Didn’t have a chance to post this blog yesterday - we have a
sick baby on our hands, so my focus was on helping him. Here’s what I wrote, though:
It must be the middle of the trip, because we have all run
out of steam. I think Susan is coming
down with something, Leo is definitely in full-swing with a little cold, and
Caolon and I are just plain tired.
Touring a foreign country while becoming first time parents is a LOT of
work. And I’m doing this while pregnant,
which just makes for all the more fun.
Leo came out of his shell a bit more today. He started to speak a little this
morning. He calls me “mama” and Caolon
“baba” and also refers to his favorite toy, “ball.” Actually, he was quite verbal throughout the
day. Right now he and Caolon are looking
at a book together and whatever word Caolon says, Leo repeats. I think he’s a smart little cookie, as he
picks up on things quickly. He has been
waving to everyone all day (thanks, Holly!) and I showed him how to blow
kisses, too. He likes to push the
elevator buttons, roar with his daddy, and sing this funny little song (nonsense
words) to entertain himself. He still
loves to walk everywhere and he enjoys feeding me his snacks from his “cheerio
catcher.” You guys would be proud of
me. I am definitely getting over the
baby drool/baby boogier/germ issue I thought I’d have. There is just no way to turn down a
2-year-old holding out his slobbery puff snack for you to eat from his
fingers. One look in those big brown
eyes, and I am munching away, slobber and all.
This is the typical activity of Caolon and Leo. Walk, walk, walking.
Along with all this good and cute, Leo was also a bit more
two-year-old-ish today. We had an
outright tantrum this morning after he had his bath and I was trying to put
pants on him. I honestly think this had
to do with the fact that we are still dressing him in the Chinese-method of
multiple layers. I’m trying to comply
with this system, as our guide lectures me that he is not dressed warmly enough
(even when he is wearing 4 shirts, 2 pairs of pants, and it’s 60 degrees
outside). The poor kid sweats ALL THE
TIME, so I gave him a break this morning and let him sit in his diaper and just
one shirt while we hung around the hotel.
I think he might have liked this, because when I went to put pants on
him, it was disastrous. He was screaming
so loudly, the man in the room next to us started banging on the wall to
complain. LOL. I would feel worse for that man, except that
he woke all of us up last night when he came in late banging around his
room. The walls in this hotel are a
little thin.
Then as the day went on, we experienced several more
tantrums. A couple were brought on by
boredom, one because Caolon left to go with Sophie to sign some papers and Leo
was left with me by himself (yes, he is still more attached to Caolon), and
then one this afternoon that was more of just a melt-down because he didn’t
feel well.
Overall, he’s still happy and adjusting well. Sophie commented today that she was so
pleased with how happy and comfortable he is with us. We are also very grateful for how smoothly
things have gone. We know that things
aren’t always this easy, so we are just so thankful.
After breakfast (our favorite meal of the day as it’s the
only one we don’t have to problem solve to get), and then Skyping back home
(Leo got to meet his aunt Heather!) we did a little more sightseeing around
Shanghai. We started by going to a
suburb of Shanghai, called Songjiang, to visit the hospital where Leo was found
as a 5-day-old baby.
Songjiang is a very different kind of city than anything
I’ve seen in China before. There was
nothing old about it. The city itself is
only 6-years-old, so all of the structures are very new and very western looking. If not for all of the neon, Chinese
knick-knack decorations on the buildings, and Chinese letters, I might have
thought we were in the USA somewhere. In
fact, it looked similar to some places we have seen in Orlando. Sophie said it is a university town where
many college students live. This got
Susan and I wondering whether Leo’s mom was a university student who was not
ready to have a baby…however, Sophie said that while it is hard to guess
anything about his birth family, usually the parents are not from the town where
they leave their babies. It is illegal
to abandon a baby, and they don’t want to be found. The hospital where his birth mother left him
was a very nice, top of the line facility with a lot of people. Sophie said the birth mother probably hoped
Leo would be discovered quickly and then taken care of as he was left with a
medical condition that needed immediate treatment. It was interesting to see this piece of Leo’s
history and we got pictures to show him someday when he is older. We also took some dirt from here, as it is a
Chinese custom for people who leave their birthplace to take dirt from there
with them to wherever else they may go.
