First Night...so far

So dinner showed the little fella starting to loosen up...just ever so slightly...still kept a scowl on his face and, at first, refused to eat anything. He only wanted to sip water.

Let me back up. Our guide invited us to meet with three other families for dinner (all from TEXAS!!). They wanted to try one of the local Cantonese restaurants, so we tagged along, hoping for any break through.
On the walk over, he almost smiled at me (kinda lifted one corner of his mouth) before he realized what he was doing.

During dinner, he refused to eat anything, shaking his head repeatedly at anything we offered...but then the fried noodles came out. BINGO! He's a noodle man! He didn't seem to want to touch it, at first, but you'll note in the pictures below that he was digging in, literally, at the end.

When we got back to the room, he was still in the, "don't take any of my clothes off" mode...until I showed him the bathtub. At first, he wasn't sure what to think, but then willingly let me strip him down and put him in the warm water. He was not at all sure what to think about the bubbles I had put in there and kept trying to shake them off of his hands and feet (Yes! Finally saw the feet and apparently has had some surgery there, too) I think this really relaxed him (may have had something to do with the lavender bubbles). He let me roll him up in a towel and rub him down with lotion.....he smelled so good when I was done with him!

Next a clean set of jammies and he crawled right in our bed (wanted nothing to do with the crib in the room). We allowed it and he was asleep soon after Jay! Eventually, he kicked us both out! So, at 0200, Jay is working on his paper (note Command Central, in the photo) and I'm writing to you!

Later this morning we will return to Civil Affairs to complete the adoption paperwork, then hopefully a trip to the market to pick up a few odds and ends for the rest of our stay. I'm anxious to see how he does at breakfast. The report is that he loves eggs...guess we'll find out!

Brave Little Dude

Oh man! What a day...and so very different from our first meeting with Cael. Kai was VERY upset and wanted absolutely nothing to do with us. As terrible as I felt for him, it actually made me glad to know that he has a real ability to bond with people. He appeared absolutely devoted to the Nanny who brought him and did NOT want to go with us!

Once we got back to the hotel room, he wanted to put all of his clothes on that were sent with him...so we obliged. He finally laid down, but had been reluctant to sleep (having missed his regular nap). He did finally give up a few minutes ago, hence the opportunity for this quick post. The only thing he has taken any interest in, so far, are the pictures that we have of him and our other boys on the iPad.

According to the orphanage workers, he has been very healthy and is mostly potty trained, though he is still prone to a few accidents. He has let me take him to the bathroom twice, already, so that's working for us!

In the car ride back to the hotel, I noticed scars on each hand and it appears the syndactly on his left hand has been released and the cleft in his right hand has been narrowed...hmmm...they did not mention surgery when I asked about any major illness. Guess I will have to be more specific when we head back to Civil Affairs, tomorrow, to finalize the adoption. Since he won't let me remove his shoes, I don't know about his feet, yet.

Obviously, we don't have a lot of pictures but wanted to at least provide a quick update on our first meeting. We are prepared for some more tears in the coming days and we will comfort him as best as we can.

Thanks for your continued prayers...we will most definitely need them!

Deep Thoughts!!

We had a very short night of sleep but, so far (at 0400) we are feeling pretty good...will probably ride on nervous energy for a while, today.

We fell asleep around 7:30 last night; I was awoken by screaming girls in the hallway around 9:30 and read until about 11:00. Then Jay got up around midnight to start working on his school paper. I dozed off and on until around 2:30 then I just decided to get up with him and be productive.
Breakfast is at 0630, so we just made some Starbucks Via in the room to tide us over until that time.

BIG DAY!!! I'm so nervous knowing that our lives are forever changed after this day is over. I woke up in the night thinking that this was the last night Kai would spend as an orphan:-) Then I really started reflecting on what adoption really means for each of us, as a child of God.

Webster's defines adoption as, "A legal proceeding that creates a parent-child relation between persons not related by blood; the adopted child is entitled to all privileges belonging to a natural child of the adoptive parents (including the right to inherit)."

When I think about the legal hoops that we have jumped through to complete this journey, it is very easy to get side-tracked into forgetting what the final result will be: A GOTCHA DAY! And a child that is forever part of our family...for better or for worse! It is then that I think about the tremendous sacrifice that God made, through his ONLY son...while were still rotten sinners!

According to Baker's Evangelical Dictionary, adoption is the "...act of leaving one's natural family and entering into the privileges and responsibilities of another...God is a father who graciously adopts believers in Christ into his spiritual family and grants them all the privileges of heirship. Salvation is much more than forgiveness of sins and deliverance from condemnation; it is also a position of great blessing".

So, along with the "privilege" of becoming a Ferland child, comes the responsibility for our son to have an honoring and loving relationship with his parents (and ultimately, a decent job that can support him outside of the Ferland nest, someday). Therefore, I also wanted to remind myself of my own spiritual GOTCHA DAY...and of the awesome privilege and responsibility that I have as an adopted child of God. I'm reminded to make my relationship with Him, honoring...and at the very least, more consistent. I hope you'll do the same!

