on our way back to America!

We leave tonight for our long trip back to America!  We are sooo excited to start this journey!  We fly to Hong Kong this evening, spend the night and then head for San Fransciso in the morning.  We arrive in Denver at 2:45 and It will be the best day to step foot in the Denver airport.
 
This morning we woke early and several of us ventured over the the "real" part of China.  We went to the fish market which was spectacular.  There were tons of live sea creature, sea snakes, land snakes, lobster, crab, eels, giant aligators, turtles and buckets and buckets of scorpions.  It was amazing.  I have to say, that although we were quite the spectacle and the workers all stopped and stared at us, it was the most friendly place we have encountered in all of China.  We had several people smile and say "hello!" to us, which has been quite the rarity here.  There does not seem to be much smiling going on in here in China, from what we have witnessed.  
We are going to try to fit in a quick trip to the natural herb and medicine market which is apparently very cool.  I will post more pictures when we get home, as we are starting to pack up and I'm short on time.

What an AMAZING day for Katie and mommy!

(2nd entry for today)
Oh my goodness!  I have had such a wonderful day with my little girl!!!!  We spent a lot of quality time today and gave daddy some time to play squash and hang out with the guys.  So what do girls do to make themselves happy?  We SHOP!  Katie and I went shopping and every time she saw something she liked she would reach for it and shove it in my face.  And what do you think I did????  I said "WE'LL TAKE IT!!!!"   Yep, anything my little princess wanted today, she got.  She got two adorable bracelets (she looooves jewelry, even more than her mama) and she had me buy her a handmade Chinese doll baby.  She pointed to some lime green with white polka dot shoes........and she is wearing them as we speak.  She picked out all her Christmas ornaments today and had sooo much fun doing it. 
So yes, I bought my daughters love.....don't judge sisters!   Don't judge!  I'm not above bribery!  And it worked!  She was all smiles with each purchase, giving me kisses and lots of grins.  She also apparently really likes mango ice cream.  Yes, we ate an entire bowl.  I have to say that today was about as close to heaven as it has come for me.  I came back to the room and did a little dance.  I did the running man and the cabbage patch and the sprinkler and she giggled, and I cried happy tears.  Thank you all SOOO much for your prayers, because they are paying off.  He is answering all our prayers and my little Katie is coming out of her shell.  She is playing in the playroom with the other kiddos and will walk away from her mommy and daddy, keeping a watchful eye on us.
We have only 2 more full days here in Guangzhou and we cannot wait to get home.  We miss our other two children something fierce.  We also miss our neighbors and family!  Being here makes you appreciate all the wonderful things that make your life in the US amazing.
Tomorrow we take the oath.  It's the oath that we give to take care of our daughter and never abandon her.  I can't even imagine my life without her.  Everyone says the bonding has not even begun, and if that is the case,  what will our love feel like a month from now, a year from now?  I cannot wait, but for now I will enjoy every little moment, every smile and giggle that we can squeeze from her. 
 

Katie lookin cute!

this picture makes me want to adopt another little girl!

Ok, if this picture of Katie and Sun doesn't make you want another little girl, I don't know what does!  I want another little one to dress in Chinese dresses!  Beautiful girls, aren't they?!
(go back to read todays blog)

