Day 8 in China

Wow! Day 8 already! Its amazing how slow the time goes prior to traveling to China, in comparison with how fast it goes once you are here! Today, we all took our kids back to the clinic to have their TB tests read. Kimi's was negative (Thank you, Lord!) Then, our group walked over the bridge off Shamian Island through the marketplace all the way to the pearl market. We saw some of the foods people eat here - some of the most unusual mushrooms, ants, scorpions (used for making soup - they remove the venomous stingers and cook them - supposed to be good for rheumatism). I have attached a few photos and video. We ate lunch at McDonald's (had to have something American after seeing all those critters) and then finally, got to do some shopping at Jordon's! Then, a bunch of us went to the Chinese Restaurant down from the White Swan Hotel. (Barb and Pam - you might recall this restaurant: it is the one with all the strange critters in bins - can you believe we actually ate there??) But it was fun - ate with chopsticks and chose items on the menu we were somewhat familiar with. Trust me - it was nothing like China Buffet! While we were at the restaurant, Kimi sat there and kept giggling - not exactly sure why. But she enjoyed watching the other kids in our group. Afterward, we went to Lucy's and had apple pie ala mode! Kimi actually ate some "rice powder" mixed in with her formula today - not much, though; about 1/4 bottle. But it was THAT much. And this afternoon, Kimi sat on the floor of our room playing with a crinkly red bag - putting toys in it and dumping them out. You could almost see her little brain making lots of new connections! It is like watching a baby develop in "fast forward" mode. She has come so far in the last 8 days! She still shuts down every so often; but those times are starting to be fewer than the times she is interacting with us and others.