signs of spring

I went for a walk this week with the kids and I finally remembered to take my camera with me. Below is a picture of our "driveway". They are doing some major work on it, digging large trenches to put pipes in. Eli likes watching the excavators, dump trucks and front-end loaders. He might be the only sad one when all the work is done.

We live in the tall brown and grey apartment buildings (although in this picture you cannot see our building itself). Here's Eli and Dana in our stroller, man that all-terrain stroller was worth every penny we paid! Shortly before this picture was taken, a Chinese grandma told me I should buy a different type of stroller because where Dana sits is too low and she inhales too much of the exhaust from cars there. I politely told her that I would discuss it with my husband, but actually I don't think the 6 inch difference in height really makes any difference. She also told me that taking the kids to McDonalds and Kentucky Fried Chicken was not good for the kids to which I heartily agreed! (I haven't taken them there once yet).
Here's Eli at the top of his gravel hill. He gets nice and dirty every day which to me is a sign of a happy, healthy kid. Plus, there are so few hills here, that we had to take advantage. It comes more naturally for me to take the kids outside to play instead of doing indoor crafty things (although I'd love to be good at that too). I love this time of year, there are so many trees blossoming everywhere, it's remarkable how forgiving the trees and flowers seem to be here, they just go on blooming as if there were no pollution at all. I don't know what kind of trees these pink ones are, but they are lovely! We even have lilacs here too! There's a bush just outside our bedroom window actually.
Here's a typical street scene these days. My brother Albert asked me for some "typical" shots of what things look like here. They wrap rope around the trees for the winter and secure tarps around all the bushes. I'm not sure what it's for but I'm sure the Chinese know something I don't (they always do). The tall skinny building in the distance (centre) is the TV Tower. It is how I discern the air quality on any given day. Some days I can't see it at all. One clear day, we plan to go up there, have lunch and take pictures.

We went to this nearby park that is near the site of an Olympic venue. Because of the proximity to the Olympic site, there is a huge drive for general beautification of our road these days. They (many peasant workers, male and female, aged from 20-50 I'd say) are planting trees and flowers, sweeping streets and picking up garbage. They tore out all the brick sidewalks and poured concrete instead (I found out how to say "concrete" in Chinese, literally translated it is "water mud", and, by the way, I knew this word before Scott did!). Anyways, I was feeling a little stressed on behalf of the powers that be because the concrete work was not at all well done, it had footprints and bike prints all over it and was lumpy and uneven. I thought the bricks they had before looked way better. But--Scott informed me today that the concrete is just a base and they are putting tiles over top of it and that it looks sharp. Phew! Here is Dana at the park, looking triumphant for good reason: She just completed her first set of stairs and I set her down to do it again. Way to go Dana! She's such a cuddly and happy baby! How blessed I am!

Another random thing to tell you is that I saw this ad and was tempted to enter Dana: Baby models are being sought by HUGGIES diapers (China), the shooting will take place in Beijing on April 21st, half day. The organizers are looking for 8-14 month old 'crawlers', girl and boy, and must be 'Euro' looking. Each model will receive 2500RMB (that's about 350$). What do you think? Does Dana look "Euro" to you? Why doesn't Huggies (China) use a Chinese baby, that's what I'd like to know. I doubt I'll enter her, it's one thing to have cute kids, but quite another thing if and when those cute kids realize they are cute (and make money off it). No thanks.

march madness

What to write really....life in China has become, or at least feels, pretty normal. We all have our routines and structure in our week is not only necessary, but most welcome.

Eli goes to school three times a week: Wednesdays and Fridays from 0900-1100 and on Saturdays from 1000-1045. Scott takes him faithfully, I have yet to go, but I will soon because Scott is going back to Canada in about a month for a dear friend's wedding. Here's a picture of Scott and Eli just ready to bike to school (about a 10-15 minute ride).
Some days Eli really gets into it at school, and other days he doesn't. He learned the words for drum and tambourine; shake and pat; one, two, and three; dog and cat (and more I'm sure). There is active play for him in the park that the school owns as well as the swimming pool (which is his favourite). He is like a little wild man compared to the other Chinese kids who dutifully stay close to their grandmas, holding their hands. Eli climbs to the top of the monkey bars and is noticeably more independant.
Eli is having one of his favourites: peanut butter and mantou. Put peanut butter on anything and Eli will like it.

