Jacey's Journey

Home, Sweet Home!

2008-01-22T19:15:00.000-08:00

October 20, 2005

Hi everybody! Just a quick note to say that we made it just fine, and are SO happy to be home. Ling Ling handled the flights like a pro, and thought she was living large in first class on the long leg from GZ to LA! She loved having her own TV and headphones, and couldn't wait until we took off to recline her seat and put up the foot rest. She slept off and on, and watched cartoons in between. The flight attendants were really sweet to her, and made sure she got lots of extra attention (and candy, too). She slept through the entire flight to Dallas from LA, so was refreshed and ready to go by the time we arrived at the airport at 5AM this morning. She was so excited when we landed, and ran and jumped into her daddy's arms when she saw him. My dad came along too, and she took to him immediately, offering him her airline pretzels right away.

When we arrived at the house, the kids were asleep, but woke up soon after when they heard the commotion. I found myself just a little while after we got home sitting in the floor of the playroom watching my kids play together, and it hit me that, HOLY COW, we have 3 kids now!! Jakob was so funny, asking where Baby Jack was (I guess he thought I'd be having the baby in China and bringing him home as well, ha!). My 3 cuties act as if they have known each other for years, and Jaden is following Ling Ling around right now like a little puppy. This house looks as though a tornado has come through, as Ling Ling has explored every inch and left toys everywhere in her wake. We'll work on clean up later. :) She's already munched on french fries from McDonald's, so I guess she is officially "in the club" as far as Jakob and Jaden are concerned. I am continually amazed at how easily she seems to be fitting in to our family, this certainly was a match made in Heaven.

Well, I think I'll go see what the kids are into now, they've probably moved on to emptying closets or something! I promise to post more pics soon of Ling Ling in her new home and with her brother and sister. Thanks again for all your prayers and messages of love, we enjoyed every single one and couldn't have made it without you all!!

Love from Texas,
Marla

Good Bye China!

2008-01-22T19:14:00.000-08:00

October 19, 2005

Ok, we're all packed, all I need to do now is disconnect the computer! Ling Ling just had a bath, has fresh braids and a new outfit on (which will probably be a disaster by the time we get to LA, she's not exactly known for her neatness!) It's been a pretty boring day here, but who cares, we're leaving in just a little while!!

I will let you all know when we make it home, please cover us in prayer for the trip!!

We love you all!!

Marla, Ling Ling, and PoPo

At the Guangzhou airport

At LAX

We have her VISA!

2008-01-22T19:08:00.000-08:00

October 18, 2005

Whew, it's done, we are officially ready to leave this place and head for home! We shopped all day long (we had to buy an extra suitcase to be able to get it all packed, hehe!), then had Ling Ling's consulate appt this afternoon. She raised her hand proudly, tried to even say the words to the oath along with me, then yelled something to the effect of "Now we get to go home and see Daddy!" when it was over.

She's had a great day today, and I am amazed at how well she is understanding me. The girl loves to shop, and I think she managed to charm every shop owner on Shamian Island. They all said she was a very good girl and were impressed with how much English she is already understanding. She picked out some very pretty things, and was very mindful to remember to also pick out things for her big brother and little sis. She picked up some paper dragons and asked the lady in the shop for 4 so that even Baby Jack would have one. She totally understands that we only have one more night here, and is very excited to see mom and I packing up bags tonight. We have talked of little else but daddy, fei ji (airplane), and home today. I know somewhere in her heart, she will be sad to leave her country, but right now she is so focused on seeing her new country that it doesn't seem to bother her. I had the guide explain to her that we will be on the fei ji for quite a long time before we see Daddy, and she said she understood and that someone had already told her that it took 2 days to get to the United States. :)

Happy Anniversary tomorrow to my sweet hubby, I can't believe it's been 14 years already. I'm sorry that I will be spending our entire anniversary on an airplane, but I'm bringing you the best gift I can think of!! I love you and can't wait to see you.

