The Great Wall

Booked our Great Wall tour today. We decided as a family to go to a "ruined" section of the wall - the least touristy. It's called Ruined Badaling Great Wall. It's an all-day tour, with lots of hiking. No cheatin' cable car ascent, like the touristy sections. (7,000 miles away from somewhere we've never been, and we're being all snobby.)

It's going to be pretty cool, I'm thinking - by the way, it may be visible from the Space Station, but only using enhancing lenses, and it's not visible at all from the moon!

Here is a picture of part of the section we'll be hiking . . . Yikes!

So, how do you decide

Say you're going to see the USA for the first time - and you are scheduled to come to Washington DC for 2 days, Boston for 6 days and Miami for 6 days - and during those times most of your time is scheduled. That which is not scheduled, you are encouraged not to tour - you have something you're involved in. But, you have a few extra days at the start where (given the proper resources) you can see anything in the country that you want. Of course, you know about the USA - but you do have resources - friends, books, the internet. You do, however, have very limited time to make the decision. And, you understand that when you get here, your knowlege of the language and customs is limited, even though some in your group have been studying.

So how would you decide? Top 10? Top 4? Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Yellowstone, Great Lakes, Rockies, Pacific Coast, Gulf Coast, Atlantic Coast, Chicago, LA, New York? Haven't even started to mention other great places e.g. Smokies, New England, NM, AZ, UT, etc.

Happy Birthday, MeiLi!!!!!

FIVE exclamation points for you, because you turned FIVE years old!! I'm sad we missed it, but you know what? We made a cake for you - it was lemon flavored. And we put candles in the cake, because that's what we like to do for birthday girls! And then we ate the cake and thought of you with every yummy bite! I know that in China, little girls have noodles for their birthdays, because it stands for "long life". What a neat idea! We love noodles too!

This will be your last birthday without us. We'll cook noodles and bake you a cake every year from now on!

We like to give presents when someone has a birthday, and guess what?! We have presents for you, and we're bringing them to China for you! I can't wait!

We have already found a friend for you! Her name is Nina, she is 7 years old, and she came from China last year. Whenever we see her, she asks, "Where's MeiLi?" It's so exciting that she's waiting for you too! She even made a pretty paper butterfly for you to have when you get home. (Thank you Nina, if you're reading this!)

Well, sweetie pie, it won't be long now . . . our trip to China is all we can think about, and we're so so so happy! I love you with all my heart!

Jesus, help MeiLi ShiQiao know that You love her, and that we love her, and that she has a forever family!

Love,
Mommy

International flights

In talking to Bill and Michelle a few nights ago they asked if we had ever flown internationally before. Carolyn answered yes, she had been to England on tour with her high school choir (she played piano and sang in some amazing cathedrals).

I was reminded that I’ve actually had one prior international flight as well. I’m wondering if this will be a similar experience.

In 1967 (I was 10 at the time), my parents decided to take my brother, grandmother and me to Expo ’67, the world’s fair in Montreal, Quebec. My sister was considered too young to remember (and, at 4, probably so), she was out-placed to our aunt (my mom’s sister) and uncle’s in metropolitan White Pine MI.

The trip went as follows:

· Dad rented a Beechcraft Bonanza (single engine, 5 passenger, low wing, V tail). He chose this because we were going relatively far and it had a relatively fast cruising speed when compared to other small, single-engine craft that were available in northern WI.

· Departure was AM – the trip would take we would be much of the day.

· Departure probably from Hayward WI (extreme northern WI – think fishing and lumberjacks)

· We flew to Sault Ste Marie Ontario / landing to refuel and go through customs. (about 350 mi east – at the eastern tip of Lake Superior). Ontario is English speaking, eh? (Well, sort of.) Travel time, 1.5-2 hours.

· Customs to a 10 year old seemed to take forever. In actuality I have no idea how long we were there or what the heck they were talking about. We had lunch as well.

· Sault Ste Marie to Montreal is over 500 mi east – another 3 hours in the air. I remember seeing strings of lakes in either Ontario or Quebec, and my mom telling me they were the hoof prints of Babe the Blue Ox. (We may have traveled, but were never far from the lumberjack theme.) As she and Granny were the only flight attendants, and Granny did not disagree, I believed her :-)

· As it turns out, Quebec is not English speaking – and we were not landing at the main airport – and had difficulty finding our airport when the only instructions were in French. This was not the pinnacle of planning or preparation - we “toured” the city for about an hour until they sent up another plane for us to follow in. I remember it was evening – getting to be dusk.

· Eventually, land we did. As there are no restrooms in a Bonanza, this was a good thing.

· My parents rented a convertible and an apartment, and I believe we stayed more than a week.

· We departed from Montreal to go south to Boston (yet another foreign country) to my other aunt (my dad’s sister) and uncle’s. The traffic in Boston, to a 10 year old from Drummond WI (population 175, and we didn’t live in town) was outrageous – but it was great fun to hang out with my cousins.

· We returned direct to northern WI. I don’t remember anything about the flight back – maybe Dale does.

We’re booked on a Boeing 777 on the way out and 747 on the way back. So, similar experience coming up? I hope we find airports. And what about the traffic – can it be as bad as Boston?

