Wednesday (7/12/05)

It is early Wednesday Morning here in China. We are getting sleep now. I had eight hours! Up early, that's ok! Maggie is sleeping. She woke up 3 times last night. But, went right back to sleep with me patting her back. She was just checking to make sure we are still with her.

Some of the babies from Changsha are not having an easy time. One in our group is sick with a high fever. They think it is dehydration. All the girls from Changsha are 18 months and are grieving pretty hard. One of the girls is starting to come around and her parents got their first little laugh yesterday.

The Qidong girls are doing very well. All are coming out of their shells. We think they all had scabies and were treated a couple of the girls look like they still have them. I am watching Maggie. She has some little bumps but she is not itching them so it could be heat rash.

Maggie is coming out of her shell and is so playful! She giggles and rolls all over the bed.

Oh it is hot here! My hair is so curly and out of control. I just laugh at it! Oh she's awake so I have to go.

Amy

Walmart in China (7/12/05)

When we were done we went to Walmart. Man was that an experience! We were the show! Matt and I almost bought a case of milk because we thought it was water. Ginny our guide thought that was pretty funny. She helped us find the water and the diapers we needed. Oh, our little Maggie wears a size 1 diaper! We bought her a 0 to 6 month outfit and it fits her perfect.

Maggie slept all night! I woke up and was up an hour in the night and then poor Matt woke up around 3 am.

Today Maggie ate so good! Scrambled eggs and congee- we have to stop her from eating too much! She is very good and tells you what she wants. We ventured out and wandered up the street. Watch our because cars, mopeds and people all us the side walks! Everyone is very friendly and says "Hellow". We are definitely the attraction. A group of young girls all came up and to see us all saying "Hellow". They were in some sort of dance recital. They were all so cute! I felt like I was looking into the future!

This afternoon we will be heading off to the embroidery museum and some more shopping. We need to buy Maggie some clothes that will fit!

Thank you all for following our adventure! We love you Luke only 10 days until we are home!

Amy

3 years today we met our daughter and became a family of four. It is so hard to describe how much we love her and how she is a perfect fit for our family. Luke and Maggie are a "normal" brother and sister. They pick on each other, fight, hug, play, and most of all they love each other.

Maggie has grown into a very precocious and at times a very spirited little girl. Her beauty is captured by numerous photos that her father and grandfather have taken the last 3 years. For the many who are waiting for a child I can say that I would have waited forever to meet our sweet little girl and I am so thankful to God for leading Matt and I down this path to our second child.

A Few More Words from Matt (7/11/05)

The eastern sun is dawning, and I've been up since 3, so why not leave a few more comments. Maggie is the sweatest little girl. She has the best disposition and very happy. She went to bed at 7:30 last night and is still asleep at 5:30am...but she had a big day yesterday. Mainland is much different from Hong Kong. The language barier takes a step up. I find my self talking in 2 and 3 words sentences , and pointing a lot (sometimes when just talking to amy). The people here are very nice, and are helpful to all the new parents. We went to Wal-mart yesterday, which is only like our's in name and the little price signs. The smell was bad, primarly coming from the aquatic area also known as the sea food dept.(see day4 photos) How would you like to buy frog legs with the frog still attached....oh ya and allive!??? We had Pizza Hut last night which was good, but not exactly "like home". Yesterday on the bus Ginny commented that there were only 4 men in the group of 16, but that was o.k. we could all carry the luggage, of course big laughs from the other 12. Well that's all I have for now, I'm a better talker than typer (ask anyone).

Matt

We Have Her! (7/11/04)

We are pleased to announce that we have been united with our daughter and Luke's little sister! Maggie is so good. She takes it all in and she hasn't cried once!

Think tiny! Size 2 diapers are too big! We are doing fine! She has 6 teeth and she is working on more. She is babbling and chewing on everything. Maggie has had her first meal with us and she likes Cheerios! She doesn't like the formula we brought. Ginny is running out to get some for all of us.

She is beautiful! She has the cutest little smile and a cute little laugh!

Thank you God and China for our new daughter!

