We learned tonight from an individual who could read Mandarin that attends our church that Gracee was discovered February 19, 2004 at the BengBu train station, apparently having been abandoned there by her mother. Medical officials determined her birthdate to be February 11. There was no note left with her. Infants are most often left in a very public location where they can be quickly found and taken to a local authority. The orphanage records, which we received last week but were not translated to English, indicated little Gracee (Beng Chun Ying) was 3 kg (approx. 6.6 lbs.) and 53 cm. long when she was found. She had a hard time adjusting to the bottle, but within a week was reportedly sleeping all through the night. In contrast to her referral picture, at 3 mos. of age (and later), it said she smiled a lot and laughed. It also indicated she enjoys colorful toys and toys that make noise and was known to take toys from her peers. [We wonder just what toys these little girls have in the orphanage.] In a December entry in the orphanage record, it was reported she was eating "bone soup" (for calcium intake), pig liver, vegetables, steamed eggs, and noodles. The final entry in the paper said she was a "perfectly healthy, lovely little girl." As the days go by, our excitement builds to move on with Gracee's Big Adventure.
We are leaving from Nashville July 20 and