On Wednesday nights, Scott and I have our date nights. Sometimes we just hop on a bus and ride it to the end of the line, other times we go out for coffee (green tea frappucinos actually) and chat. Sometimes we go to a friend's place and play games. Yesterday we walked along the river and read the plaques on the old Austrian consulate's buildings. I've found a really yummy treat here: it's called tang duir and it's candied hawthorn berries on a stick. It's the perfect blend of sweet and sour in a dessert. Scott thinks they are okay, but I love them. Here we are back from one of our dates. Our tang duir are covered in edible rice paper in case you are wondering what that is.

Hmmm, what else is new...oh! there is a school trip being planned in early May too. The destination is Hainan Island, which is kind of like the Hawaii of China. I'm really thinking of going even though Scott will be in Canada during that time. As I was trying to decide between staying home or going, my tutor put it well, she said, "Well, which would you rather be, sad or tired?" I'm definitely leaning toward tired. If I stay, things are more predictable and easy, but I might end up feeling sorry for myself. If I go, I know travelling with two little slugs will be tiring, but I won't be alone, there will be other students and teachers that I can call upon to hold Dana while I run after Eli (and spank him).

I thought I would include some more pictures of Dana as she is really starting to want to walk! She regularly pulls herself up into the standing position and cruises around the coffee table. She likes Eli's toys and doesn't own any dolls. Dana's appetite is increasing and broadening too. No more rice cereal, we're into congee (rice soup) with vegetables (and beans, meat and eggs, don't worry mom, she's getting enough protein). She likes bananas now too, hooray!
This is her "mom, would you please put the camera down and give me more to eat" face. Who, I ask you, could say no?

homework

I'm trying to learn those crazy Chinese characters and my tutor highly encouraged me to do all my homework on the computer with characters instead of relying on pinyin (a Romanization of Chinese characters). So this is a short composition about sports and exercise which is mostly true (in some areas, I just wanted to use different vocabulary)...well, never let the truth get in the way of a good story right? Enjoy!

Sports

以前我平时喜欢做很多的运动。我中学的时候打排球，打篮球，滑冰，骑马，和踢足球。这些是我最喜欢的运动。现在我是妈妈，我的时间不够了， 所以我不能做很多的运动但是我还喜欢锻炼。在健身房，在家，都可以。在健身房我喜欢举重以后在跑步机上快走。我花半个小时走路。在家我跟朋友看一个DVD， 跳健身操和跳舞一起，有意思。我觉得锻炼身体帮我很多：我可以睡的比较好，学习比较好，我的态度比较好等等。。。如果我觉得我的压力很大，锻炼帮我忘了压力!

Translation:
I used to do a lot of sports. In junior high, I played volleyball, basketball, skated, rode horses and played soccer. These were my favourite sports. Now I am a mom, I don't have enough time so I don't do as many sports but I still enjoy exercising. At the gym or at home, both work. At the gym I like to lift weights after a half hour of walking fast on the treadmill. At home with a friend I like to watch (and do) an exercise DVD, it's a combination of dance and aerobics and it's fun. I think exercise helps me a lot, I can sleep better, study better, my attitude is better etc...if i feel under a lot of pressure, exercise helps me forget about it!

Thailand!

Okay so this first picture was not taken in Thailand, but I couldn't resist adding this picture of the kids. Part of our bedtime routine is to give the kids a bath before bed. Eli calls it "turtle time" because he thinks he swims like a turtle in the bathtub. As you can see, they both quite enjoy this method of wrapping up the day. I didn't even plan the modest placements of Eli's hands and Dana's green bowl!
Here we are in Hua Hin, a city about 3 hours from Bangkok. This guy was trying to get us to rent his horse but we didn't bother...maybe some other year when the kids are bigger. We did get a chance to rent a jetski for half an hour though while friends watched the kids. That was one of the highlights as travelling with kids does not often allow Scott and I to get away and do things together.