Maggie Day! (7/11/05)

Good Morning! It is 5:30 am Monday morning and we are only five hours away from meeting our Maggie! I have had 5 hours of sleep. I woke up this morning starving. I had some of my oatmeal that I packed. It was sooo good. This morning breakfast starts at 6:30 am. Matt wants to eat early today! We have to see Echo this morning about paperwork.

Last night coming in from the airport it was very dark. No real street lights. It was after 9 pm and there were so many people outside. It is very hot here! The shops were all opened and people were milling about. As we passed by people we were now the attraction. Very poor area we drove up through. So many men outside with no shirts on, children running everywhere, you would have thought is was 12 noon. Couples riding on motorbikes and the women were on the back riding side saddle. We also so a man on a motorbike with a large cart that he was using as a fish tank. In the back of the cart there was a catfish. Did I say if is different here? It is so interesting to see all of this and to take it all in.

Then, we pulled up to the Dolton and the lobby is so lavish and grand and it is in the middle of all this poverty. We were very happy to get in and to our room. I was hopped up on adrenaline again and got things somewhat organized for today.

Today, after we get the babies we will be going to Walmart to get supplies. It is so funny to be so happy about something so mundane. We will be shopping for baby clothes, baby food and baby shoes. For us bananas and oranges (fruit that can be pealed), chips, Ritz crackers will be a good start!

We love and miss you Luke! The day is finally here, we are going to meet your little sister! Big Hugs and Big Kisses are coming to you from around the world!!!!

Amy

We are in Changsha! (7/10/05)

Good Morning to you all!

What a day! We woke up early at 4 am. Called home and then ventured out for a bite to eat! Have I said that it is monsoon season. Well, it was quite interesting walking around and seeing where we needed to get back to and not know how to get there. Obviously, we made it back to the hotel. We hung out at the hotel because both of us are feeling a little out of sorts.

About 12 we decided to go back to the airport and then it was sunny and beautiful! We could see the island. I keep having the Bali Hi song from South Pacific running through my head. We got to the airport really early and man I started to hit the wall. I was dizzy and nausated! I laid down on the chairs and slept for an 1 1/2 and felt great after that! Jet lag kicked my rear and won!

We then met our travel mates and Ginny, Echo and Mandy! Echo is the mother hen! It is great to have them I feel so much more at ease with them leading us through the process.

We arrived at Changsha at 9:00pm this evening. The 75% of the plane were families adopting! It was wonderful. You could feel the energy! I sat by a very nice woman from HK who was meeting a friend from Belgium who was adopting a little girl as well.

Susie Smith: I met a woman named Janet who is traveling with a friend from our group who is adopting. Janet used to work with you in Davenport. Her grandpa was our grandma's cousin! She was at your wedding. She looked too familar when we met. Also, we are traveling with a couple from Mahomet who are adopting and Ellen use to work with Eric! Small world!

Fill you in on more tomorrow! We get the babies at 10:30 am!!!!! Maggie here we come!!!!!

Can you believe that I am not tired! We will post pics as soon as we can!

Amy

McDonalds Tastes like McDonalds (7/10/05)

We just got McDonald's for breakfast and we were SO thrilled that McD's tastes exactelly like home...uhh yum!!! "I'm Lovin' It"

A Few Words from Matt (7/10/05)

Just to be sure this is an unbiased blog so I decided to post a few comments.
#1. The number of stars to rank hotels varies greatly from country to country and city to city. The Regal at the airport, very nice. The Marco Polo is supposed to be 4 star, I'd say closer to an old (unupdated) Holiday Inn. Although at least this hotel has hot water, not sure what was up with that.

#2. Speaking of stars, I would give Hong Kong a 2 1/2 out of 5 stars for places I'd return to. It blends the smell of New Orleans and the noise and people of New York. I prefer quiet cornfields, but this his how we grow....or go completely insane.

#3 It looks like I will be able to survive on power bars and crackers, at least I did for 3 days.

#4 In a monster mall with over 200 stores, why can't I find a sweatshirt? I am going to move to China and open, Matt's Monster House of Sweatshirts, and make a fortune.

#5 Jet lag sucks!

In summary, I am not a good "tourist", and I'm ready to go get Maggie.

