Art in the Park

One of the things that our children really enjoy is going to the park and "doing an art project". We walk to a nearby park, ride a few small amusement rides and then our children usually choose a project to complete. (We already of a large assortment of sand art, home made window clings, and piggy banks in our home.) Here is just another little taste of culture for those that are curious about life on this side of the world.


I love the sights on the way to the park. Want a hair cut? Here is a barber that sets up on the stairs that lead down to a nearby railway.


Want a yummy treat? Our kids love the fresh pineapple that is prepared by men like this one. They cut outside layer of the pineapple, cut it in quarters and put it on a stick. Delicious.


Notice the folks watching? Yep, they stopped to watch the "little foreign kids" do an art project. :)

EASTER

We had a great day celebrating Easter. We rarely get to spend the entire day with English speaking friends- but this Easter we all enjoyed our Sunday time and afterwards some sweet fellowship. We enjoyed some yummy Mexican food- because everyone knows that Jesus is a Spanish name. :) Fajitas, chips and Queso, pico de gallo, fruit salad, Mexican rice, and chocolate cake. (Well, ok... maybe only the adults really appreciated the Mexican food. But the kids did have tons of candy to componsate for a meal that was not their favorite.) After a labor intensive meal (mostly just the tortilla making) we played some Wii and just hung out. It was a great day.

Final touches on the Living Room!

A few folks inquired about our place. Well, here is the living room after some recent work. We had the whole place painted a khaki color (with the exception of the kid's rooms). I had the zebra print sofas recovered, bought some IKEA furniture in a nearby city, and finally hung some art work on the walls.

As you enter our apartment you enter a small entry way that has a place for shoes and the stroller. Immediately on the left is the dining room table, home school room and kitchen. Turn 90 degrees to the right and this is what you see- the remainder of the house. (Living room to the immediate right, CJ's bedroom then the girls bedroom on left, master bedroom at far end on right side)


Left door: squatty potty bathroom Right door: CJ's bedroom


YEAH- no more zebra print sofa :) I would still like to find something to put above the sofa but that will come in time.


More shelves surrounding the TV...

Family Day Out!

Last Saturday, March 20th, the weather was gorgeous so we went out on the town with the kids. We went to an "old town" area of the city where you can check out how things may have looked like in our city in previous years. (I'm positive there are parts of China that still look like this but in our city they are building one high rise after another- pretty much only new construction around us).

A shot of the kids as we waited for our turn at the taxi stand. Buses on Saturdays are CRAZY crowded, so taxis are the preferred mode of transportation for this family!


While at the "old town" we saw a man doing some really neat stuff with cotton candy. CJ chose a multi colored flower. Miriam and space ship.




A picture of Eliza as she pollishes off her cotton candy.


Here is a picture of the walking street BEFORE it got crowded later that afternoon. It was fun to see the various little knick knacks that were sold in the shops on either side of the street. On the way out we could hardly move because of the crowd. (Note to self: make sure to visit this place again early in the morning or on a weekday).


I'm not really sure what type of food these two men were pounding with their mallets- it reminded me a bit of what a tortilla looks like. I didn't taste any- just thought it was fun to watch.


After walking a while we wandered to the back of the "old town". It was quiet and relaxing and a little more realistic of what life was probably like in these type of neighborhoods. There were lots of little shops that were connected to the families living quarters. One shop sold eggs, another sold tea, another shop various pig parts... you would look behind the counter and see a family enjoying their noon day meal. I loved that it was slow paced and informal. (Miriam is NOT wearing a helmet- she is wearing a new purchase- mask of a cartoon character).

St. Patrick's Day Fun!

Last weekend we had a couple of friends over to help celebrate St. Patrick's Day. It was a GREAT GREEN Day. The kids and I dressed in green (various shades), we made green shamrock cookies, played games and talked about the story of St. Patrick. It was a fun evening for all.
(You may notice the children holding up their fingers. It is not a special hand shake or anything like that. They are trying to be like our Chinese friends and hold up a "peace" symbol for the picture.)

How big a crowd?

OK... so I've always wondered how fast we can draw a crowd and how many people gather to see us at a given time. Well, I think today beat all records. After buying some train tickets the kids expressed that they wanted a little snack before we headed to the grocery store. I gave into the plea for french fries and since the weather was nice we ate outside on a little bench. Ok, we've lived in China for 4 years now and I should have known better but I actually thought that we could eat our fries in peace. WRONG! Within seconds, and I mean about 20 seconds we had a small crowd of about 20 people watching my children eat fries. The crowd continued to grow and they were getting closer and closer with every breath. CJ was up and out of there before he could be poked of prodded (he's learned the art of avoidance in a crowd). Miriam was quick to follow. But poor Eliza couldn't escape (since she was in the stroller). I pulled down the sun shade on the stroller, slid her stroller next to the bench, barricaded her in from the other side and translated her grunts "She doesn't like it when you touch her"). I tried to be kind, said the all- desired "Hello" in English, and excused ourselves. At that point I pushed the stroller through the quite large crowd and gave CJ & Miriam a holler that we were headed to the grocery store.

Will we ever NOT draw a crowd? Is there a certain age at which point my kids won't be so cute that we don't draw such a crowd?

I really am curious as to how many spectators we had during our 'French Fry Affair' today, hmm?

He's 7!

Wow! It's hard to believe that my baby is 7 years old. Almost on a daily basis I'm reminded that my little guy isn't so little anymore. Sometimes it's a hug/ tackle that sends me to the floor. Sometimes it's a request for allowance or permission to walk to the arcade by himself. Other times it's a heart to heart conversation about his relationship with our Father. "I just want to love J more. I want think about Him more and more. I want my J buttons to talk louder than my toy buttons". (This was from a conversation we had the other night when he was trying to explain how he was struggling to make decisions that honored the Father. He shared with me that there were different parts of his brain that were allocated for different things. He shared how the right side of his brain was for his toys and how J had the area above his right eyebrow. He went on to say that he wanted there to be more J buttons and wanted those buttons to talk louder then the toy buttons. CJ said that when that happened he could make better choices and do the things that J wanted him to do.) I thought that he articulated his struggle very well. I shared about my similar struggles. I was so proud of him. Thank you Father for this gift that you've given us for this time.

CJ's birthday started with a breakfast of Lucky Charms while in bed. It was followed by the opening of presents and shopping with money from grandparents. He loved it & as you can see in the pictures- I don't think he'll ever tire of cars.




The celebration continued a few days later with a trip to McDonalds and a nearby play area with Eliza and his best pal Leo (Miriam couldn't make it because of illness).


And finally the Rocket Cake that he requested. He asked for a red cake but (after tons of red dye) he was content with a pink USA Rocket Cake with "CJ" printed in the middle.



We hope to make a trip to a nearby bowling alley to celebrate as a whole family in the near future. He really wanted to have a party with more friends and the family but for various reasons it didn't work out this year. But I don't think he'll mind celebrating for weeks on end. :)