Appointments and Appearances, Take "I've Lost Count"

Just like in Wyatt's province, the day after receiving her, we traveled back to the civil affairs office to finalize our adoption and complete the adoption registration.  We had to promise not to neglect and abuse our new daughter and vow never to abandon her - easy promises to make!!  We had a picture taken for our adoption registration and then pictures taken with the Civil Affairs official.  We received the official registration documents and can now officially say that Jubilee is a Robinson!!

After finishing the documents required at the Civil Affairs office, we headed over to the notary office to have everything stamped up.  It was quick.  Riley stayed in the van with the Johnsons.  Thank you, Johnsons!!

Riley has struggled with the amount of sitting and waiting.  I know many have shared that their young ones have done well on this trip, but it's been very hard on ours.  I am certain that the hundred acres behind our house and the hours of playing every day make for a much different little boy.  It's just very hard to provide him with the same level of activity here and it shows in his behavior. He's getting quite good at eye-rolling.

I was so thankful for Savannah Johnson and her patience today.  She's probably thankful that she doesn't have a little brother! 

I think next week will be easier for Riley since we have more fun things planned (zoo, gardens, park, outings).  I hope so, anyway!

With an afternoon free of appointments and appearances, we filled the hours trying to keep 4 children happy. Jubilee is still crying much of the time.  She's very scared and doesn't handle unexpected moves very well.  If you can imagine, our hotel room is filled with boys making near constant unexpected moves.  I know she will adjust in time but right now crying erupts nearly every few minutes.  

Riley and I explored the entire hotel today.  We've been in and out of shops and around the gardens a thousand time.  There's a children's playroom that Riley ransacked and put back together.  The escalators are good for a few minutes entertainment.  His favorite thing to do is look at the fish.  They have gorgeous koi ponds and beautiful paths that capture his attention for the longest period of time (maybe 10 minutes).  Do other people have 5 year olds so active?  After some one on one time with my little man, he was much, much happier.

We're hoping to get to the park as soon as we've mastered having two babies.  I know we've mastered this type of scenario before, but we weren't in China.  Back home there aren't a billion people and cars and buses to consider when planning our outings.  I'm sure people can tell we aren't city folk.  We're getting better at it but you couldn't call us city slickers yet!  

After a nice nap we headed out on the town.  Riley doesn't complain about walking and we've done quite a lot of walking. There are plenty of restaurant choices and I was happy to have Mexican food for dinner.  We ate at Tekila's and it was very good.  (We had to ask for chips and salsa.  They weren't just served as we sat down.)  The new little Robinsons LOVE salsa.  Actually, Jubilee gave us her first little grin after a tiny taste of salsa.  Clearly our two new ones speak our culinary language!  We're gonna be just fine!

Despite the fact that all the children slept well through the night last night, I was exhausted today.  I'm a bit concerned about the level of lightheadedness and sleepiness and wonder if it's normal to randomly fall asleep without notice.  I think I fell asleep while talking to the kids back home on FaceTime.  Sorry kids!  If it doesn't get better I may need to visit the Western doctor in this hotel, or maybe the spa  :).  

Dean and I haven't had a conversation in days!  I hope I don't sound like a whiner.  I'm really not complaining.  It just feels more like we're manning neighboring battle stations than it feels like we're traveling together.  Not what I expected.  This is certainly not a vacation!  We might need a vacation when we get home, though.  I'm hoping that this exhaustion will subside and we'll get into a little bit of a happier routine tomorrow.  

Night, folks!

Jubilee

Today was a beautiful day!!  We barely made it to the breakfast buffet because the Robinson boys like to sleep late!  Even Wyatt was still sleeping when 9:00 rolled around this morning.  Two days with his new family and he's already a late sleeper! I managed to sleep until 7:30 for a change…Praise God!!  The breakfast buffet closes at 10:00.  We made it downstairs with only 20 minutes to spare.

Our guide, Rebecca, is fabulous!  She is so incredibly organized.  We met with her at 11:00 to sort through the paperwork and prepare packets for our various appointments and appearances.  With everything sorted and stacked and marked with stickies, we returned to the room to pack up the diaper bag and gather our things together to go meet Jubilee!!

I thought 2:00 would never get here!  We met Rebecca and our new friends, the Johnsons, in the lobby at 2:00 and then took a short ride together to the civil affairs office. There's a beautiful waiting room on the 8th floor where we sat and waited for the children to arrive.    While we waited for the children to arrive, Rebecca carefully went over the paperwork with us and made sure everything was accurate. Riley and Wyatt were all over the place.  Wyatt hasn't quite figured out that he's with us and Riley has decided that he is a toddler instead of a 5 year old, so I was praying that we'd be able to hold it together during the wait.  I'm so thankful we didn't have to wait long.  

