Glory

I've been sulking (just a little bit) lately wishing that I was in my hometown in CA to see the incredible Humpback Whales living in Avila Harbor. 

But tonight we had our friends Sophia and Dana over for dinner and afterwards took a spontaneous stroll down to the beach by our village.  We walked into one of the most beautiful sunsets!

I have lived by the ocean my whole life, and it always has a way of ministering to my soul.

Thank you Lord for revealing your Glory to us. You are beautiful!

Remember my hot pink helmet?

It's here!

 It also doubles as a creative solution for Annette's hair troubles (:

Noooooooo . . . . .

Annette has been alive for 29 months. In that time I have never cut her hair. Ok, only slightly in the back, but the font has not even grown down to her eyes. There wasn't even enough hair to attach a clip until she was practically 2. So you can imagine my distress last night when I found her with the scissors giving herself a haircut!!!  Can you see the cut line?

Up until now, I have let her use scissors rather independely because she has great cutting skills (obviously) and loves to make projects.  I asked her why she did that and she said she was cutting off the wet (this was after her bath) What?!  When I saw what she had done I wanted to laugh and cry at the same time.

Anybody have any ideas on what to do with this? Besides a hat (:

Dentist Visits, Goggles on Trains and Heads in Boxes

I took the kids to their first dentist visits. I was kind of nervous that they'd have cavities but the dentist said their teeth looked great and well taken care of.  Great news!  I had them wear their sunglasses thinking it would help with the bright examining light. I'm not sure how much it helped, but it made for some pretty hilarious photos. 

 Annette was very serious and very cooperative about the whole visit

 After seeing the dentist they took daddy on a ride around the mall.

 When we were down in Mong Kong getting curtains made for our house I bought the kids some goggles. They insisted on wearing them the whole 45 minutes train ride home. Silly sauce.

 This last week Josiah went a little stir crazy inside because half of his first week of school was canceled due to typhoon warnings ):

 Jason was explaining to him how long he will be in school for "when you are 4, 5, 6,. . .16, 17, 18 etc"  Josiah said, "But Daddy, I don't need all that school cause I already have fancy skills" (:

 Today in the taxi I was yelling asking the kids to "stop" fighting. I must have a commanding tone because the driver thought I was talking to him and stopped in the middle of the street.

These two definitely keep us laughing. Hope they brought a smile to your face too!

Off to School

Josiah is at his first day at school and I am home enjoy a quiet house while Annette naps. I (almost) don't know what to do with myself.  By the time we take him to school we actually only have 2 hours at home before we have to start traveling back. 

 We met up with Malcolm in the station and the two boys eagerly bounced and chatted the whole walk to the Kindergarten.

 So grown up!

 Yesterday for registration day we got to visit his classroom and meet his teachers.

 This is very sweet and very pregnant Mrs. Siu (:

Most of the kids in Josiah's class are three, but I am so glad that we had an another year for him to really be ready for school. We had no tears at departure, except for Annette who didn't think it was fun for her brother to leave. (:

Come on In!

We have been in Hong Kong exactly a month now and made so much progress is getting life up and running here.  Just in time too!  Today's is Jason's first day of the school year and Josiah starts tomorrow.  Here is the living room/ dining room.

 Hanging on the wall over the dining table and play kitchen

 Looking from the living room into the kitchen

 Kitchen

 The Kid's Room

 Our Room

Pretty much everything but the bathroom, which I figured you didn't need a picture of. I always love picturing people in their homes, so now you can picture us in ours.   Although the house is small (obviusly), all the open space and light makes it feel bigger, so it works for us.  Come visit us, we love company!

Jam Session

A highlight from Josiah's last month has been returning to the same city as his best buds. Here is a video my friend Jamila took of Malcolm and Josiah rocking out. I thought it was pretty funny, hope you enjoy it!

For Jason's 26th birthday (yes, that was a few years ago) I gave him a voucher to get a motorcycle in Hong Kong- something he really wanted.  I thought I was off the hook when after the fact we learned that it is really long and complicated to get a motorcycle license in Hong Kong.  So this last year he took a three day course in America and this week bought the bike. 

 Mr. Lee, our landlord, told us that in Hong Kong kids under 9 aren't allowed to ride on motorcycles. He shouldn't have worried (:  Not. Happening.  I on the other hand am thinking a hot pink helmet would be perfect for date night.

Seriously, Jason Paine + motorcycle = hot stuff!

In other news, Josiah had his school interview today for Kindergarten (in America we call this preschool). It was quite a big deal, lasted an hour, and he looked underdressed compared to the girl he interviewed with (so cute!) He loved getting to meet his new teachers and cannot wait to start school in just another week.

I am reading a book called Factory Girls that takes place in Southern China, not very far from here. It is fascinating. I can usually only read a few pages before falling asleep, but those few pages are riveting- I would recommend it. 

Our house is nearly together now and I am really enjoying nesting once again. I also have noticed that it is easier to train the kids to be independent in a more stable environment (procedures for meals, getting dressed, picking up toys, bedtime etc). The kids are getting really creative these days and Josiah loves to build things out of trash, which he finds everywhere. He is currently in the process of trying to build a bicycle out of a block of Styrofoam, one wheel and some string.

Annette is being potty trained and has a lot of opinions about the process. She is making some progress and does ok as long as she sits on the toiled every 30 minutes. It is amazing how fast 30 minutes goes. 

And with that I am off to bed. Good night!