Day 10 was pretty chillin'. The only reason we are still in China is that we need to get Lucy's visa. AWAA does a great job of helping us through the paperwork and making the details easy on us. Today was our Consulate appointment but we did not have to go. Our guides, Liniker and Amy, took yesterday's paperwork to the Consulate for us. They filed as representatives for us. Apparently we all go back tomorrow to pick of the visas and swear an oath, but we do not all have to go to separate interviews. This is one of the advantages of using an experienced adoption agency.
We went to a late breakfast. Lucy and Daddy let me sleep a bit because of my cold. I was feeling pretty crummy this morning but have made it through the day without too much trouble. Medication is a good thing. After breakfast we had to hang out in our room in case Liniker or Amy had any trouble with our paperwork. Fortunately we did not get a phone call from the Consulate. We mostly hung out with Lucy and played with her toys. She and Chris spent a good amount of time watching Chinese and Japanese television. They both have a God-given ability to veg in front of the television even when they do not speak the language. My little couch potatoes.
Chris watched Lucy while I snuck downstairs for a caramel macchiato. It was most delicious. I sat in Starbucks and worked on my shopping list. There is so much to buy and the sales people are soooo pushy that you have to have a plan before walking into a store! Fortunately the prices are very cheap.
Lucy wore a dress for the first time today. I bought it during yesterday's shopping trip. She looked very cute (If I do say so myself!) She managed to cover the entire thing with apple juice (clearly juice boxes are not intended for babies) but she still looked darn good. We also tried on her squeaky shoes. Yes, it's true, I had no intention of buying her squeaky shoes (long story) but they are everywhere and they are very cute and cheap. Watching her face when she makes her feet squeak is priceless. It is very funny, Fortunately, we can remove the squeak if it starts to get on our nerves.
This afternoon we joined the group for a second shopping trip. This time I was prepared! Chris, however, does not have the built-in endurance for shopping. Especially this kind of shopping! The minute you enter a store they are on top of you. Someone will follow you around the entire store showing you things. They will show you sizes and colors and varieties of everything. They ask how old your baby is and suddenly have an entire stack of things your baby cannot do without. They are very well schooled in the man-to-man offense. Eventually they broke Chris and he had to get out. I was just about to close this lady on 30 yuan for a jade ship for my Dad when Chris professed starvation. I bought a few things but was not able to hammer out my entire list before we met up with some friend to get a bite at Lucy's Café. We will shop again tomorrow.
We had dinner with our new friends Scott and Kristine and baby Katie, and Jonathan and Emily and baby Margaret-Jane. We have been blessed to spend time with some of the most amazing people. If you have to be stuck in a hotel in a foreign country with a new baby, these are the people that you want to do it with! We are already talking about doing a reunion when the girls are a little older. I have really enjoyed getting to know everyone and watching their babies discover their new mommies and daddies. Watching the changes in the babies (and the parents!) in just 1 week has been pretty cool. Needless to say, it is an emotional and life-changing event. Having other new mommies to talk to is beyond priceless.
After dinner I bought Chris a ball cap that says "Lucy's Guangzhou" from Lucy's Café. It's a pretty cool hat. When we got back the hotel room Lucy had a ton of energy! Chris walked her around the room a bit but she was still ready to go. She let me walk with her up and down the hall. She heard voices in the last room of the hall and was very determined to get there. I'm telling you, this chick is very social! We made it to the room with the people but all of them spoke French. Lucy and I said our bonjours and then headed the other direction. I was hoping that she would let me give her a bottle and put her to bed. Clearly I have gotten over-confident.
Lucy took her bottle from me like she was a starving child. She started to fall asleep and then reminded herself that I am not Daddy. The whaling began. She absolutely insists that she fall asleep on Daddy. And she wants his undivided attention. I tried to explain to her that it is difficult to get Daddy's attention when he has a remote control in his hand but she did not seem comforted. Eventually I removed the remote control and Lucy got the attention she demanded. Once we settled that she was asleep in about 6 seconds.
Lucy has the largest zit I have ever seen! It is huge and right in the middle of her face. It has been the topic of several discussions today. I feel so bad for her because it looks like it really hurts. It is so big that it looks like a tumor! She is still beautiful (even with the tumor) but it is hard to ignore. Chris and I are hopeful that is will go away tomorrow. Otherwise he is threatening to bring out the Oxy 10! Poor little girl - new Mommy, new Daddy, acne. She is having a tough week.
One other fun thing I want to mention. Lucy let's me brush her teeth! I am really surprised by this. She has been fascinated when watching me brush. Last night she was watching me and she stared to imitate me. I got out the baby brush and toothpaste (which I only brought because my pediatrician told me to. Never thought I would use it) and she sat there and let me brush her teeth. I think she even liked it! It must be the moments like this that cause me to get overconfident about her acceptance of Mommy.
Can I tell about one other cute thing she does? She does "bye-bye" with her hand. She does it with her palm up, but it is clearly "bye-bye." She will do this if you wave at her or if you say "zie jen," which is roughly how you say goodbye in Chinese.
We are ready to head home. We look forward to experiencing Hong Kong (as much as you can with a baby) but we are very excited about coming home. Keep sending your e-mails. They keep us from being homesick.
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