Auntie Amy from Jubilee's orphanage arrived at the door with a beautiful little pink bundle and my heart leapt out of my chest.  Tate was snapping pictures and I was following them like a glassy eyed stalker.  Rebecca saw the look on my face and my not-so-subtle lurch toward the door and told me that I had to wait a just bit longer.  They took Jubilee through a curtained door to a small room beside the waiting room.  Torture!  After a few minutes they were coming back through the door with her.  This time we got to greet her sweet little self and 

After a few minutes they were coming back through the door with her.  This time we got to greet her sweet little self and then she was in my arms.

Amy and I moved to a section of the couch to try to calm Jubilee down and talk a bit about her schedule and needs.   Auntie Amy is from Hong Kong and speaks English….thank you, God for this time with someone so important to our sweet Jubilee.  There are no adequate words to describe the multitude of emotions that were coursing through my heart and mind at that moment.  Even trying to think about it now brings sobs to my throat.  I'm so glad Dean recorded mine and Amy's conversation because I'm having trouble remembering everything that was said.  God has shown himself in mighty ways through our journey to Jubilee.  I'm so thankful for His hand upon our little girl and humbled that we get to be her parents.  

NOTE:  For those of you traveling with young children already in the home or those of you adopting two children simultaneously…it seemed like there was no way to avoid relegating one parent to the status of bystander.  Dean and I didn't talk about this beforehand and I feel pretty bad about that.  It seems that with Wyatt and Jubilee both the cameras were thrust into his hands, as well as the task of keeping up with Wyatt and Riley, while the babies made their way into my arms.  Those that know me well aren't surprised, I suppose, but I promise I wasn't trying to be a baby hog.  We just didn't talk about it ahead of time, and there wasn't time to talk once she arrived.  It just happened. 

After we left the Civil Affairs office we made a stop at Aeon, a department store close to our hotel, to pick up a few necessities.  The Johnsons have adopted a teenage girl, so they needed to buy a translator from the electronics department.   While they shopped, we explored the store and were surprised to see things like the "As Seen on TV" section and Mother's Day signs everywhere.  If it weren't for the Chinese signs everywhere, I would've thought we were in the JC Penny's.   Jubilee peered up at me from the Ergo every few minutes, probably wondering who I am and why she's with me.  Every now and then she would cover her eyes with her tiny hands or her little blanket and just sob.  My heart breaks every time.

Armed with diapers and noodle bowls, we headed back to the hotel to hunker down for the night.  The first battles in attachment and bonding were fought, and the ranks on both side were exhausted by bedtime.  

I'm going to write more about what attachment and bonding look like for us here in China but my eyes just won't stay open tonight to tackle that.  

Pray for my babies, please.  This is hardest on them.  Night!

Adoption Registration and Travel to Guangzhou

(I'll update this post with pictures when I can hold my eyes open longer.)

I knew today was going to be a long day with a lot squeezed into the daylight hours, but I never dreamed it would begin so early!  A big "thank you, man!" goes out to Dean Robinson for setting the alarm for 2:30 am and then sleeping through the sound while I hollered, "Dean, turn the alarm off! Dean!  Dean!!"  The man can sleep through anything but a dog choking!!  He'll probably blame Riley for setting the alarm for such an ungodly hour, but since I'm up and at 'em at 2:30 in the morning and Dean's sleeping, I'm totally blaming him.

Breakfast was sweet as several families with children they received yesterday were dining in the restaurant with us.  We swapped stories about our first day with our children and chatted about the cities we'd be traveling to.  In Henan Province, adoptive families must travel to the city of their child's birth in order to apply for their child's passport.  There were no other families traveling to Xinxiang City where our little one was born. 

Celine picked us up at 8:00 in the lobby and we headed out the door.  We first returned to the Civil Affairs office to complete the registration of our adoption.  We were the only family there.  The building was quiet and Wyatt played happily the whole time.  Such a nice change from yesterday!  We were there for only a minute and had our picture taken with our adoption registration and the Civil Affairs representative.  We then drove back toward our hotel, stopping at the notary's office to have our registration notarized.  They took our picture and offered congratulations and we headed back out the door.  These events were monumental - life changing for our new son and for our family.   My heart is full and we are very happy, but everything seems very, very foggy in my mind.  I know I should have more heartfelt reflections to share, but it's hard to feel anything but exhaustion right this very minute.

