Pizza

Anna Mei was dying for a little pizza so we headed to Pizza Hut last night for dinner. Cheese pizza never tasted so good. Ellie Grace sat up and played with her rattles for a bit and then she was ready for a nap. She had some wild hair when she woke up. She is such an easy going little one. I know she has many significant needs and my guide is sure it will be so hard to have her in my life, but I assured her that I believe that God creates all life for a purpose. This little one is valuable and can be used by God. She deserves a family who will love and care for her. We are grateful to be that family though our sweet guide just can't understand.

Old Cultural Street

We are now finished with all of Ellie Grace's paperwork. The China side of this adoption is in the books. Ellie Grace MengPei is officially ours, but we have to wait for her passport to be processed before heading to Guangzhou to finish the US immigration side of things so we spent this morning walking the cultural streets. It is a shopping Mecca for all things Chinese. It was an adventure, but Ellie Grace slept in the ergo through it all. She is such a good baby. She even took a bit of maple syrup off my finger at breakfast and put my ice cream bar to her lips when street shopping. We have a very long way to go, but we are so grateful that God would allow us one more precious girl to love. My travel mates have been so good about occupying Anna Mei when she needs it. She is doing so well on this trip.

Her Finding Place

Visiting each of my baby's finding spots is something that I hold dear when I get the chance to do it. It is so emotional to be face to face with the location that my baby was last held by their birth family. I can't imagine what it must be like to place your baby here and walk away. I can't begin to understand the feelings or circumstances, but I am grateful for this piece of my child's past that I can hold for them until they can grab hold of it themselves.

The Eyes at the Orphanage

Yesterday I had the privilege of walking the halls of Ellie's orphanage.  To come face to face with real tangible need like that is indescribable in so many ways.  To see babies and children living in an institution without mothers and fathers stirs my heart like little else.  It is the day after that encounter that is always the greatest struggle for me though.  Despite saying that I know and love Jesus... Despite my desire to claim my willingness to give my life wholly to him..the day after finds me forgetting all that I have seen.  It finds me rationalizing in my own heart that I have done enough and that more sacrifice would be too costly.  It finds me questioning how I can give up my own comfort and why in the world I would even consider walking away from such a comfortable life to do more for these least.  I want this short life to be about bringing Glory to God.  I long to be more focused on eternity!  I want my thoughts to not rest on whether or not I should forfeit my American Dream for the gospel.  I wish that my own comfort and desires would more automatically take a back seat to the commands of His word and His purpose for my life, but it is always a struggle.  This morning I remember the eyes of the eight year old girl staring at me from behind the sick room window.  How many times has she watched a momma or daddy walk by that window with a little one and wondered if her turn will ever come?  How does she sit in that hospital type bed day after day without someone beside her?  And why do I, who claim Christ, let it happen?  Why do my thoughts always go back to the lies in my heart...don't disrupt your family..don't give up too much...don't risk everything...you have done enough.  These are the lies contrary to Jesus calling "those who loose their lives find it".  I don't want to spend this short life focused on finding comfort here.  I want to spend it seeking Jesus.  I want to follow him to hurting, sacrifice, and even suffering because these places have held some of the greatest blessings of my life.  I have found Jesus there and experienced his love and peace abundantly because this life was never meant to be about us. 

Anna Mei Exploring Tianjin

The morning before getting Ellie Grace we explored the neighborhood here and found a lovely little park with a few slides. Most parks here just have outdoor space and exercise stations so we enjoyed playing a bit. We also loved watching the Monday morning life taking place. There were children walking to school, elderly exercising in the park, and men rushing off to work. Exploring this culture is always a joy, but doing it alongside Anna Mei is such a blessing.

A First for Ellie Grace

Her first bath was a huge hit! The girl loves to be naked and she loves the water. She should fit in with our bunch.

Extra Cute

I am enjoying some playtime with Ellie Grace while Anna Mei naps. Isn't she adorable?

Meeting Joanne and Her Family

It is such a thrill to be here adopting next to this sweet family whom we randomly chose to donate to when Jillian collected donations from her 8th bday party. I still can't believe the circumstances that brought us together as only God could orchestrate such an amazing story! Their daughter is darling and now we have a Tianjin connection.

