Answered Prayers

This morning arrived almost as pleasantly as the others. I got up to work on our blog and was not successful in obtaining Internet access. It took awhile for me to figure out that I needed to pay...but that didn't even help. Tony worked on it for about 3 hours total with the hotel technical support people - and finally asked for a new room. Fortunately, Carol and Cal were there to help us move and we ended up with a beautiful river view of the Pearl River! We're still on the same floor in the hotel as they are. By the time we got things in working order, it was too late to "Skype" home - and I know Mom and Caitlin will be worried.


We met Carol, Callen and Kelly for another delicious breakfast. This buffet has a favorite for Ty and myself! Who doesn't like a few toasty, warm tater tots for breakfast? I normally hardly ever partake of tater tots - but right now...they are appealing! As we broke fast, we noticed a head bobbing across the river. This is a big river - with big boats cruising up and down. And this was just a little red swim cap bobbing along. We watched him go back and forth - and on his second trip, Ty began waving at him. We had no idea if he could see us through the floor-to-ceiling glass panes, but Ty kept waving. All of a sudden, we saw a little red swim cap and a big smile on an elderly, yet healthy gentleman's face. We all smiled and waved and went back to breakfast. In a few minutes, we were surprised to see the swimming gentleman climbing up onto our hotel and waving to us up close - in his little bitty swimsuit! I think it surprised more people than just ourselves.

Ty is really bonding with Carol, Cal and Kelly...and everyone else that he meets! We met a friendly family from the metro Denver area who were adopting a lovely 11 year old girl. I think she is the only adoptee older than Ty that we've seen. Cal hit it off with her as well - and was teasing her and Ty this morning. I loved the photo of Cal holding Ty upside down. We continue to play in small doses with Kelly -and when he flashes you a smile - it makes your heart leap. His smile starts out as a tiny grin in his eyes that lurks behind his long, thick eyelashes. He is precious.


Ty didn't let us forget to go to church. We found a Christian church just down from the White Swan hotel that had services in English and Chinese. We stepped out into the tropical air (aka humid!) and meandered down the block to a lovely yellow stucco type building. It was standing room only! We squeezed inside and initially sat on the floor at the outer edge of the pews. In a moment, a man stood up and offered Ty and me his seat. We accepted and found ourselves sitting next to his wife and their newest family member - an adorable girl with a very severe cleft lip and palette.

The pastor spoke about faith - the faith of the early church. And how faith is our response to God and his desire to have a relationship with us. And how this faith inspires us to do good deeds in the world, but is NOT what grants us eternal life. Our belief in God's Son as our Saviour is the only way to have an eternal relationship with our Father. The pastor would speak a few lines, and then it was translated into English by an assistant. Several times during this message Ty would gently rub the arm of the little girl next to us. He would smile at her and play with her and her stickers. He was so very tender to her. It was touching.

Following the pastor's message, we were privileged to hear the testimony of one of the congregants. A lovely Chinese lady got up and spoke about her faith being strengthened through her work with orphan children. It seemed as if she had been on a mission to Africa and her faith was stirred by a chance encounter there with a young boy named David. She noticed a spark in this young boy and prayed for a chance to witness about Jesus to him. Her prayer was answered and she was able to witness to David and his entire family. She was not comfortable with sharing her faith and had not done that before. And now, she was witnessing to us!

Our heats were happy as we left the church. We had prayed for a chance to worship with Christians. We had prayed for a chance to share our faith with others while in China. And we had prayed that somehow our son would know about Jesus. And everyone of these prayers was answered - in better ways than we could have imagined. For those of you praying with us - know that it is immense comfort to us. You are a vital part of this adoption journey.

Lunch was an interesting experience. I had realized that our lives were not going to be about buffets and fine Chinese dining and at some point Ty would need to eat something that we provided. This had been bothering me some. Plus, his stomach was not so happy with him. Tony and I talked and decided that he just could not be the only child in China that didn't eat rice. We figured that he was choosing things to eat that he had maybe only dreamed of and that he probably was not used to. We looked back and realized these things were perhaps very rich to him. So - we got "tough."

After church - Ty and Tony went up to our room (with a beautiful view). I went to the deli between the hotel and the church and ordered two plates of their hot lunch specials. There was an ox meat soup with rice and a barbecued pork with rice and greens plate. I got a side dish of hot sauce, some kiwis, oranges and apples and some bottled juice and tea. I felt pretty good as I entered the hotel and smiled at the valets. Up the elevator I went - trying to feel as confident as I had downstairs. I entered the room with the bags and Ty smiled that killer smile he has and I took a deep breath and announced food! He eyed me a tad suspiciously as I laid out the food on the little side table. He surveyed the offerings and announced that he did not like this. I looked him right in the eye and told him this was lunch and it was all there was - and he could choose from what was there.

