Visit to Pearl Market

Aug. 30, 2010

Madison checks out pearls at the market.

Madison felt much better today; she was back to her cheerful self. Some of our group made a trip to the Pearl Market this morning. I've heard a lot about this place, so I was excited to finally get to go there. It was like going into a mall specifically for jewelry, several stories high, with many shops - all with various types of jewelry. Our guide took us to a shop owner who was a reputable pearl dealer.  We got Madison a small pink pearl necklace and bracelet for now, and we got her a double-strand bracelet for her wedding day. I must say, I was quite proud of my girl. She loves jewelry. When the sales girl was trying to figure out the size for her bracelet, she put out her little arm and watched patiently as she fit it to her arm. 

We were also able to go to some of the local shops and get some souvenir items (and Christmas presents). Phil is not a shopper, but he was patient with me as I went to various shops, comparing prices, etc. 

Fun with "Baba" (Daddy).

While walking around, we found a small Christian Church near our hotel.  Our guide told us that there are three primary religions in China - Muslum, Buddist and Christian. However, she said that most people in China follow no religion. We know that God led us here to get Madison, ultimately so we can lead her Him. 

The local Christian church.

Thanks for everyone's interest in our blog about our journey to Madison.  Even though we can't view it ourselves (due to blogging sites being blocked by the governement here), I've received e-mails from several people telling me that Madison has quite a following!

Another day in Guangzhou

Aug. 29, 2010

Madison enjoys playing with Daddy.

Last night was not a lot of fun. Madison woke up with a fever due to the shots.  However, after Tylenol the fever went away and did not return! She was definitely not herself today -- a lot less active, very quiet and a little more fussy. Several children had a much more difficult time so, again, we are thankful she just had a mild reaction to the shots.  

Today we went to a Buddist temple that was built more than 1,000 years ago. Some families did the traditional baby blessing by the monks, but we opted out of that. After Madison's afternoon nap, we went to the hotel playroom. Mattel/Fisher Price has set up a playroom in the hotel for the families adopting. There were probably about 10 families in there, which made Madison a little nervous. She stayed right with Phil or I (never leaving our side), but she still played. Phil would want me to add the part about Madison getting jealous. A little boy we know came up and was playing with Phil. Madison went up and pushed him away from Phil - this made Phil's day! This evening was spent out to dinner with some friends we have met here. While at dinner, we met another couple and began talking.  I'll make the story short - he used to work with my college roommate at Georgia Pacific in Atlanta.  Can you imagine running into someone in China who knows your college roommate?

Madison plays in the hotel playroom.

More about Madison: She continues to amaze us with her glowing personality. She is such a ham - already understanding when we are taking her picture. She is also very dainty.  Each time when she finishes eating, she wipes off her mouth, hands and eating area with her napkin. 

Please continue prayers for the children here and their families. We continue to see children struggling to bond with parents. Also - the parents of the older children are seeing frustration with communication issues (which is very understandable). 

The guys hanging out.

We are counting down the days until we come home to the boys. We miss them terribly but Skype has been a big help to all of us. We have talked at least once each day. Love to all from across the ocean.

Medical appointment and a day at the pool

Aug. 28, 2010

Madison absolutely hated getting her
shots and medical examination.

I have been dreading today because we had been warned that the children get up to seven shots at the required medical appointment. Madison did not like the place where the medical exam occurred to start with. There were families EVERYWHERE, and I guess there was a method to the madness, but I never figured it out.

Madison was weighed (18.9 lbs) and briefly examined. I found it comical how the staff chose to check her hearing. The ENT nurse stood behind her with a squeaky toy, squeaked it behind each ear, and Madison looked both ways. The nurse shrugged her shoulders and said to me, "Seems OK." So Madison has passed her Chinese hearing screening. She received five shots, she screamed and screamed, but we survived.

This afternoon was spent napping, then to the pool. I must admit, the hotel we are at is beautiful. The rooms are OK, but the lobby areas and surrounding grounds are really nice.  We had dinner with our Chinese Children Adoption International group (six families) at a Thai restaurant called "Cow and Bridge" - I have no idea what that's supposed to mean.  

Madison tries to text her friends.

Quick note to my Bedford County friends: I have met a special ed teacher from New York. She has Lisa Fry's personality with a New York accent! If you see the pictures from yesterday, she is the lady in the pictures with her son in the stroller.

The Barbie doll Mattel gives all of the
families adopting a child. Sorry Seth and
Taylor, but this is what you get.

We have arrived in Guangzhou

Aug. 27, 2010.

Our travel companions on our adoption odyssey.

Madison's first ride on a carousel.

