We were on their huge tourist street so that is where we found them! This is what it looks like with all of the people!
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Aunt Amy, it is ok for you to come and visit us now...we found
GUMMY BEARS!!!!! And they are the best we have EVER tasted! So now you have another reason to come out here and visit us! Just thought of you when we saw them and had to buy them! Gotta love gummy bears!
Satisfied customer!!
We were on their huge tourist street so that is where we found them! This is what it looks like with all of the people!
They even have these trolleys running from one side to the other because it is so long! Awesome shopping street! Too many stores, not enough time!
HUGE, HUGE, aquarium...yes Eric still loves them(we do too) as this stores front window! Very cool! There were sharks and many sea turtles swimming in it!
We were on their huge tourist street so that is where we found them! This is what it looks like with all of the people!
I want some too...
Cambry has really started to enjoy different table food! Although it isn't all that healthy, now that I look back, they are staples in a little kids life, right?
Cambry enjoying honey nut Cheerios!
Just look at the concentration! Exhausting :)
Mmmmmmmm, my first McDonald's fry! Never better!
And for dessert....wait for it, wait for it, ok daddy hurry up I'm WAITING.....
Chocolate ICE CREAM! My daddy teaches young to like chocolate anything!
I'm not complaining ;)
Here are just a few more cute shots for the grandparents!
Still toothless, just like Reese was!
Reese could not have been happier, she was on her way to the playground in our complex, wearing a SKIRT, and no sleeves shirt! Oh happy day!
This is only one of the three playground areas, but they are all crazy busy right after school until about 5:45pm and then everyone heads up for supper! Most dads don't get home until 6:30ish it seems! Mostly because of the traffic in this HUGE city!
Cambry enjoying honey nut Cheerios!
Here are just a few more cute shots for the grandparents!
Try #15 on how to make her look more like a girl, just kidding, they haven't thought that too much lately! I've been putting more bows in the hair, they may still think it, but don't ask me as often! Yes, some will STILL ask!
This is only one of the three playground areas, but they are all crazy busy right after school until about 5:45pm and then everyone heads up for supper! Most dads don't get home until 6:30ish it seems! Mostly because of the traffic in this HUGE city!
Thursday, April 14, 2011
IMPROVISING
Sometimes you just need to improvise! Well...lately I feel like I have to do that quite a bit. Whether it be with recipes, things in the apartment, things for Reese that I need to rig, or dishes that I DO NOT HAVE YET! So fifth graders of years past...I didn't have a meatloaf pan to cook my meatloaf in. I only took one 9X13 dish with me so I had to improvise...I dug down deep and remembered making all of our different rocks for our rock cycle. Do you remember making the little tinfoil pans that we put our crayon rocks in to bake??? Well, I made a much larger one for my meatloaf!
It worked perfect! I think my meatloaf actually tasted better here, not because of the sweet pan, but because of the onion I used! But anyway...DELICIOUS! I had to make another make-shift pan tonight for my chicken and rice casserole as well. I wish I would have taken a 9X9 or just another smaller pan. You may say, well go out and buy one, but many (most) people do not have ovens here so it is harder to find than you may think. I'll keep looking though! In the meantime, we'll just keep improvising! :)
A secret street
They have a thing out here called Sherpa. You may have heard about it before if you live in a big city, but what they do is deliver food from many different types of restaurants to your home. You just go online and decide what ethnic food you are hungry for and you can pick from a wide array of restaurants. We thought we had hit the jack pot! We put in our address and when it pulled up the list of restaurants, there were a TON! We did order from a Mexican restaurant (I was craving some nachos) and it was very good! Spicy with all of the jalapenos but soooo delicious. Well on the weekend we had decided that we would like to try going to one of the Italian restaurants that was listed on there! Hopped in a taxi and were there in about 15 minutes. Very close!
It was an alley, not like the alley we all think of. It was a lane of all of the restaurants that were on the Sherpa website! They were all in this cute, cozy, very quiet lane/street/alley. It went on for about 2-3 blocks or so! Cute decor, and something that we have not seen often here in Shanghai yet, many expats that looked like us! I'm talking it was the street where all of the American or Europeans hung out! Crazy! It was a SECRET STREET! I think after walking through it all to arrive at the restaurant we had picked, I figured out why there were so many Americans there, it was because they had so many American style restaurants here! Burgers, chicken, pizza, spaghetti, salads, sandwiches, soups, steaks, ribs, pork, wings, potato skins, fajitas, tacos, but also many other types of different ethnic food as well! There were also so many families here too! One of the places even had a blow up jump house for kids to play in! It was a great find and we hope to go back and eat some of the other food at different restaurants soon!
You could even do a little wine tasting! We bought a bottle of their sweetest white wine, yum, my favorite!
