We started out this morning by heading to church. We always go to church here in Guangzhou, and it is always amazing to me to be able to worship with our Chinese friends.

While out shopping, a group of about 15 young children walked by with their teachers. The teachers wanted the children to use their best English phrases to try to talk to us. The kids were so cute and tried very hard to say things like, “Hello, nice to meet you,” “My name is ----“ etc. The teachers asked Jeff and I to sign our names in the children’s notebooks, so each child lined up for our autographs.



It was a beautiful day here – not like home where we got a blizzard. Ugh. We took the kids for a walk by the river and then Jeff suggested I do a bit of shopping and he would stay at the park with the girls. It seems they are all bored out of their minds while I am deciding what/if to buy. While I was gone, Jeff made the girls strollers into a double stroller. There was a group of old men watching him and when he succeeded in getting it to work, they all began to applaud!

Yes, this contraption is all one piece!

Eating lunch at "I Love Lucy's"

Hello, Guangzhou!

We are in Guangzhou and it is much warmer, although we still need jackets. We were able to be outside almost all day today and it was WONDERFUL! Our hotel room here is huge, so we are able to spread out and not feel cramped even with two cribs in our room.

We went to the girls’ medical exam today that is required by the U.S. so that we can apply for their visa to enter the country. They were given a thorough exam—much more intensive than previous years. They closely examined Zoey’s leg and foot and three different doctors discussed it.

Kate stays calm while she gets weighed

Zoey...not so much

Baby gets weighed and we think he fell asleep

Coming to Guangzhou is like coming to our second home. We are so familiar with it now and meet people we know from other trips. In fact, we have the same guide this time that we had on our trip to get Jordan!

Kate started talking today! Out of the blue, she just started using words. Most of them we don’t understand, of course. She and Zoey had their first conversation and it was so cute! Kate didn’t get a nap today and about 8PM, she put her head on me and said, ‘Sui jao,’ which means, ‘sleep.’ I gave her a bottle and she out in five minutes.

As for being “in” with Zoey….now I am ‘out’ again. Sigh….. I’ve gotten many ‘bu yao’s’ today, although she will play with me.

She has had some tummy woes, which has turned into some woes for Jeff, too. On the plane yesterday, she began to squirm around and fuss, which means she needs to use the potty. Jeff took her to the filthy bathroom and started to put her on the potty, only to discover that she had a little present in her diaper. As luck would have it, the plane also began to experience turbulence at that particular moment. As Jeff was trying to simultaneously wipe her bottom and not allow any part of his or Zoey’s clothing to touch the floor (which was wet because apparently some people find it difficult to find the large hole to empty their bladders into), the plane started bouncing around. He then realized that he had used the last of the toilet paper to line the seat, so now there was nothing left to wipe her. He eventually came back to his seat, sank down looking grossed out, and asked me for some hand sanitizer. For a brief moment, I was glad to be the parent that Zoey was rejecting. (evil grin)

Kate, on the other hand, has the other problem and has only had one messy diaper since we got her. I have suppositories but I am really hoping not to have to use them.

On the plane yesterday, we were sitting behind a couple that intently listened to the instructions and carefully followed each one. They checked to see where the exits were and then to our amusement, the man pulled the life preserver out from under his seat. I saw him put it over his head and whispered to Jeff that the man was trying to inflate it by pulling the string. It didn’t work. Seconds later, Jeff whispered to me… “Now he’s blowing into the little tubes, like they showed how to as a back-up.” Jeff and I both broke into fits of laughter as the man wrestled with his non-functioning life preserver. Soon one of the flight attendants walked by and noticed the man. Another was called over and they both began scolding him and looking disgusted. The preserver never did get inflated.

Our main goal today in the shopping area was to find a Chinese New Year outfit for Baby. We had to visit many shops but we are happy to tell you that he is now all ready to celebrate!


Here are some random pictures of traffic in Zhengzhou on our way to the airport yesterday.

Good-bye Zhengzhou

Two precious angels sleeping side by side.

We are flying to Guangzhou later today, so I’m posting this early since we won’t get to our hotel until late. I can’t wait to get there and enjoy some warmer weather.

Both girls are becoming more animated. Zoey sings and talks all the time, while Kate continues to remain pretty quiet. She Is a TEASE, though! She likes to look at us out of the corner of her eyes or roll them upwards. Today at breakfast, she looked at Jeff and then put her fingers in her mouth and pulled it out wide into a monster face. Jeff and I cracked up!


They have been playing together quite a bit. Zoey tattles on everything Kate does that Zoey finds questionable. She will come and tap me and then point at Kate. They feed each other things and share their toys pretty well. I am amazed. I have been praying that God would knit their hearts together, and it’s sweet to see them moving in that direction. They do have their moments, though, when Kate gets fed up with Zoey scolding her for getting into things. Kate will usually whack Zoey and Zoey whacks her right back. Ha.

Zoey has been mimicking everything I say. I said to her, ‘You’re so cute.” She said to me, “You’re so cute.” When I logged into my email she heard it and said, ‘You’ve got mail.” Too funny!

And drum roll please…..I’m IN! I’ve breached the wall in the circle of trust! Zoey likes me! Last night at dinner, she leaned over and gave Jeff a kiss – totally out of the blue. It was so sweet. Later, when I was fixing her hair bow, she leaned toward me and gave me a kiss on the cheek! Be still my heart! Now she wants me to carry her all over and she is SO heavy. She feels wonderful in my arms, though. I still get the occasional ‘bu yao,’ but part of that is probably just being a two year old. Just don’t get between her and the food she wants!


Zoey kissed Mama and the earth stood still

Kate has started doing some rejecting of Mama last night and today. When I put my hand on her, she takes it off. I just tickle her and laugh it off – and then she smiles at me. Hopefully, it’s just a phase she’s going through.

Now that the girls are getting more comfortable with us, they are also getting naughty. Haha I just hope and pray they do okay on the plane tonight.

The ‘clothing police’ here are not happy with how I dress the girls. Everyone thinks they are not dressed warmly enough and must be cold. You must understand that children in China are dressed in multiple layers that are very big and bulky. If I dressed the girls like that, I wouldn’t be able to hold them! I would probably buy some bulky pants here just to appease everyone, but all the pants are split. The pants are open where a diaper should be and when the baby or toddler has ‘to go’ they just squat down and go. Here is a picture of Zoey in her split pants.


Baby decided he wanted to go for a swim last night, so here is a photo of him at the hotel kiddie pool. He seemed to enjoy himself. He then put on his athletic head gear and played a little ping-pong.


"Ahhhhh....this is the life!"


"My style is unorthodox but my skills are legendary."

Loafing in Zhengzhou

Rickshaw in Kaifeng

Hi kids! Time for another Chinese lesson! Did you know that Mandarin Chinese has four different tones used to help pronounce their words? There can be several words that look the same but are pronounced much differently with the use of tones. It makes it very hard to learn Chinese! For example: the word for Mama can mean, ‘Mama’ or ‘horse,’ depending on the tone. The word for Daddy, is “baba” but can also be the word for poop! So when we introduce ourselves to our newly adopted kids, we need to be careful. We wouldn’t want to say, “Hello, I’m your horse.” And we definitely wouldn’t want to say, “Hello, I’m your poop.” Haha Mandarin is the official language of China and everyone has to learn it. Cantonese is a language used in the southern part of China. They do not use tones to pronounce their words. The written language for Mandarin and Cantonese is identical, but the words are totally different.

We are in Zhengzhou city in Henan province. Can you find it on the map? “Nan” in the word Henan, means south. Henan means ‘south of the Yellow River.’ Zhengzhou is the capital city of Henan province. It is pronounced, ‘Jheng-jhoe.’

China has been called a land of contrasts. That is because there are many high-rise buildings next to primitive homes, and brand new cars driving alongside bicycles and donkeys.

This man was selling spices door-to-door in Kaifeng. They smelled so good!

I want to thank all of you who have been emailing us and/or leaving comments on our blog. We read every word!! It is so wonderful to hear from you…thank you so much! I am trying to write everyone back, but if you don’t hear from me, please know that we appreciate your notes of encouragement.

Some have wondered how the girls are doing medically. Zoey’s leg and foot are as bad as we anticipated. Since she is just starting to let me get near her, I don’t want to start checking her foot and leg yet. From what I can see, her short leg is about 2-3 inches shorter and her foot is bent totally sideways. There is a huge bruise on the front of her leg – I would imagine it’s from the bone constantly pushing through an area that it shouldn’t be. She hobbles around quite well and is blessed with an indomitable spirit. I’m anxious to see if the doctor recommends amputation or trying to save her leg. I think it would require many, many surgeries to achieve a semblance of normality.

