HOW SWEET IT IS TO BE LOVED BY YOU.....

This isn't an official post from Vicki ......

but, I wanted you all to see what a difference love from a family can make!

Gotcha Day!

......and today!  

GOODBYE CHINA.......HOME, HERE WE COME!!!!

Today was our last full day in Guangzhou. We will be leaving our hotel in the morning (Friday) at 7:30 AM to go to the airport here to fly to Beijing. We will have a layover in Beijing for a few hours, and then we will depart for Dallas/Ft. Worth around 5:35 PM here. We are scheduled to arrive there at 4:45 PM (Friday.) Yes.....we will arrive there before the time we left here. :) We will have a 3 1/2 hour layover there, but it will take every minute of that for us to get through immigration and customs. PLEASE pray that we are able to make our flight to Nashville. If everything goes as planned, we should arrive in Nashville at 9:55 PM.

Today after breakfast, we made another trip to the Pearl Market and to the Embroidery Shop that we visited on Monday, and then we headed back to Shamian Island. We went with our friends, Ed and Kylie and their two sweet kiddos. We enjoyed some final shopping time and another good meal at Lucy's. The pictures today are all from our time there.

When we arrived back at the hotel, we received Ansley Grace's visa, the last thing we needed to be able to head home. We had to say goodbye to the three couples who have been our family for the past two plus weeks. It seems like we have known them all our lives....that's what sharing an adoption experience does. Even if we never see some of them again, I have no doubts we will stay in touch. We already have plans to visit Ed and Kylie, who have been our constant companions throughout this trip. :)

I can't begin to put into words what a phenomenal trip this has been for us. It has just been different.......SO very bittersweet in many ways, rewarding beyond words, in others. It has been the EASIEST adoption trip we have ever made. The weather has been great, although a cold front came through last night and it was considerably cooler today.....but NO RAIN, and bright sunshine almost every day. I figure God let us experience the cool temps today to prepare us for the weather we are going home to. :) We haven't had to deal with the struggles that are expected with a younger child. For the first time in four adoptions, I didn't have to pack diapers, bottles, or formula. We didn't have to deal with a stroller everywhere we went. We didn't have to be up at night with a child who wouldn't sleep. We just adopted this cute little girl who just fell right into the mold of our family.

Would I want to live in China? Absolutely NOT!!! I definitely prefer Benton, Kentucky!!!! Yet, I feel such a connection to this country. I could tell you A LOT of things I don't like about it. Probably my biggest dislike are the squatty potties. I'm proud to say that I am leaving here in the morning without having to grace the doors of one.....actually, most of them don't have doors!!! I'm not sure what I will find in the airport in Guangzhou, but if there are no above the ground options offered, I will cross my legs and wait until I get to Beijing!!! Honestly, I have never experienced anything more disgusting than the public restrooms here. And to top that, the fact that there is NO TOILET PAPER in the squatty potties????? The no-wipe policy is a reality here in many places. HONESTLY!!! I don't like the dirt and dust. Literally, there are people who sweep the streets with brooms that look like they are made from tree branches. I don't think it was quite as bad here in Guangzhou as it was in Zhengzhou, but it's just different than home. I really am not crazy about the food here, and after sixteen days, I can promise you I won't be eating at any local Chinese restaurants at home anytime soon. Cracker Barrel never sounded better!!!! I don't like the fact that we can't eat fresh vegetables here or drink the water or drinks with ice in them. If we did, we would probably get very sick. I don't like the traffic there and all the honking that goes on, even though Guangzhou has been much quieter than Zhengzhou was. As wild and crazy as the driving has been here, though, we have only seen one traffic accident since we have been here.

I could go on and on about things I don't like about China, but let me tell you what I DO like about it. I don't just like, but I love this country because it is where our four daughters were born. Even though the circumstances that surround how each of our girls came to be available for adoption will forever break my heart, I am thankful that God led us to this country to adopt. The conception of a child is a miracle. The birth of a child is a miracle. But let me tell you, when God moves in a person's heart to adopt, and He chooses a child on the opposite side of the world to be that person's daughter or son, and when that child is placed in that person's arms and in the case of a mother, she loves that child instantly, as if she had carried it within her for nine months, THAT is a miracle. I have been blessed to experience that FOUR times. Will this be the last? Only God knows, at this point in time.