Caolon, Sophie, and Leo pointing to the 5th floor
– Leo’s finding spot.
Standing on the floor where he was found. I have no clue how someone could possible
sneak a baby up here and get away with leaving him unseen. The place was crawling with nurses.
The outside of the hospital.
Gathering dirt for Leo.
Us in front of the hospital.
After this visit, we drove back to Shanghai (about a 40
minute drive) and then visited the Shanghai museum. This was a beautiful place featuring Chinese
history and art. There were five levels
with 3 rooms/exhibits on each level. I
did not see much of any of this, however, as I became completely exhausted
early into the tour and had to find a bench to sit and wait. I think I may be pushing myself too hard and I
reached the breaking point today. I need
to remind myself that I have another baby I am taking care of and remember to
give myself breaks so I don’t get too worn out.
I don’t know that Caolon saw much of the museum, either, as he was
entertaining Leo most of the time.
Following the museum, we made a quick stop at the notary
office where Caolon and Sophie went in to sign some more paperwork. This is where I sat in the van with Leo and
let him cry big crocodile tears because his baba had left him. Poor kid.
Our bus driver, who is such a funny and kind man, tried to help by
entertaining Leo – with a lighter! Like
with fire! Then he tried to give Leo the
lighter to play with!! It was
crazy!!! Sometimes the Chinese crack me
up. They lecture at me for giving my
baby Tylenol (Sophie said medicine is very bad for babies, and I should treat
his cold by feeding him warm water) and not dressing him in enough layers
(seriously – he had on 4 shirts, people!), and then they give him lighters to
play with. We live in two different
worlds. It is just funny.
We were all wiped out after the notary, so we came back to
the hotel for some rest – naps all around.
We thought we might venture out this evening to see the Bund at night
(it’s supposed to be beautiful), but when we woke up from napping, Leo was
burning up with a fever. We gave him
some Tylenol, then Caolon went downstairs to research this online, while I held
the crying kiddo and tried to get him to drink some water. Poor Caolon – he was so worried. I think he was ready to call the ambulance to
come get us all, but after about 30 minutes, the temperature came down. I think a lot of the problem was that when
Leo woke up, he started crying and got himself worked up. This probably elevated his temperature a
bit.
We decided that he might be getting hungry, but didn’t want
to go out in case his fever came back, so we ended up eating at the hotel
restaurant. It is usually very good for breakfast,
but dinner was not great. What was
great, was the service. We wanted to
give Leo some congee (rice cereal), as we thought it would be comfort food for
him. It was hard to communicate that
this is what we wanted, as congee was not on the menu and the Chinese word for
it is (we later found out) something like “joe.” The nice waiter finally got it figured out
and brought it out. Leo was, of course,
not even remotely interested in eating it.
The waiter, bless his heart, brought out some flavoring to try to make
it more appealing for Leo, but that didn’t work either. Our boy must be ready to be an American, as
he filled himself up on bread and butter and left the healthy food on his plate
(and on the floor). We ended up taking
our food to go as Leo got restless.
Caolon left me to pay, and I think I may have overtipped because when I
told the waiter to keep the change, he practically hugged me. I am okay with overtipping him though, as he
really took care of us well and was sweet to try to help find something Leo
would eat. J
We are back in the hotel now, resting and getting ready for
bed. Tomorrow, we leave the hotel at
11:30 a.m. to go to the airport to fly to Guangzhou. I’m glad we are to this point in the trip, as
I’m really ready to just come home. As
much as I love travelling and especially China, it’s hard to be in a foreign
country, trying to take care of a sick boy.
I’m ready to get home where I know how to procure food and call the
doctor. Where I don’t have to live out
of a suitcase that gets more unorganized every day. Where I am not pushing myself to see the
sights of a new place, while also trying to get to know my new son. Where I can just be myself and parent Leo the
way my intuition tells me, instead of having to comply with the tips of every
stranger I meet, who seems to be studying and critiquing my every decision with
him. Where we can just start falling
into the normal routine of our new life.
Let’s hurry up and get home!
Look Mom - A Hidden Mickey!