Day 2 & 3

The weekend is over...and so far today I've spent most of the day today in the foster home! Taking a quick break to blog during the naptime :) Sunday afternoon, after eating lunch at a delicious village restaurant (Mom and Dad, I'll have to take you there!) I got to wander through the village- go to all my favorite shops, get some hawthorne (my favorite China snack EVER) and mangoes, and see how much the village had changed since the last time I came! It was so wonderful. We went back to the apartment and ate our mango and drank some Chinese NesCafe. OH MY GOODNESS how I have missed it!!!! 

Even though Monday and Tuesday are a Chinese holiday- (kind of like their Labor Day), I was able to go into the foster home to work with the kiddos :) I spent a little bit of time up with the babies- holding and cuddling the precious new tiny ones that just came in. They are so so sweet! I spent the majority of the morning in the playroom with the toddlers, got to deliver a VERY special package to a special little boy, and played with Brooke and the other kids! I went outside with Brooke, Levi, Joshua, and Colton. They were TOO cute. Brooke was trying to climb up the slide and kept sliding back down...it's hard to pull all that weight up the slide!! Ha! I started sitting at the top and would have her grab my hand as she was climbing up. She would laugh and laugh and laugh...her little chubby hands were SO funny. We played lots of games outside and out in the sandbox :) She loves to be outside! 

The cutest was when I gave a certain special little boy a present from his forever family- they included a photo album of their family pictures. He was SO excited to see it and was flipping through so proudly. All the kids were crowded around looking and the nannies were also passing it around to each other ooo'ing and ahhh'ing over the pictures of "ta de jia"...his family. Brooke noticed this and immediately started saying "wo de? wo de?" ...Mine? Mine? I went to her room and got her photo album we sent a few months ago and gave it to her. She ran from nanny to nanny showing them HER pictures...proudly pointing at herself and saying "Wo de jia"...my family. I'm not sure if she's made the connection yet that I'M the jie jie (big sister) in the picture that she is pointing to...but hey. She's bound to figure it out sooner or later :) The nannies loved looking at the pictures of my family- they asked me what my parents did and I told them that my dad was a pilot and flew the big airplanes and they were SO EXCITED. They kept telling Brooke that "her baba will fly you all over the world...your baba will fly you back to visit us!!" It's so clear how much the nannies love Brooke and all the kids there. They really really love them...and the kids love them so much as well. It will definitely be bittersweet bringing Brooke home from New Day- we are SO excited to get her home, but know that there are so many people who love her so dearly over here! 

Still no pictures- so sorry!!! Coming soon- trying to figure out the camera situation. I think its the cord to charge it/to upload pictures that is broken so my camera won't charge at all. I've been taking some though!!! As soon as the fam gets here, we will have Allison's super camera that will take thousands of pictures...I'm sure! 

Keep praying for Brooke's heart- that her adjustment to my family would go well and that she will form a good connection with my mom and dad. Also that she and Erica will get along well! Be praying for some of the precious kids at the foster home- there are some who are sick and fighting off colds. Oh and pray for my family!! They are headed over tomorrow (Tuesday- US time!)...I'll pick them up from the airport late Wednesday night China time. They will meet Brooke for the first time Thursday morning! Can't even wait! 

THANK YOU for the prayers!!! More later and hopefully pictures soon! 

-Meredith