Home Sweet Home!!

Well..... Jet Lag is the pits!  We got home last night around 8:30 PM Idaho time.  By the time we got home and got things settled down it was real late.  We got Maddie to bed around 10:30 PM.  She was real tired and went right to sleep in her new crib.  She slept till around 1:45 AM and then started crying.  Robin went in and checked on her and got her back to sleep.  She slept to around 4:30 AM and was ready for the day!  I got up and spent the next few hours playing with Maddie.  We had a great time playing with wooden puzzles and some of her other toys.  She was bouncing off the walls, while I was a walking Zombie!  Robin got a few more hours of sleep while I played with Maddie.  Robin is coming down with a cold and I wanted her to get some more sleep!  Maddie ran out of gas around 8:00 AM and we were able to put her down for a "nap" (bedtime in China).  She slept till around 2:30 PM.  Thank goodness!  Robin and I got some much needed sleep.  We kept Maddie up to around 8:30 tonight and she went right to sleep!!!  Hope she sleeps through the night!  Stay tuned for updates on Jet Lag.

Now the trip home......

There were a total of three families from CCAI that flew home together from Hong Kong to San Fransisco. It was fun to travel as a group and one of the family's mom was traveling alone with their new daughter and we were able to help each other out getting through security at Hong Kong, loading the plane, traveling, getting through immigration and customs, etc.  We were able to share a few final hours together in San Fransisco waiting for our connections and reminisce about our adoption experiences.  Our travel group was really fun and we have made some life long friends!

We left the hotel around 8:20 AM and made it through check-in and security by 9:30 AM.  WOW!!! couldn't have gone any better.  We boarded the plane and departed from Hong Kong around 11:30 AM.  A loooooong 12.5 hrs later we touched down in San Fansisco.  Maddie did very well on the trip.  We didn't let her sleep before we left Hong Kong.  Once we got on the plane, she fell asleep for 2 hours (Yea!)  We had some food and then the "wrestling" match began for the next 5 hours -  Mom versus Maddie.  You can probably guess who won, MOM!!!!  Finally, Maddie fell asleep for the next 4 hours (Yea!) as well as an exhausted Mom.  Dad was the referee, since Maddie once again would have nothing to do with me.  She woke up in time to eat and get a diaper changed before we landed in San Fransisco.  We made it off the plane and through immigration and customs.  It was so exciting to see our 3 "newest" Americans from our adoption group!

We had a 5 hour layover in San Francisco.  One of the other families in our adoption group had a 5 hour layover as well.  The third family only had about a 3 hour layover!  We had enough time to get some lunch and spend the final few minutes with our travel group.  It was hard saying "Good-bye" but we'll all be in touch!  We kept Maddie busy in the airport having her walk (sqeek) around the waiting area.  By the time we got ready to board the plane, she was pooped!  She slept the entire flight from San Fransisco to Denver (Praise the Lord!).  We had just over an hour connection in Denver.  We traversed the entire concourse B in Denver and caught our flight to Idaho Falls.  We landed right on time in Idaho Falls!

Thanks for all our friends and family that met us at the airport!  It was fun to let them see our little girl!  She was a little shy, but considering all she had been through the past few weeks she did GREAT!  My brother and sister-in-law took us home (and stocked our fridge with Maddies favorites - bananas and watermelon) and our friend Gina brought all our luggage to our house (made a great "Welcome Home Maddie" sign as well).  Our church family has blessed us with meals for the coming week (THANK YOU ALL!!!!).  God is so good!  Thanks everyone for praying for us these past many months.  Continue to remember us in your prayers as we adjust as a family.

Suitcases packed - Ready for America

Good-bye China!

 

Waiting at the Airport in Hong Kong

Buckled In - not sure about this.... maybe Dolly will help!

Yep!  Dolly works Miracles!!!

Got to Love those PJs!

3 Newest Americans - Maddison, Ellie, and Aiden

Coming into the Idaho Falls Airport

A Balloon - thanks Gina!

Meeting Grandma Laug

Welcome Home Baby!

Hong Kong cont....

We had a great time exploring Hong Kong today.  We got in rather late last night and didn't get to post too much last night.  We had a good trip from Guangzhou yesterday.  The van was very nice - new and leather seats.  We had plenty of room to get us and our luggage to Hong Kong - we were a little worried with all the "tiny" vans we've seen in China and the pieces of our luggage!  It was an interesting ride.  There were three families in 3 different vans traveling to Hong Kong.  We think the drivers were having a competition to see who could get to Hong Kong first.  They drive like maniacs!!!!  One family said their driver was well over a 100 mph in some stretches.  I know ours was pushing 90 mph at times!  One of the other moms in our group says you need to take a Valium before you go if you are using a van!  Robin at least thinks a motion sickness pill.

