CHINA May 21--Beijing-The Great Wall

Beijing Day 2:

The Great Wall

Last time we were in China, we went to a different section of the Great Wall and we were a bit more rushed because we were with a large group.  This time we were with our guide Susan who was a wealth of fascinating details about the Wall and Chinese History and who let us spend as much time as we wanted.  We were there about 4 hours. And even had a great lunch right at the base of it.

On our way to the Great Wall, Susan asked a funny question in the van.  

"What's the difference between a cable car and gondola?"  

we thought she was just asking a translation question.  

Until we bought tickets and walked up to "this".....

Almost without notification, we were "escorted" onto a 

SKI LIFT!!!!!

I thought Lilli was going to pass out.  

She and I were on one lift and Susan and Lucas were on one lift and Peter and Isaac were on another.

It was very funny. 

She kept saying

"Someone needs to tell Susan this is a CHAIR LIFT not a gondola not a cable car"...

it was quite funny

but 

I'm sure she didn't think so...

we did laugh a lot tho

This is a VERY nervous Tante Lilli.  That is an "anxious" smile.

 But alas we made it...
and this particluar section of the Wall is GORGEOUS!
It was a beautiful day.

we climbed A LOT of steps that day...and are still feeling the effects.  But, well worth it!

 Isaac the photographer was taking a few risks while shooting on the wall. One of his parents was encouraging him to go to the top of this section to check it out. One of his parents is a "good parent". The other ... not so much.

The trip down was fun too.  We rode a Tobogan run...wa hooey

 Lilli got caught by a weird Mongolian guy to take a picture.  What we didn't realize until after we took the picture was we were suppose to pay him for it.  (on our own camera)...whatever.

 Lucas teaching Tante Lilli how to use chopsticks.

 Lucas learned how to blow bubbles while in China.  He is very proud.

What a fun day full of adventure and bringing China to life for Lucas.  He has been seeing his homeland in a whole different light and commenting about how much he loves it.  We are happy about that because there was a season when he didn't want anything to do with China.  There is a certain familiarity for him now and he is enjoying it.  Someday I hope we can return and do even more.  This was a wonderful day!

CHINA May 19-20-Travel Days and Hit the ground runnin' in Beijing

Welcome to our adventure.  You'll have to go back a few posts if you want the full story, but the short story for those just joining us now, is we are adopting 2 kids age 11 and 12 from China who were friends of our son Lucas when he lived in China the first 7 years of his 11 year old life.  He advocated for us to bring them home and prayed them into our family.  

One year ago on May 25, 2014, Peter, my husband heard the Lord say to him, "Do You Believe or not?" And exactly one year later on May 25, 2015 we will be bringing them into our family on their "Gotcha Day".  

So

We headed out on Tuesday, May 19---packed up and ready to go.  (thank you Jon Sanders for driving us to the airport). The flights went well--total air time about 15 hours.  We met Lilli, Peter's sister, and Isaac, our 20 year old in Dallas for the long flight over.  

We all have been filled with anticipation, and butterflies, and hesitation, and wonder, and joy and craziness.  So Here we go...

We met our guide Susan for the first time, at the airport in Beijing waving a sign and found out after spending 3 days with her that she was THE most AMAZING guide EVER!  She's been involved with adoptive families and tour guiding for 19 years.  She knows adoptive families and kids like nobody's business and she is fun and extremely knowledgeable about Chinese history, and adoption.  Just amazing.  Here she is with Lucas, who she had by the hand most of the 3 days we were in Beijing.  Laughing, and being goofy and loving on him so well.  We miss her already.

As soon as we arrived in Beijing we freshened up and hit the road for an authentic Peking Duck dinner.  Jet lag caught up with Lucas who slept through the entire meal.  Poor sweet boy.

Guess who showed up at the Peking Duck dinner?  Anyone else think this is funny?

We were fed A LOT of food.  And the Duck comes at the end of the other 6 dishes you order, so it's completely crazy...

All of us were about to lose our cookies when our guide explained the significance of eating the head of the duck...lol.   Our first meal in China and they split open the duck head...ok....

After dinner, which Lucas didn't eat, we strolled the streets close by and found a cotton candy maker who sold this to Lucas.  Yes, that whole thing is cotton candy and yes he slept through dinner.  Wow are we great parents.

A little bit of the street life.

  

And then we went back to the hotel, Novotel XianQiao Beijing, and crashed.  With all that activity, the days and nights all blur together.  But, we woke up bright and early the next day to go to The Great Wall....

Being Real

Is. 41:10 (NASB) is my landing spot lately:

‘Do not fear, for I am with you;

Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you, surely I will help you,

Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

The adoption process is a tense and scary journey sometimes. 

There are anxious moments as you fill out paperwork in hopes that you will somehow "pass" the test--whether it is a blood test at the doctor, a homestudy inspection, a financial review, a fingerprinting appointment, a USCIS "exam" of your documents, or a review of all your paperwork from a foreign government. 

Finally, you get to the "end" of the paperwork journey and you realize---wowsa, our whole life is about to change.  Yes, we pondered this and prayed for over 2 years before we decided to move forward.  We know it is a privelege we have been given.  But, now that the days have started counting down and we are in the last 30 days before travel and not all the finances are there yet, and the rooms aren't quite ready, and we need to pack and plan the actual hotels, plane tickets and such, anxiety creeps in.

It's a sneaky little critter--anxious thought.  

It invades sleep.  It creeps up in the middle of the day.
It makes your heart pound unexpectedly at strange times.

It tries to distract from the Greater Purposes.  

It makes blood pressure rise and fuses get short.

and sometimes
Priorities get skewed when anxious thought invades.

Sometimes it's almost as if we seek out the anxious thoughts.  We let them run wild and untamed.

I'm just being real.

Thoughts about managing kids with special needs that I have no experience with.

Thoughts and reminders of the journey we had with Lucas--particularly at the beginning.

Thoughts and reminders about how "fun" the language barrier is.
Thoughts and reminders of the bills yet to be paid. ($15,000 still needed is crazy)

That old friend anxiety has come for a visit.

It wakes me up in the morning and I need to go to battle against it.
It rushes forward and floods my mind.
Scattered disjointed thoughts race around.
And other times thoughts get so focused that nothing else matters.
I almost can't hear the world around me.

I've come to realize I can:
1.  stay there.  be overwhelmed. let my heart pound out of my chest.
or
2. remind myself..."You've been here before" "You know what to do" "throwing up isn't an option" "laying in bed all day isn't a good choice" "a beach getaway ain't happening right now"

and "God is Faithful----most importantly----Remember----He IS Faithful"

Suddenly a song floats through all the noise and clutter of my mind.
A verse of scripture floats to the top.

songs:
"I know who goes before me, I know who stands behind...The God of Angel armies is always by my side...."
"Promise Maker, Promise Keeper...You finish what you begin..."

scripture:
"Do not fear, for I am with you;

Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you, surely I will help you,

Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." (Is. 41:10)

" Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil 4:6-7)

...and these are just a few.

What a waste of time to be anxious. I want the "peace that transcends all understanding".  I've had it.  The most prominent time I remember...the day/moment Jacob died.  It was surreal, and palpable.  But, God gave me peace that day.  Tears flowed don't get me wrong.  But there was a confidence and a peace.  Where did it go? Ah yes, once again, I need to return to scripture, God's Word, and Listen.

That is what I'm talking about when I say "God is Faithful".  It's not fluff.  It's real.  And I am needing to remind myself these days that he offered it then...He can offer it now.

"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, ²¹ to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen."  Eph. 3:20-21

It's real people.  And it's truth.

deep breath

*********

disclaimer:  I think I needed to write this today and put it all out on "paper" because I needed these reminders.  When I write, God reminds me how He puts all the pieces together.  Thanks for coming inside my head and my for a minute or two.  

Just Being Real.

H 

Our Adoption Stats--

Some people like to know the stats of the adoption process.

Each layer carries with it varying piles of paperwork and time. (can't really begin to calculate the time).  Sometimes it's just a matter of waiting for something to show up and other times it's time filling it out or running around getting things certified, notarized, authenticated, etc.  For those who like the stats...here they are....

May 27, 2014 decision is made after over 2 years of prayers and research and more prayers.  

We are adopting QJF and QYM from China.

Spent some time researching Agencies and making decisions about some other details.  Put in our application, began Homestudy process and...

PA on July 8, 2014.  

Sept. 9 I800a and Homestudy sent

11/13/14 I800a approval (last piece sent through Chinese Consulate in Houston directly to Agency) 

11/13/14  DTC 

11/21/14  LID 

12/4/14  OOT 

1/21/15  In Review-

1/27/15  LOA (in China system “soft LOA?”) 

2/3/15   LOA (in hand)

2/4/15  I800 sent 

 2/14)  Receipt Notice dated 2/9/2015  (rec’d hard copy 2/14)

hiccup—

RFE

UGH!!!!!

