HAPPY BIRTHDAY ISABEL!!!!!

My Isabel is turning 8 years old today. Enjoy your day Isa and mom and Lily will soon be home. Have a great time trick and treating tonight everyone. Sam and Isa, save me a bit of chocolat from your bag!!! Isabel, the picture of Lily with the balloon is her wishing you a happy birthday. We had a busy day in China. We left this morning for a tour of Hunan University. The buildings were beautiful. It really felt like China. The picture of Lily and I in front of the chinese writting is special. Parents have their picture taken here with their kids because the symbols means respect and love for parents. Lily slept the whole morning on my belly in her carrier. She is such a trooper!! The boys also had fun with Paula's yellow rain poncho. They kept calling Big Bird!! We have our last supper in Changsha tonight. We leave for Beijing tomorrow morning at 7:00am. One step closer to home. Yah!!! Lily is napping so I will try to pack before supper. Have a great Halloween!!!

A NOTE FROM AUNTIE PAULA

Hi Folks,

I thought I would offer up an entry to the famous Lily Blog! You have only heard from Lily's Mom who is biased in her view of Lily and so I thought I better provide an objective perspective about Lily! We quickly discovered that this wee little one has a heart the size of China!! When you look into her eyes, reflected there seems to be the wisdom of all the generations of the country. When Lily offers up one of her gorgeous smiles, it starts at her beautiful eyes and then travels down to her lips - and then straight into the heart of the receiver. She has the most incredible sense of humour and loves to tease - is it possible that she has the "Nobert" gene all the way here in China?! She can also bring you down to earth and humble you with her "deadpan" stare - if we have a stare-down Lily will win every time!! Lily is one in a billion - her personality, her heart, that smile or the way that she looks around for her Mom when she is tired or uncertain or hungry - well there is something sacred and holy about all of it. It is destiny at its best. I feel so privileged to be a part of it. When we started the journey Francine and I talked about the concern of Lily connecting with me and then me being gone. This is not a concern for her at all as her heart is naturally connected to others which will be magnified tenfold when she meets Bernie, Sam and Isabel. The concern is for me!! and how I will cope with not having the daily "Lily Blessing".

One final objective point is if a person could capture the image of pure and untarnished love - one "head over heals in love", one of passion and devotion then that image would surely be that of Francine with her children. She is an incredible woman and unbelievable mother. It has been an honor to see that heart of hers at work and seeing Lily reap the benefits. China is incredible but it doesn't hold a candle to the true meaning of this trip - the completion of the McDonald family and bringing Lily home.

Love,

Auntie Paula

A day off!!

Well, we finally have a day to ourselves, no meetings, no paperwork.....Paula was up early and out for a run with Craig. Lily and I had a nice breakfast with another family. Lily slept another 12 hours. She is an amazing little girl! Our guide Smile dropped us off at a children's store and I had my first China culture barrier moment! There were about 20 salespeople following you around with a basket and if you picked something they carried it around for you. Very nice but strange for me. When I went to pay for my purchases, I was wondering about the price of a box of cookies. Well, the only thing that I could understand on the box was 12 and the lady wanted to charge me 24 so I was trying to ask her why. Well, there was soon 6 ladies around me trying to explain the price to me, all in Chinese. Then, a lady puts a phone to my ear. It is Smile our guide on the line explaining to me that the 12 means 12 months and that 24 is the price. He was with a few families in another province, 2 hours away. They had called him on his cell phone!!! Well, I started to laugh land soon everyone around us was having a chuckle. The funniest part is that the box only cost me about $3 Canadian. We got back to the hotel and after lunch, Lily had her first play date with her friend Mary-Lou. There is a cute play area in the hotel. After,Paula and I went for a walk to do some more exploring. We are now back at the room playing with Lily and we are going to go explore the hotel because Lily is getting tired and I want her to sleep tonight. Hope everyone is having a great week. I included some pictures of our walk and Lily's playdate. Enjoy.

A visit to Linxiang- Lily's orphanage

We had a great day! We left this morning for Linxiang to visit Lily's orphanage. It was raining today so it was a bit more difficult to appreciate the scenery. We had a two and a half hour drive each way in a very small bus. Bernie, your legs would never have fit!!We were the second group to ever be aloud inside the orphanage. We met with the director of the orphanage and the director of the welfare institute. They answered any questions. This small orphanage suffered major damage during an ice storm last February and all the children were placed in foster care. We were suprised and happy to find out that Lily was fostered since the end of February. She was in a home with a foster mother and there was also a 4 year old boy.Orphans who are fostered usually receive more attention than in an institution. I think that has alot to do with her easy adaption to us. We then went to the finding spots for the four families with dauthers from this orphanage. Lily was found in front of a radio broadcasting station. That is the picture with Paula, Lily and I and the director of the orphanage. It was very emotional. We finished our day with a nice lunch and headed back to the hotel. After a nice bath Lily, Paula and I enjoyed some down time. I included a picture of Lily on the move and how she lets me know that she is ready for bed. The thumb is a wonderful thing!!!

