Welcome to the [workaround] Trip Journal Page for Bring Sophie Home

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DAY 6--Gotcha Day

Cue sappy narrator's voice: "The day began like any other..."

As you saw from yesterday's update, we were in the third group of three to go to get our babies. However, someone in the first group asked if Jeff would come videotape their "gotcha moment." Jeff readily agreed, not only to help out (and get him to videotape our moment in return) but to do a little advance recon on this to see what our day was going to be like.

We'll skip you over that part for now and discuss the elements when we get to them in our story.

After Jeff returned to the hotel and he and Robin had lunch, they still had 2 hours until they had to show up to get ready to go get Sophie. So they walked around the huge city block that the hotel is on. Very educational. People stared at us like we had two heads.

Finally it was time to go get our baby.

The "gotcha day" happened on the 5th floor of a government building, in a tiny office the size of our hotel room.

We walked down a long institutionalized-style hallway and into the room where our babies would be brought. They weren't there on time but were supposedly in the area. Jeff stood watch in the hallway. When he said "Babies are on the hall" he ducked back into the office to wait with the other two families.

Two babies were brought in (the third would come later from a different orphanage) and within 10 seconds, Sophie ("Dang Rong") had been identified and handed to us.

There she is. The object of our desire for the last 3 years.

Here's the moment captured on video .

After the babies were given and the paperwork was done (and the third family got their baby), we all went to a local Kodak shop where they took passport photos of our babies. Then it was back to the hotel to begin grappling with the reality of what in the world we'd all just done.

There was more paperwork to do, including something that required fingerprints from us and a footprint from Sophie. We have to get ready for tomorrow when we go to another government office and file paperwork and pay more fees.

Jeff volunteered to go with one of the CCAI reps and another father to travel to the local supermarket to purchase formula for all the babies. The orphanages had stipulated what each child ate/drank, and we went to get some. It was another experience in Chinese culture.

When they returned, it was just in time. Robin was out in the hall with Sophie, who was crying fiercely. We knew she was hungry and the formula came in the nick of time. Sophie drank it with a vengeance.

Toward the end of the bottle, Jeff and Robin placed a Skype call to Jeff's parents so that Grace and Nathan could see Sophie live. We didn't want to post anything here before they had seen her themselves. Even though it was 6 a.m. on Monday for them, they all got up to see their new baby sister.

Aside from the government appointments tomorrow, we're pretty much going to be sitting tight here in the hotel in Zhengzhou for the next week or so. Everyone's acclimating to new parents and babies and schedules and tasks.

As I write this, it's 10 p.m. and we're walking around the room trying to find something to calm a crying baby. She keeps rubbing at her ear, so she may have an ear infection. Or colic, or gas, or total psychological shock.

Sophie's hearing seems good. She responds to soft snapping on either side of her, by turning toward them. Her head is a good size but her body is quite small. Her hands are particularly dainty. Robin has already been working with her to reach for and grasp toys and things, and she's already improving.

We have our baby! Thank You, Jesus!

DAY 7

Sophie passed her first night with us very well. We got her down after 8:30. We found out later that 8:30 is her usual bedtime. So she didn't wake up for her normal 2 a.m. bottle until 3:30. She downed that bottle so hard it made her sweat, then slept again until around 6:00.

We're doing less sightseeing and more family bonding stuff for the next several days. But today we had one more bit of official business to take care of here in Zhengzhou.

We had to go back to that same room where we got our babies, to receive our finalized adoption paperwork from China. Henan Province (where we are) has apparently not been open to international adoptions until now--or maybe it's just special needs adoptions that are rare here. In fact, we are apparently the first big group to go through the system.

The finalization of this group's adoption was a big enough event that the head of the...something...in all of Henan Province came to be the one to give us our certificates personally and to videotape the whole thing.

After returning to the hotel and getting lunch, we all started preparing for our trip to the Lotus Center, a two-floor shopping area pretty much like a Super Wal-Mart.

It was strange being back on a tour bus (to get to the Lotus Center) with all those people. The last time we'd done much of that had been to go see the Great Wall or Forbidden City or something. It was odd to be with the same people--plus 13 babies--but going not to one of the Seven Wonders of the World, but to Wal-Mart.

Robin and Sophie were definitely up for some shopping.

We got lots of goodies from the Lotus Center. More formula, new diapers and wipes, a teething toy (Sophie has teeth cutting through all across her lower gumline), some Pringles and desserts and fruit for the hotel room, and a cheap carry-on bag to help us with the final plane flights in a few days.

