China Day 7: Adoption and Shopping

Photo Album

It's almost 11pm here and I need to get to sleep.  Everyone else in my family is out like a light.

This morning was wonderful and hot and sweaty.  Tian cried for the first time since we've had him.  As we pulled up to the registration office (same place we picked him up yesterday), he looked out the bus window and started crying.  He looked around and I'm sure he recognized the place.  He was likely wondering what was happening to him next?  He was fairly clingy at the office, but did get down to play with his siblings.  

Once the adoption papers were completed and made official, all of the families headed a few minutes away to the notary office.  We trekked up 7 flights of stairs to a warm, muggy conference room and got our papers filled out to be notarized.  As hot and sweaty as it was, I must say it was quite efficient considering the size of our group.

We were happy to head back to the hotel just before noon.  When we got here, Ken fed Tian, then Ken and Kenzie went to get some pizza for us while I got Tian ready for his nap.

Just after Tian woke from his nap, Hannah and I headed out with the group for a visit to Lotus Center (supermarket).  Hannah and I agree we are "over" getting stared at.  We don't mind at all when we're out just walking the streets, but when we're in the store, with a list, trying to decipher language and figure prices, we really don't wanna deal with the stares and questions.  Sales people are abundant and pushy! Seriously putting items into my cart and trying to convince me (in Mandarin) why I need it.  This is one major reason you aren't seeing tons of photos of the hilarious things I see in the market.  We get enough attention as it is...I really don't want to be taking pictures of random items to make it worse.  

I wanted to buy some clothes for Tian because the 2Ts swallow him.  18 month is a good fit.  All the clothes had English words on them, but the translations were WAY off.  One shirt had a picture of a  school of fish and said, "There is many group fish."  Another shirt had a cool picture of an African elephant with the words "Totally Extinct."  Hannah and I cracked up. What a chipper little message to have on a kid's shirt.  I wish I had taken pictures of some of the other stuff, but with the hovering sales people trying to tell me that my 2 year old (who was not with me) couldn't possibly wear a 55, but needed a 60, whipping out the camera was far from my mind.  Another mom was picking out a bottle when a sales lady approached her, took one look at her 2 year-old daughter, "tsk tsk"ed, shaking her head and took the bottle, returning with a sippy cup.  

The people are very nice and are just trying to be "helpful" but sometimes, we just wanna look around.  And most of the time, we DO know what we want to buy.  :)

Tian is very congested and has a yucky runny nose.  Upon the advice of a doctor traveling with us, we started him on antibiotics today. So glad we had those ready.  He was coughing like crazy when he first laid down for bed, but is sleeping quietly now.

Tonight, he didn't seem as eager to sleep as he was last night.  He started to cry (he's cried a few times today either when he wants something, when one of us is walking away, or when he got a bath...he did NOT like the bath at all). This cry was just a non-specific, sad cry.  (His cries are very soft and quiet.)  I cried with him, feeling so much sorrow for him.  I'm sure at night time, when the kids go to their room and it's still and quiet, he has time to process some of what's happened to him over the past days (Weeks? We don't know when he was removed from his foster home).   I know he misses his family and everything that is familiar to him.  We would appreciate your continued prayers for his little heart.  Also to prepare him to embrace his brother, Travis. 

Tomorrow morning, we go visit Tian's orphanage and will stop by his "finding" place.