Walking the Streets Here!

It is so fascinating to walk the streets here. Tiny shops are squeezed together. Some sell sodas & snacks....others electronics. The streets are filled with people, bikes, and buses. It is a town that is truly alive! I love the smell here. The balmy weather assaults you when you walk outside. Perhaps the moisture in the air heightens ones' sense of smell. What you do also notice even in a large city like this is the absence of small children. You will see families milling about together but always there is always just one child with them. Our guide said that before the 'one child' policy it was customary to have large families. So, my sense that the Chinese love children wasn't just fantasy. The suggestions that our guide has given to me in regard to Hannah eating has been so helpful. This morning for breakfast she ate non-stop for about 30 minutes. I was stunned! Several people commented on how much she was eating. She loves miso soup and the rice mixture. She goes to town on hard boiled egg yolks and friend eggs. She's tried everything I give her but always sticks her tongue out first to get an idea of what I am sending her way! ha! Several of you have asked if she is eating by herself.....in a word---NO! It's as if she isn't even sure what to do when you put something in front of her. The beauty of this is that I am able to start from scratch and help her---coax her, if you will, to eat. We do a lot of hand clapping and praise when she does eat. I commented to our guide that she doesn't seem to even know what food is. I told her that the report I got on her made it sound as if she was more advanced regarding food. The guide gently reminded me to think about it......she's been living on rice porridge...she doesn't know how to feed herself. It only makes sense that if no one has taken the time to show her how to eat and amounts to eat then she wouldn't know. How could she? How could any of us, for that matter, know how to do anything if someone hadn't taken the time to nurture us in that area. I am enjoying that with Hannah so much. I remember how I loved teaching Ian to do things such as eat, clap, sing, and point for the first time....what is awesome is that I am on that same path again. Now I know why my mother-in-law had 7 (yes SEVEN) kids. There is such a source of pleasure in teaching your kids to thrive & live & love life.

I commented also to the guide that Hannah's head sweats so much. It is really the most bizarre thing I have ever seen. The guide said, "Oh, that is because she is malnourished." My heart literally sank when she made the comment. Her tone was so matter of fact & so certain. "How would you know that", I asked. She responded, "Well, I have heard it so often adoptive parents and the doctors here say that is one sign of being malnourished. It shows a deficit in calcium for one. Also, the actual texture of her hair is so strange...I have found out also that it is nutrition related....we've got to get this little girl back & bring her full speed ahead w/ good food and a lot of TLC. ha!!!

I have heard so many people who come overseas say that once you actually meet the girls and see the need you would take a dozen home if you could. I now understand what they meant. It seems so wrong in a world that has so much for any kid to not be nurtured, fed---taught to eat, cuddled and applauded. It seems so strange that this really does exist. I know that I am just blabbing at this point but my heart literally ached when she said that Hannah was malnourished. I can't wait for you to meet her. Everyday she is blooming....it's like that fearful downward gaze of a girl is vanishing and Hannah is coming out. I am so glad that we proceeded forward with coming to get her. We've only had her a few days and I'm already noticing the most unique things about her. For one, her smell is so wonderful. Her giggle (when it does come out) is so funny. I could go on and on. Ian is really taking to her....and now....she looks for him wherever he goes!!!! Last night I gave her a foot massage---because Ian loves that I thought I'd try in on Hannah. We used the lemon-ginger blend here in the hotel. (which by the way, this place is a palace...WOW) Anyway, I went to rub that on her toes...letting her smell it first and I kid you not...she just seemed to melt. It amazed me. You know, all of this has actually strengthed my faith. What do I mean? Well, sometimes I think (especially when problems enter my life) does God really love me? Does He really even have a good plan like the Bible says? Then I think....get real, Judy....if you love this little gal and you are a human...you didn't even know her before days ago....and yet you've planned so much for her and prepared so much....well, how much more must God be able to love you & people. I look around this hotel....a hotel with marble floors, walls, and decorative hallways. I enter the lobby with a new flower display each day and orchids lining the steps.....I wipe her mouth off at breakfast on seriously starched linen napkins (we joke they could be weapons, ha! They are so firm.) I think...how amazing little Hannah Mei was left on a cement slab & I have since learned that she received the most basic of care...and now I think...oh, my! She has me (and Brent, too) who are so honored that we get the chance to rear her. I just hope we can help her thrive. This sure is fun. Much love from China!!!!