 

We are staying at the Skycity Marriot.  Nice hotel and real close to the airport.  They have a free shuttle that runs to the airport - this will be nice on Saturday.  We are also Marriot Rewards members so we have free internet in our rooms - this was the case in Guangzhou as well (note to other adoptive parents - get a Marriot Rewards number if you are with CCAI, free internet in Guangzhou and Hong Kong!).  It was really nice using the van service.  They picked us up in Guangzhou at the hotel and delivered us to the our hotel in Hong Kong!  If we would have ridden the train, we would have had an additional hour by taxi to get to our hotel.  Two families in our adoption travel group switched to a van when they found out about the 1 hr taxi ride in Hong Kong!

 

Today we were able to Skype with my brother Steve and Irene and 2 of their daughters.  Maddie had such a good time on the computer.  She loves to punch buttons and was fascinated with my "electronics".  We rode the Airport Express train into Hong Kong to explore the area.  The train is located right next to the hotel so it was very easy to catch and get downtown.  We then rode a ferry over to the Kowloon area and explored the shops in that part of town.  Bill and Reba were looking for a tailer that Reba had used when she led tour groups from Dallas to Hong Kong in the 80s.  No such luck in finding the shop - things have changed so much in the 25+ years.  We rode the ferry back to downtown and then caught a bus over to ride the Peak Tram to the overlook of the city.  We were supposed to catch the 15C bus, but instead we caught the 15 bus.  This bus took us all the way to the top of the mountain to the overlook.  We rode the Peak Tram back down the hill.  Wish we could have ridden the Peak Tram up instead of coming down.  We came down backwards in our seats so it was kind of hard to see.  The Peak Tram rises 1200 feet and has a 14% grade.  You can see some of the tracks in the pictures.  The day was a little hazy in Hong Kong so the pictures aren't the clearest.  What a sight to see overlooking the city.  Glad we had time to spend in Hong Kong and see some of the sights of this amazing city.  Maddie did very well!  She has such a good disposition and loves to look around when we travel.  She fell asleep in her stroller for about an hour.  She did very well and went right down when we got back to the hotel.

 

Its hard to believe what things Maddie has done this past few weeks.  She probably rode in a car the first time, buses, airplanes, ferries, trains, and subways!  What a change for a little girl who came from an orphanage about 11 days ago.  Pray for us tomorrow as we travel home.  We will have a 13 hour airplane ride ahead of us.  Pray that Maddie will do well and that Robin and I will not pull all our hair out!  Maddison has taken a turn for the worse over the last 2 days.  It sounds like she is coughing her little lungs out.  The one thing I wish we had more access to over here is a doctor just for the little things like colds, infections, and coughs.  Robin and I have really not slept the last two night because Maddie has been coughing so much.  We did come armed with some over the counter meds, but it is such a hit or miss on size and weight for these little guys, it is hard.  I would imagine a local doc who would work with these adoptive kids could really help.  We had one little guy in our group who had to have a boil lanced on the back of his head and one little gal who needed catheters.  How do you really plan for those things?  You can't.   Pray that Maddison's ears don't hurt while flying, that she does not cough uncontrollably, and that she will sleep lots on the plane.  We have learned that Maddison has good volume when she crys.  It could be a long 13 hours and no one will like us on the plane.  Please pray we all rest well and that the flight is uneventful.  As I type this Maddison has started coughing again.  It is painful to listen to the little cries and whimpers she makes when she finishes coughing and is still asleep. 

 

 

Thanks for you prayers and good night from Hong Kong.

Hong Kong

We made it safe to Hong Kong!  We had to ride in a van from Guangzhou to Hong Kong.  Traffic was unreal, but we made it safely.  I'll update more tomorrow.  Good night from Hong Kong!