After the notary office we headed back to the hotel to pack up and check out.  We ended up with a few hours to spare so we ate some noodle bowls in the room and put the little boys down for a nap.  Celine returned at 1:15 to pick us up.  We checked out, loaded up and hit the road for Xinxiang City, 2 hours away.  We weren't there long, maybe 30 minutes.  We only had to file copies of our adoption registration with the police department and pick up Wyatt's. passport.  I know it seems inconvenient to travel so far for such a small little task, but here if you just go flow you'll be happier.  After a sweet little encounter with Riley and the squatty potty we returned to van to head back to the Zhongzhou.  By the way, I totally get split pants now.  Dean said that helping Riley go to the bathroom was a nightmare.  (So glad I missed that one!)  He had to take Riley's pants and shoes off and hold him and the clothes up off of the wet bathroom floor.  The platform around the squatty potty isn't really designed for little people.  Split pants for a little squatter would've been just the ticket.  (You could've called out a "mayday", Dean.  I would've come to help you -and take a picture of the great fun!!
I was hoping Riley and Wyatt would sleep on the way back to Zhengzhou but they didn't.  Jumping all over the van and playing different songs on both mine and Dean's phones on the highest volume possible was way more fun.  Don't judge me, folks.  There are no seat belts and I was tired of saying in my singsong voice, "Let's sit down now.  Let's be calm.  Remember to be kind. Only one song at a time. Let's not pull hair.  Let's not pinch."  It might have been weak to just let them go, but enduring Third Day's "I wanna be a rockstar" and Matthew West belting out , "Hello, My name is...", was easier than fighting the fighting our two littliest during the LONG RIDE! I'm so sorry, Celine  She probably breathed a huge sign of relief when we finally arrived at the security counter at the airport. 

Celine took us to a Chinese restaurant on the way to the airport.  I wish I hadn't gone to the bathroom.  In an effort to be positive about our experiences here, I will reserve all comments.  We ate there anyway.  Call me brave or call me stupid.  I think the exhaustion has effected my ability to worry about germs and safety.  I figured if I was in a little village in the eastern mountain of Honduras I would be willing and eager to share a meal with the people there, even if the surrounding weren't what made me feel the safest.  Riley and Tate complained the whole time.  It's been a long time since they've eaten Western food.  They've done so well and Riley just wants a cheeseburger!!  The food was very good.  We ate sweet and sour pork, dumplings, green beans and eggplant and noodles.  It was strange that the restaurant does not serve anything to drink but hot water but no biggie.  We've got three hours to kill at the airport.  Drinks aplenty there!!

The airport in Zhengzhou has a nice indoor playground and the boys had a great time running, climbing and playing with a few other little boys there.  Wyatt was precious and giggled and laughed the whole time.  I was thankful for the time there because both Riley and Wyatt were asleep before the plane took off and didn't wake up until we were at the gate and leaving the plane.

Rebecca picked us up at the airport.  She's amazing.  Y'all, Lifeline is amazing!  We have wanted for nothing (but good Internet) our entire time here!  Our guides, Helen, Celine and Rebecca, are sweet, kind and helpful.  They tell us what to do, when to do it and how to do it.  Our drivers must have been former race car or demolition derby drivers.  They've gotten us safely from place to place, though I will say my heart jumped into my throat a time or two. People drive a little wild here, y'all.  There are no seat belts or carseats, or expectation that you must drive on the right side of the road .  If you will soon be traveling to China, gear yourself up for this now, folks.  Remember, expectations higher than reality will equal disappointment! Our Western ideas about traffic flow, the painted lines on the road, playing highway chicken, seat belts, and carseats don't apply here. Think the 70s and the back end of a green Oldsmobile station wagon!  We survived!  It will all be okay!!

Our hotel is luxury to someone like me that is surrounded every day by the chaos of so many peanut butter covered fingers and baskets of laundry piled to the ceiling.  They replace the flowers in the lobby every day and it's quiet and has waterfalls.  I know a third grader could've written a more eloquent description of this amazing hotel, but I'm tired and excited about tomorrow.  In about 12 hours we will have Jubilee in our arms!! 

I can't wait to share the details of another new little Robinson tomorrow!

Wyatt's Adoption Day

What a morning!! In Henan province, adoptions take place at the Civil Affairs office in Zhengzhou.  There are many adoptive families staying in our hotel and the hotels around us.  We met a few families is the lobby waiting for Celine to pick us up.  There was a buzz of excitement in the air knowing that we were all less than an hour away from meeting our new children. 

The drive to the Civil Affairs office took about 30 minutes.  My heart was pounding the whole time.  I've read enough blogs and seen enough videos to have put together some expectations about how this would all go down.

It didn't go down that way.

When we arrived there were a few other families that we had seen at the hotel already waiting.  No children had been brought in to meet them yet.  Our son was standing in the middle of the room, though, which surprised me.  The sudden change in my expression probably terrified him.  He ran for cover!

His caregiver recognized me and we moved together to a black couch just to the side of the officer's desk and close to a small play area.  After we sat down I reached out and picked Wyatt up and he was not happy about that.  My "food = happiness" strategy sprung to my mind and I asked the boys to bring out the provisions.  It was pretty effective until his caregiver stepped away for a minute. 

 

 

A fierce storm I've never seen the likes of unleashed within him as she walked away from us.  He was so scared and angry and refused to be consoled.  We bounced and rocked and tried to feed.  We drug out the juice and a few toys.  After a bit, his caregiver returned and took him from my arms for a bit.  We took off a layer of his clothes because he was sweating profusely.  He calmed down, until it was time once again to move into my arms. 

He rocked a fit twice as fierce as before as his caregiver walked out the front door.  My heart broke.  I would've been overcome with emotion and come unglued if I thought I could hold onto him at the same time.  Dean was in awe.  We've parented a lot of young ones, but never have we seen anything like the grief, anger and anguish our little guy endured during our first hour together.

