HOME AT LAST!!!

We finally made it. The flight was long. The food on the plane was bad. The movies were good. It was cold and rainy in Chicago. There was a traffic jam. But we are home!!! Sofia is trying to get used to her new house and new family. She visited the doctor today and got three shots and her blood drawn. What a trooper! She has discovered a new toy, a jumperoo. She loves it.

On our way home (almost)

OK. Its 725pm on Thursday night. We are now in Hong Kong. We arrived today. This trip has been planes, trains, and automobiles. We have just one plane ride and one automobile ride until we reach our house!!!!! We have been telling Sofia all about everyone waiting for her. Our plane leaves at 1125 am tomorrow (925pm Thurs. at home). Then about 14 hours later, we pull into OHare. We said goodbye to Mary and Mandy today. It was a sad day for mommy!!! We will see you soon. Happy Trails to China!!!!!!!!!!!

Last day in Guangzhou

Well, here it is our last day in Guangzhou. Today we went to the US Consulate. We had to swear to be good mommies and daddies. There were a lot of people there! Tomorrow we go to Hong Kong by way of choo-choo train (a double decker and not the Thomas the Tank kind). The girl in the photo is Anna, she is Steve's new best friend. We bought most of the souvenirs from her store. We made some good deals and she said it was only because Steve is her new best friend. Only two more days left!!!! Be home soon. Keep the posts coming, we may get to view them there. Oh, and we have taken 650 photos so far!!!!

Busy Day

Boy, was today ever busy!!! We started out this morning a little bit earlier. Sofia woke mommy up at 5:30am. After breakfast we went to a mountain by means of a cable car. It was beautiful. After that came the botanical garden. After lunch we went to the White Swan for the famous red couch photos. That is an awesome hotel!!!!!! Next came the electronics market. They had some good deals! Not good enough for me though! Next we dropped off half of our group at a temple for sight seeing. The rest of us went to a Buddhist Temple and had the girls blessed by the monks for a happy, long life and good health. We next picked up the group and went to do more shopping. Am I ever tired of shopping. We are finally resting. Tomorrow is the US Consulate visit. The BIG DAY!!! The second biggest day of the trip (#1 is getting the most beautiful little girl in the world). We will write more later.

Medical Checkup

Sofia had her medical today. Daddy the baby Hog held her at each station. Mommy took photo. Sofia weighed 16 pounds and she was 70 cm. Then we went to the Jade and Pearl Market. We ate at Dannys tonight. We can't see the blog or get any emails. Keep the email and comments comming we will read them in Hong Kong.
We miss home.
Love us

Guangzhou

It's Sunday at 740 pm here in Guangzhou. We went to the market place today. Boy, can that Mellissa spend money. There are lots and lots of adoptive parents here. The Holiday Inn is beautiful!! The room is huge and it has a great breakfast buffet. We also visited the White Swan today. Another beautiful hotel. It is incredibly close to the market place. The crowds here are unbelievable. Sofia is becoming quite the daddy's girl!!! YES!!!!!!!!! Mommy is calling me a baby hog already. Thanks Tina! The internet is expensive here, so we won't get to post much at all. See ya soon. Us.

Last Day in Fuzhou

Today we walked around the hotel. We went to West Lake. Steve and Mary and I rented a paddleboat and went around the Lake. We also got Sofia's Passport. Tomorrow we leave and travel to Guangzhou. We might not post until Sunday. It will depend on how late we get to the hotel. There is a photo of the driving in China. It's something else.

Panda and Drum Mountain

Hello, I got to go to Panda World. Then we went to Drum Mountain where they make static free combs. The area is also know for a rock. So we bought a comb and a rock for Sofia. Enjoy the photo. OH WE CAN NOW SEE THE BLOG.

Panda World

Here are some photo's of Panda World. Steve and Sofia went today. Mommy was sick and had to stay in the hotel. They also went to a temple.

