Today is the day we are blessed to visit where Kyle has spent the first 3 years of his life. I am so thankful for the honor of being allowed to visit. Due to the fact that none of us have left Kyle yet, we all went on the trip. He was a little nervous (the van ride does this to him) but again big sister set his mind at ease and before too long he was asleep. He fell asleep right before we got to the orphanage which is a good thing. We didn't want him to know he was there.We were amazed at the size of the building! It looked like a castle! (Kris commented that he would think he went to the slums when he gets to our house lol) So big, clean and beautiful. Kris, Lynn and myself went it with our suitcase full of gifts. We had taken clothes, hats, toys and supplies from another mother how has a child from Harbin. We went in and went to the conference room. A huge room with lots of awards and certificates. It truly is a very nice place and you can tell they really love the children that is in their care. We meet the new director, his nanny and his foster grandmother. (they called her grandmother instead of mother since she was older). I could see the love that these women had for Kyle. I could not hold my composure as I thanked them for taking such good care of him and for loving him. I promised them we would take good care of him and to send them regular updates. Its amazing how love bonds people how can't speak the same language. It was truly a humble encounter that I will treasure for the rest of my life. We got to go on a tour to see where Kyle had class each day, where he played and where he took his naps every day. On our way we passed a few rooms that had children in them. IF you have a child at Harbin SWI and you are reading this...let me assure you...they are loved and are being taken care of. Everything is so neat and clean. The little toddlers would run to the windows as we walked by. We could do pass without kneeling down and putting our hands up to theirs through the glass. They would just giggle. When we went into Kyle's room we saw the children he was with everyday. Oh how I pray these sweet babies have families waiting to come get them. A little boy in the corner caught my eye. He had on the blue stripe shirt that Kyle wore in some of the photos we received. I prayed that his family would receive photos like we did with him in that shirt. His nanny showed us his favorite toys and what he liked to play with. We got to ask questions that we wanted to know and I also got them to write a little note to Kyle so when he is older I can give them to him. Because of the great honor we were granted, I will not be posting pictures from our visit. I do not want to do anything that might effect fellow parents from being allowed this same privilege. It was a special day that I will forever hold in my heart! Thank you Lord for opening doors! and Thank you to everyone who prayed for favor!
After we left there we went to a popular tourist attraction in Harbin. We went to the St Sophia Church. It was built in 1907 and was the first Orthodox Cathedral in Harbin. It was a spectacular building that now is turned into a tourist center. On the side of the church you can hand feed pigeons. We checked it out but Kyle made it very clear he did not want to feed any birds. We left there and took our guide and driver to a local dumpling restaurant. I great ending to a day that will live in our hearts forever!
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