homebound!

At this moment (Friday evening),
my China fellas are at the Hong Kong airport getting ready
for their dreadfully long flight home.

I simply can't wait for our new normal to begin.
And I can't wait to see my dear man.
I miss him terribly.

So, if you happen to wake up in the middle of the night tonight...
and/or when you wake up in the morning...
would you pretty please pray that their flight is going well,
that they are actually able to sleep, and that they arrive home safe and sound,
right on time?
Would you ?

Thank you, thank you.


And here are a couple pics from the other day when they
went to the zoo in GZ...

Those aren't real pandas.
It's hard to tell, I know.
But the children, they are real.
At least I think they are.
I'll let you know this time tomorrow night.

around the island and pool pics

Pictures are starting to arrive to me in a trickle.

But I love every one of them.

Keep up the good work, Super-K!

The boys make the rounds on the island...

(again and again and again)

K with Jordon

K with Kenny.

K with Michelle.

These folks have become K-man's extended family.

Anyone who utters a lick of English,

he gravitates to...and hangs on every last thickly accented word.



The boys are doing amazingly well.

They have so much fun together, which is a huge blessing!

And they absolutely LOVE the pool!

Long and lanky.

Just chillin'.

Mr. Silly Pants.

The comb-over.

Can't wait for these boys to finally get home!

And get my hands on that kid's hair.

pool pics!

K and the boys went to the pool.
Even though it was hot and humid outside,
the water was only around 65 degrees...
but it didn't seem to bother these two sturdy boys one little bit.

Kelly said that Isaiah giggled and carried on so much.
So cute!

They both had a great time!

Again, the bangs taunt me.

So there you have it.
Another day marked off.
One week from tomorrow they will be home.
Forever!

I'm giddy.

where's my mama?

Super-K
(that's his new name as far as I'm concerned)
and the boys made it to GZ and are safe and sound in
a very nice suite at the Garden Hotel.
They found a Pizza Hut and said it was DELICIOUS.
I kid you not, he has yet
to eat at a Chinese restaurant.
Such a waste.

Here are some fun pics for your pleasure and mine.

My baby.
Where is my Mama?

Super-K enjoying his executive suite.
And here he is pretending to be an executive.

HH's first plane ride!

My fellas having some bonding time.

My baby.
Seemingly on a window sill.
No, Seriously, where is my Mama?

Just gotta say again how thankful I am for all of you.
Your comments, emails, text messages, and phone calls
are SO ENCOURAGING to me.
You make me smile and keep me going.

oh-so-thankful for skype!

Skyping has been our lifeline.
LIFELINE.

Honestly, it is the best invention ever.
It even tops sliced bread.
Oh, yes it does.

I am so thankful, so thankful, so thankful.
Having this connection,
multiple times a day,
has been such a joy, I can't even tell you.

And so I figured out how to take snapshots
of the screen as we chat.


So here you go...

See?

You understand why it's so precious to me.

plunger in my kitchen sink

So sorry I didn't post anything this morning.

No new pics from Kel so I just didn't have any good blog material.
Ya know?

However, I did have a photo-op here at home when
one of Lucy's little plastic cups got stuck,
right-side-up,
down into the garbage disposal.
Are you following this?

It took exactly three of us to shimmy it out,
after using a plunger.
Sigh.
Yes, a plunger.
In my kitchen sink.

I didn't take pics.
But I'm pretty sure you get the visual.


I got an unexpected skype call from my Honey a little while ago.
Gasp!
I love that man.
He and Isaiah were getting ready to leave the hotel
and head to the airport.

They will arrive in Henan at 11:30am (their time),
which is 10:30pm our time.
Right?
Yes, I think that's right.

Then...he gets Hao Hao (Elijah) sometime in the afternoon,
which will be early Tuesday morning here.

I hope to wake up early to a wonderful skype conversation!

I will keep you posted as I get info!

hotel life

I really don't know how these two aren't going completely
nutty being in the hotel room so much.
They do stroll around the island a lot, have met several other families,
and have eaten at Lucy's 3,246 times.
Actually, they have also ordered Papa John's and McDonald's, delivered.
Can you even imagine how delicious McD's would be after being delivered on a
bicycle from who-knows-how far away?
That's sick.

The fun of disposable hotel slippers.

And K-man has been pulling props out of his bag-o-tricks
a little at a time.
Much parenting experience has taught him well.
So yesterday was the day to reveal
the new shades.

And, boy oh boy, did he love them!!
Kel had a hard time getting his pic because he was jumping
up and down in excitement!
But...sadly, he has no nose to hold them in place.
They stay on better upside down.

But their time at the White Swan is drawing to an end.
Finally.
On Tuesday they head to Zhengzhou, Henan to
meet Hao Hao.
Then back to Guangzhou on May 5.
Quick, I know.
But thankfully, they'll be staying at the Garden Hotel for the
duration of their trip.
Which will give them a whole new area to explore.

