A different kind of World Market

Yesterday we went to a local market. It was huge and people were selling everything imaginable to make medicinal teas. We saw live scorpions in ever size, large bags of red skins off peanuts, ciadia shells (not sure that's right but its the bug shells on trees in the early spring), every kind of root, seahorses, fish scales...you name it they have it. It smelled like a mixture of dead fish, onions and animal excrement. Lily pointed out several things for the common cold, toothaches, headaches, etc. She would say, "You make tea and it very nice for ___." We have never seen anything like it for sure.

They also had a pet market. They even had a cage full of chipmunks. I wondered if they were truly pets or if this was the local fresh meat market for dinner. I'm thinking that one of those chipmunks could have been the tiny animal we ate at the chinese restaurant. There were lots of stores selling very nice aquariums and pans with of all kinds of fish lined the sidewalks. Lily said people really enjoy aquariums in China.

We walked on and ended up in a mall. People have tiny stores where they sell their good. It was sort of like a flea market at home. Inside there was a wholesale pearl market which was very interesting. We saw more pearls there than we've seen in our lifetimes. There were eight people with huge buckets of pearls they were putting on strands for $1,000. Lily said it was a very good price. They had all kinds, shapes, colors and sizes. Dale bought Rachel a beautiful ring and me some very pretty earrings.

While there Lily told us that Chinese women traditionally have only three pieces of jewelry. Dale looked at me and said, "Well, aren't you lucky." I certainly am! Lily has a necklace with a jade pendant her mom gave her when she was very young, a bracelet from her husband and another from her son. Costume jewlery and wedding rings are not Chinese traditions.

There is also a jade market in the mall area. We may venture back over that way and pray we don't get lost. We went down several alleys and saw row after row of those dried creatures and roots before we made it there. I'm taking a card from our hotel so we can get a taxi and hope we make it back!



Medical clinic followed by a trip to the city zoo

We went back to the clinic to have Bella's TB test completed. It was fine and although the clinic was very busy again, our visit didn't take but 15 minutes. After leaving there Lily took us to the city zoo, helped us purchase tickets then left us there for a couple of hours while she went to the US Embassy for us. It's 80 degrees and very little breeze so we were in shorts. The Chinese are still wearing long pants, long sleeves and layers. Being the only Americans there and appearing half dressed, we were as much a spectacle as the animals. People stared and pointed. At first that was okay but it soon became a bit uncomfortable if not annoying. However, there was a group of school children, probably at least 200 of them who would all say "Hello" to us when we got to exhibits with them. They also had rides there and Dale rode one mid-size roller coaster with Bella. She wanted to ride another so we bought tickets. Apparently, each ride had it own ticket booth and ours were not good there. We never were able to figure out how to get tickets to ride. Bella was fine with that because she enjoys the stroller a local store owner loaned us as much as any ride. We call it her chariot as she enjoys pointing directions and playing music as she rides.

Several times Bella had to potty and there were only two pottys one near the front and another near the back. In China it's customary to let kids squat whereever they are and potty. We did that several times. Oh how Rachel and I miss American toilets. I thank whoever intented the toilet seat because squatting over a hole in the floor is not my idea of fun. We did see several small kids with slits in their pants from knee all the way up then to the other knee. That made it very simple for them to squat and do their business then keep on moving.

For dinner we walked to Lucy's again. I ordered spaghetti and Bella went nuts for it as soon as it came. It was a huge dish and she ate at least three-fourths of it. They weren't kidding when they said she loves noodles. Lucy is taking us to a noodle restaurant today. Bella won't be able to contain herself!

I had to get stern with Bella last evening because she wanted to drip her chocolate ice cream. I made her sit down. We aren't friends now. She's ignored me the rest of the night. But she did sleep with Dale all night for the first time. As I've been typing this morning she's gotten up to potty. She pretended I wasn't here as she walked past and has now crawled back in bed with Rachel. We have a room with two beds slightly larger than twins plus a blow up mattress. I'm on the blow up and find it's the most comfortable spot of all.

