The China Expedition

Time flies....

2010-06-10T23:37:00.001-07:00

Two years ago today, was referral day! I found out I was going to be a mother not only to one baby from China but two babies from China! Maxine had a twin sister. UNBELIEVABLE!!! How in the world I got so lucky is one of life's mysteries. So I had about 40 days until they were to be placed in my arms. And now today we celebrated with pony practice and Pinkberry. : ) 2 babies and 2 ponies! What could be better? Ahhhh..... Life is good.

GUESS WHAT HAPPENED A YEAR AGO TODAY?!???

2009-06-10T17:39:00.000-07:00

One year ago today, we got our referral for "twins!" THE twins! OUR twins! I can't even imagine life before them anymore. {I usually say I can't remember life BC (Before China)} I do remember what Sabrina said at the begining of our referral call. She said, "I have some good news and some bad news. Which do you want first?" Well since it was the day after most everyone received their referrals, I figured she was calling to say we didn't get our referral and that it would be here next month. So, I opted for the bad news first. She told me that I wouldn't be getting much sleep. Hmmmm... uh,why??? Then she went on to tell me that I was the mother of twins!!! I screamed in her ear and immediately apologized for doing so. I probably permanently damaged her ear drum. Have ya ever heard a Southern girl scream??? Come to find out this was our agency's first referral for twins. Wow...and the odds it was us??? Who really knows...but I am the luckiest mommie in the world! Our twins are the best! What strong, beautiful, funny girls they are. Oh and, way too smart for their mommie.

MEMORIAL DAY

2009-05-25T22:06:00.000-07:00

The twins and their first hot dogs, deviled eggs, baked beans, and potato chips...

MAXINE

Beans, beans good for the...

What the heck is this? Can I eat it?

Mmmmmm.....ketchup

Eeeewwww...dawggie, this t-dawg is da bomb.

BIBI

What is that? And what am I suppose to do with it?

Uhhhh...where's my pasta?

I sure hope we are having pasta for dinner.

Monkey see. Monkey do.

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT????

2009-04-27T15:29:00.000-07:00

THE TWINS ARE A YEAR AND A HALF!!!!! Happy 18 months, BiBi and Maxine!

HAPPY EASTER

2009-04-12T23:03:00.000-07:00

Color-it-yourself Easter Bunnies with Easter Eggs

Pink Camoflauge Bucket Hats with Easter Baskets. (Nothin' fancy here. We shopped at Wal Mart) PS. Plastic eggs stuffed with cheerios. LOL.

Notice how Mommie's color-it-yourself bunny is tossed to the side. Nice, huh??? Otherwise the Baskets and Goodies the EB brought were well received with screams and screeches.

CANDY!!!! (Only 1 piece though and they actually shared 1 piece.)

Edible Easter Grass! I knew they would try to eat the paper or plastic kind so.... just opted for the edible kind. And, it comes in different flavors and colors. It is like eating a cross between taffy and raffia.

BiBi, her bonnet and bag of tricks....

2009-04-12T23:01:00.000-07:00

BiBi in her straw Easter bonnet with matching bag(given to her by Norma, Lil Norma, and Miguel) riding the Easter duck that Marme' sent.

Giddy Up Duck

I love my Easter hat!

Ride 'em Cowgirl!

I really love my Easter hat!

BiBi, where are your ears???

BiBi, where is your nose???

BiBi, can you pat your head???

BiBi, is there something stinky???

LITTLE MISS MAXINE

2009-04-12T22:58:00.000-07:00

Maxine, where is your nose???

Maxine, where are your ears???

Maxine, can you pat your head???

Look. It opens!

And, it's green! I like green!

Can you put something in this???

Cheerios!?? I don't want no stinkin' cheerios!

Give. Me. Some. Chocolate.

Ridin' Rodi.

These better not have cheerios in them.

