He can run!!!

I am so sorry that it has been so long since I have posted.  I am going to try and go back to posting daily because I think it's so important to keep praying friends and family updated and to journal this for Jake, but also, if God could use this to encourage you in ANY way, then I would just be thrilled and would give Him the praise. 

I know I've talked about this before but each time I sit down to type, I am in awe at what God has done and overwhelmed.  Sometimes I have mentioned about how I can feel God using this change in our lives to shape and mold us.  You know, that's not always very pretty, but I want to be changed.  I hope that doesn't sound pious, but I really do want to be changed.  I used to pray faithfully that God would make me more like His Son.  The longer I walk with Him, the more I realize the depth of my sin.  It makes me think of a hymn we have been consistently singing since we got Jake.  For some reason it came to mind one night while we were there in the hotel room and I was trying to put him to sleep.  The last verse in "Come Thou Fount" says,

O that day when freed from sinning,
I shall see Thy lovely face;
Clothèd then in blood washed linen
How I’ll sing Thy sovereign grace;
Come, my Lord, no longer tarry,
Take my ransomed soul away;
Send thine angels now to carry
Me to realms of endless day.

This is such good news!!!  But even better is the verse that comes a couple before that one:

Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood;
How His kindness yet pursues me
Mortal tongue can never tell,
Clothed in flesh, till death shall loose me
I cannot proclaim it well.

Jake just loves to hear this hymn and sometimes tries to do his own version of it.

Anyway......on to "He can run!!"

Today as I followed behind Jake trying to remind him to walk in the house, I was reminded of something that I have thought about several times since being home and wanted to share about it.  Bear with me just a minute and I'll get to the point.  I realized last night that we have got to get Jake, for his own safety, to stop running in the house.  So we tried all versions of acting, charades, etc., to show him that we run outside (picture 3 or 4 of us trying to show him how to run without him starting to run and thinking that was great!) and walk inside (picture the same 3 or 4 of us trying to show him how to walk inside and him thinking this was a great big marching parade).  We were a bit overzealous, but eventually he did get that something happened outside (he knows the "miles" are outside which are the cats) and something happens inside. 

Well today he forgot all that so I was trying to catch up with him going down the hallway, without running myself, and remind him to walk.  I think that he thinks he's in a mansion.  Our house really is compared to where he came from.  And now that he knows his way around, he just loves to run the hallway back to Parker's room.  Well, he just likes to run with Parker no matter how you slice it!!  It's neat to watch what God is doing in each of my children's lives and how He's teaching them about toddlers.  And it's also neat to watch how each of their relationships with Jake is so different.  Parker is a passionate person (wonder where she got that from:)) and she has that kind of relationship with Jake.  What that translates to is a very physical, high energy situation....lots of holding, forced kissing, picking him up high (makes me sweat), jostling him around, AND RUNNING DOWN THE HALLWAY!!  So anyway, back to the title (again).  So today as I am running after him, I am reminded of a prayer request that we had in our prayer cup on our kitchen table.  The prayer request was that Jake would be able to run!!!  Many of you will recall that Jake was adopted through the special needs program in China.  Jake's official diagnosis was "cerebral palsy".  Initially when we got his referral back in October of 2011 we could tell some about how he was doing, but at 16 months old it reported that he was "standing with assistance".  We thought that was a good sign but we knew that sometimes the information isn't as accurate as you would like.  So anyway, to make a long story short, we decided to accept his referral (our first and only referral....Praise God!! because we didn't want to feel like we were choosing, though we understand completely that families have to decide what they can handle, which is wise to say the least).  I'll fill in a little about how God showed us Jake was our son when I blog tomorrow or shortly thereafter.

