We just wanted to let everyone know that we are home safe and sound.

Heading Home.....

Our time in China has come to an end. We get on a plane to Hong Kong in a few hours. We have enjoyed our time here, but have missed our family and will be happy to see them. Thanks to all of you for following our Journey to Madison. I will update the site in a few days with some photos of Madison settling in at home.

We are off to the Zoo...

Today we are going to the Zoo and then we have the Consulate this afternoon. One more night and we will be home. I can not wait for everyone to meet Madison. I miss everyone.

Madison Playing...Waiting to go home to see her sisters, brother and Daddy

http://www.vimeo.com/clip:73378

Portrait Day...

Madison is feeling much better. She did well during the photo session on the famous "red couch."

Group 957 in front of the waterfall in the White Swan Hotel.

Red Thread Sisters.....Julie with Kate and Cathy with Jasmine.

Madison and I on the red couch with Julie and Kate.

Avarie's Daddy Craig has his Hands Full.....

Craig pushing Madison, Abby and Avarie around the Mall.

Madison enjoying attention from Craig as Avarie looks on.

Madison makes another friend in the playroom.

Blessings, Napping and Being Sick......

The last few days have been filled with tours and shoppping. Yesterday we went to the temple where the babies were blessed for a life of great health and happiness.

Being Cute....

Is Hard Work.....

Yesterday we also did more shopping and went to a museum. Today is not such a great day. Madison coughed badly throughout the night. This morning I took her to the clinic in the hotel. She has bronchitis and tonsilitis. So, needless to say she is not feeling well. She is napping now after taking the enormous doses of the medicine given to her by the doctor. For the next two mornings she will go to the doctor for breathing treatments. She has not been eating for the past two days. She will take her bottle, but no congee. We are supposed to do the red couch photos this evening. Hopefully, she will feel a little better by then.

We miss everyone and can not wait to come home.

A Gift for Daddy.....


Gotcha Day! on Vimeo

Giggles from Madison.....

http://www.vimeo.com/clip:72243

Goodbye Hangzhou....


Hello Guangzhou...

Madison had a good last night in Hangzhou. She woke with some bumps on her face. This got worse as the day progressed. She seemed to get much better after a dose of benedril. I will continue to watch to make sure she continues to get better. If not, we will pay a visit to the Medical Clinic here at the White Swan. Beside the rash and bumps, Madison has done fantastic today. She played on the floor and did not require me to hold her all of the time. She is becoming more open with the others in our travel group. As you can tell in the photo she is quite talented. She likes to chew on her foot.

Room with a View...

This is the view from our hotel room. We are on the tenth floor. Madison really seems to like the room. This room is a bit larger than the room at the WangHu hotel. After we checked in we went and got her Visa photo taken. She was not happy about that, but other than that she is doing great.

Jake, Becca, Elisha, Rory.....we miss and love you. See you soon. 

Last Night in Hangzhou.....

This morning I went to the Notary Office to get Madison's birth certificate and abandonment document. While I was taking care of the documents, Madison spent the morning with Shannon. After a bath and bottle, Madison took a short almost 4 hour nap!!!

I also received two camera's from the Orphanage that I had sent and that I had sent with Mr and Mrs Hu. I got those developed today. It was wonderful to receive the photos of Madison. On the film was also photos of her finding spot. I have not had the time to sit and take in the photos. Madison requires quite a bit of my time.

We had a group dinner tonight and went to a show. Jake and Becca you would have loved to see the acrobats. We leave for Guangzhou in the morning. We have hit the last leg of our journey and will soon be home. I can not wait for everyone to meet Little Miss Madison.

A Boat Ride on Beautiful West Lake....
began our second to last full day in Hangzhou. Today we had no rain. The first since we arrived. We also had sunshine in the afternoon. Madison and I enjoyed the boat ride inside while Shannon was the photographer out on the deck. It was difficult to take a bad photo here. This lake and area is absolutely beautiful.

When the ride was over we walked around the lake and the group posed for a photo.Several of the babies, including Madison, took this photo op as a perfect time for a nap.

We all enjoyed a peaceful morning by the lake.

