Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Today was our last full day in China. We started out the morning sleeping in and then had some final quick Skype calls before heading to breakfast. We all got our usual things; I am not tired of the French toast yet! When Lily got dressed this morning she knew today was going to be our picture day. She pulled out her Traditional Chinese outfit and put it on first thing this morning. She has worn it all day and even now as we are packing she still has it on. When I suggest she take it off and put on her pajamas she just shakes her head no. Have you noticed she still has not taken the pearls off?

At 2:30 today we met our group and went to the US Consulate to receive her immigration papers and Chinese passport and American Visa. It was a very simple affair and went very quickly. The consular came out and led the 20 or so families in an oath. We swore that all the information we had provided during the adoption process was true and accurate. Now when we reach Washington, DC tomorrow and they stamp her passport she will be a legal US Citizen. At the consulate they said that our children are now part of over 70,000 Chinese children who have been adopted by US citizens. How fortunate we feel that they allow us to have one of their precious children.

We then had group photos and pizza in our room. Lily loved the pizza the first night but tonight she was not interested. We had our guide come to our room and explain some things to Lily about leaving and traveling. He and Lily talked for a long time. He said, “She is a very good girl but she is a little worried about getting dizzy on the plane”. I told him to tell her I had something for that. As I sat there and watched them talk I thought to myself how amazing she is. Ten days ago she met two different looking, different speaking strangers. She places complete trust in us and willingly leaves everything she has ever known to go with us. In some ways it makes me very sad for her to leave her homeland, the comforts of the language, the foods and smells and culture that she is used to. But I know that here she had very little chance of a good future. With us she will have every opportunity a child deserves. I am just amazed at her strength.

Tonight we are packing and trying to get no more than 50 lbs in each suitcase. That is no small task. As I was packing she watched me and started packing her own things. She is a great organizer and sorter. We leave Guangzhou tomorrow at 12:55 and arrive home at 10:30 Thursday night. That seems like only 9 hours of travel but we will be traveling for 22 hours (ouch!). Pray for a safe flight and that Lily does well on her first trip! We will not post again until we are home and a little settled.

Thank you for sharing this journey with us, your thoughts and prayers and comments have been so appreciated. Without the support of our wonderful families and friends this trip would not have gone so smoothly. We look forward to seeing you soon and showing off our beautiful daughter!