Back on the horse...

Time to break the silence.  "Vacation" is over...and we're back in our home in the Middle Kingdom. 

The six weeks of time we spent in the US traveling was the most hectic of anytime in our lives...and THAT is saying something.  The "blog blackout" was necessary, hopefully my creative writing juices will begin to flow again!

In the days to come I will be posting some summer photos...but at least the new H Family photo is in place with all our 9 kids (and one beloved daughter-in-law)...to update the page...definitely must start saving for a WIDE-ANGLE lens!

We began in Hawaii for the processing of our new guys' citizenship papers.  Our time was monopolized with government appointments here and there...but we did get a few beautiful days at the beach.  (Definitely not the place for a family of 10 living on a tight budget!)  We had envisioned, knowing what lay ahead over our furlough, that Hawaii would give us some rest from the massive adoption/end of school year dramas Here...but alas...no rest.

Then we arrived in our beloved home state to the warm arms of Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles.  Traveled up to our old hometown and enjoyed a day visiting and seeing our loved ones...showing photos...telling stories.  How marvelous it was to speak to a room full of people and everyone understood what we were saying!  How we used to take such communication matters for granted! 

We rushed around seeing our beloved Doctor (TUD) and our dear friend/ The Dentist and Compassionate Heart for our annual "herd health" events! After a quick stop at Children's Hospital for an evaluation of one of our new guys...we began a drive to see family in Southern California!  My baby brother was tying the knot and we were going to be there!  The drive according to MapQuest was to take 24 hours...but it took us 32...and we drove it straight through.  (This was an indication of the rest of our summer!)

After flower-girling, and savoring sweet moments with most of our extended family...we hit the road again to drive to the Midwest.  Stopping through to see an old friend and his wife...skipping the Grand Canyon...as our children prevailed upon us that "what really matters are the people we need to see!"  So, mostly driving straight through...we made it to our destination in 30 more hours of driving!

We relished our time with our other set of grandparents and our precious older kids.  Our 9 days there flew by!  We enjoyed an "annual birthday party" put on by our dear Grandma D...spent a day at an amusement park that our little ones think is the "greatest place on earth"...and enjoyed buying a few clothing items to fit just off the rack in a STORE! 

A quick sidetrip (16 hour round-trip drive) took Momma and Magpie to Nashville to do some recording for a major orphan-outreach group.  It was a wild 36 hour trip...but sooooo encouraging!

Finally we hit the road to travel back to our home state.  We stopped by our dear sister and brother-in-laws' Sunday group to share stories and pictures...it was such a beautiful morning meeting sweet souls there!  We relished a few hours with all our kids playing outside, BAREFOOT, (something our kids NEVER can do Here)...and then we hit the road again!

Four days later we arrived exhausted and road weary and Gramma's house...like a cloud of locusts, descended on their food stores...and began to contemplate the return trip.  In all we drove OVER 6200 miles, for a total of 112 hours in the car...in just 3 weeks time! 

Things we learned:

1)  A spray bottle can not be effectively used from the front seat to quiet dissension/loud noises when you're traveling though the desert Southwest...the children are BEGGING to be shot with ANYTHING that can cool them.

2)  Car seats are our friends.  Now that we live Here, we never have any such devices in our taxis, etc...however...there was a pure joy that all 7 children's bodies were STRAPPED DOWN into their seats for some of the mind-numbing hours on the road.

3)  When there are 9 bladders on a road trip, you must find a LARGE truck-stop to accommodate the bathroom stop.  A simple, two potty Shell station can slow you down and extra 30 minutes to get everyone processed!

4)  Adventures in Odyssey can eventually become a sleep-aid...to the driver!

5)  Finding a "Kids Eat Free" billboard along the Interstate is like hitting the jackpot in Vegas.

6)  Our kids are marvelous, hearty, and fun road-warriors...thanks to them...we survived!

After returning to our home state...we shopped for food items to take back with us (CHEESE and CHOCOLATE CHIPS)...traipsed around countless second-hand book stores to bring home dozens of English books...and eventually packed up 16 suitcases at exactly 50 lbs each.

We now have unpacked the books...salvaged the cheese and chocolate...and after one day of rest from our 28 hour return trip...have started back to work at the school.

It's the final countdown to the start of our third school year.  The kids are excited...the new guys really thrilled to go to the school with their siblings.

We will all begin the walk next Wednesday morning, at 7:45 am to the school building where we will rejoin our community here.  We will force ourselves back into the daily routine that propels us at light-speed through our life in this place. Our focus this year will be discerning our next step.  We had several key meetings while back in the US that open doors to future work Here...with different "steps" and "commitments" involved. 

The new guys' adjustments are coming along so well.  What we thought was a rough start at our "family bonding" to travel non-stop the first 8 weeks of family life...turned out to be (surprise, surprise) a BLESSING from Him...especially as Silas has some definite institutionalized attachment issues...or at least he DID have some major ones when he arrived.  The constant change of faces, beds, locations sort of forced the boys to see that the ONLY thing that didn't change, was this group of people who hang together through thick and thin.  There has been a good deal of healing for his little heart...in fact yesterday...as he was "visiting" his new classroom at our school...when I left, HE CRIED FOR ME!  Totally awesome development as just 8 weeks ago, never having anyone "special" in his life...he would go to ANY stranger who smiled at him...and would walk away from us without a thought...no concern for our arrivals/departures.  This year I will be working on language each afternoon and I will bring Silas home with me to put him down for nap...and special play time when he wakes...so that he will have more chance to BOND with HIS family.

On a closing note...

You know you've lived Here a while when you send your son to school without any pants on! 

It's true.  Here, diapers are rarely used...most families put their kids in split pants (literally crotchless pants that expose all their, to the Westerners'-mind, "private parts.")  Anyway, the children here are toilet trained by 15 months of age...except for our precious son from the orphanage.   He has to get it together before he can go to school each morning with us.  "No DIAPERS" was the mandate from his teacher...so, I sent him yesterday in his tennis shoes...and a LONG T-shirt to cover his parts...

Something that would have been unthinkable to me just two years ago...now seemed, almost..."the way to do it."  Some of you are experiencing full-blown culture shock from this revelation ...but I'm just amused...

To live Here, we simply must exchange some of rigid "unthinkable" matters...for those things that are "the way to do it" ....

Hope he learns quickly...as winter is on the way...and it could get pretty cold with your "privates" in the wind!