Almost Time

Well, this could start to sound like a bit from the movie "Groundhog Day". We all awoke pretty early, some at 3:00, others at 5:00, some later yet and then we all proceeded downstairs for breakfast. For fun, we did watch a bit of the Brewers' game "live" on the web as we prepped for our day--funny what you can remain connected to from half-way-round-the-world. Some of us are growing addicted to table-tennis on the television, although soccer and women's volleyball are also fun because you at least know what is happening even if you cannot understand the play-by-play commentary. Our day moved pretty quickly from breakfast to loading onto the bus for our ride to the airport. The sky was a little lighter and clearer than Friday evening and yesterday, so it was nice to see more of the island and the bay and Hong Kong life. We moved pretty efficiently through the airport, passport checks, immigration, etc. and boarded our plane to Kunming. The flight was uneventful, lasting only about one and one half hours. We were met at the airport by another CCAI representative named Michael. He is actually not from Kunming, but flew in yesterday from another province just to help our seven person "group". Really fun person and very knowledgable about the area. As an aside, I always pronounced it "Coon ming" but it "Kwun ming" sounds more correct. Anyways, our fist question was "When?" and the answer was/is "9:00 a.m." We meet Michael and the registration official at 8:30am, drive to the registry office, and get to meet Luke at 9:00a.m. We think he has been at the orphanage for the last four or five days, with nannies, but no longer with foster parents. He apparently still takes a couple bottles of formula per day, but is otherwise on solid food. Michael also was kind enough to put together a care package of the formula Luke is used to, as well as a few snacks he likes. I was quite pleased to see that one of the snacks looks almost exactly like a Moon Pie. Get that young man an RC and we will Southernify him in nothing flat. No word on whether or not he is walking. Once we have him, we will complete all formal paperwork by noon on Monday. Apparently, this is faster/different than other areas, and means our schedule for remainder of the week is completely open as compared to what other groups may experience. Please pray for a great first meeting and time of transition and bonding.

The picture above is at a very nice Japanese restaurant in our very nice Chinese hotel. Most of the humor of the day was generated by the collision of two factors. Fewer people in Kunming speak English and we were trying to use Chinese words. I am still not certain we have gotten "thank you" down pat. I have heard us say "see see" and "she she" and "si si" and "shay shay"and "say say" and variants I cannot capture. But, everyone is trying, having fun, and trying to connect. In the local dialect, which Luke will apparently know a bit of, "Love you" is "Eye knee". Some suggest that he may key off our emotions when we meet. So, I will probably just run the video camera so he is not confused by the blubbering fool with short hair. Yes, this child will know me as "the rock". We are obviously very excited, although once again, I am awake and everyone else is in bed. Lots of pictures tomorrow, so be ready.

We "eye knee",

The Nicholsons

P.S. I was supposed to tell some of you the Petunia bag has been a big hit.

Touring Hong Kong

Well, Piper and I went to bed this morning at about 2:00 a.m. after finishing our first post and a bit of Nintendo. She is staying with Melissa and I, while Cole is with Bill, and Shelby is with Linda. If I understand correctly, Cole and Shelby are considered adults and you are not allowed to have more than two adults per room—hence the arrangements. We ended up having a bit slower morning than expected. Originally, we were to start our day with an early tour of Hong Kong with all the families adopting through CCAI (our agency). However, there has been a lot of rain so the tour was postponed until the afternoon. So, we had a great breakfast buffet, with both Western-style foods and traditional Chinese breakfast items. For those that remember the quote, like perhaps Neil or Jon, I think I heard someone say, “You have been here four hours, go home!” A few of us tried congee, a rice porridge, because it is something that Luke apparently likes. I suppose we may help maintain that heritage, although Piper and I would prefer that he just learn to love grits. We then just relaxed in our room and checked the blog. Thank you for the comments—it is really comforting and humorous to hear from home. Shelby and I ventured out for a quick tour but hurried back because of the rain, Shelby’s queasiness at some of the local food items out for purchase, and the persistence of a young man who wanted to fit me for a suit. We then had a dim sum lunch with the other families adopting through CCAI. There are 11 other families, a few of whom are here for their second China adoption, and all of whom are adopting girls. These families are all traveling to one of two other provinces than us, so we will not connect with them again until about one week from now in Guangzhou. We had lunch with a neat family from Richmond, who just moved from Denver, and has a son named Cole. Given the Morton/Awtry connections to those areas of the country, and the common “Coles”, we had a lot to talk about with them. Of course, when you travel with Bill and Melissa, the “natural networkers”, you are not going to have a difficult time connecting with people. So, lunch was great and everyone found some one thing that they were able to enjoy. The entire group then loaded onto a bus for the tour of Hong Kong. We went to Sampan to see traditional houseboats and fishing vessels-get Bon Jovi going in your head and envision a Chinese “Deadliest Catch”. From there, it was off to a jewelry factory. From there, a quick trip to an open market for some shopping, a gelato, a tour of a temple, and the kids’ first exposure to how different toilet configurations can be in foreign countries. At this point, we most of our family was really starting to slow down. Our last stop of the day was Victoria Peak, which overlooks the Harbour and Kowloon. Although a little cloudy, it was still an amazing view of Hong Kong. We saw a few pictures from 50 years ago and the growth and change is phenomenal. We loaded back onto the bus and headed back to the hotel. We were so tired that we passed on dinner reservations at Ruth’s Chris—a decision I regret even as I write to you now. Dinner was marked by Piper sleeping at Bill’s side and Cole with his head on the table. He did try to mumble something that sounded like the guttural beginnings of “blah” but was too tired and it just sounded like “bl”. Shelby was in a new restaurant, which brought with it the “What should I get?” conversation. And Bill, ever the optimist and memory-maker, still wanted to try to make it to a laser light show down by the river. We missed the laser light show and I suspect most everyone was asleep shortly after dinner—Piper and Melissa certainly were. I on the other hand have an outlet for my musings and am too excited to sleep. We get Luke in less than 48 hours! If I think too much about it, I will cry, and that is now how I earned my reputation as “the rock”. So, I think I will end here and get some tissues for my allergies.

