Pictures of Coming Home

Paducah Airport (after almost 24 hours of travel)

We're in Kentucky!!!

Getting presents at the airport

Olivia's new home

Getting out of the car at her new home

As soon as we pulled up the driveway

she noticed her new playground

She likes to swing

She loves her books.  This is the first time she saw her room

and she went for the books.  We sit in the rocking chair and

read them a lot.

She hopped right on the tricycle Mamaw Mary got her.

She knew what to do!

We had a small "Welcome Home" party.  She had a

good time.  She ran and played hide & seek

She liked seeing her picture on the cake

She's getting the hang of this present thing

Yeah, she's cool!!!!

Day 15 Olivia's Coming Home

Friday, September 10, 2010


We got up early this morning and went down for breakfast. Olivia was so excited when they brought her own Peter Rabbit plate, fork and spoon. She was a happy camper. I filled her plate and she really enjoyed feeding herself. She is "Miss Independent".

After breakfast, we finished packing up and the shuttle at the hotel took us to the airport, which was next door. We left at 9:30 am and got all checked in, waiting for our flight to leave at 12:30 pm. Today we will be traveling through time because we leave 12:30 pm China time and land in Chicago at 2:30 pm on the same day. It looks like we are only having a 2 hour flight, but believe me it is 14 long hours.

South China Sea

Olivia only slept 2 hours on the plane. Every time we would get her to sleep they would bring food out to us and the smell of the food would wake her up every time. Of course, if there is food, she is going to eat. It's fun to watch her after she eats.  She will pick up the napkin without saying anything and wipe her mouth and hands.

I think that she was so excited about coming home that she wasn't able to sleep. She enjoyed writing in my journal that she has watched me write in all week and she would also pretend that it was the computer. She sat the journal up like a laptop and then put her hands on the area where the keyboard would be and then pretended like she was typing because she has been watching me type. One of the things that she does every morning as we get ready is sings to us.  So she sang on the plane over and over again and she also chatted with the people behind us.

After our 14 hour flight, we landed in Chicago.  It took us 3 hours to get through customs, immigration and recheck our bags. We gave Olivia's brown sealed envelope to the officer and she is now an official citizen of the United States of America. On our way to the area to wait for our next flight, we stopped at McDonald's which tasted really good. Olivia went on many walks at the airport.  She finally went to sleep and slept about an hour.  She didn't sleep much there because it was very loud and all of the lights were on.

I'm a United States Citizen

After our long wait, we boarded the plane to Paducah at 9:45 and landed one hour later. When we landed we could see Steve and Abby standing outside waiting for us. When we came in to the terminal it was nice to see some smiling faces of our family waiting for us. Olivia was really tired. She checked everybody out and didn't have much to say, but she didn't get upset. They brought her some gifts, which was a good timing because the airlines lost her bag with all of her clothes in it and if Carolyn hadn't brought an outfit she wouldn't had anything to wear. Her bag ended up in Knoxville and hopefully we will get it tomorrow. When it was time to leave, she waved bye and blew kisses to everyone.

We are going to stay the night in Paducah and bring her home in the morning. We haven't had much sleep and thought that it would be best for her to see her new home in the daylight and see her new bedroom. It is wonderful to be home to smell fresh air, see the beautiful blue sky and be able to drink water right from the faucet.
I hope that everyone has enjoyed our adoption experience as much as we have. I want to say a special THANKS to my niece Kim who has helped us tremendously. When we arrived in Beijing we found out that we were not going to be able to use our blog site. Fortunately, we were able to send emails and Kim has faithfully put in our daily blog and attached our pictures we really appreciate it.

They are on thier way home!!!

They left Hong Kong at 11:30 p.m. (our time) last night and will arrive in Chicago at 3:30 p.m. today.  They will lay over there for about seven hours.  During that time they will have to go through customs and get all of Olivia's paperwork checked.  This should take about four hours so they will have three hours of idle time.  They will then fly to Paducah and probably land around midnight so they will spend the night there.

They will be worn out plus the 13 hr time difference will affect thier sleeping patterns so please pray for them as they travel and go through this transition.

Day 14 On Our Way to Hong Kong

Thursday, September 9, 2010

We got up this morning and went downstairs for breakfast.  We then walked over to the White Swan Hotel and got some pictures. We took Olivia's picture sitting on the red sofa.  A lot of adoptive parents used to stay there when they came to get thier children and they always take thier pictures on that couch.  We also got some pictures of the waterfall and the jade ship. We made one last trip to Judy's shop to pick up a couple of gifts and to tell Judy good bye.
 