Jeff was all excited because he thought he'd come to the end of his week-long quest to find Mountain Dew in China. As you can see in the flag photo, he wore his MD shirt today--partially to use the green drink to honor St. Patrick's Day.

As we were coming out of the Lotus Center he noticed a Kentucky Fried Chicken. Several in our travel group decided that would be a good deal for dinner. Jeff went in and, to his delight, spotted Mountain Dew on one of the fountain spigots behind the counter. He was seriously rejoicing.

But then came the interchange with the person taking his order. Happily, they had a point-at-what-you-want menu for the main stuff. But when it came to drink orders, there was only a Pepsi to point at. Jeff indicated strenuously that what he wanted was Mountain Dew--and a big one at that. He was so geeked about it that he even forgot to tell them no ice (because the ice is made from tap water, and tap water tends to make Westerners sick).

When they came forward with the drinks, they had filled a big cup with...Pepsi. No, no, no, Jeff said. He pointed at the Mountain Dew symbol and said "Mountain Dew" repeatedly. In a flash of inspiration, he drew aside the button-up shirt he'd donned and showed the Superman (er, Mountain Dew) symbol on the t-shirt underneath.

"Ah!" the KFC employees all said. It wasn't until they'd gotten back to the hotel to eat, andn Jeff was dumping the ice from the cup, that he realized they'd given him Slice, not Mountain Dew.

So close.

After dinner, Jeff went on a trip across Zhengzhou by himself to take laundry to a good Chinese laundry they'd heard about and to pick up the photos from the disposable camera they'd sent to Sophie's orphanage. Quite an adventure for one Westerner alone. But despite finding out that the laundry didn't do socks and underwear and that the photos were all of the car ride on the day of the adoption, it went great.

Meanwhile, Robin and Sophie were having some excellent girl bonding time. We are both amazed at how understimulated Sophie is. Robin works with her for 5 minutes and has her doing things and using muscles and babbling semi-words--all things she hasn't done at all since we've had her. All this very smart girl needed was someone to work with her one on one.

Here's a video of some of the fun these two had.

Now we're gazing at our tiny baby girl (she's the smallest of the 13 babies, even smaller than the one who is younger than she is) and hoping for another good night.

Tomorrow--nothing but bonding.

DAY 8

Today was a strangely normal, slow day. In all our imaginings about this adoption trip to exotic China, we never thought we'd be just sitting around the hotel working on the computer and watching old Charleton Heston westerns on TV.

So after a long time lounging in the (very hot) room, we got Sophie gussied up and took her downstairs for a photo shoot.

Here's our cover girl:

Then we went inside for a very Chinese lunch (or maybe not so Chinese). Watch this clip.

Then we returned to the room so Jeff could do more work on Marcher Lord Press and Robin could do more work with Sophie. She's really developing quickly under our care--and we think she's even gained a little weight. She needs it!

Yesterday, Jeff had an adventure trying to get Mountain Dew. Now that he knew there was some to be had in China, he got it in his head to go get three big cups of it (no ice) and bring it all back to the hotel room.

So he asked one of the CCAI reps to write out on a sheet of paper what he was after, so he could show it to the person at Kentucky Fried Chicken so they'd know what he wanted.

About 4:30 p.m. Jeff grabbed another dad from the travel group and the two of them got in a taxi for the nearest KFC.

However, the nearest KFC didn't have Mountain Dew. What? The one at the Lotus Center does. "What's the Lotus Center?" the girl at KFC asks. Uh oh. We tried to describe what it was, and the girl said, "Ah, yes, I know this place." So she kindly wrote down for a new taxi driver where we wanted to go.

A several-minute-long taxi ride later, we were let out at a warehouse store (like Sam's) with a giant KFC beside it. Not the Lotus Center, but good enough.

Except, as the taxi drove away, we realized the KFC was still being built.

Now what?

By this time it was after 6 p.m. and getting dark. So we found another cab to take us back to the hotel.

Mission unaccomplished.

Jeff already has plans to go again tomorrow. He said what began as a lark became a quest, and now that quest has become an obsession. Must...have...Mountain...Dew.

He's already talked one of the CCAI reps into physically going with him in the taxi tomorrow. We'll at least get to the Lotus Center KFC. If real MD flows from the spigot with the MD logo, it will be a miracle. But worth it.

Sophie has two speeds right now: happy and content, and so angry she can't breathe enough air to scream. The latter comes when we change her diaper, give her a bath, or leave her when we hadn't yet been dismissed. But most of the time she is the most wonderful, compliant, happy baby. And by far the cutest in the world, of course.

Tomorrow: possible day trip to a museum, acquarium, and the Yellow River. And, of course, the Mountain Dew Crusade will continue.

