To Nanchang

On Sunday, we woke up really early and met Cindy at 6:00AM to head to
the airport for our flight to Nathan's province, Jiangxi. Nanchang is
the capital and this is where we will complete the adoption. Isabel
woke up well but Nathan was a little crabby since this is way earlier
than he is used to getting up. The flight was uneventful except that
Nathan fell asleep right before we landed. He didn't seem phased by
the airplane or all that interested in looking out the window. He did
like playing with his seatbelt and figured out how to unlatch it! He
was none too pleased that we held the latch closed so that it would
remain on. :)

After retrieving our luggage we met Mary who would be our guide while
in the province. She is very sweet and has been assisting adopting
families for 15 years. We are in good hands! We arrived at the hotel
around noon and after getting settled needed to find lunch. The
restaurant in the hotel was our best bet because Nathan was pretty
exhausted and needed to go down for a nap. On our way to the
restaurant, we saw a lovely bride getting ready for either her wedding
ceremony or reception. She had on the prettiest gown and I wished that
I had taken her picture.

While Nathan was napping our little superstar was reading a book and
also fell asleep. I was amazed since I can't remember the last time
Isabel took a nap. She slept less than an hour because Nathan decided
to wake her up. :)

After nap-time the kids played in the room and I think for the first
time really played together. They chased each other in and out of the
curtains and squealed with delight the whole time. It was so cute and
wonderful to see. Isabel loves Nathan and mothers him a bit. She looks
out for him if he wanders too far away or might grab something he
shouldn't. She also mentioned that she loved having a little brother!
I think he will need some time to get used to having a sister though.
Of course as one might expect, they do fight like siblings already. :)

Nathan also likes to get into everything so we will have our hands
full when we get home. Isabel never got into much so this is something
different for us.

When it was time to eat dinner, we decided to try and find something
outside the hotel as the hotel restaurant is a bit pricey. We wandered
around and found a pedestrian street with lots of activity. There were
so many stores but not too many restaurants. It was quite the site
really. We passed a couple dental offices where the exam room is
completely visible to pedestrians. Literally behind a glass window you
can see people getting their dental work done. Also, we passed a
wedding photography place where a couple women dressed as brides sat
outside for advertising purposes. It was all quite interesting. After
we ate, it had become dark so on our way back down the pedestrian
street back to our hotel the signs were lit in flashing neon. I have
never been to Times Square but I told Richard I imagine it's something
similar.

Once we got back to the hotel it was baths and getting ready for bed.
Not a very eventful day but a sweet day none-the-less. We kept telling
Nathan that this is where he was born. Of course he doesn't understand
us but it's something to ponder, at least for me. It's been a long
time since he was here and longer still since he'll be back.

Thanks again for all the comments. It's hard to get to them since we
are in Nanchang but my computer programmer husband is always figuring
something out. Yay! Also, more importantly, thanks for the prayers!!
The transition has gone so smoothly and we are so blessed! Isabel is
also doing great and we are so amazed to see this side of her. We will
be here until Friday and then it is on to Guangzhou. Tomorrow I will
post about the completion of the adoption.