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Suhui is feeling much better today. She slept until 12:30pm. I let her. I figured she needed the rest. I had a good night’s sleep also. 
Makes for a much better day. When she woke up, she was hungry and ate a huge lunch. Then she started complaining about her stomach hurting. I wasn’t surprised as much as she ate.
It was nice here today, so after lunch we all went outside to play. Suhui drew with sidewalk chalk and even ventured around the side of the house (away from me) to watch her brothers play in the dirt. After a couple of hours she started looking and acting tired, so we lay down for a nap.
I woke her up for supper. She was really zoned out. She didn’t want to eat, but she finally tried a bite of plain spaghetti and did not like it. We even had watermelon–a favorite, but she didn’t want it. (Wal-Mart has these great-tasting small watermelons for $3.) She was really out-of-it for several hours. She wouldn’t even really respond to me. I think that this is the first obvious grieving that we’ve seen from her. It’s a good thing, but it is sad to see her like that. She fell asleep on the couch for while. After a bath, she’s back to her old self, including the not-so-good habits. She did play with Baba while I worked-out. Yes!!! Thank God for small blessings!
We were busy traveling the last couple of days we were in China and did not have access to a computer. So I thought I’d post a some photos from then.
This is our family on the dinner cruise our last night in Guangzhou.
Suhui got mad because we wouldn’t let her run around the dining room, so she lay down on the window ledge by our window for a while. It was kind of nice (and quiet).
Jackson, Caleb, and Carter on the top deck of the riverboat. They had fun trying to jump up and touch the bottom of the bridges we went under.
Suhui and Youyou on the riverboat
Suhui and Mama on the riverboat
Views from the riverboat
We went to the Botannical Garden in Guangzhou on our last day there. It was amazing! I did not get to see all of it. Tommy had to go sign some papers that morning. I put Suhui’s stroller in the van because of all the steps–mistake. She refused to walk after a while, and I’m such a mean Mommy I refused to carry her 35 pounds all over the garden. So we sat and people watched while everyone else toured.
Many of the decorations at the garden are for the Spring Festival
Chinese New Year decorations
Carter, Caleb and Jackson
Caleb playing a drum
Our guide Rebecca bought the kids some food to feed the fish. It was amazing–the number of fish!
Not-too-happy Suhui–I wouldn’t let her climb around in the flower beds. 
New Year’s decorations
Suhui
Suhui eating ice cream
Suhui and Mama on the train to Hong Kong
We got to Hong Kong so late that we didn’t get to do anything. Our hotel was very nice with a living area, dining area, small kitchen, and view of the harbor. We left at 8:45 the next morning for the drive to the airport. We and the Hammond crew had to rent a 21-passenger bus for us and all of our luggage to get to the airport. Sad thing is that we really needed that much space.
Our 15-hour flight from Hong Kong to Newark, NJ wasn’t too bad. After 6 hours of sitting with Suhui, I needed a break and wanted to try to sleep. So I switched seats with Tommy. He and Caleb were in the row behind us. Suhui did not want Baba to sit beside her, so she cried for 2 hours! I kept thinking, “I would expect an infant or toddler to cry on a flight that long but not a 5-year-old crying because she can’t get her way.” She wasn’t afraid of the plane either–she was just as excited as when we flew from Wuhan to Guangzhou. After 2 hours of crying with Baba trying to entertain her, walk around with her, etc, she fell asleep for several hours.
After we got through immigration in Newark, we found out that they had moved us to an earlier flight to Atlanta. Good thing because originally we only had a 40 minute layover between our arrival in Atlanta and our flight to Columbus. I really did not want to spend the night in Atlanta. I was so ready to be home! So everything worked out perfectly.
On the flight from Atlanta to Columbus, Caleb was so excited that he was bouncing in his seat. In the Atlanta airport, Suhui and I had been looking at her photo album with all of our family. I was telling her in my broken Chinese that we would see them when we landed at the aiport. Caleb and I both became more and more excited the closer we got to Columbus. But Suhui seemed to become more and more anxious and clingy. Understandably.