He pouted and I went to type on the blog. I had my back to him and typed on the computer but I could see him in the mirror over the desk. He climbed onto the bed and punched on the pillow for a minute. I calmly got up and hugged him and told him quietly that I loved him forever and then I went back to the desk to type. After a minute, this amazingly resilient kid scooted over to the spread of food and began to pick through it. The ox meat soup was not a hit - but everything else was tasty. And the rice went down just fine! I was so proud of him, and so proud of Tony and I for taking this step towards being the "ones in charge." Not that we relish the idea of that...but it is necessary in the scheme of things.



After Tony felt we had waited the appropriate amount of time before swimming - we hit the pool (I think this is a wives' tale!) This is the number one favorite thing to do of Ty's right now - so it becomes the cornerstone of how each day goes. Everything revolves around "yo yong" or swimming. Today - Ty had a blast going back and forth under the waterfall. Tony said the pool was a little colder than the other days. Therefore, swimming didn't take as long :)

We spent some quiet time in the room - with more "school" on the white board, and playing a dice game that Ty devised using eight quarters and a little jar that the hotel delivers chocolates in! He assigned me a number and himself a number and we took turns shaking the jar to try to get our number. If you got your number, you got one of the other player's quarters. We did this for a long time and had a good time. He asked me if we could take the jar to America. I sadly told him I didn't think so, but that we could find another way to play.

Ty spent some time watching television. This is an escape for him so that he doesn't have to listen to us and our English all the time! About an hour after that - we decided to take a walk to Lucy's for some fast and easy food. Ty ordered the lamb kabobs and I had soup. Tony had spaghetti bolognese. And the iced tea - better than anything I've had so far (besides the eggplant dish I had near the waterfalls!) By the way, I borrowed this photo of Lucy's from someone else's photos - so I really have no idea who this is in the little photo. But - you get the idea of what it looks like in case you are ever in need of iced tea while in China!

By the time we strolled back to the hotel - Ty was zonked. So we got Ty bathed (not quite so many antics in the tub now)and in bed. He fell asleep once again holding our hands and was out in about 30 seconds. I crept down to Carol's room and joined them as they tried to get Kelly convinced that sleep was really a good thing. Poor little fellow was just sitting in his crib with his head nodding and nodding and just wouldn't submit to the sandman. This led to me calling Kelly "Bobby" for being a bobble head! At last - he literally fell over and slept. Carol, Callen and I crawled up onto the bed and whispered about our kids for awhile before I headed back to my sleeping boys and joined them in my own dreamless slumber.

Boys, Toys and Lots of Noise!

We don't even remember falling asleep last night. We all slept so hard. But everyone got up ready to roll. The legendary White Swan breakfast buffet was on the agenda.

The hotel is lovely and we were treated to a sense of luxury at each turn. The atrium of the hotel has a koi lagoon and bridges. There is a waterfall flowing into the lagoon from three flights up. There are adoptive families everywhere here! The breakfast buffet is in a dining room that looks out over the river. There is an omelette man, a juice station, cereal station, fruit station and then a buffet with warm food. This has everything from eggs, congee, noodles, bacon, sausages, beans, tater tots, dumplings, etc. Ty doesn't eat like we would expect. He hasn't touched rice since we met him. I don't know if this is because he had to eat rice for so long or what. He says he will eat it - but hasn't. Breakfast for him is eggs, sausages, a lot of fruit (some I don't recognize!), juice and bread. I am existing on bacon, watermelon, juice, tater tots and have added eggs in since we've been here. I don't have a huge appetite...I think I miss home a lot and just have a lot on my mind. But breakfast is usually tasty to me.


After breakfast we were walking towards the lobby and someone approached and asked if I was Honour. It was Bonnie and Brian with their Isaac. The boys took to each other and before long we spotted Kelly with her Mark and then Marianne and all her boys! By the time we were done - there was a lot of action going on in the lobby of the White Swan hotel. It was exciting to see the boys having a good time and when Dan and Carla arrived with their beautiful daughter it was like the cherry on top!

We met Connie for our visa photos and medical exams at 10:00. We stepped out and received a warm welcome compliments of the humidity of Shamien Island! We wound our way through the streets that I had read so much about over the last year. I saw the park with the statues of the children. I saw Lucy's and dreamed of iced tea! After a few short yet drippy blocks, we arrived to shuffle the kids through the Visa photo chair. Ty looked very handsome on his photo!