DAY 9

Well, the Mountain Dew Crusade has reached its end. And not in victory.

Jeff was going to go with one of the CCAI reps to the Lotus Center KFC, where he'd seen the Mountain Dew spigot. But she had to cancel because there were actual important things to do. Imagine that!

So she wrote down more instructions on a sheet of paper (here we go again!) and sent him on his way. Jeff again wore his Mountain Dew T-shirt for luck, and because the laundry was still out...

This time, Jeff recruited Kevin, the adoptive father with whom he'd made the formula run on the first night in Zhengzhou. The two of them successfully took a taxi to the Lotus Center and successfully (after much consternation) got the KFC staff to fill a cup with the liquid that came out of the Mountain Dew spigot.

Unfortunately, the liquid that came out was Sierra Mist.

End of quest. No more leads. He'll try again in Guangzhou.

At lunch, we ate at the Italian food place in the hotel. Too much Chinese food, doncha know. We were struck by the international flavor of the moment. We spent a long time speaking with Natalia, an assistant manager of the restaurant, who was from Latvia. So Jeff exchanged a bit of Russian with a Slavic woman in an Italian restaurant in the middle of Henan, China! Very cool.

In the afternoon several families went together in a bus to a nice aquarium in the city.

It was great fun. The place was big, well done, and very soothing. They even had two shows while we were there.

Here's video from one of them. Mainly, Sophie liked the bubbles. But she was enthralled with the whole acquarium scene.

When we got back from the aquarium Jeff and a smaller group went for a walk. They all had to either drop off or pick up those disposable cameras from the Kodak shop. Jeff had to go pick up our laundry, which was just down from the Kodak place.

Today we also got our notarized documents for the adoption. Didn't know we were expecting them, but there you go. Now we have them. Several copies for several agencies. We're still waiting for Sophie's (Chinese) passport, which should be finished tomorrow.

Tonight several of our families went to a Chinese restaurant in the big, 4-hotel complex we're staying in. Good food, lots of it, and ridiculously cheap. Four couples ate all we could eat for a grand total of $24.

Sophie gave Jeff her own special birthday gift today. While she loves going to either Robin or Jeff, tonight at dinner she reached--not once, but twice--to go to Daddy.

When they got back to the hotel room, there was a birthday cake waiting for Jeff. The CCAI reps had arranged it with the hotel.

Now a bit about our little girl's personality.

Sophie is a cuddlebug. She always wants to be held. She's so small we're wondering if she might've been a preemie. Her development in almost all ways is around what you'd expect from a 3-month-old baby, not an 11-month-old toddler. She's just discovered her hands. She can't roll over or sit up. Her coordination is very low. But she's responding so beautifully to Robin's teaching.

She loves to look at the sky and ceiling. She seems especially attracted to the color blue. She hates having her diaper changed or taking a bath. She loves seeing her Mommy's face--she'll cry when Mommy walks away. She likes watching her sister and brother and grandparents on the computer screen in our daily Skype call.

She likes her formula very hot and she sweats when she drinks her bottle. She has a blanket she loves so much we call it the blanket of power. Put it on her, and she's instantly comforted. She's a sweet and beautiful baby and the cutest child in China (of course!). Her smile is a unique thing--like curtains being raised from the side--that lights up the room.

And today she made her Daddy's day.

DAY 10

Today was our last full day in Zhengzhou, the city where we all received our adoptive daughters and sons.

The day started with a morning trip to the zoo. We all piled on the bus on this cloudy, cool day. The zoo was quite large and impressive. Obviously done for the locals, since Zhengzhou gets so few foreign tourists.

They had the largest aviary I've ever seen and the largest number of big cats, especially lions, I've seen in a single zoo. They had dingos, giraffes, zebras, elephants, hippos...all the majors...plus lots of snakes.

But the main attraction is their panda. Chinese are crazy for pandas. Here's the one in Zhengzhou.

He was a big boy. Spent most of the time sitting in a tree with his back to us. But he did climb down to get carrots--and you should've seen the locals run to the glass to see.

Speaking of the locals, we got video of a nice lady who approached Robin and Sophie. Through Evelyn, one of our CCAI reps (whom you see briefly at the end of the video), the woman was telling us that after the surgery to her lip, Sophie will be fine--but that we need to put more clothing on that girl. The Chinese dress their children in multiple, multiple layers.

The conversation is a great taste of Chinese life. Here it is.

The rest of the day was spent in the hotel room. Jeff worked on Marcher Lord Press edits and Robin worked to improve Sophie's core muscles.

Which is a way of saying they had sitting lessons. Watch the fun.

