Traveling Home: June 27th

It seems like forever since we've been home. Beijing and some of the early things we did during our trip since like they happened so long ago! It's even crazy to think that Ella has only been with us for 13 days. We've already gotten so used to having 2 girls in the family. I can't imagine our family without our ornery, stubborn, funny, happy Ella!!

We left the hotel at 8:30 this morning and headed to the airport. Lotus provided our escort to help us through the airport and provide transportation. I know I keep saying this but Hong Kong is gorgeous!! The trip to the airport took about an hour and took us over numerous bridges, through mountains, and around the harbor.

We made it through security and immigrations relatively quickly and easily. Thank you Lord! The flight started out ok and quickly changed to tantrums from the big sister. Thankfully that didn't last long and after lunch both girls fell asleep on Mama's lap. That makes this one happy Mama!! The girls took a good 2 hour nap and then were up the rest of the flight. 

Honestly, the girls did amazingly well on the 12 hour flight.  We took short walks on the plane, colored, watched movies, played with cars, played with play dough, and ate some food.  Before we knew it we had landed in Seattle.  

Immigration and security in Seattle was not an easy process, especially with 2 tired girls and a tired mama.  Our first stop was at the visa counter since Ella needed one to enter the country.  We had to stand in line for a while but it went decently fast.  Once at the visa counter we learned that we had to go to a second stop to process her adoption paperwork.  The workers at this counter were really nice and welcoming.  They processed her paperwork quickly and Ella is now a US Citizen!!!  Yay for Ella and us :)

Once that wonderful part was done it all quickly went down hill (I may be a little dramatic but remember I was tired and had 2 tired girls ;)).  Mark and Kim had already gathered our luggage since we had to go through customs and security again.   We met up with them and got in a very long line to go through the system.  Again the line seemed to go pretty fast but by this time I have both girls in my arms because they both are too tired to walk and everyone else is managing luggage.  When we got to the head of the line they ask where our entry form is.  "Well, we don't have it anymore because they took it from us when we processed Ella's adoption paperwork.  We didn't realize we still needed it since they took it."  It seemed like the worker didn't even listen and asked us again and told us we had to have one before we moved forward.  So we explained again.  He then sent us to another worker who was equally non compassionate, and not a good listener.  She informed us that we needed to go back upstairs and find the worker for the form and that we needed to all go and take our luggage.  Are you kidding me??!!!   By this time not only am I carrying both girls but they both are crying as well.  So yet another worker took us to the elevator.  He let me and the girls sit while Matt and he ran down the form.  The worker knew exactly what Matt was coming back for and apologized as it had gotten mixed in with all the other paperwork.   Back downstairs we went.  Luckily the worker who took us upstairs did not make us wait in that long line again.  The worker who sent us upstairs addressed us quickly and said "yep, that's what we needed".  I wanted to scream "It wasn't us who messed up lady and we don't do this everyday!"  But I held it in as I knew she was just doing her job and I am thankful for what they do.  I just wasn't super thankful in that moment ;)

After customs we stood in line at the Delta counter to get our boarding tickets for the rest of the trip.  We were finally second in line when the workers just left!!  Not even kidding!  They let us know that we would not need boarding passes to get through security and left!

Then we went through security again and anyone who travels knows that these lines never move fast.  We were waiting in line when first of all they sent half the workers on break and then shut down one of the lanes.  Are you serious?!!  Who is testing my patience today??

I can laugh about this all now, but I was not a happy camper in the moment.  I'm pretty sure I had steam coming out of the top of my head LOL!!

After all that nonsense we had to wait til 3pm to fly out...6 hour lay over.  On the other side, thankfully we had plenty of time after our whole ordeal.  We rested, ate some food, tried to nap, the girls played, and we watched airplanes.

The second leg of the trip went smoothly; Ava, Ella, and I slept for the entire trip!!

Once we landed in Minneapolis, we learned that our final leg was delayed.  No!!!  We just want to get home.  Thankfully we were only delayed for a short time and we landed in Omaha around midnight.  My parents met us at the airport and helped get us home.  It was so good to see them!  Ava knew that they were going to be there and for the entire last flight asked where they were and how much longer til she got to see them!

