A Day to Celebrate!

The man that I love was born 27 years ago today!

It was sooooooooo hard for Eden to keep the secret that she'd made him a card days ago. For the past few days at breakfast it was like she'd suddenly remember and say, "HEY MOMMY!!! CAN WE GIVE DADDY HIS...."

And then I'd "SHHH!" her real loudly in a very award-winning-parent type of style, and she'd remember that it was a secret.

So today when she woke up and I told her that today was Daddy's birthday she was beyond thrilled about finally presenting him with his birthday card.

And because Brandon is an awesome dad, he was beyond thrilled with his covered-in-stickers blue construction paper card that Eden and Salem made themselves.
He was also super impressed with my planning ahead-edness when I presented him with a birthday card I bought in the States before we left. I was impressed with my planning ahead too though...and impressed that I didn't lose it somewhere in between the move overseas!

We celebrated by starting the day off with Pioneer Woman's Coffee Cake. And after consuming almost entirely 3 sticks of butter, we labeled it a breakfast that should be eaten only once a year, and decided we had to get out for a walk!

We headed for a big lake not too far from our apartment...via bus:


We went all touristy, bought the kids balloons, and broke out our tourist smiles for a family photo.


Pausing for a 28 weeks preggy photo.


We're getting fairly used to feeling like local celebrities everywhere we go. With constant stares, occasional picture taking, and non-stop questions about whether both kids are actually ours, we didn't think things could escalate much more than that.
But something about being out in a very public and touristy spot, really brought on the crowds today. Eden's picture was snapped by no less than 174 cameras. No lie.
Occasionally, it bothers her and she doesn't understand why complete strangers want to pose with her for a picture. Good question, Eden. Good question. Most of the time, she handles it really well.

And then other times she totally hams it up and gives them a real show.


Lets zoom in on that and take a closer look...


Um yes. Totally eating up the attention.
What you can't see in this picture is how many people are standing to the left and right of Brandon (taking the picture). I was back behind the straw hut thing (which Eden labeled as Jesus' Manger) managing Salem who was less than enthusiastic about the impending crowd.

After our picnic lunch of pb&j, we concluded our park adventure with a carousel ride!


We returned home to nap out the afternoon, and to continue our high-calorie day with cupcakes and a Mexican Pile-On Feast with guacamole and all. Avocados cost a pretty penny kuai here, so we broke them out in celebration of Brandon today!
Happy Birthday Brandon! I love you and look forward to many many more of your birthdays!


Your kids love you more than their tongues can express!!

Weird Apple

Some things in China are just weird.

Yes, I said it. Maybe that sounds harsh. Over dramatic. But I live here, so I'm allowed to be a little dramatic on occasion.

Specifically...stuffed animals in China. They're strange. Odd. And occasionally, creepy.

But the other day when we stumbled upon the store where we found Eden's bike, hidden toward the back of the shelf was this Adorably Cute Stuffed Alligator. I'm all about jungle themes in boy's rooms, so I begged Brandon to let me get it for Salem and Caleb.

My case was easy to plead. It was very obvious how cute this alligator was when lined up next to all the loser stuffed animals. Brandon could see that rare gems of stuffed animals were going to be few and far between.
So, Adorably Cute Stuffed Alligator came home with us that day.

Salem has yet to even care. I'll admit, he's never been a big stuffed animal guy. That's why we left almost all of his in the States.

I was hoping the alligator would convince him otherwise. I was hoping to convert him into one of those kids that totes around an animal, as opposed to, say, a pacifier (that we so desperately need to break him of!)
But no. It looks as though Adorably Cute Stuffed Alligator will be relegated to shelf status, just to look cute in his room.

Instead, Salem has found a new companion.
Within our first few weeks here, we visited a local restaurant and the kids were each given a stuffed animal.
That's how we roll here. We tote around our white kids. They get free stuff.

Eden got this bright yellow mouse/bear thing that has already lost it's nose.

Salem was given Weird Apple.


Those lines out beside Weird Apple's eyes? No explanation.
Except to say that they are a common feature on stuffed animals around here.

And Salem?
Well, he's attached to Weird Apple.


He calls him his baby...


I call him Weird Apple.

Salem thinks Weird Apple is cool. And makes weird faces with weird squinty lines beside his eyes like Weird Apple.

I, however, am harboring hostility toward Weird Apple. Because he's, just. plain. weird.

Clicking...

You know that feeling you get when things start coming together and "clicking" and making sense and you start getting the hang of it all?

