HOT days of Summer

Just a quick post to say hi and show some photos of the girls....Lexi is growing up so FAST and Alison continues to be such a great big sister to our little girl.

We are coming up on the F0urth of July and will be spending the week with our dear friends the Clark family. We always look forward to seeing them and for Alison to see Sophia, her crib mate some 5 years ago, it is so wonderful that Ali and Sophia get to reconnect and spend time together.

Here are a few pictures of our girls..

Easter and the warm days of spring

We had a wonderful Easter filled with fun, family and great food..Lexi is growing like crazy and is walking now. She is such a joy and Alison continues to shine in her role as big sister.

Here are a few shots from the day..

Almost February

I can not believe that we have been home with our little Lexi for almost three months. Seems like she has been with us forever and she continues to be such a joy. I am so thankful that she and Alison have bonded so well, they love each other and Lexi loves to shout her name.

Lexi is scheduled for her Palate Surgery on Feb. 3rd and we are not looking forward to it. I am thankful that she will have her Palate repaired but not looking forward to the three weeks of rehab.

Lexi is now over 20 pounds, she has gained three since being home, can stand on her own and cruise all over the place, she is almost walking and just loves being on the go.

Here are a few new pictures of our little one.

Home and Life is Great

I know it has been a while since we have been home but we have been trying to settle in to our routine schedule.  Lexi has adjusted so well and is sleeping through the night..most nights anyway.  It took about five days of getting up in middle of the night for Lexi to go back to her 12 hour a night sleeps.  We had our appt. at Children's hospital here in DC and all in all it went well.  The doctor said that he had seen much worse jobs and that eventually we will have do nose and lip revision when she gets a little older.
Alison is doing great and is the BEST big sister to Lex.  They are so cute together and I am so happy to have our two girls here at home.
I will be posting more in the coming days but here are a few pictures.

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One day closer to home

Wow, I can't believe that we have one more day here and then we are on our way home.  We leave early Saturday morning, which will be Friday night for you all, connect through Korea and then land in Chicago and then connect to DCA.  We had an eventful day today, we had our consulate appt. and took the oath of citizenship for our Lexi girl.  She continues to be such a GOOD baby, we can only pray that this continues when we get home. 
We took our group photos today and then the baby photos..somehow South managed not to capture our wee one smiling..she was most of the time, oh well...
I just want to send a huge thank you to my Xuzhou family...your comments and well wishes have meant so much to me, I understand now why this group is so special..the children from Xuzhou are so incredibly special.  Lexi is such a shining light, full of joy and laughter that could only come from the kind and wonderful people that have given her such a great start in life.
Here are a few shots of the day..

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Consulate Appt. Tomorrow

Sorry for no post the last few days..we have been taking it easy and just having a great time with our little Lexi.  She is sooo funny, she is laughing so much these days and is just a joyful little creature.  When Lexi first came to us she really did not know how to eat anything solid.  We tried to give her Cheerios and she really did not know what to do with them.  Now she is eating them like a champ, and forget congee and rice cereal, as soon as she sees us eating our food she wants some of that.  Her palate does not seem to be giving her much trouble as far as eating and swallowing which is great for her.  She continue to get stronger each day, she is crawling now and can sit up very well. 
We have been taking more movies than photos for the last few days so I only have a couple to post..
Tomorrow is our consulate appt. and then just three more days to go!!!! We are so excited to be getting home to Alison.  We miss her so much, it has been such a relief to be able to talk to her twice a day with Skype.  She and Lexi are already bonding...Lexi smiles and laughs as soon as she sees Alison, it so much fun to watch.
 

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Another day in Guangzhou

Today was another day of not doing much..I do not remember so much down time from our last trip but as of now I am really getting anxious to get back home.  The weather today was wonderful, very breezy, around 78, clear blue skies...a real treat here in China.  We should continue to have good weather until we leave.  We spent the day walking around Shamain Island which is so beautiful, very European in its' architecture.
Tomorrow is another day of relaxation and spending time getting to know little Lexi.  She continues to show us more and more of her adorable personality and is so much fun to be with.
Thank you again for all of your comments, they really mean so much.
Here are a few shots of the day.
 