While I was taken off guard by the strength of our little guy, the grief and anguish was to be expected.  Wyatt has been in a small group foster home where he has received very good care since he was 6 months old.  He was very attached and it broke his little heart to come to us.  From a bonding/attachment perspective, what we are seeing is a good sign and we are immeasurably thankful for the love that he has received during his little life. 

While all of this is going on, other families around us were receiving their children.  There was a lot of crying.  The room was loud and overwhelming.  I moved with Wyatt over to the play area and sat down on the floor.  NOTE:  The play area here is not very clean.  Sitting on the floor probably looked irresponsible to some onlookers, but it was the best way I could think of to do some heavy rocking.  We've got baby wipes and Germ-ex a plenty.  I think we'll be okay.

When the play area rocking didn't work I moved back to the couch and held him Ergo style, placed my chin on his head and started humming in a  rhythmic pattern.  This worked!  He finally quit struggling against me and relaxed.  As long as I kept humming with my chin resting on his head, he stayed calm.  Because Wyatt has limited hearing (and he couldn't understand my words anyway) I think humming that way was soothing.  Within a few minutes he drifted off to sleep. 

Next up came documents, signatures and red thumb prints.  Wyatt signed with his foot in his sleep.  Precious!

 

 

 

Just before the left the Civil Affiars office, we had to have our picture made for our adoption decree.  Wyatt had to be awake.  I was dreading having to wake him up, but he did just fine.  He was in a bit of a stupor, poor little guy.

We hopped in the van, and as he woke up, Wyatt was much more content, especially after Dean whipped out the iPhone.  We're so weak.  We've been his parents for an hour and we've already pulled out the iPhone.  Because of his hearing situation, he presses the phone close to his forehead or the side of his head to feel the vibrations.  We drove along listening to Chris Tomlin sing "How Great is our God" world edition and I wept.  SO THANKFUL! LOVE!

Before heading back to the hotel, we made a stop at….can you guess?  WALMART.  The Walmart in Zhengzhou is a pretty neat place.  You know the moving sidewalks they have in the airport?  Walmart has them, too, except they take you between floors.  The sides of the moving walkway were lined with freezer type cases filled with all the stuff you need to make it through a day.  You just leisurely move along grabbing things as you pass and put them in your basket.  I'm thinking we need these in America.  Seriously, my shopping experience would be more pleasant.  I also thinking it's entirely fitting that within a few hours of becoming a Robinson, Wyatt is in a Walmart.  Hope you like it, little guy!  Our Walmart runs are frequent!

After Walmart we returned to the hotel for an afternoon of chilling together as a new family.  Wyatt and Riley played (apologies go out to people below us and around us and above us, as well.)  The ball we bought at Walmart was a big hit and finally we found a hallway filled with conference rooms to unleash the two in a less peace-disturbing way. 

It's nap time now.  Our new little prince is tucked into his sweet baby bed, snoozing away.  I tried to cuddle up with Wyatt in our bed but mean-ole-Dean wouldn't have anything to do with that. I'm guessing he's not going to be supportive of any more co-sleeping babies, since Riley is 5 and still with us!  (Actually, the past two nights Riley has slept in his own bed, Dean!! It's just one little nap).

Thanks for following along, friends - for encouraging us, praying for us and supporting us throughout this mighty work of God in our family and in the life of our new son!

Day Five: The Great Wall and Zhengzhou

After gorging ourselves one last time at the breakfast buffet, we checked out and loaded up the van at 8:30, venturing out to the Great Wall of China for a half day of hiking, listening to Riley whine about hiking, and then hiking some more. 

We visited the section of the Wall known as Mutianyu.  It is a little further from Beijing than the other frequented sections of the Wall. It took us about an hour and a half to get there. There were many visitors but the volume of people was definitely less than other historic sites we visited in Beijing. 

Mutianyu is a beautiful little village.  I loved it!  After parking, we headed up the hill to the ticket booth and Helen helped us buy our tickets.  It was a holiday weekend so we didn't have to pay for Riley, which was a plus. We headed to the restroom before moving toward the starting point for our hike.  NOTE:  The men's room has a squatty potty but the women's bathrooms had toilets here.  Nice!  Don't forget the toilet paper.  Dean scolded me for not telling him there would be no paper.  Oops!  Sorry, Dean.  I hope everything worked out okay in there.  :)

We purchased tickets for the chair lift up and the toboggan down.  I was a bit nervous about Riley and the chair lift, but he hopped on like a champ, no problems.  It was a bit scary because there was nothing really holding us in the chair.  The lap bar kept hopping around, which was nerve wrecking.  The ride wasn't long and we hopped off with no problems. 

