I love being a girl!

Well, we have a girly-girl! She loves to wear hats and have bows in her hair! Here she is wearing an outfit that Aunt Linda get her, but she added the bow to it! We might have a long road ahead of us!

Cousins

McKaden loves her cousins Faith and Claire. It is funny that Claire is only three months older than Mac ... gives you an idea of how little Mac is!

Thanks Nana

Here is Mac on her new toy from Nana and Papa!

It's my birthday and I will cry if I want to

McKaden on her first birthday! Well, as you can see the jet lag had set in and there was no way she was going to make it through anymore of the birthday fun. It really was a fun time with a ladybug birthday cake, friends and family. This picture reflects the end of the party!

Tis the Season

And you thought Christmas! Mac, went to her first basketball game on Saturday and LOVED it! She even figured out how to blow the whistle and hang on the rim ... maybe Daddy helped a bit.

We're home!

We're back safely!! Sorry that it took so long to get back to everyone. Between computer issues and jetlag, we've been out of sorts. McKaden had a relatively uneventful 20 or so hours of travel. On our long flight back to Seattle (about 8.5 hours), she slept only a couple hours. She did receive lots of attention from our flight attendants. Our friend Dianne picked us up at the airport (with baloons and flowers) right after McKaden became a U.S. citizen. No problems with immigration (we are calling her "our little Immigrant" sometimes). The Visa that we had for McKaden indentified her as an immediate relative, thereby allowing her immediate U.S. citizenship. Since we've been home, she's been adjusting to life in cold, foggy Washington. No more 90 degrees here! She's already been to Target and the grocery store. . .shopping seems to suit her. Her sleeping is slightly off, which makes our sleeping more than slightly off. Today (Thanksgiving) we had many things to be thankful for, of course, McKaden being one of them. We enjoyed a great Thanksgiving at Bryce and Missy's (Mark's brother and sister-in-law) and Mac got to play with two of her cousins. Well, tomorrow is her first birthday, so there is much to do to get ready. We'll post pictures from that tomorrow!

Going home. . .

Well, we're packing our bags and have mixed emotions as we prepare to head back as a family of 3. On one hand it will be nice to get back to friends and family and establish some pattern; on the other it has been an incredible time and it is tough to see it end. The three of us had another great day today. We got up and visited Mary Kay at the International H.S. here. It was a great experience to see the facilities and programs there. Scot teaches at the primary school in the same district. McKaden, Lori, and I then went to the famous Stanley Market, where we did some last minute shopping and had a great lunch. It is sunny and warm here, so it was the perfect day for strolling through the market. We hung out back at the Hoffman's for awhile and then late this afternoon all of us took a cab to Central District. It was a fun, romantic, and great to laugh a lot with the Hoffmans. We took a tram to Victoria Peak, which looks out over the Hong Kong Harbor and across to Kowloon. It was dusk, so a perfect setting to catch the city as it began to light up. We then had dinner up top at an awesome restaurant which looks over the Harbor. The mood is awesome and the food just as good. We adults had a great time and McKaden kept us laughing by blowing kisses and waving goodbye to the waiters. She was so funny; it was like she knew we were laughing at (with) her. On a side note, she also learned how to say "I love you" today. It's a bit rough around the edges and she has no idea what it means, but it sure melts your heart. We will see you all soon!

Pictures

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

We are sitting at our friends Scot and Mary Kay's place in Hong Kong this morning overwhelmed at God's provision. We are looking out their 12th floor window right into a beautiful harbor on a warm, sunny November day in one of the most amazing Islands in the world.
Yesterday was quite a day! One of our guides, Jack, took us to the train station, where we took a train from Guangzhou to Hong Kong. It was probably McKaden's first train ride. It was really interesting to wind through the city and into the "countryside", we both tried to soak in the images that we will be able to relay to McKaden someday. We tried to remember high rise after high rise, with people stacked on top of people, and laundry hanging out to dry. We tried to remember the warm looks and treatment given to us by most of the Chinese people. We tried to think back about our liason, Lily and our guides and what an incredible job they did for us here. We saw the few places of rolling green hills without buildings and pictured China past. Meager existence gave way gradually to more and more new high rises and amazingly wealthy business buidings as we entered the indescrible city of Hong Kong.
Our friend Scot picked us up and we had a great time with them the rest of the day and night. McKaden had several other "firsts" today: taxis, the top of a double decker bus, and a night-time ferry ride in Hong Kong Harbor. It was a fun time catching up with our friends who also took us on a night-tour of Hong Kong and the fore-mentioned harbor ferry. On the ferry there was a laser show and one of the neatest skylines we have ever seen. It is truly an amazing sight to see what is probably one of the richest cities in the world. Equally amazing was Scot's home-made spaghetti and meatballs. McKaden was awesome; just out at 9 or 9:30 and just taking it all in. What a great day!