our family photo

Our family on the red couch.  Go back to read todays blog

pictures in her silk dress

go back to read the blog for today

Katie in her silk Chinese dress

go back to read todays blog.  Lots of pics to post

pic with the giraffes

go back to read todays blog

picture with Panda in the background

Do you spot the panda?  Go back to read our blog

picture at the zoo

go back to read todays blog

another picture at the zoo

go back to read todays blog

The Guangzhou zoo and Katie's birthday picture

Yesterday we went to the Guangzhou zoo.  I was not expecting much, but was pleasantly suprised!  It was beautiful and they had it set up where you had more opportunities to view the animals much closer than we do back in the states.  The kids got to go in and feed the giraffes which was really fun to watch and the landscaping and grounds where just beautiful.  Katie let me hold her the majority of the time (still giving me the stink-eye) but at least we got a little time together.  This morning at breakfast we are going to attempt to put her in a high chair so that we can eat without spilling all over her and ourselves. 
We also did the infomous "red couch" photos yesterday.  For those of you in the adoption world, you probably know what I am referring to.  At the White Swan Hotel there is a big red couch where all the kids get dressed in traditional silk dresses or suits and sit for a photo.  Generally the kiddos are screaming which is what occurred yesterday, but we all got a kick out of it.  Katie was wearing a dress that was about 4 sizes to big for her, but the lady at the dress store insisted that it was the correct size even though it says its a size 6!  Oh well, something to grow into, right?
We all went out to eat at a Contonese restaurant which was amazing.  We ate duck, pork, veggies, some stuff that I don't want to know what it was because it was really good, etc.  Katie ate like Frank the Tank.  I don't know where this child puts it.  She has to have gained several pounds while we have been here as she eats more than I do.
 
We are going to go swimming again later and visit a Christian owned store here on the island that I have somehow missed. 
Katie is definately coming out of her shell a little more each and every day.  She still is not a big fan of mommy and does not want me to touch her if she can get away with it.  Good thing she is so stinkin' cute so I just wait and wait and hope she comes around sooner rather than later!
Kristie

Typical nap time position

Katie loves to fall asleep on Patrick, no matter how uncomfortable it may appear!
(go back to read todays blog!)

another photo

Walking around to help strengthen her legs (go back to read todays blog!)

another picture

Katie's first time in the pool.  (Go back to read todays post!)

Medical exams in China ain't so fun!

It's Katie's second birthday today!  I had a good cry this morning wondering if her birth mother was thinking about her today and feeling so sad for both my daughter and the woman who I am so grateful for because I know have Katie in my life.  The hotel brought us a beautiful cake for her birthday and we took it to the play room and shared it with several other families in our travel group.  One of the little girls sang happy birthday to her in Chinese.  It was very sweet and Katie found it entertaining. 
 
Today Katie also had to have the infamous medical exam.  I am certain that medical clinics in third world countries are infinitely worse, but when it comes to socialized medicine, this is about as bad as it gets.  There was one clinic crawling with hundreds and hundreds of people.  It was standing room only and you had to push and shove to get through the hallways into the belly of the clinical beast.  There was a small room specifically for adoptive family exams and it too was packed with bodies all American holding their hot screaming children. 
I had to do the honors with Katie for her first doctors visit as Patrick was sick all night and all morning and was unable to stray far from the bathroom, if you know what I mean. 
Katie had to do a TB test, as all children over two have to do.  She passed this test, and then on to the hearing test (doctor said "oh my!  Her ears are really clogged with wax!  Can she hear you well?"   Me:  "Nope.  Or she just has selective hearing."
Tried to check her mouth but she was a sealed vault.  Not opening up for just any doctor today.  Then height and weight measurements and then to the regular physical exam.  The doctor took one look at her diagnosis which was Epidural Hematoma and he said "What?  Are you sure this is correct?  Can she even function?"  I explained that by all indications she appears to function normally with the exceptions of speech and motor delays caused by institutionalization.  He said, "I think her diagnosis was wrong".  I actually started to get scared, worried they would try to take her away from me because they suddenly realized that she was not as severely special needs as they first thought.  I told him to feel her head and showed him the large 5 inch scar on her little misshapen skull.  This seemed sufficient enough and he let us move on to the next stage which was the shots.  Thank God that one of the other men in our group offered to hold her during her shots because it was awful.  The shots are immunizations which are generally so weak that many of these children have to have their immunizations
re-administered once home to the US.  As Katie screamed I had to shut my eyes and try to find my "happy place" but the tears just flowed.  I was so angry that she has to have these unnecessary and ineffective shots, especially during such a fragile time for her.  Well, a half a pack of M&M's later, she was happy again and all was right in our world. 
 
We shopped on the way home and I bought several items that are entirely too heavy and I think my husband wanted to make me sleep in the hall. :)  Ah, but how good does spending money feel after a really emotionally tough day???!
 
