Holiday travel

Because we have no idea how long we will be living on this side of the world - my fingers are crossed for years and years - we want to take advantage of school breaks to visit as many places as possible, places that don't take 24 hours to get there.

Beijing and The Great Wall seemed to be a logical choice for the Christmas break. The weather is cold in December and the crowds are significant lighter (although, I wouldn't say light), which we decided is far better than wicked hot and unbearably crowded.

I found the "warnings" on the weather in Beijing by our HK friends a bit disturbing. Of course, at first, these weren't "disturbing" because I dismissed these comments as those of who had been too long in the wicked hot summers and mild winters of HK.  But, there were just too many "warnings" to shake. My favorite was from a friend from North Carolina, "Have you been to Beijing in the winter? It's COLD! We often ask people, 'is it cold-cold, or Beijing cold.'" And, each time I saw this friend, she would remind me of some warm article of clothing that I mustn't forget to pack.

So, I gathered all the ski gear, scarves, thermal underclothes, gloves, hats, socks, and boots we had in the house, and then went out and bought more to make sure we had enough clothing to layer all six of us sufficiently. Deep down, I didn't think we would truly need all of this. But, my friend is a strong personality and I didn't want to face her after Beijing without having heeded her warning.

OH MY WORD!  Cold cannot describe how I felt on The Great Wall. The beauty and sheer engineering marvel is something to behold, but because I was mostly hijacked by my low body-temperature,  I don't think I enjoyed it as I might have with a few more layers.

The oldest sections of the Wall that haven't been repaired are the most interesting (and you don't see a soul on the wall while hiking). We hiked 10K each of the two days we were on the wall. 

And it didn't get any warmer in the city!

Beijing, I could have done without. The sky was blue (miracle), but the city and the people seemed gloomy and depressed (hello, communism). Also, we were a spectacle with our four kids (in this one-kid-and-better-be-my-blood-kid country). And, apparently, it's not rude to take pictures and stare and laugh at other families you do not know!!! But, overall, I'm glad we went - but mostly only for The Great Wall.

But, these finds - bringing joy to all native English speakers - make the cold, the communist, and the discourteous all worth it!

Holiday Traditions

When my neice was in high school she was asked - at school - about a holiday tradition in her family, and she replied (in speaking of her holidays with her grandparents, i.e. my parents), "Our holiday tradition is making a new tradition."

No one really laughed at this because it was just SO VERY true. We all had the Ahh-that's-insightful kind of look.

I'm afraid I will proabably do the same let's-try-something-new-this-year-tradition. Learned behavior in the formative years tend to be tough to un-learn.

But, there was one tradition that began when my children were very young, and I was able to make sure it happened this Christmas in HK - gingerbread houses. Of course, we didn't really make these at Christmas in GA, we made them on Thanksgiving Day in preparation for the holiday season (new tradition).  Finding enough gingerbread houses for a party proved to be a challenge. Nonetheless, it happened.

(I'm breaking all my rules of allowing not-my-own-kids' pictures to be posted.)

A tradition that would be fun to start in Hong Kong would be having a friend visit for the holidays. So, Rachel (a teacher from Forrest's days in grammar school at Caldwell in NC) didn't really come to HK to visit us, nor did she stay with us; but she went to church with us, ate dinner with us, met us for coffee, and posed for a picture to prove it.  And, she absolutely is a friend! This is an invitation to all.

You have to be NINE

So, Claire turns nine in December and she is having her first-ever birthday party with friends!  I probably shouldn't be putting that in writing.

Her birthday is December 26th, and for obvious reasons (in our minds) we have always celebrated with family at the mountain house or in Georgia with grandparents. This year, Claire put her foot down. She's been thinking about this a long time and knew exactly what to do (obviously her parents did not).

We made sure we set a date before everyone started leaving HK for Bali (standard Christmas destination).

Then, we set about making Olaf cupcakes. After that, sugar cookies, followed by a movie on the sofa.   Four hours of nothing but six cute little nine year old girls. Sheer delight for this girl's first birthday party with friends. And, it was truly friends only; the boys were out, Jeff was at work, and Taylor was floating around as a helper.

