day 4 nanning am

Grace slept well again last night. She only woke up crying out a couple of times. She soothed easily and went back to sleep. We began our day with breakfast downstairs. Today she did well going downstairs. She was anxious, but I do not think it was as bad. She ate some breakfast while sitting in Joey's lap. After breakfast, we went to the Guangxi Zoo. We have been a little apprehensive about this excursion since we knew it would involve a 30 minute van ride. We purchased the sea sick patches to try to see if they would help. We are so thankful it worked. She actually kept her food down and did not get sick on the way to the zoo. Praise the Lord!!! Thanks so much for the prayers!! We know they are working!!! Please keep praying. Many more trips to go before we land in Memphis! We spent a couple of hours at the zoo. We enjoyed the animal shows. The shows were quite good. They were more like circus acts than just little shows at the zoo. The boys loved going to the zoo. Grace seemed to enjoy the time spent there as well. Hopefully, this will mean lots of enjoyable days together at the zoo once we are home. :) We returned from the zoo with an uneventful ride. :) Praise the Lord AGAIN!! Both Grace and Jon Jon took naps in the van on the way back to the hotel. We are now just hanging out in the room eating snacks and playing. Grace has interacted with the boys a bit since we returned to the room. She has actually vocalized a bit. She pushed Jon Jon away when he got a little closer than she wanted him to. She was saying something to him. She semmed to be using some strong words for him! It was good to actually hear her little voice. We look forward to hearing it more. :) It is still so hard to watch her stay so closed off to us. We know this is because she continues to grieve all she has lost. We know this will pass in time. It is just hard to see her hurt and not be able to "just fix it." We know we are offering her a better life and in time she will see we are her family. We just have to wait for her to realize it. God has been reminding me through this experience of how we often grieve for the things we think we have lost as He waits with something so much better for us if we will just trust Him and accept it! I know how my heart breaks for Grace as I long to show her how much I love her and want to be her mommy. I know God looks at me that way when I do not just simply trust Him in all things. Please continue to pray. We know your prayers are helping so much. We will head to Guangzhou tomorrow night (Friday around 6am your time). Have a great day as you wake up and read this. Much love to you from China!










Grace slept well again last night. She only woke up crying out a couple of times. She soothed easily and went back to sleep. We began our day with breakfast downstairs. Today she did well going downstairs. She was anxious, but I do not think it was as bad. She ate some breakfast while sitting in Joey's lap. After breakfast, we went to the Guangxi Zoo. We have been a little apprehensive about this excursion since we knew it would involve a 30 minute van ride. We purchased the sea sick patches to try to see if they would help. We are so thankful it worked. She actually kept her food down and did not get sick on the way to the zoo. Praise the Lord!!! Thanks so much for the prayers!! We know they are working!!! Please keep praying. Many more trips to go before we land in Memphis! We spent a couple of hours at the zoo. We enjoyed the animal shows. The shows were quite good. They were more like circus acts than just little shows at the zoo. The boys loved going to the zoo. Grace seemed to enjoy the time spent there as well. Hopefully, this will mean lots of enjoyable days together at the zoo once we are home. :) We returned from the zoo with an uneventful ride. :) Praise the Lord AGAIN!! Both Grace and Jon Jon took naps in the van on the way back to the hotel. We are now just hanging out in the room eating snacks and playing. Grace has interacted with the boys a bit since we returned to the room. She has actually vocalized a bit. She pushed Jon Jon away when he got a little closer than she wanted him to. She was saying something to him. She semmed to be using some strong words for him! It was good to actually hear her little voice. We look forward to hearing it more. :) It is still so hard to watch her stay so closed off to us. We know this is because she continues to grieve all she has lost. We know this will pass in time. It is just hard to see her hurt and not be able to "just fix it." We know we are offering her a better life and in time she will see we are her family. We just have to wait for her to realize it. God has been reminding me through this experience of how we often grieve for the things we think we have lost as He waits with something so much better for us if we will just trust Him and accept it! I know how my heart breaks for Grace as I long to show her how much I love her and want to be her mommy. I know God looks at me that way when I do not just simply trust Him in all things. Please continue to pray. We know your prayers are helping so much. We will head to Guangzhou tomorrow night (Friday around 6am your time). Have a great day as you wake up and read this. Much love to you from China!