D

Preparations

This is Doug - it's been a while since I've posted. Just wanted you to know what I'm thinking and feeling.

First off - I'm excited - very much looking forward to and anticipating the trip. Can't wait to meet our new daughter.

But I'm also sober. I think about the scripture:

1 Cor 10:12 Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.

I’m thankful for all the preparations. I’m thankful for our friends Vince & Jerusha (who brought home a 13-month-old boy last week) and Bill & Michelle (who brought home a seven-year-old girl 7- months ago) – for their willingness to share with us the joys and the difficulties of their adoptions. Knowledge in advance makes me feel more prepared – at least to set my expectations. They are also helping us make choices in advance about what to pay for and arrange in advance – because once you arrive there would be no way to figure it out on your own. They have been so helpful.

Regarding other experiences in life that seem like preparations for now, further back in time, we’ve been good with inviting a stranger into our home to live, to be loved and to love. We hosted 11 Master’s Commission student and one Transit intern, albeit their ages were 18 to 28, not 5 (though some were much younger emotionally – kidding – well, sort of). Sometimes they arrived in shock (and if not in shock on arrival, then, we worked them into shock after a few days.) From this there are benefits that show up now - it has given our family some built in flexibility, as well as an awareness of when we can take on something and when we can’t – but this event is a different in many ways. There is no turfing this kid to another host parent if it doesn't work out – no calling Brenda or Lloyd late in the evening and saying “here’s the issue.” Support is available – but not quite the same – we were not primarily responsible. That was a rent – this is a buy.

Even the terrorist quaker parrot seems to be here as a form of prep for the days ahead – talk about your exercise in patience with the needy and aggressive – not that we’ll end up there. (I’m kidding around again here folks - laugh with me)

But ultimately we don’t know what we are in for, do we? We can prepare; we can read blogs; we study Holt materials; we read books; we can talk to others – but the upcoming experience is going to be uniquely ours. There may be things about it we don’t anticipate – that we have severe difficulty with – that may take us to the end of ourselves.

Yet even the end of ourselves is familiar territory. After almost 30 years of marriage, you have to become OK with the thought that there are times when you are both going to run out of gas at the same time – that there are moments when neither of you has anything left to give – that ultimately there are moments that you cannot meet each other’s needs. We’re weak fallen human beings – this is inevitable. In our marriage, that is the moment that we both stop and wait in prayer on Jesus; we wait for the Giver of Life to give us life. (We pray other times too, and He never fails, but this is the time when He REALLY never has failed us.)

Our adoption may go really easy, well, joyfully – it could go really tough – we don’t know. I hope I’m not trusting in my strength – I know One who has the strength to see us through. Regardless, I also know there is no one that I would rather go though it with than Carolyn. My wife and our daughters – we have a history where we pull together when we need each other. I’m relying on what we’ve experienced and built – but I’m taking heed too – not thinking at all that I have this figured out. Grace to us all on this tour... your prayers are appreciated.

Doug

We're going we're going we're going!!!

Holt International confirmed our dates today. So we got on the phone (and email) with some travel agents to get an idea of flights to and from China. Amazingly, we even got that settled today!

We're flying from Kansas City to Shanghai. Then we'll be flying out of Beijing back to Kansas City 3 weeks later. Yup! Crazy or not, we're spending 3 weeks in China!

So I was thinking that a fun goal would be to experience as many forms of transportation that we can arrange. We're starting out flying of course, then we have a major train ride planned (Shanghai to Beijing) with stops along the way. We'll shoot for rickshaws (pedicabs), taxis, buses and boats (from river cruise ships to Chinese-style Gondolas in the "Venice of the East" - Suzhou), cable cars up to the Great Wall and luges down.  The girls have even suggested camel-rides in the Gobi desert.

We're planning on blogging most days in China, so among other things, you'll know how our "transportation" tally is going!

Didn't expect the excitement symptoms . . .

Not going to bed. Not: not sleeping, but Not: going to bed. I am too excited to go to bed. I stayed up all night twice this week.

It's not fear, although I really thought I'd be fearful when the date (to get on a plane that will fly over the north pole) gets close. It's a little bit of anxiety, but mostly pure thrilling excitement.

God's been at work in us from the moment we decided to adopt, and He lets us know He's equipping us for every step. The step I'm on right now requires me not to have fear nor anxiety. Instead, I feel like whatever happens, He'll be there to provide just what we need to get through it.

Our friends (one of the couples we've been "in process" with) just got back from China 2 days ago. We read their blog every day they were in China. They had lots of ups and downs throughout their trip but it was such an encouragement to us because they handled everything with faith and hope, and at every step, they chose to love. Thanks, J & V, for your testimony!! We hope we do as well!

Please continue to pray for us this coming week as we nail down our dates and start to make all the final trip preparations!

TA - stands for TRAVEL APPROVAL!!!!!!!!!!!!

We received travel approval today, which is China's way of saying, Yup, your paperwork is all here, and you are now invited to come to China to get your kiddo! Oh my Oh my Oh my!!! We're zipping around, not knowing what to do first! It's finally time to pack!

Actually, now Holt's staff in China will get to work on government appointments for us. Next week we'll have dates and buy our plane tickets.