all US paperwork complete

New pictures have been posted http://picasaweb.google.com/troyernet/ChinaTrip10.

We were having Internet issues the last couple of days so we have not been able to update you. Michael has came a long way in his contentment during the waking hours. He now likes to occasionally play on the bed or floor and laughs when we play peek a boo with him. He has sat in the high chair the last couple of meals and today he picked up his first cheerio. He couldn't get it in his mouth on the first try but on the second try he succeeded!

He still has had trouble sleeping at night. Monday night he was up every hour for about 20 minutes, slept 40 minutes and then the cycle started again. Last night was much better he slept fairly well until 4:00 when he decided he was ready to get up. We are hoping the improvement continues tonight.

I love seeing him and Mandy together. Mandy is so good with him and always tries to come up with ways to make our life easier (that is unless she is having a 6 year old melt down :)

Yesterday our guide submitted our paperwork to the US Consulate asking for permission to take Michael into the states. Everything went well and today we personally visited the US Consulate and affirmed an oath that all paperwork was true to the best of our knowledge. Michael will become a US citizen once we cross through immigration in Chicago!!!!

We are beginning tell our new friends goodbye. Tonight we had dinner with Alex's family and they leave in the morning. I am so glad that Mandy and Alex could be together while they were here. It made the time go much quicker for them.

We pick up Michael's Visa tomorrow and will fly to Hong Kong Friday morning. We will miss the United flight so we will need to stay in Hong Kong overnight and fly out Saturday morning. While in Hong Kong we plan to surprise Mandy with a visit to Disneyland. It is smaller than Orlando but she will still thoroughly enjoy the experience.

Pray for Mandy and Michael because they have both developed runny noses the last couple of days. We have appreciated all of your prayers on our behalf. I am sure our trip has gone much smoother because of them. Blessings to all you and we look forward to seeing you soon.

Sheila

ps. tonight we talked about the things we look forward to at home - ice in our drinks, cheese for Mandy, brushing our teeth with running water, diet coke, friends and family, Simon the dog, western toliets, toliet paper in the stalls, church and our beds!

Sunday in China

More pictures at http://picasaweb.google.com/troyernet/ChinaTrip9

It was an exciting day today because Michael again made some major progress with his contentment in playing.   We were at the play room twice today and both times he played with some toys and was content for about 15 minutes of play time.  This is a big switch from not being interested at all.    It is a lot of fun seeing him enjoy playing. This morning he ate some oatmeal, bread and also discovered he liked cheerios.   He had not been interested in trying any food until today.   He cannot pick up any food yet but I am sure his dexterity will improve as he discovers and plays more.  Tomorrow morning we are going to try a high chair again and are hoping he will be content.   With Mandy we always carried her in our hip hammock carrier and never used a stroller.   This was great for bonding and we had some down time from carrying her when she played.    Since Michael has only been content with us holding him when he was awake we did buy a stroller because we needed some rest for our arms.  Amazingly he liked the stroller immediately - if it was moving :)    

We are finished with appointments and are basically waiting to receive Michael's Visa (I previously said we were waiting for his Visa in Changsa but that was actually his passport we were waiting for) so we have free time.   Our agency has a visit to the pearl market planned for tomorrow along with a local shopping area.   We will do this in the morning and then come back and hang out in our room while Michael and Mandy both take naps.  

Well I did discover some things today about Michael.   He pulls his ear when he is tired, he does not have an ear infection which we are glad about.   He has one new tooth on the top right  and another one ready to pop through on the left.   He can give you a high five on request and says mama.   Does he know what mama means? I have no idea but hey it still sounds great when he says it!

Enjoy your Sunday and good night.   Sheila

Guangzhou

More pictures are posted at http://picasaweb.google.com/troyernet/ChinaTrip8. 

It's was a good day on Saturday, we enjoyed being in the more familiar setting of Guangzhou and Shamian Island.  We were here for almost the entire 3 weeks when we adopted Mandy.  A lot has changed, but we feel we know our way around and can more easily find people who are able to assist us if we need help.  Our guide, Jason, has been phenomenal.  He has been giving us a detailed schedule every day and it has been great. Today we will tour several sites around the area and hopefully find some mementos to take with us.

