Another Free Day = Exhausting

Today was another free day, which sounds fun...

Except that it was 98* with 72% humidity. So. Not stellar weather for walking around the safari park all day like we did 2.5 years ago with Ruthie. 

Heidi’s morning was initially pretty good. She drank a bottle and she ate some runny oatmeal from the breakfast buffet! Huge progress. 

Unfortunately, her gums started bleeding which really set her into a crying spell. Trent ended up taking her back to our room so I could eat since he ate while I was feeding her. 

Her crying lasted for an hour. We had actually thought her gums were looking much better so had skipped the meds. But since they were bleeding again we asked our guide if it was possible to get amoxicillin. He said, I’ll have it to your rook in 1 hour. True to his word, John arrived 1 hour later, medicine in hand. 

We really needed to get out of the room so we met up with another family in the courtyard. We chatted for a bit but it was just too hot to be enjoyable. Heidi is much happier if we’re moving. We walked to a little supermarket. It was the tiniest supermarket I’ve ever seen. 

There were whole chickens sitting on ice just behind that woman. This was just off the main road but it felt like we went back in time 75 years. 

It’s hard for a photo to express the cacophony of this Street. Narrow road with cars on both sides, people flying by on scooters and bicycles. Lots of elderly people walking and chatting and shopping. Every male, regardless of age, or mode of transportation, smoking cigarettes. I’ve been floored by the amount of people smoking here. I feel like not that many people back home smoke, or maybe it’s just my friends, but so much smoking...

So many bikes on the next street!

Heidi fell asleep for a little in the carrier. She has seemed much more fussy today. It’s so hard to know what is wrong with any baby, but especially one you’ve only known for a week. 

She did lots of this grexing around. 

We finally realized she had to poop and was not having success. Unfortunately there’s not much we can do to help her. We rubbed her belly and sometimes that helped, sometimes not. 

When she finally was able to go she wanted Trent to hold and comfort her. 

I went alone to a little mall just outside the hotel for some gifts to bring home. On the way back in another person got on the elevator with me. Not unusual as there are tons of people here. It was awkward though when I scanned my card and hit our floor and he didn’t do anything. I just assumed he was on the same floor. I got out of the elevator and turned left. The guy turned right so I chalked it up to my imagination. About 30 seconds after I was in the room the doorbell rang. I looked through the peep hole and the guy was standing outside our door. He rang the bell 3 times but I just didn’t open it. It was very bizarre and made me feel unsafe where I previously was comfortable venturing out on my own. 

The afternoon was long with a sad, crying, fussy baby. Trent really did all the work with Heidi. 

For dinner we met up with two families and went to the Muslim Noodle shop again. 

I don’t know what Trent got but it was good. 

I got mutton with cumin over noodles and a side of cucumbers. I could have just gotten the cucumbers and been happy. Our entire meal with drinks was 56 Yuan which is $8 US. Trent said he loves this place with all his heart (and wallet). I would be content to eat here every night. We stopped at the Burger King inside the hotel for Trent to get an ice cream cone for 3 Yuan (42 cents) and I got just a cup of coffee. I assumed it would be cheap but it literally cost more than my big plate of cucumbers. 

This amazing contraption right here might look like a public restroom toilet paper holder on the wall of a restaurant... and that’s because it’s exactly what it is. Napkins are rarely available, but I’ll use toilet paper to wipe my mouth when the food is that cheap! 

Heidi was feeling happy! She drank 2 bottles of milk (each about 100 ml) at the restaurant. 

She’s a real sweetie!

She was clapping her hands here in this photo. Trent made her a nice big bowl of baby rice cereal mixed with milk. She ate the whole thing eagerly. 

One of our concerns is feeding her on the plane. We are trying to find non-refrigerated milk boxes 100 ml or less. I have formula but she prefers actual milk. I tried to give her formula this evening and she drank a little bit but then had a temper tantrum. I don’t remember being offered milk on the plane and don’t want to count on it if it’s unavailable. 

We did her normal bedtime routine tonight and she just wasn’t having it. She normally lays right down and doesn’t fuss or cry. Not tonight. As soon as I laid her down she cried. I let it go for a few minutes but it wasn’t stopping. Trent picked her up and rocked her. She settled down. Same story as soon as he laid her down. I did notice it looks like she may be getting another tooth so when she wasn’t settling we gave her some Tylenol. Trent got her calm now but they’re sitting on the loveseat, he hasn’t gotten her back to her bed yet. 

As you can see, the two of them have forged a beautiful bond. It’s going to be a real shocker when we get home and he goes back to work (for all of us). 

Tomorrow we have an early morning. We go to the US Consulate building for the oath taking ceremony. We have to leave the hotel at 7:20 which means we need to be at breakfast at 6:30, not my favorite time of the day. 

If you want a specific way to pray, please pray for whatever is causing Heidi discomfort, whether it’s her belly, gums, a new tooth or the heat, we really don’t know, but it would be nice to have our happy girl back tomorrow. 

We got to FaceTime with the girls at home. I’m really missing them. I wanted to hold them and hear all their stories. It sounds like they’re having a great time still with Zoey and the rest of the family. I’m truly grateful that they don’t seem to be missing us and that Zoey, Trents parents and my mom are keeping them busy. 

Is it Friday yet?