Thanks for checking in on us! (and allowing me to run on here) ...I think the coffee is working!!

As a reminder of how long Kai has waited, here the picture from when he was brought into the orphanage...just a few more hours and I can actually hold him in my arms...I'm already an emotional wreck and hope he does not have to meet me with puffy swollen eyes!

Run through Yuexiu Park

With our eyelids heavy (and our post-flight swollen ankles), Jay and I ventured out to Yuexiu Park. This is a beautiful area and is so lush and green, it is easy to forget that it is in the middle of the third largest city in China (behind Beijing and Shanghai) So, in case you kids missed our lesson during the last adoption, Guangzhou is the original Canton and one of the largest trading cities in the world. The symbol of Guangzhou is "Five Goats" and Yuexiu Park is home to the most famous five goat statue (the whole reason I launched into this history lesson, anyway).

Legend has it that 5 celestial beings brought 5 goats into Guangzhou. The goats were all carrying rice, which symbolized that they would make sure that the area would always be free of famine. Guangzhou has paid tribute to these benevolent goats by making them the symbol of the city.

It was great running weather (around 55 degrees) and the azaleas and other flowering plants are starting to bloom. Another bonus is that much of the park is still decorated from Chinese New Year (Feb 10). Me thinks that there are not a lot of runners in GZ, since we received many strange looks during our adventure. However, the run did the trick in terms of waking us up, so I think we are good until dinner time!

I'm sure there will be more shots from this location, once we have Kai, but for now, here is a sample.

Coming to you LIVE from China!

WHEW! We made it. Though our flights were long and VERY crowded, we are extremely grateful for on-time flights and traveling mercies, thus far. Our plane touched down at 0500 this morning (Sunday, here in China) and we sailed right through customs and immigration.
We were immediately met by our guide, Kelly, who also happened to be our guide during our previous adoption, so it was great to see her and catch up. She told us that she has seen Kai a couple of times, already, and remarked about how cute he is...and smart:-)

It is now almost 1100 a.m. and we are fading fast, so in an effort to avoid sleep, we took a stroll around the area. We found a Starbucks (YEAH!) and walked through one of the many open air markets where the locals were slaughtering and skinning all kinds of birds, fish, turtles, snakes...you name it...yummy??

Jay is now trying to finish a paper that is due for school, so I am taking the opportunity to post a few pictures from our travels the last 36 hours. (last picture from Memphis, sitting on the floor next to computer charging, our plane, Chinese breakfast of congee with shrimp, local site in GZ)

We were thinking of going for a run together, through the park across the street, later this afternoon...making every effort to keep moving and avoiding sleep all day...will post pics of that adventure...if it happens!

Sure miss you all and appreciate the continued prayers as we prepare for the big day, tomorrow!!

Kim

Almost Packed!

Well, it's midnight and I guess it serves us right for waiting until the last minute to pack...we are almost done, except for printing out a few more copies of our passports and adoption paperwork. We keep telling ourselves that this will help to set our clock to the Far East time zone (but I can rationalize just about anything...I'm not proud of it).
Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and prayers...keep 'em coming!
And please don't judge the state of my bedroom...I'm practically in labor with a 2.11 year old!!
Next post from China!!

Travel on Friday!

So the big day is almost here! We leave on Friday and head to LAX (via Atlanta, go figure) then on to Guangzhou! We arrive early on Sunday morning, China time, and will meet Kai on Monday at 2:30! We decided to forego all of the pre-adoption sight-seeing this time around and just get in there, get our boy, and get home as soon as we can.

That being said, we are still required to stay in Kai's province the entire time...which also happens to be Guangzhou...which is where we spent our time with Cael.  So, I have been surfing the net looking for "different" things to do, this time around.  According to several sites, there is supposed to be some pretty good hiking trails around the area, so we have at least two days that we have asked to be dropped off for the day and just explore and have a picnic.  We will have Kai with us, so I purchased a toddler backpack sling kind of thing so that we can more easily carry him when he gets too tired to walk. This contraption will also be nice for the couple of temple visits we have, since many of them have a ton of stairs and are not stroller friendly. Stand by for a full report on its effectiveness from the "other side"!

Meanwhile, we have NOT packed a thing and this is SO very different from our last adoption where we had been packed for two weeks, before we left.
Oh well...life is a bit crazier these days: Jay is trying to wrap up two more classes before graduation this spring so that he can graduate with his accounting degree on time...in addition to trying to make sure the boys are caught up in school before we leave. Yesterday, Jay's dad arrived to take care of the boys and the dog (who is VERY confused-note the "take me with you" look) for us and today was my last day of work...so tomorrow...we pack!