Final post

1 year ago today we saw her face.  One of so many, but there was something unique.  Maybe it was because I felt like I could hear her laughing through the photo, or maybe because I wanted so desperately to find the one God had called us to, I just kept hoping that she was the one.  1 year ago today YuFan had no idea that a family, half way around the world, began loving her.  1 year ago today we had no idea what we were really in for, good or bad.

1 month ago today she, YuFan, became Lyla Elizabeth McNeely.  1 month ago today in the eyes of the world, the law and everything else, she became our daughter, sister, cousin, niece, granddaughter and great-granddaughter.  1 month ago today regardless of blood, skin color or background, she became as our own flesh! 

This journey has produced many favorite songs, one of them being I Refuse, by Josh Wilson that I mentioned in a previous post.  Another was One Less, by Matthew West.  My mother-in-law introduced it to me and it was literally the song that was in my head when I woke up the morning after we said yes to adopting Lyla.  The last song, that I have listened to 1 million times during our wait, is This is Home by Switchfoot.  It's what I have been hoping, praying and waiting for for a year, that Lyla would finally be home.

Enjoy!

One month ago

One month ago today, an amazing little girl walked through a hotel room door in Nanchang, China and became ours...for real!

Loving a child, for nearly a year, through a photo was interesting.  When we first saw her I just melted into her photos, stared at them, wanting to learn everything I could about the photos and hung on every word written about her.  As our journey took a little longer than expected, and the updates on her stopped, I noticed that I carried her a little further from my heart.  Protecting me from pain, which is selfish, but something that was hard to control.

So as the end drew near, I wasn't sure just how I felt.  More excited or scared?  More happy or nervous?  Did I love her, or did I love the girl I thought she was...or who I made her out to be?  I knew that no matter what happened, we were in the right place, and in my weakness God would provide, the love, the comfort or the peace, so I rested in that.  I still wondered how this whole thing would pan out, and yes, wondered if God really knew what He was doing.

A lot of folks think we were nuts for adopting an older child, and even more nuts for adopting out of birth order and making a new oldest child. As you know, this was not our idea, we feel that God planned for us to do this. Since He is our Maker, couldn't it be possible that He actually created all of us for this purpose?  All 5 of us?

Lyla's heart, attitude, character and spirit are bigger, more positive, stronger and sweeter than mine will ever be.  I can tell all of that in the month that I have been her mom.  To say she is a blessing is a huge understatement, life is certainly better with her in it.  I know that's a lot to put on a 6 year old, but I know God has given her something special that not everyone has.  In her short little life there is no telling what she has seen, heard, felt and endured, yet every experience, since joining our family is met with a smile.

The verse I think about when I think of Lyla is Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
It seems so easy to say, but to really believe it takes my breath away. Through all her pain, struggles and loss, His plan for her has been to give hope and a future.  To think that we am lucky enough to be a part of that hope and future is humbling.  

Home!!!

YAY!  We're home, and we're finally all together!  I imagined how good this would feel, but it was even better than that!

We got to our house at 2am Saturday, after 24 hours of traveling.  Lyla was awesome, slept 9 of the 10.5 hour international flight!  Praise the Lord!  On the other two flights she was easily entertained with the things we brought, so as far as our flights go, things were perfect.  There were a few snags along the way, caused a little extra stress, but it all worked out, so I have decided to put it out of my memory, the rest is just too good to let that ruin it!

Kevin and Auntie Meedo (Megan) met us at the airport, and Lyla was cautious, but we expected that.  We got home and she was happy and running around looking at things, especially excited about Angelica, the cat.  Our cat is almost 14 years old, so she wasn't real sure what to think of this new little person, but so far, no mishaps.

By about 3am we were all in bed and Lyla had a little pallet on the floor of our room, it was easier than trying to put her in her own room in the middle of the night.  Macey and Xander woke up pretty early, but my mom was so kind to keep them in the girls' room until I woke up around 7am.  When I woke, Lyla was already awake, and you know that smile you see in most the pics I post?  Well, she wakes up that way, so we got up and walked down the hall to meet her brother and sister for the first time in person.  They were excited to see me, and I, them, and they were happy that Lyla was actually here in person.  It wasn't long before they were all up playing.

It was 100 times better than Christmas morning, who gets to wake up to a new sister?  Macey and Xander did!!!

Eventually they ate breakfast, been waiting to fill that seat for a long time!

By the afternoon we were putting clips in each others hair, just like sisters!

I must confess, I had some preconceived ideas about what today, the day all my children were together for the first time, would be like.  I had dreams, big dreams that they would all meet each other, hug instantly, play nicely all day, laugh, love and just enjoy the day together.

