Away We Went

This week was crazy town.  Satan tried to get us down and throw kinks our way, but Tuesday night we set our alarms for 2:45am and wrapped up any last minute packing that still needed completing.  We all rolled out of bed tired, anxious and so excited.  Hudson’s complexion had more color, his spirit had perked up and his voice volume was so loud which is standard excited Hudson.  No one grumbled about this early morning rise.  We checked bags and double checked paperwork and passports.  Then my sweet father-in-law knocked on the door at 3:15 and we started loading bags into his van.

I slept about 2 hours.  My nerves were off the hook.  Our little guy’s O2 machine had arrived just in time and we found the missing piece the company left out in no time all thanks to our amazing pediatricians office yet again.  Most of the night I felt like I was just going to vomit.  So anxious.  So nervous.  So excited.  So thrilled.  So sad.  Praying, praying, praying.  Keeping myself busy with a million and one things.

Nashville to Detroit.  We ate breakfast at 4:30am.  Chicken biscuits and hash browns.  This was Hudson’s first flight ever and Solomon’s first flight since he was an itty bitty coming home with us from Ethiopia.  They were the cutest things ever on the flight.  Solomon was his normal chill self and Hudson had nervous emoji teeth and was fidgety and would have bitten every fingernail he had off if he was a nail biter.

The Detroit airport was a sweet reminder of coming home from Swaziland last year.  Our phones blew up with messages of so many praying for us and our little guy.  We rode all the moving walkways and escalators.  I was probably the most excited about the amazing color music tunnel.  Rainbow lights forever.  The kids hauled all their bags and we’re ready for a break when we finally reached our gate.  Then we waited and ate lunch.  McDonalds for the kids, sub for Josh and a salad for me.  I could not quit thinking about our son.  Praying over his heart.  Praying God would allow him peace and comfort only He could provide.  Let him feel the supernatural goodness that is our God.

 

Detroit to Beijing.  13 hours and 12 minutes.  The kids did awesome.  I actually watched just a few movies…The Great Gilly Hopkins (sooooo good), Keeping Up With The Joneses (sooooo funny), Mother’s Day (eh…not my fave), The Hollers (sooooo good) and then a few episodes of Brooklyn Nine-Nine (sooooo hysterical).  Flying into China was beautiful…the mountains were amazing from the plane.

We landed in Beijing.  Went through customs with ease.  Met our guide Cindy who is crazy nice and from Beijing.  Met another family who is with our agency and bringing home their 6-year-old.  Our bags arrived safely which was a huge praise.  I prayed over those bags…thought about laying hands on them before handing them over 🙂  Drove about an hour from the airport to our hotel in Beijing.  All the kids passed out on the drive.  We all hardly slept any on the plane.

After checking into our hotel we headed out to explore a bit.  We ate the tastiest steam buns for dinner just down the street and there was the nicest lady working who spoke english…she was so so nice and helped us order.  She also told me Harper was beautiful.  The smells were amazing walking down the street and all the food looked delicious.  We also stopped in a little grocery shop to snag some water and the kids picked up some fun candies.

Afterwards we headed back for bed.  Everyone grabbed showers and then crashed.  While laying in bed we checked emails and got another update on our little guy.  My heart raced as I opened it because we received a not-so-great update on his health last Friday.  This update was different and said things like his favorite snacks are rolls, biscuits, yogurt, warm sugar water and fruits and that his nickname is “commander” in Chinese and that he loves to play in water.  My heart still raced, but this time because I still can’t believe we get to be his parents.  I still can’t believe God would call us into this journey.  What an honor.  What a gift.  Can’t believe we are finally here.  Simply cannot wait to see our little guy face-to-face and whisper in his ear, “I am your Mama and I will love you forever.”

19 Comments

  1. Jordan Osborne says:

    Praying for you all! I read this post through tears of joy for your family! What an experience God has called you to have, I’m so happy for all of you!

  2. Love. Crying. So excited to see his face in your arm.

  3. I am praying over you Beautiful Family and the heart of your new sweetie.

  4. Oh, this makes me cry. So excited for your family and praying over all the details. I know there are so many layers, but praying the beauty of the moment will be felt.

  5. I feel like I’m there with you all! So excited that you’re SO close to meeting your newest little one!

  6. Caroline Millette says:

    Hi! So excited to read this! Am following your journey & can’t wait to see your sweet boy in your arms! (We met when you came to Bowling Green!) We are in Nanchang; leaving today for Guangzhou. Got our sweet girl one week ago today. Praying for you all!

  7. oNNA WITHROW says:

    Praying for you! I am so excited for you guys and it’s so fun to see you document this journey! I love that the whole family is there to meet the sweet newest Kelley!

  8. This time last year we were in Beijing bringing home our 9 year old son. Our hearts are with you now. Praying here for you all…

  9. Love it all!!!!! Please keep the updates coming if you can! Can’t wait to meet him! I wish I were there with you!

  10. And now we continue to pray and wait with excitement as your posts are updated. One lucky family! One lucky little boy!

  11. How exciting! May you all feel God’s comfort and peace during this amazing time. Also looking forward to seeing your newest little guy with you and learning his name. So happy he’s almost with you!

  12. Love this so much! Praying for you all! What an amazing experience, I know you will soak up every minute!

  13. Praying! This is awesome and amazing and scary and wonderful! And steam buns. Yesssss

  14. jennifer gordon says:

    I am crying! You are there! So glad! That little one is SO lucky! Prayers for smooth EVERYTHING!

  15. Heather Herman says:

    I could bust with excitement for you guys. Praying all the prayers in the world for your clan, safe travels back to the US, and over the health of the newest Kelley babe. I love your handlettered signs & documenting this incredible journey. I can’t wait for your next post.

  16. Aunt Tootsie says:

    Praying for you all, can’t wait to see pictures of the newest.
    What an experience for these children!! Love you all.

  17. Whoa! Couldn’t stop the tears. So excited for you. Praying for safe travels and comfort for everyone.

  18. AMAZING!!!! So excited and thank you for bringing us along on the journey!

  19. This adventure is an amazing chapter in each of your life stories. So excited that your little heart warrior gets to have YOU in the remainder of his chapters! Love & blessings to you through this incredible journey! 🙂

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