last hours in Fuzhou

We leave for the airport in two hours!  It is a momentous day to depart Emma's province and move on to Guangzhou.  A huge change for her, and a giant step toward home for all of us.  We fly from Fuzhou to Guangzhou, Guangdong province in the far south of China.  All Americans adopting Chinese children complete their adoptions here as this is where the American embassy is located and where our consulate appointment takes place.  

The business side of Guangzhou involves a medical appointment tomorrow.  It is a fairly cursory medical exam.  For our family it has a significant difference from when we adopted Anna in 2005.  There are new Hague guidelines in effect that make it mandatory for children to receive new immunizations before returning home to the states.  I'm not sure why some children receive 4 and some 7, but the net effect is that these poor kiddos are subject to up to 9 immunizations AT ONCE.  It is a terrible piece of the Hague legislation, that I have no doubt will be repealed soon.  All these kids get reimmunized upon their arrival home by their pediatricians, and it is done on a staggered schedule so there isn't the high risk that comes with multiple immunizations at once.  We would very much appreciate your prayers for Emma tomorrow: for the Lord to protect her, to minimize the side effects of the immunizations, that any harm would be thwarted and that she would be able to turn to us for comfort and safety.  I feel sick just thinking about it.

After the medical exam, we have to also wait 48 hours for a TB test to be read.  If it is negative (on Monday) we are good to go.  If it is not, I believe there is a course of action, and it involves an extra 2 weeks in province for medicine or something.  We are praying for a negative TB test!  I have not heard of anyone who had a positive one.

On Tuesday we have our Consulate Appointment where the final pieces of EMma's US paperwork are completed and we take oaths on her behalf for citizenship!  Then on Thursday we pick up her passport and Visa and head home via Hong Kong!  There is a very short night's sleep in Hong Kong and we fly out for home on Friday morning...arriving Friday afternoon. :)  Weird.

While we are in Guangzhou we were supposed to stay on (Shamian) island at the Victory Hotel.  The Chinese government commandered our hotel rooms last week, as only the Chinese government can.  In a communist country things happen much differently than in the US.  Our agency made arrangements for us to stay in Foshan (which on the map seems to be a sort of suburb of Guangzhou?) at the Intercontinental Hotel.  It was just built in the spring of 2010, so we hope it is completed and we can enjoy a brand new hotel!  We are gulping at the cost difference, but there isn't really anything we can do about it.  Merry Christmas. :)  We stay in Foshan from Friday through Tuesday morning, and believe we move to the Victory on Tuesday morning.  So we will at least have a dayand a half on island.  

Shamian island is a fun place to be, as it is easy to roam a bit, there is a great park to play at and the little shops cater to adoptive families.  Jim and the boys are very excited for the 7-11 and a slurpee.  I am, as pathetic as this is to admit, giddy for a Starbucks.  Can't wait for a nonfat vanilla latte.  

One week and we are heading home.  Our time is both going by in a blur and at the same time crawling along.  I think we are all ready for Guangzhou. 

Anna and Luke seem to be doing famously at home.  My parents will be awarded sainthood upon our arrival home and we will need to send them on an extended tropical vacation.  Rochester is south of us, does that count as tropical?  Ha!  It is MEA weekend at home, which means the kids are off of school for Thursday and Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  Gogo and Pa took them to ROchester for a few days, and then they are back to the cities for fun with friends.  We have been so blessed by dear friends who are loving on Luke and Anna in many ways while we are gone.  Than you to each of you!  You have our gratitude and heartfelt love!  

This morning consisted of packing and Cooper worked on his homework documentary.  Jim, Jeb, Emmacakes and I headed out for a last walk around part of West Lake.  It is a cooler day, overcast and quiet feeling.  A good day for a peaceful adieu to Fujian.  

SEVEN SLEEPS TO HOME!

Love from Fujian,

Sara