Katie will now let me hold her with only about 60 seconds of tears and protest, but she will not allow me to rub her back.  She makes it very clear that I am not allowed to rub her back, touch her arms or legs or her hair.  But, she will let me kiss all over her face and will press her cheek to my cheek.  She will push my arms away and grunt at me.  She will allow Patrick to touch her, which is encouraging.  I think we will be doing some sensory testing once we get home and I need to start some education about attachment and sensory stimulation. 
 
We had Katie do more walking today.  She has zero leg strength or foot strength.  She has just enough strength in her hip flexors to swing each leg forward, but its a very awkward walk, similar to a child just learning to walk.  Her fine motor skills are phenomenal probably due to all the hours in a crib playing with a single piece of paper, or some small toy that she learned to manipulate with her fingers.  I also think that her language is probably also at least 6 months delayed, possibly more.  On the other hand, some kids just go silent for a few months and then start talking in full sentences.  This could also be her. 
 
She and her daddy are gently wrestling on the bed right now and he is able to get some good giggles out of her.  We are just so in love.  So smitten with this little beauty that has blessed our lives and enlarged our worlds.  I mean look at me!  I've eaten Ox tail soup and shaved tongue for goodness sakes!

last photos for today

last photo for today.  Go back to read my blog entry for today

another photos, #3

Here is another photo.  Go back to read todays entry

more pictures

Here is another photo!  go back to read my entry for the day

Another great day for Katie!

Today we went to visit a budhist temple.  One of the monks was very agressive with the kiddos.  He meant well but he sure scared a lot of kids.  He grabbed one little boys hands and would not let go even after the child was screaming bloody murder.  The temple was beautiful with georgous red lanterns hanging from the banyan trees.  The banyan trees are georgeous because they have roots growing down from the branches which looks like moss.  We went to a shoping distsrict where I bought a Jade necklace that has "mother and daughter" inscribed on it in Chinese. 
So Katie did great today!  I was not only able to hold her without her screaming, she didn't even put up a fight.  She didn't look thrilled about it but she wasnt trying to escape my clutches in an attempt to retreat to the safety of daddy's arms.  My back hurt like hell but my heart felt great!  I also got her to smile at me several times when I tickled her.  Prior to now, when I tickled her she was a locked vault, a frozen tundra without emotion, a code that could not be cracked.  But today I outsmarted her and I got smiles!  And to top it off, when I was feeding her a rediculously unhealthy partially hydrogenated, MSG filled muffin that she will never again get to eat once we are home, I got her to give me some kisses!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  It was sooooo worth every single empty useless calorie because it made her happy and I got kisses.  Not just the kind that you have to steal.  These were the kind where she tilted her head back and stuck out her little lips and left sugar crumbs in my lipstick.  It was AMAZING and wonderful and the best day I have had here yet!  Of course, I began to cry and had to hide my tears from her. 
Right now she is down for a nap and then we are off to get her Visa photo.  Nope, not the kind where she can go buy clothing.  She is spoiled but not THAT spoiled.  This is so she can travel back to the US.  I have to say that I really like Guanghzou which is such a huge relief because I truly could not stand the last city.  The shop owners here are so inviting and pleasant and most of them speak fairly good english (not a priority, but definately a "nicety").  The food is so much better and the hotel is really quite nice.  The grounds are very lush and green and there are two outside swimming pools.  The traffic is very manageable and the streets are not packed with smoking, pushing, rude people!  It's so nice!  I have to say I am very relieved that we got to spend time here because now I will go back to America with a much better impression of China.  I was worried that I was going to go back with bad feelings towards my daughters country, which would be horrible.  I want to appreciate where my daughter came from.  That is important to me.  Plus, the shopping is great here!  My husband is already drawing up the divorce papers based on all the money I am spending (bought 3 pairs of squeeky shoes for both Katie and Brooke!).  Haha!
I hope to give her a gift each year on Gotcha Day, something to reflect our excitement for this amazing day, the day we first got to hold our daughter.
Oh, and I almost forgot the most exciting part!  She loves bows in her hair!!!!  For anyone who knows my other daughter Brooke, we nearly come to blows every morning because I have an entire drawer full of ribbons and bows and she refuses to let me put them in her hair!  But Katie is my saving grace because she bends her head down for me to put a bow in and then she reaches up to feel that its still there during the day.  It's so sweet.  I just love to watch her look at herself in the mirror and hope she feels pretty. 
I am going to attach some photos from todays outing. 