...somebody pinch me please!!!

Would you believe that is EXACTLY what happened?!  I am not kidding, they were thrilled to meet each other, and truly enjoyed being around each other all day.  Xander woke up from his nap before Lyla and he just wanted to keep peeking at her while she slept, so sweet.  Macey and Xander were so understanding of Lyla's "unrefined" behaviors, which actually weren't too bad today.  She ran and played outside with Kevin, and helped him in the yard, which was a huge blessing, since she was a little resistant while he was in China.

I know that there is a "honeymoon" period when you adopt a child, where everything is rosie and happy, and I believe that is what we are in.  But I am so grateful that I have at least one day to remember as truly one of the happiest days of my life.  So, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go get some sleep so I can enjoy the rest of our honeymoon tomorrow!!!

Last day!!!

As I am very excited to be reunited with the rest of my family, and after 11 long months ALL of us will finally be in the same place, it is bittersweet. Lyla will be leaving her birth country, one she spent 6 years in, one where sights, sounds and the language are familiar. I have no idea what it would feel like to leave everything familiar, permanently. Many will say that she will be going to a better life, and if you mean because she is now a part of a family, when she once wasn't, then yes, I agree. But the loss she has suffered, and will suffer when we board that plane are immeasurable. Some tend to overlook that adoption is born out of loss.

I hope that someday if Lyla has questions, concerns or even fears of her former life in her birth country, that I am able to present the truth with compassion. There are a lot of things here in China that just don't jive with American thinking, but that doesn't necessarily make the Chinese wrong or bad. Sometimes it's ugly, but I think if we look deep we all have a little "ugliness" that we are trying to hide.

I had our guide come and translate for me as I told Lyla what was going to happen tomorrow. I told her we were taking all of our things and getting on an airplane for a looooong time, we would have to eat and sleep on the airplane! (she thought that was hilarious) Then when we were finally done Daddy would be waiting for us and then take us to her new home, where Macey and Xander are. She just giggled while she snuggled into me and kept looking at me, the guide translated back that she was very excited. I know God has been protecting her heart for her first 6 years, because it appears like it is smiling...and coming out on her face!

On a lighter note, let me tell you a few things about Lyla that are a bit, let's say, unrefined. I guess maybe this should serve as your warning ;) The girl can slurp noodles like nobody's business! If you share a meal with us it's likely that she will eat noodles, so be prepared. It's the way the Chinese do it, so I'm not going to apologize for it, and not even sure if I will ever ask her to change it. However, the intense smacking that follows will be corrected, in time. :) The Chinese have no personal space, and neither does Lyla. Apparently, her eyes don't work very well because she WILL touch everything. I don't believe that gentleness is something taught in an orphanage, in fact it's probably frowned upon because it might indicate weakness. So, although she means no harm, guard yourself...and your children. But have I mentioned how AMAZING she is?!

See y'all soon!!!

Loooooong day

Well, the closer I get to home the longer the days seem. I did not plan today well, and the lack of things to do made it feel especially long. Tomorrow, we have absolutely no plans, feels like a big waste of time, but Lyla's visa won't get to us until 4:30pm. If I would have known better I would have done things differently and gotten us home earlier. Oh well, next time. ;)

We'll probably take a taxi to the island again. There is a great playground, a good place to eat and lots to look at. We spend most or our time by ourselves now, which is good, but sometimes hard.

We did have a great time tonight eating pizza and hanging out with the other families. We ordered Papa Johns pizza (which Lyla does not like) and ate it in the garden/play area on the 4th floor. Lyla ran and played with the other kids for an hour and a half! She loves playing with all the kids, no matter their age. She got a bath and she should sleep hard tonight!

Nearing the end

Well, tomorrow is the long awaited Consulate Appointment. This is finally the last step before coming home. Two days after the Consulate Appointment is when we get Lyla's visa, and then we are free to take her home! Home, it's such a nice word.

Until then I'll keep filling you in on a few things. There isn't a whole lot going on before we leave, just shopping, possibly hanging out in the park, not much left to do.

Last nights dinner cruise was so fun! Lyla loved being out on the deck and seeing all the lights on the buildings. Seriously, she squealed and oooo'd and awwww'd at everything, it was awesome. If she was that excited about neon lights on buildings, Disneyland is going to be incredible!!!

Today we shopped again, Lyla is getting better, so it is more enjoyable for everyone. My favorite part about today's shopping was a simple comment/recognition by Lyla. She was looking at some small toys, which is her favorite thing, anything worth 50 cents or less, and I liked her choice so I put 3 of them in my basket. And she looked at me and said "Mei mei, di di?". Which is little sister, little brother. It melted my heart because she already recognizes that three things, bought by mom means one for all of them. And this was the only time I bought 3 of something!

