A Bunch of Blackwells: Welcome to Guangzhou

A change of scenery is such a great thing. I am writing to you from the Garden Inn in Guangzhou, China. First, a few observations about China. They are obsessed with American Basketball. I have seen a lot of Laker jerseys and Houston Rocket apparel here. When they stop at a red light they put the car in neutral and put on the emergency brake. Their language takes a while to get used to. Everyone talks like they are angry, but they are not. The inflection in their voice is so aggressive. Every time I drive around town I feel as though Godzilla is going to appear at any moment. Lorrie and I are the object of everyone's stares all the time. It is amazing. Lorrie and I are still losing weight. I am down to 163 tonight, which is a 7 pound loss in 7 day. Brodie really is the typical little boy. We were laying in bed last night trying to get him to sleep. It was quiet and all of a sudden I heard Brodie break wind, and then he began to giggle. Maybe love is not the only universal language? Brodie took his first plane ride today. The two hour flight was great. He did so good. His little face lit up when we took off, he couldn't believe it. He talked nonstop even though neither of us could understand a word. He can say mouth, nose, ears, and eyes and point to all of them. He has his alphabet all the way to H now. We said goodbye to our friends from Canada today. Joel and Gigi adopted Dan Dan and they flew to Beijing to the Canadian consulate today. When we arrived in Guangzhou we were met by the sweetest guides, Miko and Simon. We are also with several other American families now, which is so nice. Our hotel is breathtaking, it is by far the nicest hotel we have ever stayed in. Tomorrow is going to be a rough day so say some extra prayers for us. We will get his immunizations in the morning and it is not going to be fun. We have been told to expect 2-3 shots, but who knows. I am so proud of Lorrie, she has really taken to him and is already showing the love that only a mother can. I love to watch them interact together. He has never known the gentle touch of a mother's hand, but I love the way he is responding. I will update later tomorrow, thanks so much for your interest in our journey. Remember, we were all orphans once.