Wednesday June 17th

This morning we had a free morning and didn't have to do anything official until 1:30. We had a lazy morning then went to the pool for a bit. Came back and had lunch then got ready to go.

This afternoon we went for Liya's visa medical (by the way we are using Liya in the blog but she still wants to go by FunMan so that is what we are still calling her for now)  She passed the medical exam with flying colors however she will need to go see the eye doctor as soon as we get home. We knew she had some eye problems but her one eye is really bad. She already wears a patch two hours a day to strengthen it.   After the medical exam Simon was nice enough to run us by a store where we could get jack some Premier League soccer uniforms. Then onto the passport office. She signed her own name on her passport which is so cool to watch her write her name in Chinese characters. Here we are in front of the passport office.  We tried to take a picture of her signing her passport, but we were scolded for using a camera in a government office.

Liya looks a little grumpy in this picture but it's because she missed her nap today. She actually fell asleep in the van. Speaking of the van we made our trip all afternoon without any puking!! Yay! Today we used the Dramamine and sea sickness wrist bands.

After the passport office we returned home and made our daily, yes daily trip to the supermarket to get the necessities. I thought when I got mike 6 twelve ounce coke zeros yesterday it would last 2 days but they were gone by this afternoon. Mike has been satisfied with the coke zeros here, but it's a weak substitute for diet Mountain Dew which can't be found in China.  The closest we found was regular Mountain Dew.  In Beijing we could get diet coke but here it's only Coke zero (Beth Ritchey you would be in heaven).

 

For dinner we decided to try Simon's favorite Thai restaurant across the street from the hotel. He told us to go between 6:30 and 7 because they also had music during that time. Well we walked in and were greeted by music. Most of the greeters spoke great English. After we sat down and ordered, the music continued and the waitress came over and grabbed Taylor, jack and grandma up to make a Congo line to dance with them( see below). Liya wanted nothing to do with the Congo line and I think she was thoroughly embarrassed.  That or she just wanted to eat her dinner which had already been served. After that they got mike and I up dancing but luckily we have no pictures of that. Only video.

 

All the ladies at the restaurant loved Tay and Jack's hair. They kept rubbing it and running their fingers through jack's hair.

One thing I will share about Liya and I think most Chinese people. They are not afraid to ask embarrassing questions or make statements that we would never say to someone in the US. Liya has already told Simon I have a big nose and then today she patted mike's stomach and made a big circle to show how big it is. She also made a comment and pointed to all the freckles on my chest today while we were at the pool :)

Kids all continue to get along well. Mike and jack keep her entertained with all their silliness. Here she is playing Lego cars with jack!

 

Tomorrow we will drive to the orphanage and spend one night. I hope we have wifi there at the hotel. Otherwise I won't be posting again until Friday. Wish us luck with the car trip!

Tuesday June 16th

Liya slept great last night. All 3 kids slept in the same room. I am not sure she was too keen on Jack sharing a room with her but he didn't want to miss out on anything. So we pushed the twin beds together so all 3 could sleep in the same room. They slept great and no one woke up. See my 3 sleeping beauties.

All 3 kids slept great all night and no one woke up. Did I mention that Liya likes her routine. When she woke up, she wanted to brush her teeth, wash her face and get dressed. Hopefully she will rub off on the other two and they won't rub off on her.

Today Liya officially became a Losse. We went back to the registrar office to sign some paperwork. They asked us what our intention was and if we would ever abandon or abuse her. Of course we said no, signed the paperwork and it was official.

 

Unfortunately Liya got sick again on the car ride home. We had her take Dramamine before going and she did great on the way there. We were at the office for so long that I gave her a snack before we left the office. Bad idea... For the long ride to the orphanage we will do the Dramamine and I also have the sea sickness wrist bands.

After signing the paperwork we decided to stop on the way home and pick up lunch and take it back to the apartment. Simon ordered for us from a fresh carry out Chinese place (in other words made to order). Mike was complaining once we got home because Simon didn't order exactly what he asked for. Simon wanted us to try some new things so I let him order. Well Mike loved the food and asked if we could eat there every day. I told him the entire menu was in Chinese so I would have no idea what we ordered. See it's good to try new things :)

Simon told us that in the orphanage she takes a nap every day after lunch. Except Saturday and Sunday she gets to skip nap. She wanted to make sure she could still skip on the weekends. Mike was wondering why a 7 year old was still napping. But we decided to keep her schedule for now (Mike thinks everyday should be Saturday or Sunday once we return to the US) because she likes her routine.  Well she slept for 1 1/2 hours. 

After the nap it was time to swim.  Liya told Simon she had been swimming before. But we were a little hesitant not sure if she really had. Well she did great. She put her face in right away. We brought floaties with us and she liked those. Within 1/2 hour she was swimming across the pool by herself and on her back and diving for coins with Jack. She did great! 

Liya saw Taylor and I had painted nails and wanted her toe nails painted. So after her bath we painted them. (Thanks Kristin Painter for the toe nail polish!) Mike had to point out that she has feet just like me. Her second toe is bigger than the first!