 We arrived home around 1am to Christmas lights on our front porch and in the bush spelling out "Ella" from my parents.  There were also posters throughout the house that were made to welcome us home from the neighbor girls.  We are so blessed to be so loved!

Before bed we fired up the grill and had some hamburgers!  We were starving and wanted some delicious beef!  Welcome to your home Ella!

Hong Kong: June 27th

We spent the last 2 days in a beautiful city! I have to admit that when leaving Guangzhou I so wished that we were going home but Hong Kong was a beautiful surprise! Hong Kong is a city I hope to return to down the road. We stayed at the YMCA (no there was no singing or dancing when we walked in) on Salisbury. It was a beautiful, almost brand new hotel right on Victoria Harbor. The views were incredible of the harbor! You wouldn't believe all the boats and barges. I could look at it all day!

On Thursday after we arrived on the train we headed to our hotel. Our hotel was beautiful, but our room was the smallest ever. We were obviously in an expensive city. And I was tired and cranky after a long ride with 2 drama girls ;). But the hotel did bring in a cot so that we could move 2 twin beds and the cot together to make one big bed. Slumber party time!! But seriously, I couldn't believe they would book a tiny little room for a family of 4. Oh well, we were only in Hong Kong for 2 nights and we planned to make the most of it.

Thursday evening we ate a delicious dinner at The Spaghetti House. Spaghetti for the girls, which they ate all of! And crab and shrimp cannelloni for me...yummy!! They we went on a harbor cruise to view the city. They had a music and lights show with all the huge buildings on the harbor. Complete with laser lights and free drinks. The cruise took us an hour and a half. It was relaxing with gorgeous views!

Friday started off with breakfast at McDonalds. McDonalds has never tasted so good :) We then walked around the area by the hotel and on to the ferry dock. Today we headed across the bay on ferry and then meandered our way to the Peak Tram. The Peak Tram was a small tram that we rode to the top of Victoria Peak. The views were incredible; the buildings, the harbor, the boats, the mountains, and the ocean. At the peak were lots of stores with anything from souvenirs to high end shops. We started with lunch at Bubba Gump Shrimp. We indulged on our last day in China! Beers, margaritas, and smoothies all around!! Lunch was delicious!

After lunch we headed up to the Viewing Terrace. From here we could see both sides of Hong Kong Island; the harbor and the ocean. We spent a lot of time just taking in the sights and just being together, away from all the stressors of home.

We did go to the pool for a short time after we got back to the hotel. The pool was not what we had in mind. Since we were at the YMCA they were having swim lessons and team practice. We did play in a little kiddie pool for about 30 minutes. Ava loved that she could splash and walk the whole pool and Ella hung out on the side splashing us. She loves to splash us! And her laugh is the best when she does! We ended the day with Pizza Hut. I know, I know...we looked at other options but weren't up for fish tank picks or guessing about what might be good before getting on a 13 hour flight the next morning. The rest of the evening was spent packing and getting everyone ready to go home. We leave at 8:30 in the morning!! Let's go home!         

Ella Has a US Visa!! June 24th

Today we survived the last big hurdle and Ella's US entry visa came through!! We are all okayed to fly home!

We spent most of the day relaxing and exploring the park a little more. After breakfast we headed to the park to walk around. We found loud croaking frogs and a snake in one of the ponds, waterfalls, and beautiful flowers. I know I keep saying this but we need parks like this in the US. While at the park we also went for a boat ride. The girls loved it! Ava even got to drive the boat with Grandpa.

The afternoon was perfect for the pool...hot and humid! We swam for several hours. Ava could seriously swim all day if we let her. Ella didn't get in the pool today but she did spend a lot of time on the edge of the pool. She loves being outside and I think she'll love the pool soon. We all had a great time beating the heat!

The Holt group met up at 4pm for group photos in the hotel lobby. I swear this was the longest process trying to get through everyone's cameras. Each time Catherine from Holt took the picture there was a chorus of “cheeeeeese”. LOL!! We had lots of on lookers taking pictures too and one guy even offered money to take a picture with the group. I would have taken the money but Catherine shooed him off!!

