Today was a busy day. We were up early for breakfast right at 7:30AM. The crowd at the White Swan dinning room was not as busy. We had an early appointment at 8:30 AM at the medical clinic here on the Island. On the way to the clinic we passed a group of Chinese soldiers practicing hand-to-hand combat. We started to take a picture, but they turned to us and said no. We walked down the block and then turned around and snapped off a quick one. At the clinic we had three stations to visit. They checked her weight, vision and hearing, and general health. Hong Mei weighs 24lbs. A year ago at her last appointment she weighed 30lbs. We thin k that they must have weighed her in multiple layers. She was pronounced healthy a half an hour later and we left. We came back to the room and got our file ready to send to the American Embassy. Our CHI coordinators will represent us tomorrow at the embassy. We passed with flying colors. Baba was tired, so Hong Mei and I took advantage of a rainy day and visited the White Swan Mattel Playroom. She had fun playing for over an hour. I was pleased to see how well she played with the other girls. While we were there a couple of two year old sisters had a disagreement over a toy. Hong Mei went and found a duplicate toy to give the other sister. She can be such a sweetie!!! She also made an effort in include me in her play. We are slowly bonding. She enjoys playing with me, but still prefers Baba.
In the afternoon we went to the Pearl and Jade Market. This is an enormous multi-level mall. I would have liked to spend all day there, but we only had a couple of hours. Hong Mei could not have handled anymore than that anyway. As it was she was wearing a darling ladybug seersucker sun suit that she pulled all the buttons off and tried to go naked from the waist up. The Chinese are very modest and this act offended the local population. The guides had to convince her to wear the top, until we could buy her a t-shirt. She told one of the guides that we put too many clothes on her.
We had an interesting dinner at a local restaurant. Hong Mei enjoyed a shrimp and corn dish. We had chicken and beef. We also had a wonderful fried sweet potato ball dish. The vegetable dishes in China are superior in that the vegetables are so fresh the flavor really comes out. Sometimes the meat quality leaves a lot to be desired, but they make up for it with flavorful sauces. Eating in Chinese restaurants can be difficult. About 90 percent of the items on the menu contain things that westerners don't consider edible. Back at the hotel we celebrated the evening with ice cream because our adoption and immigration paper work is finally finished.
What a difference a week makes. Hong Mei has made wonderful progress. Her English is coming along better than we would have thought. Her tempers are becoming less and with less intensity. She has a darling personality. We think that she is brilliant; but then we might just be adoring parents.
Good night,
Joanna
Soliders
Medical Exam
Play Room
This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalms 118:24
