Home, and Benjamin is settling in!

It occurred to me that I did what some other folks whose blogs I followed did.....never posted after we made it home!   Sorry!  The last time I posted, we didn't have Visa's yet.  Well, I figured we were being told what we wanted to hear, that they would be working on the visa issue over the weekend and we'd maybe be home sometime this week.  I was sure surprised when we had the needed visa in hand on Saturday afternoon, and even more surprised that our travel agent got us on flights home early Sunday morning!!!  By Sunday evening in the U. S., we were home with our family.  What a way to end a trip!

Benjamin spent the first hour at home being shown around by Xiaoyu and DanDan....thankfully, they still speak Chinese fluently, and were able to make him feel comfortable. We were up until about 1 a.m. opening suitcases and passing out souvineers to the kids.  (They were much anticipated!)  I thought Benjamin slept the rest of the night, but the next morning, I woke up at 5 a.m., and checked on him.  He was up walking around the house....and the back door was wide open!  He'd also rummaged through a cabinet that I keep pictures in.  Xiaoyu said that he said, nobody was up and he was bored.  (He slept most of the flight home, so I guess he just wasn't tired.)  I'm just thankful he didn't decide to go for a hike outside!  We had the girls explain to him that he should stay in the house until someone else is up and can go with him.  

So the last few days, we've been hanging out at home mostly....Roger and I are both home this week.  Benjamin is discovering his boundaries...and isn't real receptive to some of them.  He loves the pool and especially loves the Wii!  He's buddies with anyone who is willing to ride bikes with him!

We have to wonder what his life was like in China....what his foster family was like.  They say he was with them for 2 years.  Benjamin is headstrong, and we'll be working on some of his behaviors.  He thinks it's cool to make ugly faces at me when he doesn't want to do what I want him to do. He likes to order the kids around....DanDan said he's not nice.  He wants to tell them what to do instead of asking them to do stuff.  She says if he'd ask nicely, she'd do more with him!  lol   It's been interesting to talk with DanDan and Xiaoyu about some of the things we're going through now ....it was just 2 1/2 years ago that they joined this herd!  They're doing so well, and their input is appreciated!  Roger and I realize that it's not easy for these kids to come here and feel like this is where they belong....we're just doing the best we can to make them feel like this is truly their forever home....and that they want it to be their forever home!  Overall, Benjamin is doing great!  He's 6 and he's a boy!  'Nuff said!   haha!

Never a dull moment!!

He's sure brave in the water, as long as he has floaties on!

He loves the Legos!

Riding a bicycle....I bet those training wheels come off soon!

Stuck in Guangzhou.....waiting on Visa......still!

Part of the adoption process, nearly the last step, is obtaining a Visa for your child to travel to the U.S. with you.....that's where the problem is.  I'm still unclear exactly what the issue is, but it appears to be a computer issue.

There are approximately 48 families stuck here....waiting.  Another 24 families are delayed also.  If this doesn't get resolved very soon, the families with Consulate appointments will begin to pile up, as they've been receiving their children here and elsewhere in the country.  It really has to be wearing on the people who are responsible for moving the families through the process.  I hear they're working through the weekend to try to resolve this problem.  We have to be patient, I know, but we can't help but worry....and get a little homesick.  We can't even reschedule our flights, because we really have no idea when we'll get to leave!

I'm counting our blessings....my toothache is staying calm, the family at home is doing okay, we aren't out of money yet, (we stopped souvineer shopping a few days ago!) and Benjamin couldn't be doing any better!  He's a super good sport about most things.  He does like to put the brakes on every once in a while, and I have to show him what mom's role is in this world.  :)  

Today, we took a taxi to Shamian Island to goof off....the hotel room is getting smaller!  It's a beautiful place to walk around...when it's not raining!  lol  As soon as we got there, it clouded up and rained the whole time.  We caught a taxi back to the hotel, and as a consolation to us, one of my all time favorite movies, "Matilda," came on HBO!  Benjamin is watching it with eyes glued to the TV!

