On Our Way HOME!

Wow. Two and a half weeks have passed, I feel like I've known Katie all her life and I've been drinking boiled water (and not eating dairy, fresh fruits or vegetables) for that long. I'm not sure if I've ever mentioned this, but the water is not drinkable anywhere we've been. It either has to be boiled in a hot pot in the room or come out of a sealed bottle. Not convenient! But it's almost all over and Katie will step foot (or roll in her stroller) on American soil tomorrow (well, technically, tomorrow will be like a 98 hour day or something for us since we're crossing back over the date line).

Today we checked out of the hotel after breakfast and a little shopping. I dropped off a couple of bags of adoptive parent supplies at Jennifer's place...extra formula, powdered gatorade, diaper wipes, etc. that I didn't want to haul home. They have a few shelves where they store this stuff and anyone that comes in there can have it. I didn't want the weight going home and hope that it helps out someone in the future making this same journey.

We took a bus to the train station, boarded a train for Hong Kong and enjoyed a first class ride! Uncle Bob would've been in heaven. Beautiful scenery (the weather finally cleared up on our last day here) , big seats and even drink and cookies served to us. In Hong Kong, we had a 45 minute ride to the Regal Airport Hotel where we'll spend the night. Tomorrow, we'll head to the airport around 9am and begin the last day+ of this journey. I'm actually going to miss China. It was sad for me to tell Katie that she is leaving the only country she's known, but I don't think it phased her much. Quite frankly, I'm not sure she was ever outside the orphanage, so every day is such an adventure for her. She is happy as a clam just watching the world go by outside the bus/train/cab/whatever window.

Katie is sitting up by herself well these days and even enjoys playing on her stomach. She loves to take a bath and splashes like crazy. She even has a ball getting her diaper changed. She has changed so much before my eyes in the last couple of weeks. She is a happy, content and beautiful baby. I am so filled with love for her and I absolutely cannot wait until Brad lays eyes on her. She will have him wrapped around her finger in no time. Alex is VERY excited for us to be home, and I just hope that once the excitement wears off, the shock of actually having this baby sister we've talked about so long isn't too stressful for him. I'm sure there will be an adjustment period. I think he'll have fun with Katie, though. She's going to adore him!

Thanks so much for joining us on the journey. Your comments and e-mails made China feel much closer to home, and mom and I enjoyed hearing from many of you. If you haven't had time to leave a comment yet, I invite you to do so. I want to share these with Katie so that she knows how many folks loved her even before they met her. She has walked a thousand miles from the time she was born and then abandoned at the step of a store on a busy street to where she is now, coming home to be part of a forever family in Shiloh, Illinois. As I said many days ago, we are all very lucky here.

I'll update this blog as soon as I'm up to it with Homecoming photos from the airports. Can't wait to see everyone!
Much love!
Lori

First step, Grandma and Katie on the bus leaving the White Swan Hotel.

Katie at the train station...happy as ever!

If you look closely, you'll see the porters with our luggage on carts coming up the regular escalators. These carts were packed with 9-12 bags each! Our guides teased us because we came with 25 bags and left with 35. Mom and I were responsible for 2 of those extra bags, and the 2 we bought were bigger than any of the bags we came with. Good shopping!

Mom and Katie leading the pack to the train station.

Deanna, Shelby and JD excited to be boarding the bus and getting one step closer to home.

A view from the bus in Hong Kong. This is the busiest shipping port in the world, and all of the pointy things you see are giant cranes that move the shipping crates onto and off of the boats. To see the port in person is amazing...

Katie happily played in her new room at the Regal Airport Hotel in Hong Kong. She's very excited to meet Daddy and Alex.

Loading the luggage onto the bus. If you can see a black bag with an upside down "R," that belongs to the Rainey's. All of the suitcases we bought in China basically look the same, so we personalized them with duct tape so that we can find them in a crowd.

Katie is also excited to meet Grandpa Bowen (pictured in book with Alex)...

... And Grandma & Grandpa Tillock, Great Grandma and Grandpa Hayer, Aunt Lynette & Hayley. She's enjoyed seeing everyone's pictures in her photo album, and soon she'll see you all in person.

Good night one last time from China...