Challenges Amongst the Blessings

Susi with her baby buddy both being adopted today!
Mommy and Susi with Jie Jie Zhou

Our family in front of the civil affairs office

At the civil affairs office signing the adoption papers

Our girls in China!

We left Beijing yesterday and came to Changchun in the Jilin Province. It is always challenging to travel with little ones but some times are harder than others. I ask, if your reading this, to please pray as my stamina is diminishing. The girls are doing great and so is Alyx, we have just had some unforeseen troubles and some to be expected. On our way from the airport to our hotel yesterday the van broke down. So what was to be an hour drive turned into a 4 hour wait/drive. We waited on the side of the road for 3.5 hours and then loaded into a new van and finished heading to the hotel. I would show you all the lovely pictures that I took of our family and the girls while we sat on the side of the road but I can't. By the time we got to the hotel my camera had disappeared. Gone. Vanished. No where to be found. Our brand new camera we bought for the trip and with all our sd cards and video of Susi's gotcha day. Needless to say I have cried out to God. I am heartbroken to have lost it. But, there is nothing I can do about it now. We spent today at the civil affairs office signing the adoption papers. And then at the notary's office signing more papers. So many challenges in international adoption but so many blessings. Today, my beautiful girl woke up, sat up and smiled at me when I said good morning to her. This is the first time she woke up and smiled. The first time she woke up with us, she screamed. The second time, she stared blankly at us, and now today a beautiful smile. She is still not speaking but laughs a lot when tickled and when she is throwing water on daddy. In time we will hear her sweet voice. When we were at the civil affairs office today there was another family there who was adopting a son from Susi's original orphanage. Come to find out, this little boy was the same little boy that was advocated for and sent from the orphanage with Susi back when they were both infants. They were sent together for treatment of their clubfoot and his was repaired and Susi's wasn't. So he was sent back to the orphanage and Susi was sen to Shepherd's Field. Now here they both were in the same room again with their FAMILIES! God is so good and amazing, I stand in awe! I am challenged, no doubt about it, but I wouldn't change a thing and miss all these beautiful moments.