Ewan Day!!

June 29th, 2015. A day to remember forever!! Ewan Tang day! We had a relaxed morning and took our time getting ready before heading to the Civil Affairs Office at 2:00 pm. We had our cameras in our bag, but as soon as we walked in, Ewan was there! He came running down the hall and gave his Jie Jie (big sister) a big hug before I could get my camera out. He quickly ran off and started throwing a big light-up bouncy ball he had. He immediately started playing with Jie Jie and Geh Geh (big brother) like he'd been doing it his whole life.

 They were having a great time, but Ewan started throwing the heavy bouncy ball the other way down the hall. It was hitting people and causing all kinds of problems with other kids having their own traumatic days. Already, five minutes into our meeting, I was nervous about the language barrier.

 I quickly sat down and opened the backpack of tricks we'd brought. I pulled out his cars, and he sat down and forgot about the bouncy ball of terror for a few minutes.

 He came over and gave me a hug. He is so dang sweet and more than happy to play with us all!

 The lady in the green is his orphanage director. She is amazing. She is the one that was doing the QQ calls with us and Ewan. I had no idea she was the director! She is doing revolutionary things as far as orphanages are concerned, and I have the upmost respect for this great lady!!!

 She came over to check on Ewan and made sure he knew she loved his new cars. I love her!

Here she is asking about Geh Geh. So cute! The girl to the other side of Ewan is our cute guide, Coco. She is the size of my right thigh. She's a teensy, pixie of a woman. So young and so nice! She's absolutely darling!

 We had to go into a different room, so we had to pull out the big guns to get him to follow: Cheez-Its. Serious business. He loved them. He also went around the entire room sharing them. It was hilarious. Awkward and uncomfortable and totally funny. There were a few other kids having a hard adjustment. They were sobbing and everyone was on edge. Ewan didn't mind, though. He walked right over to the crying kids and offered them a snack. Such a love! My own personality is very shy and reserved. Ewan is the complete opposite. He is beaming with joy and wants to share it with the world. He has a lot to teach us all!

Baba pulled out Ewan's big gift, his new iPad. We figure we've had 7 missed years of Christmas and Birthdays, so we owed it to him. To say he loves it would be an understatement.

 Here's Ewan sharing a Cheez-It directly into the mouth of an unsuspecting new grandma.

 Make your own Dim Sum app? Awesome!

He gives it a thumbs up!!

 He is Chinese, so I feel a selfie is completely appropriate.

It was time to leave after we'd filled out some paperwork. This was when the trouble started. I think Ewan didn't want to go with us. Completely understandable. We tried several times to get him to follow us on to the elevator, but it was not working. He wasn't interested in going on the elevator. He was interested in walking into every room down the hall he wasn't supposed to. Our guide wasn't being very assertive with him, so Quin finally just picked him up, screaming and all, and headed into the elevator. We got him calmed down and had to walk down the street to a photography studio for a picture of Quin and I with Ewan. He waved to every single person we passed, including people in cars, and yelled, "Ni Hao!!" His radiant spirit just spreads and makes everyone he comes in contact with happy. He got more smiles in the five minute walk than I've seen all five days I've been in China! Getting pictures was a challenge, but we did it. We had to wait while for them to be printed, and I pulled out a book from his backpack. We sat down on the dirty floor and read it. It has little flaps with animals hiding behind the flaps, so we had a great time making the animal noises. He thought that was funny. He's such a charmer! And so smart! He was mimicking the sounds after he'd only heard them once!

We got our pictures and it was finally time to head back to the hotel. More trouble. Apparently Ewan gets extreme motion sickness and got really sick on the four hour drive he'd had from the orphanage. He DID NOT want to get in the car. We carried him there and he sat by me. I had success diverting his attention for a few minutes, then he started wailing. His stomach hurt and he was clutching it in pain. He slithered onto the floor and sat there bawling. I got on the floor with him and rubbed his back. He eventually stopped crying and laid his head in my lap. I feel so bad he was sick!

We made it to the hotel, finally, and the real fun began! He got right into all the toys and played with his Magformers for a really long time. He's super creative and made some great creations!

His cute foster mom sent the stuff we'd mailed him in the package back with him, and this is him pointing to Baba in the picture and Baba in real life! So fun!

 Balloon time! We'd yell 1, 2, 3! and throw the balloon up. He learned quickly and would yell, "THREE" and throw it up in the air. So cute! He was partial to the red balloon and wanted nothing to do with the others.

He had taken his shoes off and was in his socks. Unfortunately the floor is slippery and he took a spill. Poor guy! Luckily he let me comfort him and was back to playing in no time!

 I had to convince him to take his socks off. It makes for much better balloon chasing on a slippery floor!

 Baba built a tower, and Ewan was super impressed. He came over and clapped! So funny!

I had to include this picture, because it shows so much of Ewan's personality. He has his Geh Geh's shoes on, clutching his red balloon, and turning a lamp on and off. He's full of mischief and fun!

 Joining Baba for a little rest.

 It wasn't long before the tickle monster made an appearance!

 Time for some iPad and cuddling. It only took about 30 seconds to realize how bad Ewan's eyesight it. He has to hold the iPad right up to his face and squints so hard it looks like his eyes are closed. I'd bet money that this boy will soon be sporting some awesome eyewear!

We didn't want to go far for dinner since we didn't know if he'd even follow us, but room service was absolutely ridiculously expensive. We decided to revisit the executive lounge from the night before. The one we left because they had no western food. We knew they had food Ewan would like, though, and that's what mattered. Luckily they had some noodles, which we all ate. He was such a character during dinner! He took FOREVER to eat, and thoroughly, slurpingly, enjoyed every bite.

 A few minutes more iPad time before bed.

Bed time was a disaster. He got all ready and even knew how to brush his teeth. He had zero interest in sleeping in his own bed, so he climbed in with Quin and I. Then he insisted the red balloon come, too. Pretty soon we heard, "THREE!" and he'd throw his balloon. I was laughing at first, but he couldn't see a darn thing. The balloon got lost every time and he'd have to climb off the bed, turn the light on, find the balloon, then get back into bed. It was disastrous. It took about three hours for him to finally fall asleep. He slept in every direction imaginable. I don't know if he has sleep apnea or what's going on, but there's no way he's getting quality sleep with the amount he was moving around. Looks like a sleep study is in our near future.

We had a great first day with Ewan. There were a few times he was scared and got teary, but he mostly took to us right away! He is amazing. Quin and I are a bit overwhelmed with all of it. He's very strong willed and wants his way every minute of the day. It's SO hard to deal with when he can't understand what we're saying! We're taking it moment by moment, though. I just keep reminding myself that it will get better soon, and I know it will. He is the most darling, charming little soul and most of our moments with him are fun and happy. We love him to pieces already and can't wait to get to know him better!!