Then we walked up the block a bit for the medical. We walked into a bustling environment full of beautiful children all being adopted into loving families. It was an exciting place! There were three areas to visit. We went to the ENT person and had Ty checked out. The medical person had a mask on and one of the old fashioned mirror things on her head. But under the mask, she would smile at the children. We passed this portion and moved on to vision, height, weight and BP. All good and I was touched that the staff were so kind and gentle to these chilren.



Things went downhill when we visited the actual doctor. She was very business-like and asked Ty about his surgery in 2004. She had him take off his shirt and looked at his chest. She had him bend, walk and lay down on the exam table and sit up. She had him lay on his tummy and get up. He was a trooper - and then they wanted to see the scars in his groin area. He had no problem showing them - but we were all surprised when we looked at one scar and saw stitches grown over and still in there from 2004!

This scared Ty very badly because I think he thought everything was normal. The doctor wanted to remove the stitches and had another doctor come look at it. Poor little guy. You could see a deep, deep fear creeping across his face. We asked the doctors to wait - thinking the stitches have been in there for 4 years...what is a few more days. Let us get to the States where we can care for him properly! As the doctors looked and discussed - Ty hit almost emotional paralysis. Silent tears slid down a stony face as he reached for his Daddy. He went into a place very deep inside - a sad, sad place. He kept whispering "afraid " in Chinese. We walked him out of there and back to the hotel.



We looked up how to say "forever" in Chinese and told him we loved him forever. We got a flicker of relief in the eyes. We walked to a park filled with children and he sort of came out of things. He went on the monkey bars with Dad's help and Marianne's sons were wonderful to play with him on the seesaw. We left the park and walked back through the statue park. Ty went up to the girl statues and wanted to find one his sister's height, which we did. He hugged on a statue of a little girl. As we walked away, Tony pointed out the statues's clubbed feet and I then knew why he had hugged her.

We went to Lucy's for lunch and met Bonnie and Brian and Isaac. Carol joined us for a bit of a break. It was pleasant and we let Ty order an ice cream sundae for lunch and a smoothie. Aren't we wonderful parents? He slurped down the ice cream and our boy began to come back to us. He began to play around and when Marianne and her boys arrived - he was joking around and playing again.



I met our guide in a hotel room with the other CHI Moms to do the consulate paperwork. It would have helped to have Ty's passport, so our paperwork was somewhat incomplete. But I shelled out the last of the designated adoption fees and that was a relief to be done with that. Tony and I were both tired of toting all the cash around. Three hours later we finished the paperwork and visiting and I went to find my boys and my friend and her boys!


Where else would boys be on a nice afternoon? The pool....that looks like a lagoon with a waterfall! It is very nice and Ty was having a great time. Kelly was attached to his Mom's finger...but through the magic of stacky cup manipulation, he all the sudden had his hands full of cups and no finger! And then Kelly really had fun. Carol and Ty got into a splashing fight and Kelly joined in. It was a very nice and relaxing afternoon.

We decided to go out for dinner - and I wish we hadn't. But what is a family to do?! We tried a kind of fancy looking place - but Ty was wiped out and tired and the emotions came creeping back in. He was very pouty and somewhat angry looking...so I took him outside. I sat him on my lap and I asked if he was sad. And he did admit he was sad. I told him that adoption was hard and that I was sorry it was scary. I asked him if her was mad at me and Tony and he said No - but just sad. I told him it was ok to be sad, it was ok to cry. He wouldn't cry - but did sit on my lap for awhile and I hugged him.

We walked back into the restaurant and he found something on the menu he would eat. Talk about comfort food. The waitress delivered a huge serving of bread to him - it looked like a block of french toast with some warm, honey dipping butter on the side. He gobbled that up and really wanted to go. The rest of the food had not come out and I made a command decision to take Ty back to the hotel. He had enough going on. On the walk back, he realized that I had not eaten and was wanting to take me back for my food. I told him it was ok and that we would go back to the hotel and watch some TV.

We heard music playing over the sound system outside of the hotel and we both started laughing. Back at the hotel in the province, they played the same soundtrack over and over in the hotel restaurant. We heard "Scarborough Fair", "Country Roads" and "Auld Lang Syne" over and over and over. We would greet our friends in the restaurant with "Happy New Year!" Well - walking back to the hotel, Ty and I heard "Scarborough Fair" and on the "Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Tyme" part - he sang "Parsley, sage, rosemary and TY!" At the top of his lungs. We laughed and laughed and I can't tell you how good that felt.

