God is good. All the time.

And the Miller family of FOUR arrived safely at the Jackson airport. Thankful for our sweet friends to be back home.
Julie

It's almost time!

They are scheduled to arrive at the Jackson airport tomorrow (Friday) night at 7:50. Pray for grace and favor on their journey. Hope to see you tomorrow night at the airport welcome home party!!

Julie

Update from Alicia

Alicia posted this on facebook. I've copied here for those friends who aren't on facebook :)
Julie

Just skyped with Mary, Lee and the boys!!! Wow, God is so faithful. Keep praying but the difference in just a week is amazing. David is getting better, he is much less fearful and is taking some steps on his own. Mary says he eats more than she does!!! He is already showing less external signs of being malnourished, like his hair is becoming less brittle already. Daniel is smart and a...ctive and is struggling with so much new found freedom. Mary and Lee have been advised to shrink their world and to limit big stimulation and give them time to slowly adjust. Mary and lee are showing signs of exhaustion and Mary is getting sick. Please continue to pray for them, it is obviously working!!

More about Daniel & David

Hey Everyone,

So sorry that we have not updated our blog very often for you to follow more closely. With two new boys that are VERY active, it is difficult to find the time to sit down and type a post. Daniel, the oldest, is into everything and as soon as we take our eyes off of him for one minute he is trying to take food from his brother or throw his sippy cup into the toilet, etc. Ha, Ha, Ha as i know some of you are laughing very hard right now. David loves his stroller that the hotel loaned us and you will see several pics in the prior 2 posts with him in his stroller. We are also trying to get David to walk more to build muscle mass in his legs because they are very thin and tiny. There are some pics of him walking at the museum in Guangzhou and yes his sleeves are about 3 inches too long so it looks like he doesn't have hands in some of the pics. We are working on getting some more clothes once we get home that will fit him better. He will be 3 years old in less than a month, but his body is so behind developmentally because of being in the orphanage and food deprivation that he is actually the size of a 1 year old. We have a lot of catching up to do with him. He is the sweetest child though. Daniel is talking up a storm in chinese and thank God one of the other couples gave us a book called, "Say it Right in Chinese!!" That book is helping us tremendously to understand some of what Daniel is saying and for us to talk to him as well. We have learned several phrases and Daniel likes the fact that we are talking to him in his language!! :) Please keep both of our boys in your prayers as they continue to transition to a new life with us and soon to be new life in America. They are transitioning very well so far and sleeping through the entire night. Praise God for all that He has given us with these 2 precious boys. We love all of you and cannot wait for you to meet the boys. 

Love,

Lee and Mary Ellen 

More pics to go with last post!

A New Update from China!!

We're in Guangzhou finally. We had an exceptionally smooth week of bonding with our children in Taiyuan, but it was difficult due to a language barrier and the city was not really set up for westerners at all. Overall, it was where we got our children and what could be better than that. Our boys are true blessings to us. The Lord has truly given us the perfect two children. They are our boys and we are their Mama and Baba (daddy in chinese). Daniel and David both help each other feel comfortable and they already love each other. 

The flight to Guangzhou overall went great. Both Daniel and David did very well and we were thankful that they had a good experience. The trip through the airport was chaotic with two children, two carry-ons, two backpacks, and miscellaneous other items that always seemed to cause problems at inopportune times. Daniel got through security first while Mary Ellen was still being wanded by the Chinese version of TSA agents which made us nervous, but he stood there and waited for us. We had a fairly long wait in the terminal and it was burning up hot in there. We had jackets and thermals on since it was below freezing in Taiyuan so they made that wait uncomfortable but the boys both did great. Once we got on the airplane it was pretty smooth. Daniel slept most of the way and David ate his meal and gnawed on a couple of rolls for the rest of the flight. We definitely learned some valuable lessons for the long ride home at the end of this week.

We are glad to finally be in Guangzhou with Zhou and the other families from our agency. The area where we are is beautiful and it is great to share and take in the experiences of all the other people in our group. This really is a fantastic group of people that we are with. We have had a lot of opportunities to get out of the hotel and let our boys have some new experiences and meet other people. Zhou has been a Godsend to give us an extra hand when we need it and to help us communicate with Daniel especially. He is a wonderful man who loves what he does and loves the families that he brings over here. He makes it almost as easy as being at home because he takes care of so much for us. Whatever we ask of him he always goes above and beyond. Most of the time before we even ask.

We are beginning to figure out the nuances of each of the boys and helping them realize how their situation has changed. They are very smart and they are learning that we will care for them always and we will do our best to protect them and provide for all of their needs just as Our Heavenly Father cares for, protects, and provides for us. This really has been an incredible journey and we are so very thankful that our children are no longer orphans. They are ours and no one and nothing will ever change that.

Here are some more pictures. Some of them are of the other children that are going home for the first time this week also. Hope that you enjoy.

Love,

Lee and Mary