Thanks so much for visiting us during our journey, Steve, Patty, Caleb, Danae (daughter-in-law), Logan, Drew and Annika!
For this child I prayed, and the Lord has given me my petition which I asked of Him.
So I have also dedicated her to the Lord; as long as she liveth she is dedicated to the Lord. I Samuel 1:27 - 28
Today was our last really big day of sight seeing in Beijing. I am so glad that they plan this 3 day tour before we receive the babies. It is very scheduled, fast paced and tiring and with the babies it would not be enjoyed or appreciated as much as we have.
We started out this morning going to a Beijing International Church. The Chinese people are not allowed in this church and you have to show your passport before going in. Our guides just stayed on the bus. Some of the men had heard about an old bow maker nearby and skipped church to go see his work and some even purchased bows. Steve did not and I am so glad. They are now trying to figure out how to transport a so called "weapon" on the plane.
After church we were off to the Jade Factory. In China there are many items that symbolize happiness, good luck and longevity. Jade is one of them. The tradition is that a mother passes down her Jade bracelet to her daughter and she passes it down to hers and so on. The Jade can be pretty pricey, but I was able to find a middle of the road one that was beautiful and I will pass it on to Annika when she is older.
The Great Wall of China. WOW!! what can I say. I had no idea the magnitude of this wall and what it all stands for and the thousands of people a day climbing it. The steps are very uneven and it takes a lot of stamina to make it to even the first tower. I think of all the things that we've seen these past few days, the Great Wall was the most amazing to me.
We were able to attend the Chinese Acrobat show tonight, and if you ever have the chance to see them here in Beijing or anywhere in the world, it is so worth it. These young men and women are just amazing. The skill and strength they have to perform what we would call backbreaking, breathtaking acts are just unbelievable.
We are packing up our bags tonight to head to our daughters Province of Guangzhou tomorrow. We leave the hotel at 5:30 am to catch our flight.
I still can not believe that tomorrow is the day. The day we get our daughter. She is one day away from having a forever family. I get chills and tears just thinking about her taking her last sleep in an orphanage crib. Taking her last few hours not being held or loved or nurtured. But knowing that she will be ours forever.
Just a side note, I am still not doing well with my stomach and the food. It is really bad. I am queasy all the time and just am afraid to eat anything because it smells and tastes so bad to me. I am hoping that once we fly to Guangzhou I can find some comfort foods and settle my stomach down a bit.
My cortisone shot wore off last night in my arm and I am back to not being able to lift it or anything in it. Steve is very, very helpful and is trying to help as much as he can. Please pray that things will go well and that I will have some strength in it to get through the day to day with a baby.
I appreciate so much everyone's prayers for our family in the many issues that we've dealt with these past few months. It means alot to us.
I am so excited to get the pictures of Annika up as soon as we get her and get back to our hotel.
I am off to bed and hopefully will get a good nights sleep and be rested for our big day tomorrow.