Ok really, this is the last photo

Katie and Daddy on the Merry Go Round. 

last photo. Katie sleeping

I love this photo.  Katie is sleeping with her bum straight up in the air.

another photo

Look how cute she is when she is happy!  Clearly, Patrick took this photo when I was out of the room!

I think this is my second blog entry for the day

I think this is my second blog entry for the day.  At this point, everything is running together into a big blur.  I am just attaching a few pictures of Katie.  She is "allowing" me to hold her in one!  She is not so thrilled about it but I'm in Heaven!  Take a peek!
 

We maid it to Guangzhou!

Well, we made it to Guangzhou!  I finally have access to the internet again.  Last night Katie slept really well, but the night before was horrible.  She had terrible night terrors and then started to grieve and it went on all night long.  Crying, screaming, thrashing around as if she was in physical pain.  It was horrible to watch as she did not want either of us, even her daddy to touch her.  She just wanted to grieve and cry.  We just laid in the dark next to her and talked to her and cried with her.  I was so sad that my daughter has to endure such pain at the young age of 2 years old.  These are the things that are not right in the world.  Our hearts just broke for her.  And then I got angry.  Angry with her birth mother for doing this to her.  Angry with all the 600 birth mothers at her orphanage that walked away from their helpless little babies.  But then as I laid there, I realized that I have absolutely no concept of what it means to feel desperate.  I have had choices my whole life.  I have had a family that supports me, and access to the top medical care any time I need it.  I have no idea what it feels like to live off of dollars a day or to be young and pregnant and possibly hiding that pregnancy from the world or to know that if I give birth to a little girl my inlaws or my husband might take her away and leave her somewhere without my permission.  I cannot begin to fathom what it feels like to know that my body is not my own, and either is my child.  I have never experienced true desperation, the kind that makes you do horrible things just to survive.  So I cannot judge her birth mother.  I have to have faith that she left Katie out of the biggest love possible.  That she left her knowing that this was her only opportunity to survive due to her medical condition at the time and that her mother prayed for her safety and a better life.   And I know that in a few short days on Katie's second birthday, her birth mother will hurt.  That she will mourn the loss of this amazing little girl that she never had the priveledge of knowing.  I wish she knew that her daughter was safe and now receiving unending love and will be one of two spoiled princesses and one spoiled prince in the Harris household.
 
On a seperate note, we are now in Guangzhou which at first appearances seems soooo much nicer than the last place!  We are at the White Swan hotel which is beautiful and the air conditioning actually works!  It's definately more tropical and humid outside and it is raining right now as their is a typhoon off the coastal area, but its not bad.  The city looks so much cleaner and nicer but we have yet to venture out.  Katie is sleeping right now and the house keeper just brought me the infamous "going home" barbie that has a blonde barbie holding a little chinese baby.  I started to cry when she handed it to me.  And then Patrick started to cry.  Not really sure why, but it was such a sweet gesture and the doll means a lot to me. 
So Katie did not have any night terrors last night. She woke up a few times and cried out and one time jumped into my arms but it didn't last too long.  She seems better today, but still very scared and timid.  She refuses to be put down but will at least sleep next to us instead of on top of Patrick's chest.  Each day we take little baby steps with her.  Most of the other kiddos are doing much better and are playing and interacting, but Katie is still really upset.  I know that someday we will realize that this is all really good because it means that she was attached to her caregiver and that she may attach better to us in the end, but time will tell.
 
I will write more again after we have ventured out into the world of Guangzhou! 

