Just Another Manic (well, not entirely) Monday

Lily was extra active and vocal this evening, so I broke out the camera and snapped a few shots. Here she is in the middle of one of her recent accomplishments...standing up on her own. She first finds a suitable spot to hang on, like the coffee table. Then she gets a very serious, intent look on her face with a hint of anxiety. All of a sudden, she will lightly push off, her fingers curl up, and for the briefest of moments, she is free of her anchor. Afterwards, she either ends up with her belly back against the table or below it on her bum. (I tried to get a shot of her actually not touching the table, but I just couldn't push the button at the right time.)

For the past couple of weeks we've tried to introduce the "sippy cup" concept to Lily. For the longest time, she just wasn't getting it. The cup would hang down in front of her with no water flowing. Julie has been working with the Pinger to get her to put her head back. As you can see above, she is now throwing her head back and sipping with reckless abandon.

Why do we buy so many toys for kids, when boxes, pots, and pans seem to keep their attention a lot longer? Observe Lily's opinion of this white plastic bowl (that's really a happy look on her face, in spite of what you may think at first).

"All in all, I'd say it was a great today," said Lily, as she squealed with delight.

Scootin' & Cruisin'

Lily's first birthday is fast approaching. She's not walking yet, although she has learned to get around the house quite well without mom and dad holding her hands. One of her modes of transportation is what is known in babydom as "cruising." Here she is on one of her trips around the house, hanging on to whatever she can find. She's even skilled enough now to mash herself against a wall and pull herself up.

Her other mode of transportation I call her "Crouching Tiger-Hidden Dragon" move, or as Julie calls it, "The Scuttlebutt." How to describe it? Well, think of Kung Fu movies, where the martial arts experts fly through the air with one leg straight out and the other one tucked in? That's kind of the way the Pinger scoots across the floor. And this girl can move! Here's a shot of Lily doing her butt-scoot-boogie. Next to her is her friend Madeline, who came to visit this past Saturday.

The Many Faces of Lily Ping

Julie's favorite picture of the Pinger.

Lily's super cute hat...out on a recent stroller ride.

Lily has a book that says "Babies are messy eaters." How true.

I was puckering up to Lily one afternoon. She quickly learned how to emulate me.

And finally...the result of Lily tasting her first popsicle. And guess what...mom and dad gave her more tastes after her first one so we could get this picture. Does that make us bad parents?

Equal Time for the Grandmas

Now it's Grandma "H's" turn to stay with us for a while (although she's only an hour away). Here she is with Lily in one of her happier moments today...Lily's, that is, not Grandma's...not to say Grandma wasn't happy today. The Pinger was out of sorts today due to a cold plus getting two vaccinations at the doctor's office. She needed two others that we get here in the US but they don't give in China.

Julie's mom came up to stay for another reason. Julie also has a bad cold, but even more troublesome for a new mother...a bad back. She must have pulled a muscle or two or her sciatic nerve is acting up. Either way, she's in a lot of pain and can't well pick up the baby. I've been back to work at the church but have also tried to be available at home as we get used to the baby routine. But it's been nice having an extra set of hands around here to come to the rescue.

Besides, even mommies need their mommies sometimes.

Adjusting to Home

Grandma "O" and Great-auntie Karen visited for Lily's baptism and stayed for a few extra days. Here's Grandma "O" trying her hand at feeding a baby after a few years' hiatus.

Lily is adjusting well to her new home. She is finally on a regular schedule and is sleeping the night through. She also has stopped crying every time we put her in the car seat (which hasn't been that many times...but at first she really hated it). In fact, she seems to enjoy kicking back for a while and going for a ride.

Her ride this morning was a breeze. Little did she know what was in store for her. We had to take her to the hospital for her first blood draw to test her lead levels. The children from her orphanage have historically had high lead levels, although from what we hear, the situation is improving. Anyhow, Lily cried her little eyes out when the two burly technicians and her dad had to hold her down so they could get the needle in her arm. Dad and mom couldn't help but get teary eyed watching their daughter suffer so much. Once the needle went in, she calmed down a bit and was okay for the rest of the day. Now we'll see how she does when she has to go in for some additional vaccinations which she didn't receive in China. I'm sure that will be another torturous event.

