Gotcha Day Part 2

Gotcha Day-Part 2

As we were leaving the Civil Affairs building, we passed the nanny and the other two girls in the lobby. The nanny kept waving goodbye to Lily Mei and calling her “Lon-lon”. Doris said this was her nickname in the orphanage. We also found out she has never been in foster care. It was very obvious the nanny loved her and took good care of her. Lily Mei was still holding on to that little cookie and letting me give her a bite every now and then.

We found our hotel van and driver and loaded up to head back to the hotel. As we were riding, one of her little shoes came off. There were marks on her foot where they had been too tight. Steve took the other shoe off in the van. Lily Mei did not like this at all. In fact, this was the first time that she had cried. And boy did she cry. She did not want anyone taking her shoes off. So we very quickly put both shoes back on and she immediately stopped crying. After we got back to the hotel and dropped off our things, we decided we needed to find somewhere to buy bottled water and the kids were about to die for some snacks and Cokes. So we headed out again looking for the Carrefour, which is kind of like a Walmart.

The streets here are very crowded and we attracted lots of attention. One lady came by and touched Landon on the arm. Others would stop and stare and speak Chinese. We finally made it to the Carrefour and what an experience. We found Lily Mei’s formula and bought several bags. Hopefully they will last until we get home and I can switch her over to either American formula or milk. We also found the bottled water and Coke aisle. The boys stocked up. They also stocked up on chips and other snacks. The chips here look very similar to American chips, but on closer inspection the flavors are totally different. David’s cheetos were meat flavored. The Pringles were cool cucumber. We also found a package of cookies like the one Lily Mei had been holding on to all this time. We bought several them, as well. Doris wanted Steve and the kids to go through the meat market in the Carrefour to see all the different kind of meats they sell. They made it as far as the duck who had been rolled flat by a rolling pin, according to Landon. Steve said the smell alone was enough to make you sick. They made a quick exit and we headed for the check-out.

We finally made our way back to the hotel and we told Doris we thought we would just stay in for the rest of the night. We came in and sat Lily on the bed and the kids started showing her all of the toys we had brought. She wasn’t interested in them and she just sat on the bed, stiff as a board, with the saddest eyes I have ever seen. The boys and Steve tried everything to get her to smile, but she just sat there looking so sad. She would cry every now and then and I would pick her up and rock her and hold her tight and she would stop. We did this for most of the afternoon. She dozed off once and I just sat and held her while she slept. Steve and Landon decided they needed to go find her some shoes so they ventured off on their mission. They returned about an hour later with two pair of little squeaky sandals. Steve decided she needed a pair of tennis shoes, so he left again heading in the other direction determined to find some.

He came back with another pair of sandals and a pair of tennis shoes. We put the little sandals on her and Steve sat her down. She took his finger and they walked over to the mirror beside the bathroom. She stood there for the longest time looking at her shoes. It just about broke our hearts. She would look at her shoes and then look up at Steve and look back to her shoes. She’s a little unsteady with her walking if no one is holding her hand. We noticed when she would stand still she would constantly squeeze her toes up and stretch them out. I think she was amazed that they had plenty of room to move around.