Better than I expected

With our day starting off going to the physical exam and Wan Yun getting shots, then finding out she does have an ear infection and can't swim, I was expecting disaster.

The training we had to do online for the Hague Convention stressed doing things in 2 hour shifts - studying/working on project, food, then physical activity.

I try to keep that going. Wan Yun has yet to turn down any snack, some foods she HATES, but if she likes it, she will eat it, like 3 eggs!

Swimming had been a great way to break up the afternoon, but I had put a stop to it in Nanchang when I realized there did not seem to be any chlorine in the pool and the only other swimmer that day continued to spit in the water! GROSS!! Did not want that germ!

So we were excited to get to the Holiday Inn and swimming again. Got the boogie boards and floaties all packed from Nanchang.

Then with the ear infection and instructions to keep her quiet and rested after immunizations that was lost.

So I did the next best thing with a long bath.

I was posting while they were taking it.

It got way too quiet in there so I went to check. They had about an inch of water on the floor from rinsing their hair (why would you have a hand held sprayer on a tub?) and had used almost a bar of soap blowing bubbles! Grace made the biggest bubbles I have ever seen using her thumb and forefinger and soap! Had to be 24" across, no kidding!

They finally finished up and I got them both comfortable clothes and Wan Yun a robe (she is always so cold) and turned back the covers and put them both in bed with the TV on The Monkey King. Gave them each a special snack and a glass of water. They acted like I had treated them like princesses.

I took a very short nap, then with them feeling ok about things, went shopping down on the street for a while.

I brought back big tubs of instant noodles, some odd pastries from a bakery, shrimp flavored chips, and some gross looking beef jerkey! Plus the new clothes I had bought them. They felt like they had hit the mother lode!

After that meal Grace wanted us to play a game as a family.

So what better family game than WAR! with Disney princess cards.

At least each of them won once, then we went looking for ice cream, Wan Yun's first English words!

We found a book store.

It is tricky to shop on these streets because the really good places are upstairs and you would miss them by all the loud noise and distractions on the ground level.

Wan Yun went straight to a Student's Chinese to English Dictionary, the large economy one, and wanted to buy it. I showed her the smaller ones, but since she also failed her vision test realized the larger words were going to be needed. We bought several other Chinese books for her and some workbooks for her to drill Grace in Chinese. Poor Grace doesn't have a chance!

We finally got our ice cream and everyone was so tired they didn't think they could make the block back!

After they were in bed and I was through with my shower and starting to type, I realized that Grace was sniffing. At first I thought it was the temperature extremes and all the rain and in and out. But no she was crying.

She told me they had looked at all the pictures on the camera while I was out and that Wan Yun had seen her foster parents. She was concerned that would make her sad.

But late at night, it was Grace who was sad. She cried and cried about her foster mother. I told her I cannot explain how they decided she was suitable for adoption but I knew she belonged to me.

I told her we don't know what it all means yet.

I assured her that God was in control and that He knew she could accomplish great things.

It might be she is to be a teacher of someone who ends up inventing cures for all types of illnesses. That we might not know in our lifetimes, but that I loved her so much and could not do with out her.

I told her I was so sorry that she has gone through so much in her very short life and that I cannot comprehend what she has experienced, but am so sorry that she is sad.

A good scratching of her back seemed to help and she is fast asleep. Which is where I need to be too!

Tomorrow morning at 10:00 we go to the American Consulate. $400 for a visa for Wan Yun. But she will also be a US citizen when we arrive in LA. That's a good thing.

But for me to have feared the worst for the day, it ended up so much better than I ever expected. We actually felt like a family today. The number of NOs greatly diminished and we all laughed and had fun. Thank you Lord!