Today began with another trip to the beautiful park near our hotel in Zhengzhou (by the way - this is pronounced jungjou). After that, we headed back to the hotel to pack and prepare for the flight to Guangzhou. We left our hotel in Zhengzhou at 3 p.m. and arrived at the hotel in Guangzhou at 10:30 p.m., which made for a long day. Madison did amazingly well on the two-hour plane ride. Hopefully this is a sign of how she will do on the 14+ hour plane ride home.

Since today was a fairly uneventful day, I'd like to take a moment to tell about an article that I read in a local Chinese newspaper (no, I haven't learned Chinese, it was in English). We were given a newspaper from the date of Madison's "Gotcha Day." I had not had an opportunity to read it until last night. An article quickly caught my attention entitled "Bride and Prejudice in China." The article led with "China's widening gender gap threatens to cause irreversible damage to the traditional family unit and could lead to more women being abducted, trafficked or sold into marriage, experts have warned."  The article goes on to say the disparity in some provinces is 100 females to 130 males.  There was already an investigation of 200,000 marriages in which 36,000 women where found to have been kidnapped from underdeveloped provinces and forced into marriage.

Madison loves her time in the park.

China still continues to place more value on the sons, so male babies are preferred. Due to this increasing problem, the government has now banned the doctors from revealing the sex of the baby when an ultrasound is performed (to avoid parents aborting female babies). This article helped me realize even more reasons we are so grateful to be bringing Madison home to a safe and secure environment where she will be honored and respected as a female. Please keep this country in your prayers, as I fear that they are just beginning to see the effects of their one child policy as well as families' preferences for male babies.

One other prayer request. One of the moms who is here with her 16-year -old son (dad stayed home with other kids) has adopted a precious 4 year old who has thalacemia (a blood disorder). He was in a foster home for three years and is having a very difficult time adjusting to his new family. We all know that the bond will occur, but Debbie (mom) is having a hard time - as any mom would. Timmy (the son she has come to bring home) is a precious boy who needs your prayers to comfort his heart while he mourns the loss of his foster family and makes room for his forever family.

A day at the park

Aug. 26, 2010

Madison is quickly becoming a mommy's girl.

Madison's fan club at the park.

My two monkeys (minus the two at
home.

The weather finally cleared enough for us to go to the nearby park with another family. It is a large, beautiful park. Probably the most entertaining thing was the reaction we received walking through the park. Even though this is a very large town, it is not a typical tourist destination, so they are not accustomed to Caucasian people.  Often we would draw a small crowd when we stopped in an area - mostly curious children.

Our afternoon was pretty laid back -- resting, eating and going to the swimming pool.

More on Madison: Her favorite thing to do today was to take off Phil's necklace and put it on herself.  We soon realized the significance of this. Phil's necklace is of a cross and a medallion that has "dad" in the center with all four of our children's names on it. It is just another reminder of how God's hand has been in on this all along. We are slowly changing over what we are calling her. Her foster family called her "ShaSha," which we have been using up until this point. We started using Madison today, and she already has been responding (she's so smart).

Madison wearing her daddy's necklace.

Madison and her friend Chandler play "ping pong" at the pool.

Another photo album of Madison

One thing about Madison: This girl can eat!

Madison and Phil check out a turtle at the aquarium.

Madison and Karen take a nap after a long day.

More about Madison

Aug. 25, 2010

What a cutie!

Now that we've had Madison several days, we are beginning to see and understand her personality traits. I really think she is going to be a girly girl (sorry Seth and Taylor - I predict lots of pink and dolls). She is so dainty and petite; even her laugh and cry are dainty. She does not like for her hands to be dirty, so she will put her hands out for us to wipe off when they are dirty. She is somewhat shy and still hesitant around others. However, she will smile and wave to others around her. Madison has the SWEETEST laugh. She also loves to try to make others laugh.  She loves toys that require putting things in and then taking things out (she has a car that you put the blocks in, then take out - she loves it).

Madison loves the bright fish in the aquarium.

Physically, as I said, she's very petite. Her 12 month clothes I brought her fit, but she probably could wear 9 month clothes. As you've already seen, she's absolutely beautiful. She is walking, but she is unsteady (more like a 12 month old).  She is wearing her size 3 shoes, and they seem to be just right. Her fine motor skills seem to be on track. She has Mongolian spots on her lower back. I'm so glad several people told me about this or I would have thought she had been abused. For those of you who do not know, Mongolian spots are fairly common in Asian children. They are typically on their back. At birth they are darker, then they fade as the child gets older. Madison's spots look like an old bruise. She already seems to be understanding some things we are telling her (such as "no" and "wave bye-bye", etc). As far as her hearing, we still cannot tell that there is an impairment.   

