Thursday, July 8, 2010

Final post from China





This is the famous "Red Couch" from the White Swan hotel in Guangzhou





Swearing in ceremony at the U.S. Consulate.


Tired and ready to go home.


Hey people!

My mom is packing, so I have taken the duty of writing the final post! Um, so it's been about a week since our last post... terribly sorry. Claire/my mom has been sick since Nanning, so she falls asleep with Sophia.

We went to the Consulate yesterday, which means when we touch ground in Detroit (after 15 hours of being on a plane, mind you), Sophia is officially a U.S. citizen! Yay!

This afternoon we are going to take the afternoon train to Hong Kong! Not quite the midnight train going anywhere, or the midnight train to Georgia, or the crazy train, but it's close. Sophia likes to sing the song: "Shwinkle, shwinkle, little sar" It's very cute.

We're anxious to get home, and see her interact with a more "normal" environment. Ex: Not living in a hotel. Well, we're off to lunch! Lucy's, here we come! Again! Sorry for the short post people.

This is the Taylor family, signing off from Guangzhou, China, one last ti... Forget it. Ya'll know this ain't the last time.

Peace out.
--Michael

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Good to be back in Guangzhou!



Oh it is sooo good to be in guangzhou. Familiar sites and sounds, and an amazing breakfast buffet at our hotel!

I have not talked much about the food... although Nanning was pretty, the food was not.

So, with full stomachs for the first time in a week...we headed to Sophia's medical check out. She is 32 lbs and 37 inches tall! A few of the medical staff commented on how long her fingers and toes are, seems they think she might be kind of tall. Looks like Mia will be the big sister only in name.

Thankfully, due to her anemia, the doctor waived all but 2 of her required shots. Since the new rules, Hague rules, have gone into effect...the children are required to get 7 immunization shots and a TB screen all at one time.

After the check out, we met the Horner family, wonderful friends, for lunch before they headed back home to the US. It was so surreal to be having lunch with them and our 3 new kiddos in China! And it was a sweet gift to lay eyes on some people we love while being so far from home.



After lunch we did a little shopping, but it was too hot to do any real damage .But, it was Michael's 17th birthday today! So as promised, I bought him some God forsaken Katana, big sword thing. It is very cool looking, but will have to be well hidden out of Logan's sight!



When we got back to the room, our guide had ordered a beautiful birthday cake! Sophia placed the candles on it, and we sang and had a great treat.



Another big step aside from the medical check was taken today. Sophia actually got into the tub and stayed there for a bath! She was hesitant at first, but soon was having a blast. And I was excited to finally give her something more then a sponge bath.



She played with her tooth brush a bit, but that ended when I put tooth paste on it. Do not think that she has much, if any experience with brushing her teeth. But, it is a huge goal of mine.



Why you ask? Well, I can honestly say that this girl is THE queen of back wash. The picture of the water bottle has been in no way altered or enhanced. Let's just say that she gets her own drink no matter the cost.

All in all it was a really good day. Sophia is opening up more and more. She is freely letting us hold her and carry her. She even let me "eat" her toes tonight at bed time. She thought it was hysterical.

She loves to walk around, look at things and talk to me like I have any idea of what she is saying. Too stinkin cute. She is also quite taken with flowers, and got us in trouble with the front desk this morning when she picked a few from their flower bed. Really people? There were hundreds of plants in it. So, I decided that I have been here enough times to shoot the desk clerk back the same look she shot us.



Bed time is getting less and less stressful for her. But tonight I think we were out too late for dinner. She was pretty tired and was trying to lay in my arms when she just became really teary eyed and looked afraid. I went outside with her where it was more quiet and we snuggled until
Pa and Michael finished eating. Not sure what it was all about, but once we were back in the room, she relaxed.

She is sound asleep now, and sleeping on her stomach for the first time. Hopefully that is a good sign?

I can not believe that we have only had her for 7 days. She just feels so right. Can not wait to get her home and let her get to know her other brother and sisters.

Tomorrow we will brave the heat, visit a famous Buddhist temple and do some shopping at an outdoor market that is said to be fantastic.

Hope all is well at home. Miss everyone so very much!

Claire

Friday, July 2, 2010

Leaving Nanning today

Hey out there!

Hope that all is well. we have just finished a late lunch, and Sophia is down for a nap.

She has a pretty good cold going, so hopefully some sleep will help. She does find it very funny to blow boogie bubbles out of her nose, so she is still in good spirits.

Today was very low key. We played in the hall with other adoptive families while we waited for Sophia's Chinese passport application to be processed, and packed our bags for Guangzhou! We are on the down hill slide towards home!!!

We fly into Guangzhou tonight. Saturday morning is Sophia's medical check out [for U.S. immigration]. Then we are meeting some dears friends, who are here in china adopting their 6th and 7th kiddos, for lunch before they head out for home.

The rest of the week will be spent doing Sophia's final immigration paper work and end with her swearing in ceremony at the American Consulate. Between paper work and some site seeing, I am sure that we can squeeze in a few minutes of shopping on the Island!

Well, to be honest..things are going very well. Sophia is a hoot! Despite the fact that we can not understand a word she says...she gets her point across just fine. So far we have not seen much drama at all. She is easy going, but does know what she likes and does not like.

She has given Michael the "what for" a few times. It is hysterical, and unfortunately our guide was not around to translate. She gets this very serious look on her face and puts an arm straight out with her wrist bent so the hand is palm out. Then while she is saying something that she really means, she will hit his arm with short, fast hits.

Then she will walk away and stop with her back towards you. I'm sure if we understood it, it would not be as cute. But it is really pretty funny.I have a feeling that Sophia will be able to hold her own when she gets home.

She has also come to love Coke. She had one sip, and it was all over. She is also a huge fan of candy and all things junk. Seems that is a sign of being spoiled by the foster parents. But, when those goodies can't be found,,,she loves to eat all types of fruit. I have never seen a 3 year old peel grapes before. Pretty impressive.

She is also a huge fan of dresses only. When I pull out a pair of shorts she just shakes her head no and stands there. As I look around town, I do not see any girls in shorts/pants. Guess it makes using the squatty potty tough.

She is doing great using the western potty, but can tell it isn't natural.

And, as for our bonding.. If having your own personal rest room attendant is any sign, then I would say that things are going great. She calls for me, will hold hands and let me kiss her. She still does not understand what they are, but has resigned herself to the fact that it won't end anytime soon.

We can tell that she is feeling much more comfortable. She is having a good time exploring our luggage and likes to hand feed us treats.

Night time is also going better. We have gotten a nice little routine going and she likes her space in the bed, but also likes to have a hand or foot on me during the night.

So, that is the scoop from here. Our next post will be from Guangzhou. About 7 more days until we come home!

Love you all,

Claire

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Pictures from the Park on Thursday

Sophia and company went to a park in Nanning on Thursday.

--Bart