Steve Buchanan

ouradoptioncross

Steve Buchanan

Steve, Julie, Zachary and Grayson Buchanan



Asia » China » Guangdong » Guangzhou November 10th 2010

We are on our way to Beijing - then to Japan in the morning and on to Atlanta. We can't wait to see our family and friends. Thank you so much for your prayers that have covered us to China and also on our way back home. We miss each and every one of you. Love in Christ, "Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west." Isaiah 43:5 ... read more

Asia November 9th 2010

We've had a really nice time the last 3 days. Lots of meetings and paperwork to get her passport and her visa. Yesterday we went with several other couples to the US Consulate here in Guangzhou to say our group oath. We made some very sweet memories - there was a couple from Georgia and a couple from Nashville on our bus who are both here to adopt Chinese babies. The Georgia couple has a 6 year old biological daughter and a 5 year old daughter they adopted from Russia. The Nashville couple had a 5 year old daughter from China. The little girls sat behind us and sang Jesus Loves Me, Deep and Wide, and This Is The Day That The Lord Has Made the whole trip. I LOVED it! What a blessing to know ... read more
This and the next piece of art are silk needlepoint.  Looked like a painting - hard to believe
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this is what the chinese used to sleep on and some still do - no mattress, and the pillows are blocks made of... CERAMIC!  Yikes!

Asia » China » Guangdong » Guangzhou November 8th 2010

Hi guys - wow, so much to tell. Ok - first off, the boys (all 3) are all better - praise God! It was about 24 hours and was terrible, but it was short lived. And Jada and I were able to avoid it. Thank you Lord! Ok, the orphanage. Sigh... It was so sad. John, our facilitator, at some point had mentioned to us that some of the orphanages were really nice, almost like hotels. I suppose that, coupled with the way the orphanage director and Jada's Ayi seemed to care about her, had left the impression upon my heart that where she came from couldn't really be that bad. Big assumption. It was pitiful. We drove over 3 hours to get there, and when we arrived in the city where she's from, the van ... read more
Standing in the tiny hallway talking to the director and another Ayi
The door to her room - the pitiful faces beyond the door just kill me - can you see them?
Note on the door - not sure exactly what it says, but something to the effect of "No entrance"

Asia » China » Guangdong » Guangzhou November 6th 2010

Hi guys - just a quick update. Yesterday Zach and I visited Jada's orphanage while Steve stayed at the hotel with Jada and Grayson (it was a 3 hour drive one way and we thought it would be too hard on the 2 younger ones). Steve had a good day with the kids, Zach and I had a pretty rough day. The orphanage was awful and then our van broke down on the interstate. The 3 hour ride home took us about 5 hours. More about that later. I need my prayer warriors to rally the troops. Although we've been very careful about what we eat, Steve, Zach and Grayson have been up since 2:00 a.m. throwing up. Please pray that the Lord will let this pass soon. Also that He will keep Jada and I ... read more

Asia » China » Guangdong » Guangzhou November 4th 2010

Wanted to share some pics of our facilitators/translators. They have been so wonderful. They help us with anything we need and with bargaining when we shop. :) Lisa was with us in Beijing and she was awesome. John is with us here in Guangzhou and is so sweet. He has been doing this for about 8 months and he's 24 years old - and he's putting up with me, so he's a very patient young man. I asked him if he likes his job and he was so cute - "Not at first. I cry. I thought I lost family's paperwork. But they left in hotel room. But now I like. At first I scary" :) Isn't he funny? He speaks pretty good English, but it's broken. I have trouble understanding him too - I was ... read more
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"A swide"  - the slide to get to the bottom of the wall.  Horrifying...

Asia » China » Guangdong » Guangzhou November 3rd 2010

Sooooo, here we are in Guangzhou. Let's see, what to share... What not to share... Probably shouldn't share, but I will - when we gave Jada her first bath (on video, of course) we were all crammed in the bathroom talking to her and distracting her. As soon as I began to take her clothes off the boys started "inspecting" and telling each other that she was missing, well, let's say...um, "parts". Caught all that on video too. :-/ I shooed them out of the bathroom and they didn't get to come back in, but from the giggles, I don't think they cared. I'm going to try to attach some pictures of her crib. It's sweet - looks like it's from the 40's. It reminds me of a doll bed my grandfather made for my baby ... read more
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Cookies make me happy too!

Asia » China » Guangdong » Guangzhou November 2nd 2010

Hi mom - I miss you and daddy! She only makes little baby sounds - of course she could be saying chinese words and i dont know. she's sitting on my lap right now watching me type. forgive the lack of capitalization, trying to type fast. she still takes a bottle and can crawl, can walk if you hold both of her hands. She sucks her little fingers a lot. she's very apprehensive and quiet. the boys are being so sweet with her. she's tired of watching me type gotta go love you!... read more

Asia » China » Guangdong » Guangzhou November 2nd 2010

The boys are at the pool with Stevie and Jada is taking her nap, so I thought I'd share some pics of our trip down...... read more
I think he was headed for a "thumbs up"
When we get bored, let's play with tape!
His idea, not ours, but it was our favorite...

Asia » China » Guangdong » Guangzhou November 1st 2010

Hi guys - sorry I didn't mention much about the boys last night when I posted. I was literally falling asleep as I typed. They are in love with her and she loves watching them. We got a few small smiles from her last night. She has a very reserved personality (at least for now) and seems hesitant to smile. She slept all night - and is still sleeping. The only sound we heard from her was sucking her little fingers. It's 6:45 a.m. now and I guess I'll have to go wake her up, we have to go down for breakfast because we have a meeting at 8:30 to complete MORE paperwork. Will update more later today. Love to all. It is quiet and peaceful here. The Lord is near... :)... read more
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Asia » China » Guangdong » Guangzhou November 1st 2010

Wow. What a memorable day this has been. We arrived at the Civil Affairs Office to meet her around 2:10 p.m. We were early, so I was hoping to video our baby girl as they brought her through the door. Our facilitator/translator went to take care of her paperwork and came back and told us that she was already there but we couldn't meet her until the paperwork was taken care of. Just about killed us. It took about 5 minutes but seemed like hours. Afterwards, he called us over to a doorway and two ladies came carrying her out. I was so excited just about passed out! She is beautiful. She was very reserved, watching everything around her. We were in a room with many other families, there to meet their babies as well (Guangzhou ... read more
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