Hey guess what? They have great Chinese food in China.

Dumplings for breakfast!

 Fun in the park!

 Is that a Subway bag in Katherine's hand? Couldn't be.

 With Sophie- the greatest guide ever!

 Brothers and sister collecting baggage at 1:00 am.

Here is a glimpse of our last two days:

Went to the park.
Nap time/packing time.
Off to the airport.
2 hour delay on Tarmac in Shenyang because of typhoon in Guangzhou.
4 hour flight to Guangzhou.
 
It's now 1am. Everyone is exhausted but in good spirits. Luke may
never sleep because of a 2 hour nap on the plane.  The hotel is
gorgeous and so clean!  Soft beds!
 
Please pray for Yang Yang (Luke). He got the Krosley cold and is coughing.
We have his medical exam for clearance to enter the US in the morning.
 
Off to bed!

Next day:

The medical exam went well.  We went with 4 other families from our
agency and there were many other adopting families at the medical
office.  Luke was amazing! He went to every station totally relaxed,
chatting with the staff, submitting to the exams.  The last station
was a tb test.  This is where all the other kids started screaming.
They took him into the room and wouldn't let us come.  It was totally
quiet and when they came out the nurses were smiling and laughing.
They said that when Luke saw the needle he said (in Mandarin) "Don't
worry.  It will just be like a mosquito bite."  No tears!
 
We are so happy to be in Guangzhou! It's so much prettier here, very
tropical and lush.  It's like a breath of fresh air. We really needed
a change of pace as homesickness was setting in. There are so many
adoptive families at the hotel. It's almost like the old days at the
White Swan.  It's also good to be with other families in our group.
One of the families we have bonded with a bit more since we met the
mom Angela in Beijing last week.  She is traveling alone.  Her husband
is in the Air Force and they have custody of his two sons, 11 and 16
from his first marriage, a baby they adopted domestically two years
ago and this week she adopted two unrelated boys.  One is Chaoyang
(same name as Luke's orphanage). He is 8 years old with a very rare
skin condition where he has no defense to sun damage.  He is covered
with what looks like black freckles and probably already has cancer in
several places.  He was not prepared for the adoption by his orphanage
and is so sad.  The look on his face makes me cry!  Please pray for
Chaoyang. The other boy is Chaozhen.  He likes his new name Dean.  He
is 14 and has cerebral palsy.  He loves life!  Angela was told he can
walk but he needs much more help than she thought. With 2 boys on her
own this has been difficult.  Rob has stepped in and has really been a
big help to Dean.  What a blessing!
 
There is also a single mom with a 9 year old girl adopted 3 years ago
and they just adopted a 4 year old girl.  A mom traveling alone who
has already raised 3 boys and now has a very strong-willed 5 year old
girl. And a mom traveling with her mother who just adopted a 2 year
old girl named Ruby who looks malnourished and underdeveloped.  She is
the only non-special needs child in the group and she is sicker than
most.  Please pray for Ruby. She reminds me of Andrew when we met him.
 
Kevin and the kids went to the beautiful outdoor pool this afternoon
while I put Luke down for a nap. They had a great time.  Luke is
coughing his head off every time he lays down.  The only way he is
getting to sleep at all is with a little bendryl.  I did not bring
cough medicine because I don't really like to use it but I guess I
should have.  Please pray that he improves soon.  If he's not much
better by tomorrow, I may give him the Z-PAC we brought just in case.
 
Thanks for all your prayers.  We can really feel them!

from Pam via Elizabeth