Consulate Visit

We got up this morning and had breakfast and then had to be in our room by 9. We actually didn't have to make a consulate visit. It is strange to us, but our guide went to the Consulate for everyone with our paperwork that we completed last night. We all just had to stay in our rooms from 9-12 and if there was a problem then they would call us. Thank goodness we didn't get a call meaning all paperwork was fine. So next is tomorrow at 2:45 Vince, Me, and Zoey go to the Consulate to pick up her Visa and then we are in the home stretch! We spent the afternoon shopping. We had such a great time walking around Guangzhou. Laine I have to tell you that we have had our laundry done at Home of Love and the girl in there asked how you all were and told me to tell you all Happy Chinese New Year. She thought it was so great that we were friends of you guys and talked about how beautiful your children and you were especially. They are all so sweet in there! We also had a great time in Jordans and in A Gift From China, which is a store that proceeds go to benefit orphanages in China. We have had a great time buying cutie pie clothes for Zoey and beautiful Chinese wear for Madison. And of course us grownups found some things for ourselves too. We of course, as you can see from the pictures found Starbucks, I had to have my frappucino fix. We are getting Zoey broken in early with the frapps! By the time she is 18months she'll be going into Target with Aunt Lee saying she has to have a Mocha like her big sister. We ate dinner again at Lucy's, which again was great. Be praying for everyone over here trying to travel home. It's been absolutely crazy at the airports because of the weather. We have confirmed our flight arrangements and hopefully won't have any problems. The snow here in China has caused major casualties and destruction of disastrous proportions, so please keep all of these people in your prayers. The army had to be dispatched to help feed people stuck on roadways for days at a time. We saw them out on the side of the highway shoveling the snow by hand on the way to Guangzhou. It has been a crazy winter storm and a great many of these people have NO HEAT, just like in the orphanages. After the week we had in Nanchang, it has been so wonderful to be here, even though it is still cold. Everyone is sooooooo nice and most speak English or at least enough to communicate much easier than in Nanchang. Lee, we found the Catholic Chapel, Our Lady of Lourdes. We didn't go to Mass but we did take pictures and wanted to share. Only one more day and we will be on our way. Vince and I are dying for some Milo's Tea!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wednesday in Guangzhou

This is a picture of us with our guide in Nanchang, his name is Bruce. He was so awesome! We couldn't have survived in Nanchang without Bruce and our other guide LiPing. He is in Guangzhou with us, but Bruce stayed in Nanchang. Well after going to bed so late we got up and went to breakfast right before the buffet closed about 10:30. After breakfast we geared up and spent midmorning walking around the hotel. It was pouring down rain outside and surprise I have bronchitis, so we walked through the shops in the hotel. Around 1 we came back up to the room to get some things together before meeting at 2:30 to take Zoey for her medical appointment. While we did that Mom and Madison hit the shopping scene. At the medical appointment they took her picture for her Visa first. Then we went next door to see the ENT and other doctor to check her out. Well the chunk weighed in at a healthy 20lbs and everything else checked out perfectly. Once we got back to the hotel I had to go to do all of the consulate paperwork for tomorrow. We voted for me to do it because I had pretty much done all of the paperwork. I tell you what it is so nerve racking when you start doing all this paperwork. Every "t" had better be crossed and every "i" dotted. We got all of that done finally and then hit Lucy's for some dinner. I had a BLT and fries and it was the best ever!!!!! After that we did a little shopping. We got some PJ's for the girls and some dresses of course, and who could pass up "Sqeaky Shoes". Tomorrow we have to stay in our room from 9-12 while our facilitator takes our paperwork to the Consulate. If there is any problem they will call us, otherwise we go to the Consulate Friday afternoon to get Zoey's Visa and then on the plane Saturday morning. YIPEE! The pics are some randoms like Madison in the snow and us and our guide, and then some from Guangzhou when Mom and Madison ventured out today. And you Springvillians notice that I am representing with my Springville Tiger T-Shirt on! Oh and the horrible bus accident that happened, we weren't the only ones whose family's were concerned. Some of the other families with us has family calling their state offices trying to find out information too. Again thank you all for the prayers which led us here safely!

We made it Guangzhou

Sorry to keep you all waiting, I heard that some of you were worried about us being in an accident,but I am happy to say that it wasn't us. We made it to Guangzhou about 2:00 am and tried to go straight to bed. It is almost 10 in the morning now and we have just gotten up. The bus trip was very long, but all in all the babies did great. The plane trip will be a breeze compared to that. We have left the freezing rain and snow behind for pouring down rain and dreariness, but who cares we are still coming home on time! We go this afternoon for our medicals at the hospital and then tomorrow to the US Consulate. I'll try to post some pictures later. We are about to eat something and walk around the hotel some. Thanks for all the prayers, I know that is what got us here finally and safely!

