Next Post. . .Guangzhou

Tonight we are having dinner at Islands--celebrating a citizenship award Maddie received from school and also my send off. I am hoping to post daily while in China. I'm going to take lots of photos and I want to journal my first days with my new daughter, Lilah Zhen-Ju.

I won't touch ground in China until very early Monday morning--so still Sunday night here in the states. You can probably expect my first post around then.

This is my third adoption trip to China, but I am expecting a lot of firsts. This is the first time my daughter will come to me as a toddler, complete with a personality and language skills. I am hoping she will be patient with Mama while I fumble through the little Mandarin-Cantonese (a true jabbered mix) I know and pantomime the rest. This is the first time one of my daughters is coming from a foster home and I am praying that God has prepared Lilah's heart for her new family. While my first two were very young infants on Family Day and grieved the changes in their lives through sleep, I expect Lilah will react differently. I am hoping she will let me meet her needs, maybe even accept a little love from Mama while she begins her adjustment to her new life. This is also my first adoption of a child with medical needs. Lilah was born with congenital heart disease and needs surgery. The kind of surgery that is done on a child at the first weeks of life here in the states--Lilah has waited nearly 3 years for this and I am praying that God has kept her heart and lungs strong enough that she can handle the surgery well as soon as we get home (if not, it'll be meds and time and prayer to get her ready). I'm good in a crisis and experienced at advocating for children. Of course, I am so hoping that won't be necessary, that our time in China will be uneventful as far as Lilah's health goes. That our flight home is smooth and swift and that Lilah won't even need the supplemental oxygen -- but it'll be on-hand if she does (one of the last pieces to come together and I am very grateful to my adoption agency and the travel agency I am using who have been tenacious and gracious).

My flower girls. The lights of my life. Soon there will be 3 of you. Sisters. Friends. Lifelong confidants. Your hearts are filled with a beauty and strength that takes my breath away and I am so honored to be your Mommy.