We are all headed our own directions at this time so lots of good byes tonight. It's hard to say good bye to people who you've spent so much time with, all going through the same process. I'm sure we'll all stay in touch.

For dinner we went back to the noodle restaurant one last time. And ordered the exact same thing we've eaten every time. Seriously the best food!

Tonight we are all packed up to leave for Hong Kong in the morning. We leave for the train station at 10am. One last hotel before heading home. I don't know if I've ever missed home this much. It has been amazing and so worth while to be away from home this long. But now that we have our girl it is time to head home!    

US Consulate Appointment: June 23rd

Today was our last big appointment before Ella can come home with us. We had out US Consulate appointment which is the agency who will issue her visa allowing her to enter the US. Once we pass through immigration in the US, Ella will officially be a US citizen!

The day started super early. We all had to be ready to leave the hotel at 7:30am. However, the day didn't start well because our bus didn't show up on time. Sounds like there was miscommunication with the hotel booking the bus and they weren't even on the way by 7:40am. We were freaking out about what happens if we missed our Consulate appointments. We are ready to go home!! Luckily Holt took care of the issue and even though we were over an hour late the Consulate still saw all of us. Even though this is a big day it is very subdued by government. The interview is done with a glass pane in between us and the worker and the “oath ceremony” occurred again with all the parents at one time and the worker behind glass. Not real classy but regardless this next step was taken care of this morning. And that's the most important! We know in our hearts that we love our daughter and promise to take care of her no matter what.

When we made it back to the hotel, we walked over to grab a quick lunch and then we all split up for a few hours. Ella and I came up to the room for a nap. Ava and Baba headed to the pool to swim. Mark and Kim headed out on their own to do some shopping on Shamian Island. We found out when they returned that they ended up taking a car service from the hotel and paid twice what a taxi cost. But they did make it to where they wanted to go. After Ella and I woke up I started doing a little packing. Only 2 more nights before we head to Hong Kong!

We also went to Yuexiu Park this afternoon to walk around and explore. I wish they had gorgeous parks like this in the states. They're free and big enough to get lost in. Both with lots of history as well as fun things to do as a family. There are 2 of these gorgeous parks near our hotel here. We are spoiled.

We ended the night with McDonalds and a quick stop at the playground. Then baths all around and movie time before bed.

Today was another great day together. Ella and Ava both had great days. A few minor break downs for each of them but nothing compared to what it has been. Ella continues to come out of her shell and we see more and more of her goofy personality all the time. She loves to make people laugh. It's truly amazing how much she has adjusted in just over a week. Unreal how far we all have come. God is so good to us!      

Adoption is Beautiful: June 22nd

We are definitely still adjusting as a family of four. We're having lots of really great moments together along with more difficult ones. The difficult times are made more difficult with the fact that we are in China in a hotel and not at home and the fact that we are all tired. We are sleeping well at night but I think the stress of travel and adding to our family as well as being gone now for 15 days is catching up to all of us. It is not only weighing on the girls' patience but also mine. I am praying for extra patience on a daily basis.

Ella continues to come out of her shell on a daily basis. She is ornery and likes to test the waters. She is going to give us a run for our money. You can just tell by the look on her face when she gets an ornery idea and is ready to try it!! We keep joking that if Ella is quiet for a few minutes we better come see what she is up to. It's obvious that she was spoiled rotten and not told no often. Matt and I are trying to balance building a bond with her but also setting some limits. We can't have her throwing toys or coloring on all the furniture! I think possibly that the last couple of days Matt and called her out on more things than it should have because Ella has been hesitant to go to him. She is coming easily to myself and Nai Nai. We have to correct this a little. So we are correcting the balance of who is calling her out when needed and Baba is getting to play a little more with Ella than discipline. We love that Ella is forming a relationship and trust with her grandparents, don't get me wrong on this. But we don't want to have to start all over with who she is trusting when Nai Nai goes home after we get back from China. Ella first and foremost has to have a trust with Matt and I and then it can go to other people. It's not an awful balance right now we just have to correct it quickly. Ella is calling us Mama and Baba already and giving lots of kisses, smiles, and laughs. Oh how those moments mean so much and fill up my heart!