S. O. S.

2009-04-08T08:09:00.000-07:00

Excuse me, is that $hit on your $hirt???
And, S.O.S. is not referring to $hit On a $hingle as my dad refers to chipped beef on toast. It is referring to $hit On my $hirt....& the floor, the bed, a bottle, a toy, etc... all coutesy of one $hit $lingin' baby, AKA BiBi. No, she didn't just $ling poo. $he took off her diaper and $lung it around with glee. It just so happened it was a full load. How lovely. NOT. I am not blaming anyone for this but... someone who remain nameless, changed her diaper this morning. Thank you for that but next time do it right or don't do it. I told this nameless person to put her pants back on or she would take off her diaper. And, I even gave this person clean pants for BiBi. But NOOOOOOOooo he...oops, nameless person, didn't put her pants back on her. Of course I could have done it but I was making the twins brekkie and nameless person's "to-go" brekkie, washing dishes, unloading and loading DW, feeding dog, cleaning high chairs, etc....all before peeing. TMI, right? $o when I look around from chores while taking my first bite of my Nutella English muffin, she is very happily laughing, twisiting, shouting, and slinging her diaper. Now if we had a $low motion replay of this you would $ee me leap tall cabinets and baby gates in a $ingle bound. Hope I didn't pull a muscle. There was poo all over her. Poo covered baby...yuck. I would have liked to extracted her from the disaster zone and decontaminated her with a bath but then Litle Miss Maxine would have been left to have her way with the aftermath. That couldn't happen. $o while holding back the $truggling $hit $lingin' culprit and blocking Little Miss Maxine form entering the disaster zone, I baby wiped the area and baby. In the process $.$. $wiped me with her poo covered hands on the front and back of my $hirt. I haven't checked my hair yet. GROSS, the thought of it. No longer hungry for my Nutella English muffin. I am due for a bath anyway. LOL.
Oh the joys. $orry no pics of the $hit $linger available.

A MOST IMPORTANT DAY!!!!

2009-02-08T20:24:00.000-08:00

Well.... at least to me, today turned out to be a very important day. No one else seemed to give a rats ***. I would say IMO it was just as important as the twins' first Christmas with me but not quite as important as their christening day (which BTW I have no pictures.) So... what is soooooo darn important about today????? Well....... The twins had {DRUMROLL, PLEASE}their first..... PONY RIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YUP. THEIR FIRST PONY RIDE!!!!!!!!!!! OMG!!! THEY WERE SOOOOO CUTE!!! YES, I'M BRAGGING AND EXAGGERATING LIKE ALL PROUD PARENTS DO SOMETIMES. BUT COME ON.... THE TWINS RODE A PONY!!!! A REAL LIVE PONY!!!
First up... Maxine looks like she is ready to race.

Now we serious with BiBi. Let's get this show on the road.

BiBi checking out the competition.

Ride 'em cowgirl!

GONG HEY PHAT CHOY!!!

2009-01-26T14:18:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!!! Today is Chinese New Year's Day. Mok's mom has been visiting us since before Xmas so we are celebrating this year with red pockets, presents which include a new red ball and an animated pony named Smores (on sale at Target for 50% off), yummy food, China Mum flowering plants, Mandarin oranges, etc... Oh and the greatest present ever from Aunt Jamie... Parents brand toy cell phone that you can record your voice onto so the girls can have a special message from mommie. (Thanks Aunt Jamie!)
If I have a spare minute between diaper changes and feedings, I will post some pics of the twins.
I would like to wish all my buddies a special Happy New Year who have their kids at home for their first CNY and BIG HUGS to all my friends who are celebrating their (hopefully) last CNY without their babies.

GUESS WHAT HAPPENED 6 MONTHS AGO....

2009-01-21T14:59:00.000-08:00

DOES ANYONE REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED 6 MONTHS AGO??? GOTCHA DAY...THE DAY WE MET BIBI AND MAXINE FOR THE FIRST TIME. IT REALLY SEEEMS LIKE THEY HAVE BEEN WITH ME FOREVER. I CAN'T REALLY REMEMBER LIFE B.K. (BEFORE KIDS).