To my Feb Lovebugs, I will be on the plane during chat, so y'all be nice and behave yourselves in my absence, ha!

To my DSPTC buddies, I'm glad the tournament is over, and it sounds like you guys did a great job. See, you didn't need me that bad after all! ;)

Well, we're off to bed soon, so good night for the last time from Guangzhou. I will probably post once more before we leave tomorrow since we will be here until about 5pm.

We love y'all!
Marla, Ling Ling, and PoPo

Goofing off at the White Swan

Happy Anniversary-14 Years!

2008-01-22T19:06:00.000-08:00

October 18, 2005

Hey Marla, Lingling and PoPo,

Just sitting here reading yahoo groups because I can't sleep. Been up since 3am and I'm not even close to being sleepy. I thought playing golf today in the 90 degree heat would have worn me out, but I guess not. I hope ya'll had a very productive day of shopping, and I know ya'll will be glad to head to the airport Tomorrow!! Everyone was asking about you and Lingling at the golf tournament today and can't wait to meet her.

See ya soon.

Love, Derek

Shopping!

2008-01-22T18:58:00.000-08:00

October 17, 2005

Hello all,
Yesterday was a pretty boring day so I didn't have much to report. We hung out here at the Phoenix all day and Ling Ling went swimming at the enormous pool. She didn't seem especially confident in the water, so we stayed in the shallow end. She doesn't really like water in her face, even in the tub. We had dinner with the Keohane's (the family with the twins) and it was quite interesting. We ate at the Chinese restaurant here and the wait staff had a hard time understanding us. I asked for water for Ling Ling to drink, they brought her a Coke instead, and then insisted on serving it to her even though I was saying "no" and moving the glass. She ended up mad at me over the whole thing, but she had already met her Coke quota for the day, and I did not give in. This girl is not used to being told no, and is pouting at me regularly when I don't let her do what she wants (like turn the volume up to a deafening level on the computer when she watches a DVD). I'm such a mean mommy. :)

Today we got up early to go to the pearl and jade market and visit Shamian Island again. It was a very good day, and we made a pretty decent dent in our money supply. Ling Ling picked out some very pretty outfits for herself, 2 pairs of shoes, a silk blanket, toy cell phone, beaded purse, umbrella, and is playing happily with her new things right now. At the pearl market, I got her and Jaden both necklaces and bracelets made for when they are older, and have some extra pearls that they can have made into earrings or rings as well. There was a great DVD store at the market, and we stocked up on 12 Disney and Barbie movies for only $2 each!! She's already watched one of the Barbie movies and loved every second of it. I had to fight her to have a second to get the computer back long enough to post here.

Ling Ling continues to do well, and other than the meltdown over the Coke last night and missing her daddy (which also came up last night at bedtime with some tears), she is a very happy little girl. I think she is getting sick of people asking her about her new family and telling her how lucky she is, and I don't blame her. I think she is wondering if she's ever actually going to get to see her real home, and I must admit that I am getting impatient to see it as well!

Tomorrow, we are heading back to the island to finish up our shopping and then will go to the consulate in the afternoon to take the oath and pick up her visa. Then Wednesday, we will hang here for the day and then head for LA on the 9pm flight out of Guangzhou.

Thanks to everyone for your messages of support, you have no idea how nice it is to know that everyone back home is thinking of and praying for us. This trip has been incredible and I am so happy to have so many friends and family members to share it with! I will post a few new pics in a little while if I can negotiate use of the computer long enough. :)

Love from GZ,
Marla, PoPo, and Ling Ling

Red couch at the White Swan

Modeling one of her new dresses

Dad is Home

2008-01-22T18:56:00.000-08:00

October 15, 2005

Well, thanks for everyone's prayers and good wishes. I am finally home and the kids are soooo glad to see me. After a very restful trip from China (First Class Rocks!) and a good night sleep in LA, I was able to get home today, and am well rested. Marla, the
pictures from the Phoenix look very nice. I almost wish I was there to see it. Tell Lingling I love her and talk to ya soon.

