Day 5 and 6 in China

Nanjing City Wall

Mike and Kimi!

Immigration medical exam

Good ole' Lucy's on Shamian Island!

...and NO, that isn't ME standing with Mike.

McKinley family

Corman family

Ellis family

Gours and Perry's (except me - the photographer)

Its hard to believe it is already day 6 with Kimi! So, here's the latest: Yesterday, we did a little more paperwork (verification mostly), then visited the Nanjing city gate and wall (600 years old - Ming Dynasty) and then went to the Nanjing airport to fly to Guangzhou. Everything happened so fast after we arrived. By the time we got our luggage checked in, we didn't have time to grab anything to eat before our flight was called and we had to take a bus to get to the plane, climbing up portable steps to board. The bus was SO crowded and it was very difficult getting two carry-ons, one diaper bag, one stroller, and Kimi onto the plane with those awful steps. Plus, Mike's knee decided to act up and he had a hard time handling those steps, not to mention it was freezing cold and we had packed our winter coats, not realizing there was no jetway! Poor Kimi - she was already fighting a little bit of a cold - and here we were, in freezing weather with the wind blowing, no winter coats waiting for a bunch of people ahead of us to climb the steps and board the plane. Not fun. But we made it. I gave Kimi a sucker to help with any ear issues as we took off. Then she fell asleep for her entire first flight!

When we arrived in Guangzhou, we again had to descend steps and walk to a bus. However, several Chinese people graciously helped both me and Mike when they saw I was handling a 3-year-old and diaper bag and Mike was having trouble with the steps and his knee. Our guide, Connie was there to meet us after we all gathered our luggage, and then picked up some more people from our "MAA" group in the mini-bus. Next, we arrived at the Victory Hotel in Guangzhou. Our room is unbelievable! It is HUGE! We have french doors that lead out to a balcony (granted: it faces an alley, but still...). It also has a faux fireplace and huge, modern bath! It is beautiful and we feel like kings! We pretty much crashed after that.

Today, we took Kimi to her immigration medical exam. She passed! We saw the doctor that examined Elizabeth back in 2004! However, since Kimi is three, they had a female doctor do the examination rather than the other doctor (who was male). Thankfully, kids older than 2 no longer have to have all the "shots" while still in China. Regardless, she had to have a TB test which really upset her for about 15 seconds. I was glad to get her out of there. As we exited the building, we passed an armed guard with a machine gun - yes, a machine gun! ("I don't think we are in Kansas anymore, Toto.") We ran into Jordan of "Jordans" and he remembered us from 6 years ago! He especially remembered Mike - he even remembered Mike used to have a beard! We can't wait to do some shopping in his shop.

We also put together all our US Consulate paperwork as a group with Connie. Our Consulate date is 3/2 - SO close now!

Kimi continues to improve. Even our travel group has noticed the difference. She still is only taking formula and won't eat anything solid; but at least she is getting something! And she is making good eye contact now and was looking to me for comfort (and accepting it) at the medical exam. She is also laying her head on my shoulder at times and wanting to be held more. Attachment is obviously going to take longer for her, due to her lack of one-on-one her whole life in the orphanage (based on what the orphanage director told us). So, we are doing all we can to facilitate attachment for her. Also, today, we were able to spend time with Paul and Chelsea Gour and their new son. She has been a wealth of information for me, as they adopted an SB child a couple of years ago! Most of our group also ate dinner this evening at "Lucy's", here on Shamian Island. The weather is great - in the 70's! No coats or jackets! In fact, we all ate outside. (Sorry about the several inches of snow in Indiana.) Kimi fell asleep in the stroller as we walked back to the hotel, and then she "lost it" when I went to get her ready for bed. She was really tired. Plus, she is still trying to figure out all the changes happening to her. Can you imagine how it must be for her? No wonder she was so overwhelmed in the beginning, and continues to have occasional periods of crying. But I have seen so much progress - especially since arriving here in Guangzhou. Attaching more photos - I love the one of Mike and Kimi; but I realize the quality isn't very good - just a sweet moment.