The beach was beautiful and the ocean quite refreshing. I think it was the perfect time to get away from the winter in China, even though where we are is not near as cold as in Canada, the wind can still sure chill to the bone and take your breath away. I'm in a daily habit of wearing long johns in China whereas I didn't in Canada...go figure!

Dana preferred the beach and the ocean. She ate her fair share of sand and really enjoyed the way the sand felt on her fingers and toes, when she got too sandy, we would scoop her up and rinse her in the ocean's waves, even dipping her in completely at times. She did not mind this, if you can believe that! We bought that adorable hat in Thailand, and you can see her crawling trail in the sand.
Eli however, preferred the swimming pool to the beach. The salt and the waves of the ocean threw him off a little. Our pool at the bungalow where we stayed had toys and a nice little shallow pool for him to play in. Most of the time, Eli liked to "park" his toys in an orderly way on the edge of the pool. He is such an organized little guy: he really likes order. He fell in the pool a few times, but not to worry, I was always close enough to fish him out right away and he is not traumatized by those experiences.
And then it was time to go home. This was Eli's idea of packing! We actually had to buy some more suitcases because one of our suitcases was ripping apart and then we ended up accumulating more stuff as well. I definitely packed too much stuff for this trip. I think I can easily cut the amount of clothing for all of us in half for next time!
Other highlights from Thailand were: 1) meeting many new friends in the first week; 2) having a special Valentine's Dinner in the same restaurant we got to go to when Scott and I were engaged (7 years ago); 3) having games nights at our place after the kids were in bed; 4) meeting an inspiring couple from Norway who are now living in India; 5) eating delicious Thai food and the fresh fruit so plentiful and cheap everyday...

Now we're back and gearing up for a new semester. We have pretty much the same schedule as last semester with just a few changes. We are rested and raring to get back to work again. Eli will be starting his preschool this coming Saturday. It is just a 45 minute class in which he must be accompanied by one of us (good for our language learning!). Should be fun. We want to gradually get him used to the idea of school, (and liking it!) so he will eventually be ready to go 2 or 3 mornings a week on his own...maybe by next September.

the BONKS

here's a new one:

the good news is: i'm not a battered woman...the bad news is: i might look like one.

i'd better explain:
i had been feeling sick for most of this week, kind of a flu, kind of a cold and was starting to feel better. i was preparing fruit salad like i do every morning for breakfast and i started to feel dizzy/woozy/lightheaded/and maybe a little bit like i might throw up, so i thought i would do the sensible thing and sit down. i sat in a kitchen chair right by eli and called softly "scott..."

the next thing i knew i was on the floor with a terrible aching sensation on my cheek, my forehead and my head. i had blacked out and fallen on my head! scott was standing over me looking concerned and reassuring me, and eli (bless him!) was saying "sorry mommy" like it was his fault or something!

ouch! what the hell happened? were some phrases that came to mind. i had broken my 500$ glasses in the process, and the frame had cut a little bit into my cheek. but scott took my glasses to get fixed which they did (for free!) and although i'm sore, i don't have really nasty noticeable bruises on my face, so i'm thankful for that.

eli (he's so funny) talks about how "mommy fell RIGHT OFF her chair!" and asks me if i'm going to do that again sometime! i tell him that i sure hope not, because it hurt and i only have one head!

p.s. so if you ever feel dizzy like that, sitting down in a chair is not enough, just lay down on the floor right away and save yourself the BONKS!

p.p.s. the bright side of having something like this happen to you is, at the very least you get a good story out of it.

our first Christmas in China...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everybody! We had a wonderful first Christmas in China, all things considered. We definitely missed being with friends and family, but made the best of things...what choice did we have?!

