No time for pictures, I'm packing! We leave for the airport at 6 in the morning and arrive in Houston at 10:49pm on Jan31. You are welcome to meet us at the airport if you are awake at that time of night!
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Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Sunday Morning
This morning we are going to take the subway to a Christian Fellowship that meets here in Guangzhou. We will have to have our passports swiped as we enter because only expats (foreigners) are allowed to attend this church.
The Chinese people themselves are only legally able to attend the Three Self-Church which is not a true church. You can follow the link above to get some info about that "church."
We are so grateful for the freedom we have at home to attend a church that is not governed by the government. We are filled with a desire to pray for our brothers and sisters in this country, that they would be strengthened through the oppression and that their pastors would be able to receive training to shepherd their flocks despite the lack of resources.
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The Chinese people themselves are only legally able to attend the Three Self-Church which is not a true church. You can follow the link above to get some info about that "church."
We are so grateful for the freedom we have at home to attend a church that is not governed by the government. We are filled with a desire to pray for our brothers and sisters in this country, that they would be strengthened through the oppression and that their pastors would be able to receive training to shepherd their flocks despite the lack of resources.
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Location:Guangzhou, China
Saturday night
Here is a quick wrap-up of the last 2 days and some pictures.
Yesterday we ate breakfast, packed our bags, and boarded a plane for Guangzhou.
This morning Josiah had his medical exam for his visa. While he and Josh were doing that the rest of us stayed at the hotel. When they came back we had pizza for lunch!
Josiah liked the crust but didn't want any toppings on his pizza, not even sauce!
Then while some took naps, others went and explored the hotel grounds a little.
And for dinner we had noodles again!
Right now we are waiting to apply for Josiah's visa. In the meantime we hope to enjoy a little bit of Guangzhou. Please pray for our health during this time. We have been a bit sick with upper respiratory stuff and would like it to clear up before we begin our journey home.
To our sweet kids in Texas: it was a joy to talk to you tonight (morning for you) we miss each one of you and are praying for you daily. Love, mom and dad
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Location:Guangzhou, China
Thursday, January 24, 2013
A Little Fun
Today we had a little break from beating our paper trail through the Chinese adoption bureaucracy and enjoyed a day out and about touring the city!
First we visited an old park in the center of the city. The trees and landscaping were gorgeous and we enjoyed strolling through. In addition, they were decorating for the Chinese New Year so there were colorful lanterns and other decorations everywhere.
We came upon a group of older Chinese men and women singing and playing instruments and enjoyed listening to them.
Afterward they asked about us and our guide told them who we were and what we were doing. He particularly seemed to enjoy the look on their faces when he told them we had a total of 8 children! Though they were shocked one of the older ladies said she had 5 herself and thought we were doing the right thing :)
Part of the park included a sort of amusement park with games and rides. The kids enjoyed riding on a large carousel.
They then followed this with a lively game of bumper cars! Nothing more fun for Josiah than getting the chance to ram cars with his older brother Nathan!
Following our excursion to the park we took in some local culture by visiting the Walmart Super-center. Yes, Walmart is here too!
Some of the items are very similar but some are quite different (especially the food!). I was able to introduce our guide to the concept of pull-ups which he was excited to buy to help with potty training his 20 month old son. We also got a small stroller to push Josiah in on walks around town. That boy is heavy!
We finished off our day with a visit to a delicious noodle shop that is part of a local chain that has been here since the 1800s. They have definitely been perfecting their recipe because it was amazing!
Unfortunately all pictures are on other media so I'll get those up when I can. If all goes as planned we get Josiah's passport tomorrow then head back to Guangzhou for the next step of our journey! (Pictures are now added!)
-Joshua
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First we visited an old park in the center of the city. The trees and landscaping were gorgeous and we enjoyed strolling through. In addition, they were decorating for the Chinese New Year so there were colorful lanterns and other decorations everywhere.
We came upon a group of older Chinese men and women singing and playing instruments and enjoyed listening to them.
Afterward they asked about us and our guide told them who we were and what we were doing. He particularly seemed to enjoy the look on their faces when he told them we had a total of 8 children! Though they were shocked one of the older ladies said she had 5 herself and thought we were doing the right thing :)
Part of the park included a sort of amusement park with games and rides. The kids enjoyed riding on a large carousel.
They then followed this with a lively game of bumper cars! Nothing more fun for Josiah than getting the chance to ram cars with his older brother Nathan!
Following our excursion to the park we took in some local culture by visiting the Walmart Super-center. Yes, Walmart is here too!
Some of the items are very similar but some are quite different (especially the food!). I was able to introduce our guide to the concept of pull-ups which he was excited to buy to help with potty training his 20 month old son. We also got a small stroller to push Josiah in on walks around town. That boy is heavy!
