Home!

This is Kelly, posting for Kimberley, knowing that she's just exhausted. This is what I posted on my blog last night and then woke up and realized that all of Kimberley's friends and family and faithful readers should know that they arrived home safely last evening. Kimberley, delete this post when you have time to post again.

Kelly

Kimberley, Tim, Eli & Sophia had quite the welcoming committee at the airport tonight...their boys Zachary and Tyler, Steffie and her hubby and Sophia and Andrew were there, as was Kim K. and her daughters Emma & Josie, and my hubby and I arrived last with Katie and Ella (and helium balloons)...chaos reigned! All the kids (front l to r): Emma & Josie, Katie, Andrew & Sophia, Eli & Sophia, Ella (back) Tyler & Zachary Kim K., the Craft Queen gave Eli & Sophia American flags decorated with "welcome home" notes (that blur behind Sophia is another Sophia!) Mama and daughter, on American soil! Big brother Tyler gives a hug to his little sister At baggage claim (where one of the family's suitcases never showed up), Eli poses with "his girls" (Ella didn't want to be in this picture, but she's still "his girl"!) Zachary called a friend who speaks Mandarin and put the phone to Sophia's ear...Sophia listened for a very long time before Zachary took the phone back and said to his friend, "Now, what did you say?" Sophia is absolutely delightful and such a princess. We are so happy to live so close so we can see her family and have our kids play together! Oh, and for anyone who is even thinking about giving Kimberley grief for not posting more in China, please don't. I told her she was "the world's worst blogger" already, and she explained it wasn't entirely her fault. I completely understand, it IS hard to carve out time to blog on an adoption trip. Anyway, she promises to "retro-blog" her trip, so everyone will see and hear about her trip in due time. WELCOME HOME KIMBERLEY, TIM, ELI & SOPHIA!!!

God is Good

Things are really going well. Eli and Sophia seem like they have been together all of their lives. They are truly brother and sister. Sophia answers to both her American and Chinese names. She seems very comfortable with us. Last night she brushed my hair. And she is very free with her kisses. She still can be a little stand-offish with Baba/Tim, but she is growing more and more affectionate with him too.

She has had two temper tantrums. One last night and another the night before. They were both near bedtime when she was tired and when she couldn't have something her way. Let me tell you...the girl can belt it out.

The people here have been very kind to us. Today we went to the Summer Palace. I'll post those photos soon. Tomorrow is our last day in Beijing and then we are off to Guangzhou.

Happy Father's Day to my Husband

Sophia's Prince Has Come and His Name is Daddy.

The Olympic Village, The Great Wall & The Cloisonne Factory

The Decision

Sophia and Mama at the pool. Love those mandatory swimming caps!

Sophia still packs up all of her treasures and places them around her before she will sleep.

There has been a change with Sophia. When she calls me Mama now, I can tell that it isn't because someone told her to. She is not the same little girl they placed screaming into my arms. Now when she calls me Mama, I can sense in her that she has decided to give me the chance to truly be Mama. I cannot explain it, it is a soul thing. When I look into her eyes and when I see her smiles and receive her kisses, I know she has decided to try with us.
I am doing everything I can to show her how much I want to be her Mama. I am in complete awe of this child. She is fragile yet strong, vulnerable yet in charge. A little pixie dancing around our hotel room. Her laughter is so loud that I wonder if people can hear her in the halls. She is a stunning beauty, she draws attention and holds it. Gives love and then witholds it. An old soul I cannot wait to know better, a hand I love holding every day, a face I can't stop looking at, a dream I just can't believe that has come true.

Tiananman Square and The Forbidden City

Today was truly an amazing day. I love history. I am constantly glued to the history channel. For me to stand in Tiananman Square and the Forbidden City was the experience of a lifetime.

It is very hot here right now, so the struggle on this day trip was to keep the little ones hydrated. One woman had a heat stroke while I was standing nearby. The temperatures are in teh 90's. The pace is quick with our group and I was pushing 100 pounds in a stroller. Tons of stairs! But it was fabulous.

People here are very attracted to Elijah and Sophia. They are constantly photographing them and asking to have their pictures taken with them. We get lots of pointing. Some people smile and some people look disapproving. Chinese women are all about Eli, they want to talk to him and hug him. The waitresses bring him goodies and one of the waitresses here at the hotel calls him Superman. It is totally going to his head. With Sophia, people want to touch her. They try to talk to me about her, but I do not speak Chinese and cannot understand exactly what they are saying. I know they are wondering about adoption and how she came to be with us. Many say beautiful.

For Robin

Our Pictures So Far...