China Adventure Day 8

After the night we all had last night with Selah grieving so hard, we were surprised that Selah woke up in a pretty good mood. We went to breakfast at the hotel and then came back to the room and played. She was laughing and smiling as we played with bubbles for a little while, and I did some laundry in the sink (so fun).  We’re so thankful that Selah is finally feeling better. Thank you all so much for all of your prayers!
 
We went out to lunch at a restaurant with our group and we had some traditional local food. It was really good! The local food here is pretty spicy. After lunch, we went to a local souvenir shop where local merchants make everything. We bought Selah a few keepsakes from her province such as a little Miao doll, a silver medallion we plan to give her on her 18th birthday, and a traditional Chinese dress. As long as Selah was strapped to our backs, she did very well.
 
After our shopping trip, our guide took us to Selah’s finding place, which is where she was found abandoned as a baby. We weren’t totally sure we wanted to see it, but if Selah ever has questions when she gets older, we want to be able to show her this part of her history. Selah was found outside of a hospital when she was six months old and very sick. As we were walking where she was left a year and a half ago, I held her so tight. It’s heartbreaking that she’s experienced so much loss in her short life. But, God has had a plan for her long before she was left. As I held this precious, amazing little girl and walked along the path her birth mother took, I prayed that we would always meet her needs and that God would use her life for great things. We’ve only been with Selah for a few days, but we already love her so much. She is incredibly smart, funny, and loving. She has already learned two English words! She says “thank you” and “bye bye”. It’s adorable.
 
After visiting Selah’s finding place, we came back to the hotel and played with Selah for awhile. We opened up some Play Dough and Selah had her first experience playing with it. She touched it and had the funniest look on her face! It didn’t take her long to love it. We played with her stacking cups, her baby doll, and a little car. Her laugh is one of the best sounds in the world!
 
We ventured out to the underground Wal-Mart to get a few supplies before we leave the Guiyang tomorrow. We picked up some water, Selah’s favorite Chinese rice cake snacks, and we let her pick out a toy to keep her busy on the plane. She picked out a little Hello Kitty toy phone, and it is adorable to see her pick up and say “Ni Hao!” Wal-Mart is quite an experience. We wandered through the “fresh foods” section of the store and came across a bunch of fish tanks with fish swimming around. It looks like the pet section of the store, but nope, it’s the fresh foods section!
 
For dinner, we went to KFC. Selah had her first French fry today! This girl is going to have a whole lot of firsts with us. She wasn’t a fan of the French fry, but she loved the mashed potatoes. Ordering was a little challenging again, and somehow I only ordered one little piece of chicken, but it was just nice to have some familiar food.
 
This evening, we played with Selah a little more and started packing for our next destination. Tomorrow we fly to Guangzhou, China to finish up our last few appointments to finalize Selah’s adoption at the American Consulate. We think this change will be good for Selah and our bonding, and Guangzhou has some more things to do (like a pool and a playground). Tonight it only took about an hour for Selah to calm down enough to fall asleep in my arms. She still cried out for her foster mother, but it was definitely less intense than last night. We have a lot to thank Jesus for tonight! If these last few days have taught us anything, it is that we are not enough. We can't get through this without leaning very heavily on God and His promises.
 
We are so incredibly thankful for everyone’s prayers and encouragement. It means more than you could ever know! Please keep praying for us and the rest of our trip!