More China Trip Pics

Well, Lily seems to be adjusting to Pacific Time, but now I'm wondering if her dad is. Here it is, 1:45 am, and I'm sitting at the computer having a hard time sleeping. I think it may be new dad jitters, I'm not sure. Whatever it is, it's given me a few moments to post some more pictures of our China trip. Click here or in the sidebar to view them. I've still got a bunch more that I plan on posting, but it takes about a half hour each time to upload six pictures at a time, so it's a slow process. That gives you a reason to keep checking back in on us and seeing what's going on with the Pinger.

Twice Adopted

Lily has now been twice adopted. Yesterday our Heavenly Father called her into His family in the sacrament of Holy Baptism, uniting her with her Savior Jesus and creating faith in her heart through water and the Word of God.

In the top picture are her sponsors. That's Julie's brother John on the left, cousin Jan Johnson (my China traveling partner and parenting coach) in the middle, and her husband Rich on the right.

We had a little gathering later on in the afternoon. All the activity seemed to really wear the Pinger out, which was a good thing. She slept the night through for the first time since we got home, except for a brief half hour around midnight. We'll see if she can make it two nights in a row.

Growing Like Crazy

I can't believe how much this kid is learning. Lily was fairly docile when we were still in China, but in a few short days has become very active. She can't crawl yet, although she is making great efforts. On mom and dad's bed, she is able to roll over without help, but not yet on the floor. I have a feeling she may walk before she crawls. She loves to pull up on your hands and stand up and walk with you holding her (like in the picture above). She plays peek-a-boo, pulling a blanket up over her face by herself and pulling it down. And it didn't take her long to figure out where the snacks are kept in the kitchen pantry. When she's hungry, she makes a funny little sound (a close approximation would be "NUM!") and points toward the kitchen.

Bao Bao Hao

Many of the shops near the White Swan Hotel will loan strollers out to all the adopting families. We put Lily in one, and she seemed to enjoy chilling out as we walked around Shamian Island. I asked one of the shopkeepers what "Bao Bao Hao" means (written on the back of the seat above Lily's head). It means "Good Baby."

I'm in the process of posting pictures of our trip to my Flickr account. If you want to view what I have posted so far, click here.

The Welcoming Party

Here's a shot of the welcoming party at SeaTac airport yesterday morning. That's Grandpa Marvin on the left and Grandma Marilyn on the right. Uncle John is taking the picture.

Lily's Home

Lily and I arrived in the US this morning around 8:40 am. I can't speak for Lily, but I know that I am definitely feeling the effects of jet lag. I would bet, however, that she is, too. She has cried more than she did while we had her back in China.

It's so good to be back home. No more hotel rooms. No more brushing your teeth in bottled water. No more long waits in line (at least for the time being). No more rush rush rush around every day without any decent down time.

Now it's all about getting used to her new digs. Now we can drink straight from the tap again. Most importantly, it's all about getting to know mommy. She's doing okay so far, considering what she's just gone through (Lily, that is...not mommy, although mommy's doing okay, too). Lily still is a little cautious with Julie, but she has let her hold her for brief times. And she even let her kiss her (as you can see) without her pulling away. And I think Julie got more initial smiles than I did with Lily back in China. Hopefully that's a good sign.

I will continue to post in the days to come if you wish to keep on following along. I still plan to post more pictures of our trip. Lily's baptism is scheduled for Sunday, so I'm sure we'll have pictures of that, too. Since Lily isn't yet too keen on baths, we thought about trying a dry run (can you have a "dry run" of a baptism?), getting her used to water on her head so we don't have a meltdown at the font.

Inching Closer to Home

I wrote the following last night, but Blogger wasn't working properly. I still wanted you to read it, so I saved the message and decided to post it today. Here it is...

Tonight (Monday at 9:50 pm) is our last night at the White Swan. We check out tomorrow, board a bus, and head to the U.S. Consulate to get visas for our babies. After that, the bus will take us to Hong Kong,where we will spend the night and then head home on Wednesday. God willing, we will arrive in Seattle early Wednesday morning after crossing back over the international dateline.

