Diving Update

In the Guam post, I alluded to the fact that there would be a new diver joining the ranks of the Taipei expat scuba faithful. I am now well underway with my certification, and I recently made a trial "discovery" dive off the coast of Bali, Indonesia. As first dives go, I have to say, IT ROCKED!! On the van ride up to the dive site, the folks with me asked if I was nervous. I told them I was actually more anxious about leaving my kids back at the hotel kids' club, so I think that took my mind off the descending-30-feet-breathing-air-from-a-tank thing. Upon arrival, I got 20 minutes or so of basic instruction from the Balinese guide. Unfortunately, I could not understand a word he was saying. If you have ever watched Finding Nemo, you'll remember the scene where the young sea turtle is giving last minute instructions for exiting the East Australian Current. In a panicky voice Marlin says, "Wait, I know you are trying to tell me something but I can't understand you..." before plunging into the unknown. Yep, kind of the same feeling. In truth, I could tell from his hand motions what he was talking about regarding equalizing ears and mask, not holding my breath, etc., and I did ask him, "You are going to stay with me the whole time, right?" And with that reassurance we began our descent.

Well, sort of. The instructor and fellow-novice diver Lance began deflating their BCD's and descending. My buoyant self continued to float at the surface without sinking. Then to float with my rear end at the surface like a neoprene buoy while my head descended. Then to flip unceremoniously onto my back with my fins in the air. The instructor worked with me on buoyancy control but finally just grabbed my hand and pulled me slowly down under the water with frequent reminders to clear my ears. At one point he reached down to the gently sloping bottom and began picking up rocks to shove in my BCD to add more weight. I cracked up, then wondered if laughing under water would harm me in some way and stifled my giggles.

At last I stopped thinking about the mechanics of the descent and began to explore the reef, soft fan corals waving gently, crabs and urchins clinging to the hard coral, fish everywhere. At about 10 meters, we kneeled on the sandy bottom and simply watched the life around us. I was in the middle of a school of gray and white fish who seemed suspended like I was, simply watching the reef. I looked up through them as one might look up through falling rain drops, and I felt the strange sensation of being in a child's snow globe at a moment just after someone has shaken it but before the glitter falls down. Spectacular.

After about 30 minutes we began the gentle ascent. I had experienced a few moments of over-awareness of my surroundings--in other words, too much realization of where I was and where my air was coming from--but was pleased that I had been able to slow my breathing, relax and force myself to focus on the marine life. It seemed to take forever to reach the surface and my calf was cramping a bit from kicking the wrong way. Just as I was about to point this out to the guide, I noticed a familiar face looking smiling at me around his snorkel. I realized it was McLeod and that I was at the surface without even knowing it. I found myself laughing into my regulator again. This time I didn't stifle it or the whoop of triumph that came out when I popped above the surface.

Now back in Taipei, I am fortunate to have my buddy Cathy taking certification classes with me from a great PADI instructor located only a short walk from where I live. My hope is to complete everything including my open water dives on the north coast before I leave Taiwan for the summer. Not sure how much diving I'll be doing in central Alabama but I hear there's an old cargo plane sunken on the bottom of Lake Martin...


With the instructor and fellow-diver Lance from Boston.

Orangutans, Giant Lizards and the Royal Treatment in Kota Kinabalu

If Guam was McLeod's scuba playground, then Kota Kinabalu in Maylasia was my day spa, with just enough adventure to keep me from being permanently cemented to my lounge chair. Referred to simply as KK by the expat community, this beach town on the island of Borneo was the perfect escape from Taipei's incessant winter rains. We settled in at the Shangri-La Rasa Ria Resort for the week of Chinese New Year and found it to be a good choice for families with young children. We were enchanted by the orangutans living in the protected rainforest area next to the resort. The resort works with other conservation efforts on the island to care for orphaned or injured orangutans and then reintroduce them into the wild. The kids and I have put together a Voicethread for you on our time at this beautiful, jungle-covered island. Flip through the pictures using the arrows or play as a slideshow to hear the commentary.

McLeod's Theme Song

This is McLeod rocking it after he finished his half marathon. He set a new personal best time at 1:56:54 so he was very excited.

If the video below doesn't work use this link.

http://www.fordvehicles.com/cars/2008focus/index.asp?section=ThemeSong&mid=26512099

Happy Easter!

Up early and remembering my high school days of shivering at the 6am sunrise service. The cadence of a youth choir piece is drumming in my brain:
HE is alive.
He is ALIVE.
He IS alive.
HE is alive.
He is ALIVE.
He IS alive.
I turned 33 last week so this is probably my 29th Easter to know that truth with my innermost being. To know that because the ultimate hero willingly laid down His sinless life to rescue me from sin, He defeated not only the curse of sin but death itself. Yes, He IS alive!

So how will we celebrate today? McLeod is running a 1/2 marathon, starting in about 60 seconds, through drizzle and 20 mph winds! GO BABY GO! He told me and the kids he'd be having some special time on the road with Jesus this morning--he just hoped it wasn't going to be like the road to Damascus where Paul was knocked on his proverbial behind and blinded for 3 days by the light of the risen Lord! The kids are starting to stir in their beds and will no doubt be pouncing on Easter baskets soon. I found a note from sweet Barret last night that read, "Dear Easter Bunny. I love all the Chreets (treats)!" Then, we're off to church with our visiting friends, the Georgsons, with maybe some Chili's take out and a little egg-dying to follow. To be here in a country that allows us to celebrate the resurrection is a good thing, and I can't help but think of the home groups in other countries that will be quietly celebrating under the radar, so to speak. Can you imagine, though, how those precious voices must sound to the angels? A multitude of hearts ringing out, "HE is alive! He is ALIVE! He IS Alive!" in some shape or form? And listen: the angels are singing back!!

Happy Easter from all the Texpats!

Guam-erica the Beautiful

Oh, to see the day dawn on your own country, even if it's a tiny spot in the Pacific Ocean! Just a 3 hour flight from Taipei, Guam gave us a great taste of Americana (24-hour Kmart, Macy's, Lone Star Steakhouse, Wendy's Old Fashioned Burgers) and for the divers in our group, some fantastic underwater scenery. In fact, the divers saw so much underwater scenery on so many of our vacation days, that at least one of the non-divers decided she felt left out and has since started her own certification. I'll let you figure out who she is in future entries, assuming I...er, she goes ahead with the plan discussed with her scuba instructor. Hey, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. I'm still hoping to get some of John Heinemann's underwater shots posted but until then, here are some pictures of our other Guam pursuits.

