just be.: 2010

give thanks

a-art

b-book of mormon

c-chinese people

d-dad

e-exercise

f-family

g-google

h-home

i-internet

j-jokes (especially mary's)

k-ktv

l-love

m-mom

n-naps

o-opposition

p-peanuts (and everything that contains them)

q-quiet

r-rice hats

s-songs

t-taxis

u-umbrellas

v-voices

w-windows

p90x

y-yogurt

z-zinc

i was thankful for slightly different things this year. living in china can have that affect.

thanksgiving meal #1 nanjing, china

thanksgiving meal #2 bengbu, china

the closest thing to a pie that i could make in the rice cooker.

not even enough table space for the rice cooker.

not much to work with here in china

thanksgiving meal #3 beijing, china

actual thanksgiving day dessert: coldstone

the big day finally came. i wasn't out drinking, i didn't go book a cruise all by myself, but i was in china. i'll admit, that's pretty cool. but there's nothing like being home with friends and family on your birthday. but thank you for everyone here who helped make it a fun day.

my new found chinese friends who threw hailee and i a party on our birthday.

mary was so sweet to give us spoons while we were out to dinner at cool ice cream.

my besties. couldn't imagine this day without them.

birthday cake made in the rice cooker.

chi fan

my eating experiences here in china have been something else. i have eaten crunchy peanut butter banana and honey sandwiches, sweet and dour pork, green beans, apples, eggs in every way possible, plenty of oreos, enough noodles and carrots to last a life time, watermelon, and oodles of yogurt. but the more interesting part of my eating experiences is what i haven’t eaten. i knew that i wasn’t going to be that girl who went to china and did everything as the chinese do. i’m not really brave and don’t like weird foods. it’s as simple as that. but i have certainly been surrounded by strange food-i just chose to not partake of it. pictures do a much better job explaining. bon appetite!

teachers day

teachers day was today and the chinese teachers in the kindergarten invited us to a party this evening. they were so sweet and bought us so many treats. by treats i mean apples, pears, peanuts, peanuts and more peanuts, oj, and chinese candies. we sat and talked, sang songs, gave them english names and took a few cute pictures. i love these wonderful people so much already.

i could only find one picture. i'll search again and maybe add the others.

14 items from home that saved me...

14 items from home that saved me…

craisens

dried mangos

special k granola bars

fruit snacks

dried apples, pears, bananas and strawberries crisps

snickers

kit kat

milky way

almond joy

m&m’s

peanut m&m’s

hershey’s

crunch

reese’s peanut butter cup

thank you costco, for providing me with enough american food to last
me three months.

a bugs life

the bugs in china are disgusting. the summer heat brought much more than just sunny days. it brought bugs. big bugs and lots of them. there were so many crickets and grasshoppers that just lined the street at night. we would run everywhere because they’d jump up onto us while we would walk. there were so many centipedes that crawl at the speed of lightening and are impossible to catch. i definitely don’t enjoy them. upon numerous occasions we would be walking around, minding our own business and all of the sudden a huge bug would be right in front of my face. i hate bugs. here are a few more examples of why i hate bugs.

currently there is a lady bug infestation here in bengbu. mary says that it’s just the season but i think that we’re suffering from some sort of lady bug plague. i’ve heard that some might be poisonous…

the first week michelle and i had a little visitor move into our room with us. it was an unwelcomed guest and we tried our very best to get him to leave. it took two days of searching for his bed, almost half a can of bug spray used as ammo, a few cups used as traps, and two miserable sleepless nights. this little bug crawled into a little hole in our bedrooms doorframe and camped out for a couple days. we killed a few bugs before finding him thinking we found the source of the annoying chirping noise but we hadn’t. this chirping was awful. it is unlike any sound i’ve heard. it was so high pitched and loud. michelle and i didn’t sleep for two nights because that little guy kept us up with his singing. let’s just say he died a slow and painful death.

at one point i easily had over 20 mosquito bites all over my legs. my ankles were constantly itching, my calves were raw because i was scratching so much and my thighs were bruised because the only way i could find relief was to distract myself and scratch hard enough that i started hurting elsewhere. as many of you know i definitely bruise easier than most and my bruises tend to stay for a while. i don’t know why this is but i don’t like it. especially when i’m the one that causes the bruising.

cravings...

cravings…

diet mt. dew

pizza

byu creamery milk

costa vida pork salad

wingers sticky finger quesadilla

byu creamery ice cream

arby’s cheddar melt

nesquick chocolate milk

jennie’s rolls

ranch

apple or cheese omelets

cheesy sour cream potatoes

j dawgs beef dog with lots and lots of special sauce

tomato sandwich

chik fil a nuggets

egg nog

carrot cake with cream cheese frosting

cereal: waffle crisp, cocoa pebbles, chex, reese’s puffs, you name it

basically the whole magleby’s fresh menu

cracked wheat cereal

carmel syrup

pumpkin chiffon pie

grapefruit

homemade bread

lemon chicken from la jolla groves

pumpkin cookies

whole wheat pancakes

buttermilk syrup

cold stone

pesto pizza

happy halloween

halloween has always been a fun holiday for me and one that i love to go all out for. i planned on getting a costume ready for this year before leaving for china but that never happened. so i was forced to get somewhat creative and use what little supplies i had. rachel, michelle and i decided to be a couple different things. we were cats for one day of classes, and scary ghosts for the other day of classes. and then we dressed up as chinese women for a party we threw. we hoped it would turn out a lot better than it did, so please forgive us and just look at that picture for only a fraction of a second. so question...did anyone eat way too much candy? i know i did. did anyone teach 30 chinese kids how to say trick or treat and come up one by one to say it and get a piece of candy? i know i did. did anyone dress up scary for your kindergarten class and make about six students cry? i know i did. did anyone have a party where a bunch of chinese people dressed up by putting bags with fly swatters taped to them on their head and called it a costume? i know i did. ok, ok... only the headmaster did that. others made hats out of paper, got their faces painted, or just came as themselves but it was still the best halloween party i've ever been to.