Hi everyone. Sorry for the delay in posting again...we are indeed without a laptop so we're borrowing a laptop from the family that we met through Sunny Ridge...the Coyne family. We were with them in Beijing, we split up to get our kids, then we met back up in Guangzhou.
We had a fun time on the flight out of Chengdu...first, for whatever reason, they booked us on a flight out at 5:20 PM. We got to the airport good and early...3:00. Over 2 hours with a 5 year old in an airport...OY! Well, we boarded the plane late and sat. And sat, And sat. At almost 5:45, they announced that we would be delayed an hour and they brought the food and beverage cart. We ate dinner in the plane at the terminal. At around 6:15, we taxi out to the tarmac and sat. And sat. We had to have been 5th or 6th in line to take off with a landing in between each take-off. We got airborne fine and landed a little rough, but Anyssa did not have any reaction one way or another. We landed close to 9:00, had to wait for our shuttle and by the time we got settled in our room, it was after 11:00 PM! We had to be up early for Anyssa's medical exam and TB shot.
We had a fun time on the flight out of Chengdu...first, for whatever reason, they booked us on a flight out at 5:20 PM. We got to the airport good and early...3:00. Over 2 hours with a 5 year old in an airport...OY! Well, we boarded the plane late and sat. And sat, And sat. At almost 5:45, they announced that we would be delayed an hour and they brought the food and beverage cart. We ate dinner in the plane at the terminal. At around 6:15, we taxi out to the tarmac and sat. And sat. We had to have been 5th or 6th in line to take off with a landing in between each take-off. We got airborne fine and landed a little rough, but Anyssa did not have any reaction one way or another. We landed close to 9:00, had to wait for our shuttle and by the time we got settled in our room, it was after 11:00 PM! We had to be up early for Anyssa's medical exam and TB shot.
Well, jump ahead to today. Today, the honeymoon has officially ended. Anyssa has been a brave trooper through all this...almost TOO brave. Today, after breakfast, we were going to take a walk. We left the hotel and as we started to walk hand-in-hand, she stopped. She fought us and lay down on the ground. We tell her either "walk or you get carried." Well, she got carried and she started to meltdown. Crying like never before. We went back to the room and put her on the bed and sat with her as she cried for another 15 minutes. We have all been struggling with communication but obviously, Laura and I have each other, but she has no one to relate to. Bill, our guide, said it is especially difficult to communicate with her because she speaks a unique dialect from the region she is from...not straight Mandarin. He taught us "BU" which means NO...which we could have used a week ago. Today, we went to a nice park area and as we were leaving, she got away from me and started run. It's a game to her...she runs and we chase her. Fine and dandy until she ran into the street. I freaked and grabbed her. I tired to yell at her but she was laughing the whole time. If you saw how traffic is here, you would realize how especially bad this is. It may sound bad, but we are more than ready to get the heck out of this country. We are all going stir crazy here waiting for things to happen. Just WAY too much free time in an unfamiliar setting for us all.
Tomorrow we get her TB test checked out, then free time. Tuesday, we have free time in the morning, then we take another city tour. Wednesday, we have free time until 3:30 at which time we go the American Consulate to take the "oath" which we undestand to be more of a "do you swear that you did not lie?" thing. Provided we make it that far without a hitch, we head back to the room, pack and prep for our bus trip to Hing Kong at 6:30 Thursday morning. Then, a 14 hour plane ride home and we're back!!
OK, folks...that's it for now. Pray extra hard for us that this whole Consulate business goes smoothly. Once we get her visa, we are done. Then home. Home...what a wonderful, beautiful word.
as the days went by I kept wondering.....ooohhhh I bet they are SO ready to come HOME. I was curious if the family tht USED to be my neighbor speaks chinese.....just in case you need it??
ReplyDeleteItll all be wonderful when you are hoime sweet home. Love to all. Thanks for posting.
Everything should get easier when you get home and things settle down. Sometimes it's hard to tell what a child wants, no matter how old they are or what language they speak!
ReplyDeleteWow...do we know how you feel guys. Especially from our experience in Paraguay. Once you have that baby, you feel that the years of effort have just paid off...the race has been run... and all you want to do is get HOME.
ReplyDeletePrayers for all three of you for these early and normal challenges, and for a quick and safe return.