Mary Ann and Anthony Tomasek

Mary Ann and Anthony live in Temple, Texas, near Ft. Hood, where they spend many hours watching their daughters, Jencie and Juliann, at dance rehearsals and performances.

They knew very little about China when they embarked on their adoption journey. They talked with friends who were in the process of adopting from China. The couples have remained friends.

Mary Ann and Anthony waited less than a year for Jencie. By the time they filed paperwork to adopt Juliann the wait had stretched to almost three years. nthony said they felt, `a little bit of apprehension and misunderstanding of why it was taking so much longer the second time versus the first time.`

How did they cope?

`We just, through our support group, kept the pace we were going and just buckled down and thought it's meant for a time and this is our time to wait,` he says.

Jencie's adoption required a two-week stay in China. They were in China for three weeks for Juliann's adoption. Having once stayed at Guangzhou's White Swan Hotel, the longtime `headquarters` for international families adopting in China, they knew their way around. The girls' grandparents accompanied them on both trips.

`We did shopping. We went to different markets. We were just able to see some of the day to day life as well as seeing some of the sites around the area,` says Mary Ann.

`We knew exactly what to expect as far as surroundings,` Anthony adds. `Some had changes over the years, yes, but we still found places to go and things to do. It was sort of like a home because we knew what to expect.