Back to China

Back to posting about our trip to China.  This is the last post, showing some highlights from our final couple days in Beijing.  

We learned how silk worms transform into beautiful fabric.

Our agency tour bus.

Next stop Tienanmen Square and the Forbidden City.

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It was a cold and very windy day.   Somehow the bone chilling coldness of this place felt much deeper than the weather. 

Our Canadian adoption agency flag being held by one of our guides. 

New power meets old as the Communist gov't buildings meet up with the Palace of the former Emperors.  

The vastness of the Forbidden City was astonishing.  It goes on and on...so many buildings and courtyards.  We only saw a fraction of them. 

The snow covered ancient cobble stones weren't very stroller friendly.  Elijah thought the bumpy ride was funny.

Back at the hotel to get warmed up.  

On our final evening in China our entire adoption group were treated to a  "goodbye China party".

Of course the food was amazing.  I've never loved green beans as much as I did in China.  We were able to try traditional Peking Duck.  We wrapped the strips of meat in what looked like small tortillas and drizzled them with what looked (and tasted) a lot like Oaxacan Mole we've had in Mexico.  

Yummy food and our last meal with new friends.

All the kids were gifted a scroll containing their original Chinese name characters and artwork.  

These three ladies have been our heroes.  The lady on the right does an incredible job of running our Canadian agency, and she travels with the groups to China to take care of all the immigration and Canadian consulate paperwork.  The young ladies to her left live in Beijing and facilitate the adoptions on that end.  They were our guides during our time in Beijing, meaning they toured us around, answered questions, took us to the airport to catch our flights, and generally took very good care of us.  Our agency (Family Outreach International) was excellent!  So organized, knowledgeable, compassionate,  and efficient.  We are so thankful for all they did to bring our son home. 

They party included a magician to entertain the kids.  

There were a few other five year old's going home with their new families, and a few other older siblings along for the experience.   Most of the kids in our group were young toddlers, many with cleft lip/ palates.   I haven't been around another child with an unrepaired cleft since I held my own son Samuel 12 years ago.  The cleft babies have a special place in my heart, and they were super cute.  

This performer was pretty impressive.  He did a dance as well as he had different masks covering his face that kept changing.  The crazy part it you couldn't even see him change them!  It was like a magic show and a dance performance combined.  Then at the end he showed his face. The bigger kids all posed for pictures with him, but Elijah was quite terrified of this strange man already so I didn't want to push him just for a photo.

Our party finished with a Goodbey China cake.  With our agencies Panda bear symbol on it...or something similar to a panda bear?

Looking back at our time in China I realize even more what an incredible adventure it was.  We went with the sole purpose of meeting and bringing home our son.  Honestly that was the only thing on my mind as we prepared.  I couldn't have care less what we actually did there. I'm glad now that we did have a chance to see some of the sites, and to experience a small glimpse of Chinese culture.  I have a deeper appreciation for/ understanding of my child's ethnicity of origin.  I felt a bit of God's heart for this vast land and it's beautiful people.

Our time in China was also time to lay some foundations of bonding with our new son, without all the business, distractions and competition for my affections.  It was great to get back home, but those two weeks spent with my son, in China, will be memories I will always treasure.    That was a huge surprise to me.   I figured , like many families who adopt, the "in country" time would be more something to endure rather than enjoy. Although I didn't know what to expect, I prepared for  trauma, tears, and a bit of struggle as he adjusted to his new stranger parents, but it really couldn't have gone any better.  He transitioned beautifully, considering all the changes he was experiencing.  Such an incredibly brave little boy.   There was absolutely nothing that went awry the whole trip.  I  know that "easy" isn't always what God chooses for us, so I went open to whatever this trip would turn out to be, and willing to embrace whatever it would teach us...but this two week trip just felt like a gift. It was almost ridiculously smooth in every way...even right down to the smog clearing up the night before we arrived in BJ, no lost luggage despite many flights, no mistakes in the paperwork...nothing.  We felt your prayers, and know they were answered.  Bringing Elijah home was God's purpose right from the beginning, he was true to his promise, and faithful in his provision every single step of the way...even during the difficult times of waiting and trusting.  All we did was say "yes"...and step out into one incredible story.  

