Gotcha!

Bet that gotcha attention! Sorry, not talking about Lia Faith. This "gotcha" is a celebration of our magical day two years ago today when God brought Lily Grace Xing Green into our lives. And things haven't been the same since. Pink has become the standard around here. Lily Grace thinks pink is the color everything should be, so it was only right to get her some pink roses to match her mother's roses.



Look mommy, I got some roses!



It's funny how you remember little details, and good I guess that we can put them down here for Lily Grace to read one day. Here's my best recollection of what that day was like. Let's start out the day before ...

It was a hot day in Nanchang, Jiangxi China on July 22nd, 2006. Somewhere in the mid 100s, not quite 110, but inching ever closer to "really hot" as Sally would later tell us. We arrived from Beijing in the late afternoon/early evening, having spent a few days becoming "experts" on Chinese culture so we could "educate" Lily Grace as she grew up. Looking back, we were still pretty tired from our cross-country, cross-Pacific flight. Even after a few days in Beijing to acclimate, jetlag was still the 800 lb elephant in the China shop (no pun intended). Our jetlag set the tone for interpersonal relations, which is a nice way to say we were not quite over our agitation at the internal body clock malfunctions and blamed each other for our discomfort. In short, we were dragging that Sunday afternoon and a bit tired as we arrived in Nanchang (Nun - chung!). Spread out like a squadron of lookouts, our party stretched from the luggage rack to the exit door. By this time, Connie must have been aware that we were about to receive some exciting news, because she was manning the point (that means she was out front), while I was bringing up the rear to make sure everyone made it out of the airport and into Nun-chung.



We first met "Sally" at the airport exit. She was standing there with a big sign that said "Welcome Green Family." She was wearing an "I'm about to laugh" smile, something that we came to realize was a permanent expression on her beautiful Chinese face. God had provided a real angel for us in Nun-chung. Her English was good, well enough that if she were here in the states, she would easily assimilate into society. Catching up to Connie, I approached the lady with the sign and said "Mary?" Mary was the name of the person we were told to meet, but Mary was unable to meet us, so Sally was her replacement. "No," she replied, "Sally." Oh, OK. Well we're the Greens. By this time, all of us (except maybe Austin) were wringing wet with sweat. The temperature and the humidity seemed to be locked into a spiraling battle to see which could reach 110 first. It was a heat unlike any other we had ever experienced, even living in Alabama. I asked Sally is it always this hot here in "Naaan-chaaang?" Suddenly, that "I'm about to laugh" smile burst open and she laughed out loud. "What did you say?" "Naaan-chaaang." More laughter. "The city is called Nun-chung!" You must say it with correct enunciation and head movement. Quickly. You try "Nun-chung." Thus, our first lesson in Chinese.

Now, back to that good news Connie was anticipating. We were told that we'd probably be able to meet our Lily Grace for the first time on Tuesday, July 24th. But Sally told us that the adoption had been rescheduled for Monday, July 23rd. Great!!! We only have to wait one day. To me, the best way to describe that moment is to liken it to when Austin was born. Connie had been in labor for several hours with the doctor coming in every so often to check on the progress. OK, actually she was in labor only a few hours - even then, God understood very well her impatience. We were just enjoying our time, visiting, talking with family and friends until at about 2 am, the doctor announced "OK, she's ready!" And that's when it hit me. A child is about to be born to us - and then we have to take care of it, and feed it, and ... uh oh! So, back to Sally. "You will get to see baby tomorrow." Uh-oh, a baby is about to be given to us, and then we'll have to take care of it, and feed it, and ... Of course, in both instances, the moment the baby was handed to us, time came to a complete standstill while we adored what God had given us. Anxiety gave way immediately to adoration and love. So ...

Sally took us to our hotel, the Gloria in downtown Nanchang, hard by the river. The hotel was very nice, easily measuring up to western standards (perhaps exceeding western standards). But there were no Americans anywhere to be found. We heard a few languages being spoken that we didn't recognize, but thankfully, many of the Chinese spoke some English and a few were quite fluent. So we didn't feel totally like we were on Mars. After checking in and unpacking and setting up the computer (to write to this blog!), we decided to eat. Pizza Hut. Connie and Austin claim the Pizza Hut was good. I don't think it tasted anything like pizza, but I couldn't tell you what it did taste like. At least they didn't put fried eggs on top of it.



Obviously, we couldn't sleep that night. Except Austin. He announced that he was going to bed early so he'd be plenty rested up for the next day's events. Turns out, he was the smart one. We just stayed up arranging and rearranging anything and everything. Wanting for it to be perfect. I think that was just a way to kill time, ultimately. Eventually, we did fall asleep.



The morning of July 23rd, 2006, we dressed, ate breakfast - our first at the Gloria - a meal that would become the staple of the day. Ready to go, we took one last picture as a family of three and loaded up in the van for the short ride to the local CCAA office. A critical mistake was made here. The camera and camcorder were kept at room temperature - pretty cool until we exited the hotel and got on the van. As soon as the electronics equipment was exposed to its new Nun-chung environment, each one immediately declared "It's too humid and too hot and I quit!" So, major major disappointment - no video and only limited pictures from cameras that did work.







At CCAA, we were led to a "courtroom" like area and left alone for quite some time. Even Sally left. I began to wonder if this was some kind of test to see if we really wanted Lily Grace. But after a time, we heard footsteps in the hallway - the building had wood floors that creaked and gave off loud noises with each step. We could see her in the distance, held by a lady and accompanied by two other men. Lily Grace had clearly been crying for a while and was still crying. It seemed like the next events took an eternity. Passports were requested and other paperwork which Sally had. They looked us over and finally became convinced that we were indeed the Greens, Lily's new family. Smiles now. All except Lily - she was still crying.



I'll never forget what happened next, as Connie grew impatient (surprise, surprise, surprise...) and moved in. She reached out and took Lily Grace from the Nanny (later we learned children's director) and I think the nanny was a bit surprised by that turn of events. We didn't get many pictures of the event because of the aforementioned camera strike and because the entire thing, though it seemed like it took hours, was over in a matter of minutes.



And just like that, Jiang Yongxing became Lily Grace Xing Green and was united with her forever family. And they all lived happily ever after. Well, more on that later ...



Love,
Jerry, Connie, Austin, Lily Grace, and Lia Faith
Green, Party of Five