Kate’s hands and feet are always cold and have a blue tinge to them. You can probably see in the pictures, her face is bluer than Zoey’s. She is especially blue around her mouth. She obviously needs her second heart surgery but seems to be doing well and is not short of breath. She seems a bit frail but I think it’s just because she’s still in ‘shutdown’ mode and is so thin. We are happy that her appetite has picked up today.

I forgot to mention the other day that when we completed the adoption paperwork at Civil Affairs, they had a little presentation ceremony. They told us that Zoey and Kate were their very first double adoption and they were happy to see them get a loving family. I knew it was rare to be allowed to adopt two at once, but I was surprised to learn that we were Henan’s first family to do so.

This morning when we sat down to breakfast in our hotel, we were handed a card of congratulations with a sweet poem for the girls about getting parents. It had been signed by the entire staff! We were very touched.

We have passed the magic third day of having the girls—this is the day that kids often start to come alive and come out of the trauma of being handed to strangers. Zoey actually let me hold her today and has been initiating contact. She still prefers Jeff, but it’s fun to have her reach out to me, too. He told her to kiss me and she still won’t, but I got a coy smile rather than a ‘bu yao.’ Today we heard Kate’s little voice for the first time. She hasn’t uttered a sound since the day we got her, except for a few giggles. Zoey has been singing today—it’s adorable. Kate gave Zoey one of her chicken nuggets today and Zoey rewarded her with a big smile.


The day after we got the girls, we returned to Civil Affairs for paperwork and a little girl was brought in. Her family was coming and I was so thrilled to be getting to watch a family being made. When her parents came, the little girl became hysterical and would not stop screaming. It reminded me so much of SaraGrace’s reaction to us. We were deeply saddened to hear the next day that the family decided not to adopt her because she wouldn’t stop screaming and her skin condition covered more of her body than they thought it would. Another family tried to talk to them and explain that kids settle down after a few days, but their minds were made up. They were planning to go home without the child they came to adopt. I am soooo sad for this little girl. I hope that someone else will find her beautiful and accept her the way she is.

We were totally on our own today, so we decided to take the girls for their first Happy Meal at McDonald’s. Zoey ate everything we gave her and Kate about three bites. She has had no appetite since we got her. She spends most of her time playing with her food and re-arranging it on her plate. Baby had his first French fry and we think he liked it.

This afternoon, I found a beauty shop on the street that did massages for $10 an hour. Sweet! We put the girls down for their naps and I went for the massage. Rather than the aromatherapy and soft music you might expect, it was ‘eau de ashtray’ and loud Chinese TV. I prefer not to think about how many people had already used the pillow I put my face on. The girl did give me a good, deep massage but I don’t think I will be going back.

Since I am still avoiding MSG and unable to eat Chinese food (wah!), Jeff decided to take a taxi to Pizza Hut for dinner. We are getting pretty tired of fast food, but at least I don’t have to cook! Baby didn’t eat anything but Kate sure did! Finally! She actually ate a whole piece of pizza and some corn from the salad bar. Zoey is starting to understand what we tell her to do and when I told her to kiss Jeff during dinner, she obediently leaned over and kissed his cheek. Too cute! If he tells her to kiss me, she says, ‘bu yao.’ Yep….I’m still persona non grata. I just laugh and pretend to be offended, which makes her smile. Ohh…the danger of a two-year old with power. It goes right to their heads.


After dinner, we decided to wander through a nearby department store. The department stores here are several floors and often the basement level is a supermarket. I find the supermarket the most interesting, so we headed down. At first we had fun meandering through the aisles, but after awhile, it began to get claustrophobic. There were so many people crowded into one place! Everyone was staring at us and making comments. Most were friendly and nice, but there were a few that made us uncomfortable. I just tried to smile at everyone, as I feel an obligation to represent Americans in a good light. The night took a turn for the worse when we tried to exit the store. The guard (aka Chinese Barney Fife, who took his post VERY seriously), would not let us leave and motioned that we needed to exit via a different part of the store. He waved in a general direction and with a flurry of Chinese words that we couldn’t understand, sent us off. We walked and walked and couldn’t find an exit. We eventually circled around again and tried to make our escape. However, the ever-vigilant Barney Fife pounced on us again. We tried to explain without words that we couldn’t find the exit. Again, he used the identical hand motion to tell us that we had to exit in a different location. Okaaay… that was helpful. We started off again and found a different exit. Ah-ha! We headed in that direction, only to find that it was a loading dock. Drat. We turned around, and feeling like mice in a maze, threaded our way through the dizzying array of food, men’s underwear named “Fatty Pants,” and shampoo. Hark…was that another exit? Yes! Alas…another loading dock. At that point, I had to stifle giggles and maybe a little bit of panic, wondering how many hours we would be wandering through the myriad of aisles in search of the ONE exit that Barney Fife wanted us to use. We eventually found it and here is the kicker… It was just around the corner (by about 3 feet) from where Barney Fife wouldn’t let us exit! Like he couldn’t have just let the foreigners walk three feet through the forbidden zone. Urgh!! As Jeff and I left, we were totally cracking up over the absurdity of the whole thing. I still think that Jeff should have bought those ‘Fatty Pants’ underwear.

