Nyah's Thoughts on the Whole Thing

Nyah didn't care much about the trip to the Consulate. She snoozed through most of the drive. Once we arrived, we had to ride a whole bunch of escalators to get up stairs to the US Office. Nyah has learned what escalators are. She always wants to climb on and stand by herself. This time, when she did it, she remembered that her new shoes have squeakers in them! And Yes...every time she took a step we heard loud squeaks. By the way, so did half of the kids in the consulate office. It truly got annoying.

We got through all the metal detectors and waited in line for our passports to be checked and we listened as a man congratulated us all. Then we visited with other families and swore in. We swore to keep our kids and never abandon them. Following that we received a brown envelope. This envelope cannot be opened until we reach US soil and by an Immigrant Officer "ONLY." We left and that was that! According to China, and the US, "we have officially adopted a little, cute, adorable Chinese girl." However, she will not be a US citizen until we get a US stamp in her passport and that will be when we go through customs in Seattle. :)

On the way back to the Hotel, Nyah was a one woman wrestling match! She was ready to play and didn't appreciate having to sit in a bus full of people. By the time we reached the hotel we were exhausted. Imagine what a 20 some hour flight schedule is going to be like. UGH! :(

Pray for us!!

Trip to the US Consulate Building

Waterfall and "Red Couch" Pics

Nyah's Chinese Outfit

She's so Cute!!

The Mall!

This mall is HUGE!!

Baby peeing in the drain system.

This is as common as parents having them pee in the sinks in any bathroom.

Our Last Day in Guangzhou

Well, we're finally here;
We're in our final moments in Guangzhou, China.

I'm sitting her listening to my little girl, who does not want to go to bed. She is laying in her bed talking to herself very loudly.


We started the day with breakfast, Starbucks coffee and a tour of an old temple museum. It was neat to see part of Southern China's history. We went with the Tennessee couple. Eric and the man from Tennessee had difficulty paying attention to any of the history. Instead, they had a long talk about hunting. I almost felt like I was back in the States. :)


From there, we went to see a shopping mall that would put any US mall to shame. It took up several blocks, had at least 6 floors and just about every kind of shopping you can think of.


Then we went back to the hotel, Eric left to pick up a massage and I took Nyah to lunch and out for more shopping.


Later, we went to have the "traditional family pictures, in front of the water fall and the red couch." Some of the families, with our agency, left earlier today so we were unable to do a larger group picture. By the way, it was amazing to go to breakfast today. At least 10 new families came in for their adoptions. There were foreigners to China everywhere. We went from the "red couch" pictures to the American Consulate. The Chinese people must think this is so odd. We're with a large group of at least 20 babies, two huge tour buses and at least 60 Americans. We kind of stuck out. :)

Following this event we went to dinner. We had to spend the rest of the Yuan. See, China will let you exchange US money for Chinese, but they will not let you exchange it back. HMMMMMM! I guess this is a nation wide policy. Our guide said that "he wouldn't even be able to exchange it back for us."

Well, we're packed now. Nyah is bathed and headed to bed at 8:00 p.m. We have to be up by 4:00 a.m. to check out and catch the plane by 8:20. There are huge numbers of adopted children leaving tomorrow (All of the consulate families). We will no longer whine about our 24+ hours of travel and layovers. Some of the families have way longer journeys. Either way we are so ready to come home. We're tired, we miss our kids, we're sick of Chinese food, sick of Chinese t.v. and, all in all, just want to be back where we belong.

We've had a great time. We love the people, the places and, most of all, getting our little girl. But now, we just want to come home. :) It's funny, I keep thinking of the American Idol song, "I'm Going Home." The words "I'm going home, to the place where I belong," seems to be so fitting. We've enjoyed coming but YEAH, We are going home!!!!

God has blessed us beyond anything we could have imagined. We do give God all the credit for this journey and our little Nyah. She has made a huge transformation over the last two weeks. She came to us scared to death. She was devastated, on day 3, when we went back to her orphanage. (I was devastated by what I saw and for the little ones I had to leave behind.) We watched her start to laugh, play and bond with us. And, she's still changing. It will take a long time for her to truly settle in. All I know is, God loves this little girl enough to take her out of a sad, dirty, lonely place where she had no hope and He gave her a family who will teach her to love God with all her heart. He will transform her life from "destruction" to "freedom in Him." This whole thing is a miracle. Thank you God!!!

I am tired tonight and a little emotional. So please, give me a little grace!!

Thank you, everyone, for following our blog. We will continue to write in the blog for a full year. We'll update it often so you can continue to see the transformation of Nyah and her incorporation to a great group of kids; Jeremy, Jordan and Emma. Thank you for your prayers, your financial help and love. We are eternally grateful!

Love you,

Melody

P.S. This will be our last blog until we are home and settled.


P.S.S. Please pray for Nyah. This will be a difficult trip for her, and us. She started having a bloody substance ooze from her ear the night of the medical check. It has not stopped and we are a little concerned. We are thankful that we have a doctors appointment scheduled for the Tuesday after we come back, but this may be a difficult journey with the air pressure.

P.S.S. Jeremy, Jordan and Emma, WE ARE COMING HOME! Please Do Not forget Nyah's car seat and a coat for Mom and Nyah.
Love you more than you can know.
Mom and Dad

Nyah's Potty Trained

I keep forgetting to tell you the Nyah is potty trained. We didn't figure it out until the day we got to Guangzhou. She had been saying wuh-lah often. We thought it was so cute. Her mouth kinda gives a half smirk when she says it. Well, DUH, that's the code word she says for "I have to go to the bathroom." If we're able to take her when she has to go...then she stays dry! We are hoping that she will teach her big sister Emma how. :)

She also looks at the screen saver on our computer of her brother and sisters.

She calls Jeremy ~ Bubu,

Jordan ~ Luh

and Emma ~ Em.

So CUTE!

Also, We got Nyah and Emma these shirts that say "Made In China" on the front. My sister Melissa told me she wanted to get the girls a shirt that said this. I guess that China thought of

that too. :)