Sugar is evil

Well so much for posting every day in Guangzhou! This will be our last post from China, because it is evening and we leave the hotel before 6:00 AM tomorrow. We have about 24 hours of traveling yet will log only about 12 on the clock due to the time difference (we get back the 13 hours that we lost on the way here). On Saturday we had a nice visit from Annette Place, our missionary friend, along with three of her six kids. Sunday we tried to visit church but Faith didn't want to be still so I (Brian) took her back to the hotel. We did a good bit of shopping here and are fairly shopped out. Last night we took a riverboat cruise and saw the beautiful lights and laser show on the Pearl River here in Guangzhou--the buildings along the rivers' edge are quite spectacular at night as the Chinese seem to subscribe to a philosophy that makes every building a billboard. Today we visited the U.S. Consulate here and received a visa for Faith's entry into the U.S.! That is the last hurdle before we actually travel and pass through immigration in Detroit--which is where she will actually become a U.S. citizen! We have enjoyed being back with our group that we toured with in Beijing and are sorry to say goodbye to them; some live not too far away and perhaps we can visit in the future.

Oh, so why is sugar evil? Well we gave Faith a sucker the other day, and she absolutely loved it; in fact, she wouldn't stop asking for more, so we gave her another and another...but when we stopped giving them, she got a little upset. (dramatic understatement there) From then on, whenever she has seen a backpack (the suckers came out of one of our backpacks), she has begged, cried, and pleaded for suckers. So we learned a lesson there. She had a similar reaction when she had some ice cream the other day. Today we gave her an ice cream cone, however, and when she finished it she was satisfied, and didn't scream at me for more. Progress! She is really a delight and makes people smile wherever we go, so we can't wait for you all to meet her. In spite of the reaction we got from sugar the other day, she really has warmed to us all and has become much, much easier to deal with. Now if only we didn't have to deal with jet lag on the return trip...

Please pray for us in our return trip for safety, smooth schedules, and no lost luggage. We have been very blessed with a smooth trip so far including wonderful company and an absolutely fabulous guide and agency, we simply could not have asked for better. I might add that B.J. and McKenzie have remained excellent travelling companions and have made many things easier, rather than harder, for us. We will see you all soon, then get ready for a steady flow of pictures for a few days thereafter.