One of my favorite things about adoption is the people you meet along the way.  Guangzhou is full of families from all agencies adopting children.  I  could sit in the lobby and visit for hours listening to the stories of how the children came to their forever families.  Our morning began in the lobby of our hotel where we ran into a family adopting two girls, one who is 13 and one who is 2.  Both of these girls were in Maryn's orphanage and the 13 year old immediately began waving to Maryn and our travel buddy Zach, also from the same orphanage.  This 13 year old girl was one excited person and she was so proud to see the other kiddos.  

 We visited a while and then we went to the medical exam.  A short ride and then into a building that Maryn immediately recognized as a threat.  She was not a happy camper but most kiddos aren't when they are being poked and prodded by total strangers.  

 She was deemed to be a 23 pound healthy baby girl!  23 pounds of cuteness, leg rolls and all!  

 We came back to the room and played - the girls love her to pieces!  My absolute favorite thing to hear is when Maddox scrunches up her face and says, "Awww, Maryn is so adorable! Really she is, mommy!" **Take note, "Awww" has at least 3 syllables!

 And of course I tried to snap a few photos to share with everyone at home....Miss Bright Eyes is not one to smile much yet but she is always taking note of everything going on around her.  She has waved to everyone today and she as babbled more.  She loves to push the buttons on the elevator and points to things around us and makes the cutest little surprised face ever!

The girls could not be doing better!  MK is quick to step up and assist me with getting things that Maryn may need.  MK's eyes lit up when Maryn walked to her for the first time and she was able to hold her.  She really enjoys playing with her and showing her how to stack cups or build with blocks.  Maddox is a mommy's girl!  She is quick to tell her daddy how handsome he is but mommy is the one who she goes to for most everything.  She has been the baby for over three years now and everyone caters to her.  So, all of that said, we were concerned about her adjustment.  God has shown up big and Maddox could not be more pleased with her new role as big sister!  She delightfully squeals at least a gazillion times a day, "Mommy, I am big now because I am a big sister!"  Granted this is all new to everyone and we know bumps will occur but for now we are rejoicing!

A water girl!  The girls enjoyed an afternoon swim with Maryn!  Can you see that her little belly?  She is a healthy girl, leg rolls and all!  

 Her skin is flawless...

 and we got smiles at the pool!  So sweet! 

Our time here has been low key thus far.....we will be in Guangzhou our entire stay in China.  Guangzhou is a huge city and has a variety of smells.  We have done a lot of walking around the hotel and the girls hold their noses as we go.  We finally had a good day of eating - we found Pizza Hut and McDonalds....both are not places we frequent at home but both were a welcomed taste of western food.    Our guide is great but she is quite busy with several families from our agency on different timelines.  Therefore, we are finding ourselves on our own which is a new China experience for us....but our time here has been good thus far.  We have enjoyed meeting the children who have recently joined their families, the stories that brought them together warm our hearts, the hope that fills the air is breathtaking.  

**I am blogging as I can - the internet connection is not very good at all unfortunately.

Maryn had her first bath with Maddox Monday night and LOVED it!  Of course, Maddox was thrilled to be the big sister in charge of bathtime!

 Our first morning....it was like Christmas for the girls as they waited by Maryn's side for her to wake up.  They kissed her and watched her for almost an hour until she awoke.

 Our activity for the day was going to the civil affairs office to finalize our adoption.  Maryn is proving to be a smart girl - she knew exactly where we were, the place where her nannies had last been seen and her life had changed forever.  She let out a few noises of distress as we entered into the building and the playroom but she eventually opened up and played with MK.

 It's official!  Maryn Gentry Drafts is ours....all papers have been signed and sealed and we could not be  more excited to be parents once again!

A Few Things About Maryn

Things we have learned in the last 24 hours about our girl.....

• Maryn is one strong little one.....she can arch her back like no other in protest....and last night as I went to place her in her crib, she clung to me with a death grip - pretty sure that had I let go, she would have just been hanging there....
• She smiles....90% of the time she is serious and taking every detail around her in; however, 10% of the time she will crack a smile and it is the sweetest little grin ever!
• She loves water....bath time and pool time are lots of fun when you can splash with your sisters and play ball too!
• She waves bye-bye and hello 
• She will make the funniest expressions when she sees something that interests her
• She likes to drink and eat most anything we give to her
• She enjoys the Ergo 

 Things I heard today....