The adoption of Ansley Grace has been very different. Of course, it is our first time to adopt an older child. If you had asked me four or five years ago if I would ever adopt an older one, I would have said no. After we adopted Eiley Joy, I had said I would never adopt another younger one again, although I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED having a baby again. This time we knew because of our age we wouldn't be able to adopt a baby, and we didn't want to anyway because Eiley Joy was and will forever be our baby girl. At first, I was against adopting a child any older than Molly Kate and Callie Beth, but then God intervened and led me to Ansley Grace's sweet face on our agency's Waiting Child Profile page. We have had it SO easy compared to everyone else in our adoption group. A few of the couples have really had a struggle with their children. When I look back at our past adoptions, I guess we did, too. But with Ansley Grace, it's as if God had prepared her to become a part of our family. We had smiles from her before we ever left the Registry Office the day we got her, and she has warmed up to us SO well. It seems like she has been a part of our family forever. One of the families that joined our group here in Guangzhou told us yesterday, that if we hadn't told them, they would not have been able to tell which of our girls we had just adopted. Her sweet smile and giggle warm my heart through and through. She fits in SO well with Molly Kate and Callie Beth. They pick on her, and she tells them, NO.....but then she giggles and picks back. Right now, she is snuggled up next to Callie Beth sound asleep. I think we are going to have some challenges in the upcoming months.....trying to teach her English and getting her caught up in school. We will be taking her to the International Adoption Clinic, and we are praying for a good report. She is going to need some physical therapy....her legs are not as strong as they should be, but we have certainly given her a lot of exercise with all the walking we have done. She is going to need some speech/language therapy, too, I am sure. However, we know how much that can help. After all, when we adopted Callie Beth, she didn't talk at all, and didn't for a long time. Just look at her now!!!!

We have shed a lot of tears during this trip......we have missed Eiley Joy SO much. Getting past the one year anniversary of her death and funeral was another first for us. But OH, how we have felt her presence here. So many of the places we have been are a repeat of where we were with her our last adoption trip. Yesterday when we were at our consulate appointment, I could see her SO vividly, running back and forth across the room with those red squeaky shoes on, giggling like crazy. Yesterday, as we were on our way to Safari Park, one of many of those bittersweet moments came over me, and my eyes filled with tears. When I looked up, my necklace with her picture in it was reflecting on Ansley Grace's head, dancing around like crazy. It was a Godwink, and it was almost like her saying to me, "Mama, God let me help pick out my new sister." This adoption has NOT made our grief of losing Eiley Joy go away......we didn't expect it to. We know, though, she would be SO happy to have another sister, and one day ALL of us will be together with her in Heaven.

What an AWESOME Christmas this is going to be for us this year. Bittersweet, too, but we can celebrate that another child has come home to her forever family. I'm not sure she is going to be thrilled with some of her gifts. Last year when she was hosted, she LOVED dolls. Now, she wants nothing to do with them. SO much for getting my girly girl!!!! She's getting some dolls for Christmas, anyway. If she doesn't play with them, I guess I will have to. :)

I owe a big thanks to my lifelong friend, Ginger Norsworthy, who has posted on my blog daily. This is her fourth time to fill this capacity for me. Thanks to all of you, too, who have taken time to ready about our journey. I hope to share more posts after we get home. Please pray for safe travels for us. We can't WAIT for you all to meet our China Blessing Number FOUR!!!

U.S. CONSULATE DAY

Today was our assigned day to go to the U.S. Consulate for Ansley Grace's visa interview and to take the oath that everything we submitted in our application for the visa was true. The U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou is the only place in China where adoptions can be completed. This consulate is the busiest U.S Consulate in the world. Over 2,000 visas are issued here daily. The lines have always been long when we've had our appointments, but adoption people are VIP's, so we don't have to wait in the long lines. Our guide told us today that for most Chinese people applying for visas to the United States, it takes about ten years for them to be granted. It's just a whole different world here.

I wasn't able to get any pictures outside the consulate today.....the lines were too long and were blocking the sign on the building. The pictures of the girls dressed up were taken right before our appointment, though.

Pictures from the Consulate appointment. 

After we were finished with our appointment, we came back to our hotel, changed clothes, and left with two other adoption friend couples for an afternoon at Safari Park. It is a WONDERFUL zoo type facility. The grounds are nice and clean, and there are SO many different animals there. We had a GREAT time. I have included some pictures from there, too. I think our favorite thing to see was the pandas.

Safari Park Fun

When we got back to our hotel, my friend Kylie and I took a taxi to Walmart. It was about a 20 minute ride from the hotel. As in Zhengzhou, it was an experience. It was much cleaner than the one on Zhengzhou, but there is just no rhyme or reason to the way things are arranged. The smell is unique, too! Of course, any where we go, the taxi ride is an experience, too. The fare is cheap, though. It cost a little over $3 for our ride there.