We ate outside, looked as though EVERYONE was eating outside because it was so beautiful out! I love warmer weather! Cambry was all smiles! She has been trying some table food lately and she loved my chicken alfredo!
Reese sat in this swing for probably 20 minutes or so while she waited for Eric, Cambry, and I to finish our dinners! She was just enjoying the sights and I think PEACE and QUIET street! This will definitely be one of the places we take our visitors to when they come out!
It was an alley, not like the alley we all think of. It was a lane of all of the restaurants that were on the Sherpa website! They were all in this cute, cozy, very quiet lane/street/alley. It went on for about 2-3 blocks or so! Cute decor, and something that we have not seen often here in Shanghai yet, many expats that looked like us! I'm talking it was the street where all of the American or Europeans hung out! Crazy! It was a SECRET STREET! I think after walking through it all to arrive at the restaurant we had picked, I figured out why there were so many Americans there, it was because they had so many American style restaurants here! Burgers, chicken, pizza, spaghetti, salads, sandwiches, soups, steaks, ribs, pork, wings, potato skins, fajitas, tacos, but also many other types of different ethnic food as well! There were also so many families here too! One of the places even had a blow up jump house for kids to play in! It was a great find and we hope to go back and eat some of the other food at different restaurants soon!
We ate outside, looked as though EVERYONE was eating outside because it was so beautiful out! I love warmer weather! Cambry was all smiles! She has been trying some table food lately and she loved my chicken alfredo!
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL
Reese started her first day of school today! I have had a lot of mixed emotions about this! I'm extremely happy for her because I think she is getting a little bored at home and wants to play with other kids and meet new friends. However, I'm going to miss her like CRAZY! She is such a big help with Cambry and she is my little buddy! We play games, talk, read books, make forts, play outside, go shopping and do many other things together! It broke my heart this morning having to put her on a school bus with kids that she didn't know, carry tons of stuff in her backpack and a pillow in her arms. She, of course, was soooo excited and couldn't wait!
I'm happy for that, but just sad that I won't get to have her around as much! She will be going to school EVERYDAY, ALL DAY! What was I thinking? Thank goodness it is only until the middle of June. That way if she or I don't like it, it will be over quickly! No, she will love it! We went there yesterday to meet her teacher, Mr. Steve, and she really liked him! She was able to meet the other children in her class (a total of 10 in her room) and play outside for 30 minutes with them! She ran right out there and was playing the entire time! She was even playing with another little girl for most of the time! She wasn't one bit shy and loves her new playground. I'll take a picture of it sometime! I now realize how many of you moms felt on your childrens' first day of school. So happy and yet so sad!
Reese will be kept very busy during the day so she won't even have a chance to miss us! She has center time, and then circle time, then they have a snack and go outside for a morning recess. Then after recess they have a special. The special consists of either Art, P.E., Music, Computers, Library and one other that I can't think of. After that they will have lunch! Yes, they switch every other day with the Chinese meal and then a Western type meal. They do always have options if they do not like the chinese meal though. After lunch they take a 1 hour nap and then they have a second small snack. Then she will have her mandarin lesson (chinese lesson). Once that is finished she will have her second recess and it will be time for me to pick her up! She starts at 8:30 and goes until 3pm. So, that is her day! Now I just have to figure out what I'm going to do with mine! No, I have plenty to do, but her smiling face will surely be missed by her little sister and her mommy!
Friday, April 8, 2011
We're MOVED IN!!! (And many other updates)
Sorry that we have been MIA lately but with moving in, and trying to assemble I can't remember any more how many pieces of furniture, and shopping for general supplies and painting...we have been a bit busy! Plus, the main reason, we did not have our internet hooked up until yesterday! Believe me, it has been a LONG week without and connection to friends and family and just looking on the internet in general! We were also able to get a VPN which now allows us to access the internet from the US and we can access Facebook, Youtube, and blogs. I was actually able to see our blog for the first time last night! Great job Tom! Thank you so much! So last Wednesday we packed a Holiday Inn shuttle bus full of all of our belongings and made the trek over to our "new home." Before leaving, the manager at the hotel gave us these beautiful flowers to make our new home a little more homey and just to say thanks for staying at their hotel! The flowers were gorgeous and were very thoughful! The staff at that hotel were awesome from the greeters to restaurant staff to housekeeping crew to the kitchen/chef staff! Amazing place to stay if you ever travel to Shanghai!
The bus driver literally dropped us off at the curb as he had to get back and shuttle people around! It was very kind of them to even let us use their bus as we would have had to take many, many taxis to get all of our stuff there. Reese found her room right away and began settling in. She was so excited to see some of her toys that we didn't see or hear from her the first few days we were here because she was playing so nicely with them! (Note to self, I should take more of her toys away from her for periods of time so that she will think that they are new and play with them better!) And as you can see GRANDMAS, we don't need anymore stuffed animals!! Don't get me wrong, she LOVES them and plays with them ALL, but has more than any one girl should have!