Today, Sophie's passport was delivered to us. We're now officially traveling with a citizen of the People's Republic of China.

Tomorrow, we leave for Guangzhou. We'll be there for a few days while we await our chance to go to the U.S. consulate there to get Sophie's U.S. visa and to have her take the oath of citizenship. That's the last main hurdle before we can come home.

The flight from Zhengzhou to Guangzhou will be our first hint of how Sophie will do on the long flight back to the States.

Robin brought an inflatable bath thing in the shape of a duck. So far, Sophie still hates baths in any form. But we bring the inflatable fowl onto the carpet and put Sophie in it as if in a playpen.

In a pinch? Put her in the duck.

DAY 11

Today was a flurry of activity. We got all our bags packed and out into the hallway so they could be taken down for the bus to the airport. We trundled in and had the adventure of the Zhengzhou airport again--this time with babies.

Sophie handled it with her usual aplomb.

She did great in the airport and even better on the 2-hour flight to Guangzhou. Really, all 13 of the babies in our travel group did remarkably well on the flight. The 1-hour bus ride on the other end, from the Guangzhou Airport to the White Swan Hotel, was much harder and almost all of them cried.

Guangzhou is much warmer than either Zhengzhou or Beijing had been. We're only about 75 miles north of Hong Kong, so we're in the far south of China now. Hot and humid. Palm trees. It really looks a lot more like New Orleans than anything else.

The White Swan Hotel is the stuff of legends among Chinese adoption stories. It's the one place where almost every adoptive family stays--no matter which Chinese province they adopted from. Guangzhou is the city where the U.S. Consulate is, so American parents bring their Chinese babies here to have them do the oath to become U.S. citizens.

And the White Swan Hotel is right next door to the U.S. Consulate. Well...the old consulate. Now the U.S. Consulate has moved downtown and the White Swan is no longer convenient for it. But the name itself and the famous red couches are tradition. Besides, it's a nice hotel, right on the Pearl River.

Here's a shot of our travel group. Buncha troublemakers, eh?

When we got to the hotel several of the travel group families decided to order in from the local Papa John's Pizza. No joke. We had another couple in our room to share pizza. Great fun.

Jeff got a piece of exciting news when he checked e-mail in the room. One of the new Marcher Lord Press novels releasing April 1 is getting a "highly recomended" review in a very influential review magazine. This could be huge for him. Indeed, Marcher Lord Press is mentioned three times in this upcoming issue. It's virtually unprecedented for a small press.

And then, right at the end of the day, there came a knock at the hotel room door, and Jeff's quest for Mountain Dew in China reached its end. Some folks in the travel group had ventured to the local 7-11 and found it stocked with the blessed liquid. Some kind soul brought him one, and now Jeff's inner journey is at its end (or something like that).

Tomorrow: a long, slow nothing. Ahhhh. With perhaps some exploration of the area right around the hotel. And, of course, the savoring of a can of Mountain Dew--and a stock-up run to the 7-11.

DAY 12

Today was a nice relaxing day. We began by enjoying continental breakfast in the wonderful lobby restaurant of the White Swan Hotel, where we're staying. Then we explored the main floor, including the waterfall.

Notice the pagoda at the top of the waterfall? Beautiful.

We also discovered the hotel's playroom. It was designed by Mattel, believe it or not. It's very nice, and it gave Sophie a good chance to work those leg muscles.

Her feet look funky in this photo, but they're normal. She's just not used to standing on them and she likes to curl her toes under to grip.

Next, we explored the small island the White Swan Hotel is on. It's pretty much given over to tourist shops, restaurants, and a large park. We purchased our main souvenirs today. We think our kids will like them.

The park was wonderful. Easily Robin's favorite spot so far. We were there on a beautiful Sunday late morning. The park was filled with Chinese in groups of four and five playing this hacky-sack kind of game with a foot badminton birdie. Another large group was doing Tai-Chi. Another group danced waltzes and disco under a banyan tree. And four old ladies played a mean game of mahjong. It was bizarre and wonderful.

The trees were beautiful. One dropped these heavy red flowers like tree grenades. They dropped at a pretty high rate, and yet there were almost none on the ground, because the locals ran around grabbing them all and putting them in bags. To be used for decorating later, perhaps?

Speaking of trees, Jeff was particularly taken today with the miniature trees at the hotel. They're the Chinese version of bonsai trees done by the Japanese.

He decided to go on one of his information quests. He asked the lady at the business center to get him in touch with someone in the greens department. She ended up connecting him with an assistant manager for the hotel and a young man from the plant department.