Goin to the Zoo!

We had time today to go and see the zoo here in Guangzhou. It was a little chilly out, so many of the local folks stayed home. We had a great time hanging out with some of the other families in our group. We were surprised to see that they kept a monkey and a dalmation in the same cage ... have no idea why. We did get to see the Giant Panda but it was asleep, so no action there. Mac slept pretty much the whole time and did not care that we were even at the zoo!
Kids, you try to give them great experiences and they sleep the whole time!! Mark did some shopping in the afternoon and I started to get stuff packed up. We are heading, by train, to Hong Kong tomorrow [Sunday] afternoon to meet up with friends. All of McKaden's paperwork came today and she is free to leave the county! When we arrive in the U.S. she becomes a citizen!! Better get out the red, white and blue outfit again! Well, we are all tired tonight... one of the babies in our group had a birthday party tonight...she turned 1 and gave us all Cheerio's for our goody bag... how cute is that?! Good night.

Red,White, and Blue

Consulate Day

Well, as of today, all of our paperwork is finished and will be delivered to us tomorrow (Saturday). McKaden slept in this morning to allow dad a time for a workout and a time for a leisurely family breakfast. Since we didn't have to be anywhere until 1:00 we enjoyed time for a nap (Mac), getting some work done (Mark), and a workout to Chinese techno music (Lori). At 1:00 we took off to go to the US Consulate to swear that all the information on her visa was correct. As many of you know, there have been terrorist threats on the consulate here, so we were very glad to get in and out safely. We tried to hold up McKaden's right hand for the swearing, but she would rather suck on that hand. We have to admit she was the cutest baby there in her red, white, and blue outfit. After heading back to the hotel, we took some time to take some pictures in the garden here; our hotel is amazing as it has a huge garden and waterfall. McKaden gets distracted by the koy. She must take after her mother with her love of fish and will probably be a great snorkeler. Tonight we went on a "dinner" cruise on the Pearl river. The trip is actually really pretty with all the skyscrapers and large hotels lining the waterfront and their many lights and colors. We have learned through this and other experiences that the Chinese do love their cigarettes. . .The "dinner" part of the cruise was actually pretty fascinating. It was a buffet and as soon as the trays were out, there were people all over, pushing, cutting in line, swarming the tables. We were pretty amused to watch; and even more amused to find out that the food was . . .well. . .buffet. It is weird to think that our time here is rapidly coming to an end. Thanks for all your comments; we love them!

Nana's request

Here's a picture of McKaden's little foot, as requested by Nana!

Little Empress part 2

PS. I am about 29 inches tall and weigh 19 pounds with all my clothes, shoes and a wet diaper on ... so you can say 19 pounds soaking wet!

The Little Empress

Hi, This is McKaden checking in from China. My parents started calling me the little Empress today. Maybe it was when we were out and about they found themselves on either side of my stroller carrying me up and down long flights of stairs. I'm sure they felt stupid, but I felt like a queen on a throne. Or maybe they called me that based on how skillfully I have been trying to use my newfound knowledge of the "power of the tear". I tried to play that card several times today in effort to get them to spoil me. It worked a few times, I'll have to admit. Here's how it goes around here: I usually wake them up about 6:45. They scurry around here trying to get things ready so we can head down to the delicious breakfast buffet. For breakfast I usually order up some congee (some milky rice thing), some fruit, and some bread. Today I also decided to eat my mom's scrambled eggs. They were quite delicious. After breakfast, we went back to the room so I could rest my royal eyes. While I was resting, mom went to a paperwork meeting while dad got some work done. Those poor people always have so much to do. I woke up refreshed from my nap ready to see the town. I noticed that my parents are looking a bit tired. After taking me to a fine Italian restaurant for lunch, they took me shopping for some formula of my choice. They carted me back to the hotel where we left about 2:00 pm. for me to get my visa picture taken and my medical exam. I didn't really care for the exam, but I guess I need to do it for the paperwork. You should notice a nice glam shot of me on a red couch. Shopping came after that, which included a purchase of my new birthday dress. Boy, will I look cute. AFter dining on Thai food, we went back to the hotel for playtime and a royal bath. I am now reclining in bed with mom stroking my brow. Nite Nite

Who dressed my daughter?

