Let's Review

For those of you who come here for the pictures, here is our week in review. As you can see Max is settling right in! It was a week of
Making Easter Eggs!



Carousel Riding


Going to the Zoo and meeting Auntie Di




Hitting the Children's Museum


and seeing first snow!

Home a Week

I cannot believe that we have been home a week - where has the time gone?! Max has settled in rather nicely and we are thrilled. Things have gone easier that we thought it might be. Now don't get me wrong - it is not like we walk around here singing "the Hill are Alive with the Sound of Music" ... oh, there is screaming that makes me glad our neighbors are not close [this kid can throw a temper tantrum!], there is singing of the part english part chinese version of Jesus Loves Me and there is laughter and yelling. The kids seem to be sleeping ok, but are still going to bed toooooooo late. They get along better every day and find things that they both like to do. We have ventured out to the zoo, shopping, resturants, church, Lori's work and to friends homes. We are still an on the go family, and Max LOVES it! Today when he saw we were going out he not only quickly put his shoes on, but went and got my purse for me. With all this running around there is still lots of time for cuddling, reading, rocking, eating and all the bonding stuff. I promise to get some pictures up soon - maybe after we hit the Children's Museum tomorrow ...

Life with us

Max is doing great adjusting to life with us. He is a great little guy and seems to like to be on the go - that is a relief! Both kids still find ways to argue over the same toys ... I know it is normal, but it drives me crazy. We are all doing a great job sleeping and have fallen, already, into a routine. I want to thank you for all of your prayers! I know that this transition has gone easier because so many of you are praying for us and Max. Last night we went out to dinner at one of our regular places to eat and Max acted like he does that all the time. Mark and Max both got haircuts after dinner - he was looking a bit scruffy - and he was a champ. McKaden is still adjusting to having someone else in the house, shared attention from us and sharing toys. You can pray for her - although we think she has done remarkably well. Here's to life at home!

Time Flies

Sigh ...

Home Safe and Sound

Hi everyone! Sorry that it has taken so long to post - no good excuse except I needed to charge my camera battery. We had an uneventful trip home, which is great news with 2 three year olds! When we were leaving Guangzhou, heading through the heightened security, Max decided that he had to go potty. There was no bathroom around and he SCREAMED ... every eye was on us. We guess that people thought he did not want to go with us, but he just had to go potty. Max is completely potty trained and the thought of wetting his pants was scary to him. That, my friends, was the worst part of the trip. On Max's first flight he took a snooze ...

On the second flight he ate, slept and pushed every button ...


When we arrived in the good old USA he rode around like he owned the place. Our new US citizen!

Really, the kids did great - it seems we have TWO great travelers now. We all slept most of last night - still trying to figure out how that happened. It is just after 9p now and Max just went to sleep and Mac is watching her movie [oh yes, the pony one again]. We hope that we all quickly adjust to the time change. So far, so good. The kids are doing fine, most of the time. They fight and bicker like most siblings and play and have fun too. We will keep you posted on our adjustment back to home life. Good night.