It was a terrific talk. The hotel assistant manager translated Jeff's questions for the greensman, and vice versa. When Jeff asked if they cared for the plants on site or somewhere else, the assistant manager offered to show him right away. So off the three of them went.

They passed through the guest areas and back to the empoyee areas. There he was shown a wide balcony facing the river, filled with the miniature trees from the hotel.

He learned that the trees have to stay outside most of the time, and that the hotel staff rotates the trees in and out of the lobby regularly so they don't stay inside too long. This balcony extended to the left and right and was filled with scores of miniature trees of all sizes and species. Jeff learned so much and by the end was seriously considering taking up the Chinese art of peng jing.

A high point of our day was getting visa photos taken for Sophie. She came alive for the camera, smiling like a real glamour girl. We also got her some of the famous Chinese squeaker shoes, which she enjoyed.

Watch her trying to figure them out.

Tomorrow, we take all the babies to the pediatrician for a checkup. We have to take the shot records and so forth we've received from the orphanage for Sophie. We also have to contact the airline to verify our flight back to Beijing in a few days, because apparently the travel agency has dropped the ball on paper vs. e-tickets. We just do what we're told.

Today was a good day. Tomorrow...also the famous red couch photos.

DAY 13

Today we did three main things: doctor visit, visa paperwork, and red couch photos.

At 9 a.m. we all left the hotel and walked to the clinic. It was a crowded Chinese medical clinic, but they had a section in the back for foreign adoption examinations. They had a plasma screen playing Toy Story--in English, with no Chinese subtitles--and several doctors and nurses there just for us.

They had a height-weight-temperature station, an ear-nose-throat station, and a general exam station. We all had to take our children to each station.

Sophie got worried a bit but mostly did great. We were glad they checked her hearing, because cleft babies get so many ear infections and often get fluid on the ears, resulting in temporary hearing loss. But she checked out fine--no infections, just wax in her ears.

The doctors were surprised at her low weight (12.5 lbs) and small size. They told us to feed her a lot! The very thing we're doing.

On the walk back to the hotel, we passed several classes in session at a local elementary school. Some were going from one place to another.

After returning from the exam it was almost lunchtime. Then Jeff went to the business center in the hotel because Jason told us we (and a few other families) had to confirm our tickets with the airlines. We still have a flight from Guangzhou to Beijing before our Beijing-to-Chicago-to-Colorado Springs flights. Jeff didn't know which needed to be confirmed, but he went.

The lady at the business center called the airline for the Guangzhou-to-Beijing flight, and discovered a problem. They had record of Jeff but the record for Robin showed she had canceled her ticket. WHAT?

Jeff put in a panicked call to Jason (one of our two CCAI reps here in Guangzhou) and he came up to help. After hearing it all in Chinese from the business center lady, Jason checked his notes and realized Jeff hadn't needed to confirm the flight at all--that Jason was going to give us the e-tickets himself. Grr. Must...control...fist...of...death...

Jeff was wondering if they'd all have to cancel or if he'd have to fly home with Sophie and send for Robin later--maybe via mail-order bride. And then to find out the whole thing didn't need to happen at all. Oh, well. All's well that ends with all of us together in Colorado Springs. And Jason really is terrific. But Jeff could've done without the cardiac arrest.

After that it was time to go to Jason's room to do the massive paperwork for the visas. Robin stayed in the room with Sophie and Jeff went to Jason's room armed with all the official documents.

Many forms and nearly two hours--and $400 in fees--later, we were done. We can't imagine having to figure these things out on our own. Very complex and in some cases, tricky. Happily, we'd brought all the papers we'd needed from home, and it went as smoothly as it could go. Some of the families had problems, but nothing major, we don't think.

According to Jason and Kathy, our reps, we have now filled out the last adoption paperwork and paid the last fees. After three years of paperwork and $24,000 in costs, can it really be the end?

Tomorrow, Jason and Kathy will go to the U.S. Consulate on behalf of all 13 families. They will deliver the paperwork and fees we worked on today. We all have to stay in our rooms during that whole time in case there is a problem and they have to reach us.

Today, after all the paperwork was done, it was time to get ready for the red couch photos. Many of the families had purchased Chinese clothing for their children--and for them as well. It made for some fabulous photos.

Like this.

Then it was time for the main event--the all-the-babies photo. Oh, my--blessed chaos. Pay no attention to the hands of the puppeteers...

On Day 13, a photo of all 13 of our babies. Sophie is on the top row, third from the left. See that tiny one?

Tomorrow, hotel wait time while the reps go to the Consulate for us, then possibly a trip to the pearl market.

