It's official!! We have a daughter! :)

Today has been a great day! We spent the morning finalizing all the paperwork for Aubrey to become OUR DAUGHTER. After three hours and three different offices, she is ours!

Our morning started bright and early....again. But not because of Aubrey. She slept all night. I was so surprised. I just can't quite adjust to this time difference. We had breakfast downstairs this morning. Then we came back to the room to facetime the boys. I miss those three munchkins soooooo much!

Our guide, Mary, met us in the lobby around 8. I just have to say, Aubrey is definitely not herself when out of our hotel room. I don't even know the best way to describe it. She is very attached to us. She doesn't utter a single sound when we are in public, even when she is spoken to. She just stares. But the minute we walk back in our room, she is all smiles and giggles again. This is where she is most comfortable. Ok, back to our day. We went to three different government buildings today. We said goodbye to the orphanage director. He was a very nice man. He kind of reminded us of one of Jeremy's grandpas. He was talking to Aubrey and tried to see if she would go with him. She didn't want anything to do with that! Sure did make this mama feel good! :) We signed lots and lots of paperwork, took our pictures, had our interview, promised to never abandon her, and applied for her passport. Whew! What a morning!!

 



We were back in our hotel room around lunch. She was all smiles before we were in the room for a minute. She went straight for her toys. I fixed her some noodles for lunch. Girlfriend can eat!!! :)

We spent our afternoon playing with toys!

 

She loves all of her toys! They are everywhere!!

And of course, she had to have a nap with mama and baba(daddy)!

This little girl is truly amazing!! She is so brave, full of smiles, lots of laughter. She is just precious! And I thank God for her! She has come so far already after being placed in my arms yesterday afternoon. She went from a scared little girl to a little one who just ran up to her daddy with arms wide open ready for a hug. I can't wait to bring her home to her brothers.

Gotcha.....Forever and Ever!!!!

Everything is going well!! Aubrey is doing great! She is such an amazing little girl!! We couldn't be happier. We are very tired tonight so I will just post pictures. I will tell about Gotcha Day when I have time. Thank you for all of your prayers and thoughts. Keep them coming! :)

Nanchang

Today was interesting.

Our day started at 4:00a.m. Yes, you heard that right! Four o'clock in the morning!! This time change is crazy! (Just to give you an idea.....it is 7:00 Saturday evening here. At home it is 5:00 Saturday morning.) We have actually done okay with the time difference. But by the evening, like 5:30ish, it hits me. I am exhausted!! We went to bed last night around 6:30. I don't even think it was dark outside yet. My goal tonight is to stay awake until 7:30. I think I will be able to! :)

Jeremy and I had breakfast this morning in the hotel. We were sitting by a family from Amsterdam. They were so friendly. Today was their last day in Nanchang. They told us there were a few other families here also adopting. Two from Amsterdam, one from Canada, and another from the US. We haven't met any of them yet.

Our guide, Helen, met us in the lobby at 10 to take us out for some sightseeing. The sights, sounds, and smells are unlike anything I have ever experienced. I have to admit, after about an hour of walking around today, I was a bit overwhelmed. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it! It is just so different from home. I can only imagine how Aubrey is going to feel.

We spent the afternoon in the room relaxing. Because you know what.......GOTCHA DAY IS TOMORROW!!

Aubrey should be here around 4:00p.m. tomorrow afternoon, about 2:00a.m. your time. So say some prayers before you go to bed.

Also, say a prayer for my little CarCar. He was throwing up Friday :( I wish I could be there to hold, cuddle and kiss him. I miss all three of my boys so much. But it has been so wonderful to be able to Facetime with them everyday!

Next post will be pics of AUBREY!!! (Or Ju, as most of the family calls her)

Here are some pictures from our day.

 

We are here!

To say that we are exhausted would be an understatement! After 20+ hours in three different planes, we finally made it to Nanchang. Our guide, Helen met us at the airport. The ride to the hotel was a little nerve wracking. The people drive a little crazy!! I thought for sure we would get in an accident. But we made it! We took a walk down the street to the supermarket. We got quite a few stares. We are THE ONLY Americans. This week will definitely be interesting. Tomorrow, Helen will take us sightseeing. I can't wait! :)

Oh, and this was waiting in our room for us!!!

