Happy 7th Anniversary to US!!!!

Seven years ago today we were married at The Summerall Chapel, The Citadel in Charleston, SC. It was a beautiful spring day in the Holy City. Our reception was at Gold Bug Island on the intracoastal waterway. I can't believe it has been 7 years - and thankfully we aren't itchy!!! We are thankful that Christ is the center of our marriage - otherwise the past 7 years would have been very difficult. Enjoy the photos...Sweet memories.

The Blog isn't 'Inconsistent Ramblings' for nothin'!!! I will finish posting our trip to TA in one long post and then include a photo montage of the past few weeks. Enjoy!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~
Shamian Island, Guangzhou
Saturday, April 9, 2005
8:28pm China time, 6:27am MDT

TA had his first plane ride. I didn't take any photos on the plane
because he was in a rotten mood - the rest of us weren't feeling too
great either. He was just able to show his true feelings.

The hotel in Hangzhou turned off the AC last night and sleep was
miserable. Add to that TA waking up several times crying, kicking
and flailing. I don't know if everything was hitting him or if he was
having nightmares. He calmed down with singing and belly rubs
everytime. He didn't take a nap today except for about 30 minutes
after the plane landed. XC did great on her first plane ride
also. YP sat with us and regaled us with stories from school.

We are now in the Victory hotel with soft beds and AC. We ran into
several families we met on the plane from San Francisco or in Beijing.
The island is full of western families with their new children. We are
no longer the center of attention - the movie stars - that we were in
Hangzhou. TA is still a sight though. We have borrowed a stroller
which the boy loves to ride in. It is great for holding bags - except
when BaBa pops wheelies and catches them on the wheel and breaks the
bag.

The kid should be in bed by now. Check out the new photos posted
tonight. Classic TA. :-)

until tomorrow.
C

~~~~~~~~~~
Sunday, April 10, 2005
Guangzhou, 8:52pm China time, 6:52am MDT

5 more days until we are home. None of us can wait. Today we woke
up TA for breakfast and to go get visa photos. In the photo, he is
pouting. Then we shopped and went to McDonald's for lunch - he had
his first Happy Meal. He ate chicken nuggets - picked the outside
off and ate the processed chicken stuff inside. He doesn't care for
french fries. That's ok. We tried to find a department store - he
is teething and has a huge blister on his thumb from sucking it so
much. We want a teether or something for him. Instead we found a
huge store full of cell phone pieces, parts and accessories...didn't
know there was that much out there.

After naps and resting (had to wake up the kid again) we went to the
White Swan Hotel to fill out paperwork. There is a playroom
sponsored by Fisher-Price where the kids all played. For dinner,
several adoptive families got together to go to a Thai restaurant.
We passed on the pigeon (we had previous chances to have it along
with dog meat soup). M. claims pigeon is quite tasty - we'll
just trust him for now.

A few more appointments and a bit more sightseeing and shopping and
we will be home. See you soon.

C.

~~~~~~~~~~
Monday April 11, 2005
Guangzhou, 9:19pm China time

An uneventful day. TA was able to take a full nap in his bed
for the first time in a week. He is cutting a molar and is fussy at
times.

We left Shamain island in search of a department store to buy a
teething ring or something. We were successful. In the afternoon we
wandered the shops, dropped off laundry and had dinner at an European
restaurant around the corner. XC stayed with us while Ya Ping
had some dad time. S observed XC give TA a bath...they
had great fun.

We were going to try to zoo today, but it was cloudy and drizzling.
Just as well. We are all worn out. Hope to visit it before we leave.
Please pray for our health. I am getting the cold S and TA
have been sharing and I suspect TA is getting an ear infection based
on the way he is pulling and tugging on his ear - even in his sleep. I
hope not since we have a long flight coming up.

