Another Step Towards Home

We made it safely to Guangzhou and are now settled at the White Swan Hotel, but it's been a rough couple of days.

Our guide got us to the airport a few hours before our flight, and then it was delayed. So as you can imagine, it was challenging to keep Grace entertained and occupied. Not to mention that we were the ONLY Americans in the whole area of the airport, and I had about 60 pairs of eyes on me the entire time. At first, she had a ball exploring and looking out at the airplanes.

But then she got really loud and sassy. As I've mentioned, we are supposed to meet all of Grace's needs right now and avoid discipline until she is bonded to us. She completely melts down and screams when we have to take something away, and the only way to soothe her is with food. You can envision what the Chinese observers must think of Americans and their parenting tactics as they watched us. When we finally ran out of the yogurt melts, Grace screamed and became inconsolable. Someone even got a security guard...I'm sure they thought I was kidnapping her! I kept telling them the Chinese word for "adopted daughter." The Chinese are not discreet when observing, so it was really nervewracking to have EVERYONE in the room just staring at us. But there were some really sweet men near us who talked to Grace and tried to help cheer her up. I know the stares are mostly out of curiosity.

Thankfully, she slept the whole 1 1/2 hour-flight. Lily greeted us at baggage claim, and we boarded a bus to wait on 3 other Lifeline families that were also flying in. (All American families end their adoption trip in Guangzhou (GZ) because the US Consulate is located here and it must finalize all papers and issue each child's visa.) On the bus, I had Grace in the carrier, and I could tell she was nervous. She clung to me and would look up with questioning eyes. I asked Lily to tell her not to be afraid and that we would not leave her. As Lily translated this, Grace just smiled the biggest grin, looked up at me, and patted my chest where her hand was resting. From that point on, she perked up and was very animated and outgoing. She is the youngest one in our group, but she is by far the most vocal and energetic. :)

We checked into the White Swan Hotel around 9:30 pm. We were very pleasantly surprised. People had warned us how old it is, but it is much fancier (albeit outdated) than our hotel in Kunming. The lobby is huge, and it reminds me of the Opryland Hotel (ie. plants, waterfalls, ponds with fish, shops, etc.)

Our room has a river view (we're on Shamian Island within GZ), and we love all the city lights and boats. This picture caught my reflection because I didn't have the lights off, so I'll take another one tonight.

Guangzhou is much more commercial than Kunming, so it's got a totally different feel. It was also crazy to walk into the breakfast room and see tons of American adoptive families!

Because Grace slept on the plane, she was wired! While we thought she might be nervous in a new hotel room, she actually loved exploring it all.

The crib (which she's not even sleeping in) is an old wooden one with beads, so she loves to get in just to play.

She was very loud and rambunctious last night, even up until 1 am. We could not get her to sleep to save our lives, so I finally had to put her in the carrier and walk the halls until she fell asleep. I think I was able to get us into our bed around 2 a.m.

Virginia Grace had her medical exam this morning ...


...and due to a US law (that many of us are working to repeal), she had to receive FIVE shots. While parents can choose in the US whether their child will receive certain vaccinations, all kids coming in are required to receive all shots, all at once. Thankfully, Grace had already had a few of them at the orphanage. But it's so pitiful to watch them scream and cry... no child should receive that many vaccinations at once. My eyes filled with tears as Scott had to hold her down while the nurses administered the shots. We're praying she won't develop a fever or serious reaction as some kids have since this law went into effect.

This picture is after all the exams and shots...

... you can see how sweaty and tearful Grace still was after the whole ordeal. Oh, and the doctor said the spots on her legs, arms, and back are from a past occurrence of chicken pox or similar infection. I guess we won't know until we get her home and see Dr. Chambers at the International Adoption Clinic. They did say the spots should fade.

Since we've been traveling and then doing medical exams and more paperwork (for the Consulate appt), I haven't been able to take many pictures. I'll get busy with the camera and have some cute ones for you tomorrow. :)

Until then, I'll leave you with some cute Grace-isms:

1. She LOVES to play with her daddy. She runs up and sticks her head between his knees, and she often pulls his hand toward her to kiss it. She let him hold her briefly a few times last night!

2. She is a deep sleeper. We had to wake her up this morning at 8:45 am. And we've had to wake her up from every nap.

3. She seems very smart and mimics everything we do. She saw me put some hair balm in my hair last week, so she pretends to squeeze out the product and then rubs her hands all over her head.

4. She loves to play peek-a-boo and says something like "Dai!!!" - the Chinese expression for the game.

5. She is finally taking a bottle!!!!

6. She is a very clean eater. She even tries to feed herself and does a pretty good job. If there is a piece of rice on her lip, she'll pick if off and hand it to me.

7. She's very opinionated. Some mornings, she has vetoed the outfit I wanted her to wear. :) (I think one was because the elastic on the legs hit midcalf.)

8. She babbles, talks, squeals, and makes funny noises with her mouth ALL the time now. I had to ask our guide for the Chinese word for "SHH...be quiet."

9. She is a tough cookie. She has bumped her head hard a few times now, and she doesn't even cry. When something upsets her, she rebounds within minutes.

10. She will not keep bows in her hair...I'm trying really hard!