A never been released photo of Maxine and BiBi with their caretakers just before we get to hold them.

My Girls. Awwwwww.... Notice the square bald patch on BiBi. We later found out that is where they shaved her to give her an IV. Ugh...in the head.
More post to follow....

Santa Claus does exist!!

2009-01-01T21:45:00.000-08:00

HERE COMES SANTA CLAUS....

2008-12-20T19:42:00.000-08:00

.....right down Maxine and BiBi Lane.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!

BIBI & MAXINE ARE 1 TODAY!!!!!

2008-10-27T08:29:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY GIRLS!!!!
pictures to be posted of the days events....

FIRST PLACE AND THE BLUE RIBBON GOES TO.....

2008-10-20T21:55:00.000-07:00

THE PONY GIRLS AKA BIBI AND MAXINE....were competing in their first horse show in the Halloween Costume Class (for people not horses) in Laughlin, NV at the Tennessee Walking Horse Western Celebration.

BiBi & Maxine

BiBi

Maxine

And, Mommie won a blue ribbon too.

FISHY FACE

2008-10-09T05:56:00.001-07:00

MEI MEI DA FISHY MONSTER

Just Chillin.....

2008-09-20T22:48:00.000-07:00

"YO, wut up?"

"WE'RE LUCKY THEY'RE ALIVE"

2008-09-19T17:28:00.000-07:00

THIS IS AN ARTICLE PUBLISHED IN THE ATHENS NEWS COURIER ON SEPTEMBER 7TH WRITTEN BY KELLY KAZEK.

http://www.enewscourier.com/homepage/local_story_250211345.html

'We’re lucky they’re alive’
Couple’s trip to China to adopt twin sisters almost turns tragic

By Kelly Kazek
kelly@athensnews-courier.com

For a few seconds, BiBi Beasley Mok stood in the middle of the living room without holding anything — not the table, her grandmother’s knee or her sister’s shirt.

Marveling at this new ability, she looked up at a visitor and grinned.

BiBi’s not quite ready to take an unaided step but it won’t be long, and then her mother, Beth Beasley, will have her hands full.

Because walking on the heels of 10-month-old BiBi will be her twin sister, Maxine. Beth, 42, an Athens native, and her husband, Mok Waiwan, 41, who now live in Venice, Calif., adopted the girls from China in July.

Going to pick up her daughters was, for Beth, the culmination of a lifelong dream to be an adoptive mother. What she couldn’t know is that it would nearly end in tragedy.

Before Beth could get back to the United States with the girls, both their lives would be threatened by a sudden illness.

“We are so lucky to be back with both of them alive and well and healthy,” Beth said.

How it began

When Beth was 2-years-old, a family friend went to Montgomery to adopt a child.

“So Beth said, ‘I want to go to Montgomery to get my babies,’” recalls her mother, Linda Beasley of Athens.

Beth, an architect, never forgot. In 1999, she married Mok, who was born in Hong Kong and came to the United States with his parents when he was 16.

Knowing that so many baby girls in his homeland had been placed in orphanages led to the decision to look to China as a place to adopt.

“His mother always wanted to adopt a baby girl from China but they were never able to,” Beth said.

But until Mok became a citizen, the process would require more paperwork. So in April 2006, with his citizenship official, the couple contacted Nightlight Christian Ministries, a California-based adoption firm, and began the adoption process.

They qualified to adopt twins but they did not know what child would be theirs until June of this year when the agency called to tell them about the twins, whose names at the orphanage were Jin Bi Yun and Jin Bi Xia. In China, the family, or sur, name is written first.

Mok, whose given name actually is Waiwan, was called by his family name Mok upon arriving here by people who did not understand the Chinese custom. The confusion is why Beasley decided to keep her last name.

The girls, however, will be called Maxine BiXia Beasley Mok and Elisabeth “BiBi” BiYun Beasley Mok, keeping their Chinese names as middle names.