Michael improved greatly with being able to sit and play on the floor or the bed, becoming more relaxed, and eating more regularly.  We also gave him a chance to pee in the toilet before giving him a bath and it came right on cue!  He does not seem to be as potty trained as Mandy was.  He allows us to hold him in different positions and his personality and humor continues to come through.  Yesterday we had his medical exam and everything was fine.  He still has a bit of his fever rash but that is clearing up.

We're still trying to figure out how to get him to sleep through the night without waking up for an extended period of time. We've tried several things but it seems he will stay awake (and keep us awake) for at least an hour.  It feels like we're making progress, but we really look forward to sleeping through the night again.  I have great sympathy for parents who are awake many times through the night because of a sick baby.  We've been rather spoiled with Mandy because she has always slept through the night from the moment she first became a part of our family.  

We will return to the South Bend airport at 6:41 pm on Saturday, April 3. You are welcome to meet us there if you like. When we return home we plan to hibernate for a week during Mandy's spring break week and while we adjust to the time change. Continue to keep us in your prayers.  We miss all of you and look forward to seeing you again. 

John

site seeing

New pictures posted at http://picasaweb.google.com/troyernet/ChinaTrip7 

It was a full day of site seeing and Michael's fever stayed down all day!   We were excited that we are seeing more and more of Michael's personality now that he is feeling better and getting more comfortable with us.

We went to the Martyr's Park this morning and the best way to explain it is that it is similar to Central Park (sort of) in the middle of the city.  The park was built in honor of those that died in the revolution.  The most interesting thing (if you can call it that), is when we entered the park there were a bunch of students and they immediately swarmed around Mandy.   We knew that that this sometimes happens when older children with nonAsian parents return to China. Mandy handled it fairly well but definitely withdrew some until the worst part was over.   The park is a combination of a relaxation park including fishing and lake along with an amusement park.  The amusement park side was set up to pay individually and Mandy was thrilled that she got to go on the carousel and a blow up bouncer.   It was a long walk through the park but the weather was beautiful and it was great to be outside of the hotel.   

We also went to the Embroidery Factory and Museum.  It was fascinating watching the ladies work.   Interesting side note - Our guide told us that Steven Curtis Chapman ordered a custom embroidery piece of his asian daughter that died.  It took 2 ladies 1 year to finish the piece and the cost was $6,000 US dollars.    

The biggest highlight of the day was swimming.  Michael absolutely loved the water and was not afraid at all.  He splashed around and even put is head under at one point.  He laughed and laughed.    However, the best thing for me was when I walked into the pool area later than everyone else and Michael saw me and he reached his arms out and was so excited to see me!  My heart melted and I thanked God for his wonderful gift. 

After swimming us and Alex's family headed for McDonalds.   Both girls were excited and the parents were tolerable of the experience.  No they did not have diet coke - I had to go with Coke Light with no ice.  

Tomorrow we will finish our time here in Changsha and fly to Guangzhou at 8:00 pm tomorrow night.   I previously had said we were waiting for Michael's Visa but actually we are waiting on his passport.   His Visa will be processed in Guangzhou.   The flight will only be around 1 hour and I am hoping that Michael sleeps through it since it will be past his bedtime. 

I love seeing him get more comfortable with us and to relax.  This  morning when he sat on the bed and played for a few minutes I was ecstatic!  I keep reminding myself that we need to take one step at a time.   We are making progress and that is the most important thing.  

Ways to pray for us - 

-smooth flight tomorrow night

-Mandy is homesick and misses her friends at school

-continued bonding

-good health

Tomorrow we head to warmer weather - 80 degrees - HEY!

Until later, Sheila

It was a long day

New pictures are posted: http://picasaweb.google.com/troyernet/ChinaTrip6

It was a long day of walking the halls and taking care of Michael.   It was a down day with no appointments or sightseeing so we were able to focus on getting Michael the rest he needed.   His fever seems to be staying down longer so we are hoping we have turned a corner.   Some of you asked if he could possibly be getting teeth. It could be, he is drooling a lot but I cannot feel any teeth yet.   He also continues to pull at his ear so we are glad that we brought the antibiotic with us.    Thanks for praying us through the day.  It is difficult having a sick child when you have yet to figure out what brings comfort etc. to the baby.