Soli Deo Gloria,

I actually went outside

With my eyes blinking in the sun, and a deep breath of fresh air filling my lungs I emerged from my cave like a bear after a long winter's hibernation. 

 I have not been outside to walk, play, frolic in the snow, or whatever people do here in winter since I've been home...heck I haven't been outside here all winter.  The problem being, other than I loathe being cold, is I had no logistical way to take Elijah out.  Oh we go "out" far enough to get into our van to drive to town but I don't ever just stay out.  

Even if I had somewhere to put him once we were outside,  it's a lot of work just getting there!  Exhausting  Shoving feet into boots, digging through bins for missing mittens, making sure everyone has socks and has gone potty, cramming Elijah's rather stiff angular body into snow pants while we both fall onto the floor, is a work out in itself.  Then, once outside he is pretty much unable to do anything (while all bundled up) but lay in the snow, which isn't all that much fun (although that's all I feel like doing by the time we all get out!)  So It's kind of sad that Elijah hasn't been out more than a couple times.

Yesterday my husband bought a sled, and adapted it with a seat back.  Turns out March is a great time of year to get toboggans on sale.  It's super slick...even Silas had no trouble pulling two kids.  

It was gorgeous outside.  The sun was shining, the snow was sticky, and water was dripping from the roof of the house.  The days are longer, and I'm almost giddy that Spring is just around the corner!..or maybe down the street, past the old mill, and then around the corner.  This is Saskatchewan.  Winter holds on long past it's welcome...but it's just a matter of another month or so.  Then we're into mud season...sigh..but after that come out the flipflops! 

Soli Deo Gloria,

Out with the old, In with the new

We've had this couch now for about a decade I think?  Before that it belonged to some other family members who had bought it for cheap years before that.  We were happy to take it at the time, since we had no furniture (other than one broken futon)...but over the years I've come to both loathe and accept it's position as a giant plaid eye sore in my living room.  An eye sore that is unable to perform it's basic function of a couch.  I kept  hoping that we'd come across an upgraded hand me down couch, but no such luck.  For the past few years we've had a new one on our wish list.  We planned on using last years tax return but then we were led into another adption... our tax return paid for our homestudy.   So it was put on hold.  My son is worth more than a new couch any day!!  

So being that it's tax return season again it was back on the wish list.  Typically we count on that little bit of extra money to pay for any extra expenses.   This year it's ear marked to pay for Elijah's dental work, summer camp for a couple kids, some tires, and just enough left for a new couch!  Yippee!

Our house is old, with narrow doorways, and right angled corners in strange places so furniture is difficult to move in and out.  We have an odd little doorway in our living room, that is only used as a toy closet and a fire escape.  It leads outside but actually has no steps below it. ...just a door suspended about 4 feet off the ground, facing nowhere, just a few feet of grass and our treeline.  This house was moved onto this lot from an old farm a few decades ago and I think they positioned it very oddly.  We had to open up this door, that was permanently covered with an old blanket to keep out the draft,  to get the couches in and out.  Even then it was a tight squeeze.  

A sawsall came to the rescue. 

While the fabric was in somewhat decent shape ...the structure of it was completely gone.  It was the kind of couch that swallowed you whole when you sat on it.   If it had still been in good shape structurally, I would probably have just covered it up.  

Celina was shocked.  We explained very clearly the difference in how we treat our new couch to how we  just treated the old one. 

No pity or remorse at all.  Just glee. 

Our new couch.  We went out "just looking" this morning and came across this one on a really good sale.  Because it was the floor model we could take it home the same day.  We wanted something simple and low backed enough to get through the door...other than that we had no idea what we were looking for specifically.  I don't care for the little pillows but I think they would look great recovered in red fabric.  

This is our living room after I cleaned up the chaos created.  We also bought the rocking recliner picture here on the right.  I've always thought it would be such a comfy "mom chair" for all the time I spend snuggling, rocking, and reading to kids.  They were both on sale and when be bought both they gave us an even better deal.  

    

It may not seem like anything all that exciting...but I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying sitting on these.  I can actually SIT on this couch! The other one killed my back, so I would sit on the floor to read to the kids if there were too many to fit on my lap in the other chair.  You know you have a crappy couch when the floor is the better option!  I've never been so comfortable typing on my laptop than I am with my feet up in the recliner right now!  It's heavenly.  

....in fact I may never leave it.