Ava continues to learn what it means to be a big sister. This is a big job and one that Ava was just thrown into. Most big sisters get the period of time when their baby sibling is an infant. They still have to learn to share time and attention but they are not also having to work with a little brother or sister who doesn't want to share, is hitting and throwing toys, or have to share their food with them. I feel for both my girls and the big adjustment they are going through. Again I think it will help to get home where they can have time together but also will have room to get away from each other when needed. Ava is struggling with Ella “always” getting held by the parent she wants to be with. Or which hand of Matt and I's she wants to hold. Bedtime is hard to get Ella asleep right now which is also a time where Ava struggles because she is wanting snuggles as well. Bedtime often turns into a tantrum because she's having a hard time not getting both of our attentions right in the moment. Ava loves being a helper to us with Ella and loves when she can teach her something or make her laugh. We have quite the little mama and I love watching that!

This sounds like such a negative post and I don't mean it to be. But I want to be real about the struggles and changes that are occurring. Adoption is a beautiful thing; a piece of our family that we would not change. But it is a difficult thing just as many things in life are. It will be difficult for while but will get easier over time. But never through the difficulties have we ever questioned whether this was the right route for us...we know it is and know that our girls were meant for us. We are family! We are beautiful!

Happy Baba's Day: June 21st

Matt is so lucky! He was able to celebrate Father's Day with both of his daughters in China today! That will most likely not happen again so we enjoyed it!

Today was a day free of appointments. We slept in later, had breakfast, and then walked to the park. On they way to the park we walked through a shopping area but Ava freaked out about the mannequins and Ella started crying as well so we high tailed it out of there pretty quickly. Once we were on our way to the park again the girls were much better. The park was gorgeous with a huge lake, lots of beautiful foliage, and walking paths. The girls (and adults) had a lot of fun on the park exercise equipment. The park had elliptical type equipment, leg press machines, pull up bars, and lots of other equipment that we didn't really know how to use but still had fin with. This area of the park was packed! And we had just as much fun people watching as we did playing on the equipment. As we were walking through the park we got caught in a brief down pour. We huddled under a roof but honestly it felt so good and cooled down the temperature for a brief period of time.

We walked back to the hotel a little after lunchtime. We grabbed some sandwiches and headed to the room for naps. Ella ended up napping for an hour and a half. Ava and Matt curled up on one of the beds and watched a movie. And I was able to take a long bath. Successful afternoon!!

After nap time the girls each had a bath. Ava's was more like swim hour but Ella's was quick. She still was not happy with the bath and cried the whole time but also wasn't trying to climb out of the bath; so I'm marking that up as progress :)

Tonight was met up with lots of other Holt families and headed to the Pearl River boat dock for a dinner river cruise. We really enjoyed this the last time we were in Guangzhou and were really looking forward to the boat cruise tonight. It did not disappoint! The views were amazing! The buildings and bridges were all lit up and the girls had a great time! And the breeze on the boat was very welcome. We ordered Papa Johns pizza for dinner which was delivered at the boat dock. This was also a special treat! Since Ava isn't a big fan of pizza and Ella had never had it, Matt also picked up chicken nuggets for the girls. They downed every chicken nugget available! There was also a clown on the boat who we watched for a short amount of time. She was juggling and doing tricks. She also helped the kids who wanted to balance a spinning ball on their finger. Ava was able to do this! I was so proud of her!

Once we arrived back to the hotel we opted for an ice cream treat. This was Ella's first ice cream. Her and Ava shared a vanilla ice cream cup. Ella put the first bite in her mouth and her reaction was hilarious! The look on her face was “Wow! That is cold!!” This spit out the first bite but when we all kept eating it she decided that she better take a few more bites. Each time she had the same funny look on her face but she did eat a few bites with a huge smile on her face. We all enjoyed watching her reaction and the snack.

This was a great day for Baba and for our whole family!

Adjusting to Each Other: June 20th

Ella is doing amazing! I didn't know how she would do after the first few days. Ella didn't cry constantly but there were so many hours of tears for the first 3-4 days together. It makes me laugh now seeing that the tears lasted only 3-4 days because in the middle of it all I felt so helpless to my new daughter and didn't know if she would ever trust us at times. But now just 6 days of being together and her adjustment has been amazing! Our sweet Ella is quite the adapter but we are promising her that she doesn't have to worry about adapting to another family every again. We are family for life!