We finished off our day with a visit to a delicious noodle shop that is part of a local chain that has been here since the 1800s. They have definitely been perfecting their recipe because it was amazing!
Unfortunately all pictures are on other media so I'll get those up when I can. If all goes as planned we get Josiah's passport tomorrow then head back to Guangzhou for the next step of our journey! (Pictures are now added!)
-Joshua
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Location:Changsha, China
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Culture Shock
We only brought enough diapers to make it for a few days since we knew that diapers would be available here in China.
Imagine our surprise when the first diaper we took out looked a little different:
Can you tell what is missing in this picture? The tabs! Apparently there are brands of diapers that don't have the adhesive tabs that hold them on. It seems there is some sort of diaper cover that they fit in but I am not sure I understood our guide correctly.
In the picture above can you see what else I have in my hand? It is some handy gaffer's tape which I was told to never travel without! The obvious solution to the missing tabs is to make some tabs ourselves.
Does she look a little dubious? No worries baby girl! We know what we are doing!
See? Pink and black look great together!
Are you waiting with baited breath for the verdict? Well, they say a picture speaks a thousand words....
Yup, nothing like familiar diapers!
Imagine our surprise when the first diaper we took out looked a little different:
Can you tell what is missing in this picture? The tabs! Apparently there are brands of diapers that don't have the adhesive tabs that hold them on. It seems there is some sort of diaper cover that they fit in but I am not sure I understood our guide correctly.
In the picture above can you see what else I have in my hand? It is some handy gaffer's tape which I was told to never travel without! The obvious solution to the missing tabs is to make some tabs ourselves.
Does she look a little dubious? No worries baby girl! We know what we are doing!
See? Pink and black look great together!
Are you waiting with baited breath for the verdict? Well, they say a picture speaks a thousand words....
Yup, nothing like familiar diapers!
Good posts on orphans in China
Love Without Boundaries is the organization that helped our son have a much-needed surgery. They have done a lot of work in China and know well what the environment is in the Chinese orphanages. This series of posts have some good information about the current state of affairs in Chinese orphanages.
The Changing face of Chinese Orphanages
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The Changing face of Chinese Orphanages
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Location:Changsha, China
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
CA Day
Today we officially adopted Josiah from the Chinese government. Josiah had only been with us for about 24 hours and he was clinging close to us and ignoring the assistant director from his orphanage. It was such a blessing for us to see that he wanted to be close to us!
He has begun to pull us in for hugs and kisses and he eagerly tries to do everything that Nathan does. They will wrestle and play toss-the-toy together until both of them are sweating. He is sleeping well for both nap-time and night time. He is very observant about everything going on around him and he has begun to show that he understands some of the things we say. He does have a strong will and we have seen that play out in good ways (he does NOT want to go to anyone but us) and in difficult ways.
We could definitely use prayer as we love on this energetic little guy!
While we wait on Josiah's passport to be processed we will go to visit his orphanage and do a little sightseeing in Changsha. On Friday we fly back to Guangzhou to begin the process of getting Josiah a visa so we can travel back home. We miss our kids at home and are eager to see them again.
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He has begun to pull us in for hugs and kisses and he eagerly tries to do everything that Nathan does. They will wrestle and play toss-the-toy together until both of them are sweating. He is sleeping well for both nap-time and night time. He is very observant about everything going on around him and he has begun to show that he understands some of the things we say. He does have a strong will and we have seen that play out in good ways (he does NOT want to go to anyone but us) and in difficult ways.
We could definitely use prayer as we love on this energetic little guy!
While we wait on Josiah's passport to be processed we will go to visit his orphanage and do a little sightseeing in Changsha. On Friday we fly back to Guangzhou to begin the process of getting Josiah a visa so we can travel back home. We miss our kids at home and are eager to see them again.
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Location:Changsha, China
Monday, January 21, 2013
A Few More Pics
Here we are first meeting him. Adelynn was asleep on my back.
He was not very interested in acknowledging ours presence initially.
But the IPad broke down all the barriers!
Goldfish crackers were helpful too (this boy likes to eat!)
Hmmm..... I'm not so sure about this lady...
I think I will share my juice with this guy....
First family picture
Josiah and Nathan.... Brothers! (He has 4 more brothers waiting for him at home :)
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He was not very interested in acknowledging ours presence initially.
But the IPad broke down all the barriers!
Goldfish crackers were helpful too (this boy likes to eat!)
Hmmm..... I'm not so sure about this lady...
I think I will share my juice with this guy....
First family picture
Josiah and Nathan.... Brothers! (He has 4 more brothers waiting for him at home :)
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Location:Changsha, China
We have him!
What a full day! We are exhausted but happy to announce Josiah is now with us!