Judy

We went back to our room and had lunch, then Olivia took a nap. We finished packing and as soon as Olivia woke up, we were out the door because Grace was picking us up at 1:30 pm. We met Grace and left for the train station. Grace got us checked in and then she went back to the Consulate, which was next door, to wait for Olivia's Visa.

 

Grace returned at 3:30 pm with Olivia's Visa.  We boarded the train and left at 4:12 pm. The train was very nice and had very comfortable seats. Olivia did okay at first until she figured out that she wasn't free to run around the train.

 

 

Olivia's 1st Train Ride

 

We arrived in Hong Kong at 6:12 pm. It was evening time and we didn't get any pictures, but Hong Kong looks beautiful. There is another family that stayed at the Victory Hotel that's from Louisiana.  They rode the train with us and they are also staying at the Marriott Hotel in Hong Kong. After we arrived in Hong Kong, we exchanged our money to Hong Kong dollars. Kevin saw a McDonald's so we all decided to get supper to go. A few of us stayed with the luggage and the rest went upstairs to get the food. We got a van so we could all ride together to go to the hotel. On the way to the hotel, we were happy to be riding in a van, in Hong Kong, eating McDonald's. Our hotel is beautiful it faces the South China sea. Kevin is planning on getting pictures tomorrow. We got here at 8:30 pm, went to our rooms, and got ready for bed. Tomorrow we will be coming home.
 

Olivia at the hotel in Hong Kong

She's learning!

Day 13 American Consulate

Wednesday, September 8, 2010


We got up this morning and had breakfast and went walking around Shamian Island. We bought a few souvenirs and got some pictures. We came back to the hotel room and had lunch in the room. Olivia took a nap and we packed up a few things.

Grace met us at 2:00 pm in the lobby to take us the American Consulate. On the way to the Consulate, we picked up another family. The Consulate reception area was about a hour drive from our hotel. We arrived at the Consulate at 3:00 pm. Grace got us checked in and we sat in the waiting room. She told us that they will start calling families up front to sign some documentations at 3:30 pm. They had a little play area in the back of the room, so Olivia played with a few toys until everyone started showing up then she just watched all of the kids play. When it was 3:30 pm we moved to our seats to wait for Olivia's Chinese name to be called. They had just started calling names and there were about 50 families in the waiting room, so we figured it would take a long time before they got to Olivia's name. Olivia had to go to the restroom and when we were coming out, Grace came flying in to the restroom telling me that they had just called Olivia's name and we hurried to where Kevin was. The officer gave Kevin a paper to sign and checked our passports. After his signature we took a seat and waited for everyone else to go up front. When all of the names had been called, the Director of Immigrations Visa talked to us about the immigration papers. When she finished, she had all of us to stand and raise our right hand repeating after her saying that we had given the U.S. Government, to best of our knowledge, correct information on our adoption papers. She said we would be able to pick up Olivia's Visa tomorrow and we would be given a brown sealed envelope.  We are not to open it. When we arrive in Chicago and go through immigration, they will ask for the envelope. We were not allowed to take pictures in the Consulate, so after the oath ceremony we took our picture in the front lobby in front of the Consulate sign.

Olivia on the way to the Consulate

After we left the Consulate, we returned back to the hotel and went for a walk around the area. We went to Lucy's for supper, but the wait was way too long, so we stopped at Thai restaurant for supper. We returned back to our room and got ready for bed. Tomorrow we will pick up Olivia's Visa and ride a train to Hong Kong.

Traveling to Hong Kong

This is Penny's niece.  I got an email from them during the night.  They had a long day yesterday.  They went to the American Consulate and Olivia did get sworn in. 

On the way to the train station today they picked up her papers.   They had to take a two hour train ride to Hong Kong.  They should have arrived at 6 a.m. (our time) or 7 p.m. their time, on Thursday.  They will not have a guide once they get to Hong Kong, but they only have to get a taxi on their own and get to the hotel.  From there, a shuttle will pick them up and take them to the airport Friday.

They will have a long plane ride to Chicago.  The will lay over there for seven hours.  About four of those hours will be going through customs and having Olivia's papers checked so she can enter the country.  They should be back in Ky before midnight Friday night.