Matt

Early Morning Day 2 in Hong Kong (7/10/05)

Early Morning Day 2 in Hong Kong

Good Afternoon!

I just woke up! It is 4 am but I did get about 8 hours sleep! Yes, I did wake up at midnight wide awake and decided to take one of Matt's happy pills. I am so glad I did.

The smells in Hong Kong at times can be quite over powering. We drove by beaches and saw families swimming and then we saw all the garbage in the water. It was very gross!

Driving through the city we saw all the housing. It was so interesting! All the windows had laundry hanging out to dry and it was pouring down rain. All the bamboo scaffolding is so weird. It also appears that they erect buildings and then do no maintence on them at all. Mold appeared to growing on a lot of buildings.

When we went to the mall in the afternoon, the place was wall to wall people. The noise was incredible. We saw some soccer promotion in the mall. It was very funny! They had a big blown up character running around. Some sort of promotion. It was fun! I made the comment about to Matt, "How many people do you think are here?" Matt said, "Everyone!"

The landscaping is so pretty all the lush greenery everywhere. Our taxi driver did say that this is monsoon (sp) season.

The people are very polite and friendly. We really don't feel the culture shock yet. I know tomorrow we will! It will be very interesting to see the differences from Hong Kong and Changsha.

I am very excited about meeting Maggie! I just can not believe we are leaving today! Tonight she will go to bed like any other day in her life and tomorrow everything will be shaken up! I am praying for a smooth transition for her and preparing myself for a rocky one.

I can only imagine what tomorrow will be like. I keep dreaming of her and what the moment will be like and tomorrow I will be living it.

Amy
Love you Luke!

Day 1 (7/09/05)

Well woke up at 3:30 am and got up and surfed the web. We got down to breakfast at about 6 am. It was ok. We wandered around the airport and converted some cash. We really liked the Regal Hotel. It is very nice. Flat screen tv, comfy bed, and we did find English television programs.

After breakfast, we checked out of the hotel and took a cab to downtown Hong Kong. I would love to say we have great pictures of it but it was pouring down rain! The mountains meeting the bay are beautiful! After we got checked in at the Marco Polo, we took the #273 bus down to Stanley Market. When we arrived it looked like the weather was clearing. We even saw blue skies. When we got into the market we wandered around and bought a couple of things. Susie we got Christy’s name for you. Then, the weather let loose! Buckets of water falling from the sky! We then bought another umbrella. I did buy two light weight tops for a total of $5.50.

We left Stanley market at about 2 pm and realized we hadn’t had anything to eat since 6 am. An hour on the bus and we decided that we were not going to be adventurous on our meal. We went down to the hotel restaurant, Gripps American Restaurant. We had cheeseburgers and fries. We aren’t sure if the meal was really good or if we were just so hunger that anything would taste good. We did find two things that are made in the US- mustard and hot sauce.

We came back to our room to hang out for a little bit and to regroup. I laid down and started to fall asleep. Matt made me get up and told me to work on the computer and then he laid down and fell asleep. Ginny, from the ISS, called to check on us and to confirm the time we would meet at the airport tomorrow afternoon. I let Matt sleep for 20 minutes and then we when to the Harbor City Mall. It is huge! There was easily over 200 shops, restaurants plus our hotel.

Tonight we are going to go down to watch the light show on the harbor. Matt has said no way to the Star Ferry! If we go to Kowloon it will be through the underground tunnel by taxi or shuttle.

One thing I have noticed is that the air quality is not very good. Lots and Lots of exshaust from all the buses and cars. I have notice that sometimes it is hard to breathe.

We are very tired and are hoping that we can get a good night sleep tonight! I would love to sleep until at least 5 or 6 am. Tomorrow we leave for Hunan! I can't wait until Monday! Our Maggie Day! We will be posting pictures tonight!

We Made It! (7/08/05)

Hi All! We made it at 9:25 pm on July 8th. What a long day! Over all not that bad! The internet is working and we are beat! Tomorrow we will get up when we get up and go to the Marco Polo Hotel and site see in the afternoon!

Hi Luke, by now you have two presents. I hope you like them we miss you so much! Be good!

We posted pictures. Just look to the left side of the site.