Once we were back at the hotel, we went to eat with our besties here, and then came and collapsed in our room.

Tomorrow will be our last day here in Guangzhou. Thankfully, we don't have to be up at the crack of dawn. We are planning on spending most of the day on Shamian Island. The weather here has been perfect, but a cold front is getting ready to come through. The temperature had really dropped a lot tonight, and I think there is a chance of rain tomorrow. We can't complain, though, because up to this point, we have had no rain. Our last adoption trip it rained almost a whole week.
I hope to share one more blog entry tomorrow night, and then that will be it until we get home. This has been a phenomenal trip. I will elaborate more on that tomorrow night. :)

LIFE IN GUANGZHOU

We have really enjoyed our last couple of days here in Guangzhou.  The weather is BEAUTIFUL!  Yesterday, the temperature got up to 79.  Today it was a little cooler, but actually about as perfect as possible.

Yesterday was the day for all the adopted children to go to the clinic to get their physicals. Ansley Grace did great with the doctors, although she talked to the first one and answered all the questions he asked, and then didn't say two words to the second doctor.  Because she is over two years old, she had to have a TB test.  Here they draw blood for that test. They wouldn't allow me to go in the room with her, and when she came out, she was crying.  That was only the second time she has cried since we got her a week ago Monday.  The same nurses who drew her blood measured her and weighed her, and attempted to do some vision screening on her.  Well, we have learned that if our little munchkin gets hurt, whether it be physically or just feelings, she kind of shuts down and plays the ignoring game. That is what she did with the nurses except she told them she didn't want to play their games!!!  We really didn't learn a lot from the physical that we didn't already know or suspect.  We already knew that she has neurofibromatosis, and the doctor asked if we had plans to follow up on that, which we do.  They labeled her as language delayed, which I don't think she probably is, but because she is so introverted and because we really don't know what she is saying, we don't know to what extent.  She is saying quite a few words in English and using them in the right context.  She talks in Chinese all the time when we are in our hotel room, and she understands a lot of what we are saying to her in English.  She definitely knows what NO means, and she minds us really well.

View from the drive to medicals.

Clinic waiting room.

After we were finished with all the children's physicals, we came back to the hotel for a few minutes, and then headed to the pearl market.  The store we went to was just one of MANY stores that sell pearls, but our guide knew it was a reputable one, and the pearls from there are top grade.  I bought Ansley Grace a necklace and bracelet for when she is older.  There were a lot of nice stores in the market. 

Bags and bags of pearls!

Tomorrow we travel to the consulate to finalize everything!  We will receive her VISA on Thursday!

A BUSY DAY.... NEW PICTURES!

These pictures are from the Pearl River Cruise.

The tower is the Guangzhou Tower, and it is the 4th tallest tower in the world.

                       Hey Mom and Dad, I can drive!

                              Family Pictures Today

Travel Group

Good Night!  Sleep Tight!

ALL ABOUT OUR ANSLEY GRACE

I have been TOTALLY AMAZED at how well Ansley Grace has adjusted to her new life with us. It was a week ago today that she joined our family, and it seems like she has been with us FOREVER!!!! She really is doing well.

There are some things I would like to share about her, along with some AWESOME pics I took today.

1. Our China Blessing Number 4 is SHORT!!!! Even though she is like a chunk of lead when I pick her up, she is SO small for her age. As you can see in her pictures, she is at least a half a head shorter than Molly Kate. She honestly would pass for a five or six year old.

2. She is very introverted, quiet, and shy WHEN SHE IS AROUND OTHER PEOPLE. HOWEVER, she can be quite loud when she is around us.

3. She is a GIGGLER!!!! Oh, my GOODNESS.......she has the deepest belly laugh for a little body that I have ever heard, and it doesn't take much to make her giggle.

4. She has only cried twice this week.....once when she fell, and today when they drew blood. HOWEVER, sometimes if she gets mad about something, she kind of ignores us. Today, after they had drawn the blood, she didn't cooperate with any other tests. She told them she didn't want to do them. Actually, I didn't blame her!!!

5. Even though she really has been good with us from the beginning, as each day has passed, she has shown more and more affection toward us. We both actually got our first kiss on the cheek from her yesterday. She will hold our hands, and she has let me help her in any way she has needed it. We can now tickle her and tease her. Sometimes she still doesn't like it, but for the most part, she does.

