She knows the word, "Wow!"

This morning we drove to the civil affairs office where Charis was waiting to meet us. We brought her a back pack full of activities and crafts as well as a cuddly, soft teddy bear that holds a sack that we filled with some little trinkets. We also had a picture booklet prepared by Esther and the Walkers showing Charis Esther's new family and her new homelife. After we introduced ourselves to the staff, I sat down next to Charis and said "hello" to her in Chinese (profound, I know!). Then I pointed to myself and said "mama, and then I pointed to Scott and said, "baba'," those are Chinese words for mommy and daddy. She knew why we were there. She was coloring a picture when we came into the room and as we spoke our first words to her, she continued to color. She had drawn a house and was adding the sun and clouds. Then she drew a person with long brown hair. She told the orphanage staff member that the person she drew was her "mama,"...me!

I rubbed her back as I sat next to her and she continued to draw. I can't imagine what she was thinking. I told her we had brought some things for her and asked if she wanted to see them. Of course she said yes. The first thing she said when she looked into her backpack was "Wow!" Evidently, this means the same thing in Chinese and English! She took each item out, opened it, looked it over, smiled, played for a minute with it and then put it away. When she found the picture book from Esther she shouted Esther's Chinese name and quickly looked through the pictures. She oohed and aahed and after she had looked at all the photos, apparently she said "That was lovely." Nice vocabulary word!

Next came the teddy bear. She liked it. Inside the little sack she found a little trinket that says "I love you." When she looked at it, I pointed to the words and told her in Chinese "Wo ai ni." When she looked at me , I looked into her little face and said it again, "Wo ai ni." She smiled. I continued to caress her back and I asked the orphanage staff member to ask her if she minded that I was touching her. She said she liked it.

We spent a little over an hour at the civil affairs office doing paper work and getting to know each other. When we left, we drove to a local supermarket and bought some goodies for Charis and let her pick out some goodies for her friends at the orphanage and at her school. She pushed the cart and had a blast! At one point she told our guide that he was going too fast. That's my girl! She already gets shopping!!!!

When we returned to our hotel room, we showed her the clothes and other activities we brought for her...many more "Wows!" were spoken! And since the pool was being renovated we decided to go bowling! Fun and funny!

Dinner was interesting...Charis ate sooooooooooooo much. She chose duck tongue, snake, a crab, some kind of fish, 2 snails and some sheep stomach to eat along with her rice and noodles. That was just the beginning of the delicacies available to us! Charis just kept eating and when I brought her a second plate of rice and noodles she once again said, "Wow!"

Anyway, this has been an amazing day that we just praise God for. Charis holds our hands willingly. She calls for us if she wants something or if she just wants us to look at what she is doing. She laughed and giggled throughout her bath (she is very ticklish!). She let me brush her hair. She held up the little trinket and initiated telling me "Wo ai ni." What do I have to say about that? Wow! Wow! WOW!!!!!!!!!

I am with my little girl now. Tomorrow she wakes up with a mommy and a daddy and I wake up with another daughter. I am basking in this sweetness and I am so grateful to the Lord. The whole earth is full of His glory!