Ok- we are leaving......by Bus?

Well actually 2 buses. They keep saying we tell driver safety first, but that's hard to believe when the roads are iced over. Anyway we are leaving at 1:00 in 2 buses to drive to Guangzhou. We have no idea how long this is going to take, we are definitely in for a LONGGGGGGGGG bus ride. The sun has peeked out a little bit so your prayers are working, now if it would just heat up and melt everything! Once we get to Guangxi (?) I think, they say it will take 6 hours to get to the White Swan, but who knows how long the ride will be to Guangxi, so keep us in your prayers. That 15 hour flight is sure sounding good right now!

IT's looking Grim!

So it's 10:55 in the morning and now the trains have stopped to Guangzhou, so we are literally stuck in Nanchang and they are supposed to get 4 more inches of snow tonight. Our guides are freaking out too, saying "this is very bad", thanks for the encouragement. At least we are in a hotel and have a bed and food. They are trying to get us on a bus to get to at least the next province, because it is much warmer. If we can just get out of Nanchang and then meet up with a train or something, but we have no clue. So basically if we can't get out in the next few days we don't know when we will be home. We have already tried to reschedule the US Consulate visit and there was some conflict there on their part. We are all just like, "I cannot believe this. Of all things to have worried about before the trip, getting snowed and iced in was not one of them." I can't believe now that I was actually stressing over the paperwork. In Vince's dispair he and Madison are going out to have a snowball fight. Me and Mom are just hanging out listening to our guides yell at people in Chinese over the phone across the hall. We'll keep you posted. If you don't see a post for a while hopefully we are in route somewhere that's warmer!

Still in Nanchang

So everything with our certificates and things was fixed no problem. We loaded up and headed to the airport at 2:30. We got their about 3:30 and the whole way there we fought iced roads. We sat at the airport until 6:30 and during that time found out that people had been sitting at the airport for 2 days waiting to fly to Guangzhou so any flights going there were loading these people that had been waiting. We had to sit at the airport for a certain amount of time before they would refund our plane tickets so we could then turn around and book train tickets, yes, I said TRAIN tickets. We came back to downtown Nanchang and are staying at a different hotel, but thank God we have a bed to sleep in. Tomorrow we leave around 3 in the afternoon we think, by train for a 12 hour train trip in sleeper cars to Guangzhou. We have to get special permission from the US Consulate to still make our appointments on Thursday. We have to have their medicals done before our Consulate appointment, so we are all praying that we can get the babies medicals done when we get to Guangzhou on Wednesday. Needless to say, it has been a VERY long day. And who would expect any differently when talking about us on a trip that China would have the worst freezing weather it's had in like 30 years. We told everyone at the airport that it's because they are traveling with us that this happened. We'll hopefully be posting on Wednesday night from the White Swan, but I probably won't get to post tomorrow. Pray for good weather on the train! All in all at least we still all like each other and are managing to laugh about everything. Tonight after getting to the hotel Zoey found her laugh and we have been cracking up at her while we play and tickle her. Madison, God love her, has been a trooper throughout this day too. She is so exhausted she actually didn't want to eat dinner, even dessert. They have some fabulous gas masks in the closets in our room that Vince was going to model for us but we were afraid to take them out of the boxes, hopefully we won't be needing those for anything tonight. Having all this happen today has really been humorous and none of us has really been to bothered by it. The babies have all been great. We were worried about traveling with them and they have all been so good, we're all much more worn out than they are. All of us adults only care about being able to leave to come home on Saturday! Pray that everything falls into place from here on out! Then we can see you on Saturday.

Waiting to leave Nanchang

It's Monday morning around 10:45 our time and we are just hanging out waiting to leave. Checkout is at 2:30 and then we will go to the airport. Our flight is not until around 6:00 so that should be great. Of course with traffic we'll probably be sitting on the bus for a while to get to the airport. We were relieved to hear last night that the White Swan in Guangzhou is not under quarantine anymore. There was a chicken pox outbreak there with some of the other travelers, but apparently it is all clear now. We heard from our coordinator a little bit ago, he called our room and asked us to look at our adoption certificate. Of course out of the three of our names, one of them is misspelled. We both looked at it that day and didn't realize that they had left a "z" out of Vince's last name. So now we are waiting to hear how much we are going to have to pay to correct it. I guess we didn't notice it because we are so used to people misspelling it, we pretty much accept any spelling. HaHa. Hopefully all will be corrected soon and we will be boarding that plane to Guangzhou. Only 5 more days until the Blaszczynski 4 hit Birmingham! YIPEE!