Steps

Luke is a walker! :)

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Medical Exam - CHECK

Time to start checking things off the list for Guangzhou. Luke had his medical exam this morning.

Current Stats:
9.9 kg
36.1 degree temp (c)
80 cm

Waiting for everything....





Our guide, Lucia, had us whip right through everything. I don't know how she did it because it seemed like families were waiting, but we just walked right up to each room and got in right away.

First stop was Luke's visa photo.


Next was the ENT visit - It was rather comical watching the doctor check his hearing. She thought she was being stealthy I'm sure, but Luke doesn't miss a beat. He noticed her moving her arm to squeak the toy near his ears and of course he turned his head in her direction. I'm anxious to get him home and to an audiologist to really see what the status is.


From there, we went to the nurse's station for height and weight.





Lastly was the general examination. This was sort of funny as well. As I've said before, Luke will sit still for noone. I know the picture is blurry, but check out the mess as she's trying to measure his head.. Hahaha...








Her only comment to us was, "Oh Buddha belly. This boy likes to eat." :)

Yep!

So the rest of the day has been pretty quiet. We stopped at a supermarket and picked up some bread and peanut butter, some noodles, and some snacks. We are hoping to save some money by eating some meals in our room. Back at the hotel we wrapped up some paperwork for our consulate appointment on Monday. We also had someone come by and pick up our laundry. It will be nice to get some clean clothes for the rest of the week.

So tonight, I think we'll probably just take a stroll around the area here and see what there is to see. We talked about going to the island to see our friends and eat at Lucy's but that may wait until tomorrow. Hmmmm - I need to make a shopping list. :)

Prayers for today:
Luke - He still has a pretty deep cough and runny nose...though his temp was normal at the medical appointment this morning. We did give him a dose of Motrin this morning though.
Hope - She is sneezing a bit now too. Also, this "big sister" gig is hard. It is hard to know what is helpful and what is a job for Mom and Dad.
Ron and Me - Just pray that we remain healthy and rested so we can be the parents our children need us to be.

Thanks everyone! It will be morning when you all see this, so have a wonderful day!



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Goodbye Jiangsu, Hello Guangzhou

Good morning from Guangzhou. Today is Saturday, Aug. 4. 9:20am. We made it to Guangzhou last night. If yesterday's trials were any indication of how our flight home is going to be, we need some major prayers. Little Luke is MIGHTY!!! He has no intentions of sitting still for any duration of time for anyone PERIOD. It didn't help that our flight was delayed, and our gate was changed. When there is a language barrier it is hard to negotiate such things. We were at the airport with plenty of time, but our poor kids didn't have a snack before we left and it was getting to be lunch time, too. Our guide was able to get us through security, but after that we were on our own to find the gate. Originally we were down two escalators to the gate 25 waiting area where we'd have to take a bus out to board our plane. Then we were changed to gate 10 so back upstairs we went to stand in line for about 45 minutes. I had Luke in the carrier. By that time he was completely exhausted, flailing all over, and screaming. As long as I kept the Cheerios coming he was ok, but that couldn't go on forever. Finally, we boarded the plane and he had had absolutely enough. He was in full tantrum mode. So as soon as we were up, I took him and stood in the back of the plane for almost the entire 2 hr. flight. I had some terrible flashbacks of Hope's trip home. YIKES! Please pray that our travels home are much smoother for us.
Anyway, we are now in Guangzhou safe and sound. Our hotel is pretty incredible! I've never stayed anywhere even close to this lavish. We are headed out in about a half hour for Luke's medical appointment. After that I think we are going to try to find a laundry service. Not sure if there is really anything else on the agenda for the day. A little down time in the hotel would probably do us all some good.
Jiangsu
(This is our original waiting area)




Goodbye Jiangsu - This was the point where I had some emotion with Hope's adoption. Taking your child from his home, the people, places, smells, sounds....the only things he's ever known, etc...it's hard.


Guangzhou - YES! We made it. Get us off this plane!


(Blurry from the plane window but truly very polluted and overcast as well.)
Lucia - Our Guangzhou Guide - sight for sore eyes when we arrived at the baggage claim


Before signing off, I'd like to share a few pictures of our last night in Nanjing. Hope and I explored the market around our hotel with our new friend Terrie while Ron stayed back with a sleeping baby. It is such a cool area. I'm glad we got to experience this part of Luke's home. We got to be pretty darn good negotiators.

















These 'yellow' gentlemen gave rickshaw rides around the market. Every once in a while we'd here the jingle of cowbells only to turn around and narrowly miss being hit by the train or rickshaws strolling by. Watch out!


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Thursday, Aug. 2 - Final Day in Nanjing

We chose to have a somewhat quiet day. Our guide took us this morning to Xuan Wu Park, which is a series of islands. We wandered around for just and hour and a half or so before heading to a jade store where we picked up a few pieces for the kids.








We tend to draw a crowd.





Toss the ribbon in the tree for good luck.





Mama Lotus and her Children








Park Entrance








We spent the afternoon in our room with naps for the kids, a walk for Ron, and a little typing time for me. In a few minutes we are heading downstairs to meet our guide and go over the final paperwork to make sure everything is correct so Luke's passport can be released and we can travel to Guangzhou tomorrow afternoon. Our flight leaves at 3:10 I think. Hopefully all goes smoothly. Luke has been becoming much more antsy during rides these last two days. Sitting still for any length of time is a bit of a challenge. It doesn't help that he just doesn't feel well. Hopefully he gets to have a good restful sleep tonight.