But anyway, from the time we accepted the referral til May we didn't have an update which is pretty common.  Still that diagnosis lingered and so during those months we decided to just go all out in our prayers for Jake and not only pray that he could walk, but that he could run.  So finally in May when we got updated pictures and some video, we could see that indeed this little one was walking, talking, interacting.  We felt so blessed.  One day as I cleaned the kitchen one of the prayer slips had somehow made it's way to the counter and I almost threw it away, but decided I should look at it.  This was literally within the week that we got the pictures and videos and I felt as if it was almost like the Lord was saying "remember this request....I have answered".  I remember being in awe, but the funny thing is that the video only showed him walking.  I was already giving God the praise for him running because I just knew that he could, but still I hadn't seen that.  Well, as I'm running behind him this morning, I remembered our prayer request and God's faithfulness to answer that.  How precious of Him!!  What a blessing. 

I don't know what Jake's future holds and as I watch the Olympics and see all these young men and women from all over the world representing all the nations, my heart feels like Jake's won a gold.  I don't know if he'll be a runner, but let me tell you something folks......HE IS FAST!!!!  By far the fastest of all my children at his age.  He's not only fast when running, but fast when reaching for things, undoing things, taking things apart, and all the other things that toddlers can do that can hurt, damage, etc.  It's amazing.  He can get into trouble super fast also!!  So, my prayer request if anyone is hanging in there and not given up on my blog, pray for his safety.  And pray also, if you could, that I will get my ducks in a row, as the Lord sees fit, to start back our homeschool work in later August.  I feel a need to plan, but it's difficult.  I knew it would be hard, but with the fastest 2 year old I've ever seen, it's harder than I had planned.  But I'm not complaining mind you.  God is sufficient and He will help.  Please continue to pray for my other children and anything else that comes to mind.  My greatest concern throughout our adoption is how will this affect them.  Pray that Jeff and I will continue to make changes that we need to in parenting and that our relationship will be sweeter than ever.  He is and has always been my hero!!

"Ah-mi"

Yesterday I noticed that Jake kept finishing lots of things that he was saying with "ah-mi".  I couldn't imagine what in the world that little one was trying to say.  I thought maybe "more" or "again".  Sometimes I am so slow.  But then I kept noticing that he was saying it when he'd come running.  Still no clue.  Finally I realized that he was trying to say "Mommy"!!!  Oh, what joy!!!  I had been "Mama" which is said a little differently in Chinese and for Jake can mean anyone that's a woman that's older and motherly (sounds exciting huh?).  But then to hear him trying to call me by what he heard the other children saying just really touched my heart.  How precious!!  He is picking up the English language so fast.  It is really amazing.  Today we visited with another family and he got to spend some one-on-one time with one of their children while the others went to the pool.  Before we left he was saying this child's name so plainly.  I feel like any homeschool mom feels when her child is learning to read or something of that magnitude and yet it's just acquiring another language (this would be a mountain-sized task for me so I don't mean to belittle it, I just know it's much easier for a little one).  I am so excited that we are connecting even more and one of the ways that that happens is through language.

Jake seems to be adjusting so well.  He looks me in the eye multiples of times a day and smiles and says "Wo aye ni" which means I love you.  He just loves to play one on one games and mimicing me.  Last night while I was rocking him he heard my stomach growl.  I just took his hand and pressed my stomach and made some crazy face.  Well that has been the game of the day.  I am running out of crazy faces to make when he does it.  But what's even funnier is that sometimes I totally forget what he's doing and wonder "why on earth is this child pushing so hard on my belly and making such faces".  And then I remember our game.  There are tons of little things like that we do and I believe all of them help us to connect more and more.  It's our secret language.  By the way, a stomach growl is a stomach growl in all languages.

Here are a few pictures.  I am most certainly the proud Ah-mi aren't I?