The rest of the night was quiet and we all climbed into bed. Ty fell asleep wanting to hold my hand and that was a first. He quickly slumbered and after a few minutes unsuccessfuly attempting an internet connection - we crashed. It was an emotional day. I keep telling myself that Ty letting out these emotions is a good thing. That he is beginning to trust us. I hope this is true.

A Very Big Change

Today we woke up and began to pack. Our guide Michael was getting our notary certificates ready and we were hoping to receive Ty's passport. We were told to hang in the room all morning in case he needed us. We spent the morning playing with Ty. I will miss the days at the Ramada - even though I am more than ready to move on.

I worry that Ty hasn't shown a lot of emotion about leaving Guiyang. We had asked him what his earliest memory was and he remembered breaking a mask at a friend's house and the friend's parents asking his foster parents to pay for it. We asked him what his happiest memory was and he said he remembered having some birthday cake once when he was 3 1/2. This was apparently not his birthday. He further said he didn't have many happy memories in China.

Our guide called and was bringing the notary certificates at 2:00. We were not checking out of the hotel until 4:00 (thank you Michael!) We let Ty talk and talk to Michael thinking that he wouldn't have a chance to talk so freely and be understood for quite awhile. At one point - we realized that Ty was speaking with Michael about Christianity and trying to convert him. He spent the better part of an hour on this - while he parents sat by and watched in amazement. He told Michael about the verse in the Bible that speaks about storing your treasures in heaven. He really tried to get Michael to say he believed in Jesus - and Michael was so patient and kind with him. When Michael left the room at 3:30 for us to finish packing the few things we had left- Ty was so sad that he had not succeeded. It was very touching.

We arrived at the airport with high spirits - knowing that in a few short hours I would be with my best friend Carol and meet her son Kelly! That dream was delayed - considerably. We checked-in, went through security and to the gate and waited. Finally it was boarding time and Ty was so excited. When about half the plane was down the jet way, they all turned back. The plane was experiencing mechanical problems. This was around 6:00 and we had been at the airport since 4:30 already. Tony and I were trying to figure out how to explain to Ty that we had to wait - when God intervened.

A guide for another family from our hotel approached us. She said that she had seen us in the hotel and had been very touched by how we were all working to communicate, etc. She offered to talk to Ty for us and we gladly accepted. She explained things to him and he understood - wasn't happy about it, but understood. He really enjoyed talking to her (her name was Stephanie) - and she helped all of us so much. She explained that we could show our board tickets and get a free meal due to the delay. This helped pass the time and then as the delay got longer and longer, we decided to teach Ty to play "War."

He won a game and then lost gracefully. I stated before that he doesn't like to lose - and we have worked to make losing just as fun as winning. I hope he will understand this someday. I think he is doing better with it though.

Stephanie's flight left at 8:30 p.m. We hated to see her go - but were thankful for the gift that her presence had been.

At 9:00 we finally began to board. Poor Ty - he appeared to get very nervous. I saw a cold sweat break out on his head. We comforted as best we could in a line of Chinese people! When we reached our seats - he didn't have a window! We had THAT seat - the one with the blank wall at the end of your row. More disappointment - but after we finally got the seat belt on him (by showing him the lighted sign) he realized he could lean forward and see outside.

Now- I am not good at handling certain bodily reactions to flying for example. And when it dawned on me that Ty was getting more and more nervous - I feared that he may not feel well and be betrayed by his tummy. At which point - my tummy got uptight. Tony and I switched places - because that doesn't phase him (yes...we are a perfect compliment!) Ty kept looking out the window and asking if we were flying yet. The Chinese family on the row next to us had two children and they waved at Ty. Tony sketched out the taxi and runway procedure for Ty and we traced the progress. At last- take off!

He did really well and didn't get sick at all. He watched everything, but was so exhausted. He kept trying to lay down on Tony's lap to sleep but just couldn't let himself do it. I know Tony and I were both sleepy. We all had something to drink and all declined the meal. After about two hours - we began to descend into the Guangzhou area. This is a town of 12 million people so it covers a lot of space and we were landing at the new airport (3 years old.)

Tony did so well when Ty began to panic because his ears hurt. He was in a lot of pain and we felt very helpless. We had talked to him (through Stephanie) about swallowing. He didn't do that - and the other children across the way had ear pain as well. I showed them how to hold their noses and blow and they did - and it helped. But Ty didn't want to try that. He can be dramatic when he is in pain...or appears to be in pain.