I just wanted to update you so you would know they are OK and ask you to be praying that everything goes smoothly during their travels and they get home safe and sound.

You're Invited To Meet Olivia!!!

We have two events scheduled when we return.

The first is a welcome home/meet Olivia gathering at 2 p.m. on Saturday, September 11 at our church, The River at Trinity Gospel Tabernacle, 1580 Nortonville Rd, Nortonville, Ky 42442. 

The second event will be a shower for Olivia.  It will be on Sunday, September 19 at our church.  We are registered at Wal Mart and Babies R Us.  She is wearing a 18 mth/2T in clothes and a size 6 in shoes.

We would like for all who can to come be with us and enjoy Olivia.

Please let us know if you can attend  the shower by emailing my niece, Kim at kimberlyskeepsakes@yahoo.com so we can plan the food.  Thank you!

Day 12 Visa Accepted by Consulate

Tuesday, September 7, 2010


Olivia got up during the night last night because she wasn't feeling good after getting four shots. We gave her some Motrin and in a few minutes she went back to sleep. We got up and got ready for breakfast and when Olivia woke up she was feeling a lot better. She is kind of quiet this morning, not her usual self, but we know she isn't feeling too good.

We had breakfast and Grace called to check on Olivia. We told her how she was doing. We had our visa Consulate appointment today. Grace took our papers to the Consulate and told us to stay in our room between 10:00 and 11:30 a.m. because the Consulate would be reviewing all of our papers and would call if they had questions. Apparently, Grace went early to the Consulate because our phone rang at 10:15 a.m. and it was Grace telling us CONGRATULATIONS, all of our papers were good and the Consulate doesn't have any questions for us today.


We were happy with our news, so we decided to go walking around outside and take some pictures. We went down the street behind the hotel and there are some shops where you can buy trinkets - fans, tea sets, chopsticks, baby clothes, etc. Judy is a lady that runs one of the stores. She was sitting outside of her shop and she started talking to us. When we went into her store, she shut the door behind her and wanted to know if we were Christians. We told her that yes we are Christians. She was go glad because she is a Christian too. She said that she became a Christian 5 years ago, but her family is Buddhists. She said that God has given her peace in her heart and she prays for them. She said that one of the families that adopted a child gave her a Bible and she reads it everyday. She said that she enjoys reading Psalms and Proverbs. She invited us to go to church with her Sunday, but we told her that we would love to go to church with her but we will be leaving here Thursday afternoon. We bought some trinkets from her and she gave Kevin a special discount because we are Christians. She was really, really nice.


We came back to the room, had lunch, and Olivia had a nap. Grace picked us up at 2:00 p.m. and we went to the Jade and Pearl Market. When we arrived, to our amazement, it has hundreds of shops in various alleys, as well as several in the four story mall. There were literally millions of various sizes and shapes everywhere you looked. Most of the Jade is sold as unset pieces and when you purchase a piece then they will fix you a necklace or bracelet. This also goes for the pearl market across the street. It was really hard to pick any one shop to purchase something from. We finally found some that the necklaces were already strung and ready to wear. They will string the pearls right in front of you when you purchase a necklace. Kevin really enjoyed bartering with the locals over the price. If he didn't like the price they said, he just walked away and suddenly they changed their minds and went with his offer. We purchased a few things and then we ate at a McDonald's and it was really good. It tasted just like it does back home. Olivia really enjoyed chicken McNuggets. After our shopping trip, we came back to the hotel and got ready for bed. Tomorrow we will be going to the Consulate for our Oath Ceremony.

Buying Mommy some pearls!

Jade Market

Outside of the Mall

Inside the Mall

Day 11 MORE SHOTS!

Monday, September 6, 2010

When we were getting ready for breakfast this morning, Olivia sang us a song in Chinese over and over again. We believe that she learned the song in the orphanage. After she sang her song, we got her to say Hi, Bye, wave good bye and she blew us kisses. I also got her to repeat the alphabet letters of ABC and count to 10. It sounded pretty cute because she really works her tongue and lips before she repeats me. You can see that she is thinking really hard about what I just said. She has called us mommy and daddy a couple of times. She calls us mama and baba all of the time and whenever someone else asks her who mama and baba is, she always points to us.

