We spent the last week or so ringing in the Year of the Rooster (read: 7 days without our car ;)). We made the best of the situation and had lots of fun times: the girls rode bikes, we baked and decorated cookies, we drank our good coffee every single morning, we placed a large to go order from our favorite pizza place, we took the girls swimming at the indoor swimming pool, we hung out with friends in the neighborhood, we played at the playground, we played dress up and make believe, we painted :). And we listened to loads and loads of fireworks. I am not sure anything could prepare me with how many (very loud) fireworks we heard on New Year's Eve!
Leading up to Chinese New Year - we had a few celebrations!
We bought a rooster because we don't have enough stuffed animals ;).
We enjoyed the thousands of lanterns strung everywhere.
And Wes and I went to the girls school to see their Chinese New Year performance. I really hope she is always this thrilled to see me - it really is the best feeling in the world.
At the end of the performance (I need to figure out a way to upload the videos - they are my favorite school performance to date) we headed outside to watch a dragon dance.
We were impressed:).
I think I had the cutest little kitty cat there ever was :).
In our neighborhood, we found a rooster at our playground!
Since we were recovering from jet lag, I missed sharing any New Years reflections on the blog but here are a few things about 2016 and what we are looking forward to in 2017.
We are proud of ourselves for traveling so much - we knocked out Guilin, Hong Kong, Borneo, Shanghai, Beijing and Thailand (and then we went back to the US for Christmas). Traveling with little ones is not always easy, but it is always worth it. We are looking forward to some travel spots this year: Tokyo, Xian, Singapore, Juigazhou, Taiwan, Thailand (again, we loved that place!) and even possibly Australia. If you have travelled any part of Asia you don't think we should miss - let me know!
Relocating is hard, but it has made us stronger. It has made our immediate family bond so very strong and we feel like we really get to enjoy the girls during this critical age in their childhood. But there are challenges and annoying things every day. My goal is to let go of the little things that don't really matter in 2017 - it is so hard, but I know it will make me enjoy our time here more.
Blogging in a foreign country is hard and it has taken me awhile to get into a groove. When we moved, I posted a lot of link ups and my blog gained a lot of new readership and it kind of drained the fun for me (I was just focused on linking up and statistics). After a few re-sets I have found my groove again. While I don't think I will ever go back to daily posting again - I am hoping to maintain 3 - 4 times a week this year. And I will always be behind. And I am perfectly fine with that.
The girls have grown up so much - I can hardly believe Everly was just barely two and a half when we arrived. Part of me wants to be able to stop time, to bottle up their adorableness, but I also see so many fun times ahead where we will be the parents of kids and not toddlers (gasp! I know!). With all the craziness in the world right now, we want to teach the girls kindness above all else (we are a work in progress ourselves, too). I really truly believe that they are at the age where they can grasp this. Kindness towards each other. Kindness towards our families. Kindness towards strangers. Kindness towards their friends/teachers at school. Just in general, I want them to react with kindness.
Here are a few of my favorite memories of 2016: watching the pure glee on Everly's face the first day that she got to go to school in China!, teaching/watching Emma learn to ride her red bike, the girls playing dress up on a daily basis, our Thailand vacation - beach life is our favorite :), getting to walk on the Great Wall of China (pinch me, I still can't believe it was real), baking cinnamon rolls on Saturday mornings, all of the laughter (ahhh, there was so much laughter!), curled up reading books to the girls, walking through the airport after 72 hours in transit and seeing my parents!, getting to go on a date with my husband after 9 months with no babysitter!!, stolen smiles with Wes when we are listening to Emma tell her latest tale, Rapunzel and Frozen on repeat, the Disney magic (and characters) we got to experience, holding a baby tiger!!!, playing at the girls new favorite playground, discovering our new favorite pizza place, long walks plus ice cream on summer nights, the striking surroundings in Guilin (and that perfect sunset), watching Emma twirl on the beaches of Borneo (and sliding down those slides at least 200 times), reuniting with sisters/cousins over Christmas break, good morning/night night/all day smooch-a-looches from the girls - because really is there anything better than your kiddo kissing you and telling you they love you every.single.day (p.s. the answer is no - there is nothing better than their love!).
Happy 2017!!!!
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