We are going to CHINA!!!!

It's official.... we know the dates.... Not that the waiting is over yet, but now we know when we will leave... how long we will be there.... and when we will meet and hold our daughter in our arms for the first time! The "waiting" has got to be the hardest part of this whole experience, but boy the things I am learning through this!!! It is amazing!

My brain seems to be on HOLD in some ways... hard to concentrate... my normally reliable memory is shot... my ability to focus is dim... much the way I felt through my pregnancies. It helps to have airline reservations and itineraries nailed down. "Helps" I said, not cures.



Here is what our entire trip looks like….

09/01 Leave SeaTac for China
09/02 Arrive Beijing, get picked up by H.F.H.

09/02 – 09/05 stay at HFH in their volunteer facilities, Yurts, they are so COOL!
09/05 Fly out to Wuhan, Hubei. Have dinner at our friend’s home.
09/06 Take a 5 hour bus trip to Yichang where the HUGE dam on the Yangtze is under construction. Take a boat cruise to see dam. Stay in Yichang over-night.
09/07 Return to Wuhan by bus. See more of Wuhan.
09/08 Go to train station around 10 am. Arrive in Changsha (Provincial Capital of Hunan)at 2 pm. BOIT takes us to Dolton Hotel.
09/09 My BIRTHDAY! Free day. We will explore and see what there is to see??? Get ready for ESTHER!!!!
09/10 GOTCHA DAY!!!!
09/11 “Country side” tour
09/12 Primary school tour, shopping for tomorrow’s visit to SWI (Esther's orphanage)
09/13 SWI visit.
09/14 Get Esther’s passport, fly out to GZ , transfer to Victory Hotel.
09/15 Medical exam for Esther.
09/16 Zoo visit.
09/17 Pearl River Cruise.
09/18 Pick up Esther's Visa from American Consulate.
09/19 Fly home!!