Happily Ever After

On Thursday morning we departed from our hotel in Guangzhou around 6:00 a.m. The driver picked us up for the two hour ride and we said good bye to mainland China. We were very nervous about the ride as Blythe has a tendency to freak out (scream and squirm) while in the car.  Sorry to say she did not disappoint!  It was a long stressful ride, even the driver was sighing.  We finally got to the airport and found that there were two other adoptive families on our flight- one family had 15 months old twin girls!  It's hard to prepare for a 15 hour flight with a toddler- your tools are limited mainly food! I have to say it was probably one of the most stressful and tiring days of my life!  Blythe surprised us all by being pretty great on the plane. Not much sleeping- maybe 45 minutes but no screaming!  We finally got off the plane and handed over Blythe's immigration paperwork at which point she officially became as citizen of the United States- probably one of the highlights of my life! There was no fanfare or even congratulations from the immigration officer but Christian and I knew how special it was. Next leg of journey was the 2 hour ride back to Wayne, PA.  Blythe freaked when we put her in the car seat so it turned into a screamfest! Poor thing. 

We arrived home and my heart was thumping as I hugged Avery and Claire!  They looked so great and they were so sweet to Blythe-giving kisses and calling her by name. The next two days are a blur except to say that Blythe would not sleep for more than 45 minutes at a time and the girls were great with Blythe- they are already sisters and friends. My brother Mitchell came to the rescue and spent all day researching sleep issues in adopted children.  We took all of his advice and can you believe it- she is sleeping at night and napping. 

We have all been through a lot in the last three weeks (well four years) but every minute away from the girls, every notarized document, and every worry was worth it to get to these moments with our three beautiful girls. Now onto living and enjoying her with all of you- our dear friends and family.

Love to all of you for your support!