Ella is now going to both Matt and I as well as Matt's parents. Ella tends to prefer whomever she was with at the start of a task. She'll trade people but that often comes with a few tears if it wasn't her idea. But at this point she isn't as scared when she needs to change the person she is being held by. No more pulling at shirts because she doesn't want to be moved away.

Ella already feels comfortable walking both around the hotel room and in the community. She likes to hold just our pinky finger when she walks if anything. She does not prefer the entire hand!

Ella is already calling us Mama and Baba and reaching for us when she wants us. I can't even put into words how amazing it is to hear my daughter who I hadn't even met a week ago call out for Mama as she is reaching for me! One of the best feelings in all the world.

Ella will need to learn how to play nice with others. Right now she likes to hit and throw toys. It sounds like she was pretty spoiled by her foster parents so I don't know if she was ever corrected or disciplined. We obviously will be doing our best to help her learn how to play nice. This will be a chore as Ella is very obstinate and stubborn. She does not like to be told no. At this point we are trying to balance giving a little and disciplining when needed. We want to continue building her trust without saying no to everything.

Ella and Ava are learning and adjusting to each other as well. Ava has had a difficult adjustment to not being the only one and the center of attention at all times. There have been many tears on her part as well as some tantrums but also lots of one on one talks about reminders of how much we love each of them and that we have to give each other time to adjust. It fills my heart with so much joy when they are playing together. I know that this will become more and more the norm as the adjustment continues.

Our hearts are full of joy with our two beautiful girls! I didn't know I could be this happy!

Shamian Island and Swimming: June 20th

Today was a beautiful family day!! I'm just trying to soak up every moment I have with my sweet family while we are in China with no distractions. Today was a free day so we started with a late breakfast (have I mentioned how amazing the breakfasts are here, yet?!!) and then FaceTime called family. Technology is so cool that we can be half way around the world yet still be able to talk and see their faces. We then headed to Shamian Island to do some shopping. In order to get there we all loaded into a taxi and off we went. The taxi cost us 20 yuan (about $2.50) each way. Super cheap! We went into the first shop where I bought tons of stuff including Chinese dresses for each of the girls, dolls, gifts for family, and gifts for the girls down the road. Ava freaked out in the first shop because she was scared of the mannequins. And Ella was also not super happy. Again most likely due to some fear but also the heat. We shopped around a little more before Kim and I decided that we may have to come back and shop just the two of us. After a couple hours of shopping we headed to grab some lunch at Lucy's Cafe and then walked to a nearby park on the Island. We spent some time letting the girls go down the slides. Ella lit up going down the slides. You could tell she was in her element. We then spent some time walking around the park where you could see the bay and the Dragon Boats. This was a fun time spent dancing together to live music, taking pictures, and just enjoying our time together.

We headed back to the hotel in early afternoon to make it to the pool before it got too hot outside. We were going to beat the heat today!! Ava is a fish and couldn't wait to get going. I didn't want to push Ella to quickly though. She wasn't too found of the pool the first day. But as soon as Ava had her suit on, Ella was asking for her's to be put on. So off we went all ready for the pool. Matt and I took turns hanging out with Ella on the lounge chairs and playing with Ava in the pool. But after some time Ella decided she was ready to get a little closer and it wasn't long before Matt had her in the pool! She didn't stay in the pool too long but did sit on the side where she could put her feet in and splash the water. What a big step! We were having so much fun that I think we spent almost 3 hours in the pool this afternoon. By the time we were done we were hungry!!

For dinner, we headed back to the noodle restaurant. It was so good last time and really how do you beat $8 to feed an entire family. Plus both girls loved the food and ate really well and after a busy day they needed food. The dinner was wonderful again. We pretty much ordered the same dishes tonight but added dumplings. Ella loved the dumplings. I bet she ate at least 6-8 dumplings on her own plus noodles! Ava loved the rice and ate a few noodles as well. Both girls were so tired that they looked like they might fall asleep in their dinners. While Matt and his dad stopped at a local store to pick up a few things, Kim and I headed back to the hotel to get the girls to bed.