We're clicking now. We're getting the hang of it all. It's all coming together and making sense! Minus the language aspect, which hopefully we'll have mastered in, oh, about 27 years.

I mean, we've been here a month now, so it would make sense that I've finally figured out how to work my oven, right?
And I'm not at all ashamed to admit that one of the first things I baked was my mom's recipe for homemade cinnamon rolls. Even with wonky yeast and inadequate rising times, Pillsbury got nothing on these babies...


Brandon is glad that the putting-together-all-of-our-furniture aspect of moving is over. (mostly) I'm going to out him and say that he even slapped down some cash to buy an electric drill just for putting together our IKEA furniture. But when said drill costs a mere $9 here in the Big Chicken, it's very much worth it.


The kids are still troopers. With our big box of stuff still yet to arrive, which has most of their favorite toys from the States, they've been resorting to other means of entertainment.



I'm wondering how much longer the fascination with our front loader washer will last? I'm milking it for all it's worth. Bored kids? Start some laundry!! Brights are Eden's favorite. Swirling purple and pink in a sea of soapy water...the kid is in awe.

We inherited some treasured from-the-States Crayola finger paints....so, we painted rocks.




So after a month of having played with the same small toys that we barely had room for in our suitcases, Brandon and I broke down and decided we'd find some new toys for both of them. Eden got a new bike, with Mermaid Ariel's face prominently displayed, much to her delight!
And Salem got an inside riding toy, and a set of tools with welding goggles and all.


So, we're figuring things out. Slowly but surely, it's all coming together. We have couches. We've found the right type of milk to buy. We know which bus to take to Chinese-Wal-Mart. We can order drinking water and have it delivered to our front door.

Soon enough we'll have our big box of stuff hopefully. Soon enough we'll have gas so we can use our stove top.

We're functioning! And enjoying our functional status!

Friday Foto

I can't help but attach a few words to this Friday's Foto.
Our apartment complex is brand new, which means there's lots of renovations being completed, lots of construction still going on, and lots and lots and lots of trash being produced. This country has trash issues. I'm not going to go into a ton of detail...but a lot of it is great. They recycle almost everything. And for this crunchy mama, that's really cool.

But a lot of it is really annoying. Take for instance, the fact that all of the community's trash is currently dumped right outside our apartment door. (well give or take 50 feet). It's literally TONS of trash that piles up in one day. Then after a few days, a bulldozer type tractor and dump truck come and carry it away.

So, annoying yes. Especially when the bulldozer comes and makes it's racket around midnight.

But, the entertainment that it provides my children is fabulous. Salem, especially, is fascinated by the "tractor" that comes to our window so often. For those minutes that it's there, he's glued to that window!

Blondie's First Day

Eden's first words this morning: "MOM! I get to go to school today!!"

Her excitement permeated through our house this morning. It made us all bubbly and cheery. You will probably never hear me describe myself with those two words ever again. Especially concerning morning time.

She couldn't wait to pack her back pack. She made sure to include her house shoes...a new staple for attending preschool. Outside shoes are never worn inside. So, into the backpack went her pink boot-legged crocs.
One picture before leaving the house with daddy...


Can't you see the excitement on her face?!

Salem was less excited. That's an understatement. He was screaming mad. No really. He was screaming. He didn't like the fact that sister was getting to leave and he wasn't.
He ran to the window to watch what he was missing out on.


Her little friends are funny and are fascinated by her blonde hair. The little boy on the far right seriously cracks me up.


3 teachers to 5 students. Pretty good ratio.


She'll be attending twice a week from 8:45 to 11:45 and eating lunch there before she comes home. The whole lunch thing...that makes me a nervous mom. A paranoid mom.
When I picked her up I was rapid firing questions at her...
What did you do this morning? What did you eat? Did you like it? You didn't drink out of anyone else's cup, right?!
Her teachers told me she had three bowls of rice. No surprise. She's a bottomless pit as long as rice is being offered.
And then on our walk home she said, "Yeah I liked the rice! But I tried some green stuff. And then some other green stuff. But I didn't like the green stuff."
We're working on becoming more detail oriented. :)

When tucking her in tonight, I asked her what her favorite part of preschool was.
She said, "Playing with my friends."
and that makes my "green stuff"-mommy-paranoia totally worth it.

Before...

Have you ever picked out your future home while living on the other side of the world?

It's not fun. I don't recommend it.

