Another day in Zhengzhou

It's Wednesday afternoon here in Zhengzhou.
Just another day.
One day closer to home.
12 more to go.

I feel like we are boring now.
No more Gotcha Day's.
We are getting use to each other.
So what else is there to say?
Hmmmm.

We went to a park down the street this morning with a couple of other families.
It got us out of the room.  The rest of the group went to Luoyang to see their kid's orphanage.
They also get to tour Maria's Big House of Hope.  I SO BADLY wanted to go!!  But it is an 1 1/2 hour drive there and back and Sophie gets car sick and I don't think Bao Yun Fei could sit still long enough.
He's so much boy!

So, at the park we walked around and then let the kids run in a grassy spot and pick flowers.
All Bao Yun Fei wanted to do was climb trees and torment his sisters.  It's so fun to watch him come out of his shell.

Sophie is maturing already.  I see it in the way she interacts with with Isabella and Bao Yun Fei.
But she still needs a lot of attention, affection, affirmation and love.  She craves it.
Bao Yun Fei doesn't need it constantly, but every now and then he will slip me a hug.  He is so very sweet.

Kim went with the group to Luoyang.  She wanted to see where Wesley had been when he went with Show Hope a couple of years ago.  Even though she has no idea who Steven Curtis Chapman is she was excited.  I'm so glad she's getting to see it.

Art class at the park!

This poor boy needs a little more testosterone in the room!!

Happy Adoption Day

It's done!
It's official!
He's mine!!

Hudson and I traveled back to the registration office today to pick up our adoption certificate.
Not until we left the same building where we were the day before that was so traumatic to him did he start smiling.  It's bedtime now and he is very comfortable with us.

He always holds my hand when we walk somewhere.
A couple of times today he has come over and put his arm around me.
Not for very long- but it counts.
This morning when we woke up he looked at me with a big grin and put his hand on my cheek.  Twice.
He is sweet.  He is ornery.  He is ALL BOY!!

He only talks in chinese.  Knows no english.
Sophie on the other hand is picking up english great!
She is also acting like the older sister at times.  When Isabella doesn't listen right away Sophie tells her what I just did.  It's very sweet.  She still roams to other's in the group that she doesn't know.  Knows no boundaries yet, but will come in time.

We are tired and are off to bed.  It's 9:30pm and we were up at 5:30 this morning (thanks to Sophie).
I'm SO ready to come home and there's still 12 days left.
Ugh!

Other exciting news flash:
Isabella lost her first tooth!!!
She let Joel, a dad in our travel group pull it (but she wouldn't let me!).  And when it was all over and the pictures had been taken she gave him a big hug and told him thank you.  That's just like her.
I LOVE that girl!

Do you see the picture below?
He smiles most of the time now.

I tried to post the pictures last night, but the internet is so bad here it wouldn't let me.
More later today.

Boa Yun Fei (by Kim)

Oh. My. Goodness. 


This little boy is THE cutest little boy EVER!


I'm so glad I got to witness another adoption! This experience has been so amazing and life changing! 


Bao Yun Fei is awesome. He is soo cute and smart.. and cute!! haha!! The poor thing was so scared when he saw his mama and sisters for the first time. I don't think he knew quite what to think.. He was so sweet though!
The room was total chaos except for him. He was calm and quiet and just taking everything in. 


I wish I would have gotten the part where he ran outside to go to the bathroom on video! It was HILARIOUS!! Stacy and I really thought he was running away! Neither of us were expecting that at all!  


When we got back to the hotel stacy had to go to do some more paperwork so I stayed in the room with all the kids. Isabella and Sophie were watching Beauty and the Beast and I was helping Bao Yun Fei put together a little lego race car.. or trying to. He stopped to watch a part of the movie that apparently was really funny to Isabella because she would laugh and laugh and then rewind it and watch it over again. They watched the part together and about the third time they watched it, Bao Yun Fei started to giggle a little bit. The 4th and 5th time he started laughing right along with Isabella. It was was soooooo cute! He has the sweetest little giggle!! 


All while that was going on, I finished putting together the little lego car and gave it to Bao Yun Fei. He took it, looked at it really funny and said something in chinese. He looked at the directions and shook his head a little bit and started taking it apart! I guess I put it together wrong and didn't even know it!! haha! He put it back together the right way and held it up and smiled!  He is very very smart! Smarter than me when it comes to putting together lego cars!


I can see why Stacy is so smitten with him! She is a very lucky mother to have a son like him and he is a very lucky son to have a mother like her. He will finally be loved :) 


I can't wait for everyone to meet him! He is absolutely wonderful. If you think he is cute in the pictures, just wait till you see him in person! You will be in love the first time you see him!

A Girl In LOVE!!

OH.
MY.
GOODNESS!!!!

I
AM
IN
LOVE!!!!!



I want to maul this boy with hugs and kisses!!!!
But, I'm not.  I'm refraining myself.

He is the most adorable chinese boy I've ever seen.
Sorry to all you MaMa's out there with your cute chinese boys, but mine tops them all.
:  )  Seriously.

It feels good to have a boy again.
It feels natural.
That must be why God only birthed me boys.
I wonder what that means for my future with teenage girls.
Oh, right.  I'm gonna find out.
Soon.
Like REAL soon!!
:  )
I'm still smiling.


Ok,
Hudson.
Only he doesn't know about Hudson yet.  He's still Bao Yun Fei.
Only I've been saying it wrong!  It's pronounced Bao RIN Fei!  Who knew?!

The poor boy was scared to death!
No.
No tears.  But the furrow in his brow was there for a LONG time.
In fact, I don't think it left his forehead until we got into the hotel room.
Although, we did get one smile while at the registration office.  He must've forgotten to be worried.
I felt so bad for him!  He didn't say a word until later on in the room.
Now he's laughing and saying a few words.
And his voice is like music to my ears!  It's deep for a boy.  He's smaller than I thought he'd be.
But smarter than a whip.
He likes Bionicles and Legos-( so Trey, you will get along great!!).
He certainly likes Isabella.  He called her over to watch TV with him.  And he called her MeiMei.
It was so sweet.
I missed his first giggle while I was out doing the paperwork (Kim was kid sitting).
But she got great pictures.

So,
I guess you want to see pictures?
Sorry.  I forgot my camera.


Just kidding!!!!

Brace yourself.  He's darn cute!
I mean handsome.
Wait....he's adorable.

I am giddy with joy, excitement, happiness, love and something else, I'm sure.
:  )

Here he is!!

The story behind these next three pictures are TOO funny!
He sort of wandered off towards the front door.  When he put his hand on the door handle I thought to myself, "Self.  What is he doing?  Where is he going?  Oh dear.  I think he's leaving!"
I got up and ran to the door (which he was already outside) and practically jumped down the steps to catch him!  There was a parking lot he was running into and I just knew he was going to get hit by a car, van or bus!
Well, he stopped at the bushes.
And went.
Pee.
I died laughing!!
I just wonder what all the chinese people outside on the steps must've been thinking.

 When you gotta go- you gotta go!!!

Moving On

Not much to say today.

We are so ready to move on.

Some of you have asked about the provinces we will be (have been) in.

Sophie is in Chengdu which is in the Sichuan province.

It's known for it's bracade (silk embroidery) and pandas.  It's the only place in the world that still has wild pandas.  

Tomorrow morning (6am) we leave for Zhengzhou which is the capital of Henan province.  Hudson is from Zhoukou city.  The orphanage director will bring him to us.  Don't know yet what his province is known for.  

I get Hudson on Monday and will post as soon as I can.

I'm so excited!  

Everyone is in bed.  It's late.

Good night from Chengdu, China!!