Today was a big breakthrough day. She chose to wear short sleeves (shes's been demanding 2 long sleeved shirts everyday) and only 1 pair of pants! At breakfast she ate scrambled eggs! She's only been eating noodles at every meal, I was so excited because I can make scrambled eggs.

Each day gets a little better for us. A few days ago she was being a toot, but I think she is learning that I am not going anywhere and neither are my rules. She's a bit whiny at times, but I've got one of those at home so I can deal with it, and her rowdiness can actually be settled with a calm, serious voice from mom. We're going to be ok!

The island

To those who are reading this blog who have adopted before, or the few of you reading who are familiar with China, you know exactly what I mean when I say we went to the island today. Shamian Island used to be the main hub of all US/Chinese adoptions. The White Swan was a hotel where most families stayed, and it is surrounded by shops, shops and more shops! The White Swan is closed for renovation, which means many of the stores have closed or gotten much smaller. Much less foot traffic, but still a nice place to visit. The island is about as westernized a place as you can find around here, so it is a small taste of home at the end of our journey.

We had a great time eating, shopping and even playing. I bought some good souvenirs and we had fun! Tonight we're going on a Pearl River Dinner Cruise, just hoping they have tall railings or my sweet, sassy, wild daughter just may go for a swim! Kidding, but I considered not going because sometimes the Chinese definition of "safe" doesn't always match mine. We shall see.

Shopping...yikes.

Well, I don't have another little shopping partner just yet. Today I had to parent a little more than she wanted. Nothing major, we're not ready for that, just simple things like making her get dressed when she shook her head no, or making her walk by me when she wants to take off without me. Until today all I wanted was for her to like me and start building some basic trust, we have started that process so I know we are headed in the right direction.

We were out touring and shopping and she was giving me the cold shoulder most of the morning. I wouldn't let her buy everything she pointed to and that made her mad. We had to leave the store and sit outside waiting for everyone else, and she pouted, big time!

We are learning, together, what it means for me to be her mom. We will be learning this for years, but as long as we are learning something new each day we are doing fine. I definitely wish, at times, I could be the "auntie," spoiling her, giving in to her every request, but God has given me a different roll. If I do not do my job I
doing a disservice to her, and that is the last thing this sweet girl needs. So I parent, in the best way I know how, and pray that God will fill in the gaps!

It is interesting, despite all of our battles today, I have received more spontaneous hugs and kisses than any other day! God's reward for my obedience? Perhaps.

In Guangzhou

Well, we got to Guangzhou late Friday night, and then first thing Saturday morning we were off again. We had the medical exam today that made for a long frustrating morning, lots of people, long waits and very little organization...not real sure what it surprised me. ;)

Our flight here was great. Lyla was beyond excited to be on an airplane, and she did well, even if it was just a 1 hr flight. It will still be interesting on our way home. 3 hrs then 11.5 hrs then 3 hrs. I'm already dreading it, but I know my attitude needs to be positive so hers will be too.

At the medical exam today a few interesting things happened. During the part of the exam where they were trying to check Lyla for color blindness and then for her eyesight, she did not do as she was asked. Basically refused, with a smile, to do anything. I was afraid that this would negatively affect her "results," but I was wrong. On her medical exam, instead of measurements and answers to questions it simply says "Would not cooperate." Hahahahaha! Made me laugh! Then as we were getting ready for the last step, seeing the Dr, Lyla was being a little crazy, tripped, fell and went head first into a concrete wall. ouch! That's the big goose egg you see on her head. She took a bit to recover, but has been doing fine.

After the medical, we ate a light lunch and then took a long walk around the neighborhood near our hotel. We just made a big loop around the block, saw some very cool things. The places we saw were what I like to call real life China, not the hotel/tourist/foreigner China that I am used to. Very neat to see.

After our walk we headed to the 7-eleven, Lyla is so much fun in a store, well, fun is what I tell myself, it's more like exhausting. She wants everything, but she doesn't really know what most of the things are. It's fun to let her choose things, even if she has no clue what it is! After that we headed to dinner with a few of the other families, and now we are hanging out in our room and soon she will go to sleep.

Tomorrow we are doing some touring, the weather should be really nice, so going out will be great.

