Monday, July 2, 2012

Catching up...


Let me start by apologizing for completely abandoning this blog! We had some technical and logistical problem in China, so I thought I would backtrack to the beginning of our time with Julia and share some pictures.



This is our first glimpse of Julia.  Her caregivers brought her
into the room where we were filling out papers, and she was quick to show us her silly side.  She warmed right up to both of us and was happy to hold Barry's hand as we were leaving.  She said good-bye to the orphanage staff members who brought her to us and never looked back.

Our guide took us back to our hotel where we hung out in the lobby (the only place with wifi) long enough to skype with the kids at home and introduce them to their new sister, and then we went up to our room to spend some time playing and bonding.

On Tuesday our guide picked us up and took us to finalize the adoption.  When she saw Julia that morning, she asked her if she was happy with her new family.  Julia replied, "Very happy!"




After finalizing the adoption, we again spend the majority of our day in our hotel room hanging out and getting acquainted with one another.  Here are a few things that we learned about Julia during those first few days:

She LOVES to look at herself in the mirror!













She learns things very quickly.  Barry taught her to give high-fives and to do the hand sign for "I love you."  When she says,"I love you," it sounds a lot like "I love veh."  It's very cute!


And she was amazed by her stroller! 



On Wednesday, we spent the day at the Shanghai Zoo with our wonderful guide, Ming Ming.  She helped us so much by teaching us some key phrases in Shanghainese so that we could communicate better with Julia.






Thursday was probably one of the most emotional days of our time in China.  We were able to visit the orphanage where Julia spent the first four years of her life.  When we got there, the children from Julia's room were in preschool, so we were able to peek in and take pictures without disturbing the class. 


Then we walked over to Julia's room where she got to visit with her nannies for a few minutes before the children came back into the room for lunch.


She had four caregivers, and each one seemed genuinely pleased to see her.  It was fun to watch her interact with the adults and children who had
been such an important part of her life. 
One of our priorities was to take pictures and video clips of as many little faces as we could.  Several of the children are matched with families, and we know firsthand how valuable each picture is to a waiting family.  Many of the children are not matched, and we tried to hold some hands and pat some heads while we prayed silently that families would come for them.




By special request, we were able to meet a little girl who our family has been praying for since last year.  Her parents are in the final stages of the adoption process, and it was our pleasure to meet sweet Analina and to pray for her while holding her little hand. 

One of the hardest things we've ever done was to walk out of the orphanage with just one little girl. There were so many children, both girls and boys, who clamoured for our attention, grabbing at our legs and arms. I heard lots of very pitiful cries of "Mama," and many of those children will never know the love a mama. Very sad. I believe each one of them is precious in God's sight, so if my human heart was broken by the sound, I have to wonder how the One who made them feels when He hears their cries...



1 comment:

  1. My life has been a bit crazy so I am just now getting the chance to catch up on your blog. Every single time I see that picture of you holding my girl's hand I cry. I pray that within this month I will be there and holding her myself! Keep praying, please! We need miracle upon miracle!

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