Weekend Outing

On Saturday our family planned to go out into the countryside and get in touch with some people we met the last time we were out there. So, Friday we called one family and asked if they could meet and have lunch on Saturday. No problem. We told them we would be there by noon.


They called back and said we should come earlier, all go swimming together, eat lunch, then take a drive and see some "sights" - particularly a famous gate built between where we are and the country south of us.


HMMMMM.......well, we have some rules about public swimming......Chlorine, a must......Swimming pools out in the countryside? a little sketchy........probably going to be a Little House on the Prairie type of swimming hole and all I have to say about that is SNAKES!!! So, we told our friends we didn't think we could make it until noon, and that after lunch we would be glad to take a drive and see the famous gate. So....that was the plan, here is how it went.


We left the house at 8:30am to hopefully catch a 9 or 9:30 bus and arrive by 11:30. When we arrived the next two buses were full, so we had to wait for the 10:35 bus. Can you find us in the bus station? Here we are looking happy. On the bus I had filled my ipod with great listening entertainment for the 2 hour drive, but that was not to be. There was a young girl sitting in front of me who immediately began talking to me and I was able to share with her.....which was really cool. During the bus ride Rob got a text from our friends we were meeting. They said there was a typhoon blowing throw so our "drive" might be cancelled. However, by the time we arrived....no more storm. We ate a quick lunch, got some local "crack and peel" fruit for the road trip, (which apparently you can't eat too much of because it is a hot food and will make you sick.....haven't figured that one out yet) and hit the road.



Our hosts had borrowed a minivan from a friend, so we had a nice smooth ride. After about an hour, we arrived at our destination. As we all got out of the car our friends began asking about the gate fee. To avoid paying the fee, a guy standing by the road said we could follow him for a 10 minute walk and avoid the gate fee. Note: when all that is surrounding you is mountains....10 minute walk will be adventerous and probably isn't really 10 minutes.


Immediately we began climbing up. I had on flip-flops, but lest you pity me, my friend had on heels and a dress. (WOW) So, I really couldn't feel like a wimp. We went up and up and up. Climbing and climbing. Jungle, trees, rocks, small path. I will pause here to say I have the best children in the world. No complaining. I am a city girl, so small paths climbing over tree trunks in the paths, fear of snakes and other animals lurking in the mountains.......this is me. It is in these situations that I walk in front and Rob worries about the kids. (we are a good team) About half way up the mountain, our friend's son starts saying "shhh, shhh, shhh". Fear grips me. Is it a bear? a snake? WHAT!?!? He points through the trees. Oh, good just "men in camoflauge" loading a mortar pointing toward the border of the neighboring country. Just what they wanted to see.....a bunch of foreigners tromping close to their activities.


A few minutes later our guide, who is WAY in front of us calls to us to "HURRY!!!" Why?....remember the typhoon.....it is about to find us. How do 3 children, 2 men, a chic in flops and one in heels hurry? Especially when the terrain is steep and slow going? This pic is at the end of the trek when we finally got off the path and connected with the real path. We just had to walk down a huge amount of steep, uneven steps with thunder and lightning all around. Thankfully, we arrived just as the storm hit and were able to take cover in the gate. You can see Hannah and Hudson really enjoyed the strong winds and cool breezes.

We decided to wait out the storm in and under the gate. I have a great video to show, but blogger won't seem to let me post it.
After the fun of the storm, we took a few pictures to say we had been there and headed back. By this time it is about 5pm. Whew! What a day. We knew the last bus back home left at 7:40 so we really needed to start heading back. I was a little concerned about how we were going to get back....were we going to go back to the car the way we came in? After all there had been some damage from the storm. Who knew!?! Thankfully we were able to go through the main gate back to the car, guess they don't require a ticket to get out, and wouldn't you know.....it was just a few steps from where we were to the car.......still learning the culture.

On the way home, our hosts really wanted us to see the swimming hole. It is off the main road and belongs to some villages. My curiosity was piqued. As we got near, we saw a few signs, in English, that said "swimming pool". Another curious thing. We were suprised to find a big tiled swimming pool. Clean water from the mountains rushes down and fills the pool and the water exits the other side of the pool and continues to run down a creek. We were pleasantly suprised. We think we could swim here and live. It is not the Oberosa, which the O Fam is particulary found of, but could work in a pinch. Next time, we told our friends, we will have to go swimming together. (I forgot to mention, we are the only ones who actually know how to swim.)