Sweet Baby

Our Ellie Grace was very well cared for. In fact, it was overwhelming to experience the hand off because of how special the orphanage made it for her. They sent her with a scrapbook, professional photos, and a commemorative plate. They loved her well. She was the cleanest, well dressed babe I have ever been handed. She is very small for her age wearing only 12 to 18 month clothes, but she is a healthy weight for her size. She isn't eating and doesn't want anything to do with anything in her mouth, but formula from her bottle. Feeding is going to be a challenge. She is sitting up and in the beginning stages of crawling but is very floppy. We are so excited to continue to get to know who she is and how we can help her reach her full potential. Her eyes are so big and bright. Sweet girl had a few times when her little tears were flowing because of being with strangers, but she ate her bottles and slept well. We have a very busy day today to complete the adoption and I am praying she can rest some while we are out.

Ellie Grace Day

We arrived a bit early at the orphanage but this beautiful girl was worth the wait! She fussed only a bit and fell asleep in the ergo almost right away. We have a lot to do to get to know each other, but Anna Mei and I are smitten. Ellie is absolutely precious. On this day, I am over come with gratitude to those of you who gave so this little peanut could be mine. Thank you!

About to Experience New Birth

This is the fifth morning that I have woken in my life about to experience the miracle of new birth.  I would have never dreamed when planning my future that I would have five children as just typing that makes my head spin. I only wanted one.  The fact that I never desired this large family makes the blessing even more bountiful.  What an immense privilege it is to be called momma by these babies of mine.  What an overwhelmingly good life my Lord has granted me.  These journeys to each of my children hold some of my deepest, most miraculous life experiences and they have built my faith like nothing else I have witnessed.  I am grateful to God this morning that I didn't miss this calling..that I didn't say no when I first heard adoption and orphan care whispered in my heart.  These places I have walked with my children are truly some of the greatest blessings of my life.  This morning my devotion was about Easter and Christ's resurrection.  It said..His victory over death frees us to serve Him with vigor in this life.  This morning I am acutely aware of that reality because without my salvation and the love of my Savior I would not be welcoming another precious one into my arms.  Good. Abundantly good is my God to invite me to be a part of the redemption of this valuable little one.  Four hours from now,  she will be in my arms!

17 hours until Ellie Grace

We took the train to her city. We are settled in our hotel and we are so excited to meet Ellie tomorrow. Tonight is the last night she goes to sleep without this momma!

Playing Dress Up

Just because she is so darling, we did a little cheesy dress up. How I love this girl.

Temple of Heaven

This morning we visited the Temple of Heaven. Our guide explained the origins of this place. How they worshiped the God of the Heaven and the Sun to get good luck. Anna Mei thought maybe the emperor should go to church so he could know the true God like she does. Insert beaming smile from a momma who is grateful my girl has a wonderful body of believers to call her church. Praising God today for our freedom to know Him and that this baby girl has Jesus rooted deeply in her heart. Her story could have been so very different and today I am grateful to God that she knows him and is my daughter.

Hutong Tour

We took a rickshaw back into the Hutongs to have lunch in the home of a Chinese family. It was incredible and my sweet girl was back to her dumpling eating silly self away from the crowds. The food was delicious and I always love my time in this distinct part of town. Anna Mei noticed how very small the house was we had dinner in. What a different way of life they have there.

Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City

The crowds were heavy and so was my girl's heart this morning as we explored Tiananmen Square and The Forbidden City. Crowds are always tough on her and she continues to draw lots of attention. I honestly think it is much more attention than we get at home with our unconventional family make up. It is so good to be here with Anna Mei though. Experiencing this alongside her is such a blessing.

The Old City Wall Park

Our hotel here is right next to the old Beijing city wall. There is a beautiful park near there. We explored it early this morning as we are not yet sleeping much. The flowers are in full bloom and it is beautiful. My sweet girl draws so much attention with this western momma. How I wish we could talk with some of the people who seemed to be sharing so much with us this morning.