Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Chinese New Year

We are looking forward to experiencing our first Chinese New Year next week. The elementary school had two assemblies and Benjamin participated in the primary grade assembly. The kids also made Chinese lanterns, wore traditional Chinese clothing -- Benjamin stuck with his red sweats since red is the color for Chinese New Year. It is fun to see the city decorated for this important holiday. We are looking forward to a week off from school.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Ice on the Pond

It finally got cold enough for a bit of ice to form on the pond. Benjamin and Molly were amazed to see the pond frozen over and spent a lot of time throwing rocks on the ice, breaking off large sheets of ice and shattering them, and even standing on top of the ice at the very edge of the pond. Benjamin wanted to go back to the pond constantly for two days. He filled the freezer with sheets of ice to save for later. Now, if we could just get a bit of snow his life would be complete.


Monday, January 5, 2009

Shanghai Aquarium

We finally made it to the Shanghai Aquarium in Pudong and it was as exciting as we had heard. Sharks and stingrays floated overhead as we rode down the elevator. We saw turtles, penguins, and tons of fish. After the aquarium, we headed to a noodle shop and had our first experience in a restaurant where no one spoke English. We managed to get what we wanted and successfully ate our meals with chopsticks. The kids will try almost anything.

Friday, January 2, 2009

Christmas Season 2008

We decided to stay in Shanghai for Christmas so we could have some time to finish settling in and we could do a bit of sightseeing. We spent the first week hanging pictures, shopping for presents, visiting with friends and getting organized. By the time Christmas came, we were tired, but settled. We spent Christmas Eve at a party with other teachers and their families. On Christmas morning, Santa brought everything the kids were hoping for: Wii, Star Wars Legos, doll house. Grandma, Grandpa, Nanny, Mom and Dad provided most of what Santa forgot: more Legos, doll, Dora stuff, clothes, Ben 10 watch, Bakugan. It was a hectic morning. We headed to SRC for brunch with a few other families and returned home to continue playing with toys. The Wii was a big hit that the whole family could play with. Even though it was cold, we were able to golf, bowl, and play tennis. We spent the rest of the vacation doing a bit of sightseeing, swimming (inside), playing more Wii and visiting with friends. We missed our families and our Dubai friends!

Christmas Photos