买2送1 (buy 2, get 1 free)

Not exactly what I think of for "buy 2 get 1 free." I am trying to see the logic here. Snickers gives you energy, you know just like . . . batteries? So you get a free battery with 2 Snickers? I'm trying here, people. Anyone else have any theories?

Snowy Suzhou

As is apparently obvious from my total absence of blogging is that I have been lacking in inspiration. When we first came to China, everything was new and overwhelming. But as we have settled into life here, things have gone from new to usual and mundane. I think that I also feel like I would be repeating myself. I have been sorely lacking in ideas and my time was limited leading up to finals. All this led to: NO blogging. While I want to write about our life here, I also want it to be different from things that I have already shared. So I am looking to you for added inspiration. If you have an idea of something you want to know about, let me know and I will blog about it. :-)

But back to life. . . before we left for Chinese New Year, we got snow in Suzhou. This is the first amount of accumulation that we have seen since we moved here. Over the course of 3 days we got less than 5 inches and that amount pretty much shut down the city. Our kids had 2 snow days and reveled in the time off to play in the snow. I had the realization that Tori really does not remember seeing or playing in snow. I had to teach her how to build a snowman.

Because this city hardly ever gets snow, they are unsure of what to do with it. People still ride their bikes/e-bikes even in the snow and ice. I saw many people on bikes sliding and falling over. And to remove the snow? With brooms, of course (even on major streets).

Becca and friends taking a break from a snowball fight.

Somewhere in all those clothes is Tori

Do you see what the men are using to move the snow? You got it, brooms! Only in China!

Uninspired

So, I have not blogged in over a month. And while the usual excuse (of busyness) is there. I think it is more than that. I think that I have just been lacking in inspiration.

But just to keep you somewhat updated, here is a snapshot of our last month:

• Hosted 2 Thanksgivings (one with almost 40 people, and one with a measly 25)
• Got family portraits done
• Hosted a Christmas dinner for our church's leadership
• Josh performed in the lower grades school musical. My quiet boy actually rapped. It was awesome to see!

And in the midst of it all, school and work continues. Today is the kids' (well, at least Josh and Becca's) last day before holiday break. Tori does not get a holiday break, but in the idea of family harmony, I will decide which days she can stay home from school.

Packed in

I have become used to taking the bus. So much so, that I really don't think about the crowds or other quirks of public transportation here in Suzhou. But like my other recent attempts to show you more of a complete picture of our life here, I thought I would show you a fairly normal sight on my morning commute:

While I am not the only foreigner on the bus, you can see that I am definitely in the minority. Today it was raining and so the bus was particularly crowded (some who might normally use a bike or e-bike in nicer weather opt for the bus in the rain). But there is a saying in Chinese that is commonly heard:

中囯人太多了.没办法.

(Zhongguoren tai dou le, Mei banfa. MEANING: The Chinese people are too many. There is no solution.) I think that pretty much sums it up!

Waiting in Line

I am trying to bring you more pictures that capture our everyday life. Here I am standing in line to pick up Tori from school. The school is ahead on the right (though not visible in the picture). When I pick her up, I scan a card on a machine (each family is issued several cards) and that way they know exactly who is at the school at any given time. Another thing that I think is a great idea is that to communicate with the parents, they send text messages (granted they are in Chinese, but it just becomes a way to practice what I am learning). That is often the way that I communicate with the teachers as well. But back to standing in line. . . I tell you, many times, this song runs through my head: "One of things is not like the others, one of these things doesn't belong..."

Morning Communte

Just another morning commute for all of these people (this photo was taken as I was waiting for the bus). . .

Even though there are more and more people driving cars in China, the bike and e-bike are still the most popular ways to get around. Did you know that there are estimated more than 120 million e-bikes used in China? Isn't that crazy?! It is estimated that there are about 200,000 e-bikes used in all of the United States. I have read that between 700,000 and 800,000 e-bikes are used in Beijing alone. This number is hard to gauge because there is no license required to operate them. I have been pondering buying one. But in the meantime, I have been borrowing a friend's while they are back in the U.S.. Can you imagine me (with several kids) on one of these?

AMAZING RACE: Unexpected Challenge

Unexpected Challenge: Stomach Virus

When living (and especially traveling) in a foreign country, you just kind of expect that sometimes your stomach is not always going to be happy. So when Andy's stomach wasn't doing the best one day, we chalked it up to any number of things (sanitary issues, iffy food, you name it). But then the next day both Becca's and my stomach were not happy. And I began to have suspicions that it might be more than just a "China tummy day." The following day when we were at Leshan seeing the Big Buddha, Josh began complaining that his stomach hurt. Uh oh. On the 2 hour drive back, Josh got really sick several times in the van. Yeah, my concerns were confirmed. He was one sick little man that night. We just stayed at our hostel (and I have never been more thankful for a washer than I was that night). He went to sleep super early and the next morning, thankfully felt fine. On the night he was not feeling well, Andy and I were talking and realized that our kids have gotten sick (aka thrown up) in all kinds of places in several different countries. Just one of the joys of adventuring with kiddos, I guess. I must say that I think that Tori is quite the hardy kiddo because she was the only one of us to make it through this episode unscathed. For which I cannot express enough gratitude because the Super T sick is a daunting thing.

As an aside, I am FINALLY going to finish blogging about this trip tomorrow. Only a couple more noteworthy things. And then back to our "normal life." :-)