Lilli's Birthday!

Day 5--Lilli's Birthday!

We started this day with an early morning appointment to finalize some paperwork. The orphanage director was there, but the nanny was not. Lilli was clearly stressed to be back in the same room where we received her the day before, but made it through okay. We were uncomfortable because she was and when it was over, we were glad.

Since we had no plans for the rest of the day, we decided to get some lunch. Somehow we ended up at a South Korean restaurant, a very interesting dining experience. I'll leave it at that.

Then, the boys decided to play ping pong in the special room downstairs. After getting special shoes and socks, they were ready to go on the court. They do take table tennis seriously in this part of the world! Then it was time to check out the swimming pool. The language barrier makes everything take about three times as long to accomplish, but eventually we figured out that the boys needed to wear a swimming cap and take a shower before entering the pool, which was filled with older women. Luke made the most of it and practiced being Michael Phelps.

For dinner, we decided to celebrate Lilli's birthday American-style and headed to McDonald's. She experienced her first hamburger, fries, chicken nuggets, and Coke. Loved them all.

This was the day we got our first real smile, and it lit up our world. She is an amazing survivor of a child, and we feel so blessed to have her.

Day Six

Today we went to Walmart, a day we have all been looking forward to. It didn't disappoint, as we found all kinds of fun things to see and take pictures of. Our favorite part was finding Oreos and Lay's potato chips. We bought several kinds of chips, including mango, blueberry, and kiwi. But our favorite was the American Classic style. Yummy, just like home. The others tasted gross to our American palate. But we really like the strawberry Cheetos! We did, however, choose not to buy the seaweed pringles or shrimp pringles.

Later in the afternoon, we tried to find a nearby park, but ended up getting caught in the rain. Trying to make the most of it, we saw a KFC across the multi-laned street. Eric got into the spirit of the city and crossed against the light with Eli, almost getting hit by a bus. I was too timid and got caught in the middle of the intersection with Lilli, Luke, and Jacob. We made it across after several cars and bicycles and mopeds swerved to miss us. We walked up the steps to the KFC, ready to celebrate our escape from near death. It was under construction and was not open. Doh!

We had dinner at the Chinese restaurant in the hotel and it was the most memorable experience of the day. Lilli, who wasn't feeling well early in the day, was feeling fine after our long walk. She loved looking around at all the hustle and bustle of the big city. At dinner, she amazed us all by smiling and playing at the table. I leaned over to give her a kiss, and she turned her little face toward me and put her lips on mine. I just knew it was a fluke, so Jacob came over and gave Lilli a kiss. She did the same with him, and with Luke, and with Eli, and with Eric. We were all crying in our dumplings. That this little one could mimic our love to her after only two days is a work of the Lord, I just know it. I know she doesn't truly understand our love yet, and we know we have some long days ahead and setbacks to be had for sure, but this was a sweet, sweet day for our family.