Sunday, December 25, 2011
Merry Christmas!
We had a wonderful Christmas Eve service with our church family and Matt's parents who are visiting. We had a wonderful present opening experience. The girls have spent the day building Lego Hogwarts Castle, and I have to say that I am amazed at how well they are doing. The Panda has spent most of the day sleeping because he is sick. Congestion, and I think, ear pain. Glad that the tubes are going in with the cleft surgery.
He LOVED the ride on/ push behind car that his grandparents gave him. He presses his head against it (and everything including my face that makes noise), because this helps him hear better. The Puppy LOVED the Nerf gun from the grandparents and the Nerf weaponry from us. I am really enjoying a few days of just letting people be. It is nice not to have to make them do school, make them do chores, make them go to bed... (not that we have have much luck with make them go to bed...) Sadly, we have 50% sneezy, congested people here, so we didn't get to go caroling with our church this afternoon, but no one wants to be infected, I'm sure...
The Panda is getting up on his knees and stretching more, especially to reach things. Yesterday, he even put one foot up, like he was going to try to stand up.
Of course, the Lord has given us the best Christmas present ever- adoption. He sent his Son so that we could be adopted into His family, and this year He gave us a dear son.
John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
He LOVED the ride on/ push behind car that his grandparents gave him. He presses his head against it (and everything including my face that makes noise), because this helps him hear better. The Puppy LOVED the Nerf gun from the grandparents and the Nerf weaponry from us. I am really enjoying a few days of just letting people be. It is nice not to have to make them do school, make them do chores, make them go to bed... (not that we have have much luck with make them go to bed...) Sadly, we have 50% sneezy, congested people here, so we didn't get to go caroling with our church this afternoon, but no one wants to be infected, I'm sure...
The Panda is getting up on his knees and stretching more, especially to reach things. Yesterday, he even put one foot up, like he was going to try to stand up.
Of course, the Lord has given us the best Christmas present ever- adoption. He sent his Son so that we could be adopted into His family, and this year He gave us a dear son.
John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
A month and a half together. :)
The Panda is still adjusting very happily. We've been keeping the world pretty small (for us anyway... home, church, tae-kwon-do, and occasional visits from friends). He likes going out, though.
The Panda is getting good at kneeling. He has gained 3.5 pounds in 5 weeks, and is getting stronger. He still has a gentle spirit though. He's getting hair! He watched the Puppy get his hair cut (by me) with clippers today and didn't seem too worried. I hope he feels the same when I try to cut his hair. He figures things out very quickly- he learned to click a ball point pen after I showed him how once. He loves hats, and puts on any available hat. Santa, Woody the Cowboy.... His fear of the bath is a little less, and he is ok with balloons now too. The Panda LOVES pretty girls, and really works hard to get attention from them.
Homeschooling is happening. The Christmas tree is up, thanks to Matt and the kids, and it looks great. The Panda is good at taking ornaments off. House cleaning isn't happening as much as it used to. We have too much entertainment to distract us. The Panda can interact much longer than he used to without getting overstimulated, so we are having fun getting as many laughs out of him as possible.
I am so used to the Panda's cleft now that it takes me a moment to remember when people are staring at us. No one has been mean or anything, but several children have gotten really angry because they think the Panda is injured and grown ups are just standing around like there's nothing wrong. He has such an expressive face, though. I'll include some of his great facial expressions here.
The Panda is getting good at kneeling. He has gained 3.5 pounds in 5 weeks, and is getting stronger. He still has a gentle spirit though. He's getting hair! He watched the Puppy get his hair cut (by me) with clippers today and didn't seem too worried. I hope he feels the same when I try to cut his hair. He figures things out very quickly- he learned to click a ball point pen after I showed him how once. He loves hats, and puts on any available hat. Santa, Woody the Cowboy.... His fear of the bath is a little less, and he is ok with balloons now too. The Panda LOVES pretty girls, and really works hard to get attention from them.
Homeschooling is happening. The Christmas tree is up, thanks to Matt and the kids, and it looks great. The Panda is good at taking ornaments off. House cleaning isn't happening as much as it used to. We have too much entertainment to distract us. The Panda can interact much longer than he used to without getting overstimulated, so we are having fun getting as many laughs out of him as possible.