But fortunately for us, we have friends. Nice friends. Patient friends.
Friends who looked at 12 (or more?!) different apartments before finding one that was owned by landlords who weren't afraid to rent to foreigners, and one that was ready to move in to.

I'll admit, in my selfish Americanized bratty way, that when I first saw the pictures for this place, I wasn't thrilled. I wasn't jumping up and down about it. In fact, my first reaction was, "ummmm....No!" It lacked some things I was really hoping for in a new place.

But my dear husband, in a very gentle way, told me that I needed to relax a bit, and go spend some time with Jesus. He's always right. Brandon is. Well, Jesus is too. anyway...

So I relinquished my desire for a nicer place. Gave in to the "yellow walls" and agreed that we should sign the contract. It was freeing to know we'd have a place to come to once we landed here.

Turns out, (big surprise) the Lord had his ever so sovereign hand in the whole thing. This place that I wasn't thrilled about, I'm totally loving. Sure it has issues. The apartment complex is surrounded by construction that makes it hard to catch a taxi, or walk to the grocery store, or keep our children from getting muddy every.time.they.go.outside.  BUT, it's a nice apartment. It already feels like home. And truly, the Lord is blessing this home.

So...now, the much anticipated pictures. There's A LOT. Be warned.

These are actually before BEFORE pictures. Pictures that we received from our nice, patient friends seeking our approval on this place. Pictures taken before our arrival. Before we had it cleaned. Before we removed all the landlord's furniture. etc...

Standing in the front doorway, looking down the hallway. Living room to the right. Dining area to the left...


From front doorway looking left toward dining area and kitchen. Kitchen is behind those terrible glass doors with the purple hearts. :) (They've since been removed!!)


Dining room and the area by the window is where my fridge is now and pantry cabinets.


Kitchen. That's my sink. :) The counter top is a little annoying. It's metal. Has small raised hearts on it. Which make it terribly hard to roll out tortillas. But, it'll do.


View from fridge area. Dining room, living room in the distance. Hallway to the left, just past the kitchen door.


Living room. All furniture has been removed. It's now overtaken by IKEA furniture. :) Lord, bless that place!! The door in the left corner is to our little laundry room.


Eden's room (first door on the right in the hallway). The area past the big glass doors is the laundry room with the door from the living room. I must admit, this separate laundry area was a big selling point for me!


Hallway bathroom. Separate sink and toilet/shower area. (except no shower yet in this picture)


Toilet/shower area in same bath. This is usually just the way they do things here. The bathroom is usually just a tiled shell of an area. You shower, you get water everywhere. That's just how it is. We've changed it up a bit since our arrival. :)


Salem and Caleb's room. Bed has been removed.


Looking into master bedroom. Little hallway on the left leads to linen closet and bathroom.


Opposite view in bedroom. Handy dandy closet and storage behind the gray sliding doors. Bed is gone now. Replaced with, you guessed it, an IKEA bed (which we're totally obsessed with now!)


Hallway to bathroom. See the nice big linen closet?! Yes, it's grrrrrrrreat!


View into bathroom. Are you seeing now why my first reaction was a "NO!" Things have since changed. :)


Another view in the bathroom...



Soon to come....AFTER pictures. Pictures that will make you think....ahhhhh, yeah, that's much better!!
Pictures that will show off our beautiful IKEA furniture. We still haven't received our big box of stuff we shipped over a month ago. So it won't be pictures of a beautifully decorated place, but they'll help you understand that we aren't living in a concrete shell of an apartment anymore!!

Hong Kong

Since I know our blog is a big picture starved, I'm going back a few weeks to post pics (from Brandon's phone!) of our stay in Hong Kong. I've been a totally awesome mom ever since we got here and have completely neglected taking pictures of any sort in our new place. I know, Mom-of-the-Year right here, folks. I promise to dig out our camera sometime soon!

Since I pulled a crazy stunt on our 15 hour plane ride, I got to sleep the majority of that trip! So the rest of our crew suffered a bit more with jet-lag! The kids spent a lot of time doing this:


I used to be concerned about Salem not being able to sleep through noise. When he fell asleep on the HK subway, I realized my concerns aren't really legitimate anymore.


Since then, he's learned to sleep through jack hammering and fireworks at our new apartment. Jack hammering and new apartments in China go hand-in-hand.

One of our days in HK turned out to be a fairly clear day so we took advantage of the tram up to the peak, and enjoyed the HK skyline!


Enjoying the tropical flowers of Hong Kong...


Not a bad place to be stuck for awhile!!