Christmas in July

The last few days have been so nice....there have been ups and downs but all-in-all, things are going very well.  I am in awe at how God has put together our family and how He is growing us.  Each one of us is being stretched.  I titled this Christmas in July because when we had our first baby Parker, she came home from the hospital on Christmas Day.  She was born on December 23.  It seemed to stay Christmas for a good year or so.  We felt so blessed and like we had gotten the best Christmas present we could ever imgaine....next to our relationships with the Lord and grafting into His family.  Yesterday ended with standing at the front door looking for the "de" which is deer in Jake's new English.  The night before we had seen a mom and 2 tiny baby deer.  It was so awesome.  The deer visit our yard each night around dusk.  Last night I was out of fresh, clean pajamas so we went to the Christmas ones.  I was totally fine with it.  It feels like Christmas here again in the Stanley household anyway.  Both yesterday and today we spent time out in the yard enjoying the waterhose, bubbles, popsicles, our new picnic table (thank you again friends!), and today we had a mini pizza party and movie at lunch time.  It has been so sweet.  I am so enjoying getting to know Jake and also seeing each of the children and their budding relationships with him and him with them.  There is so much more to tell, but enjoy some pictures for now.  Blessings and thank you for the prayers!!

"Cow - wul"

On Tuesday, July 10th, we went out to Brier Creek for Jake's physical with the pediatrician.  The pediatrician is amazed at how well Jake is doing.  That little fellow is 87 percentile for height, 51 percentile for weight and has a strong heart.  No one seems to understand how Jake's cerebral palsy seems virtually non-existent, but I do!  In one word.....Jesus!!  I give Him the credit.  Jesus knows all Jake's past while we don't.  We don't understand why he was so weak at 1 year (though I have a number of theories).  We are getting a number of things checked with Jake but the pediatrician's initial impression was "he looks great".  I can't tell you how grateful we are.  After a couple of years of medical issues with Parker, we felt equipped to handle some needs but also felt a bit "spent" with doctors, hospitals, etc.  So when we received our first official referral from our agency, which was our sweet Jake, we were both excited and nervous.  We accepted the referral and wrote our Letter of Intent to adopt and provide for Jake.  But in the days that followed I became concerned about his official diagnosis of "CP".  I clearly remember one night laying in bed and just feeling like "wow, maybe I goofed up when I added CP to our list of needs that we felt open to".  We had had to expand our list of special needs due to Jeff's history of thyroid cancer (I know, it makes no sense).  We were only eligible to adopt a moderate to severe special needs child.  All of those precious children need homes, but was God calling us to adopt at that level of need?  Anyway, I'm rambling a bit.  Well that night when I was questioning opening up our list to include CP, Jenna walks into our dark room as she had forgotten something she had left in our room before bed.  I hear this sweet little voice say "Mama, aren't you glad we opened up our list to include CP, because if we hadn't we wouldn't have Jake".  WHAT?!!!  I couldn't believe what she had just said.  It was as if God spoke directly to my heart through this child and said "it's going to be okay; this is my plan for you". 

Well today, we went back out to do some of the tests which included skull x-rays and bloodwork.  We are passing on rib x-rays because the "depression" that the pediatrician says she saw disappears when you have him look you straight on (lesson learned from experience with Parker: you do have choices in the medical process....exercise them!!!).  Anyway, Jake did great with the skull x-rays.  Andrew was with me and helped keep Cheerios going and combine that with the coolest movable machine and lights (one of his new words: "yights") with crosshairs and we got the 4 or so x-rays needed.  I'm not saying it was easy.  It was a little challenging just to get him to lay down on the cold table, but it was very doable.  And we had a sweet tech who understood by the time we finished everything that this child didn't speak English and had just gotten home less than a week ago. 

Anyway, to break up the tests a little, Andrew, Jake, and I decide to go to Chick-Fil-A for lunch.  So we go in and guess what?!  It's wear your cow outfit and get free food day (sorry, I don't know the name).  Jake didn't seem too phased by all the strange people dressed up like cows (sorry, to those of you that are one....I've done this one time I think).  But what did get him was the Chick-Fil-A cow.  You should have seen his eyes when that cow came out.  He didn't scream or cry or anything, but the size of his eyes was bigger than a quarter and he was reaching for my hand and grabbing it tight and making the beginnings of a low rumble that's like a engine starting up.  I assured him that it was okay, but I don't think he ate more than 4 waffles fries the rest of the stay because he had to keep that cow in full view.  I taught him how to say "cow" which came out "cow-wul".  Must be my Southern accent.  I just couldn't imagine what was going through his little mind.  This can frighten any youngster, but just thinking where Jake had come from made it all the more precious. 