Derek

We're in Guangzhou!

2008-01-22T18:50:00.000-08:00

October 15, 2005

Hi all!! Ling Ling's first flight went very well, she was grinning from ear to ear the entire time and was very excited about the whole thing. We arrived late last night to the Phoenix Hotel and wowsa, what a place. It makes the White Swan look like a Motel 6, and I'm not kidding about that! It reminds me of a resort like the Bellagio or Venetian in Vegas, everything is very European and elegant. The breakfast buffet was pure heaven, and I look forward to pigging out there again for the next several days. :)

First thing this morning, we went to Shamian Island (about a 50 minute drive) to get Ling Ling's visa photo made, have her medical exam, and then had a quick lunch at Lucy's before heading back to the Phoenix. We are here with another couple, Sean and Mary Keohane, their 2 1/2 year old Chinese daughter, and their 2 new additions, 9 month old twins. Yeah, they've kind of got their hands full to say the least. Tomorrow, we plan to go to the amusement park here on the resort, and then Monday and Tuesday will be for shopping on the island and going to the jade and pearl markets.

Ling Ling continues to thrive and does not seem the least bit upset that Derek is missing in action. She and I are spending some great quality time together and I have to say that I am becoming more and more able to understand what she is saying to me in Mandarin. I can't always repeat it, but I understand when she says that she is hungry, thirsty, needs to go to the bathroom (and am amazed to watch her use the squatty potties), wants to be picked up, or needs help with something. She is also understanding more and more in English. She holds my hand everywhere we go and gives me lots of hugs and kisses. Derek taught her the sign for I love you and we flash that to each other often. She can also say I love you in English, and I guess that's my favorite thing she says so far. :) The Holt staff have all been quite impressed with her progress with us and she tells them all that she is very happy with her new family. I can't imagine how things could be going any better for us at this point and feel so blessed to have this little girl in my life. I can't wait for you all to meet her.

Thanks for the prayers for Derek, aside from his slight mishap in Nanning, he made it to LA fine and will be heading home to Texas very soon. Get that Dr. Pepper cold for me honey and give my sweet kids a big hug from Mommy!!

I promise to gets pics posted soon!

Talk to you all soon,
Marla, Ling Ling and PoPo

Our ridiculously fancy hotel:

First purchase in GZ

Medical exam:

Got her passport, yay!

Hanging out at the Phoenix

Dr. Pepper and Baseball!

2008-01-22T18:41:00.000-08:00

October 14, 2005

Well, Dad made it just fine to LA, and got here in time to watch some baseball (Go Cubbies in 06, or 07, etc.) and drink a DR. PEPPER. Sorry Marla, your time will be here soon. Hope everything is going well in Guangzhou with Lingling. At the Nanning airport they had a mixup of gates and I, and about 10 others almost got on the wrong plane to Shanghai! That will be a funny story I can tell for years. Well, I am going to go try and get some rest. Tell LingLing that her Daddy Loves her and will see her at the airport in a few days.

Love, Derek

Last Day in Nanning

2008-01-22T18:20:00.000-08:00

October 14, 2005

I can't believe our time here is already through. Now on to Guangzhou for the visa and lots of shopping. We're all packed up, and Ling Ling is bouncing off the walls. I'm having quite a time getting her down for a nap right now, I think she is excited and nervous about what we're about to do. I'm certain she's never been on a fei ji (airplane) before so today should be a real adventure for her. I think we're about to move into the phase where she starts testing us with some of her behavior, we are starting to see a little more mischief each day. So far though, she is still minding pretty well and seems to understand when we mean business and when we are being playful and silly.

