Update on Potty Training

I posted a few weeks ago about beginning to potty train Coop. He is very anal (I wonder who he gets that from?!!) and I thought he would be pretty easy, but, I had no idea he would be as easy as he was! We are almost 4 weeks in and we have only had about 5 accidents total - none in the past 2 weeks! This included us going away to Sanya, so we even have the travelling covered!! I'm not trying to brag, but Eens took forever to train, so I am delighted that Coop has been so easy!

Of course, in St. Martin style we always have to have at least one story that diverts anything from being completely easy! After talking to our friend here who has children Eens and Coop's age, she suggested that we always travel with a potty in the van because you never know where you will find a restroom here, and if you do find one, you may not want to enter! So we brought a potty along for the ride on our way to and from the airport in Beijing (this is about a 1 1/2 hour trip!). Thankfully we did, here's why...

My friend was sweet enough to bring me back this fantastic "car" potty from Edinburgh this week. It is really quite interesting and I am excited to go on our next rode trip just to see if it works - it is so compact!! Obviously we are both very excited about potty training our two year olds!!!

Last day on the beach!

We spent our final day on the beach taking a long walk down past the other hotels! Along the way Danny caught crabs and scared the boys to crying, Ellie found "sand rocks" as she called them, and Eens whined for water (I think they were still a little dehydrated from being sick!)! It was so fun to walk along the beach and observe the Chinese people enjoying a vacation! Danny and I talked about it, and we don't think the Chinese really vacation like we do. My idea of a vacation is to go somewhere do a little sightseeing, relax, and eat yummy food that I don't have to cook!! It seemed to me that the Chinese vacationers had no idea what to do on the beach. They did not have sand toys for the kids, they could not sit still for more than 1 minute, instead they took lots of pictures and walked up and down the beach. Some did swim in the ocean, even when the red flags were out because the surf was rough. I think they were having a good time, but it was interesting to me to see how different we must perceive vacations. I plan on having a chat with my Chinese teacher today about it to see if my observations are correct! Also, Sanya must cater to many Russians. Most menus were written in Chinese, English, and Russian. Jeannie - have you ever heard of Russians vacationing in China?? Danny thought it may not be a terrible flight from St. Petersburg, but I'm sure it is a long flight from Moscow...here is a picture of a massage stand on the beach with both Chinese and Russian!! This is just for you Jeannie...I know you are probably in need of your Russian fix!!

I had to post this picture because it is no wonder things here go bad and break so quickly. Apparently they have never heard of a dock, instead they just drive these boats directly onto the sand!! Once again, very interesting!!

We were happy to arrive back in Tianjin to the comfort of our own beds and ayi's cooking! Now we have to be cold for a few weeks until we head to Hong Kong for our Chrsitmas vacation!!

Trouble in Paradise

Yes, we made it to Sanya, China without too many gliches!! We ended up flying out of a different terminal than we usually do, so there was some initial disappointment that we wouldn't be having Burger King (I never thought I would say I'm disappointed about not having BK!!) for lunch, but we got over that quickly! Thank goodness for drivers who know where they are going, we would have had no clue which terminal to go to! We didn't even realize there was more than one terminal!! The four hour flight was actually uneventful - it seemed so quick compared to our 13 hour flights to the US! At the end of the flight, Eens announced to everyone on the plane, "I'm not puking!!!". We were proud parents!

We made it to the hotel and were pleasantly surprised! We are staying at a 5 star (Chinese standards!) Holiday Inn. We got a kids suite so we have 2 bedrooms and 2 baths - it is actually quite spacious. Our balcony and windows overlook the ocean so I have made Danny keep the windows open at night so I can listen to the waves - it is so peaceful! The only thing that is not great are the beds - it is like sleeping on a board! I'm not sure why they even bother paying for a mattress, but what do I know about hard matresses and my health!

This is the view from our balcony! I forget I'm in China!

Yesterday we spent 7 hours on the beach and in the pool! We all had a ball! This is the first time Coop has ever experienced a "beach" vacation - he loves to dig and kick the waves with his big brother! Danny caught three little fish and two crabs (which are all currently living in our room!!) - he was very happy! I got to enjoy a foot massage on the beach - it doesn't get much better than that! She wanted to put the table under a tree, but I was like, move that so I am in direct sunlight! Not a good move - I'm pretty burnt, apparently the spray sunscreen needs to be rubbed in a bit!! We all had a great day and then headed to another hotel for dinner (prices for food here at this hotel are very high, and the food is not that great!). We found a pizza place and ate outside! We realized this morning that this was not a good move because here is where our trouble begins...

Great Kung Fu, Eens!!