I am so relaxed right now I can barely type. I just had a massage here at the White Swan Health Centre. It was just what the doctor ordered for my aching back. I'm not used to carrying around a 17 pound blob of squirming flesh. And unlike other new parents, I didn't get the chance to work up to it, starting with an 8 pound newborn. Lily was delivered to us in all of her 17 pound glory.

I don't know what the email and internet situation will be like at the Hong Kong hotel. That means that this might be my last post before we get home. And even if it is available, I still think I'll hold off until I get home since we will pull in to Hong Kong late and have to get up so early on Wednesday. That being the case, I'll see some of you when we get home to Washington. Those of you who are coming for an Onken-Toulouse-Hepola birthday celebration in June, I'll see you then. I'll see some of you when we travel to SoCal in August. And hopefully all of you can meet our lovely daughter sometime in the near future. Thanks for all your wonderful, encouraging comments.

Keep checking the blog, though. When I get home, I plan to post more pictures of our trip (when I'm not paying for internet time!), and I will post some pictures of Lily adapting to her new home in Marysville.

The red thread is getting pretty short.

Another Smile from the Pretty Girl

Better close this blogging session...but I couldn't leave you without one more smile from the Pinger.

View from the White Swan

In contrast to our view in Nanchang, here's a view from our hotel in Guangzhou. The hotel sits on a little island called Shamian Island. Guangzhou (or Canton, as it used to be called) clearly has a European influence, and you can notice it in the architecture. Jan, Lily, and I strolled around the town today after the red couch photo. We have another free day tomorrow to continue shopping. It's fun haggling with the shop owners. They will punch in the price, show it to you on a calculator, then you name your price, they come down a few dollars, and their reasoning is always, "This is my best price" or "I will give you this price for friendship." More than once I've heard Jan mumble, "Why, yes, of course that's your best price. Yeah, right." Even so, there's a part of you that feels bad haggling when you realize that in American dollars you are haggling over $1.25 instead of $1.50. The Chinese Yuan is about 8 to a US dollar.

View from the Gloria Plaza Hotel

A view from our hotel room back in Nanchang where we received Lily. Nanchang is a big city, but much poorer than Beijing. You can see the dirty buildings and the laundry hanging out the balconies. As much as the economy in China is booming, it is still very much a developing country, and this was quite evident in Nanchang. And I cannot wait until I get home and can drink water right out of the tap.

Street Scene in Nanchang

This is a scene right behind our hotel in Nanchang.

Lily's First Passport

Here's another flashback, this time to Nanchang. This is a picture of Lily right after she got her first passport. I didn't get mine until I was 25, and she's not even a year old yet.

Red Couch Photo

Our babies had the famous "Red Couch" photo taken today, Sunday, April 22, at 10;15 am. This is a tradition at the White Swan Hotel. The babies in this picture are all from the Ningdu orphanage, so they probably knew each other and played with each other there. This is only half of the babies in our group. There was another group of Bethany families with girls from another orphanage as well, for a total of 21 babies from our traveling group. Can you spot Lily?

A Smile from the Pinger

Finally, I caught Lily Ping (otherwise known as "the Pinger"...nickname courtesy of the Jan Johnson family...I kinda like it) with a smile on her face. There have been even better ones, but you'll have to wait to see those when you meet her in person.

Dust Storm in Beijing

Sweeping up after the dust storm in Beijing. This is the day we went to Tienanmen Square and the Forbidden City. Spring time, from what I understand, is the time for dust storms in Beijing, and this was the worst one of the year. We woke to find everything coated with a fine, light brown dust. Many people were wearing surgical masks to help keep from breathing it all in. The weather there was quite a contrast to where we are now (Guangzhou). It's very tropical here. Warm and sticky (but not unbearable...I hate to think what it would have been like had we been here in July or August). Jan was commenting on how all the plants you see growing are strictly houseplants back in the Northwest.

I'll post some more pictures of our trip when I get the chance. Right now, of course, we are focused on the kid.

Forbidden City

At the south entrance to the Forbidden City (again..."B.L."...Before Lily) in Beijing.

Jan at the Great Wall

This was earlier in our trip...B.L. (Before Lily).

Pics After All

I can post pics after all here in the business center. Here's one of Lily standing up (with Baba's help).