After our entertainment, we went downstairs for breakfast and met a few families that are getting their children today. They had lots of questions for me and Kevin because they saw how well Olivia has adjusted to her new mom and dad.

After breakfast, Grace meet us in the lobby at 9:50 and we walked to the doctor's office. Olivia had to get four more shots today and get her TB skin test checked. Her TB skin test checked out okay, but when they took her temperature they said that it was up just a little bit. They go by Celsius and we go by Fahrenheit so we are not sure what her temperature was. Olivia recognized the doctor's office and immediately started crying. Grace went to tell the doctor that Olivia had a little bit of a fever, so we went outside for Olivia to calm down. The doctor told Grace to tell us to go back to the hotel room and give her some more Motrin and come back at 11:45 am. Grace took Kevin to the pharmacy around the corner to buy a thermometer which cost about 75 cents. This thermometer is Celsius. They told us what her temperature has to be exactly 37 degrees Celsius or we have to come back tomorrow. So, we gave her a dose of Motrin and Kevin played a game with her so she would drink a lot of water. We checked her temperature and it was exactly 37 so we went back to the doctor's office again for recheck. The lady out front took her temperature and it was normal. Olivia was okay with the nurse taking her temperature, but when we turned the corner to the room where they give the shots she remembered it and started bawling immediately. When I sat down in the chair Olivia was fighting me and the nurses because she knew what was coming next. After her shots were over, we went to sit in the waiting room for 30 minutes to make sure she is okay. She stopped crying pretty quickly because the waiting room had a few small toys for her to play with. The doctor came by and told us we could leave. When we went out the door, Grace told Olivia in Chinese that she would never have to come back here again and she was happy and smiled at Grace.

Doctor's Office

It's all over!

We went back to the room and had lunch. Before we left Xi An, Kevin went to WalMart and bought a few things to eat. So, today we ate beef noodles. When Olivia saw the bowl with the noodles in it, she was dancing and jumping up and down with joy because she knew what it was. After they cooled, we put some in her snack bowl and gave her the chopsticks to use just to see if she knew how to use them. She picked them up and started using them immediately. After her belly was full, she took a two hour nap.

When her nap was over, we took a walk around the Shamian Island. This area looks like the Victorian Era or what you would see in New Orleans, because it used to be where the British and German Consulates were.

We came back to our room and Kevin ordered Papa John's Pizza and they delivered. Kevin was a happy man. After supper, we got ready for bed because Olivia had a big day today and wasn't feeling too good. Hopefully she will be feeling a lot better tomorrow. Tomorrow we have our visa appointment at the Consulate.

Day 10 Going To The Zoo

Sunday, September, 2010

We didn't get much sleep last night because Olivia didn't feel good after getting three shots. We got up early and got ready to go to the Xiangjiang Safari Park. Grace called us at 6:30 a.m. just to check on us and to see if Olivia was doing okay after getting her shots. We decided to go ahead and go to the zoo. Grace picked us up at 9:00 am and we headed off to the zoo. On our way, we stopped and picked up another family who was going to the zoo with us. We had met them yesterday when we were standing in the long lines at the doctor's office. The Douglas family mom Terry, son Danny and daughter Nicole. Nicole was adopted when she was 12 months old. She told us that she came from China. She told us that she is 5 years old and she is starting kindergarten. Nicole entertained us during our trip. The father was sick and their new adopted son didn't feel good after getting his shots so they stayed back at the apartment. It was an hour drive to the zoo and Olivia fell asleep right away.

The park is very beautiful and extraordinarily large. The first half of the park, we got to ride a safari bus and got see the animals living in their natural environment. The second half was more up close and personal meaning it was a very long walk and Nicole was ready to see the pandas and go home. Olivia was still tired from the previous night and wasn't to worried about the animals that we saw, but she enjoyed her nice ride and eating her snacks. On the other hand, Kevin's snacks were stripped from him at the gate at our surprise because Grace told us to bring our own snacks for lunch. Grace went to take our snacks back to the van and then she decided to smuggle them back in for us and she did. So, Kevin was a happy camper when she returned to us with a big smile on her face opening her bag to show Kevin she had his beef snacks. She just earned a big tip today from Kevin. We ate our snacks that we brought, but Nicole didn't have a good experience. She wanted her mom to buy her some noodles and fries for her and not eat the snack that her mom brought. Her mom went to the counter to order and the ladies wouldn't wait on her. They waited on everyone else but Terry. Terry came back to our table and asked Grace to come to the counter because there must be a problem. The ladies took her order and also took her money, but they only gave her some cold fries that Nicole wouldn't eat, but of course Olivia ate them for her. The ladies told Terry that they were out of noodles so she would have to wait for them. When the noodles were ready they served them to everyone else but Terry. Finally, Terry asked for her money back and poor little Nicole didn't get her noodles for lunch. We shared our snacks with her so she would have something to eat. She was a good sport and didn't even realize what was going on. She really liked Kevin's beef snacks and he didn't might sharing with her.

