how a beautiful 75 degree day can do wonders for the soul wherever you are!! We enjoyed our first day in Tianjin today when the temperature was not above 85 and it was fantastic! There was a nice little breeze and the sky was extremely clear! Our "new" normal is beginning to fall into place and the kids are very excited to start school this week!
Last Friday, Ellie began to prepare for school with her new student orientation. El and I were able to meet her teacher, Ms. Sayers, and a few classmates that are also new. We found out that there will only be 10 students in her class this year so I am even more excited! El's teacher is originally from Australia, but was previously working at a school in the Philippines. She seems very caring and excited to be here! She gave us a tour of the school and Ellie was most impressed with the playground (she did not get to see it before!). She was very brave the whole time as long as she had a very tight grip on my hand!
I do have to say driving to the school is quite humbling. The school is located about 15 minutes from our house. The majority of the drive is through city streets and a wee bit of highway. After you turn off of the highway you drive through a "village" right before you get to the school. This "village" as you can see below is simply tents and buildings that are falling apart. Ellie realized on Friday that this was the way some people had to live and I think for the first time she also realized how lucky she is. I hope this image sticks in her mind and humbles her as it has me. I also hope that she learns compassion for those who are not as fortunate. She will pass this "village" daily and I think it is possible she will learn more about life from this scene than she will in school, we'll see.
I haven't mentioned Danny in these past few posts and that is because he was going to "meetings" in Hangzhou, about a 2 hour plane trip south of Tianjin close to Shanghai! He did actually go to some meetings, but he also ventured out to a favorite among the locals, a KTV. KTV's are basically buildings with private rooms for karoke. When he first told me he went, I giggled and assumed he just had a couple of drinks and watched others make fools of themselves!! Further into the conversation I found out that my wanna be John Denver husband sang Country Roads and Annie's Song, plus a few more. Thankfully his boss sang more than him so I think his job is safe!! In other Danny news, he was able to go golfing on Saturday with a group from the American Chamber here in Tianjin! I think he had a good time - it just wasn't his best game of golf!!!
Today we enjoyed a yummy breakfast at the Sheraton, our Sunday morning ritual before church!! The servers know us now and immediately when we sat down Coop had a big chocolate donut put right in front of him. Now we usually wait until the end to indulge in the pastry section, but he took a bite right away and there was no turning back!! The breakfast consists of tastes from around the world. There is Western food (omelets, french toast, bacon, sausage), European, Chinese, and Japanese sections. It takes at least an hour to eat everything I like! The beauty of the whole thing is the kids get so much attention from the servers and so much food, that they are good pretty much the whole time!! Now at the end, Coop needs at least three wipes to clean his face and most of the time I end up changing his clothes before church!!
After church we drove to TEDA to meet two Deere families for a barbeque. We had a great time at their gorgeous, sprawling house (that's what you get for living in the suburbs!). It truly felt like we were back in the states - they even have their own little backyard! We were jealous, but then we reminded ourselves that we have the SOS medical center in our "backyard" - it made us feel better!! Cooper finally met a little friend who is also 2! They had fun kicking the ball and Coop even gave him a big hug! We were laughing that one of the families, Jeff and Robin, lived about 3 blocks away from us in Bettendorf, and we end up meeting them in China!! We also were spoiled with delicious food - spinach salad with blue cheese, filets, potatoes, and my very poor attempt at deviled eggs (they weren't even close to yours grandma!!)!
I'll leave you tonight with Eensie's major excitement of the day! We were almost halfway to our friend's house when he decides he has to go to the bathroom. He didn't just have to go pee, he needed to, you know. I look around the van and found a plastic bag and am pretty sure it is going to have to do because when Eens has to go, he has to go!! Thankfully, Danny explains what is happening to our driver and he quickly finds a government building that houses a bathroom! Danny takes Eens in and runs out two minutes later for wipes! A few minutes later Eens bounces out and tells me, "I pooped in a squat pot!" How exciting my dear, how exciting!!Have a wonderful Labor Day, they don't celebrate that holiday here in China!!
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