A Look Into Our World

This is the front entrance to our dorm/apartment building...LDI has 10 apartments just like ours in this building, the rest of the building is for other foreign teachers and some of the LDI students . . . their living areas are much different than ours, however. The other foreign teachers have one bedroom and a living / kitchen area with heat and air, the students have two sets of bunkbeds and no heat or air. We are very thankful for our small home!

This is our side of the building. We are three windows up and the last three windows on the far left of the picture.

The University Library on the west side of the University Square. We have been told this is the second largest Library in Changsha. Considering we are not even in the top five largest/best Universitys in the city, that's a pretty big deal.

The "back street". One day we went out back and all these buildings had just been demolished! They are needing to widen this alley/street to allow for all the traffic that has been created from the growth of the University. Always something new! 

Another Look Into Our World

Our most traveled street, up the hill from our apartment is the LDI classroom building.

The courtyard in the classroom building . . . looking down from LDI's 5th floor

The front of the classroom building . . . and the beautiful fountain in the University Square

The bulletin boards outside the classroom building and the entrance into the courtyard area. 

Game Night

Jenga Drama . . . this was a new game for our friends, but they were quick learners!

A very unruly game of Sequence . . . but in the end the Girls Rule and the Boys Drool! (Always trying to teach American Culture, even if it comes from Jr. High!)

The losers, or winners, depending on which ones the girls were, wore the victors/losers crown . . . or, the Chinese humiliation of choice: crawled under the coffee table. Shao Jerry was the loser here . . . but what a great color for him!

LaWanda, Julie, Holly, John, Da (big) Jerry and Shao (little) Jerry

The night began with some great food from one of the many restaurants near the front gate of the University, then Holly and I mixed up a batch of oatmeal raisin cookies . . . and the games began. It's a great way to spend a Sunday evening before beginning another very busy week. 

Wedding Bells are Ringing!

Jerry's student, Jane, and her new husband

The bustling banquet hall

One, of about 15 times they showered the bride and groom with confetti. . . the gentleman on the left is the MC for the reception . . . One loud and boisterous MC!!!

Rachel had a blast playing with the other children while we were enjoying the banquet . . . and the boy behind her here even informed Jerry that she didn't understand him and translated for her when he came to tell her that she shouldn't run aound the tables . . . quite funny!


This was our very first Invitation to a Wedding Celebration! (note I did not say the first wedding celebration we had been present for. . . one of the larger resturants we have attended a couple of times is a very popular "wedding banquet destination", but apparently not private, because both times we have gone during a wedding banquet and we were still seated and waited on as if nothing unusual was happening! We always wanted to crash a wedding reception . . . and i guess now we have!) It really was a fun time of celebration, Jane and her new husband were so very happy . . . and exhausted! I guess our cultures aren't that different when it comes to the bottom line of weddings. . . a happy and exhausted couple head off into the sunset! 

A Baby In A Basket

Shhh . . . we have to hide the baby so the mean king won't find him!

Ahhh . . . such quiet, attentive students of the word!

"Oh, Princess! Look what I found in the river! "

"Yes, sister Miriam, I would like you to find a nurse for me . . . "


On Sundays, when we meet as a group, everyone takes a turn filling all the roles . . . this week happened to be my week for S.S. and we had a spell-binding preformance after the lesson with each of the three girls taking a turn being "Princess" , "Mommy" and "Sister Miriam". . . they did such a great job pretending. Who would have guessed that I would move to China and WANT to be the S.S. teacher??? None of my girlfriends at FGBC, huh, girls??? 

Experiencing Technical Difficulties

In recent days we have not been able to access our blog. The university has kindly added broadband access to all the student dorms (which are at max capacity) thus making our access much slower during peak hours when students are not in class. . . this may be the cause, and may not be the cause, we are uncertain, but have been told that blog access here is quite a "hit and miss" situation (insert previously discussed reasoning for this here) . . . even now i am getting a message that says this post may or may not publish, I am crossing my fingers and speaking to him about it now . . .

So, just to let you know, we are still here, still wanting to keep you updated, but may need to find a more convienient form of communication.

My Identical Chinese Beef Twin

That's right! I have found him. This is Jimmy, my identical Chinese beef twin. We had a cookout with one of my conversation groups (students who get together every week to practice their English) this week and I found the one man in China who loves beef as much (or nearly as much) as I do. His excitement as the beef came off the grill nearly brought tears to my eyes.


