Happy 2016!!

It's 9:30am and my kids only just woke up. Not bad at all!

When I look at 2016, I don't feel that same excitement about change and moving that I used to. I think after 5 years in the FS (our anniversary is this weekend!), I'm getting used to all the movement. I am definitely used to weird FS habits like using up products in the pantry. In fact, it's been bugging me for a good six months (beginning a full year before our departure) that we have a bunch of bags of lentils, beans, and cornmeal that need to be eaten.

But this year will be a big one! We are going to try to travel a bunch before we leave China. Then we will have a whirlwind home leave in the US, and then on to settle into our new home in Mexico!!

Here are the photos that I think best represent 2015 in theory. Having adventures together as a family, and wishing for good health and happiness for my kids.

 And 2016? When I think of moving to Mexico, I see more color, music, beaches, and vibrancy in our lives. And of course, more time with family! 2016 looks more like this:

Thailand with kids (Part One)- Dolphin Bay Resort

We just returned from 8 days in Thailand. The kids are off for 2 weeks due to Chinese New Year, so everyone takes off for somewhere.

My heart is full after a truly wonderful vacation. Normally, coming home makes me depressed. But this time, I just feel happy. I won't lie, the warm weather (75 today) and fact that I have another week off of work helps. So does the fact that I really like my life right now. But the real reason is that I just feel full to the brim with happiness about our trip. I loved watching my kids explore and learn about travel, another culture, animals. I had worried that they would be difficult during the Bangkok sightseeing part of our trip; instead, they were amazingly accommodating. We had a few days of relaxation, we swam with elephants, I finally went to a floating market. It was the best.

We first flew to Bangkok and rented a car service to drive us about 3.5 hours southwest to Sam Roi Yot, 38km south of Hua Hin. I had wanted to go to one of the famous islands like Phuket or Krabi, but could not find affordable flights or lodging by the time we were able to book. Sadly, Dolphin Beach was not particularly attractive (I am a beach person, so this was a big disappointment), but the hotel and sealife in the water made up for it.

 

The Dolphin Bay Resort is an adorable family resort with bungalows and 2 & 3 bedroom apartments. Our 2BR (including kitchen, balcony, and buffet breakfast) was spacious and comfortable. The hotel pools are right next to the restaurant so you can literally sit down, order your lunch/dinner, and call the kids out of the pool when the food arrives.  There were dozens of kids there who all played together from morning til night. Best of all, the restaurant was really affordable, so I wasn't stressed all the time about how much we were spending. I tend to stress about that...

We only did one outing- to Monkey Beach and a cave. The hotel sets up excursions to help local fishermen earn some extra money, so we rode on a basic fishing boat.

Upon arrival at Monkey Island, the fisherman gave us a bucket of bananas, and we looked around, not sure what to do. Then, the monkeys started arriving and they knew exactly what to do! Soon, the mamas and babies arrived. It was too cool!

After that, we boated over to see a local cave- about a 30 minute hike. There was a temple in the cave- really beautiful. We finished up with a refreshing swim.

Back at Dolphin Beach, L and I discovered that the beach was home to thousands of little hermit crabs! The tide was usually out, and you could dig your hand into the sand and come up with bunches of hermit crabs. On our last day, we convinced M to join us down there, and they didn't want to leave! We spent 2 or 3 hours swimming around in the warm water, finding crabs, starfish, and sand dollars...it is one of my most treasured memories. I wish I had a photo of that afternoon, but I will just have to carry the memory in my heart.

We are already planning our next trip to Thailand. The people are kind, the water is warm, and the food is amazing. What more can you ask for?

Hanukkah and New Year's 2014

We had a busy holiday season this year! As the kids grow older, it feels more important to help them share their Jewish culture with others so that they don't feel alone in a sea of Christmas. Here in China, Christmas isn't as visible, but most of the other Consulate families celebrate it. So we volunteered to play the dreidel game at the Consulate holiday party, as well as each kid's class holiday party. We also volunteered to go to the kids' classes and briefly talk about Hanukkah.

We also invited all of the Consulate's Jews to a Hanukkah party, which included making latkes for the first time! I used an interesting recipe that involved mashing half of the potatoes and shredding the other half. It made substantial latkes with a yummy center. However, I was completely inept at frying them! They were either raw or burned- no middle ground. That was the first batch. So I asked my ayi to do the next batch, and she rocked them! Thank goodness, because I don't know that these folks would have forgiven me...

