Second Day but a Day of Firsts

It is day two of our new life with Gabriella but it was a day of firsts:

• Our first night as proud parents to this precious little girl
• Gabriella's first morning wakening to her new life with us as her mummy and daddy
• Gabriella taking her first full bottle of milk for us
• Gabriella's first trip in a buggy/stroller
• Gabriella's first trip to a shopping mall - hopefully something she will not develop too much of a taste for ;-)
• Gabriella's first trip to Pizza Hut
• Our first time bathing Gabriella

Gabriella slept much better than her mummy and daddy. We had to wake her at around 7:30am (she had been sleeping from 9:00pm). We got her dressed up for her adoption certificate photograph and we headed back to the civil affairs office where we signed that we were happy to proceed with the adoption and we were asked some general questions. We then went to the next floor up where we met the notary and completed some more official paperwork. All in all this only took around 45 minutes. After lunch and a nap we borrowed a buggy/stroller from the hotel and walked up to a nearby shopping mall where we had dinner in Pizza Hut. Gabriella tucked into some bacon and sweetcorn soup. We then had a walk round the mall and back to the hotel for bath time and bed. Gabriella was not so sure about the bath but I think she will grow in confidence.

We join with the psalmist in saying: 'Praise the Lord O my soul; all my inmost being, praise His holy name. Praise the Lord O my soul, and forget not all his benefits......' Psalm 103:1-2.

 

It's offical!
 

 

Gabriella taking it all in her stride, let daddy sort it out

 

Half a banana gone - who looks more pleased, mummy or Gabriella?
 

 

Chauffeur driven shopping

"I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of Him" (I Samuel 1:27)

Today we set off from the Victory Hotel in Guangzhou and our lives have been changed forever, but in the most blessed way. Gabriella Wenyuan Sara Beattie was placed in our arms at the Guangzhou Civil Affairs Department at 14:30hrs and following a short cry and a few tears she has already started to settle into her new family life. We have enjoyed our first day with her so much and already a few smiles have started to emerge from her quite serious personality. We are slowly introducing her to a life outside of her orphanage and will take the first few days at a pace that allows her to smoothly transition into her new family life. Not too much excitement or stress.

We are thankful that she has not significantly rejected either of us, something that we were both apprehensive about. Instead as long as one of us is holding her she seems to be content and feels safe. Although she has not ate or drank too much today she is starting to explore more, watching everything with intent concentration. At the moment her favourite toy is a block of lego which her Auntie Karen gave before we left home and a small jellycat mouse whose shoes she likes to stroke....maybe a sign of things to come :)!

We enjoyed our evening tea in the lobby restaurant and following a short walk around the hotel block it was back to the hotel room, a quick wash and before we knew she was out for the count...had not even time to hardly put her pyjamas on!

Tomorrow we head to the Civil Affairs Department again to sign the formal acceptance form that will complete our adoption.....and then hope to enjoy more quality time with our beautiful baby girl.

 

Us setting off to the Civil Affairs Office This afternoon
 

 

Here she is with a delighted mummy and daddy

 

 

No smiles just yet.......

 

and so to bed

Onward to Guangzhou

Well it is now morning time in HK and our bodies are trying to adjust to the new time zones. We enjoyed breakfast in the hotel and we were pleased to see familiar English cereals. We depart HK at 13:05 and get the train to Guangzhou, China. Journey time is approx 2 hours. We took a photo last night which allows us to say in Chinese "please wait" one more day!

We have arrived :-)

We have arrived in our hotel in Hong Kong. Our travels thus far have not just been hassle free but even better than we could have hoped. Both the Belfast and London flights arrived early. We got great seats on the plane and managed to get some sleep. The transport from the airport to the hotel was in a merc SL350 which was an unexpected luxury! We are going to freshen up and then have a trip into Hong Kong city. First impressions of HK are very positive despite the Belfast like rainy weather (apart from the heat).

here are some pics of the journey so far...