We decided we needed some comfort food and hit the local pizza place. It was so yummy. Liya knew exactly what pizza was and the English word. She likes her pizza,
spaghetti and sprite....this little girl can eat like a pro. See below.  She also likes to repeat what her brother and sister say like, "Oh my gosh" and "Wow"!

After dinner we walked around a bit exploring. So many cool streets and alleys. We bought some fruit from a street vendor becsieni thought it was something I had in Vietnam called longans. However they were something different but still tasty. No one but my mom wanted to try them :(

And lastly to end the night a Liya and Taylor selfie  :)

 

Monday June 15th

Today is the day we have been preparing for.  Unfortunately our appointment was set for late in the day.  So we killed time by taking a walk to a local park and hanging out by the pool.  At the park we found people doing Tai Chi, playing badminton, and hacky sack. So Guangzhou is like St. Louis heat and humidity on steroids.

Finally, it was time to load everyone in the van and head over to the adoption registrar to get Liya.  Once in the office we signed some paperwork and then sat down and waited for our turn.  While waiting we watched children brought out from a room to meet their new family for the first time.  Then out walked Liya.  After lots of hugs and kisses she proudly reached into her bag and gave each of us a gift.  We then sat down in a corner and visited with Liya.  She loved the frozen sticker book that Taylor and Jack bought for her with their own money.

Simon had warned me before coming that liya gets car sick. He asked me to bring along some Dramamine.  However we didn't bring it to the adoption center. It was only about a 10 minute drive from the hotel. Mike however thought it would be great to show her videos on the way home. I kept telling him it wasn't a good idea because she gets car sick. Well sure enough about 2 min from the hotel she started puking. Luckily we were prepared with a plastic bag and wet wipes. After we got out of the car she just threw her puke bag away, swished her mouth out with water and she was ready to go!

Liya talks non-stop which is pretty funny because we can't understand  a word she is saying. Simon our guide came back to the apartment with us and also had dinner with us. So we had a lot of time to have him translate for us and explain things to her. They told us she is very shy and quiet.  But from our first 1/2 day with her she appears quite the opposite. Liya asked at dinner if everyone could use chopsticks. We told her everyone but grandma does. So she went over to try and help grandma learn to use chopsticks (pic below)  

Taylor and jack were both so sweet with her and I think it has been such a blessing having them here. It has really helped her feel comfortable with us. They just played together all afternoon. Well it's getting late now and has been an emotional day. Going to hit the hay and get some rest. Tomorrow we head to the registrar office and make the adoption official! Thanks for all the prayers

Sunday June 14th

Sunday June 14th

We flew today from Beijing to Guangzhou.

 

 

 

 Taylor and I had the pleasure of sitting next to a not to nice smelling person. Deodorant and showers seem to be optional around here. Taylor kept taking out her beautiful day lotion and sniffing it to get rid of the smells....

 

 

Traveling again today took a little toll on Jack. He got quite upset going through security. First he was searched with a wand, then his bag got searched and the Chinese have a habit of talking quite loudly as if they are yelling. They are really just talking but it is a bit overwhelming at times. All that and lack of sleep, jet lag and he said he just wanted to go home. But in the end, all is well and he is back on track.

We were picked up by Simon, our wonderful guide and brought to the beautiful hotel. Simon has great connections here and was able to get an incredible deal for us to have a 3 bedroom apartment in the 5 star hotel. We have a full kitchen, huge living room/dining room area and it's 2 levels.

So nice considering we will be here over a week. Kids got to swim in the pool this afternoon and were very happy about it. Guangzhou is extremely hot and humid. Just how I like it but it is a bit overwhelming when you first step out into it. I guess it would be comparable to St. Louis humidity in August when it's 100*'outside.  We decided to head out for Vietnamese food for dinner- a little of a break from Chinese food but it was quite comical at dinner. No one at the restaurant really spoke English and our Chinese is almost non existent. I kept wanting to speak vietnamese to them but it wasn't working either. My mom finally broke down laughing after she was forced to try and eat with chopsticks because they had no forks at the restaurant. We finally managed to get her a big spoon:)

Tomorrow is finally the big day. We will meet Liya tomorrow Monday around 2:30 pm which will be 1:30 am Sunday night central time. Everyone is so excited and we have been asking Simon all kinds of questions about her. He told us a very touching story when we arrived today about her. He said that Liya told him she has been saving all her money up and has bought us all gifts. When I asked him how she got money he said, every year at Chinese New Year they give the kids a little bit of money. So this year she saved that and they also give the children a little money when they leave the orphanage. What an incredibly thoughtful child! We will meet her tomorrow and take her back to the apartment with us tomorrow. She will be with us the rest of the time. We will spend time this week applying for her passport, getting her medical check up and on Thursday we will all drive to her orphanage and spend one night in her home town city. Originally Mike and I were just going to go but Simon arranged for us all to go and I think it will be a great experience for Taylor and Jack. So they will get to see where she spent the first 7 years of her life. The orphanage is about 3 hours away (one way).

