Pearl Market

Today was a shopping day to the pearl market. It was at least 6 or 7 stories high and pearls were just on one floor. We found some nice pearls for very reasonable prices. We also bought some souvenirs. We stayed there until about 4:00 and then Christina brought us back to the hotel. She took us to a Chinese restaurant for lunch and it was very good. She ordered four plates of food and we shared it all. Sophie is really trying to use chopsticks but doesn't have it down yet. We ate ramen noodles and crackers again for supper because the restaurant was closed and we didn't know where else to go. Tomorrow we will go to the Great Wall. I am looking forward to seeing that. We may also go to an acrobat show either tomorrow or Monday night. I cannot download my pictures from today and I hope that I will be able to tomorrow.

Our first day

We really did not have a chance to see much yesterday, but this is our hotel and a view from our window. I will post pictures this evening after our first real day here! We love the emails and comments on our blog. It is so nice to hear from home!

We made it!

I'm sorry I don't have any pictures to share yet. It has been a long time since we have had sleep. The plane trip went great - just long, REALLY LONG! We rested some but never really slept. Tomorrow, our guide, Christina, will meet us in the morning for a shopping day. Christina met us at the airport in Beijing and took us to our hotel. It is downtown Beijing. Very loud and very crowded. More people than I have ever seen! She helped us exchange our money, buy bottled water(to brush our teeth with and for drinking), and helped us hook up the computer. All of theses were major undertakings and took well into the evening. I promise to post pictures of our day tomorrow!

We leave in the morning!

My very kind father will be picking Sophie and I up in the morning at 4:30 a.m. to head to the airport. We will fly to Chicago and then at 12:30 p.m. fly straight to Beijing. We will arrive at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, which will actually be your 3:30 a.m here in the states. It will be a LONG flight and I hope we can sleep some!

I am having an emotional day because I am going to miss my family at home so much. I am not a seasoned traveler and I don't go many places without my husband and children. So going for 13 days without seeing them and kissing their cheeks will be hard for me.

We will be in Beijing from 9/19 to 9/23
On 9/23 we will fly to the province where Cate was born
On 9/24 we meet Cate for the first time. Please pray for us this day.
On 9/25 we sign the adoption papers and Cate will be ours
On 9/26 we are hoping to be able to visit her orphanage before we fly to Guangzhou
We will be in Guangzhou until we fly home on 10/1. There, Cate will have her medical exam, get her visa and we have a consulate appointment with the U.S. embassy. Please pray that our paperwork goes well. There is a LOT of it!

I pray that our next post will be from Beijing, China!

Gratitude

I have been thinking the past week how to put into words my thoughts about where we are right now in our adoption. There were many days that I doubted I would be able to ever say "We are leaving in 5 days!" I cried so many tears during this process...When we didn't receive our LOA when another family did, when we found out we were just in review after 4 months, when 90 days turned into 130 days, and I was sure something was wrong. Sometimes I would just lay my head down at the computer and cry..because another day was spent without Cate knowing us as her family.
I have loved God all of my life, though some times I felt closer to Him than others. God has shown me so much this year. He has taught me to be patient. That His delays are not always His denials. That He isn't here for us just when we want something. He wants us to want Him. And for that to be enough. I realized along the way that I had to be O.K. if we never got Cate. I prayed from day 1 that we would travel in record time. Oh, we got our LOA in record time alright! Probably for one of the longest waits! But I am so thankful for every day that we waited. We have grown so much as a family,we have prayed for one another and for Cate, and I wouldn't trade one day!
I am so thankful to our family and our friends who have prayed for us and supported us throughout this process. Your kindness will never be forgotten. Please don't stop now, though. The hardest part could be just ahead, but please pray for Cate that she feels our loves and makes a smooth transition into our family.
We will be meeting her for the first time on September 24.

We are going to China!!!!

It doesn't even feel real yet! We found out this morning that our first requested CA date of 9/29 is confirmed!!! We are so excited!!! We leave Columbia on 9/18 and return home on 10/1. I will post our itenerary when we get it. We would love your prayers during this time for those of us traveling and for those staying at home. We are going to miss our guys at home so much! Please pray for Cate that her transition will be an easy one for her. We are about to take her away from a foster family that I'm sure she loves. 13 days!!!!

TA!!!!!!

I am so happy to say that we have TA ( Travel Approval)!!! China has said that we can come to their country to adopt Cate. Now all we need is a Consulate Appointment(CA) and we can book our flights. We are soooooo excited!! Please pray that we will be able to get one this month. We're coming Cate!!