Good bye, China

Well, it is finally (and quickly) here. . .we are up at 4:30 tomorrow and off for a long time of travel. We will gain almost a day as we travel, even though it will take us something like 15 hours to get home. Can't say I'm looking forward to being trapped in an plane seat tomorrow. . .by the way, what size person DOES actually fit comfortably in that space!
This is Mark tonight, often we have co-written these blogs here from China and Lori almost always does them from home. I just want to brag on my wonderful wife. It is truly with so much of her labor and love we were able to bring Max home. She did a truly amazing job seeing the paperwork, financial piece. . .well, just about everything if I am to be honest. You all know her to be a very organized, put together person. This is true, but she is also a very great mom and our kids both love her like crazy (as do I). Her hard work and diligence resulted in our final piece coming together as Max got sworn in and has his Chinese passport and can now leave the country.
Adding Max to our family has been awesome and also challengin as any parent can attest to. As the week has progressed he has become more and more free to be himself and seems pretty comfortable in our family. He laughs a lot and there is no way not to smile when he breaks out that crooked tooth, dimpled laugh. He gets frustrated easily and complains/cries loudly when he is upset or doesn't get his way. He also calms right down immediately. He is rough and curious and a crazed button pusher. Sometimes already those buttons are are nerves, but we wouldn't have it any other way. We already love him like we've known him forever. It is hard to wonder what he is thinking in his quiet moments. . .tonight after he went to bed, it wasn't his customary routine. I've spent about 10 hours this week laying in bed, listening to him jabber, sing at the top of his lungs, yell and laugh, etc. until he finally goes to bed. But tonight I heard him sniffling and when I went to see what was up he was just fighting back tears; that definitely isn't his style. In that moment I was reminded that although I'm sure he is having fun and feeling very loved and right in the middle of everything; there has to be a huge sense of loss and wonder if that could happen again. . . Even in this wonderful event and time, there is still a lot to be said for the tremendous change in his life, habits, and relationships as well. I'm definitely rambling, but you can all pray for Max and his process.
Thanks for keeping up with our journey, we have very much enjoyed hearing from people. We'll see you on the other side of the big pond!!

March Madness

March Madness is upon us!
Oh wait, you were thinking basketball - we were thinking the Twin Tornado's!! Watch out as they are coming to a Northwest city in a couple of days. These two 3 year olds can take apart any room in a matter of minutes, they can cause a perfectly nice dinner to go awry, all while making you laugh so hard you almost split your side. They are fast, so you must stay one step ahead of them at all times. Since they both speak Chinese -McKaden I guess speaks it now?? - they will not always respond to you when you call. They do give some powerful kisses and hugs and are known to melt you heart with a single glance. Watch out USA, here they come!!

The Fish Market

Our new friends, Amy and Stephan, took us across the bridge to the fish market ... talk about a great experience .. we loved it! Just a few minutes walk from the hotel is the area of town where they sell all kinds of seafood, alligators, insects, snakes and other delectable treats. Take a look at some of the things that the Chinese eat - it is not for me, but to each his own. The kids loved it and it was an eye opening experience. To get a close look at the picture, click on it. Crazy stuff!

The Zoo

Last time we went to the Guangzhou Zoo, McKaden slept through the whole thing. You will have to remember that she was just 11 months old at the time! She and Max took the zoo in and loved it. The weather was hot and humid so we did the quick tour - but hit the highlights. This zoo is not- how should I put this- very habitat friendly. The animals are mostly in cages, or like the elephant, on a big dirt hill looking at us. I cannot say that this is the most safe zoo in the world! We did see a lot of animals - some we were familiar with and some we were not. We stopped at a local dumpling restaurant for lunch and home for naps ... we are tired!

The Red Couch part one

Today was the group photo and the red couch photo. We did not take the time to dress the kids in their traditional clothes as we were soon to leave for the zoo. We had three boys and three girls in this group of kids. Max is the oldest at a whopping 3 years old - Hudson is right behind him at 2.5 [but is much bigger!] Kaleb is about 20 months or so [and so little!]. We added some girls to the group and they are all younger than the boys. How wonderful that these kids have loving homes now - their lives are forever changed, as are ours. A week or so ago these kids did not have much of a future and a family was missing a child .. today we are all together. God is amazing in how he puts families together.

Medical, paperwork and play

Good morning friends and family! We are on the homestretch now and finished up all paperwork and Chinese adoption appointments today. Lori took Max to his medical appointment where everything was just fine. He did not cry and laughed and entertained the doctors. The exam is really no big deal - they just make sure they can hear, see how much they weight [almost 30 pounds with his clothes on], take their temp and check their little bodies over. While they were at the medical exam Mark and McKaden had a little Daddy Date - Starbucks, playing animals and computer time for McKaden. Max and Lori made their way slowly to Starbucks, shopping along the way. Once they got to coffee they were surrounded by young children speaking to them in english. There were from the international school and they were on a scavenger hunt - they had to ask your name, your favorite color and sport. While surrounded by about 15 kids out of Starbucks came Mark and McKaden! It was fun to talk with the kids, McKaden included, and help with their homework. After that we strolled the island and visited the playground.


