Hangin at the Mall

Today we ventured out to the mall. It's about a twenty minute walk from the hotel and we went there earlier in the week. Hannah made a purchase at the store...some panda pjs. It was a little hard trying to ask the lady for a bigger size, but we connected through some hand motions. It feels like charades sometimes. We ate at KFC for lunch and Moses really loves chicken nuggets and fries.  Hannah played in the play area while Jason and Moses went to the grocery store to get some things for the plane ride tomorrow. We got some m&ms and some new snacks hoping they will help on the 3 hour flight. Tomorrow will be be in Guangzhou and meet up with the rest of the families. It is sad to leave Moses's home province, but  we are looking forward to being with everyone again and seeing their new babies.

A Fall Day at the Zoo

Today has been one of our favorite days while in China.  As we walked out of our hotel, the air felt like a perfect fall day. We went to a beautiful park where we watched people exercising and doing Tai Chi. The people were friendly asking us questions about the children. We were thankful to have our guide so that we could communicate with them. Then, we headed to the zoo. Going to the zoo at home is one of our favorite things to do. There were many animals, but Hannah's favorite was the Panda. She had been hoping to see one while we were here and she was a happy girl! She also rode some of the rides there and rode a camel, too. Moses is doing very well. He is a very sweet and happy boy. He seems very comfortable with his new family. It takes all of us to watch him as he is very fast and into everything. We get a lot of smiles and giggles everyday, along with cries of wanting his own way. Tomorrow is a day off from sight seeing with our guide. I'm sure we'll venture out and do something. On Friday, we leave for Guangzhou. This will be our last leg of the trip. We are praying that Moses likes the plane ride better than the car trips:)

Beef and Noodles

Short post tonight as we have some tired kiddos.  We had a really great day today.  Thank you all for your prayers we really sense God's Grace over this transition. Moses and Hannah both did really well for spending several hours in a really cool museum, but a museum that was focused primarily for adults.  This museum was focused on Gansu history and also had some artifacts from Wu Wei City were Moses is from.  Tonight we went for a nice long walk to a local mall for the kids to play and then some Kentucky Fried Chicken.  Thank you again for your prayers  - talk to you all soon.

Jason, Julie, Hannah & Moses

The Adoption is Finalized!

Today was a paperwork day to finalize the adoption. We thank God that today, he is officially our son! We met with the orphanage officials and one of the men wanted Moses to come to him and he wanted to stay with Jason and I, which is very good for our bonding. From there, we went to a mall and out for lunch. The mall was very cool with an upstairs section for kids. There were people riding these animal like motor scooters with their kids. Also, just realized that we spent $15.00 for Starbucks coffee at the supermarket. Oops! We have experienced some tantrums today and he can say "no no" already. He can also say MaMa and BaBa(means Daddy). Tomorrow, depending on weather, we may go to a zoo where there are Pandas. Hannah is very excited about that!

Gotcha Day!

We started the day with an early flight to Gansu province. When we got to the hotel, we had time for lunch and Moses was brought to our room by 3:00. It took a little time for him to warm up to us. I tried to bribe him with goldfish and suckers. I guess I was feeding him too much because the orphanage director told our guide to tell me he's had enough food. I got busted in China! He cried just a little when they were leaving, but has been fine since. We have gotten lots of giggles and smiles. Hannah had her first babysitting job while we were doing some paperwork tonight. She is just loving the big sister role. She said "he's so cute" at least fifty times. It was a great day and we are praising God for the newest addition to our family!

Hannah's the hero

Short post today as we had a long day sightseeing and need to pack for an early flight tomorrow. We will meet Moses soon! We can't wait! Hannah made it to the top of the Great Wall today. Our guide said she was a hero if she made it to the top. We also saw the Forbidden City. Next post...you will see Moses!

Sightseeing and Sleep

Today we were up and at em pretty early. Thankfully Hannah slept from 8:00pm-5:00 am without waking up.  Julie and I maybe not quite as well, but all and all a pretty good night.  We had an unexpected opportunity to be able to Skype with Mary and Michael, Ava, Jesse and Noah this morning which was really cool - sorry Abbey and Mom we missed you guys.     After a really nice breakfast at the hotel we headed out to the Summer Palace, which is a 700 acre area outside of the city where the emperor would spend his summers.  It was an incredibly beautiful place filled with a lot of history and a lot of walking which was really good for us.  Hannah has been a real trooper enjoying every minute of it - even all of the walking, thankfully.  After a really nice Chinese lunch of beef noodles, chicken and beef entrees and tomatoes and eggs we headed over to the 2008 Olympic park.  We saw the Birds Nest and Aquatics Center, which was also very cool.  Now, we are settling in for the evening.  We pray that everyone is well at home and thank God for all of our friends and family - we miss and love you all.  Tomorrow we are scheduled to go to the Forbidden City and the Great Wall of China. 