I will post again when we get to Guangzhou provided I don't have any trouble getting us connected to the internet! And I will endeavor to do as good a job as Derek at posting pics. Please keep him covered in prayer for his journey home, he will arrive in LA at 6pm (8pm TX time) Friday evening and then will fly back to TX Sat morning.

Jakob and Jaden, Mommy and Mimi love you and miss you!! Daddy will be home soon!

Love to you all,
Marla, Derek, Mimi and Ling Ling

Fun facts about Ling Ling

2008-01-22T18:13:00.000-08:00

October 13, 2005

There are several things I keep forgetting to mention that I wanted to share about our Ling Ling. First, she seems to be truly
ambidextrous. We have seen her eat with both hands, and last night she was coloring with both as well. She would switch from hand to hand depending on which side of the page she was coloring on. She seems to prefer her right for actual writing, but uses both easily for everything else.

She knows the ABC song and can count to 5 with ease in English. She was apparently learning these in school here and nearly knocked our socks off last night when she busted in the ABC song without prompting. She loves to sing and dance, and knows the words to almost every song on the Chinese children's CD we brought with us. We have some excellent video of her singing quite boisterously.

She likes to squat by the side of the sink when she brushes her teeth. Now this is a sight to behold, she gets up on the counter, squats down, with a cup of water in one hand and the brush in the other and rinses and spits about 20 times for one brushing session. I have to get that on video soon, it's quite funny.

She knows how to braid and could probably be doing a better job of her own hair than I am doing now. She can sit for half an hour at a time and style her Barbie's hair. She pulls hers back and puts it in a ponytail when we take it down for the night if she's trying to color or play because it really seems to bother her if it gets in her face. She's got the most gorgeous head of hair I think I've ever seen. It never tangles, even when soaking wet. I think I'm going to need to take a class in how to style it and will definitely be getting up a little earlier just to have ample "hair time". :)

Lastly, she's already lost her first tooth!! It looks like it just came out a few days at most before we met her. I am glad to know we won't be missing any more of her milestones.

Love y'all!
Marla

Visit to Nanning SWI and foster mom

2008-01-22T18:04:00.000-08:00

October 13, 2005

Ni Hao again,
The morning went great at the SWI. Ling Ling's foster mom was very sweet and brought us a picture of her that was taken the morning she came to us. She asked us to send her lots of pictures, and we assured her that we would. Ling Ling was thrilled to see her, and gave her lots of hugs and kisses, but also seemed eager to tell her goodbye at the same time. Derek posted several pics of them together in today's folder. A group of children (mostly boys) with various special needs came by to say goodbye to Ling Ling and they were so precious. Of course, the sight of them started my tears (and Mom's too) and we pretty much didn't stop crying the rest of the time we were there. The foster mom started to cry as we neared time to say goodbye, and that was difficult for me. Ling Ling just happily yelled goodbye to her as she ran off to play in the playground nearby. She didn't shed a single tear, and almost seemed relieved in the van on the way back to the hotel. I guess today was her first true realization that she is staying with us forever.

The Nanning SWI is located in what seemed to be a very poor area of Nanning. The SWI itself was pretty nice, and the caretakers were all very kind to us. We got to see the classroom where Ling Ling went to school and several of her classmates. She seemed very happy while we were there and was eagerly telling everyone she saw goodbye. Her foster mom had given her a bag with jelly candies in it, and as we left, she passed out the candies to all the children who had come to see her off. She was careful to be sure she did not miss anyone and it was honestly the most precious display of kindness I think I have ever seen. Of course, that made me cry too, so I was practically a blubbering idiot by the time we left. :) I am so thankful that we were able to visit the SWI and most of all that her foster mother saw how happy she was with us. It was difficult to even come up with words to say to her, how on Earth do you thank the person who has cared for your child and loves her as much as you do? We will be forever grateful for her kindness and love for Wen Ling and hope that we can stay in touch with her for many years to come.

