Finally Final!

Monday, March 25th, 2013...Mycah's adoption is now final in the eyes of China as well as the U.S.  Although he will not be a U.S. citizen until we touch down in Chicago, all paperwork is now completed!  No cameras were allowed in the Consulate office, but I took an oath on his behalf, submitted a few last papers, and answered a couple more questions.  The whole thing was over in less that 20 minutes.

So off we went to celebrate...at the Safari Park!  Mycah absolutely loves animals, so this was quite a day!  And the fact that it rained on us most of the time made it even better...or so he thought!

Safari train ride!

Sippy cup got benched for the water bottle...not sure if he was more wet from the rain or the drink!?

Some of us got to feed the giraffes, but Mycah would have nothing of that!

Llama or Duck?  Ever play that game?  A certain someone or two may be a tiny bit addicted!

First Oreo...yummy!

Wiped out!

We ended our day with about 50 friends at a local Mexican restaurant, Tekila's.  The food was good, but the fellowship was great!  We have walked this adoption journey with these families for months now, and to finally see them live and in person with their families was so much fun!  I am sure everyone thinks that their travel "group" was the best, but I am quite sure that ours really was! 

Mycah's buddy, Simon

Wonderful Weekend!

The last few days have been filled with a few appointments, a little paperwork, and a lot of fellowship. We visited a beautiful memorial on Saturday morning.

I think we had our pictures taken almost as many times as we took pictures!  Blonde hair is kinda rare in those parts!

Our agency group

 Mycah had his medical appointment for the US Consulate. Talk about a CrAzY place! I am not sure that the pics below accurately portray the chaos that was the adoption side of the medical center?! His TB test came back negative and there were no surprises at the physical. Praise The Lord!

Sunday we visited Shaiman Island. What an incredible oasis in the midst of a city of 33 million people! My favorite part? Church! Yes, church. I'm not sure all the ins and outs of that, but there are a few sanctioned churches that are allowed to hold services. Albeit very monitored I am sure, the Gospel is going forth! Taking Mycah to his first church service ever and doing it in his own country and language was absolutely priceless for me. I actually heard him cry for the first time, however. When the music started and the people began clapping, he was quite startled! So we spent a few minutes outside calming down, and then returned to the overflow room which was full of parents with young children. Even though the service was in Mandarin and English, I can't say that I caught too much of the message. It was kind of difficult to focus with the back and forth translation. But the worship...oh, the worship! Even though their talent was nowhere near that that most of us are blessed to enjoy on a weekly basis, their passion and heart for the Lord were quite evident. And God was there! As I stood among dozens of Chinese brothers and sisters (and a few adoptive families) and sang Hillsong's "Hosana", I was awestruck. The prayer I prayed almost two years ago that was the beginning to this journey was word for word in the bridge of this song.

"Break my heart for what breaks Yours."

And he did. And here I am. In China. Holding a child who was once considered the least of these. And he is now my treasured son. And I wept. No telling what was going through Mycah's little head, but he didn't say a word and no longer seemed scared. But I probably should have opted for the waterproof mascara that day!

Sweet Kinsley joined us for our church picture!  

Once church was over, we shopped a little and went and had tea with Dong. It was so neat to see him make a serve the tea in their traditional style. Tiny cups. Very hot tea! And quite a sense of humor. His wife was there also and entertained Mycah the whole time. She is the first person he has really carried on a conversation with since I have gotten him and it was so neat to see and hear him. He is very quiet and shy around new people, so I was pleasantly surprised to see him dashing all around their store gathering toys and then bringing them to show me. He had quite the stash by the time we finished our tea! We put most of it back, but did find some Lego type blocks that he loves and some Pleasant Goat (popular cartoon) toys as well.

We had lunch at Lucy's which serves American cuisine. Since there was no Chick-fil-a on the menu, I went for the cheeseburger. It tasted a little different and was a little chunky. I just kept telling myself it was beef and I finished most of it. Never mind that I haven't seen a cow here yet!?

It has been such a blessing to meet so many people in person that I have known for months only in FaceBook land! We have been quite entertaining to wait staff around the city I am sure! I will miss our dinners and outings together when we all go back to FaceBook land. But I am oh so thankful to have made dear friends and shared this experience together. Some of their blogs are on my sidebar...hop on over and take a look. These families are all precious!

Hard to believe our time here is almost up. It has gone fast and slow all at the same time! I miss my family dearly, though, and am looking forward to getting home soon. And having that CFA sandwich and maybe even a cheeseburger with no worries. ;-)

One Less...Yet Many More

Thursday afternoon we were allowed to visit Mycah's orphanage. We took an approximately 2 hour van ride to Qingyuan City SWI and arrived just at the end of their school day. I had been a little nervous about this trip. Mycah had been doing pretty well, and I didn't want this to confuse him or set him back. We first entered the administrative building and were greeted by a lady in charge of adoptions. After a quick trip to the squatty potty, we were ready to start our walk. At this point Mycah had a funny look on his face and I was pretty sure we were about to see his first breakdown. After a few encouraging words...none of which he understood I am sure...I started walking and he followed. By the time we got to the school building, we could hear the sound of children's voices. He started to smile. When we reached his classroom, the kids were SO excited to see him! Although a little shy at first, he became quite chatty and animated when he was able to pass out the treats we had brought to his friends. Six little girls...and Mycah. The absolute joy on their faces and the high pitched Chinese chatter absolutely melted my heart. Watching the girls bring him their treats so he could help open them was adorable. After a few pictures we headed outside and watched them dash across the courtyard, laughing and playing the whole way. Those were the biggest smiles I had seen out of him up to that point, and it made me happy and sad to see how happy he was to be back at his orphanage. The kid has no idea what waits for him in a family. We walked the girls back to the dorm building and said goodbye. We were not allowed to go in and see where they slept and ate. I can only imagine why, and I do not like what I imagine.

Looking back on our visit four days ago, I can see that our visit was a positive turn for him. That night when we returned to our hotel room, he chattered more that all the previous days combined. And every day we see a little less shell shock and a little more Mycah! What an incredible process to witness.

Which brings me back to 6 little 4 year old girls. Six girls that I saw, smiled at, talked to and touched. Six little girls who have no recollection of a father or mother's love. Six little girls who have no family coming for them...yes, we asked! Six little girls who have grown up in a building with holes in the walls and no heat or air conditioning. Six little girls who wear sandals with their toes hanging over the ends.

Six little girls that

I.

Left.

Behind.

Although I could not bring these precious little ones with me, they are forever etched in my memory. And I will do all I can to see these orphan girls become beloved daughters. Expect to see them on my sidebar very soon...as a reminder for me and everyone else who reads that though I rejoice over our son, it isn't just about him. One less is not enough...there are MANY more.