DAY 14

We spent most of today in the hotel. We needed to stay put in the morning while our rep was over at the U.S. Consulate with our fees and paperwork. Praise God, that all went perfectly!

All that's left is for us to go to the Consulate ourselves (tomorrow!) so Sophie can take the oath of citizenship for the U.S. No cameras allowed inside, so we won't have photos of that. No bags allowed inside, either, so I wonder what happens in diaper emergencies... Guess we'll find out.

After we got the call telling us our paperwork went through fine, Jeff and Shane (one of the other fathers) took a taxi to the nearest Carrefore supermarket to get more formula and diapers--and Mountain Dew.

Actually, the Mountain Dew here tastes exactly like Sierra Mist, so maybe Jeff had gotten the right stuff from KFC after all. In Chinese it's called Crazy Wave (or Wild Wave) and is pronounced Ji Lang. No wonder no one knew what he was talking about when he'd been asking for the literal translation of mountain condensation.

But despite the difference in taste, Jeff has taken a liking to saying "I need a Crazy Wave" and "Where's my Ji Lang?" so he doesn't mind the taste difference so much.

When he returned to the hotel room, he found Robin and Sophie working with a toy. Sophie was having great fun playing with it not with her hands but her feet.

Watch the fun here.

After that, it was time for lunch. They headed down the street to their favorite park and local restaurant: Lucy's.

Terrific fish and chips and chocolate milkshakes. We're kind of done with Chinese food, you see.

After lunch, we decided to explore a few streets we hadn't been down yet. We came across a couple having their wedding photos made.

Beautiful bride. Lucky groom.

After exploring--and managing to not buy any souvenirs--we went back to the hotel room. Robin and Sophie relaxed and Jeff worked on Marcher Lord Press projects.

Some of our families went to the pearl market here today. Outdoor market for freshwater and ocean pearls. Apparently there were tons of buyers, and not all of them tourists, and lots of deals to be had. We were glad we opted out.

We ate dinner in the room--leftover pizza, chocolate Oreos purchased at the Carrefore, and a Crazy Wave--then went to explore more of the hotel grounds. We found both pools and some beautiful flowers.

Beautiful girls need beautiful flower pictures.

Tomorrow: our last full day in China, God willing. In the afternoon Sophie will take the oath (though she won't officially become a U.S. citizen until she sets foot in Chicago on the flight home). Some of our travel group families are going to the zoo, but we're done sightseeing. Better to stay at the hotel and pack.

DAY 15

Today was nice and slow, with only one big thing we did: the U.S. Consulate.

Three of our families went to the zoo in the morning, and reported it even nicer than the one in Zhengzhou. The rest of us hung around the hotel, packed, and took it easy. Jeff worked on Marcher Lord Press stuff. Many families have illnesses upon them or coming on them, including Robin, so people are trying to rest up before the gargantuan travel day tomorrow.

Sophie has come so far in just the nine days we've had her. When we got her she was basically just a lump. She didn't know she had hands, she couldn't come close to sitting or rolling over, and she just sat there looking stunned a lot.

Now she finds her hands with ease, rolls 3/4 of the way over on demand, is almost ready to sit up, and smiles a lot. She also has a very good grip on things now, including her little bracelet, as you can see.

It rained today, so Jeff ran out to take rainy day photos of some of our favorite places in Guangzhou. He got another shot of the park we've loved so much...

...and the "A Home of Love" store where we borrowed a stroller, did laundry, bought Chinese clothes, bought a small suitcase, and generally had a good time and spent a lot of Chinese money.

After a small lunch in the room and more work/relaxation, it was finally time to get ready to go to the Consulate.

We had been told to bring nice clothes for this day, but we're not sure why, because no one else dressed up and it ended up being just a trip to a government building. But we dressed up all the same. If we're going to lug these clothes and shoes across China, then by gum we're going to wear them!

We all got in the bus and drove 45 minutes across the huge city of Guangzhou, until we arrived at the building downtown where the Consulate is.

It turned out to be just another high-rise office building in which the Consulate had rented out the 4th and 5th floors.

No cameras are allowed inside, so we can't show you what happened. But it involved escalators, security checkpoints, waiting rooms, glass windowed booths with clerks behind them, and more waiting.

We'd heard a lot about "the oath." We thought it was going to be this cool thing where we held up Sophie's hand and spoke for her the words that made her a U.S. citizen.

Um...not so much.

We were just affirming that the answers we'd given in the paperwork were correct to the best of our knowledge. Kind of anticlimactic, if you ask us.

Then they handed us back our babies' passports, only now they all had U.S. visas in them. She becomes a U.S. citizen when that visa is stamped in Chicago. And we have to immediately apply for a U.S. passport for her (plus birth record and Social Security number) because the visa only allows her to stay in the U.S. for one year! If we were to somehow travel back to China on this passport during that time, there might be trouble.

