China: Day 1

**On our way to Beijing, China**

After 20 months of waiting, paperwork, fingerprints, physicals, notary stamps, money orders, package mailing, scanning, signing, fundraising, paying and more waiting we are faintly on our way.

For those of you who don't already know when I was 8 years old I heard about little girls lift on the side of the road in China. At that moment I knew I was going to do something about that someday. Well, 28 years later we're going to China!

{crazy}

Three big kids ready to go get their little sister!

Two people, nervous and excited all bundled into one.

 

My faithful father comes to the airport with us at 6am.

 Our faithful friend Deb comes to see us off too! And she bought the kids a Starbucks. Sweetie!

 Obwald5 about to become Obwald6! Yipee!

Boarding our first flight to SF from Fresno. Now it is starting to feel real. I think for so long I didn't quite believe it was going to happen. Maybe I didn't want to get my hopes up too high just in case something ruined it. Well that is over :)

I got this cute little pouch made by 31 earlier this summer for our diaper bag. I smile every time I look at it. Yep, it's an obwald life :)

In SF on our way to the International Terminal. Whoo hoo!

The kids each picked out some sort of activity books and/or reading books for the down time and flights. Kirra found these amazing time-period sticker books. The clothes are beautiful.

She loved them!

One of my ideas about making this a school trips as well as a family/adoption trip was to have each kiddo document as we went through pictures and journaling. We homeschool so of course I wanted to add in some learning. You can learn anywhere, right? The best field trip ever!

The kids taking in the sights as they prepare the plane. They all loved taking pictures of the planes taking off. I think we have 15 pictures of planes taking off. ;) And I had to cut them off and pint out that they will all look the same.

We are in line to board our flight TO BEIJING!!! (12 hour flight)

A complementary drink and and some reading...later we found out that this very nice and new book and her glasses were lost on the trip. BUMMER!

Enjoying the in-flight movie...

 Jenna's giant book that she picked. I don't think she read another page after the flights.

  Window shades drawn for our flight that is light the whole time! Weird!

 Seat swapping.

I love this...seeing the progress.

It's a bit sad when it hasn't gone quite as fast as you think it should have. :/

I was not familiar with the skyline of cities in China. There are SO MANY high rise apartment buildings...I mean SO MANY. And I have never seen so many cranes in all my life. At one point there were 17 in one location building more skyscrapers!