Packing Day

Our journey is almost at a close. When we first arrived it seemed like we would be here an eternity. Now it is almost over. Tomorrow we leave for the airport early in the morning to catch the AM flight to Beijing. Briana tells me that she is sad to leave the hotel room. She cracks me up. I am sad too. But the sadness I feel is due to the end of an adventure which brought us a very special gift. We will never forget our wonderful experiences here and will look back fondly to many of them--the Buddhist Temple, the Baiyun Gardens, visiting my daughters orphange, meeting her for the first time, and making new friends with people that have something very special in common. I will even remember the not-so-warm and fuzzy memories like crazy drivers, overzealous panhandlers, pushy shopkeepers and annoying, squeaky shoes. Don't ask!

The best memory will be watching Jaina tranform before our eyes. She is now a typical 13 month old baby. She squirms like the best of them, grabs anything within reach, flips herself in the bath tub to my utter dismay, smiles and coos easily and isn't shy to tell us when something is bothering her. I look at her and can't believe she is finally a part of our family. I can't express in words how full my heart is when I look at her and how I have already fallen madly in love with her. She is a joy and a comfort to hold and when she looks for it in her Dad or me, I feel like we have truly become a family. All that is left now is to pack up and come home. The time has come to begin our new lives as a family of five.

This afternoon we went for our appointment with the U.S. consulate to receive Jaina's passport and visa to enter the country. Once we land on U.S. soil she becomes a US citizen. We swore an oath that all our paperwork was true, and that was that. The entire room erupted in cheers and applause. The adoption process was over and our children were ready to come home. A banner posted in the consulate read, "The U.S. Consulate would like to welcome adoptive parents. Congratulations!" It was a joyous day for so many adoptive parents and their accompanying families.

Tomorrow morning we begin the last leg of our journey: the flight home. What a great adventure it has been.
Jaina helps us pack!