Nashville To The Nations: The not-so-white stuff.

I've arrived! I'm very thankful to have had smooth flights and an easy arrival. The Beijing Capital airport was all but deserted on the cold morning of the 18th - a big change from the media storm surrounding the Olympic athlete arrivals that were taking place the last time I was in that airport.

I was quickly thrown back into the China swing of things. My second night here, I was invited to a nearby university to be their special guest judge at an English talent competition. Let me tell you - there is nothing like listening to teenage Chinese boys belting out a Celine Dion hit in their broken English! The winning prize went to the best Whitney Houston impersonation I've ever heard! Following the show, my twins from the orphanage treated us to a special number.

My first few days were spent adjusting my days and nights, unpacking a bit, and playing plenty of board games. Here's a look at my new place!

On Saturday, we headed into the city to 'Smallville', a restaurant run by the Wyses (the American family that runs the orphanage). Santa made a visit and even brought ginger bread cookies! The special day brought in a lot of families to the restaurant.

One night, around ten o'clock, I began hearing shouts of laughter from kids outside my window. Curiosity finally got the best of me and I crawled out of bed, slipped my feet into my slippers, and shuffled to the window. To my surprise, it was snowing! I was excited to know I'd be having a white Christmas, but alas, I am in China, and here even the snow is not-so-white. It took the usual 45-minute drive into Beijing close to three hours the following morning. Here's a garlic truck that was stuck behind us for most of the journey.