During naptime Lori went to finish the last of the paperwork for the adoption - WooHoo! Evening time was playroom and out to dinner with the families who have joined us to finish their adoption with the consulate appointment. We have gone from two families to six - the mini van to the bus. Our night was finished with ice cream and a lot of laughter. McKaden even asked if she could sit by her bother - now that is progress. They continue to ride around in the stroller together - thank goodness I brought the Maclaren as the chinese strollers would not stand up to their weight! Max usually sits on the bottom and McKaden sits on his lap, he wraps his arms around her and she holds on to him .. it is SO cute!

Heed the warnings

China is filled with signs to tell you what you can and cannot do. A lot of the ones around here are also translated into English, if that's what you want to call it. Today we ventured out to a Children's amusement park. McKaden was excited when she found out we were pretty much the only families there. It's hard to get away from people in China; today we found what might be the most empty place in China. Anyhow, after a quick ride on the Merry Go Round, we ventured to the next ride, called something like the Swinging Viking. There was a sign next to it, translated in English, but we didn't read that sign. After less than 10 seconds on the ride, every kid was scared and Max was terrified. We asked the guy to stop the ride, so we could all get off. Since there was nobody there; it was no problem. Later we read the sign that stated the ride was for children over the age of 6. Parenthetically, it also said the ride was not for those who were "psychotic or drunk" (that is verbatim!). The good and bad about this is that we were able to comfort Max. The bad was that he was terrified the rest of the day. The only ride he wanted was the stroller. He even wanted all the buckles and harnesses on later in the morning. (It is a great thing we didn't go to Hong Kong Disney afterall).



After a quick lunch of McDonalds (McKaden's request), we headed back for naps and playtime. Max seems to be fine now and McKaden wants to go back to the amusement park. Max really has connected with Lori and even gets teary when she is not around or runs a quick errand. McKaden is doing okay as a big sister, although she mimics Max to get the same attention as Max, who is usually slyly getting in trouble. He continues to get louder each day and loves to sing. It is awesome to hear him sing "twinkle, twinkle little star". McKaden even says she loves his voice. For you dads, it has been a sad few days, as McKaden has gone to the "Little Pony" stage. . .Today she asked out of the blue, "am I still 3" because lately everything she does she says is because "3's do it". Today she asked this because we asked how she enjoyed being a big sister. As we write this, McKaden is long asleep and Max is sitting up in bed behind us, jabbering in Cantonese and singing like crazy. Tomorrow is more paperwork and Max's medical appointment.
Lori is still coughing like a 30 year veteran of the mines. . . you can still pray for that. Max seems to have either an infection in his mouth or several visits to the dentist coming up. . please pray for that as well. We do have him on antibiotics for this. Pray for McKaden that she can feel secure in her place in our family. Thanks for all your comments and prayer!

Finding our groove (a bit)