I am so used to the Panda's cleft now that it takes me a moment to remember when people are staring at us. No one has been mean or anything, but several children have gotten really angry because they think the Panda is injured and grown ups are just standing around like there's nothing wrong. He has such an expressive face, though. I'll include some of his great facial expressions here.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
One Month since Family Day
The Panda has been ours for a month. He's had three shots, gained about 3 pounds, and nearly outgrown 18 mos. clothes and size 3 diapers. He's learned to clap, and to imitate a little bit. We're working on pointing to body parts- no "Ah-ha" moment there yet, but it will come, and we're working on bye-bye too. We've resumed homeschooling around here, and it is going about the same as always. The Panda still needs his alone time after playing and learning, but I think he's more and more able to deal with the constant togetherness of family.
Our first Thanksgiving together was great. My dad was here and we enjoyed our low-key dinner and day. We even remembered to take pictures. Since we hadn't started school yet, we even made one of those hokey Thanksgiving turkey crafts we never have time for. The left handed Puppy is getting better with scissors, at least. Sometimes I think the Panda might be a lefty too... that would be nice. We meant to put up the tree, but didn't yet. Probably we'll manage before Christmas....
The Panda had his first visit from the Early Intervention nurse. I will meet speech and PT/OT folks next week. I really hope they have had experience with cleft affected kids and feeding, or are research geeks, so we can figure out how to teach his tongue to move solid foods around. I'm hoping that he'll get over his fear of food quickly- he is much better with his fear of the bath now, already. The Panda amazes me with his ability to adjust to so many changes. Of course, when the nurse was here, she asked if he could stand, and I told her he can't even bear weight. I stood up the Panda to show her, and of course he stood right up. *headdesk* He is bearing weight a little better. He REALLY wants to see out the windows, but that would require him to pull up on the windowsill and stand, and he can't do it. The motivation is good for him I think.
I'm trying to figure out what to get him for Christmas... is he a 9 mos. old or a 2 year old? Such a dichotomy. Any suggestions? Leave a comment! Something that encourages pulling up or needing to stand... lots of sensory experience. But not overstimulating...
In other news... the Penguin and I checked out a local Lego Robotics team last night. This is really cool stuff. I am hoping that she will want to do this next year (because I want to do it too...). The boys on the team wrote amazing programs to get their robots to complete various tasks, and did a little skit about food safety. If you are among the 80% of folks who don't check your meat with a thermometer, then let me suggest a great Christmas present for you.... :)
Our first Thanksgiving together was great. My dad was here and we enjoyed our low-key dinner and day. We even remembered to take pictures. Since we hadn't started school yet, we even made one of those hokey Thanksgiving turkey crafts we never have time for. The left handed Puppy is getting better with scissors, at least. Sometimes I think the Panda might be a lefty too... that would be nice. We meant to put up the tree, but didn't yet. Probably we'll manage before Christmas....
The Panda had his first visit from the Early Intervention nurse. I will meet speech and PT/OT folks next week. I really hope they have had experience with cleft affected kids and feeding, or are research geeks, so we can figure out how to teach his tongue to move solid foods around. I'm hoping that he'll get over his fear of food quickly- he is much better with his fear of the bath now, already. The Panda amazes me with his ability to adjust to so many changes. Of course, when the nurse was here, she asked if he could stand, and I told her he can't even bear weight. I stood up the Panda to show her, and of course he stood right up. *headdesk* He is bearing weight a little better. He REALLY wants to see out the windows, but that would require him to pull up on the windowsill and stand, and he can't do it. The motivation is good for him I think.
I'm trying to figure out what to get him for Christmas... is he a 9 mos. old or a 2 year old? Such a dichotomy. Any suggestions? Leave a comment! Something that encourages pulling up or needing to stand... lots of sensory experience. But not overstimulating...