Sent 2nd set of $$ to USCIS didn’t know I needed to send a second check.  

3/11/2015-  1800 approval (verbal) 

—-FINALLY recv’d verbal approval for 1800!!! yay!

3/18/15   GUZ number recd (filled out ap and submitted)

3/19/15   Article 5 Drop off 

4/2/15  Art. 5 Pick up 

4/9/15  TA (soft) 

4/14/15   CA  (for June 2)

Someone asked me how many pieces of paper we have actually touched and "done" in this process.  I can estimate, but there is no way to completely know all of them.  Keep in mind we are adopting TWO kids so some of these items were doubled because of that.  And we haven't been to China yet...

DRUM ROLL PLEASE.....

we are at approximately 575 pieces of paper...not including all things we've had to photo copy but including the 2 full Dossiers.  

It's A LOT OF PAPER....let's just say that.  It's a bit hard to fully calculate.  And we have more to do in China--although most of it is done now.  

It is definitely quite a process and not for the faint of heart.  But, God is Faithful.  He carries us through.  

With our CA now determined, we hope to leave May 19.  But, final plans are still in the works.  

This is a bit of a dry post, but those stats are important pieces of information that I wanted to be sure to have centrally located.  

Stay tuned for more "personality" in future posts.  I promise, I'm really not this boring.

=)

Birth Order hahahahahaha

I've been mulling this over in my mind for a few weeks and thought it could be an amusing post.

First I must begin with a few caveats:
1.  I'm really not an insentitive lout.
2.  I realize what tragedy is and have walked it too many times
3.  Tragedy has torn my heart to it's core, but Jesus has healed so much.
4.  And thus I'm left with a warpped sense of life and humor.
5.  My mind is a strange strange thing and takes me down rabbit trails often.

We are about to travel in a few months to pick up our next 2 children ages 11 and 12 from China.  Let me say, even that part is questionable---not the adoption---the ages.  I look at paperwork and not all the numbers line up, but for the sake of this post, we are going to say these are the ages they are.

In 1990 we had a son Benjamin. Born at 30 weeks who died one hour after birth.
So First question.
Is he the "first born"?

Then in 1991, his brother Samuel was born.  He also died one hour after birth.
So Second question:
Is he the "second born?"

Then in 1995, their brother Isaac was born.  He is currently almost 20 years old. Alive and well.
So Third question.
Is he the "first born"? or is he the "third born"?

Let's assume he is First born since we never really knew Ben or Sam's personality.  Of course in OUR  hearts they will never be forgotten, but this is where it gets warped and weird.
Isaac often recalls how he wishes those older brothers were in his life.  So he has a place for them in his heart. And even on his arm.  His first official tattoo is 5 slash marks (one for each child in our family--he may need to ammend that now)

Then in 1998 their brother Jacob was born.  He lived 6 years.
So Fourth question:
Is he the second born? or the fourth born?
He died.
So is his place now different in our family?

Then in 2004, Lucas was born.  In China.  To a family.  He had a mom and dad.  What place was he in that family? Only? or a sibling?  Nobody knows.
He entered our family in 2011. Age 7. He took on the roll of "baby"; last born.

Since Isaac was the only living sibling at the time, he assumed the roll of "Second" born.
But, in all honesty.  He has grieved the loss of the brothers that came before him.  He definitely feels he is the "baby" of the family.  And "last born".

Now we are adopting 2 kids.
Their birth records show being born in February and September of 2003.  So technically they fall between Isaac and Lucas.

BUT, they are the last to enter our family.
SO
Are they the "last born" or are they numbers 5,6 out of 7?

Confused?

Live in our house.

Since Lucas has lived in our family for 4 years he has knowledge and experience as a child that would be "older" than these next two.  He will have things to share with them.  But, he will still be the "youngest".

If we all end up in therapy at some point, you will now know why.
Our family is a "mess".  (that's a southern term for something...not quite sure if it is a good thing or not since I'm a northerner living in the south)

So the order is
Ben, Sam, (both in heaven) Isaac, Jacob (in heaven), Lucas (wait is he last or #5?)...then Joshua, then Emma.  Or should it be by age: Isaac, Joshua, Emma, Lucas?  How should I sign their names on a Christmas Card?

These are the things that keep me up at night.
Where's my Lavendar Essential Oil.
Good Night!

Inviting others into the journey

This week we launched our t shirt fundraiser.
First let me say, I wasn't very comfortable starting fundraising. Just bein' real.