I hope everyone is enjoying our blog. Katie my sister in law is nice enough to post for us everyday. Everything is blocked here in China. We can't access Facebook, certain web pages, no google and certainly no blogs. So we have been emailing her everything and she posts it. So we are not able to read any messages you are posting. It will be fun to come home and read it ourselves and see the posts from all of you.

Our plan tomorrow is to have my mom video tape our first meeting with Liya. Hopefully our wifi will cooperate and we will be able to include some video tomorrow!

We would appreciate everyone's thoughts and prayers for us tomorrow and the rest of our time here. We can only imagine how nervous and scared Liya must be. We are praying for her to have trust in us, open her heart to us and allow us to love her. So many thoughts and emotions going on right now!

Thanks to all and good night!

 

Saturday June 13th Sightseeing

Saturday

 Today was a big sightseeing day. We had a wonderful local guide named Lee that told us all about the history in China and about the places we visited.

We started the morning going to Tian'an Men square and the Forbidden City.  Lee told us that it would be crowded because it was the weekend but not as crowded as July and August when kids are out of school. Wow we couldn't imagine it being any more crowded.

Below are some pictures of the amazing sights. The forbidden city includes various huge courtyards that you walk through one more grand than the other.  One of our favorites was the last one called the Imperial Flower garden.  Here there were beautiful 300 year old trees, rock formations and beautiful flowers. Notice below on top of the buildings it shows the carved wood animals. The more animals on the each building the more important the building. However you never exceeded the number 9 because 9 is as high as you can go for approaching the diety but not claiming to be him. The emperors considered themselves next in importance to God and 9 was the highest ranking with God being 10 (I am sure I am not explaining that right but it's 11:30 and I am not sure I am even coherent anymore :))

Next our tour guide took us to lunch and we had a delicious Chinese lunch. We walked in and the kids said they weren't hungry because of the look of the food but we all ate a ton and it was delicious. It's much different than Chinese food in America but I think much more delicious.  You should see the number of tour buses pulling into these places. It's a whole set up between the travel agencies and the restaurants. In the front is a massive store selling mostly jade jewelry and jade statues. They did show you how the artists cut and designed each piece of jade which was pretty cool.

After lunch we drove to the Great Wall. There really are no words to describe the beautiful scenes from the top. My mom came up just far enough to say she did it and get a picture. Then she waited 2 hours at the bottom while we climbed. The stairs are all uneven and incredibly steep. You have to take it slow and pace yourself. Of course we would go up a section, Taylor would say, ok let's go down that is far enough. But the competitor in all of us Losse's kept us going. Taylor and I made it almost to the top of the section we were at. Mike and Jack of course went as far as they could. I was picturing someone having to go rescue Mike on the way down since he has such bad knees. Mine are not great either and we all had jello legs by the end of the climb. I am sure we won't be able to walk at all tomorrow. Here are some pictures to try and capture the beauty. It really is amazing.

Lastly we met several of my co-workers and the associate director of chi melody and her family for dinner. Again we had a wonderful dinner that they ordered for us. The kids especially loved the mango juice!

Tomorrow morning early we leave for Guangzhou. The best is yet to come.
We will fly there tomorrow and get settled in. Then meet Liya on Monday!!! Can't wait!

Friday June 12th

Friday June 12th

Today was a travel day from Hong Kong to Beijing. After we arrived we  went to visit the foster home of children's hope.  The kids had a great time playing with the children and Rosalie was also holding all the babies and singing to them.  (See pictures below) Next we checked into the hotel and went shopping. Mike had to get his knock off blues jersey's and did some other shopping. Taylor learned that she hates shopping in China. All the vendors were yelling at you asking you to buy their items. They also allow you to bargain. She hated both of these things. She would run through the aisle so no one could talk to her :)

Everyone except for my mom fell asleep in the van on the way home. It was only 7:00. After we returned to the hotel, they just wanted to go to bed but I made them stay up and eat. Everyone except for my mom actually is suffering from jet lag. She seems to be doing the best of everyone. Tomorrow is a full day of sightseeing.

This little boy was shooting at Mike and he was falling down playing dead.  then Mike gave him his phone and he was watching Despicable Me.  When we went to take the phone back he swiped at the phone and stuck his tongue out at me.  Guess he wanted to finish the movie.



Made it to Hong Kong

Well we finally made it to Hong Kong after only a few snafus (I promised my mom I wouldn't tell) and a couple of delays.  Kids were very excited about our seats, having their own tv, phone charger and Jack was especially happy with his kids meal (see pic below). It's the little things that make them happy.  Flight ended up being only about 14 hours instead of 16 and kids managed to sleep a bit on the plane. The bad thing about that is now they are wide awake and it's 10:00 pm in Hong Kong. We are overnighting in a very nice airport hotel and then fly to Beijing at 9:00 am tomorrow. Here are a few pictures from our travels so far.