Dave, on behalf of The Sleepers

The Departure!

Well, we started our day Wednesday probably about 75% ready to leave. This was a good thing given that as much effort went into the remaining 25%. As we finally wound down preparations at around 11:00 pm that evening, Shelby came downstairs crying because her ear was bothering her. After my caring reponse induced more tears, it was time for a precauationary visit to the ER. Good thing, because she was diagnosed with infections in both the outer and middle ear. So, after a trip to Walgreen's, we were in bed by 2:00 a.m. Our travel day Thursday started early and our travel group (Dave, Melissa, Cole, Shelby, Piper, Bill and Linda) all met at the airport for our 9:27 flight. The picture for today was actually taken by Will, who was both driver and photgrapher for the morning. The flight to Chicago was uneventful and our flight to Hong Kong departed on-time. A few members of our group ended up in business class and after visiting with the pilots for awhile, and being otherwise pampered, did manage to wander down to the hull where the rest of us were busy flapping our arms keeping the plane in the air! The flight was uneventful until we got near Beijing, which seemed to stay on our GPS view for quite awhile. This was because our destination, Hong Kong, was having bad weather and we were being re-routed to Beijing to for a "brief stop" to take on fuel. Well, the "brief stop" turned into a four hour "pause" on the tarmac, doors shut, while things ultimately cleared in Hong Kong. I probably snapped at least once, or maybe six times, during the 20.5 hour flight that was supposed to be only 14.5 hrs. As you might guess, given our lack of sleep, things are only looking up at this point. With a scant 10 minutes left in the flight, during a brief moment of rest, I was awoken by the melodious voice of my wife exclaiming "Dave, Piper is puking!". Why I needed to know is still beyond me at this point, but I sacrificed a Barnes & Noble bag full of bike magazines to support the cause. Ultimately, we land, clear customs, get our bags, meet some great representatives from our agency, meet two other neat families using the same agency as we are, and ride the 45 minutes to our very nice hotel. Thankfully, the only thing that marked that bus ride was another round of Piper's dry heaving while Linda dutifully wiped her brow. And so, we are now in our hotel, with everyone slowly falling asleep while I drone on-and-on. Someone needs to give me some blog etiquette or this could become a novel. We really are having a blast and appreciate the prayers and the messages.

P.S. I have not referenced Cole in this note, but when I asked him about his time in business class, he did not say "Blah" but joyfully reported something about filet mignon and two containers of freshly toasted and roasted nuts. I just went back to flapping my arms.

Dave

Preparing for China

After hours of practice Dave and Cole got this blog up and running. Our departure date is Thursday, June 12. While we are gone please pray for us--specifically for safe and timely travels. And most importantly, pray for Luke and his transition to our family. For 11 years God has blessed our family with so many joys that we will cherish in our memories "before Luke". What fun we have had! We now eagerly anticipate our new addition and all the memories we can share with Luke. We are ready to welcome him to the party!