When we returned back to our room, Olivia enjoyed looking at the photo album that we had sent to her back in February. She would really get excited looking at our pictures and her bedroom, calling us mama and baba. When she gets excited she starts talking in Chinese.  We wish we knew what she was saying because she looks so happy. Olivia was feeling a lot better after we got back to her room and she could run around in the room and color.

We went to Lucy's restaurant tonight for supper which serves western food. Kevin was a happy man. We both ordered hamburger with cheese, fries and Coke. Olivia got the kids meal which included chicken strip, half hot dog, fries, fruit and ice cream. She liked the hot dog, chicken and ate a few fries. She wasn't interested in the watermelon tonight, but she has liked it before. They brought her a small bowl of ice cream, which she has never had ice cream. I gave her a tiny bite and she didn't like it at all. We think she didn't like the ice cream because it was cold. There was some whip cream on top so I got her to try it and she liked it. We will definitely be visiting Lucy's again before we leave. We returned back to our room and got ready for bed and finished our blog. Tomorrow we will be off to the doctor's office to check Olivia's TB skin test and get four more shots.

Day 9 Exam and Immunizations

Saturday, September 4, 2010

We came in this morning and went to bed at 1:30 am and had to get up at 6:30 am. We went downstairs and had breakfast at the hotel this morning. Grace came to the hotel at 9:00 am and we went down the street to get Olivia's Visa photo. We went into a very small office and the gentleman was waiting for us to have her picture made. He took the picture and Kevin paid the bill, then we headed down the street to the doctor's office. Olivia has to get a physical examination and shots today. When we came into the doctor's office there were a lot of people there. They had all of the adoptive parents go in the back waiting rooms for the children's exams. The Chinese people saw the doctors up front. There were probably 40 parents here with their children. We all had to get in line. I am glad that we came early because with forty families, the line moved slowly. Grace helped us with our paperwork.

I waited in line for us while Kevin sat in the waiting room with Olivia.  He started playing with her and she would mimic him.  He would sit in the chair with his legs crossed and she sat beside him and crossed hers.  He put his hand on his face and made a suprised face and she did the same thing.  Everything he did, she did.  It really tickled us to see her interact with us even though she doesn't understand our language.  She can still communicate with us.

In the first room, the doctor examined her eyes, ears and face. In the second room the ladies took her height and weight. In the third room we saw a doctor who did the exam. The doctor said that Olivia has to have 7 shots and TB skin test. At first, she was going to give all of the shots to her today. Grace talked to her for us and she changed her mind and let Olivia get 3 shots and TB skin test today. We have to come back to her office Monday for her TBskin test results, so she said that she could get the other four shots then. After her decision, she sent us to another room for the vaccinations. When we came into the room they made me sit down and hold her arms down and put her legs between my legs. It's not far that I had to be the bad guy. They should have had to do it. She started crying when they cleaned the area for the shots and didn't stop until they were all over and I can't blame her. After having three shots and TB test, I thought she did very well because all of this is new to her. We had to go sit in the waiting room for 30 minutes to make sure that she didn't have any reaction to the shots. I brought her snack bowl filled with Cheerios and gave it to her and in just a few minutes she was fine.

We went back to the hotel and had snacks for lunch. We stayed in the room the afternoon and Olivia played in the room. She is doing really good for having three shots and TB skin test.

Grace came by after lunch and showed Kevin around the island while Olivia took a nap. Kevin said that the island is beautiful.  It reminds you of the Old South in the Victorian Era. She showed him a Subway, so we had Subway sandwiches for supper. I had a chance to get caught up on the blog. We got ready for bed early since we didn't get much rest last night. Tomorrow Grace is picking us up and we are going to the park.

Victory Hotel