Day 5 in China

Well, today we decided to stay home and do absolutely nothing and its soooo nice not to be out in all the crazy traffic with millions of people shoving and running into us!  We went to the play room here in the hotel and Katie played with Patrick (she was happy as long as she had her back turned to me and couldnt see me!)
But the good news is, each day gets a little better.  Today she doesn't cry when I walk in the room and she will let me sit next to her and she even let me kiss her several times without any tears.  She still wont let me hold her, but last night she snuggled up next to me in the bed all night long.  I didn't sleep a wink but I didn't care, as long as I could smell her hair and feel her warm little body next to mine, I was in heaven.  Then around 6:00am Patrick went to the gym and she woke up.  She knew she was only with me and she didn't freak out.  She let me scratch her back for about 30 minutes and then she let me give her a bottle.  I couldn't hold her during the feeding but she let me lay next to her and stroke her hair which is a HUGE improvement!  She is napping with her daddy right now.  She is still dealing with the night sweats as her infection is much better but still appears to be giving her some trouble.  Her lungs are still a bit junky but each day is better. 

At breakfast she let me feed her and she will also let me change her diapers without bucking and kicking. 
Today is Patrick and I's 9th wedding anniversary and 11 years together.  I asked him if for my anniversary gift if he would let me adopt that little boy with the club feet at the orphanage.  He said I could review his file if I could get it but that we wouldn't be adopting again anytime soon........  My focus is on Katie, but oh how that little guy stole my heart.  Did you see his picture?  His little butt is shoved so far into that bucket he looks like he has been folded in half.  And he was still just as happy as could be!

Our guide helped me find some pictures of my daughters finding spot which is a buhdhist temple near Luoyang.  I have not been able to find any information about the temple in the US so it was priceless to find a picture for her to see someday.

Hopefully tomorrow will be more exciting and I will have more to write about but we really needed some downtime, given how stressful yesterday was on everyone. 
Smooches,
Kristie

We went to the orphanage today

Well, we made it out alive....we went to the orphanage today.  It was truly wonderful to get to see where our daughter has spent her entire life for the last two years.  But.......it was also heartbreaking.  It is a 7 story building and there were over 600 kids in the orphanage, many of which are special needs.  The sleeping quarters were relatively clean and well kept.  There were two children to a crib and it was nap time when we arrive, at least that is what we were told.  Each of the rooms were completely silent, even though there were around 30-40 kids per room and many were laying there awake.  Not a peep.  Oh, and to my Valentia St. crew, I bought a bunch of formula for the orphanage, and they threw in a big plastic blow up bouncy cow for the kids.  Everyone in the market kept calling us "rich" and taking pictures of us as we bought the formula because most families cannot afford to buy that much formula at once.  It's actually really expensive as it was $35 per large tin.  Thank you guys!
Anyway, when we walked in we had asked that Katie not see anyone that she would recognize and we were told that she could stay with one of us in a meeting room.  We also said that no one was allowed to hold her.  Two seconds later her nanny came running down the hallway and scooped Katie out of Patricks arms and was gone in a flash.  We later found us in her "room" with the other 30 kids crying hysterically.  We got to take pictures of her little best friends and they gave us several pictures of her with them.  They also let me search out a bunch of children that I knew their waiting adoptive families (through a Yahoo group) and allowed me to film them.  It was priceless. 
I was heartbroken being in this orphanage because it felt like such a dead end.  A deadly dead end.  The end of their spirit and their futures.  There were brand new babies, only a day or two old, some with cleft lip/palate, some with downs and some that appeared healthy all bundled 3-4 to a crib for the newborns. 

There were others that clearly had sores on their bodies, but most looked fairly well cared for.  There was one little boy that I will forever see in my dreams at night.  He was probably 4 years old and had club feet.  He was beautiful.  He was sitting on the potty pot and he let me sit next to him and stroke his face and hold his hand.  He smiled so big at me and was so happy.  I fell in love all over again but it was horrible leaving him.  I am sobbing writing about him.  Because he is a boy and he is older and because of his disability they will probably never complete his paperwork for adoption.  It KILLS me.  So if anyone is open to a little bit older boy with what appears to be a completely manageable special need, I will totally advocate for you.  I am going to see if there is anything that can be done to get his paperwork done as once someone sees his sweet face, (he is in one of my posts) they would fall in love too. 

