Bebo and Toot had fun at the school carnival!!!
Bebo's "First" Birthday
Bebo looked forward to this day for sooooo long! He had never experienced his own birthday in China. He had a little bit of a hard time believing that this was a day just for him. He kept trying to give his presents to Toot. Very sweet but also kind of sad. He said "thank you, thank you" to whoever gave him a present even before he opened it. He is truly a sweetie pie.
We kept the party simple and small. We didn't want to overwhelm him too much. Just the family and our Pastor and his wife(PD and Helen), and our "adopted" grandma (Grandma Shirl).
Bebo requested soup for dinner, his favorite food. So soup it was.
He is looking forward to his next birthday and is disappointed that he has to wait a whole year!!! Join the club Mister!! :o}
We kept the party simple and small. We didn't want to overwhelm him too much. Just the family and our Pastor and his wife(PD and Helen), and our "adopted" grandma (Grandma Shirl).
Bebo requested soup for dinner, his favorite food. So soup it was.
He is looking forward to his next birthday and is disappointed that he has to wait a whole year!!! Join the club Mister!! :o}
Gotcha Day #4
I can hardly believe that it has been 4 years to the day they laid a beautiful sleeping angel-girl into my arms. Toot has been woven so tightly into our family that sometimes I have to remind myself that I didnt give birth to her. The saying "Born in my Heart" is so true. We love you dearly, Tooty Fruity!!
We are alive !!!
Yes, we are alive and well!! Life has gotten louder, messier, busier, and crazier. Toot and Bebo have become best friends. It has been a total blessing. My heart melts just watching them play (most of the time). Yes, they have their brother/sister moments and there are times when the noise is to the point of driving me CRAZY!!! Thank goodness for bedtime. Bebo will be starting 2nd grade after the Christmas break. He is looking forward to it. Toot is already talking about how much she will miss him. I am looking forward to having some Mom and Toot time again (Im also looking forward to a little bit of Quiet time!!!!)
Bebo will have a little surgery on the 20th (2 teeth extracted) so please keep him in your prayers.
Pictures soon!!!
Bebo will have a little surgery on the 20th (2 teeth extracted) so please keep him in your prayers.
Pictures soon!!!
Coming Home!!!! (Yes, I'm finally posting)
Coming Home!!!.....We left the hotel in HongKong at 6:30 am and took a taxi to the airport for the first leg of our journey home. 20 Minutes. Hong Kong to Tokyo 5 hours. Off one plane and onto another. Tokyo to Portland USA!!! 9 hours.
We are back in the United States of God Bless America!!! Thank you Jesus!!!! BUT not home yet.
We had a 7 hour layover in Portland, part of which was spent just getting through Immigrations. Of course now the kids are wide awake and Weatherman and I are fighting to keep our eyes open! We figured it might not be the best idea if we fell asleep and let the kids loose in the airport. Hmmmmm....
We are back in the United States of God Bless America!!! Thank you Jesus!!!! BUT not home yet.
We had a 7 hour layover in Portland, part of which was spent just getting through Immigrations. Of course now the kids are wide awake and Weatherman and I are fighting to keep our eyes open! We figured it might not be the best idea if we fell asleep and let the kids loose in the airport. Hmmmmm....
The kids did a good job of keeping themselves occupied ( you have to love portable DVD players!) and they were pretty creative with a couple of packs of playing cards. I lost the sleep battle for a short while!
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On the plane for the final leg!!>
Portland to Minneapolis. 4 Hours. We are going home!! The kids of course, and thankfully, slept the whole way. Weatherman and I got some good "nappage" in.
We are off the plane and I wanted to run to see my kids and the grandmas and our friends , but we stopped for bathroom breaks and then I made Weatherman stop and buy me a pack of gum because.......YUCK!!
My heart was beating hard as we headed down the escalator! I saw feet then legs then signs then faces then tears and balloons and smiles!!! Pooh and Goose and Shrimp and Grandmas and dear dear friends! It was a joy to see all your faces. Thank you thank you for coming to welcome us home!!
Pooh and Goose and Shrimp, I love you so very much. You have been such a blessing through this whole process. The way you have welcomed first Toot and now Bebo into our family has made me stop and think about how God loves us. He loves us just because we are here. I love you to the moon and back!!!!
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Bebo was shy (of course). Just think of all the changes and disruptions he has gone through in the past two weeks. First leaving his farming village and foster family to stay at the orphanage for a few days then meeting these strange people and being told they are your new family. Going to a hotel which he thought was his new home then leaving there for another hotel then another. Then flying halfway around the world only to see a bunch of strange faces smiling and laughing and crying. All in all he has done amazingly well! Much better than I would have done I'm sure!
Taxi ride to airport...20 min
Hong Kong to Tokyo... 5 hours
Tokyo to Portland... 9 hours
Layover ...7 hours
Portland to Minneapolis... 4 hours
Total time traveling with layovers... 27 hours
Coming home...Priceless!!
I will post again in a couple of days (be patient Joelle!)
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On the plane for the final leg!!>
Portland to Minneapolis. 4 Hours. We are going home!! The kids of course, and thankfully, slept the whole way. Weatherman and I got some good "nappage" in.We are off the plane and I wanted to run to see my kids and the grandmas and our friends , but we stopped for bathroom breaks and then I made Weatherman stop and buy me a pack of gum because.......YUCK!!
My heart was beating hard as we headed down the escalator! I saw feet then legs then signs then faces then tears and balloons and smiles!!! Pooh and Goose and Shrimp and Grandmas and dear dear friends! It was a joy to see all your faces. Thank you thank you for coming to welcome us home!!
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Bebo was shy (of course). Just think of all the changes and disruptions he has gone through in the past two weeks. First leaving his farming village and foster family to stay at the orphanage for a few days then meeting these strange people and being told they are your new family. Going to a hotel which he thought was his new home then leaving there for another hotel then another. Then flying halfway around the world only to see a bunch of strange faces smiling and laughing and crying. All in all he has done amazingly well! Much better than I would have done I'm sure!
Taxi ride to airport...20 min
Hong Kong to Tokyo... 5 hours
Tokyo to Portland... 9 hours
Layover ...7 hours
Portland to Minneapolis... 4 hours
Total time traveling with layovers... 27 hours
Coming home...Priceless!!
Mickey In Asia?
We made reservations for a "Character Breakfast". Breakfast was very good and just when we thought they weren't goint to show up... in walked Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Pluto!! Toot's expression was priceless when she saw Goofy (her favorite)
. Bebo did not care for (or was afraid of) Goofy or Pluto but was super excited about Mickey. It was great fun!
. Bebo did not care for (or was afraid of) Goofy or Pluto but was super excited about Mickey. It was great fun! 
After breakfast we headed on over to Hong Kong Disneyland.
We waited 45 minutes for the first ride... driving cars. We waited 15 minutes for the teacup ride, 20 minutes for the merry-go-round; then Weatherman and Bebo waited an hour for the flying Dumbo ride.
Then we waited for the rain to stop... it didn't!
Can you tell waiting is NOT my favorite thing?! We decided to pass on the Prawn Chips!!!!
We headed back to the hotel and went swimming in the rain (the only logical thing you can do in the rain). Bebo discovered the waterslide and wore himself out. He probably slid 30 times!! My waterbaby.
Room service for dinner again! It is so nice to shove the dirty dishes into the hall.
We are heading to bed early tonight since wehave an 8:00am flight.WE ARE COMING HOME!!!Please keep us in your prayers as the flights including layovers will be about 24 hours long. Please pray for my few remaining brain cells.
We love you all!
