Back in the Tropics!

Well, we are happily in warm weather in Guangzhou.  It was fantastic to pack the coats away!  Everyone is in a better mood - change of scenery, warmth and sunshine.  GZ is SERIOUS shopping, so we are having fun already.  Even my girls are learning to bargain and negotiate!  There are tons of other adoptive families here at the end of their China stays, so the mood is very festive.  There are so many cute little girls Lia's age and she is in hog heaven playing and ruling the roost.  

Last Night in Hohhot

Wen Jun thinks my hair smells like candy.  :-)

Adorable Chinese girls

Avree's hair drawing a crowd

McDonald's play-place - bringing children together.

Macie's pic for Doopey and AuntT

I can't believe we are leaving Hohhot tomorrow morning!  When we arrived, I couldn't imagine how we would survive 6 days in 2 tiny hotel rooms with 4 children.  Now, it's over and we're off to Guangzhou in the morning.  We are looking forward to the warm, Florida-like weather.  We received Wen Jun's Chinese passport today, but for the rest of the day, just lazed around and relaxed.  We're finally getting our body-clocks set to China and can sleep in a bit - just in time to come back West!  The girls are all great - getting a little cabin fever - but all is well.  Miss all of you tremendously!  Thanks for the emails and comments- so great to hear from home.

Visit to BaoTou Orphanage

Sisters walking into the orphanage

BaoTou City Orphanage

Wen Jun's bedroom

Us, staff and children (director is the gentleman)

Wen Jun and her "big sister"

Today, Wen Jun, Macie and I visited the orphanage where Wen Jun spent the first 9 years of her life.  It was a very heavy day.  BaoTou is 99% children with special needs.  It is very modern and clean and the staff there seem to care very much for the children.  The fact remains that I went into room after room with 6-8 babies with hydrocephalus, cleft palates, Down's, etc. and it was agonizing.  Many of the ayis remembered Wen Jun and were so happy to see her and see that she had a family.  The hardest part was Wen Jun saying goodbye to her best friend at BaoTou, a 15 year old girl with hydrocephalus.  They bawled in each others arms and the entire staff and I were bawling as well.  

After we toured for about an hour and a half, the director and his staff took us out for a traditional Mongolian lunch.  Each person had a pot of soup in front of them that was on a boiler.  In the middle of the table was a lazy susan that was piled with raw slices of lamb (traditional meat for Baotou), vegetables, noodles, tofu, etc. that you would cook in the boiling soup.  Macie and Wen Jun were given yogurt to drink and the adults all had a warm, purple taro root milkshake (!).  Macie was amazing trying everything  - she ate more than any of us!  She will NEVER be able to say that she doesn't want to try a new dish!  It was one of the most delicious lunches I have ever eaten.  We also got to visit the place where Wen Jun was found as an infant - very touching.  The 6 hours of driving today were so worth it and I will remember this day forever.

Hohhot Traffic - always on the verge of being run over

The first clip is a top view of the street we crossed, the 2nd clip is our attempt!  We almost lost Wen Jun and Dad to a bicycle tonight.  No one obeys traffic laws, and when we stepped out into the sidewalk, a bike almost took all of us out.  Wen Jun has track marks on her sweat pants!  She said she was just glad it wasn't a car.  :-)

Happy Birthday Avree!

"Happy Birthday" in Chinese

9 year old!

HUGE Breakfast pancake!

Happy 9th Birthday, to my sweet Avree!  Our chef here at the hotel kept the pancake with candles breakfast tradition alive...even though the pancake was a little different than the ones we're used to!  Lunch was traditional Chinese, and for dinner, Avree chose PIZZA HUT!  We came back to the hotel where Larry had arranged a black forest cake with candle.  Our coordinator, Gessie, prepared a gift for her - a little red bracelet with a Fortune Cat and a pink purse.  She was tickled! I am so proud of her for being such a good sport not being able to have a traditional birthday, but really enjoying the idea of a birthday in China.

Museum Day

My poor home schooled children...all the way to China and Mom is STILL dragging them to museums!  Today we visited the Hohhot Museum of Natural and Mongolian History.  It was an amazing place, as you can see from the photos.  There were many beautiful exhibits and we were all glad for a few hours outside of our hotel.  We ate lunch at a very traditional restaurant with our sweet coordinator, Gessie, who we have all fallen in love with.  We are getting a tiny bit stir crazy, but trying to enjoy Inner Mongolia while we have the chance.  Unless you are adopting or have official business here, Hohhot is not for foreigners.  Check out the video of the traffic!  It is wildly colder here today than it has been.  We definitely felt the chill of the wind blowing from the north.  Tomorrow, Macie, Wen Jun and I will travel about 2 hours to visit Wen Jun's orphanage and the clinic where she was taken as a baby.   She is very excited to say hello and goodbye to her friends at BaoTou.

Wen Jun's signature saying she likes us.  :-)