Hope & Scott in China!!!!

Hi, this is Stephe, Hope's partner in crime! Kidding! I am one of her fellow Precious Pandas from the January DTC group!!! Since China is making it hard on bloggers to post, I am posting for them.

Email from Hope:
Okay, here is the message I tried to post last night when we got in! It was like 12:30 pm here when we finally got to our hotel... we were in bed at like 1:30 and up by 5:30. Gonna crash hard tonight!! We get our baby tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Will post more later!!

Hey everyone, I just took an Ambien so I might not last long! But we made it, our AST flight landed at 10:00 pm Friday here in China which is am. Our whole group is exhausted and we are in our fabulous hotel!! The Grand Millennium in Beijing!! It is very nice and cozy. I have to admit I am a bit home sick but know that we are so close our little Izabelly so, tonight and tomorrow night and life will no longer be the same and praise the Lord!! Love you all but will write more when I find my brain! Stephe, I have lots of packing tips for you. We have shampoo, shower gel, toothbrush and toothpaste, q-tips... okay my pill is making me swurlly so I'll try to post more tomorrow. Got to go to sleep. Love, Soctt and Hope

This is a photo that I found online of the Grand Millennium in Beijing! Below is what the rooms look like!

Sweet Dreams Hope and Scott!! Izabella will be with you soon!!! Stephe

Bon Voyage!!!

Okay, this is Bon Voyage message!! We are heading out in the morning – early to the airport – maybe to get a good upgrade!! I cannot even tell you how we are feeling. We are so excited and happy and just cannot wait to meet our daughter for the first time! Thanks for all your enails and prayers for our trip!! I promise to post as soon as we are there and are able to connect!!

Hang on my little pop tart - you have no idea how much love you are about to receive!! Mommie and Daddie are on their way!!!

By the Way...

THREE MORE SLEEPS!!!!!!!!!!!

Our Itinerary!!!!

Finally we will be bringing our girl home!! I cannot believe we are going to be parents in less than a week!! I just wonder what she looks like?? We have had NO updates since the old pictures of her that we got. I know she has changed a lot!! I hope they have not cut her hair! I think I am going to kiss her little face all over when I get my hands on her!! My good bud Stephe is going to keep this blog updated while I am gone with updates and pictures since it is usually not updatable in China!! Cannot wait be home and share all our fun!!!!!!!!!

6/26 NW3741 leave Louisville at 11:05 am, arrive Detroit at 12:36 pm
6/26 NW25 leave Detroit at 2:25 pm, arrive Tokyo 6/27 at 4:20 pm

6/27 NW29 leave Tokyo at 6:45 pm am louisville time), arrive Beijing at 9:35 pm
6/28 visit Tian An Men Square, Forbidden City and Great Wall
6/29 Leave Beijing at 8:20 am to head to Chongqing (where Izabella is!)
6/29 in the afternoon China time WE WILL GET IZABELLA!!!!!! HAPPY DAY!!!!!!!!!!
6/30 - 7/4 we will be in Chongqing with OUR DAUGHTER!!!
7/2 9:30 am Visit Chongqing Zoo and People’s Hall
7/3 9:30 am Visit Eling Park Chaotian Gate
7/4 6:45 pm we leave for Guangzhou and arrive at 8:45 pm HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!
7/5 9:00 am take Izabella’s Vista Photo and her Medical Check up
7/6 10:45 am Walk to a Church Service
7/7 9:00 am Izabella’s Visa will be taken to Consulate and we will get our Red Couch Photo at the White Swan
7/8 2:45 pm To Consulate to have the Oath Ceremony

7/09 4:30 am wakeup call – 5:30 Leave hotel for the Long Journey Home - leave Guangzhou NW28 at 8:20 am, arrive Tokyo at 2:05 pm
7/09 leave NW12 Tokyo at 4:15 pm (4:15 am US time), arrive Detroit at 3:00 pm
7/09 leave Detroit at 5:01 pm, arrive Louisville at 6:25 pm WE WILL BE HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

4 More Sleeps!!

I cannot believe that we sleep four more times before we leave for China!! This time next week we will have Izabella in our arms!! I am so happy I could just pop!! We pretty much have everything packed. Still need to get the car seats in and a few more things to buy and mail to stop. I promise to check in again before we leave and post our itinerary of our entire trip!!

