Super Bowl, Super Day!

Well, tomorrow, while Alaska is watching the Super Bowl, we’ll be holding our new daughter. We are slated to pick up Carli at 9:30am tomorrow (Monday) morning, which will be about 4:30pm Alaska time (Sunday).

Today was an awesome day. We left Beijing under an amazing cloud of pollution and haze. The factories had been shut down while we were there for Chinese New Year so the haze and smog level was what you might expect to see in Los Angeles… we had some beautiful sunny blue sky days while we were there. Today, however, was a different story. You could not see the blue sky, let alone a half mile ahead. The haze of pollution was everywhere, and we could tell in our breathing. We made it to the airport, however, with plenty of time to spare.

The flight to Harbin was fairly short, about an hour and a half. It was perfectly clear, though, and all you could see was farm land… it was amazing. There were thousands of square miles of farm land with small groupings of houses among them. It is very flat up here, so much so that our altitude was deceptive and it looked like we were going to land on the farmland when in actuality we probably had another 4 thousand feet to descend.

After arriving here we met our guide, got checked into the hotel, and then went out to one part of the ice festival. This festival is just amazing and completely took our breath away. All of the buildings and structures are created by ice or snow. The magnitude of what is created is not done justice by these pictures; it is a very cool festival and a fun atmosphere. Of course, you see things you wouldn’t ever see in the U.S. like the guy on a motorized para-sailer flying around the festival dodging fireworks from folks on the ground and offers to have your picture taken with tame Artic foxes. Sara and I went down a pretty wicked toboggan run which ended with a run into a big snow pile. There were inner tube sleds, sled dog runs, food, ice bikes, ice buggies, horse rides… all sorts of fun. The temperature is pretty cold here, but not bad as long as the wind doesn’t pick up.

Tomorrow we get our daughter, and I think Amanda and I are experiencing a bit of nerves about it. I at least have the feeling of entering a test that you don’t feel prepared to take. There are things I wish I had done before coming, long before our trip was planned, to help us and Carli with the transition. I think I feel a bigger responsibility and anxiety about the transition (than with Jenna) because Carli is older. I have concerns and worries about the language barriers. I know it will all work out and that love conquers all, but tonight I’m a bit worried. In preparing for this trip I’ve been excited, but I think some of the realities are hitting pretty hard now that we are actually in Harbin. Our guide told us she (Carli) is in Harbin tonight, that she made the long journey here today. She knows that tomorrow is a big day, also, and I wonder if she will have a fitful night of rest.

Jenna, of course, is nothing but excited. She knows where Carli is sleeping, what Carli is wearing, what toys she can play with, everything. She is very ready and I am so glad she is here with us… I know she can make up for any of my shortcomings. She is doing great on the trip. She makes a lot of friends with people all over especially because she pretends to understand them when they speak Chinese to her. She just keeps talking to them and they assume she understands them. Although at the end of the day she has been crashing hard and does not need much prompting to go to bed.

Well, stay tuned for tomorrow… it is a big day… and no, I don’t really care who wins the Super Bowl… my mind and body are worlds away.