In other news... the Penguin and I checked out a local Lego Robotics team last night. This is really cool stuff. I am hoping that she will want to do this next year (because I want to do it too...). The boys on the team wrote amazing programs to get their robots to complete various tasks, and did a little skit about food safety. If you are among the 80% of folks who don't check your meat with a thermometer, then let me suggest a great Christmas present for you.... :)
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
So, How's it Going? Twelve Days of Thomas (at home, that is...)
Everything is going so well. The Panda is such a happy baby- lots of smiles and laughter and not very much crying. He loves all "baby games" like peek-a-boo and patty cake. He likes singing and toys. He loves the fun sisters. He drinks 60 oz. of formula a day, and sleeps like, well, a baby.... He can crawl much better than he could two weeks ago. I have not spotted anything that concerns me about his attachment process.
He's scared of being undressed, bathing, and food. We are making progress- he will touch food now, sometimes. He is more comfortable sitting at the table watching other people eat. If you get it near his mouth, he turns away and covers his eyes and mouth. Even a lollypop gets this reaction. Even juice or cereal in a bottle gets the horrified reaction. He is not scared of some typical things, like pets and vacuum cleaners though.
He had his first cleft team visit yesterday, which was a 13 hour saga (travel time included). If the Bunny hadn't played with him when we got home, mom and dad would have been unconscious with a baby on the loose. Dr. Boyajian at Children's National Medical Center in DC seemed great, and is willing to do his lip and palate surgery at one time, so we are scheduled for Jan 11. He has fluid in his ears, and some hearing loss, but the ENT thinks tubes will probably fix the problem. The Panda handled his 8 hours of appointments so calmly, even though he was awake for 10 straight hours, but he was a little screamy during the car ride home- even crying in his sleep.
The Panda LOVES Granddad. Anyone who knows us is not surprised here. They play their silly baby games and already have their little secrets.
We have so much to be thankful for on this day before Thanksgiving. Here's a great promise from the Lord, who is faithful, to help spur us on to more and more thanksgiving.
Psalm 50:23
The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!”
He's scared of being undressed, bathing, and food. We are making progress- he will touch food now, sometimes. He is more comfortable sitting at the table watching other people eat. If you get it near his mouth, he turns away and covers his eyes and mouth. Even a lollypop gets this reaction. Even juice or cereal in a bottle gets the horrified reaction. He is not scared of some typical things, like pets and vacuum cleaners though.
He had his first cleft team visit yesterday, which was a 13 hour saga (travel time included). If the Bunny hadn't played with him when we got home, mom and dad would have been unconscious with a baby on the loose. Dr. Boyajian at Children's National Medical Center in DC seemed great, and is willing to do his lip and palate surgery at one time, so we are scheduled for Jan 11. He has fluid in his ears, and some hearing loss, but the ENT thinks tubes will probably fix the problem. The Panda handled his 8 hours of appointments so calmly, even though he was awake for 10 straight hours, but he was a little screamy during the car ride home- even crying in his sleep.
The Panda LOVES Granddad. Anyone who knows us is not surprised here. They play their silly baby games and already have their little secrets.
We have so much to be thankful for on this day before Thanksgiving. Here's a great promise from the Lord, who is faithful, to help spur us on to more and more thanksgiving.
Psalm 50:23
The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!”
Friday, November 18, 2011
Be a tiny part of something big- a God thing!
http://mattmandi.blogspot.com/2011/11/whew.html
Please consider helping a family add a beautiful daughter. They are fundraising for adoption expenses, and every little bit helps.
Please consider helping a family add a beautiful daughter. They are fundraising for adoption expenses, and every little bit helps.
Monday, November 14, 2011
China Pictures
I'm no expert at pictures, but if you go to photobucket.com and search for the user matthiaszoo, you can see all our China pictures. :)
We are so jet lagged. Matt and I are waking up at 11 pm. Not great. Good thing our kids are being really nice about it. The Panda is waking up at about 2-3 am. Blah.
We are so jet lagged. Matt and I are waking up at 11 pm. Not great. Good thing our kids are being really nice about it. The Panda is waking up at about 2-3 am. Blah.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Home by the Grace of God
Ok, Matt and the Panda are sleeping. I moved all our posts from Babyjellybeans.com over here. Maybe someday I'll edit them. I took the Puppy to soccer this morning. Life is "normal" again.