Anyway, after that we went on to have bloodwork done.  Jake got stuck twice (the first produced enough blood for most of the test, but the second was unsuccessful).  We'll have to go back in a week or two and finish up.

All in all, I am amazed at our new little one.  He is so sweet (I think I may have said that) and adjusting so well.  He is responding more to "Jake" and learning what it means when I say "come".  I see more gentle hands and sharing and less throwing.  And he loves to tell me and all his family that he loves us.  I feel so blessed.  If you're still following and can keep praying, please do.  Please pray for continued adjustment for us all.  We are praising God for you all and for His faithfulness.

Really, really, really enjoying beef stew brought by a sweet friend!!

He is so precious!!

I always feel like there's so much to tell that I don't know where to begin. This is why I never blogged or did much on Facebook before or why I didn't scrapbook until a dear friend roped me into that here in the last year.  There's a perfectionist side to me.  One that wants to really get it right, but the only thing that has made this blogging doable for me has been that I have had to leave that behind.  I just make myself sit down and capture where we are.  And I am fighting sleep right now.  I try not to pick over the wording or fuss over how I'm saying things because if I did it wouldn't happen.

I wish I could tell you what all has transpired in the last few days, but I see awe and wonder in the face of a child.  He's figuring things out and I wonder often what in the world is going through his mind.  Sometimes I think he must be confused like when he watched Jeff riding on the riding lawn mower tonight.  He was mesmerized.  I wasn't there to see what he has and has not seen in the first two years of his life.  I can only imagine.  And the other day, he looked at me like is it okay to step in the green, wet stuff (it was the grass with waterdrops on it from the sprinkler).  And tonight he pointed to the crib as I was rocking him which meant "put me in there" and I wondered what he's thought about the other 3 cribs he's had in the last 2 weeks and then the crib he had in the orphanage over a year ago and then the bed he had with his foster mother (hard as a brick and covered by a bamboo mat to help keep them cool).  Does he know he's home?  I guess he'll figure it out in a few weeks when we don't move to another hotel room or other house.  Where in the world did he think we were going on that 15 hour flight?  He doesn't speak English but I talk to him in English and told him, but I don't think he understands.  I wouldn't. 

And then there's the look of amazement in his eyes.  What's that thing on the wall that you keep putting things in to warm stuff up (it was the microwave).  And then just he and I sitting in the yard listening to the birds and looking around.  And then seeing more "chocolate" colored skinned people today at the doctor's office (this is meant with great affection as I learned the term from another adoptive family at the airport as he stared at their adopted African American, dark-skinned daughter).  Praise God for the little things.  His hand has been upon Jake!  And then, the cats!!!  Oh my!!!  He is mesmerized by them.  They are amazing creatures.  He loves them to rub his legs and wants them to go through them.  And a bath with toys...that's the best thing ever. 

He's tough.  I have only heard him cry a couple of times from getting hurt.  Even today while getting his second TB test (it's an injection just under the skin), the most he did was make a sound like "OH, this is hurting".  It was precious.  My girls just could not get over his facial experssion.  Their hearts were so touched somehow.  But pain came when we got in the car and he bit down on the sucker we had given him and it must have hurt the new tooth that's coming in because he wailed.  I've seen that child walk into walls, do forward rolls into corners and sharp edges, fall face forward and he just doesn't cry, but somehow that little erupting tooth combined with a dum, dum lollipop just HURT.  He cried.  I am grateful that he can be a child.  I want to help him to just be two years old. 

I don't know how much I blogged about this, but being in China was really hard for me.  I was disappointed in myself that I felt so fragile.  I wanted more compassion but felt like a mother bear souped up on steroids and only wanted to protect my brood.  I wanted to feel "one with the people" but felt a bit in survival mode.  Sometimes our expectations just aren't in line with reality.  We don't even know ourselves.  But God does. 

