we had to reclaim our luggage again, pass security, recheck our luggage then pass through customs. This is where we had to turn in our brown envelope from the China Consulate to allow Alanna to enter the country. She is now an official US citizen! HOORAY! Now, on another shuttle to our gate, pass security again and board our flight. No rest at all, even though we had almost a 3 hour layover. It was go, go, go from the minute we landed with no time to spare. Finally, the last flight to Savanah. Alanna slept again until I woke her to change her clothes. Thankfully, she usually wakes up happy.

We were met by our boys, Braden and Holden, and our friends Ed and Eric. What a relief to finally be home. Alanna has taken pretty well to the boys and calls them ge ge. I slept until noon, got up long enough to eat lunch, took a 3 hour nap with Alanna, got up to eat dinner and we'll be going to bed again soon. This weekend I'll be spending our time toddler proofing the house! I thought we had things ready, but not so! This girl is into everything!

I'll post more with pictures after getting some more rest. Zia Jian- bye bye for now!

Packing up her toys and coming home!

Tomorrow is the last day in China. Boy time just flies! They will leave the hotel 6am Thurs Beijing time and arrive in Beijing around noon, then on to Newark and finally Savannah. HOORAY! Nancy is so ready to come home, but not looking forward to the loooong flight. Pray Alanna sleeps A LOT!

The consulate appointment went well. Afterwards they went to Shamian Island for a little more shopping.
Tomorrow is back to the consulate to say the oath to care for Alanna, pick up her visa and start packing to come home. Hopefully they will be able to fit everything they aquired while in China back into their suitcases.

Although they enjoyed the day, Nancy is pretty worn out. Alanna wants Nancy to carry her everywhere, even though they have a really nice stroller. When Nancy can get her to walk, she'd rather run. Zai pao! What a change of having a toddler around again. When I spoke with Rob & Nancy yesterday I was able to talk (not really) with Alanna. She sounds amazing, very confident, enthusiastic and cheerful. Not much longer until they are all home again. Keep them all in your prayers as the journey is truly just begining!

We’re in Guangzhou

We arrived at the China Hotel Marriott Saturday morning. Wow, is this hotel nice! And a little pricey in the restaurants I might add. We walked across the street and ate at McDonald’s for lunch. This area is more accepting to tourists, the driving is much better and the people aren’t apt to surround and stare at you. SIGH! For dinner, we took a taxi to Papa Johns’s, then walked through Carrefour (Chinese Walmart). That place was packed! We were able to buy a few Chinese/English DVD’s for Alanna to help teach her the ABC’s and some songs. She loves music!
Sunday we went to a local museum. Very beautiful landscaping and building designs. In the afternoon, we had a paperwork party. Not so much of a party though. It was about 2 hours of filling out forms for our consulate appointment. Let’s just say I needed a Goody’s powder after that! Our group then went to a Japanese restaurant that’s connected to the hotel. Great food, but pricey. Yeah I know it’s a little weird eating at a Japanese restaurant in China.
Today is Monday and we all took our children for their medical exam. There were three different stations we had to go to and have the Dr. sign off on. When we got to the exam part, they asked what Alanna’s special need was. They had a little trouble understanding she was listed as having an intellectual/speech delay as she was jabbering away. Our guide interpreted for us and the Dr. asked if we felt she no longer had a special need. Well, not that we can tell at the moment! After the exam, we went shopping at Shaiman Island. Alanna charmed all the women in the shops at chatted away as we looked around. She is definitely a girly girl. She loves putting on lotion, testing out my makeup, trying on Rob’s and my shoes and clothes.
Tomorrow is our consulate appointment. We’ll be hanging out in our hotel room in case they have any questions about our paperwork. Then Wednesday we’ll be picking up her visa.
I’m not able to access our blog here, but will try to post again before we leave. I can retrieve our gmail though. Keep us in your prayers as we’ll have about 24 hours of traveling on the way home with a 3 yr old.

All is safe on the Western front!

ni hao (Hello)

Hi, it's Jessica again, as many of you have seen on the news or read online there was a large earthquake in China. I spoke with Nancy this morning and they are all safe! The earthquake hit southwest of Beijing, they are approximately 2700 km or 1677.702 miles away in Guangzhou. Praise God!

