Hong Kong

At the end of our adoption trip, we made a stop in Hong Kong. We loved, loved, loved it! Yes, you are tired. Yes, you are homesick. BUT when is the next time you are going to be two hours away from Hong Kong by train? We took the 8:20 a.m. train from Guangzhou and arrived in Hong Kong around 10:00 a.m. We took two cabs (too many kids and too many suitcases!) to the hotel--Marco Polo Hong Kong on Canton Road. (By the way, I can't recommend this hotel enough for its service, appearance, cleanliness, or its location. Awesome Hotel!) Then, we checked in, left our bags, and zipped to Disneyland where we had a magical day with the Mouse and his friends. We had the best time! Even Blake "The Grump" had a fabulous time and was thankful that we took the time and effort to go. We arrived back at the hotel around 6 p.m., showered, refreshed, and enjoyed our view of Hong Kong Harbour from the room. We then went to a English pub called Bulldogs where we sat on the restaurants patio and enjoyed non-Chinese food and rock music by a live band. YES! We were back in western civilization! Jack Henry inspired his family to clap and sway to the music. (No, the Clan is not afraid of singing out loud and dancing in public.) The next morning we ate McDonald's and walked around the harbour and Canton Road (amazing stores!) before catching a taxi to the airport.
Look out, Mouse! Here we come!
Disneyland Main Street
The girls hit the park!

Silly girl!
Loungin' in Mickey's chair...
Too cute!
Yum! Ice Cream! First food (besides congee, milk, or rice cereal) that Jack Henry would even eat!
Going to the future... and Space Mountain!
Cooling off...
Self-Portrait of Professional Tea Spinners.
Amateurs! Hardly any spinning at all...

Tea Cup champion spinners.
Hangin' with Buzz.
The girls hit the streets of Hong Kong for family fun!
Jack Henry loving the music!
Isabella and her daddy.
Isabella, Me, and Jack Henry enjoying the view of Hong Kong Harbour.
Katie Beth and Maggie out on the town!

Video from Tianamon Square

I found this video from Katie Beth's digital camera.

Home, at last...

We made it home safely. I apologize for those of you following the blog, but after a few days at the White Swan, blogger was blocked. I tried lots of things to get around the blocks without success. Over the next week or so, I will try to recap our trip and our adoption experience.

We stayed in Guangzhou at the White Swan until the 21st of May. We really enjoyed the Shamian Island. It is so beautiful! We shopped a lot! We ate at Lucy's several times because we were so sick of Chinese food--Lucy's is very conviently located down the street from the White Swan. The breakfast buffet at the White Swan is incredible! The girls enoyed every morning-chicken nuggets, french toast, bacon, fresh fruit (tried a lot of new kinds), omelets, cereal, etc. Shamian Island is just across the river from Guangzhou City. We really enjoyed Guangzhou City as well. Our guide, Elvin, took us over to the city for business and pleasure. We shopped at a Carrefor (French-version of Wal-Mart). We also walked through a herb market and a animal market to get to the main shopping road in Guangzhou. It was so interesting to see the traditional side of China with the old markets and then see the modern China with large shopping malls and McDonald's. We visited a few parks in Guangzhou. There, we saw the daily of life of the Chinese. Older people meet at the park to exercise and socialize. Parks are equipped with exercise equipment. We saw people excercising on the equipment, running, and doing tai chi.
The Girls in the Herb Market,comtemplating a purchase...
A main shopping thoroughfare.
Blake and Maggie finishing their shopping at Carrefor.
A woman doing tai chi.
A kindergarten class on the streets of Guangzhou.

Medical Examination

Today, the children visited the clinic for the medical examinations. The U.S. Consulate requires this step before the children can immigrate to the United States. Jack Henry did pretty well until he had to get his immunizations. There were 4 steps for Jack Henry because our family was required to file the I-800 form. The other two families started the adoption process before us and filed the I-600 form. They only had to do three steps at the clinic. All families that filed the I-800 are required to have their children immunized before they are allowed entry into the United States. When one doctor tried to examine him, Jack Henry refused to stand up for him. We have a little emperor in training. He knows what he likes and doesn't like, and he lets you know it. He also is strong-willed. He is so quiet in public and won't move too much. Whenever we return to the room, he gets excited. It's amazing to see how he changes every day.
Medical examinations for adopted children.
Waiting for our turn.
Studying his green frog while being examined.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Happy Birthday, Dad! I love you! You are the best!
Laughs and Smiles. What a beautiful sight!

What a wonderful day we had today! Jack Henry really opened up this afternoon. He has been so happy. He talks, laughs, and smiles now.

