Yuntai Garden

Today we went to Yuntai Garden. We had requested to go there, since we loved it the first time we were in China. It is so picturesque. Eric always teases me that I cannot even keep three house plants alive - I can't imagine tending to this garden.

Guohao is completely addicted to the Nintendo DS that we brought, specifically the Super Mario Brothers game. So when Eric saw some of the characters from Super Mario Brothers at the Yuntai Garden, he took Guohao right up to it. He wanted his picture taken with every single character. We'll spare you all of the pictures.

He has developed this means of communication, which to us is just awesome. There are the hand signals for the bathroom - we won't go there. Then there is the charade for the Nintendo DS - it is moving his fingers acting like he is playing the game and saying "Dit Dit Dit", like beeps. He calls us "mother" and "father". So he'll say, "Mother (or father), Dit Dit Dit?" And depending on where we are and the situation, we'll say "No Dit Dit Dit" or "Yes Dit Dit Dit". Crazy, isn't it? I guess we'll never forget the ways we communicated here in China.

He is now saying: Yes, No, Mother, Father, Eat, Good morning, Hello, Bye Bye, Thank You, Okay, and "bounce the ball" in daily conversation. I may have missed some. And we have known him for only four days.

We try and keep him out of the stores whenever possible. He is like a kid in a candy store. We are working on him not touching everything in sight. He is just so excited. Eric gave him some money in an envelope, and it is burning a hole in his pocket. It doesn't help that when he does spend his money, Eric replenishes the bills right away.

He loves butter. He told Bill that he has never had it before. He puts it on his toast, and even muffins when we eat breakfast. He told Bill that I was "wasting money" because I didn't drink the milk from my cereal bowl after having eaten the cereal. It gave me a different perspective on things, and I know that in our culture, we are wasteful. So I drank the milk from the bowl.

So all is well here in China. One more week, and we'll be flying home. We are missing Avery so much, and it has been pretty tough on her, having her mommy and daddy away for so long. Our precious girl could use some prayers. Can't wait to squeeze her tight and have the four of us together. That will be a great moment.