Madison and her friend Chandler

As for today, we went to the aquarium this morning.  It was a pretty nice aquarium, and the kids really enjoyed it. Seth and Taylor, you need to get her fish tank ready - she really likes bright, colorful fish! After her nap, we went to the playroom in the hotel and let the children play. We are having to find indoor activities since the weather continues to be gloomy and rainy. Tomorrow will be another day in Zhengzhou, then we will head to Guangzhou on Friday. We are ready to move on to another city but are making the most of our time in Zhengzhou. We are thoroughly enjoying reading your comments (they are sent to us through e-mail). We can feel the prayers all they way across the ocean!

Registration and notary day

Aug. 24, 2010

Madison's footprint is placed on the adoption certificate!

Madison's adoption is now official! She is legally our
daughter!

Madison experiences one of those sad, uncertain moments with
her new parents.

Madison enjoys her time at the kiddie
pool.

Today we went back to the registration office to receive Madison's completed adoption certificate.  Once that was completed we went to the notary and finalized her paperwork.  Madison is OFFICIALLY adopted!

Our prayers have been answered about her bonding with us. She still has a few moments of sadness, but I believe she already realizes that we are her "mama" and "baba." We realize we still have obstacles ahead with bonding, but so far, we have been very blessed.

This afternoon was pretty laid back. After Madison's nap we had a play date in the playroom of our hotel. Madison still stays close to Phil or I, but she's beginning to venture out to play with other children. After that, off to the swimming pool. Initially she liked it, but because she was tired, we didn't stay long. Her first "official" bath was a hit. She enjoys the water and splashing herself. As you will see in the pictures, she's already becoming quite the ham. She is now sleeping peacefully.

Phil and I are now both experiencing what many don't talk about during the adoption process. While we are LOVING our time with Madison, we are ready to be home. Seth and Taylor are on our hearts constantly. We miss them and want to hurry and bring their sister home. Unfortunately, the way the process works, we have no control over the time factor (we have to be here two weeks). Please pray that Madison continues to bond and that Phil and I aren't quite so homesick.

Madison thoroughly enjoys her "first" bath with us. She loves
splashing in the water.

Gotcha Day! Photo Album

Aug. 23, 2010

Madison is still unsure about her new parents.

Madison's foster mother and Karen share a few tears together.

Madison slowly starts to warm up to Phil and Karen.

Madison is quickly becoming a daddy's girl.

Madison up close.

Karen and Madison spend some quality time together.

Gotcha Day!

Aug. 23, 2010

Phil and Madison check each other out for the first time.

Okay, now that you've seen our beautiful daughter, I can tell you about the amazing day we have had. Our day started at the registration office. We opened the van doors and the couple with us said, "There's a little girl at the top of the steps" (with the orphange director). We scrambled to get our camera out, and then we made our way to our Madison. 

She looked at us with such a puzzled expression. Slowly she went to Phil (she was having nothing to do with me). She had a few moments of crying and kept looking over at a woman in the room. Our agency rep pulled me aside to tell me that that was her foster mother. I went to her slowly and we both began crying. With such kindness and tenderness, she began telling me about ShaSha's habits and personality (ShaSha is what her foster family calls her). She then handed me a gift for Madison (I later opened this to find an amazing photo album and letter from her foster mom). I soon went back to Phil and Madison. She definitely was being a daddy's girl.

We stayed at the registration office several hours to let the children warm up to us (there were two other children and two other families there) and also to do some paperwork. After about an hour, Madison was warming up to me. While we continued to play and get to know each other, we would see her foster mother peak in to check on her. We feel so blessed that she had a foster mother who loved her dearly and took care of her for approximaately one year.  

After leaving the registration office we headed back to the hotel. The other couple that is staying in our hotel asked if we wanted to go get lunch in the hotel's "Noodle" restaurant.  By this time, Madison was doing so well we decided to give it a try. We were able to eat together and watch our children enjoy their food. Madison is definitely an eater.  

We returned to the hotel and had some quiet time with Madison. She was still warming up to me, but when it was nap time, she went to daddy. We have had such a great day getting to know Madison. Gradually we have seen her personality shine. We haven't found anything she won't eat at this point, she has a heart-warming smile, her laugh is infectious, and we can already see that she will have us all wrapped around her little finger.  

One other note, our "special needs" daughter couldn't be more perfect. The reason she was listed as special needs was due to a moderate to severe hearing loss and she was premature.  She is a tiny peanut but her hearing is FINE. We will certainly still have her checked by the audiologist, but she seems to be hearing everything around her just fine! Thanks to you for all your prayers. She was obviously lifted in prayers from across the ocean. 

I could go on and on, but it has been a long day for us all, and I need to conserve my energy for another fun-filled day tomorrow. 

Arrival in Zhengzhou

Aug. 22, 2010

We finally board the plane to Zhengzhou and Madison's
birthplace. Tomorrow is Gotcha Day!