Well, as you can see, Daddy dressed her today! She is in head to toe pink [thanks Anne for the outfit] and a Daddy's Girl shirt! Is this a plot against me?
We had a great day today. We went to the pearl market and got a few things. We wanted to get a pearl necklace that we can give her someday, when she is older. We also had lunch at Pizza Hut ... yes Pizza Hut, in China. We got a laugh as the servers were dressed in Santa outfits and they were playing Christmas music... very strange. Mac loves pizza! That must be another sign that she is our daughter. We have been resting this afternoon. Mark got a workout in and while he was there found out they will set up ping pong in one of the squash courts! You know what that means .. the Hein's challenge all other families in our group to ping pong. We hope that works out and that we can show our dominance in the sport.

One more thing ... our daughter is in training for cross country. We hate to have to admit that. She wants to do laps in our room ALL the time. It is so funny to see this tiny [she is so small] ,little, almost one year old, boss her Dad around. She will drag him to his feet and hold on to his fingers and start running back in forth. She will make one stop at the mirror to check herself out, but then it is off and running again.

The weather here is great ... mid 70's out. We are loving it! It was WAY to hot and humid when we got here, so the weather change is really nice. Well that is all for now. Will be back on later to let you know about our wonder child.

Trip to Shamian Island

Today we went to Shamian Island. This is normally where we would have stayed. It is a portion of the city that caters to adoptive families and where some of the process is completed. The White Swan is the famous hotel that almost all of families in our situation usually stay. They were sold out due to some type of convention this week, so we are at the Garden Hotel in a different part of Guang Zhou. It was also fun to go to a market today. It was an awesome cultural experience and we visited a part of the market that specialized in toy sales. It was fun. Lori thinks McKaden wore herself out shopping; I'm inclined to think she got bored with shopping. We spent a better part of the afternoon playing with Mac in our room. Much to my chagrine we taught her how to kick the ball while we are running around holding her hand. . .we need to keep her away from soccer as long as possible.

My future is so bright. . .

I gotta wear shades. . .

Funny things

Where do I start ... first of all the hairdryer in the bathroom is so wimpy that I cannot dry my hair. That explains my hair in every picture. It reminds me of my Dad's hair dryer ... my family is laughing now!
Next thing is that Mac likes her do-do [the pronunciation of that is doe as in do, a deer] which is what her cousin Gunnar calls his blankey [it is a cloth diaper]. Good thing that he left some at our house and we brought them with us. As soon as she has that in her hand, she puts her two fingers in her mouth and relaxes.
Next is Mark buying formula at the store and asking Lily, our guide, how much you put in the bottle. She explained that it is one scoop to each ounce of water. Mark looked at the size of the package and told me that this package would only make one bottle! I was trying to figure out what he was talking about when I realized he thought the scoop was one like you make coffee with, or kool-aid!! When we explained to him that the scoop for formula was really small, we all just laughed at him ... we are both learning SO much.
Keep the comments coming! We love hearing from you!

Hey Claire, You Walking?

Hey Cousin Claire, are you walking? Today Mom and Dad were playing with me and guess what? They think they taught me to walk!? The place I used to live at said I did not walk yet ... but I can! I can stand up, on my own, holding a stacking cup in each hand and walk now ... what do you know, you learning something new everyday. My parents also found out that I move my hands back and forth when I want more food! What will tomorrow bring,...the quadratic formula, defending the low post, playing the cello or reading Shakespeare? Who knows ... but these people think I am brilliant! Love to you ...McKaden

Two become three

Today, we are officially a family of three. We spent a couple hours at the civil affairs office. It is a weird experience of being in a building of crying babies, much humidity, and probably lots of germs (Lori of course noted this). BUT it is amazing to think that every one of those kids is going from a temporary foster home or an orphanage to a home where they are deeply loved. We had a couple interviews where we signed things and promised to love and care for McKaden and then she is officially part of our family. She was awesome all day; not a tear. She has also become a good eater. . . she loves pears and this rice stuff that is called Congi. Her diaper will attest to this fact!
Lori and I just want to thank so many of you for writing. It is truly awesome to know others deeply care about us and her. It is quite moving to get the e-mails. We are off to more meetings this afternoon (I think Mac gets her passport), so we really can't write everyone. The pictures are from today at the affairs office.

First smile

McKaden has been a trooper. She definitely was cautious with us. She didn't know what to make of us. It doesn't help that we think she was probably pretty medicated when we met her. She also is quite sick with a cold. Despite all that, she hasn't had any crying episodes, and has taken a bottle and started to eat. This picture is from 9:22 last night when Lori first got her to smile. Since then, today she has smiled several times, showing off her toothy (4 big ones!) smile. It was neat for me, Mark, to go from her not really looking me in the eye when she took her bottle, to today where she just contentedly watches me as she drinks it: very cool.