A Birthday with Backup Dancers

Barret turned 6 while we were in Guam, so for his birthday dinner our family invited three other families to join us at Hard Rock Cafe. Since coming to Asia, we've always had one or more other families traveling the samevacation itinerary, so it makes for an instant party where ever we go. The birthday dinner was no exception. Kids and grown-ups alike jumped up on stage to dance and sing to "YMCA," and we even convinced McLeod to do his famous breakdance move, The Worm. When it was time for the cake and candles, Barret was the center of attention with the fair Alexandra, Sydney, Grace and Caroline as go-go dancers to the Beatles "Birthday." ("You say it's your birthday. It's my birthday, too.")

All I can say is, someday Barret's gonna look back at pictures and think, "I used to be so cool!" Honey, you'll always be cool to us!

Here I have to rag on our buddy Tom--he was the most enthusiastic dancer of anyone out there. See how hesitant everyone else is with which letter of YMCA they are on? Not Tom. Nope, he's larger than life with that, ummmm, J?

Breathtaking

Guam has some of the most gorgeous volcanic cliffs and blue lagoons I've seen. We were able to snorkle with ease in the sheltered waters next to our hotel. Caroline was content to float along in a small plastic sea kayak tied to McLeod's wrist so that he and I could snorkle with Barret and show him the coral reef and tropical fish. Mc and his diving buddies also did several days of boat dives including Guam's famous Blue Hole, a limestone vertical shaft that descends over 300 feet. I rode along on the boat that day and got a chance to snap photo's of the beautiful (above water) scenery, watch several pods of spinner dolphins playing around the boat, and talk with the boat captain and dive master. These guys cracked me up. They will never, ever go anywhere else but Guam--and why should they? I especially enjoyed talking to the captain who, when he's not hauling tourists around, spends time free diving to spear-fish monster grouper and playing drums for both an alternative rock band and "a badly out-of tune" country-western band (his words). McLeod's dive highlight for the week would have to be swimming with sea turtles. Trumps my dolphin encounter from last summer=)

The divers were McLeod, Kevin, Kathleen, John and Tom. And doesn't McLeod look cute in his wetsuit!!

Typhoon damage is frequent in Guam and evidently hard to clean up. We saw several boats like this one.

Santa and Seafood

A few more pictures to share from our tropical Christmas. The kids were delighted to pose with Santa--who had to have been sweating in the near-90 degree weather! Though the setting was very different than any past Christmas, we still managed to incorporate some traditions. We had a great stocking surprise--the kids each hung one of their sandy little socks on the TV cabinet and woke to find them mysteriously replaced with the real things. The kids also acted out the Christmas story in the hotel room while I read the account from the book of Luke. Abby the baby doll got to be the Baby Jesus, Caroline was Mary, and Barret was everyone else. We even had a Wise Man showed up bearing a gift...for his wife. A lovely diamond bracelet with 17 stones, which he explained was one center stone for our love, 12 stones for each year we've been married, and 4 stones for each of us in the family. Cue the "Awwwww, isn't that sweet...." I really was blown away. For Christmas luncheon and dinner, we enjoyed some great seafood buffets and being the pyromaniacs that we are, we got a thrill out of the Polynesian fire show. Barret was so captivated by the ladies in the grass skirts and coconut bras that he followed them off stage, clicking away with his camera. McLeod had to go reel him back in!

Expat Gals in Hong Kong

One of my highlights of 2007 was a three-day shopping trip to Hong Kong with five other ladies: Kris, Dawn, Karen, Ana and Kim. All of us are moms, and all of us needed a trip during which we were not enforcing curfews or bedtimes, not cutting up anyone else's food, and not visiting sites marked "family friendly" in the guidebook. We were ready for the essentials of a good Girls' Weekend--Shopping, Dining, Pampering, and More Shopping--and we wanted to go somewhere that most of had visited before (albeit while wearing our "Mommy" badges) but had never really gotten to explore from an urban expat gal's point of view. Hong Kong was the perfect fit.

Departure time
Once we'd picked a date and bribed the husbands into spending three days with the kids, brave soul Ana worked with a local Taiwanese travel agent so that we could get a decent deal on hotel and flight. There were quite a few rounds of Itinerary Hokey-Pokey while we shopped rates and times (bless you, Ana!). In the end we nailed down the Sheraton and a reasonable rate with EVA Airways since we were all Taiwan residents. We were actually designated as a Taiwanese tour group with special check-in service at the airport. We got a few stares and some sympathetic help at the ticket counter since a) only one of our group could even pass as Taiwanese, b) we didn't have a tour guide to help us figure out where to go in the airport, and c) heaven help us, we didn't bring a multi-colored flag to hoist and follow, marking us as a guided tour. We did end up buying funny matching t-shirts, but nope, no flag. Of course we didn't actually need a flag since two of the gals, Kris and Kim, are 5'10" blondes. We just followed them through the sea of small, dark-haired folk. Kim was recovering from a series of hair coloring mishaps--a common occurrence for blondes living in Asia--and boasted a particularly brilliant sunshine-y hue that made our group the toast of Taoyuan International Airport.

A side note to any gals looking at life overseas: if you are or plan to be any hair color other than black, brown, auburn, or purple, you should NOT ONLY bring your own color with you from home, but you should have your hometown hairdresser check it and swear on her life that is actually the right shade. In the weeks leading up to our trip, Kim nobley survived being a brunette, a red-head (twice), and a truly shocking, crispy-fried-bleached-white-blonde along the road to her current golden locks (which I must say, suit her quite nicely).

For me, no girls’ weekend can properly begin without a visit to Starbucks, so once we'd checked our bags, we headed to that heavenly latte spot on the upper level of the terminal. For my travelling buddies, though, no girls’ weekend can properly begin without some kind of shopping. So before we even got to Hong Kong, there was shopping at the Taipei airport gift store followed by duty-free shopping on the airplane. During the ninety-minute flight, we also passed around Born to Shop: Hong Kong, a must-have expat gal’s guide by Suzy Gershman that’s organized both by city area and by item (jewelry, electronics, shoes, etc.). Yes, we were about to take the city by storm and couldn’t wait to touch down and begin our adventure.

The Purse Mavens of Monkok
Though we had a great time visiting various stores, malls and markets during our trip, it was our first several hours in Hong Kong that were the shopping pinnacle of our weekend. As soon as we could get from the airport to our hotel, we dropped our bags as quickly as possible and then ran, not walked, to the cab stand to get taxis to Monkok Ladies Market, or as I now call it, Ana’s Land of Copy Bags. This three block stretch of alleyway was crammed with stalls featuring cheap watches, trinkets, toys, belts, watches, t-shirts, and most of all, knock-off versions of luxury brand purses (though few of these are openly displayed).

“Hey missy, copy bag,” chanted the hawkers, eager to shuffle us to the back of the stall and shove catalogues in our hands to see what might tempt us. Were we Gucci girls? Coach fans? If we took the bait, there were cell phone conversations and the arrival of a black trash bag with the selected items. Seemed simple enough, but as I was to discover, this was only round one of purse acquisition. A few ladies bought bags at a few stalls, and we continued to wander down the road, stopping to look at belts, watches (“Hey missy, copy watch.”), cashmere wraps, and Chinese silk outfits.

