Back in Beijing

It's been a long day! Max woke up at 5:00, and Mama started the bad habit of having him sleep in her bed. But it bought me two precious hours. Both Car and I have been feeling a little under the weather - we're both fighting a cold - so the extra sleep was great. Then, packing up everything to be ready to depart was truly an accomplishment. As usual, Car was amazing that way and deserves more than a medal. A podium in Max's room perhaps, where we will leave fresh flowers and gifts on a daily basis to only make a dent in thanking her for all she has done for us this trip :). It's days like today that I am convinced I could NEVER have done this by myself.

We left Gaungzhou and drove to the American Embassy where little Max Qian Christiansen became a U.S. citizen. We were sworn in by an American Consulat and got his IR 3 visa, which means that as soon as he steps foot out of that plane, he's an American. He currently has a travel visa, and his passport will arrive in the mail.

I got a little mushy during the oath. It's been such a long road, and I was so glad to have Max with me, that even when I write this I get all teary eyed. Now, granted, I cry at Hallmark commercials, but I am so thankful to finally have the little Cutie Patootie (as Judith calls him), that it still overwhelms me at times.

This is a picture we took just before we went through security in Guangzhou. I just want to say how wonderful all of our guided have been throughout this trip. Charlotte, Michael and Cordelia really went out of their way to make sure we had everything we needed, and were so sweet! Here's an example: Max has been on Chinese Nestle formula, but we couldn't find it in Guangzhou. So Cordelia called Charlotte in Beijing and she went out and got it for us. Way beyond the call of duty! I look forward to staying in touch with them, and having them enjoy watching Max grow up. They contributed so much to this process. I truly thank them from the bottom of my heart.

We got to Beijing really late - it's past midnight here. The three-hour flight was fine, Max did great. He didn't sleep, but enjoyed being entertained by his Mama and his Lala. Now he's sleeping in his crib, and we are re-packing some bags we left with Charlotte in Beijing. Not such a stringent weight limit on our bags - phew!!

So tomorrow, we will leave here around 10:30. We can't wait to see everyone, and be back home. Only one more sleep, and then Max get so start his new life in Seattle!