Home at last!

All is right with the world, and we have our family of five under one roof!  Allison continues to amaze us with her adaptability.  She has settled right in.  When we landed in Richmond, she took off toward her brothers like she has know them her whole life.  She took Aiden's hand and didn't look back.  It was a moment we will never forget.  The boys are so proud of their little sister, and she already idolizes them.

Our first challenge has been helping Allison switch her nights and days because she is used to being 12 hours ahead of our time.  She slept three hours the first night and was up and ready to check out all of her new toys.  When she saw her bedroom she was so excited but didn't understand that its contents belonged to her. She asked if the play jewelry was Grandma's.  It was so cute to watch her come to the realization that it is all hers.  Night two expanded to four hours of sleep and two very drowsy parents.  By last night, night three, she slept eleven hours in her bed, on her own!

We came home to the best weekend with all four grandparents here with us to celebrate Father's Day and Allison's fifth birthday.  The boys helped show Allison how to open her presents, and she caught on very quickly.  The kitties and "puppies" are her main focus right now, but she is quickly getting better around them.  The poor animals were so happy to see us come home and then Allison greeted them with shrieks of terror.  We separated them but only for a short time the first day.  She complained about them and kept her distance on day two, and then she touched them yesterday.  I predict that she will want McGuire to sleep with her in about a week.

We are so grateful for the help our parents provided us during our time away.  Our moms kept everything on track for the boys while we were gone during a very busy part of the school year.  We have been so humbled by the number of people we have heard from during this journey to our girl.  We were met with nothing but encouraging words and support throughout this entire endeavor, and it just shows us how fortunate we are.  We wouldn't trade our families and friends for anything because there are none better!

As we settle into our lives, we do so with a new appreciation of clean tap water, blue skies, and our family.

Koalas and tigers and pandas, oh my!

We had such a fun day today at the Chimelong Safari Park.  It was a day all about the kids, and Allison loved every minute.  She was thrilled to hear that she would get to see pandas today and even more thrilled when she finally saw them.  Check out some of the great pics from today.  We are so glad our girl is feeling so much better!

Here we go!

Feeding the baby tiger with Baba

Adorable Koalas

Koala with Baby

Allison was so happy to finally make it to the pandas!

We are in love with the baby panda!

Some days are like that, even in Australia (and in China)!

We arrived safely to Guangzhou and our hotel, The Garden.  We have  a very large and beautiful suite. The hotel is one of the nicest we have stayed in and has a gorgeous garden to stroll through.  This part of our trip is already more relaxing than the rest.  

Waiting...

Getting here was no small feat, though.  We arrived early to the Nanjing airport with plenty of time to make our 1:30 flight.  Allison didn't seem to be feeling well, and we had to put all of our meds in our checked luggage because no liquids are permitted in carry-on bags. Our flight was delayed four hours, and the airport was incredibly crowded and warm with few food choices.  Allison was very tired but unable to sleep there.  We were so relieved when we were finally able to board, but this was short-lived.  The pilot came on to let us know that we would be delayed an additional hour.  Our sweet girl was already nervous about flying, and by the time we finally took off she panicked.  Yes.  We were that family with the screaming child that couldn't be consoled.  When we were able to take off her seat-belt, she fell asleep on my lap.  We realized that the belt had her the most upset.  I had the flight attendants explain to her the need for the belt for landing in the hopes that it wouldn't scare her, but she became very upset as soon as it had to go back on.  The attendants quickly returned to our seat and told me that it was okay to hold her.  They allowed me to hold her during the entire landing.  It was a big help, but she will have to get used to a seat-belt soon! We were so grateful to get into the van to the hotel and were so happy to finally walk inside.  As we stood at the front desk to check in, Allison threw up all over the floor.  The poor thing was like a limp dishrag as we carried her to the room.  

How's that for an introduction to flying?  And to think, that was our "easy 2 hour flight"!

Very brief nap

Her face sums it all up!

We completed the medical exam this morning and were dreading taking Allison for the TB test after the rough trip we had and the little sleep she was able to get, but she handled it so well!  She is still not feeling great this evening, so we have started her on antibiotics.  We hope that she gets to feeling better quickly.

Big Girl

Hotel Lobby

Family of Five

I am sitting here updating with my DAUGHTER on my lap!  Can you believe it?  We had the most amazing day.  When Allison "Min Ru" entered the Civil Affairs Office with the orphanage staff, she looked at another family that was sitting there.  Then she looked at us and yelled, "Mama!  Baba!" and ran to us.  It was a moment we will never forget.  At the same time, it was sad to see the orphanage staff that cared for her so well have to say their goodbyes.  She is the first international adoption they have done, and they sent her with many things.  We have a bag of clothes, a bag of her favorite foods, and a backpack full of toiletries.  They bought her new shoes, a dress, a necklace, and a watch.  She is very much loved.  We are most grateful for one woman from the orphanage who cared for her in her own home until around age 2.  Then she took a job at the orphanage and has cared for her all this time.  I can't imagine what today must have been like for her.  I take solace in knowing that our sweet girl would have left her for another family if not ours, and I know we will give her an abundance of love.  We will also provide pictures to her first mother through emails.  We are very blessed!  We can't wait for her to meet her big brothers in person.  We did Skype before school, but it just isn't the same!

Our First Meeting

Allison "Min Ru" and Baba

Coloring Together

Baba, Min Ru, Mamas

New Dress

Let's Share Hats

Mama and Min Ru

We love mirrors!  Baba, Allison, and Mama being silly in the elevator!

Getting Ready for Bed

Nanjing

We have arrived safely to Nanjing, the capital of our daughter's province, Jiangsu.  In less than 24 hours we will finally have our daughter with us.  This is her last night in the orphanage.  That thought alone overwhelms us with emotions.  Our guide, Meloday, met us at the train station and has been so kind and helpful. Our hotel is connected to a huge shopping center with many restaurants and even a market, so everything will be close at hand for the week.  Meloday suggested a local restaurant and even took us inside to be sure that we'll be comfortable ordering and to make suggestions for foods that Allison might be accustomed to.  We have spent the afternoon exploring and organizing the room to fill the time and to be ready for tomorrow. The next time we post, it will be to share pictures of our Allison!

Train Station in Beijing

After boarding the bullet train

We arrived via bullet train today, and that was a great experience.  We traveled at about 190 mph, and it was such a smooth ride.  We were able to see more of the country this way and spotted many farms as well as factories.  The smog has not let up anywhere we have been and have only seen one small patch of blue skies for a short while as we passed through today.

View from the train

Nanjing--Scooters 

View from our room of Nanjing

The Great Wall

Tommy and I had the best day visiting the Great Wall.  What a rigorous and steep climb!  We are feeling very accomplished right now after making it to the top.  The views of the mountains were spectacular, and the wall is just amazing.  On the way to the wall, we stopped by a jade factory and on the way back were able to stop for views of the Olympic village.

We are off to the train station first thing in the morning to head to Nanjing.  We are getting so close to gotcha day!

The Before Shot

Just keep climbing!

We made it!

On the Way Down