Well - hands down - I have to say that today has been the BEST day in China!!!
We went on a little adventure this morning! David took us and the other family in our "group" to a little village just outside of town. I was a little disappointed when we got to the "village" because there were high rise apartments within eyeshot.
But I didn't know the half of it.
We started to walk through the village - on a concrete sidewalk! Whatever. But then an elderly Chinese woman came up to David and invited us into the village garden. She took us back into a bunch of papaya trees and invited us to pick one. She insisted that we take at least two! She offered the two little ones a fruit that Micah gobbled up (Anna can't eat solids yet). Then she took us into the "newer" part of the village. This is REAL China! The reason that the village seems so close to the city is because the city keeps crawling towards farmland. In order to preserve SOME of the farmland, the landowners will corporately farm some of the land and then build their homes surrounding the land.
We walked in and through not only the newer part, but also the older part - that had homes nearly 60+ years old. We saw women doing laundry in the river (which is part of the Pearl River Delta). We saw villagers working to restore their temple; intricately cutting stone for the posts and pillars. I was corrected by a Chinese "grandmother" that told me that Anna should have a hat on her head "it is too hot for her to be outside". I complied and thanked her. The saddest part (aside from the fact that they had lost so much of their farmland) was that a large freeway is being constructed right through the village. Proof that progress costs...
We brought Anna back to the hotel and gave her some ibuprofen. I don't know that I mentioned that she is cutting THREE molars right now! She slept for almost FOUR hours!!! But you know what? She woke up SO happy! We went to the Swan Room and played for over an hour. After that we went to dinner with Alan and Wendy and kids and met up with a family from our previous adoption agency (with Amy) and went to Lucy's. I have been trying to teach Anna the sign for "more" (because the grunting was getting old!). Tonight she was using it very well and even said "more" (her first English word!).
I just gave Anna a bath and a bottle and laid her down for bed. Before I lay her down and tuck her in, I stand and "rock" her a little to help her relax. She usually lays her head on my shoulder and grips around my neck with her arm. Tonight we had "rocked" for about 10 minutes when she pulled back to look at me. She smiled and leaned in for a kiss! She giggled and then went back to nuzzling her head in my neck. She leaned back again and smiled and leaned in for more kisses! I kept kissing her until she was done; I gave her kisses for about a minute and a half! Yay! I laid her down and she offered her token "fuss" then blew me kisses. I backed out of the room and she offered more kisses - mixed with fussing (she doesn't want to miss out on anything!).
Wow.
I did manage a trip to Starbucks with my good book today too, although it doesn't come close to being one of the best parts of my day!!!
I can't wait to bring this little one home to her Daddy, Ashleigh, Austin and Amy!
Two more sleeps...
our group in the village (with our wonderful local "guide")
Anna drinking water at Lucy's
a villager hand sewing sequins to fabric in the village