Tomorrow is another important day - the consulate appointment, this will be the day where if there are problems with the adoption paperwork they will need be fixed to complete the process. Both Rob and Nancy have expressed what a joy Alanna is; while they are enjoying their bonding time together with her they are anxious to return home.

Please continue to keep Rob, Nancy and Alanna in your prayers as they prepare to travel back to the United States on Thursday, for Braden and Holden as they prepare to meet their new sister and please pray for the people in China affected by this terrible earthquake.

Until next time......

Getting ready for Guangzhou

It was rainy today and we were getting a little stir crazy in our hotel room. We decided to walk into town and eat lunch at KFC. Crossing the street is an adventure all in itself! There are 2 lanes of traffic each way and the intersection does not have a traffic light. Buses, cars, bikes, and pedestrians going in all directions in no particular orderly fashion. Walking through town, you have to been on your guard at all times. Several times we were approached by beggers and even children asking for money, not to mention all the stares from people wondering what caucasian people are doing with a Chinese baby. Of course I have a story about our adventure, but I won't write about it now. Lets just say I was VERY glad to get back to the safety of our hotel.

Tonight we are packing up to head to Guangzhou in the morning. YIPEE!! We've packed all the toys, so Alanna has found something to amuse herself, baba's shorts. She loves to dress up in mama and baba's clothes. I had already packed away my laptop, but these pictures were just to funny to post later.

The orphanage visit

Today we visited Hefei SWI. We weren't sure how Alanna would react, but she did very well. All the nannies called out to her and she chattered away to everyone. We met her foster mom and dad. They seemed very nice and cared for her well. When we entered Alanna's classroom, all the kids called out "Qing Fang!" and swarmed around her. She is liked very much. There is alot to tell about our visit, but not enough time now.

We also visited her finding spot at Heichiba, Hupo Garden. We don't know the exact spot, as the park is very big, but we took pictures of the area. The park is very pretty surrounding water and full of tress and sitting areas. As you see in the last 2 pictures, Alanna had enough of picture taking and was hiding her face. But, nothing a little tickling won't cure.

Bedtime has been the most difficult time, as is for most adopted children. Alanna gets agressive and tries to scratch and hit, then cries for a long period, I cry and then she finally falls asleep. It's all got to be very confusing for her, espcially after today's visit. We have a long road ahead and need your prayers for strength to work through the challenges.

Little trouble in Big China

Hi, I am Jessica and I will be your interim tour guide on this journey when communication for Nancy is slow or delayed. When she first left for China we envision very little internet communication especially when it came to blog posting but she has been able to - with photos! I spoke with Nancy last night briefly, while it was 7pm here it was 7am in China and they were all up and ready to tackle the day starting with breakfast. Alanna was talking up a storm in the background, she has a lot to say; she sounds like such a happy and cheerful little girl. What a great addition to an already great family! Nancy thinks the nanny in China spent a lot of time with Alanna looking through the photo album they sent to her; she knows everyone by face. How exciting!

Nancy mentioned that she was having trouble charging her laptop and it seems that there is a shortage of time over there too - to much to do and just not enough time to do it all. She is very thankful for the emails of encouragement and support and apologizes she is behind on answering. This morning I received another email saying that she is using a different adaptor and things were up and running, so who knows.

Please keep Rob, Nancy and their "new" family in your prayers for strength, wisdom, safe travel and creative communication skills. Until next time.......zigh jee–in (good bye/so long)

A day in Hefei

The first few days it seems Alanna has eaten everything in sight. Her little belly is full and round! All this is new to us, and her, but we realized today we need to start slowing her down on the food. I think because she was so full, she actually started to get sick. It's been frustrating communicating. She talks confidently in Chinese. I'm understanding some of it, with the help of some of her sign language. But it's hard that she can talk to strangers in the hotel and carry a conversation, and I, her mama, can barely understand a word. She doesn't know any boundaries and takes what ever she wants. Today was a little sad for me. We put her down for a nap and she is constantly asking for food or candy. We told her no and she needed to lay down, which initiated about five minutes of sobbing. This is the first time she cried like that for that long. It broke my heart, thinking this is only the first of many of these episodes. Alanna just discovered my laptop, so I better go for now.