Another Busy Day

Today is Saturday, April 22. It's now almost 9:30 pm. Today was another busy day. These parents and kids over here are kept moving. This morning we had to get Visa pictures taken. Then a quick breakfast (and the buffet at the White Swan is out of this world...best French Toast I've ever had) and the infamous medical exam. It takes place in a local clinic in a little room in back for adoption groups. All 21 of us families were crammed in, waiting to have our babies weighed, measured, listened to, poked, and prodded. Needless to say, the babies weren't too happy about it. As much of a trooper Lily has proven herself to be, even this was too much for her. She squirmed and cried and squealed and whimpered and stiffened up and threw her head back. It was good to get back to the hotel (about a 10 minute walk) and borrow a stroller from one of the local shops (a service they provide to adopting families). My arms were absolutely killing me trying to hold Lily the whole time (we were told that for space limitations only one parent should come, so Jan stayed at the hotel), not to mention that it is quite humid here and I was sweating like a race horse.

But I'm not complaining. I am totally digging this father-daughter thing. I never expected to turn into a complete ball of mush just looking at her.

Last Stop...Guangzhou

Finally, we're here at the famous White Swan Hotel in Guangzhou. It's almost 10 pm on April 21. I know the date, but I don't even know what day of the week it is. Ever since we left Beijing, we've been swept along by this adoption thing. Our guides have directed us along the way, thank goodness. They have gone above and beyond the call of duty to arrange things for us and to make things go as smooth as possible with the Chinese adoption authorities, provincial officials, and hotel arrangements. It will be nice to be pampered a bit here in Guangzhou. The White Swan is the nicest of all the hotels we have stayed in so far.

Today was Lily's first plane ride, and she was a trooper. She fell asleep the moment the plane lifted off the ground, and didn't wake up until after the plane landed in Guangzhou.

Prior to leaving Nanchang, we got Lily's passport. I'm not sure when the picture was taken. She is wearing the same clothes as the ones when we received her, plus her little ID tag is around her neck, so I'm assuming it was taken the same day. She has this poor little forlorn look on her face, like in the other pictures you've seen. I'll tell you what...she is not the same kid as when we first got her. She smiles often and giggles. She loves to snuggle with her dad, and is fond of Jan, too. She likes it when I hold her and rub her back as she rubs her eyes and plops her head onto my shoulder before I lay her in her crib. Her world has suddenly grown so big, and those big beautiful eyes are wide open when she's awake, taking everything in...her head moves back and forth as if she's afraid she's going to miss something.

I will try to post some more pictures before we leave for home. Here in the business center they charge extra for posting pictures, so I'm going to wait and see if I can borrow the laptop of one of our fellow travelers. I have some really cool pictures that I'd like to share with you all, too...the Great Wall, the Teng Wang Pagoda in Nanchang, and other pictures of Lily, of course.

Also, today is the first day I've been able to see the blog. I've been posting, but I haven't been able to see the finished product. Here in Guangzhou I can access it, so that means I finally have read all of your comments. Thanks so much to all of you who have posted comments. It means so much to me and Julie that you have been following along with us on our journey.

Creating a Fan

It's never too early to start teaching your daughter to enjoy the game of baseball. Here I am teaching Lily the intricacies of the infield fly rule.

Smiles and Laughter

It's 9:15 here in Nanchang. Lily's fast asleep in her crib in the room. We got back after dinner and fed her half a bottle. Laid her down to sleep and she started to cry a bit. Jan suggested I try burping her, which we hadn't done yet. I picked her up, patted her back...no air, but she laid her head down on my shoulder and was out. Guess she just needed a bit more "daddy-time." That's okay with me. She seems to be attaching to me quite well. She will go to Jan, but will whimper at first if I'm not in her line of sight, and is okay after a short time.

We also had a nice surprise at dinner tonight. Lily was in a high chair, and she seemed to be okay with that. That was a first with us. Then came another first in our time with Lily...she gave us smiles and laughter. Her little giggle was totally cute, especially with her two little bottom front teeth showing. I'll try to catch her at the right time and snap a picture and post it. You'll love it.

It's Official!