By the time we got to baggage claim it was midnight and Ty recovered some. You really should witness the baggage claim after an in-country Chinese flight. There are all kinds of bags taped up - like plastic shopping bags....and checked through. One can only guess what is in these...but one of them broke open and leaked ALL OVER one of our bags. It is an awful smell - remember my sensitive tummy? Well - this almost did me in.

We met our guide Connie and she explained that another CHI family was arriving late as well. We met the Collier family as they boarded our van and we headed to our hotel - quite a trip...about a half hour. Tony was in a jump seat and couldn't find a comfortable spot for his head to rest...and as he dozed some anyway, I realized that deployments have taught him to sleep anywhere, anyhow. Ty passed out across my lap.

The check-in went well and I vaguely remember Connie telling us what time to meet her in the morning - and I vaguely remember being thankful that she said she made the meeting time later for us because we were getting in so late. I was just so glad to see our room....quite a bit fancier than our Ramada. And cooler - at last - hot mommy can get some relief!

Even though it was so late (or early!)- I had to call my best friend and get a hug...We met in the hallway between our rooms and hugged with happy tears. That hug did so much for my soul. We got flashlights and showed each other our sleeping children. I wish that Ty smiled in his sleep...but she'll have to wait until tomorrow to witness this miracle. Her son Kelly is so tiny - but so adorable. I snuck in some love pats while he was sleeping because he has stranger anxiety and I didn't know when I could do that again.

I crawled into bed next to my husband (a TINY rock hard bed), happy to be next to him, knowing he was beside me for this next step in bringing home our son. We left Guizhou province without Ty's Chinese passport. It was not ready and I am nervous about this. Our guides have assured us they will get it to the hotel here in Guangzhou. I have no reason to doubt that this trip is not in the perfect hands of God - but if you could pray that Ty's passport ends up in our hands soon we would be deeply thankful.

Deep Waters

If we thought Ty was ready to go to HuangGuoShu Waterfalls yesterday - the excitement built! He was up before the alarm and dressed and ready for breakfast. We had another very pleasant breakfast at the buffet with our California friends and met our guide to go to the waterfalls!!!!

Michael told us that all over China people know these waterfalls. They are on the cover of the Children's primary school book. However, Guizhou is considered so remote, that many Chinese do not know where the waterfalls are! It is named for the tangerine banyan tree and is about two hours west of Guiyang.

The van drive was pleasant and it felt wonderful to leave the city behind for awhile. Tony and I worked on teaching Ty to play "Rock, Paper, Scissors" and he figured it out and enjoyed it! Although he seldom uses paper and when I tried to get him to - he lost that round to Tony. So paper may not be his gesture of choice - and I've probably just ruined his chances at being the "Rock, Paper, Scissors" champion of the world by divulging his strategy. Following this, we began to thumb wrestle. He is pretty good - but doesn't like to lose. I suspect that losing in China carries greater consequences than we can imagine.

We began our journey to the falls by walking through a National Bonsai Garden. It had very large bonsai of many different varieties and giant stones that have been carved by the water of the local river. The stones were amazing and one of them was even hollow! You could strike it with another rock and hear a beautiful sound - like a deep wind chime. Ty enjoyed this rock very much! We struck all over the rock enjoying the different tones.

There was a stone path that was very uneven. Ty's walk is very unsteady at times and stilted - and he fell in front of many people. Of course, he was stared at and there weren't many smiles in the crowd. Tony and I bent down immediately to help him and see if he was hurt. As he stood, he told us he was ok and he was a very brave boy. All three of us rose and walked forward with HUGE smiles on our faces!


We began to hear the falls and the excitement built. The path had many, many stairs - which can be a challenge for Ty - but he bravely went on. We tried to get him to stop and rest - but there was no way. The Energizer Bunny would have lost the race to the falls if there had been one. The path led down beside the falls and then actually went UNDER them! We could see the raging curtain of water in front of us. It was amazing - and very wet! We were drenched - but loving it! Ty was disappointed that we couldn't shower and swim there. He found a small trickle of a waterfall in the caves and played in that and loved it. We had to walk along way back- but after crossing a rope span bridge over the river - we found a very long escalator that went back up the gorge. As we were heading up the escalator, Ty asked our guide what we were doing next. Our guide replied that we were going to have lunch and then go home. Ty replied to our guide that "Ramada was not his home, America was his home." Can your heart physically soar out of your chest??