Packed up and ready to go

 the next time we are standing here we will be a family of 3

flight EI036 is ours

Aer Lingus check-in desk at Belfast City

Departing

Disaster closely averted in Heathrow

flight VS200 is ours

The sign says it all

Stephen starting to show the strain already :-)

Driver who took us to the hotel

I wonder if now wishes he had an estate car?

Hong Kong skyline (in the rain)

Soundtrack for our Adoption 'Journey'

There were times during the years of waiting when our faith was tested. Sometimes little moments of blessing would come to us. One such moment came in the very unlikely form of the theme song ("Faith of the Heart") to the Star Trek movie. We listened to the words as we sat in the cinema and were struck by their poignancy. This link is to a version sung by Russell Watson.

Other songs that meant a lot to us were:

"While I'm Waiting" by John Waller. This link is to a YouTube clip version of the song with lyrics. The song was used in the soundtrack of the movie "Fireproof". The wait was difficult and at times we found ourselves putting our life on hold and letting moments of blessing and opportunities to praise and serve our God pass us by. This song helped to give us focus.

"He is With You" by Mandissa. We heard this song in South Tenerife Christian Fellowship Church when we were on holiday in 2008. The lyrics gave us words of encouragement, no matter what situation we find ourselves in, God is always there working out His perfect plan. This is a link to the song.

 

Another wonderful song that tells of an experience that we will soon live out is "So Far to Find You" by Casting Crowns. The song was written by Mark Hall and Steven Curtis Chapman, both the Hall family and the Curtis Chapman family have adopted precious little girls from China. Mark and Melanie Hall's adoption story and inspiration behind the song is found at this link.  The song with lyrics are available at this link.

 

Itinerary

"Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west" Isaiah 43:5

Itinerary week 1

Friday 30 August	Fly Belfast City to Heathrow
Friday 30 August to Saturday 31 August	Fly Heathrow to Hong Kong
Saturday 31 August to Sunday 1 September	Overnight stay in Harbour Plaza Hotel, Hong Kong
Sunday 1 September	Train from Hong Kong to Guangzhou Check-in to The Victory Hotel Guangzhou
Monday 2 September	‘gotcha’ day. Get Gabriella this afternoon at Guangzhou Civil Affairs Department
Tuesday 3 September	Complete adoption paperwork at Guangzhou Civil Affairs Department & Notary Office
Wednesday 4 September	Apply for Gabriella’s passport at Guangdong Police Station
Thursday 5 September	Visit Gabriella’s orphanage in Dongguan

Itinerary week 2

Friday 6 September	Attend Notary Office for notarised papers Collect Gabriella’s  passport at Guangdong Police Station
Saturday 7 September	Free Day – sightseeing / rest
Sunday 8 September	Free Day – sightseeing / rest
Monday 9 September	Apply for UK entry visa for Gabriella at British Consulate in Guangzhou.
Tuesday 10 September	Free Day - TBC
Wednesday 11 September	Free Day - TBC
Thursday 12 September	Free Day - TBC
Friday 13 September	Collect Gabriella’s visa from British Consulate in Guangzhou
Saturday 14 September	Check-out of The Victory Hotel, Guangzhou Travel by train from Guangzhou to Hong Kong Fly from Hong Kong to Heathrow
Sunday 15 September	Flight arrives in Heathrow Fly from Heathrow to Belfast City

Introducing Gabriella WenYuan Sara Beattie

"Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see" Hebrews 12:1

In July 2013 we got a referral for a beautiful little girl from Dongguan. She is almost 17 months old. Her name is Gabriella Wenyuan Sara Beattie. Wenyuan is her Chinese name and we felt it was important to have this as her middle name since her Chinese culture will always be central to her. Her two English names surround her Chinese name to reflect how she will be protected and natured. Gabriella means "God is my strength". Wenyuan means "language and literature" and "a woman of beauty".

We have received our travel approval and have the flights booked. We fly to Hong Kong on Friday 30 August and then make our way to Guangzhou on Sunday 1 September 2013. 'Gotcha' day will be Monday 2 September 2013.

These are the photos we received with the referral. Gabriella is about 12 months old in these pictures

  

 These are updated photographs of Gabriella. She is around 16 months old in these pictures.