Day 2 in Beij*ng

Our visit to New Day

Yesterday we spent the day at  New Day Foster Home in Beij*ng. I can't even put into words how great our visit was. I left there, we all left there foever changed. The visit was far better than I ever imagined it would ever be.

The kids are amazing and beautiful. The staff is so wonderful. Alaina cried when we left there. She wanted to stay. We even met 2 very special mommies there. We have been chatting with them online for months now. It was so great to meet them and to see their children in their arms!

We sponsor Rachel and a few weeks ago she was placed in a foster family (yay for Rachel). Her foster family made a special trip to New Day so we could meet her. I am so thankful for her wonderful foster family and we were so blessed to get to meet Miss Rachel and her wonderful foster family. She is such a sweet little girl; she just melted my heart.

Joel made an instant buddy Levi. He is going to be a blessing to a family someday soon. What a fun little guy.

My mom sponsors Colton so we were able to bring a little gift from my mom to Colton. What a honey he is!! Such a handsome little man!

Like I said, all the kids there are absolutly AMAZING! What a blessing those kids have been to us!

(out of respect of all the kids at New Day I have removed their pics. Please check out New Day's blog, the link is below)

We are praising God for the awesome staff at New Day and for all of the work they are doing there!! All of those children there are so precious and loved.

I will never forget my trip there. What a life changing experience!!

For more info on New Day you can visit there blog at: http://newdayfosterhome.blogspot.com/

We are here!!

We made it to Ch*na!! After a minor hiccup we arrived at our hotel in Beij*ing at about 5:30 pm Thursday (Ch*na time).

 

 

We had a very teary and emotional goodbye at the airport when we left. Our sweet David is having such a hard time. I am missing him and the rest of the kids like crazy already.

 

Alaina was such a trooper and did so well on the plane and while traveling. She is feeling a bit out of her element, but we have been able to talk her through it. We were even able to use it to help her understand how Aliyah is going to feel when she is placed in our arms.

 

It is about 4 am now. We all are wide awake and up. Today at 8 am a driver from New Day will be picking us up so we can go for our visit at New Day Foster Home. We are so excited and Cannot wait to meet all of the wonderful staff and volunteers and of course the sweet kids too!

 

I will post some more later and will hopefully have some pictures to share too.

China Itinerary

Several people have asked what our itinerary is in China so I thought I would share it here. I still cannot believe that the time has almost come. We have waited almost a year for this day and we are so very close. I almost feel like we are begining a new journey. I know the next few weeks will be filled with many different emotions. Please pray for us as we journey half way around the world to meet our daughter.

June 27, 2012- late morning flight to Beijing. (home to Chicago to Beijing)

June 28, 2012 - Arrive in Beijing.  Your guide will be there to meet you with your name. Hotel check in.

June 29, 2012 – visit NEW DAY FOSTER HOME in Beijing

June 30-July 1, 2012-Sightseeing in Beijing, which may include Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, Temple of Heaven and the Great Wall.

July 1, 2012- Flight to Hangzhou Province

July 2-6, 2012 - Processing paperwork in Hangzhou. Your guide will arrange your daily itinerary while in this city. 

WE WILL PROBABLY MEET ALIYAH ON JULY 2ND

July 3- take a van or train to Wenzhou, Aliyah's birth city, to process passport paperwork. Will be staying overnight.

July 4- Evening van or train ride back to Hangzhou

July 6, 2012 - Flight to Guangzhou. Your guide will take you to the airport to fly to Guangzhou in the evening.  

July 7, 2012 –Medical exam.

July 8, 2012 –Half day Guangzhou tour.

July 9, 2012 – Your appointment with the U.S. Embassy in Guangzhou is today at 8:30 am. You do not have to appear at this appointment. Our guide will carry in all your papers at the time of the appointment.

July 10, 2012 - You will visit the U.S. Embassy today for your ceremony and receipt of your child's visa to enter the United States. It is a brief ceremony. You will likely be able to take pictures outside the building.

10:20 pm flight to Hong Kong. Stay the night in Hong Kong

July 11, 2012- Fly home. Depart Hong Kong 10:15 am.(Hong Kong time). Will be flying Hong Kong to Tokyo to Chicago to home and Arrive home at 6:47 pm

The count down

I am sorry that I have not blogged in awhile. I wish I could say that I have been too busy, which we have been busy, but not too busy to blog. The truth is that I have not been dealing well with the last few weeks of the wait. It is tough. Really tough. When you want something so bad and it feels like it is forever away. When things do not go as you thought and are delayed a week.  Yes, just a week, which somehow feels like forever. I find myself clinging to the promise that our Heavenly Father placed on my heart when we first started this process.

Habakkuk 2:3 For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.

I know in my heart that my God has this all planned out and we are indeed leaving at the perfect time for us and for our beautiful daughter. And I know soon our daughter will be in our arms. I just wish that I could get my flesh to believe like my mind does.

We received our travel approval (TA) on June 6th. We were hoping to leave on June 20th but as you probably have gathered that was not able to happen. Instead we will be leaving on June 27th and return home on July 11th. We hope to meet Aliyah on July 1st or 2nd. Our appointment at the Consulate is July 9th- we are still waiting on the rest of the details. It looks like we will be meeting some of our friends that we have met on our FB group in Ch*na. I am REALLY looking forward to that. What a blessing it will be to meet some of our wonderful friends. There is even a possibility that we might be on the same flight as one family.

Financially, for the most part, we are ready for the trip. God has been working in some very BIG ways and has really blessed us beyond measure! Our "Food and Fire" fundraiser went really well. We had a lot of fun at our benefit dinner too. Thank you to everyone who has supported us by giving, praying, calling or sending messages, you have blessed us! Please continue to pray for us as we wait and journey half way around the world to bring home our beloved daughter and treasure of the King.

Soon this sweet girl will be in our arms!