Trip to China
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Wednesday,
November 21, 2007
Hola! Wait, that’s not Mandarin!! Let’s try that again, Ni Hao!
Today, this is Rett posting! That’s Mrs. Foster to those at
school!
Well, today was another action packed day filled with many
firsts. It started with our traditional breakfast buffet in the
hotel. Today I looked closely to see what foods were really
there. Two things caught my eye today. Squid soup and thousand
year old eggs! (Look THAT one up on the Internet---not pretty!)
A fellow traveler tried the egg and said it was pretty good!
None for me, thanks! The girls ate well, whereas we just ate our
usual toast, hard boiled egg, and croissants.
From here we went to the Teng Wang Pavilion. This is a tall,
heavily decorated structure that has been around since the Tang
dynasty. We learned two key things. First, we learned a lot
about the history of Jiangxi . Second, we learned that the girls
can maneuver stairs on their own, so we never need to break our
backs again! Our guide, Mary chuckled when she saw Laney MeiMei
walking down the stairs with me. She said, “Ahh, look, she is a
princess! She walks like a princess!” Laney held my hand and
instead of balancing herself with her other hand on the wall,
she held it behind her, against her back. I thought that was
cute! But nearly everything she does is cute! (Um, except cry!
But, even that is cute sometimes…especially when her lower pouty
lip makes an appearance.)
While in the pavilion, we got to see a show that consisted of
some traditional singing and interpretive dance. It was actually
quite beautiful. The girls even seemed to enjoy it.
After strolling through the gardens that surrounded the
pavilion, we met up with several students on a field trip. It
was great fun to see them test their bravery and come forward to
say, “Hello! How are you?” They said it quite loud because they
wanted their friends to see how brave they were to test their
English on the Americans! We would say, “I’m fine, how are you?”
They’d respond similarly and then run off giggling. It warmed my
heart to see them having such fun! I wish we could have talked
to them more. It actually made me miss my students at home even
more!
Afterwards, we went to pick up our strollers that we left at a
little shop outside of the pavilion (so trustworthy, the Chinese
are) and did a little shopping. The couple that ran the shop was
very nice and showed us some traditional Chinese jewelry. We had
already purchased two bracelets in Beijing , but found two
longevity necklaces. We received two similar necklaces as a gift
from their orphanage, but decided the two we purchased today
could be given to them as gifts to be worn, instead of mere
keepsakes. The couple had us take our picture with them and even
offered a fellow traveler, Andi, some of their lunch. She said
it was good! I declined the offer, but thanked them so much for
the offer and necklaces.
We then returned to the hotel for naps and snacks. It wasn’t
long before the girls awoke and were ready to go! It is quite
comical, actually. They always tend to wake up, get their
bearings, want their shoes, and head over to the stroller. Abby
LaLa uses her overused phrase of “Ga got,” whatever that means,
when she points to something. They’re as tired of this room as
we are! So Daddy and I put them in their strollers and walked
the halls. We took the elevator to all of the non-smoking floors
and cruised. Luckily, that appeases them.
Dinner was a must tonight since we just snacked for lunch. Mary
took us to a traditional Chinese restaurant down the street. We
ate pork, and chicken, rice, and some jalapeno beef that was
SUPER DUPER spicy, but we loved it! Another first, the girls
dined on something we had NO idea was so important to
them…steamed eggs! Poor Tony could barely eat because Laney
MeiMei kept grunting and signing “More, More!” every two
seconds! The girls ate two or three small bowls full of this,
not-so-tasty-looking custard. They also enjoyed more watermelon
which seems to be a Chinese staple. No wonder they stay so tiny
here! |
Adoption Paperwork and gifts from Civil Affairs and orphanage
And no, Laney is NOT eating the crayon, it just looks like
it...and yes she is a bit ticked off in this picture.
Probably sending text messages
to each other on their cell
phones
School Kids...they loved saying - how are you
Teng Wang Pavilion
The whole crew at Teng Wang Pavillion |
As a side note on the meals, at
most restaurants here, you receive a hot towel to wipe your
hands with first. Also, you’ll often get little packets of
“tissues” that are to be used as napkins. We think we’re a
wasteful society!?!? These packets are wrapped in little plastic
envelopes. We got two each tonight. One set was dry for during
dinner, and the other was wet for afterwards, cleaning up. We’re
not talking a little square moist towelette. This is a mini-pack
of Kleenex!
Another first that happened today was that we had limited tears
on diaper changes! YAY! We also gave them their first bath
together. It was a hit! Ok, well, at least with Abby LaLa. Laney
cried during some of it. But it was better! We got them out,
dried them off, slathered them with lotion and kisses, and put
their feety pj’s on. Goodness, Abby loves those. She just looks
at her feet and grins! We then did our prayers (Laney watches us
so closely) and had more kisses all around and put them to bed.
Off to dreamland without a hitch…ok, other than Abby crying.
Nope, actually full-on meltdown. But, not too bad. Only one or
two major meltdowns per child today! Please keep praying for
that to continue to improve.
WOW, I didn’t mean to give you a play-by-play of the day! It
will just be fun for us to remember all of this one day. I want
to remember how much we grew together as a family throughout our
stay in their homeland.
One fun note to end on. The girls are little mockingbirds. While
we wait on the elevator, we often sing. And when the bell dings
for our floor, I always say, “Ding dong…” Well now, the girls
always mimic it when it rings. It’s too cute and makes the staff
and other guests here smile. Also, these girls are the smartest
little things ever. We’ll often hear Laney singing, “Twinkle,
twinkle” which is flat out adorable to hear her say it. Or, if I
start singing “Pat-a-cake” with her, they’ll start rolling their
arms over each other like the song goes. Too funny! Well, today
I introduced the “Itsy Bitsy Spider” to them and it was all the
rage. After only one time through it with the motions, they
started working their finger to make the spider climb. We can
never catch it on tape though, but you will all see it soon
enough! It’s the best! Tomorrow’s song? “I love you, a bushel
and a peck!”
Thanks for all of your comments. They are nourishment for our
souls. We’d be totally lost without you. This is the best way to
bring you all along without paying a massive airline fee! I’m
sorry if you think we ramble, but China has given us to of its
most precious gifts and we want to share all the details with
all of you back home! We love you and miss you terribly! Since
it’s nearly Thanksgiving here, we’ve attached a picture message
for you at home. But here’s an early HAPPY TURKEY DAY to you at
home! Stay tuned to see how we celebrate it here!
WE LOVE YOU ALL! |
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myadoptionwebsite.com
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