About an hour into our exploring, I noticed that my friend Ana had a strange gleam in her eye. She had been slow to buy purses at the main stalls, sure she could do better on quality and price. “I’m a girl looking for a deal,” she said, shaking her dark pony-tail, and so far, she hadn’t found it. Later, I was to learn from her husband that her powers of haggling are legendary: here was a woman who, with pit-bull tenacity, could convince sellers to lower their lowest price and then to accept other kinds of currency when she ran short. So she was still seeking the holy grail of copy purse inventory, the stash of A++ quality copies being sold by someone ready to negotiate.

Half-way down the market street, we opted to break into pairs with some time/place instructions for meeting up later—instructions that went completely out the window when Ana began to get her good deals. I began to get a little concerned around 6pm when Ana and Karen seemed to have disappeared from Monkok Market. Fortunately, Ana and I had the only working phones in the bunch and after several tries to reach her, I finally got Ana to respond in a hushed voice, “I’m in the middle of a transaction…I will come out in a moment.” Come out? Where was she? And WHAT was she buying??? I was now about to be initiated into Level Two of purse buying – the back room. Just as Ana and Karen suddenly appeared *poof* like magic back with the group, each carrying new bags purchased from someone named May, our group was approached by one of the sellers who said, “Hey missies, BETTER copy bags, not far.”

No siren’s song could have been stronger. Ana, fresh from her own back room buying experience, and Kris, who had a mental Christmas gift list at least two feet long, immediately set off to follow with the rest of us in tow. Through a door, up stairs, along a hall, (with nervous me memorizing landmarks like “mop bucket and mop on the left,” “Halloween poster on a door to the right,” “flickering fluorescent bulb”, and checking my cell service constantly), we wound our way to what looked like a run-down apartment. Inside, it actually was a run-down apartment but with no furniture other than a long table and shelves upon shelves of bags and wallets. And on a three-legged wooden stool, sat a gaunt, weathered man going by the name “King.”

Shoving a cigarette behind one ear and pulling a calculator from his back pocket, King began to answer the barrage of questions from our group as we pulled bag after bag from the shelves to check zipper and buckle quality, sniff for that “leather scent” and examine the labels for misspelled brand names. Bags under consideration were piled onto the central table while those of us who were new to the game asked about price and whether he had the same bag in other colors. But the seasoned buyers, notably Ana, were asking, “But what is your BEST price?” “Were these bags made in China or Korea?” “Where are the A++ bags?” No matter what price King quoted, the purse mavens would counter with other offers or raise a doubting eyebrow about the quality.

At one point, Karen—Ana’s original back room shopping buddy—pointed to Ana and said, “This woman has five kids to feed. She needs a better price.” This line seemed to work so well, it became a standard bargaining tool over the weekend. So much so that Ana herself later had to stop and think about how many kids she actually did have. (She has three.) At another point in the haggling, King brandished his lighter and held a purse to the flame to prove that it was indeed leather, not synthetic. (For the rest of the trip, Ana wanted to light purses on fire to check the quality. We wouldn’t let her near matches, candles or lighters after that.) By the end of the bargaining, the pile of purses on the table had grown quite large since the gals had decided to buy in bulk for the best price leverage. A bewildered, middle-aged Brit, hoping to find something for his wife, stumbled into the room, took one look at the raucous, purse-crazed females circling their prey, cursed and said, “Where AM I?”

There would be other back room forays that evening, but nothing would match the adrenaline-laced, primal purse hunting of our visit with King. Ana and Karen attempted to find their original purse connection, May, so the rest of us could see her stock. Walking through the crowds, forlornly yelling, “May? May?” they actually conjured up one enterprising young seller who said, “I know May! I take you!” The woman running THAT back room was not May and kept shaking her head “No” even while the hawker continued to insist that she was the May they were looking for. While the group applauded itself on being able to tell Fake May from the real May, they were not so successful at remembering landmark details. Remember my mental notes on the way to King’s? Two more times the girls let themselves be led by different guides past the same mop bucket and mop, Halloween poster and flickering fluorescent bulb, only to be surprised to find they were back at King’s place. No surprise that King wouldn’t let us back in!

We finished the evening at Monkok Ladies Market carb-loading at California Pizza Kitchen and planning for the next two days. Not much of an extreme shopper, I was ready for some pampering at the spa (I had a fantastic facial), some fine dining at Felix in the renown Peninsula Hotel, several more lattes, and some tame department-store browsing. But I will never see or hear a price anywhere again without wanting to ask, “But what’s your BEST deal?” And I will never see another luxury purse without wondering whether it came from King’s copy stash or not.

Thanks to my dear friends for an incredible trip, and I hope those purses are still holding up!!

12 Days Video

Two friends each sent me the link to this men's a cappella group from Indiana University --thanks to Kris and Joanne for some wonderful holiday cheer! Merry Christmas everybody!

Things to do while your spouse is traveling

As of December 14, we're on day 16 of McLeod being out of town, and I have to say, we are ready for him to come home to us! Not that we've had a bad time. It's just time to move out of my "hold down the fort" routine and into the more balanced family life we love. I am beyond blessed to have a network of fellow moms who know the ins and outs of life as an expat gal. They understand those crazy weeks when hubby travels to the far flung reaches of the galaxy or has to work extremely weird, late hours because the US is just waking up while everyone in Taipei is calling it a day. When the grump-inducing exhaustion kicks in, there is nothing like having a friend that will kick you in the pants if needed, remind you of how good life really is, and then meet you at Chili's for some comfort food with your squirrely, sleep-deprived, daddy-missing kids. I did, in fact, have just such a meal with friends last night, a meal during which my daughter spent most of the time either climbing on me, hanging upside down over the bench, or crawling under the table. Barret, meanwhile, hand-cuffed himself to his friend Aiden and devoured half a grill cheese and half a hamburger.

Of course, I haven't spent all my time eating at Chili's and being consoled by friends. I have also taken the kids to McDonalds for "Liang ge Happy Meal" - that's how I order two Happy Meals using Chinglish and gesturing toward pictures of french fries, burgers and yogurt drinks. We also made the trek to Jake's Country Kitchen, which is styled after a U.S. truck stop/hole-in-the-wall. Here the wait staff serves up pancakes, bacon, eggs and burritos but secretly eats rice noodles and dumplings behind the counter. And there have been multiple visits to the American Club for mac and cheese or grill cheese sandwiches, bowls of applesauce, and ice cream for dessert. When we aren't eating out, we consume peanut butter sandwiches, hot dogs or pizza with random side dishes of broccoli and carrot sticks. Since the dining table has been covered by craft projects, Christmas goodies, soccer paraphenalia and library books for the last three weeks, we have eaten most of the "home meals" at the coffee table in front of various Disney movies. Yes, nutrition and wholesome family conversation have taken a back seat to surviving the spiraling-out-of-control hours between 5pm and bedtime.