Nevertheless, this was a big day and the last major thing we had to do before we could bring our babies home. Sophie did raise her right hand during the oath, incidentally. Apparently her ear itched. But it was classic. Then Jeff held it up for the rest of the oath. And the lady giving the oath almost started to cry when giving the oath. I guess that even though the event itself is no big deal (no, we did not lie on our paperwork) it represents something huge.

On the way back to the hotel we realized that this was the last time we'd all be together. Tomorrow, we leave for the airport or train station at different times. It's been a terrific group to go through this adventure with.

See Robin and Sophie at the right edge of the photo?

Back at the hotel, almost all the families decided to go together for dinner at a local Italian restaurant. Great fun and good food.

Then it was back to our rooms to finish packing.

Our suitcases have to be outside our door for pickup at 6 a.m. Then we'll head down to the hotel restaurant for a final White Swan breakfast. We're part of a group of six families who will be leaving for the hotel at the same time, so we'll get to see some of our friends then.

We fly with one of those families on our Guangzhou-to-Beijing flight. Frank and Dina are first-time parents. Frank runs a ski resort in an area near New York City. Everyone else is going different directions, so we'll say goodbye to them in the Guangzhou airport.

We'll have about 3 hours in the Beijing airport before our United flight leaves. That will be the biggie: like 15 hours in the air. We think we'll fly more or less over the north pole.

Don't know what all the fuss is about though. Our ticket says we leave Beijing at 4:20 p.m. and arrive in Chicago at 4:24 p.m. Why is everyone saying it's a long flight?

We have every expectation that Sophie will do great on this flight. On all the flights. She'll eat and sleep and look around and smile. We're praying we can secure bulkhead seating and a bassinet for this long flight, as people have told us that's the way to go when traveling with a baby. Second best would be just having an empty seat between us (without having to pay for an extra ticket).

When we touch down in Chicago we'll have to go through the "foreign travelers" line because of our little Chinese citizen we're flying with. As we mentioned earlier, when her visa gets stamped in Chicago, she becomes a U.S. citizen. We can even apply for her Social Security number right there in Chicago.

I don't know if we will or if we'll even care about her citizenship at that point. We'll probably be so weary and jet-lagged that we could become citizens of Swaziland and not care.

Then there's a "mere" 900-mile flight from Chicago to Colorado Springs still up for us. After a 3,600-mile flight, that last one will be like nothing. Hopefully.

And then, God willing, we will arrive in Colorado Springs around 9:30 p.m. It will officially be the same day as the day we departed, but for us it will be more than 29 hours later.

But to see our children again, to be home, to see Jeff's parents, and to see Grace holding Sophie...it will all be worth it then.

DAYS 16-17

On this 32-hour "day" we traveled home.

It was pretty brutal. We were up at 5 a.m. China time and, aside from about 4 hours of spotty sleep on planes, were still up at 4 a.m. Colorado time (which was 6 p.m. China time, two days later). We think. It's all fuzzy!

Six families from our travel group had to be at the airport at the same time, so we took a bus with one of our CCAI guides, Kathy. The other guide, Jason, was already at the airport with a previous portion of our group whose flights left earlier. At the airport we said goodbye to the guides and all but one of our families, because we were on the same flight with that family.

So we flew from Guangzhou to Beijing. Sophie did very well. We had an empty seat beside us, so we were able to lay her down on it sometimes. She ate and slept, which established what became pretty much her routine for the next many hours.

We said goodbye to our other family in Beijing. We had to claim our bags and find our way to the United counter to check in. There was some trouble with our tickets, and we had no one to interpret for us, but they got everything worked out.

This was the big Bejing-to-Chicago flight, so we tried to see about improving our seating arrangement. We'd been booked to have an empty seat between us, but because we weren't paying for that seat, we knew it might not stick. We'd also been advised to request bulkhead seating and a bassinet that would mount onto the bulkhead wall.

Not only were we unable to get bulkhead seating, we found out that there was no empty seat between us. No empty seats in the entire "cheap" section of the plane, in fact. We were welcome to upgrade to first class if we wanted...

So we just prayed that we could do this. The 777 we would be riding on was wide and didn't have that claustrophobic feel, but the seats were pretty close to the ones in front so there wasn't much breathing room. If Sophie were going to be unhappy, it would be a miserable ride for everyone.

