New Digs

With only a week before we were slated to fly to the States and an entire houseful of goods to pack, load, unload and unpack, my head was spinning.
I really didn't think it was possible to accumulate as much stuff (junk) in two years. I'd just gone through this process when we moved over here and thought we had done a pretty good job of keeping the junk to a minimum. Nope, not at all. As I packed up each and every thing, I often stopped and questioned, "What was I thinking? Did we really need to bring fourteen water bottles? How many bath and hand towels can one family actually use?" And the clothes, my God, the clothes. My ayi made out like a bandit. Each day I'd place unwanted items on the makeshift storage' ledge and the days she came, she'd load up her little scooter with EVERYTHING.

Larry and I agreed we could not handle another year on a rock-hard mattress. Unfortunately, the new landlord had already bought one bed. We moved it to what would be Katie's room and bought the mattress pad from the old landlord to soften it up. We bought a beautiful bedroom set and a 3 piece red leather living room set in Likou (furniture town). The existing furniture is, in one word, hideous. It's way too big and, did I mention, HIDEOUS. We've asked over and over for it to be removed, but as of today it is still in the spare room/office.

John, our faithful 'relocation guy', set up the movers and they showed up three hours early as they said the day was supposed to get really hot and they wanted to get as much done before the heat of the day. "No problem, let me just get dressed and wake up my kids since it's just after 7:30 and the start of their summer vacation".

What an experience. There were two flat bed trucks and eight guys. The leader of the pack asked what went and what stayed. I went through and pointed. I cringed as they basically slung the boxes on the backs or stacked them haphazardly. They hastily dismantled the twins' beds. They loaded things on in no apparant order and made no effort to consolidate space. I had initially been quoted a price of 150 RMB per truckload, but that changed to 200 due to 'summer rates'. Whatever.
Mr. Liu helped a great deal. He'd see me getting upset at how something was being handled and he'd yell at the movers. I about had a meltdown when one of the guys dropped my antique dollcase. I don't know what he said, but they slowed down and were a tad gentler with things.
With one truck loaded and the other truck driving in, I ased Mr. Liu to stay at the old house while I rode with movers. That was interesting and I received more than one glance from other drivers. Here I am, in the front seat of this rickety flat bed, with four Chinese men. No, we weren't all in the front seat. Two were hanging on to my worldly possessions in the back. This process was repeated four times, and by 1:00 they were done.

There were boxes and suitcases everywhere. As I started unpacking I had to be careful where I put things for fear I'd forget when we returned from our trip. (By the way, I did forget where I'd put the girls' ties and PE uniforms. I silently cursed the ayi thinking she'd put it somewhere. It wasn't until the second day of school when I finally remembered I'd put all these things under the twins' beds in one of the storage drawers.)

Rosie and Peanut were the last articles to be moved. I told the girls that if they could keep them off of the leather furniture then they could stay inside. Less than twenty four hours later, Rosie and Peanut became outside cats. They meowed and meowed, almost weakening my resolve. However, I saw what their claws could do to leather. Besides, there were a couple other felines roaming around. I figured they could be neighborly.

Even though I was not looking forward to the long flight, I was mighty happy when we boarded the plane. The garage and attic were in disarray, and the girls' rooms were cramped with clothes and toys. They don't have dressers, only closets. Katie utilized her nightstand drawer for socks and other delicates, while a couple of the twins' toy bins were converted into clothes' holders for the time being.
The hectic move drained me, but I truly believe we will be much happier in this house. Plus, how can we not love it with red leather furniture?

Year Six Party

How is it possible I have a child who has completed elementary school? Didn't she just stop sucking her thumb?
Year 6 marks the last year of Junior School. Katie has actually started SENIOR school. Really?!??!

To mark the special occasion the Year 6 parent representatives and the teachers planned and manned a celebratory party in their honor. We'd wanted to host it outside of the school, but cost, time and logistics forced our hand. However, with the help of the school's catering services, a financial boost from the Headmaster, and some dedicated moms, a great party took place in the cafeteria after school.
The kids were allowed to bring a change of clothes and the girls even put on a bit of make-up. The teachers had put together a slide show and a song list that played throughout the party.
I couldn't stay for the entire party as Sarah was at a birthday party at a friend's house and poor Syd was stuck out in the hall waiting for me. There were a few other younger siblings in the same boat so she wasn't

complaining...too often.
Katie said everyone had a great time and she was sad to see the end of the year come. She said it was the best year of her life.
I think I might be inclined to agree with her.

Tiger Hill...Finally!

My desire to visit as many of the Suzhou historic sites and beautiful gardens has not abated since our arrival. Larry and the girls could 'take 'em or leave 'em', but I am determined to come home with enough pictures of gardens, temples, cute Chinese children and pagados to fill up several memory cards.
Tiger Hill has been at the top of my list. Whenever we travel to the old town or go to Larry's office, we pass by it and every time I say, "Let's go!
When I found out the Year 3s were going on a field trip to Tiger Hill I immediately volunteered to chaperone.
I was charged with watching Sarah and three of her classmates. All four Year 3 classes were together most of the time, so I did get to spend some time with Syd.
Tiger Hill is beautiful and definitely worth the wait. I loved exploring the bonzai tree park, which showcased hundreds of different little trees. The rock formations and inscriptions were fascinating. The girls bounded from one part of the park to the other, with barely a moment's breath in between. Their interests laid in the little rivers and searching for 'giant birds' in the forest rather than the thousand year old pagado tower that leans almost as much as the one in Pisa.

After we'd spent a couple of hours at Tiger Hill, we headed over to a small park to have a picnic lunch. The skies were overcast, but the rain held off and we had a wonderful day.

Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat

We all know the Whitfield women love the spotlight. Whether it's nature or nurture, my girls are performers. I can't say I haven't influenced them because that would be a big fat lie. They've grown up with me singing around the house or talking in strange accents. Also, I can't say I wasn't secretly doing a happy dance in my head when they all told me they had decided to audition for the Junior School's production of 'Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat'.

The day they found out what part they'd be playing was tricky. Katie was ecstatic as she'd been cast as Joseph. Sarah was a bit upset because she had auditioned for Joseph as well. Both she and Sydney were cast as brothers of Joseph. I told them not many Year 3s had been cast in speaking roles and they should all be proud of themselves.

Rehearsals ensued, lines were learned and songs were sung. Frankly, I was in seventh heaven. All three of my girls were going to be performing together. Syd was relishing the scenes she and the other 'brothers' were cruel to 'Joseph'. "Art imating life", I told her. She gave me a devilish smile.

After two months of rehearsals, their moment to shine was upon them. And, boy, did they shine. Unfortunately, Larry had to go to Korea and he missed the live version. I, however, arrived super early to ensure a front row seat to film the show and to beam proudly at my three stars.

My face hurt from smiling so much that night. Sarah and Syd hammed it up and sung their little hearts out. I never doubted their characters' dislike of Joseph for a minute. Katie was a star. She didn't look a bit nervous. In fact, she looked at home in the spotlight. Ok, this may be just a proud stage mother talking, but geez, "Wow, Katie...wow!"

And...We're Back

The summer of 2011 will definitely go down in my record books as the quickest and busiest to date. When I last wrote back in June, I mentioned I was going on a writing hiatus. I really thought it would only be for a few weeks, not a couple of months. Where did the time go? Well, let's see if I can recall the events, including the last couple of weeks of school. As many know, I tend to ramble and my mind is churning with everything I need to write before it's lost in the memory abyss. The next few entries will be a bit dated as I try to catch up.