A day of discoveries

I want to thank everyone for your nice comments. It makes us feel closer to home. We had a busy day today. We had to return to the adoption agency and sign all the paperwork. Lily is officially part of the MacDonald clan! She is such a pet and a joy to get to know. She cuddled right into me when she woke up this morning. We discovered that she can crawl very well and stands up in her crib no problem. We tried new foods today and she doesn't seem too fussy. This afternoon she had her first bath as you can see she had alot of fun(so did I). All the families in our group have been blessed with healthy and happy girls. All the babies slept well last night(lily did 12 hours) and the parents are all very calm and happy. Hope everyone is well and getting ready for Halloween. We have 30 degrees today!!!! I didn't bring any shorts!!!! Have a great week everyone.

Welcome Lily!!!

What a day!!! It was beyond my wildest dreams. Lily was a bit scared and apprehensive of me, but she quickly warmed up and was giving us smiles. We came back to the hotel and after a quick sponge bath, a bit of congee(rice pudding babies eat in China) and a bottle(it took a few tries with different nipples and heat of formula) Lily is asleep in her crib. She sucks her thumb and seems to have no problem self soothing. I am one happy maman. Paula was a great help to me. At one point she said that she felt like a maid of honour! Isabel, Samuel and Bernie, I miss you and I wish you were here. We will be home soon....

Hello from the Far East

Paula and I are having a great first day in China. After breakfast, we met up with two other families and went for a walk to a park. It is quite an experience to walk around the streets of China. People are very interested in us, especially the youth. They are very nice and friendly. We had a meeting at 3:00pm with Smiley, our guide to prepare for the big day tomorrow. I think we are all ready!!! Tonight, we are meeting for a group supper. Well, it is 4:45pm, but my body is registering 4:45am and I would love a nap, but I will tough if out and sleep well tonight. I am including a few pictures of our hotel and our journey so far. Enjoy.

We are in China!!

It is now 1:30am and we are heading to bed. The flights were great but we didn't get much sleep. The hotel is beautiful! Tomorrow, we have a meeting in the afternoon to prepare us for getting our little one on Monday. We will have Lily in our arms sometimes after 3:00pm. It is so nice to know that she is just a quick 2 hours away from us. I miss you Isabel, Samuel and Bernie. Love you all. Paula sends her love to Jules, Chloe and Maggie. Allo Memere et Pepere!!!!

My next blog will be in China!!

Hello everyone. It's finally here! I am heading to Halifax tomorrow to spend the evening at Jean's and we are leaving Friday morning. Paula and I have a full day of travel: Toronto, Beijing, and Changsha. We are going to be tired by Saturday! I wanted to thank everyone for all the well wishes for our journey. We will keep you updated with this blog. Have a great couple of weeks and Lily and I will see you soon.

One week away!!!

I am getting so excited about our trip to China. The baby stuff is pretty well packed and I keep checking things off my list. I think that I will be busy right up to our departure on Friday. Jules helped me load my camera program on Paula's laptop so I think we are all set for blogging in China. Merci beaucoup. I had a shower last night at our local coffee shop. It was alot of fun and Lily received some beautiful stuff. Thank you girls, I was very touched. Well, I hope that everyone enjoys the sunshine and the Fall colours this weekend.

Lily's update!!

We received an update on Lily tonight. She now weighs 17.6 lbs, is 26.38 inches long and has 6 teeth(4 on top and 2 on the bottom)!!!She is 8 1/2 months, so she seems to be a healthy weight and average lenght for a Chinese girl. Their growth charts are a bit different than caucasian children. Anyway, we were very pleased to receive this information. Two and a half more weeks to China. Yah!!!!

3 weeks away!!!

In three weeks, Paula and I will be on the flight of our lives. I can't wait to have Lily in my arms and bring her home. This week, I finished the nursery, after painting for 2 days. I had to put 4 coats of yellow to cover the light blue of Isa's room. The guy at the paint store told me I didn't need a primer!! Ah well, it's done and looks great. The rest of our paperwork also arrived from China this week and I am off to Halifax to pick it up on Monday. Now, we are ready to leave on the 24th! It is all very exciting and also very sureal. The next few weeks will be to stay healthy,start packing and organize my trip. Hope that everyone is enjoying the Fall.