A few steps forward...

and no steps back! Yes, we are making some seriously good progress here and I have the photos to prove it!

We're having a great time and Ning is really relaxing with me. He still won't hold my hand when we're just walking along, but he comes and takes my hand and leads me to whatever he's asking for. It's wonderful. He also lets me hold him when Dave goes to the bathroom. I'm dying for him to let me hold and snuggle him, but I'll take whatever I can get right now. He loves the wheels on the bus song and totally cracks up when I sing the verse about the people going up and down.

Here we are putting on his shoes. Yes, that's really him sitting on my lap! And he's learned that we take our shoes off when we're inside, so he has started coming to me to take them off every time we return to the hotel room.

Here we are sharing a little kiwi this afternoon.

Here we are visiting the old Chen house. It's a museum now, but it used to be a house of the Chen family (the largest surname in Guangdong province) used for studying for the imperial exams and for ancestor worship.

Ancestors, schmancestors, I just want to run around!!

Isn't he adorable?! We took red couch photos this afternoon, and almost all the others are a total blur. He's all boy and doesn't want to sit still for a second. That plane ride home is going to be a lot of fun ;-)

We have the medical exam tomorrow and then we'll spend most of the afternoon deciphering the US immigration paperwork.

In Guangzhou

We flew to Guangzhou today and it is hot, hot, hot. Boy, howdy, is it hot. And uber humid. I'm sporting the biggest mop of frizzy curls that you ever did see. I can hear my nephew now saying, "Hey, man, I like your wig."

We had a good couple of last days in Nanjing. Thursday night, we got a cab and went to the old city gate. On the way there, our cabbie hit a guy on a bike. We wondered when that would happen. As crazy as the traffic is here, the odds were pretty good it'd happen at some point. The cyclist was none too happy and, after cussing a blue streak, a police officer arrived. We pulled off to the side, the cabbie pulled a wad of cash from under his seat, and it was settled right there. At the city wall, we climbed a whole bunch of steps and walked around on the top. It was nice outside, not crowded, and we enjoyed some time with just the three of us. We headed back to the hotel during rush hour and had a heck of a time getting a cab. We finally got one after walking a few blocks.

At the top of the old city gate

Friday, we went to Purple Mountain to visit Dr. Sun Yat-Sen's mausoleum. We climbed all three hundred bajillion steps. And wouldn't you know it, Ning loves stairs, but he wanted Dave to carry him the entire way. It was totally worth it as the view from the top was incredible. Friday evening we went for a celebration dinner with the rest of our travel group. It was in a very glitzy part of town and the food was wonderful. We had a long day of traveling today, so we ate an early dinner, gave Ning a bath, and put him to bed early. I'm pooped out so I'm about to join him.

Halfway up to the mausoleum (Yes, we're idiots and took our stroller)

We have made some progress in the day or so. Ning has stopped screaming bloody murder when Dave goes to the bathroom, and today he actually sat in my lap while I put his shoes on. He still goes ballistic if I hold his hand or pick him up, but I really do think we're getting somewhere. I keep reminding myself that he just met us six days ago. And I'm praising God for a husband who encourages me and keeps me laughing.

Heading to the airport. Can you believe how cute they are?

Little stinker

We’re doing okay, but it’s been a rough couple of days. Tuesday afternoon, Ning decided that I was chopped liver and doesn’t want much to do with me. Every once in a while, he’ll interact with me, but he’s very nervous about getting too close. He is great with Dave, but he definitely wants to call the shots when it comes to engaging me. One minute, he’ll throw the ball to me; the next minute he is hitting me and saying “bu, bu bu!” I’m trying to keep my perspective and remember that he didn’t ask for a new mama. He wants the one back at the orphanage.

We did visit the orphanage yesterday (Wednesday) and that was difficult. Before we even got off the bus, he spotted his Half the Sky nanny and was crying and reaching for her. She scooped him up and cried pretty hard. They are obviously very attached. Dave and I decided to go with the flow and not get too uptight about it all, but we stuck right next to him no matter who was holding him. We suspected from his confidence and outspokenness that he was well-liked at the orphanage. Our visit confirmed that. He was a little prince! And I think he got to do whatever he wanted. Dave calls his gait the I’m-large-and-in-charge strut. Boy, do we have our work cut out for us! Anyway, no fewer than ten nannies scooped him up and kissed all over him. He was smiling and lapping it up. We were able to see where he slept and they gave us the little card that marked his crib. Lunchtime came, and he ate two bowls of rice porridge with vegetables and meat. He’s definitely a good eater.

Saying goodbye was extremely hard. We all cried, and his nanny gave him back to Dave just before we hopped in the elevator. When we got down to the bus, the nannies were leaning out the window calling his name and waving. He cried for a good bit, but then fell asleep in Dave’s arms. It was a very emotionally exhausting morning.



