New T-shirt!!

I have to say that today has been one of my favorite days so far.   Please don't think this move has been a bed of roses every day.  There have been some difficult transitions (language barrier, transportation, techno music and food are my top 4!), but we're adjusting as a family and many wonderful changes have happened as a result of this move.  One being that my husband is home every night.  We all eat together each night (actually, we eat every meal together now!).  We sit around the table as a family and talk about what we're thankful for, what has been everyone's favorite part of the day, and what has been frustrating to us that day.  That may seem fairly simple, but if you're anything like our family, at times we make life get just a bit too distracting and forget to do the "eating thing" together as a family.  It's been interesting to hear everyone's highs and lows in these last 3 weeks.  One of the things we've been most thankful for has turned into being our biggest thorn in our side- our apartment.  The noise level has been almost unbearable at times.  The construction noises we're  getting used to, but the incredibly loud "techno" music from down the street at night makes us feel like we're living in a nightclub.  We're hoping that it's due to the holiday- if not, hmmmmmm.....

One of the first things on my thankful list at dinner tonight was meeting a young lady who came with the cleaning ladies this morning (yes, I have cleaning ladies...see post "Bye Bye Hotel" for more on that!).  She goes to the university here in town and does speak some english!  She even said, "Ni Hao" (means "hello" in chinese) to Audrey An!  We really enjoyed talking with her and making the connection that the cleaning gals are sisters.  Anyway...I just had to grin inside thinking of the connections being made and relationships being built.

We're living in an area that overlooks one of the many lakes in the city, and we walked around almost the entire lake this afternoon!  We had an amazing time enjoying the awesome weather, trying out new foods, and I had the best time taking pictures.  I just love people watching.  It's so fascinating to me!  David and I feel like we're getting such a better grasp on the area in which we live. It was kinda cool to come across an area of town coming in from a different direction and say, "Oh! I recognize this place!"

I've also come to the conclusion today that I'm getting a new t-shirt made that says, "Yes, she's my daughter, Yes, she's chinese. Yes, I'm sure."  The back side will say, "Yes, the blondie is mine, too!"  If I could have a dollar for all the strange looks we get walking down the street, I'd be a millionaire (and we've only been here 3 weeks!).  I just crack up looking at the faces of these sweet people as they are trying to process why I'm holding hands with two little girls who look nothing alike.  If some of them get brave enough, they ask, "Children?? (or something in their language!)"  I politely smile and say, "yes!"  They try to convince me she's not chinese : )

Enjoy the pics...

We crashed a wedding on our walk.  I even asked played charades to ask if I could take their picture : )

The reception on the street...

David took this one outside our window early this morning.  I was still trying to recover from the techno music from the night before!