We focused on doing some things Mandy has wanted to do today.   Her and Alex, her friend, went bowling on the 6th floor of the hotel.   That was a highlight for Mandy that we didn't even need to leave the building.   When we get  home, I am sure you will hear a lot about our hotels.  She has quickly gotten accustomed to the 5 star hotel idea.  She will probably be expecting play rooms and all of the other extras anytime we stay at a hotel.   She was able to get in a lot of time just being Mandy which included singing and drawing.   She really is missing her craft supplies :)

Even though Michael was not feeling well today we did begin to see more of his personality coming through.   He laughed more today and we did discover that he would sit and play in the stroller that we bought at Walmart.  It was nice to  have a break periodically from holding him and just playing with him instead.

Mandy was able to skype her Kindergarten class and was excited.   She had to overcome some initial disappointment because their video was not working so she could not see them but they could see her.   She enjoyed telling them all about her experiences and hearing about what they are doing.  I think we possibly will try it again next week.

We went with our group to dinner tonight at a local chinese restaurant.   The food was very good minus the tofu and sweet potato noodles which were not my favorites at all!  For one meal earlier we ordered Pizza Hut pizza which was good, but not quite like the US.  We have also gotten carry out from a restaurant close to the hotel and have enjoyed the spicy food that is their speciality in the area.

Ways to pray for us - 

-Michael's health

-Sheila's developed a sore throat

-rest for all of us

-continued bonding with Michael and Mandy's adjustment

The weather has turned cold and rainy here but we are looking forward to a dry day in the 60s.  We continue to wait for the Visa approval and today we plan to visit a silk and embroidery factory and a museum.  Tonight is our last night in Changsha and we fly to Guangzhou on Friday evening.

Thanks again for your support and love for us.   We appreciate each one of you.   Sheila 

Fever

Please keep Michael and us in your prayers, his fever has gotten worse and he has been up several times through the night. 

Thanks,

John

Adoption finalized!

We added some pictures again: http://picasaweb.google.com/troyernet/ChinaTrip5

 Michael slept through the night and woke up at 5:30 this morning hungry. This was a good sign since he had not been interested in eating much last night. Thank you for joining us in praying for his appetite. He drank his morning formula and rice cereal quite quickly. Here in Hunan province they cut the hole in the bottle nipple much larger and mix the formula with 2/3 boiling water to 1/3 room temperature water. I remember being surprised that Mandy drank her bottle this hot so I was not shocked when they said this was how they prepared Michael's bottles. They had mentioned that he had eaten steamed eggs but so far he has not been interested in eating any table food. Actually the concept seems to be foreign to him. Mandy was on all types of table food at 10 months so I have no experience with introductions of food. I guess I will learn.

This morning we met our group and went back to the Civil office to do the last of the paperwork to finalize the adoption. They asked the following questions: 1. Why do you want to adopt? 2. Can you promise not to ever abandon this baby? 3. Will you provide this baby with the proper education? Do you accept this baby as your own? We had our fingerprints taken one more time and Michael's footprint. A Visa picture of our Michael, John and I was taken so that is now being processed. Our signatures were notarized and the adoption was complete! Hey!

When we go through immigration in Chicago on our way back Michael will cross the immigration line as a US Citizen and his Naturalization Certificate will be mailed to us automatically.

After lunch Michael and the other two children were tired so we went back to the hotel and everyone took a nap including all of the adults. Mandy, who never volunteers to taken a nap, was asking when it was time to lay down. She has been exhausted. After everyone woke up we headed to the local department store -- you guessed it -- Walmart! What an experience that was. Everyone needed to purchase formula, diapers etc for the children. While we were there we noticed that Michael didn't seem to be very happy. The store was hot so we attributed it to that. However, when we got back it continued. We soon realized that he had a low grade temperature 99.6. I got my personal pharmacy out that we brought along and gave him some Ibuprofen and gave him a bath. He drank most of his bottle and went to bed at 7:00. We are hoping the fever was just stress related from all of the changes and that nothing more serious develops.

He has continued to laugh more and to be more relaxed with us. However, he still is not comfortable unless one of us his holding him. Mandy was comfortable playing on the floor and was busy exploring immediately upon receiving her. He is much more timid and cries easily when we try to sit down with him and play. Needless to say, our arms are getting a work out. I think we are both thankful that we focused on those arm exercises at the GC Rec Center the 2 months. Even though we both get tired, we are thankful that he is happy with us holding him and that he is relaxing. The exploring and playing will come in time.

Mandy is very excited because she has met up with a 5 year old girl named Alex from MA. She will also be in Guangzhou next week so they are both hoping to continue playing together there. Currently Mandy and John are swimming with Alex and her family. We are excited that she has found a friend to connect with.

