The Countdown Has Begun!!

It's Saturday night here. 

The countdown has begun!

7 more days!!

We flew into Guangzhou last night and I'm glad to be here.

Kim left us yesterday morning (VERY early) and I miss her terribly!

She flew to Hong Kong to spend one night and then on to the States this morning.

So far we've done pretty good.

We had our physical examinations this morning.  Both of them did great.

No tears or meltdowns.

Sophie had to have 2 shots and she didn't even flinch!  Very brave.

We will go back on Monday to have their TB tests read.

Our hotel is very nice here.

5 minutes after walking in the room Hudson had broken the shade to the bathroom window.

This kid is very hard on things! 

We went swimming this afternoon.

Neither one of them had ever been and they both swallowed a LOT of water.

It was fun to watch them get use to the water and see how different they are from each other.

Sophie took it nice and slow.  Walked around without making much of a splash.

Hudson started out slow and by the time we left (and I had to make him get out!) he was bouncing around and going all the way under.  One of the dad's in our group would toss him to me and I'd bring him up quickly.  He loved it.  It won't take him long to learn to swim at all.  He's a bit of a daredevil.  I wish I could take pictures of them swimming, but I don't dare leave him unattended in the water yet.  Maybe by Thursday!

Sophie is doing a better job of listening to me, yet she still wanders to all the mom's in the group to hang on.  I was told they do this to all the nannies in the orphanage so it is normal for her.  Not to mention this girl needs a LOT of attention, affection and affirmation.  The language and culture barrier make it hard for me to tell her that it's not always appropriate.  With Isabella, I could control that behavior.  It will be very hard with Sophie.

We are going to skip the tours tomorrow.  We need a break from going here and there (and the squatty potties) on a bus.  So, we will swim and watch movies.

It's been hard not having a normal schedule.  I can't always control the environment or behavior here.  It's hard to keep 3 kids safe and under control in a very crowded, foreign country.

I'm ready to come home.

I had our guide tell Hudson his name yesterday.  He was pretty uninterested and but thought it was fine.  I also had her ask him if he remembered before he came to the orphanage.  He does remember and didn't want to talk about it.  It made him very quiet and sad.  When she left she told them to help Mama pack for our trip to Guangzhou.  All I can say is that he was like a tornado!!  He packed like a madman!

I couldn't even keep up with him.  It was stressing me out because I like to pack MY way- and not anyone else's. Right, Trent?   :  )

I'm leaving with a few pictures from our last full day in Zhengzhou.  We visited the Shaolin Temple.  This is where they study KungFu.  We saw a KungFu performance and it was amazing. 

Best part of the day.

Also pictures of Hudson's first plane ride.  He loved it!

And our medical exams from today.

It was K-State day today!!

Our group for the tour.  These people are wonderful!

The KungFu show was amazing.

This place is also like a boarding school for young boys who want to learn the art of KungFu.

Hudson hung with our guide at the Temple.  Does this mean he's tired of us girls?

Monk at the Shaolin Temple.  I loved his suitcase and pink bag.

On our way to Guangzhou.

He LOVED his first airplane ride.

This is what Isabella was doing while we were waiting for our turn at the exams today.
That look on her face is SO Isabella.  Everyone here gets a kick out of her.  She makes us all laugh.

Sorry it's not a good one of Sophie.  But it's the only one I had of our first day of swimming.
It was fun!  I just wish we were at home doing this!  This boy needs a dad!!