We opted for lunch in the hotel today and Ling Ling, Daddy and Popo all had burgers and fries (I went for the pizza!). Ling Ling ate every fry on her plate and even some of Daddy's and Popo's too, but wasn't too impressed with the burger. She also ordered a Coke (a habit that will soon need to be broken) and we had a difficult time getting her to lay down for a nap. She's going to be quite shocked when she gets home and sees that her choices of drinks and snacks have narrowed considerably. ;)

I hope you all are enjoying the pictures, Derek is doing a great job of getting them downloaded quickly for me. As you can see, Ling Ling is not at all camera shy and insists on a "peace" sign in almost every shot. She inspects each picture on the digital camera as we take them and most of the time even directs who is going to be allowed to be in the picture with her. We can tell she is used to being in charge and are in for some interesting times when we get home. Though we never understand exactly what she is saying to us, often her tone and mannerisms are such that she gets her point across with very little difficulty, especially when she is unhappy with something we've said to her. We battled a bit over what she was wearing today and I wish I had a picture of the look on her face when she finally gave in and put on the dress I picked out. I had to really work hard at not laughing out loud when she rolled her eyes after I told her how pretty she looked.

We don't have anything really planned for tomorrow except the flight to Guangzhou in the afternoon. Derek leaves about an hour before mom, Ling Ling and me, and then he will head for LA at 9pm. Please pray for safe travels for him, and that Ling Ling isn't too upset by him leaving. She and I have definitely bonded more in the last few days, she even wanted to lay next to me for a while before she went to sleep last night, but I think Daddy is still her favorite.

Thanks for all the support, we love your messages!! And yes, I think a road trip to Texas will be in order for several of you very
soon. :) Also, Lorrie, we dropped off Alycia's gift today at the SWI, so hopefully she will get it very soon!

Love to you all,
Marla

Love this picture of Jacey and her Mumu

Wednesday continued...

2008-01-22T17:58:00.000-08:00

October 12, 2005

Hello again,
Derek and Wen Ling are napping (yes, she still naps), so I thought I'd write and share a little more about her. Jane asked her this morning why she was crying last night, and she said it was because she missed her foster mom. Jane reminded her that we will be seeing her foster mom tomorrow and Wen Ling replied "I'm going to tell her that this (pointing to us) is my mama and baba now." We asked Jane to tell her that it is OK to cry and miss her mom and that she didn't have to try and always be such a big girl. She just smiled and said "OK." We can tell she is trying to be very brave in front of us. Last night before she cried, she got up and shut the curtains in the room (to make it darker) and hid under the covers. It nearly broke my heart to hear her quiet sobs, but it is good that she is letting her emotions come out. We just sat with her, rubbing her back and arms and told her we loved her over and over. I can't even imagine going through such changes at such a young age. She is our little trooper.

We took a taxi (not nearly as scary as the ones on our first trip) to an open market today and shopped for a little while. We bought Ling Ling a cute pink Mongolian princess headband and a few other things for her hair. Mom and I both picked out pretty bracelets for ourselves, and I bought Jaden a very cute purple jade bracelet too. The market had all sorts of interesting things, including live fish, turtles, rabbits, parakeets and Ling Ling wanted us to buy her a bird and a fish! Jane had to explain that we couldn't get those on the fei ji (airplane), but that we had a fish at home she could see. She was satisfied with that and we moved on. :) I'm really surprised she hasn't asked for more than she has when we have been shopping. She tried to sneak a few small things into the basket yesterday at Wal Mart, but really hasn't asked for much. She even told one man at the market today, "No, I don't want that, I am just looking." There will be a lot more for her to choose from in Guangzhou than there seems to be here, so we will do the bulk of our shopping there.

We ate a delicious Chinese lunch at Food Street, a giant restaurant where you just walk around and point to what you want. We ordered 3 different noodle dishes, a fried eggplant, corn cakes, jello, 2 cokes and milk and the whole bill was $12! We are still amazed how inexpensive things are here. Nanning is a very beautiful city and is much less polluted and congested than Changsha in Hunan (where Jaden is from). I can't wait to go the park this afternoon with Ling Ling and take some pictures there. Everything is so green and lush here, sometimes I forget we are in China, it looks more like a tropical island than a big city.

Well, I guess that is enough for now. I think Derek posted more pics this morning, and we will add more to the folder today after the park. You will notice that Derek and I will be in more of the photos and that is at the request of Jaden back home. She likes the pictures with Mommy and Daddy in them best. :)

Thanks to Karen for the quick reply about the Mandarin words, you'd think I'd have learned more before we came. She is doing much better today about staying with us, and I think is even starting to understand some of the commands in English. We have started calling her Wen Ling (instead of Ling Ling) when we mean business and she is responding well to that. I'm not sure how soon we will start to call her Jacey, she has a little trouble pronouncing it, so we will probably just start to gradually work it in. We're really going to just leave it up to her.

Thanks for all the messages from home, we miss you all!

Love,
Mama, Baba, PoPo, and Ling-Ling

Beautiful park near our hotel

Love to watch her color with both hands

Is she cute or what?

Good morning everyone!

2008-01-22T17:53:00.000-08:00

October 12, 2005

Hello again,
Well, another day is beginning here in Nanning. Today we are heading to a market to do more shopping and then we'll take Ling Ling to the park near our hotel to play. Last night, we saw her first tears, just after we went to bed, and aren't sure what brought them on. We assume she was missing her foster mom, but are going to have our guide ask her about it today. We expected that she would start to grieve at some point, and are happy that she feels comfortable enough with us to show such emotion. This morning, she is her normal smiling self and is sitting with Baba on the bed right now watching Chinese cartoons.

We completed all the notary and civil paperwork yesterday, so as far as China is concerned, she is officially a Westbrook now!! Now we just wait for her passport, which we will get Friday before we leave for Guangzhou.

I can't tell you all how blessed we feel to have this little girl, she is just so precious. Her personality is amazing, and she is so strong and brave for a child who is only 5 years old. I only wish we could understand what she saying when she's going on and on about something. Her little voice is so sweet and she sings very pretty as well. She likes to sing songs while she plays with her new Barbie, which she picked out at Wal Mart yesterday.

Well, I need to hit the shower so that I will have time to work on Jacey's hair before we go eat breakfast. She is definitely used to having it up, and even asked me to pull it back before she would brush her teeth this morning. I'm going to get really good at pigtails and braids eventually!!!

Love to all of you,
Marla, Derek, Mimi and the beautiful and amazing Ling-Ling

PS- Lorrie T-the orphanage gave us pics of Jacey and the first two in the album are of her and your Alycia (Yong Jun) together. They look fairly recent, and I promise to scan them for you when we get home! Alycia is beautiful!!

Joy Orton-We need your help with a few words!! Would you please send us the pronunciation in Mandarin of "wait" (or stop), "sit down", "eat" and "slow down"? We keep asking our guide, but can't always tell exactly how she's saying them. Jacey is so fast, and has memorized our hotel so well, that sometimes she takes off for the elevator before we even have a chance to get off the van out front!! We need a few words to yell in Chinese, hehe!!

This is so fun!

2008-01-22T17:48:00.000-08:00

October 11, 2005

Ni Hao!! Well, it's another fun day with Miss Ling-Ling by our sides. We're just about to head out to Wal Mart, but I wanted to
write and tell you more about her. She acts as though she has been waiting for us all her life, and is completely comfortable with us in every way. She slept great, and in her own bed (yippee!). She is still very much attached to her Daddy, but did not seem to mind when he left a little while ago to get money, so that made me feel good. She is so smart that it actually scares us a little! She is excellent at repeating English words and is already working on her letters and numbers. We gave her a Magna Doodle today, and she has been drawing all day. She is very witty and funny and gets a kick out of just about everything. Right now, she is turning out the light on Baba while he is in the bathroom and giggling like crazy. I can't wait to see her in Wal Mart, I only hope that Derek got enough money at the bank!! :)

Ok, off to shop now! We will write again very soon! Take care and we love you all!!