Flooding in China

Here is the latest on happenings in China. We have to go to Guangzhou to finalize our adoption and Izabella is in the Chongqing province. So many bad things happening right now. The country really needs our prayer...

GUANGZHOU, China - Massive flooding across a broad stretch of southern China killed almost 60 people and forced 1.3 million others from their homes, state media reported Monday.

People were forced to flee their homes across nine provinces, including Sichuan, still reeling from last month's earthquake that killed nearly 70,000 people, the official Xinhua News Agency said. At least 57 people died and eight were missing, Xinhua reported.

Water levels on the swollen Wujiang River in Guangdong province rose to nearly 79 feet, far surpassing the "dangerous level" of 20 feet, he said.

Heavy rain in Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan provinces will further raise water levels downstream, especially in the coastal manufacturing powerhouse of Guangdong, Xinhua reported. Most of those areas are expected to receive more heavy rain over the next 10 days.

The worst-hit province was Guangdong, where 20 people died and eight were missing, and nearly 5.8 million people in 17 cities were affected, Xinhua said.

The North River (Bei Jiang) swallowed up a cluster of brick homes with orange-tile roofs on its banks, where about 100 people lived in the Sanshui district of Foshan, a city about an hour away from the provincial capital, Guangzhou.

One man, who would only give his surname, Huang, stood on a dike and looked across the river at his submerged home as his neighbors crossed back and forth on wooden skiffs.

"The water came in fast. It started rising yesterday morning and by noon, our homes were swamped," Huang said.

"So far the government is ignoring us and not providing any place to stay," he said. "We're living on the second floor of the tallest building in our neighborhood. We had to do the same thing during the flood in 2005, which was much worse than this one."

Huang worked in Sanshui's southern port, which was also flooded. Tall towers of shipping containers were inundated by water.

Streets and houses along the Xijiang River in Guangdong were submerged in the worst flooding to hit the Pearl River Delta region in 50 years, the official China Daily newspaper said.

"A major flood is feared if rain continues," Huang Boqing, deputy director of the Guangdong flood control and drought relief headquarters, was quoted as saying.

Vegetable prices in Guangdong have risen by 70 percent in four cities including Guangzhou, the paper said.

Economic losses have reached $1.5 billion because of the floods, it said. More than 45,000 houses collapsed and 140,000 had been damaged.

14 More Sleeps!!

14 More sleeps until we leave for China!! We will be holding Izabella for the first time in about 2 1/2 weeks! I cannot believe this is happening! Dreams DO come true!!

Well here is a montage of pictures from my first two showers...

We've Got our flights booked...

Here is our flight information. 3 weeks from today we will be IN China. I am having such a wide range of emotions right now. I just can't wait until we have our little princess with us.

6/26 leave Louisville at 11:05 am, arrive Detroit at 12:36 pm
6/26 leave Detroit at 2:25 pm, arrive Tokyo at 4:20 pm on 6/27
6/27 leave Tokyo at 6:45 pm, arrive Beijing at 9:35 pm
7/9 leave Guangzhou at 8:20 am, arrive Tokyo at 2:05 pm
7/9 leave Tokyo at 4:15 pm, arrive Detroit at 3:00 pm
7/9 leave Detroit at 5:01 pm, arrive Louisville at 6:25 pm

Yipee and Wohoo!!

We finally got our travel confirmation!! Looks like we will be taking off on June 26 and will return July 9!! I cannot believe this has finally happened!!!

Sweet little girl, we are on our way!!!