Because I'm pretty sure I shouldn't put other kids' (other than mine) pictures on my blog, I thought this would be a good after party picture. We picked up all of these sunglasses for the girls at the party - this way they can pack a little memory for Bali.

a dozen years

The best way for our sweet tween to celebrate her 12th birthday -  baptism.

I think baptism Sundays are one of the many reasons we love Island ECC. Those being baptized invite friends and family and cheer as each and every baptism takes place. It's beautiful.

The youth have two Sundays per year dedicated to baptisms, while the adults of the church have six per year (baptizing 10 or so people at all three services on those particular Sundays).

The one thing (prior to Taylor's baptism) I FAILED to notice in this church's baptisms was the presence of gifts and flowers. So, as the service was due to begin and I saw a sweet friend with flowers in her hand, so I asked, "Oh, who are the flowers for?" She looked at me with a quizzical smile and said, "For Taylor."  I wanted to yank those right out of her hand and claim them for my own!
As is normal for my relationship with my kids, I was apologizing.

And, as you see in the photo, other people brought more than flowers (not her lame mother, of course). We just brought the entertainment (Claire).

I'm on a roll

The fourth post in one day!

We're still in November 2014, I think.

At this point, we have only been in HK fifteen months and the kids, especially Forrest and Ellis, act as if they were born here. They have embraced everything good in this place, and it's a prayer answered beyond my expectations (as are all prayers, I believe). I remember telling the kids (while we were still living in NC) that we wouldn't want to be where God didn't want us, even if we thought we wanted to be there. I also remember telling them we could easily stay right where we were and be happy and content, but there would be so much we would miss. Of course, at the time, I was trying to convince myself of this, as well.

Recently, someone asked, "Why do you think they have embraced the move?" I could only answer this: "Only as much as Jeff and I BOTH embrace this and find joy in this, can the kids find the capacity to do the same." This doesn't mean they will be happy if we are, but I find the likelihood much higher.  Our physical home is where we are together, and I think it's the same for every family, no matter where that physical home started.

Running to Stop the Traffik
This is probably the beginning of the big league for Forrest.  He began working with this organization when his school needed a first aid person for the 24 Hour Race for "Running to Stop the Traffik," an organization run by students all under 24 years old. This picture is from a fund raiser that Forrest had to attend, and asked Jeff and me to go along. At the end of the night, I told him I thought he did a great job introducing me to people and talking with all the different people at the event. Then, he sighed, and said, "Small talk is REALLY hard."

I would probably butcher the details of the organization and all that it entails, so I'll stop with that.

Scouts is a different animal in HK, but I think it's because the boys had such a special bond with their Greensboro troop. With that said, they still have cool opportunities, all of which are safer than RUGBY!

Ryze 2014

When he called to say he needed to go to the hospital, I'm pretty sure I said, "You know, you are the only one with a job here; I don't even have the correct visa to have a job!" I know - incredibly compassionate. 

I wasn't at Ryze when this accident happened, but I wasn't surprised. The man loves to have fun and push the limits.  He's there providing "example" for our children.

I'm thinking no one in the trampoline park was trying to hit the bag on the ceiling, except Jeff.

I know he doesn't regret that he missed his half-marathon and adventure race because of it. Of course he's not trying to hurt himself; he's just trying to live. And, this is why I the luckiest girl in the world.

Halloween 2014

I have a horrible memory, so this is going to be tough - this backing up and trying to write about events. It's also a bit tough because I tend to write these while listening to TED talks or online interviews (at the moment I'm listening to Brene Brown's interview with Krista Tippet). Thankfully, pictures in iphoto are organized chronologically.

I think the funniest part of the upcoming posts (October to April) will be the cutS and colorS of my hair! So, it's probably appropriate that this catch-up begins with Halloween. Okay, I can't remember much about this night, except that the girls went to the clubhouse because they were offering food AND Halloween candy (those are different according to my sister - and she's always right - because candy is not really food, it's flavorful plastic and we LOVE it).

Claire had a few different looks for Halloween - the Korean, the Indian, and the Vampire. I'm wondering if Hong Kong has given her an identity crisis.