In July, more than two years after beginning the adoption process, Beth and Mok were ready to travel to Nanning, China, in the Guangxi province to pick up their twins.

Beth arrived in Nanning July 17, traveling with her mother. Mok, an architect with Gehry Partners who was in the midst of a large project, followed on July 20 to sign papers. He returned to the U.S. the next day to continue the project but Beth and Linda had to stay until all Chinese and U.S. documentation could be completed, which was expected to take several days. Beth and Linda went sightseeing, careful to avoid drinking or brushing teeth with the water, and carefully adhering to feeding the girls’ the formula they were given by their caretakers.

On July 25, mother and daughter traveled to the Guangzhou province, taking the twins on their first airplane trip, to finalize papers. There, they were joined by Beth’s sister Jamie and nephew Austin.

What happened next

While in Guangzhou, Beth realized Maxine was having difficulty breathing.

Panicked, Beth took Maxine to the recommended hospital, Guangzhou Children’s Hospital.

She was in for a surprise.

“There was an outdoor waiting room and then you went upstairs to stand in line to see a doctor and describe what’s wrong with the baby,” she said. “A doctor at a desk writes out what tests are needed, then you go down to the cashier, where you had to pay in Chinese money because that’s all they would take and nothing is done without money.”

Everyone, including Chinese, was required to pay before any hospital services could be done, she said.

After taking Maxine back upstairs for tests, Beth had to wait for results.

“We had to get back in line and wait to see the doctor,” Beth said.
The process repeated itself when the doctor prescribed treatment. Beth went back downstairs to pay for the treatment, then took the rapidly sickening Maxine back upstairs, where the treatments seemed to have no effect.

Linda arrived to find Beth sitting on the filthy floor in the emergency room holding a tube to Maxine’s nose to get oxygen to her.

“It was 100 degrees in there. There was no air conditioning, nobody attending to Maxine,” Linda said.

Finally, doctors agreed to admit Maxine to the pediatric intensive care unit, which meant Beth had to carry the ailing child back down to the cashier to give the hospital more money.

At that point, Beth noticed the baby was turning blue.

Finally, doctors agreed to admit Maxine to the pediatric intensive care unit, which meant Beth had to carry the ailing child back down to the cashier to give the hospital more money.

At that point, Beth noticed the baby was turning blue.

Exhausted, she gave Maxine to Linda to carry back up to PICU.

“I was carrying her and her fingernails were blue and around her mouth was blue,” Linda said. “I didn’t think we’d get there.”

Both were relieved to see the PICU seemed clean and modern. Doctors told them to leave the baby, promising to call with any news.

Hospital visits were allowed each day only at 4 p.m. When they arrived the next day, Maxine had been hooked up to a ventilator but no one had called to tell Beth.

Eventually, doctors would diagnose severe viral pneumonia. With Maxine’s prognosis still unknown, BiBi also grew sick. She was admitted with the same diagnosis to a regular room at the hospital where a family member had to stay 24 hours a day because there were no attendants. By this time, Mok had returned because Beth and Linda feared he might never see Maxine again but he soon had to leave again.

In the meantime, Beth and Linda had called home to Linda’s husband Jimmy begging for help in getting the girls home.

Jimmy went to Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital and asked the highest-ranking doctor, Margaret Rush, if the hospital could help.

He was shocked when she said yes. An evacuation plane staffed with Vanderbilt doctors would have cost the Beasleys about $250,000, but at that point, afraid for the babies’ lives, they were willing to try anything to get home.

But then Rush was told China would not allow the plane into its air space and the plan was scrapped.

Fortunately, the girls began to recover quickly and within days were ready to come to their new home in the United States.
Linda and Beth changed airlines so they could fly nonstop to Los Angeles, then they flew to Nashville, where Vanderbilt doctors checked the girls thoroughly, giving them a clean bill of health.

Another homecoming

Beth’s visit with her parents here in Athens will come to an end this weekend and she’ll return to Venice and her husband with the girls.

Linda and Jimmy have enjoyed the weeks with their granddaughters and will miss having them in the house, Linda said.

