Our Last Days in China

It has been a very busy couple of days so I am finally able to sit down at the computer (thanks to a sleeping baby) and tell you about the final days of our trip. Yesterday we started our day at the American Consulate in Guangzhou to have our Oath ceremony and pick up the visas that allow Ella and her friends to enter the United States (and become a citizen at their first port of entry). While the oath was a single question and over very quickly, I really felt the emotion of that final step to be able to bring her to her new home in Chicago.

After our trip to the Consulate, we headed back to Shamian Island for our final group lunch and more shopping. It was a bittersweet day as we had to say good-bye to our guide, Dear Mary and watch the first families in our group leave. As you can imagine, this experience, like many, bonds the group of people despite many differences. Our girls spent their first months together, some of them living in the same room with the daughters of our friends and that is an amazingly powerful feeling that we have for ourselves and them. I hope that many of us will stay in touch and our daughters will know each other as they grow up (now Bella, I am counting on you to learn Chinese as well so you and Ella can chat on the phone, the good news is that your moms will have no idea what you are saying!)

Rob, Ella and I had our last dinner in Foshan in our room with the Skoog family and are really going to miss them. Luckily they live in Columbus and come to Chicago regularly so I know that we'll see them soon enough!

Today we took the train from Guangzhou to Hong Kong with the Ikenberrys, another really wonderful family that we'll miss. We aren't staying in the same hotel in HK and as their 4 year old, Adam, said, "it would be nice if we were staying together." Rob, Ella and I are at a hotel literally at the airport and that should make tomorrow's travel plans much easier (thankfully). Hong Kong is a huge (and hugely populated) city that is a bit overwhelming but a really cool place.

It is almost impossible for me to believe that our travels and this trip I have thought about for so long are coming to a close. I think I have said before but it bears repeating, the experience of becoming Ella's mother is beyond every expectation, hope, wish and dream I could have imagined. I just didn't know how awesome this little girl would be and how much I would love her. I am so glad that we get to go home to Chicago tomorrow and share a life together, I feel so lucky.

I also am so grateful for Rob's support and participation in this trip and the experience of meeting Ella. In many ways, I could not have done it without him (and wouldn't have wanted to). It is hard to put into words how much it means to me that he came all this way and left behind his job and his family to share this final step to Ella. I wish I could find a way to thank him enough for everything. I'm sure he knows and she will always know how much we love you, Uncle Rob!

I won't really close here. I have one more post for the evening and I will continue to post photos and news occasionally so that friends and family near and far can watch my girl grow. I know there are some blogs I follow all the time (and I see those families regularly).

Thanks for coming along and we'll see you soon!!