Going for Gracie

(Not sure why the date on these pictures is wrong, but today is August 11, 2008)

Oh my goodness! Gracie is taking a nap right now. Otherwise, I would not be able to be writing this right now. That girl is a wiggle worm!! She doesn’t stop. She’s bright, curious, and on the move. We’re still not sure how we are going to manage the plane ride home. We’ll figure something out I’m sure.



She is absolute doll! Have I said that already? We arrived here in Kunming yesterday, and were able to get her right away. Right now, we are all still adjusting to all of the changes, so we haven’t been able to do a lot of sightseeing yet. We will stay here until Friday, so we will be working that in. I want to walk around and take lots of pictures of her birthplace so that I can show her when she grows up. Life is SO VERY different in China than what we are used to. Of course, I knew that, but seeing it makes it more real. We have only really been here in Kunming so far, except for the day and a half we spent in Guangzhou. We will go back to Guangzhou on Friday and spend a few more days there before heading home. Both places we have been to remind me of New York in some ways. There are lots of tall buildings and people walking around a lot. Some of the differences are the cleanliness (or lack of), the traffic, and of course the fact that we are completely illiterate. I don’t think they have any traffic rules except "move!" It’s not so much that they drive fast as it is that there are so many cars, bikes, walkers, and scooters on the road. We had several near misses of pedestrians, but it wasn’t a big deal to anyone. They did say there are very few accidents, so I guess it’s working for them. I went out last night and was terrified to have to cross the street. Much harder than even crossing in NY. At least there you have signals to tell you when to go.



Today, we went back to the Civil Affairs office. This was for paperwork in which China made us officially Gracie’s parents. It still feels strange that all of this is happening this week. Today is the same day we had Hanna’s funeral 4 years ago. It’s certainly bittersweet, but we just feel that this is her way of shining her light on us. We are so thankful for the promise of eternity!



We will be going to Wal-Mart in a couple of hours. That should be a treat. I’m REALLY hoping to find some Diet Coke. Even though it still doesn’t taste like ours, it’s better than water. It reminds me of Coke Zero - just not the same. Finding it on the street is an ordeal, and then you have to pay way too much for it. When I went out last night to look for it, I stopped to buy David a drink. It’s very difficult to do the simplest things. Two children were running the store. Their dad was there, but they were the ones working. They tried to tell me how much. The little boy held up 3 fingers, so I gave him a five. He shook is head no, and held up 3 fingers again. So, I pulled out all of my money and tried to get him to just take whatever he needed, but I don’t think he wanted to that. His sister then picks up a calculator and punches in 3, obviously thinking that she’s dealing with quite the idiot. I still didn’t understand why they wouldn’t just take my five. Finally, she takes her money out of the register to show me exactly what she needs. The five I was offering her was like a half dollar (yuan). Duh! After that, the lightbulb went off and I paid for the drink. They got a laugh out of me. At least they have a story to tell about the goofy American. :)