I get to come home tomrow

I get to come home tomorrow. I get to see my sister Sonja. I miss her so much. But I am going to miss Fuling too, because Fuling is more exiting than Forest Grove. Today we boarded a plane to Beijing, then Mama went shopping and I got to stay in Chessie's room and watch movings and we got KFC, which was awesome. This was a cool journey. I'm glad I came, and I thought it was cool the four of us came--my, Mya, Chessie and Lily, and together we had a lot of fun. I think being Chinese is part of my heritage, and I'm proud of it. I want to go back to China next week, but first I want to go school in Forest Grove and see all of my friends and say hello.

We started flying back home today. This is in the Chongqing airport.
That's Lucy and De Ang and their parents (plus Lily's dad). They live in Australia. Theyve got a lot of energy.

Lily and I got to ride on the cart. Tomorrow we fly together from Beijing to Tokyo and then home.
We hope there are carts in Tokyo too!

Last Night in Fuling

This morning we went to one of the museums, and I only liked the fossilized stuff. Because it was cool fish and it showed perspective and details. I liked being crazy with Mya and Chessie there. We went back to our hotel and talked things over. Lily and I wanted KFC for lunch but Lily's dad and my mom said no. And so we went to this small restaurant and had noodles. I liked mine because they weren't spicy and the sauce was sort of sweet. After that we walked around. In the afternoon we went to the orphanage goodbye ceremony. I liked the part where we got to plant a tree. First I used a hoe thing, then I traded it for a shovel. Then I picked up a heavy rock and put it on the pile and dropped it. We went inside and played with babies. Then we went to the bus and went back down the mountain to our hotel. We had a farewell dinner with Blas, the tour guides. I wasn't very hungry because my stomach hurt. So I ate two pieces of meat and french fries and two cuts of meat. Mama took me up to the room to get some rest, then later I felt better. We went out in the dark.

Fuling is beautiful in the dark because there are whole bunches of lights and flashing lights. The people were doing shopping and bargaining. We bought Chocolate kind of like hot chocolate and it was nice. We walked to a little shop and bought muffins like cornbread. They were good. We walked further the turned around and walked back to the hotel. I'm tired now and going to bed. We have to get up early to start the trip home. I really liked the trip to Fuling because it was exiting and like a mini adventure.

I think America is more organized but China is more fun.

This morning we went to a Fuling museum but I didn't pay attention that much. Mama made me add this photo. She said it was educational. The museum had rubbings and pictures from carvings on rocks that are in the Yangzte River. The carvings are underwater now because of the Three Gorges Dam when it filled in. The carvings are ansient and told people how high the water was for fishing.

Chessie and me had noodles outside with our parents. We love noodles. The lady cooked them in a big pot right in front of us. This place was called the Shun Jiang Garden. That gate behind me is spessial.

That's some of us girls at the goodbye ceremony at the orphanage. My aunties are laughing. Can you find me in the picture? We all got a special jade necklace that says Fuling on it to help us remember our first home in China.

Chessie, Livvie and me with Director Huang and Director Chen.
They help Director Yang run the orphanage. Those are presents all the kids gave them.

Carly, Chessie and me got to be in a picture with our auntie Wu Ping and Director Yang's husband.
He told me he carried me around when I was a baby.

Director Yang said I was too heavy now to carry but she still picked me up.

The kids could donate a tree to the new orphanage. Our parents decided to plant one in honor of the Fuling 7 sisters, the girls in our adoption group. We got to plant the tree ourselves. I liked it because it was hard work and I got all sweaty. Director Chen told us the sign he would put by it would say "The Seven Flowers of Fuling" (that's what they call us a the orphanage). The sign would list our Chinese names too.

That's Director Chen, Director Huang and Director Yang and us. It's a fig tree. The Chinese people make medicine with the figs.

I found a praying mantis and I picked it up. I found it when we were walking away from the orphanage to get us on the bus. It was cool, and Chessie thought it was venemous so she jumped away whenever I showed it to her.

Last Night in Fuling

Leaving Fuling is sort of sad because its an awesome place. We got to be here for only three days and we didn't get to see everything and we would like to explor a litt le more. And also Fuling has alot of traffic jams and sometimes you could only go five miles an hour. Also their food is really good. I liked their french frys and the meat with mild spicy sauce. Right now were about to go out and take a short walk around Fuling for a little bit. We'll try to send more pictures and news later tonght before bed. We have to leave at like 8 oclock in the morning.

