Showing posts with label China Trip 2010. Show all posts
Showing posts with label China Trip 2010. Show all posts
Monday, March 8, 2010
Sweet Sienna
Sienna has improved Praise the Lord!
Here is an update I got from Diana late last night...
We did go to the Children's Hospital, and we left as fast as we arrived. It was like a Mash Unit! Our wait would have been 1/2 a day in an outdoor waiting area as big as a football field. Literally, people everywhere, very sick people. There was no way that Sienna was going there!
Prior to leaving for the hospital, Sienna was very sick unable to keep any fluids in here. Upon returning she finally drank some Sprite and it has stayed down. We just heard her first words of the day, "Jie Jie!" Two good signs!!!!
Here is what we need.. We are going to request that the American Consulate expedite Sienna's visa so we can fly home Wednesday night! Please pray that we can get this done!!! We know it is possible with a medical concern!
Praying for more good news soon, so we can get Sienna to a "real" doctor!
Blessings,
Diana
This morning, Diana says that Sienna is perking up and showing more of her spunky personality.
She wrote,
She had a great burst of energy and we saw a little of Miss S again. I will say the benefit of her being so sick was getting to love on her.. Jeff too.
It is still their hope to get an expedited visa so that Sienna can get care here in the US as soon as possible for her long term medical issue. Thank you so much for your faithful prayers. You can see more on the travel site.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
UPDATE
Sienna woke up after a fairly good night of sleep with her lowest fever so far of 101.5! Praise the Lord. We are now dealing with a little girl who is run down, and is unable to keep anything in her tummy. And, she is refusing liquids other than a sip of sprite so far. We are waiting for our guide where we will be taking her back to the American Clinic for an evaluation. Our assumption is we will be seeing the walls of a hospital in China today. Unfortunately, due to her Thalassemia our fear is that her oxygen levels are low from her high fever. This truly is your worst nightmare as an adoptive parent in China waiting to go home. But, we know that we have to do what is right for Sienna.
She continues to be a brave little girl with an inner-strength that one can't help but be in awe of.
We will not lose hope, but cling to God's promise to love an protect us all. Thank you for interceding on our behalf! I will get back to Kim when I can."
"For I am the LORD, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you." Isa 41:13
~Diana
Prayers for Sienna
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Sienna's Medical Exam
Thank you to all of you prayer warriors for lifting up Sienna today. The medical exam was very difficult, and she was amazing. God, once again, took over the steering wheel. Sienna has been blessed with an inner strength and stubbornness that has allowed her to survive in tough conditions, with a challenging medical condition. When I think about it, she is truly a miracle. Protected for great things, I believe! We are praying that God will break down the walls so she knows and she truly understands we love her. We are not leaving, and we will take care of her. It was a privilege to be her parents today!
We are tired, and we miss Ruby terribly. But, we know that it is so important to take the next six days in China to bond with our new daughter!
I have posted about our day at the Medical Exam on our travel site.
Blessings,
Diana
Friday, March 5, 2010
In Guangzhou!
Diana let me know they are safely in Guangzhou and on their way to the White Swan. Apparently, Sienna Grace is a "rock-star traveller!" That is good. Once again, God knew exactly which family she belonged to:)
P.S. There will be a special post later today.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Silly Sisters
It is now Wednesday in China, and we are getting ready to start our day. The beautiful Tung Tung slept pretty well last night. She prefers the couch in our room over her bed, so that is where she spent half her night.
In the middle of the night, Jeff was up with her. I came out and she was just sitting on the couch with that quiet stare of a child who was wondering how she got to here from there.
As her Mom who would jump in front of a bus for her already, this broke my heart. She is so brave! Honestly, I think some tears would be good. Perhaps, she shed enough on Monday for this chapter.
When she woke up for the day, it was clear she needed her space. Kind of like most of us before coffee. This is hard for Ainsley to understand, and we are working on it. However, if it were not for the Pearl I truly believe we would not be where we are with Tung Tung. She adores her Jie Jie, and it has helped us make great strides quickly.
The weather here is so rainy and cold that there is not much to do with the girls. We are going to take the girls to the pool this afternoon, which we know Sienna will love!!! That is after we go to the infamous Chinese Wal*Mart and let her pick out something fun for the room. We look forward to Guangzhou on Friday!