We made it back to the bus station at 7pm. Enough time to buy bus tickets and have a quick meal at our favorite noodle shop, where we are all the rage. I am waiting for my picture to be put on the wall and be asked to sign it, that is how famous I am in there. And just to prove it to you, after we finished our standard bowl of noodles, the waitresses and owners brought us out a bowl of what they were eating. I would love to tell you what it was, but nothing in my 33 years of life has ever come in contact with it before. After a long day of travel, language, and culture, I didn't really feel like trying mystery dish and you know none of my family members did either. But, in order not to offend and continue to work on friendships......I took a bite, told my family it tasted a little like a potato, and we swallowed most of our bowl, and hid the rest under uneaten noodles. My waitress friends were happy and we scooted off to the bus. To reward my tired children for eating "local" food all day I had the foresight to pack a nice American snack for the ride home. We found some sort of chip combination at our Western import store which has Doritos, Sun Chips, Pretzels, and Cheetos in a bag together. (It has a name but I forget it) Quite a treat!! We arrived home at 10:30. All in all, it was a great day! We had such a fun time with our new friends!

If you have made it to the end of this post.....WOW! Sorry it was so long!

First Day of School!

As of today, I have a 4th grader and 2nd grader living in my house. Hannah keeps saying, "wow, I can't get used to saying I am a 4th grader, it sounds old." Tell me about it. I still think they should be going to Antioch Preschool!
Hannah described her day as "awesome" and Hudson said his was "a lot of fun". So, what more can you ask for from the first day of school? They both want to go back on Monday. Hudson has one little boy in his class who doesn't speak English, and his teacher told me how much he helped the little boy all day. She said she was so thankful for his help. There are 8 boys in his class, and 3 girls. Poor teacher. Hannah really loved her class too. She knows all of the girls in her class already, making the first day of school much easier. Sorry these are only pics of Hudson's class....Hannah said we couldn't take pictures of her in her classroom on the 1st day....apparently you don't do that in 4th gr. I think she said that in 3rd grade too. So, you will just have to glimpse Hudson's room.

On Fridays the kids get out of school at noon. What a great school! So, promptly at noon we picked them up, headed to McD for the first day of school debrief, then on to Wal-Mart to buy school supplies. It was really sunny...as you can see on Hudson's face. (wal-mart in the background) While some things never change, one very important thing did.....I spent only $20 on supplies, while last year it was $200. YEA!!!! The one little wrinkle came when we realized there are no lunch boxes here. There are lunch tins....a la Laura Ingalls Wilder....which frankly my kids take more than that to eat for lunch. So we found little bags that I think will work.

Finally I will leave you with a few shots from Wal-Mart, things you don't always see at your local Moore Wal-Mart. I left out the food shots...those will be for another day and post.

This is my favorite sight, always. In the electronic section there are benches lined up in rows, so people can watch TV....the olympics. There is always a crowd in this area.

Nothing like a little light reading for children....notice these men, Abraham Lincoln, Karl Marx, and Confucious, all side by side. I wonder exactly how fruit falls in love, and does it taste better when it is in love? These are questions that roll through my mind. Nothing like a little home town pride. I thought the Wal-Mart Smileys cheered for Team USA, now I know.

He loves me.....

I just want to say what a wonderful husband I have. Yesterday he brought home roses for me, for the 3rd week in a row. No, we aren't fighting, no occasion.....he just likes to bring me home flowers because he loves me. And today, he brought Hannah home some carnations. What a great guy!!

The girls in our family feel pretty loved!! Thanks Rob!

PS...School starts in the morning so pictures and blog to come! I know the grandparents are especially interested!!

4 Months Ago Today

Well friends and family.....we have lived here 4 months today. It is so hard for us to beleive we have been here that long already, and even more incredulous is that we haven't lived in OK in 8 months. WHAT!?!?!?

So, in honor of our 4 month anniversary.....I know, a little strange.....I will give you a list of things I have learned so far.

1. Who knew you could actually go through 2 big cans of Crisco in 4 months......side note, I hadn't gone through an entire can of Crisco in 12 years of marriage, usually it went rancid and I would throw it away.

2. It is more comfortable to wear slippers or rubber shoes inside the house than go barefoot.

3. Rob and I really enjoy cooking together, and he is a great cook. Never before has cooking been a project we could share together.

4. I spend way too much money at Wal-Mart....oh wait nothing new about that.

5. This one is big....I prefer to eat local noodles for lunch than McDonalds or KFC.

6. I have found there are tons of "new" fruits here that I really love, but my mom never taught me to "thump" or "smell" these types of fruits so I have had to learn by trial and error what is good and what isn't.

7. If you just ask the butcher at Wal-Mart to grind you beef....he is happy to do it. Why? Because they seem to have stopped carrying ground beef. So when I go shop, I go there first and have to ask them to grind up some fresh beef. They oblige becuase I buy a lot.....and freeze it. Now, when I show up they say "no problem, can you wait a few minutes".

8. I like to eat squid and sweet potato vine (you know the pretty purple and green vine in your front yard that about now has taken over your flower bed.....you can cook it and eat it...who knew?)

9. When you have language 3 hours a day, 5 days a week, it can cause crazy dreams where you spend the whole night translating back and forth.....and it is pretty scary when you start translating for yourself!