Greetings from Beijing

We are here in China! Hannah was a trooper on the long trip....even doing better than Jason and I at times. She was so nervous on the first flight and then, when we landed in Beijing, she said that she just LOVES flying. We think it may be because she watched all kinds of movies and Disney channel shows and had food served to her about every few hours. We are so tired (didn't sleep much on the plane), so this is just a post to let you all know we made it!

Tomorrow's the Big day!

We are all packed and ready to go! Even as prepared as I thought we were and that we were packing lightly, today we have been shifting things into different bags trying to get the weights right. Think we got it now! We are so excited! Please keep Noah and Abbey in your prayers, too, as they stay back with their Grandmas and Aunt and Uncle. There's a birthday cupcake in the freezer for you, Moses!

Happy Birthday Moses!

Today Moses is two years old! It has become a tradition to make a birthday video for the kiddos around our house. This one's for you, Moe!

Get ready....Here we go!

We are leaving in about a week and a half!! This week has been busy making travel plans, shopping for the trip, starting to pack a little, but mostly just trying to process that we are finally here at this point. We are so excited!! Please keep our family in your prayers as we work out the details of everything and for Moses, too. Thank you!

The phone call came!!!

Today, as we were in the middle of our school day, the phone call we had been waiting for finally came! We have travel approval from China to get our Moses! Our family coordinator told us that we could be leaving 2 weeks from tomorrow if we can get a consulate appointment. Yay! We are thanking and praising God for this news! We will keep you posted and would love your prayers for when we go, for Moses, and for the things that we still need to do. Thank you so much!

There goes that alarm clock AGAIN....

It was back to school for us this past week. Gone are the days of sleeping in, going to the pool, and watching full seasons of the Cosby Show just because we wanted to. I have just as hard of a time starting back to school as the kids do. There were tears (by me, too!), but we made it through week 1! Noah is taking a Consumer Science class this semester, aka Home Ec, and we all have been really looking forward to him taking this. We enjoyed some of his homework this week....cinnamon applesauce muffins. Yum!

Summer Camp 2013

Summer Camp is very special at our house. My kids talk about it all year long and can't wait until August when they get to go. I love seeing their excitement as they pack up and get ready to go and picking them up is even better because the hour drive seems so short hearing all the stories and fun they had. Noah and Abbey had another awesome time at camp! Remember when I said that camp is special at our house....Jason and I met at summer camp and have wonderful memories of growing closer to God there and are so thankful that our kids are making those memories, too!

Mommy/ Daughter Day and another step forward!

My friend, Tammy, invited Hannah and I to go to Kings Island and Great Wolf Lodge. We were celebrating Dulce's sixth birthday and we had a blast!(Thanks Tammy!!) The last adoption document came in the mail and was sent to China this week. Now, we wait for travel approval which should come in the next few weeks! Please continue to pray for all the travel plans and timing of when we should go. We can't wait!!!!

Getting Closer!!

On Thursday night, Jason opened his email to find that we had received the 1800 provisional approval which is what we had been waiting for in this next step of the adoption journey! For many of you who have been asking, this is the paperwork done here in the US for Moses to come home. This paperwork is then sent to China to be processed and then we should be receiving travel approval. So, all that to say, we ARE getting closer!!! Hannah had VBS this week and loved every minute of it. On Tuesday, they could dress like a princess and she spent a lot of time coordinating this outfit and accessories. On Friday, we drove to Hocking Hills for a family getaway. We met a friend and spent some time on his property, and then were planning to hike. Our plans changed quickly when this crazy storm came. Thankfully, we found shelter in this little country store. After the storm, there were trees down on the roads and it was pretty messy. Needless to say, we changed our hiking plans and went to see Jason's helicopter since his work base was on the way home. So thankful for God's protection!

While We Wait......

So while we wait, it has rained almost everyday! While we wait, we have tried to stay busy with indoor projects and have squeezed in some precious time having picnics with family and friends. While we wait, we have been trying to raise the money needed for the adoption through a garage sale at my Mom's house. And lastly, while we wait, two little girls and a little boy have raised $221.00 to bring home their little brothers by saving their money, making duct tape projects and cookies!!!!!

More Moses Pics!

We heard that he is a "happy boy" and as you can see by the pictures...Moses likes to smile! Please continue to pray for the rest of the paperwork to process quickly as we are ready to go get him!!! And, for his little heart to be ready for his new family. Looks like there may be another delay as the Chinese Consulate is moving buildings and will be closed for over a week. We'll keep you posted:)

New updates today!!!

Here's our adorable Moses.... He's about 31 pounds and 33 inches tall. The last picture we posted was dated December 2012, so he has changed so much! What a gift it was to receive pictures today! We can't wait until we can finally see him. Praying these next couple months fly by!

A package for Moses

Yesterday was a fun shopping day online looking for the right care package to send to our little guy. We finally decided on this one after several hours of looking. We were remembering the package that we sent to Hannah 7 years ago and we treasure the pictures we got back that her Nanny took with the camera. Hoping Moses gets this soon and praying that we get some updated pictures, too!!!:)