I know this has been long, but I can't say good-night until I brag on my big girl. As I finish typing this she just laid in her bed (oh yes, we have 2 in this hotel!) and fell asleep. I simply told her it was time for bed, gave her a hug and a kiss and she laid there while I am sitting in my bed on the iPad. I had no idea there were kids like this!!! She is amazing, but I think I have told you that already. She is not perfect, but who is? She is pretty rough around the edges, but aren't we all? She is sweet, giggly, happy, loving (yes, loving in the best way that she knows how to be) thoughtful, rowdy, fun, cute, eager to please, quick to learn, sassy, stubborn, independent; I think that about covers it. I cannot wait for you all to meet her. I know we have some tough days ahead of us. I won't be the perfect mom, and she will not always be as "cute" in my eyes, but I know, without a doubt, she is worth it!

Buddhist temple and August 1st Park

We got to do some touring again today. It is so nice to get our of the hotel room. Lyla is great when we are here, but there is only so much one can do in here. She's a bit harder to handle in public, but it's still nice to get out.

We went to a Buddist temple and it was so busy because it is the 1st day of the 3rd month of the lunar calendar, who knew? It was quite an experience.

Next we went to a local park, it was gorgeous weather while we were there, so we took our time and just walked around.

Lyla has been chatting up a storm. It makes me sad because I have no idea what she is saying. She carries on like I can understand every word. Most of the time I just smile and she doesn't seem to mind that I don't talk back.

I think we turned a corner today. I got my first real hug and kiss! She seems a little more loving toward me today, so I think things are moving in the right direction.

Photo test

Dad's perspective

Allison asked that I contribute to the blog as this is my last night in China.  I am far too tired to write anything that may in some way make sense, but that won't stop me.  I definitely have mixed feelings about heading home so soon.  I feel like I just got here, which in some ways I did.

I'm shocked at how well Lyla is bonding to her Mama.  After only one half hour of crying, we have not seen one more tear or sign of sadness.  That alone is not enough to ensure that we are where we want to be with Lyla.  We know that we have a long road ahead of us.

I will start by describing the little girl I have got to know over the last few days.  She is all girl who loves pink and jewelry, but she is far from refined.  She is silly, stubborn and a little grumpy at times (not half as grumpy as Xander though).  She loves to play with me and wants me around at all times, but she will not hold my hand or let me pick her up.  What she doesn't realize is that at night when she sleeps between us in our one king sized bed she is touching me almost the entire night.  Sometimes the touching is kicking, sometimes just cuddling.  The trust is not there yet with me, but that is OK, since I don't necessarily want her to trust any strange man.  I have learned that with adoption, trust must be earned.  Because of this, I believe that adoption is not for the weak at heart.  Adopted kids take a lot of work and more patience that I have to offer, but the payoff is worth the work.

I guess the good thing is that I won't be losing much progress by being separated from Lyla for the next week and a half.  I'm sure I will have to start from scratch when she gets home.  The greatest thing for me during the past few days is knowing that I am providing for her basic needs including providing her meals, protecting her and knowing that she is safe.   The bottom line is that I see her fitting in perfectly with our family.

Confession

So, we have a MacBook Pro, an iPad2 and an iPod Touch, but we're quickly learning that doesn't mean a hill of beans unless you can use them properly.

Kevin went home today and took the laptop. I have the camera, my iPod and the iPad. We didn't consider that I couldn't download pics from the camera to the iPad. I also didn't know there wasn't an iPad app for Blogger, but there is an iPhone app, hm. All that to say, for the rest of the trip the only pics you will get to see are those taken with my iPod and all my blogging will be done from here, which kind of gives me a hand cramp.

I only got two pics of our tour today, sorry. I'll do better tomorrow since I know the issue now.

Lyla is doing great, I'm having a tough day since Kevin left, but I know I'll feel better once I see him home with M and X.

Lyla is a phenomenal kid! Seriously, always smiling and making others do the same. She's a picky eater, but eats a lot of what she likes. She has an opinion about everything and will let you know it, and she is a bossy britches! Going to be interesting when my 3 kiddos are all under one roof.

Feeling so honored to be her mom, I know she will teach me a lot, I just hope I can do the same!

*just tried to post pics on this blog and I can't. Not sure what to do, will try to figure it out...grrrr!

A little about Lyla

We have found out a few things in the short time that we have been her parents.

1. She likes pink!  This is great news as she has a little sister at home who also like pink.  It appears that Lyla likes pastel pink, when we went shopping everything she picked out was pastel pink!

2. She likes getting her fingernails and toenails painted!  Good thing, at the last minute, I brought polish, and it happened to be pastel pink!

3. She LOVES noodles.  I am seriously going to have to learn how to make Chinese noodle, because she eats them for every meal.

4. She is a budding photographer.  Give the girl a camera, any kind and she will set up objects and photograph them.  She wants to take a picture of anything and everything.