1o. The biggest thing I have learned in the last 4 months is how much I love my little family. Rob, the kids, and I have spent so much time together since January.....and we sure have had fun. I wouldn't trade it for anything. After living a life where there would be days the kids wouldn't see Rob becasue he would be at work before they got up until after they went to bed, we have all adjusted nicely to being together A LOT!!

4 months down.....and we are doing well. Can't wait to learn even more!!

Sickness

How do you know when your child is sick? Well, when it is Hudson there is no doubt in your mind. When my noramlly active, funny, bouncing off the walls child comes in at 4pm and says I think I need to lay down, then stays on the couch until bedtime.....something is wrong. So, last night and so far today I have been "hanging out" with Hudson. He has a fever and feels like doing nothing but laying down. So last night we watched Team USA beat Angola with wet washcloths on his head and today he is watching movies.

I am staying home from class today to serve food and water and cold cloths. I wonder if there is ever an age you get to when you don't want your mom to be with you when you are sick. I think this may be one of the best parts of being a mom.....it isn't everyday you get to hold your 8 year old boy all day.

Thank you Mary Lou Retton

I was 9 years old. I remember my mom and I watching, cheering, and screaming as she scored her perfect 10. That was the beginning of my love for the Olympics. And boy does NBC do a great job with all those stories that make tears come to your eyes. The first year Rob and I were married I was thrilled to find out, I wasn't the only one who had a love for the Olympics. We had Rikki and Tom come to our apartment and watch the opening ceremonies of Atlanta '96, then each night afterward we watched the games religiously. Rob even broke our bed vaulting over our clothes hamper into the bed after the Li Xiao Shuang won his 6th or 7th gold medal in vaulting. (he will not appreciate me sharing this fact)

So....last night we all gathered around and watched the opening ceremonies live, in another language. And guess who showed up as one of the last torch bearers, Li Xiao Shuang, I thought Rob might try his vault move again, but the beds are alot harder, so he abstained. We understood most of what was happening last night, but decided when we woke up this morning to watch the highlights from NBC. Thanks to the miracle of slingbox, we fast forwarded the NBC coverage to the explanations of all the things we weren't sure we understood. We have several dedicated channels here showing the games, but we are opting for the slingbox versions....yea NBC.....for the highlights and stories.

I was so happy last night my kids loved all of the ceremony and really got excited during the parade of countries. They are pretty good with geography thanks to their travels and their new friends who live all over the world. So, as each country arrived in the stadium they would cheer extra loud if someone they knew lived there. Hudson particularly enjoyed picking out all of the NBA players from the different countries. We couldn't believe he could spot them before we could or the news coverage. Hannah enjoyed all the costumes and thought the whole thing was spectacular.

One moment I feel I have to share was provided by Hudson. You know, the minds of children. We had discussed throughout the evening (remember we didn't watch in English so Rob and I were the commentators) as we looked at the different athletes "Oooh I bet she is a bball player" or "That person is a long distance runner for sure" or "He has to be a weight lifter", etc. etc. So, throughout the night, we talked about certain countries strengths, like cold countries are stronger in winter olympics (eg.. cool runnings) and other stereotypes like that. As we approached hour 3 Iraq marched in. Hudson was laying on the couch and popped up and said, "Oh I bet they are REALLY good at sharp shooting." Hmmm. Oh the things he says.

Happy Olympic Watching, and NO we live nowhere near any of the activities.

Where Have We Been?!?

To my faithfull followers.....okay, Bob, who I know has been checking my blog to find nothing new for the last week, I am so sorry.

Sometimes I ask myself, do you really want to hear about what we ate yet again today, or what we did? So I wasn't feeling like my blogging self the last few days, then we went out of town for 4 days, returned home and had no internet. This morning I went to pay the internet bill, and come to find out, our helper had knocked out the connection while cleaning under our couch. (yes, it's a new one for me....cleaning under the couch daily, but Hey! who can complain, not me) So after running what seemed like 100 errands this morning, I am finally ready to blog.

We had such a fun time with friends this last week as we went to a beautiful spot in the country for a few days. This is quite a tourist spot, with lots of white faces. Quite a bit of shopping and "western food" Please note the quotations. I am coming to the realization that "western food" is only found in the west. Just like when you go to "Dot Wo" it isn't really anything like what you eat here. However, it was a good "taste" of home. Complete with Tex-Mex"ish" food. We were satisfied. A new rule the O FAM has decided upon: No hamburgers unless you are at McD or in the USA.

We had some great games of Nerts, Catch Phrase, and Uno. Rob and Hudson went hiking one day while Hannah and I slept in and went shopping (of course). During the course of our shopping I found out something very valuable that I have been left out of the last few times I have visited this particular place.....if you can speak the language, you get better deals. One lady even told me, "Oh you speak my language, I will give you the "real" price." Thanks.

Some of my favorite girls.

I really don't know what to say about this....but feel the love. yours truly...my shopping buddyThis was taken for my benefit....the post says "DANGER" I was obviously not around and Rob didn't think that sign really meant what it said.