Grand Guangzhou

Today was another day to relax and wait for our consulate appointment which is Tuesday.  So we headed out with our guide and three other adoptive families to do a little shopping.

It rained everyday we were in Chongqing so this is really the first sunny day we've had with him.  He squinted in the sun so we tried some sunglasses on him.  They lasted long enough for us to get a good laugh and one funny picture.

Pearl market:

Mobile Sugar came juice stand.  I really wanted to try it but someone who had before said it would not be a good idea.  I didn't ask any more questions.

We visited the Chen Essential Hall which is a beautiful building built over a hundred years ago as a school for the Chen family.  Now it serves as a museum and market where artists create beautiful Chinese art.

This artist only paints using his hand and finger to apply the paint.  He uses a small brush pto sign the art but that's it.  It was fascinating to watch him.

Here's a painting of The Great WAll he did while we watched.  Everything was applied by placing his hand in the liquid ink and stamping different parts of his hand and fingers on the paper.

Brad took the kids (we have three now!!!) on a snack picnic while I ordered 'chops' for each of them.  Chops are special hand carved stamps made of jade.  I ordered one for each child with their English name on top and Chinese translation name under it.  James has his Chinese name (Li Jiao) under James.  It's something unique to China that we wante each of them to have.  I'll post a picture when I get them tomorrow.

This is a very exciting moment right here! James watching his first ever Alabama football highlight!  He really seemed to like it and could tell how excited we were to hear Bama had won.  He was glad he hadn't worn his crimson all day for nothing.

Later we had a nice walk around our hotel's garden on the way to the pool:

Today is officially the day I realized we have a two year old again.  Mainly because I only did about 6 different activities with James all day but we did them 87 times each.  We opened and closed that door over and over and over. We flipped on the bed over and over and over.  We picked up the stacking cups he threw down over and over and over.  It's amazing how much more you enjoy it when you know it doesn't last forever.  Or maybe I just have more patience because this is the first day he really did it. :)

Either way, I'm so thankful to have a two year old again.  So precious, so funny, so cute, so innocent, so full of wonder.  So thankful.