Love,

Mommy and Daddy

Amy and Matt

Today! (7/07/05)

Today, the day we have been waiting for is finally here! We are at the airport and we have free internet access! We are such geeks! It will take us 27 hours to get to our final destination! Tomorrow when you all get to up we will still be traveling.

Look out Maggie Mommy and Daddy are coming! We love you and miss you already Luke! Be good for Jama and Papa Edwards!

Been a long time...

WOW! I can't believe I haven't posted since April. What a slacker I am! Well, for the next few weeks I am going to be posting all of my posts from when we traveled three years ago to China to adopt our Princess Buttercup! I hope you will enjoy the Journey to Maggie again.

Amy

My pants don't hurt!

This morning I put on my favorite pair of jeans and they didn't hurt me! Been doing Weight Watchers again and have lost 8 or 9 pounds - just depends on the morning. This time I am just going to keep going to the meetings. I have been a life time member since I think '96. I am also doing a walking routine every morning. Walking either a mile or two at least 5 days a weeks. My goal is to lose 15 to 20 pounds by our trip to Table Rock this June!

The big thing for me is snacking and portion control! I love feeling in control of my eating instead of it controlling me.

Amy

Spring?

It seems that Spring has finally arrived! The temps have warmed up and it looks our lowest high temp will be 50 degrees this week. It is raining here today and the humidity is back finally. My hair is curlier and my skin is not itchy. Yea!

Last week was Luke's Spring Break and we went to my sister's home in Michigan. I know we went the wrong way! Everybody is heading to warmer climates and we headed north. It really was a fun time together. We took a long weekend over the Easter holiday. The kids had a great time playing with there cousins for a few days.

Luke went back to school and it was such a bummer for him. He only has two more months of first grade. I can't believe it! This year is flying by.

Maggie is growing up so fast. Today the two of us went to the grocery store and just looking at her I can't believe how she has changed over the past 2 3/4 years. She is a fun loving child that wants to do everything herself.

Ok...I will sign off now. Just had to put this pic of Luke playing golf in the back yard.

Amy

March already?

Wow time is flying by! I can't believe we are almost done with the 1st quarter of the year. I haven't posted in awhile so I thought I would give an update. The past two months were extremely busy for me. I wrapped up to big volunteer projects. Yea! Never sign up to do your child's school's yearbook. Huge project! Had some nice Pampered Chef shows and now we are getting ready to take a trip to see my sis in Michigan.

I am trying to gear up my Pampered Chef business. I really am enjoying it! I get to got to a party when I work. It is too cool!

The kids are doing great! Luke is still in Taekwando and he really likes it. Maggie is now a ballerina and tap dancer. She loves it! Today they got to play outside for the first time in a long time.

Matt is doing well and he still makes me podcast with him!

Well that is it!

Got Milk?

So my 7 year old came home from school today. As he was taking off his coat and he asks me the following question, "Mama, do girls, women make milk?"
I said, trying not to giggle, "why do you ask?"
Luke,"Well, someone said that girls make milk...that's not true?" Luke looks at me with a funny puzzled look waiting for me to answer.
I said,"Yes, women can make milk."
Even funnier look on his sweet face. With his eyebrow lifted, he asks, "Why?"
Me, "to feed babies."
"Huh," he questions.
"Because, after a woman has a baby her body produces milk for the baby to eat," keeping my answers simple.
Questions keep coming, "Where does the milk come out?"
Me,"Out of her breasts."
"What,how does that work," Luke replies.
"The mother puts the baby to the breast and the baby eats," I reply, keeping it light but, wanting the conversation to end.
Luke,"ahhh, did I do that?"
Me,"Yes."
He leaves the room. I am off the hook.
Luke returns 10 to 15 minutes later and asks,"How?"
"How what, honey?" I reply.
"How does it work, your body and the milk?"

Now we are into the science part of the discussion. I then go into an abbreviated version of how a woman's body creates a baby and when the baby comes out that the body says time to feed the baby and it makes milk. Luke was so surprised by this fact. It was very funny to see his reactions to my answers. I wish I could have had this on video.

He is such a cute kid and I know he thought that there is no way that girls make milk. It really is a new twist to...Got Milk!