Bedtime has not been the easiest with Ella. She sleeps all night long once she's asleep but it takes her a little time to calm down at night enough to sleep. Tonight Ava asked to watch a movie while they laid in bed for sleep and we agreed knowing that they would likely be awake a little longer than planned. Ella did pretty well for awhile until she wanted to start getting out of bed. Ella does not like being told no so this did not go over well. After several attempts to get her calmed down she did crash. We knew she was exhausted but she just needed to give herself a chance to sleep.

Today was our best day so far with the girls getting along and playing as well as Ella continuing to adjust to us. It's been fun and amazing to watch her settle in to our family in really a quick amount of time. She fits just perfectly!

Guangzhou Zoo: June 19th

Today we opted to head to the zoo with several other Holt families. We knew it was going to be hot and humid (heat index reached 106) but we also have a lot of free days in Guangzhou and don't want to fill them all around the hotel. The zoo itself is amazing! We started with a Safari tram ride which is my favorite part. There are so many parts of this zoo and things that the keepers do that would never be allowed in the states but it makes for a really cool experience. On the tram ride there are keepers who throw food to the animals as we ride by in order to bring them out to put on a good show. While on the tram we saw tons of animals but to name a few: lions, white tigers, wolves, bears, zebras, giraffes, elephants. Ava and Ella loved the tram ride. We knew Ava would love it but it was fun to see Ella experience it for the first time.

After the tram ride we separated and all planned to meet up again at the end of the day. Now we were on to the walking part of the zoo and this is when it hit us just how hot it was!! Our first stop was at the icee machine for a cold drink! LOL! The Guangzhou zoo is beautiful with lots of gorgeous foliage and vines everywhere. We made it to the elephant show where the elephants played basketball and soccer. We also saw the koala bears. But a favorite part had to be the panda bears. The poor panda bears were so hot even that they were laying on blocks of ice! And they still looked hot!! They are so cute! I'd really just like to give them a hug. We saw monkeys hanging from nets above our heads. Ava was hollering at the keeper to “be careful!” We also got to feed the giraffes. Both the girls got into this. Ella was a little braver than Ava and was okay being a little closer to the giraffes but both girls loved feeding the giraffes.

Ella was off and on a happy camper while we were at the zoo. I honestly think that when she was unhappy was more because of the heat than it was the confusion and scared that we've seen. She was so happy and content when we were on the tram, watching the elephant show, and numerous times when we were inside the buildings looking at animals. But if we were outside for too long she was not a happy camper.

Once we got back on the bus to go home Ava quickly dozed off while Ella was ready to play. Ella was in a great mood eating corn by the cup (yes, you read that right), hitting knuckles, blowing kisses, stealing Baba's cap, and whatever else she could find to play with on the bus.

The rest of the evening consisted of bath, picking up dinner at McDonalds, playing in the room and bedtime. Lots and lots of smiles and laughs today! Loving watching her adjust and make progress.

Medical Check for Visa: June 18th

This morning Ella had her Visa medical check with the doctors and nurses as well as had to have her picture taken for her Visa. We started with all 20 Holt families loading the bus to head to the medical center. Once we arrived the kids first had their picture taken. Ella's day was going great until this point. For the picture they wanted her to sit by herself in a chair and promised it would only take 2 seconds...yeah right?!! They don't know my daughter!! We tried once and as soon as I tried to set her in the chair, she grabbed at me with all her might. I thought she was going to pull my shirt off at one point! When this didn't work they thought maybe I could hold her but she was so upset by this time that nothing was going to work. We went to the back of the line. Matt and I did my best to comfort her to give it another shot. It took a little time but Matt pulled out the fruit snacks and we were able to get a decent picture. Now on to the hard part :)