We went to the Jiangxi provincial notary this morning, and it's official...as far as China is concerned, Lily is officially our daughter. Today was a cakewalk compared to yesterday. Just a few questions, basically that I would promise to take care of Lily and love her and educate her properly.

After that we went to WalMart. Yes, you read that right...WalMart. The bus dropped us off for an hour of shopping. We bought some more drinking water, some pop, and a box of Cheerios for "you-know-who." It was quite an experience in there...the deli cases didn't have their familiar lunch meat, cheeses, salads, etc. Rather, they were full of pig snouts, birds feet of all sizes and varieties, and other assorted unidentifiable items. Outside waiting for the bus we were all quite the attraction. People would come up to us and ask "How old is she?" and "Where are you from?" A young man who spoke a little English outside translated for us...it seems as though fewer people speak English here than in Beijing. Most people give us a smile. Others give some suspicious stares.

We returned to the hotel to rest and bond some more. I'm going to keep trying to get a smile out of that girl!

Figuring Out Her New Life

Sorry about this...I'll try to fix it when I get home. In the meantime, you'll have to cock your head sideways to see this one. But just look at that irresistable face. Still haven't gotten a smile out of her, but she is bright eyed and trying to figure out her new life with these strange people.

Warming Up to Dad

Lily taking her first bottle from me. I should think it won't take her long to warm up to me as soon as she realizes, "Hey, this guy pays attention to me and gives me food." She also has been eating some rice cereal as well.

End of a Long Day

After Lily cried for a while, she went down for a nap yesterday afternoon. The babies were all dealing with fear and confusion, as well as exhaustion...they didn't get their usual naps and were hauled around four hours from Ningdu to Nanchang to meet their new parents.

New Dad and His Daughter

Here's me and Lily moments after she was placed in my arms.

Gotcha!

Today, Tuesday, April 18, around 2:30 pm, Ning Kang Ping...otherwise known as Lily...was placed into my arms at the Gloria Plaza Hotel in Nanchang. It was a whirlwind day. A half hour after we arrived at the hotel from the airport, we received our daughters. Lily screamed as I received her, and continued to cry a mournful cry for quite a while afterwards. But after a nap and some rice cereal, she warmed up to Jan and I a bit. She is still a confused little baby, but she is making eye contact with us and grabbing for toys and snacks that we give to her. The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent with our babies and filling out more paperwork. The good thing about that is that tomorrow will be a less hectic day and we can focus on our babies and getting to know them.

Two more things before I sign out...

1) I changed my first diaper ever today! And it reeked! But I didn't gag. That was a big step for me. Jan was right there beside me coaching me along the way.

2) I will be able to post pictures here in Nanchang. The business center at the Gloria Plaza is set up so that we can upload from memory cards. So tomorrow when I have a bit more time, I will post some pictures for you.

I can't wait for you all to see her. You will recognize those big, bright, beautiful eyes as soon as you see her. And I can't wait to get home for her to meet her mommy, too. I love you, Julie.

Beijing Tour

This morning we left the hotel around 8 am and noticed all the dust that had settled over the city. Workers sweeping everywhere. Seemed like a pointless job, as dusty as it was.

The bus took us to Tiananmen Square where we walked around for a bit. It's the largest public square in the world. Following that, we toured the Forbidden City, where the emperors of China once lived. The south gate of the Forbidden City faces Tiananmen Square. You may have seen famous images of it...it has a large picture of Mao Tse Tung right in the middle. When I get back to the states, I will post some pictures.

Next, we rode in rickshaws through a "hutong," a traditional Beijing neighborhood. The entire hutong is walled-in with small homes facing an open courtyard. The rickshaws took us down long, narrow alleyways with doors to the homes and shops along the way. While in the hutong, we visited the home of a Mr. Liu (sp?). He was the consummate host, serving us jasmine tea, rose flower snacks, dried Chinese crabapple, and seasoned peanuts. He also shared with us his pet crickets and grasshoppers. Apparently he is a well-known "cricket fighter"...which is now illegal in China. It wasn't clear to us if Mr. Liu has gone straight. Nevertheless, he was quite a character, a warm and funny man. In fact, one of his crickets was named "Little Jerry Seinfeld." (Actually, that's not true...just an inside joke for you Seinfeld fans)

Had a two hour break for a late lunch/early dinner, followed by a Chinese acrobat show at a local theatre. Saw some amazing feats there.

