Baby+Stroller=Back Relief

Day 11

1/10/06

For the first time Sydney had trouble sleeping through the night. She woke up around 2 AM screaming and I got up and changed her, but I assume she had a bad dream. She went back to sleep pretty quickly. At 5:30 AM, she woke up again and this time there was no way she was letting me put her back in the crib. I was still exhausted and not feeling good, so a laid her on her back in bed next to me and the next thing I knew it was 8:30.

Our guides were delivering our paperwork and money to the US consulate this morning between 9 AM and 11 AM and we were not allowed to go out in case there was any question with our paperwork. Brandon and I weren’t feeling very good, so we were not able to get down in time to eat breakfast. Brandon has not been too hungry since he has been sick and I had to stay in the room because of the paperwork. Thankfully we did not get any calls, so the paperwork must have been in order. I fed Sydney and showered and since we didn’t need to be anywhere until 3 PM, we decided to take a cab to Shaiman Island and do some more shopping.

We went downstairs to the front of the hotel and waited in line to get a cab. When I got in the cab I said "Shaiman Island" and the driver had no clue what I was talking about. I had to call one of the hotel employees over to have him tell the cab driver where we wanted to go. You would think they would at least understand the English for the shopping district. I worried briefly that on the way home the cabbie wouldn’t understand the China Hotel, but figured I’d cross that bridge when I got there. The island is only about 10 minutes away and the fare was 17 Yuan or 2 dollars. We immediately went to one of the shops where a few people had bought strollers. Lori and I bought a stroller at home, but I could get one very cheap here and I’ve been having more and more problems with my back carrying Sydney in the carrier or without it. We sprung for the nicer stroller for 20 bucks and it was immediately worth it when I could put the back down and Sydney took a nap. I enjoyed walking around on the island while she fell asleep and not being hurried to do anything. There is a park that divides one of the central streets down the middle of the island and Brandon and I just walked around the whole thing pushing Sydney. I'm sure Brandon appreciated the stroller also because it relieved him of the backpack we use as a diaper bag and any packages we bought.

We did some shopping, mostly for gifts for the family and got in the cab at about 2 PM to go back to the hotel. When I said the China Hotel to the cabbie, he knew where I was talking about. We ran to 7-11 down the street to get some more water and diapers to finish out the trip when we got back. Sydney really did great in the stroller. She napped for about an hour while we walked around and did some shopping and was happy to sit in it and watch the world around her. I always thought she would have been much happier in the carrier if she could face forward, but every time I tried it she screamed because her legs were bent funny.

We met the rest of our group in the lobby when we got back to go on a tour of an old temple of the Chen family that is now a museum dedicated to folk art. The Chen family is one of the largest families in China. The temple was beautiful with very ornate carvings over all the doors and ceilings. There were different types of art work inside including needlepoint, bone carvings and a beautiful garden. It was fun to go site seeing again and take pictures and very nice with the stroller. Now I wish I had bought one sooner. We spent about an hour at the temple and they stopped off for some more shopping! I only got one outfit for Sydney, we mostly just walked around while she napped again.

We did go into the White Swan which is right on the island. The White Swan is the other big hotel many adopting families stay at when they are in Guangzhou. From the outside it is not very impressive, but the lobby is beautiful with a waterfall and huge koi in a pond. We went back to the hotel at about 6 PM and Brandon was feeling pretty bad at this point. He has really been a trooper going out feeling this way. I had given him the option of resting in the hotel, especially now that we got the stroller, but he would rather come out with us. Since he wasn’t feeling well we ordered room service and got two bacon burgers. They were excellent burgers and they wheeled the whole table in the room for us to eat on. I think it is the first time I have ever ordered room service. Sydney ate good and kept trying to crawl across the bed to see what was on our table.

She screamed like a banshee when I put her down for bed in the crib, but eventually quieted down when I sat next to the crib so she could see me. The dependence on me she has at this point is increasing and she still seems afraid that I may leave her. It will be interesting when we get home. Well tomorrow is the last day and we have our appointment at the consulate to get everything we need to leave China with Sydney.

We fly home on Thursday, the 12th from Guangzhou to Japan, Japan to Detroit, then Detroit to Raleigh arriving at 6:41pm. It will be great to be home.

Steven