Thanksgiving in Fuling

First, we ate breakfast, then we got on the bus, and drove to the new orphanage, then we did a ceremony, the ceremony was about opening the new orphanage, and we got pink balloons. I ''lost'' mine (on purpose)beacause I don't like pink . Then, people who ( I think ) worked at the orphanage handed out this long red ribbon, and scissors and then we took our scissors, and cut the ribbon. We cut the ribbon, because it was part of the opening ceremony. After we cut the ribbon, we took a group picture, and sang Twinkle twinkle little star, and dashing thruw the snow. I thot the opening ceremony was awesome, because we got to play with the babies again. Then we ate lunch inside the orphanage. Me, Mya,Chessie, and Lily, together, drank 20 cups of soda, and water (my stomach hurts, just thinking about it ). After lunch, we went back to the hotel, then we went shoping. After shoping, we came back to the hotel, droped our stuff off, and went out again.

This time, we went out to dinner for Thanksgiving, at this restaurant that Mama had written down in her notebook. People showed us to a building and we took an elevator. We ate on the 4th or 5th floor, and I swallowed a chili pepper whole, I thot the chili pepper was good, so I sucked on another one for about 2 minutes, before I spit it out. I even made Chessie eat a chili pepper. In China,the Chineese people ussally like their food spicy. After we were full, we sang yi shan yi shan ( twinkle twinkle little star in Chineese ), and''where are my friends'' (a chineese song ), and yu er yu er shui jong yo (another Chineese song ).After we thanked the waitresses who helped us, and went to the bathroom, we rode the elavator down to the 1st floor, and started walking back to the hotel.

This is a temple you can see from the New Orphanage. It looks cool. I wondere what it's like there. Mama said she thinks monks live there. Monks are wise guys who shave their heads. Women buddhists who do that are called nuns. I read that in a book about a woman warrior in ansient China.

The opening ceremony was kind of long, but at the end we got gifts!
We got a Chinese dictionary because we the people who took care of us hope we learn Chinese.
This is us on the stage with Director Yang

This is Molly's mom with one of the babies. The moms held some of the li ttlest babies. This baby is only a few days old.

This is Huang Guang Rong. She took care of me a lot when I was a baby.
She took a picture of me with her with her cell phone to keep.

We went on a walk in Fuling today with our parents instead of going to the pickle factory with the group. We walked past the old orphanage where we lived when we were babies. I lived there for one whole year before my parents came. The gate was open but we did not go in. It's a home for older people now. But the gate is still open. We almost ran back in but our parents said it was time to see more of Fuling.

This was on a lilttle street. There was kind of fun stuff. For instance there was little stores where people were selling things and bargaining and playing cards. Really cool stuff. Lily almost stepped on a ladies eggs, but then the lady smiled when we said sorry.

This lady stopped to let us take a picture with her baby. The baby was riding in the basket. It's like backpack for babies.

Lily's dad got his shoes shined. The lady showed us how to do it. It was complicated.

This is the sign on our hotel. Lots of parents took pictures of it.

I dared Chessie eat at chili pepper at the restaurant after I ate one. She did! It was very hot.

Chessie gave me big ears at dinner.

We sang songs in Chinese for the waitresses.

We were going berserk and we were getting in a little of trouble from the grown ups.

Fuling

Sofie has fallen asleep. (This is her mom writing.) Tomorrow she will write her thoughts about her first day back in Fuling. See the photos for now. That's all we had time tonight to put up. They tell a lot of the story.

This morning we went to Fuling finally! It was two hours on the bus.
I read Harry Potter until my mom told me to put it away and pay attention. When we got out we saw the Yangtze River
and everyone said this is Fuling.

When we got off the bus Director Yang gave us a good hug.

Then we went to the old orphanage. There aren't any babies there anymore, but we liked it. That's us in front of the picture at the orphanage that showed us when were younger. Except Ariella, Dejie and Sophia aren't on this trip.

This is the room where our cribs were when we were babies. After that it became a First Hugs baby room.
Mama said she had held babies in there this summer and didn't realize I had slept there as a baby. She cried.

Just before we said goodbye to the old orphanage we got in a big group for a picture.

Then we got in the bus and went up and up mountains for a long while. The orphanage is up high.

When we got there, Chessie and me wanted to get off the bus. That's our guid Vivian. She's nice.

Director Yang walked me and Chessie and Mya up to to the new orphanage.

One of the aunties who took care of me picked me up like I was still a baby. I liked it.

She was Mya's auntie too. When she saw Mya she got exited because she hasn't seen Mya since she was a baby.

There were lots of baby rooms. This is an auntie and babies.

This baby has the same name as me Hui with the same meaning.

All the kids and parents wanted to hold babies. I looked around for one to hold.