 

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One day closer to home

Today was a relaxing day, no paperwork, no appts. just time to enjoy Guangzhou and walk through the beautiful parks.  Lexi continues to open up and show her true personality  She is such a funny little thing, she has the best smile and giggle and is such a happy baby.  We started her on antibiotics yesterday so this was her second full day on meds.  I think her ear is starting to clear up a bit and I pray that she will be better for the trip home.
South, Lexi and I spent the day relaxing, walking through the park, and just hanging out at the hotel.  We are so ready to come home and are counting down the days...just six to go and I will be home with my precious Alison who I miss like crazy.
Here are a few shots of the day.
 

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Here we are in Guangzhou

Today was a very busy day.  We started out early after sleeping very well, the first good sleep I have had since coming to China.  After a great breakfast we were off to the Medical Exam.  It was pandemonium, lots of babies crying and lots of older children getting shots.  Poor kids, some had to have six or seven shots..our little one did not.  Lexi did well but has an ear infection.  We thought that might be the case after our flight into Guangzhou yesterday.  It was really terrible, our poor little girl was in terrible pain coming into our descent and cried inconsolably.  The doctor confirmed the infection at Medical Exam and then a doctor in our travel group gave us antibiotics to start her on.  We hope that the meds begin to kick in soon and maybe make the trip home better for her. 
After our Medical Exam we had a bunch of paper work to do for the completion of the adoption and for the US Embassy.
Tomorrow is a sightseeing day and we should have lots of pictures then, South had his video out today so we did not get any pictures of our day unfortunately.
I have a few of our sweet, precious pumpkin and I will post those.

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Windows 7: I wanted more reliable, now it's more reliable. Wow!

On to Guangzhou today

Hi everyone,
Sorry for the no post yesterday but there really was not much to talk about...other than Lexi is just the BEST baby ever.  She is such cutie pie, she laughs and smiles all the time and is such a happy little girl.
I am counting the days big time until we come home.  Thank goodness we are off to Guangzhou this afternoon.  Nanjing has been nice but we are so ready to move on the final part of our journey.
I am fiercely protective of little Lexi and walking around the streets of Nanjing have not been so great at times.  People stare at my peanut like she has two heads, her lip has a small scar and her nose is not perfectly uniformed.  I can see people look and then stare at me and then back at her and I just hate the looks they give us.  Oh well, I know it is a cultural thing but it upsets me.  I am looking forward to our Dr. appt. the week after we come home to schedule her surgery for her palate and possibly her revision on her lip.  She is such a sweet and joyful little girl and I so want the best for her.
Tomorrow we will be strolling around in 90 degree weather, a change from the 70s that we have had here in Nanjing.
I am posting random photos here but will have lots of Guangzhou tomorrow.
Thanks everyone for following along, your comments mean so much.
 

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Windows 7: I wanted more reliable, now it's more reliable. Wow!

The Ming Tomb, another day in Nanjing

Today was a great day, we started off after waking up from a great nights sleep.  Lexi went down at 8:00 and slept all through the night without a peep.  I thought it was from all of the excitement of the day, I keep telling myself not to get to encouraged but I just put her down tonight, she was up and laughing and being very cute, and within two minutes was sound asleep.  I have heard of babies like that, mythical creatures that I refused to believe existed until now.
 
We visited the Ming Tomb today and I have to say it was amazing.  After being in the bustling city of Nanjing, going to the gardens at the tomb was so relaxing and really beautiful.  There were huge statues of Lions, Camels, and Elephants lining a long path that were carved in place there over 600 years ago.  All of the stone work and the gardens were breathtaking.  We also visited the Wall of Nanjing that was built over 1600 years ago, it surrounds part of the city and was just incredible.
 
Nanjing is a very interesting place, lots of tourists from all over the world come here and I can see why.  There is so much to do, tons of shopping, and a tremendous amount of history.  All of the main roads are lined with massive Sycamore trees, it reminds me so much of France, of all places, as you drive down the streets.
 
Lexi is really starting to show more of her adorable personality.  I know I have said this already, but she is such a SWEET BABY, she has the cutest smile and is starting to babble a lot.  She recognizes me and when I give her big smile her little face crinkles with a big smile right back at me.
 
We are ready to get on to the next stage of our journey and to the luxury of Guangzhou.
It seems like all of China in under construction and the pollution has been pretty bad.  We had a bit of sun today but mostly it has been that hazy dreary sky shrouded with pollution.  We sometimes forget how fortunate we are back in the states...
 
Thanks everyone for all of your wonderful comments, my dear friend Maria has emailed them to me since I cannot access blogger here in China.  They have been so encouraging and kind, and I truly appreciate each one.
 

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Windows 7: I wanted more reliable, now it's more reliable. Wow!