First, Greg and Sam would go to breakfast early and plate Benjamin's breakfast....cut everything into bite size pieces, get his drink, etc. Ben and I arrived 10 minutes later and good to go! His favorite breakfast item - chicken sausage. The kid LOVES it. Not a big fruit guy - other than bananas which we think are giving him constipation. :(
Shirley was picking us up at 12:40 p.m. so we had a few hours to hang out. We skyped with the kids...miss them soooo much but so thankful for skype and for Grammy (Greg's mom) for taking such great care of them. Then, Greg took Ben for a walk in the stroller while Sam "journaled" in the lobby and I skyped my parents. We needed to eat lunch prior to our tours but none of us were hungry. So we packed granola bars for Greg and I and purchased KFC chicken nuggets for the boys.
Finally, we were so happy to see the van pull up with 2 other American families!!! YAY!!
One of the families has 2 boys around Sam's age. AWESOME!!!! They spent most of the day together and it was so great to see Sam opening up and really having fun. They are adopting a 16 month old girl and leaving Beijing for their province on Sunday. They live in Oklahoma. The other couple is from Massachusetts and this will be their first child, a 21 month old boy. They will also leave on Sunday. Shirley was our guide and we headed first to Tian'anmen Square. It was VERY hot today and sunny....thank goodness BenBen LOVES the stroller!! It was around his naptime so he slept most of the tour. I was expecting to see more Americans/Europeans touring but mostly Chinese....all very interested in taking our pictures!!
Tian'anmen Square is next to the Forbidden City where we journeyed next. It's beautiful, very large and extremely interesting. I could have spent a lot more time there....if the weather was cooler and without kiddos. The guards who work at the Forbidden City live there now. It even has air conditioning and basketball goals! Shirley talked mostly of the placement and order of the temples -- everything is symbolic in Chinese. Ben awoke about 1/2 through the tour and wanted to eat ("Mama eat" - along with the sign for eat!!). I handed him a KFC chicken nugget, and then another, and another, and another....until he'd eaten his 6 pack and 4 of Sam's (shhh....Sam was NOT going to be happy...but whatever it takes to make BenBen happy - and the kid has a huge appetite :).
We left the Forbidden City and headed to a touristy "Tea House" for a Chinese tea demonstration on the various types of tea, what ailments they cure and how they're made. It was a beautiful tea house tucked away in a sidestreet and full of tourists. Our group had our own room -- all sitting around a long rectangular table on little round stools. Ben was awesome!!!! I sat him next to Shirley....just in case!!! (for translation assistance). We tried 4 different teas and it was very interesting and tasty!!! much different than American tea (or even China tea purchased in America) -- but also pricey. After the demo we were escorted to their "grocery" to purchase the tea, tea pots, etc. We didn't purchase anything -- it was extremely expensive (our green tea in the Keurig is fine for now!).
BenBen is a serious ladies man!!!! There must have been 20 girls working in the tea house and each one of them ohh'd and ahh'd over him...trying to touch him, hold him, speak to him. They kept telling us how handsome he was.....and lucky. :) He charmed them with waves and blowing kisses but he wanted no part of being held by them. He definitely enjoys working the crowd.
We then headed to the Olympic Park....a massive area and very beautiful. Loaded with very persistent and annoying vendors attempting to sell you things. The Water Cube is now an indoor water park and would be a fun place to visit....we weren't able to see inside the Bird's Nest or Water Cube though.
Last stop was an Acrobatic Show. We weren't sure BenBen was up for it but he did great! He ate the last 2 chicken nuggets, a sucker, some Gerber gummies and puffs....and loved watching all the acts. The lights were completely dark at various points and the noise sometimes very loud...he did great. He ooohhhhh'd and ahhhhhhh'd and even a "Wow, Mama!" So cute! He was getting restless though and a 1 hour show was perfect.
The other couples were starting to show their jetlag (having just arrived in Beijing the day before) and we were extremely tired too. We all decided to skip dinner out and head back to our hotels. We gave Ben a quick bath and off to bed he went. Greg and I ordered room service and grabbed a quick drink from the "Happy Hour" on our floor. Sam had a PB sandwich and still hasn't asked about the chicken nuggets! :)
We're headed off to bed for a long day of touring tomorrow. We're leaving at 8:00 a.m. for the Great Wall. It's about an hour drive. On the way, we'll stop at a Jade factory/store for an hour tour. We'll spend about 60-90 minutes at the Great Wall and then drive to the Summer Palace. The other couples are leaving on Sunday and will need time to pack etc. so that will be all for tomorrow. We are looking so forward to seeing them again in Guangzhou with their new children!!! We'll have about 5 nights with them in the same hotel (The White Swan) and can't wait!!! They are such nice people and such a blessing for us on this trip.
The American families (and Shirley) were so amazed with how well Benjamin has attached to our family....and how behaved he was. It was really a great day and I'm so happy we all got to participate in the tours. Benjamin is starting to communicate more and more each day. I taught him several new signs yesterday (please, thank you) and he now says "up" and "down" - and signs "please" when he wants to be held or put down (vs. whining/crying!!). YAY!!! We still have a looonnng way to go but our little guy is such a trooper and a sweetheart. He's trying so hard. He's so smart and determined - he amazes us every day. He seems to truly enjoys being with us....but most importantly, he seems to enjoy the ability to communicate with us as much as we do!!!! We'll get there! For now, we're just enjoying every minute and soaking in the experience.
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