Little Ingrid

Today we had some happy moments with Ingrid and some where our heart ached for her as she is visibly grieving.   Her day started out with a happy breakfast with her brothers.  It got so "happy" with the boys we needed to leave with boys giggling the whole way up the elevator to our room.  They are doing so well and experiencing so much that it was actually nice to see this normal crazy behavior again.  I think.

Ingrid clings to Matt, walks to him, and absolutely prefers him.  However, I held her today and she screamed so angrily in my arms for 20 minutes until she settled down and finally allowed me to hold her peacefully.  I stroke her hair and tell her "Wu shu nee da mama".  Each day or each hour seems to bring her tiny bits of trust in us.

We went to the Peoples Park yesterday and walked all around.  The park in the afternoon is mostly grandparents and their grandchildren playing, walking, doing Tai Chi, playing chess, and enjoying the outdoor park placed in the middle of a busy, noisy city.  Oskar loved the elderly man doing Tai Chi with a giant Samuri sword!  So many times people come up and ask to take pictures with the boys.  Oskar keeps saying "oh mom- it happened again.  I am not cute!"  One guy came up to him and squeezed his cheeks and said "cute"!  They point out our four boys and count each one of them.  Obviously that is a rare site in China as well as their lighter hair, braces, and pukka shells.

We went to a really great water-light show in the evening downtown and the kids had a ball.  Ingrid came alive at dinner and at the show- staring at everything.
We forget so many of these are "firsts" for her... grocery store, parks, lights.

 We also took pictures of some foods that the boys think would be crazy to eat from the grocery store.

frogs and turtles for dinner? octopus?