The Panda was such a good traveler. About an hour into the long flight (11 hr 30 min) from Hong Kong to San Francisco, he nodded off. I poked the Penguin, who was on the other side of him, and as she pulled out her earbud, I said "Don't wake him up!" in a whisper. She got a crazed look, grabbed his head and shook vigorously. I did the whole "what the heck are you doing" thing- apparently she missed the "don't" during the earbud removal, and thought I'd said "wake him up!". So the Panda was awake for 8 hours during that flight, but was very good and quiet. Then he cried for about an hour because he only likes to sleep in a bed or crib. We got him to sleep for about 2 hours, and then landed.
I am a little scared of flying. I do a lot of praying. How much we have to be thankful to God for. He was so merciful to us on this trip. The Penguin was only sick for a couple hours and the rest of us were fine - congestion and sore throats were the worst of it, and not bad at all. The Panda adjusted so well. We had a wonderful travel group and super guides. All the paperwork went smoothly. Eight kids who had no families, no hope, no future, now have all of that, and six families who longed for them now have sons and daughters.
The Panda became a US Citizen at immigration in San Francisco. Another huge moment of thankfulness.
The girls slept through the three hour layover in San Francisco and through 5 hours of the 5.5 hour flight home. The Panda fell asleep before the plane took off, and slept until it was almost time to land. No crying. Matt and I dozed, but neither of us sleep on planes very well.
Our wonderful friends the Perrins met us at the airport with a big sign and balloon for Thomas. They took great pictures of our homecoming. They brought us home. The Panda did not hate the car seat, and slept for some of the car ride. We got home at midnight after 30 hours of being awake. I fed the Panda, changed his diaper, put him in the crib which apparently neighbors and friends and my dad moved heaven and earth to get into our room, and took a shower and went to sleep. I got 7 straight hours, another mercy straight from heaven. Matt is having a little more trouble with the sleep thing... The entire Tiananmen Square lego set is built.... I hope his current nap helps.
The Panda woke up this morning and met my dad and the Puppy, and has been smiley and it just seems like he's been here forever. I feel tired, but ok, and so very very thankful to God and our friends and family and church. Maybe I'll figure out how to upload pictures soon...
1 Peter 2:10
Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Daniel 9:18
O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy.
The Panda was such a good traveler. About an hour into the long flight (11 hr 30 min) from Hong Kong to San Francisco, he nodded off. I poked the Penguin, who was on the other side of him, and as she pulled out her earbud, I said "Don't wake him up!" in a whisper. She got a crazed look, grabbed his head and shook vigorously. I did the whole "what the heck are you doing" thing- apparently she missed the "don't" during the earbud removal, and thought I'd said "wake him up!". So the Panda was awake for 8 hours during that flight, but was very good and quiet. Then he cried for about an hour because he only likes to sleep in a bed or crib. We got him to sleep for about 2 hours, and then landed.
I am a little scared of flying. I do a lot of praying. How much we have to be thankful to God for. He was so merciful to us on this trip. The Penguin was only sick for a couple hours and the rest of us were fine - congestion and sore throats were the worst of it, and not bad at all. The Panda adjusted so well. We had a wonderful travel group and super guides. All the paperwork went smoothly. Eight kids who had no families, no hope, no future, now have all of that, and six families who longed for them now have sons and daughters.
The Panda became a US Citizen at immigration in San Francisco. Another huge moment of thankfulness.
The girls slept through the three hour layover in San Francisco and through 5 hours of the 5.5 hour flight home. The Panda fell asleep before the plane took off, and slept until it was almost time to land. No crying. Matt and I dozed, but neither of us sleep on planes very well.
Our wonderful friends the Perrins met us at the airport with a big sign and balloon for Thomas. They took great pictures of our homecoming. They brought us home. The Panda did not hate the car seat, and slept for some of the car ride. We got home at midnight after 30 hours of being awake. I fed the Panda, changed his diaper, put him in the crib which apparently neighbors and friends and my dad moved heaven and earth to get into our room, and took a shower and went to sleep. I got 7 straight hours, another mercy straight from heaven. Matt is having a little more trouble with the sleep thing... The entire Tiananmen Square lego set is built.... I hope his current nap helps.