Also, Sunday was my first Baby Shower. It was very nice. I have a wonderful group of friends and feel so blessed that they are in our lives. I will post pictures when I get them from Christina -- hint hint!!

FINALLY SOME NEWS!

We finally got our TA today this is our Travel Authorization from China to travel as well today we received our Visa to Travel to China. I am so excited I can barely stand it!! Finally sweet baby girl we will be on our way soon. In fact our tentative travel date is June 26 so we are hoping that will be it! Stay Tuned...

Dear Sweet Daughter,

As a girl I had a common dream, to be a mom someday.

My baby would have eyes of blue and hair the hue of hay.

But now my dreams have been transformed. New visions fill my head.

Now the tresses that I long to stroke are raven black instead.

And in my dreams those eyes are not so big or blue or round.

Now in my dreams they're almond shaped and colored cocoa brown.

And in my dreams my arms can stretch across enormous seas.

They reach half-way around the world and hold you close to me.

As you grow in your mother's womb, carefully knit together,

you're also growing in my heart, where you will stay forever.

And in my dreams the moment that your mother says good-bye,

I'll be right there to comfort you and hold you as you cry.

Our features may not look alike; we're different as can be.

But still I know the Father has created you for me.

And though I've not yet seen your face, or held your tiny hands,

and though we're half a world apart in very different lands.

I'll be right there to get you just as soon as God allows.

But til He says the time is right I give to you this vow.

I'll pray for your protection every night on bended knee.

For God will hold you in His arms, until you're here with me.

More goodies...

Our Social Worker who did our Homestudy was just delightful and I will always remember her. She sent us these goodies last week in the mail. I will charish them -- they are so sweet!!

WAITING UPDATE

Okay, I am sooo far behind on this blogging thing that I have a lot of catching up to do. So, I will start by saying that we have a tentative travel date of June 26. Now this is if everything falls into place as it should. And, we all know how that goes.

This lovely Piggy Bank that Aunt Betty gave us quite a while back. It already has her first money in it. It is adorable.

Now, right after we got our Referral I got a little gift in the mail from Dear Dear Donna. Here it is. It is so precious and I love it so much!!

Then the first gift for Izabella I got after we got our referral was this and I just says soo much...

Update

We have been told by our agency that everything is okay in the area of Chongqing that Izabella is. Just keep praying for the whole area. It has had horrible devastation and I feel so sad for the people of China.

Worried...

CHONGQING, China - One of the worst earthquakes in decades struck central China on Monday, killing nearly 9,000 people, trapping about 900 students under the rubble of their school and causing a toxic chemical leak, state media reported.
The 7.8-magnitude earthquake devastated a hilly region of small cities and towns in Sichuan and nearby provinces. The official Xinhua News Agency said 8,533 people died in Sichuan alone and dozens of other deaths were reported in surrounding areas.
Xinhua said 80 percent of the buildings had collapsed in Beichuan county in Sichuan province after the quake, raising fears the overall death toll could increase sharply.
State media said a chemical plant in Shifang city had cratered, burying hundreds of people and spilling more than 80 tons of toxic liquid ammonia from the site.
The earthquake sent thousands of people rushing out of buildings and into the streets hundreds of miles away in Beijing and Shanghai. The temblor was felt as far away as Vietnam and Thailand.

I'm so worried about Izabella today!! I am just praying that God will watch over her and keep her safe until we can get to her!!

MOTHERS DAY!

This was given to me by my mother on my first Mothers Day. And mom gave this this adorable little set for Izabella... Scott's mom and dad gave us this video monitor that I hope will ease my fears of having Izabella's room upstairs. I hope...

This came from one of my Precious Panda friends and I felt like I would share it today in honor of Mothers Day!! It made me smile since I don't have my sweet Izabella today!!