Tomorrow is a big day for Mandy. We are going to be skyping her kindergarten class at Prairie View Elementary. She has missed her classmates and is excited about telling them what all she has been doing and to hear what they have been up to.

Tonight as I was rocking Michael to sleep I was overwhelmed with a desire for him to know of God's love and also our love for him. We were listening to a Twila Paris Nighttime lullaby CD and the songs were so moving as I held this small child that was so recently given to me to care for. I pray that we may have wisdom in knowing how to best care for him especially in the weeks ahead.

Ways to support us in prayer -

-continue to thank God for the positive experiences that we have had so far

-continued thankfulness that Mandy is having a good experience. She is taking her role as big sister very serious.

-that Michael's fever goes down and that he stays healthy

-continued bonding

-physical strength for all of us

-wisdom as we learn to parent Michael

I trust you will all have a great day today. Blessings to all of you - Sheila

Gotcha Day - March 22, 2010

Our new pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/troyernet/ChinaTrip4

This afternoon has seemed to go very slow and mixed with tears as we impatiently wait for 2:30 to arrive when we will load a minibus to travel to the office to pick up Michael.   It is now close to 2:00 so there is just 30 minutes to wait until it is time to meet the group.   The time seems to stand still as we wait.   There will be a time for us to ask questions of the director and nannies.  It is hard to decide what the most important questions are for us to ask since we have such a short amount of time.   At this point, the logistical basic questions have won out - What is his sleeping schedule, how much and what does he eat, how often does he eat, what comforts him the best when crying and the list goes on.   Hopefully I will not forget something important.

We arrived to the Civil office and found out that the children had not yet arrived.   We only had to wait a few minutes and then we saw them coming down the hallway.  One of the hardest things I have ever done is to wait patiently for them to call our name while looking at him across the room and being able to touch him.  At last they call Nan Fu Wei.....hey that is us!   They hand Michael to John and we all want to hold and kiss him but know we  need to give him space and time.  He whimpered and softly cried off and on but was somewhat content if we walked around carrying him. He seemed to be most unsettled if we tried to crowd around him so again we tried to be patient.   Once again, just like in the picture we received, he was dressed in pink and had several layers of clothing on. He was sweating through his clothes and his body radiated heat.  We took off his jacket but didn't feel that we could respectfully take of any more layers until we left the office. 

When we got back to the hotel we gave him a bath and put some manly clothes on him -- a football shirt and gray pants.  No more confusion if he is a boy or girl by looking at his clothes.  He smelled so good and was very cuddly.   He had smiled a little bit for us but after his bath we heard some laughter and that was definitely a wonderful sound! 

He has only drank 4 oz of formula/cereal since we got him.   I am hoping that he will eat better tomorrow.   He is most content if we are holding him.  He can sit comfortably on his own and seems to have good strength in his legs but doesn't seem to be crawling.  I know with Mandy it only took her a couple of days to start crawling once she was comfortable with us.   

How can a person fall in love so quickly?   It is amazing, but I do love this little guy with the chubby cheeks and kissable lips minutes after meeting him.  Mandy is doing great and is a great help and seems to be taking everything in stride.  

I am confident prayer makes a difference!  Ways you can pray for us - 

-that Michael's eating improves

-we all stay healthy and are able to get rest

-our bonding with Michael and that he feels comfortable with us

-paperwork for the adoptions continues to go smoothly

-Mandy and her relationship with us and Michael

Until next time....Sheila

A day of relaxation

Today was a day of relaxation.  It was very nice to have a day to ourselves without anything scheduled until our departure to the airport at 2:00.   We enjoyed Aron, our guide, to Dabu but we loved not having someone tagging along with us today.  Pictures have been uploaded to Picasa so check out this link to see them http://picasaweb.google.com/troyernet/ChinaTrip3

Last night we met up with Patrick and Tamara Miller and their family from Detroit.  Patrick is a grandson of Mary Miller who attended Locust Grove with us.   We had hoped we would travel together in the same group but they are at the end of their trip instead of the beginning.  We had dinner at an Italian restaurant and had some great pizza.   I think we will visit this place again when we are back the last week because they had not only great pizza but diet coke.   The first diet coke since I have left and anyone that knows me well will realize that is a long time without one.    I am already dreaming of a diet coke from McDonalds with lots of ice.