One would think that just getting kids out the door in the morning, getting them home again, feeding, bathing and putting to bed would be enough of a job while on my own. Yet, somehow, though I always vow to keep life simple while McLeod is out of town, I have once again managed to do a lot of stuff anyway. So if you are looking for ideas to keep busy while your spouse is traveling for weeks at a time, feel free to use a few from my list:

• Take your child to his first modeling shoot - 3 hours of outfit changes, hair and face touch-ups, posing, and bribing with candy. American and European kids get tagged for all sorts of ads here from clothes to cars. More on that in another entry.
• Rehearse and sing at two Christmas events, during one of which a teary-eyed daughter should come on-stage and stand there holding your hand and sniffling because she needs her smelly pullup changed in the middle of Silent Night and you can't exactly help her right then. I had to laugh (later) at this reminder of the first Christmas. You know, the one where another child shows up at an inopportune moment (think, "there was no room for them in the inn")?
• Run a Coloring Contest and Letter to Santa booth at the elementary school Winter Wonderland. Now, this was truly eye-opening for me. There were a lot of standard "Dear-Santa-I'd-like-a-bike-please" letters but there were also quite a few "Please-give-me-good-grades-so-I-can-get-into-Harvard" letters in there, too. Did I mention these were K-5th grade kids?
• Plan a class party. Thank the Lord that this was quite easy since Barret's teacher, Mrs. Winter, is like the fairy godmother of fun, easy crafts and party ideas, and she is blessed with a great teacher's assistant who does a lot of the prep work ahead of our get-togethers. We had tons of parents pitch in, so I basically mananged the train of confirmation emails and showed up with the teachers' gifts. We had a fun time of activities, cookies, ice-cream ("snow") and a great music performance by the kids. Since I was busy with Barret's party, I opted NOT to volunteer to do anything for Caroline's Christmas party other than show up with a bowl of popcorn and my camera. She was a doll singing "Santa Claus is Coming to Town"!
• Find extra time for standard Christmas shopping/holiday gatherings/card and stocking-stuffer exchanges/stuffing your face with your kids' candy late at night after they go to bed. One of Caroline's gift bags from school had really high-end dark chocolate in it. Wasted on a three-year old, I say. Much more appreciated by three-year-old's mother, which was no doubt the giver's intent!! I definitely believe chocolate should be a staple of any mom's survival kit.

McLeod gets home on Dec. 15, and then it won't be long before we are having a little beach bum time in sunny Guam. (Yikes, gotta pack for that!) I think I'm good for one more round of Easy Mac and carrot sticks until then...

Southbound to Kenting

We've been experimenting with Voicethread.com so thought you'd like to see and hear a slideshow about our recent trip to Kenting, Taiwan. We had a blast at the very family-friendly Howard hotel, swam a lot, ate lunches concoted from things at the 7-11, played arcade games and generally relaxed. We managed to snap a few pictures, so click on my smiling face beside the image to start the commentary and the arrows to browse through the pictures. The kids add their own thoughts later in the show (you'll see their icons appear)--Enjoy!



During the voicethread, I mentioned our cramped return journey to the train station, but I had to quote from my friend Kim's account to her extended family:

It was a great vacation. Well, until we all decided to pile 8 of us in a Ford Escape for our 2 hour trip to the train station. Yes, our friends who had rented this very compact SUV somehow convinced us that it would save on having to hire a driver to take us back to the train station 2 hours away. I have a 6-letter word for that, STUPID. But we all climbed in, 2 men in front, and of course, since the ladies have smaller derrieres, we got to sit in the back with a kid in each lap and 2 in between. (Remember there are no seatbelt laws in Taiwan and in most cases you can't even find the seatbelts in the cars). I will never get in a back seat again unless I have checked for air vents. Cassia and I both gave it each other the “what the heck have we done” look after about 30 minutes of driving. I was already nauseous from the magnification of heat through the sunny window , 98.6 body that had fallen asleep on top of me, and lack of air circulation, when Barret announced he might get sick. We quickly had to shuffle kids around so that should he need to hurl he was closet to the window. Air quickly got turned up from the front. You can only imagine after trying to entertain kids in a sardine can for an hour and a half how well-mannered and calm they are. While we still had the “I’m a little bit nauseous” feeling going on from 2 of us, Nick woke up and decided he should be able to get up and play in the ½ inch space I had between my knees and the drivers seat. Then, Caroline started crying that she was hungry and (I noted) she was drenched with sweat, when Jacob announced quite loudly with his hands over his ears, “These people are annoying me. When can we get in a nice quiet cab??” It continued to escalate at that point only to hear from the front, “Did we miss a sign?” Shoot me now was all I could think. I am, however, happy to say it was a very minor error, and as we pulled up to the train station my hand was on the door handle awaiting the great “escape” from the nightmarish journey into the fresh, polluted, but cool air of Taiwan. What a relief, and we are all still friends.

Poor Kim! She was so traumatized that she forgot to mention that McLeod faced his own bit of trauma while driving. He ran over a pigeon in the road. But never fear. After the thump-bump under the wheels, he looked back in horror to see the bird pop up like a weeble-wobble or one of those blow-up clown boxing dummies we all had as kids. Yes, it was a fake: a rubber pigeon placed in the road by an enterprising veggie-stand man as a ploy to slow motorists. Then, he could wow them with his bins and bins of onions. With the carsick moans, kiddie bickering, complaints about the air vents and general unpleasantness in the backseat, I can see why McLeod didn't brake for the pigeon, much less the onion stand. Just get these miserable people out of this car and on the train!

Caroline turns 3

Our Caroline is a three-year-old! This was her first year to have her very own party--not a family celebration or a joint gathering with Barret but a bona-fide birthday party with her friends. She decided to have a Little Mermaid Princess Tea Party. I decided it would be at the ice cream shop near our home since it's new, it's usually empty during the early afternoon and it has gorgeous ice cream cakes. Fortunately, Caroline told me what theme she wanted while we were in the US this summer, so I was able to buy Little Mermaid party supplies. Otherwise she'd have had a Hello Kitty-meets-Snoopy party, as those seem to be the main heroes here. She invited five girl friends to dress in their finest princess attire. They had a luscious strawberry ice cream/red velvet layer cake (with a Mermaid candle on top, of course) and enjoyed pouring each other "tea" from minature tea sets. Yes, extreme girliness at its finest. It always amazes me that I, the girl who played more in the mud puddles than with the dollhouse, should have a daughter that dresses head-to-toe princess or ballerina everyday, loves pink nail polish, sleeps with a collection of Barbies and baby dolls, and takes great delight in matching her shoes, hairbows and outfits for preschool. While I was typing this, she just came in, took a look at my baggy sweatshirt and old jeans, and sympathetically offered me her golden crown. (I'm wearing it. It is a vast improvement.) Of course, I've always had a thing for make-up and gorgeous evening wear (I've been known to play dress up on more than one occassion). So maybe, despite my pony-tailed hair and uniform of t-shirt and jeans, there's some girliness in me, too.

