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!