We have a huge picture window in our room, which is 19 floors above the street. Often she kneels on the window seat and takes it all in. Which she is doing right now..
Thank you for your amazing comments. I love reading them. Yes, she is beautiful. Truly breathtaking in person. Besides the face, she has gorgeous hands and fingers. Kim mentioned the legs. They are so long and skinny. I will get a shot of those in her swimsuit today.. :) I adore the Pixie haircut and I can't imagine it any different. It may be her signature doo!
Anyway, we are heading to breakfast and they in will be time to check in with Ruby Mei! We miss her so! But, without a doubt, leaving her home with Camp H was the right decision for our family.
I thought I would share these pics from yesterday at the Civil Affairs office. We feel blessed that God allowed us to see this very silly side of Sienna so quickly. She is a complex package with many layers. And slowly, she is revealing them...
I am going to work on posting a short video here later.
Thanks Kim for being such an amazing friend and scribe!!
Love from Changsha,
Diana
Eye Candy
Here are some more photos Diana sent of beautiful Sienna to hold us over until tomorrow.....
A good day
Thank you everyone for lifting us up and checking in on us. We are overwhelmed by God's faithfulness as we see our prayers being answered for Sienna. She has a long way to go in trusting us but we could not have asked for a better first day. I have a more detailed account of the day on the travel site.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Introducing Miss Sienna Grace
Diana gave me (Kim) permission to post an update. Obviously, I cannot really write what is on Diana's beautiful heart but I know that so many of you are waiting for news.
Here are a few photos....
Sienna Grace is STUNNINGLY beautiful and supposedly has long beautiful legs:)
Diana has said that Sienna's smile lights up all of Hunan (and it does)! Those photos are coming soon. Diana has also described Sienna as very strong willed. You can imagine how hard this is for Sienna. She is 4 and 1/2 and she is leaving everything that she has known. Please pray for her. Diana is trying to get her to sleep right now. Tomorrow, they need to go to Civil Affairs and it could be very challenging for Sienna as that is where they met her and the Orphanage Director will be there. I know Diana would want me to thank you all for your continued prayers and support for them. They can truly feel it in China.
And don't forget to check Sienna's travel site.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
30 hours, but who is counting?
Update: The "Gotcha" time for Sienna was moved back a few hours and will now be at 3:00 China time (which is 1 am Central time). Di hopes to send photos by about 6 a.m. Monday:) So check back!! Keep the prayers coming. Diana and family are so grateful for them.
Since it is 3:48am and Ainsley and I are wide awake, I thought I would share a few more pictures from our fun morning exploring the area around our hotel yesterday. We don't meet up with our guide and the four other families we are traveling with until "Gotcha Sienna" morning, so we are on this adventure solo until then. It really is amazing to be the minority in every way here. Unlike Beijing or Guangzhou where you will fine many people who speak English, this is a mandarin only speaking town. Smiling and head nods seem to go a long way. Honestly, it is hard not to enjoy the harmless attention if you let yourself! Just imagine the stares we will get when Sienna mixes it up!
So, it is Sunday morning (almost 4am now in China.) The rest of you are winding down your Saturday's and getting ready for dinner. Jeff is sleeping, Ainsley is playing a game, and I am catching up with all of you. On a side note, if you received an email from me, with a lovely advertisement for Viagra my apologies! Some hacker obviously got a hold of my address list. I have now changed my password and it will hopefully solve the issue. UGH!
Thank you for your specific prayers for our family. It is a very big day for Sienna tomorrow. She will be up early, and on her way for the three hour drive into the city with staff from the Hengshan Social Welfare Institute. How does a four year old begin to understand what is ahead for her? We are praying for God's peace beyond all understanding for Sienna Grace. That her heart will sense that we are here to love her and protect her forever... That in some ways she will not look back, but forward to the path that has been chosen for her. We will do our best to meet her where she is, and to love her through it all. I know many of you understand the enormity of it all, and the thoughts and prayers of this mother's heart!
