Well, hard to believe it's been a week since we arrived and tomorrow will be one week since meeting Lucas. Seems like we've been away for so much longer already!
We are much more adjusted to the jetlag, but it gets dark here around 5:30 pm so by 8 it feels really late and we are ready for bed. This week has been busy with appointments (ceremony, Vietnamese passport and Canadian passport applications) so we haven't done alot of sightseeing. It has been a huge help having my mom here to hang out with Maiya while we do some of the paperwork. They have been very busy making crafts and cards. It also helps since the contact lens insertion and removal is quite an ordeal and it is tough on Maiya to hear Lucas screaming and see us holding him down. Having someone to distract her helps.
Contacts - well, not sure I will ever get used to it! Wearing contacts ourselves is really NO help whatsoever in knowing what to do! We got one in the first try this morning, but had quite the episode this afternoon! You can't even imagine how freakishly strong a baby's eyelids are! We basically try to get a small slit open and slide it in. Taking them out has proven more difficult for us actually - some luck while he's asleep but no luck awake. We lost one yesterday after coming up from the pool, and thinking there was no hope we'd find it happened to look down and saw it in the seat of the stroller! One fell out in the hallway today right when I looked down so we must have a contact lens guardian angel looking out for us.
We made it out to the Diamond Plaza and the Tax Centre so far, both places we visited last time we were here. We are amazed at how much high-end expensive stores have taken over. There were some 5 years ago but now they are everywhere. The Tax Centre still has some good souvenirs so my mom had her first bargaining experience. Most places will quote foreigners exorbitant prices, often exhalting the one-of-a-kind quality of it, despite there being 10 other stalls with the exact same thing! With some negotiations and walking away you can usually get a good deal. (This is for the mass-produced stuff like fans or tshirts - we will go to some hand-crafted stores too, and there while we will negotiate, I always try to make sure to be respectful of the time and labour put into each piece). Anyway, Maiya got a nice fan with some of her souvenir spending money from our friend Mel, and she LOVES it! Mom made some nice purchases too. Hoping to get some ao dais this weekend (traditional Vietnamese dresses ).
We have been lucky in the health department so far, until a stomach bug hit my mom today. She thinks it was something she ate so hopefully it will be out of her system by tomorrow. I have been feeling much better the last few days, since discovering The Coffee Bean! My Starbucks withdrawal is cured now and I am enjoying the Ultimate Mocha Ice Blended coffee - a little pricey but oh so worth it. I keep planning to get a latte but it is so hot outside that by the time we get there I am too hot!
The weather has been pretty good with mostly just a downpour in the afternoon. Rained hard today and was like a steam bath outside when it stopped!
There is one other family from Quebec here right now adopting the cutest little guy (next to Lucas of course!) so hopefully we will get together with them this weekend to hang out. They are in another hotel so we have only seen them for official stuff so far but will have some time to relax now.
I can't get all the blog features to work with the iPad and PlayBook so I can't put labels by the pictures at this point. I will try to attach one of mom and Maiya at the Tax Centre, one of Brett and Lucas by the Canadian Consulate, one of me introducing Lucas to frappucinos, and videos of today's rain and Lucas in the pool. The pool is scary with the contact lenses, hence the panic in my voice at the end when he gets his face too close to the water! (sorry - I think the pool one is sideways!)
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