Welcome to Parenthood

Today's post is a bit of "This and That" from Tuesday and Wednesday. I posted about being "official" before our eventful afternoon and evening on Tuesday! So, here we go . . .

Tuesday, July 30

Zeke has been nursing a cold since Monday and after returning from the Civil Affairs office it decided to get worse. Then the game was on . . . how to get a child who won't eat/drink anything unfamiliar to take cold medicine? We brought a syringe so we started with that. Hmmmm . . . all down the front of a screaming little boy (oh, those crocodile tears!). On to Plan B!  I made a bottle of milk and snuck some in . . . that worked! Nap time and he goes right down. About half an hour later up comes everything he has eaten since breakfast as well as the medicine that is supposed to help him feel better. Poor kid . . . puking three times while still half asleep can't be pleasant. All over him, his blanket, the sheets, and the lovie. We think it was the medicine that did it. Stinkers!! I changed his clothes, putting him straight into pajamas, and then he proceeded to sleep for about 4 hours. We worried that he wouldn't sleep through the night but took the gamble because the poor kid was pooped. When he woke up drenched with sweat it prompted another first . . . a bath in the tub.

First Bath

Zeke needed to be washed up but we hadn't attempted a bath yet and weren't sure how it was going to go. As you can see from the picture it required Randy holding him in the water. It took about 5 minutes just to get his feet in all the way. He did enjoy throwing the rubber ducks though! We let it go at that and I ended up washing him down with a cloth while Randy held him up. We will attempt a full bath another day!

Tickles and Noises = Laughter

After the bath and a new set of pajamas (Stacey, the Superman pajamas were a hit!) he had perked up enough to have some fun with Daddy and try a french fry for the first time. We can't get the kid to try ANYTHING new but Randy handed him a french fry and down it went. Go figure . . . Randy went and grabbed dinner for us from the McDonalds next to the hotel.  Quick, cheap, and there was no way we were attempting to eat out with a sick kiddo!



Superman and French Fries


Wednesday, July 31

Zeke's "Oooo, Oooo" Face
(We see this when
something excites him.)

Today was a mellow day but one where Zeke's stubborn side decided to sneak out! We didn't have to go anywhere until mid afternoon so we headed to a huge park that is across from the hotel (large enough you could easily get lost!). We wandered for about an hour (we will go back another day for a longer visit) and then headed back for nap time. Zeke has never had a problem going "night, night" when asked but all that changed today. Can you say tantrum? He pulled out all the stops . . . crying, laying on the floor flapping his arms and stomping his feet, rolling around, etc. At least he doesn't have a high pitched scream! It was so out of character based on the last few days that we were caught somewhat by surprise. Then we started talking about it and it made sense. He is still processing his new parents, that he is with us forever, and he is starting to get comfortable. Comes with the territory of a 2 year old too. ;) So his two hour nap turned into about 30 minutes prompted by pure exhaustion. He finally fell asleep on my lap and I made the mistake of moving him onto the bed . . . tantrum episode number 2. Nap time over . . .

Sign in the Park
(There were flowers
in the background.)

 



In the Van

Later that afternoon we went to the police station to finish the Chinese passport application (Zeke is still a Chinese citizen until we land in the USA so he has to travel on a Chinese passport). After arriving we found a place to sit and wait our turn.  Within a matter of seconds, Zeke jumps down and starts running from chair grouping to chair grouping looking at the other children (the room was full of adopting families) and offering his toy helicopter. This was a BIG deal because his helicopter and the little police car have been glued to his hands since Gotcha Day! We were amazed by the social little person that was emerging before our eyes! Our turn at the main desk took about two minutes (check our passports, check our paperwork, take a picture of Zeke) and then we were on our way. 



Heading to Dinner

We arrived back at the hotel close to dinner time so we regrouped and decided to walk to a local restaurant recommended by our guide. Since this particular restaurant caters to local clientele and not tourists it was interesting navigating the language barrier.  We were happy to see a picture of every dish in the menu!  Randy picked a few for us to try making sure at least one included noodles for Zeke.  When the food arrived it was AMAZING!  The only issue was that the noodle dish was spicy.  We ended up with five different staffers, each speaking just a tiny bit of English, trying to get the point across that we wanted plain noodles.  Unfortunately we were unsuccessful. Although they brought us lots of other things they thought we were asking for! Since there wasn't anything Zeke would eat we had to have them pack up our dinner so we could finish at the hotel . . . Zeke decided he was going to make it impossible to stay in the restaurant to eat. Not having a nap definitely kicked in!  So, we had dinner in our hotel.  Us, amazing authentic Chinese and Zeke, noodles from a cup!

We are on a sharp parenting learning curve but can only imagine how hard it is for Zeke not to be able to communicate his needs/wants. We can only guess and we are the adults so we have to be the patient ones. ;)  Tomorrow is another day and we are relishing every moment!