Back home again in Indiana

Friday, September 17th started early with a 6:15 clock alarm to wake us up for the big day of travel back to the U.S.  Alexis was still sleeping soundly and we arose to get dressed and gather all our belongings for our departure from Hong Kong.  We got Alexis out of bed at the last minute, checked out of the hotel and walked through the connecting hallway to the airport terminal.  We met up with some other families from our travel group who were on the same flight to Detroit.  We navigated our way through check-in and security, waited at the gate for a few minutes, and boarded the plane.  Unfortunately, the seating configuration was different from what we had seen online and we did not have an aisle seat as expected.

The 14 hour flight from Hong Kong to Detroit seemed like the longest flight of all time.  Alexis did pretty well considering that we woke her up early and that she only managed three short naps on the flight.  We found that the days of reading books, napping and watching movies on the airplane are temporarily over.  We were not able to do any of these things as we spent the whole trip caring for Alexis, with many hours standing up with other parents holding babies.  There were probably around ten adopting families on our flight.

We arrived exhausted to Detroit and went through immigration where Alexis became a U.S. citizen!  We got our bags, breezed through customs, re-checked our bags, went through security, and boarded our flight to Indy where we were happily surprised to see a familiar face - Mike O. from church, who happened to be on the same flight.


Upon arrival in Indianapolis we changed Alexis' diaper and put a cute outfit on her.  We walked down the hallway to be greeted by a large welcoming committee.  It was wonderful to see family and friends again after our long trip.  There were many tears and smiles.  It was a memorable moment and Alexis managed it well.


We drove home with Grandpa Matt in the car with us.  Alexis struggled with the drive home.  I'm sure it was all too much for her after the exhausting day and seeing so many new faces.  However, after arriving home and being joined by some family and friends, Alexis was herself again and she enjoyed all the attention and adoration, hamming it up a little and being the social person that she is.


We're thrilled to be home again!  Thanks to all for your prayers.  We needed them and felt them throughout the trip.  We can't wait for you to meet Alexis!