Leaving tomorrow!

At 12:20 tomorrow (if our flight is on time, hah), I will be taking off for Beijing! We'll be tourists for a few days, seeing the Forbidden City and the Great Wall of China! Can't wait : ) From there, we'll be off to Hunan on the 25th, meeting Junie sometime the next day; I hope Sarah is ready to take LOTS of pictures. We'll spend a few days exploring Hunan, getting to know each other, and completing some official adoption paperwork. Then, we are on to Guangzhou for medicals - including shots, thank you U.S. government - more adoption formalities, sight-seeing, etc. Finally, we will drive to Hong Kong on the morning of the 7th and fly home direct to Chicago! We'll be home in the mid afternoon. I want to say thank you to our awesome friends, and the family who have helped with upgrading our flights - Sarah will appreciate the leg room, I am sure ; 0

When Junie gets home, we'll probably take it slow in introducing her to family and friends...try to remember that she is 4 years old and has had 4 years of experiences in China; first with a birth family who made the decision, or felt forced to make the decision, that they could not keep her, abandoning her in a safe place at the age of 5 months. Since then, she has lived with other kids - some of whom she has seen leave to be adopted, some of whom have been sick, or maybe even died. It certainly seems like she has been well cared for, but her life there is not the same as living with a family. Her caregivers have almost certainly changed over time. There will be adjustments; she will be grieving the people and experiences she leaves behind; she will be introduced to all new food, new sisters, new extended family, and a new routine. She may never have been to a store, or ridden in a car much - certainly not in a car seat, or had a choice of what to eat, or when to eat. She has never slept in a room alone, or been on an airplane; she'll be learning a new language! People here sound different, smell different, look different...it will take her some time to process all of these changes. So please be patient as she gets accustomed to her new life! We can't wait for her to meet all of you!!

Tick tock! Time to check my bags and lists for the 445th time!

Check here while I am in China - I won't be able to read comments here, but you can email me at amylyons1@comcast.net.

Can't wait to get our girl!