Futing has been doing fabulously well. His favorite english phrase is "Good Job" and he claps when he says this. He is now saying "Wuh eye nee" to us (this means "I love you".) He is giving hugs, kisses, and referring to us as Baba and Mama. He loves cars of all kinds and playing peek-a-boo.
Don't be fooled though, he has had some melt downs. As he becomes more comfortable with us, he is pushing more boundaries and sometimes yelling at us in Chinese. Parenting in full public view is always difficult and it is a tad more stressful when you can't understand what your child is saying ... but EVERYONE ELSE can. (The potential for humor and/or catastrophe here is vast!) It will be interesting to see how he reacts when he realizes he is not an only child. I am sure we will have more squabbles over sharing and learning what it means to be a part of a family of 5 children. Please keep us in your prayers as we navigate what will be a new "normal" for us.
Today, it was raining so we went to the mall. It was about a half hour cab ride from our hotel. We actually felt normal for the time we were there. We were probably the only Americans in the mall but shopping in a mall is the same in China as it is in the USA.
Initially we were going to fly out of Guangzhou at 11:00 PM on Thursday night, but after consulting with our guide we have decided to take the 5:00 PM train to Hong Kong instead. This will allow us to arrive at our hotel around 8:00 PM instead of 2:00 AM (which would be our arrival time if we fly). Friday our flight leaves around 11:30 AM (I think) and we arrive home around 1:30 PM ... just a short 2 hour flight! (OK really it is about 13 hours!) It will be so good to be home and back with our other children who we miss terribly.
Numerous Chinese shopkeepers and people we have just talked with on the street have remarked that he is a lucky boy to have a family in the USA. But really, we are the lucky ones to be adding such a wonderful, humorous, giggly little boy to our family.
Attached are some photos of us. They are:
- Futing sporting some cool sunglasses
- Futing and Baba goofing around
- Kim and her friend Melissa checking out the Mall directory (quick! Where's the Chinese/English dictionary!)
- Baba, Futing and Ultraman!
I can't tell you how happy I am to see you with your son. I've been praying for your family for months, and it is my privelege and joy to be a small part of this journey.
ReplyDeleteWe had meltdowns in China, too. But when Q hit US soil, she snapped back into what seems to be normal for her. China is wonderful but very stressful for parents and child!
Glad you are doing well. Our son was pushing the boundaries with us SO MUCH in China (sounds like more than your son), and now that we are home, it is MUCH BETTER. I think in 1 week we were home, he only had 2 meltdowns. He had that much in 1 day in China. Life in a hotel and on planes and trains is just rotten sometimes.
ReplyDeleteAlso, thanks for taking a pic of ULTRAMAN. Our son loved that show in China and we had no idea what his name was.
Praying for your safe travels!!!!!
PS Good to hear you are taking the train. Much better for everyone for sleeping before a big flight.
Yeah for pushing boundaries and yelling in Chinese! Yeah for feeling comfortable enough to direct his emotions towards you, his parents! You'll look back on this and find humour. Thank you for specifically delineating your prayer requests! Will continue to keep you in prayers. Do you have any stickers, playdough, candy, better yet potato chips to keep Futing preoccupied in the plane? :-) Can't wait to meet you stateside... Liz
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