Helen left us to explore the wall, and we agreed to meet back in 2 hours.  We didn't make it 2 hours.  I knew we would have some whining from Riley about the hiking, and we fully expected to carry him up and down the Wall.  I even thought Tate would whine some about the amount of walking, but he didn't. I think he was so excited to be in China and to be at the Great Wall that he endured without attitude.  Both boys did much better than expected.  We only had to carry Riley for one stretch toward the end.  . 

The wall is so impressive, beautiful and unbelievably well preserved - well, it was before my boys began lifting bottles of Great Wall dirt, pebbles and loose bricks.

There are venders everywhere selling overpriced water, trinkets, t-shirts and snacks.  Dean got a kick out of this t-shirt with a familiar face on it. 

After an hour of walking, we bought the overpriced water and snacks and sat down on the stairs outside the wall for a bit before heading back to Helen. 

There was family visiting the wall that was fascinated with Riley.  They kept taking his picture and pointing.  It was a bit very freaky. When we went to pass them, the grandfather bent down and started to talk to Riley in Chinese.  Riley nodded at them like he could understand, and the man picked him up and posed for a photo - family members' cameras snapping away.  I almost snatched him up and ran, but Dean grabbed his camera and started taking pictures of their family, too.  It was hysterical, and a bit very freaky!!!  I asked Riley what the man was saying and why the man picked him up, and all he said was, "I don't know.  I guess they think I'm so cool."  Little ham!

After the photo session violating everything we've ever taught our children about strangers safety, we headed back to Helen.  The toboggan is very cool!  There were people in front of us going slow,, and my boys were disappointed that they couldn't go very fast.  I will probably have to hear about this for the rest of the trip!  They're speed demons and try to make every activity a dangerous activity.  If you are going to take the toboggan, go as slow as you can without having a guard urge you on (pull the lever toward you), giving plenty of space between you and the person in front of you.  Then when you get to the curves and long, downhill stretches you can push the lever all the way forward and go very fast.  Also, keep you hands inside your little cart.  You can break a phalange on the toboggan track….I know this from personal experience.  A recent conversation with our orthopedic surgeon regarding Olivia's broken toe came in very handy this afternoon!

NOTE:  If you are considering bringing little ones with you on this trip, bring with you advanced coping skills and an extra measure of patience…or some really, really good medications, properly prescribed by an appropriate practitioner, of course.  Now we all know that psychotropic meds are frowned upon in the China adoption process, so start now working on those coping skills.  Breathe deeply, count to ten a hundred, practice your calm and soothing voice and exercise those affirmations or you will go CRAZY!  I mean CRAZY!  There's a lot of walking for little feet, a lot of whining and a lot waiting around.  Little ones get tired, their feet hurt and they get bored.  That being said, Riley is doing an AMAZING JOB all things considered.  Dean catches my eye at times and does some labor breathing for me and it's all good.  It just hasn't been all easy.

After we finished at the wall, we had a nice lunch at the Schoolhouse Restaurant.  The Schoolhouse is a sustainability project in Mutianyu.  It was very nice and the impact that it is making on the community was inspiring!  The price for four sandwiches, three sodas and a milkshake was HIGH (600 RMB - Yikes!), but paying it was easier knowing the impact of the project in the village of Mutianyu, I think.  

Following lunch we headed directly to the airport for our flight to Zhengzhou.  Checkin was uneventful and the wait for our flight was made much more enjoyable by a nice children's play area.  Riley made a new friend named Henry who is 6 years old.  They ran and played ball together and enjoyed Tom and Jerry on the TV.  Laughter is the only common language required! 

Our flight was short and we arrived in Zhengzhou just after dark.  I had my first squatty potty experience in the airport in Zhengzhou.  It wasn't that complicated, folks.  Just remember to keep your feet on the platform and you'll be fine.  Expectations are everything!  If you're prepared for the worst, better than the worst won't seem so bad, I guess.

Celine met us at the arrivals area and we headed to the hotel.  During the half-hour ride, she filled us in on the ins-and-outs of Zhengzhou, the hotel, the plan for tomorrow and the location of the 7-11 store.  (It's not really called the 7-11, but that's what it looks like). 

After checking us in Celine left us for the evening.  Seeing the crib set up in our room almost brought me to tears. 

No time for sentiment, though.  My men were hungry!  We headed to the 7-11 and then had noodles in our room for dinner.  Tomorrow is our big day.  Wyatt will be in our arms by 10:00!!!! 

Night, folks!

Beijing: Jet-setting while Jet-lagged

We stuffed a lot into Days 2, 3, and 4.  I planned to write everything down day by day but I didn't expect such an epic fail to my jet lag prevention plan..  The time has gone quickly and fighting the internet stinks. I'm hoping we have faster service in Zhengzhou.
 
Jetlag is a beast.  My well-thoughout plan did not tame it.  It seems that a logical adjustment of one's sleeping schedule does not change the internal clock.  The three men in my party have adjusted more quickly than I have. Dean can sleep anywhere, anyhow.  Tate is proud of himself because he wakes up between 5:30 and 6:00 am independently, whereas at home I'm dragging the boy out of his bed every day.  Riley woke up between 1:00 and 3:00 for the first few days which was WAY FUN, but he's snoozing through the night like a baby-wise baby today.  It's 4:00 am and I'm wide awake again.  It could be excitement SINCE WE WILL HAVE OUR SON IN 6 HOURS!  I'm hoping that yesterday is the last day of lightheadedness, difficulty concentrating, heavy eyelids, and insane insomnia. 

