She absolutely loves her brothers and sister.  She plays and plays.  Rachel is absolutely loving being a big sister.  The only part of it she does not like is when Marie chooses to be with Micah and / or Adam instead of her!  Micah was having a rough time of it as Marie was more interested in big sister Rachel and Adam (who is almost her size) but then last night Marie came up and snuggled with him on the couch... he was in heaven!  Adam loves having a little sister to play with.  They have been doing great together and Adam is figuring out that his sign language skills from school now have a purpose at home.  Rachel, Micah and Adam have been out of bed by about 5:45 the last two mornings as they want to be ready to play with Marie when she wakes up.  Yesterday they all went in and climbed into bed with her and woke her by giving her kisses... she awoke with a smile (something mom and dad were never able to manage with her).

She is in the throws of the time change.  It will, it seems, take a while to get her on our time schedule.  Unfortunately during the night (and most other times) Denise is the one she wants.  Consequently Denise is not getting much sleep.  It seems like she might only have a couple more days of the confused clock.  With the weekend coming up we can let her cry a little more at night without having to worry about the other kids waking up on a school night.  We will see.

Monday and Wednesday of next week Marie has Doctors appointments.  Monday is a physical and Wednesday is with a hearing specialist.  If we have news on Wednesday night or Thursday morning we will post it here for anyone interested in finding out about her hearing situation.  (Mike)

Okay, so this is it! (Yeah!!!)  We went to the Chinese Consulate in the "new" Guanzhou and stood with 50 other families to swear an oath that all information we submitted was true to the best of our knowledge.  It was interesting standing with all those families thinking about what each of these children have in store for them and all the opportunities and possibilities that exist in the very room we are standing in.  I was  moved to tears and Mike giggled at me.  It is amazing how much time and energy each of these families have put into bringing their child(ren) home with them.  Marie is now a Chinese citizen in China, and a US citizen in the US.  The oath officer recommended that we strongly encourage our child(ren) to always travel with a US passport even as a dual citizen for the sake of utilizing the US consulate and embassies in case of emergency/need in their future travels. 

Our day started with an early breakfast... amazing that the paper we received, on our way to the airport to fly to Marie's province, reported her schedule to be the same as ours!  Up at 6:30 am, breakfast at 7:00ish, lunch then nap at noon and dinner then bedtime at 8:30 pm.  I think her foster mom knew the Johnson household schedule and she helped Marie prepare for her 'forever family'!  She is just like Rachel and needs some coaxing to awaken then... on the go... needs to eat like Micah and Adam, though.  Then play and learn time.  She is so visual and smart (did I mention how smart she is... just like her older sister and brothers!?!?!?!)

We started the group day with pictures at the infamous red couch in the White Swan hotel lobby with all the children dressed in Chinese attire.  Then more photos then lunch and playtime.  Nap and then off for the 40+ minute bus ride to the Consulate.  During the bus ride Mike and a couple of other people were talking about the gender imbalance already seen here in China (more boys than girls).  There have been about 10,000 babies adopted from China (70% of those to the US).  At this point there is already a gender imbalance of 10's of millions more boys than girls.  Given that only 10,000 have been adopted, where are the rest of the girls?  Aborted.  Abortion is illegal here in China (as are ultrasounds to determine the sex of a baby).  However, people find out the gender of their child and sometimes decide to abort that life if it is female.  Some blame adoption for the gender imbalance... not the case at all - it is the "one child" policy of the government and choices pregnant women (and men) make in the midst of hard to fully grasp cultural and economic pressures. 

After the consulate appointment we had the chance to have one last meal with some of the other families in our group and enjoyed this last meal together (2 families already started their flights home today).  We have the opportunity to see all of our group families again at the FTIA family reunion in the summertime.  If we can attend, it will be fun to see the children after some time in the US and be able to speak on their medical interventions as all the children in our group are "special needs" (several with cleft lip/palate, one with a right arm brachial plexus injury, one with abnormal genitalia, two with heart defects).  After dinner it was packing time!

Well... here we come- ready or not!!! We can't wait to see everyone!  You're gonna love Marie!  (She's a lucky girl... she just doesn't know it yet!)  See you soon! Thanks again for all the love and support!  (Denise)

We had dinner as a group with FTIA (our international agency) families, ten in total and all adopting special needs children ages 15 months to six years of age.  We ate at a Thai restaurant called Cow and Bridge (the English translation... I could not even begin to say the Chinese name!)  Interesting menu selections... baked goose (yes, head and all), pig intestines, ostrich (as in the big bird) kidneys, fried goose feet... sounds good, huh?!?!?!  That's what I said.  Marie and I settled for pineapple pizza and Mike had the sweet and sour chicken with cashew nuts (he also tried the pig intestine!)... needless to say we are ready for a serious large Domino's pizza!!!  It was fun being a big group though... lots of laughs and Marie did a great job! 

