Flying High with Louis

We are in Guangzhou and enjoying it immensely! Louis likes that we can get out and about, and he especially enjoys the free stroller we rented from a store nearby that did an enormous batch of laundry for us. I can't post photos right now (not sure why the business centers here don't want to let me post to shutterfly, but maybe I can figure something out as the time goes on), but when you see the photos, you will know that we were out of outfits. John and I are always in the same clothes, and Louis is often in something different, but not necessarily coordinated. We were getting really funny looks today because I had him out in green and blue dinosaur PJ pants and red socks--or maybe it was just that the pants didn't cover his legs entirely. ;) We'll never know!

[Note from Treasa: Rita did manage to email me photos (posted below) but cannot upload them to Shutterfly.]

Shamian Island in Guangzhou is under construction for the Asia Games, which means we have to walk over some slightly precarious pieces of plywood to get where we need to go. But so far, so good, and Louis thinks it's all just fascinating. There are no bulldozers--at least not that we've seen--and everyone seems to be working by hand and not wearing any safety equipment. My shoes look tougher than the ones they are wearing. There is loads of shopping and we bought two Chinese outfits for Louis this morning. You don't pay sticker price here, so John is having a blast. Sometimes I think the sellers will be offended, but the guy this morning made tea for us after we closed the deal, so clearly there were no hard feelings--or he came out way ahead, one of the two.

Louis is doing really, really well. Our only challenges are not begging for food when we see someone else eating, falling asleep when there are so many more exciting things to do, and--this is the big worry for us right now--flying. Our flight from Changsha to Guangzhou on Friday was delayed more than an hour, and Louis was tired and hungry and not happy to sit still. We weren't able to give the children a real meal because of the time of the flight, which was horrible, and he really does need more nutrition than I can carry in a carry-on bag. He did fine with the take-off, although he refused to sit in his own seat--luckily the flight attendants didn't notice or care. But after flirting with everyone around us during the flight and making them all laugh (except for the man directly in front of us who glared at me whenever Louis kicked his seat), when we started descending, Louis started screaming and writhing in pain. It was horrible. Our friends on the plane said it was only about 20 minutes, but it felt much longer than that. He stopped as soon as we landed and settled in, chattering happily to himself, and loved the 40-minute drive to the White Swan Hotel, though he was asleep when we finally arrived here.

When we went to our medical appointment yesterday, Louis was an absolute dream, and John and I did much more complaining about standing in lines (crowds, really) waiting to see doctors who muttered to the children and said little to us. I was half hoping they would tell me Louis had an ear infection so I could get an antibiotic, but no, he's apparently fine. (The medical appointment is part of the process the U.S. requires as we wait for our little boy's visa to come home with us.) Louis didn't cry, even when they stuck him with the needle for the TB test. He chatted with the other waiters, offered them empty cookie wrappers, and generally had a good time.

The White Swan is a beautiful hotel with the most amazing breakfast buffet I have ever experienced. Louis loves the omelet bar and he was happy they had fresh mandarin oranges this morning. He loves peeling and eating them. We know he's finished when he throws an orange segment on the floor. His signals are getting easier to read! Our hotel room here is even less childsafe than the one in Changsha (there are marble floors in the hotel room and the son of one of the families with us here has a huge lump on his forehead from a fall), and Louis is thoroughly enjoying himself. We haven't noticed that he says any other English words yet, although his Baba thinks he said crab yesterday. He loves opening and slamming drawers and cabinet doors, and his occupation this afternoon was to take bottled water from a case in our room and place the bottles one by one in a cabinet. The hotel has a lovely playroom sponsored by Mattel and we have already been a few times. Louis enjoys it, though I think he preferred the smaller, less polished one in Changsha.

I am really hoping we can get some great photos of Louis here at the hotel. There is a waterfall and an enormous Christmas tree and lovely large coi swimming in the water in the lobby and all kinds of cool Chinese art. The Pearl River is just outside the window and we can watch the boats go by. Last night there was a light show over the river and it was beautiful. Louis loved it. He already has a Guangzhou T-shirt, mostly because I had no idea how many clothes a little boy could go through in a day!

The weather is warm and humid today, but it's a relief to be outside. Tomorrow we go back to get six shots (eek) and check Louis's TB test, which we're sure will be fine. He is really an amazing little boy. He amuses himself to no end, talking on and on, and laughing. He thinks so much of what we do is hilarious. He likes to impress his Baba and tries to repeat back what Baba says. Putting him down for sleep has become a collaborative effort because he wants so badly to stay awake, but he is a deep sleeper and he's getting plenty of rest. I can't say the same for his parents, but that's not our son's fault--that's the jet lag!

All the same, as much fun as we're having here--and we are--we are looking forward to having our son home. I am not eager to step on the plane, but I can't wait to get off our last plane (we have three to take) on the 19th. Hope everyone at home is doing well! I will try to post again soon!


These are photos of Louis peeling a mandarin orange, meeting the panda bear his Baba bought him at less than sticker price, playing in our room, laughing at Baba, a second one of him playing in our hotel room, on his first (unfortunately of several) flight, kissing his Mama in the playroom, riding in his rented stroller, playing with Baba and a big red ball in the playroom (note his fashionable outfit).