Anyway, it was a very tough day for Katie as she cried alot and nothing went as planned.  Then our hired driver dropped us off miles from the hotel and we walked for ages trying to find out way back.

On a good note, Katie will let me feed her today.  She will also make eye contact with me for brief moments.  Sometimes I catch her watching me out of the corner of her eye.  But she is absolutely terrified if Patrick steps out of her site for even a moment.  He had to go to the bathroom at a rest stop and he left her with me in the van and she freaked.  She was shaking uncontrollably and scared to death without him.  It's a real heart crusher to know that I cannot comfort her in the slightest right now.  A mothers instinct is to protect her children and I am incapable of doing this for her.  But I know it will get better.  Enjoy the pictures and may they not haunt your dreams as they will mine.

Day 3 with Katie..........

Well good thing for Katie she's cute!  Because she really really hates her momma right now and if she wasn't so much fun to look at I would end up under the covers in my hotel room feeling sorry for myself.  As we expected, Katie picked one parent to bond to and that happens to be Patrick.  She is truly a velcro monkey right now and wont even let him put her down to go to the bathroom.  Yesterday when all this started and she had completely rejected me, I was really upset and had my heart broken.  But today is another day, and I know that although it stinks for me, it's a good sign that she is able to trust Patrick and is attaching to someone.  I think she is really angry with women right now because its always women that abandon her, most recently her nanny at the orphanage.  So she feels safer with men and is really really angry with females.  Understandable considering all she has been through. 

Last night she was up alot crying and would only sleep directly on Patricks chest.  She also just threw up all over her crib and now will only sleep on Patrick's chest (that puke smell in her hair will help lull him to sleep, right?)

I am completely useless.  If I come within 3 feet of her she just shuts down and cries.  It is very sad but I am truly keeping a good attitude about it. 

Today we went to Shaolin Temple where high powered Buhdist Monks were buried inside the tall tombs.  We then got to see a Kung Fu show.

I have decided that no one will ever have to worry about me packing up my things and moving to China.  Although its cool to experience, the smog is horrible, the traffic is terrifying and people are downright rude and disrespectful here.  Plus the men spit loogies inside buildings on the floor and all the kids wear pants that are missing the crotch and they just pee wherever they feel like it.  Yes, this means in the isles of the Walmart so when I kept seeing puddles of "water" all over the store, I realized it was pee-pee.  Yuck.  I know its a different culture and that I need to be understanding, but when they push and shove to get into buildings and cut in line when I am first to go into the "squaty- potty" its just annoying.

Here are some pictures of Katie today.  Patrick can get her to smile and giggle and play with toys, as long as I am nowhere in site.  Hence, any of these pictures are taken from around the corner so she wont start bawling.  Pray that she will quickly attach to me, or at least like me enough to allow me to sit next to her without her pitching a fit!  I thought only teenagers hated their mothers!  Oy!

Pics from Day 2

Trying to fall asleep but checking to make sure we were still there......

pictures from Day 2

Picture of Katie as we head off to make our adoption legal.  Let the waterworks BEGIN!!!!

Day 2 with Katie

Today was our second day, and it was much like the first.  She is still very quiet and clearly grieving and scared.  She is also still not feeling well and had to have her absess drained again today which was painful.  The pnemonia seems a bit better but the doc said it can certainly fluctuate and she may have a fever the entire time we remain in China which would be a huge bummer for her. 
She loves food and clearly stuffs herself as it appears she thinks she is still on the orphanage feeding schedule.  There she only got two meals a day.  But we are Harris's and we eat a lot, so she will soon figure this out.  Food is never in short demand!
Tomorrow we are going to Shaolin Temple and seeing a Kung Foo show and the next day we are going to go to her orphanage.  Given that she is still very much shut down emotionally right now, we are not going to take her inside.  We are going to trade off so that she does not have to experience any further trauma.  Today she started to panic when Patrick stepped around a corner and she couldn't see him anymore.  Poor thing.
I am attaching a picture of Katie after her first bath.  More to follow.....You know the drill.......it will only let me enter one photo at a time.

more pictures again!