Here is a video of some post-cake, sugar-induced spinning with her friend Sarah. It really was a nice party, thanks to our dear friends and our funny, fiesty, Princess Caroline:

Thanksgiving 2007

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Hope it was a great one for all of you. Here's how ours went:

On Thursday morning I walked the five blocks up to Barret's school to pick up two pumpkin pies ($18US) from the school sale--I truly am thankful for this resource in our land far, far away from Krogers and Wal-mart! I wasn't sure how to get to the school kitchen and started wandering around, for some reason heading down to the basement and up a back staircase where I found an employees-only entrance. The kitchen staff were quite startled when I appeared among the industrial mixers and wire racks like Alice in Wonderland popping out of her rabbit hole. But they were happy to give me my pies--two greenish brown circles that tasted kind of funny but filled my mandatory Thanksgiving requirement for pumpkin pie. Walking back from school, I grabbed a coffee from the newly opened Dunkin Doughnuts (another thing for which I'm thankful!), then dropped by the vegetable stand at the street market for carrots and cherry tomatoes for our nibble tray. I began the final two blocks back to our apartment, nobly balancing my two pies, bag of veggies and coffee, congratulating myself on how well I function without a car these days. Then, a gust of wind hit me, and I had to sacrifice the coffee to the wind in order to hold onto the pies. There was a time when I would have felt embarrassed by the dramatic splatter of latte all over the walkway in front of a nice shop. But considering the offerings of doggie doo also on the sidewalk, I figured the coffee smell was an improvement.

Once home, I thawed out some lasagna for our lunch, then pulled out my horded supplies, procured from 3 different stores at a cost of $9.00US , to make one medium-sized green bean casserole--again, I was grateful not just for finding the can of French's french-fried onions but for this reminder of "back home." At 3pm, we loaded the family into a taxi with our pies, veggie nibble tray, green bean casserole, bottle of wine, McLeod's laptop and projector for watching recorded football games, our outfits for changing into for the annual Christmas photo, and various things the kids might need to stay clean, dry, thirst-free and happy. We headed over to another expat family's apartment, where we spent the next few hours enjoying time with the two other families there, snapping photos, pulling together a fairly traditional meal including a real turkey that did NOT have its head or feet still attached, and getting ready for some football. Then, the obnoxious neighbors decided our group of seven kids (all but one of whom were under age 5) were too loud playing in the courtyard at 5:30pm.

What option did these disgruntled not-so-thankful neighbors choose in dealing with our unpleasant noise level? Did they call or go talk to the building supervisor? Did they yell down from their third-floor balcony? Did they send the local cops to issue a warning to those squealing two-year-olds? Nope. They turned on their garden hose and sprayed the little guys. Poor Caroline came running in with a puzzled look and said, "Mommy, why did it rain on my dress?" I just scooped her up and made a quick check to verify that it was indeed only water that had been sprayed on her (add that to the thankfulness list, though I can't say I was exactly happy at that moment). Next began an exchange of remarks in English (our side) and Chinese (their side) about noise, children, and water hoses--with my friend Mary throwing in a valiant, "Ting! Ting!" (which means both Stop! and Listen here! in Chinese). Kim, the friend hosting us at her apartment, came in wide-eyed after a few moments to say, "Maybe Steve (Mary's husband) needs to go out there with Dana (her husband) because he is getting really angry." Steve, the prototypical strong, silent type, went out as moral support for Dana, but when the balcony water-blasters began shouting even more loudly at Steve's wife, he had suddenly had enough. In a voice I never imagined our quiet friend possessed, he boomed, "You better stop right now or I'm coming up there." Which he, Dana and Dana's landlord did. Armed with a digital camera.

Things get a little fuzzy at this point. All I know is that two hours later, the men returned having gotten both the local police and the Foreign Affairs police involved. Our friends decided not to press charges but are hopeful that a report has been filed somewhere if something should happen again. They are also holding onto some lovely photographs of the two people trying to hide their faces, which will be circulated around the neighborhood if needed. Meanwhile, as the drama played out across the courtyard, McLeod had been diligently fighting a losing battle with wireless Internet to set up the football game he'd taped via Slingbox--Dana's last words before heading to the errant neighbors' were, "I'll give you the Wi-Fi code as soon as I get back." So for two hours, instead of watching football, we kept the kids entertained with a slide show of our last vacation including movies of Barret and his friends feeding fish from the pier. By the time all the real-life drama was over, we were ready to load up another taxi and head home--after all, who needs football when you can have it out with crazy neighbors? Truly memorable evening in good ol' Taipei. (Dana and Kim, we'll be sure to bring the Super Soakers and water balloon cannons next time we visit. Thanks for helping us celebrate Thanksgiving, even if it wasn't how we imagined it would be. But sometimes that makes for the best memories later.)

I had planned to update the blog with notes and pictures from a few recent trips, but this weekend's Thanksgiving excitement kind of sent me in a different direction. I'll try to get those up in the next week or so, though. In the meantime, love and blessings to all of you.

Cleaning Up after Super Typhoon Krosa

We are relieved to be bidding Super Typhoon Krosa goodbye. Equivalent to a category 4 hurricane, this big baddie began roaring in during the wee hours of Saturday morning, surprising everyone with intense, unrelenting wind and drenching downpours. More than one family reported that the shrieking gusts and rumbling sustained winds sent all the kids running into mom and dad's bed for reassurance. Looking down from our window during the daylight hours, we could see the wind-driven rain spiral and snake its way through alleys like a misty-white Chinese dragon. And we all kept saying, "This can't be it. It isn't supposed to be here yet! It's supposed to be here on Sunday!" That's about as lame as telling a woman in the final stages of labor that it's not her due date so she can't have her baby yet.

This was my third typhoon since I've been in Taipei, but the first one during which I could actually feel the building sway from the force of the wind. A little unnerving. We also had a minor ceiling leak, as did most of the apartment complex residents. The poor ladies at the front desk dispatched engineers with buckets all over the building and were logging the leak reports in a spreadsheet. I'm guessing maintenance is going to have a busy week ahead. One friend had water steadily flowing out of her light fixtures in both her bathrooms and was dumping full buckets about every three hours. In the lobby water was trickling out of the electrical outlets which is just a little scary. Our building had some minor damage - I heard an unconfirmed report of broken windows in the health club area - with the biggest loss seeming to be window screens. One friend called his wife over to the window of their 16th floor apartment and said, "Honey, do you see that rectangular thing way down there on the street? That's our screen door."

