Tomorrow, Tomorrow, I Love Ya, Tomorow!

We had a nice last night in Beijing, but weren't sad to say goodbye, because it meant making our way to Milo's province!! We decided to take the high speed train instead of fly to save some money. It was a little bit confusing trying to figure out where we were supposed to be, but luckily we had pretty good instructions and figured it out! We had also left our hotel with plenty of time to spare so we weren't too stressed when we went to the wrong place a few times! The trickiest part of the train station was that there is no elevator or escalator and it's mandatory to go to different floors. It was kind of a pain to haul our luggage up stairs, but no big deal. Luckily we just have one suitcase each and our backpacks. If I had to carry a baby at the same time, it certainly would have made it much trickier!

Waiting at the train station.

Finally boarded and ready to go!

The train was nice, though! It only took three hours to go from Beijing to Zhengzhou and was wonderful to see the countryside! There was lots and lots of farmland! I got teary as we got closer. I just kept thinking, "This is his homeland! This is where he's from!"

Our guide was at the train station to meet us. He's a nice man and he will be helping us the whole week. On the way to the hotel we discussed our week and schedule. I just kept thinking, "I can't believe this is happening!!!"

I paid close attention to the city as we drove through, and I think it looks nice! It seems a lot cleaner than Beijing and all the buildings seem newish. I'm excited to get to see more of it! In comparison to Beijing's 21 million residents, Zhengzhou only has 5 million.

We picked a hotel called the Crowne Plaza in Zhengzhou for a few reasons. 1) There is no Marriott in Zhengzhou. 2) There is a big adoption agency in our province that puts their clients at the Crowne. While we're not with that agency, we thought it would be nice to connect with other adopting families while here! Once we got here and got checked in, though, I was very upset. Our room was SO gross! Disgusting carpet and very old and icky. Not only that, but our bed was upstairs and there was no room for a crib up there. I knew we couldn't stay here. I knew this couldn't be the place we brought Milo and started our bonding. I couldn't set him down on that carpet and try to help him learn to sit up! I couldn't leave him downstairs while we slept upstairs! No way!

We went to talk to the front desk and they said there was nothing they could do. I asked if there was a room with no stairs where we could fit a crib next to our bed. At first they said they do have normal rooms, but they are less expensive than the room we booked, so they couldn't switch us. Grrrr! We just kept pressing. We knew even if we had to pay for a more expensive room that was smaller, that would be better than not sleeping by Milo. They finally said they have a new wing and they could show us a suite in the new wing. Um, okay! We walked in and my jaw about hit the floor. It was GORGEOUS!!!! Absolutely stunning! The downside to the room, she explained, was that it is new and stinks. It does have a strong new smell, but holy cow, who cares!? They said we could stay in the new suite and not pay extra. SCORE!!! I immediately felt so much better!

The living area of the suite. There is also a bedroom area along with a gorgeous bathroom and an extra toilet in the living room area. In addition, there's a nice closet area!

We got our suitcases completely unpacked, including all of Milo's stuff. Our room is suddenly filled with baby toys, bottles, clothes, blankets, and diapers. EEEKKK!! Then they brought in a little crib. My eyes have been swimming with tears ever since. In mere HOURS we will have our son in our arms!! I have a nervous stomach ache and I'm so fidgety!

After we got unpacked and started to actually use the room, we noticed several problems. For one, it was HOT in the room. We turned the air all the way down, but no fans came on. Also, the Wi-Fi wasn't working. Finally, I needed a hairdryer, but couldn't find one. We called the front desk and all of the sudden our room was filled with workers! It was hilarious!


One by one these workers would ring the bell and come in. There were five of them in our room at one point. So funny! We felt like such troublemakers!



While some of the problems got resolved (they found me a hairdryer), most things remain broken. Our Wi-Fi for starters. Dang it!! Because it's a new room, the Wi-Fi is not set up yet. Their suggestion was to move to the other wing if we want Wi-Fi. Back to the non remodeled rooms. No thank you!! If I sit by the window, the computer has patchy Wi-Fi from the hotel next door. They said they'd try to fix it by tomorrow, so I'm praying that happens! Also, apparently there's no air conditioning yet. Yarg! We opened the windows, so it's okay. The curtains close when you push a button, but they were jammed. Then the light in the bathroom is motion activated, so if you get up to pee in the night, all the lights will turn on! Oy! We have called the front desk so many times! I'm sure they're ready to kick us out! It's so beautiful and we feel grateful to be here, so we're trying to keep our complaints to a minimum ;)

We went to an Italian restaurant in the hotel for dinner, and it tasted heavenly! Our first non Chinese food in 5 days! While we're loving the Chinese food, it's also nice to have some variety! After I finish blogging, I'm going to get the backpack ready for the morning. Toys for Mr. Milo and some clothes and diapers. I feel so nervous and excited that I think I might throw up!



Tomorrow, a certain little boy will be sleeping in this crib next to his mama and baba for the very first time in his little life!

This is our last night as parents to three children. While we're ecstatic, we're also very cognizant of the changes this will bring to our lives.  We request your prayers! We certainly need them!!