As Mike said it was a pretty low key day.  Nothing eventful, which is appreciated!  Tomorrow we will dress all the kids in their Chinese dress and get a famed photo on the red couch in the hotel lobby overlooking the Pearl River.  That's at 10:30 then to the Consulate for the final decree (oath)... that should be interesting!  Then we are all through with the political stuff.  Marie will be official and will then become a US citizen (as Mike and I both traveled) as soon as she steps off the plane in the US!

We are all so ready to be home!  At least Mike and I are... Marie may think differently when she realizes that Mommy and Daddy's attention is not all for her anymore!  It will be an adjustment, but I think we will do just fine!  She's a lucky little girl and we're lucky to be blessed with her!  She is so smart just like Rae, Micah and Adam.  She already signs boat, mom, dad, more, sit, eat, drink, thirsty, hungry, and walk.  She is also working on please, thank you, happy, sad, and silly!  Today she tried to say "up", touching my throat as I said it and trying to form her lips!  We'll see what God has in store for her! 

Well, off to sleep for us- you all have sweet dreams!  Oh, Rae, Micah and Adam... don't let the bed bugs bite (if they do, bite them back!!) Love, Mommy

Hey lovebugs!  Daddy is right... we miss all of you terribly!  Can't wait to show you the cool stuff we found for you!  We have been eating at a place called "Lucy's" or in our hotel restaurant because we have to be very careful not to get sick (the water here can hurt our tummies).  We have eaten a lot of rice and breads.  Yogurt, believe it or not, is very easy to get here and Marie seems to like it.  Rachel... I have a favor to ask- can you find one or two small (not too small) purses for Yi (you all remember that's her nickname) so that she can carry her goodies- her little hands are too small to juggle them without loosing a few.  She likes a little yellow ball and a little book we brought from home, and a few little rolley animals.  I will also need Micah and Adam's help as Marie is still not happy in the bathtub... apparently they just spray off the children with cold water so bathing is not an enjoyed event.  None of the babies/toddlers in our group of families have enjoyed bath time.  You'll need to help us get her comfortable with it, okay?

The temple we visited today was neat, so much history here!  Trees in the courtyard alone were over 200 years old!  There is a lot of worshipping on the temple ground for the Buddas (for longevity, happiness, wealth, fertility, etc) with offerings on the altars (fruits, drinks, maize oils, etc).  There were also temples to honor deceased family members... very respectful.

This culture is P.T. heaven... the people young and old exercise all the time.  They have incredible work ethic and the exercise seems to offer social opportunities too- badmitten and hackey sack groups laughing and running.  It's really neat.  No obesity problems here.  They actually have exercise (albeit metal) equipment in the public parks.  Often times the people doing the elliptical exercises are 60+.  They also do a lot of group exercise with music and one or two people leading a group (like low level aerobics), most commonly groups of women. 

People are very friendly here, too!  The rumor here among the guides is that Chinese adoptions are slowing drastically as people are opting to keep their children or for some other reason the percentage of Chinese children available for adoption is declining rapidly.  (One comment was that up to 98% of available children in the orphanages are "special needs").  With the decline in adoptions it is not a good prospect for all the vendors here in China whose business centers around foreign adoptions.  We sure are glad for our timing on this amazing journey!

The pictures are neat from our day... it was a warm day so we spent a lot of time outside- the temple, the park, near the Pearl River next to our hotel (the White Swan). Rae, Micah and Adam-  Daddy and I figured Marie will probably enjoy our excursions to The Purple People Bridge!  The picture of Marie trying to get the stone ball out of the lions mouth has an interesting story.  Our guides told us the rumor is that whoever can get the stone ball out of the lions mouth becomes the owner of the Chen temple... no luck though!  Well, we'll write soon.  We love you and can't wait to come home!