I am so happy to be home.  We are so blessed.  Jake is so, so precious.  We are enjoying him so much.  He is a joy and precious addition to our family.  He is full of life and responding well to our love and training.  What joy!!  God has a plan for Jake.  I truly believe that He wants Jake to know and serve Him and that He has given us that responsibility to train him up in the Lord's ways.  I am beginning to understand that I won't do it perfectly and that it's okay so long as my hope and trust is rooted in The Perfect One.  God is faithful and trustworthy.  He isn't dependent on us being perfect but wants us to be perfectly dependent on Him.  Why did it take me so long to get this?  I think the Enemy doesn't have to work too hard on some of us because we let our thoughts of falling short be too prominent when instead we should think, if we have trusted in His provision through Christ, of the grace and forgiveness that has been granted.  I still long to be like Him.  I think I always will.  But I also know I won't be like Him until heaven and that it's okay.  I will have to remind myself of this many times over the years I'm sure.  His grace is sufficient and He too is precious.

We Are Home!!!

Forgive typos, bad grammar, etc. in advance:)

I woke up around 6:45am US time this morning and before my feet even hit the floor silent tears began to flow.  I was surprised by my emotions and really have no explanation other than I just feel so blessed...blessed with some of the sweetest friends and church family in the world, blessed with a dear family, and now this new little guy that God has entrusted us with.  And here I lay in my comfortable home so many miles away from Jake's birthplace.  It seems so far away and yet so close.  My heart is somehow broken.  I can't explain it.  This trip was really hard for me.

We left Friday after getting Jake's visa at 4:30pm to go from Guangzhou to Hong Kong.  The ride was supposed to take 2 hours but at around 7:45 - 8:00 Jeff and I were wondering if the driver had gotten lost.  We could not talk to the driver because of the language differences.  This wasn't the first time we were at someone else's mercy.  I think we get to our hotel room around 8:30pm.  It wasn't a bad ride, just long.  The "van" was actually quite nice and the only vehicle we rode in with seat belts.  Turns out that ride was only one of a couple where I felt like we needed seat belts.  Jake did well on this ride as Jeff and I talked and played with him the whole ride.  Turns out our older ones had a harder time and I thought I was nearly going to have to gag them at about the 3 hour point.  They just got beyond silly and LOUD!!!  Anyway, the whole experience wasn't so bad, but just knowing we were getting up at around 6am on Saturday for a 15 hour flight that started at about 10:30am made it a little unnerving.

All went fine Saturday am but just lots of reloading bags, bellboys, lugging the luggage around, checking in, getting seats together (Praise God for my idea to check "one more time" to explain to the Delta check-in person that although we had "3 adults"...they had us seated by 2, 2 and 2....that our third adult was only 13, we got seats 3 together and another 3 together), trying to feed everyone, etc.  The flight got started on time but within minutes we were encountering "turbulence".  This "turbulence" due to "a batch of thunderstorms" lasted for about 5-6 hours!!!  We were told to stay in our seats so we wouldn't get "hurt".  I was MISERABLE and, in my weakness, my mind went all kinds of places.  At some point I asked Parker to get my bible (I was holding Jake who was sleeping) and my mind went to Jeremiah 29:11.  This is what the version that I had said:

Jeremiah 29:11

King James Version (KJV)

¹¹ For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

Before we left for our trip we all each got small bibles for traveling and apparently the one I brought was this translation.  The part that I zoned in on during that moment was "an expected end".  This comforted me somehow because I thought that the Lord wanted this boy (sweet Jake) home to be raised up in the Lord's ways.  God's word, along with some Christian worship music, sustained me through the rest of the flight. 

Oh, forgot to mention that Parker had a little incident on the plane at about the 5 hour point.  I think the "turbulence" got the best of her so she had the experience of throwing up on a plane.  The plastic bag worked good and I offered no explanations to those seated around us.  It was what it was. 