Today I think will be very interesting. We're going to an open market where they sell all kinds of dried insects and plants they make tea from. We're also going to the pearl and the jade markets. We'll be sure to have the card in the camera today (left it in the computer on the zoo visit) and I'll let you know how it goes with both text and pictures.

By the way, our VPN is only working on the laptop consistently. We aren't able to do much to get access on our phones. It it improves we can communicate more directly.

Good gifts

I can't sleep. It's almost 4:00am here in China. The room is quiet except For the sounds of Dale, Rachel and Bella breathing. The events of the last few days keep rolling through my mind. I never imagined it would be anything like this. Of course, I had no frame of reference for this experience either. Each day has been full of pleasant surprises and new learnings about Bella and also about ourselves.

I keep thinking about Matthew 7:11 which reads, "If you then, although you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more then will your Father in Heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him!" As a parent, I have a new understanding of this verse and the power of asking God for a bounty of blessings. We prayed everyday for Bella's heart to be soft toward us and for God to prepare her to be a part of our family. He ABUNDANTLY AND BEYOND, answered our prayer.

Last night as we walked back to our hotel after dinner, Bella rode on her Daddy's shoulders for the fifth or sixth time. She trusts him more and more each time and holds on more loosely than before. I'm watching this when she looks at me and smiles then says "I love you" so sweetly. We barely understand a word one another says but we know we love each other. At that moment it was almost as if God said, this, like salvation, is an example of a "good gift" I can give. He can mold our hearts. We, who are evil, no matter how much money or power we have can save ourselves nor perform that miraculous work on the human heart. Those surely are good gifts. We have commented over and over about how God has blessed us with her. God is SO good!

Day 2 - Adoption Certificate and the city park

Bella is sleeping with Rachel and will have it no other way. Last night she had nightmares at least three times. She would cry and flail her arms as if she was being hurt. It made Rachel cry to see her that way. But this morning she woke up happy and smiling. In fact, she has not cried since we left the civil affairs building on Gotcha Day. What a blessing.

This morning at breakfast we met two other families. One was from Baltimore and the other from Sweden. It was great to speak english for a while without having to use hand gestures and minimal words. The couple from Sweden left today but we hope to see the Baltimore folks again before they leave on Friday.

We met Lily at 3:00 and went to the Guangzhou Security Center where we received our official adoption certificate. There were several other families there for the same process. It is interesting to see how different all of the families and the children are. Our Bella would definitely be one of the most outgoing of them all. She is full of smiles and giggles and just has a presence about her whereever she goes.

After we left there Lily offered to take us to a public park where Bella could play. It was off the bank of the pearl river and was a beautiful place. The trees were unbelieveably huge and looked to be a thousand years old. There were several rides for small children which Bella had to herself and rode There was also area with all kinds of exercise equipment, jungle gym equipment, ping pong tables and large spaces for some kind of game similar to hackeysack. It was working alive with people. We were the only American's we saw in the whole place. Some people greeted us warmly, others simply stared and made no facial expressions. It was nice but we did feel out of place.

Our language barrier with Bella is a little better today. She definitely understands some things we say and she repeats much of what we say whether we ask her to or not. She knows what "no" means but seems to enjoy pretending she doesn't. Haha! She's a pistol!

Dale and Bella bonded well today. He wrestled with her until she couldn't catch her breath from giggling so much. She thinks he's a big play toy for her to enjoy or abuse. If she's mean to him Rachel gets bowed up pretty quickly at her and scolds her. Bella just giggles as if she's saying, "I was just kidding!"  Then she gives that smile and we all laugh even if we have to turn our heads when we do.

She randomly looks at us and gives kisses and will say "I love you" without prompting. It's unbelieveable. The work God can do with the human heart is truly amazing. His love is evidenced for us daily in this adventure.

Here are some pictures from today:

The ride back from the medical exam and playing in the room