We're leaving for China!!

Our bags are packed and we are ready to go! We have a complete peace that we know is only from God as we prepare to travel half way around the world to bring our daughter home. We would like to thank you all for your prayers and support during this process. We would love for you to follow our journey on our China adoption blog which is http://www.youbelong.net/gabriella Your words of encouragement and prayers during our journey is something we will look forward to reading and will be a precious keep-sake for Gabriella:) The password to the China blog is: Gabriella. We will see you over at the new blog:)

A week from today....

A week from today this beautiful little girl will be placed in our arms to join her forever family! We know her world will be turned upside down and our heart truly breaks when we think about all the changes she will experience in such a short time. We know beyond a shadow of a doubt this is the daughter/sister that God has chosen for our family and we are beyond excited to meet Gabriella next week and begin to get to know this precious little girl who God has blessed our family with.

As China has "the Great Fire Wall" we've heard that blog spot, which our blog is through, may not work while we are there. We are in the process of setting up a blog site that can reach from China, through the fire wall and back to the US. If you click on the link below it will take you to the blog we will more than likely need to use while we are in China. We will be adding to the new blog however I wanted to at least post the link this evening as we are having a very busy week as prepare to fly to China in four days!!!!!!

http://www.youbelong.net/gabriella

The password is Gabriella

It's official...my mommy and daddy are coming to China!

Today my daddy was very busy emailing Todd our travel agent. They looked at several flights until they found the perfect one:) Mommy and daddy will be flying out on February 26. They will arrive in Beijing on February 27 and in my city, Taiyuan on Sunday February 28. March 1, China time, is the day I will finally get to meet them. I've been looking at pictures of my new family for several months now and have even been able to wear some of the clothes they have sent me. My family has sent a couple of letters to me and I know they love me a lot and pray for me as well as my foster family everyday. They have also said they pray for my birth family and hope that some how God will let them know that I will be loved and cared for forever. Though I don't know who my birth family is my new mommy and daddy said they will always be part of our family and they are very thankful to them.

A very special friend who also adopted her daughter from China sent my mommy a quote about adoption. "Adoptive mothers are experts in finding lost objects, but understand and validate the profound deep loss left by adoption. She allows the tears to flow and grief to be felt allowing the mourning of the mom not there. She is secure in knowing she is not a replacement but a finisher of a race for someone, for whatever reason, could not run any longer. The role is not for the weak of spirit, or the easily wounded. Loving a child not born to her but calling him her own, but that is what she does, it is her calling. She is a mother".

I know my world is going to change and leaving everything I know will make me sad. In time, I will learn to trust and love my new family as much as they already love me. I have heard my big brothers are very excited for me to finally come home. Daniel thinks we should all go to Florida over spring break for some bonding time. Jordan wants to teach me how to play basketball as soon as I get home. Nicholas wants to read me stories and prays that I sleep the whole night through as his bedroom is right next to mine:) It's now official. I'll be coming home, to the place that I belong, on Saturday night March 13. I hear that's Auntie Anna's birthday and I may even get to meet her and thank her for my beautiful pink blanket when I arrive:) I hope my brothers are ready because after all this time I'll finally be home. Life will be different, but something tells me it is going to be a lot of fun:)

Travel Approval!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today it happened at 4:15 this afternoon an email came up on my blackberry from our agency that said "You're TA is here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" I opened the email and saw that Fei was immediately scheduling our consultant appointments and I was beyond thrilled!!! Two of my fellow instructors shared in my joy with me and knew we were going to China due my screams of excitement before my hubby did ~ he was the first person I called though and I have to say I think he was in shock. We knew our TA would be arriving but our agency didn't feel it would be for another week to ten days. Many important dates for Gabriella's adoption have fallen on or close to family members birthdays. When I looked at the calender and saw my brothers birthday was Feb 7 I hoped we would get our TA this week...and we did!!! We have a zillion things to do to prepare to leave for China....in a little over two weeks!!!!!

You know you're expecting a little girl when...

Grandma and Papa even feel that their new granddaughter needs a pair of Uggs to match her mommy's...

You have this little habit that your hubby is beginning to call an addiction when it comes to buying little girl clothes...




There is more pink in your house than you have ever had....




You realize you have to have all the coordinating things to go with each and every outfit....





There are even pink football jerseys in your house....

The people in a store called Gymbore* know you by name, know when your baby girl is coming home from China and you begin spending more on your daughters outfits that she will out-grow than you do your own and you enjoy every minute of it!