In Detroit, all the various security checks went fine but just when we got ready to present the "brown envelope" which was supposed to remain sealed from our consulate appointment, I look back at Parker and she says that she feels like she is going to pass out.  She is green and I've seen that look before.  I ask the homeland security person if he needs me to pass over this envelope or if just one parent will do and he says that's fine and that he can call an ambulance if we need him to.  Parker would have been horrified and after sitting and some orange juice, she was fine.  The flight from Detroit to RDU was fine for everyone....except Jake.  He cried nearly the whole hour and part of it was these extremely ear-piercing screams that he does sometimes when he's excited and sometimes when he's scared or upset.  I literally had to hold that child in his seat at the end because he is squirming out from under the seatbelt.  He was just absolutely spent.

One of the reasons that I had tears this morning I think was because of the welcome home that we received at RDU.  A huge group of dear friends...some from our church, some from our co-op, some from our taekwondo group, some from the community, came to welcome Jake home and us back.  It was so sweet.  I was stunned and hardly able to speak.  Jake was precious and enjoyed meeting all these people.  I believe he could feel their love for him and his smile radiated that.  It reminded me of what happens in heaven when one person is saved and welcomed in to the kingdom of God.  Jake has no reason for people on the other side of the world to love him like they do.  But God had a plan and He is in the business of redeeming and saving the lost.  I can't imagine the party in heaven.

I wish I could describe what things have been like since we have been home these few hours.  Jake is taking so much in.  There are so many "firsts" that it would be hard to list them all.  He really enjoyed meeting his cats this morning and tried to love all over them.  He's a little more skeptical of Joey (he's a smart little fellow:)) and even when he sees him through the window, he comes running for "Mama".  His little legs clamp tight around me as he asks (in some language) to go back to see the dog.  It is precious.  He is amazed by so many things in our house.  So many friends blessed us with a toy or clothes or a stroller, playpen, etc. here and there and every one of those things has come in to good use.  It was so neat to watch him get on a little ride along thing that a friend from co-op passed to us and then to see that big smile.  We don't know if he knows who Elmo is yet or not, but he seems to love the music.  And what would we have done without the stroller that a friend passed along to us right before we left.  We used it the entire time (it carried Jenna's carryon and Jake once we got him).  The list just goes on and on.  It is almost as if the Lord God Himself put this thing together!!!  I feel like I'm just walking into it if that makes any sense. 

So many people have touched our lives through this process.  I am grateful for every single one of them.  God has blessed us far, far beyond what we deserve.  And I can feel the Lord changing us.  I am so grateful that He doesn't leave us to ourselves and that He is faithful and trustworthy.  Thank you Lord God for bringing us home and for loving a little boy and us and for uniting us as a family. 

Baba (daddy) is blogging???

I must admit that I am not experienced at this blogging thing, so here we go. I know that I will probably be all over the place, so you will have to bear with  me.

It has been an amazing journey so far, and we are like at step 2 or 3 of ?? in the journey.   When we definitely decided to start the process a little over a year ago, we knew that it would be a life changing experience for our family and for the adopted child.   I must admit that this is a little different than having Parker, Jenna, and Andrew.   Even though we knew we were getting a cute 2 year old little boy with CP, and had pictures and videos of little Jake HongFu, I was a bit nervous and anxious last week.

Jake HongFu is an amazing little boy.   We can tell that he was loved and cared for greatly by his foster family.   He is full of love, very affectionate, active, smart, and has plenty of tendancies of a typical 2 year old little boy (we will have to work on some of those).  Even with our lack of oral communication, we can tell he loves his jei jei's (older sisters), gege (older brother), mama, and baba.  Jake has learned to say Andrew's name already, working on the others.  

I have been to a few of the larger cities in the US with my business travels, but I have been in awe of the cities Nanning (6.8 million) and Guaungzhou (13 million).   Apartment buildings, office buildings, as far as you can see, and traffic that I would be scared to drive in (we have plenty of pictures).   

We are so thankful for all of the support and prayers from our family, our TKD family, church family, co-op family, my work family, and all of our friends. 