We also made Hanukkah cookies, a family tradition. I used this nice sugar cookie recipe recommended by a blogger friend. Now that I can make fairly decent cookie dough, it's time to tackle frosting. We just slather it on with a knife, but I think next year I'll get some of those doohickeys that help you apply the frosting more expertly. All these baking friends of mine are making me take things to the next level. :)

On Christmas Day, we got a kick out of choosing where to eat Chinese food,  since that's what good Jews do in America. As you can imagine, we had some great choices! We went to a nearby restaurant (Bing Sheng) that appears on all the 'best food in Guangzhou' lists, and it was delicious. The pork buns are seriously to die for. My son has become quite picky, and didn't eat much (it kills me). But my daughter is pretty great about trying things. 

 

I forgot to mention- someone lost her first tooth during Hanukkah!

We planned to do some sightseeing on Christmas Day, but the air wasn't great, so we stayed close to home, organizing and reading, for a few days. Honestly, it was great. Lots of rest and good food. Couldn't ask for more.

On New Year's we were invited to a delicious Turkish feast at the home of some lovely friends. We all have small kids, so we weren't sure we could make it to midnight. At around 11pm, everyone headed home, but my kids were determined to stay awake until 12. So we watched a movie and at five minutes before midnight, we went outside where the apartment complex was having a big party. We stood on the second floor overlook, counting down until midnight. It was the perfect night for 6 and 8 year old kids!

We are excited about a wonderful 2015!

Thanksgiving 2014

Happy 2015! I'm excited about the New Year.

This holiday season has been lovely, but not without its Foreign Service growing pains. Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday, and I have never really done it myself much because I always go to my mom's. Last year, our New York family came down to celebrate both Thanksgiving and Hanukkah, so it was doubly special.

So this year was a little hard. We knew from our first holiday in the DR that being alone would feel sad. So we invited some friends to celebrate with us, and I'm so glad they said yes. Our kids have developed lovely friendships with two of their four delightful kids, so everyone was happy.

I went to our local imported goods grocery store a few days before the holiday to stock up. They had Thanksgiving signs up, but no products. No pumpkin puree. No appropriate spices if you are going to make the pie yourself. No prepared pie crusts. No cranberry sauce. I was really upset and felt somehow betrayed by the store.

I reached out to my Facebook network, and they helped me out with homemade pie crust and sweet potato pie recipes. My husband offered to make the crusts, because baking and me don't exactly go together. We ordered the U.S. turkey from the Australian butcher, and of course mashed potatoes and gravy weren't that hard to manage. I had brought the cranberry sauce back from Hong Kong a few weeks earlier. With a few tears and calls to my mom, we moved forward. Our friends supplied the stuffing, sweet potatoes, and more sweets.

On the day before Thanksgiving, a friend of mine gave us a delicious homemade pumpkin pie. I was moved to tears- what a beautiful gesture of kindness and friendship. I know years from now, I'll be saying, remember that year in Guangzhou when I was so sad, and J made us a pie?

At the last minute, I did get a can of pumpkin puree from the grocery store, and borrowed some spices from another friend. The pies were ok. The turkey and sides were divine. It was a lovely holiday in the end.

But I still missed my mama. And I'm finding that that's the real difference between this post and our last. We are just farther away from home.

Halloween in China

We've been very busy lately! But I figure I'd better get these Halloween pics up before the next holiday arrives!

We had a packed Halloween, with a Consulate party, a party at our apartment complex, and trick or treating in between! The Americans in our complex organized trick or treating at our different apartments and it felt like we were right at home.

Using a tip I learned from a photography class I took this year, I held a little Halloween photo shoot a few days before the holiday. I'm so glad I did, because that night is always so hectic.

And so I present, our Jedi and Spidergirl!

Why are they battling? They are both good guys. 

In case you are wondering, I was Mittens the cat from the movie "Bolt," and Daddy was a shark.

Here's my family at the Consulate party. 

At the apartment complex party, they handed out pumpkins and people were expected to get to work carving. It was a little funny, because most of the Chinese guests didn't know how to carve them. I only managed to do one, because they were pretty hard. But it was nice to be there. 

All in all, a great Halloween. But I have to confess, I missed the trunk or treat...