We had many friends and family at the airport to meet us. My camera battery was dead, so I didn’t get photos. I’d appreciate any of you who did get photos sending them to me. Suhui met Eli and Titus first and then Granny. Caleb and Titus were so excited to see each other. Titus told us on the drive home that he missed us(Tommy and me) but he missed Caleb the most. Caleb also was very excited to see his best friend Robert. We spent a while visiting. Suhui was thrilled to get a bag of candy and GUM and also a stuffed panda.
My dear friend Angie not only cared for my boys and animals while we were away, she also did an home makeover. It looked awesome! Caleb walked in my bathroom and said, “What happened?” When I told him that Aunt Angie did it, he said, “It looks like she got some of those tv people to come here.” So, Angie, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!! I have been noticing new things for days.
Also, thanks to Linda and Angie who painted our playroom. Can you believe it? It is much brighter and pleasant in orange than in that dark purple. THANK YOU!!!
We left early yesterday morning to go to Birmingham to the International Adoption Clinic. Rachel was rather pitiful. She has a stomach bug. She kept wimpering and hold her stomach, and she throws up anything except tiny sips of Gatorade or Sprite.
This sounds crazy, but this has helped me. Her being so pitiful has brought out my maternal instincts. It’s easier to feel sorry for a sick little girl than it is for a demanding, spitting, throwing, kicking one. 
Our visit with the social worker at the clinic was so very reassuring. This is supposed to be hard, but we are going to make it is what we got out of it. Also, we are reading The Connected Child. This along with talking to the social worker has helped us be more understanding about where Rachel is coming from. She is terrified that we will leave her because that’s all that she’s ever known. So all of her behavior stems from that.
I read a good bit about attachment before this, but it has been hard for me to see this little girl as needing me or anyone else. Honestly, her behavior has grated on my nerves to the point that our last few days in China and our first couple of days her I kept thinking, “What on earth have we done?! And is it too late to undo it?” I’m sure this sounds awful to those of you who feel an instant attachment to your child. This is for those of you who don’t, so you will know that this is normal and it will come. I know because I’m already seeing the beginning of my feelings for Rachel growing.
I talked to other moms in China, some who have adopted multiple children. They all talked about how hard it is at first and the problems they were having with their children. But I just have to wonder if Rachel is somehow a bit harder to handle. I would look around and their kids were playing or sitting quietly while Rachel would be bossing, kicking, throwing, spitting, or burping.
God and I have had quite a few conversation about this over the past few weeks. I haven’t been too happy with Him in many of them. So thankful my Papa can handle me even at my worst and still loves me anyway. I have come back to the fact that He gave us Rachel because He knew we could handle her. He knows that we can love her and give her what she needs no matter how difficult it may be at times. I sometimes question His confidence in me, but He seems to know what He’s doing. (Reminds me of a Sara Groves’ song, of course, “What I thought I wanted, what I got instead leaves me broken yet grateful”)
One of the biggest things I got today besides reassurance that things are normal and we will make it was permission to ask for help. Our social worker told us that this is very stressful, harder than bringing a new baby home, sleep deprivation is part of it, and I will be exhausted for quite a while. She also said that we will need help for more than just a week or two. So I have called on all of my dear friends and family who have offered to help.
Rachel Suhui was so pitiful at the Adoption Clinic. She didn’t want anyone to touch her. (At our medical appointment in Guangzhou she laughed and played with the doctor.) We did find out something new about her when they did a renal ultrasound (routine screening with kids adopted from China because of the melamine found in the formula). The ultrasound technician kept asking me if anyone had ever told me that there was anything wrong with her besides her heart. After the third time, I finally asked her what she was seeing. She told me the name of a syndrome I can’t remember, but basically all or most of Rachel’s organs are on the opposite side of her body from where they normally would be. This can be part of other disorders but likely will cause her no problems. The cardiologist said that he sees this problem with people with her heart problems and didn’t seemed concerned about it.
The cardiologist was fantastic! He did an ultrasound of her heart explaining it to us. He was great at explaining her problems, the surgery that she already had, and the surgery that she will probably have. He was much more positive than the earlier reports we had gotten on her condition. We were told to see a cardiologist as soon as we got home, and we were expecting her to have surgery within a month or so. He told us to go home, get over our jetlag, and come back in three months for a heart catheterization. After this he will be able to tell more about her condition, and then we can decide what to do next.
This is really great news because Rachel will be understanding a great deal of English by then so that we can explain what is going on. This has been a fear of mine–her having surgery when we cannot really explain to her what is happening.
But we got even better news! Although Rachel’s condition is extremely complicated and she is at higher risk for certain problems, things are not as bad as we initially thought. The cardiologist spent a great deal of time answering our questions. Tommy asked him what would things look like if Rachel could not have her next surgery. His reply was, “I wouldn’t expect her to live too far beyond 70.” I almost laugh when I think about this! We were told that if she couldn’t have the next surgery that she would not live beyond her teenage or young adult years! The cardiologist said that he has adult patients who are right where she is, the same problems but they cannot have additional surgery. So we were extremely thrilled to find this out!
It was a long, but good, day. And I even squeezed a Target trip in there to buy Rachel some shoes and a few other things. We all got some sleep last night which is another good thing. I’m looking forward to trying to get into some sort of normal routine with Rachel and the boys this week. I feel like this is our first normal day since we’ve been home.
We are all safe at home and have had a restful day. Rachel has done very well today and I think a lot of our anxiety is down just by being home. We are still overwhelmed by all the people that met us at the airport. Thank you all.
Off to get Titus some chocolate milk!
Please remember us Monday as Rachel has an appointment with the cardiologist then.
We are all asleep (except me) in Hong Kong. Very nice hotel overlooking the Harbor. Hong Kong is Beautiful at night and I actually wish we had more time here to see more of it. Also wish we had a suite like this at the Victory (we were supposed to but for some reason couldn’t get one).
We get up early and head to the airport. I plan on blogging about our travel plans at some time, but we have a very tight connection in Atlanta again! Really stupid to plan that in my opinion Hopefully we will make it, and be home soon!
Some of my favorite photos from yesterday
Aaron, Youyou, and Erica
Caleb, Carter, and Jackson playing hackysack with some Chinese in the park
Rachel in what Tommy calls the “Nixon pose”
Youyou and Suhui
Suhui kissing Youyou’s hand
Suhui holding Youyou’s hand
Suhui smothering Youyou(I know how you feel Youyou!)
Suhui kissing Youyou
Youyou is thinking “Leave me alone!”
Suhui
The girls being silly on the red couch
Before Caleb was bribed
And after
The river cruise last night was lots of fun! Guangzhou is beautiful lit up at night.
This morning Tommy and Aaron have to go to the Consulate to fill out a new piece of paperwork that they are requiring while the rest of us go to the Botannical Garden. Then we come back late morning to finish packing, check-out at 2pm, head to the US Consulate for the final ceremony and to pick up Suhui visa, then to the train station to begin our journey HOME! We take the train to HongKong, spend the night there, and leave on a flight for Newark at 11:30am (hopefully) Thursday morning. We will be on the same flight as Aaron and Erica’s family, so hopefully that will help make the 15 hours more bearable.
Please pray that our journey home will be smoother than our trip here. We only have 40 minutes in Atlanta to catch our flight to Columbus. INSANE!
I love Guangzhou, but I am rather tired of living in a hotel. AND I am missing my home and my boys!
Rebecca is the best guide ever! I am sorry for all of you families who do not get to have her!
Guangzhou shopping tip: Shop at Jordan’s! We met Jordan in the park near Lucy’s. He is extremely nice and is also a Christian. He gave us a flyer for his shop and offered to write Rachel’s new name in Chinese characters for free. He offers this to all adoptive families. Tommy and Caleb went to his shop 2 days ago to have that done. I only went yesterday and wish I had gone sooner! Unless you are a very aggressive person the sales clerks in the shops here will drive you nuts. Jordan’s sign says “No harrassment.” It was the most pleasant shopping experience I’ve had here. I regret that I did not seek out his shop sooner (compounded by the fact that I was ripped off by a pushy sales clerk an hour before ). He has a good selection of clothes, shoes, toys, and souveniers at very reasonable prices (with no haggling). His store is a little out of the way of the regular shops but well worth searching for. It is two blocks west of the Victory Hotel (at the least the part where we stayed) and 1 1/2 blocks north, the road across from the main entrance to the park where Lucy’s restaurant is. I think it is two blocks west of the White Swan also and 1/2 block south.