I felt if God wanted someone to help us with the financial piece, He would speak directly to that person and they would give if they felt led. That sounds very spiritual doesn't it?  And sometimes that IS how God works.
It wasn't that we didn't need the financial support. It's that I felt we stepped out in faith to adopt because God seemed to be showing us He was supplying what we needed to bring our kids home.
But, over the past 4 months or so we have realized how much we do need it. 
Much of our reserves were stripped away with several financial issues.
Perhaps that happened so we would step out and invite people into this process with us?
To us the financial piece has suddenly become overwhelming. 
But God is not overwhelmed.  
Nor is He surprised. 
I believe He is using this season to teach us once again about the body of Christ and their overwhelming generosity. And to show us what HE can do.

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."  Ephesians 3:20-21

When we entered the tshirt fundraiser, I calculated some numbers so we could get an idea of what the fundraiser could produce.  Ha ha 

What I didn't consider was what God could produce.
What I didn't consider was people who I know are not financially "rich" buying a tshirt to show support.
I'm so humbled.
What I didn't consider was people who we haven't spoken to face to face in many years "showing up" in support via social media and buying a t shirt.
I'm so humbled.
What I didn't consider was the impact of our story for His Glory on people we have never met-buying a t shirt.
I'm so humbled.
What I didn't consider was people donating well OVER the price we set, to show support by buying a t shirt.
I'm so humbled.
I may be surprised.
But God is not.
He apparently wanted us to see we are not in this alone.  He wanted us to invite others "in".  Because after all, this story does not belong to us.  It's His Story --and lest we forget --for HIS Glory.

I am realizing God doesn't want us walking these journies alone. He wants others to be a part of it.
"Everything in heaven and earth is Yours oh Lord".   
  
"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession,that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy."  1 Peter 2:9-10


We needed to allow margin in this process for God to do Immeasurably more so That We May Glorify Him for what He has done.  I'm seeing more and more that our small act of stepping out in faith has far reaching implications--much farther than we'll ever know.  

Thank you to all who already purchased shirts.
Our t shirt fundraiser goes until March 1.

You can find info here if you'd like to continue to pass it along:
www.jundtfamily.com

To God Be the Glory
Join Us

For Joshua and Emma--

The New Year, 2015 has arrived.
Another big year ahead and exciting things on the horizon.
As we step out in faith and move forward to bring our kiddos home, (see previous posts if you want the full story) we realize once again that God has a plan so much bigger than us.
Paperwork is well underway, and being processed overseas as I write this.
Christmas has come and gone.
And now we wait.
We are estimating traveling to get them in April or May of this year.

We have had people who wanted to know how they could support us in this process so here is our "list":

1. TONS of Prayer.  For the process.  For the kids hearts while they wait. For us to make necessary preparations.  For Travel as it approaches.--God Hears our Prayers.

2.  Continued adoption costs--
We anticipate our total adoption costs to be in the range of $50,000+.  Just being real and honest.
I would imagine some jaws just dropped.
I would imagine some people are thinking we've lost our minds.
But, we are not kidding when we say "God's got this".
It's so insurmountable, that we have nothing left to do but trust that He will come through.

God's Word says,

"Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all." (1 Chron. 29:11)

We felt called to the privilege to adopt these two kids, and have to trust God had the whole picture in mind.  What seems like a barrier to us, is nothing to Him.  He Will recieve the Glory.

If you feel led to help you can make a Tax Deductible donation and  DONATE HERE (Look for Emma and Joshua in the dropdown list)

3.  Remodeling some portions of our home to adapt some rooms.  Costs unknown at this time.  apx. $2-3,000? (local peeps that want to help with some labor are welcome--we hope to start in the next month or so)

4. Occasional childcare when they get home.  They are older, but won't be able to be left alone right from the start at least for a little while.

5.  More Prayer.

So if you would like to help, we would be beyond grateful.  It was not our intention to "ask" but we had people telling us they wanted to help in this way.

Every penny we raise will go directly to Emma and Joshua's journey to bringing them home.  The non-for profit organization we are using, Shepherd's Crook, doesn't take any overhead costs.  And all donations are tax deductible.

We made a little video...
We hope you enjoy "meeting" us and seeing just a glimpse of our family and the journey we've been on:

So is it ok with you if we lay out our need?
It's a very humbling process.

Here are our "babies"...waiting.
Let's get them home shall we?

Joshua

which means

Jehovah is Generous

and 

Emma

which means

whole/complete

(but it is also the name we chose for our first son before he was born so it has been in our family for a long time and is also my mother-in-law's name)

To GOD BE THE GLORY!