Chinese Church, Paperwork and Squeaky Shoes

I think today went by faster than any since we arrived. Maybe because I took a nap this morning (I was starting to get a headache so the family cleared out and let me rest which completely did the trick). Dean went to the Catholic Church on the Island this morning (we decided not to try that with Katie yet). It was in Cantonese, but he was able to follow along for the most part. Kris and I stayed in the hotel with Katie who only cried for a few seconds when Dean left. We had a snack to tide us over and then played. Kristine got to babysit for the first time while I took a quick shower. Kristine reported that "she only threw two fits and I gave her candy so she would stop".

I attended a meeting this afternoon to make sure all of our paperwork was in order. Thankfully, I think I had all of the papers I needed. Our consulate appointment is on Tuesday and that is when we will find out for sure. We don't actually have to go to the consulate - our guide does that for us and then calls us at noon to let us know if everything is in order. Hopefully, that will go smoothly.

While I was at the meeting, Kris did homework and Dean and Katie went for a walk to a market just off the island. He said it was a huge food market kind of like the bird and flower market we went to in Guiyang. He reported that it was a feast to his senses with all the sights, sounds and smells.

For dinner, we went with a huge group of families to the Italian restaurant on the island. The food was good, but it took about 2.5 hours for some of our food to arrive. Most people had eaten and gone before Kristine finally got her food which she didn't even like. We sat with 2 families from Wisconsin. One family is from Fitchburg (near Madison). They are adopting their 3rd child from China - a feisty 5 year old. Please pray for this family. Their new daughter tested positive for tb (with a chest xray) and they don't know when they will be able to go home. Needless to say, they are a bit stressed out right now. (Katie's skin test looks fine, by the way). The other family is from Mayville which is 1/2 way between Milwaukee and Madison. They are adopting a 2.5 year old with developmental delays due to surgery on her spine. This is their first child. The mother is an early childhood teacher like me - she owns her own preschool, in fact. They will be returning to Chicago on the same flights as us. Both of our children have similar personalities - including a dislike for sitting still - so we can be miserable for 14 hours together.

On the way home, we stopped in a shop and bought Katie some new shoes. She needs something pink to wear so it is more obvious that she is a girl. Her blue shoes, orange coat and short hair make most people think she is a boy. We can't do anything about the hair or coat yet, but at least she has pink shoes now. The big thing here is to get squeaky shoes. They squeak just like a dog toy when she walks - which she loves of course. The salesman assured us that we can remove the squeaker whenever we want to. Dean is hoping the squeakers motivate her to walk more when we are out and about. We also bought the girls each a traditional Chinese dress. They couldn't wait to try them on when we got back. We will put them on again soon so we can get some pictures. It was too close to bedtime tonight.

Only 5 more nights and we will be heading home. Katie and I are getting closer everyday - I can help her get dressed, put on lotion, take her out on walks by myself, take her to the bathroom and get her ready for bed. She still wants Dean and only Dean when we are out in public, but she shares her food with me and lets me talk to her, which is an improvement. She and Kris and having more positive interactions - though the sibling rivalry is definitely still present. That goes away, right? Please don't answer that - I know the answer, but I am trying to deny it!

Enough babbling for now, good night!

Karen