The Panda woke up this morning and met my dad and the Puppy, and has been smiley and it just seems like he's been here forever. I feel tired, but ok, and so very very thankful to God and our friends and family and church. Maybe I'll figure out how to upload pictures soon...
1 Peter 2:10
Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Daniel 9:18
O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy.
Yesterday was not a very blogworthy day. We'd hoped to go to the Safari Park, which is outside of Guangzhou, but it rained all day. It is still raining today.
This morning we had our consulate appointment, where we (and other families) took the oath of citizenship for our kids. All of the families with America World (our agency) had paperwork that said that we did not want Social Security numbers for our kids. We all decided to change that and get them- don't know why the paperwork was messed up. Then the officer said that we'd all have to re-change the kids names in the US, which I hadn't heard before. Also, we have to carry Thomas's chest x-rays so we have them when we enter the US. Please pray that we don't have any major issues.
We came back to the hotel for Thomas's nap, and this afternoon we are planning to explore Shaiman Island. We've only had a total of about 3 hours down there of just free time to explore.
Tomorrow, we will have breakfast, pack up, check out and take a bus to Hong Kong with three other families. We all have Friday flights out of Hong Kong. Two more sleeps and then we'll be in our own beds. I can't wait to see Matthew. China has really been great, though.
This morning we had our consulate appointment, where we (and other families) took the oath of citizenship for our kids. All of the families with America World (our agency) had paperwork that said that we did not want Social Security numbers for our kids. We all decided to change that and get them- don't know why the paperwork was messed up. Then the officer said that we'd all have to re-change the kids names in the US, which I hadn't heard before. Also, we have to carry Thomas's chest x-rays so we have them when we enter the US. Please pray that we don't have any major issues.
We came back to the hotel for Thomas's nap, and this afternoon we are planning to explore Shaiman Island. We've only had a total of about 3 hours down there of just free time to explore.
Tomorrow, we will have breakfast, pack up, check out and take a bus to Hong Kong with three other families. We all have Friday flights out of Hong Kong. Two more sleeps and then we'll be in our own beds. I can't wait to see Matthew. China has really been great, though.
This morning after breakfast, we went to have the TB tests of the kids who are over 2 years old read. Of course, Thomas tested positive, and had to have chest x-rays. I'm not sure if they showed nothing or dormant TB, since everyone was shouting in Chinese at me, but apparently we've got the all clear to immigrate. My wonderful US doc. can sort out the rest. Whew. God answered my panicked prayer at the clinic. Then we shopped. We bought everything. Then we went to the wholesale toy market and bought everything else. Very fun. And we finally found a cool present for my Snuggle Puppy. It took 50 minutes for me to hail a cab to get back to the hotel. The kids were all so good during the wait. So here's the way to get a Chinese cab. Where ever there is a white fence thing by the road, walk down the actual street to where a car is already stopped. Then flap your arm up and down at every cab that passes by until one stops. Lots of fun, with traffic rushing by. We are about to try another bath- Thomas really doesn't enjoy the water yet. |
Today, we toured the Chen Clan Academy in Guangzhou. It was a beautiful garden with rooms full of art and ornate old furniture and metal statues. Thomas was wearing the outfit that we received him in, and it has traditional Chinese split pants. All the grandmas at the garden seemed to approve, and they all wanted to talk to us. They finally dragged in a student to translate. They wanted to know where we were from and how many children we have, and when we would fix Thomas's lip. We did lots of shopping. There was an artist at the temple garden that made beautiful things, and then we went to the pearl market and jade market. We went to a Cantonese restaurant with our guides, which was mostly pretty good. On the short walk home, we wandered through the mall and got the kids all Chinese outfits. Then we came back to the room and had naptime for Thomas, and I did laundry in the tub, which is a very good workout. Whew. Papa John's for dinner, ordered right to the hotel- tastes just like American Papa Johns... Tonight is our one week anniversary with Thomas. He's traveled a really long journey in one little week, and is handling all the change so well. Our only big concerns are that he still won't bear any weight on his legs, and won't eat any solids at all, but we'll work through those things. The big stuff, like playing and enjoying having a family, is going very well. |
While Matt and Elizabeth were at breakfast this morning, I Skyped with Matthew and my dad. I miss them so much! After a kind of rushed breakfast, we went with the group for the kids medical exams. No big deal, but of course Thomas didn't like his PPD test. Please pray that it is negative!