Alanna is officially a Videon-HOORAY!

GOTCHA!!!!

GOD IS TOTALLY AWESOME!!! He has blessed us more than we could have imagined! We got Alanna today at the Civil Affairs office at 3:00 pm Beijing time. This girl is a pistol! And boy is she a chatterbox! So much for the supposed speech delay...none here! Alanna took only a short time to warm up to us and didn't cry at all. Well, she did throw a little of a tantrum when she couldn't get what she wanted,as you can see in the first picutre, but it didn't last long. She successfully devoured 2 small snacks from the orphanage director, a Tootsie pop, a snack bag of Teddy Grahams and then helped herself to a few handfuls of Cheerios from another family. She is very confident and walks around like she knows exactly where she is going. She can feed herself, dress herself and tell me when she needs to go potty. She is also very polite and properly greets people, like ai e hao (I know that's not spelled right, but it means nanny, hello) When we got on the bus to return to the hotel, she plopped down in the first seat and crossed her legs like a little lady and finished her snacks. We are in awe of how joyful she is. She had us both laughing when we went to the noodle shop for dinner. Once she finished her steamed egg (kind of like a soup), she poured water from her sippy cup into the bowl, mix it around and eat it like soup. Once it was gone, she dramatically pretended to keep eating soup with the spoon. Then she'd let out a hysterical giggle. She is a little comedian and will fit right in with our family! She already calls me mama when she needs something and I even was able to get a kiss. Right now, she is sleeping next to baba (Rob). It took only a short time for her to go to sleep. She kept talking and talking, but finally got the idea it was rest time.

I do feel a little awkward, as she talks to everyone in the elevator or bathroom, then chatters something to me, waiting for a response. I'm clueless! I've figured out a few things she says, but the communication is going to be a little challenging.

It all seems to be going a little too smoothly. We are preparing for when the reality hits and for now, we are enjoying every minute! I also must add that Alanna is smaller than what she appeared in the photos. She also has hair down to her low back! I think most of the 4T clothes will fit her perfect!

Rainy, cold, but memorable day

Radisson Hotel Beijing, China




Today we had a buffet breakfast at the hotel. We got to meet the rest of our travel group, as the majority of the others arrived much later than us yesterday. We then boarded buses to Tiannamen Square & the Forbidden City. As we left, the sky was pretty smoggy. Just as we got off the bus, it started to rain. Well, it turned out there was more than just smog in the sky. Within a short time, the sky turned scary dark along with a lot of thunder. Let me mention, once you start walking through the Forbidden City, it's a 2-1/2 tour and there's no turning back. Most of us were expecting a warm day and dressed in pants/shorts and short sleve, and no jackets. It got very cold and very windy! We all ended up buying unbrellas and ponchos (which were pretty much a once us item as far as quality). My shoes were soaking wet, along with my hair. BBBRRRRR! I'd say the majority of what I saw on the tour was either the back of an umbrella or the cobblestone on the ground (trying to avoid stepping into a huge puddle). It was also very easy to accidently start following the wrong umbrella and not the one of our guide. At one point, we lost two people and had to get help from the police to locate them.




After that, we enjoyed an authentic Chinese lunch. I got a kick out of the sign that was on the bathroom stall. Hope that's not an indication of what normally happens after eating there! Then, off to the pearl market. We learned a lot about pearls, how to tell the authentic from the fake, and then had the opportunity to shop.

Next was the Summer Palace. We, along with a few others, decided to skip this part and stay on the bus. It was way too cold and windy!



Then we went to a silk factory. They had a quick instruction on how the silk worm grows and the process for producing the silk. Very interesting! Of course, more shopping there.


Finally, we enjoyed another Chinese meal of Beijing duck. By this time, we were all tired and cold and ready to return to the hotel. Oh how good it felt to take off my wet socks. My feet are still freezing! All in all, we had a great time and were able to laugh and have fun with the other families. Hopefully, tomorrow's weather will be nicer. We'll all be a littler better prepared.

ONLY 2 MORE DAYS UNTIL GOTCHA!! Unbelievable!

Braden & Holden...we love and miss you soooo much!!