Here are some more pictures of our day out. It rained most of the day but we were not intimidated.

The price of rice in China

Not that this has anything to do with anything but we thought you might be wondering. The price of rice in China is 1.19 yuan (Chinese currency) per 500 grams. Almost 15 cents for half a kilogram (that's a good size scoop for those of you who are metric clueless like me). Subject to much fluxuation depending on store, brand, color, aisle, time of year, time of day and the dow. Now you know.

Happy Birthday!!

In the interest of global celebration we wanted to introduce you to our friend John. His birthday was Saturday, October 14th. Thought you might want to celebrate with him. Happy birthday John!












Rachel showing John that you can't really have a birthday without covering your face in chocolate icing!

Peacocks, Hula-hoops and Bears, Oh My!

Jerry and Rachel regularly take a day out together that has fondly become "Daddy Daughter Date Day" when, I think in reality it should be called "Mommy- gets- a- break- and- some- quiet- at- home- by- herself Day" But the prior sounds so much nicer, and they always seem to find some great thing to do that makes these days a much anticipated day for all of us, and this week was no exception and possibly the best find so far!





They headed to the park for a little picnic lunch in hopes of finding an actual play area at the park and lo and behold what did they find but a Russian Circus! Here are just a few pictures of their unexpected adventure!

A few more pictures for your pleasure . . .

Here's a link to a web-album with a hundred or so of the zillion pictures taken of the birthday festivities for those longing grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and other Rachel fans. Enjoy!

http://picasaweb.google.com/jonesesinchina/RachelSBirthday

The Big Birthday Weekend

Several years ago, being the "love language of gifts" person that I am, I declared that one day to celebrate a birthday was simply ridiculous . . . so in this family we often celebrate on the "eve" and "post" birthday days . . . So, the adventures began with family night on Friday night: pizza, popcorn and a birthday surprise . . . homemade ice cream in a ziploc bag!



And Saturday was the BIG DAY . . . when she woke up, Rachel found her very own Disney Princess bike waiting for her in the kitchen. She was thrilled and we could barely get her off of it to eat her birthday breakfast blueberry muffins (that would totally sound better if they were blueberry buffins)! Since it was rainy out, she rode and rode that bicycle around the six foot open space in our kitchen/dining area for hours! (until we got smart and took her out into the hallway! Oh, yeah, that's right, look out einstein the Joneses are in the house!)

We spent the rest of the day playing and relaxing and getting ready for the much anticipated visit from the Nuk Fairy . . . we have been talking about this day for months . . . the day when Rachel turns three and we wrap up all her nuk's nice and pretty and she leaves them for the Nuk Fairy to come and get them in the night so that the Nuk Fairy can take them and give them to little babies who don't have Nuk's of their own . . . And of course, for the sadness of the parting, the gracious Nuk Fairy leaves a wonderful gift for the charitable Nuk giver . . . Ahh.... I love it when a plan comes together!

And then Sunday . . . the party!!!!

We played "Pin Backpack on Dora" which was a first for everyone, especially for our Chinese friends . . . but they loved the silliness of being blindfolded and spun around...




. . . balloons who had the best intentions of becoming grand images of animals of all varieties quickly became swords for waging "balloon war" and beautiful accessories to graceful dance moves . . .






The menu was as follows: Boot's Bouncy Banana Bread, Fiesta Fruit Kabobs, Boot's Banana and Apple Dip, Dora's Sassy Chips and Salsa . . . And Rachel's most anticipated and exciting part of the day . . . BIRTHDAY CAKE!!! For this she danced and jumped up and down ... and with a giddy voice sang her very own "Birthday cake song" . . . and after blowing out the candles she, taking no chances someone else might ask first and she may be asked to share, quickly apprehended the two much sought after cherries from atop the cake. Oh the craftiness of a three year old's reasoning!

. . . and then, finally, after three long weeks of helping, explaining and waiting and waiting, explaining and helping, the time finally came to bust open the candy and prize-filled pinata!!! Again, a new experience for all the girls, but once they got the hang of it (and found out that they could hit this thing with a stick and not get in trouble) they had a blast!

. . . and as the day came to a very tiring end, with all children properly sugared and wound, everyone departed to their own homes . . . and the sun set quite beautifully on the post-birthday day of one very happy, very tired, three-year-old.