Next Stop - Packin at Pizza Hut

Before Sally left us for the day, we had her write (in Chinese), "please take us to Pizza Hut" on a card, so that we could give it to the taxi driver. So, after a little stroller lesson from her two favorite teachers, Sara and Lauren, we ventured out into the rainy night. The ride over there was a little nerve-racking, but we made it. The taxi driver let us out on the opposite side of the street, so we had to cross a very busy intersection. No Lights - just whoever gets the biggest bus or smallest taxi in first goes! We decided it was best to blend in with a group of folks who looked like they knew what they were doing. By the time we made it across 4 or 6 (depending on if you count the painted lines on the road or the lines of actual cars), we were laughed at and then congratulated! Tourists - Americans that can't even walk across the street. Sara said she had never been so close to a moving bus!

On to Pizza Hut! We ordered the American Special (pepperoni pan lovers) and it sure did taste good! The restaurant is located in a very upscale mall and looked like a Buckhead restaurant (if you are familiar with Atlanta, you'll know what I mean!). All of the waitors were dressed like pirates. Pirates and pizza, why not? So our pizza came and we ate it all - we even ordered another small American Special. We did a lot of pointing and hoping that we had not ordered 4 pizzas! We weren't sure what we'd get until the food came! Ally had several pieces of the crust that I had cut up for her - she was feeding herself just fine and drinking form a new cup as well.

Three very funny things. First was the salad bar, which we figure, by the size of people's bowls of food, it must have been a "one visit limit". Everyone we saw had heaped on tons of fruit, lettuce and dressing into their bowls. So much food that many people were squishing their bowl down to make more room! They all were "strowing" food everywhere (my sisters will smile!).

The second funny thing was a little boy (younger, but much bigger than Ally) was sitting across from us with a direct line of sight to Doug. Well, as he is sometimes known to do, made a goofy (often interpreted as scary face to little children) face to this little boy. The boy immediately started screaming as loud as possible with total fear in his eyes! His entire family laughed and laughed as Doug attempted to appologize. Finally his mom had to get up and leave to calm him down!

Ally was the source for our last good laugh at Pizza Hut. It took a while for the check to come, so as we sat there, she seemed to be finished eating her dinner. She was pushing around 4 pieces of cut up crust around on her plate. It looked like she was counting them, but we aren't sure. We had ordered ice cream, but the waitress came and managed to tell us that they were out of ice cream (at least that is what we think she said). So, we were waiting for them to fix our bill as Ally moved these 4 pieces of crust around. When we all stood up and I reached for her to lift her out of her high chair, she reached for her plate (cup in other hand) and picked up one of the 4 pieces of crust and put it in her mouth. Before I could move her much farther, pieces 2, 3 and 4 were popped right into her mouth! Packin pizza! We just smiled and hugged her. This behavior and go on for quite a while from what I read, and we are not supposed to discourage it. She will outgrow it in time. I'm just glad that she is with us and no longer had to compete for food or be concerned that she will get enough next time.

So, here we are now back for our last night in the Shangri-La in Xi'an. We don't know if Ally will ever be in "her town" again, but we would like to think that someday we can all visit again. Tomorrow will be another day of Ally's "firsts" with us. We are going to try the pool in the AM. Sally will pick us up at 11:30 to go to lunch and to the Civil Affairs office again to get Ally's Chinese passport. From there we will go to the airport for her first plane ride - going to Guongzhou in southeastern China for her US consulate appointment. It is with very mixed feelngs that we leave Xi'an. It will always hold a special place in my heart, as it is where we finally saw our little girl's beautiful face and her precious smile. I can only look at her in wonder! She is just such a little beauty and we already love her so much. We can't wait for each new day of getting to know her and seeing who she really is. What a precious gift her birth mom gave us. I only wish she could have gotten a glimpse of her baby girl today with her new family. I would hope that she too would have peace in her heart, finally. As we drove in and out of her town today, I couldn't help but wonder as I saw each young woman out in the city, if she might be the one. I'll never know.

By the way, hop-a-long daddy is much better. Still limping and a slightly swolen, but better than expected! Thanks for the kind thoughts. Ally is now riding in her stroller. Sara and Lauren took on that job and treated her like one of our cats - giving her puffs (cereal pieces) as they strolled her down the hall outside of our room. That will be a huge help as we head to the airport tomorrow!

Sorry I have been making everyone cry! I'm crying a few tears myself too. The girls just laugh at me, and I tell them "one day you'll understand 'happy tears'!" Good night for now!

They have warned us of another 4 hour power outage during the night, so we'll see if we are eating b'fast by candle light. Apparently, this is a common occurence!