5.  She is a good and rowdy sleeper.  She sleeps great, but man, she is all over the bed!  She kicks and turns and tosses all night long, we hope she will be able to stay in her twin bed.

6. And she's a lefty!  We've been told, by our Chinese guide that lefty's are thought of to be smarter than right-handed folks.  So now we've got two smart, Chinese kiddos in our family!  I hope we can keep up with them!

Adoption day!

It's been a long day, and the lack of sleep and crazy emotions are catching up to all of us, so I'm not going to say too much.  She's officially ours, Lyla Elizabeth McNeely!  This time around it wasn't quite as chaotic as when we were in Fujian with Xander.  I was so glad.  All the paperwork was the same, but some was done earlier, some later, and most without the crazy, loud crowds.

This was after her bath while we were on skype, it's been really fun to talk to my kids at home every day! 

The girl loves her LeapPad!  Thank you Gma Connie and Papa Ross for this gift, and thank you Aunt Stephanie for finding exactly what we wanted (I had to send my family on a hunt for this thing, couldn'y find one anywhere!)

Here she is eating yogurt at breakfast.  She is a super silly girl, and quite a ham.

She LOVES noodles, the girl can put them away!

At the end of all the running around for the day Lyla fell asleep on the bus.  All tuckered out.

Tonight should be interesting.  After our day of running around, she didn't get a nap (apparently it is not abnormal for a 6 year old to nap in China....hm) and so before we even ate dinner, just before 7pm, she fell asleep.  Actually, we all fell asleep.  We'll see how the night goes and just how early she wakes us up, there will be a nap tomorrow, no doubt.

Speaking of tomorrow, a pediatrician is coming to our hotel to examine our kids.  This is an extra service that our agency provides, it is a really great idea!  We have no good way of asking medical questions while we are here without this.  You can call your physician at home, but they cannot physically examine the child, and the physical in Guangzhou, is, well, I'm glad a pediatrician is coming tomorrow.  We'll have time to visit places within walking distance, as long as it is not too rainy, so it will be a pretty low key day.  Tomorrow afternoon our guide has arranged for a masseuse to come to our room for a massage, the other mom and grandma who are with us will be enjoying a massage too, ahh, best suggestion for an adoption trip!!!

Well, I talked more than I thought I would.

Lives forever changed!

Shew!  Well, it is before 5am here in Nanchang.   I think I woke up at about 4am and just laid in bed wondering if I should force myself asleep or just get up.  My internal clock is still not working properly, so out of bed it was.

Kevin is awake, and our sweet Lyla is still sleeping.  She just woke up and took a look around.  I told her good morning, she gave a sleepy smile, snuggled back under the covers and scooted a little closer to me.  She had one heck of a day yesterday, so I hope she sleeps a little more.

This is shortly after she walked in, still content and interested in the things we had for her

She just kept smiling at me (at first).  The director even instructed her to call me Mama, which just melted my heart!  She has continued to call me Mama, by the way, and Kevin is Baba.

And then the orphanage director left, and nothing was familiar, and our sweet girl's heart was broken.  Here we are digging through the suitcase looking for something to help calm the situation.  I found the $10 Wal-Mart shoes with lights, and that started the process.  Seriously, this was THE LAST item I purchased for her, and I felt guilty because I didn't know her shoe size and I had already purchased one pair of shoes.  But, wouldn't you know, they are her favorite thing and they fit!!!!

We found a cartoon that we were familiar with from the last time we were here (I swear, if I don't have a weird facial expression in a least one photo a day, it has been a bad day!) so we put it on to try to help.  It took a little bit, but she finally settled down and then we started playing and having a good time.

We got out the LeapPad, and I haven't really had a chance to figure out how it works, but it didn't matter, because she just wanted to push and poke everything, which was fine.  Then I figured out the camera and she went to town!  SO MUCH FUN!

We ended up going to dinner here in the hotel, and found out that our girl loves her some shrimp! (Yes, Mom, the kind with the heads still on)  She was so cute, I was eating my rice with a fork, and she was eating hers with a spoon, she kept looking at me and then decided to switch to a fork.  Then she looked at Kevin to see if he was doing the same.  The other family from CCAI was also at dinner, and their sweet Maia is just the tiniest thing.  She is just 14 months old and they are first-time parents, such a beautiful thing to see!

Anyway, I'm rambling.  Just so you know, she is just as sweet as we imagined!  Her little smile is priceless, in person it just makes you want to gobble her up.  However, her little heart is so sensitive, and I just have no idea the pain she is going through.  This is SO hard for me, I cannot reassure her with my words, so I touch, hug and try to help her with my actions.  Just like with Xander, there was a moment within the first few hours of meeting her that something in my heart said, "We're going to be ok."  No doubts, no fear, just perseverance with love!  

