Hockey and Hairbows

 

 

 

 

Today we left our hotel in Beijing at 5:30am and flew to Changsha at 7:30 am. It was very early but it was so special to realize that we were traveling to the hometown of our daughter. It is very touching. The flight was fine and we met our guide Susan at the airport and her and the driver drove us to a grocery store to pick up some snacks and water. We then went to the hotel (Dolton Hotel in Changsha) which is very nice. It is a 5 star hotel and as nice or nicer than many hotels in the US. When we were getting out of the van another adoptive mother was walking in and Susan, our guide, was her guide to. She said that she had just finished a massage at this place right next to the hotel. She told us the massages were great and that she and her husband have been getting them almost every day. We thought that sounded nice so we got settled in our room, had lunch and then went to the massage place.

OK, here is the deal with the massages. We had a 2 hour FULL BODY- and I mean from head to toe to tip of nose and even the eyeballs and the sockets. I am talking about the most detailed massage I have EVER heard of or had. It was PHENOMINAL and get this- the massages are done by blind people. Kev and I laid next to each other in a simple room with 3 beds and the men get a woman to massage and woman get men to massage. They are AMAZING because their senses are heightened because they are blind so the field of massage is PERFECT for these blind people who would probably never be able to do much with their lives in China. So, we had a 2 hour FULL BODY massage and take a guess at how much this massage cost us? In the US a 2 hour massage would be a minimum of $130 plus and could be MUCH more but our massages cost us less than $10 US dollars each. It is just ridiculously cheap. Kev and I enjoyed it so much that we plan to have at least one more while in Changsha.

After the massage we walked around Changsha and it was really a neat place. Everything in China is beautifully landscaped and they put a lot of garden areas around for people to sit and relax. There were people walking and riding their bikes and scooters and lots of kids with their parents. It is a nice place (at least around our hotel) and I look forward to spending time seeing the city. Also, the hotel hosts pretty much all of the adoptions in Hunan so it is very kid/ adoption friendly. There is a play room on the 30th floor and one on the first floor. It is a really nice hotel.

So, tomorrow is the day!! We were disappointed to hear that we will not be getting Mia until 3pm. I guess Yueyang is pretty far out of the city so the Yueyang babies don’t come until the afternoon. We are fine with it but we are literally counting down the minutes. I am just so nervous. My stomach is in knots and every time I think about getting Mia I start to choke up—see I just did it again. So, we will get her around 3pm and then we will go to a baby store to buy formula and diapers etc. We will probably then come back to the hotel to play and get to know each other.

I need your help. Tomorrow is a half day so I don’t want to waste one of Mia’s adorable outfits on a half day but I want her to be cozy but the fist dress I ever bought her I always wanted to put on her the day we got her—so I am stuck. Should I put her in a comfy outfit or should I still dress her in the special dress. I am leaning towards the dress but I thought I would ask you blog readers. So, the purple comfy outfit for the half day or the dress I have been planning on forever? Let me know what you think.

Ethan and Owen, we get your sister tomorrow!!! WE will call you in the morning and then the next time we call after that, you will get to see your sister. I am glad you had fun at Jordan’s birthday (Happy Birthday Jordan -Ethan and Owen’s neighborhood friend) and that Cassie let you have a slumber party with all your friends—how fun!!! We really miss you boys. We wish you were here but we will see you soon. Remind Aunt Cassie to buy a microphone. Laila—call Cass and tell her what kind to get—she is confused.

Talk to you all tomorrow and by the way, watch your weight on the incountry flights. We had the same amount we had on our international flight and Air CHina made us pay $59 US dollars for an overage fee-- ugggg!!! It is like the have you caught- you have to take a lot for yourselves and kid beuase you are there for so long-- but then once you get inside CHina they limit your weight-- It sucked but we just had to deal :( No big deal. We got over it. Talk to you all tomorrow!!!

Christy :)