Bath time

This is from last night after we met McKaden and she took a long nap. I imagine this was her first bathtime ever. Although she seems a bit frail, she was determined to get out of the bath tub! We realize how weird it probably was for her. Lori managed to bath her in spite of her eyes welling up.

Let's try again

Pictures of our miracle

Meet McKaden!!!!!!!

She is beautiful!!!! We just got back from the center of adoption where we met McKaden for the first time. What an amazing, overwhelmingly emotional event. We (the 4 couples) got on a bus and headed to the place where we met the orphanage director and filled out quite a bit of paperwork. Then, came the moment we've been planning towards for what seems forever. They brought the babies in quickly one by one. Xin Hong Yi (McKaden) was called and in she came. She has had a long day. We're told the orphanage is about a 6 hour drive. All the babies seemed very quiet and a bit "out of it". None of them cried; they all just kind of confusingly looked us in the eye. We, of course, had a different response. Lori and I were so moved to see her right away. She still had her beautiful hair!!! We were told that it was shaved, but for whatever reason, McKaden was the only one that wasn't. Most of you know Lori's affinity for the color yellow and my affinity for athletics. We were even moved to see she had on a yellow outfit with baseball on it (wrong sport, but we'll let it slide). She let us hold her and take a bunch of pictures of her. McKaden fell asleep on the bus ride back to the hotel and it still napping right now.
There are SO many people that have cared for us and for her; we wish you could be here to share this moment. . .but, I guess we're happy to have the moment alone together as well. Throughout this whole process, God has been honored and glorified in so many ways. We have been moved and greatly impacted by the power of prayer over our lives from so many of you. God has worked in ways of impossibility to see this through. We like to think that McKaden is already impacting the world for Christ, and she can't even speak a word of English yet. . .

Moms, you can stop worrying now!

We're finally here! We are currently sitting here in our hotel room unpacking our bags and getting ready for a 6:00 pm meeting with Lilly and other families. Thanks, Dianne for bringing us to the airport. We had no trouble on any flights. Mark's knees even survived economy class. Special thanks goes out to our plane ticket angels: THANK YOU!!!!! Our overnight in Hong Kong was uneventful. We were exhausted, so we were very glad our hotel was located right at the airport. Well, we need to be going to our meeting, so we need to sign off. We will leave you with this. . .We get McKaden 3:00 tomorrow!

Birthing pains

OK ... I am scared to death! I [Lori] could hardly sleep last night... the bed is SO hard, it is a queen size [small!] and I am getting a baby shortly. Mark and I hit the gym this morning and I think that it is helping to clear my head. I really need to give this to the Lord in prayer. I know that I have had months, even years to get ready for this, and here I am panicking. I feel so unprepared for what is going to happen to me today. Maybe I should just come home!!??

At the round table

Tonight, Saturday, we went out to our first dinner here with our fellow families. It was great food and fun, chopsticks and all. We ate at a round table with a spinner in the middle so that we could all share the different dishes. On the way out, we were introduced to a menu item (which we didn't order) which had to do with a deer and his. . . uh. . ."antler". We have a great group of couples. There are four of us couples, all representing a cross-section of America. We are from Seattle(kinda), Spokane, Tennessee, and New York. We're really glad there are some other first time parents in the mix. The pictures above show the view out our window of our hotel; notice the water fall. The hotel is very nice. Lori and I found out that 10 million people live in Guang Zhou. The third picture shows Lori (she wants me to note: tired after two days of travel) and the window of our hotel and the many high rises that dot the landscape. It is interesting (and kind of sad) to see the contrast of the luxury hotel and the stark accomodations of the so many that live here. The middle picture shows a seemingly happy couple that are actually quite scared of not knowing what to do with this beautiful daughter that they are about to care for. . .

At the round table

Tonight, Saturday, we went out to our first dinner here with our fellow families. It was great food and fun, chopsticks and all. We ate at a round table with a spinner in the middle so that we could all share the different dishes. On the way out, we were introduced to a menu item (which we didn't order) which had to do with a deer and his. . . uh. . ."antler". We have a great group of couples. There are four of us couples, all representing a cross-section of America. We are from Seattle(kinda), Spokane, Tennessee, and New York. We're really glad there are some other first time parents in the mix. The pictures above show the view out our window of our hotel; notice the water fall. The hotel is very nice. Lori and I found out that 10 million people live in Guang Zhou. The third picture shows Lori (she wants me to note: tired after two days of travel) and the window of our hotel and the many high rises that dot the landscape. It is interesting (and kind of sad) to see the contrast of the luxury hotel and the stark accomodations of the so many that live here. The middle picture shows a seemingly happy couple that are actually quite scared of not knowing what to do with this beautiful daughter that they are about to care for. . .