Even with all the action today, it was hard not to keep thinking about the big event tomorrow. Finally, we all get our babies. You could almost see the anticipation on everyone's faces. We leave for Nanchang tomorrow at 10:45 am. After we check in to the hotel, we get our babies sometime in the afternoon. The details are sketchy about when and where. I'm assuming it's at the hotel.

Wherever it will be, I can't wait!

Easter in Beijing

It's around 7:30 pm here, and our "Easter celebration" is almost over, although it didn't seem like Easter here. Nothing at all to suggest the Christian content of the day, although the hotel restaurant did have a display with colored eggs. I'll tell you more about how Jan and I celebrated the day in a moment.

The bus left the hotel around 8 am this morning for the Great Wall. It was about an hour and a half drive to a portion of the wall called the Badaling Great Wall. A gondola took us almost to the top where you could then get out and climb or descend as much as you like. Jan and I climbed a bit, but it's quite steep in spots and wore us out quickly. On the way down in the gondola, we finally got to celebrate the holy day that it was today. In the privacy of our car overlooking the scrubby brush of the rocky foothills of the Gobi Desert we sang "Jesus Christ is Risen Today! Alleluia!"

After our stay at the Great Wall, we drove back to Beijing and toured a cloisonne factory. Saw some very beautiful work. Our tour guide was a real hoot. Like many Chinese, he has taken an English first name. His name was "Herbie." "You know," he explained, "like the Love Bug." He also referred to himself in the first person, such as "Please follow Herbie now...Excuse me, Herbie must pass through here."

Sorry no pictures yet. I'm taking a good share of pictures and video. However, the computers here are not set up to upload images. Hopefully I can do so in Nanchang or Guangzhou. If not, I will have to wait until I get home and share them with you.

Jan and I are both feeling well so far. No "Mao's Revenge" if you know what I mean. Jan has forgotten twice and rinsed her toothbrush in the tap water, which you are not supposed to drink. Even the locals don't. Everyone drinks bottled or boiled water. Me, too...although I did have a Tsingtao Beer for dinner tonight.

Time to turn in. I'll try and post tomorrow again.

We're in China!

We're here! We're in China! It's 8:15 Saturday morning the 15th, sunny and hazy outside. After a flight from SeaTac to Tokyo/Narita, we immediately boarded a plane to Beijing. We met up with our travelling Bethany companions at the airport in Beijing. We all recognize one another by our "ladybug bandanas" tied to our luggage. By the time we got to the hotel last night, it was close to midnight. Both Jan and I are exhausted. We were probably up 28 hours straight, with just a few catnaps on the plane. We have separate rooms here in Beijing, but once we get the baby on the 18th we'll be in the same room. (I need coaching, you know.) Today is a day to kick back and relax and get refreshed.

Zai Jian

Well, it's 10 pm here in Marysville, and I should be in bed. Julie and I have been packing and running last minute errands today. Like leaving for any trip, it seems like we're forgetting something. But we've been making our lists and checking them twice...and thrice...and then some. Everything should be in the bags and ready to go. All our paperwork should be in order. Now, it's just a matter of making it to the airport tomorrow morning and meeting up with Jan at the check-in counter. This will be my last post on this side of the pond until I return. I'll try to get online in Beijing. So long...or should I say "Zai jian," which means "Goodbye!"

Leavin' on a Jet Plane

We got the news today on our travel arrangements. Our flight leaves Seattle on Thursday, April 13th. After a brief layover in Tokyo, we arrive in Beijing on Friday, April 14th. In-country details are soon to follow.

However, we do know that our "Gotcha Day" is April 18th. That's when we will receive Lily in Nanchang. And that's really what it's called in the adoption community..."Gotcha Day."

On April 24th, we have our appointment at the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou to finish up the paperwork.

Hong Kong is our last stop, and we fly home from there April 26th, arriving back home 15 minutes before we left! Figure that one out. It's not that we will be travelling faster than the speed of light--although that would be nice--it's just that we will cross back over the international date line.

This also means that I will be gone during Holy Week. I'm now on the horn calling fellow pastors to fill in for me during this busy time in the Church. And it will be very different indeed celebrating Easter in China.

