Day 11, Guangzhou Red Couch Photo

Hi all,

Today David and I took a bath together while Daddy ran some errands. We were afraid of how David would be with just Mommy, but once I ran the bath water, he toddled right over to the tub and tried to get in. We splashed and yelled, made bubbles and had a great time.

We had lunch at the hotel's Cantonese restaurant--goose liver in fungus (I didn't feel like chicken feet or braised bullfrog), beef with a long, delicious mushroom, bean curd (tofu), and steamed pumpkin. David loved the food so much he shoveled it in until we thought he'd burst. Later we scraped the rice and food bits off David, the high chair, table, and floor. The servers keep telling us not to worry about it, but it's still horrifying to leave behind. Kevin loves to pick up David from the high chair and say, "time for a shakedown!" He jiggles David a little, David giggles and all the food bits fall off.

David's sign language use increases daily: bird, done, mama, dada, David, please Chinese style), bath, fish, car, more, water. He says "more", "done", "water", "mama", and "baba", which is pretty amazing, considering his cleft.

We continue to meet up with the same families at breakfast or on the street. The families with adopted boys tend to stop and compare kids. And today we hung out with a family from the CCAI's Waiting Family Yahoo group--they're here to adopt their 6th child (5 adopted Chinese kids, 1 biological). What a nice family! And of course, the grandmother's brother is from Scranton...go figure!

Red Couch Photos

Today was also time for the famous Red Couch photo. The White Swan Hotel has red velvet couches, and it's tradition for new adoptive families to pose for pictures with all kids in traditional Chinese clothing. It always draws a crowd who excitedly snap our photos as well. It's sheer mayhem getting a good photo, as all parents are shooting away while yelling encouragement to their little ones. One of the babies always starts crying. Poor David had barely woken from his nap only to be slipped into a silk outfit, so we didn't get smiles today.

The Guangxi group we met up with in Guangzhou.

Other Kodak Moments I Didn't Catch

My most embarassing moment--not getting my butt caught in a children's slide, but realizing I'm a size 3X in Chinese clothes! Four shop girls were giggling while trying to fit me with a silk top for the Red Couch photo. They suggested I try a man's shirt! They did manage to fit me with the only one in the store...ugh! And I'm an average size American woman! :O Later on during the Red Couch photo session, my shirt popped open...ugh.

My most surprising moment--David's morning farts. I'm not kidding, this kid just plants his legs apart and stands still, then treats us to a symphony each morning! Is this a Chinese custom or just a guy thing? Later on he peed on the tiled floor and stepped in it, giggling.

Note to Scott & Melissa

Tonight we ate at the Cow and Bridge...yummy! But also try the White Swan's Jade River Restaurant (Cantonese, Dim Sum) on the 3rd floor. Here you can order decent-sized half portions to try a variety of wonderful dishes. And it's all still cheaper than lunch in Florida!