Here he is being brought in by the nanny. He was initially very scared and hesitant but did slowly warm up. I'm so glad Nathan is here with us. Josiah was very comfortable with him from the beginning and enjoyed playing with him from the get go. I'll try and blog more tomorrow but just wanted to let everyone know things are going well. Josiah had some tearful times but also some laughs and fun. At the end of the day he even went to sleep without crying!
Thank you all for your prayers!
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Here he is being brought in by the nanny. He was initially very scared and hesitant but did slowly warm up. I'm so glad Nathan is here with us. Josiah was very comfortable with him from the beginning and enjoyed playing with him from the get go. I'll try and blog more tomorrow but just wanted to let everyone know things are going well. Josiah had some tearful times but also some laughs and fun. At the end of the day he even went to sleep without crying!
Thank you all for your prayers!
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Saturday, January 19, 2013
Our day in Japan
Since we had some hours before we flew to China we took the circle bus and visited Narita.
It was only a few hours but we enjoyed walking around and seeing a little bit of Japan. We also came across this wonderful little cafe. I'm not sure how authentically Japanese it was but the food was so delicious and they made wonderful lattes.
Then it was time to catch the circle bus back to our hotel and take the hotel bus to the airport. We were going to China!
(Photo courtesy of Nathan)
After a fairly straightforward flight, immigration, and customs we began to wait for the hotel bus I had arranged to pick us up from the airport. I say "began" because we waited, and waited, and waited. We tried to see if he met us somewhere else. Then we tried to find a pay phone - none of them were working! Finally we managed to beg someone to call the hotel for us and they came to pick us up. At the hotel they told us that they didn't have any room and that we would have to go to another hotel. There were several red flags that made us a little uncomfortable with the alternative arrangements so we asked them to take us back to the airport so we could make different arrangements. I think it was around midnight when we made it back to the airport. There, a helpful courtesy-desk worker arranged for a hotel nearby to come pick us up. When we arrived at the new hotel we saw that not only were the rooms cheaper, but the hotel was much nicer and had an inexpensive breakfast buffet. I don't have any photos of the episode so you will just have to imagine 3 tired adult travelers and one tired but trooper of a little boy. Adelynn did great through it all and slept soundly in her Ergo. We are so grateful for God's protection and provision.
It was rather late when we got to our rooms and neither jet-lag nor the really really firm bed kept us from falling asleep.
This is the final travel-day. This afternoon we will fly to the city where we will meet our son (we get to meet him tomorrow)!!!! The rest of the hotel arrangements have been made by our adoption agency so hotel related things will go much smoother from here.
Please be praying for us and for Josiah as the time of our being united comes ever closer!
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It was only a few hours but we enjoyed walking around and seeing a little bit of Japan. We also came across this wonderful little cafe. I'm not sure how authentically Japanese it was but the food was so delicious and they made wonderful lattes.
Then it was time to catch the circle bus back to our hotel and take the hotel bus to the airport. We were going to China!
(Photo courtesy of Nathan)
After a fairly straightforward flight, immigration, and customs we began to wait for the hotel bus I had arranged to pick us up from the airport. I say "began" because we waited, and waited, and waited. We tried to see if he met us somewhere else. Then we tried to find a pay phone - none of them were working! Finally we managed to beg someone to call the hotel for us and they came to pick us up. At the hotel they told us that they didn't have any room and that we would have to go to another hotel. There were several red flags that made us a little uncomfortable with the alternative arrangements so we asked them to take us back to the airport so we could make different arrangements. I think it was around midnight when we made it back to the airport. There, a helpful courtesy-desk worker arranged for a hotel nearby to come pick us up. When we arrived at the new hotel we saw that not only were the rooms cheaper, but the hotel was much nicer and had an inexpensive breakfast buffet. I don't have any photos of the episode so you will just have to imagine 3 tired adult travelers and one tired but trooper of a little boy. Adelynn did great through it all and slept soundly in her Ergo. We are so grateful for God's protection and provision.
It was rather late when we got to our rooms and neither jet-lag nor the really really firm bed kept us from falling asleep.
This is the final travel-day. This afternoon we will fly to the city where we will meet our son (we get to meet him tomorrow)!!!! The rest of the hotel arrangements have been made by our adoption agency so hotel related things will go much smoother from here.
Please be praying for us and for Josiah as the time of our being united comes ever closer!
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Location:Narita, Japan
Friday, January 18, 2013
Hello Japan!
Nathan was so excited to be flying on an airplane! He is a great traveler and is really enjoying this trip. Here he and Lesli are posing at the Houston airport. I'm not sure why he has started making that funny scrunchy-face look when I take a picture but he is really excited!
We are very thankful that Lesli is with us on this trip. She has already been a big help but we know that we are going to be very busy when Josiah joins us and she will be an even bigger help then. I'm also thankful to get to spend this special time with her.
