Day 16 and beyond!!

Hey Alex - recognize this place?? We ate 1 or 2 or 8 meals here!

We did manage to get all of our "stuff" packed away into bags - the 3 we brought with us, and the 2 that we bought over in China. Todd got a kick out of shopping for our new suitcase. The people kept telling us that they had disposable suitcases, or for more money we could get a suitcase that you could use more than once. Todd managed to hold his tongue for a while, but the comment finally burst forth (with a muted chortle), "Well, if I'm going to buy a suitcase, I certainly hope I can use it more than once!" Before coming here I had never heard of a disposable suitcase. Live and learn. The suitcase shopping also netted us 8 more purchases - maybe we should have bought that mongo-huge, gargantuan sized suitcase that we had laughed about earlier! The good news is - as I stated in the first sentence - that we did manage to get everything in. Everything, that is, except the one plug adapter that I used with my curling iron - it's still in the closet outlet in room 1430 of the White Swan Hotel. Of course, that was the one thing that we had borrowed for our trip. Radio Shack, here we come.

For our last meal in China, we decided to try a new restaurant. Todd and I were both terribly depressed at the end of our meal - it was by far the BEST meal we had eaten the entire trip, and we realized that we will probably never have another meal like it again. Todd stated quite emphatically that if we had found it earlier, we probably would have eaten there every day for the entire trip. We picked up a business card on the way out, hoping to pass on the name to other folks. Joke was on us - it was all in Chinese. We did manage to tell one person about it on the walk back to the hotel, though. If you are interested - go out of the hotel, turn right, walk past Lucy's, past the tennis shop, you will see tennis courts on your right, go in where the hostess is standing, they will take you through a courtyard and up some stairs - order the Sweet and Sour Chicken. Wish we knew the name!

Finally, Friday morning arrived. We were out of the hotel at 5:45 AM, and caught an 8:20 flight to Tokyo, then on to Minneapolis, and finally to Dayton. Total travel time was a little over 24 hours. Micah was awesome on the flight. The only time he cried was when I put him on the changing table in the airplane bathrooms for diaper changes. Other than that, he sat on my lap (or Todd's lap) and played with his fingers, stacking cups, rattle, my necklace, our hands, etc. He never seemed to be bothered by take-offs or landings. He smiled, laughed, slept, and was an all-around joy. One highlight of the trip was the McDonald's in the Tokyo airport - yes, McDonald's was a highlight. I had the best hamburger I'd eaten in a good, long time - almost tasted like there was a bit of horseradish or black pepper or something on it. And the french fries . . . heavenly!! Now, to satisfy my other cravings - PB and J, Subway, City BBQ, and ICE COLD WATER.

Even though Micah was awesome, it was the longest 24 hours I have ever experienced. I just couldn't wait to see Sofia, Peter, and Molly. If I let myself think about them, I would start crying. I guess 2 1/2 weeks without seeing them was just a wee bit too long for my taste. When we finally got to the airport, I couldn't seem to hold onto them long enough or tight enough. Thankfully, they were pretty tolerant of their overly emotional mother, and they let me hug on them and kiss on them as much as I wanted. I think they missed Mom and Dad, too. It was great to see my parents, too :) Our friends, Tom, Lisa and Beth Clinch were part of the welcoming committee as well. They very thoughtfully provided the welcome home banners that the kids colored and held at the airport, and also helped transport people back to our house from the airport. Another surprise - our friends the Dobbs were there, too! They left from the airport to start their PCS (for you non-military folks, that means they left the airport to start their drive across the country because they were moving). After a year of waiting, they just couldn't leave without one quick glimpse of Micah!

Now for the important part - Micah and the kids. We had been showing Micah pictures of the kids the whole time we were over in China. I kept wondering how much this was going to impress him . . . after all, he's only a little baby! Micah took one look at Sofia, smiled a HUGE smile, and put his arms out for her - remember, he still isn't really smiling at people much. We had her sit in a chair, then let him sit on her lap. He looked around at all 3 kids and smiled. Guess that answered my question! He did really well with my parents - again, we had showed him a picture of them, too. He relaxed enough with them to fall asleep on my mom Sunday afternoon - how sweet.

We have now been home for 3 full days. On Saturday night/Sunday morning, he slept 18 hours with a short 45 minute awaked period around 4:00 AM. He seems to have adjusted completely to the time change already. We are desperately hoping that this sleeping pattern continues. However, I'm sure that the tried and true kids' rule will apply to Micah - As soon as you figure out the baby's schedule, the baby changes it. He seems to be fine with Buddy (cocker spaniel), but is still a little uncertain about Fido (cat). This isn't such a good thing, because Fido likes to jump into the crib and sleep with Micah. I'm just waiting for him to wake up at some point and find Fido in the crib. Yikes. He officially hates his car seat. His very first car seat experience was coming home from the airport. I sat in the far back end of the van so he could see me from his his in the middle row (he is facing the back - only 18 pounds, and really doesn't have much neck and back strength yet). That trip was fine. Second trip was today going to Sofia's riding lesson - not too bad. Cried for a couple of minutes. Third trip (home from the lesson) - he screamed for the whole 20 minutes, and then hiccuped/gasped for 20 minutes after getting back in my arms at home. Fourth and fifth trips (to and from gymnastics) - equally bad. Luckily, Todd came home in time to do the kid switch at the gym, and then I was able to pick Peter up alone at the end of the evening. Everybody seems to be adjusting just fine to Micah being in my arms for 7 1/2 of his 8 waking hours each day. We will see how my arms and back adjust to it as he is awake for longer periods each day - ugh. Luckily, Todd's mom arrived today just hours after my parents left. It will be really nice to have an extra set of hands around for the next week. I'm hoping that Micah will feel comfortable enough by the time she leaves to sit on the ground for short periods of time so I can get some stuff done myself.

Before anyone asks - NO, I don't have any pictures from him at home. My camera's card is full, and I don't want to delete until I can backup my pictures. Yes, that is approximately eleventy-gazzillion pictures on my camera. Todd, you can stop laughing now - that's why I bought a digital camera . . . THINK HOW MUCH I SAVED by not developing 50 rolls of film :)

FIRST FOR TODAY (Monday, June 18) - Micah was playing with two stacking cups (playing means he had one in each hand and was examining them intently) when he suddenly dropped one. It fell between my leg and the arm of the recliner. He actually LOOKED for it (first time), LEANED OVER to continue to look for it (obviously the first time since it was a continuation of another first time event), and then STUCK HIS HAND DOWN TO SEARCH FOR IT AND RETRIEVE IT!!!!!! I was blown away. Up to this point, he has never shown any sign of wanting to find something that had been dropped, or even an awareness that an object continues to exist out of sight (OK - I am trying really hard to avoid using phrases like "object permanence" . . . I don't want to sound like a textbook). Maybe this is just a breakthrough in him realizing that he can now go after and get what he wants - no more crib bars in the way. He is continuing to become more comfy with the kids. I think the kids are getting more comfy with him. I've got 2 awesome Mommy's helpers in my 2 girls. They love to sit with him, play with his hair, help distract him when I change his diaper, etc. Peter is so funny - he just takes Micah in stride like he's part of the furniture.

I am rambling a bit. I think I will draw this to a close so I can get a bit of sleep tonight (although I am not a bit sleepy yet). 4:00 AM comes really early when you don't get to sleep until 1:30 AM.