Here is another picture of Katie.  She is doing good as the hours go on.  Still very quite.  Just gave her a bath and she was not a big fan.  We went out to eat and she ate like a champ!  Ate dumplings, beef noodle soup, and rice.  She has a very strange aversion to drinking however.  Every time I try to give her a bottle, sippy cup or even spoon feed her liquid she starts to cry and refuses to drink anything.  Very strange.....
Kristie

pictures of Katie!!!!

 


We have her!  OMG we finally have her!  The year and a half of waiting and its finally here!  It has been a very tough day for our little Katie.  We got her around noon and her nanny from the orphanage brought her in.  When I took her she began to sob.  And then so did I.  It was a big blubber fest for quit some time but we were so grateful to have her in our arms!  Her weight is accurate and she looked overall very healthy.  One of the families in our travel group (there are 10 families total) happens to be a pediatrician and he came to check Katie out and was a bit concerned.  She had a huge boil on her back that was oozing puss.  He pulled out what appeared to be a large bug stinger.  When we got back to the hotel, he and his father (also a pediatrician) came straight to our room and said that Katie's absess needed to be drained right away as she had a bad staf infection which can be dangerous.  We left the room and they did the procedure which was so difficult to do.  We did not want her to associate us with "pain" though, so it was for the best.  She also has a bad case of bronchiolitis and pnemonia and a fever of 101.  She has lots of bed bug bites covering her little body and her skin is painfully dry and cracking (ichtheosis).  Regardless, the antibiotics will hopefully do wonders for her over night. 
So on to the fun stuff.... She is BEAUTIFUL!!!!  I'm not kiddin' either!  She is georgeous and amazing and perfect in every way!  We are absolutely head over heals in love with her and cannot wait until she is not terrified of us.  Poor thing looks up into my eyes and just bursts into tears.  She is really grieving the loss of her nanny.  Her nanny gave her a sucker and she held onto that thing for dear life and it only came out of her hands once she fell asleep.  She finally crashed on the bed and is sound asleep. Before she crashed, we gave her some stacking cups and she had a great time playing with those and they seemed to keep her happy.  We have yet to see her first smile, but we are rootin' for tomorrow! 
My life before her?  It feels so long ago.  I cannot wait for her to meet the rest of her family. 
I am going to attach pictures and of course,  I think I have to attach them one at a time so you will have to view all the older posts.  I cannot see our blog in China as they are blocked in China (so is Facebook and U Tube).
We miss everyone so much and are so grateful for the many prayers as they have paid off!!!!
Kristie and Patrick

more pictures of Katie!

Here are more pictures.  I wrote a bunch about her but I can only post a few pics at a time so go back to the previous blog to see more and read more!

picture of the rickshaw tour

Picture of Patrick on one of the Rickshaws.  Go back to "view older blogs" to see each photo entry.

more pics

For some reason it will only allow me to upload 1 photo per blog entry.  Buggin....  You will have to view "older posts" to see each of the pictures I post.  Sorry!  We leave tomorrow morning for our daughters Province and we get her the next morning!  Pray she does not rip all my hair out when first handed to me!
 

problems emailing the blog

I am having problems emailing my blog site from China.  Things are being blocked.  Ahem.......
We are having an amazing time and have seen so much....Tieneman Square, the Forbidden City, Rickshaw tours, The Great Wall, The Birds Nest Olympic Center, a Chinese Acrobatic show and a Jade factory.  We have also bought a lot of "stuff".  My husband has another term for it  but I will spare you.........

We leave in 16 hours!

We leave in 16 hours and will pick up Katie on the 16th!  We are beyond excited and nervous and are so thankful for your support!  We will do our best to update this site with photos of our journey to bring home Katie Jane!