When we traveled to adopt Mandy we stayed here in Guangzhou the whole three weeks and we really enjoyed our stay here.   The area was very clean and there were lots of shops just outside of the hotel.  However, they are having major construction for the Asian Games that will be held here in the fall so it is very dusty and most of the shops are closed during this time.   I would appreciate your prayers on my behalf  because the dust from construction is starting to bother my asthma and allergies and we have been here less than 24 hours.  My cough has started and I am so hoping that it doesn't get out of control.    Luckily we are leaving for Changsha today but I am not sure what will happen when we are here for a whole week.

In this immediate area of Guangzhou there are lots of different types of restaurants - Italian, Thai, Japanese, American, Brazilian and, of course, Chinese.   We are looking forward to trying them all out when we come back.

We slept in, had breakfast and then Mandy said she just wanted to watch a movie in the hotel and hang out so that is what we do.   After a while we went to a park close by that has lots of exercise type play equipment.   Mandy had a great time but soon the heat and humidity led us to 7/11 to get ice cream and head back to pack for the airport. 

We had thought of attending a church here but Mandy said it would be really fun to have our own church service in the hotel room so we did that.   Can you tell that we are enjoying our time with just Mandy this week, trying to accommodate her requests since we know Monday when Michael joins us will change all of that tremendously.   We sang, each shared a Bible story and prayed.   It was a meaningful family experience with God.

Last night I had trouble sleeping and I am sure tonight will not be any better.   The time is so close to meeting Michael!  Anticipation is building and we are so very ready for this union.  

Time to check out and head to the airport.   Love you all.    Sheila

Dabu SWI

We  had a great day at the Dabu Social Welfare Institute.  They were excited to see us and were so thankful that we brought Mandy back to visit.    They treated us like royalty.   I posted a lot of pictures on Picasa at this link and added captions to the pictures and tagged them into groups.  I thought it would be helpful for  me to make notations now versus later.  

We started out at the orphanage and Mandy was a ham for them.  She hugged and kissed all of them and asked if she could sing for them.  They said that Mandy looks much the same except for bigger.   They remember her as a baby that cried alot and was quiet but yet happy. They smiled and said she doesn't seem quiet now.    They were so grateful because in their interaction they could tell we loved her very much.  They treated us to a lot of local fruit and then a special lunch with lots of local specialties.  Again this included chicken feet and head. Mandy decided this time she would suck on the legs and she said she enjoyed them.  I think it was the attention she was getting that she loved the most.

The Bao Hong Hotel looked much the same as it did in our pictures from 2004.  They did tell us that they assume that the reason they chose the outside of the hotel is because it is across the street from a local hospital and that  assured the birth parents that care would be provided.   The hotel is in the middle of downtown which we had taken quite a few pictures of.

Tammy Prins traveled with us to China and her family adopted a child from Dabu when we adopted Mandy.  Last year they again adopted a 7 year old girl now named Isabella from Dabu.   They asked that we locate Lily's finding spot for them and take pictures.   They had come to the orphanage before and their camera broke and they had no pictures of the experience.   You will see that we posted a lot of pictures of this site.   We had to walk about a 1/2 mile in a small village to the location.   Tammy I hope you will enjoy the pictures and I cannot wait to talk with you.

The nannies and director were emotional with tears at different times and it was so reassuring even this many years later to know that they truly care and love the children that they provide care for.  It is great to have this interaction with them and He Li Na expressed several times that she would love to email us and for us to send her pictures periodically. 

We are having a great time and are so thankful that we could add this to our trip to adopt Michael.  We will all have these memories for life.  I am also thankful that Mandy's personality showed through today and that she was not shy.   They saw the true Mandy today.   John and I shed tears periodically throughout the morning in thankfulness to God for the protection that He provided Mandy in those first 10 months of her life.

I hope you enjoy the pictures but please do not feel like you have to take time to look at all of them.  We are posting most of them so before this trip is over there will be hundreds.  

Blessings to all of you, Sheila

We're in Dabu

The day started at 4 am to catch an early flight to Guangzhou. We met our guide, Aron and driver in Guangzhou, where we left immediately for Dabu, Mandy's orphanage town. It was a six-hour drive which was on main highways until the last 1 1/2 hours which turned into mountainous roads that were curvy and fairly rough. We enjoyed the scenery along the way which was mostly farming. We are so thankful that both Aron and the driver are very nice and hospitable. We will enjoy spending the next couple of days with them.

