Guang Zhou , China. Final Leg of the Trip

Friday May 10th, 2008

While in the city of Luoyang we discovered very quickly that the network is different and don’t have the same capability to communicate via the blog as we did back in ZengZhou an hour and half away. So if the pictures and writing fuzzy I apologize. We’re now in Guang Zhou for the last leg of our trip with the other families. We will be getting the medical, visa, and final paperwork finished up.

Some frequently asked questions that we’ve been asked about the girls:

Can they speak English? No! So it has been very interesting trying to communicate while out shopping and having dinner and away from out guide. I think the hard part about not being able to communicate is talking about our feelings openly and assuring them that we will take care of them.

Another question we’ve been asked is will we eat their food and what if we don’t know what it is? Evan and I go by the, don’t ask just eat policy… So far we’ve done pretty well; some of the food has been a little slimy yet satisfying ( Lion King) and some not so satisfying (Tim & Evan) We did find a Pizza Hut yesterday and had some pizza we really enjoyed the change.

The funny thing was; Danielle told us that she did not like pizza. After we ordered a pizza she really enjoyed her pizza. So we believe pizza must be kind of a code word for some awful vegetable in Chinese. Audrey has been a little more cautious about the don’t ask just eat policy, she has done remarkably well.

What have been some of the highlights of the trip?

How God is in the details. When we’ve run into road blocks or potential road blocks we just pray and see God at work. Since we’ve all met back at Guangzhou with the 30 other families on the 9^th I’m truly overwhelmed at God’s love through his fellow believers. To see all these families that have gladly adopted children with special needs has left me speechless. To not only see their faith but watch these mothers sharing tender moments with their children.

These are children that have been rejected by their own families because of a physical blemish that has stained their health or their appearance. They’ve been adopted by dads & moms that see beyond their physical impairment and see the beautiful children that they are, and can provide a haven of protection a long life’s way.

This comes from the heart of our God we serve. We’ve been stained by sin that has impaired our walk with God. He adopted us to his promise presence with a future far beyond us from his saving grace.

A few other moments I will treasure was on mother’s day while in a bus heading to a store, I noticed Maria and Danielle talking and whispering to each other. They looked my way and signaled me over. I asked what they wanted and Maria quickly held her finger to her lip to hush my questions.

She waved her hand for me to come closer and both the girls were smiling and then Maria asked if they could get mama a present for mothers day? It was all I could do not to start balling like a baby… I just shook my head yes and after I regained my composure asked what they would like to get? They paused for a few seconds and in broken English Maria whispered; “flowers”.

I asked Evan if he would take his sisters out and help them find flowers for their mom on mother’s day. Audrey was over the top after she received the flowers and I shared the experience. There’s a lot experiences I could write about but I will finish up by saying again, thank you for your emails and comments, you have no idea how much them mean to us!!!

Check out the pictures of Maria’s birthday party with some of her teachers and friends from the orphanage. I have never seen anyone eat birthday cake with chopsticks… Soooo cool isn’t it!

Love you all,

Tim & Audrey, Evan, Maria and Danille

Maira and Danielle with friends from the orphanage
that came over to celebrate her birthday.

Danielle eating birthday cake.

Maria's teacher eating birthday cake with
chopsticks,

Maria making a wish.

Maria's Birthday Party