Last night I orderd the kids a 4 cheese pizza and Danny and I got my new favorite the Hawaiian. I thought that the cheese pizza was a little stinky, and Coop was even like, "Someting stinky". I let the kids eat it, they ate the whole thing and I didn't think anything about it, until 5:00am. Coop was the first one up vomitting every 20 minutes or so. Then El came into our room saying her stomach hurt. We didn't believe her until 1 hour later when she was having her moment. Eens seemed fine, so Danny and I thought maybe he just had a tough stomach...not so fast, right before breakfast he threw up! I couldn't believe they were all sick! We decided that Danny and I needed to eat and we had already paid for our breakfast, so we drag the sick children downstairs. Bad idea, El walks in and takes one whiff of the food and she ALMOST makes it to the bathroom! I gulped down a cup of coffee with Coop asleep on my lap and then we decided to get some fresh air. We took the kids to the beach to lay on chairs and listen to the water - Eens perked up immediately and so did Coop! They played and one would never know they were sick. El stayed on the chair all curled up - she was so cute! After the beach we came upstairs for a little rest and watched movies. Everyone appeared to be doing better and Eens and Coop wanted to go down the little waterslides at the pool so we played in the pool for a bit! Danny had to get ready for a dinner so I took the kids to the playroom (most of the hotels in China have the greatest playrooms - ball pits, riding cars, art activities, basketball hoops, lots of toys...). Eens started to look green so I was on my way to the bathroom, but didn't quite make it. Poor Eens ate the most and I think got the worst of it. They are sleeping prettily right now - I hope they all wake up feeling great!

I cannot believe our luck, the first bout with food illness while living in China had to happen on our mini vacation! Oh well, I'm just enjoying being with my family(in sickness and in health!!) and the warm sunshine!!

And We're Off!!

We are flying out tomorrow morning for Sanya, China for a little beach vacation! Actually, Danny has to go to meetings the majority of the time, so the kids and I will be enjoying the sun and sand! Sanya is on an island at the southern most tip of China. Danny has heard people call it the "Hawaii of China". I'll let you know if that is the case! There is one tiny little problem we learned of today on the island, there is a taxi strike! Here's what Danny got in an e-mail...Taxi drivers in Sanya, China, strike for third consecutive day Nov. 12.Expect crowded public transportation and travel delays. It looks like we'll be doing a little walking!

We have hit the wall here as they say (wondering what in the world made you decide it was a good idea to pack up and move to China away from your friends and family!), so a little getaway could not have come at a better time!

I'm not sure what sparked my sudden negative attitude towards being here...maybe it was the fact that we have had to call and complain about lack of hot water once a week since we got here, or maybe it was the sink that has now leaked 5 times, or maybe it is because I feel like I can never get anything accomplished even with full time help, or maybe, most probably, it is because I miss my family and friends a ton. From Thanksgiving until New Years is my favorite time of year! I love all of the excitement in the air, the decorations, the picking out of gifts, making sweets, and most of all being with the people I love. I am truly going to miss that this year!

Enough of my complaining!! I'm off to finish packing!! Have a great weekend and I'll try to post from Sanya if we have an internet connection!! One never knows in China!!!

Our Talented Children!!

I must share some of the exciting things the kids have been up to over the past couple of weeks.

Eens has become obsessed with writing books. It is a very cute process, he draws pictures, then he decides what each page should say, Ellie or I tell him how to spell the words, and then he writes them down! He loves to take his books to school to read to his classmates! His teacher encourages this writing and told us tonight that he is currently working on a book at school with his friend about princesses and frankenstein! I can't wait to see that one! He even won an award for his Haunted House book. This certificate was presented to him in front of all of the PreK - 5th graders at their Friday morning assembly! He was so proud and so are we!!

Ellie just started taking art lessons this past Sunday. My Chinese teacher found two graduate art students who are willing to come to our house on Sunday afternoons for 2 hours and work with her!! She was very quiet this week, but I am assuming she will open up as she gets to know them better! This was from her first lesson. The teacher sketched the vases and helped pick the colors.

What's for Dinner?

I have had many, many people ask me, "What does your ayi cook for you?". I must start out by saying that Danny and I have always wanted a cook - I don't mind cooking, but it always disrupts my time with the kids and it usually needs to be done when everyone is crabby. Now that we have our ayi cook for us Monday through Friday, I am able to help El with her homework, read with all of the munchkins, play a little rough with the boys, and get everything ready for bed. It is definitely a treat and I do feel spoiled pretty much everyday! She enjoys cooking for us and makes delicious meals. Most nights there will be two different meat dishes (we prefer chicken or pork, the beef is not all that good here), rice, and a plate of freshly cut fruit! Dinner at our house is truly a family event because we can all sit down together and talk, which is such a blessing and a wonderful way to find out about what the kids did in school! After we finish we give ayi all of our leftovers to take home to her dog, "Bebe"!!

I know once we come back to the states, there is no way we can afford this luxury, so I will enjoy and be thankful for every dinner I don't have to cook!!!! Here is a picture of some typical dishes...

And here is what we eat when I have to make dinner (which thankfully isn't very often!!)!

Halloween at IST

This year we celebrated Halloween at school a week late due to United Nations day. I am somehow "head" roomparent for El's room, so I was busy trying to organize the party. Most countries that are represented at our school do not understand the concept of room parent so my job was a little more difficult than in the states. I requested food and drinks and only heard back from 2 parents. We ended up with plenty, but I was stressed running around trying to buy stuff to make sure there would be enough food!! The parents did not realize they should let me know what they were bringing! We also organized the game where the kids touch food "body" parts and try to figure out what it is! The kids had a ton of fun and I enjoyed spending the afternoon with El!

We also had a pumpkin carving contest. We carved a vampire Mickey (thanks Aunt T!) and didn't win. Eens insisted that if we had carved the Goofy frankenstein we would have won for sure! Next year, maybe!!

This was Danny's favorite costume!! Pretty creative and a little disturbing!!