Before leaving the US, I booked Lifeline's Beijing guide to show us around the town, and she did not disappoint.  Helen is a lot of fun and does her job so well.  She's really good with Riley and if the shenanigans of my two boys have annoyed her, she hasn't let on.  Helen loves working for Lifeline, and it was amazing to be with a co-worker in a city on the other side of the world. 

Friday began with a breakfast buffet that could've kept us eating all day.  My type A brain likes my breakfast to look like breakfast and my lunch to look like lunch, but I tossed myself aside and filled my plate with fried eggs, bacon, steamed pumpkin, wonton soup, steamed cabbage and A WAFFLE.  My internal me was scrambling to organize all that but I was busy eating.  it was SO GOOD.  After breakfast we took a leisurely stroll around the block, dodging scooters and bikes and taxi cabs, just to see what there was to see.  SO MANY PEOPLE.  SO MUCH SMOG.  I was tempted to hide away in our room because it was a little intimidating at first, but I'm so glad I didn't.  I've always thought Atlanta was a big city but it's a small town compared to Beijing. We've got our Perimeter but they've got four!!  Now, I'm not saying we conquered the whole city - just a block or two - but conquering my inner small-town chick was confidence boosting and gave our sons a glimpse of me they don't see everyday.

After about an hour we headed back to the hotel to gather things together for our afternoon adventure.  We're keeping the details of Friday afternoon on the down low for now, but I will say that it was THE MOST AMAZING DAY!!!  (I know that's torture, isn't it?)  It's torture for me not to write about it, but I will say it was an answer to much prayer and an assurance and confirmation of the Lord's hand on this journey. 

On Saturday, we began the day at the buffet once again.  I wasted no time with the pretense of the waffle this time and filled my plate with fried noodles, wonton soup and steamed buns.  My brain tried to balk at the lack of breakfast items on my plate, but I kept eating anyway.  Riley and Tate have surprised me with their food choices.  Tate eats mostly meat, which isn't a shocker, except that he eats plate after plate after plate and then finishes with a bowl of Cheerios.  (His type A brain screams "eat breakfast!", like mine does).  We met Helen at 9:30 in the lobby and headed out for a day of sightseeing. 

We started off our day off at Tiananmen Square where we demonstrated our ignorance of Chinese history for Helen.  She was patient with us but probably wonders if we're uneducated folk.  She did an amazing job pointing out important buildings and sharing the history of monuments and the importance of things symbolic to the history of China.  She loves her country and sharing its history, which kept me hanging on to every word. 

We headed next to Forbidden City.  Helen handled the purchasing of tickets for the tour for us while we waited with the masses to head through the main gate. Our morning was steeped in Old China, emperors, wives, concubines, ceremonies and palace life.  Helen did such an amazing job sharing the history of her country.  We've learned so much and feel blessed to have this experience to share with Wyatt and Jubilee.  I didn't realize Riley was paying as close attention as he was but several times since our tour he has asked, "When are we going to New China?"  He clearly understood that our morning was filled with Old China.  We stood on the brick courtyard that is over 600 years old! It was interesting keeping up with Riley in the courtyard.  He needed to run and we found an area away from other people (which is amazing in itself) and then spent the next 20 minutes pulling him off the water cisterns that he insisted on climbing.  I'm such a mean mom, not letting him climb inside!  Looking sheepish, Tate brought me a piece of the wall and said, "You son broke the Forbidden City." Oops!  No more climbing on the wall, Riley.  You broke the Forbidden City!

Helen asked us what we wanted to eat for lunch.  She offered up a few safe suggestions for timid tummies, but also told us about a restaurant that the locals love.  We chose to eat with the locals.  We were not disappointed.  Everyone stared at us.  We were the only Westerners in the place, but it wasn't uncomfortable for long because the food started rolling out.  Helen helped us order.  We had plain noodles that were served with sides of vegetables and a sauce.  The veggies came out first and Dean ate his, thinking it was a salad.  It was served like a salad.  Cucumbers and carrots shredded and on a small plate.  Helen stopped him before he devoured the whole plate.  Thank you, Helen!  When the noodles arrived she showed us how to mix up the noodle bowl and it was amazing.  SO TASTY.  We also had a fried snack with a spicy sauce, shredded potatoes fried and stacked like a haystack and kung pow chicken.  Everything tasted so good.  The kids impressed me with their willingness to try new things, and we left there stuffed like cabbages. 