If you got a minute, pray for all of the families here to get the needed visas so we can all get home to our families!  Thank you!

These two have bonded well....He would rather call her JieJie than  Gracie...

Been here so long my gel nails are growing out!!

Table manners???  Maybe....

Doesn't this go without saying???

Loves Tom and Jerry!!!

Rain ruined our day out!

Selfie in a China bathroom!

"Matilda" on HBO!  Funny movie....a must see!

We're still doing well in Guangzhou!  Today was our appointment at the American Consulate...where we take an oath that all the information we've given them is true.  Tomorrow, we should receive Benjamin's Visa so we can head home on Thursday!  There was some excitement at the guard post...some Chinese man was very irate about something!  The guards had to man handle him a bit and eventually sent him away.  I don't think they'd be so tolerant in the U.S.!  His butt would have gone to jail!  Made for a little distraction for us though as we were waiting in line, patiently!  It's super hot here, and humid....couldn't wait to get out of the heat.

We've been to the pool every day....it's fun to meet and talk to other adopting families.  All the kids we've met seem to be adapting to their families very well.  We've met some really sweet kids...and a LOT of boys!   I think everyone here knows who Benjamin is....he pretty much stands out with his friendly personality.  He's scared the life out of a couple of moms this week too...with his jumping!  Any time there's 4 - 5 steps left on a stairs, they must be jumped down!  Or, from the top of the slide, he must jump instead of slide down!  He's more the size of a toddler, but has the balance and agility of a typical 6 year old.  It's something I'm still getting used to!  He's a nut....cracks everyone up.  

I took the water wings off of him today so he could see how much he depends on them.  He wanted them back on immediately.  Ha ha.....big, bad, Benji isn't quite that tough!!

We've been pushing Benjamin around in the stroller, more for keeping him safe than anything!  He's so quick and fearless, and there's so much traffic and one of my biggest fears is losing him in a crowd.  He loves the stroller and isn't embarrassed to ride in it....so what the heck!

This trip, with the exception of a couple of days of severe toothache, has been awesome!  We have one more day, and most of it is free.  We're ready to come home....so ready!  Gracie has been an awesome traveler, and I couldn't have imagined doing an adoption like this alone.  She's been my third and fourth hand many times!   Roger has done a great job of keeping the family at home in check!  Plus, he's gotten a few honey-do's done, I hear!  Can't wait to get there....

Typical street scene.

I bet my Electrician/ET friends at work would love to trouble shoot this....NOT!  Noticed the burned out window to the right?  Yikes!

Little girls shielding her head from the hot sun.

Shamian Island sculpture...Ben fits right in!

He'll try anything!

Some of the parents were gasping...I knew he could handle it!

The boy is a LEGO genius......I can't believe how he can put together these kits.  By himself!

Brick paving.....beautiful work done by hand.

Remember Lucy's Restaurant, adoptive parents??

Benjamin wanted the mutton on a stick....jealous, Roger?

Beautiful Starbucks on Shamian Island!

Hotshot and his sword....

I wanted a couple of these tables that Starbucks had....couldn't find a way to get them home!

Another LEGO masterpiece!

Love the scaffolding here!

Buds???   Sometimes!

Too cute to be a boy....

Too cool for school.....

His finished project...

Kiss the Peking Duckhead!  Thought of you Greg Hindahl....hahah!

Remember when we had duck in China?!?

Today, Benjamin had his physical at the clinic....part of the process!  He really didn't want any part of it, and showed his naughty side a few times.  We saw so many families there with their children, and it was neat to meet/talk to some of them.  Children with various special needs and ages were there with their new families, most doing very well.  Benjamin was definitely the most stubborn when it came to cooperation!  I think it's because he's clever and knew what was coming up.....yes, a blood draw!

We got through it and made it back to the hotel.  The other family we're traveling with made it to Guangzhou last night, and it's good to see that they're bonding well with their precious little girl!

