On being a tourista

I love to travel. One of the great temptations for me during the trips to China was to try to see as much as I could and to eat as much local food as possible. The problem wa,s I wasn't really in China to travel. I was in China to form a family! Each day I would wake up and tell myself  "I am not here as a tourist". That was followed by the most difficult thing a man can do- try to think how to help my wife out with taking care of the baby. The temptation to go to the exotic Beijing market (where you can get everything from fried scorpions on a stick to sheep's penis) was almost too much but i can proudly say I said no and just had a scorpion delivered to my room by friends in our travel group.
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The point is that it takes time to effectively bond to your child and the best way to do that is to not be a tourist but rather be a parent, having lots of down time: time hanging out in the hotel room playing, trying out the squeaky shoes in the hotel lobby or just playing in the park.

This also applies to when you get home. Try as much as possible to keep your life simple and not foo full of activities and events. This wasn't easy for us when we arrived home to two college students, a girlfriend and a boyfriend and Christmas, but down time was important the help our daughter adjust to her new forever world. Daycare unless absolutely neccesary, preschool, dance, gymnastics you name it--is best left for a few months down the road once your child has become comfortable with her new home and family.

P.S. the scorpions just taste like salty potato chips (see picture) but I passed on the penis- probably taste's like chicken anyway.