Friday January 24, 2014
I can’t believe it is our last day in China. When I left home2 weeks ago, I was
nervous. I had never traveled alone
before, much less to a foreign country.
I also had no idea what to expect from Teagen. Other than our initial referral and a short
update in December, we knew little about her.
Let me tell you she is an amazing kid who is going to fit into our
family very well. The girl has lots of
energy! She loves to run, climb and just
move. She also talks a lot. Of course, I
don’t understand her, but for the most part that doesn’t stop her. She is also very expressive so you can figure
out by her face or actions a good idea of what she is talking about. There are some times when she has
understandably gotten upset when I don’t know what she is saying. Teagen is definitely strong willed. While she seems to get along well with other
children, she also likes to be in charge.
In many ways, I think that she and Wyatt have similar
personalities. I’m not sure if they’ll
be a match made in heaven or if they’ll battle for control; likely some of
each.
All we needed to do today was wait for Teagen’s visa, which
our agency rep will pickup about 3:30 this afternoon. The other families planned to just stay in
the hotel and pack. Since I have 1
suitcase and 1 small duffel bag, packing was a breeze. I also knew that I would go crazy sitting in
this room all day long. Since this is
our last day, I wanted to get out again.
This was the first morning we didn’t have anything
scheduled, so we did take it easy. Teagen wanted to go to the kid’s
playroom. Eventually I told her that we
were going out. She started to cry. I think she is getting tired of walking so much
(which I do find ironic, since she does love to run). Once we were out she was ok. Our goal this morning was just to get her
some snacks for the airplane ride and some comfort food for back home. I’ve typically been buying things at the 7-11
across the street or a small nearby shop.
Since we had extra time, I decided to venture across to the mall and a
large supermarket the other families have gone to. This was probably a good choice as there was
more for Teagen to pick from, and it was a bit cheaper. She is now stocked in her dried seaweed and
crackers, as well as ramen and yogurt she had for lunch. The store was more like Wal-Mart, although it
had mostly food and then some household and clothing. I also discovered that in
China they charge you if you want your items in a bag!
I had done some looking in my China guide book and the
little map the hotel had given me to come up with a couple of options for after
lunch; one we could walk to but the other required a taxi. I personally was hoping we could walk. Maybe it is my need to be in control or too
many episodes of the Amazing Race, but taxis frighten me more than venturing
out on our own. I drew a picture of the
2 of us walking and also of a car. I was
surprised when Teagen picked the walking (though I’m not 100% sure if she knew
what she was doing). We crossed off
Shamian Island and walked for a bit along the Pearl River. It had warmed up and the sun came out for a
bit. Teagen enjoyed running around and
we relaxed and watched people. The area
was filled with people walking and biking (some of them were delivering
numerous large boxes on their bikes).
The hotel map had shown a “cultural park” and the guide book had a 19th
century church. I figured I was fine if
I could find one or both of them. I
missed the church but did stumble on the park, which was very neat. I think that there were extra decorations in
preparation for the lunar New Year (or spring festival) which is coming up next
week.
Tomorrow morning we will take a van with another CHSFS
family to Hong Kong, which I believe is about 90 miles away. Our flight leaves from there at 11:25AM. We have a layover in Newark, at which time
Teagen becomes an American citizen.
We’ll arrive in Minneapolis around 5:30PM—where I hear the windchills
are -40 degrees.
Overall it has been a good trip. I am grateful for the time I’ve got to spend
knowing Teagen and her first country.
Now I can’t wait to see my boys and have everyone meet our girl.
