Hockey and Hairbows

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Today was good but it rained most of the day. We started out with Mia sleeping almost 12 hours which we were very happy about. We woke up and had breakfast at the buffet here at the White Swan which was AWESOME!!! It has a ton of really great food and it is a nice time to talk with the MANY other families who have adopted. It is so strange here. It is like white person culture shock. We have been in Changsha for so long and we were somewhat of a freak show there – being white, Kev being on crutches and having an Asian baby—so being here at the White Swan (and Shamian Island for that matter) is really strange. There are adoptive families everywhere and it is really fun to be able to talk with them and to hear their stories.

After breakfast we went on a tour of some old folk art place (see pictures) and then we went to buy Mia her tea set. We came back to the hotel for Mia’s nap and she slept for about 2 hours and then we went to dinner. We ate at a Thai food restaurant and then did a little shopping before coming back to the hotel and putting Mia to bed. She had a little trouble going to bed. I think she may be a pacifier baby as she tried to comfort herself by sucking on her clothes or anything but once she almost falls asleep and the material falls away from her, she wakes up and cries. I think I may try a pacifier tomorrow night but I don’t want to get her use to it. If she takes to it I will only so it for bed time.

Shopping is great. Kev is already sick of it but I have a lot more to do tomorrow. You can get a leather pair of Mary Janes for little for around $3 USD. It is so cheap it is crazy. Also, the cute little traditional baby dresses that many of the families get for the “Red Couch” photo are only like $5 USD. I love the prices but Kev will be putting a stop to the spending money thing very soon.

Mia is doing great!! She seemed a little tired today but is still the happiest baby alive. She is just as cute as can be and people are constantly telling us how cute she is—we totally agree!! I am starting to work on her fine motor control. She does not reach for things in front of her and hold them in her hands yet. When she grabs onto things it is like she doesn’t know she has then and she wildly flings whatever it is around. I’m not sure where they should be with this area but I am trying to work at her grabbing things in front of her.

Tomorrow we have her medical exam at 11am. After that it is a free day. If it is not raining we may take Mia to the pool. We think she will like the water—she better as we have a pool and pretty much the whole summer is spent in the water. I met some more people who have been following my blog. It is always fun when they ask if I am Christy. I also got to meet Carolyn who I communicated with a lot before we left. We met her husband and son. They are really nice people. I just love that so many people were supporting us during our journey. Anyway, I’m going to go to bed now. I will write more tomorrow. Enjoy the pictures and the video.

Ethan and Owen, We hope you are having fun with grandma and grandpa Bock. We only have about 5 days left until we get to see you. We bought some really cool things for you both today. We think you are going to LOVE them but I can’t give you any hints about what they are. It is a surprise!! Anyway, we love you soooooooo much and we miss you more than you know. You boys are constantly in our thoughts and we are so looking forward to seeing you in a short 5 days. Plus, on Friday you get to leave school at half day to come see us at the airport--- YAAAA!!!! Lucky you!!! Tell Mr. Kooyman and Ms. Serl Hi for us. We love you boys—love mom and dad!