Our first full day with William

When we woke up this morning, William was awesome. He slept through the whole night and woke up with a smile on his face. His first words were.... Ba Ba. (Dad in Chinese)  A precursor to the day. 

Spencer and Jacob were so excited to see Will in the morning, they just huddled around his crib. It really started out as a great day. 

We went to the government offices to complete Will's adoption. We left at 7:45 for breakfast then on to meet our guide at 8:30.

Breakfast was yummy again. The buffet was awesome. Will is having a bit more solid food. He had some rice crispies and totally sucked down 2 bottles of apple juice. This was great to see him drinking. He hasn't been drinking his formula very well. He'll only have 3 or 4 ounces and push it away. He woke up with a dry diaper, so we are pushing the fluids. Spencer had more noodles and I loved the steamed stuffed buns. 

We met up with Ellana our guide and we're off. We have decided William does not like riding in a car. Every time we get in the van... tears. Spencer and Jacob are fascinated with the traffic. Traffic kind of flows like a river and it seems the traffic lights and signs are more of a suggestion. Spencer keeps saying I guess in China you don't have to stop at a red light. 

We made it to the office and did all of our paperwork. The three orphanage staff were there as well as the officials who finalize. And boy howdy...  When Will saw is nannies, Dave and I were moldy white fish. He only wanted them and reached for them. It was sweet to see him so attached,  that means there is a good chance he can feel that way about us. And when we get home it will be total cocoon mode. 

When we signed the papers we also put our fingerprint next to our name. It was great and Spencer a day Jacob were fascinated, they also wanted turns doing their fingerprints. Ellana was awesome and let them do it too. 

We took some photos and also got the email for the orphanage. This is huge, we love to send updates and not many orphanages are open to this. When the nannies left, Will was heart broken again, but he recoved more quickly then Monday. 

I asked our guide where we were going next. She said, that we were done. Signed,  sealed, delivered! Every other adoption has required multiple official visits. It was so pleasantly surprising to done,  and with such ease. Now we had the rest of day to relax. 

We were on the 19th floor of the government offices and while we were in the elevator we were all chatting and Jacob was asking lots of questions. A man in the elevator turned to our guide and in Chinese said, "His English is very good." Our guide chuckled and said,  "It should be." We can't wait for Jacob to start taking Chinese when he starts 1st grade. 

Back at the hotel, when we were dropped off, our guide told us the orphanage agreed to a visit! We have been asking for a while and it was always, "We haven't heard an answer." So happy that the answer was finally yes. We think this is great on many fronts. First, we will have photos and videos and descriptions for Will. I know he will have questions later and we want to give him as many answers as possible. Second, this will be good for Spencer and Jacob, although this is not thier orphanage, I think they will connect on a deeper level about what an orphanage is. At 9 and 6 they are old enough to remember and process. 

Our guide told us that bringing gifts for the children would be  good gesture. Thankfully we are right next to a shopping complex. It's funny, in the past we have had a dedicated suitcase of orphanage donations (coloring books, crayons,  toys, shoes,  clothes...) this time we didn't. It was too hard with 2 adults to manage 3 children and 5 suitcases. 

So, off we went to go shopping. There was a KFC in the complex so we settled in for some yummy American fare for lunch. William had some mashed potatoes and some fries. He was looking pretty tired and promptly passed out in the stroller as we were leaving. 

On to V+,  the local grocery store. We got a variety of toys for babies up to about age 6. We also got formula, shoes, socks and some treats (candy and nuts). 

We had a nice time shopping and looking at all the fun things. But so glad to get back to the hotel. Dave stayed with sleeping William and I took the boys to the pool. It was a bust :(

The pool was too cold for the boys liking and the shallow end was 4 feet deep, meaning Jacob couldn't touch. And everyone in the pool was wearing a swim cap. I know in China it is a cultural preference to use them and some pools require them.  I didn't see a requirement of  the hotel Web site, so thought it would fine.  But when Jacob got in the pool I'm pretty sure a 10 year old girl was calling him out for not wearing one, but no one else seemed to notice. So  with the dirty looks, cold water and too deep,  we looked for greener pastures.  Back to the hotel room to play...  Minecraft. 

William was awake when we got back, he seems to tire very easily. I'm not sure if it's just his stamina or just such a big transition. He will play for 30 minutes or so then just lay down or start to cry and need a snuggle. Then grab a cat nap on your shoulder. But not just any shoulder, his boy definitely prefers his dad. Even if Dave walks out of the room Will tracks him and cries the moment he is out of sight. 

When I tried to put him to bed while Dave was taking a shower,  he was having none of it and cried for the whole time. Didn't want me to comfort him, didn't want me to hold him. Just a sad little boy until he saw Dave's face. Then instantly stopped crying. 

This is not the first time dad has cast his spell :) Ella and Luke also prefered dad. I'm just glad he is feeling comfortable with someone. He has such a sweet countenance when Dave is holding him. 

Well, tomorrow is going to be a busy day. We leave at 8:30 for dingxi. It's about 90 minutes away. We'll stay about an hour and head back. I'll to take lots of photos.