Rae- did you have fun with Lisa and Ellie for the Christmas Craft gathering on Sunday?  Sorry mommy couldn't be there, but I bet you all had a good time.  Maybe we could have a Christmas Craft activity after we get home that Marie could participate in too!  You all (Rae, Micah and Adam) can think about it and we can decide... okay!  Love-Mommy 

Her personality is out in full swing now.  She is cute and has the funniest facial expressions.  The trials of our first four days (and probably more in the next couple) were obviously about her dealing with being separated from her foster mom.  In the midst of having the various conflicting medical reports and then seeing her those first few days it was difficult trusting that we were not seeing the true Marie and that in time we would.  While I am sure we are still not seeing the fullest expression of her personality, we are getting closer and she is doing great.  Her struggle adjusting to this change is a testament to the care from and her attachment with her foster mom.  She may have spoiled Marie but she definitely laid a good relational foundation for us to build on.  (Mike)

Today did start off better, as Mike said.  Marie was playful and full of personality as we toured the pavilion.  It was a very peaceful day... the visit to the pavilion was interesting.  The dance and entertaining show was a touch of the cultural history.  The wealth of cultural heritage in the contents of the building at the pavilion was amazing.  So many artifacts that have survived 38 rebuildings of the pavilion due to revolutions and wars that resulted in the destruction of the prior hardscape.  Bonsai tree gardens and water surround the base of the structure as it stands today.  There is a display where they have the shoes that the Emperors female family members wore... they did bind their feet and the shoes were small enough to fit Marie!  Ouch!

I have always viewed butterflies as a reminder of the presence of my dad in our lives.  On the fourth floor of the pavilion was an entire display of the local butterflies as one Emperor apparently appreciated their beauty.   It was a much needed "Intervention Bisig"!

After our tour of the pavilion, we ate at a local Chinese restaurant.  Marie ate five bowls of steamed egg, beef, broccoli and fried rice! (Yes five bowls... we can't imagine where she puts it!)  Then nap time... my left arm is resting as Marie's foster mom must have always carried her on her left side.  After nap time it's walking again... to the local outdoor mall... we get a lot of onlookers and young Chinese who want to practice their English.  Older females enjoy smiling and saying "Hello" (in Chinese of course) to us. 

Cindy met us in the lobby at 4:00 to visit a temple.  It was a rich cultural experience as the monks were participating in a ritual of music and "worship" at the feet of a 36,000 yin (1 yin=2 kilograms) copper statue of a Buddist figure.  Mike stood and watched the ritual for a while.  Then we walked around the temple grounds and got a picture with the monk students and spoke via Cindy's interpretation with their master.  Very interesting (Mike's second favorite cultural experience of the trip... the first was being on the great wall, the third was being in Tiananmen Square looking at the picture of Chairman Mao)!

We walked across the street to the August 1st park (the history for August 1st was the last revolution in 1989 and the date is celebrated in Nanchung).  It was fun and Marie enjoyed the water surrounding our path and the boats on the water... she is drawn for some reason to fish...

We ate, again, at Pizza Hut... pepperoni pizza (for me to really like pizza, I must be desperate!)...it was good!  Then into a taxi for our trip back to the hotel... Marie is getting tired.  We have visited a lot of bathrooms in China... Marie needs to use the "toilet" a lot... not sure why.  Is it a 'this is the only thing I still have control over and darnit, I'm not giving it up without a fight' or is there something physically going on (urinary infection, etc).  Before we left for China, I scheduled Marie's first appt with Dr. Stadt and the ENT at Cinci Children's Hospital.  I'm sure they will be able to shed some light on the situation! 

Well, it's bedtime (yes at 7:30 pm) and tomorrow will be the day to get her passport and then fly to Guanzhou... keep praying!  

The Nanchang Zoo (Denise).  Cincinnati's zoo is wonderful and while Nanchang's does not compare, it was nice and very good for Marie.  We saw fish... lots of fish who wanted all the food Marie was willing to throw their way with Dad's help.  The fish would literally swim over each other and out of the water in hopes of getting a pellet... amazing (I don't think I'll ever eat fish again!)  Anyway... there was a dirty panda bear (as our guide Cindy told us, they do not revere them as much as we expect), elephants, lots of different birds, lions, tigers and bears (oh my! as the Wizard of Oz would recite), a sun bear, and dogs!... yes dogs in the cage with the lions and cheetas!... weird!  We were there for an hour and then off to lunch.

Our guide got us to a local pizza chain (no, not Dominos... much to my chagrin [sorry Brad!]) and helped us order lunch.  It was the best darn pepperoni pizza I have had in a loooong time.  Marie even enjoyed a slice from daddy.  We then caught a cab and returned to the hotel for Marie's nap (I'll be honest... Mommy has been napping too!)