American Consulate

Today we had our American Consulate appointment.  We had to leave the hotel at 7:50 AM this morning.  We had about a 1/2 hour drive to get to the Consulate and then had to go up to the 5th floor.  We couldn't take pictures inside, so there weren't a whole lot of pictures to post today.  Three families in our group had their Consulate appointment today at 8:30 AM.  We had to go through a security checkpoints and metal detectors to gain access to the area.  A total of 12 families (3 CCAIs and the rest other adoption agencies) had Consulate appointments for 8:30 AM this morning - another set of 12 families (2 CCAIs) had 10:30 appointments.  A Consulate official talked to us a few minutes and then we had to take an oath on behalf of Maddie.  Then, each family was called up to a window and met with a Consulate official to go over their immigration paperwork.  Ours was all in place and it took only a few minutes with the official and we were done!  Tommorow, our adoption agency representative will go back over to the American Consulate and get our official paperwork that we will carry back to the United States.  We will hand this paperwork to the immigration official in San Francisco when we land on Saturday and then Maddie is "officially" an American citizen!  Once everyone from our group was done, we headed back to the hotel for a free day.  We got back to the hotel around 10:00 AM.  We celebrated the occasion with a cup of coffee at Starbucks and a muffin!

 

After that, we headed back to the room and Maddie had a nap.  Yesterday was a long day and she was pretty tired so we wanted her to get a good nap.  She slept for about 2.5 hrs.  Today, Robin showed Maddie how to brush her teeth.  What a sight it was to see her try to brush her teeth!!  We also found the pool and play area in the hotel.  Maddie had fun splashing along the edge of the pool and then try out the playground equipment.  She must have used the set at the orphanage because she knew how to slide down the slide!  We had a great time relaxing around the hotel.  Bill and Reba caught a Taxi to Shamian Island and did some more shopping.  We ate diner at Lucy's on Shamian Island.  It was a real "American" meal.  We had a good ol'e American hamburger and fries!  Sure tasted great!  We are all getting tired of Chinese food.

 

Well, that's all from China today.  Tomorrow we receive Maddie's immigration visa and paperwork and head to Hong Kong.  We have to ride in a van for about 3 hours and will get into Hong Kong late.  Probably won't post tomorrow and will catch up on Friday.  We'll spend Friday in Hong Kong and then fly out on Saturday. 

 

 

Guangzhou continued...

Today, we didn't have any real appointments in regards to our adoption trip.  We had arranged a shopping trip with Ann of Redthread.  She is the gal who lives here in Guangzhou and helped us get updates of Maddison from her orphanage.  She met us at 10:30 AM and we headed out to the Pearl Market.  We had another first for us as well as Maddie.  We road the subway to get to the Pearl Market.  We had a lot of fun riding the subway and walking the streets of Guangzhou.  I included a few pictures of us walking down the streets around the Pearl Market to let you get a feel of what it is like here in China.  It always amazing how many people there are.... all the time.  We had a great time at the Pearl Market and got some beautiful pearls for Maddison (it is a tradition to get your adoptive daughter some pearls for her wedding day).  Robin keeps wondering if I am ready to even type those words.  Ann was amazing!  She had these contacts and was very good at getting us super prices on jewelry.  Take a look at some of the pictures of the Pearl Market and see how many pearl necklaces are stacked in each of the shops!  It was nice to have someone who new the ropes and could get us some good quality pearls.

 

After the trip to the Pearl Market, we headed back to the hotel via a taxi.   Maddie took a quick nap and then we had to head down to the lobby of the hotel for the infamous group pictures.  Our adoption agency always has individual and group pictures of their travel groups to China.  It is always fun to dress up you children in their Chinese silks.  Maddie wasn't to happy since we had to wake her up for the pictures.  However, it was nice to see all the kids and their parents.  We will treasure the contacts we have made these past two weeks!  Maddie loves here new shoes!  I include a picture of her putting on her shoes.  It's amazing how quick she picked up on how to do this herself.  She is one independent little girl!  Oh my!!!!!

 

We ended the day going out to diner!  The whole group took taxis to a Mexican restaurant called Tekila.  You read correctly,  we went out for Mexican food in China!  The food was fantastic!!!!  It was so nice to eat something other than Chinese.  Not that Chinese is bad, but something different was great.  We had a great time talking and sharing stories over dinner.  Maddie is learning to share.  In one of the pictures she is sharing her Gerber Puffs with her buddy Aiden!  One of our families is leaving tomorrow and there are a lot of us leaving on Thursday.  It was probably the last diner as a group!  After diner we headed back to the hotel via a taxi.  We are starting to get pretty good at hailing taxis to get around in China!

 

Everyone is doing well.  We all seem to be in pretty good health, but are looking forward to coming home!  Thanks for the all the prayers!  Tomorrow is our Consulate Appointment.  Can wait to see Maddie in her red/white/blue bubble.  You'll have to check back tomorrow!  Good night from China.....