2nd Visit! - Wednesday in Korea

Today we were able to have a second visit! We tried to pick up Laynie today so we would have a couple of days with her before her 13 hour flight back to Illinois with these strangers! Unfortunately, that wasn't possible. So we will pick her up on Thursday at 3:00 p.m. We leave Friday morning for the airport.

When we first arrived at the Holt office, we met with Mrs. Lee, the social worker who matched us up with Laynie and Malea. She's awesome. I brought two huge bags full of donations. My ladies' Bible study group donated items for the Holt office that are not available in Korea or are very expensive here. Mrs. Lee was overwhelmed - 20 lbs of lotion, a stack of the cutest preemie outfits, baby vitamins, diaper cream, newborn outfits, and a huge bag full of rice cereal boxes. Because there was so much, she was able to divide it up between the Holt Reception Center where some babes are kept, the Ilsan foster home for special needs babes, and the medical center to distribute to foster moms. Thanks again to all of you in my group for the donations! You are awesome!

After that, we went to the medical clinic where Laynie had her pre-flight physical. She is such a doll! She is still not feeling well though and has the runs to boot. We learned she is allergic to milk products and is on soy formula. She's been put on medicine for her diarrhea and special formula - no solids for a few days. Plus she still has her cold. So please pray for her health - we know she will have a rough time separating from her foster mom anyway, but it could be a lot worse if she isn't feeling well - not to mention the crazy long flight.

At first I didn't think she would let me hold her without fussing - you could tell she didn't feel well, but she actually reached for me - twice!!! My heart about stopped. She is so sweet. We only saw her for about 30 minutes, but it was still so good. I can't believe she's mine! The foster mom is very concerned that I don't have a Korean baby carrier - she says Laynie prefers to be carried on the back instead of the front. So she is giving me one of hers and gave me a lesson on how to get her in the carrier. Oh my.....pray that I don't run her into a wall. I'm not comfortable with having her where I can't see her! We'll see about that. She let us know that Laynie is not a good sleeper - wakes every hour some nights looking for her foster mom. Wow! She also said that Laynie can already feel that something is up - she is experiencing separation anxiety. We need lots of prayers friends and family! Please, please, please remember us!!!

After leaving Laynie, we went to the Holt Reception Center - took a bag of donations and held some babies. They are adorable!! One loved Tyler - just so content in his arms. We then stopped by the room of the couple from our city tour to see their precious baby boy then headed to the subway. My aunt and cousin live in Suwon, about an hour south of Seoul, so we went there for the rest of the day to visit with them. They speak little English and, well you know how our Korean is, so thankfully, they had a friend from their church come who speaks English very well. He is such a nice man. We had a wonderful time! It was so good to see them! Tyler really loved meeting them. They are so kind and hospitable. They took us to lunch - it was amazing! Just when we thought we were done and so full from the 6 courses that were served, out came the main course. What?? Oh my....it included grilled fish though, Tyler's favorite, so he managed to find some room for it in his stomach. We then went to their home for a visit and they pulled out more food. Wow! I don't think we'll eat again until we're back in the states.

We got home a couple of hours ago and both of my men are sleeping so I should hit the pillow too. Tomorrow is our day! We finally get her! I hope I sleep tonight. I don't think we'll get much tomorrow night. Pray for us! I'm so excited. We feel so blessed to have her join our family. I love, love, love that she has a special connection with Malea through their birth mother, but honestly, that's not why we love her or accept her. That just happens to be what led us to each other. We love her because we were chosen to be her family and she was chosen to be our daughter by the One who created us all. Not only is she being joined with her sister - Malea, but with her sister - Brooklyn, her brother - Nick, her brother - Tyler and her mom and dad. We are her forever family and that doesn't have anything to do with blood lines. That's the beauty of adoption. She may not have grown in my womb, but she definitely has been growing in my heart. I love you Alayna Charis Eun Bi, and I thank God He brought us together. I can't wait to bring you home!