Kindermusic

Today was Chloe's first Kindermusic class.  Every Tuesday from 3:30-4:30pm, the local international school sponsors a music class specifically for kids ages 3-5.  Chloe loved it.  At first she was a little shy and hesitant to participate but by the end of class she was hopping and bouncing and beating wooden sticks to the beat of carnival music along with all the other kids.

During your quiet times, I would ask that you remember a couple of items in relation to her class:
1. Although Chloe has made GIANT progress in her development skills she is still lagging a little behind her peers.  Things like hopping on one foot, throwing a ball and marching in place are quite difficult for her to do.  She is also making good progress on speech and language but once again she is still a bit behind in pronunciation as well as pronoun usage.  Just ask that the right tools would be placed in our path to enable her to continue to progress as she enters pre-k this fall.

2. Most of the other children in Chloe's class are Taiwanese which means that this is a great opportunity for me to meet other local moms.  Please ask that doors would be opened and I will be able to build relationships with other locals who may or may not have heard the good news.

Culture 101

Here is your first lesson in Asian culture:

When visiting an Asian home the general rule of thumb is to remove your shoes before entering. Where we live this rule applies to everyone. Delivery men, workmen, friends and coworkers.

For example: We had a new refrigerator delivered. It was large and still in the box. It took two guys and a dolly to move the thing around but nonetheless they paused long enough at the door to slip off their shoes. We had a carpenter come to build a box around our ac units to prevent outside air, limit noise, and make them look better. He spent all day barefoot stepping on sawdust and it was only about 50 degrees inside and out.

Lesson: It is very important to remove one's shoes.

No Beef For You

Oh, I have so much to talk about and so little time to post. I guess here's a funny little story.

I just found out that the Taiwanese will no longer eat American Beef because all of a sudden they are afraid of "Mad Cow Disease"

So at least for awhile we are unable to get ground beef. :( I guess it's back to Pork Spaghetti.

Jeff and I have started language and it is going well and the girls love their new babysitter. We are making Taiwanese friends and Jeff has started leading an English group that is opening many doors to explaining the gospel.

Please continue to remember us and especially remember one of our friends who is very ill at the moment.

Happy Birthday Bubby Sissy

Today was Ava's birthday. It is hard to believe that she is already one year old. A friend of mine once said that with children the days eek by so slowly and the years just fly.

I sometimes find myself wishing for them to be just a little older or a little more advanced. "If only they were both potty-trained, could feed themselves, walk better solo, clean up their own mess or take a bath themselves- then life would be good." The truth is life is good just the way they are and they are growing way too fast to wish for the next step too soon.

So Happy Birthday little Bubby Sissy!

(Chloe just drank some Crystal Light. She's not trying out for the part of "Joker" in the next Batman movie)

To celebrate we ordered pizza from the Chicago Pizza Factory whose owner has never been to Chicago but "learned to make pizza from an Italian guy who grew up in Chicago." It was good.

And I made a special carrot cake. Chloe helped me with the icing.

We didn't have any birthday candles so one chopstick had to suffice.

The tradition lives on of letting the birthday girl feed herself as much cake as she can handle.

Then, Ava showed off her new birthday pj's (after a bath of course)

As seen around town.

Sometimes things don't translate correctly between two exceptionally different languages and cultures.



Above: Besides the misspelling, the images are just noteworthy in themselves. There is a man plummeting off a cliff and apparently a very thin Santa may take off with your stuff in a great big bag.


Below: This one was spied at a local park. The rules according to the sign are something like this:
1. Hold a shovel under your dog while he does his business
2. Don't ride a bicycle or motorcycle in the park (simple enough)
3. Don't use a megaphone or maybe do cheerleading- not sure on that one.
4. Shirts are forbidden. (Really unsure about that one)

Our New Home and A New Year

We have finally completed our move to the new apartment. The curtains are hung (but in need of ironing and hemming) and the pictures are on the wall and I don't care to pack another bag for a long time. 2009 could be summed up in one word: TRANSITION. It seemed every few weeks we were transitioning to a new baby, a new home, a new city or a new country. 2010 will hopefully look very different.

Tomorrow Jeff and I begin our formal language training. We are thankful to have found someone to watch the girls on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings while we both attend language school. Jeff also officially begins his new job in the office and his seminary course work will be beginning soon as well. Chloe is enrolled in a Kindermusic class on Tuesday afternoons to get her out and involved with other kids. And Ava turns one year old in just a few days.

Here are some pics of the new place:





This is the master bedroom.

And the girls bathroom. Spacious, eh? We have an identical bathroom attached to the master bedroom minus the Dora stool and lime green diaper pail. :)

And the girls bedroom. When Ava gets a bit bigger, she will transfer to the bottom bunk and Chloe can graduate to the top (with rails, of course).

And their playroom.

This is my oven. But I have a two-burner gas stove this time instead of a two-burner hotplate. It only takes two minutes to boil water as opposed to twenty minutes in Thailand.

And here is the kitchen.

And the dining area.

And the living room.