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6.22.2011

We're Here



Our travel party at "o'dark-thirty" getting ready to leave our local airport.

So today.  Or yesterday and today.  Or whatever period of time it was...  It was long.  Sure, there was lots of complaining about having to sit on a plane all day, but most of it came from me.  :)

Ky learning a little about the homeland of her cousins (Taiwan) on UNC TV as we waited for our first flight.
Caleb, he was hungry and devoured some "grah-netta bars," watching planes go by.
DQ spent time carefully coloring fairies in her Color Wonder book.
Two parents, three kids, FOUR kid suitcases!
A few things I want to remember:
As we touched down in Chicago, Darcy turned to look at me and asked, "Mommy, are we in China?"  
When our second meal came out on the long flight, Caleb was sleeping.  But I knew that he'd be hungry, so I woke him up to eat.  He said that he wanted to sleep but that he also wanted to eat and the kid ate almost every single one of his noodles with his eyes closed.  
Kylie, being her typical outgoing self, made friends with the college student (Simon) that was seated beside her.  Before I knew it, he pulled out his ipad and she became the first one in our family to play Angry Birds.  (I probably would have asked for a turn, but Ian and the girls were in the row in front of Mom, Caleb and I).

When we finally, FINALLY arrived at the airport it was...um...well, we'll call it hazy.  Hazy like I've never experienced.  Hazy like visibility was probably less than 1/2 mile.  We're hoping for nicer weather on Saturday when we go to the Great Wall.  

Despite the haze, when we stepped off the plane, I caught the "smell" of China.  You know, you almost forget how this place smells like nowhere else on the planet.  It's a blend of so many smells, some good, some not so good.  If you've been here before, you know what smell I'm talking about.  Some folks can't stand it.  I however LOVE it and just one "whiff" while hearing the different sounds and being pushed through the crowd by the moving sea of humanity felt like home.  We're so glad to be here!

It didn't take long for us to find Ruth, the ND staff member who was picking us up at the airport.  In just a matter of minutes we were in the van and on our way out of the city, headed to this place that I've dreamed about for so long.  Ruth works in the preschool and is quite familiar with our little guy, so she was telling us some about his personality and said several times that she thinks he is a perfect fit for our family (she's been stalking our blog for months now).  Then we chatted about some of the other kiddos here and before long, we turned off the major highway and onto the smaller roads that would bring us into the village.  And then we pulled up to the gate.  When I read the words, "New Day Creations," I nearly teared up.  So surreal to finally be here!

We were shown our rooms ~ simple but nice ~ (I'll try to take pictures tomorrow ~ not gonna lie, just too tired to mess with the camera anymore tonight) and then went to the cafeteria for dinner.  We had noodles with eggplant and diced pork, 12 jiao zi dumplings, a pot of hot and sour soup, a plate of deep fred chicken and stir fried broccoli. It was MORE than enough to feed all of us and cost us just over $8.  I'm looking forward to more meals here!  We got to peek across to the playroom and through two sets of windows I saw Jace and Vincent.  Oh so precious!

And tomorrow?  Tomorrow we meet our precious Daniel.  I'm thankful for the opportunity for him to get a chance to be around us BEFORE we take custody of him on Sunday.  It's gonna be hard to sleep tonight, but luckily I've got sheer exhaustion on my side...

One of the last photos of the M5 ~ looking a little worse for the wear after 24+ hours of travel time.
(FYI ~ my sweet friend Glenda is posting for me.  Access is somewhat spotty...) 
(No, problem, Kristi! It is my pleasure!)

21 comments:

jody said...

So happy you are there! Ah , yes the smells! Can't quite describe some of them, just to experience it yourself ! Praying...

Rachelle said...

You made it! Woo Hoo!

Jenn said...

Glad you made it safely. I will be continuing my prayers for the M6. Can't wait to see those first pics :)
Jenn

Lindy D. said...

Yeah, you made it! I'm so excited to follow along. It seems like you were just there to get sweet Darcy Q. Remember Ian carrying all three kids just out of the bathtub. Hope you can get some rest!

Jenna said...

I'm hanging on every word! :) So, So, SO giddy with excitement. Can. not. wait. for you to get to Urumqi. I am SURE it won't happen, BUT, if you do get a young woman named Linda for a guide, say hello for us! :)

OH, the smell of China, I got all choked up just reading what you wrote....I am desperately longing to go back! How strange is it that it feels like home to me?

PRAYING for you!!! So thrilled!!

Don and Lisa Osborn said...

Yea! So glad you made it safely! Rest as much as possible.

Xo,
Lisa

Traci said...

I would have love to have seen Caleb slurping noodles in his sleep! HAHA
Glad you guys are there safe!!! I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE HIM IN YOUR ARMS!!!

Jess Danielson said...

Praises for safe arrival and YES! totally know that smell! LOL

Hugs!

Joy Graham said...

So HAPPY YOU MADE IT!!!I can't wait to smell China again this fall! ENJOY your time there and please post lots of pics!I will send up a prayer for you guys.-Joy

Amy Murphy said...

So glad you made it safe and sound! Can't wait 'til you hold that little boy! (Watch out! Angry birds is addicting; Ewen wants to play it all the time. He started playing it on his aunt's i-pot touch; now you can get it on you computer if you use google chrome as your web browser.)

Valerie and Jeff said...

Oh my you're in CHINA!!! I found out via another mutual friend's site--guess I dropped the ball on being a good blog follower. Sorry!
Cannot wait for you to meet your son!! What JOY!
Just am doing my updates edits for ND this month and was overjoyed this morning to see Polly is now Khloe! Hope you get to meet her as well as visit ND???
Happy travels!
--Valerie

Lindy D. said...

Yeah, you made it! Can't wait to follow along. Seems like you were just there for Darcy Q. (I can't see these pictures but can see the older ones??!!)

Anna said...

How exciting! I am so happy for you guys and can't wait to hear more about your adventure! :)

Chris said...

So glad that you are in China safe & sound! :)

(can't see the pictures, though.)

Anonymous said...

Glad you made it safely. Can't get the pictures, and that's sad. :( Soon you'll be a family of 6.

Marge

Our Journey to China said...

So very glad you are safe and sound on Chinese soil. :0) 'Ah...the smells and sights...'; wish I was with you! BIG HUGS!!

Mary Beth said...

So glad you are there! Can't wait to hear more!!

Learning Together at Home said...

Ahh that wonderful smell! It actually brought tears to my eyes just thinking about it all. I'm so glad you all made it safe and sound. Too cute about Caleb and his sleep-eating. :)
Shelley

Jen Barbee said...

Glad you are there safe and sound and enjoying all the Can't wait to see you with your sweet boy ! Many prayers....

Our Journey said...

How exciting! I remember that "smell" even today...I told Mike about your post & we were talking about how we remembered all the sites, sounds & smells. So glad you're safe & can't wait to hear/see more!!!

Nancy said...

So glad you made it safely! That is so cute about Caleb... I can just imagine your little man "sleep eating"!