After lunch we took a tour of the hutongs riding rickshaws.  This was my least favorite part of the day.  I didn't mind the rickshaw ride and it was interesting but I think I would've rather poked around in the national history museum.  The hutongs are old and dirty and sad in some ways.  We stopped in a local market where people tried to press things into our hands and looked disappointed when we didn't purchase their overpriced wares. The market was filled with beautiful produce with such variety.  I wish we had that variety in our produce department at the Piggly Wiggly.  Even a 45 minute drive to the Publix wouldn't afford me the choices that this small market provided.  The spices were plentiful, gorgeous and smelled amazing.  I did buy some.  I couldn't resist the fresh fennel and red pepper.  I can't wait to cook with them!!  Our tour guides for the hutong tour are from Zhengzhou (the province where Wyatt is from), and I asked them a lot of questions.  They were gracious and answered my every one, clearly enjoying sharing about their well-loved home town.  We had tea in the home of a hutong resident whose husband collect antiques.  Her home was beautiful and filled with pieces that keep me gazing with awe while I tried to focus on what our guide was saying.  We even had the joy of taking Riley to a two-pillar bathroom in the hutong.  (The higher the pillar number, the higher the class of the family).

Note to future travelers:  Bring with you to China a patient ear for your guides.  Though our guides seemed to understand us well, it was difficult to understand them at times.  Sometimes when I'm confused I just have to listen carefully for a bit and then the context of what is being said helps to clarify things.  I have found that my enjoyment of this experience has much to do with not becoming irritated by inconveniences and unmet expectations.  I keep reminding my boys (and myself) to be mindful of our attitudes.  I can definitely see how one could leave feeling overwhelmed and stressed out. 

After our hutong tour, Helen returned us to our hotel and we took a good nap before a Pizza Hut dinner.  Pizza Hut is not Pizza Hut, y'all.  I don't mind trying new foods but familiar foods should be familiar.  Just saying'.  If what you want to eat is pizza, order the pepperoni or the cheese lovers.  They put some unique things on pizza in Beijing! 

There's so much more I could say about the past couple days, but it's time to hit the sack, so that I can lay motionless for hours begging to fall asleep. Please pray for me and this whole jet lag thing!

Night, y'all. 

Day One: Travel (A blog post as long as that flight from ATL to Seoul!)

Packed and ready to go we got up this morning (yesterday morning, whenever). 

 

 We are last minute shoppers.  There were some things we just had to pick up before leaving for China - things like socks for Tate, really good snacks and some baby constipation medication (highly recommended by a friend that had the pleasure of trying to pantomime their desired item at the local pharmacy).  Then came the banking fiasco.  

Because of the banking fiasco, there was NO time to stop, which means I'm going to need to refresh all of my expectations for the coming trip.  Remember folks, the space between expectations and reality is called disappointment!  I'm telling myself that properly aligned expectations are going to make this whole trip a breeze!!  Every bit of the last minute shopping thing could've been avoided and our desired items could've been safely tucked into our suitcases days in advance, but I usually try to complicate everything with a banking/Walmart run on the way to the airport.  

I had the whole morning planned to the minute.  We left in plenty of time.  Dean was to drop me at the pharmacy to pick up prescriptions and grab Tate a quick haircut. From there we would head to town and hit the bank to wire money and withdraw cash for our trip.  Next up - passport photos at Walgreens (because for the life of me I can't find ours) and we would finally make one more Walmart run for last minute items.  If all went according to plans, we would arrive at the airport three hours before departure, as recommended by the airline.

Nothing went as planned except for the haircut.  

I'm not sure why I thought it would go off without a hitch.  When will I learn?  Nothing really goes off just as planned.  The pharmacy wasn't ready for us when they opened.  Their sign said 8:00 but in reality 8:00 is when the employees arrive to open the doors  It takes about 30 more minutes to open all the registers and be ready to match customers with their prescriptions.  

We chose a bank branch unfamiliar with us.  They didn't see the need to try to be accommodating.  We had moved money from one account to another (both the same bank) the day before in order to have enough in one account to make our wire transfer.  Even though the funds were available to be moved before the transfer from one account to another, every dollar moved became tied up in the transfer.  Our money was floating around in cyber space unable to be accessed.  We were finally able to resolve the situation but it effectively took up every minute available for our Walmart run.  Tip for future travelers:  if you are planning to do your wire transfer on the way out of town, don't.  Give yourself a few days in case there are issues like this.  There's nothing quite like heading to China without all of the cash we hoped to carry.  No worries, though, (insert sarcastic tone of voice) since our bank gave us the locations of ATMs in Beijing where we can withdraw money. I'm sure that will go off without a hitch.  Right?

 Arriving at the airport stressed me a little.  I'm not going to lie.  Being dropped off at the front doors by my teenage son and watching him drive away alone in our 15 passenger van smacked me with emotion.  

Checking in was easy peasy.  Korean Air is super friendly and efficient.  We headed to the ATM next.  It was no shocker that the ATM didn't have much cash available for withdrawal.  After a few exchanges laced with panic between Dean and I, we decided to call it an adventure and headed for security. (This could have all been avoided if I hadn't said, "There's a huge line at the ATM.  Let's just withdraw cash at the airport."  Lesson learned.)

