Weekend Advenures

What a weekend. Doug and I went shopping in Dalian on Saturday. The boys were at the babysitters and we loaded in the bus and off we went. We got a ton done and it felt good. On the way home the bus pulled over because it was having trouble shifting. Well it started up again and then we heard a big boom, parts from the transmission were on the road. So we had to pull over and wait. Luckily we called our Secretary and she got us another bus. With everyone helping we were able to unload the broken down bus and reload the other bus. (Let me tell there was a lot of stuff on that bus.) We were thankful that the boys were not with us. We only had to wait for 45 minutes. The funny thing was our friend Trina was teaching others the electric slide on the side of the road while others were reading and hanging out. I am sure we were a sight. Did I mention this happened on the major freeway :)

(man making noodles, YUMMY)

We had a staff potluck on Sat. night. Yummy, it was great to hang out and not think about teaching.

(Making Jell-O)

Then today we went to "church" a small group of American teachers, Intel employees, and Canadian teachers meet up and have worship and a study. The boys loved it. They had Sunday school too. It is right behind our Condo so the walk is nonexistent. It was nice to see so many people there.

(world class table tennis players)

Then we headed to the beach. What a beautiful trip that was. We walked a total of 4 miles. It was not too hot and the boys just played in the sand.

(Golden Pebble Beach)

(Early b-day present)

 

Weeks adventures

Another week down and it was a busy one. Doug and I both had Back to School Night (Curriculum night). It went well for both of us.


Matthew is loving school and has two meal worms named Nippy and Flips. Isaac is getting ready to be in a play and he is the gingerbread boy. Doug got more chemicals so now he can actually teach Chemistry (Novel concept for a Chemistry teacher) He still cannot get Acids, the school has to get a license to own them. I got my first science lab coat. The lady in charge of the supply room (Man o man is she in charge) she took my measurements on Tuesday and by Friday her husband had made it. She was so excited to give it to me. I will have to get Doug to take my picture.  We watched our friend’s daughter the other night and we made Jell-O. It was a great night.

Doug and I hope to start mandarin lessons next week. It would be nice to be able to talk to Sha Wong (our Ayi) we felt bad on Thursday she accidently broke my French press. She felt so bad she said (we think) that she would buy us a new one. I tried to explain that I would get one on Saturday. We figure it would cost her more money to get and find a French press then it does for us to pay her for the month.

We have some upcoming adventures planned. We will keep you posted on them.

 There is a small restaurant in the town close to us. We had breakfast there last week. It was amazing. Pancakes with real Canadian maple syrup, baggers (hamburger bun with egg, bacon, cheese and ketchup) and coffee were what we had for breakfast. The owner is Chinese and she married a Canadian man. They opened this restaurant here. It was great and cheap. (Not like my chocolate chips I bought)

It is Friday night as I write this and we are all tired!!! I will post some pictures later this weekend. We miss everyone and are thankful for all the emails and warm wishes. The boys love to see who wrote to them or what is happening back home.



More to come… I am sure there will be a story after our day of shopping tomorrow. Until then

Price you pay

Well today we went to the market and my camera worked. I took a few pictures for you to enjoy.

The funny story for the day. Our friend Trina, found some chocolate chips at the store. So I thought it would great to get a pack. Well once we left the store Doug asked me if I knew how much I just paid for them. I had no clue. Well $9.00 later. UGH!!! They are not even the "good" ones. I will not be doing that any more. The other funny thing is we got two pairs of Crocs shoes for less then that price. UGH!!!

sounds

This is what we hear on the way to school. Can you guess what it is?? This was Matthew and Isaac's idea to post this. Hope it works :)

Sounds and Adventures

I am working on posting some videos. The boys want you to guess the sound. We hear this sound every morning when we go to school.

This is our first full week of school. Isaac is so tired but he is loving Kindergarten. It is fun to the boys at school. Matthew is also enjoying first grade. He is meeting lots of new friends. He told us the other night that he learned a lot in Kindergarten and first grade was starting out easy. He said Mrs. Thayer did a great job. (We agree, we miss you Mrs. Thayer)
I am attaching some pictures from our shopping adventure. We found a Dairy Queen and ordered blizzards. Doug and I both thought the green tea blizzard was a little strong . The boys loved the treat.

Market and Food

So many people ask what are you eating. I took a few pictures :) There are somethings that we can not get but for the most part we are doing well. I feel like we are eating a lot healthier. There is a picture of our freezer full of chicken :)

More pictures

The boys at Golden Pebble Beach.. just a mile away. The last picture is Matthew and Isaac with their new buddy Sarah.

I was going to take pictures of the market today but when we got there my camera had a dead battery. UGH. will do that next Saturday.

Pictures

Pictures from the Condo..

WE are online again!!!!!

Thank you for your love and support we are finally connected!!!

What an adventure!! We have been waiting to get the internet and access to our blog. It has been a LONG wait. Thank you for all your well wishes. We are adjusting well and having a great time.
We were worried about getting our luggage from one point to the next when we were traveling but some nice Chinese men helped us for not much money. It was a funny process. 10 bags, 4 backpacks and 4 carryon bags. Our flights went well except for the boys being so tired that when we finally got to Dalian we left a carry-on on the plane. The school was able to get it back for us.
We all had a little jet lag, but it hit Matthew and me hard. Once we got over that things seemed to look up for us.
We are living in a beautiful new 3 bedroom condo. We feel blessed. It has marble floors, AC, dishwasher, garbage disposal, microwave, stove, gas range, 3 bathrooms, 2 balconies, washer and drier and even MORE light switches then we had in Stanwood. The boys are able to free range of the development. They love to take the elevator, even though we are only on the second floor.
The boys are looking forward to starting school and meeting new friends. It has been hard because Doug and I have been in meetings so they just get to hang out.
Some of our favorite experiences so far… the driving is crazy. Isaac said “that everyone is just in a rush.” Imagine a three lane road where 6 or 7 cars drive across it at the same time. Keep your hands inside or you will lose them.
The boys are popular and people want to touch them. They are doing well with it. We thought if we started charging for pictures we can finance their college education. J
Doug and I had to have medical checks.. That was a hoot. We had a vision test, blood pressure test, EKG (I was afraid I was going to be electrocuted) oh did I mention I flashed an entire apartment building during this test, an x-ray with no protective vest, urine test (ask me about that later), a blood test (where you stick your arm through a bank teller window) and an ultrasound test. We all left laughing and shaking out heads.
Doug went to the market the other day and it brought back memories of living in Africa. He loved it. Streets were full of people doing business, a nice selection of farm fresh produce, tons of seafood and meat. He got a ton of boneless, skinless chicken breasts from the “Chicken lady” for only 3 dollars. He said that it was the sounds and smells of life J
We needed dishwasher soap and I had to act it out in the store. Doug was cracking up. Sadly they sent me to the dish washing soap and NOT dishwasher soap.
I even had a Starbucks latte the other day. It was a taste of home. I showed them my Starbucks gift cards and they wanted to see them all. Of course I could not use them in China but they thought it was a great idea. We found a DQ and shared a blizzard. They even served it upside down like back in the old days. It was great.
We are excited to finally be connected again. We can’t wait to share our adventures with you.

We are ready

We leave tomorrow and we are ready. The adventure begins. We appreciate all your prayers, love and well wishes. We will keep you posted on this amazing and scary adventure. We are one blessed family!!!! Next time I check in we will be in China. :)