An Old Yellow Towel

My friend Esther translated our referral information for us the other day. It turns out that Gao Shao Huan does not, in fact, mean "little happiness", but the character for Shao means "young", and the one for Huan means "relaxed, mild". So, AnnaLyn is young, relaxed and mild. PRAISE GOD. I need one of those! What a change from 4 teenage boys! I have to wonder if she'll stay that way long. Oh, I hope so. Anyway, all her medical stuff looks good, and they say she's had all her immunizations. (We'll have her tested when she comes home, and probably have them re-done.) They say her physical and intellectual development is very normal and healthy. They also say she has had a few colds, but has recovered quickly with the doctor's care. She loves to smile and laugh and is curious with different environments. (I wonder how many she's been exposed to?) The referral says she was eating some solid foods. (Remember, this info is 7 months old) However, in talking to other parents, all the referrals say very much the same thing...and almost none of the babies knew what to do with solid foods when they were introduced to them. Some say that they fill out the forms with what the parents want to hear, some say the babies are stressed and won't eat. Who knows? (I guess we will in a week or five) The saddest part of the referral is her growth report. I will quote it. "On November 8th, 2005 the Gaozhou local police station received a report that there was a baby abandoned outside of the Gaozhou Industrial and Commercial Bureau. After research, they couldn't find the parents of the baby. They got the permission from TianJin city's bureau of Civil Affairs that day and sent her to Gaozhou Social Welfare Institute. When she first entered the institute, she was wrapped in an old light yellow towel. The physicians of the institute gave her a physical check. Her height was 49 cm, weight was 3.0kg, head circumference was 33cm, chest dircumference was 32 cm. She was a normal newborn. According to the development of her body, they determined that her birthday was November 7th, 2005. And they named her Gao Shao Huan" Makes me cry every time.