Made it to Zurich!

Our flight on Swiss International Airlines was long but uneventful and Leslie was a very good girl, hardly crying at all. We have our car and are checked into our first hotel. We are showering and will then go out for dinner.

The car is a Ford station wagon diesel stick shift with plenty of room for all our stuff and a baby seat for Leslie.

We'll post some pictures soon!

The weather is perfect today, sunny and warm.

Sentence

For the first time, Leslie put together two words to form a "sentence." When Bill dropped me off at the BART (train) station, Leslie said "Bye Mama!"

December Update

This is a very quick and short December update.

A few weeks ago Leslie started stacking the toy rings in order of size. She also successfully figured out how to put all the pieces of the animal puzzle into the right slots. It just seemed like things clicked for her suddenly.

She also started WALKING on her own last week! She walked clear across the kitchen floor, as well as the living room! It wasn't just one step, but a whole bunch of steps! Soon we'll be chasing after her ALL the time. She's an active girl. Many people who have met her says how she is "busy" all the time.

Here's a photo of us taken in San Jose near the Tech Museum. There was a display of like 200 Christmas trees.


Here's Leslie dressed up in her holiday finery, courtesy of her Grandma.

Sorry we haven't updated Leslie's blog in so long. Once our trip to China was over, we fell out of the blogging habit, but since then Leslie has made *so much* progress; we really should let y'all know (as our friend Brandi would say) that things couldn't be going better. Leslie can now crawl all over the place, can walk while leaning against tables, chairs, etc. and can say a lot of words. She learns more each day. We added "razor" and "floss" this morning. She has boundless energy, enthusiasm about everything, and hardly ever is in a bad mood. She even sleeps through the night! We have nothing to complain about at all.

Well, we could complain about one thing -- that Leslie will not keep her shoes and socks on! Here she is playing with her feet again.

Home in Castro Valley

The trip home from China wasn't easy just because it's such a long flight, but thanks to Elise's planning and insistence at the ticket counter, we got one of the only bassinets available on our China Southern flight from Guangzhou to Los Angeles. Leslie was able to sleep most of the twelve hours of our night flight, which was her normal sleeping time anyway. If you're planning to adopt from China, don't forget the bassinet on your way home!


After our long flight across the Pacific, we spent a night at a Travel Lodge near LAX and then went to Denny's the following morning. Here's the newest U.S. citizen enjoying her first visit to Denny's! (No, we didn't order her a Grand Slam or anything like that, don't worry.)

Together with Leslie's new grandpa, our friends Kahn and Veronica welcomed Leslie to her new home with colorful balloons and a banner. We had made it all the way home from Guangzhou, driving up the I-5 from L.A. after staying the night there. (Leslie adjusted pretty easily to her car seat. She had never used one in China, where babies are carried in the car on laps.)

And here's Leslie, sleeping off the jet lag in a beautiful crib from our neighbors Amy and Ed.

Flouting the White Swan

We've reached our final day in China. Tonight we fly from Guangzhou to Los Angeles, but there was one final piece of work that needed to be accomplished this afternoon. A little background is called for here. It is tradition for adopting American parents to take a picture of their daughter in a Chinese Cheongsam (dress) on one of the red velvet couches at the White Swan Hotel. The White Swan knows this and posts conspicuous signs stating that only registered guests may use the red couches. Leslie wasn't having any of that. She isn't a rule follower (as we've learned already). Leslie wore her Cheongsam proudly in her dirty and slightly broken down (and not very "White Swan") stroller, ready to flaunt the rules.

Yes, she owned that couch. Did everything but pee on it. Even spilled cracker crumbs all over the couch. Clean those up, White Swan!

Afterwards Leslie celebrated her victory on a plush Starbucks sofa, once again eating her favorite food, the cracker. Just look at that smug look on her face.

Guangzhou: White Swan Hotel and Local Park

We ate at a Thai restaurant near our hotel. It was filled with local people, with just a peppering of tourists like us, so we expected the food to be good. And it was. Leslie had to make a poop during the meal, which was a challenge for us to deal with in the midst of so many other people. We found a back room and managed to do the diaper change without much trouble.

