remodeling

The house across from ours is being remodeled. Now, no matter where you live that is annoying. But here in China, the remodeling process takes on a whole new dimension. Because this is not just painting or putting in a new bathroom. Instead, it looks like this:

The entire house is being gutted. And this is fairly normal when renovating. Or as it is called in Chinese 装修 (pronounced: zhuang xiu). I am glad that I am working during the day and am hopeful that it will be finished by the time we return at the end of August. But I don't know, it looks to be a long way from being finished. So unfortunately, when we start homeschool in the fall we may have some background noise. I will just keep hoping that this moves at the normal speed of construction work here. . . really fast!

spelling debate

With just over a week of school remaining, my thoughts are turning towards the fall. The kids have all kinds of questions of how homeschooling will work. . .

how many days will we have school?

how long will our school day be?

will we do the same thing every day?

what will I do when you are working with __________ (a sibling)?

And while I have ideas of how things will work, I am sure that most of these questions will be answered over time as we figure out the details together. Since we live outside the US, we aren't required to have a certain number of educational days or don't have certain standards that need to be met (e.g. the kids won't be required to take any standardized tests). Of course we will have a "normal" amount of school days. Being me, I have researched the number of days/hours required by various states of homeschooling families. And yes, I will keep records even though I don't have to submit them to anyone. But one question that I have been debating. . . which spelling standard will we use? The kids have been using British spelling for all of their educational careers. But our curriculum is from the US and therefore will use American spelling. While this may seem like a small matter, I just like to think it all through before instead of in the midst of things. I am leaning towards using American spelling, but if there is an alternative spelling informing them of both. But I am inviting you to weigh in. Opinions?

The big cut

The girls have been talking about donating their hair once we got back to the States. However after swimming so much this last month, T's hair was decidedly green. And I was secretly wondering if they would even want it. So when she asked to get it cut, I agreed.

Tori was so excited she had a hard time sitting still.

And the result? Is mighty cute if you ask me.

This picture is blurry because I took it with my phone and my girl is constant movement.

Perfect for the hot summer. And I am glad not to battle the tangles each day!

summer bucket list

Summer is exciting. Time with the kids. Time to refresh. And for us, it is a time to be with our friends and family. (Not to mention all the little joys of being in our home country).

We are usually fairly purposeful about where we are and what we will be doing. Especially planning for the big things. But this list is more than just the big trips. It is all the things that we want to soak up and not take for granted while we are Stateside. So, in a stream-of-consciousness-kind-of-way here are my dreams for the summer.

1. Eat berries every day. Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries. I am not going to look at the price tag. Because no matter what I will pay, it will be way cheaper than here. Not to mention some of those fruits are not available ever here.

2. Eat corn on the cob, often. Maybe not every day, but close. Because midwest corn is some of the best on the planet. In my humble opinion.

3. Walk barefoot in the grass. There are many reasons that this one is a must. We live in a city of 7 million and grass is hard to find, and when you do find it often you are not allowed to walk on it. And then I would never, ever go barefoot in China. Ever. I will let your imagination fill in the blanks on that one.

4. Eat ice cream at least 3 times a week. I can't seem to get away from food! But since ice cream is one of my favorite things, I have to indulge while I can.

5. Catch fireflies with the kids. Did you know that there are no fireflies in China? Or much of southeast Asia for that matter? Since I grew up with them every night in the summer, I kind of thought that they were everywhere. Huh. . . one of those childhood beliefs proven false.

6. Have at least one park playdate a week. This one is closely tied with #3. And a great need to connect with people I miss.

7. Try to see as much of the Olympics while simultaneously trying to see as little election coverage as possible. Hmm, not sure this one is possible. I have decided that while I firmly believe in being informed about the election and candidates, that the whole election process is a bit better from afar. And we return to O-H-I-O. This one is probably unattainable.

8. Have a date with Andy. And hopefully eat Indian food in Clifton (you Cincy folk know of where I speak). With grandma babysitting. What could be better?

9. Go for morning runs that look more like this

and less like my normal view. 

Do I really need to say anymore on that one? And while I won't get to run in the woods every time, even the neighborhoods with the big lawns and trees will be a great change.  


10. Go to the grocery store alone. This may seem like an odd one, but I love the grocery store. I enjoy grocery shopping more than shopping for clothes. Well, I should say that I love going to the grocery store in the US. So at least once while I am back I want to wander the aisles and just be able to enjoy grocery shopping again.

So what are your plans and hopes for the summer? I know they will look different than mine, but join me in being intentional about this precious time.

And just in case you were wondering. . . 16 days until we are Stateside. Summer fun, here we come!

catching up

Where to begin? While life has been incredibly busy, I feel like I just don't have much to say. I wake up, prepare for the day, go to school and teach, come home, run to the store if necessary, make dinner, spend a little time with the kids and Andy, and go to bed. Occasionally, I may throw a run into the mix. For many, I know that is the norm of life. But when you add in the fact that I shop on my e-bike and need to go at least every other day (and if I truly get everything I need, I have to go to at least 4 different places in one week) and going back to work has been busy. While I am sure that given time, I would get into a routine. But I am just tired.

