March 30, 2005 Hey Everybody! Well, we have almost finished another day in China, and we are halfway through our trip. We had a day introducing Leah to some of the finer things in life such as toast, Congee with raspberries (RW's idea), French fries, strawberry shakes, and Big Macs (well at least the bun of a Big Mac). We all got up and ate breakfast; then it was nap time for the babies. We left the hotel at about 11:30 for an outing to a department store called Pacifica. It was very nice, with a grocery store on the first floor and a normal department store on the upper floors. We bought Baby Leah a stroller and, man, has it been a back saver. She likes to ride in it, as long as it is moving. We went from the hotel to McDonald's, China style. All of the girls working at McDonald's loved the babies and wanted to hold them. There are several pictures at the bottom of the page. It is very strange being here. It is almost like what it would be to be famous. When we were standing out in front of the department store, the people just gathered around and watched us. They were very friendly, and oohed and ahhed at the babies. They point and laugh and follow you. We finalized the adoption with the Chinese Government today by meeting with the Notary. Basically he asks who we were (name and date of birth), looks at our passports, and takes our money. We now have only to wait until Friday to pick up Leah's Chinese passport, and leave on Saturday for Guangzhou to finish with the American Consulate. The prayers have worked! Leah is feeling much better today. She is eating much better and is really beginning to open up. She smiles and talks much more, and is not nearly as grumpy. She has had a good day filled with lots of naps. She slept from 8:00 P.M. to 3:00 A.M. and woke up with a stinky going on. This was good to see, since it was her first in 2 days. We changed her, and she fell back to sleep until 6:30. She is a precious baby and is becoming much more animated. She readily goes to either one of us and fell asleep in Heidi's arms today. We did some more riding around today but the weather is really bad. It is chilly (about 55 degrees Fahrenheit) and raining again. It really makes you appreciate living the way that we do when you see most of the city here. Though the Chinese people seem happy and welcoming to us, for the most part. The women really get teased when you talk to them here. We met a teacher in the department store that seemed to really like Leah and talked to us for a while. She spoke very broken English, but she was happy to use what little she had. We find it interesting what types of food that they have in the so called western-style restaurant in the hotel. There have been prawns (shrimp) with the heads still on, soft chicken paws (feet), fish with the heads still on, and a bunch of other different types of things. I was able to tighten my belt a notch today. As a whole, the food though different is not too bad. I have a very limited selection due to my allergy to seafood but I manage to find enough to stay alive ;-) Baby Kasen, the baby with pneumonia, is much better. She had her last trip to the hospital today. She is sleeping and is once again eating. Her dad said that the hospital was really scary. He said that the floors were filthy and that the general sanitation was horrible. I felt very sorry for Kasen, as she had to have an I.V. in her head for the antibiotics and fluids. Her parents were reall wishing they were back in the States. Her dad got up this morning and took some medicine, and it made him sick much of the day. He went to KFC and said that after they ate it was much better. Amazing what the Colonel can do. As a whole, this has so far been a very interesting and eye-opening experience. We think of all of you guys everyday and look forward to introducing you to our new daughter. Keep praying for all of us and we will post again tomorrow. Love, RW   Everyone Loving on Leah     Happy Group of McDonald's Patrons   Keep It Comin'     Leah's First French Fry (Nanchang)     More Lovin' on Leah       This page hosted by