Kim is out shopping. AGAIN! (retail therapy) Rachel is was napping. Kim wanted me to post a few pictures. We went to a “toy market” today. 7+ story mall that looked like Oriental trading company exploded.
After lunch we took some pictures of Rachel Suhui and youyou in the park and also on the red couch. Red couch pictures are a tradition in Chinese adoption.
Rachel and Clara
Rachel
Clara Youyou (yo-yo)
Caleb was bribed.
Youyou decided to hug Suhui
a Nixon fan! (very common pose here)
Rachel poking head around column.
She is watchign some new year special on TV and singing along. Her volume goes up each chorus.
Tonight we go on a River cruise.
****
BTW her behavior seems to be noticably better today. We had only one time that she HAD to stay in her stroller and wanted out and getting those new PJ’s off her this morning wasn’t easy, but she is learning. Our guide says it is good that she greives out loud and shares what is on her heart instead of being withdrawn. That she gets it out and soon is back to being happy. That is a good perspective.
I see Tommy already covered yesterday. Good, because I don’t feel like remembering it. I have a slight cold and didn’t feel so great. It was fun watching Suhui’s excitement over the animals. She yelled out at every animal “Beautiful!” When she said that about the rhinocerous, our guide Rebecca said, “Beautiful? I don’t think so.”
“Piao liang!” (Beautiful) is one of her favorite phrases. In the shopping mall she kept saying that about all of the clothes we passed. So I taught her “beautiful” in English. She also exclaims that over herself when she gets dressed, and we all exclaim with her “Beautiful! Piao liang!”
Yesterday morning and this morning I have been listening to Watermark on my ipod. Both mornings when I heard the song “More Than You’ll Ever Know” I thought of my dear friend Angie. She is staying with Eli and Titus while we are away. I know that Eli and Titus are having a blast. They love her to death. And Caleb is a little jealous that he is not getting to spend time with her. Angie, between you and China, you win out!
I have always considered this song Angie and my special song about our friendship. This morning it also brought to mind my other dear friends who help me through life and who have been encouraging me so much during this trip. So Angie, Linda, Kim C, and my sister Christy, this post is dedicated to you. (Hope the videos okay. I couldn’t listen to it without waking everyone.)
Something brought you to my mind today
I thought about the funny ways you make me laugh
And yet I feel like it’s okay to cry with you
Something about just being with you
When I leave I feel like I’ve been near God
And that’s the way it ought to be…
CHORUS:
‘Cause you’ve been more than a friend to me
You fight off my enemies
‘Cause you’ve spoken the Truth over my life
And you’ll never know what it means to me
Just to know you’ve been on your knees for me
Oh, you have blessed my life
More than you’ll ever know, yeah, yeah, yeah
More than you’ll ever know, yeah, yeah, yeah
You had faith, when I had none
You prayed God would bring me a brand new song
When I didn’t think I could find the strength to sing
And all the while I’m hoping that I’ll
Do the kind of praying for you that you’ve done for me
And that’s the way it ought to be…
You have carried me
You have taken upon a bruden that wasn’t your own
And may the blessing return to you
A hundredfold, oh yeah…
A hundredfold, oh yeah…
My dear sisters, I cannot thank you enough for the blessings that you have been in my life. I love you all deeply and am praying as I listen to this song that God will bless your lives a hundred times the blessings that you have brought to my life.
I am sure Kim will wake up in the middle of the night and post about today as well. But I will give you my 2 cents while I am waiting on photos to upload so that I can charge batteries for tomorrow and play at making another “video”.
