Grits, Grandmothers and Grumpy

Francie continues to loosen up, smile, laugh, play, and be held by others . Both grandmothers got their first chances to hold her yesterday and Greg got his this morning. Francie keeps following us around and copying each of our motions. She is even starting to respond to her new name. It is so wonderful to see Francie become part of the family. Her contagious smile, little giggle, and gentle nature are so much fun to see and hear. And she plays well with Lee, who continues to be excited to be a big brother and take care of her. We're very proud of how well he's doing with his little sister.

The "adoption" events of the day were all done this morning. Bob came up to the room to help me fill out a bunch of forms before we left to visit two offices. The first office was to take Francie's picture for her Chinese passport (which was terrible as she was being abnormally fussy). Then we walked down the street to the medical check where she was measured, poked, and prodded. It clearly was not her favorite part of the day. We were the only ones there, though, so it went quickly.

The rest of the day was filled with play time, naps, and eating. After our nap, Francie and Lee were a little hungry and Katie seized the moment. We brought some food with us and have a small kitchen in out room, so Katie prepared some grits to teach our newest addition how to be southern. It started with Francie and Lee each having a bowl, but it ended with Francie taking both bowls, and the floor, table, and Francie's face holding most of the grits. She loved them!

Other than that, I was in a bit of a down mood today. I got to the point after about day 3 of the trip for Lee where I didn't see why we needed to stay so long and just wanted to get home to start our new life as a family. Katie and I are both at about that point now. Each day we spend about 30 minutes doing paperwork or visiting some office for a few minutes. I know it is the process and the result is absolutely worth it, but we're at the lull in the middle where I don't want it to last another whole week. We're homesick.

Tomorrow should be different and a lot of fun. We are scheduled to travel about 45 minutes outside of Guangzhou to a safari. We were told it is great and the kids will love it. I'll be sure to post pictures tomorrow night. We've really enjoyed everyone's posts and notes - thank you!