Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City

Another amazing day of site seeing and taking in the culture.  Our guide is
AMAZING!!  Today we visited Tiananmen Square, The Forbidden City, and for lunch
we visited a Chinese family in their home.  The family cooked us an authentic
Chinese lunch and kindly served us in their home.  Their home was the same size
or smaller than our hotel room and the water from the bathroom faucet drained
into a bucket on the floor.  I am not typing this to belittle what they have...I
want ALL of you, including myself,  to realize what we have.  Mike and I
realized that we are so blessed and have so much compared to most in the
world.  From there we went to have tea with an 82 year old Chinese lady who has
lived in the same home for 52 years.  We were told that most Chinese people do
not move around and it is very common for them to live in one place all of their
life.   Being content with what you have is very important to them. Every person
we have encountered has been so kind....even though most of the time we cannot
communicate by words...our smiles and a friendly wave of a hand can tell alot. 
In 6 1/2 hours we will be flying out to Kunming City......aka home of Baby
Addison!!!!!!  To God be the glory!!!!!

The Great Wall and a Great Day!!

We have been tremendously blessed with having an amazing guide.  Kathryn (yes,
she is Chinese) took us out to the Great Wall yesterday where we got to do lots
of exploring and have some really great Chinese food.  I was even able to find a
Coke Light;)  I find the culture here so rich and so traditional compared to the
USA.  Sadly enough there is one BIG component missing for me and that is
Christianity....it seems non existent here. Yesterday, I did manage to find a
cross painted on a Christmas ornament but it had a Santa face painted on the
cross.  The NEED for the truth here is so great so please keep the beautiful
people of China in your prayers so that they too may know the joy of knowing
Jesus as their Saviour.  Facebook is blocked on my laptop, however, I do enjoy
reading all of your comments thru my email.  Thanks for the encouragement and
prayers!!  2 MORE DAYS.....UNTIL OUR SWEET BABY GIRL MAKES HER DEBUT!!!!!!!!!!!

WE ARE FINALLY HERE!!!

My blog is blocked in China, so I am unable to see anything I am posting.  I am
sending this all via email and hoping that is makes it to the blog!!  The sun is
finally starting to peek thru the smog covered sky.  I am so anxious to take in
all of the scenery this morning because we have been in the dark for over 24
hours.  Our guide told us some interesting things last night as she picked us up
from the airport such as 17 million people live in the city of Beijing, approx.
1,600 cars are sold a day in Beijing, she has only one son due to the one child
policy in China and most school aged children are still finishing up homework at
11pm.  Those were just a few things that boggled my mind. 

Mike, Steve, Lisa and myself will soon head downstairs for our first "meal in
China" and then it is off to The Great Wall.  Steve and Lisa have been such a
blessing to have with us already because we are definately the "foreigners" in a
city of 17 million.

I am going to do my best to focus on taking in as much culture and sites as I
can before leaving for Kunming on Sunday.  Please continue to pray for us and
Addison, I know that God is moving mountains right now that I can't see:)

Love to you ALL!!

WE ARE HERE!!!!!

Hello Friends, we are FINALLY here.  We got settled into our hotel room around 2
AM and after only 3 hours of sleep, here I am sitting at the computer.   Jet lag
is NO FUN! 

oH......HaPpY dAy!!!!!

Plane Tickets......Check

China Visas.......Check

Bags Packed.......Check

Quality time spent with the girls.........Check

Holding our baby girl for the first time....Priceless!

This past weekend was our last weekend as a physical family of four.  You see, God has always known that we are a family of 5 or maybe 6,7, or 8 (just kidding Mike).  Wednesday at 2:20pm we will step onto a plane and begin the journey to our "new kind of normal".  Soon we will SEE the beauty that He has created and our hearts will be forever joined together with a little girl that we need and desire just as much as she needs us. 

"And like the rain that falls into the sea, in a moment what has been is lost in what will be." - When Love Takes You In/Steven Curtis Chapman

Thank you God for always being good enough even when we are not. 

Next post.....China!!!!

Finally.... The time is here

We are so very excited to finally get to be with our baby girl.  Our Gotcha Day is March 21st and the time can't go fast enough for Michelle or I right now.  Over the course of this journey, I have been very  much at ease and I had become almost lethargic to the entire adoption process.  But now that the date is set and the tickets are in hand, Dad has become the nervous one in the house.  As my wife packs the bags and prepares to bring our dear Addi J home,  I spend my time wondering what is going on in my daughters head.  Last week Addison was to of been taken out of her foster care home and taken back to the orphanage to await our arrival.  I can not imagine what that felt like to her... Being pulled from the only family she has ever known and taken back to the very place that she started her journey from. I pray that she can be brave and that my God has placed a calm over her that lets her know that the time has come for her to join her forever family.

Sleep well baby girl.... Daddy is coming.

TA IS HERE!!!!!!

I can't even believe what I am typing....YES you guessed it...we received our traval approval today from China.  Very soon our sweet Addison will know the love of a forever family.  We will leave the US as a family of 4 and return as a family of 5.  Details to follow as we will know more in the next few days.  My cup overfloweth.....praise you God!!!!