Yuntai Garden, TB test result, and Relaxation

We met in the lobby this morning at 9:30 to go to the Yuntai Garden.  Again, you can read more about it by Googling it.  We had fun, taking pictures, as you can tell from all of the pictures!  Lucy had so much fun finding the next spot to get her picture taken and then she loved to look at it right away.  It was a shorter outing with more physical activity which suited Lucy just fine!

Abby is feeling a little better but the ear is still bothering her.  We have a couple more days before we fly and I am hoping it resolves on its own.  I have a tight cough and swollen glands and sore throat but I feel better.  My eye is doing better but not quite sure the drops are totally going to resolve the problem…

This afternoon we just spent in the room working on Abby’s math a little, working on English with Lucy a little and Lucy was teaching Abby to count in Mandarin.  We played a game, painted fingernails, and the girls watched Frozen on Abby’s IPOD.  Lucy has the cutest giggle and she thought lots of parts in the movie were funny!

Late afternoon we went exploring a little to find some place to eat.  We decided on KFC because some people we met said they offered rice and chicken as well as fried chicken.  So what does Lucy order?  What we ordered…2 pcs of fried chicken , French fries and Pepsi and then she ordered pudding with ice cream on top.  She ate good!  The Pepsi had ice in it and she put a piece in her mouth.  She wanted to know what it was…or what the English word was for ice…next we hit a Haagen Dazs…$6.00 USD per scoop!  Not very many people were in there!

The first phase of the Trade Show starts tomorrow in Guangzhou, so lots of people have been checking into the hotel.  The hotel decorated with some Easter decorations…interesting…please see pictures.

We have had Lucy for 7 days already!  Some things we have learned about her:  she likes baby blue, she likes her bangs combed straight down, she is goofy and has a good sense of humor…she will fit right in, she learns her way around quickly, she likes playing on the Nexus, she is liking ice cream, she likes chocolate, she likes French fries, she likes bacon, doesn’t really like Cliff bars, she likes to be clean, she squeezed my hand 3 times today out of the blue…our secret code for I Love You!  She likes spicy food!  Duh…she is from Sichuan province!  She notices things that are out of place just like Eli.  Her pronunciation of English words is getting better all of the time.  She says her name very well and is practicing writing it.  She is showing us her personality more and more each day!

I need to get to sleep because we have to get up at 6am!  Tomorrow is our US Consulate appointment at 8:30 am!  We turn in our packet of supporting documents that go along with the application for Lucy’s US visa.  They will issue it the very next day and then we will be ready to travel home! 

The TB test was NEGATIVE!  In China, no news is good news…..

Sight-seeing and Shopping!

Today I woke up with what feels like the onset of a virus…sore hoarse throat, swollen glands in my neck, and I don’t know if it is related, but gooky eyes.  My left one is all red and swollen.  I don’t feel good.  Abby got away from the hotel without a dose of painkiller onboard.  It was a long, hot, miserable day for her.  One ear is plugged and she can’t hear out of it and it hurts.  She doesn’t think it is from all of the swimming though.  She was able to pretend like she felt good to pose for most of the pictures.  Especially for some of the Asian guys that came up to her to get their picture taken with her!  The guy in the picture below said he thought she was very beautiful.  Lucy’s cough is getting better, but it seems like she coughs in the mornings.

It was 90 degrees today in Guangzhou and a ton of humidity…kind of like Alabama.  But it was a sunny day here and that always lifts my spirits.  Tomorrow we are taking Lucy’s sunglasses.  She borrowed mine today.  In Chengdu where she is from, they have about 20 sunny days a year.  So the sun is really bright for her.  She will probably be wearing sunglasses all of the time at home!   We had three stops today.  The first was the Six Banyan Temple.  You can google it to read more out about it.  It was interesting, but obviously not my cup of tea…hahaha!  Next we went to a Provincial shopping center and I thought the prices were a little high for my blood.  Then we went to the Pedestrian Street for pearls.  The guide took us to a reputable store.  They also sold jade there.  When Dave and I were here in 2011 for Eli, we went to the Pearl Market then as well.  This Pedestrian Street was where Abby got to pose for pictures and if you look back at Eli’s blog, you will see a picture of me standing next to a bronze statue of a little Chinese boy with split crotch pants on.  I had to go back there and take a picture of the little guy with Abby and Lucy! Hahaha.  Because of the heat and our ailments and the fact that Lucy isn’t much of a shopper, we drug through the day, but didn’t want to miss it.  When we got back to the hotel, Abby had had it and voted for McDonalds!  It was actually a very close match to the McDonalds in the US.  Lucy had not been to a McDs before, so of course we had to take her.  She pointed to the hot fudge sundae and I said yes!  So she ate that and loved the fries, but would not even try a cheeseburger!  We had to wait until 5pm when they started selling beef and rice and got that and brought it back to the room.  She ate that and we watched Chinese TV.  It is really interesting.  Then this evening we had a skype date with Erin and Neal.  The connection was really good and we were able to visit for a while.  Now we have to skype with Eli and gma and gdad.  It is tricky to figure out when both parties are available with the 13 and 14 hour difference.

I was able to ask the other Americans at the hotel at breakfast if they brought any antibiotic eye drops.  One family brought some and they are letting me use them.  My eye feels better, but it still looks bad.  The guide said we can go to a pharmacy to get some, so we will see how I do with the ones from the other family first.

Tomorrow we head to the Yuntai Garden and I am looking forward to taking lots of outdoor pictures.  We will also find out the results of Lucy’s TB test.  Actually, if our guide hears nothing by 3:30pm then that means it was fine.  We will spend the rest of the day resting.

Medical Examination Day!

No time to acclimate….we had to hit the ground running today!  Lucy had her medical examination today.  She had to go to four stations:  1)  general look over and listen to heart  2)  ear, nose, and throat  3)  eye exam, blood pressure, height, and weight  4)  TB test blood draw.  They take each child into a room and close the door to do the blood draw.  Our guide in Chengdu told Lucy that she would have to do that.  Lucy just smiled and walked in.  We could not go with her.  A few minutes later, she marched out with a big smile on her face and a band-aid on her arm!  I was very proud of her!   We will find out the results of the blood test on Monday.  Next our guide oriented us as to where things are within walking distance from hotel.  Then we had to meet with the guide to put the paperwork together for our US Consulate appointment on Tuesday.  We had lunch at an Irish pub, Starbuck’s, and dinner at a noodle restaurant.  If we eat American food, Lucy just sits there, and if we eat Asian food, Abby just sits there.  Hmmm?  Lucy tried Tobasco sauce today and loves it!  She puts red pepper sauce on her food!

The next couple of days will be spent doing some sight-seeing and shopping while we wait for blood work and consulate appointment.