Today, we visited the Six Banyan Tree Temple. It is a Buddhist temple where monks live. We learned lots about Buddhism and its principles. It was a very interesting, and we learned so much. Jack Henry got very grumpy at the temple. He does not like the heat. After the temple, we visited a state owned gift shop, and then we had Chinese dumplings for lunch. The lunch was delicious! Jack Henry was very good at lunch because the restaurant was air conditioned.

When we returned to the hotel, we all took a nap. Well, really just Jack Henry, Blake and I took a nap. The girls played on their itouches. After naptime, we all went to the pool. When I changed JH into his swim trunks, he was very grumpy. We took him to the pool anyway because the girls really wanted us both to swim. Once we got to the pool, JH still just sat in his stroller-very grumpy. Finally, O got him out of the stroller and we sat on the edge of the pool. He slowly warmed up and started playing in the water. Before we knew it, he was in a good mood. After an hour or so, we returned to the room to hang out. Jack Henry was playing with us. He talked so much! We don't understand what he is saying, but we don't care! I tickled him, and he absolutely loved it! Later, we went with our friends, the O'Cains, to an American restaurant on the island called Lucy's. The girls had chocolate and strawberry shakes and really enjoyed the food. Afterwards, we visited the playroom. We all played, ran, and laughed. Jack Henry loves playing catch. Now,everyone is already in bed except for me.

Everyone looking at the fish.
Jack Henry in the playroom.
Six Banyan Tree Temple
Darbys in the house!

Hangin' with the monks.

Morning on Shaiman Island

Our Little Man
Discovering blocks.
This morning we walked around Shaiman Island and did a little shopping. I found beautiful silk baby blankets and bought two for Jack Henry and one each for the girls. I also found Jack Henry a traditional Chinese outfit in white for his baptism in June. We are hanging out with a fun family from South Carolina. (Hey, John, Jennifer, and Lily!)

I attached a few pictures of life on the Island.

Girls trying to call the states. Grandma, please send McDonalds!
The Crew at Starbucks.

The Darbys and the O'Cains starting their shopping trip.
Local Elementary School
Physical Education Class
Jack Henry checking out the playground equipment.
Ladies exercising in the park.
Isabella and Jack Henry
Katie Beth get her morning exercise in.
Maggie tries the stationary bike.
A couple getting their wedding pictures taken.
A group of older people playing hackeysack.

Happy Family Day!

Today, we headed back to the Civil Affairs office and officially adopted Jack Henry. It was pretty simple process, and we were finished in about 1.5 hours. After the adoption, we ate a "typical Chinese meal" (this is what our guides tells us). We then returned to the hotel and put Jack Henry down for a nap. He crashed! And so did Daddy! Isabella and I walked around Shaiman Island and window shopped. We have our eye on several items...

After naptime, we visited a local shopping mall and a Carrefour, the French version of Wal-Mart. We loaded up at Carrefour. The girls picked out a bunch of familiar items such as Oreos, Lays stacks, strawberry wafer cookies, etc. Blake found some saltine crackers and Land O'Lakes cheddar cheese block. We have never been so excited about cheese and crackers in our life! LOL! We also bought milk and diapers for Jack Henry. This evening we ate ANOTHER "typical Chinese meal." At dinner we(our travelmates and ourselves) talked about all the food we wished we could eat (besides a "typical Chinese meal"). We just made it harder on ourselves...LOL!

Jack Henry was pretty quiet today. I think he is in what I call "shut down mode." I see him eyeing us when he thinks we are not looking. Throughout the day, he forgot about being stoic and laughed or smiled. As soon as remembered that he was with strangers, he became stoic again. I know that he will eventually feel safe and comfortable with us, and we will see his true personality. Right now, we see small glimpses of his personality.

Jack Henry really started to smile and laugh and explore tonight. When we returned to the hotel, we played with him. Maggie and Isabella took turns blowing bubbles, which he really enjoyed. Maggie also blew up a balloon, and he played catch with the girls. Both activities really made him smile and laugh. Jack Henry also played with the buttons and knobs in the hotel room. He is very curious. He watches people very carefully, curious about their actions. Katie Beth videotaped tonight, trying to capture any smile or laugh that we could get. Later, Blake took the girls to the hotel pool. I fed Jack Henry and put him to bed. He is sleeping peacefully.
Adoption Day at the Civil Affairs Office
The girls choosing their lunch. Yes, all the animals are alive. You pick what you want for lunch and the restaurant will cook it for you.
Don't worry, the girls didn't choose sandworms for lunch.
Not sure what these are, but our guide says you find them at the bottom of the sea. Don't worry, we didn't eat these either.

Our first laugh from Jack Henry. He loved it when the bus bounced him up and down!
Where's the money?!!!!! (Jack Henry looking through Blake's wallet.)
Let's play ball!!!!