Wow, the days and time just slip away so quick. We arrived in Guangzhou on Saturday and had a pleasant flight. We don’t have free internet in the room (and I am not going to pay $15 a day for the hour or so I use it) so I have run down to Starbucks while she is sleeping, so this will be a fairly short post. It was Mikayla’s first airplane ride and she did wonderful. She didn’t care too much for being cramped up but other than that she did fine. I keep thinking of all the firsts she is experiencing with us (first plane, first time in a crowded airport, first time on a big bus, first time in a Walmart and McDonalds), just so many firsts and she takes them all like a trooper. She hardly fusses and when she does it is a pretty short fuss. It is nice to come to the White Swan hotel and see all the families that have adopted, some of our CCAI group that went to another province is here too so it was a nice little reunion because we last saw them in Hong Kong before we got the babies. It is cloudy here in Guangzhou, we thought the sun was going to shine today but it didn’t, we haven’t seen sunshine in over a week, literally.

Yesterday we filled out an hour and a half of paperwork for the US Consulate that our guide will take to the Consulate on our behalf tomorrow morning. Then yesterday evening we ate at the Cow and Bridge Thai restaurant, it was OK, not great. Today a bunch of people are having a few stomach problems though (us included) so I wonder if it was the food. Not bad enough to be considered “sick”, just “rumbling”. We also had the famous Red Couch photo, which of course meant a shopping trip before hand and then we also stopped on the way back from dinner. Stuff is so cheap here, like we got two traditional Chinese outfits for like $5, it is so cheap that it feels bad to bargain but it is fun too anyway. Starla got 5 Yuan off of a couple things which is like 85 cents or something.

Today we had our medical examination and Mikayla did wonderful and passed with flying colors. She is such a healthy baby. I do hear something in her chest from time to time and when she lays down (and she snores) I am wondering if she is a bit asthmatic. We will have to ask our doctor when we get home. This afternoon we are going to a Buddhist Temple, the Chen House (not sure what that is yet), and then a crafts place for… more shopping.

Sorry for the rambling nature of this post, just wanted to get the thoughts out there and throw up some pictures (I am behind on organizing them too), it really is crazy how quick life can get ahead of you when you have a child. Honestly, what is happening is when we put her down for a nap or for bed, since we are all in the same room and have to make it dark and quiet, we are falling asleep too. Which means I am going to be cranky later because I missed my nap so I could post to the internet So far the naps are my favorite part of parenthood, oh and the smiling laughing baby we have too.

Things we know about Mikayla: She does NOT like hats or hair bows, she does not like to lay down (even right after waking up if you try to lay her down she has a fit) and only lays down quietly when you are changing her, she does like to eat just about everything, she like headstands, she does like attention from other people but after a couple minutes does start looking for ma or da. She seems to be attaching to both of us but is a daddy’s girl, because of Starla’s knee she is not able to carry her much so I do most the carrying. She likes to look at herself in the mirror. Everybody just loves her so much because they all say how cute she is, and we must agree.