I've been waiting for this day, always knowing that this is where the hard part starts.  So, this is where I step back, and let God intervene.  I can't do this, I can't mend Lyla's broken heart, I can't erase deep pain that she may carry with her, but it's a good thing I serve a God who can!

From my iPod

Just giving this iPod blogging a try.

We're waiting in the Phoenix airport for our flight to Fresno, we missed our connection and were delayed 4 hours. Ugh.

The other day I was consumed with worry about Xander while I am gone. In so many ways he has come so far since bringing him home, very few people would even know we still deal with issues daily, but we do. So, as the mom it worries me, how another adoption and me being gone for 2 weeks will affect him. I know he will be fine, ultimately. I know he will be loved on and cared for while I'm gone, and I think my worry is pointless.

In the middle of my time-wasting (worrying) I was reminded of God's provision when we adopted Xander. He took our high maintenance little Macey and turned her into a caring big sister in the instant Xander joined us. That simple thought made me realize, again, that He will prepare and guard Xander in the same way.

God chose our family to grow by adoption, and He will continue to equip us, kids and parents alike!

As we fly to the other side of the world

As we enjoy our 13 hour flight half way around the globe, I want to share with you, what I call "my Lyla song."

Before we decided to bring Lyla home God had a lot of work to do on us. It wasn't long after Xander came home that Kevin and I knew that we would adopt again. However, that was all we agreed on. I had my idea of age special need and timing, and Kevin had an altogether different idea. Not kidding, none of our desires were the same.

Well, I knew God had a plan, and so did I! I would pray that God would change Kevin's desires to match mine, yep, that's what I prayed!

During this time of prayer is when I heard this song. You see, this song basically told me to stop making excuses, get off my butt and do what I was called to do! Then I spoke to God again and made sure He knew that it was Kevin who was not on the same page as me. Yep, threw Kevin under the bus. This time God gently reminded me that I wasn't perfect and that He gave me Kevin because I needed someone like him, in situations like this.

Wouldn't you know, God brought our ideas, thoughts and desires together at just the right time to lead us to Lyla. Now, here we are 2 days away from adding her to our family!

So, here is my Lyla song, and a challenge. Who or what is your Lyla?

China schedule

Here is what we will be doing starting tomorrow.  

On our free days in China, if we feel up to it and Lyla is doing ok, we will sight-see and do our best to enjoy the country! 

3/15 Fly to Fresno, drive to Bakersfield

3/16 6am BFL to SFO; SFO to Beijing

3/17 Arrive Beijing 4:30p 

3/18 Beijing to Nanchang
        Gotcha Day!  Get Lyla in afternoon

3/19 Adoption Day!  Fu Yu Fan becomes Lyla Elizabeth McNeely!
        Go shopping for necessities (i.e. clothes and shoes that fit her)

3/20 Free day

3/21 Kevin flies home, Arrives DFW 8pm

        Macey, Xander, Nana and Gpa Max arrive DFW 7:30pm        Free day for Allison and Lyla

3/22 Notarize adoption docs

3/23 Nanchang to Guangzhou

3/24 Lyla's physical 

3/25 Free day

3/26 Free day

3/27 Free day

3/28 Consulate appointment

       Gpa Max goes back to CA

       Auntie Meedo comes to TX!

3/29 Receive Lyla's visa so she can come home!

3/30 Leave Guangzhou, final destination HOME!

        Lyla becomes a US citizen!
3/31 Arrive DFW 12:45am

Winding down, and your to-do list!

Well, it must be getting closer to the day we leave because my to-do lists are disappearing!  Hooray!  There was actually a day, last week, that I made a list of my lists.  I had a CVS list, a Target list, a grocery list, a Costco list, a people-to-call list and a places-to-call list.  Seriously, I didn't think they were actually going to get done.  Check by check things got done, and here we are, just a few days away from leaving for California.

Now, since I am so good at making lists, I have made you one!  Hahaha!  Aren't you lucky?!

1. Please pray for safe travels.  This is a given, but I have to make sure it's on here, because this time we are traveling to China without our kids, and well, I won't even go there.

2. Pray for my emotional state while being away from Macey and Xander.  Seriously, as much as this mama likes a short break from her kids, 15 days is a little longer than "short."  I know, I know.  I'l be so busy... The kids will be fine...  Got it, but maybe I won't be fine, maybe I'll be wishing I was with my kids that spoke English (just being honest, people).  I just want this covered in prayer, please!

