I think today is the hardest day I've had so far. Poor Jeri has been sick in bed. I won't go into the gorey details but she cannot keep anything on her stomach.
The kids slept well last night and we were up bright and earlly to meet our guide. We went to the museum, but mostly to shop! We got the famous Pine Tree artwork made of iron. I also got a couple of rather large paintings on scrolls. Hope I can get them home in one piece.
We came back to the hotel to check on Jeri and I decided to take the kids swimming. Let me just say it was a less than enjoyable experience. Wei Fu and Wei Long whined the whole time. They whined if anyone came within 5 feet of them and pointed like they had been hit with an axe or something. They would splash each other fiercely in the face with water, then cry when they got splashed back. I finally resorted to making the splasher sit out for 5 minutes. That worked! No more splashing, but plenty of very very loud whining. I ignored it to the best of my ability.
The other three had a great time playing in the water like they usually do. Towards the end our new boys kind of got the hang of it and had a good time too. I think we (especially dear Jeri) have a lot of hard work ahead of us. But I'm praying that I'm wrong and that social skills are quickly learned.
After a couple of hours in the pool the children were very hungry, and very vocal about it. Cathy, our guide, and I took the 5 of them to a nearby restaurant and they had a good lunch. I had Cathy tell them that I wanted them to rest for a while after lunch, and they were really good about it. I had two portable dvd players, ours and Jeri's and one was playing Automan in Chinese and the other was playing the Lion King in English. I propped up my poor achey brakey legs and rested for a relatively quiet hour.
Then followed lots of playing with loud toys, gameboys, cars, barbies, and cards. The two new boys are having a hard time sharing today. Much whining again and pointing and tattling and pouting. Again I ignored as much as possible, and put away toys that they couldn't come to agreement about.
Poor Jeri couldn't make it to supper so I took all 5 up for a quick bite. I wouldn't let them eat much because I'm determined no one else is going to get sick if I can help it. Again we had bickering in Chinese, and some sly kicks under the table. It's hard to call them down when they don't understand what I'm saying. I would like to explain to them why such behavior is unacceptable, but can only say "bu" and "bu hao" for now. Finally the short meal was over, and we're back in our room. Adam will stay with his mom again tonight and I will have the others.
Poor little Wei Fu got out his picture album of the orphanage and his friends and cried a little. I comforted him the best I can and asked Jesus to bring comfort to his little heart. He's watching TV right now, so I hope he is settling down and will be calm for the rest of the night.
To be perfectly honest, I wanta go home! I know you aren't surprised by this statement after I just described my day. I want to make the best our of the one day we have left in this province, but we don't have any plans for tomorrow. I hope Jeri is feeling better and that no one else is sick. I have a terrible head ache, but I think it's just stress. A good night's sleep should cure it!
Did I mention that Wei Fu loves to play dolls with the girls? He had an older girl who he really cared for at the orphanage and he really misses her. Wei Long makes his Automan beat up on the girls dolls and tries to take their heads off. They squeal and quickly take them away from him.
I'm going to upload a few pictures of the kids, don't be shocked at the sad state of this room. I challenge any one of you to keep a cleaner room when you have all these children and suitcases in tow.
PS: Even with the whining I still squeeze my sweet little boy every chance I get. He's a doll, and this is so unsettling for him. He is going to fit perfectly into our family.
And my sweet little girls are singing softly together right now. The most beautiful sound on earth. How blessed I am to have them. They are so sweet through all the tough times. We miss you so much, dear husband. I wish you could hear the girls singing right now.
1 comment:
Hi, a wonderful blog. We took our three year old with us to Hefei in February. It was really tough but once the photos were developed worth it. I know how taxing it can be...especially when you're sick. We all became ill in Hefei. At least the Holiday Inn is nice! All the best!
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