We will hopefully be home in a couple of days.

May God bless you all!!

In His name,  Jeff

The Little Things

Do you know that I believe that we are supposed to rejoice in the small things?  Well I do.  God has given us so many blessings but sometimes, in fact often, I overlook the little things.  Well we (now Andrew joins us for the first part of our nightly strolling routine and both boys really look forward to that together) started our stroll last night and Jake looked at Andrew and remembered how the night before Andrew had told him in Chinese that he loved him (woh ai ni).  Well last night right as we stepped out the door Jake remembered this game and said to Andrew "ai ni" which means "love you".  It was so precious.  We walked and talked and strolled and then Andrew went back in to the room.  I walked a little more but have decided that the hallways aren't the safest place due to all the knooks and crannies (thank you God for protection) and so I just stroll the one hallway where our room is.  But I moved into the second part of our routine which is just cuddling and a few whispered words and then after a while he falls to sleep.  Well last night I decided to just bring him on back in (everyone was asleep at this point) and lay him down in his crib awake.  He laid and babbled a little but after about 10 minutes went to sleep.  I was so excited.  I think he is getting more comfortable with us and I am understanding his needs better.  That was big in our world.

Then this morning he woke up about 6:30 and said "nu nu" and then again "nu nu" which means he has to go potty.  I thought surely not.  Everyone was asleep but I went and got him, took him to the potty (dry diaper), and then laid him back down and he just immediately went to his stomach and went back to sleep.  WOW!!!  I can't tell you how excited I am for him. 

Oh, the little things.....they are so precious.

By the way, he loves "The wheels on the bus" and can now say "please" which comes out "peas" and "An - drew".  So, so cute.  He is such a smart, smart fellow.

Oh, and one more thing.  Some of you know that I was worried about his itching before we came.  Totally dry skin.  He hardly scratches at all now.  Skin looks great.  Oh, and the pool hasn't caused any stomach problems.  And he loves the water. 

I could keep going, but better get moving.  There is so much to be thankful for.  Hugs to everyone.

Tuesday in China.....Purchasing, Pooping, and Planning

Each day we're getting closer to being able to go home.  I am so excited about that. 

Today we didn't have any paperwork or appointments so we took a bus ride to Shaiman Island where we did some shopping (the Stanleys did all their buying in one little store since we're not big shoppers).  We learned from another family that's done this before that Shaiman Island is where the Europeans settled and primarily where adoptive families stayed in the past.  Much of that has changed now and many of the shops have closed.  We still had fun and ate (well, sort of) at a place called Lucy's where most of the adoptive families like to eat because there is some Western food there.  I had one of those "we can do this" moments when just after we sat down for lunch, we realized that Jake had just gone poop.  I asked one of the families where the bathroom was and his raised eyes and "there isn't really one" told me right away that this was going to be interesting (squatty potties are very interesting).  I was up for the challenge.  Kids primarily go in the street in their split pants and it's not unusual to see lots of "private parts" if you know what I mean, so that wasn't the issue.  Somehow the staff got wind of our "need" and showed me to where the babies get changed.  I was so curious how this was going to work out.  She took me out the back of the restaurant and brought out what looked like one of those tray holders that they use in restaurants when they bring out your food.  She folded it out and I thought, "yeah, this will work".  With a quick wipedown of the cloth and scooping Jake up and in, he was changed and we were on our way.  I will tell you though that I had a back-up plan which involved a bench (I had forgotten our "changing pad" which is a blanket because it's been a while since we've had a baby in the house) and, hmmm, that's about it.  I just can feel the Lord's protection on our health so all is well. 

All three of these families we are traveling with are still adjusting.  And we all will be for many years to come I think.  It's so fascinating to watch it all unfold.  I can see us all being shaped.  We all feel so blessed.  Still there are so many questions, so many looks.  We are loving the least.  I don't think it makes sense to them.  I don't know though...maybe I'm wrong.  I don't think it's me that's doing something great.  I think I have been selfish at times wanting to love on and have the blessing of a child.  They are such blessings!!  But I think it's Him!  God's love for them is SO amazing. 