• "Mommy, I am so glad we got Maryn because if we didn't, I would have to go and adopt her!  She is so adorable!"
• "Mom, wait, if you did not get me then would I still be in the orphanage?" - eye opening
• "Zhang Fen, you  know, that is your name in Chinese."
• "Maddox, why are you in this room?" Her response, "I don't like the way it smells in there." - Maryn's diaper was the root cause of the smell:/ - Maddox walks around now with her nose covered most of the time!

A bright eyed, hesitant little one walked into our lives today forever!

 In the blink of an eye, we became parents again and our children became siblings once more.

 Maryn, your sisters prayed for you just before we left.  One said she was so thankful for adoption and for you joining our "big, big family!" and the other said she couldn't believe you had a heart big enough to love us all!  

 My favorite picture...those eyes have so much expression.

 Then it was the moment of truth, the exchange.  Let's just say that Maryn was less than excited about this taking place.  There were a lot of tears and the arching of the back occurred.  

 She soon tired herself out with all of the tears and fell fast asleep on my chest.  Sweet girl!

 And then she awoke, the make or break it moment of gotcha....and she didn't scream!

We have played in our room most of the afternoon and given her a bath....she is so very scared and continues to shy away from Ryan!  Bless.  

Almost time....

In one hour and ten minutes, we will be off to finally meet our daughter, Maryn Gentry!  This day is always so surreal for me and our guide telling us this morning that our daughter was already on her way  to the civil affairs office gave me chills.  To think that this precious little soul is finally outside of the orphanage walls, in a car, driving to meet her forever family.

Our morning has been simple..we had much-needed sleep, followed by a hearty breakfast, followed by visiting with new friends, followed by meeting your guide - all of these things made for a very comforting few hours.

We have packed our bag with all sorts of goodies to give to our sweet girl, we have showered and eaten a snack, exchanged money and gathered paperwork, and now the only thing left to do is GO and GET our GIRL!  We appreciate your prayers and we feel each of them!

Next up....MARYN!

China - WE ARE HERE!

We are here!  After 39 hours of travel, we arrived safely in Guangzhou.  We arrived at the airport in Columbia knowing that our plane had a one hour delay.  Then it turned into a two hour delay.  When they announced it would be noon before we could depart, we were scrambling to figure out what our next step would be.  It was like a scene from Amazing Race - Ryan standing at the ticket counter begging and me scanning our computer for a flight, ANY flight, that would get us to China ASAP.  In the end, we flew to Chicago, had a six hour layover, then flew to Newark, NJ, had a four hour layover, then flew to Hong Kong, had a two hour layover, and then, finally, Guangzhou.  

 The girls were troopers through it all.  MK is such a helper, she was pulling and carrying bags left and right while Maddox provided our entertainment with her comments each time we landed.  

"I can't believe we are going to China on an airplane!"

Upon landing in Chicago, a short plane trip, she quickly looked out the window and shouted, "China is so pretty!"  Little did she know what was ahead flight wise:)

And my favorite was when we arrived in Hong Kong, "Why are all of these Spanish people here?"

 Guangzhou proved to be easy to work through and we soon found our driver who took us very safely to our hotel, The Garden.  If you've been to China, you know that the driving here is less than stellar!  

And, finally, the hotel.  The girls were beyond giddy.  They were thrilled to be out of a seat and free to run around.  We all showered and took a tour of the hotel gardens, found a much needed Coke, and ventured out for a walk around the streets of the hotel in search of water.

MK began asking if we could please go back to the hotel.  Maddox fell asleep.  It was 2:00pm and Ryan and I were anxious to keep them awake for fear they would not sleep at night.  We decided to rest for one hour and then wake everyone for dinner.  

Ha!  They were beside themselves.  Maddox cried and cried.  MK fell asleep in the bath.  I pulled out a new Barbie (thank you Gran!) for Maddox and a new book for MK which made them both happy AND they were awake.  

It was at this point that my stomach began to act up.  If you know me well, you know very well that my stomach is a mess and causes me much angst at times.  After waiting for a bit, I thought all was well and we decided to go find something to eat.  Not far from the hotel, I told Ryan I wasn't feeling well and it went downhill from there. I know that God sent an angel to me at that time - out of nowhere this lady knelt down and began massaging my head as I lay on the sidewalk and she spoke English!  Seeing as there were many, many Chinese people walking by and talking about me, to hear English at this point was extremely comforting.  

All is well.  I eventually felt well enough to walk back to our room - of course, the hotel staff insisted I ride in a wheelchair, so embarrassing!  We rested in the room and then just gave up trying to keep the girls awake at 7:00pm when we noted that MK had fallen asleep with her hand in her dinner!  They slept ALL.NIGHT.LONG.  And MK is STILL sleeping as I type this!