As tough as that was, I think it actually helped him. He seemed more relaxed yesterday afternoon. I know the nannies talked to him during the visit about his new mama and baba. They seemed to be emphasizing that and encouraging him to go with us. I wonder if he feels like he got a kind of permission from them that leaving was okay and this whole thing isn’t a mistake. I love that he was so loved there, and I know if he attached to them, he can attach to us.

We visited the provincial museum this morning, and we have a free day tomorrow. I’m going to keep making myself available to him and pray that he’ll let me in soon.

Happy Adoption Day!

He's offically ours and he's still doing really well!

Last night, we went and ate at a noodle place and then played some more. He was talking a blue streak and was even singing some songs. I'd give anything to know what he's saying. I can make out "xie xie" and "bu" (which he says alot!), but other than that, I'm at a loss. At bedtime, he wanted nothing to do with the crib in the room so Dave held him for a few minutes and then laid him down between us. He slept really well and didn't wake at all during the night. Every once in a while I would wake and think "what is that noise?" and then I'd realize it was him sucking his middle fingers.

This morning we had to wake him early to be picked up at 7:40 for the adoption appointment. He was not happy about that at all. But during breakfast he perked up and ate well. We went with all the other families to finalize the adoption and it seems like it took a long time. We took the ball with us and he ended up being a little showoff throwing it around and laughing. He's a busy little guy! (Thanks, Kathy and Grace, for the Curious George shirt. That's what he wore today for adoption day because it fits very well what we've seen of his personality so far.) He played with the woman who brought him yesterday (we learned that she's not a nanny, but the person in charge of international adoptions from his orphanage), but he wouldn't go to her. He's definitely perferring Dave today and doesn't want me to hold him much, but he's still making good eye contact and letting me feed him. He also makes sure that we're all together. If I get very far from him and Dave, he calls out "mama!"

Right now he's napping and we're going to get out and explore the area more this afternoon. Thanks for all your prayers and good wishes -- we can feel the love all the way over here.

Ning rocks!

We met Ning today and everything is going really well. We arrived at the civil affairs office a little after ten and he was already there. One of the nannies was showing him the photo album we sent. We got him to sit in my lap with some milk and a snack. He wouldn’t look right at us but I caught him stealing a glance every once in a while. He smiled when I pulled out a book! We knew we were perfect for each other! He sat still for a long time and then he finally started crying. He is very attached to his nanny and was crying and reaching for her, but I kept talking to him and holding him. He has obviously been very loved and he knows how to be comforted. Even though he wanted out of my arms, he still let me pat him and be close to him. When I told him he could put his head on my shoulder, he did. He eventually fell asleep but then we had to wake him to have our picture taken for the paperwork. Bummer.

Back at the hotel, he wouldn’t let me put him down or sit down, so I walked him back and forth like a baby in the middle of the night. He didn’t want anything to do with the cars or ball we had for him. I just held him and he cried off and on for a long time. He fell asleep again and I lay down with him.

After we napped, we ate a little something and he shared a sandwich with me. He was looking at me pretty regularly and would calm down when I told him everything was okay. He wasn’t talking, but he understood my poor Mandarin and responded to it. So at least I’m able to ask him about food, drink, and being hungry or tired.

Eventually, we got on the floor and played ball and blew bubbles. He started laughing and smiling. It was heaven! Then he really started talking! He was pointing to the pictures and saying, mama, baba, jie jie, and An Ning. He is incredible. He also finally let Dave hold him, too, and is very comfortable with him.

We just got back from the store because he needed new shoes. He did really well. I carried him there and back, and my arms got a workout. I’m guessing he weighs about 28-30 pounds. He’s a solid little dude. Way bigger than his barely-older sister. He carried his new socks around the whole time and pointed at things and smiled. When we were leaving the store, he leaned over and kissed me! He is so stinkin’ cute. Right now, he’s sitting on Dave’s lap sucking his two middle fingers and relaxing.

Really, we could not have asked for a better day. I’m so thankful that he’ll let us comfort him and feed him. I’m hoping that as he grieves and adjust, things continue to go this well.

In Nanjing

We arrived in Nanjing today after a long but smooth trip. We barely had enough time in LA to catch our flight, but we pulled an OJ Simpson and arrived at the gate just in time to board the shuttle bus out to the plane. We plopped into our cushy seats and breathed a sigh of relief.

We are in a different part of the city than last time and we like it much better. It's surrounded by neighborhoods and local shops instead of downtown construction. It's a perfect spot to get out and walk around. We walked to a supermarket today to buy diapers and an unbrella. I got to practice my teeny Mandarin repertoire and I was understood! Of course after that I didn't understand much of what was said in return, but hey, it's a start.

Tonight we're eating dinner with our travelmates. Tomorrow we go to meet Noah and I can't wait.

16 days and counting!

We got news today that we get to leave in 16 days to bring Noah home! Woohoo! Yipee! Yahoo! Supercalifragilisticexpealidocious! Exclamation point!