Airport Adventures

As I said in my last post, we did have a bit of an adventure getting home. Our flight from Hong Kong to Kansas City was delayed by 2 hours and we only had a two-and-a-half hour window in Chicago to begin with. We were certain we would miss our flight in Chicago and have to take a later flight home.

Hanging out in the Hong Kong airport for about four hours wasn't too bad. We had lunch and then Isabel ended up falling asleep as we walked around the airport. When she woke up we set up a play area for her and she was able to walk around some before we boarded the looooonnnng flight back to the States.

Luckily they were able to make up a bit of time in the air from Hong Kong to Chicago....but when we landed in Chicago we only had 45 minutes to catch our flight. We had to get through immigration, pick up our checked bags from the Hong Kong flight. Then we had to go through another section of immigration specifically for Isabel where they checked all of her adoption paperwork because she was still considered a foreigner and was traveling on a China passport and visa. Next we had to get our luggage through customs. After all that was over we realized we only had 15 minutes to get to the complete other side of the Chicago airport and catch our flight.

It was insane....I wish we could have had a video of us. Jeff had a cart for all of our luggage, we had to re-check it in for our next flight. Then, we made the mad dash to the other side of the airport....we were running...literally. For those of you who know me....I don't run, so that in itself is quite comical. But there I was....running with Isabel attached to the front of me in her Baby Bjorn bouncing all over the place. Jeff had our carry on luggage and was running as fast as he could. We finally get to the correct terminal and we are told we have to go through security...again. At this point I was about ready to lose it. There was a huge line and although I knew we probably were already going to miss the flight, I wasn't ready to give up. So, I talked to the security guy letting the flight crew people through a separate line (currently there was no one waiting). I think he saw my panicked look and the crack in my voice and knew I was a woman on the brink of a complete breakdown. He thankfully took pity on us, looked over our documents and let us through the line.

Jeff and I looked up the gate number and of course it was the last one in the terminal. We were running on the people movers and trying to be polite as possible as we were frantically yelling at people to move over as we ran past them. Jeff ran ahead as he could go faster than I could with Isabel bouncing around. (She was a bit confused, but seemed to be having a grand time.) I see Jeff finally reach the gate, talk to someone and set down his bags....my heart sank and I was fighting back tears. Then....as I got closer, I see that the flight had been delayed by about 30 minutes and although we were late, they were just getting ready to board. (The delay wasn't yet posted on the board when we checked for the gate number.)

So...to everyone that was in the Chicago airport on Saturday and let us run past them like wild people....we thank you. If we wouldn't have been able to cut to the front of the lines and ran ahead then we would have possibly had to stay the night in Chicago as the next flights were about full.

When we arrived at the airport in Kansas City we had family and friends awaiting our arrival. There were signs, balloons and plenty of cameras. Isabel had never touched the ground in Chicago as we were running with her the entire time. So, when she set her feet down in the KCI airport she officially became a US Citizen. (I just realized that we never took pictures at the airport with our camera....so anyone who took photos can you pass them along to us?)

And, finally we want to send a big THANK YOU to four very special people. They know who they are and I will keep them anonymous. But shortly before Jeff and I had to book our flights to China we received an amazing gift...they wanted to pay for our flights to and from China. As anyone who has had to make international flights only a week in advance knows....they are not cheap. Jeff and I still do not know how to thank someone for such a great gift....it enabled us to have MUCH less stress when the time came to book the tickets and prepare for our trip. So, the last picture on the blog today is for the four of you. As Jeff and I flew to China and back, the four of you were in our thoughts....we cannot thank you enough.

I am posting some catch-up photos below to make up for when I couldn't post.

Just a super-cute picture of Isabel...has become one of our favorites:



These are some photos of our hotel in Guangzhou...the infamous White Swan. The pagoda and boat are carved out of jade:





Here are our guides in Guangzhou...amazing people.


Getting ready for our appointment at the US Consulate and a picture of the Consulate offices:




Last dinner in China....our group all met at Lucy's...which is a restaurant that served "western" food. Burgers, fries, grilled cheese, onion rings, etc. They also had a menu for the babies with chicken congee and noodles with egg.



Isabel passing the time at the Hong Kong airport:



Pictures from our flight: