Kumbum Monastery

Thursday afternoon we went to the Kumbum Monastery. Can you tell Anna Li has been here several times:) The weather was chilly and a little bit of a drizzle. There was some really neat sights to see. We were not real crazy about the smell of burning incenses everywhere. Some of the temples were so smokey I couldn't stand to stay around. We were not able to take pictures inside the temples so you will only see pics of the outside.
This little girl got really embarrassed that we were taking her picture. She put her hands over her face and gave us a dirty look. Then she ran off to find her mom.

It is actually Friday around noon here. Everyone is doing great. We found KFC today (our last day here!!) and a pizza place. We took the girls shopping and bought them a lightweight jacket each and Anna Li picked out some tennis shoes. She tried to get us to buy roller skates but we told her she would have to wait until we get home:)

Our flight leaves tomorrow at 1:30pm which is Friday night around midnight Alabama time (I think!!) Pray we have a safe flight to our final destination in China- Guangzhou.

Dear sweet Colin,

We miss you so much and can't wait to come home and see you. We will bring you a surprise!!

Only 6 more days. Hugs and kisses from Mom and Dad!!!

Blessed with Pictures!!

We were given a CD with tons of pictures of Anna Li during her stay at the orphange. I just wanted to share a few of my favorites with you!!



She is our precious daughter and we are enjoying every minute with her. Can't wait to bring her home!!

Visit to the Orphanage

Today we got to visit the orphanage. We had a very enjoyable time. It was nice getting to see where Anna Li has lived for the majority of her life. We also learned a lot of things about her past. We were given a CD with lots of pictures of Anna Li's stay at the orphanage. They were priceless. I will try to post a few of my favorites later tonight. Chad and I are feeling much better. We were given a Chinese herbal remedy that cures altitude sickness and it did the trick:) (above) picture of our family with the orphanage director
(above) picture of Anna Li with the care givers and children from her family home.
(above) Anna Li showing Bethany her room.
(above) Bethany and Anna Li with one of her favorite caregivers
(above) Anna Li holding one of the babies from the nursery. We were able to get 15 picture of a little girl that is being adopted to give to her new family. She and Anna Li were on the same waiting children's list at Children's Hope. We didn't post her picture but trust me she is a cutie!!

Our Wednesday

Not a very eventful day and no pictures to share. Today we were suppose to go to the Center Square but it was cold and rainy all day. To top things off Chad and I are sick. Chad is worse than me. I am congested and have a sore throat. Chad is miserable!! He is running a fever and has chills. He hasn't ate much today and has slept most of the day. I have been making him drink lots of fluids:)

Anna Li has been wonderful today. She has not cried once:) She has been a delight! Both of the girls did good for sitting in a hotel room all day with two sick parents. I did feel better this afternoon and took the girls down to shoot pool. It is not really pool but it looks like it. It has a bunch of red balls, 1 white, 1 black, and 4-5 other balls of various colors. Does any one know what game this is. We get an audience every time we play. I know they are sitting there thinking "crazy Americans" because we are not playing it right. We made up our own rules:)

We will soon be going to bed. Pray we all feel good in the morning. We will be visiting the orphanage and I am afraid Chad may have to just stay at the hotel.

Good Night or should I say Good Morning..

Adoption Day

Yesterday was adoption processing day and it is finally official!! Anna Li Kate Gray is our daughter. We had a very good day! Anna Li is starting to call us Mama and Daddy and she is starting to take interest in English. She got upset a few times because she was missing her foster father (baba). She will get to see him one more time Thursday when we go for the orphanage visit. Today we will hang out at the hotel and go across the street to visit the center square. Anna Li will be our tour guide and she is very excited about this. I believe she has had a lot of good memories of her and her foster family there.

Some have asked why we have to stay here so long now that we have her. We are waiting on her passport so she can travel. We will be getting it Friday.


The weather here is nice!! It is in the mid 70's and can get a little chill when the wind blows. I am starting to catch a cold:( I am all congested and getting a headache.

Here are a few pictures of our day together.

Our First Night:(

Oh where to begin.....

Yang Li lived with a foster family from 6months to 3.5 years old then returned to the orphanage. Her foster family has remained in contact with her and sees her on a regular basis. Last night we had the privilege to meet her foster family. She calls them mama and baba and she considers their 2 sons her brothers. She is very close to them and it is very clear that they love and care for her very much. By Chinese laws, they were not eligible to adopt her. I am so thankful that they were able to give her love and nurture her into the sweet girl she is today. However, this makes saying goodbye even harder. She is ready to be adopted and start a new life with us but is very sad to leave her friends and family behind. All of our hearts are aching right now. Please keep us in your prayers especially Yang Li.

How we spent our first day

Anna Li really loves to fix hair! I think she has fixed our hair 100 times! She does a good job at it too!! The finished product. Bethany fixed one side and Anna Li fixed the other.
We spent some time playing table tennis and she really liked that. She is such a tomboy!!

She enjoys watching TV as well.. don't all kids:)
Good Day, harder night... ran out of time more to come!!!