9/30 - Time does fly when you are having fun!

It has been two months since our arrival home...wow! Before I let you know how we're doing now...let me tell you about our arrival at the airport. It was so wonderful! I had so many different emotions flood my body all at one time that it was impossible to contain any tears. The faces of so many friends waiting for us...balloons and "Welcome Home" signs, so many children, Elizabeth's friends that she was so happy to see...smiles...and so many much needed hugs. Our dear friends, that we first met with Elizabeth's adoption, came from NC just to welcome us home...it was their daughter (Elizabeth's age) that I saw first come through the crowd and I could not believe my eyes. Thank you so much for the gift of you love and friendship! We arrived home to a stocked full refrigerator and all the essentials that a family needs after being gone for more than two weeks. Thanks so much, Kathleen and Teresa!

Our tender care was extended even further by friends fixing meals for us over the next couple of weeks. What a blessing it was for us because we were so tired and I got to catch up with everyone that I missed so much when they came to the house!!!! This trip to China was harder for us to bounce back from than the last one 4 and 1/2 years ago. The first couple of weeks back found us trying to get our sleep patterns retrained to US time. Clare and I had the most difficulty. She has done so well though since coming home. She is speaking quite a few English words and gets the story across with alot of acting out filled in!

Thank you for joining us here in this space and along this journey. Your prayers, support, and love have lifted us and kept us strong. God has watched over us on this road to bring our Clare home...from the beginning to the end. We are so blessed, thankful, joyful, peaceful and complete...and we are so in love with our girls!

I leave you with these pictures in closing...

Love and Blessings,
Anne

Guangzhou – Day 6 Our last full day here in Guangzhou is about to come to a close.  We made it to the Consulate and took our oath this afternoon.  It was a huge relief to each family to finish this process and the tears spoke more than our words.  We have 4 passports now, as Elizabeth noted to us leaving the building, so our Family 4 Pack is now very much official!  Clare will become a US citizen as soon as we step on US soil and our last papers are stamped at immigration in LA.  I don't know how we could be filled with any more joy than at this very moment! We are so thankful for each of the families here that have shared these last two weeks with us.  We have been knitted together by God's perfect work, and through our girls, the strength of this bond will last a long, long time! See you on the States side! Love and blessings from Guangzhou…Anne

Guangzhou – Day 5 Today we had a total Solar Eclipse.  It happened this morning during breakfast and it just amazes me!  The gift of Clare…Typhoon Molave…and now the eclipse…it has just been amazing since we arrived in Guangzhou!  We received another gift today…Clare's passport has been issued!!!  We have not received it in our hands yet, but it was given to Michael this afternoon and it was supposed to be on a 6pm flight from Guiyang to Guangzhou tonight.  Michael faxed a copy of it to Elsie and the ACS so they could be processing as much as possible of the final paperwork prior to tomorrow's appointment.  As of now (10pm) we haven't heard otherwise that all is going according to schedule.  I still will feel better tomorrow when we have completed the oath and have the passport in hand!  We will all sleep better tonight and we are thankful for the work that was done by Michael and Elsie and the folks in the CHI Beijing office…all of which was empowered by God and the prayers of so many.  Also…both families that were waiting on the results of the TB test x-rays received good news as well!  There were many smiles today…and then we all got massages! It has been a long day so tonight's post will be short, but will include some pictures.  We had our group pictures done this evening in the hotel garden…a lovely setting and a lot of happy girls. Two more days and we'll be back in the states!!! Woo Hoo!!!

Guangzhou – Day 4 Today was basically a "free" day to do whatever we liked in the city.  Still anxious about Clare's Chinese passport, we decided to get our mind on something else and headed back to Shamain Island for a little shopping and exercise.  It was very hot and humid today…well each day has actually been this way, but today seemed more exaggerated since Clare is still not feeling up to par because of the runs.  We started her on some medicine this morning as I just don't want to let it get too out of hand.  She is such a trooper…but the cab ride to the island and the heat of the day just put her out to sleep several times and by lunch she had had just about all she could take.  We headed back to the hotel and went to the pool to cool off…the first time that Clare got in the water!  She loved it, but made it very clear to us she didn't like the water in her eyes!  We had dinner in our room tonight and while we waited for dad to bring the carry-out food back, the girls were watching some Signing Time dvd's.  Clare's already singing the opening song and doing the signing motions.  It puts a new slant on the song now for me with the Chinese accent thrown in!  She is doing well…she has attached to me mostly, adores her big sister, and is, each day, getting closer with Don…playing time aside!  The playing has been her favorite pastime with her Dad! She sleeps well at night, no waking at odd hours, or bad dreams, or night terrors.  She is ready for bed in the evening without a fuss anymore (this has been since we arrived in Guangzhou) and I hold her until she falls asleep.  This evening was especially sweet…we were cuddled in a chair and had just finished our prayers.  She was watching me as I was talking softly to her and saying goodnight, and then she quietly and so sweetly said, "Mama" before she closed her eyes.  She wakes with a smile every morning now and I think sleeping with her sister gives her lots of joy.  Elizabeth told me this morning that when she and Clare woke up, before they got out of bed, they were just laying there smiling at each other. Elsie our guide called us tonight with news that Michael did not get the passports today for us and the other family, but said they would be ready tomorrow.  Last night we emailed our agency's St. Louis office to be sure they knew what was happening here.  They did not know and contacted the Beijing office.  Their response was prompt and despite the unsettling information provided, we were told we would have the passports Wednesday.  We'll get excited though when we have them in hand.  Our ACS appointments are tomorrow morning, and evidently they (the agency) have worked out something with them to process our paperwork that is ready so far, but they still can't issue the visa without the passport.  Tomorrow will be a stressful day waiting for word…perhaps the massages that are scheduled in the afternoon will help.  The other two families that have the children that tested positive on the TB test have still not heard any results on the x-rays that were done.  We appreciate so much your prayers not only for us but for these other families as well. I'll close tonight with a Happy Birthday to Miss Netta!  Elizabeth is missing you and told me today she can't wait to get home to you and Hershey and all her friends.  Love to you all, Anne