Adelynn is also turning out to be a world-class traveler. Here she is sleeping in the airplane bassinet. There is another baby sharing our row and sleeping in a bassinet right next to her. He has the same exact birthday as Adelynn!
Here is Nathan on the plane to Narita.
By the time we got to Narita, Japan we were all exhausted. We went through customs/ emigration, waited for the hotel bus (cold!), and eagerly got into our rooms. We were asleep by eight thirty and were blessed to sleep through until 6 am. That's pretty good considering that the time difference here is 15 hours!
This afternoon we get on another plane to go to Guangzhou, China. Thank you for your prayers. Please continue to pray for us and Josiah. We get to meet him in 2 days!
Janiece
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We are very thankful that Lesli is with us on this trip. She has already been a big help but we know that we are going to be very busy when Josiah joins us and she will be an even bigger help then. I'm also thankful to get to spend this special time with her.
Adelynn is also turning out to be a world-class traveler. Here she is sleeping in the airplane bassinet. There is another baby sharing our row and sleeping in a bassinet right next to her. He has the same exact birthday as Adelynn!
Here is Nathan on the plane to Narita.
By the time we got to Narita, Japan we were all exhausted. We went through customs/ emigration, waited for the hotel bus (cold!), and eagerly got into our rooms. We were asleep by eight thirty and were blessed to sleep through until 6 am. That's pretty good considering that the time difference here is 15 hours!
This afternoon we get on another plane to go to Guangzhou, China. Thank you for your prayers. Please continue to pray for us and Josiah. We get to meet him in 2 days!
Janiece
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Location:Narita, Japan
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Night before the journey
It was a busy but wonderful day. All our children and animals are in the right places and our bags are packed. We need to be at the airport at 7 tomorrow morning. From the we fly to LA, then on to Narita, Japan. We get to spend a night in Narita then it is on to Guangzhou, China. The next day (Sunday) we fly to Changsha. On Monday we get to meet Josiah! We are so excited.
Please pray for us as we travel and pray for our kids. There are lots of things that we could worry about but it is important that we not forget to trust God. We are so thankful to know and trust in His Sovereignty.
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Please pray for us as we travel and pray for our kids. There are lots of things that we could worry about but it is important that we not forget to trust God. We are so thankful to know and trust in His Sovereignty.
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Thursday, January 10, 2013
Counting the days....
Today is the one-week mark. One week from today we will be flying on our way to our son in China. We are thankful to have gotten our visas today and our itenary for our time in China. We get to hold our son on Monday the 21st! Then there will be a whirlwind of appointments and we will be back on the plane home. We are so excited and we just can't wait to have our whole family together on Feb. 1st if all goes as planned.
We appreciate your prayers as we continue to pack and get ready.
Not much longer Josiah, we are coming!
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We appreciate your prayers as we continue to pack and get ready.
Not much longer Josiah, we are coming!
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Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Chinese lesson
I had a great idea to help Josiah become familiar with his new siblings and our house before he comes home. We would make a video of the kids using some Chinese words in different locations of the house. It has not been as easy as I thought. I feel some pressure to have the kids all cleaned up and the house straightened before we can record anything. By the time we have that accomplished there is not any time left to make a little video. And then I thought... Only Josiah is going to see these movies so he won't really care what things look like, right? We all know he won't.
I have had such fun making these with the kids that I want to share some of them with you. If you notice toys all over the floor or a little boy wearing a button-up shirt with shorts then just know that we were having too much fun to take care of such trivial matters. :)
(For some reason Nathan couldn't smile without shutting his eyes during this one)
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I have had such fun making these with the kids that I want to share some of them with you. If you notice toys all over the floor or a little boy wearing a button-up shirt with shorts then just know that we were having too much fun to take care of such trivial matters. :)
Location:Texas
Monday, January 7, 2013
Cooking adventures
When Josh works 24 hour shifts our day always looks a little different- meals in particular are less structured. So take a day where Josh is working and I am busy and distracted with packing and things are definitely different around here. Tonight I considered picking dinner up but Rishona and Nathan wanted to cook so I put the baby in her seat with some Cheerios and went to the kitchen to help them get the meal together.
I guess I neglected to tell the rest of the crew that we were going to cook dinner because when I peeked back at the table this is what I saw:
Cereal for dinner anyone?
Well, Rishona and Nathan enjoyed their meal even if everyone else filled up on cereal.
Please pray for us as we pull everything together for our trip!
Location:Texas
Our Chubby-Cheeked boy
We are so excited to be traveling in 10 days to pick up our new son from China!
Meanwhile, the kids have been practicing their Chinese!
Thank you for joining us by keeping up with what we do! We are thankful for your support and your prayers.
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Location:Texas
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