What a Great Day!!

Today, (Tuesday, March 22) was a FABULOUS day!  We got a call from Eric this morning and he told us that our shipment was in and that we could take a taxi to his shop and pick up a few things!  Boy was Reese ecstatic!  She could not wait!  She started immediately making a list of things that she wanted to take back to the hotel with her.  I guess you never realize how important some of the things that you have from home, that you are used to having around you are, until you don't have them for awhile.  Some of them are just little things like your favorite blanket,stuffed animal(eric's ;0 jk) or a pair of tennis shoes or even a couple of family pictures!  Just good things to see again!  Cambry was very excited to sit/stand and play in her exersaucer.  It seriously was as if it was the first time she saw it EVER!  So we took a taxi out to Eric's work.  That is a story in itself!  I'm amazed at how run-down everything looked.  The hotel that we are staying at must be on the very edge of the big city because you only go maybe 2-3 miles west of here and it is flat with fieds.  But, you also see so many houses or buildings that are in just shambles.  There is also so much trash along the streets.  In the city we don't see that at all.  So as we are weaving in and out of traffic, need I remind you that the taxi drivers out here are CRAZY drivers, we are trying to take in the scenery.  We noticed as we were driving along that they have a lot of waterways which in turn have lots of little bridges that you have to cross.  At one point (insert here the Dukes of Hazzard General Lee horn toot)  we literally were airborne.  Both Reese and I let out huge screams.  Not even kidding, we hit the top of our heads on the roof, poor Cambry was tossed in the air (don't worry mom, I always have a death grip on her due to not having any carseats) and as we landed back in our seats all we could do was scream.  You know that oh, ohhhhhhhh kind of scream. (Amy, you know what I'm talking about, the kind of noise we always made.) So we kept watching for more bridges to come and at each one we were letting out screams!  Totally fun, but it can't be good for the taxis, can it?  Oh well, we had our laughs for the day!  Oh wait, one more!  At one point while weaving in and out and around big trucks, then slamming on the brakes, Reese almost ended up in the front seat! (She wasn't sitting down either like she was supposed to so that may have helped with the cause of propelling her in the air.)  So she got the giggles and could not stop laughing!  I try to keep one arm securely around Cambry and one hand on Reese!  But, I do know that God has his arms around us every time we are in those taxis.  There have been MANY times were I have wondered how we just got somewhere safely!

Anyways...we are also making great progress on our apartment!  Last Friday was a very discouraging day! It seemed as if EVERYTHING was going wrong and we weren't making any progress on anything (ex. an apartment, church, school, shipment coming in, friends) I was starting to think to myself, what have we gotten ourselves into!!!  But I'm so glad that when Saturday came, things started to turn around. We go tomorrow morning(Thursday) to negotiate on the apartment and then could possibly even move in this weekend!  Good news right!  Yes, but that will also mean that I have to start cooking again!  That does sound fun until I remember that I have to use the ingredients here.  Well...another challenge that we will have to overcome.  Just a side note, if you were a die hard Lucky Charms or Fruit Loops fan, it would cost you $13+ here for a SMALL box!  INSANE!  So, we'll stick with their brand of rice crispies or frosted flakes or something.  Imported food here is CRAZY expensive!  Milk is like $5-6 a gallon and it doesn't even taste as good as our 1% at home.  CHURCH- I did tons of research online on Saturday and found two possibilities near our apartment that we are going to check out this weekend.  Both sound very good and very similar to ours back home.  One of the elders is actually from Michigan.  I heard about one of the Churches through a website here called "Shanghai Mamas."  It is a website that helps you connect with other moms here that live in Shanghai and they give you advice about anything and everything, it is a great place to check if you need to find ANYTHING!  FRIENDS-so I met a girl on there that is actually from Newaygo, Michigan and she lives in the same complex that we are going to live in, with her SIX kids! Yes, SIX!  Their youngest is Reese's age and the oldest is 12.  So, we have already chatted and we are going to set a playdate as soon as we get settled in!  SO HAPPY!  She actually went to Cornerstone College as well, small world!  There were other people I have made contact with as well that were from Michigan or just from the States.  So, good news on that front!  SCHOOL-we are hoping to get Reese enrolled yet this year hopefully after their spring break which is the second week of April.  I know that she will love going and I'm very excited for her to meet new friends!  We have found a few that are closer to our apartment and have had a few people recommend them to us, so we are going to check them out next week!

Eric says that things are going well at work, they are still trying to get the press running, they have had the manufacturer in to try to get it running!  So hopefully soon so they can keep the customers happy!  He has had many meetings with suppliers and customers!  Sounds like it is going very well!

Funny story, we were watching a movie called "Ramona and Beezus" the other night and Ramona's dad told them that they had to move.  Reese asked us why they had to move.  We told her it was because of her dad's job.  Then Eric asked her why she thought that we moved to China.  Her response was, "because we wanted to see what it was like here in China."  Oh Reese!  So we told her it was because of her dad's job too!  She really does seem to like it here and has adjusted very well so far considering!  The girls are doing such a great job with going along to check out all of our many, many, many apartments that we have seen!  They been dragged through the subways, on taxis, in the rain, the cold, and even when they were not given naps or have even missed dinner.  We are so proud of them and could not have asked for better little girls! Grandma Kathie, she told me this morning at breakfast that the french toast here is good, but not as good as Grandma Kathie's!  She's right! It also felt like it was Christmas opening up our shipment!  Grandma Yonker, she LOVED her new cozy sweatshirt that you got her!  It is funny what you wrote in the card to her!  She always runs back to the room to put on her cozies, just like you talked about!  She said it was the perfect card and gift!  She can't wait to open up her "April" gift!  Thanks so much!

So, that is a little of what has been happening around here lately!  I'm going to try and start taking more pictures of the city around us and what we see!  Many interesting things, so I'll try and blog about that too!  Believe me, I have learned so many things already being here that I NEVER knew before! Talk to you all soon, I promise that I will try to blog more and take more pictures and we appreciate you keeping us in your prayers!

the photos are of food that we see in the grocery store, aka "stinky" store, the "squatter" potty, some sites, and some of the girls. Make sure you look closely at the types of Pringles flavors, YUMMY!

Love,
Eric, Marcy, Reese, and Cambry