Our Day in Hong Kong

"The truth is, I was born with a plan. I wanted life to be safe and predictable. My plan was to marry someone with a nice nine-to-five schedule and have a tidy, organized life -- everything under control. Absolutely none of that came true! And if it had -- if I had lived the life I thought I wanted -- I know I wouldn't have experienced the grace or the miracles of God in the ways that I have. What I've found is that it's in the most unlikely times and places of hurt and chaos that God gives us a profound sense of His presence and the real light of His hope in the dark places." -- Mary Beth Chapman, "Choosing to See"

I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.  -- Isaiah 46:11b

We have had a wonderful day in Hong Kong! We arrived here last night at 7 p.m. The flight was very smooth and uneventful and the kids did SO much better than I expected. I really tried to have low expectations for them and they amazed me. A lot of you must have prayed for us over your turkey dinner because we had a really easy trip (minus the airport and luggage situation). Britton and Lia Kate each had one short crying spell and otherwise were very content and happy to be in their seats and having unlimited access to their own tv! When Britton woke up one time, half-awake, he cried and kept saying "I want to go home!" Poor guy. It must have been so disorienting. Britton slept for about 5 hours of the 16-hour flight and Kate slept about 7 of them. Not too shabby. At one point in the flight, Lia Kate looked at me and said, "Mom, it's hard to get to China." They finally know what I mean when I kept telling them we would be on an airplane for a LONG time. 

Somewhere over Siberia.

We landed at 7 p.m., took a 45 minute van ride to our hotel (the kids were completely silent as they watched the tall buildings and this city all lit up), ate a late dinner, and went to sleep. We all slept for at least 7 hours and woke up at 7ish this morning ready to go. I am so surprised at the easy transition we've all had so far to this time zone. It definitely helped to have a flight that arrived here at night.

For our one day of sightseeing in Hong Kong, we decided to take the double decker bus around town for an overall view of the city. It was a great way to see a lot of the city. We rode out to Stanley Market, an area of town we enjoyed a lot last time. 

At Stanley Market area

Christmas decor is up all over Hong Kong

This city is a mix of San Francisco and Manhattan. It has the hills and beautiful scenery of San Francisco but the urban-feel and skyscrapers of New York. After touring all morning, we rode the Peak Tram up to Victoria Peak and had a late lunch/early dinner at a restaurant with picturesque views of the skyline. After that, we were exhausted and the kids were fading, so we took the tram back down the hill/mountain, walked to the bus stop, which took us to the ferry, which took us back to the Kowloon side of town where we are staying.

So proud of these two and for how well they are doing so far on this trip!

In the last 36 hours, we have ridden planes, buses, boats and a funicular train. Tomorrow, we take a real train into mainland China. It will be a 2-hour trip north, and we are excited to get to the next point of the journey.

One last note on Hong Kong...you would be surprised to know that we are only about 15 miles from Collins right now! We are in Hong Kong and she is across the bay in Zhuhai City. I can't believe we are so close to her, but can't get to her yet. Instead of getting her where she is from, we will meet her in Guangzhou on Monday at the Civil Affairs office, where all the "Gotcha Days" for Guangdong province take place. It is only less than 48 hours away from now. We are so excited. Lia Kate asked me this morning, "When am I going to get my baby sister, Mom?" Soon. Very, very soon!

Little monkeys ready for bed

I will post from mainland China tomorrow night!

And We're Off...Happy Thanksgiving!

Two little turkeys are on their way!!!


We are at our first airport waiting to fly to Chicago, where we will catch our flight to Hong Kong. We are praying for smooth travels and no delays. In so many ways, I can't believe this day is finally here. We are so grateful this Thanksgiving Day to be so close to our new daughter.

Also thankful for the little things too...like the fact that all of our stuff fit in our suitcases! Here we are after zipping them all up last night.


Would love your prayers today that all goes well and that our kids can hang in there with the long day ahead of us. We will be blogging here for the duration of this trip, so stay tuned!

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What I've Been Doing Lately

TA Arrived!

Our TA (Travel Approval) came on November 7!!! It's official...we are going to China for Collins. We leave on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 22, and Gotcha Day will be on Monday, November 26! I can hardly wait.

Since we were matched on September 6, this adoption has moved at warp speed. Such a relief to have things move fast after waiting 6+ months for a referral. The typical timeframe from match to travel is usually about 5 or 6 months. We are going from match to travel in 2.5 months. I never in my wildest dreams thought this adoption would move so fast.

When we adopted Lia Kate in 2009, we were an I-600 family (in other words, adoptions were quicker back then), and we went from match to travel in exactly 2 months. Since we brought her home and knew we were going to adopt again, I had been preparing myself to have to look at a sweet picture for 5 or 6 months before we could hold our next child. So thankful that was not the case and that we will be on a plane to China soon! As in, four days soon.

In fact, in exactly a week from now, at this very hour, we will be getting ready to go to the Civil Affairs office to meet CC. Can. Not. Wait.

Stay tuned...

Q&A about CC

Last month, I had Gretchen and Lillian from China Adoption Help get some questions answered about CC from the orphanage. These answers are from the beginning of October when she was just turning 8 months old. Here is the Q&A!

1. What are her current measurements – height, weight, head circumference, feet?

Height 66cm, Weight 6kg, Foot length 10cm.

(Height 26in, Weight 13lbs, Shoe size = 2)

2. What is her personality like?

She is extroverted. When she hears somebody calling her name, she will laugh and swing
her arms and legs, and make sounds like 'oh', just like she is talking with you. 

3. Does she suck her thumb or fingers or a pacifier?

Yes, especially when she is not happy.

4. How do you comfort her when she’s upset? Does she like to be held?

She could only be upset when she is hungry or her needs not to be met. She loves being held.

5. Does she have a favorite toy or blanket? 

Teething toy is her favorite, she likes holding it and sometimes put it in her mouth.

6. What are her sleeping habits - how much does she sleep and when? Does she wake up at night? 

She likes to suck her finger to go to sleep. Nap time: 11:30am-1:40pm, night time: 8:30pm-6:00am. She needs to drink milk once around 11pm.

7. How many bottles a day does she drink?

5 times a day, formula with rice cereal, 250ml each time.

8. Who is she closest to?

Everyone likes her so much. 

9. Is she sitting up now?

Yes, but she is not willing to. She sits for a while and will ask for being held. 

10. What makes her happy? What makes her cry?

Nothing particularly.

Suitcase Shower

I think we're ready to go to China now! Some sweet friends threw a "Stock the Suitcase" shower for us last night. We have everything we need to take to China for Collins (and then some). Thank you, dear friends, for celebrating our baby girl in such an awesome way.

Sweet Sleeping CC

Today, I am thankful to kick off this month of thanks-giving, with some new precious pictures of sweet CC. What a way to start November?!


We received these pictures from a sweet mom who was at CC's orphanage adopting her son a few weeks ago. It was naptime, so we only have sleeping pictures. But I kind of like that!

Do you see the photo pillow in the crib? This is the first care package item we sent through Gretchen and Lillian. I wanted something where she would see our faces, but since she is so young, I knew she couldn't flip through a photo album. So, voila, the solution was a photo pillow. There are pictures on the other side too. The mom who took this picture said the pillow was already in the crib and the nannies positioned it so it would show in the photos. Love!

My sweet sleeping girl! We will have her soon.