We Are Here!!!

We Are Here!

We made it to Beijing just fine today, it was just a really long day. We left Chicago at 12:41 and got to Beijing about 1:30 a.m. Friday morning central time. But it was 2:30 p.m. Beijing time, so basically our bodies feel like we skipped Thursday night. We were all very tired and pretty much crashed for a few hours after we got all checked in. It is a surreal but not entirely bad feeling to be distinctly in the minority in a place. As we stood in the entry line awaiting permission to enter China, I was self-conscious as I was talking to Eric because I realized I was the only one speaking English within earshot.

Beijing is a bustling town to say the least. There are people everywhere, bikes, cars, on foot. It's amazing to watch the chaos on the roads, but they all seem to take it in stride.

We had no major mishaps (thanks for the prayers) and the boys got lots of compliments on their nice manners and good behavior on the very long 13-hour, cramped flight. This mama was very proud!

I think the coolest thing for all of us was flying really close to the North Pole and seeing the Arctic Circle from 36,000 feet. It was awe-inspiring.

We made some new friends on the plane, the Blommels from Minnesota. They are also with our agency and are adopting their first child, who is eight months old. How sweet. We also met a few other families on our flight; we'll all be together during our days in Beijing.

The boys are sleeping and soon we'll be off to bed too. Big day of sightseeing tomorrow, I think partly to help us shock our bodies into China time. I think it's about 11 hours worth: the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, and Summer Palace.

We slept through supper so I hope the breakfast buffet is good! Thanks again for all the prayers, we really felt them during this exciting day.

Hope you enjoy the pics. My brother Joe is posting today (thanks Joe!!) and I hope to add captions later.

We're on our way!

The bags are packed, the fees are paid, the papers are gathered, the Istres are scurrying around, and the last crisis (we hope) has been averted: Luke has found his new glasses. Whew. Now he can see China clearly!

We have a full day of travel: leaving Nashville at 9:30, to Chicago; from Chicago at 12:41, 13 hours to Beijing. That's a long time aloft :0 But we get to fly over the Arctic, so that's pretty cool. We'll get to Beijing at 3:30ish local time on July 31. We're like time travelers!

Thank you to all of you who have encouraged and prayed for us, especially over the last several months. You can never know what your words and actions have meant to us. I'm sorry I haven't had the opportunity to write my notes and tell you personally.

Zai jian (goodbye) for now! China, brace yourself--the Istres cometh!!

Packing, packing, packing

Well, our packing is in full gear now. I can't believe in just five days we'll be winging our way to China, after all the years of waiting and dreaming! Woo hoo :)

We had a conference call yesterday with our agency travel buddies, and it was a neat experience. We discussed some of the particulars of the trip, and found out we'll be getting our detailed itinerary on Monday via Fedex. We will also find out the total cost :0

The best part of the meeting, which consisted of about 12 families, was the group prayer at the end. It was very moving, sharing a prayer with believers from Seattle to Jacksonville.

Oh, and for those of you who read of our concern about the plane tickets, it all worked out great! Thanks for your thoughts. The tickets actually came in under our budget by a good amount, so that leaves us with some wiggle room. I love wiggle room.

Thursday was my last day at work. It was a little bittersweet, and I will miss my friends, but I know that it is time for me to go. I actually interviewed at the middle school for a teaching position, even though I had already told them I couldn't start any earlier than January. I left the interview feeling good, so we'll see if anything comes of it later. Right now, I'm looking forward to spending a few months with Lilli Grace, helping her transition into her new life.

The boys spent the afternoon today packing their backpacks for the long plane trip. My goal is to be completely packed and ready to go by Tuesday night. It would be good to have one last day of calm after all the craziness of the last few weeks.

And now, off to bed.

Hating Technology

I have four posts saved as drafts but unpublished because I can't get the accompanying pictures to upload. One of the pitfalls of living in the country, I supposed. It's still frustrating. We are supposed to have better than dialup, but I don't believe it, especially right now.

So, I'm sorry, Aunt Connie and Uncle Doug and everyone else who would like to see pics of the new house. I'm trying!

I have posts on our wonderful family visit to Georgia, on the work we've done in Lilli's room, of our packing and other things. Maybe one day I'll get to publish them.

Consulate Appointment!

We got our consulate appointment today, which is where we will finalize all the immigration stuff. It's the last official business we have in China, and our appointment is at 9:30 a.m. on August 11. That means our travel will be from July 30-August 13, one day longer than planned.

Right now we're waiting on our travel arrangements, and it is a bit of a nail biter. We are concerned at the high fares we are finding on our searches, and praying that our agency can find some better deals. We just can't afford $2,000 a ticket! It makes me feel a little sick just thinking about it. But I have to remind myself that the Lord owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and He has not led us to this point to leave us stranded. So we prayerfully wait for the details, trusting that He has it worked out.

If anyone out there happens to be reading this tonight, would you pray for our situation? Thank you :)

Tired but happy

We've had a long day today, a long weekend, really, but filled with so many good things. Eric's mom and dad have been visiting since Thursday and it has been great catching up with them. This is the first time they've stayed with us, now that we have room for a couple of extra folks. We gave them the "master suite," and I hope it has been better than the Days Inn.

Thursday was also Eli's eighth birthday; how time flies. My baby boy, growing up before my eyes. We had a small family celebration with Hulk cupcakes for breakfast and presents right away, like Christmas morning. We gave him some Star Wars figures and his very own dart gun.

His actual birthday was Saturday; he had it all planned out: pool in the morning, then cookout, then cake, ice cream, and presents, then a campfire with marshmallow roasting, then a campout in the backyard with Jacob and Luke.

We managed to get it all in except for the swimming, because it looked like rain. We went to the creek instead. It was a long day, but really good. Attendees were Nana, Nunu and PawPaw, Joe, Josh, Tristin and Destini. And us, of course.

Sunday was church and then the shower for Lilli Grace! What a joyous day it was. So many people pouring out their love and prayers for a little girl half a world away. My heart was just aching for her to be with us to celebrate. Only 17 days to go before we are on our way . . .

Sunday afternoon was spent looking through all the gifts and relaxing on the front porch, watching the rain.

Now, I'm tired :)

TRAVEL APPROVAL!

Wow, we got our travel approval yesterday, so we are definitely set to leave on July 30! Can't believe it . . . it's so exciting.

No more words, just thankful.