Talk to you soon.
C
~~~~~~~~~~
Tuesday, April 12, 2005

Are we there yet?

Another rainy dreary day. However we got to sleep in until 8:30 -
even TA slept. We went for the medical exam today. The doc was
concerned about TA's eyes and the 'quivering'. Normal with the
albinism. TA is 89.5 cm tall (35 inches) and weighs 11.5kg (25.3
pounds). And he isn't two yet - he is a tall boy.

He was great during the exam. He bit down on the tongue depressor
and grinned at the ENT. The chief doc did the physical exam - it
appears that his undescended testicle has descended. One less thing
to worry about.

We visited the Pearl Market in the afternoon. Bead heaven!!! I was
loving it. Not all the prices were great - but some were fantastic!

I am still a bit cruddy. Jason, our rep, took me to a pharmacy to get
some cough medicine and something to bring down my temp (low grade).
I have some Chinese cough/cold medicine to take. I told them what I
was taking and they said it will be fine. (Don't worry Mom.)

More tomorrow...

love and hugs
C
~~~~~~~~~~
Wednesday, April 13, 2005

Guangzhou, still. 9:20pm China time, 7:19am MDT

Our final night in China. Today was our consulate appointment. Jason,
the rep. went for us and everything was fine. We did some last minute
shopping and I spent a chunk of the afternoon in bed with a 101.1
fever. TA slept for 3 hours also.

My fever finally broke - after taking chinese herbs, motrin and
tylenol. If I have a temp when we leave, they will put me in
quarantine and not let me leave. We do not want that.

TA is still a happy kid and eating plenty. The girls are going to
miss him and vice versa.

Tomorrow we have our swearing of the oath at the consulate and then we
go to Hong Kong in the evening. I will try to write again if I can.

home soon...
C
~~~~~~~~~~
Saturday, April 16, 2005
Colorado Springs, CO 10:46am MDT

We're HOME!!!! Let's see...where was I... Oh yea - Guangzhou, China.
Thursday we had our swearing in at the Consulate. Basically they
gathered a bunch of families in a room, verified our passport photos
with the copies they had, asked us if everything we have provided is
true - we said yes - that was it. We did a bit of last minute
shopping, packing, etc. And left for Hong Kong in the afternoon.

We flew into the airport and had to go through customs and immigration
(what a pain! If you had a stroller with you, you got to go in a
faster line.) All of us then walked to the hotel in the airport. It
is something out of the 70's. YP was tired (we all were) and had
a minor meltdown. Instead of taking the train into Hong Kong, we ate
at the hotel. I tried to send an email, but the hotel broadband wasn't
cooperating. Oh well. XC was starting to show reactions to all
the changes and was crying a bit. TA was also a bit fussy. So
much for keeping everyone up for the flight. We said our goodbyes to
the E family after dinner. We will miss all of them, but email
is a great tool!!

The morning of the 15th (Friday) we left Hong Kong at 11:35am.
TA slept the first four hours of the flight and played the rest
of the flight. He is a great traveler!!! We were able to check our
luggage from Guangzhou to San Francisco - that was nice. And we got
seats all together - that was iffy at one point.

We arrived in SF at 8:10am Friday, April 15. The kid was fast asleep
and slept through immigration and customs. He is now a US citizen!!!
The flight from SF to Colorado Springs was more interesting. He was
tired, but fighting it and didn't want to listen. (He's almost 2!!)
He fell asleep during landing and taxi and slept through meeting
Granny and Pa and friends.

At home he was grumpy and tired. Not happy about the puppies and
unsure about everything else. He went to bed at 4pm in his crib. He
woke up around 2am and we thought he was up for the day, but he fell
back asleep with us until 6am. He is much happier today and playing
with his grandparents and looking at the puppies. I tried to make
rice porridge and failed. I will try again

It was wonderful sleeping in my own bed, seeing the dogs, sleeping in
the same bed as S, using my spinbrush to brush my teeth, and being
home!!

Thank you for the thoughts and prayers while traveling. Continue
praying for adjustment for us and especially TA.

C

Happy Birthday Mom/Granny!!!!!
~~~~~~~~
April 8, 2005
We are still in Hangzhou for one more night. Today we went to the
Notary and received all the final key pieces of paper - the
abandonment decree, the adoption decree and birth certificates.
Slightly important papers.

For lunch we returned to the restaurant where we ate yesterday -
again very yummy. Then we visited a temple that was built over 1000
years ago by folks from India. It was amazing - there was one Buddha
(huge) carved from a single piece of camphor wood. Some of the
similarities to Christianity were interesting. TA was a movie star
again! Old ladies were taking off his hat and rubbing his hair.
they even pushed up his sleeve and rubbed his arm. He just laughed
and smiled.