Yesterday, we got smart and rented a stroller from the hotel!  I know Benjamin is 6 years old, but he LOVES riding in it....(King Tut attitude here)....and it helps us get where we want to go faster...(less lolly-gagging!)

Yesterday it was raining, but we still made it out and about with an umbrella and the stroller!  Twice now, we've gone to a restaurant and over-ordered.  The servings are huge at the nearby restaurant where we have found to love the local food.  It feels so wrong to waste food...we'll get it right here soon!

Benjamin was super sweet last night....he snuggled up next to me on the bed while we watched TV. I think the back scratches I'm giving him have helped win him over.  I suppose for a kid who hasn't had regular snuggles with a mommy, it is weird!  I wish I knew what he did have....what kind of fostering he had....  Yesterday, he came up behind Gracie and started giving her a back massage.  It was cute....he's a ham!

The elevator doors....majically make you appear slimmer and taller!

Too much food!

Smart stroller and umbrella keep us out and about!

Treating ourselves!

Silly boy...

Snuggles with mama!

Laying on my legs....love that he wants to be close.

Taking an eye exam.

Yummy fish and noodles!  Tasted better than it looks...

This trip just got a LOT better!  We are now in Guangzhou, and it's such a beautiful hotel.  Everything we need is within walking distance too.  We went out this morning and got Benjamin some much needed shoes.  Unfortunately, when the sales girl put these little shoes on him, that are just a bit small, he just HAD to have them.  The fact that they light up when he walks was the biggest selling point!  They were cheap, and I suspect I'll be buying more when we find some that fit.  His foot is not very long, but it's wide, so not just any shoe will work.

He was posing with the mannequins, and wanted me to take a picture of him doing it!   lol  He's catching on real quick.  We just might introduce him to McDonald's today.  He says he's never been there, didn't know what it is.  (Through an interpreter, of course.)  He talks to the interpreter a lot...he wanted to know why he was going to America and not the other kids.  He wanted to know if it was a Chinese guy or American guy flying the plane.  He said he doesn't think he can learn English.  He said he wants to fly airplanes when he grows up.  I don't think there's anything he CAN'T do....he's very smart and I believe he has the determination to do whatever he sets out to do!  It will be fun to see what he grows up to do.

Every day, at least once a day, we Skype with the family at home.  The girls will talk to him in Chinese, and he's less shy all the time.  Can't wait for them to meet their silly brother...he is really a character!  Libby, I think he and Mason are going to be a pair!  Hard telling what all they'll cook up to do!  I see bicycle ramps, mud pies, and double trouble in our future.

When my toothache started to ruin this trip, I was afraid I may jump out of the 19th floor hotel window....it was as bad as, if not worse than, a kidney stone.  The only way I could get relief was to swish room temperature water on it, which I did every minute or so.  Our coordinator took me to a drug store where I was able to get over the counter antibiotics for it....thank God!  I am feeling so much better.  Danielle was able to read the instructions on the box to confirm the dosage!  No English inserts....thankful Danielle and Xiaoyu have retained their Chinese!

We started our shopping today...Gracie is getting good at haggling for a good deal!

The other family who started out with us will make it in tonight....I'm anxious to see how they are all doing with their new little girl!  It funny, when we started with the first adoption, we set out to adopt a little girl, non-special needs, as young as possible, and her name would be Jillian Lace.  We never did adopt a "Jillian," but have some very awesome other kids that we must have been meant to have!  We are so very blessed by the wonderful kids... birth kids and adopted kids, kids-in-law, and grandkids that we have!  It's not a perfect world, but we appreciate what we have...

Found this in the hotel store....won't hurt to use it!

He wrote  on his face with a pen!  Silly boy!

His new too-little shoes that light up!  A "must have" for every boy that gets to pick out his shoes for the first time!

Posing with the mannequins...

See the peace sign on the mannequin?

Making friends with a dummy!

Very interesting steaming job!

Need I say more???

Beautiful hotel....and kids!