Monday, April 14, 2014

A Boy and His Basketball...

We've been blessed with some lovely, spring weather the past few days, so we've been outside enjoying it!  On Friday we decided it was time to find our boy a place to shoot some hoops.  Since our driveway is too steep for a basketball hoop, we went to check out the local parks.  


We discovered one just a few miles from our home.


The playground was fenced off as they were doing some construction on it, so the girls went to the court to cheer on Isaac.



Or......not.  Tikvah discovered it was also a good day to read in the great outdoors.


Isaac seemed happy to get his hands on a basketball again.


 And I'm telling you, the Prince is GOOD!  He made a large percentage of the shots!


Thursday, April 10, 2014

Early Days at Home

We've been home for almost a week, and the kids are doing GREAT!  The Little Princesses LOVE their big brother, and (so far at least) he seems amused at them.  I have to keep an eye out or Abigail will grab him and plant a big ole kiss on him.... that could get old pretty quickly!



Yesterday we went to our homeschool co-op.  Isaac sat in on Musical Theater, Art, and Science and seemed to enjoy it.  Then yesterday evening we had our first post placement visit from the social worker for Isaac, AND our one year post placement visit for the girls - big day!  It must have worn our dear boy out because he didn't get up until eleven this morning.  I joked with Tikvah that he must be trying to put himself back on China time - and I was tempted to join him in that!

This old Mama is having a really difficult time with jet lag.  I am fortunate to have a great support group here though.  Friends have brought us dinner every night since we've been home, and today one even came to play with the little girls so I could get a much needed nap.  Not sure why it has hit me so hard this time, but I'll be glad when my system is back on USA time.  Yawn.......

Monday, April 7, 2014

Home at Last!

After missing a connecting flight in Hong Kong we finally arrived home on Friday. Instead of Guangzhou, China to Hong Kong to Chicago then Cincinnati, it was Guangzhou to Hong Kong to Taipei, Taiwan to Los Angeles to Nashville to Cincinnati. Whew! What a trip! Our anticipated twenty-three hours stretched suddenly to thirty-seven. And then I thought for sure we would miss the flight to Nashville! We had a lot of assistance with the wheelchair and the airline people speeding us through immigration and security checks in order to avoid missing any more connecting flights.

Isaac did great on the grueling trip home and kept on smiling in spite of having tummy problems from the start of the trip. Not sure if it was nerves or eating different food, or likely a combination of both, but he didn't complain AT ALL. I can't make that claim about myself... I took missing the connecting flight pretty hard, primarily because of disappointing the Little Princesses. They were counting down the days and KNEW we were supposed to be home on Thursday. I've worked so, so hard to build their trust and really hope this won't set us back.

As the plane landed in Los Angeles, America gained a new citizen!
Our time spent IN China was really good. I posted daily updates with photos on Facebook, but I know some of you weren't able to follow it there. I do plan to backtrack and fill in some of those travel days.  We had a fun travel group and made sweet memories with our sweet boy.

For those who are still in the adoption process and wondering about the differences between the airlines, I intend to write up our experience with the various planes we've flown on our trips to China. I'll give you a hint: the favorite of many – Cathay Pacific – scored the lowest in both comfort and service.

But for now, we are HOME and happy to be here! We were met by family and friends at the airport. Unfortunately, several who had planned to be there were bumped out by the change of the time and date due to the missed plane, but there were plenty of people there to let Isaac know that people were anticipating his arrival.  

Friends and family awaited us with a party at the airport.
The Little Princesses LOVE their big brother!
Isaac with sisters, brothers-in-law, nieces and nephews

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

US Consulate appointment






Today we had our final legal appointment in China.  We applied for Isaac's immigrant visa.  They told us our paperwork was all in order, and his visa will be ready to pick up tomorrow afternoon.  Our flight leaves early on Thursday morning, so we'll be on our way home soon! 



Sunday, March 30, 2014

We're still here!

My apologies to those following via the blog.  Our days have been busy, and we're falling into bed most nights exhausted.  I've been posting many photos and small updates on Facebook, but I've neglected you here.  I do hope to catch up here soon, but for now know that we are well, Isaac is a WONDERFUL KID, and we love him to pieces!  He's only been with us a week, but already I wonder how we lived without him.


Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Adoption is Official!


I am thankful to report that our courageous young man took that leap of faith today and told the judge, "I want to be adopted."  So happy to officially welcome Isaac into our family today!

Monday, March 24, 2014

Introducing Isaac!


Introducing our Prince!  Isaac is such a charming young man, and we are blessed to have him as part of our family.  Can't wait for you all to meet him!