Today was a much improved day for our little family. Max and McKaden actually spent time playing and laughed a lot together. Of course, there was also the typical brother and sister spats, but it was fun to see them giggle hysterically together. We definitely had more laughter together today as a family. Lori is feeling better today, the family we are traveling together with and our guide, Rebecca are a lot of fun. Mark and McKaden also got to go swimming today during Max's nap (although the water was about 50 degrees).
This morning ourselves and our new friends from Oklahoma traveled to a mountain in the heart of Guangzhou city. We rode a gondola up to the peak and did some activities at the top. First we got to observe a bird show which was a cross between fascinating and very late night TV. We saw birds ride little bikes, shoot some hoops, and take money out of people's hands in the stands. We then proceeded to what's called the "bird cage". It is an enclosed huge area with rare and exotic birds that are in there with you. This was a test of Lori's fear of bird flu, germs, mosquito's, etc, etc. We got to see the haze of the city from a great vantage point, but the view was actually pretty cool. We then had a great lunch at a noodle restaurant near the top of the mountain. McKaden was fascinated by the way they made the noodles - you can watch them through some glass. After watching for a few minutes the ladies waved to her and she waved back - everyone smiling. We are kind of a show everywhere we go - as Rebecca says, "you take pictures of the flowers and the people take pictures of you." I'm not sure the casual reader of the blog understands that there are about 12 million people in this city or its suburbs. People and pollution are constants here, so anywhere we go, there are quite a few people there with us.
Max found his voice today. He often speaks in soft tones and just says what you say to him. But this afternoon and tonight, he was full on loud and was even walking around with a new little swagger. A highlight of the day for him I'm pretty sure was the ice cream that he alternated between eating and spreading over every inch of his clothes and face. We used some of our excellent parenting skills by feeding our kids hot dogs and ice cream for dinner ... we know, we are really getting good at this! Max was in heaven and it was both funny and heartwarming to watch him try to eat the hot dog and ice cream at the same time - and oh so messy. It's interesting that he tries to everything that McKaden tries and even shares his food/snacks and toys with her, too. He also wants to take his backpack on whenever we leave the room and runs to get McKaden hers too. McKaden had a great day with Max and she also LOVES our travel guide, Rebecca. She loves being with her and Rebecca is awesome with her. We are going to the childrens park - merry go rounds and things like that in the morning - and McKaden echos Rebecca in saying that "she cannot wait"!
Please continue to pray for Lori, as even though she is showing improvements, she is still not well. It is Thursday night here, which means it is a week until Max is home!!
Well it is night here and McKaden is asleep and Max is in his bed singing to himself ... a sweet sound. Good night and remember that God is good ALL the time.

Did we really earn our parent license. . .

Sometimes I don't know how we got here. . parents of two. We found ourselves laughing at (I mean "with") each other often today. It really came to our attention when we looked at each other across the table at lunch just as Mark reminded Max for the infinity time to "get your hands out of your pants", while sporting a fresh black pen mark running down his face courtesy of Max. Meanwhile Lori tried to balance getting McKaden to take a bite of food and then would turn around and Max would have eaten a whole plate of food. Balancing trips to the bathroom, complete with the requisite challenges of Chinese facilities which often don't have a western toilet, while also serving as judge and jury in regards to whose turn it is to play with a tiny $.02 plastic animal, also trying to discipline/redirect a child who doesn't understand a word you say. . well, you get the picture. I'm sure we'll get better. .
Today we had an appointment at the police station to apply for Max's passport and did a quick shopping trip. Otherwise we were around the hotel or Shamian Island taking walks. We spent a lot of time in the playroom today and had a good time getting to meet some other adoptive families and hearing their stories. Max is definitely starting to feel like he can be himself. He likes to mimic McKaden and do what she does. Bless her heart, she is also trying to figure out her place in this new situation. Max laughed a lot today and also pushed the envelope a lot today. He definitely already wants to find out where the boundaries are.
Max is a fun kid and has a great laugh and smile. He speaks softly most of the time and really doesn't speak much. He is learning words like "daddy, Mama, Max" and will usually try to say what you ask him. He doesn't seem to understand "no" so well yet. He is an active kid who runs and jumps and likes to play a lot. He loves to try to dribble the ball. We found out at dinner last night he is terribly afraid of dogs. Mark saw a dog wandering through the outdoor restaurant we were in and brought it to Max's attention and Max went postal (can I say that?) He must have had a bad experience with a dog somewhere. He has some health concerns and it looks like at some time he took a bad fall on his front teeth. He has a chipped tooth, a dead tooth, and some very infected gums. He will be a great project for our dentist. Max is potty trained and is awesome about helping clean up, taking his clothes on and off, keeping things in order, etc. You can get frustrated with him, but his smile melts you. He loves it when all 4 of us are together and gets concerned when we're not.
The Lori health update: things are getting better. We're down to about 4 or 5 hours of coughing at night and got about 4 or 5 hours of sleep. She is feeling much better, but not out of the woods yet. Thanks for your prayers! Feel free to ask questions to us - we can see you comments and sometimes forget what you really want to know.
Now is the time of the night when we think we have this all down. The kids are both in bed. Another day complete.

He's definitely boy!