It made me so happy to see so many little ones with new families. My heart is so broken for what so many children suffer because they don't have a family. Thomas is doing so well, but when he smacks his head repeatedly, or can't fall asleep in his mother's arms, it is just a reminder that all isn't right with the world.
We walked around Shaiman Island briefly, and went into Jordan's for a minute, and ate at Lucy's (just a snack). Good fries, good spring rolls. I can't wait to go back to do some real shopping!
On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at a Carrefore (grocery) to get diapers and formula and snacks. We are trying the steak and chicken chips, and green tea Pocky. Very fun. We need to test out which are the best snacks to take home to Matthew. We also picked up a stroller- our backs are killing us. We found out at the medical exam that Thomas weighs 23.5 pounds.
We have a little paperwork tonight, and then rest. The girls have been so good on the trip, but they are starting to get on each other's nerves (and on ours a little...). Please pray that God would give us all patience. :)
It made me so happy to see so many little ones with new families. My heart is so broken for what so many children suffer because they don't have a family. Thomas is doing so well, but when he smacks his head repeatedly, or can't fall asleep in his mother's arms, it is just a reminder that all isn't right with the world.
We walked around Shaiman Island briefly, and went into Jordan's for a minute, and ate at Lucy's (just a snack). Good fries, good spring rolls. I can't wait to go back to do some real shopping!
On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at a Carrefore (grocery) to get diapers and formula and snacks. We are trying the steak and chicken chips, and green tea Pocky. Very fun. We need to test out which are the best snacks to take home to Matthew. We also picked up a stroller- our backs are killing us. We found out at the medical exam that Thomas weighs 23.5 pounds.
We have a little paperwork tonight, and then rest. The girls have been so good on the trip, but they are starting to get on each other's nerves (and on ours a little...). Please pray that God would give us all patience. :)
Nov. 4 Last night, we found out that Thomas has been holding out on us… he was playing with this little card, and threw it, and next thing I knew, he crawled a little to get it. Not great crawling but it’s a start. Today was a travel day, from Lanzhou to Guangzhou. We got up and said goodbye to travel mates who were headed to a second province to adopt a second child, and had breakfast and headed to the airport. Our flight was fine- we found another American couple, whom we’d met briefly on adoption day. There were many babies on the flight and a few hearty rounds of screaming, but we survived. Flying is hard, because even though Thomas lets us hold him for bottles, he still has never fallen asleep in our arms, but he’s too big to lay down on a plane without touching someone. Our wonderful guide from Beijing, Lilly, picked us up at the airport. It was great to see her. We had a big bus and lots of space on the way to the China Hotel (Marriott). Our rooms are very nice here, although they gave us a not so great playpen for Thomas. He slept straight through the night, though. At the airport, we had a long, fast walk from the terminal to the bus, and carrying Thomas so far and fast was nearly beyond my ability. My blood sugar dropped and I was feeling pretty grouchy last night. We ate at our first Chinese McDonalds, since it was right next to the hotel, and I was done. It tastes just like US McDonalds. We all had fountain drinks with ice and Ginny had lettuce on her sandwich and I was too out of it to pay attention, but so far we are not sick. I have a bit of a sore throat this morning and feel achy, but not terrible. I’m writing this the morning of Nov. 5, since I totally crashed when we got back to the room. Matt went to make copies of Thomas’s Chinese passport, and I gave Thomas a quick bath, which made him unhappy. Then he had a bottle and we both fell asleep. Today is his medical exam and TB test- pray that all goes well. Thanks! |