I have been blessed with some mighty prayer warriors in my life. You have all taught me so much about trusting our Heavenly Father to be the one in control! I have chosen this verse to cling to:
"Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you." ~Hebrews 13:9
To me, this means, I will be there in that Civil Affairs office, I will be there in your hotel room, I will be there for Sienna Grace. So do not worry Mom! Thank you Lord for your comforting reminders and truth!
Blessings from China!
Diana
Friday, February 26, 2010
"Ni Hao" from Southern China
After 22 hours of "un-eventful" in the air flying, we made it safely to Changsha! We can't believe that just three hours from us, is our precious Spicy Girl! And, in just three days she is going to be in this room looking at her Provincial City outside our 19th floor window! We are so excited!
In the meantime, we are going to take in the end of of the Chinese New Year Celebration. The Lantern Festival is on Sunday. My camera will be ready!
From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for your prayers. It is so humbling to know that we are being lifted up all over the world!
Blessings,
Diana
P.S: Her Rubiness is doing fantastic at Camp H!
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Sienna's Adoption Website!
Here is the address for our website for Sienna Grace! Your guest book messages will be such a gift of encouragement to us while we are in China, and for Sienna one day.
You can also check the blog for photos, prayer requests and updates. I hope to have something for Kim on Sunday night, February 28th. We are scheduled to meet our girl at 8:30pm Central time.
Thank you in advance for your support and prayers! We can't wait to share her with you!
Four more sleeps to wheels up, and eight more days to "Sienna Day!"
Have a great weekend!
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Now It's Time to Get Serious!!!!
The official Itinerary for our trip arrived today!! We meet Sienna Grace at 10:30am on Monday, March 1st. That is 8:30pm on Sunday, February 28th for all of my Central Time Friends and Family! Can I humbly ask you to pencil in, "PRAY FOR SIENNA GRACE" at that appointed time! I got a little teary when I saw our schedule. That is the same time Jeff and I had to be in the lobby of our hotel to meet Ruby Mei, almost two years ago! Praying for the same peace we felt that morning!!So now it is time for Jeff and I to really kick it into gear. I am not a big pack ahead traveler, but I do have my list started!!! My main goal is to get all of the movies off of our video camera hard drive, and 1460 photos off of my laptop and over to my external drive!! I am going to need the space in China! And, to get Sienna's website done (ok started!) I may even start that tonight!!!
For any of your readers, that have spent time in Changsha, please let me know if there is anything we must do or see. Or, anything you think Ainsley would enjoy. We will have the weekend there before we meet Sienna. Our guide is going to be Amy, and she will take us to the museum and to Lieshi Park once we have our new daughter! We also found out we will be traveling with another family with a 9 year old girl. And, they are adopting an older girl too!!
I am so excited for Ainsley to have some potential travel group friends too! And, I am sure Sienna will love hanging out with the big girls!
We head to Guangzhou on the 5th, and Sienna has her TB test on Saturday morning. Prayers for to her results to be negative will be much appreciated! Assuming everything goes according to plan, Sienna Grace will become a U.S. Citizen officially on March 12th when her feet hit the ground at LAX!
While in China, Kim is going to be my scribe here on the blog. She will post mostly photos, maybe some video, and any prayer requests we may have... I am going to use "My Adoption Websites" to really journal our trip like we did for Ruby. I will share that address when it is done.
I have a feeling the next month will go quickly, as we prepare for #3!!
Blessings,
Monday, January 25, 2010
Destination Changsha Confirmed and Booked!!
(This adorable gift arrived from Wesleigh Jane's Mom, the day before they left for China!
I am blessed with amazing friends, with fabulous taste!!)
We got the official "OK" to book our plane tickets today!! Our Consulate Appointment has been confirmed for March 9th. This is our last order of official business before we can bring Sienna Grace home!
Jeff, Ainsley and I are going straight to Changsha for this trip. We will spend two days in the Capital City of Hunan getting acclimated and rested up before we welcome Sienna into our world. We are booked at a wonderful hotel, that has "massage" written all over it for these waiting parents!
I am very excited to experience this journey through Ainsley's eyes!!! Ruby is booked at "Camp H" and she is very excited about the fun that promises to be!!! We have practiced Skype, and we are ready!!! Now, I need to get going on our website, and that list of what to bring!!
It's almost February!!! 5 Weeks from today, it's "Gotcha Sienna!"
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