I'm standing in the security checkpoint line, minding my own business, answering questions like "does the pilot like to go hunting", when I glance down and my eyes fix on Tate's socks.  

Me:  Oh my!  How did those disgusting socks make it into the clean sock basket?  

Tate:  I didn't get them from the sock basket.   They were in my room. 

Me:  Well, that makes perfect sense.  Don't take your shoes off again today.  Do you understand me?

We settled in for a short wait before boarding, during which time I came to the conclusion that little boys should't have wheeled baggage to pull around.  Boarding was smooth and we were in the air in no time.  Those that know me well know that every flight is torture for me - lot's of anxiety.  I joked all last week about packing Xanax for the flight, but it turned out to be unnecessary.  (Unless Dean slipped something in my drink and that's why everything went so smoothly, ha!) When I was pondering so proudly about my unusual lack of inflight anxiety, the words of our pastor on Sunday sounded loudly.  "You can't threaten a Christian with Heaven."  I know a flight isn't really a threat for most people, but for me inflight anxiety has always taunted me - until today.  Praise God!

A few thoughts about the flight for upcoming travelers, Korean Air is as good as it gets in economy.  All the things I could complain about our flying experience have to do with economy class, not the airline.  They crew is kind, gentle and attentive.  The takeoff and landing were smoother than any other flight I've ever taken.  

The flight from ATL to Seoul is LONG.  We had so many movies to choose from, and I watched several I've been wanting to see.  BTW, The English Patient is WAY different when you watch it on TBS.  Not a good choice if you're sandwiched between your two sons.  Fortunately they were preoccupied with movies and video games and combat crawling up and down the aisles and under the seats (Riley!)  

Riley:  7 Hours In

The food inflight was as good as any economy class we've had before.  We weren't expecting fine cuisine.  They served beef with mashed potatoes, Korean rice bowl with soup, or fish with noodles.  Riley had a kids meal each time, pizza and hamburgers with french fries.  Snacks and drinks were provided often.  We felt well taken care of.  

Sleep was difficult, but surprisingly Riley did well without it.  He did manage to fall asleep about 10 hours in, stretched across Dean and I.  I was so worried that he would roll off onto the floor that I didn't sleep well.  It was okay, though, because not sleeping was part of my jet lag prevention plan anyway.  (The plan was unsuccessful, by the way.)

We landed in Seoul right on time and were greeted by friendly airport staff that directed us to the transfers hall.  We made a quick trip through security and then scoped out our gate before looking for something to eat.  I didn't expect an inflight meal since our flight to Beijing was only a hour and a half.  I was worried that we would get to the hotel so late that there wouldn't be time to eat.  We didn't want to spend all night hungry and nothing else on any menu looked familiar, so we ate hot dogs.  I know, I'm brave.  There was a pork cutlet thingy with curry that a lady was eating at the table next to us.  It looked good and I thought about ordering that, but I think it's wise to avoid unfamiliar foods before being locked up in a plane with a bunch of strangers for and hour and a half. 

Note:  Korean Air serves a full meal, even if the flight is only an hour and a half.  There wasn't a choice offered for this meal, and I wasn't hungry, but it looked comparable to the food served on the previous flight.  They also served Riley a kids meal, which was nice.  

We met an adoptive family from Kentucky on the airplane and enjoyed the baggage claim/customs experience together in Beijing.  It wasn't a bad experience.  The immigration process looks like Atlanta's.  You wait in a line.  They welcome you to the counter when it's you're time.  The agent we had was friendly and smiled a lot.  She was kind to Riley who pretended to be very shy.  Baggage claim went smoothly.  Nothing was missing and within minutes we had all four of our suitcases ready to go.  The line for customs seemed long at first but it moved quickly.  

I arranged ahead of time to have Helen pick us up from the airport and she was waiting for us in the arrivals area.  She had a sign with my name of it and greeted us with a sweet smile.  She is kind and very comfortable to talk to.  During our ride to the airport she shared with us about Beijing.  We also talked about our tour plans for Saturday and Sunday and a few tips for safety and shopping.  When we got to the hotel, Helen helped us through registration and check in and then we said our good byes.  We are really looking forward to our tours with her for Saturday and Sunday.  

Our hotel is nice.  It's in a good location and is within walking distance of Forbidden City and several good places to eat.  The hotel has a breakfast buffet that is included with our room cost.  I'm hoping it's good and has something familiar looking to eat on it.  I did promise myself that I would try new things, expand my pallet and enjoy the international traveler experience - but if they have omelets, a toaster and a steamer tray of bacon, I'm not going to be unhappy about the buffet.  Just saying'...

We're now tucked in a ready to hit the sack.  The bed is comfortable, but as exhausted as I am, it confounds me that I can't fall asleep.  Excitement, jet lag and gratitude are swirling around in my head keeping me awake.  I'm really wishing we had made it to the Walmart - the melatonin was on that list.  

Night, folks!