Life is Becoming More Comfortable

We are closing in on the one month mark of living in Shanghai.  We have had many highs and lows, and certainly miss all of our family and friends back in the the US.  As time goes by and the comforts of our former home seem farther and farther away, it is nice to find ways of bringing those touches of "home" back and comfort back.

 We got Big Bear stuffed and that makes Bryson happy! 

 We have found some our favorite foods and plenty of new ones.  Here's a new combination....eating PB&J toast with chopsticks!

 Plants, plants and more plants.  Finally some nature in our home.  We love plants inside and out.  There is wonderfully landscaped grounds here at the Shanghai Racquet Club, but our house has been lacking the green feeling.  The gardener at school presented us a "menu" of plants in photo form to choose from.  We selected 11 different kinds of plants and with in 36 hours, he showed at or door (9pm on Saturday) and dropped them off!  They have brought a wonderful sense of comfort and relaxation into our home!

The kids have really taken to school and learning.  Not only are their class sizes super, crazy small (Bryson has 11 students and 2 teachers and Carina has 14 students and 2 teachers), the teachers are phenomenal, the activities and specials are...SPECIAL and frequent (Mandarin Chinese everyday, art, music, or PE each day and 16 swimming lessons in the year!)  Also, the kids have a group of friends they hang out with after school.  The bottom pic here shows the group playing Mandarin Chinese learning games!

 Here is our new "mini-van"!  A chinese Tuk Tuk.  It ill be perfect for scooting the whole family around the neighborhood and keeping us protected from the rain.  Also, we can go shopping and bring back larger things too.  Today we bought a large pot for one of our new plants over in Zhudi town and easily brought it back.  Comforts!