Bath time!


The girls are spending more time interacting and it’s so cute. They are actually very good about sharing. This morning, when we were getting ready to go out, Kate went over to Zoey and patted her head. Then she tried putting Zoey’s hat on her, and patted her hand. It was so sweet. Tonight Zoey saw that Kate wanted to draw, so she went over and got her some paper. (She threw it at her, but that is just Zoey’s style!) Kate is feeling better tonight and we are so grateful! Now if I would just stop getting migraines….

Kate looks much taller in this picture but that is because Zoey is standing on her short leg.

A visit to Kaifeng

Hi to the kids at Jillian, Molly and Chloe's school!! Today, I will teach you another Chinese word. It's the word for 'thank you.' Actually, it is two words, 'Xie xie.' In Chinese, "X" is pronounced, 'Sh.' Xie xie sounds like this: 'she-a she-a.'

Baby went with us to visit an ancient Chinese city. Maybe some of you can find it on a map of China. The name of the city is Kaifeng and it is one of several cities that used to be the capital city in all of China. While we were there, we saw some men going swimming in the lake. It is very cold here, and the lake has ice on it. Brrrr... Some Chinese swim in lakes in the winter as part of their work-out.


We asked Baby if he wanted to join them for a swim, but he said he preferred to stay in the car, in his little bag, under a blanket.


Kaifeng is where Kate was born, and we visited the orphanage where she spent part of her life. While we were there, the orphanage director told me that Kate 'can be the bridge of love between Kaifeng orphanage and Love Without Boundaries.' I don't yet know the whole story, but I think Kate was one of the first children LWB helped in Kaifeng. We toured the baby room, which currently has about 8 babies. Most of the children in Kaifeng are put into foster care through LWB sponsorship. There was one little baby girl with Downs who kept giving me big smiles when I patted her tummy. She was adorable.

At Kaifeng orphanage with staff
Our next stop was the Kaifeng Jewish area. I have always been facinated with Jewish history, and I had read that there was a Jewish community in Kaifeng many years ago. The Jewish line has been assimilated for many years, but there are still some Chinese who claim Jewish bloodlines. We walked through the area because the road was too narrow for a car (Jeff stayed in the car with the girls). We visited an old woman who lives in a home that used to be part of the Jewish synagogue. She is the widow of a Jewish man who had the Chinese/Jewish surname, Zhou. They invited us in, and allowed us to take photos of the Jewish artifacts they had. It was amazing!



I was almost overcome with emotion several times during the visit. It was something I will never forget.

Kate had a rough night last night with fever and sickness. I decided to start her on the Zithromax I brought. Tonight she is starting to feel better, so I hope she is on the mend. Poor baby was pretty listless all day. Zoey is allowing me to touch her once in awhile, as long as Jeff is within sight. She has gotten hysterical a few times when our guide tried to take her potty (without Jeff) or Jeff has left the room. He is her security right now, so he has total care of her. We are just going to take it easy tomorrow and have fun with the girls to help them bond. We did find strollers today (not as inexpensive as home) and they both LOVE riding in them. It's so funny to see their faces light up when we put them in their strollers and head outside. Just wait until I teach them to shop....

There are ping-pong tables in the pool area, so Jeff and I had a rollicking game while the girls watched. They were highly amused. The Chinese people here couldn't decide which was more odd, foreigners playing ping-pong, or 'twin's in strollers.

Double Gotcha Day!

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We have the girls and they are precious!! Zoey was waiting for us when we got the Civil Affairs office. She wants nothing to do with me. ha The nanny kept pushing her toward me and saying, "Mama, Mama." Zoey said, "Bu yao," which means, "Don't want." I cracked up laughing. I kept trying to tell them that it was okay and that I didn't expect her to come running into my arms. Everytime I made a move toward her, she would back up. I tried candy, but that didn't work. I just kept my distance and tried to talk to her. She was unimpressed.

