This first picture is of Jaelyn falling asleep with Joshua last night, and she did so again at naptime today. She is so good about going to sleep; just tuck her in, give her a kiss, but most importantly, make sure she has her special handkerchief. She came with this handkerchief when we got her. We thought it was just something the nanny had given her because she threw up on the car ride over (her foster family lived about 70 km away), but come to find out it is like her blankie! She likes it when she goes to sleep, and uses it like a pacifier to suck on. It's tough to pull out of her mouth when she goes to sleep. She occasionally wants it during the day too. And to think, I was going to throw it away!
We had a good, lazy day today just getting to hang our with Jaelyn. We had no appointments after all, so walked a bit around the hotel. Walmart was our first stop for a stroller and a few other items. Little did we know that it would be entertaining too. Turns out the workers were having a karaoke contest. The audience had these hand shaped clappers that they would use to cheer the performer on. One of the managers was very helpful and one of the only English speakers we ran into today. She told us that they like to have relaxing things for the employees to do, so do this type of thing regularly. I'd love to see that in the US!
Mike was not feeling well this evening, so the kids and I ventured out to find McD's. It was a good walk away, and we enjoyed our time taking in the sites. The streets are very noisy and crowded here. Between the constant honks and blaring music from the stores, at times we couldn't even hear one another talk. We couldn't resist taking a picture of the garbage collectors out on the street! We finally found what we were looking for, and Jaelyn particularly loved the fries. We were quite the spectacle everywhere we went, but there were many friendly faces too. Jaelyn has only encountered a couple awkward moments, but she doesn't seem to be bothered by them, just us. A few people have wanted to touch her arm, and one young girl pulled Jaelyn's hands apart as she was scratching the end of her left arm. I refrained from saying "excuse me, get your hands off my daughter," but it wasn't easy.
Tomorrow morning we go to the police station to apply for her Visa. It won't be ready until later Friday, so looks like we'll be flying to Guangzhou to begin the US side of the adoption on Saturday. Hopefully Mike will be feeling better tomorrow and we will be more adventurous in our outings.
As you can see from the pictures, Jaelyn has been bonding with everyone in the family. She has little games she plays with each of us. It is so wonderful to see. Kaia, you are going to have so much fun with your sister. I'm glad you're having fun with Grandma and Papa. I hear you are quite the helper.