Today we had our family over and after dinner me, mom, mom-in-law and brothers girl friend went up stairs where he had ALL the clothes that Izabella has been given over the last 3 years and got them sorted and her room more organized. Still have a lot to do but I feel less stressed today and feel like that has been a big weight lifted!! Take a gander at the finished closet.

It was a very nice day - only wishing Izabella's was in our arms!!

FINALLY SHE IS HERE!!!

Izabella FuLing Simpson

Isn't she beautiful!

We are sooooo blessed to FINALLY have our little girl!! Here is what happened and sorry it has taken so long but we have been on the road since this am at 8:30 and had NO IDEA this was going to happen! I talked to Ebbie (atour agency) Wednesday and he said, we have no word and with the holiday they won't probably arrive until next week. So I have been so bummed all week since then. We ALMOST cut our trip short by one day but we were with another couple and my friend convinced me to stay and shop with her all day!! We shopped until I thought I would die! Major retail therapy! So, we left Pigeon Forge, TN this morning at 8:15 just ready to come home have had a headache for two days -- must have been that pre-labor stuff! Anyhow we are driving home and it was a 4 hour trip and we got to Versailles, Ky which is right past Lexington where our agency is and Susan R. called and said they heard word about Sophia, so I started freaking -- soooo happy and thrilled for them. I thought maybe I need to call Ebbie - our family advocate at our agency, A Helping Hand (HAA). So I called and they transferred and it went directly to voicemail and then my call waiting kicked in from AHH and at that point I was FREAKING OUT!! So I immediately called back and he was actually calling me when I was calling him. At the same time all this was happening, I was driving, trying to call and get it on speaker phone and it was finally getting there and I whipped the car into the Versailles Exit and pulled over literally on the exit ramp edge and brought the car to a screeching halt and Scott was like, you cannot park here and I said Watch Me!! So Ebbie left a message saying that he had our referral to call him and we turned around and was in his office 15 minutes later in Lexington. It could not have happened any more perfect.



So......



Her Chinese name is Fu Ling Yang



She is almost 7 months old and weighs 13 pounds & 24 inches long



Her birthday is October 9, 2007



She is from Yunyang SWI



She is so sweet and we are so in love. We neither one know how to act right now. We are in shock and excited and scared and tired and all emotional. So, tonight we suprised our parents and told them at dinner tonight! I cannot believe this is finally happening!!

You all mean so much to us and we are so glad to share this with you and cannot wait to see her sweet face in China. We will probably travel sometime in July so now we have a lot of work to do!!



SUSAN AND RIZ Can you believe it!!!!



And everyone else that is to come!! It does happen and will happen -- all in time. Hang in there my Precious Pandas!!~!



This is so surreal~~

THINK GREEN!!

Click this link to vote: http://www.designagreenbag.com/vote-for-designs/bag.aspx?BagId=19660

I'm doing my part to keep our world green. As of today I am going to start using Reusable Shopping Bags when I shop. I even designed my own. Click above and vote for mine, it might even end up in the Kroger Stores. I want our world to continue on so that my children can enjoy it!!
So, the next time they ask you paper or plastic, think about it!!

THE ZOO!!

Today was our most beautiful day of the year I believe!! So, I took off work and went to the Zoo with my friends Shannon, Jack & Palmer and Leighann & Kaitlyn! We had the best time!! The weather was just fabulous!!! Here are some photos of our day!!

Two Little Monkey's

Kaitlyn can't run from those boys!

Palmer gives Kaitlyn some love!


Supastaaaa!


The new baby elephant!!

The tired boys at the end of the day!!!

The Final Touch!!

I finally got the chair back from dad. I placed it i Izabella's room tonight. It looks so nice! Thanks dad! You and mom are the best!

Sadness...

We just found out that we are NOT getting our referral this month. We missed the cutoff by one day. We were for sure we would be in but China had a different plan. The good news is that we WILL be in next month if they only match one day because that will be us -- the 10th. So keep us in your prayers to survive one more month without seeing Izabella's sweet smiling face!!

This is how I feel...