A bit later, Jin Yang (Kate) came into the room looking scared and dazed. She didn't reject me, but she just stood there motionless. Her eyes would move around the room, taking everything in, but the rest of her body didn't move. She looked so terrified. It broke my heart. The nannies then pushed her toward Zoey and we told them Zoey was her MeiMei (little sister). Zoey looked at her and said, 'Bu yao.' haha After awhile, I gently picked Kate up and she allowed it. I held her for the rest of the time that we were at Civil Affairs. She cracked a few smiles here and there - especially when her MeiMei was goofing around with Baba (Daddy).



Meanwhile, Zoey had decided to make friends with Daddy. She lets him do everything for her, but if I try, she says, 'bu yao.' She has the cutest little voice. We haven't heard a peep out of Kate yet. When we stood up to leave Civil Affairs, my jeans were soaking wet where Kate had been sitting. The poor little thing was soaked through all of her layers of clothes (shirt, sweater, over-alls, pants,and jacket). Zoey had split pants on, so we saw her little butt cheeks hanging out. The big news is that she is potty trained!


Mommy's bit wet spot where Kate peed
This afternoon we went to the supermarket to get a few things and we put the girls in the shopping cart. They giggled and thought it was great fun to ride around. As I put items in the cart, they examined them and handed things back and forth. It's cute to watch them get to know each other.

Being goofy with Daddy

We REALLY need to find two cheap strollers because they both weigh too much for us to be carrying them everywhere. Zoey is a baby moose, so it's a good thing she likes Jeff best! There is no way I could carry her all over. Kate is petite, so it's easier for me to carry her, but my muscles are still protesting.

They both have colds and coughs, so if you could please pray they get well, we would be grateful! We would also like prayers to stay healthy! Zoey seems to have a spunky personality and does everything with gusto (especially eating!). Kate seems very quiet (so far) and more meticulous about everything. Both of them are sweet and precious. We are doubly blessed!

We're in Zhengzhou

Just a quick post to let you know we are in Zhengzhou. We are getting the girls tomorrow. There is a bit of confusion (on our parts) about whether we will get them both at the same time, or separately. We think we are getting Zoey first and then Kate a bit later. Not sure though...

We had a great morning at the Beijing International Christian Fellowship. We were somewhat rushed, so were unable to get a photo of Baby enjoying the service. He WAS there, though.

We spent the rest of the day in taxi's, airport and the plane. The Beijing airport is so amazingly cool. Jeff would have to describe the engineering feats they accomplished - but from me, the most technical, descriptive words will be, 'amazingly cool.' We lunched at Burger King in the airport. I have not been eating any Chinese food since I realized that the MSG in it was causing me to have a constant headache. Drat...because I LOVE Chinese food.

They are taking down Christmas decorations and putting up Chinese New Year decorations. It's been pretty neat to see the decorations from both holidays. I will try to take some photos and post them. Our hotel in Beijing had just finished their CNY decorations as we were leaving today, but my camera was packed and I didn't get a picture.

Saturday in Beijing

We spent the day with some friends here in Beijing who took us around to some of the things we wanted to see or do. Our main objective was the Pearl Market, where you can buy all kinds of fake stuff like North Face jackets, Coach purses, etc. The top two floors are pearls, and my mom had given me a list of what she wanted. Our friends, Bill and Lynsay, have two blond girls, ages 3 and 4, who got mobbed everywhere we went. At one point, there were four Chinese girls clustered around them with their camera phones a few inches from the girls' faces. Their hair color is such a novelty so everyone wants a picture of them. They are pretty good natured about the paparazzi following them relentlessly.

Here are the girls getting their picture taken with another girl at Tiananmen Square.

And here is the crowd that wanted to take their picture.

Bill and Lynsay are working on getting NGO status so that they can take in Chinese orphans with special needs. They currently have one baby who has some special needs, including feeding problems, and is very malnourished. She spent the day with us and is unbelievably precious.

If you are interested in seeing what Bill and Lynsay are doing in China, here is the link to their website, Hearts for the Fatherless.

Baby Sees Beijing

Baby spent the day touring Beijing with his people.

First, he went on a subway ride

and hung on for dear life!

He tried KFC for lunch, but it was very yucky. His people didn't eat much.

Then he bought some pearls at the Pearl Market

and took a taxi ride

Baby admired beautiful architecture near the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square

He took a stroll in Tiananmen Square

And posed in front of the Forbidden City as Baby Mao

He ended the day at TGIFriday's for dinner and his people asked the staff to pose. Now he is tired and wants to go to bed.