Also...some good news on the bonding front...


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Orphanage Visit - complete post

I promised that I'd give a better update about our trip to Xuzhou yesterday. I'll do my best to get most of it done here during nap time. We'll see how I do. Both kids definitely are in need of sleep, and they're both sawing logs for now, but I'll be surprised if it lasts long. Please pray for both of our children. Luke is pretty sick. His cough is getting worse. Last night was horrid for the two of us as I was up pacing the floor with him most of the night. Hope is over-tired and it is catching up with her. She's also starting to feel some jealousy when it comes to sharing her parents with her little brother. I know this is normal big sister stuff, but it is still hard.
Anyway, here is the scoop from yesterday. We we're up early and had a pretty quick breakfast before meeting Nancy in the lobby to head to the train station. We were given a choice between renting a van for the day or taking the "fast" train. Well the train was cheaper and faster. What would've taken 4+ hours in a van, took us an hour and a half. AND, who doesn't want to try a ride in a bullet train. It was pretty cool.
Here we are at the train station...




















When we arrived in Xuzhou, we took a taxi to the orphanage. It was about a 20 dive through the city to get there. Funny story...our taxi driver missed the turn into the SWI. So naturally he did what anybody else would do, he stopped right there on the highway, put the car in reverse, and backed up to the driveway. Seriously! Sometimes it is so scary to be a passenger in China. In the cities there are pedestrians, bikes, and scooters ALL over the roads. There just doesn't really seem to be any rhyme or reason to it. But that is a whole different post. For now I'll get back to the SWI visit.
So, we arrived at Xuzhou SWI at about 11:00. We had some short introductions and then were given a tour of the current facility. The children were eating lunch, so I got to feed Luke in his old playroom with all of his friends. I think they said the dish was sort of a thick congee with fish mixed into it. Ms. Tang (assistant director) also ordered a nice bowl of noodles for Hope to eat with the children. Everyone was so gracious. After the children were through eating, Hope was allowed to go around the room handing out some animal crackers we'd brought along. It was very sweet. There was one little boy who thought they should all be his though. LOL There is one in every crowd. :)
We've Arrived




Lunch With Friends - I felt pretty good about a couple things that happened while we were in the room here. I think Luke has definitely started to bond with us. He kept a pretty close eye on his sister as she wondered around the room. Also, he turned down a nanny when she reached for him. He wanted to stay with Mommy. And, we notice him checking in with us if he falls, or needs attention for something. There is a definite preference for Mom over Dad right now, but we made some good progress in that department today, too. I'll have to blog more about that later.




This was Luke's crib. He did not have a cribmate, but we did learn that he has lots of friends, and that he especially likes the girls. Apparently he liked to kiss them. :) We were able to take some pictures of the other children so we'll be able to share with Luke about all his wonderful friends there.




Copies of the Abandonment Paperwork (This is Nancy on the left and Ms. Tang on the right)




Luke was found here on these rocks at the entrance by one of the orphanage workers on his way in one morning.




After our short tour, Ms. Tang and some of the office workers treated us to this phenomenal lunch.




Everything was wonderful. Ron got some attention because he did well with his chopsticks.




I had some emotional moments at the restaurant because we were able to interview the workers with some questions I'd written down. The biggest gift we'll have for Luke is that we were able to take video of some of the conversation. We also asked them if they wanted to record a message that Luke could hear when he got older, so we have some priceless video messages for our son. He was so loved. We let the workers hold him and play with him a bit when we were done eating. I know, I know...attachment...BUT they were so wonderful with him, and I think they should have the chance to say goodbye. My tears started flowing, which of course caused some concern for Hope, but I couldn't help it. What wonderful people these men and women are who care for these children with such love and tenderness.
When we got back to the orphanage after lunch, this is what we saw...




We were also given the chance to walk around the grounds a bit to see the new facility they are working on. The children are set to move into the new building in September. It looks like it is going to be quite the place. They will definitely have more room. I asked Ms. Tang how many children they care for, and she said there are currently about 200 in the SWI and another 300 in foster homes. Those numbers shocked me! I would never have expected those numbers to be so high. She also said that a new baby was found and arrived at the orphanage just yesterday morning before we got there. I wish we could've brought them all home.




To see Luke's home for his first year of life was truly a gift. The trip to the SWI was one we had some reservations and mixed feelings about, but we are so glad we went. We were introduced to wonderful people and were able to thank them in person for caring for our sweet boy. For that reason alone, the trip was worthwhile. The bonus is that we were able to document some of our son's story and we feel so blessed to have had such an opportunity.



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Orphanage Visit

I realize everyone is waiting for the daily blog post. Sorry to disappoint tonight. Ron is out shopping the market around our hotel...with the camera. So, photos of our journey today will have to come later. I promise I'll do my best to give an update tomorrow. Today was pretty wonderful! I'm so glad we made the trip. It is hard to put into words just how priceless it is to gather pieces of Luke's story to share with him as he grows.

P.S. The bullet train was pretty darn cool, too. :)


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