Isaiah's Gotcha Day in China.......

We've gotten a lot of requests to post this video on the blog for those who have never seen the first time we met Isaiah (commonly referred to as the "Gotcha Day"). The Chinese women in the video are his nanny, the orphanage director and our interpretor.

As you can see from the photo, all is going well with Isaiah (even though the Jets lost) and he has grown tremendously. He is excelling in his speech and is truly a gift from God! He and Maris play so well together (most of the time). More to come.....

Adjusting at Home

Well we made it home on Thursday night (08-14) after 26+ hours of airports and flights...WHEW. Isaiah was very good on the plane (mostly) and LOVES airplanes as much as cars. On our final flight home from Chicago to Jacksonville a passenger had a heart attack and we were diverted to Atlanta for medical treatment. We finally made it to Jax several hours later and completely exhausted...we were met at the airport by about 30 family and friends who stayed late into the night to welcome Isaiah home.

Isaiah is adjusting well to his new home and Maris is so helpful with him. Joanna, Isaiah and I are having a very tough time adjusting to the jet lag and barely sleeping over the past 3 days. Isaiah has met a majority of his new aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents over the weekend and loved them all. The cousins are patient with him, teaching him english words and showing him love.

God has been in every detail through this adoption. It's amazing how Isaiah fits into our family so well. It shows us that the Lord chose him for us and loves him so much. We give God all the praise and all the glory for our new son.

Coming Home !!!!!!

THIS WILL BE OUR LAST BLOG POST AS WE ARE FINALLY COMING HOME!

Today (Wednesday) we completed all adoption paperwork in Guangzhou and were officially sworn in as parents at the consulate office. Then we boarded vans and drove 3 hours to Hong Kong where we are now. We are in yet another hotel, but just for the night before we head to the airport and fly home. This hotel is very modern and VERY pricey...they wanted to charge us $40 Euros just to use internet in our room for 1/2 hour so I had to find a public computer in a nearby lobby (that's why there are no pictures or videos).

So,..........THANK YOU to all of you who have prayed, cried, sweat, listened and waited with us during this very long process. We can not thank you all enough for the financial and spiritual support you have shown us during this adoption. We SERIOUSLY could not have done it without each one of you. A sincere and geniune THANK YOU. We love you all and can't wait for you to meet Isaiah.

Mike and Joanna Gajewski

Last Full Day in Guangzhou

Thank you God, all of our paperwork was accepted today!! Not much going on today other than the completion of paperwork and hanging around the hotel. Tomorrow we go to the consulate and take an official oath to care for Isaiah. We then leave Guangzhou via bus for Hong Kong and then fly home Thursday morning (China time). Everyone in our travel group is so ready to go home and tired of hotel rooms / Chinese food.
The picture is of our America World adoption travel group and their adopted children which was taken in the hotel lobby. The second pic is Isaiah at the hotel pool which he still hasn't fell in love with. They make you wear swim caps if you go in the pool and, as you can see from the picture, Isaiah didn't care for it. The Chinese are quite funny.....they make you wear caps for hygiene reasons, but when a huge lightning storm moved in only the Americans got out of the pool. At least the pool filter will be clean as the coroner removes their lifeless bodies from the pool.
We miss you all and can't wait to come home. Isaiah is adapting well and definitely more accepting of Joanna's smothering than he was originally. He's ALL boy through and through. Can't wait to get him home!

Hanging in Guangzhou

Everyone keeps saying that they just want more pics and video of Isaiah so here they are. The pics are of various locations around Guangzhou over the past 2 days (fish pond, dinner, the famous 'White Swan hotel'). The one video is Isaiah at dinner...he's just babbling as usual. If anyone can translate for us we would appreciate it. The other video (sorry its so dark) is Isaiahs' daily routine of running out the hotel room toward the elevator. He LOVES elevators, escalators, stairs and of course cars.

A picture is worth a thousand words....

To those of you who thought we were exaggerating Isaiah's 'bad boy' attitude. These pictures were taken immediately after he was scolded for smearing a half-eaten chocolate cookie all over the hotel windows. He was told to lay in bed and take a nap and these were the looks we got. WE ARE IN TROUBLE. Unfortunately, the Chinese consulate told us it was too late to give him back and then strangely laughed like Dr. Evil.

Arrived in Guangzhou, Day 1

We made the short flight to Guangzhou yesterday without any problems (thank you everyone for all prayers). Isaiah loved the plane ride and stared out the window the whole ride. Guangzhou is beautiful and much like a major US city (reminds me of New York or Atlanta). Our hotel is one of the nicest I've seen in China. We really thought we would be 'roughing it' here but it's been great.
Isaiah had his medical review today and, besides some crying at the TB test, it went smoothly. The rest of the day consists of his US visa paperwork.
The video shows how independent he is.....he wants to do everything himself and doesn't give up! He is strong-willed and VERY sarcastic with us. I never imagined that we could bond with a complete stranger so quickly but we feel such love for him already. Most other families here are adopting special needs children, some with severe handicaps. Seeing them and Isaiah proves to me more everyday that Christ knows our days before we are born and had a plan for Isaiah long before Joanna and I decided to adopt. Thank you Father for using us!!

Father to the fatherless, defender of widows — this is God, whose dwelling is holy. God places the lonely in families.
Psalms 68:5-6