Beijing Tour, Tienanmen Square, Forbidden City

Early morning walk to discover that Starbucks doesn't open till 9am

Today we spent the day adjusting to the time change, and getting a tour of the city of Beijing.   Admittedly, a small portion of Beijing.  We learned that there are 5.2 million cars and 20+ million people in this city alone.   Mind boggling.  Today we were with 3 other adopting families.  Great people,  we look forward to getting to know them more over the next couple of weeks.

[Note -I have overcome the picture challenges after a night of sleep.  So pics are now rearranged, and I have added a few more.]

Hutong -- We took a bus to the Hutong area which is basically a village of homes and shops.  But these are authentic, old school Chinese homes.  We hoped in a bunch of rickshaws and got a ride through the village.  We got out, and went into 77 year old Mrs Wu's house where she served us tea and we learned all about her and her family.  She has lived in the same house for 53 years, and couldn't stop talking about how much she loved it there.   Public toilet, and bath houses,  53 years.

Wow

Cozy, but still pretty chilly

Rickshaw ride

Us with Mrs Wu

Silk Museum.  Funny how they call it a museum.  Oh sure,  we learned how they make silk, and it was fascinating, but they are selling the stuff there.  Absolutely beautiful craftsmanship and attention to detail.  We bought a awesome authentic silk outfit for Michael and a customized hand lettered banner.

Lunch -- We all went to an authentic Chinese restaurant.  They brought out the whole gamete of Chinese food on the big lazy susan in the middle of the table.  The food was very good.  Some of the dishes like the kung pau chicken tasted nothing like what I am used to.  It wasn't bad, maybe a little bland, but still good.

Loving the name of the restaurant "Kim Mansion Gate Roast Duck Shop"

Tienanmen Square -- We walked from the restaurant to Tienanmen square.   Once we got there and were just walking out toward the middle of the square, Kerri and I were stopped by a man and his family.  Having been told to not stop when approached by the street vendors we kept walking.  The man appealed to George (our Guide) and George stopped and told us he just wanted to take our picture.  So Kerri and I had our picture taken, along with this man's ~8 year old son.   Who knew we were celebrities.   The 2 little girls (2 and 4) in our group were also found to be a very popular photo subject for the local photographers.

George, our local rep -- this dude rocks

Us in front of the Tienanmen Tower 

The whole group

Tieanamen Square

We went from the square to the Tiananmen tower (Red building you see in pictures of China) and through the gate to the forbidden city.  We then walked through gate after gate after court yard after court yard.  It just kept going until we finally got to the main building.  The scale of this place was enormous.  As we got closer to the inner courts, where the main building is, the painting became more ornate and the security tighter.  Truly fascinating

Inside the Forbidden City

From there we went back to the hotel ( hotel is actually very close to the forbidden city area).   Kerri and I opted for  Pizza hut.  My gut wasn't feeling all that great and Kerri?  Well, she doesn't like Chinese food:)   She was a trooper at lunch.

Weather today was pretty darn cold.  The rickshaw ride was especially chilly being early in the morning.   The air started out pretty clear, but by the end of the day was downright nasty.   The big city smell is here, and things are definitely dirtier than we are used to in the states.  Our hotel room smells smoky and musty.  Our window opens to the inner (inside) courtyard of the hotel.  We have the window propped open right now for air flow which has the side effect of some nice live piano music.  Except for the fact that the gal playing has a repertoire of about 5 songs.

Before going down for breakfast this morning,  we did have a chance to facetime with the kids which was awesome to see them.  They were at our dear friend's house after school.  While we were talking to them, my folks showed up to pick them up so we got to say hi to them as well.   Only gone one day, and we needed that contact.

This is going to be a long trip.

Tomorrow is the great wall and then an acrobatics show.  That will be our last full day in Beijing.  Looking forward to more sight seeing, but very anxious to fly to ZhengZhou on Sunday so we can meet Michael on Monday!

Beijing!

We made it!   We are in Beijing,  checked into our hotel and got our first night of sleep (kinda).   Going to get some breakfast and then are touring Tienanmen square and the forbidden city with the group.   WE will try to get some pictures and update up tonight.

Thanks again for all of the support!

-Adam and Kerri-

Chasing a sunset

So many unanswered questions, so much anticipation, my plane ride home from my (very productive) business trip to Iowa has provided another opportunity for quiet reflection...

I noticed as we took off to the west the the sun was just starting to set. Being a softy for sunsets and sunrises (ask my kids how often I point out the sunrise when we drive to school in the morning) I was glad I had a window seat to soak it in for a few min as we ascended. But wait, we are flying west, and so is the sun. Here we are, chasing a sunset. We are an hour and 10 min and it is just now fading from purple to orange, it will probably be gone by the time we land in Denver.

Picture below was taken at 1 hour 20 flight time.

It was a good chase, but not meant to be this time.

The beauty of God's creation and the unexpected opportunity to experience it knocks me off my feet once again.

I needed this reflection. God's got this.

Lets do it

Tomorrow we chase a sunset, but a little further west this time.

Blessed

[this post was started Sunday, finished in flight Sunday night, but was partially lost due to iPad gremlins, so I am attempting to re-write as best as I can.]

This is Adam posting this one.  I don't write nearly as poetically as Kerri, but I had this on my heart so I wanted to share.

This journey down the adoption road has been incredible.  The applications, approvals, classes, paper chase, then one agonizing wait after another...  Now here we are with bags more or less packed waiting for our Wednesday morning departure.  All in less than 11 months.

I am sitting at the airport waiting for my flight to Iowa for a quick 2 day trip, and this is the first time I have had an opportunity to reflect and express the overwhelming emotions of all of this.  (To be fair,  I sat in the recliner for the final 3.001 quarters of the bronco game, but I was consumed by different emotions during that time - and for a little while afterwards)

The emotions hit me on Friday as I was leaving the office after a marathon afternoon of performance reviews and meetings.  After being surprised by the urgency of the planning and packing cycle,  this week was a blur.  I was blown away by the way that God has placed everything at just the right time, for just the right reasons.  

The big ones for me on Friday were:

- We booked our airfare,  for considerably cheaper than we expected

- We got word that Christopher got into the school we have been trying to open enroll him into, after expecting an inconvenient appeals process that we had to go through with Rachel.

- After practicing my shade tree mechanic skills last weekend, we still had an Adam-induced ABS error light on Kerri's car.  I had to cave and bring it to the dealer to get it dealt with since I just didn't have time and Kerri's mom is going to be driving this car for 2 weeks while we are gone.   Dealer called and said a sensor had been bumped and come unplugged.   Went to pick it up, and there was no charge!!  From a dealer!!   Kudos to Jeremy and Jeff at Ed Bozarth Chevrolet Park Meadows.  They have bailed me out in the past and came through again this time.

- I finished up performance reviews for my Denver Staff.  I realized just how fortunate I am to have such an awesome team 

- After not seeing any new pictures of Michael since October, we received another update, with encouraging news of good development progress

Then to top it off,  as I was leaving the office building I hear someone from calling my name from behind me.  I turn around to see one of my best friends from high school who happened to be working a contract job in the same building.  He greeted me with a hug and a congrats.  I started to share a little of the blessings I had had that day, but had to stop short because I was getting choked up and wouldn't have been able to make it.   Thanks for the great timing Jon,  you topped off an already great day.

[added later because I am re-writing this due to technical difficulties]  -- Today (Monday) our very good friends surprised us by paying for a house cleaning.   Which is a huge blessing because Kerri is not one to leave a dirty house, and it would have consumed much of Monday and Tuesday that needs to be spent getting other things ready...   

While these things may seem small, the pile on effect of all of them just got me, and it got me where it counts.   

Some have asked why we are doing this, other have probably not felt comfortable.  But to me,  we both felt like we have been called to do this.  And the blessing falling as they have fallen, and when they have fallen have done nothing but solidify that calling.  I am convinced God has his divine blessing on this process and on this child.

This is not just about bringing home a lonely child into a loving home.  It is that and so much more.  It is about his impact on so many lives of so many people making this journey along with us.