We had lunch at a restaurant at a hotel near the falls. We had a private dining room with a breeze gently blowing through. The staff at the hotel all treated Ty with such kindness and respect. It was a nice change. Tony and I shared a beer and dishes of sweet and sour pork and eggplant with garlic. It was so good - the pork was not battered and in a light sauce. It was the best meal we've had since arriving. Ty ordered an unrecognizable chicken dish that was of course....SPICY and full of chopped up chicken with skin on it. I kindly declined tasting any.

The van ride back began quietly. Most everyone slept accept me and thankfully the driver. Ty laid his head across my legs and was out in an instant. As he drooled on my leg thus christening me a mommy again - I looked out over the rural countryside and tried to soak up my son's China. I saw terraces of rice fields and corn with people in traditional costume of their tribe at work in these fields. Some had water buffaloes, some had horses - but most had very little. I saw men working on the roads and was struck by the fact that they were given such very small tools to accomplish a large task. No front-end loaders to move giant piles of dirt -just tiny spades with long handles and a few men.

I looked down at my son and saw evidence of his past pain scarred across his cheek and on his neck and wondered what has to happen to a person to make them want to leave their own country? I began to cry silent tears. I was so glad for the peace and quiet - time to reflect. The driver saw me in the rear view mirror and acknowledged my tears with a kind look in his eyes.

Ty woke up with about an hour to spare and was ready to get some questions of his own off his chest. He obviously understands that we have limited time with our guide and seemed to get right to work. We began with him asking about doctors in America. He told about his surgery and how no one explained to him what was going to happen to him and he went to sleep and woke up with casts and a lot of pain. We told him that he might have to have surgery again, or he might not, but that he would know what was happening and have a family there with him each step of the way. He even asked if the scalpels the doctors used were small or big???

He told us that before his surgery his life was dismal. He could not squat and that made using the restroom here a humiliating thing for him. He asked about bullies in America. He had heard that movies from the west were more violent and wanted to know if the bullies in America were more violent than here. We explained that bullying is a bad thing no matter where it happens, that his Daddy was bullied when he was his age and understands how he feels, but that no matter what happens he should always tell us if something happens so that we may help him together.

He asked about the laws in America and if there were life sentences. I do not have enough background in the Chinese justice system to know exactly where this came from. He asked if the law was fair. He said maybe he would like to be a lawyer or judge to make sure that things were fair, but that he had made a promise when he was in the orphanage to be a teacher. We told him that maybe he could be a teacher that taught people how to become lawyers. He told us that he also likes to make babies and disabled children laugh. He asked about some deep theological issues that moved us beyond measure. He has asked if we were baptised. He has asked about communion. It was a good ride in the car - and were left blown away by this child of China.

We were not in the hotel two seconds when he asked about swimming. He was so excited when I explained that his Uncle Joe was a swimming teacher. He said he was so happy because he really needed it! And you could probably join in the chorus of what comes after swimming - TUB TIME! Spiderman continues to expand....we are beginning to think he may need his own suitcase.

We dined in the hotel restaurant with the California crew. Ty discovered the dessert bar for the first time tonight. I looked over to track his progress at the drink station (he loves lemonade) and saw him enjoying the chocolate fountain with glee. He was eating right out of it - and there were trails of chocolate everywhere in a matter of two seconds. We wrangled him and his treats to the table - knowing we would pay for this in about 20 minutes.

When we got back to the room - our Skype was ringing - and when I answered I heard the sweetest voice - my other angel baby! Caity and Grandma called and we fired up the video. Unfortunately, the sugar high of the century kicked in and I can't imagine what they were thinking back home as they watched Ty leap up and down on the bed trying to pop a balloon that we put under the covers. He calmed enough to come over and I got tears in my eyes as China and America sang together. Grandma and Caity sang "Jesus Loves Me" to us and we sang a Chinese song that Ty taught us back to them. My heart soared again - so I know that I didn't lose it at the waterfalls!

We hung up hoping the next week will fly by. Every morning Ty wakes up and tells us now many days until Guangzhou and then how many days until America. We are just as anxious as he is.

I know that on some level leaving his China will be difficult - but we were never promised an easy road....just that we wouldn't be alone. He will never be alone again.

Bless the Beasts and the Children

Well this morning got off to a rocky start. Or maybe explosive is more like it. Let's just say that spoonfuls of red pepper into your tummy don't do so good coming out of your tummy. Ty was not feeling well - and we had to rearrange our schedule. He had been so excited to go to Hong Guo Shu Waterfalls - but it was 2 1/2 hours away and I just didn't think he needed to be that far from "things." Things like a toilet and maybe clean clothes.

