This is a tradition on your last day at the White Swan. However, with 7 babies, it was impossible to get them all to sit still at once. We also had our group picture taken in front of the waterfall.
The rest of the morning/afternoon was for shopping and packing. Cheryl and I took turns running out to buy last minute gifts and pack our bags. Cheryl also made a donation of left over medication (OTC) to the Charity Store to help lighten the load. When all was said and done, we ended up with four checked bags and way too many hand carry items.
At four we met for one last time in the White Swan and headed to the airport. Once again Nelson’s timing was impeccable as we arrived slightly before the ticket counter opened, but got us at the front of what turned into a very long line. With everything checked and seats assigned, we had to say goodbye to Nelson. Cheryl and I had met Nelson once before at the Gift of Love Ten Year Anniversary Party and we had heard repeatedly how great he is as a facilitator. But now we know how truly wonderful he is as a guide, a leader and a friend.
(Jon fell asleep and I just woke up and I’m taking over) The flight went well - 12 hours and Molly slept on my lap for about eight of them. I managed to get a few hours of sleep though Jon did not. The babies were all really good on the plane. After a breakfast of a bottle, some bites of fruit, Cheerios and cookies, and half a jar of some type of mixed fruit mush, Molly was ready for action and tried out her routine on surrounding passengers (Waving hi, quick two rounds of Peekaboo, completed with a raspberry, arm waving an many giggles.) We’ve started calling her Molly May-be, the happy baby. She giggles when we say it. I think she likes rhyming.
We arrived at LAX about noon, China time. Went through the health screen, then waited in line for Immegration. We gave the officer our bundle of Immegration Visa documents from the Consulate in Guangzhou and waited until they called our names. They handed us back our passports and that was it. Molly is officially a U.S. citizen. We’ll get her passport in about a month and we were off to baggage claim.
We collected our mountain of baggage (or luggages as Nelson called them ... “Double confirm you have all your luggages,” he would tell us.) Then we said goodbye to the Parsons family, Paul and Sherry Van Gheem and Jim and Gena Lacy. Kathy Winfield’s sister met us looking fresh and put together. We look like quite a ragtag bunch, by comparison, after two weeks in China, carrying babies and having been up all night. We found a shuttle to the Four Points Sheraton and piled up our luggage in the back. Julia told me stories as she was mushed and smooshed into the seat with Sarah and Phoebe and some luggages. She told me Jon is her best friend and I was really touched. I told her he’s my best friend, too.
We arrived at the hotel, checked in and dropped off our stuff in our room (wow, these beds are big and soft). Jon called his folks to set up our meeting in Denver tomorrow and I realized we were missing a bag. Just as I had this panicked realization, the phone rang with the bell manager asking if we were missing any luggage. Encounters on the phone in foreign countries can always be an adventure because its hard to communicate without hand gestures. But it threw me briefly that he had a heavy Spanish/Latino accent. We’re home.
After Jon got our bag, we went and ate hamburgers and french fries with coke on ice with the Anderson-Wilks family. It’s funny how much you can miss such simple things. Ordering from Jose was a breeze and he was very patient as we dripped baby cereal and watermelon juice all over the white tablecloth and Molly left her typical Cheerio-trail under and around the table.
We are parents and we are almost home.
It’s a little past midnight. Our flight to Denver leaves at 8:30 tomorrow morning. Molly is sleeping like a baby on Jon’s bed and Jon is sleeping like Jon behind me as I clack away at the keyboard. We have to be up and out at 6:00 and I’m hoping we can get a few more hours of rest in before we wake up for the day.
By dinner time we’ll be home.
Cheryl
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