After nap time we went for a walk... about a 1 1/2 hour walk.... unfortunately, Marie wants mommy to hold her the entire time!  My left arm is about to fall off!  (I need to clarify something to all those other mom's who sooo appreciate Mike's wonderful skills as a dad... he was in good standing with Marie for the first two days and Marie would let him hold her.  For whatever reason though, he has lost graces with Empress Marie, and only mommy can hold her!!!! (That'll need to change in the Johnson home!)  Anyway, we found a neat outdoor mall a few blocks from our hotel and we enjoy taking walks there.  There is also a "department store" on our trip to the mall.  We have been there several times to buy pull-ups, sippy cup and a few other incidentals (Tide soap bars to wash clothing in the basin).  After our walk it was time to play in the hotel kiddie playroom (very basic) and then in our hotel room.  We actually met a really nice couple from Michigan in the Tokyo airport and fortunately are staying in the same hotel here in Nanchang.  They were in the playroom (had come to our room to see if we wanted to join them but were on our walk) and we had the fortune to talk to them and another family about their experiences.  After that, dinner, then another walk, then off to bed.  That's where we are right now... exhausted and contemplating.

Can we give Marie what she needs without sacrificing the needs of Rae, Micah and Adam, or Mike's and my relationship?  Can Team Johnson handle the added stressors of having a member who may have additional needs not known to us now that may impact the entire team?  Can the Johnson household function given the additional special needs of one member?  How do we handle this situation, knowing that all we want is a loving, healthy and happy home?  What about the "lost sheep"... is that Marie, or our family unit?  This has  been the hardest decision Mike and I have had to make... we appreciate all of your love and support ("Intervention Bisig"... as I call my dad's presence in our lives will help too!)  and know that we will have your support whether we decide to come home with open or empty arms!  Thanks ahead of time!!

One of the kind of funny things that is actually quite a red flag is that she throws a fit when we enter into the hotel.  She wants to be outside all the time.  Any of you that know Micah and Adam (and Rachel to some extent) know the irony here - they love being outdoors and Adam frequently helps himself to trips into the yard... and our neighbors yard... and the neighbors house without us (okay, Mike) realizing it.

Another thing we need to say (amidst the complaining about the Chinese medical system) is that the people here are very nice.  Nanchang is a fairly economically depressed area yet we have felt no threat of violence even amidst our after dark walks.  People are very curious about Marie and want to talk with her (we usually let them know she is deaf as they wait for a reply and look at us like "what have you done to this child?").  Every other country I have traveled to (including the US) I would never think about being out and about in an area as economically depressed as this is.  Anyway, we just wanted to make sure we reported that the people here are wonderful, they care deeply for their children and if the people we pass each day in stores and on the street are representative of the majority they are very peaceful people.

Sorry about the lack of photos... as you can tell from the notes above we have had a lot on our minds!

So, the hospital.  If anyone EVER hears me complain about our health care system - hospitals or Doctors' offices please simply say... "Remember the hospital in Nanchang."  This is the nicest of the children's hospitals in the city... kids squat down and pee right on the floor, adults spit on the floor and are smoking inside, people huddle around INSIDE of the exam room and watch the doctor treat the children, there are vomit/pee containers sitting all around on the floor and finally (at least for now) we were the ones who gave Marie her anesthetic to put her to sleep for the CT scan.  It was bizarre to say the least.  This has been our greatest "culture shock" (although the number of people in these big cities is a close second).  We had no idea that the healthcare situation in China was in such a state.  People let their kids throw toys on the floor and then pick them up and put them in their mouths.  It seems as if the concept of germs... bacteria... biological organisms... etc. is completely foreign.  So their is either one of two explanations for the situation.  1.  This situation is incredibly unhealthy and China's medical system is in the dark ages (and no, China does not have socialized medicine).  2. We in the US are way to "germ-a-phobic" and go way beyond what we need to do to control the spread of illness.

Anyway, today has been educational.  This afternoon (after Marie wakes up from her nap) we are going to go for a walk around the city and check things out.  After that it is dinner at the hotel and then Marie is getting a bath!  We waited to give it to her as her clothes and the smells of her body serve as a sort of transitional object from her foster home to us.  We did not want to take that away from her too soon but with the trip to the hospital it must be done!

3:07PM: So we are here in the hotel.  We arrived in Nanchang at about 2:00, got to our hotel at about 3:00 and will receive Marie at 4:15!  We are going to travel to an adoption center - not the orphanage.  The orphanage director (Mr. Woo) will be bringing Marie to us.  We are both excited and scared.  Nanchang is the provincial capital.  There are over four million people that live in the city!  It is not nearly as polluted as Beijing - we can see blue sky through the clouds.  We'll write again after we receive Marie and we have regained our senses!  Pray for us!