Marla, Derek, Mimi(PoPo) and Ling-Ling

Wrote her name

She's Perfect!

2008-01-22T17:42:00.000-08:00

October 10, 2005

Wow, what a day!! Miss Jacey WenLing aka "Ling-Ling" is an absolute joy and we are so blessed to be able to call her our daughter. She walked right into the room where we waited at the Civil Affairs Bureau and gave us a big smile and an even bigger "Hello!" She immediately started to play with us, especially Derek (her Baba), and it wasn't long before she had her new Hello Kitty backpack unloaded to inspect all the goods. She really likes taking pictures of us, and in addition to using her own camera, she has figured out how to use both our 35mm and digital cameras. Some of the photos we get from this trip should be interesting. :)

I don't even know where to begin when I describe her. She is even more beautiful in person than in her photos and she is so confident and secure with us that it blows my mind. She is into EVERYTHING, so we are trying to stay on our toes and keep up with her. She is definitely used to being in charge so we are trying to learn to negotiate with her with the few words we know in Mandarin. She's hearing the word "Bu" (no) quite a bit, but so far is minding very well and complying with what we ask. Baba is trying to talk her into coming to bed soon and that may be our biggest challenge yet!

She came to us wearing a very cute dress, white knee socks, and pink and white leather shoes. Her hair was up in pigtails with 8 braids. Mommy is going to have to do some serious practicing on the hair-styling! She had a bath tonight after dinner and after about 10 minutes of undoing hair, we finally got to see what she looks like with it down. This kid has one gorgeous head of hair and it wasn't even the least bit tangled when I took out the braids. Right now, she is sitting on the bed with Baba in her new jammies, snacking on a cracker and watching TV. She is obsessed with the key pad on the nightstand that works all the lights in the room, and keeps turning them off and on, so please forgive any typos! :)

She has been very accepting of all 3 of us, but seems to have decided that Baba is her favorite. She calls him Daddy or Poppie
and asks him to hold her often. I think we have a serious Daddy's girl on our hands, and I couldn't be more thrilled. He is loving every second of her attention.

Well, we have to be up early for our appt at the Civil Affairs Office, so I will close for now. I will post again tomorrow about
our adventures with this gorgeous little girl and will post more pics, too. I am about to download a few and I think Derek already changed the homepage pic. As you can see, she is quite photogenic and not at all shy about having her picture taken.

Thanks to everyone for your messages of support, we have so enjoyed reading them. Take care and we will talk to you all soon!! And Jakob and Jaden, get ready for some serious fun with your new sister, she's a riot!!

Marla, Derek and Mimi (or PoPo as Ling-Ling calls her!)

Pics of our pretty girl at gotcha

Taken by Ling Ling

Her favorite pose

With her hair down

These were taken earlier today of our sightseeing tour of Nanning

Our hotel

We are so EXCITED!

2008-01-22T17:36:00.000-08:00

October 9, 2005

Hi again all!
Just wanted to give everyone the latest on Miss Jacey. Our guide, Jane, has actually known Jacey for quite a while now and brought us some pictures that she has taken over the years of her. She just saw her today and said that she is very excited that we are coming and she has been going around telling everyone that she is moving to the US because that's where her Mom and Dad live. It turns out that she does speak Mandarin as well as Cantonese, so I guess I shouldn't have given up on the Mandarin so soon. Oh well, we will survive! Jane asked Jacey's foster mom if she thought that she (Jacey) would cry tomorrow when she leaves her and she replied "No, not if they give her candy and dolls!" :) We are thrilled that we will get to meet her foster mom on Thursday when we visit the Nanning SWI.