“They’re beautiful and so outgoing,” she said. “They’re just wonderful.”

But the Beasleys have an excuse to fly to California next month — the twins’ first birthday.

“We’ll be flying a lot,” Linda said.

Some new old pictures from Tennessee...

2008-09-18T23:18:00.000-07:00

The twins had their first "photo shoot" in Tennessee by Shane Shiflet, a horse photographer! Look how they have changed in less than a month! These were taken on August 20th, I believe.

Photos courtesy of shaneshifletphoto.com

Shane Shiflet

What you have all been waiting to see....

2008-09-16T21:41:00.001-07:00

Maxine & BiBi - Rascals du jour

WE'RE HOME...finally!!!

2008-09-09T20:01:00.000-07:00

The girls and I flew in last night with the aid of my "mannie," my dad. He's the greatest! He has never really done in child/baby care and he was a champion "mannie" yesterday. And we passed all of Vanderbilt's test with flying colors! Vanderbilt's IA clinic is just terrific. We cannot thank Vanderbilt enough.
So we are finally home. I'm just trying to get settled, get supplies for twins, and slowly unpack the assorted 7, yes 7, checked bags/boxes that I brought home. One tends to accumulate a lot of stuff when travelling extensive periods with twins.
Oh and, one quick tip I have for those of you travelling to China soon. You can never take too many or too much antibacterial wipes or antibacterial liquid soap. More travel tips to come. But leave you with the 2 most important items to take to China. Ergos and Sit n Strolls. Could not have functioned without them.

AUGUST 21ST FROM AUNT JAMIE

2008-09-09T07:02:00.001-07:00

HAPPY ONE MONTH ANNIVERSARY

Wow, how time flies when you have two beautiful girls!!!! I truly can't believe it has been one month since Beth and Mok finally met their wonderful babies.

I would like to thank all of you for your thoughts and prayers during this immensely stressful time in Mok and Beth's life. They were definitely answered. Mei Mei and Bibi are thriving thanks to the wonderful, caring, professional Chief of Staff, Dr Margaret Rush at Vanderbilt's Children Hospital, Dr. Cooper, Dr Rothman, and all the nurses and staff.

They will stay in Tennessee for the duration of August to be close to Vanderbilt to ensure they are completely virus free and ready to travel to Venice. They are pulling up on the crib and cruising around it. Bibi favorite thing is to lie on Mei Mei until she yelps for help:) It is amazing to see them so happy from the fragile state they had been. I see them having so much fun in Venice visiting all of you who can't wait to meet them for the first time. They have stolen my heart and I am so happy they have found such wonderful, loving parents. Mei Mei and Bibi are so lucky to have so much family surrounding them right now. Aunt Chavigny is AWESOME and so are Jeb, Jasper, and Mike. Need I mention Marmee (Grandma) and Grandy. They are beyond the most special grandparents I know. Mei Mei is such a charmer. She melts everyone's heart and Bibi is a little rascal.

Happy Happy Happy One Month Anniversary!!!

Love to all,

Aunt Jamie

FROM AUNT JAMIE

2008-08-04T06:56:00.000-07:00

August 3rd

We are sorry for the delay in posts and appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers at this time. This has been the most frightening, heart wrenching, physically, mentally, and spiritually trying time for Beth, Mok, and the babies. In time, when they are ready, they will share the stories and events that have taken place.

What is important now is focusing on the recovery of Mei Mei and BiBi and their safe return to the U.S. They are both in PICU with a rare pneumonia (they do not know the cause and we probably never will know) and slowly improving day by day. Their temperatures are down, their circulation has improved, their respiratory rate is finally normal, and removal of the ventilator is the next step. Both babies are unable to drink from bottles so this will be very challenging for a while and especially on the plane ride home.

They are searching and are in need of a doctor to travel on the plane ride home with them so if anyone has any connections or any information that would help, please notify us immediately.

Your continued thoughts and prayers warm our hearts. Please send all your positive, healthy energy their way.

