UPDATE

Today our only “engagement” was a mid-afternoon appointment to test the boys TB results. Thankfully they both passed without having to do a chest X-ray. We took the morning to go to a park that we had been to when we were here with Jaiden. The pictures are from our trek. Anything look familiar Jaiden??

TRIVIAL TIDBITS

· On this trip we’ve used planes, bullet trains, subways, taxis, black taxis (“illegal” taxi), metro taxis, vans, cable cars, city bus, and our own 2 feet!

· Squatty potty: I (Amy) try to avoid these, but have had to use 2 or 3 so far. It always feels like a first time, as you just never get used to those. Quite frankly, the western toilets (where available) are usually much dirtier than squatties…apparently the Chinese can’t stand to sit on them, so they “hover”and make a mess! It’s very annoying. Ok, I’m sure that’s TMI (too much information)!

· Toothbrushing 101 is coming along well. Unfortunately, now that we’ve established one method, it’s time to go home and learn a new one. i.e. We can’t use tap water here, so we boil the water to rinse our mouth and rinse our toothbrush. They still do a LOT of spitting since they don’t like the taste of Crest. Definitely going to get to the Dentist soon!

· Eric and Andrew (and sometimes Brandon) constantly play the “winner” game. Anything and everything can be turned into a race…going up the steps, getting to the elevator, etc. etc., so the first one there says “winner”! On the LONG trip home (in airports, etc.) we’re going to have to eliminate this game though, as we don’t want to lose track of anyone!

· Brandon and Eric enjoy talking at bedtime when the lights are out. We can’t seem to shut them up. And they choose to not understand what the word “whisper” means. I’m sure there is some good bonding going on, but Andrew is worried how he will ever get to sleep once we are home (as all 3 will share a room). We may just have to put them to bed early so they can get their talk time in. :)

· Religion: Brandon is being exposed to both Protestant and Catholic Christianity. So he bows his head while we pray…and then crosses himself when finished (just like Eric does).

· Airport security: If you want to sneak something through security in the US, put it in your carry on. In China, put it in your shoes. i.e. They don’t make you take off your shoes to go through security in China…but they will confiscate your PLASTIC toy nerf gun! It was meant to be Brandon’s birthday gift, so that was extra frustrating. I told them to take it home and give it to their kids instead of throwing it away!

· Being pushy and having no personal space is just a way of life here. And if you’re going to use the subway, you better join right in.

· Lots of people stare at us and some tend to stare at Andrew (the blond boy) in particular. Today some teenagers took a picture of him. What was funny though, is that the teenage boy who was pointing at Andrew’s hair had orange hair himself (not to mention several earrings)! We decided that if anyone stared at us longer than “4” seconds, we would smile and say Hi or Ni hao.

· God’s grace is sufficient…and we are so blessed to know Jesus! Adoption has so many correlations with the gospel… We are all orphans until we meet Jesus… We can’t reach our full potential without our Father’s help… We may have had a rough beginning, but we were chosen… Assimilating into a family (or into God’s family) is a process and takes time. Bonding doesn’t usually happen instantly…we need to intentionally spend time together. The future may be a big question mark, but we know Who holds the future. Walking by faith means continually stepping out there even when you don’t know where the next step will land. Yes, adoption and the Christian life have many correlations!