This morning we and the Hammond’s went to the Zoo. We were driven around in a large golf cart kind of thing to see the whole layout then walked most of it again later. As we were driving we would see an animal and Rachel Suhui would squeal and say in Chinese “Beautiful!”. As we approached a lake with swans both black and white she yelled “OHHH little Chickens!!!” The driver was very amused asking why in the world she would think they were little? She loved the animals and we bought her and Caleb suffed tigers. She spent much of the rest of the day trying to scare people with her tiger.
Rebecca told us that she thinks Suhui developmentaly is ahead of normal in terms of intellegence and also that she is VERY bossy. We knew the bossy part! She was bossing the driver today as well yelling GO! She does get out of breath very easily and tires from walking very far. Heaven help us when that is corrected!
We came back to the island for lunch and all went to Lucy’s which is very near the White Swan Hotel. We went first into the White Swan to see the lobby. It is MUCH nicer than here at the Victory, but from all accounts our rooms are much better and cheaper. The walk between the two is only a minute or two. Lucy’s is western food. Suhui (hard to call her Rachel, because innocent lamb doesn’t seem yet to fit) showed a little of her button pushing or the Hammonds. she started by throwing her plastic chair then later kept eating flowers that were falling off the trees. Can’t really remember the rest of it. Kim said the hamburger tasted strange and couldn’t eat it. I guess the cheese covered mine. It was REALLY nice to have sweet tea.
Kim went shopping after that while we played “DON’T SPIT IN BABA’S FACE” in the room. Which is followed by how many kisses can I give you. Apparently pretty classic behavior to see what it takes to make you explode. We are learning when it gets too much to get away if you can, go in the bathroom / let her cry. At least that is what I think I am learning. I asked Kim if she for some unknown reason might have prayed for patience and this was our way of learning it.
We ate Ti food tonight (how do you spell that? any way it was good but Caleb had Subway…I think he made the better choice.
I just realized as I was putting some pictures into a set on Flikr that it has been a week. We have had this tasmanian devil of a little girl in our lives for a week now! Despite all the challenges I can honestly say it doesn’t seem that long. A week ago she ran arround a table and changed our lives forever.
Eli and Titus…I miss you both so much! I will not be too much longer now until we are home. Caleb misses you guys and Molly too. Tomorrow we go to a toy market in the morning! And I think (unless my days are mixed up) we will talk to you guys on Skype in our morning your afternoon.
Now a few pictures from the day.
Arron asks “How much do I have to pay for you to take this snake off my son?”
Caleb chose to take his picture with the exotic Dalmation.
Suhui dragging her feet in the stroller…a little trick she likes to do
I love my tiger.
The gang eating at Lucy’s
Naptime
new PJ’s and ready for bed!
I got a Sword!
Caleb has been fantastic with Rachel! He is extremely patient with her even though I know she must be frustrating to him. She stands right in front of the tv while he is watching. We move her and tell her that Gege can’t see. She goes right back. Sometimes she looks at him and laughs when she does it. Yesterday when we got back to the hotel after shopping, they both had to use the bathroom. She ran in the bathroom and shoved Caleb out of the way. Most brothers would have slugged her by now.
More commentary on the toilets: You adoptive families already know this, but many of the bathrooms here do not have toilet paper. They are not out of toilet paper. They just don’t have a place for toilet paper. They don’t intend to provide you with toilet paper. Are the European bathrooms like that as well? We have to carry toilet paper with us. I did find that you can buy small travel rolls in the States that fit in a purse.
Eli and Titus, there is a Mr. Bean cartoon on tv here. Caleb and Rachel are watching it.
Went shopping in shops around the hotel yesterday afternoon. Bought many dresses for Rachel Suhui in different sizes for when she is older. The traditional Chinese dresses are so cheap, only $5USD! There are many beautiful kites here. Caleb picked out a kite.I also bought a traditional Chinese dress for myself to wear at our Chinese New Year celebrations. I won’t tell you what size I where in Chinese sizes, too humiliating!
The movies we bought play in Chinese or English. Tommy put Cinderella on in Chinese this afternoon for Suhui. She loved it! She giggled and giggled!