Hong Kong

We made it to Hong Kong around 8:00 tonight. What a long day!! Our flight from New Orleans to Chicago was okay. The plane was a little small so I was kind of a nervous wreck! ;) But after lots of prayers, we made it safely.
Our flight to Hong Kong was delayed only by about 15 minutes. We flew Cathay Pacific. It was great! The seats were comfy. The service was awesome. I would highly recommend them to anyone.
But don't get me wrong, it was looong!!!!! We will fly to Nanchang tomorrow morning.
Oh, and we were able to FaceTime with the boys before they went to school. Jeremy told the boys that we got to fly over the North Pole. I wish you could have seen Bradley's face. Priceless!
For now, I will let the melatonin take me off to dream land!! :)

Just a few more hours!

Tomorrow is the day!! I can't believe the time has finally come. We will become a family of six in just a few more days. We leave for Ch*na in the morning. Our flight leaves New Orleans at 7:30. We will be headed to Chicago. And then from there, the loooong flight to Hong Kong. We will spend the night in Hong Kong. Friday morning we will fly to our daughter's province. And Sunday we will finally meet her!!!!!!

We will be there for two weeks. I am already looking forward to coming home. I can't wait to see the boys' reactions when they meet her. Speaking of which....I would love to have pictures of our homecoming. If anyone, or if you know of anyone, would be willing to drive to the airport on Friday, March 22, I would LOVE to have pictures taken. (Talk about wait until the last minute, right?!) We will land at 10:25a.m. Anyone is welcome to meet us at the airport. When we leave the airport, we will go to Jeremy's parent's house. Please stop by some time that day if you would like to meet Aubrey. We will be there for quite a while, and there will be food!! :)

Please pray for my boys. There were lots of tears shed tonight....from them and from me. I am going to miss those boys like crazy. I know they will be very well taken care of. I'm not the least bit worried about that. The simple fact is....I will miss them. So if you see my boys these next two weeks, give them an extra hug or smile. I think they will need it! :)

Last dinner tonight as a family if five!!

It finally hit me!

Today was the day....the day that it finally hit me. We leave for Ch*na next week. Did you hear that? NEXT WEEK!!! We will board a plane on Wednesday of next week to go across the world to meet our daughter. I am excited, but it's also overwhelming at the same time.

It finally hit me today....I will be halfway across the world while my boys are here. I will miss those boys more than words could ever say. My boys are my life. They mean THE WORLD to me!!! And those two weeks without them will be very difficult. I know they will be well taken care of. I'm not concerned about that. My mom will have them half of the time, and Jeremy's parents will have them the other half. They will also be with friends of ours for a weekend. I can't even begin to tell these people what they mean to me. I appreciate them all for taking care of our boys.

I packed Aubrey's clothes today.....14 outfits. I was thinking about her so much today while getting her clothes together. I feel like she is a part of me. This girl has such a special place in my heart. I feel like I know her so well, yet I don't know her at all. I look at her picture everyday. The boys and I pray for her every night. She has become such a big part of our family. But she doesn't even know it. I can't wait for the day that I get to meet this little girl! Please pray for her heart. We will be taking her away from the only thing she has ever known. This is what has been on my mind today. I know we are doing what is best for her. But it will still be difficult.

Now, let me quit crying.

We leave next week. I didn't even tell you when we will be coming home. We will arrive in New Orleans on Friday, March 22. Yep! On her birthday!!! How cool is that?! We will arrive at 10:30 that morning. Anyone is welcome to meet us at the airport that day. The boys are so excited. Not only do they get to make "Welcome Home" signs, but they also get to make "Happy Birthday" signs.

Also, don't forget about our puzzle fundraiser. Look to the right and you will see a donate button. Or just message me on Facebook. Any donation is more than appreciated!

And let me leave you with this little comment made by Bradley the other day. Oh, I love this kid!
"If bacon was never invented, it sure would change a man!!"
(We were having bacon that night)