8:48PM: We went to the CCAA's adoption center in Nanchang at 4:15 and had a private "gotcha day" with Marie.  Marie was very uncertain of us but was willing to do some interacting with us.  Playing with a ball, giving us crackers, sharing a little animal toy.  About ten minutes or so after we got there, we left with her.  She got into the taxi and was looking around... she began to whimper a few minutes after we left.  By the time we got to the hotel she realized that she was out of her element and began to cry.  She cried for about three hours and so we fed her and put her to bed (it was a long day for her).  I slapped my hands together a few times right above her ear to see if she would startle (she seemed to respond to some noise earlier) but she did not move.  She fell and scraped her head a couple of days ago so she has quite a scab on her forehead.  We will see how tomorrow goes... it is not easy to say whether or not she has issues other than being deaf affecting her.  It seems that she lays in her crib on her back a lot as her head is very flat in the back.  We will see what tomorrow brings!  It is difficult but we are glad to be with her and getting to know her. 

We also got to see and stand in front of the famous portrait of Mao Tse-Tung hanging on the front entrance of the "Forbidden City".  Chairman Mao Tse-Tung was elected president of China during a period of great struggle.  China was wrestling with who it was in the post WWII world.  In Chairman Mao's opinion China was selling out to the world.  Giving up its own natural resources and ancient culture to feed an insatiable western world.  He brought China back to its roots - focused their attention on their rich culture and laid the foundation for modern day China.  He was a man of contradictions as this "foundation" for China was rooted in its ancient past yet he was willing to do away with elements of that past he personally did not find value in (he was the law).  He was a philosopher yet was able to put forth the ideals of communism and socialism into a black and white package so that the commoners might be able to understand the virtue behind these two systems of governance and economics (here is the online version of his "red book" which he wrote to put forth his vision for China http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/mao/works/red-book/ ).  He is very much revered in this culture not for his political or economic success but for his success in unifying the Chinese people helping them to understand themselves as one nation eternally dependent upon one another.  This is a link to a brief article in TIME magazine when he was named mane of the year (http://www.time.com/time/time100/leaders/profile/mao3.html).

We went inside the walls of the "Forbidden City" from which the feudal Emperors reigned.  "Forbidden" because only the emperor, his family, his servants and closest advisors were allowed within its walls.  An unbelievable compound filled with room after room for the various events in the emperor's days, weeks and months.  There was a lot of work being done to refurbish the buildings and grounds for the 2008 Olympics.

Tomorrow we are due to leave at 10:30 to visit the Forbidden City and an acrobatic show.  Beijing is due to have it's first snow of the season tomorrow... we'll see.  Wonder how much snow Marie has seen in her life?!?!?!

We did receive some paperwork on Marie... looks like we are out of diapers... finally!!  Marie must have known she was coming to us as she has the same nap and bedtime as Adam... hopefully it will not be too difficult to switch her to our time zone!

Rachel, this city is busy!  We think it's busy in Cincinnati going to and from school, but here the city of Beijing is populated by 15 million people (1.3 billion people in China... that's a lot of people isn't it...) it's hard to think about even counting that high. 

Micah, There are a lot of bicycles here.  Parking lots filled with cars back home are filled with bikes here!  So many people on bikes that they actually take up an entire lane in the road!!!  It's quite dangerous... maybe their mommy or daddy forgot to tell them to stay out of the road.

We miss you... please give Adam, yourselves, Grandma/Grandpa J and Grandma M a hug for us!  We love  you!

Tuesday night… we packed until about 12:30AM (Wednesday) and just as the packing ended… parenting began!  Adam woke up vomiting and remained awake for the remainder of the night.  Grandma and Grandpa J report that he is doing fine today (Wednesday).

We got to the Airport in Cincinnati only to wait for an hour as computer glitches slowed the systems putting all North West flights about an hour behind.  The flight from Cinci to Detroit was a short one (we have a cool photo of their tunnel from terminal to terminal – lights flashing everywhere)… the flight from Detroit to Tokyo not so much so!  13+ hours on the plane.  We watched a couple of movies, talked and studied our sign-language flash cards.  No sleep the night before meant we also dozed off and on during the flight. 

We flew from Cinci to Detroit then up over Canada and Alaska (the views over Alaska were awesome... mountain ranges, glacier beds, etc.) and then over the ocean to Tokyo.

Tokyo’s airport was filled with duty free shops selling all kinds of items (especially perfume).  In the Tokyo airport we saw some people who were on their way to adopt and we spent an hour or so with a couple who was adopting their third child from Asia (two from China, one from Korea).

When we arrived in Beijing we met with 11 other people who were also adopting through FTIA (Families Through International Adoption). 

We miss everyone!  We are watching Mike’s cell phone which shows us the path of night / day across the globe.  We have been chasing the sun and just now are in the “black” of night.  We are looking forward to getting to the hotel (which we heard was very nice) and getting some sleep… in a bed!