We all four went shopping which we should have known was a mistake, but I think we all needed to get out. In the shops, the sales clerks are terrible about handing the children toys. Of course, with Suhui this leads to disaster. Tommy and I had to both pry her arms away from one of the kites. Amazing she didn’t destroy it.
Tommy had an interesting conversation with the sales lady. The sales lady kept trying to hand her things, and Tommy kept saying, “No, don’t give her that.”
Sales lady: “Just let her have it.”
Tommy: “No, she has to learn that she can’t have everything that she wants.” (And she wants everything she sees!)
Sales lady: “Maybe it is different in your culture.”
Tommy: “In your culture, do you let children have everything they want?”
Sales lady: “In my culture, children are very spoiled.”
Then she tried to give Suhui a cupcake since she was crying. Tommy said, “Don’t give her that. You are rewarding her for throwing a fit.”
Erica and I were discussing this later. She reminded me that since they only have one child they are frequently spoiled, especially the boys.
We spent some time playing in the playroom with the Hammond children. Suhui is actually quite sweet with Youyou sharing her toys with her and feeding her Cheerios.
Last night we went to the Italian restaurant with Erica’s mom, Aaron’s parents, and Carter. It was very good, and Suhui acted relatively good.
She is about to drive me nuts having to go to the bathroom everywhere we go. I think maybe we are letting her drink too much. If you have ever been to China, you know that public restrooms are not a place you want to spend much time. The bathroom in the Italian restaurant was a very clean, nice-smelling, American-style bathroom. I was thanking God for small blessings!
While we were getting ready for bed, Caleb looked out in the hall (I think hoping that Carter and Jackson would come out to play). He saw the Millers, our friends from the flight here! We went out to visit with them a few minutes. Their Owen is adorable! He is a BIG guy with a precious chubby round face! They apparently have had a rough time of it and were grateful to be in Guangzhou. We also met a couple from Wyoming, Sally and Chris(I think?) and their sweet little guy, Levi.
I asked The Millers if they froze in Beijing. Sally piped up, “We are from Wyoming. I brought plenty of warm clothes to wear, but I have never been so cold in my life!”
We look forward to visiting with them more at breakfast this morning. I told them they could find us because we would be the ones with the child who is yelling and burping loudly! (She burped loudly at our waittress when she came to our table yesterday morning. We are trying to ignore this behavior, but so far it is not helping any.)
Oh, I almost forgot (maybe I will forget all of the bad stuff)! We had a full-blown tantrum this afternoon before shopping. Suhui refused to get in her stroller even after I explained to her that we were going to the store in Chinese and English(she repeated me and seemed to understand). Of course, we were not about to go to the store with her NOT in a stroller. So we went back in the room and put her on the bed. She screamed until she began to calm down. Then Tommy kept telling her that we couldn’t go until she got in the stroller pointing to it. After refusing for a while, she finally agreed.
My mom suggested that we make the blog into a book to have for the future. I think that is a good idea, but we will have to explain to Rachel how rotten she was when we first got her. Then I started thinking about how rotten we all are before God captures our hearts. Then he slowly transforms us into the beautiful creatures that we were meant to be. Hopefully, it will be the same with Rachel. Tommy and I get to be God’s tools to begin the transformation until He captures Rachel Suhui’s heart.
I also have thought alot about the fact that God planned for Rachel to be a part of our family. I believe that He chose her for us because He knew that she needed us and we needed her. We can’t see all of the reasons we were meant for each other now, but someday we will hopefully be able to see how God’s plan has unfolded. Papa, give us strength for the journey!
We are headed to the zoo today! It should be fun! Need to try to get a couple more hours of sleep before then!
Love to you all! Especially to you, Eli and Titus! We can’t wait to see you! Only four more days! Caleb has so much to tell you about. Titus, I hope you didn’t wear Granny out this weekend. Be good for Aunt Angie, and we will see you in a few days.
Photos of Suhui and Youyou
Sharing Cheerios in playroom
Suhui feeding Youyou a Cheerio
Rachel Suhui in her dress from Aunt Sandy
Clara Weiyou Hammond
Youyou and Suhui playing together
Suhui
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