We arrived in Lanzhou, yesterday at 2:00, then we had an hour drive to our hotel where we were told that the babies were waiting for us. We love the other families that are with us, Teri and Dan, 2 veterinarians from Oregon with 5 bio kids, this is their 1st adoption, they are picking up their son Samuel. Shari, a sweet fun Christian lady from California, is traveling alone to pick up their daughter Hannah, she leaves behind her pastor husband and 3 bio kids. All of our babies are 19 months old, all cleft babies.
When we arrived at the hotel our very knowledgeable guide, Steed, told us we would have a while to check into our rooms and relax. When we arrived to our rooms he told us to meet him in the room with our babies in 5 minutes! So much for catching our breath! We put our bags in our rooms and all prayed together as a group, which was a special time of affirmation. We are so fortunate to be sharing this experience with such wonderful believers.

 My 1st look at my little girl.

 Adalynn, and her nanny before I took her.

 Shari's daughter loves to play but, I think she might be a little ornery.

 Little Samuel, meeting his parents.

 This is pretty much what it looks like if I hold her.

 On our way for family photos..which did not go well since I ws in them.

 That is a bisquit in her mouth, but, I thought it was a cute pic regardless.

Samuel and Hannah snuggled right up to their new parents. That was not the case for our Adalynn. She screamed, and screamed, and screamed some more. So far she is really not liking me. But, that is ok, even normal. Her day was so traumatic, she was picked up just that morning from her foster family, the place she has been since she was 3 months old. The strange trip for her was several hours away. Everything, everyone that she has ever know is gone. Her cries are cries of grief, and fear.

 Adalynn loves daddy. Right she has just woke up and she still will not let me anywhere near her.

Here are some of my initial observations.
She is prettier than I ever could have imagined.
She is smart.
The concerns we had about her head, are gone. She is healthy.
She is teeny tiny..the size of a 12 month old, but, her developmental skills are on target for her age.
Her lip repair looks great.
She will need more cosmetic surgery in her nose.

Since she screamed so long, I did get a good look at her palate, it is split all the way back and even her uvula ..is split. I am not sure however if the palate cuts through her gum line. It would be nice if it didn't but we will fix it no matter what.
She loves spicy chicken.

I still haven't found a cup or bottle that she is able to use, so we are going to have to check into that this morning.

She loves to play.
She is a great sleeper, all night.
We absolutely adore her and she will be such a blessing to our family!