Elizabeth woke in the middle of the night vomiting, but after sleeping some more she has been fine today. I just know it is because she ate the raw parsley garnish on the beef noodles at the restaurant yesterday... We went on a tour of the museum here in Lanzhou today- there are dinosaurs and beautiful silk and pottery dating back 2000 years. The most famous exhibit is the Galloping Bronze Horse that was found in Wuwei. Lanzhou is along the Silk Road, and the history here is fascinating. We were able to buy a book at the museum shop about Gansu, and a silk map of the province. Our wonderful guide, Steed, also handed out paper maps of Gansu in English. Next, we went to the famous Yellow River waterwheels, which are huge and beautiful. There was a little shop there with art, so we were able to get some great souviniers, including a replica of the Galloping Bronze Horse, some art that is common to Qingyang, Thomas's birthplace, and a painting of pandas on silk. We made a quick stop at a famous sculpture that was made by a lady artist in the 1980's along the Yellow River of a mother and baby for family pictures. Then we ate at Pizza Mira, which was ok. The fries were amazing. I made the daily water run to the store, and poked around while Thomas napped with Matt and the girls. I was looking at these crazy green boots for Elizabeth, who LOVES green, and the sales lady dragged me off with them and sold them to me for an ENORMOUS discount. Less than $7 US dollars... so if you see my kid in crazy boots, that's why. Tomorrow we fly to Guangzhou in the south of China to complete the US portion of the adoption paperwork. Everyone says Guangzhou is so much better than here, but I've enjoyed it here very much. Seeing Thomas come out of his shell has been great. He's still doing self-stimulating behaviours like smacking his head, staring at his hands, and rhythmic rocking, but he's having good eye contact and more laughing and smiling too. He even lets me touch kind of near his mouth, all over his face now. He still HATES having his mouth or cleft area touched. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Thomas woke up a happy boy this morning. We haven't had very much crying at all. He has started to cough a little, but doesn't seem too big a deal yet. Maybe the initial deep grief is fading a little. He is eating formula very well now, but really not happy about any baby food or solids even approaching his mouth. I think our guide was so smart to give us so much downtime the first few days. Going out with Thomas today was fun, but even just yesterday, it would have been hard. He seems stronger today, but still very weak considering he's 27 mos. We went to the Lanzhou park and zoo today. They have so many very beautiful animals, but the cages aren't great. The panda came out to see us. Many Chinese tourists were more interested in us than the panda. More people than I expected approach our cleft-affected kids in a friendly way, but there are a few who stare at the kids. All the babies really seemed to enjoy the outing- no real screaming at all at the zoo. Our guide, Steed, is great- he brought extra strollers, which were a life saver, and he tells jokes in English that are actually funny. The older folks at the park were doing tai-chi, water painting, and playing instruments. It looked like a wonderful place to hang out. The view of the surrounding mountains is breathtaking. The road was very bumpy, but we have a great bus driver. I haven't felt uncomfortable without a seat belt at all. Then we had a quick stop at the police station for a passport picture for the babies, and we went to the famous Lanzhou beef noodle restaurant. It was good, but the pulled noodles that they serve for breakfast at the Landison Hotel where we are staying are better, imho. Maybe just because they leave out the cilantro for me.... Watching the chef pull the noodles by hand is pretty amazing- I've never seen anything like it. He just grabs some dough and starts stretching, and suddenly, he's holding noodles. We came back to the room and got ready for naptime, and one of the other moms and I headed out for our daily "buy more water from the store" trip. On the way, we stopped at a boutique and bought really cute baby shoes. Of course, Thomas's have pandas... The girls enjoyed some Chinese cartoons on TV while I was gone. You don't have to speak the language to follow the plot of a cartoon. We expected it to be freezing in Lanzhou and came equipped with parkas and everything, but it is very warm- at least in the 60's, and not below 50, even at night. The Chinese still expect you to bundle the babies in many layers, and I got yelled out when a bit of his leg peeked between his pants and socks. He was already sweating from all his clothes, though... Thomas just woke up (almost 4 pm here) and had his 4th bottle today. He'll have at least one more before bed, so that's the most he's eaten for us in a day, by far. Yay! He lets me hold him for every bottle, and looks at me as much as he can stand. I think we are growing on him. :) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)