Our Sweet Little Man!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes indeed, we have our little boy!  We went to the lobby at 9:30am this morning to meet our guide and go to the civil affairs office to meet David.  She called at 9:20 and explained that because of the huge rain storm there weren't any taxis so she was walking to our hotel and would be 20 minutes late.  When she arrived, she called the orphanage officer who was bringing David and made plans to bring him to our hotel instead.  After waiting another 20 minutes in the lobby, the orphanage officer called back and said we had to go to the Civil Affairs office after all.  Fortunately, we were able to find a taxi rather quickly.

About 10 minutes after we arrived, so did David.  The minute he walked in the door, he started wailing.  The orphanage official handed him to me and walked away into a back office.  David spent the next 30 minutes crying inconsolably while I held him and tried to ask a few questions to the officer who clearly knew very little about David.  But it doesn't really much matter at this point, we'll learn what we need to as we go.  Just before we left, I was able to interest David in a small book with pictures of animals.  He wasn't exactly happy, but he was willing to be distracted by it until we got in a taxi to head home.

On the ride home he started pointing out the window and talking.  He also devoured a couple of crackers, though he still wasn't interested in drinking anything.  When we got up to the room, I sat him on the bed and opened a package of small cookies.  That was definitely the right choice of activities as he started stuffing them into his mouth and smiling.

After a few minutes, we started playing a game where we would hand the crackers back and forth to each other and laugh about it.  He has such a cute and mischevious little smile!  He liked to pass the book back and forth as well.  Jeff came in with some fried rice and noodles and he ate about 3/4 of the rice and some noodles.  Yep, we have one more kid who can EAT.  After lunch was playing on the floor with some blocks.  He LOVED playing with Abba on the floor and was quite happy there for about an hour as we played and also filled out a bunch of paperwork with our guide.  About 2:15 I decided it was time to try a nap, so we kissed him and laid him in his crib.  I put a blanket over the side facing us so he would have a little less stimulation.  He talked to himself for maybe 5 minutes and then fell fast asleep.  He is currently sound asleep holding his book in one hand and his juice in the other.

Oh, and he peed and pooped in the toilet!!  Unfortunately I didn't realize his pants were overalls when I took him pee until it was too late, so they got a little wet. :)

The only two things that have been hard from the day were learning that he was returned from his foster family to his orphanage before we came to get him, and seeing his face all scratched up from another little boy in the orphanage who attacked him. :(  But his face will heal and from this point on he will never have to experience being separated from his family!

We are all so thankful and happy to have David here with us!  He is doing such a great job and we are loving watching little bits of his personality slowly emerge.  The orphange officer said he could say "baba" "mama" and maybe a couple of other words, but he has been talking away to us.  He even started counting with me!  We have the cutest and most amazing little boy in all of China!  I'm sorry for the poor quality of the pictures, we can only post iphone pictures at the moment.  I'll make a whole collage of good ones when I get home.

                                                   
                                                     Right when he was first handed to me

                                                               Our first family photo

                                                             Our official family photo

                                                Doesn't this sad little face break your heart?!

                                                      Reading the animal book with mama

                                              Starting to come out of his shell a little in the car

                                                                Devouring his rice!

                                                            There's my happy little man!!