6. This girls LOVES clothes!!!! From the first day we got her, she has loved everything I have laid out for her to wear. She also LOVES the bows!!! This morning, she brought her bow to me for me to fix her hair. Before her physical appointment today, we had to get her picture made for her visa. They made me take out the bow, comb back her bangs, and clip her hair behind her ears. She didn't like that AT ALL!!! She was ready for the bow to be put back on, and the clips out!!!!

7. She is an EATER!!!! She eats anything and everything we put in front of her. We have had to start limiting the quantity she eats just a little bit. I'm not sure that in the past she has not always been fed as much as she has wanted or needed

8. She is a stasher. In the first update we received after we received preapproval to adopt her, we were told that she liked to stash things under her pillow, like strings. She puts at least one thing under her pillow every night......the past few nights it has been an empty M&M tube. I think she feels real ownership of those things. When I visited the orphanage the other day and went to the apartment where her foster family lives, I did not see one single toy there. She came to us with the clothes she had on her back, and a photo album sent from the orphanage with pictures of her. That's it. She LOVES that album, I think because it's all she had.

9. She is CUTE beyond words!!!! I thought her haircut was atrocious, but it is absolutely darling on her. Couple that with her beautiful smile......she is a little doll!!!!

10. She LOVES her sisters!!!! They love her in return!!!! I think the pictures demonstrate that!!!!

11. She is a KEEPER!!!! We couldn't ask for a more perfect Pierce Sister Number FOUR!!!!

FIRST DAY OF SITESEEING IN GUANGZHOU

This morning we went on a tour of some historical places in Guangzhous, the Buddhist Temple.  The Old Chen House, and the Provincial Arts and Crafts Shopping Center.  Since this is the FOURTH time we have taken this tour, I was much more interested in taking pictures of our virtual triples. I don't have a lot of pictures to share about the actual sites we visited. 

The Buddhist Temple never ceases to amaze me. I watch people go in, light incense, and bow before those golden statues in hopes of peace, prosperity, good luck, long lives.....the list goes on. Our guide, Jason, explained that they always light the incense in multiples of three, representing the three lives they believe they live......their past life, their present life, and their future life. There were several different statues of Buddha, each representing something different. The Buddha in this picture is called the happy Buddha, and it is recommended to rub his belly is you want more children. I asked Roger if he wanted to rub it.....he declined. :) I know if I had grown up in this culture, this might be a part of my way of life, too.....but, as and American who has grown up in the Bible Belt, I look at these educated people and I just don't get it. Again today, I wondered if this might have been part of our girls' lives had they remained in China. It is doubtful that any of them would have ever made it to the temple.

We also visited the Old Chen House. It is an amazing place because of the art work there. You can see the carvings on the roof and along the eaves in the picture. It is remarkable. There are also displays of the important items that the Guangdong province is known for: porcelain, jade, bone carving, carved furniture, and beautiful calligraphy pieces, to name a few. I bought a calligraphy piece with Hope, Faith, Joy, and Love written on it....a part of each girl's name. 

We were able to shop a little at the Provincial Arts and Crafts Shopping Center. This shop is owned by the government, so the items there are good quality. I got a pretty jade pendant with the symbol of mother/daughter on it. I had already bought jade bracelets for all my girls for the future, but I had never gotten anything jade for myself. Of course, I have Eiley Joy's jade bracelet, but it would never fit my arm. It is just something I will keep that was hers. 

After we got back to the hotel, we went with Ed and Kylie, our best adoption friends on this trip, to a quaint little noodle shop for lunch. We are thankful that we have such a bond with them. They are a sweet, sweet couple, with hearts of gold, and we love being with them.

I have sent Roger down to the adoption meeting room to do the paperwork for today. I do ALL of the paperwork pre-adoption, but when we get to China, I allow him to take care of everything else that has to be done. Right now, the girls are playing in the room. I think all of our hearts are a little heavy because we are remembering how bad these days were this time last year. As I'm sitting here, I'm listening to Molly Kate as they are playing and realize that she is having a funeral with her toys. We have really worked to make these days happy days, and they have been......after all, we have added a little girl to our family who is precious beyond words. They miss Eiley Joy SO terribly, though, and have talked about here throughout this journey. She will NOT be forgotten.....

One FUNNY thing to share..... This morning Molly Kate was talking about when she was adopted.  She looked at me and asked, "Mama, when were you adopted?' I told her, "I wasn't from adopted, I grew in Gran Gran's belly."  Her reply?  "Oh! I didn't realize you weren't from China."