Trick or Treat

Both girls had a lot of fun tonight despite the windy wet weather. Their favorite part was handing out treats to their customers. Lila interviewed each one asking their name, "who are you?", or "where is your costume?"

Carving Pumpkins

Pumpkin carving with Melissa and Joe. Lila grew the two little pumpkins in her garden this summer!

Home Sweet Home

We arrived to an incredible welcome, some hometown food and 60 balloons. Thank you Melissa.
Tess loves her home just as Lila does. Even though Lila requested we stay at the building house.

Heading Home

These girls are amazing! We were driven by van to Hong Kong. Our van driver was great and we were able to see more of China. After a night in the Airport Regal it was off to the airport. We knew it was time to go home when it took 20 minutes to check us in, even though we already had our seats assigned. The girls decided to only sleep a few hours of our 15 hour flight and Lila brought her record, staying up to 2:45. 
 Waiting at JFK.

A View of Guangzhou

October 24: Last Day in Guangzhou

After packing up we headed out for a quick trip to Shamien Island. 
A first negotiation 


Good bye Poolside Dinner

We enjoyed dinner with Randall, Kathy and Jordan by the pool. Two of our families headed home today and we will depart Guangzhou tomorrow. The girls love Jordan!




A Favorite Place to Visit

Lohas Cake

October 23: U.S. Consulate Appoint

We had our appointment with the U.S. Consulate. We took on oath on Tess' behalf. They will see her a Visa to enter the United States since she will travel home as a Chinese Citizen. Once we arrive in New York we will hand in the brown envelop of papers completed by the Consulate and she will be sent her Certificate of United States Citizenship. We were restricted from entering the building with a camera or phone so we were unable to take photos. We made up for that at our trip to the playground with some friends.

October 22: Happy Anniversary

I am blessed to walk the journey of life with my best friend. We have had many great experiences in our 19 years of marriage, as well as great challenges to face. We are blessed to have faced them together holding onto our faith. We have Trusted in the The Lord and as a result are spending our anniversary as a family of four in our daughters birth country.


A Firecracker in the Bathtub

Our girl is turning into a little firecracker especially at bath time. She can't wait to get in the bath tub. She giggles, squeals, and splashes with her hands and feet.  Jocelyn had to teach us to say sit nice in Cantonese!

October 22: Family Photos

So many cameras snapping at once! So many beautiful babies with such unique personalities!


October 22: Yue Xiu Park

We ventured across the street today! Well really we walked through the subway passage underground. The park is gorgeous and full of greenery. It also home to the Statue of the Five Goats.
"Legend has it that in Zhou dynasty, Guangzhou has been also called"Chuting".

One year, Chuting was hit by a severe famine, people got no crops at all and were helpless but praying all day and all night, their piety eventually moved 5 celestial beings, so they decided to help people in Guangzhou and descended from heaven by riding five goats with different colors and each of them brought an ear of grain. After they arrived Guangzhou they bestowed the grain to people and gave them bless of "Non-Famine Forever".

From then on Guangzhou had never been hit by famine again and had good weathers every year for crops and people lived prosperously ever after for the blessings those five celestial beings had given them. In order to commemorate those five celestial beings, people built Wuxian (Pinyin of Five-Celestial-beings in Chinese) Temple at the place where those five celestial beings arrived and made their ridings—Goat the symbol of Guangzhou.

This is why Guangzhou is also known as Sui (Pinyin of Grain-Ear in Chinese) City, and Yang (Pinyin of Goat in Chinese) City as well. There are many goat statues in Guangzhou and the Statue of the Five Goats is the most impressive, and now the one which were built in Yuexiou Park in 1959 by government, has been attracted thousands and millions of tourists through the years."


Old Wall of Guangzhou: