Hello Friends!
I hear it has snowed at home. How much did we get in Thiensville?
Today we went to the US Embassy, located on a road of embassies from all over the world. Pretty cool! Nanda was is a sour mood, unsure of what was going on I'm sure. I wish I could speak Gujarati! As we were in one waiting room, a cute Indian man started to talk with us and to Nanda. I don't think he was speaking Gujarati, but Hindi must be close enough that she could understand a bit. He just kept looking at her and talking to her, making her smile. It is really strange to have someone talking to your child and not know what they are saying. It made me nervous! We were then called in, it was our turn. When we were done, we walked through that same waiting room to another waiting room. The guy, (Surrender was his name), followed us and sat down next to Nanda again. He said that he had something for her, a gift- something he had had for a long time. He pulled a card out of his wallet. It read "With God, all things are possible." (from Matthew). I couldn't believe it- there are very few Christians in India. He said that he could sense that Nanda was nervous, so he prayed for her after we were called inside. He invited us to a worship service at his church on Friday night. I think it would be so interesting to go!
This afternoon, we hung around the hotel. Nanda is much happier here. We shopped in the shops downstairs for a while, and she picked out a sparkly necklace, which she would not take off before bed. She will say, "No Mom". She also has an opinion about what she likes and doesn't like. While we were shopping, I would look at something, and if she didn't like it, again I got the "No, Mom". She and Molly were just watching "Tom and Jerry" in the other room, and I could hear her laughing and laughing. She is so sharp- it is fun to watch her discover new things, and make connections. She tried spaghetti noodles for dinner. We all had a good laugh about it! You can't eat spaghetti gracefully.
Tomorrow we go back to the embassy for an interview. I hope the line is short. Nanda is like a different person when we are out in the morning going to appointments. I feel so bad that I can't ease her fears better. When we return to the hotel, she seems so light and happy.
Sorry no pictures this time, I couldn't get them to load. You'll have to wait to see Jim's new haircut until tomorrow. (Let's just say the Indian #2 is different than the American #2).
Love to you all!
Melinda