He was crushed - but we told him that if he felt better, we would go tomorrow. He pouted for about...oh I dunno....10 seconds and then accepted it and we moved to Plan B. I told him that I always have a "Plan B."

Plan B:
Qian Ling Park, a.k.a. Monkey Park.
He was moderately happy with Plan B.

We left in the van and drove through a very poor area of Guiyang. I've never seen poverty like this and can't really describe it. For those of you that have seen poverty like this - you know what I'm talking about. Hungry people with almost no life in their faces everywhere. Dirt, waste, trash, starved or dead dogs. It was heart-wrenching.

After driving a bit, we came into a wooded area with a river. People were fishing along the banks. We past an "entry point" and it felt like we were part of an exodus from the city and into the park. Everyone was walking accept us - and we were riding along in our minivan honking for folks to get out of the way (we have a driver - it wasn't us!) Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. Meandering was the word that came to mind.

People had game boards set up on stones and were gathered for lunches. Some families had birdcages. We asked our guide about this and he explained that these were for a local bird that is unusual. The owners bring them here for exercise. They open the cage and the bird flies around until about noon - and returns to its owner. We didn't see the birds (that we know of.) All along the road, people were playing badminton - but without nets. In one day at Monkey Park, I saw more badminton than I've seen in my entire life thus far.


We drove for quite aways into the park and then began to ascend a mountain. We saw monkeys in the trees and then eventually on the street. And more badminton - and more people meandering. It got to a point that we needed to walk because the van just wasn't going to make any progress. And that is when we saw the first monkey(s) up close. Mommies and babies. Our guide specifically told us not to feed them - because they will accost you for the food. Glad we are good listeners! We saw monkeys with entire grocery bags of bananas they had stolen. But no accosting....



We continued until we came to a lovely setting with a Buddhist temple. Ty was more than reluctant to enter the temple and we had to explain that just because you learn more about something doesn't mean you chose to believe that. This was an awkward few moments with our Buddhist guide. But both the guide and Ty handled things with grace. At 8 years old, one tends to think very black and white.

The setting of the temple was lovely and our guide told us some rudimentary things about Buddhism and the meanings of some of the fixtures we were seeing. We looked around, went into the Buddha area - but did not bow, kneel or pray as most were. The altars were laden with bouquets of flowers and platters of fruit. These were gifts from Buddhist followers. Michael explained that the monks will use these things on their tables first and then beyond that goes to the poor.



Following this, we wound our way down several hundred steps to the rest of the park. It was crowded like Disneyland....people everywhere. There was more badminton, games, choir, tai chi, group dancing and ballroom dancing. It was like a cruise. Michael explained this was daily activity for the elder folk - but some didn't look all that elder to me. He told us these were the "early retired people." If you retire from a company at an early age - the company pays your retirement until you reach the official government retirement age and then they take over. I wish our parks looked this active at home!

We took Ty to do some amusement park rides since he had not had any more quick-trips to the toilet. He loved them!!! He would blow us kisses and shout "Thank you Daddy!" and "thank you Mommy!" as he went around. We noted that most of the rides had some type of gun attachment. We finished our time with a trip on the boats. We got to ride in the boat on a lake for 30 minutes. These are little bumper boats. And yes...they had guns too. You were to drive around and aim at these water cannons and if you hit them, it would soak your semi-unsuspecting fellow boaters. It was good fun - and we were able to get in several good shots of soaking water while said soakees were busy gaping at the white couple with the Chinese son. I loved it.




We walked to the park exit and Ty spotted the man who made homemade tops. These are pretty big tops and they came with a stick that had a cord attached to one end. Ty grabbed one of those and went to town. Once he launched the top, he kept slapping it with the cord on the stick and it would keep going. He would have done this for hours I think. I got a video of him doing this and when Ty looks at it he calls out "Ty on TV!"


Our van arrived and we joined the exodus - this time leaving. Once again - the only vehicle on the road.

Our next stop was a Christian church. We had asked if we could attend services if possible when we were in town. But I think that got a bit "lost in translation" maybe. There were no services going on at this small, non-descript building. There were people practicing for a special event and one of them quickly took us upstairs to an office. We were seated in the office and served warm water. The pastor was on a break, but they called him to come back. It was a short visit- but nice. Ty enjoyed it - but there were some more potentially awkward moments for our guide. Everyone handled things well and after a prayer with the pastor we were back on our way.