With all my love,

Aunt Jamie

GOTCHA DAY WAS MONDAY THE 21ST!!!!

2008-07-23T03:43:00.000-07:00

TWO BUNDLES OF YUMMY!

Maxine BiXia (Mei Mei)

Elisabeth BiYun (BiBi)

I AM READY FOR MY CLOSE UP!!!! (BiBi)

WE'RE IN CHINA!!!!

2008-07-19T06:40:00.000-07:00

Well, Mother and I made it to China. The Northwest World Business Class is AWESOME!! People... start saving your frequent flyer miles!! It is definitly worth it! So...In Tokyo when we changed planes, they confiscated all of our bottled water. Ughhh. We had no Japanese money...but I found some little place, Tatsu that would take USD so I could buy a miniature perrier for $4.00. Also there is a Mickie D's in the Tokyo airport that supposedly would take credit cards but I just could stand in that long line. Then when I gate checked one of the sit n strolls in Tokyo, they didn't bring it back up to me at the jetway in GZ... after waiting and waiting and asking and begging. So it came out with the luggage fortunately. Then we pushed our great big overloaded luggage carts through customs after loading them, unloading them, scanning them and re-loading them. Fun, Fun! Then we proceeded out into the GZ airport where someone was suppose to meet us and take us to the Novotel Hotel. Uhhhh... they weren't there. So.... I saw a sign pointing the way to the Novotel hotel and follow those down these extremely long and dark hallways under the GZ airport. (BTW it is like midinght at this point.) It led us out the back of the airport into a garden area with a long slope up to the hotel which took us into the back of the hotel with no elevator to put our luggage. So some bellhop carried it up to the mezzanine and put it on the elevator to take it down to the lobby. And this is where we found they didn't have any reservations under our name. So... after many discussions of yes we have a reservation, they finally determined it was under a travel agents name. Phew! And then..... my Panda phone(Chinese cell phone rental) had not arrived. UGHHHH!!! Well, after many unsuccessful discussions I just let it slide until this morning when I raised some Alabama hell. Oh... our guide has just shown up. Must go see GZ now. BTW.. We are already laughing about the mishaps. Oh and if you try to call us at the Novotel, you have to give them our room #.
PS. JUST HEARD FROM OUR LOCAL GUIDE IN NANNING AND SHE HAS SEEN THE BABIES!! THE ONLY QUESTION I COULD THINK TO ASK WAS IF THEIR HEADS WERE SHAVED. AND... THEY ARE NOT. THEY HAVE HAIR. LOL. OH LORDIE... HOW VAIN, AM I???

8 MONTHS OLD...

2008-06-28T13:03:00.000-07:00

Jin, Bi Xia

Jin, Bi Yun

Just wanted to let everyone know that the girls are now 8 months old!!! Happy 8 months to my babies!!! We should have them in our arms before they are 9 months old. Travel dates are still tenative but it is really close. And we received our Travel Approval yesterday, as well. So our Consulate Appointment has been requested. When we get confirmation of our CA then we buy plane tickets!!! OMG! Who is excited??? ME!!! That's who!!!

DOUBLE HAPPINESS....

2008-06-10T20:50:00.000-07:00

DRUM ROLL............... PLEASE!

JIN, BI YUN

JIN, BI XIA

IT'S LOOKING LIKE DOUBLE TROUBLE.....

2008-06-10T16:59:00.000-07:00

Well... its referral time again. And this month we are overjoyed and....overwhelmed to announce that we received our referral for TWIN GIRLS!!! They are 7.5 months old.
Province: Guangxi (This province is just west of Canton/Guangdong Province.)
DOB: October 27th, 2007 (7.5 months old!!!)
Name: Jin, Bi Yun
Name: Jin, Bi Xia
Pictures to be posted ASAP!!!
PS. Thank-you to everyone at Nightlight Christian Adoptions especially Sabrina and Kathryn!

STORK ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-06-10T08:23:00.000-07:00