We kept checking at the gate counter to see if someone might've not shown up, but everyone showed. Finally we boarded--and then proceeded to sit on the runway for a long time. Nothing like starting a 13-hour flight by adding 40 minutes of sitting still, not moving toward your destination, and being unable to get up to go to the bathroom.

Happily, we had two very nice Chinese people in the seats beside us.

This is a nice introduction to a topic we like to call "1,000 Chinese Grandmothers." We knew we were getting something precious when we adopted Sophie, but we had no idea that with the adoption came the blessing of 1,000 Chinese grandmothers.

When Chinese women, especially older women, see us with this baby, they come running. They want to know everything about her. They talk to her. They want to hold her. They have tons of advice for us about how to care for her. And they all make Sophie smile, which just redoubles the energy these women have in talking with us.

We have several photos of groups of passers-by who stopped to have a long chat with us about Sophie. And on this long trans-Pacific flight we had at least three Chinese grandmothers come and interact with us about her.

One told Jeff that Sophie's eyes are set far apart on her face, and that's a trait the Chinese cherish because it indicates a wide open heart. Pretty amazing, huh? We were consistently overjoyed by the interactions with these dear women and we hope the phenomenon will continue in the States.

The flight itself was very, very long. Sophie did quite well, all things considered. She was fussy a few times, but Jeff took her on walks down the aisles (upon which they usually met more grandmothers). The rest of the time she was eating or sleeping.

Because our schedules were so off (we flew through the night in about 5 hours), her sleep schedule was thrown off. She ate about every 3 hours, which caused us to begin worrying that we were going to run out of formula.

During her naps, Robin and Jeff were able to get about 4 hours of sleep on the flight, off and on.

Finally we landed in Chicago. There we had to get our bags again, go through Customs, and wait for our connection to Colorado Springs. We were pretty beat by this point.

In Chicago, though, is where Sophie officially became a U.S. citizen.

One person told us that this happened the moment she set foot in Chicago (or whatever our first U.S. city "port of entry" was). So we got a shot of her touching down on U.S. soil--right off the jetbridge.

Another person told us that she became a U.S. citizen when her visa was stamped. But cameras weren't allowed in the Customs area, so we didn't get a photo of that happening. Either way, she's an American now!

We were eager to get on the flight for Colorado Springs. We kept hearing about a snowstorm in the area, however, and that many flights were being cancelled. The thought of spending the night in Chicago--or even Denver--when we'd come so far already, was awful.

We prayed hard that the flight would not be cancelled. It wasn't. When we were on it, though, they said we might be diverted to Denver. So we prayed hard that we could land in Colorado Springs. We did!

It was a bit dicey--and probably we should've diverted--but we wanted to get there and the crew was all Colorado Springs-based, so they wanted to get there too. It was a pretty bad blowing snowstorm, but we landed fine.

And who was there at the airport to meet us but Grace and Nathan and Jeff's parents.

Ever since Grace was 3 and we learned that we'd miscarried her little sister, she's been dreaming of this moment.

What an incredible moment. I believe that one of the reasons God made this trip so successful--and even that we were able to land in Colorado Springs even though almost every other inbound flight was cancelled--was so that we could get Sophie to Grace. Here's the moment in full motion video.

Then it was a 45-minute drive through a virtual blizzard. But we got home and the real fun began. Introductions and special moments...

...and of course the full tour of the house.

All you can see of Sophie is her foot, but she's here and loving getting to know Grace and Nathan.

By this time it was nearly 2 a.m. on Day 17. It was hard getting everyone down. Sophie didn't like the pre-mixed formula we'd gotten from the pediatrician--and we were down to our very last serving of the powdered kind she liked. So we gave it to her and put her down, hoping she'd sleep until we could go get some new formula she might like.

She had some teething pain and couldn't quite stay down. But finally at 4 a.m. she fell asleep--and slept until 10:00 a.m. Jeff's parents went out during this time and got two kinds of powdered formula.

Praise God, Sophie liked one of them! So we're good. Whew.

As we all get used to being a new unit and used to being back together again--with the addition of a crying baby in the house--we can't help but fall on our knees and worship God for what He has brought about.

Three years ago in February we prayerfully decided to take the first step that led to this moment. More than 10 years ago we miscarried a baby that planted in Grace's heart the desire for a baby sister. All the things that could've gone wrong but didn't. All the illnesses we didn't get and accidents that didn't happen and potential pitfalls that never materialized. We see God's hand in all of it.

We are ready to get Sophie in for her first surgeries at the Shriners Hospital in Chicago. And we're ready to continue bonding as a newly enlarged family and see what it is God has in store for us together.

Thank you for reading our travel journal and sending encouragement and prayers our way.

Thank You, Jesus, we're home and we have her.