We were fortunate, though, that we only lost power for about half an hour, unlike friends in other parts of town who were without electricity throughout the day. When the power went down in our block, McLeod had taken Barret and a friend Aiden to the movies next door (remember, we all thought we were only experiencing the outer bands and not THE typhoon). They got through about two-thirds of the movie, when everything went dark. Another kid was having a birthday party at the theater and had given all his buddies glow sticks, so of course, what else would you do in a blackout but play tag up and down the aisles of Cinema 2? Barret and Aiden, who weren't blessed with glow sticks, had to sit out that rollicking good time while McLeod got them bundled up to come home. I heard some great stories from the boys about their adventure including 1) climbing down the stalled escalators, 2) seeing a chair fly across the road, 3) getting stuck in our apartment elevator as the power cycled on and off and of course, 4) NOT getting to play glow stick tag with the other typhoon-crazed six year olds. They did get rainchecks for the movie so guessing McLeod or I will be taking them back to finish the movie later this week. I wonder if they'll have a different perspective of the film, Evan Almighty, after actually seeing some flooding around town?

This morning I got out with the camera to check the damage around our area. As you would imagine, there were lots of trees down, some broken windows, and signs blown away. What amazed me, though, was the speed with which the clean up was happening. Not only were the city garbage crews out early picking up the stacks of debris, but everywhere, people were pitching in to clean up the common areas. I recognized several senior citizens brandishing brooms and rakes as the group who regularly meets for Tai Chi in the park behind our house. Elsewhere, families were out sweeping up broken glass, pottery shards and leaves from in front of their businesses and homes. And as soon as they could, everyone was getting back to business as normal, whether that was frying up eggs in rice wrappers at the breakfast shops or selling knock-off sportswear in the market.

Below is a clip of the storm as it rolled in and more shots of the aftermath. We are thankful to be safe and dry. Please pray for the folks who lost property, had injuries, and the few families that lost loved ones. Near us, one house on Yangming Mountain (the mountain behind our home) collapsed on the eight people inside. One person was killed, others injured. Landslides are still a big issue until things dry out. McLeod just walked in from touring the mountain area on his bike and said the roads are strewn with rocks and trees. That will take a little more time to set right.

Brag Blog

Ok, I'll admit it. This entry is really for the grandparents so bear with me while I brag on the kids! First up is Barret. He did chores forever to earn a set of building dominoes (the kind you set up and knock down). He cashed in his chore chart recently and has had fun setting up the dominoes with help from Mom and Dad. Last night, though, he painstakingly set them up on his own, using the box top as a guide, and after three tries finally got them to collapse as planned. (I did help a little setting them back up after the test runs.) Take a peek at the end product:

The second brag is on Caroline. She officially kicked the thumb habit four weeks ago, and after proving herself for a month, she got her own reward. Wednesday, I took her to George Pais Beauty Salon to have her nails painted and hair trimmed. The staff there absolutely treated her like a princess as she sat primly in the grown-up chair. She picked out a lovely, sparkly purple shade for her nails and afterward had a blast telling people, "My nails are painted....Wanna see 'em?" Then, we joined friends Nicky and Anne for coffee (and apple juice) at the corner cafe. Caroline, what a nice grown-up girls' day we had! I'm proud of you!

'Tis the Season for School, Baseball and Typhoons

School is underway at last, and both kids are doing great. Caroline, my confident pre-schooler, spends two days each week playing, singing, tumbling and learning a little Chinese. At first, she was confused when her teacher switched to Mandarin during the language lesson time. Caroline kept asking, "Why aren't you talking in English?!?" and when the teacher would say something like "Ping guo is the word for apple," Caroline would insist that "apple is the word for apple!" She has since caught on, though, and seems to be enjoying learning some new words and songs.

Caroline is the oldest in her group, and I think she really enjoys NOT being the baby sister for a change. In fact, within the first hours of Day One, she'd pretty much taken charge of the class. Her teachers were singing "Twinkle Twinkle" with the kids during circle time. When they finished, Caroline stood up and said, "Let me show you how it's done." Miss Ruby laughingly vacated her cushion for Caroline to sing for them. As you will see in the video, Caroline experienced a moment of uncertainty then plunged right into her version. Hope you can catch her comment at the end of her performance...

So what she said at the end was, "That's how you do it!" Her teachers cracked up and have loved her ever since!

Kindergartner Barret is in his second year at Taipei American School, so though his day is a bit longer than in junior kindergarten, he really feels like an old pro. One difference for him, though, is riding the bigger bus. Last year he rode on a little bus with just his classmates, but this year he rides home on a double-decker coach with the K-5 kids. No bumpy yellow school bus for this kid. He sits up top in a plush seat with a great view of the metropolis.

His first day home on the bus was so unlike what I imagine it would have been in northwest Houston. There, I would have walked across my yard and down to the stop sign, perhaps dodging the spray from a neighbor's errant sprinkler. One or two other moms might be there. A dog would bark from inside his fence while we waited. At last the yellow bus would bring me my child, and he and I would chat casually as we headed back to our house for a snack.

Here, I took a short cut through a department store (stopping only briefly to look at a jewelry display) and ended up in the midst of a Ghost Month celebration. The sidewalk where I was supposed to wait for Barret was blocked by an eight-foot table piled with offerings to departed ancestors said to roam during the seventh lunar month. Arrayed on the table were burning incense sticks, trays of fruit, pyramids of beer and canned food, and whole dried fish, duck and chicken with all fins, feet, beaks and coxcombs intact. At the curb where the bus was to drop off the kids, two fires were blazing in large wire trash cans while people pitched in paper ghost money for restless spirits in need of some currency in the afterlife. The fires were getting slightly out of hand and threatening the tree branches above, so of course, people on scooters and in cars were stopping to watch. Thus, when the bus arrived, there was no place to really pull up, so all the parents were dodging ashes, people, and scooters to get their kids and usher them back to the sidewalk. Barret's eyes were popping as he climbed down the steps from the top deck of the bus--look, fire! look, food! What more could a little boy ask for at a bus stop!

Baseball Season

Barret's other big first for the year is baseball with Coach Dad. McLeod and fellow dad, Coach Dana, work with a team of twelve boys and girls called, you guessed it, the Astros. They have a half-hour practice on Saturdays followed by their game, so it works well for both of the coaches, who are usually travelling around Asia during the week. They do a few drills and learn important things like how to jump up and down in unison while Coach Dana yells, "What time is it?" to which they reply, "It's Game Time!"