The Director of the orphanage, He Li Na, met us at the hotel for a few minutes on her way home from work. She said Mandy looks very much the same just older. We will plan on meeting her at the orphanage tomorrow at 10:00 and she will spend the day with us showing us various parts of Dabu.

Mandy is loving staying in hotels. She is always excited to "set up" when we arrive at a new one. She said she is just gong to call them home since it is where we are going to live. She has been courageous in trying new foods but not so excited about the squat toilets. She was relieved at 4:30 when we got to our hotel and our room had a western commode since she hadn't used the bathroom since we left the airport this morning. She kept refusing to squat. Her bladder must be stronger than mine!

Here in Dabu there is no western food, only chinese. For dinner tonight our guide ordered us several different dishes to share including chicken with both the head and feet, beef with onions, bamboo shoots with celery, sweet and sour ribs, and a pork soup. Everything was very good. Mandy's favorite was the sweet and sour ribs and John and I loved the beef with onions and the bamboo shoots. Chop sticks are our only option and we all managed fine. After dinner as we were walking back to the hotel we stopped and bought some local fruit. I will have to ask Aron the names of the fruit again but we all enjoyed it and Mandy truly loved trying the new fruit, especially the hairy red stuff and the miniature oranges that you eat the rind all.

Tomorrow will be a big day for us and we are excited to get to have this experience. I know many of you have been and will be praying for us and continue to be thankful for that. We have definitely seen God throughout the last several days and know that he is with us.

We continue to look forward to meeting Michael on Monday and pray that he is being prepared for how much his world will be changing. We are so ready to physically touch and love him. Monday will not come soon enough.

I hope you enjoy the pictures and following us on this journey.

Sheila

We arrived

We have arrived in Hong Kong and all three of us are thankful to be out of the plane :)

The flight was uneventful after the orange juice spill in the first hour. Sorry for John that it was all over his pants and he had to gradually drive out over the flight. Mandy was trying to help and knocked over her orange juice. Early on the flight we realized that flying 15 hours with a 6 year old is definitely different than flying with just the two of us. John was reported to be suspicious by a fellow traveler when he was organizing his head sets and other electronic stuff. The flight attendant said she had to follow up on the report and just smiled.

Actually though, Mandy did a great job. I was really proud of her. She was a trooper when she was over-tired and crowded. We were served 2 meals and a ramen noodle type snack. She ate all three times without complaining. We played play dough pictionary and numerous other games while we were awake. All of us were able to take several naps.

It is already 7:00 pm and and we need to head to find something for supper. We were going to go to a light show down by the shore but Mandy said "I really just want to hang out in the room." We leave at 5:30 am tomorrow morning to fly to Guangzhou so I think we will take her suggestion and just call it a night after supper.

Tomorrow we will have about a 40 minute flight and will be met by a driver and guide to drive to Dapu which is Mandy's birth town. We are all looking forward to the drive through the mountainous countryside. This trip will be much different from our trip in 2004 because during that time we stayed in Guangzhou the whole three weeks. This time we will visit several different areas.

Oh I did want to mention that the temperature tents are currently not activated. Matthew, our guide, said that you never know exactly when they are turned on or off because it is based on the sickness level here in the area. He said sometimes it is on in one airport and not another.

Thank you for praying for us today....we felt the prayers and are thankful to be one step closer.

Sheila

Chicago O'Hare

We have a six hour layover in Chicago, and realized it was well worth it this morning. When we got to South Bend, we found out that our travel agency had not properly processed our ticketing information. They were able to print my ticket right away, but Sheila and Mandy did not have tickets! They were on the itinerary and confirmation emails I had received, but they had never actually gotten tickets for them. After a half hour on the phone, we were finally able to get it straightened out and we boarded on time. I hardly broke a sweat because I knew there was still another flight to Chicago and we had time to work it out.

We will leave Chicago for Hong Kong at 1:15 Indiana time. We will be on this flight for almost 16 hours. Mandy is letting people by our waiting area know that we are going to China and she will have a new little brother. That definitely makes the entire process well worth the discomfort of a long flight.

Thanks for all the prayers from church, family and friends as we prepared for this trip. It was especially meaningful to have a number of you gather around us, lay hands on us, and bless us. We are grateful for your continued prayers as we go through each step.