Happy Late Halloween

Here are photo of Sofia in her halloween outfit. We went to a park. The tree in the photo is 1000 years old. We saw a bird show also. No we didn't catch the bird flu. But I was sick from the Pizza Hut. I was the only one to get sick.

Document Day

Well, Today we signed all the necessary paper work for Sofia. She is offically Ours. She is in a much better mood today. There have been some moments. We went to Walmart. What an experince that was. 3 Floors. Tomorrow we are going sightseeing. I think Mary said up to a mountain. Here are some more photo's because that is what you are waiting for. Give the boys a HUG and Kisses. I miss all of you. Love you.

gotcha day

Sorry this is late. We had a rough day. Sofia was not a happy camper when she left her caretakers. It was a long afternoon. On a good note she slept through the night. Here are some of tht photos. We are not able to read any comments. Or even see the blog. So I hope photo's turn out. Email us if you want to make a comment.

Photo's from Hong Kong

I tried to post the photo's of me with steve but I had to do it this way. This is me at the hotel lobby. And at the Kiddy Playland.

photo's from Hong Kong

We had to take a photo of the lab at the airport. Her name is Molly. Steve was in the Kiddie Playland at the airport.

updated info

ok, we got more info on sofia that we didn't have before. Mary from ISS dropped off a package with the info. It says that she has a close friend, who is named Zhang Qing Ling. she likes food with sour taste. she is active, she does not like sun bathing. she likes animals, she gets along well with other children. and alot of other stuff in there as well. see ya soon, love, us

We Made It

It was a long flight. How are you doing? The boys, mom??? I took photo on the plane. I know how much everyone likes my plane photo's. And yes, Mellissa did see the North Pole and there was no actual pole from what she saw. She did see Santa and Rudolph though. It was -78 degrees way up in the air. We did take a wierd flight pattern. Instead of straight east, we went north and then south from the north pole. We will post photos later. We love you all. Give the boys a big hug from mommy and daddy. Love, us.

Thank you

Here I sit on the eve of leaving to get our little girl. I am trying to figure out what all we need to take on this big journey and I'm not even packed yet. Oh well, I guess I can finish some time tonight. I just wanted to say thanks, which isn't enough, to two people who helped out incredibly, mom and dad. None of this would have been possible if it weren't for you! Times were tough but we made it through and in two weeks you will see the end result. Thank you again for everything that you have done and will do.

Quilt

Just wanted to show off the quilt we will be taking with us to China. Each hand print represents a family member. We traced the hands and let the person write whatever they wanted on the inside of the hand. This way a part of each family member will be with us when we met Sofia for the first time. I have to say a BIG THANKS TO MY MOM. Without her help this would not have been possible. We love you so much for everything you have done.

Itinerary

We got our itinerary and budget today. On the 29th we fly to Fuzhou. We meet Sofia at 4:00. Then on the 30th we do all sorts of paperwork. November 4th we fly to Guangzhou. For more paperwork. (we are not able to stay at the White Swan) We will be at the Holiday Inn. We stay in Guangzhou until November 9th. On the 9th we take a train to Hong Kong. November 10th we fly home.

Updated Information on Sofia

We got a update on Sofia today. She has 2 teeth, and she weighs 15.4 pounds. Her favorite Toy is a teddy bear. Favorite food is Formula. Her personality is active.

Travel

WE got the call today from Laura. WE will be leaving on Oct 26th and returning home on Nov 10th. Happy Day Happy Day

CA

We got our CA appointment. No travel dates yet. CA is on November 8 at 10:00. We should know tomorrow when we leave.

TA'S

We got the call yesterday from Laura. She has our TA's. Now we wait for our CA appointments. We should know something by Monday. Steve thinks we will be leaving around the 24th of October, I said the 20ish? Anyone's guess?

Zhang Qing You

WE have a daughter
Her name is Zhang Qing You
Soon to be Sofia Mahri CN??
Date of Birth Feb 10,2006
She is in the Fujian province
QingLiu Welfare Inst.