Well, here we are, one week and one day from leaving.  We're down to the nitty gritty now.  What five outfits do we each want to wear for eleven days?  How many dvd players do 6 people need for 30 hours on planes?  How many little packets of kleenex will a family of 6 use in a country with no toilet paper?  Really want to be sure and get that last one correct.

The Mayernicks called about a month ago to see if Chris could get them a special toddler walker.  This led to his finding the United Cerebral Palsy trading center in Nashville.  First, they donated the walker for the Mayernicks' trip to Uganda.  They said the little girl was soon happily toddling all around the village.  The UCP people also kindly offered to donate some of their used chairs to the Hope Foster Home in Beijing.  Chris and I went downtown yesterday and loaded up.  Now we have to figure out what all to take.  According to Continental's book, every passenger can bring a wheelchair without cutting into baggage allowances.  It doesn't say anything about the passenger needing one personally.  So, theoretically, we could go with our 6 bags and 6 carry-ons, 6 suitcases for Hope, and 6 toddler wheelchairs.  Are you starting to get a mental picture here?  Can you see the looks on the faces of the Airport employees when we waltz in at 5:20 a.m.?  I'll let you know what Jethro ends up loading on the truck.  No decision yet on who gets to sit in the rocking chair on top.