3. Pray for my parents, who will be taking care of Macey and Xander while we are both gone, and then taking them to Texas when Kevin gets back.  They will also be staying a week so Kevin can go back to work, and then Auntie Meedo (Megan) will come at the very end to welcome us home!  It's going to be a lot of coming and going.

4. Pray for Macey and Xander.  They will be busy, more busy than normal, sleeping in a different place, with different people.  Although they will LOVE their time in California, and the time at home with Nana, Gpa Max and Auntie Meedo, it is still a change, and that can be hard on 3 year olds.  I feel like God has equipped my 3 year olds in a special way, to handle all the craziness that comes with adoption.  I mean, why wouldn't He?  He is the one who brought us here!  But, kids are kids, and blanketing them in prayer is always good.

5. Pray for Lyla.  I can't believe the time is here, soon she will be ours.  Her short little life has been filled with trauma and loss, and I would like to believe she has felt love along the way as well.  But soon we KNOW she will feel love, I just pray that her little heart would accept it and transition well into her forever family.

6. And finally, pray for Kevin and I.  Adoption is hard, it is beautiful, it is what we are called to do, it is what we desire to do, but it is hard!  We are about to parent a 6 year old, with a past that is virtually unknown to us.  We want to be the best parents for her, and we know that we are, but we need to rely on the One who can give us the tools.

And there is your to-do list.  Oh, one more thing, check back here often, I hope to post daily from China (I know, high hopes, but at least ket me try!), and if you are my FB friend I will update my status regularly.

Time to go check off a few more things!

Shew!

I think my head is only spinning slowly, rather whatever it was doing before. Man, what a crazy few days! So, we have booked our flights. First we go to CA so we can take our kids to Nana and Gpa Max's house. They will stay there for a week and have lots of fun with cousins and aunts and uncles! We get a special treat because we decided to fly into Fresno and spend a few hours with the McNeelys. Papa Ross has already promised homemade chocolate and peanut butter ice cream. No, you may not join us! :) After a few hours in Fresno we head to Bakersfield. Bright and early Friday morning we board a plane for our first leg, which eventually lands in Beijing, China on March 17, 4:30pm local time. Early the next morning (Sunday, March 18) we get on another plane which takes us to Nanchang, Jiangxi. A few hours later we finally get to meet our big girl! In my mind, I know that at the moment she is brought to us, that's when the real work starts. But in my heart, I will just feel better when she is finally with me. I can't even begin to imagine what her little heart will be going through, but God is in control. I pray (read PLEAD) that her heart will feel my love for her in whatever way it can, and that somewhere, deep down, she will know that the moment she is with us it is forever! The rest of our trip is paperwork, paperwork, paperwork. Hopefully there will be some shopping involved, maybe a few fun outings, but mostly just learning about Lyla. So for now it's back to packing a bunch of suitcases, organizing and arranging everything so this family of 4 can get on our way and become a family of 5!

Hold on to your helmets!

My kids say that line all the time "Hold on to your helmets!"  It's form their favorite cartoon, Team Umizoomi!  Well, it is very true in our case....

WE NEED TO BE IN BEIJING ON MARCH 17TH!!!!


OHMYWORD!!!!

I knew it was a possibility, but honestly, did not think it would happen.  Well, it happened!

Right now we are figuring out all the travel details, I'll post more info about the trip later.  However, we know the most important part, Lyla will be ours forever on March 18th!!!

Correction

WE GOT OUR TRAVEL APPROVAL TODAY!!!!!!

I don't know why we got two emails today, and frankly I do not care!  The second one said that our agency received our travel approval and our consulate appointment has been requested!  We should get a confirmation early next week and then we can book our flights!!

AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

My to-do list just got longer!!!

Our agency has informed us that our Travel Approval is ON IT'S WAY!!!!  They do not have it yet, it should get to them by Monday or Tuesday!  At that time they can request our consulate appointment, which will determine our travel dates!

We are SO close!  I can hardly believe that the time is finally here!  I need to start checking things off my list at lightening speed.

See ya!

I totally believe in fortune cookies!

So, there is reason to believe that we could receive our TA ANY DAY!  And by any day I mean, today, tomorrow or any day after that!  Good news!

After lunch, I needed a little something sweet.  I had a few fortune cookies leftover from CNY so I grabbed 2.  The first one I opened said, "Good news of a long-awaited event will arrive soon."  YES!!!  I love that.  Then I opened the other one and it said, "You will soon take a very pleasant and successful trip."  Seriously people, you can't make this stuff up!!!

Wahooo!

We just got this from our agency!  