Today has been a day of travel from Beijing to Zhengzhou in the Henan Province. This is Madison's place of birth, so we are very excited to be here. We ventured out briefly with another couple to exchange money then we went to an "authentic" restaurant. Our guide went with us to explain the menu (then left). I think we were very entertaining to the staff at the restaurant - they were obviously not accustomed to Americans. We had dove, a type of spicy beef, vegetable rolls & lotus balls. However, on the menu we had choices such as turtle, chicken feet, tongue, etc. We opted out of those choices.

The traditional dinner in Zhengzhou. That's the Lotus
Balls on the right, the dove on the left, and the spicy
beef on the back right. The remaining plate was full of
vegetable rolls when it arrived.

Now for the most important information. Tomorrow is Gotcha Day, when we will go to get Madison. We are so incredibly excited to hold our daughter who has been in our hearts for such a long time. Please pray that she will feel our arms as welcoming, loving arms. This may be a very difficult day for her. We have just found out today that she has been in foster care.  Ultimately, that has been the best thing for her (instead of being in the orphanage the entire time). However, it is often the case that the children who have come from foster homes have a more difficult time initially. She has been with one family who has hopefully loved and cared for her for some period of time (we are unclear at this point how long she has been with them).  Tomorrow she will leave that family to come with people who look different, sound different, probably even smell different than what she has been accustomed to. Please pray that she finds peace in our arms, and please pray that Phil and I find ways to comfort her. Thanks again for all of your prayers - we really need them now. 

Naturally, Phil managed to find a little taste of home
halfway around the world.

As much as we are enjoying our time in China and as excited as we are about getting Madison, we are also missing Seth and Taylor terribly. We know they are in great hands, but it is still difficult being away from them, on the other side of the world. However, Skype has been such a blessing. Please also remember our boys in your prayers.

Rainy, busy day

Aug. 21, 2010

Our view as we climbed the steps to the top of The Great Wall of China.

We pose together on our trip back down from the Great Wall.

Today we started out going to the Jade Market and saw how jade is tranformed into beautiful figures and jewelry. Our next stop was the Great Wall. To be able to see one of the Seven Wonders of the World is an amazing experience. It was a rainy day, so walking up the steep steps was a little challenging but well worth it. Next stop, the 2008 Olympic Stadium. We were wet and cool, so we took quick photos there and headed to our next stop. Our last stop of the evening was an acrobatics show. Unfortunatley we were not available to take pictures, but it was a great show. 

I wanted to share another experience we had yesterday. While at the silk factory, Phil noticed one of the sales girls had on a cross necklace. He showed her his cross necklace. She smiled at him and said, "We are all family." Another thing we have found interesting so far is that the three couples we have met so far all love telling about God's role in their adoption experience. It has been great talking about how we knew He was calling us to our girl/boy in China. 

Tomorrow we will travel to Zhengzhou in the Henan province (where Madison is from). We will arrive tomorrow afternoon and hopefully be able to explore her city. The next day it will be time to get our daughter!

We pose in front of the Olympic Stadium/Bird's Nest.

The sign outside the acrobatics performance we attended.

More pictures from the Forbidden City

A view from the Forbidden City/Tiananmen Square.

Another view from the Forbidden City/Tiananmen Square.

I bet you can guess which of Karen or Phil insisted on having this photo on the blog.

More photos from our journey

This is the traditional Chinese house we visited. This is man who painted the fan we purchased.

We took a rickshaw ride in Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.

Traditional Chinese home, Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City

Aug. 20, 2010


Our tour guide, George, kept us very busy today. We started out in a rickshaw, riding through Beijing neighborhoods. We were able to go into the home of a family and see what a traditional home looks like, which was fascinating. The family did a lot of calligraphy and drawings just as a hobby, but we were able to buy a fan that a man had recently hand drawn.  From there we went to Tienanmen Square. From Tiananmen Square we walked to the Forbidden City. The Forbidden City was HUGE and so beautiful. Most of the buildings were built in the early 1400s.We were able to hear lots of historical facts from our guide. 

We toured with another family from New York who is here to adopt their little girl. They have been great company for us. We are getting ready to eat dinner with another couple who is adopting a little boy. They did not tour with us today because they were able to go to the foster home of the child they are adopting! We just briefly spoke with them, but they also told us they got to meet their little boy today (which is very unusual - usually this does not occur until their "Gotcha Day"). We are so excited to hear more details at dinner about their little boy and the experiences of today. 

While today has been amazing and wonderful, we are still anxious to get to Madison's province and hold her in our arms. We have one more day of touring here in Beijing, then we have a day of traveling to her province. The following day will be our "Gotcha Day" - when we get her.

Please feel free to leave your comments - we are going to use this as a journal for Madison so your comments would always be welcome. 

--Karen Nixon

Photos from our first day

This is our first meal in Cbina.

This is some fruit we bought at a local market. We don't know what it was, but it certainly tasted good.

This is our hotel.