We went ahead and completed our official paperwork right here in the hotel room so that we don't have to bother with it tomorrow and we can just concentrate on getting to know our beautiful girl. We happily signed our names and stamped our thumbprints to make her forever our daughter. We will meet her tomorrow at 3:40pm, which is 2:40am Texas time, so we'll have her when all you sleepy heads are waking up!!

Alright, we're going to wind down now and get some sleep. We love you all and so appreciate your love and support. Jakob and Jaden, we miss you tons already and can't wait to bring your sister home to you!!

Love from China,
Marla, Derek and Mimi

PS- Here is the list Jane gave us of Jacey's English words:
Hello
Good Morning
Mother
Father
Brother
Banana

Love that last one! :)

We're here!

2008-01-22T17:33:00.000-08:00

October 9, 2005

It was a long haul, but we're safely in Nanning and relaxing in our very nice hotel room at the Majestic. We all made the trip just fine, and our only little hiccup was a very long hike through the airport at Guangzhou. We meet our Holt guide this afternoon to find out what time tomorrow we will be meeting Jacey. :)

The weather is absolutely gorgeous and we plan to venture out in a bit (after I lay with my swollen feet up for little while!) and see all that there is to do around here. This area is very beautiful, lush and green with gorgeous tropical flowers and trees everywhere. We'll try and get some good pics to post later.

We met up with several other families on our flight that will be staying here at the Majestic, so we are looking forward to getting to meet their girls as well. Ironically, one of the couples actually recognized us from our first trip in 2004, they were in Beijing and Guangzhou at the same time we were and are now back adopting an 11 month old little girl. Small world, huh?

Well, that's it for now, gotta go get these feet back up!

Love to you all, especially my precious Jakob and Jaden,
Marla (and Derek and Mimi, too!)

Ready to hit the town.

Typical China traffic, this is the intersection at our hotel.

Also from the hotel:

We're Outta Here!

2008-01-22T17:30:00.000-08:00

October 7, 2005

Hey everybody, just wanted to say thanks for all the well-wishes and prayers, we really appreciate them!! We're leaving in just a bit and will try to post when we arrive on Sunday. We will meet Jacey on Monday afternoon, so by the time you all get up on Monday morning, hopefully we will have posted with the good news!!

We love you all!!

Derek, Marla and Mimi

Referral!

2008-01-22T17:07:00.000-08:00

May 26, 2005

After receiving a call from Holt on May 12, seeing her pic for the first time on May 16 and then going through the waiting child committee with Holt, we found out on May 26 that Yuan Wen Ling would be ours. Here is what I posted on the Feb 05 Yahoo group:

Hi everyone,
We are thrilled to announce that we have been matched with a very beautiful waiting child! Her name is Yuan Wen Ling (soon to be Jacey WenLing) and she is waiting for us in Nanning, Guangxi. Her dob is 12/13/99, so she's going to be Jakob's little sis (though not by much) and Jaden's big sis!! We are so excited we can hardly stand it.

I posted her pic in the Westbrook folder.

Just had to share with my Lovebug friends, and for all you chatters, I'm sorry it took me so long to post, we didn't get the news until late!!

Hyper in TX,
Marla
dh Derek
ds Jakob, 6, bio
dd Jaden XiangHui, 2, Zhuzhou, Hunan
DTC 1/28 for Miss Jacey WenLing
Holt Intl

Here is the first picture we saw of our beauty:

Welcome to Jacey's Blog!

2008-01-22T16:34:00.000-08:00

Hi all, I was inspired by my friend Lisa to create a blog to record our journeys to get Jacey and Jaden. I'm starting with Jacey's, since her Yahoo group is still active and I can copy the posts to here. It may take me a while to complete them, but I think this will be a wonderful way for us to relive their journeys over and over. And who knows, maybe one day Jacey will take over this blog and share the story herself!