We just received an update from our Guangzhou staff stating that they have picked up your family’s Article 5(s) (signed 2^nd acceptance letter) from the Consulate and now it is off to the CCCWA.  The Article 5 typically takes about 2-3 days to be delivered to the CCCWA. Once the CCCWA receives this document, they will have all that they need to issue your family’s travel approval.  The CCCWA typically takes about 2-4 weeks to issue a travel approval.  Once the travel approval arrives families typically leave for China about 10-21 days later.  We see this update as great news for your family as you are one step closer to getting you to your little one in China!

So based on this info we are anywhere from 4 to 7 weeks away from traveling!!!  Puts us in China between mid-March and the first week of April!!!

Article 5 drop off!

Today our Article 5 paperwork was delivered.  So, in 2 weeks from today the actual Article 5 will be issued and picked up.  It is at that time our wait for our Travel Approval will begin!

I can DEFINITELY see the light at the end of the tunnel now!

Cabled!

1/26/12 we've been cabled!  One step closer!!!

Xin Nian Kuai Le!

Happy New Year!  It's the year of the dragon, which is a lucky year!  And I would say so, we get to bring home Lyla in the year of the dragon.

"The other Lila's" family has done it again, this time they sent us a VIDEO!!!!  AHHHH!!!!

Apparently I am not smart enough to be the actual video on my blog, so you'll have to click on the link, sorry!  I just wanted you to see it!

Video of Lyla!

A HUGE thank you again to the Childers family for getting pictures and video of our girl!  And big WELCOME HOME to them as they arrived home yesterday!!!

I800 Approved!

Yay!  One step closer!  Again, all these steps, they mean something super important to immigration, but they confuse the heck out of me.  The important thing here is that we were approved and we are one step closer.

Let me add, the average time it takes for this step is 18 days, it only took us 13 days!  Can I get a WOOT! WOOT! for being below average this time?!!!!!

Excited little sister

I know this blog is about adoption and Lyla, and this still fits that category, but it's mostly about excited little sister Macey.

We've explained to the kids that Lyla will say different words than we do, we might not know what she is saying and she may not know what we are saying.  I've said that she speaks Chinese and we speak English.  Well, my kids are big fans of Kai Lan, so I explained that she speaks Chinese like Kai-Lan.  That seemed to help them understand.

Well, we've been talking a lot about the upcoming Chinese New Year, and that we get to celebrate it and they are getting very excited.  Any mention of the word party and my kids are ready to get involved.  Macey remembered that we had a Kai-Lan DVD of the Chinese New Year episode and asked to watch it today.  I put it on for her and came to the other room to work on the computer.  About 5 or so minutes later she came in and said "Lyla knows how to say Xin Nian Kuai Le."  It just made me smile so big!

The rest of the video she was repeating all the Chinese phrases and making sure I knew that Lyla knew how to say those words.  We talked about how when we meet Lyla we would say "Ni hao" instead of "Hi," so she has been practicing that for the afternoon.

Sweet girl, she is so excited to have a big sister! She looks at Lyla's pictures and always points to the ones where Lyla is smiling the biggest and says "This is the one we are going to get."  Apparently, she will not put up with a grumpy big sister, but after the last set of pictures we received, I'm thinking we'll see a lot fo smiling in our house!

We interrupt this long wait...

TO BRING YOU NEW PICTURES OF LYLA!!!!!

I mentioned the family that was in China adopting "the other Lila," well, they got to meet Lyla and take pictures of her!  I know you don't want to read anymore, so look at the pictures and then I'll talk!   Ahhhh!!!!!

The two Lylas (or Lilas, depending on which Mommy is typing!)

 I sent Brandi the same family picture that we had sent in Lyla's photo album so she could remind her of who we were.  We're still not sure how much she knows of us, but I hope this will help.

This could be when Brandi was telling Lyla about us, she can correct me if I am wrong.

Lila's mommy!  

Who selflessly took time out of her visit to the orphanage to make this mommy's heart happy!

I know, I know GORGEOUS!  I can't stop staring and thinking that these pictures were taken just yesterday!  This is what our girl looks like RIGHT NOW!!!

Brandi said she seemed happy and healthy, which eased my heart and mind just a little.  An orphanage is not a place for a child, EVERY child needs a loving home with a family, but at least I know that they seem to be doing they best they can.

Now to the emotion of it all.  I am so grateful to receive these pictures, seriously, one of the most wonderful gifts.  In ways it makes me feel so close to Lyla.  I finally know someone who has met and talked with my little girl, who is half a world away.  It sounds strange to say, but sometimes she feels like a picture, even though I know she is not, this brings her closer to me.  At the same time it makes her feel so far away.  She's there, we're here, and we can't get to her.

Well, I'm going to go back and look at the pictures a little more.  Maybe I missed something the other 30 times I have looked through them!