We got her!

Yesterday was nuts! We left our hotel in Beijing at about 8am. We arrived with about an hour to spare at the airport and flew to Guangzhou. We all were a little nervous about the Chinese flight. Nothing to worry about... it was nicer than the International flight by FAR! Relaxing, spacious... just plain nice! In about 3 hours, we landed in Guangzhou. We were met by our guide, the famous Elvin (he's legendary in the adoptive world). When we walked out of the airport, it was like walking into a bowl of soup... hot and humid. Guangzhou so far is proving to be rather gloomy and gray. The city is an industrial city, too.... so the buildings are dreary and not very pleasing to the eyes. Our hotel, though, is on Shamian Island, which was British run at one point. The architecture is more Western.

The White Swan is gorgeous and nice, but when we arrived, we had precisely 35 minutes to get checked in, run to our rooms, get the money exchanged, copies made, toys and such picked up, and drive to the Civil Affairs office. we were actually 20 minutes late due to the slowness in checking in. But, when we arrived, we saw Gracelynn in the next room. They escorted her in to us... and thus the adventure began. She screamed and stiffened up that little body so much I couldn't hold her. So, we all went into the playroom to chat with her and the staff. She eventually loosened up and allowed me to touch her (though with her back to me!) The orphanage staff (doctor, director, and assistant section chief?) answered a few of our questions and slowly made their way out the door while Gracelynn (Chun) was looking the other way. About 30 seconds later, we were asked to please get ready to leave as the office was closing! Leave? With this girl who still wouldn't let me hold her? Surely enough, as if on cue, she lifted her arms to me, clung to me and we were done.

Back in the room was another story. She did NOT like me touching her clothes and shoes. She's 3.5 and is potty-trained, but was wearing a diaper (to be safe). She also screamed bloody-murder when I attempted to change her. So, she went to dinner in the pants we gave her (after screaming at me) and her original shirt and vest and shoes. OH well. By the time we went to dinner, she was exhausted from crying, and so was Mama (just ask Daddy and PapPap). Mama didn't eat much, but Chun-Chun (her orphanage nickname) did eat some boiled peanuts and noodles. We stopped in at the local convenience store. You may have heard of it before.... 7 Eleven! We picked up some crackers and water (since you can't drink tap water here) and headed back to the hotel.

Chun-Chun wasn't thrilled with being changed, but we put her in some nightclothes and got ready for bed. I was concerned about how this was going to work. The hotel gave us a crib with a pull-down side. We set the crib next to the bed. I set her in the crib and then laid down in the bed next to her while Mike took a shower. Next thing I knew, Mike was done in the shower and Chun was sound asleep (sitting up!) Mike laid her down and we all slept for 8+ hours! WHEW! Day one was done.

Today we let Chun-Chun sleep till 7:30 and then gave her a bath (yes, she let Mike remove her clothes this time) and she went "niao-niao" (potty). :-) Wow... three big steps in 10 minutes time!!! We got her dressed and headed down to breakfast. She ate some fruit, bread and french toast while watching the boats on the water. Then we headed back to Civil Affairs. After a few papers, a notary question-session, and an interview for registration, and a photo, we're done. She's officially a Hollar child! So, Ben, Reagan, and Tommy.... you now have a little sister!!!

But little did we know, our day was not done with excitement. We went out to lunch with the other family in our group and arrived to streets lined with people... thousands of people! The Olympic torch was coming!!! About 30 minutes after we were done eating, sure enough... the "parade" arrived. Buses of athletes, lots of police, and ... the torch passed right in front of our restaurant. Mike, PapPap, the guide, and much of the other family went outside to catch a glimpse. Mommy and Gracelynn and Mr. Tellis (who was not feeling well) watched from the window above. It was something neat to add more excitement to our day. The Chinese pride was out today... lots of "China Go" chanting! This is one very-proud country.

We've been napping ever since and need to go eat... so we'll catch up on more of our visit later.

Christy