After teaching for a couple of months, I have only confirmed that I want to homeschool in the fall. I am really looking forward to teaching and having a lot of time with my own children in the fall. Don't get me wrong, I have loved the time with my littles, but I miss time with my own kiddos.

And we are reaching the time of year when I am ready to go back to the States. I miss family and friends. But even in the midst of this longing, I have seen several things over the last couple of weeks that remind why life is never boring living abroad. Hopefully, you find some humour in these as well.



While the characters do correspond and it does say antelope in both Chinese and English, what do you think they mean? That the bike is fast like an antelope? That it can jump?

Here I think some fellow expat was bothered by the incorrect English and decided to take matters into their own hands. Do you see the correction? Look closely at the word beverage. Or should I say bevrage?

We saw this as we walked home one day after having dinner out. Clearly, this is a girl-car. Complete with eyelashes.

So what do you think they mean by Long Yeah?

And the days until we get on a plane. . . 13. A few days in Japan and then in 18 days we will be back in the good old U.S. of A. Oh, happiness.

birthday girl: Becca

I know that every parent says that the time goes so fast, but I can hardly believe that my girl is 11. How did that happen?

I remember the week you were born, so ready for your arrival that I must have walked miles hoping to speed things along. After a week of contractions (and thinking you would never come), we welcomed you into the world in the middle of the night. While the world was still and quiet in those early hours we prayed for you and the path that your life would take. So thankful that we could help to guide and shape you as your parents. I must say, my sweet girl, that I so enjoy the young lady that you are becoming.

I love your sense of humor.

I love your enjoyment of nature. And your fearlessness with various critters. (though I don't think you got that from me)

Some sort of tropical beetle.  Thailand

Bali, Indonesia

I love your sense of adventure and how much you enjoy traveling. I love that it was one of your lifelong dreams at 4 years old to have your own passport.

One of the first trips where we saw your love of traveling emerge. We were in New York City and you (at 4) walked and walked, carrying your little backpack. You were so curious and wanted to see and experience EVERYTHING.

Tioman Island, Malaysia

But with your love of traveling, I love your cautiousness and even your travel stress.

At the Seoul airport making sure she is carrying no banned items. Even with all the flights we have been on, I love that you read the safety card every time we fly.

I love your sweetness and big heart for others.

Even your sister and brother.

I love how you are comfortable with who you are. You are not afraid to just be yourself.

I love your intelligence. But more importantly I love how you think and use that brain of yours.

Darling girl, it is a privilege to be your mama. One that I don't take lightly. I look forward to seeing you continue to grow and change over the next year.

Happy birthday, Becca. We love you.

spring break

The last two weeks the kids and I have been on spring break. I know 2 weeks seems like a crazy amount of time. But most of the breaks at the international school are 2 weeks. Because when people here travel, they take time to do it. Especially considering that when we go home, it requires a 12+ hour flight to do it. No weekend trips to grandma's house for us during spring break!

And since the Chinese holiday is only 2 days (meaning that Andy only gets those 2 days off), we were not going to be traveling anywhere. Instead our time was spent around Suzhou. I caught up on those little details that had been overlooked during my first couple weeks of work. I ordered our curriculum for homeschooling next year. Which Andy gave me grief for. "You have plenty of time" he tells me. True, but unlike other homeschoolers, if I decide midyear that I want something different, I can't just order it and have it delivered. I can't decided, oh this other book would be a great addition. I needed to know exactly what I wanted for the whole year. Knowing how busy I was when teaching, I didn't want this on my mind as well. And when we get back in the US, I just want to enjoy being with family and friends, not researching what curriculum I want to use. Wow, I guess I felt rather strongly about that?! I think I was just humored that my husband, the ultimate planner, was giving me, the impromptu queen, grief on one of those times when I am actually planning quite a ways ahead. I'll say no more.

And the rest of our time was spent around our neighborhood enjoying beautiful spring weather.

One afternoon, we went to the park around the corner from our neighborhood to rollerblade. The kids had to skate in the bike lane to get there.

Becca and one of her dear friends, Silje. We will be sad to see their family move back to Norway this summer. I know that I have said it before, but saying goodbye is a hard reality of life here. And probably one of my least favorite things about expat life.

While many Chinese parks don't have as much green space as those in the US, they do provide a great place for rollerblading.

Is there any wonder why we call her our force? (as in our force to be reckoned with)

Then yesterday, we took the train into Shanghai with some other families to the Science and Technology Museum. I got only a few pictures and they were not that great. Somehow, whenever we go to any museum I come home with memories and no pictures. True in the US and true here.

As we are winding down our break, I am already thinking to the future. Lesson plans for the rest of the school year for my class. Finishing up buying the curriculum. And while we have made a family rule that we don't countdown to summer until there is less than a month, I could tell you the days until we are back in the US.

69. . .  Just in case you were wondering.