Earlier in the day we visited the White Swan Hotel, which has beautiful indoor fountains, a pagoda and waterfall. White Swan was the first five star hotel in China and is very impressive.




In the early afternoon we visited a local park, where we saw people learning to salsa. Parks in China are full of retired people, kids, and groups doing particular activities like the salsa dancing. Unfortunately a rain storm interrupted the fun and we had to run for our van. Later in the day, we went to the American consulate for Leslie's swearing-in ceremony. (Cameras are not allowed in the consulate.)

Guangzhou: "Up-Down Nine" Shopping District

Today our guide and the hotel van took us to the "up-down nine" shopping district, named after the street where these shops are located. The area is undergoing renovations in preparation for the Asia Games. There's a countdown clock to the games (81 days remaining) and people are working feverishly everywhere, refacing store fronts, fixing sidewalks, etc. This district is a combination of outdoor street shopping and very large air conditioned indoor malls.

This is one of the indoor malls we visited, and it's devoted to jewelry. Imagine a mall, five storeys tall, filled with jade, pearls, other precious stones. And just next to this there's a similar mall selling clothing. There are also department stores that would remind you of Macy's or Nordstrom. We ran into some other American families shopping for baby clothes at one of the department stores and bought a cute outfit for Leslie while we were there.

This store was selling heavy globes made of precious stone. These could easily put us over our weight limit on the flight back!

We visited a jade shop in the jewelry mall. Elise bought a bracelet for herself and another for Leslie. Elise also found a nice jade stone that she'll have mounted onto a ring once we get home.

The shopkeeper didn't smile much until he had made his sale. (-:

Guangzhou: Visit to Yuntai Garden

We started with another large buffet breakfast at the Victory Hotel, where we are staying. Leslie likes the congee better at some other places we've tried, like Lucy's Restaurant down the street, but breakfast is really good and they have a self-service espresso machine.

We visited Yuntai Garden with our guide, Aron. The hotel van took us there. It was about a twenty minute drive from our hotel on the elevated freeways, which cut through some busy areas of town. Yuntai Garden is a water park with a greenhouse, man-made lake, many fountains, and lots of cartoon-inspired statues for the little ones to enjoy.

This is the view as you enter Yuntai Garden.

We had to keep Leslie's eyes covered in the areas that weren't shaded. She is very sensitive to light and will block it with her hands if we don't get her hat on fast enough.

Elise, Leslie and our guide, Aron, in the greenhouse.

Standing under the shade of a rock house that looks like it was inspired by The Flintstones.

Next we visited a Buddhist temple. It had been located in the same spot for 1,400 years. Two trees near the temple were over 500 years old, which left us wondering what California looked like 500 years ago, as those trees were being planted.

Exploring the Island in Guangzhou

Leslie started her day in a colorful outfit that was a gift from her grandmother. I bet grandma will be happy to see this jumper being put to good use on our trip.


Our first stop, other than an excellent breakfast at the Victory Hotel, was Leslie's medical check-up, which is required by the American government. This Chinese clinic works with the American consulate and all the American families who are adopting. It was pretty crowded when we arrived at 10:30, but the lines moved fast and we were probably out the door 45 minutes later. Everyone was easy going and it wasn't stressful at all.

Next we had to visit Starbucks for a latte, a Frapachino, and other reminders of home. The prices were a little high, and a cup of coffee cost the same as a latte, so we went with the more expensive drinks that we'd usually avoid.



We spent some time walking around the man-made island where the Victory and White Swan hotels are located. It was hot and humid and Leslie was uncomfortable, so we didn't stay out very long. There are many baby clothing shops, souvenir stores, restaurants, places to have your laundry done, and there are also many beautiful flower beds and statues. The people will stop you, ask if you're American, and want to talk. Some people have stores and want to direct you to do some shopping, but others just want to chat. It's pleasant walking around, other than the heat, but we've experienced worse heat and humidity in Mexico and in the southern U.S.