First full day in Guangzhou

It was an early morning after getting in so late last night. Grace and Sam were not ready to get up. But they got moving, we got breakfast and then it was off to the clinic for Sam's medical exam. He did really good. He is so ticklish that he laughed through most of the exam even laying there buck naked in front of two doctors. Then they take him into a room and draw blood and bring him back out to us. He came out smiling...not a tear was shed. What a brave little guy! Between breakfast and the clinic, we finally started meeting some other adopted families. Your time in province can be so lonely if you there are not other families adopting from that orphanage (thank God for the Pellegrino's and Ellis' when we got Claire). Then we went back to the room with our guide and got all the necessary paperwork together. After that, it was off to McDonald's for lunch and then a little souvenir shopping. That made Grace's day. She has been chomping at the bit to do a little bartering. Sam was really sweet. He got a few things today. As he was picking out a new yo-yo, I asked if he wanted to get one for Jack too. From then on, he picked out everything in 2's (can't wait to get them together). Then I ruined Grace's day after I encouraged her to go with us to the park. All the kids equipment was tore up and being reworked, so it turned into a really long walk thru a beautiful park...she was wearing flip flops...and...it is a little hot here. 

I let Sam call his foster family today to tell them that he made it safely and talk about his first flight. He continues to be affectionate towards us and today we noticed that he started calling me Boby (?spelling)...I asked about this and was told it means daddy. He seems to get more and more comfortable with us. He is very shy around new people and on Skype, but otherwise, he is a fun and ornery little guy. He really cracks himself up too. This evening, we hit McDonalds again...Sam's choice and talked to two very nice families. The one family form Georgia just got a daughter who sounds very similar to Claire.

All in all, it was a good day. The last time that we were in Guangzhou, they were gearing up for the Asian games and everything was on point. This time, it all looks pretty trashy. Our hotel is VERY busy. It makes me wish we were back staying at the White Swan Hotel on Shamian Island.