Ty was begging for western food - so we went back to the hotel so he could eat a hamburger and fries. Personally, we questioned the "western-ness" of the food when the hamburger had an egg on top ot if! It was a relaxing lunch - we spent it with a terrific family from California who are here with their wonderful daughter Holly and newly adopted daughter Kaleigh. We actually first met them in the Civil Affairs building the day we "officially" adopted Ty. Our appointment was at the same time. We've bumped into each other a few times and always enjoy talking and sharing experiences. I will miss them when we leave - but we may see them in Guangzhou. If not - we exchanged information and will stay in touch.

Ty managed to finish the hamburger - you should have seen him working that thing into his mouth. He got tickled at first because he was squeezing too hard and the burger was falling out of the back of the bun! Fortunately, he is feeling better...so his chances of seeing the waterfall are going up!

Michael came to get us for a fabulous shopping trip to a government store that specializes in items only made in the Guizhou province. We found several nice gifts and things for Ty to keep to remind him of his China. It was like a department store and you walked from area to area. If you selected something in a certain area, the clerks wrote you a ticket and kept your merchandise. Once you were done shopping, you took all of your tickets to the cashier and then after you paid, she stamped your tickets. Then you went back to each station to collect your goods.

Ty got pretty bored while we were there. He held it together for awhile and our guide Michael did a wonderful job keeping him entertained while we buzzed through the place. But that didn't hold. Towards the end - Ty came up to us and told us that his legs were hurting very badly "Bu Hen Tang!" and he was rubbing the scars on the backs of his ankles. I didn't think this was true because we had had no evidence thus far that his legs ever slow him down too much. I just bent down and very sympathetically said that I was so sorry his legs hurt and we would hurry - but if they were really hurting, we probably needed to rest and not go swimming today. He eyed me with his best cute face and said " Oh Mommy - bu tang, bu tang" Meaning no pain, no pain. He said he was very sorry. I had the guide tell him that I was a smart Mommy and those things don't work with me. He grinned and said he understood....the little sucker. It was funny - and I was glad it happened with our guide Michael. He did a great job translating for us and was really chuckling too!

Michael got a cab for us to take us back to the hotel. All was going well until the cab just stopped in the middle (as in...not the sides....)of the road. The driver looked at us and raised his hands and shoulders like "Sorry - what do you want me to do?" Our "Amazing Race" attitude kicked in and we jumped out because we didn't want to be "eliminated from this leg of the race." We had a backpack, several bags of great stuff from the store and Ty - who can't run too fast. And we had to get across 6 lanes or so of traffic and one traffic island. We managed - and thanks to Ty - found our way back. We also passed a gas station with probably 40 cabs in line to get gas. I know where our guy should have been....

Ty immediately wanted to go swimming - but we relaxed in the room for awhile first. And this meant that Tony & I were put in school for a few minutes. We did pretty well from the day before on our apparent quiz! I am still marveling that we can communicate as well with each other as we do. He is a hilarious mimic - and picks up English very quickly. His impression of a news anchor on CNN will make you double over and almost you-know-what. I am finding that I'm having to learn new mandarin phrases to help us out - things like "slow down" and "be quiet" and "you may not." What else would you learn with an 8 year old boy!???

Pool time was followed by more tub time. He is completely obsessed with the spider man figure that grows bigger and bigger the longer it is in the water. Spiderman is getting pretty big now - and he has asked if Spiderman can come to America with us. I guess it will depend on how much water Spiderman can shed between now and then - because the weight limits on our bags are going to be critical. We wrapped up afternoon play time with Ty's favorite thing - singing. He taught us a song and we worked on it over and over until we got it nailed. All five verses - over and over.... Maybe he'll be a conductor?! He loves to direct us in our musical endeavors.


We had a quick meal downstairs and then headed out for a surprise for Ty. We had been invited to 'Guitar John's' apartment - well....really Guitar John is from England - so it was actually an invite to their "flat." He and Kathy welcomed us into their home and it was a fabulous night. Ty played with their children and you could tell he was at home. We visited with them about their lives here and their desire to help these orphans of Guiyang the best they can. Their four daughters were there and their son-in-law Simon. Simon is the one that taught Ty the English he does know. They gifted me with artwork that my son did! It touched my heart so deeply.

These folks are really sacrificing to help these children. Due to Olympic hype and the changes in travel requirements, etc. they have to renew their Visas to be in China every 60 days. And every 30 days they have to leave the country and come back in. You have to be dedicated and committed to your mission to endure these demands. We enjoyed the fellowship and it was hard to part...but Ty was exhausted. As we were leaving, they again gifted us with the most lovely batik from this area. We will treasure it always.

So often it seems that those with the least to give - give the most.