Today the major order of business was going to the Civil Affairs office. As of today, Max is officially our son in the eyes of the government here in China. We had to promise to never adandon him, etc. and to answer general questions. It was a great day! We also did two things we would never do where we live - we went to Walmart and ate at KFC ... as they say, "when in China".
McKaden has as combination of fascination and concern about the lack of safety here. .. she had so many comments about the lack of seatbelts and carseats as we travel about the city, as well as the lack of helmets for the 5 million people on bikes, and the general free for all that the roads present here. She has been pretty accepting of Max in what has to be hard for her.

Max showed us today that he is a boy after all. He has a mischevious smile and side that came out today in many ways. He seems to feel much more at home to be himself, which is great. He also seems to really be happy today. This morning after breakfast we were all walking holding hands and he looked up and gave us the biggest smile. One thing I will add, is the boy loves to eat. You have to cut him off at every meal, or he will just keep going.
For those who want more specific info here we go - Max seems more like 2 than 3 - he is much smaller than Mac and does not even fit in 2T pants - so a shopping we will go. Lori is feeling better - the pollution has not made getting over bronchitis easy. We joke that she is like the knight in Monty Pythons Holy Grail ... "it is mearly a flesh wound". McKaden is hanging in there and still claims to like having a brother. Mark is feeling like he might be getting sick - so bring on those prayers!
Thanks for all your responses; we love getting them!

To all a good night

So if you were wondering how the night turned out ... first bath!

A Ponyland Video [not sure that was Max's choice] and sweet dreams.

ps they went to bed at 830p and we went to bed at 9p!

Meeting Max

What a roller coaster ride of a day! Last night would fall under the "brutal" category. Lori's sickness has worsened and she spent almost the whole night coughing. I think we got in a good two hours of sleep last night. Just as she was winding down, McKaden woke up at 4:00 and was wide awake. Lori went to the "doctor" this morning. There is actually a walk in clinic in the hotel. A large bag of medicine later, Lori was back in the room with about 6 medicines to take a day. You can all pray for her as this combo of no sleep and being really sick has wiped her out.
We met another adoptive family for lunch and then met with our adoption liason, Rebecca. She is awesome; very fun and competent. We then left in a van to meet Max. It is a very different experience for us this time. For one, last time we traveled with several families the whole time. This time we were the only family in the van. It is also very different adopting a 3 year old rather than someone less than one. We were very prepared for a difficult day due to the fact that he is bound to be attached to his care givers, which is actually a very good thing. Today proved to be a tough and utterly amazing day all at the same time.
We met Max at the civil affairs office. With our adoption of McKaden, we had our travel group and they quickly brought the babies in a couple minutes after the other. This time we had time to really spend with Max. It was so cool to see him; he is a cute (he'll hate me for that description several years from now. .) little guy. McKaden and I almost missed the grand entrance as she had to use the facilities. Rebecca came yelling at the bathroom door, so we got there just in time. A couple of his nannies from the orphanage came with him and it was very obvious they care very much for him and he is close to one of them. That was great to see. It was such a surreal, special thing to see McKaden and Max meet; she was a great older sister today and he loved the toys that she picked out. Our initial meeting was very smooth as he played with all of us and with Mac. He liked the snacks we brought and things were going smoothly. But then his nannies had to go and he melted down. We both anticipated this and prayed through our response and just to understand how difficult this really is for a 3 year old to be in such sudden transition. He went crazy and was the loudest wailing kid in the room. His athletic future looks good with how strong he was trying to break free to get back to his comfort. He had a hand oustretched and was just wailing.
We managed to get him back in the van and eventually he calmed down a bit. When we got back to the hotel we played in a room they have at this hotel, which has a lot of toys in it. We then came up to the room and played for awhile and then had pizza. He started to flash his awesome, dimple filled smile several times as we played, but the real joy came when he had his first pizza! The boy does like his food. We had a great meal in our room and now McKaden and Max are taking a bath. As far as we know, this is his first bath, as he has had showers.
We are so appreciative of this wonderful new addition to our family. He is an adorable kid and we feel that God has so orchestrated this and gone before this, that we have felt a lot of joy today. Thanks for all your prayer and support in so many ways. Max is awesome!!!!