Leaving tomorrow!

Well, what seemed to take forever has all of a sudden turned into a crazy sprint to get everything in order on many fronts. This is Mark and I just wanted to thank everyone who has already been such a blessing to us and to McKaden. This adventure we are beginning wouldn't have happened without so many people helping us out with prayer, financially, baby supplies, helping us cover work responsibilities back home, etc. We are eternally grateful. Your efforts and concerns on our behalf have not gone unnoticed in the slightest.
My wife is an amazing woman and it is due to her that we are really where we are. . her determination, follow through, constant optimism, and ability to persevere have kept us at this for a long period of time. She already is garnering votes for the "mother of the year" voting. Those of you who know Lori already know this, but I am once again amazed at her in so many ways.
Please pray specifically for Mac as we meet her. She undoubtably will have some serious and hard adjustments to make. Pray for quick and deep bonding and safety for us all. Thanks!!!!

1 more sleep

For our younger friends out there .... only one more sleep before Mark and Lori go to China to get baby McKaden! Say a special prayer for the baby as this will be a big change for her. Pray that Uncle Mark and Aunt Lori have a safe trip and that they stay healthy.

No White Swan for us

There is a hotel that most adopting families stay at in Guangzhou. All U.S. families adopting a child from China must finish their trip with a visit to the U.S. Consulate, that is located in Guangzhou. We are actually getting a baby that already lives in that Province, so we will be staying in Guangzhou the whole time. Anyway, there is a hotel there called The White Swan. For months now we have planned at staying at least some of our time there. I have learned the best places to eat, drink coffee, shop, have laundry done and use internet service. After all this research I found out that we would indeed NOT be staying there ... it is booked for a convention! We will be staying at another wonderful 5 star hotel ... not on the island that I researched, but in town, near the convention and financial center. I don't really care where we stay, so it is fine with me. Hey, it makes it more of an adventure!
By the way, I hear there is a Starbucks there!
http://www.worldhotels.com/china_peoples_republic_of/guangzhou/hotel_cangar.html

What do you feed her?

OK, so we have had over a year to think about what a baby around a year old might eat ... have we done any reserach on this ... no. Of course, we have no idea what she has been eating for the past 11 months, so it is kind of hard to know. About a week ago or so, Mark and I were standing in front of the baby food looking confused. What is this "stage" thing that this baby food is talking about? Mark starts getting food that he thinks looks "good" to him ... things like chicken and vegetables and stuff like that. I look at him and say, "What if she does not eat meat?" Mark replies, "Do you think she is a vegetarian?" We decided we did not know, got a couple of things of fruit and vegetables [my sister informed me we got enough for about one meal] and off we went. I guess we will have to figure this out when we get home.

More information on our trip

OK, I finally have a minute to fill you on on what we will be doing in China. Of course, anything can change in China!
Thursday afternoon the 10th of November leave Seattle for Hong Kong
Saturday November 12th - Arrive Guangzhou, China
Sunday morning November 13 - Prepare for babies.
Sunday afternoon November 13 - Get McKaden!!
Monday the 14th - Do Provincial paperwork.
Tuesday the 15th - Thursday the 17th - Touring, Babies Medical, Visa Pictures, etc.
Firday the 18th - Guides take paperwork to American Consulate.
Saturday the 19th late afternoon - Familes go to Consulte to pick up paperwork.
Sunday the 20th Journey by train to Hong Kong
Tuesday the 22nd - Home!!

So this is a baby shower ...

Yes, it happened, I gave in to having a baby shower! I know that some of you are already laughing out loud as you read this. I am not a fan of showers of any kind, in fact I take baths! My friends Christy and Tanya would not let me get out of having a shower ... so instead of trying to beat them, I decided to join them. My mother had also informed me that the shower was for Mac and not for me ... good point Mom. Well, it turned out to be a great time and I feel SO blessed to have these kind of friends in my life. In this room of women I had two friends I have known since I was in junior high!! Boy are they old! I also had friends in attendance who I have met since we moved over to the "Westside". I was sharing with them that there are not a lot of people who have this many friends who care for them so deeply. Thanks dear friends!!

How much stuff does she need?

As you can see you had some decisions to make in packing for McKaden... I think we did it! Now, if we can just get ourselves packed.