We started the medical check with height, weight, and temperature with the nurses. Each step of this process was hard as they had to take her out of our arms for the exam but we knew it was a step we had to get through. Deep breaths and keep moving. Next we went to ENT. They checked ears and mouth. No concerns noted other than mention of her cleft palate which of course we already knew. Next was the general exam with the doctor. He reviewed her records that we had received and then listened to her. She was still coughing some at this point and he asked how long that had been going on. We told him at least 4 days since we had picked her up. I then asked if her lungs sounded ok and he assured me they were clear. We then laid her down on the table so that he could fully examine her. It went quick and we were on to our last stop. The last stop was the blood draw specifically to check for TB. This room was kids and nurses only; no parents allowed. So you had to stand in line outside the door and then hand your child over one by one for the blood draw. Horrible! I hated handing my daughter off to nurse but on the plus side we were able to console her as soon as she was done. It was over quick and we were done!!! One more big step done!

The rest of the day was awesome!! As soon as we were done with the medical appointment we headed outside and Ella finally wanted to walk. We knew she could walk but hadn't seen it quite yet. The entire afternoon was awesome! We went to lunch and Ella felt comfortable enough to walk to the restaurant as well as sit by herself in a chair. Huge progress!! Ava and Ella shared chicken nuggets for lunch and loved them.

Matt went to a meeting to fill out Ella's Visa paperwork at 3pm and I tried to lay the girls down for a nap. I was unsuccessful! LOL! We ended up watching a movie and then headed to the pool. I was hoping Ella would get in but she was scared of the water. Ava is a fish and jumped right in with Grandpa. Ella hung out with Nai Nai and I on the pool deck and eventually ended up taking a short nap on me while we laid on the pool lounger. The pool felt great!

For dinner we went to a close by noodle restaurant. This may have been the best dinner we've had. Noodles, fried rice, and more noodles...all for $8! That fed all 6 of us. We stopped by the 7 Eleven on our way back to the hotel to pick up some essentials: wine, beer, yogurt, crackers, and M and M's.

Back in the hotel we tried bath number 2. It went a little better than the first. We got her hair washed this time so I'll call that progress. She still didn't want to sit in the bath tub but it will be small steps.

A great day we had together! We're going to get this family of 4 thing yet!

Traveling to Guangzhou: June 17th

On Wednesday of this week we packed up and our entire group flew to Guangzhou. Guangzhou is the last “have to” stop for the US Consulate to issue visas for our Ella to enter the US. The travel day itself was long, and tested all of our patience. Ella is still scared to death and uncertain with any little move. So you can imagine that she spent a lot of the day crying as we were hustling about. And Ava had one of her roughest days as well. I was holding Ella in the carrier and Ava wanted me to carry her as well. Everywhere Ella was, Ava wanted. My sweet, tenderhearted girl is loving her sister but having a really hard time adjusting to sharing our attention. I'm glad Matt and I saw this coming and were somewhat emotionally prepared for it. And thank God Matt's parents are here to help! Don't think we would have made it through the airport without them!!

Us with Echo

As we were trying to get through security in Wuhan, the security guards slowed our line way down and then started taking our electronics to another area. We were freaking out! Kim thought maybe they found something on her computer that they were looking into. They had taken Ava's blanket to go through the xray machine even though we were stalled and Ella was just scared and crying. We did have one person in our group who could speak Mandarin and they were able to find out that the issue was that their xray machine stopped working and nothing to do with us!! They switched us to a different line and got us right through all while apologizing for the inconvenience. I appreciated that but goodness!

Once we were on the plane, things calmed down for a while. I held Ella and Ava sat in the seat next to us. We ate a lot of snacks and treats that I had brought. In fact, I think half the bag was empty before we ever took off, but everyone was happy!! On the flight there were lots of laughs and fun. Ella seems to be doing great as long as there are no changes or movements going on. Hard to limit all the movements on a travel day ;) We finally arrived in Guangzhou after what seemed like an eternity.

We made it out with all our luggage and everyone in the group. Success!! And then we stepped out into the very hot and humid air of Guangzhou. But we were here. Home sweet home for the next 8 days. We were definitely ready to be in one place for a while.

That evening we headed to a restaurant in the hotel that served steaks. Boy did that sound good...good until we saw the prices!! $100 a steak; yeas dollars not yuan! I don't remember ever walking out of a restaurant but tonight we did just that. By that time the girls were done and so was this mama. We opted for room service and night time.