Homeward Bound TOMORROW!!!

Tomorrow we start our journey home to the US - a day that cannot come soon enough.  We are so ready to get home, to bring Caleb back with us and to start our new life as a family of 5.  My heart is in pieces, as it has been far too long since I've hugged an kissed my biggest babies.  My arms ache for them, much like they were aching for Caleb all those months leading up to this trip.  At this point, it's almost hard to even talk to them over FaceTime.  I see their faces and fall apart.  I just want to go home.

Our journey home starts around 7AM, when we will meet our guide in the lobby and head to the airport.  We will catch a flight to Beijing, have a short layover there, then board to very long flight back to the USA.  We will fly back into Detroit and go through customs there before loading that precious plane for our final flight to Raleigh/Durham.  Because of the type of US Visa Caleb has, when we land in Detroit and he put this sweet feet on the ground, he becomes a US Citizen!  How awesome is that!!!  It'll be another unending, very long and draining day, but at the end....

THESE TWO!  I can't WAIT to get my arms around THESE TWO!!!!!

In the meantime, here are few pics from our time here:

 Our first night with Caleb.  We didn't know what to expect, so we decided to play it safe and just order in pizza at our hotel.  Yep, Papa Johns in China!  It was pretty good too!!!

We rented a paddle boat at the park across from our hotel.  This was a lot of fun!

On the 24th, we had to go back to the Civil Affairs office to finalize the adoption.  We had to answer questions and take an oath to care for Caleb, to never abandon or abuse him, for the rest of his life.  Gladly!

One day, as Jodie napped, I was reading and Caleb was playing with his toys, being a silly boy in our room.  Then, he climbed into this chair and fell asleep!  It was so funny to me!

These are just a couple of sweet moments that I will forever cherish.

Thanksgiving Dinner - with new friends, turkey, dressing, pie......can't you see it!?!?

Tonight, as we lay our heads down for one more sleep in China, we are forever changed.  This journey has rocked me to my core.  We have seen things and been taught things that we can never unsee or unlearn.  We have made friends that will be life long friends.  As we head home tomorrow, pieces of our hearts will stay here and others will spread all over the US as our new friends begin their journeys home in the coming days.  We leave China, already knowing that we will be back again. “We [have] learned that orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names. They are easier to ignore before you see their faces. It is easier to pretend they’re not real before you hold them in your arms. But once you do, everything changes…” – David Platt, “Radical”

Good night, friends.  See you soon!