We're getting on a jet plane...

and coming home tomorrow. Up until today I was ok with being gone. But today it hit. It's time to go home! We went to Shamin (sp??) island this morning to shop. It was a beautiful little island with some great shops. This is where all the adoptions used to take place so since they moved some of the government buildings the shops have lost a lot of business. Because of this, they are willing to bargain more. For some reason, I was very overwhelmed with the shopping. I should have had a list. There were several things I wanted for our family and yet I bought for others. WHY?!?! Our son lives here and this is his culture yet I bought for others. I am trying hard not to think about it. I had a mini melt down after we left a shop and had paid bookoos of money for some wonderful items, yet none were really for us. I am more ok with it now but I am still a little sick about it. It's not like I can run to Walmart and get these things. Oh well...it's just things! Life will go on!! Funny how my tone has changed from the beginning of the emails, huh? I have always loved buying for others so it was fun. As we were packing we noticed that some of the items were wrong. It's kind of a big deal because of what the gifts are. But I am not going to worry over it! They will understand. I hope... I hope I do not sound bitter about this. It's a bit like the feeling after you go black Friday shopping and you realized you forgot your top 5 items that your kids really wanted. So are any of you heading to China to adopt soon?? ;-) I have a list! I guess it was really for the best because even with our extra suitcase we are out of room and over our bag weight limit and bag limit. Golly, I sound like I had a bad time don't I?? It was fun and I cannot wait to share what we bought! It's just time to go home! This evening was much better. We had a very nice dinner with the Raffray's. Peter believes that Adam is the funniest guy ever. Blue is very good with Peter and that warms my heart. They were so sweet and brought a cake to celebrate the boys adoption! I am still in awe of how all that worked out. Having them here has been wonderful. We didn't see each other much but knowing we were here experiencing the same things at the same time was awesome. I wish I would have worked out with Wendy more. I kept falling asleep at 8! This will be a memory we will always treasure. Peter has loved meeting all the families and for some reason, has handpicked a select few he really likes. We never really spoke with them but he always made a point to go up to them and try to talk. So he made sure we connected with one family tonight so we can "call" (I could not explain FB) them. ;-) Some things I will miss about China... 1. Peter being in his home country. I am very sad for what he is leaving. This is all he has ever known. We know he is very excited about coming to the US but we know he will mourn in time. 2. Healthy people everywhere. I have yet to see an overweight person. Seriously. It's very refreshing. It makes you want to eat healthier, get out and walk more and take better care of yourself. Noe one talks about their weight. They love to eat but eat well. They get out and have fun exercising at their little parks with fun equipment. I will miss seeing that. 3. Having breakfast ready every single morning and my bed made for me. Luxury... 4. The view. This is a huge city and it's spectacular from our room. The buildings everywhere with the mts. in the background. 5. Learning new things 6. The food! The food has been out of this world. Seriously. We are going to miss it! 7. This hotel!! It's beautiful. And the movie channels What I will not miss.. 1. Feeling like I am always dizzy. Eric and I have both dealt with this since our plane landed. Must be inner ear 2. Not understanding the language, especially when they talk with my son and he looks uncomfortable. Not cool.. 3. Wondering if I can drink the water and keeping my mouth closed tightly while showering. 4. Seeing myself when I shower. The mirror is right in front of a glass shower. This is wrong on many levels. 5. The bed..Maybe one other reason Chinese people are so skinny is because their beds are so uncomfortable that they don't want to be in them long. I do want to clarify the welcome home. We will be home sometime between 1 and 3. The welcome will not last from 1-3. It will be a quick welcome (maybe 30 minutes at the most) We do not want to overwhelm Peter but want him to see how wanted he is! Our family (Eric, Aimee, Chelsea, Andrew, Abi and Peter) will be the only ones to enter the house. We want him to understand who lives there. If we all go in, that could be a little confusing for him. We know that grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins are very excited about spending time with him and we promise that will happen. But with just coming home, he needs a little time. Landing in China for me was a bit overwhelming and I knew I wasn't moving here, who my family was, and that I was loved. He does not get all that yet. But please do not let this stop you. We would love to see you all and cannot wait to show off Peter!! Prayer Requests: 1. Our flights-they will be on time with no weather delays or air traffic delays. Our flights are not back to back so we have a little bit of time but big delays could be bad for us. You could toss in extra leg room also! ;-) 2. Health and sleep for everyone on the plane. Eric is fighting a cold. He is using all he has to battle it. Peter and I both deal with motion sickness and have trouble sleeping on the flights. It's hard to communicate how long the flight really is to Peter so pray he does ok also. 3. Two of the families we have become close to are traveling with littles ones. They have asked for you to please pray for them also. They are the Musgrove and Ankrich families. There are several other families who will be doing other things so I know they would appreciate being lifted up also. 4. Good transition for Peter and us when we get home. We will have a new time change, new son, new lots of things. Pray for mercy, grace, understanding but most of all love! Thank you for following our journey! If time allows, I plan to still blog about how things are going periodically. I would post pictures but the camera is packed and I just do not have the energy to find it! We love you all and you will never know how much we truly appreciate all you have done for us!! The next time you hear from me, we will be on US soil! And Peter will be a US citizen! Loving Him, Aimee for the Akin's