My vertigo is slowing getting better.  Thank you for praying. 

Tomorrow is another slow day.  Nothing is ever simple though with the food issues and we are nearly out of gluten-free mashed potatoes.  We will go on some sort of river boat cruise with dinner tomorrow night.  This will probably prove to be very interesting.  We thought about not going because we are struggling with the food, but it will be some sort of buffet so at least the girls can have steamed rice.  So far I don't think that they have gotten any big hit of gluten which is great.  But it hasn't been easy.  I am sorry to be so whiny.  I just wish that they could enjoy the food part a little more.  But all is well.  And as Jeff says "it is what it is".  That just means to accept it and move on.  This involves some contentment in the situation and trust and faith and I appreciate that reminder.

Thursday is our CA.  Friday we are waiting on Jake's visa and moving back to Hong Kong for departure on Saturday.  I think I might have laid this out before.  Can you tell I'm ready to go home?

A quick update and a few pictures

Today has been a good day.  We are gettting into a rhythm though I am so looking forward to going on.  We got up early to get down for breakfast this morning and got to sit in a spot (with lots of other adoptive familys, mind you) where we could see a gorgeous waterfall.  I am starting to feel a little more normal though I do feel that maybe we are getting a few more stares because Jake is a boy.  We are enjoying meetings lots of new folks and hearing their stories.  It is amazing to see how God has worked in all their situations. 

This morning families piled into the bus to go get the TB tests read and they were all negative which is a very, very good thing.  This would have prolonged our trip and caused Jake to have had a chest xray and some other things which would have been a big ordeal for him.  Then we went on to the zoo here in Guangzhou.  This was a "relaxing" family time for us.  The three families chose to stay together after a 20 minute tram ride to orient us to the zoo.  I say relaxing because we are all adjusting to our new little ones and their needs so there was lots of stopping and adjusting and trying to remember that it wasn't about the zoo but it was about bonding and loving each other.  Two little girls have really taken to Jenna.  They came to China to adopt their 3rd child...another little girl.  This little one has CP and low muscle tone in some areas and rigidness in others.  She can't sit up.  It is a reminder to me of how well Jake has done and a huge praise.  He has to sit in the stroller to keep him from taking off while she needs the support.  I am enjoying loving on these families and it especially melted my heart to see Jenna holding hands with the two older siblings (one like 7 years old and one 6 year old).  The younger one is missing two limbs including her forearm and most of her leg on one side.  Jenna was holding the side that was missing the limb and seemed unaffected.  What a blessing to me!  We will be praying for these precious families when we return and hope to keep up with them as we are able.  We have a common bond.

Our three older children have now gone done to the pool and Jake is napping.  I will wake him up soon.  He still has a hard time going to sleep at night.  I have worn prints in the carpet in the hallways from our strolling routine at night.  I stroll, them hold and love on, and then he falls to sleep.

Please keep praying for us.  We are eager to return home.  Our Consulate Appointment is Thursday and then we'll be leaving on Friday to take a van to Hong Kong where we'll stay overnight until our flight leaves on Saturday.  There are at least 3 other families going back from  Hong Kong to Detroit that we have met.  We all feel literally sick on our stomach when we think about the flight with our new little ones.  Please also pray as I have struggled with vertigo.  This isn't normally a big deal, but it has been hard for me because I feel like I might drop Jake or fall into oncoming traffic.  I am feeling a little better today it seems.  Also please just keep praying for all of our adjustments.  Hugs to you all and thanks for following along.  It is comforting to know that there are folks praying for us.

 At the clinic for the medical

 Daddy and Jake

 The Stanley Boys

 Hot and Tired in the Garden at The Garden Hotel

 The First Day

 Getting Height and Weight....Jake has done this before, we can tell.

 At the Orphanage

 A Friend

 A Common Bond

Sleeping in the Playpen the Second Night (sucking thumb)