There are only a few official rules: there is no score and everyone gets to play, everyone keeps swinging until they get a hit either from the coach's pitch or off the T, and if the ball ends up in your hand, throw it to first base and first base throws to home. (The kids recite this last one constantly, but sometimes in mixed up order.) I have also noted a number of unofficial rules:

1. No matter where the ball goes, the whole team should run after it.


2. When the ball is finally stopped, the whole team should pile on top of the ball and each other.


3. If your nose starts bleeding, you have the option of leaving the blood on your face if you think it makes you look more menacing.
   
4. Gloves can be worn on either hand or on top of the head during a game.


5. When running to first base, you should take the bat with you and brandish it like a sword.


6. All base runners should meet up at third base and race each other home.

Going to watch these little sluggers is absolutely one of my favorite things about Saturdays. Goooooooo Astros!

Typhoon Season

We are currently bracing for Typhoon (hurricane) Wipha, slated to brush by us in the next 12 hours. This will be our second typhoon since we got back to Taipei--the first one, Sepat, ended up being milder than we thought, though we did get some good views from our window of the wind stripping leaves off the trees and sending signs flying. I know TX and LA have had some weather themselves recently, so you know what it's like waiting and watching as these spectacular systems inch their way toward the coast. The first bands began impacting us yesterday. I shot some video from our porch of the clouds coming over the mountains.

As I don't watch the local news here, the sky was my first indication that I might want to check Weather Underground to see whether a typhoon was out there. By 10pm last night the expat phone and email cascades had started as we passed each other word that schools and businesses would be closed today. As one of my Mandarin-speaking friends from Singapore said when she called, "I thought I should call some Americans because I know you don't watch the local TV." She was right! Anyway, we will stay safe and dry at home today, with flashlights, radio, and lots of snacks at the ready. Until next time, Zai Jian!

Reflecting on the Summer

Ni Hao to my sweet friends and family around the world. It's late August (ignore the weird July date stamp on this post) and we are back in Taipei, excited about the year ahead. What a gift to have some lazy (and not-so-lazy) summer days with family and friends in the States! And what a warm, happy feeling we had to see familiar faces in Taiwan upon our return.

If you didn't catch the update on my June trip with the kids to the States, check it out at this link. Our trip back to Taipei, this time with McLeod accompanying, went like this:

We board airplane. Kids sleep and eat.

We change airplanes. Kids sleep and eat and sleep some more. McLeod also sleeps.

I become nevous during jet stream turbulance and don't sleep.

Still-nervous and now-tired, I knock over glass of milk and sit on a nest of soggy magazines for last hour of the flight into Taipei. We land.

We pick the slowest immigrations line ever. Man in line behind us erupts into some kind of waiting-induced fit and begins loudly cursing in English. Caroline begins singing made-up songs at the top of her lungs.

We get through the line, head to baggage to add our 5 checked bags to our 5 carry-ons.

Long ride home but at least everything looks crazily familiar. We drop off our bags and head straight for Chili's to scarf down food.

We return to our lovely apartment, and I finally sleep. (I have no idea what the other family members did at that point.) Really extremely uneventful flight for which I am truly grateful.

Alabama Adventure
Now comes the part where I feel like a kid starting back to school with that evergreen assignment, "What I did on my summer vacation."

June started with the journey for me and the children to Sweet Home Alabama. Here we first checked in at my parents' home on five-acres of wooded bliss, complete with trails easy enough for little explorers, lots of feathered, scaly and furry creatures, a new tire-swing hung by Barret and Doc (my dad), and close proximity to Target. Did I mention there was a Target? I was there within 24 hours of arrival, just roaming the aisles and drinking a Frappacino. Heavenly.

My parents were the jet-lag calvary while we all re-adjusted to the time zone. I will never forget waking at 1a.m. to find Doc and Barret playing Go Fish in the kitchen. Once we'd gotten over the worst of the jet lag and taken care of our yearly check-ups, we headed to Lake Martin for a little boating, swimming and fishing. Due to draught, the lake was the lowest I'd ever seen it, and a tornado had blown through just before we got there, so things were a little torn up. I love the lake at every season, in every circumstance, though. With the low water level and churned up surroundings, we had a chance to explore wide beaches and hunt for "treasures of the deep," our term for the flotsam and jetsam that washes up, or in some cases, comes floating by. We have a tie this year for best finds: a He-Man style play sword that warbled out an other-worldly tune at the press of a button and a Lake-Martin-chilled can of Budweiser that Doc snagged as it floated by.

While we were lounging at the lake and tromping through the woods, McLeod finished up in Taipei and then headed State-side for business travel and a golf weekend with his dad. He also got to make some customer visits to New England this summer and met up with our recently re-patriated friends John and Rhonda Adams. [Adams Clan: We miss you so much. We keep expecting to see your smiling faces around TienMu, and it's just not the same. We will strive diligently to be as kind to the new crop of expats coming in as you were to us!]

In July, the kids and I reunited with McLeod at his parents' home for a great visit with his family. One of the highlights was a trip with Grandmommy and Aunt Rachel to Birmingham's McWane Center for hands-on science fun. With cousins Sydney and Zachary, the kids got to race minature boats, meet Bob the Builder, shake a robot's hand, see a fiery display about combustion, watch me ride a counter-balance bicycle suspended a few stories above the ground, and laugh at McLeod's transformation into the frozen Han Solo from Star Wars lore. I was so pleased that our home state now boasts such a classy, fun science center that still managed to capture a bit of what it meant to be in Alabama--afterall, where else would you have a massive model of our unofficial state mascot, the large-mouth bass, for the perfect photo op?

Relaxing in the Florida Keys

After tearful goodbyes to our Alabama friends and family, we made a brief stop in Houston to check on our house, visit our church, and let McLeod stop in at the office before we were once again traveling. This time we joined friends for a vacation in the Florida Keys. We stayed at the relaxing Hawk's Cay Resort on Duck Key. This was a great family-oriented place with fun water areas for the kids to play with their parents, a kids club with a parents' night out program, and nicely furnished condo's with washer and dryer (very important to us!). It wasn't a beach vacation per se, since the Keys don't really have the crashing waves and stretches of sand you would find on the Atlantic or Pacific coast, but it was nice mix of relaxation and activity with chances to golf, explore the reefs, boat, fish, and eat seafood at the local restaurants. On one of our days there, we drove to Key West to shop, visit the aquarium, tour the pirate museum, and stop off for food and drinks at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville and the Hogsbreath biker bar. Another day the ladies indulged in some pampering at the resort's Indies Spa while the guys took all the kids to feed massive tarpon schooling at a near-by dock. Check out some video of these armor-plated monsters snacking on bait fish:

Since it was spiny lobster mini-season, McLeod also got to go on a lobstering dive in hopes of bringing home something for the cook pot. His catches were too small to keep but he had a blast luring them out from under the reef while continuing to enjoy his new-found passion for SCUBA diving. While McLeod was diving, I got to take Barret snorkling on a coral reef where the mast and a cannon from an old shipwreck were still visible. I was immensely proud of my brave five-year-old. He has come so far from the kid who only a year ago wouldn't go into water past his chest. To be out there in the ocean with him was amazing. The swell was a little intimidating--this was not like snorkeling in the pool or the lagoon--so we made two short swims and then rested on the boat with Captain Kelly. Barret even suffered a painful jelly-fish encounter but was brave enough to get back in the water and try again. Of course, having some fierce jelly-tentacle stripes to show off almost made the encounter worth it! McLeod rented a boat later in the week, and we were able to make a second, easier snorkle trip on our own to a sandbar where the kids could touch bottom and hunt for sand dollars. Caroline had a blast bobbing up and down in her swim vest, and Barret and his friends got to play with some large hermit crabs sporting crusty barnacles on their shells.

My personal highlight from the Keys was a chance to swim with several dolphins who live in their own lagoon at Hawk's Cay. This is something I've been wanting to do since I was about 16! The resort offers a special Dolphin Discovery program that lets visitors accompany the trainers into the water to feed and play with Nemo, Sebastian, April and their buddies. I was amazed at how big these guys are up close. Nemo, the largest and one of the oldest, is over 500 pounds and has three or four chubby "chins" on his neck that he likes to wiggle up and down to make the trainers laugh (or maybe it's just to make them give him more fish). Of course I have to share a picture from the amazing encounter! Special thanks to Kristy, Paul, Kayleigh and Colin for a fantastic trip. It was wonderful.

Home to Houston One Last Time

We ended the summer back in Houston to visit friends and even managed to squeeze in some short weekend trips to see additional family. I shared lots of hugs with my gorgeous Colorado neices, Sarah (2) and Rachel (1 month), and the equally gorgeous cousin Madelynn (3) in Austin, TX. While in Houston, we were able to catch an Astros game, which they won, and share some delicious meals (love the Tex Mex!!) with friends. Thanks to everyone for some great memories to hold us over for another year.

I'm already at work on the next update as school starts up and we get back into the rhythm of life in Taipei, so see you online again soon!

Quick update on our travels

The kids and I made it safely to the US! This was my first trans-Pacific solo flight with the kids and they did great. Not much sleeping--my little guys were too wired--but Barret happily gamed away at his PSP (Lego StarWars rocks!) and Caroline kept us both busy with a steady stream of requests:
"I need to go potty."
"I need my drink."
"I need food."
"I want to watch Cinderella."
(20 minutes later.) "I want to watch Dumbo."
(20 more minutes) "I want Sleeping Beauty."
(Once again, 20 minutes into the movie) "Where's Little Mermaid. No! Little Mermaid 2!"
United probably could have given my seat to someone else because I pretty much spent 10 hours crouched down in front of Caroline or walking around the plane with her.

Of course, then she konked out the last hour or so of the flight, and I had to wake her up so she could walk through the San Francisco airport. We must have looked pretty cute going through SFO: me pushing our bags and hunching under a bulging backpack, Caroline sporting OJ splattered pj's and total bedhead and holding tightly to Barret with one hand while sucking her thumb on the other hand, Barret shouldering his red backpack and dutifully shepherding his sleepy sis.

We made our connection no problem. Barret promptly went to sleep for four hours, but C got a second wind and transformed into monkey-girl. Just as we started taxi and take-off she decided to wriggle out of her seatbelt and start trying to stand on her head in the seat. I was across the aisle from her (we were in the front seats of the plane) and the flight attendent and I were sweetly yelling at her to get back in her seat belt. Which she did...except she scooted back under it upside down with her legs up the seat back and her head hanging off the edge of the seat. Imagine the impish grin on her face. As soon as the wheels lifted off the ground, the flight attendant convientiently turned his head the other way and I jumped up, re-positioned her and cinched the belt as tight as it would go for my little Houdini. Per her standard airplane MO, she kept up her antics until we began descending into Atlanta and then konked out again. So, once again, I had to wake her up and watch her zombie walk with Barret through the airport.

What a relief to see Mom and Dad and know I could finally get some rest after pulling an all-nighter! I dozed in the car, ate a little dinner and went straight to bed. The kids somehow managed to stay up giggling and watching movies with Doc and Gran until midnight. Since then we've been slowly getting back on schedule so I'm guessing by next week jet lag will be a distant memory. We did find a sure-fire way to keep kids awake during daylight hours, though: When they start to fall asleep, feed them ice cream! Then, when the sugar rush wears off and they start crashing again, feed them more ice cream!

That's it for now but thought you'd like to know we made it safe and sound.

Flying the Coop

It's leaving time around here for the expat community. Hordes of people--primarily moms with kids--will depart the Taipei airport over the next few weeks to visit extended family around the world. (Working spouses left behind in Taipei become the lifeblood for a hundred deli's, pubs, and food stands, I'm told.) The travelers are joined by all of the families who have finished assignments and are moving back to their home countries or on to new assignments. Even the animals are on the move. The kids and I have been watching with fascination over the last six weeks as dozens of swallows built elaborate mud nests under the overhangs of the concrete buildings, brooded over their eggs, fed the ravenous hatchlings and then booted them out of the nest. Barret became particularly adept at spotting the "splatter patterns" on the sidewalk that gave away the location of a nest above. These four fat baby birds cracked us up. Quite obviously ready to leave the nest, they were still insisting that their parents feed them while they hung out in the cramped quarters of home. By the next day, they had finally decided (or perhaps been convinced by ma and pa?) that it was time to strike out on their own, and all that was left was their empty nest.

Buffalo Ahead!
Barret's class recently celebrated the end of the school year with a trip to Buffalo Meadow in Yangmingshan National Park. It was a great chance to get up into Taipei's mountains, and we made a family day of it. The temperature was at least 10 degrees cooler, and the lush grasses, ferns and trees made it seem like we were somewhere completely different from the traffic and smog of our city. We even got to see first hand why this section of the park is named as it is. While walking down one of the stone paths, we were startled to come face to nose with a massive water buffalo. In the 1930's the occupying Japanese government introduced herds of the animals to the area with the intent to farm them. Most have been relocated, but a few thousand still roam the park with some basic care from the park service. Warnings are posted about not getting too close--our favorite said something to the effect of, "Violators will take care of own safety"--so we didn't hang out with our buddy Buff for too long.

Taking a Blog Break

With summer here we'll be resting from our blog "homework" until school starts up again. Hope everyone has a safe, fun summer. We've so enjoyed hearing from our friends and family around the world and look forward to catching up with you in the fall!