To all who have and who are journeying with us.  We thank you and we love you!

I can't wait to meet my boy on Monday.

-Adam-

Oh, and we got another version of the same update today,  so here is one more new picture of little man (think we need to find him another shoe! )

Oh my word!!!

It's official.  We leave next week and will have Michael in our arms on January 21st.  Tickets are booked.  We will return home on February 1st.  Absolutely cannot wait.   

We hadn't received an update on Michael since October.   The agency had requested one in November, but we still hadn't heard.   That is, until today.  I emailed the agency and pestered  asked politely if there is any chance of any update before we leave next week. 

OH MY WORD!  Look at this sweet face.  The cheeks are begging for some lovin.  

I love every detail of this picture.  The winter coat, his missing shoe, the crumpled paper.  I told the kids they had better watch out or he might "play" with their homework.  

The report states that he is walking very well.    He loves to watch t.v. and if you block his view he gets very upset and will give you an upset look.  He definitely has an opinion.  He'll fit right in over here. 

I'll leave you with this precious picture for now.  

Sense of humor required

So in my last post, I was a bit of an Eeyore. My heart's desire was to be able to leave on or around the 23rd of January. I felt that was a stretch but I was hopeful. So, we get an email yesterday saying that there is a chance that travel approvals may be coming in soon and if it were to come today (Wednesday) would we consider traveling next Thursday. Like, 8 days from now. That was not even something I considered possible. That's downright crazy. After discussing it last night, we should "Sure, why not?!"  1:00 today, we get the email. Travel Approval has arrived!
What does that mean? We could be leaving mid  next week to travel to China.  We still need to wait to confirm our consulate appointment.  That "should" happen by Friday.  If it does, we leave next week.   Have we booked tickets? Nope.  Have we packed?  Nope.

Crazier still, Adam is traveling for business early next week.  I can do this.  I WILL do this.  Why? Because I trust God 100%.
First stop, Beijing.
I'm so glad God has a sense of humor.
On January 21st, we will meet our son.
I will tell him this story one day.  The crazy, hysterical, and sometimes unbelievable story of the road we walked.  The road to four.  

Being real

Well this week could be a deciding week for travel.  If we receive our TA(travel approval) this week, there's a good chance of us leaving very soon.  If we don't receive TA this week, I may cry, just being real.  That would mean we would be traveling mid February.  That may not sound like a huge deal.  And in the big scheme of things, probably not a big deal.   

But, if I'm being real, I don't want to miss any more of his life.  I don't want to miss any more of his milestones, any more holidays, any more smiles, any tantrums.  Yes, I'll take the tantrums!  Selfish, yes, but we have four children and one is not here.  This is much harder than I thought it could be.  Yes, it is possible to love a child you have  never met.   A child who has no idea that in a month or so, his world will be rocked.  He has no idea about the amount of love that is already poured out for him.  He has no idea about the amount of "crazy" he's about to encounter (we have 3 preteens in this house!)

Insert sample of "crazy".  This was a simple ride home from school.  Good grief

 I guess what it all boils down to, I'm ready to get this thing going.  I'm ready to start our journey as a family of six.  I'm ready to pack diaper bags and head to the ball field for baseball this summer.  I'm ready to drink more coffee (as if it's humanly possible) after a night of no sleep.  I'm ready to hold him as he works through the unknowns and fears of this new world.   

There may be are a few things I may not be so ready for. 

Get on that plane:  So not ready for that part.  Terrified.  Medication? Yes please.
Leaving A,R,& C at home:  That's a tough one.  Totally confident and extremely grateful for the village that has stepped up for us while we will be away, but...
Chinese Food:  Ok, it sounds childish, but real.  I don't like Chinese food.   Adam is thrilled about the food. Me, not so much.  Power Bars?
Get on that plane:  It gets two spots on this list.

School starts again tomorrow after a very restful break.
Between school and activities and Adam traveling for work, the next few weeks will be very busy.  However, I  really hope that I get to add something else to the "To do" list.
Pack for China. 

We are ready to add another fantastic kid to this wild bunch