Here we are, spending Christmas Eve morning on a walk, just the four of us. We walked to where there was snow...at a ski hill where they make their own snow. This was at the zoo coincidentally and so we also went to see the birds. Eli really likes the birds and can spend a good half hour just watching them in the comfort and (relative) safety of his stroller. I really liked seeing the swans, I have no idea how they keep their feathers so clean and bright white...especially considering how dirty the zoo is.
Here was our decidedly non-traditional Christmas Eve meal, lotus roots, a spicy pork dish and mantou (Chinese buns), all made made by our beloved and much appreciated ayi (that's "auntie" in Chinese, but here it refers to our house-help or maid if you will). She's the one that truly makes it possible for Scott and I to study Chinese simultaneously.
But I at least made the vanocka (that's Czech Christmas bread). I didn't make the loaves beautiful like my mom's though, she braids the bread whereas I just made simple loaves. Too lazy you ask? Yep, and I didn't have any toothpicks to secure the braids on top of one another. Still tasted like my mom's though and that's what counts.
Eli very much enjoyed Christmas too. He received many new cars and trucks from friends and family. One of his favourites was a school bus from Scott. Here is a picture of Eli, engrossed in his new toys on Christmas Day.
Well if I had to choose my top three favourite memories of our Christmas this year, they would be:

1. the carol sing that we had on the 23rd. We invited about 10 people over and sang Christmas carols with Scott on the piano and someone else on the guitar. It sounded beautiful, and it chased away the homesick feelings that are especially strong this time of year. Eli had some of his buddies over and really enjoyed that evening too.

2. watching "The Nativity Story" on Christmas Eve. We plan to make this one of our traditions. The movie is so well done and it helped me see again how amazing this story really is. It helps the story not be so "same ol', same ol'" even though I've heard it so many times.

3. making cookies with a friend the week before Christmas. We spent the whole evening chatting and laughing as we made cookies and decorated them together (and yes, we sampled our fair share too). Hopefully we can do that again next year as well.

new things

Dana got a new "car bus" as we call it. It's a walker and you can't get them in Canada because they are illegal (deemed too dangerous as many houses in Canada and the US have stairs). We got one secondhand and don't worry, we are on the first floor in our building and there aren't any stairs. Dana loves it and has really mastered scooting all around our house. She loves being mobile! Eli loves to push her but he gets in trouble if he does. I let him go "park" it when she's not in it though.
Here's a picture just for fun: Eli with his crazy hair eating the peanut butter off of his bread. Dana helped him get that crazy hair, she put her rice cereal hands in his hair and started pulling. Eli is pretty good-natured about it when she does that; he says that Dana is giving him a "haircut." Needless to say, we gave him a bath after this.
Dana has started eating solids! So far she prefers only rice cereal though, she spits out any banana or sweet potato that I've offered her. Hmmm...a woman of simple tastes perhaps? Sweet potato I can understand, but I can't believe she doesn't like banana! My friends tell me not to worry and that it is just a matter of time before she eats anything and everything, so I'm just taking things a day at a time. She certainly looks healthy to me.
Eli also has embarked on something new: potty training! We've been at it for two weeks and I confess that in the middle of the first week I was very tempted to give up and just go back to diapers. Who knew that I had a definite control freak streak? (I just wanted to press a button on Eli and have him deposit a #1 or a #2 in the potty.) Who knew that I would take it personally if I missed getting Eli to the potty by mere seconds? (I felt like he was not cooperating on purpose.) It is humbling to rinse Eli's poopy pants...probably good for my character and all that. We won't give up, we are persevering and Eli is doing pretty well, all things considered. I have to readjust my attitude every now and then about it. I ask myself: "What, with my tile floors and my brown couches, is the worst thing that could happen?" We're starting to look forward to and prepare for Christmas. I'm trying to look at the bright side of being so far away from friends and family in that this Christmas will be more simple. It's business as usual here; no holidays for us. Good Christmas music is in short supply over here though. Some friends of ours got us Michael Bolton's Christmas album which we haven't listened to yet (but we will!). Thankfully, we have a new electric piano that sounds fantastic! I love the way the music fills our house when Scott plays. Another new thing? Scott's goatee! His barber told him he looked better with it, because without it he looked "too white." I didn't like it at first, but it's growing on me (ha ha).