Week 1 is underway with lots of sightseeing and adjusting.
I've been told that Bea is very serious about her food and snacking often saves the day from a melt down. Her transition hasn't been seamless, but under the circumstances she is doing quite well. These things take time...which we have.
(On their way to the Forbidden City...yikes...Brodie said there were crowds, but woah!)
(So glad these 2 have had each other...and this wonderful experience!)
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DAYS 4 & 5, BEIJING
Hitting a low...It's been a couple of very rough days. Poor sweet Bea is grieving more and more as the reality is sinking in that life has changed. She'll wail for hours on end without relent and can't seem to find comfort no matter how the troops try to help. As Brodie has stated repeatedly, it's all normal, even expected behavior under the circumstances...but that doesn't make it any less hard.
Reality: Adoption is hard! Hey, regular life is hard at times! But, what do we do with the hard?
Where do we turn when life throws us curve balls? Who can help us? Where can we turn for comfort?
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too."
2 Corinthians 1:3-5
When we signed up to adopt children, we didn't sign up for easy. We signed up for challenge and sacrifice and giving and crying and offering ourselves to brokenness with the love that Christ can give to them through us. That's the reality we signed up for.
Hard. Hard reality. We chose it.
We chose to take this rocky road because we're not afraid of hard...
not when the rewards are so sweet...not when LOVE WINS!
We know that sin has wrecked our baby's heart. We know that life doesn't feel fair to Bea right now and that she is frightened and traumatized. But, we also know that our great God has a great plan of redemption for this child and He will bring it to completion in time. We are part of this plan. These are the growing pains of a redeemed life and it is an honor to help Bea through it.
I see my children, Brodie and Elka, so empathetic, so willing to serve their new sister. They have been AMAZING! Elka gets right in there and even wakes from sleep to help. Little Brodie's heart breaks for Bea when she cries. He wants to make it better. He hurts when she hurts. This tearing in their hearts will produce growth in them as well. How could they receive such a gift without the toil?
Elka has cried at night with compassion for their guide. She wants her to know Jesus. She hurts that she doesn't know Him. Brodie said she has been singing hymns loudly in the car with hope that the guide will hear the words of her songs and understand the hope we have in the Lord. The kids have been grieved by the Buddhism and superstitions they have observed in China. It's special to see them care so much for other people they don't even know. It's beautiful to watch them love Bea through her pain.
And so they carry on...one tough day at a time...my people so far away in China carry on for the sake of love,
for the sake of Christ, for the sake of souls that are worth it. I'm so proud of them all!
I watch via Skype and offer morsels of encouragement, and I pray with dependency over here. We will get through this, just like we did with Noble. We will see fruit in due time. And the voids that remain, the ones we can't fix, will one day be filled to full with a Savior's love, hope that never disappoints. We will watch Jesus fill our children's hearts someday...prayerfully very soon.
There is hope.
"Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning."
Psalm 30:5
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DAY 8, BEIJING
My daily Skype report started off with great news today! Bea has turned a corner...for now.
We don't know what tomorrow holds, but today, we can praise God for a successful day with almost no crying!
(How encouraging to see bedtime smiles!!!)
Destination: The Great Wall of China!
They decided to take the lift up this time.
When Brodie went with Aida in 2011 they walked all the way up the steep terrain, but since Brodie had to carry Bea nearly the entire time, the lift seemed like the better choice. He said she was nervous at first, but then clung tightly to Daddy...not a bad idea for bonding! And it sounds like there was some definite progress on that front today. What a blessing!
(Bea loves her Hello Kitty *light up* shoes...won't go anywhere without 'em!
Never mind that I sent 6 pairs of shoes for her, unsure of her actual size.
She'll take the Hello Kitties we met her in...every time. :))
(She also loves her bag of oranges. Fruits are her favorite.)
(Learning to love her Daddy too...He sure loves his girl!)
They all had a great time roaming around and exploring. Bea was happy. :)
Elka has dreamt of this day when she would visit the Great Wall.
How fun to see that her time has finally come!
Aww...Bea's big siblings are so proud of their new sister!
Brodie loved it!
At the end of their visit (Brodie said they could have stayed even longer because they enjoyed it all so much!),
they rode down the hill on the toboggans. Funny enough, Daddy and Bea went down first and
I hear Bea is a bit of a dare devil. Though nervous at the start, she ended up loving it!
Brodie too. Then they sat at the bottom and waited...and waited...no kids???
We've always laughed at the story of when Aida tobogganed down the Great Wall. Her brake was stuck, so she snail-paced all the way down with a trail of people behind her. I guess "Brodie pulled an Aida" with 50 tourists all backed up behind him in his snail-paced toboggan stuck in the brake position just like Aida's! Ha! Like sister, like brother!
What a special day!!
After returning to the hotel, the guide reasoned with Bea not to cry and tantrum. Whatever she did, it worked!
She didn't cry when they went back to the room and they even got to go to the park across the street for a walk since Bea was in a rational frame of mind. Brodie said he teared up at one point watching the kids stroll along, so grateful for the day they had and the progress made. We're seeing the light at the end of the tunnel...and it's a beautiful sight.
"Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert."
Isaiah 43:19
Isaiah 43:19
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DAY 9, BEIJING
Destination: Summer Palace and Zoo
The last day in Beijing included more sightseeing with a visit to the Summer Palace and the zoo.
Bea loved the animals and has been improving dramatically. Praise the Lord!
(Lots of dependence on Daddy...always a good thing.)
Bea seems to be accepting her new family and even responding to correction.
She has learned an appropriate word to use instead of screaming for what she wants..."please?"
But, she says it this way, "paleaseee?" It's so cute to watch her with her Daddy via
Skype and to see that she is learning something very new...boundaries.
The Summer Palace was beautiful.
Bea had a great day with no crying!
(She loves her fruit flavored milks...apple, peach, strawberry milk...
she loves them all and can often be spotted with one in her hand.)
What a good brother :)
After the Summer Palace, they went to the zoo and then for a long walk near the hotel.
Bea's fitting right in!
Last, they finished off the night with their first hamburgers...from Burger King.
Back at the hotel there was plenty of time for silly.
Bea is quite the character.
It seems that there is never a dull moment when this little one is around.
She's lots of fun and loves to make people laugh with her antics!
(I guess things were too dull around here, so why not add a little Bea just to spice things up?!)
I see already the joy and giggles she will bring to our family.
. . . . . .
DAY 10 - OFF TO ANHUI!
Day 10 was a day of travel to Anhui to prepare to meet Beck!
Bea was elated at the thought of going on an airplane and couldn't wait to go!
Apparently if there's an adventure in store,
Bea is up for it...the first to be ready, all smiles these days.
(Miss Personality!)
Brodie said the flight was incredibly encouraging. "She nailed it," I think were his exact words. :)
She squealed with delight on take off and landing. It couldn't have gone better.
Brodie is such a trooper...What a great sport! To think of all he's been through this week,
still he smiles and has a great attitude. He's getting smitten with his little sweetie already.
It's beautiful to watch him go after the hearts of his newest son and daughter with such
love, compassion, and patience. I miss my people!! But it's been an incredible journey so far!
So goodbye to Beijing...hello to Anhui. We're praying for our Beck as we've been told he is very sensitive and attached with his care givers at the orphanage. It might be another rocky transition, but I can't think of a better crew for the job. With tenderness and prayer, they're ready to meet their new son/brother. Just one more day until Beck joins the family and another new chapter begins...