After the lake tour we went on a tour of tea farm....I am not sure if that is the correct term, but the tea is grown and processed there. This is Rebecca our wonderful local CCAI guide. She has made sure we are well taken care of. For our final night in Hangzhou she is arranging for a group dinner and a show. We will be sad to leave this beautiful area. But leaving means we are one step closer to coming home. We miss everyone and are anxious to come home.





We also went shopping this after noon and found squeaky shoes. Elisha, I made sure to buy Aidan and Madison a pair. I am sure you will thank me when he is learning to walk and you are trying to figure out how to get the squeaker out.

Waiting, Touring and Just Hanging Out........

Since we arrived in Hangzhou we have had rain every day. Our time was pretty much restricted to what we could find to do in the hotel. Yesterday we finally got a break. We had a little rain in the morning and then no rain for the rest of the day. We spent the first part of the morning touring a silk factory. Jake and Becca you would have loved to see them pull the silk thread from the worms. This was very interesting. After the silk factory tour we had a group lunch at the Marco Polo Hotel. The food was really great. However, Madison does not like to sit still. So, I usually do not get to eat too much. I guess I am on the Madison diet. She ate a bit of the egg custard, but still prefers only her bottle and Congee. Rory your task is to figure out how to make this and be ready when we get home. She can eat about a half a bowl at breakfast and dinner. She did manage to eat one cheerio today, then thought of them as toys.

On Tuesday Madison had an extremely late nap and was up quite late. So yesterday I made it my mission to keep her up and get her to bed early. I am getting quite sleep deprived. So by 7 last night, she was quite fussy and nothing pleased her. So she and I walk the halls in the hotel. We must have put about 3 miles on the stroller. Finally in the last half mile she fell in the a deep sleep. So she and I were in bed by 8. The cost of an early night is an early morning. She was up at 3. I was afraid she would not go back to sleep. But is now resting nicely in my bed.

Today if we have no rain, we are going to go on a boat ride on West Lake. This should be a fun time. We miss everyone and I really can not wait to come home. This is indeed an experience of a lifetime, but is made harder when leaving Rory, Jake, Becca and Elisha behind.

Madison did not want to go to one of the staff at the silk factory. She finally gave in. This woman also let me know that Madison was not covered well enough. Later in the store there were many more who let me know she was not covered.

Madison's Adoption is Official!!!!!

Today was a wonderful day. We went back to the Civil Affairs Office and received the Official Adoption Certificate. Madison is now officially our daughter. The walk up the six flights of steps felt completely different that it did on Monday. Not better, not worse....just different. Monday I met my daughter for the first time after the climb. Today the end of the climb was a document that said, SHE IS YOURS!!!!! The feeling was incredible.

After our visit to the Civil Affairs Office we went and applied for Madison's passport. Now we wait. The next few days will be free time. We went shopping at the mall and Madison loves her new stroller. At first she protested.....then WOW......she didnt want to get out. Madison is a completely different little girl and she was on Monday morning. She seems to change hourly. She is all laughs, smiles and giggles now. She seems to have advanced about 3 months in just these two short days. She is so precious and looks at her photo album constantly. We will have no problem recognizing her Daddy, big brother and big sisters.

Travel Group 957 after receiving the Adoption Certificates

We miss everyone and can not wait to come home.

Madison laughs and smiles..........

She has changed so much in just a few hours........

MADISON!!!!!!!!! (OUR LITTLE WEN WEN)

God is definitely good. I can not believe that as I type my beautiful daughter is laying next to me in her crib. What a day!!!! After a long 10 minute walk to the Civil affairs Office and up 6 flights of stairs.....finially our long wait has come to an end....or shall I say a beginning. Madison, or as her Orphanage nannies called her Wen Wen is beautiful. After a 10 minute meltdown and a 5 second nap she finially began to interact some. She loves the photo album we sent over in a care package. She will sit forever and rub the photos. After a few hours of documents and absolute chaos we walked the long 10 minutes back to the hotel. Madison and I had our family photo taken and her passport photo. Then up to the room.

After a bit of play with her toys, we decided it was bath time. She loved it. No smiles yet, but I know they are going to come soon. Here are some photos from our magical morning.