Elizabeth Joins Our Family

David phoned from Nanjing last night just after 11:00 PM, Sunday, March 30 (around noon, Monday, March 31 in China) to tell us they had Elizabeth. Thanks be to God! Rachel's glow in this picture expresses the joy we are all sharing. For more pictures and the story of their time in China go to http://www.stolpeadoption.blogspot.com/.

First E-Mail from China

Yesterday, March 26, we received this first e-mail that Rachel sent from China. Sounds great, and we were very excited to get it.

We got to Beijing just fine. It was a very long day of traveling. We left Milwaukee on Sunday at 7:00 AM and then got here Monday at 10:00 PMish.

Yesterday we walked around the city and went to the zoo to see the pandas. The food is incredible everywhere we go. It is so cheap and so tasty.

Today we saw the Great Wall. Sam was awesome! He practically ran up to the top of the Great Wall and thought it was "incredible" and "awesome". We thought it was too. Then we took a tour of Beijing, saw the Olympic area, and went to Silk Street for some shopping. The shopping is very wearing, they come at you and try to get you to buy things and then you have to bargain. I am very bad at that. David is really good at it though, luckily.

I am having a hard time being here, I really just want to get to Nanjing to get Elizabeth, but it is incredible to see this city. The people are very nice (the ones that are not selling things) we had a tour guide, Jackie, today. He was incredible and very nice. This city is huge, polluted and very smoky. Everyone smokes, everywhere. It is clean though.

I am so tired, but Sam is doing great. The jet lag was not bad either. Did I mention how well Sam has been doing? He has tried all the food and has walked all over and not complained. I hope I did not jinx it by writing about it.

Rachel

In the Air to China

After 16 inches of snow on Good Friday, Rachel and David with Sam and with Rachel's parents, Fran and Kent Hadley, left for China on Easter Sunday, March 23. They flew out of Chicago O'Hare. They expect to get Elizabeth on March 31 and return to Milwaukee on April 12. They will be sending me emails to post on their blog. Anyone who cares to follow their progress can check http://www.stolpeadoption.blogspot.com/.

Their itinerary looks like this:

• Sunday, March 23, Leave OʼHare for Tokyo , then Beijing
• Beijing for the week
• Saturday, March 29, leave Beijing and head to Nanjing for the week
• Monday, March 31, gotcha day! We get Elizabeth !
• Saturday, April 5, leave Nanjing for Guangzhou for the week
• Wednesday, April 9th, consulate appointment
• Saturday April 12th, leave Guangzhou for Milwaukee by way of Chengdu , Shanghai and Chicago !
• Land ride back to Milwaukee

Easter Tickets to China

Rachel and David (with Sam and Rachel's parents, Kent and Fran) have their tickets booked to leave for China on Easter Sunday, March 23. Praise God! You can see Rachel and David's blog for some of their reactions (and hopefully update post from China).

They just received some new pictures of Elizabeth from China (the wonder of the internet). She is now 14 months old, weighs 17 pounds (that's what Sam weighed at about 6-8 weeks) and has four teeth.

100 Wishes Quilt

Friends and family have contributed to a 100 wishes quilt for Elizabeth and one for Sam. It is tradition in China for friends to bring the expectant mother pieces of fabric and she makes a quilt for the baby. Adopting parents in America have taken the tradition as a way to keep busy in the long wait. They also sew the pieces together with red tread, a symbol of the Chinese folk tale that everyone who is supposed to be together is connected with an invisible red thread. Rachel and Sam are holding up their quilts. Sam is holding Elizabeth's quilt and Rachel has Sam's. Sam has just learned that he got a quilt too. As you can see, he's not happy about that or anything!

Alleluias in Lent

Rachel and David called today, Thursday, March 13, 2008, to say they have gotten word that their travel permissions to go to China to get Elizabeth have come through. They are expecting a schedule close to these dates: leave for China March 23, get Elizabeth March 31, complete adoption process April 8, return home April 10. With our joyful thanks, we continue to pray for all the details and arrangements to come together smoothly and for a wonderful and safe experience traveling to and in China. May God give Rachel and David, Sam and Elizabeth many blessed years together!