Needless to say, we are very excited knowing our daughter will be home in four weeks!

Nine Months and Growing

On March 10, Lily's "nine-month birthday", we received an update on her from the orphanage in Ningdu. She is 27" tall and 17.5 pounds. She also has 4 teeth! Guess we better bring some Cheerios to China along with all that formula.

Thanks to all of you who have emailed us or posted comments on our blog as you share in our excitement. We love hearing from you, and Lily will enjoy reading your messages someday, too.

Ping Means "Peace"

Lily's middle name will be "Ping." That's her Chinese first name. We dug around on the internet to see if we could find what it meant. The first definition we found was "duckweed," but that didn't sound quite right nor did it sound very charming for a little girl's name...and besides that, I have no clue what duckweed is. Finally, we found a site with Chinese characters and matched the character that was on the paperwork we received from China. The symbol you see in the picture is the one we matched, and it means "peace." And I'm glad of that...I'm sure Lily would soon have grown tired of her father calling her "Daddy's little duckweed."

"God likes to wink at us every now and then."

That's a direct quote from one of our friends at church. She wrote that in reference to the picture with Lily and the lilies. I do believe she is right.

Here's another "wink" I believe we got on referral day. To celebrate we had...what else?...Chinese food from our favorite Chinese restaurant here in Marysville. After our meal we opened up our fortune cookies, and, I kid you not, this is what we read...

Correction

After examining our paperwork more closely and poking around on the internet, I discovered that one bit of information I posted was not quite correct, so I made a correction to the previous post "First Impressions." Initially, I wrote that Lily is waiting for us in Nanchang, Jiangxi province. Our caseworker told us that we would be receiving her in Nanchang, the capital of the province, so I just assumed that's where Lily is. Actually, she is at an orphanage in Ningdu (which is actually considered a county), about a 4-hour drive south of Nanchang, still in the same province.

If you'd like to see it on a map, here are two links. Click here to see a simple map. Click here to see a more detailed one (you will have to zoom in once to see where Ningdu is...look for the words "CHINA" in red letters in the center, and Ningdu is not far below).

Lily With Lilies

Here's another picture of Lily...and notice the lilies in the foreground. Is that providential, or what? Remember, you can click on the image to see a larger version in another window. We proud parents want you to get a good look at our darling little girl!

We don't know for sure yet when we travel to China, but it should be in the next 6 to 8 weeks. It's very strange knowing you have a daughter, but you still cannot touch her, hold her, talk to her, or play with her for another several weeks. All we can do is pray that God will watch over her and care for her through the loving hands of the orphanage caretakers. In the meantime, we have plenty to keep busy with...paperwork, preparing the house, and preparing myself and Julie's cousin Jan to travel. And of course, you know that a pastor's life is not all that busy during the Lenten season (did you notice my tongue in my cheek as I wrote that?).

Also, we learned that "Ping" is our daughter's Chinese first name, so that is what her middle name will be...she will be "Lily Ping Onken." If you remember, in an earlier post I mentioned that her name given to her at the orphanage is "Ning Kang Ping." Apparently, "Ning" is the surname given to all the babies who are cared for at the orphanage, which is in Ningdu county. We don't know where the "Kang" comes from at this point.

First Impressions

The first impression of our daughter...this was the picture stapled on top of the packet of materials we received today which tells us a bit more about her. She is apparently a healthy baby, waiting for us in Ningdu, Jiangxi province. And Julie and I both think she is beautiful.

By the way, that white mark on her head...that's just a staple hole...on the picture, not her head!

Referral Day!

1:26 pm. That's when the message was left on our phone today that a little girl has been assigned to us. I was at home and missed the call, but listened to the message soon after it was recorded. After a joyful fist pump and a leaping heart, I called Julie, who was at the church finishing up her Spanish class. She zipped home and called our adoption caseworker at Bethany to get the first bit of information on our daughter.

Her name is Ning Kang Ping. She was born June 10, 2005.

Tomorrow we will go to our agency's office and receive more information about her, including pictures. I will post them soon to share with all of you.