The countdown continues!

a very good day

All conked out.
Little Fella goes to bed early,
and sleeps long and hard, all night long.

Probably because during the day he is super busy
doing stuff like this...

For those of you who have been here to adopt,
you no doubt recognize this box.
That's right, he saw the White Swan Barbie and tore
into it like nobody's business.
(And meticulously put each torn piece into the trash can. He may
be a tornado, but he's neat about it)
Oh and once he finally got to the Barbie...he was no longer
interested.

View from the room.K-man says he took this pic to prove that
he was in fact in China and not on a Hawaiian vacation.

But I think he took it to prove:

1. That he hasn't hurled himself out the window. Yet.
2. That he looks so dapper in his new shirt and no one there seems
to appreciate it.
3. That he figured out the timer on the camera.
4. That he hasn't hurled himself out the window yet.


And as of just a few minutes ago...Little Dude was curled up
in Daddy's arms settling down for bed.
He's feeling better.
And so is K-man.
(Emotionally, that is)

They seemed to have turned a corner,
are figuring each other out,
and doing really well.

We are now thinking that he will just stick it out by himself.
But we'll make a final decision this morning about
sending B over.

THANK YOU so much for praying.
It TOTALLY makes a difference.

please pray...

Hi guys.

I would sure appreciate your prayers right now.
Little Isaiah still has a fever,
itching, and just not himself
(not that we quite know what that is yet).
But my heart is so sad because I'm not there.

K-man is taking him to the doctor in less than an hour when
the clinic opens up.

Also...I am just about the pull the trigger on
booking a flight for Brenden to go
over to help him next week.
It's a tough decision because of money,
but we are thinking the benefits outweigh the cost.
Please pray that we make
a wise decision, that God would provide,
and that we get B's visa in time.


God is sovereign and in full control.

I'm so thankful for that.

mr. silly pants

A few pics for ya!

He loves him some congee.

Skimming through the paper.
And saggin' & draggin'.

No explanation needed.
I also have a photo exactly like this of K-Man.

Kelly (I get tired of calling him K-man sometimes, ya know?) called about 3am this morning
saying that Little Guy was scratching all
over (no rash...just scratching everywhere) and had a fever.
All I could think to do was have him give him
Benadryl and Tylenol.
But guess who forgot to pack the Benadryl?

Yes, that would be me.

I think Benadryl is the very first thing on the travel list
that is given to adoptive families.
And I neglected it.
In my brain, I had put it in the suitcase...but not in reality.

But I'm thinking K can snag some on the streets there
on Shamian Island.
It's the drug of choice for the crowd there.



But I'm so happy to tell you that I woke up this morning to hear that
his fever was gone and he was doing much better.
Maybe it was just stress.
Or bedbugs.
Aaak.


Please pray for my K...he's so worn out still from the time change
and Mister Silly Pants is giving him a whole new
dimension of tired.

I think getting Hao Hao will be a huge help to him!
Which will be May 3.


Gotta run for now.

charming smile {and other things}

Look what we got!

A picture of our little fella taken just last week
by another family.

He's the one smack-dab in the middle.

Look how healthy he looks!
I am SO at peace that everything is ok with him.
And I felt that even before seeing this.
God is good!

Will you also notice that he has written all over him,
cabinet-climbing, sofa-jumping,
chicken-chasing, pig-tail pulling, never-ever-ever stop
moving, then flash that charming smile...
and all is forgiven by mushy Mama?

Yes.

Boy, oh BOY.

We are in for a treat!

I think I better bubble-wrap a few things around here.


UPDATE:
Oh and I am SO THANKFUL for a family who is in China
right now who so very graciously asked their
guide to call and check on Isaiah for us.
She did and said he is FINE.
Several of the boys from the orphanage
had to go have minor surgery for
some "boy" issues.

I'm SO grateful that he is ok!!







PLEASE be sure to read my post below about Corrie if you haven't already!

inbox surprise {a very good thing}

Well, Happy Day!

We came home from a long grocery shopping trip/Chinese dinner
to find pics in our inbox of our
Little Mister!!!

This totally makes up for my disappointment
in not getting TA today.
Although...getting both would have been beyond dandy.

Enough yap, yap.

Here are the pics.



Have you ever?

Look at that little man with his hands on his hips
like he's all that and a bag of chips.

Lucy has met her match.

Lord help us all.

oh boy, oh boys!

Oh boy, OH BOY.

Or should I say, boys?

Yes indeed, I should.

Let's just cut right to the chase here.

We just received PA for a SECOND boy.

Wooo!

A cute, cute, cute little guy.

Head over to my private blog to see his pic.


EXCITING TIMES!

UPDATE:
If you aren't already a follower of my private blog, you will have to
go to Journey To Me to see pics.
Click on the "Friends and Family private journal login"
Username and password are
located UNDER my profile on the sidebar of THIS blog.

Oh, and
HAPPY NEW YEAR!