I also got to talk with John Droste. He helped start the foster
system at Hangzhou Social Welfare Institute. He is from the USA, but
lives here now. He had some interesting stories to tell about the
orphanage and also shared some photos of TA when he was younger. I
will post those tonight.

It was a very warm day, but the hotel finally saw fit to turn on the
AC - tonight we will sleep with a comfortable temperature. Maybe the
bed won't seem so hard.

More tomorrow. We are all tired and ready to return to a normal
routine and a place where drivers aren't quite so crazy. One more
week. The girls and TA are all showing their fatigue with more
whining and eye rubbing. But they are all troopers.

love and hugs
C

April 7, 2005
Hangzhou (still) 6:32pm China time (4:32am MDT)

We had another fun yet busy day. We started out on a boat ride on
West Lake, the "Pearl of Hangzhou." It was beautiful. We saw
pagodas, the Hangzhou skyline and the surrounding mountains. Then we
walked around the gardens - the peach trees are in bloom and the
garden smelled terrific. A group of 20something Chinese girls mobbed
us and wanted photos with us and TA - the movie star. He smiled
and waved at all of them.

We saw ponds of koi and pagodas and peacocks. Then we went to a tea
plantation. This was amazing. They were picking the new leaves to
make Dragon Well green tea. This is the best tea of the year - they
pick every season except winter. We also had a tea ceremony and
learned the many uses of the green tea. The country side was filled
with tea trees and the workers wearing straw hats picking leaves.

Lunch was incredible. We had Beggars Chicken - cooked in a bag.
Very tasty. The fish was wonderful as well - they brought it out for
us to see prior to cooking it - and I don't know if I will get used
to eating fish with the head attached. TA liked everything except
the scallions and peas in the rice. He loved the lotus root stuffed
with rice.

He is still smiling and laughing a lot. Took another nap in the
sling, and really enjoys playing with the girls - especially XC since they understand each other. He will smile and wave at
everyone and folks are always staring at us - TA with his white
hair and M with his two Chinese girls. We make quite a scene.
It is rather fun.

XC and Rebecca were singing Chinese kids songs and TA was
listening and clapping. He likes music and XC sings
beautifully. She is also quite the little gymnast. The E's are
going to have their hands full with her, just as we are with our
little guy.

I will write tomorrow - Mom's birthday.

love and prayers to all
C

April 6, 2005 ~ Hangzhou, Zhejiang, PRC

I tried to send a message last night, but yahoo ate it. It was
great!! You would have really enjoyed reading it. Here is a recap:

Yesterday (Tuesday) morning we went to finish applying for TA's
passport. Then we drove to the hospital where he was abandoned. It is
a prominent Children's hospital in the province. There was a garden
out front and lots of families with their children. Some vendors were
also selling toys out front on the street. It brought tears to my eyes.

We spent the afternoon shopping for clothes for the kids and getting
some books. TA took his nap in the sling on my back. It worked
great! We are discovering what he does and does not like to eat. He
feeds himself rice porridge (congee). He likes chicken nuggets at KFC
and noodles.

The dads went to get laundry and I watched all the kids. YP and
XC played with TA. Then YP and I played cards. We
taught XC to play war - there was much giggling going on among
the sisters during the game. XC caught on very quickly. She is
a sharp girl and is learning English minute by minute. They are fun to
explore with and TA loves having them around to dote on him. It is
obvious that XC helped with the little kids in the orphanage.

Last night TA slept in the crib (he slept with S the night
before). S tried to show him how to brush his teeth - instead TA
brushed S's teeth.

Today we went to the orphanage. TA was full of smiles when we got
there - he recognized everyone and they all talked to him. We visited
a classroom and the nursery. There were not many children there - over
200 are in foster care in the community. I cried when we left - after
seeing how much they loved and cared for TA.

Before lunch we toured the silk factory. An amazing process. Now I am
going shopping for the boy - he doesn't have many clothes here and he
wet through his jeans - my fault. Beginner mistake. :-) Contrary to
the latest report - he does not weigh 30 pounds - he weighs 24 pounds
with only a diaper on. He is tall with no waist or hips so his pants
are always falling down. He'll be an overall kid!

I will not write again until tomorrow night. Hope everyone is well.

love
C