busy bees

Wow-it has been slightly impossible to blog. We made it to the Shaolin Temple and Longmen Grottos. We did not make it home until 830 and Lucy had cherios for dinner we felt so bad for her. then we passed out.

Yesterday we took another 3 hr one way bus ride to Luoyang - lucy's town and where her orphanage is. The orphange was slightly overwhelming and an experience I do not think we will forget. Lucy's crib was on the 3rd floor. once we got on that floor it you could smell urine and the walls were pretty dirty. The babies were sleeping so we went into the room with about 25-30 babies. Some were sleeping some were looking at us. The babies were from newborns to about 3 yrs old. Lucy's crib was right in the front - they were all pushed together. Her crib had a metal bottom with a bamboo mat. They all wanted to hold her but she shook her head no and took away her arm from them.

One little guy was standing up and i waved to him he smiled at me and his little hand did the wave. John walked around a more than me. I was sort of frozen at the entrance and then saw the sweetest little girl rocking herself in her crib. I went over to her and smiled and said ni hao- hello she smiled back real shy. So i rubbed her head and touched her face and totally lost it. I gave her a lolipop and she smiled . I could not take my hands offf of her. I put lucy's hair bow in her hair and told her she looked pretty. It was the saddest experience of my life that I had to leave that room with out her. The orphange lady gave me her name and I will send her things once I get back home.


The play rooms were very decorated and some stuffed animals around. We went up to the severly disabled floor . a little paralyzed boy was on his belly and moved around pretty good. He smiled so big when I gave him a lolipop. The other room had some blind, cerebral palsy children. The little clinic was up there too.

The director met with us and gave us a gift. It is a watercolor of peony's - Luo yang is known for them. He then set up a lunch for us. It was a huge spread and a restaurant about 10 minutes away, I would have preferred they spent the money on the kids. I did not eat anything so I was starving again. everything is spicy. When we got down from the 3rd floor room we ate in a man just about ran me over running in the door yelling something. When we got out the driver was urging us to get moving . the outside of the restaurant was on FIRE! smoke flames the whole nine yards,

Lucy is starting to show more of a wild side. She is a bit more impatient when she thinks you have some thing she can eat.
She makes some really funny faces. She teases a lot too. She cracks her self up. We have a two hour plane ride back to guangzhou- so it will be a little nerve wracking to see how she does onthe plane.
ok pics for everyone!!