Monday, July 19th- Part 1 Medical Exam

I know I still haven't posted from Sunday but wanted to go ahead and let everyone know that Jia only had to have 3 shots!  Also, because her TB test was completed last month in Beijing she didn't have to have that.  We are so thankful!  Kirk took her and said that she didn't even cry when they gave her the shots!  Lillie Mei and I went shopping while they were at the medical exam and got their traditional dresses for a picture later this week.  Thank you so much for all of your prayers!

Saturday, July 17th-Part 2

We left our hotel around 11:30 for the airport.  Everything went smoothly.  Like everywhere else in China the airport was very crowded.  Our flight was supposed to leave at 2:00 but didn't take off until after 3:00 so we sat on the plane for an hour before we finally took off.  We had 2 extra seats so that worked great.  The girls colored, tore paper (which they both like to do for some reason) and generally made a mess.  Other than a slight meltdown by Lillie Mei, they did fine.

At our hotel just before we left.   Lillie Mei was having a "moment".

With our guide, Candy, and our driver, Mr. John       

Waiting to the board the plane and Lillie Mei watching as we land.

Jia with her goat, Ya Ya.  The most popular kid's show here is the cartoon "Three Pleasant Goats and a Big, Big Wolf". Ya Ya is the leader.  She picked him out and is quite attached to him.

We arrived around 6:00, got our luggage, met our guide and headed to the hotel.  The White Swan is a very nice hotel and has many adoptive families staying here.  It is the same place we stayed when we adopted Lillie Mei.  After we dropped off our stuff we headed to Lucy's for dinner.  They have American and Chinese food.  We ordered Jia rice and broccoli (the girl LOVES broccoli) but she tried my hamburger and loved it.  I think she will be fine with American food!  After dinner we settled in to our bedtime routine and the girls were asleep quickly.   Guangzhou feels so much more like a vacation than Beijing.  I think we will make it!!1

Loving Guangzhou!

We made it Guangzhou yesterday (Saturday) around 6:00 p.m.  I will post more later!

Saturday, July 17th- Flying to Guangzhou

There is really nothing new to report from yesterday (Friday).  We ate dinner at KFC and went to McDonald's for ice cream.  Afterwards we came back and did our typical bed time routine.  Jia fell asleep really quickly and slept until 7:45.  We are now up and getting everything packed up.  We leave for the airport at 11:30 a.m.  Our flight to Guangzhou leaves at 2:00 and we land around 5:00. 

While we are in Guangzhou we will complete the American parts of the adoption process- the consulate appointment, the medical exam, the swearing-in ceremony, and getting her visa.  We are officially less than one week from arriving home!!!!!

Pray for us since this will be Jia's first time on a plane. Pray for the people around us too!  :0)

We will post as soon as we can!

Friday, July 16th- Pool and Mall

We went to the pool this morning and we don't normally make our children wear swim caps but that is a requirement at our hotel.  Thankfully, some friends who were in Beijing a couple of months ago sent us theirs since this will be the only time they are used.  Kirk and I agreed that NO photos would be made of us in our lovely swim caps.  Jia had never seeen a swimming pool so she was very apprehensive.  The water was too deep for either of them to stand so we had to to hold them.  We were only there for an hour and by the time we left Jia was letting Kirk hold her in the water and she was splashing a little.  After lunch we went to a mall to try to keep the girls busy and get out of the heat (this is our hottest day so far).  We found a Dairy Queen in the mall which we all enjoyed.  Now we are hanging out in the room and as usual Lillie Mei is asleep and Jia is "exploring" the room.  Tonight we are eating at KFC for dinner.  I'm thankful for something different but the food has definitely been better this time, I doubt I will lose weight this time around!

Baba and Mama Boo Hao!

One of the few words we've learned in Chinese is Hao, which means good.  Kirk has been asking Jia since the day we got her, "Baba Hao?" meaning, "Is Daddy good?"  She would always just repeat what we would say whether he asked her about Baba, Mama, Mei Mei, etc. she would say "Baba hao or Mama hao."  The other day he asked her and she said, "Baba boo hao."  Kirk was hoping it meant Daddy is very good.  When we asked the guide she said it meant, "Daddy is not good."  For a few hours she would say that Daddy is not good but Mama and Mei Mei were good.  Yesterday she added me to the "Not good" list and only she and Mei Mei were good.  It has become a game because she knows that Kirk and I will react when she says we aren't good, usually by tickling her.  So, when she wants to be tickled she will come up to me and say, "Mama boo hao" with this huge grin on her face and she braces for the tickles that come.  She is a very silly girl which is probably why she and Lillie Mei get along so well!

Today (Friday) is a free day for us while our guide goes to get Jia's passport.  Please pray for the boys as they are transitioning from the beach to my sister's house, then to mom's, then back to our house with my mom.  Pray for me as I pack this room!  Also, the shot situation doesn't look great.  Jia has had a lot of shots but she isn't current on most of them.  We could still be looking at 8 shots.  I could be wrong, but based on the CDC list and her record, she is only current on one vaccine.  Pray that I am wrong and that she doesn't associate us with those needles.  The medical exam isn't until next week. 

Love and miss you all!

Thursday, July 15th-Science Museum and Olympic Park

We left this morning and headed to the China Science Museum.  I wasn't sure what to expect but the area we went to was an incredible children's play area.  The girls had a blast but it was so crowded that we couldn't let them run freely and it was stressful, especially since Jia likes to run off.

It was very rainy so we just drove through the Olympic village.  I didn't get good pictures.  Afterwards we attempted naps with no luck so we walked down to the pedestrian shopping area.  Then dinner and now bedtime! 

Tomorrow is a free day which I will spend packing and organizing.  We might finally attempt the pool as well.  Good night!