Still Waiting

Many of you have told us that you have been checking our blog often. Thanks for being so faithful and interested in our journey. We haven't posted in a while because we haven't had any news. January 24th was the 8-month mark since our paperwork was filed in China, so God willing, we should be hearing something in the next few weeks, barring any further delays.

Waiting families are given the advice to stay busy. Believe me, that's not hard for us. Each month on the calendar seems to fill up quickly. But even with our busy-ness, the adoption is always in the forefront of our minds.

One thing in particular that has kept us busy is preparing the nursery. It's nearing completion. The image above is a shot of some of the painting I've been doing on the walls. We decided to go with a garden theme, so there's a few small murals around the room with flowers and butterflies.

Keep checking back! We'll keep you "post"-ed!

Baby Shower, Part 2

Here's another picture from the shower at the church. The head table where we were seated was decorated with two creative bouquets of lilies (how appropriate) made of pipe cleaners and cut paper. Thanks to the artistic girls (and moms) from our congregation!

If you'd like to see more pictures from our shower, click here.

In case you were wondering, I'm feeling a lot better after my recent bout with pneumonia. My energy level is increasing, but I still have a pretty scratchy voice. Now, I just have to avoid the bird flu when I finally get to China!

First Baby Shower

Our church gave us a baby shower last Sunday. Here's a picture of the cake. Thanks to all the gracious people at Messiah Lutheran Church! You can click on the image below to see a larger version.

Cross-Cultural Parenting 101

Well, I now know how to say "Where is the lavatory?" in Chinese. I also can say "Where is the bus...taxi...restaurant...hotel?" All handy traveler's questions. Now the question is: how will I understand the replies once I ask those questions? Thankfully, there will be a translator with the group of prospective Bethany parents traveling together. But I'm still working on learning a few more helpful words, like "The lavatory is at the end of the hallway" or "Around the corner."

For Lily's sake, more important than my learning Chinese, of course, is learning how to be a good parent...and learning about the specific issues involved in a cross-cultural adoption.

This will be our first parenting experience, as most of you know. (By the way, the symbols you see above are the symbols for "father" and "mother.") How do most people learn how to be parents? I suppose it's primarily from the parental models that they had in their lives. After that, there's probably a bit of "shooting from the hip." But before Julie and I strap on our holsters, we can always look to the wonderful examples our own parents set for us. Both of us were blessed with stable family environments. That will go a long way toward establishing that same type of environment for Lily. And advice is just a cell phone call or email away.

As you can imagine, there are some unique things about our situation. Our child will not look like us. Questions from others will abound. We will be stared at in the mall. We will have to sensitively teach our daughter about why she was in an orphanage in the first place. There may be no background information about her birth parents.

And then there's all the not-so-unique things that every parent in every culture faces as they raise a child.

Julie and I have been reading a number of books for our "coursework" in "Cross-cultural Parenting 101." Some times it feels like drinking from a firehose, but hopefully getting doused with all that information will pay off in the end.

Two of our favorite books so far have been A Passage to the Heart and The Lost Daughters of China. A Passage to the Heart is a collection of newsletter articles from chapters of Families with Children from China. It has a wealth of information about the adoption process, travelling tips, cultural issues, and medical advice. The Lost Daughters of China is journalist Karin Evans' description of her adoption journey, along with a poignant description of the social and political climate that has created such an overwhelming need for homes for so many little girls...and not a few boys with special needs.

Cross-cultural Adoption is a slim but great resource. The subtitle explains its contents: "How to Answer Questions from Family, Friends, and Community." It asks a series of questions, then gives a simple answer geared toward small children, and a longer tactful answer geared toward older children and adults.

We've also read The International Adoption Handbook, Secret Thoughts of an Adoptive Mother, and Twenty Things Adopted Kids Wish Their Adoptive Parents Knew. Attaching in Adoption is still on the desk, waiting to be opened.

Then there's also What to Expect: The First Year and What to Expect: The Toddler Years. If Lily ends up being close to 12 months old when we bring her home, we may not be spending too much time in the former volume, but the latter will probably be a constant reference for at least a few years. Which will probably feel like a whirlwind. Before you know it, she'll be dating...and then that holster will literally come in handy.

And after all this drinking from a firehose, my question is..."Where is the lavatory?"