Ducks: Pictures! Monday and Tuesday

Hard to believe that we are leaving later tonight. I'll have to post the rest of the pictures when we return home. I enjoy going through these and celebrating all the great experiences that we have had here.

We went out for dinner to an Irish pub with 6 other adoptive families.

Swimming every day! The pool is a big hit for Michael.

They have so much fun together.

Taking an outdoor shower together. What a view from the top of the hotel.

Awe.

His typical pose. This is at breakfast.

A wine dispensing machine at the Medical Clinic.

Our guide Judy is in the black dress. She is bypassing everyone and getting us in right away. I felt like I have a fast pass at Disney.

Speaking of Disney, this is on the floor of the medical clinic. Did they do this to make Americans feel more at home?

Part of Michael's testing was to see if he could write his name and numbers.
"Smart Boy" was her assessment.

Checking out his eyes and ears. This is the doctor who told us that he has equipment in both of his ears!

These boys did a great job of entertaining themselves while we went from room to room with Michael. They have been such a great support to each other.

Judy helping to navigate the entire process.

We got dropped off in the middle of a huge shopping street. There were four McDonalds across from each other. It was only a five minute walk from our hotel (quiet) into this loud and very bright area. It was so great to go from Old China into Modern China in just a few steps.

This is the drink I wanted. I got it once, fell in love with it, and then it was discontinued. It was pineapple juice with a little vanilla soft serve on the top. Two of these for $1.50 and so nice on these hot and humid days.

We went to the dessert McDonalds and they see our white faces and hand us a picture menu so we can point. Judy is on her translator app. so she can tell us "sweet potato" flavor ice cream. No thanks.

We settle for Sprite with strawberry burst ice cream. Not bad.

Simon loved them.

We walked to the largest mall I've ever seen (except for mall of America) and every store had jewelry. Wholesale on the first floor. We went into a pearl shop and bought five strands. One for all the wives of our boys (if they choose) and one for each of our girls.

You look at a hundred strands and then pick out the five that you like.
Then they put them on the string with a knot between each one. It is so fast it is hard to even see what they are doing.

Then we were off to find scorpion on a stick for Simon to eat.
We couldn't find any, so Simon settled for squid on a stick.
It was 3 for 10 yuan, or about $1.60.

Garrison wasn't about squid at all, so he got a potato and was thrilled.

He loved it.

A whole alley full of cheap street food. It was so delicious and I was able to get fried dumplings.
Every place has pictures and in many cases bowls of food sitting out. Just point, pay and enjoy.

These are my friend dumplings. They are unlike anything I've very had before.
They were so delicious!

And we are off to shop.
Can you sense Gary's excitement?

We shopped at a place called Shamian Island. We stayed here when we traveled to get Simon.
There are many statues everywhere and so we got the boys picture by one of the more famous ones.

Our Zeeland Christian boys enjoying a little dance. I love seeing the retired people dancing and singing and doing any number of exercises in the park. We visited one of the largest parks in Guangzhou.

The translation for the trash: Love our Homeland.

I was trying to get a good "China picture" of the boys for school.

Michael wanted to get in on the action! I find them adorable and love that God entrusted them to me.

Just missing two!

Simon found the outside of a cicada! Of course he did. His trip to the park was almost complete--if only we had let him catch a toad.

Garrison found a palm branch and used it as shade. It also came back to our room with us because he thought it was so cool. His mama didn't think of it as fondly as he did, so it mysteriously disappeared. Hmmm