John

The count down is almost complete

The suitcases are packed, the check lists are almost complete, we have converted to China time and we are more than ready to get on the plane tomorrow morning!

We have successfully fit everything in our three carry on suitcases and backpacks. Compression bags work wonders :) in helping all the things nicely fit into their assigned place.

The long checklist is complete except for some basic cleaning on Monday and spending some one on one time with Mandy. The list seemed so long as times but it is amazing if you focus just on one thing at a time it is much more manageable.

One of the unique things that we chose to do to prepare for the trip was to convert to China time before leaving. China is 12 hours ahead of us here in Indiana. Agencies normally schedule adoptive parents to travel a couple of days prior to receiving their children so that they have time to adjust before the emotional day. We are also planning on leaving early but the first portion of our trip will be spent exploring Mandy's birth town and her orphanage. We decided that we wanted Mandy (and ourselves) to be rested for this special trip since it will likely be filled with lots of questions and wondering on her part as she discovers and explores her biological heritage. For that reason we chose to stay up later each night and to sleep later each morning. Today we have accomplished our goal. It is currently 6:42 am and we are still going strong but I am sure we will be ready for bed soon. This experience has given us an appreciation for those of you that work nights. In the last few days we have missed connecting with people and the sunshine!

We all will enjoy sleeping in our own beds tonight for the last time until April 3rd. We will be staying at 5 star hotels while in China and they are very nice hotels with great service. However, the beds are small (more of a 3/4 bed than a full bed) and extremely hard. I love going out of town but I am one of those people that absolutely loves coming home.

I have been blessed with God's peace and assurance of his love during these last weeks as we have prepared for and anticipated this trip. I am so looking forward to being Michael's Mom and having the opportunity to teach him about Jesus' love and exploring the world with him. The time is fast approaching and I cannot wait! It is difficult to know how to express our appreciation adequately so I will just simply say thank you for your prayers and trust that you know the thankfulness in my heart.

Tuesday morning we will leave for the airport at 4:00 am and will arrive in China Wednesday at 4:55 pm (4:55 am here in Indiana). We would appreciate your prayers as we travel - that we have safe flights, that we are able to rest and also that Mandy is easily able to be entertained for 14 hours of the flight plus the 6 hour layover.

This will be the last blog post until we arrive in China! The excitement continues to build!!

Blessings to all of you, Sheila

new pictures of Michael

Today we were blessed to receive new pictures of Michael! He has definitely grown but still has those adorable lips and cheeks. His hair has grown quite a lot too. He is absolutely beautiful!

What an exciting day.

Sheila

We leave Tuesday March 16th for China!!!

Hey Michael, we are coming to meet you and cannot wait to bring you home. As I just read the email that gave our travel information my stomach did a flip flop and I got extremely excited! We are coming.....we know the date we are leaving and it is time to start packing. I am overcome with nervousness, excitement and a whole lot more emotions all in one.

We will plan on leaving South Bend on Tuesday, March 16th at 5:54am. We will arrive in Hong Kong on Wednesday, March 17th at 4:55 pm. That evening we will fly to Guangzhou, Guangdong and spend the night.

On March 18th we will drive to Dapu, Mandy's birth town, with a personal guide. We visit her orphanage, her finding location and explore the town. All of us are excited to be able to spend time together exploring Dapu. I think doing this at the beginning of the trip will be the best option for Mandy and it will be a great opportunity to continue learning more about her story. We will drive back to Guangzhou on Saturday, March 20th and fly to Changsha on March 21st to meet up with 2 other families that will be adopting children from Michael's orphanage.

The big day is Monday, March 22nd ---- we will meet Michael FuWei face to face. We talk about Mandy's gotcha day on a regular basis but as I am anticipating another one, I am amazed at the memories that just come flooding through my mind. These memories are so full of emotion and of falling in love with a beautiful 10 mth old baby girl. I can't wait to have this experience with Michael!

In the next couple of days we will find out more about our itinerary while in Changsha and Guangzhou.

On Saturday, April 2nd we will fly from Guangzhou to Hong Kong. However, we will miss the one nonstop flight to Chicago for the day so we will spend the night in Hong Kong and fly home on April 3rd. We will arrive in South Bend at 6:41 pm on Saturday April 3rd.

One step closer....now if I can just get all of our stuff in the 3 suitcases and 3 backpacks.

Love all of you, Sheila