Like I said before, it seems like all we do is go to the grocery stores and get more things that we keep forgetting, but Reese actually likes this because one of the grocery stores we go to (that is AWESOME because it actually has many of the brands that you would find in stores at home, PRAISE THE LORD, like cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soup, can't make many meals without, am I right moms?!?!?) well this store has little grocery carts for kids! Well this is just the best thing ever to Reese! So, we have to fill her cart first of course as we shop! Oh, to be a kid again and be able to push your OWN shopping cart like a mom! The simple pleasures in life right! The kids have been so good with going to furniture stores and electronic stores and textile shops and stores like Home Depot. I think we have been back and forth to Ikea, well...I lost count! Needless to say, they have been so good without complaining!
(white building and then to the left)
This is a HUGE, probably as big as an airport or bigger, store with as many kinds of fabrics, curtains, bedding, carpets, rugs, and clothing that you could ever want or ever think about looking through. It has hundreds of little shops! Each shop is not huge, but hundreds of them and I think there are 5 floors. We heard that this is the place that we can find cheap, large rugs for our apartment. Right now the entire apartment has either wood floors or tile. Nice, but not nice for babies and little kids to play on. So, we were in search of big rugs! I think we were here for maybe 2-3 hours, with kids, and we didn't even see a quarter of it! CRAZY big and will have to go back by myself for a day to look around! Hopefully I don't get lost, I'll make sure to bring my phone.
So when moving into a new home or apartment or whatever you usually have things that need to be fixed, replaced or installed, well that has happened A LOT in the last couple of days! This is a funny picture I got of the guy installing a new light bulb in our bedroom! I will remind you that it literally took him about 1 1/2 to install after not realizing it was the light bulb but the light socket thingy and various trips back and forth to the store! Not sure what it is called but it was a small electrical box of some sort, I'm sure Larry G could explain to us what it is called :) Anyways, he kept coming into the dining room to get chairs. After grabbing three of them, I had a funny suspicion that he was up to something crazy and I had to see! So I of course grabbed my camera and this is what I saw:
Eric asked me after I sent it to him on email, "How many chinese guys does it take to install a light bulb!" He is standing on three chairs and one of the girl's stools! Not bright, and I was worried that if he fell, I could be liable, so I grabbed on tight and was going to push him towards the bed if he fell! Just to let you know, he did make it off the tower of chairs alive and my light does finally work!
On Sunday we went and checked out the church that I was talking about. It is called Shanghai Community Fellowship and it takes place at the Marriott Hotel. When we walked in we had to show our passports because they do not allow locals to come. Not because the church wouldn't allow it, but rather their government doesn't want their people to be influenced by it. After looking at their information tables we went into the grand ballroom and had a seat near the back because that is where Cambry allows us to sit :) The room was HUGE! They had tons of seats set up and bunches of them roped off. Honestly, I was expecting maybe 30-50 people tops! Completely wrong AGAIN! Eric thought that there were for sure 500 or more people there! It was AWESOME! Every nationality that you could imagine! It was great worshipping with so many like believers! Their service was very similar to the one that we have at home. We sang many familiar songs so it felt just like home! I took Reese out to go to Sunday School and stayed with her the entire time. She wasn't too sure of it by herself but assured me afterwards that she could do it by herself next time. She sang songs, participated in a role-play of Andrew and Simon Peter being friends with Jesus, and made a craft! She LOVED it! They did a really nice job! I also got to meet some of the other mothers of some of the kids! Very friendly and hope to see them this week Sunday!
Cambry has been growing like a weed and Eric thinks he can see her hair growing! She loves to read and look at books! She is very very content and will just play! We love that!
Reese just got a new "big girl" bike and is anxious to learn how to ride "just like Grant"! Grant, do you think your's is bigger? Probably! She will be ready to ride when she comes to the beach this summer so get ready! She did good the first time out, but definitely needs some more practice. Reese also loves reading books and loves to read "No, David at School" to us and Cambry! I'll have to get it on tape for you grandmas soon!
Lately the weather has been in the upper 60's to low 70's during the day and cools off to the 50's at night! Needless to say, we have been spending some time outdoors! They cut the grass outside yesterday and boy did it smell like summer! You can't beat the smell of fresh cut grass and blossoming trees in the spring! I love warmer weather!
Today my Ayi taught me how to make Sweet and Sour Chicken! It turned out great! That is my favorite chinese dish, even though it really isn't a true chinese dish out here. Who cares, I love it and now I know how to make it! DELICIOUS! So, if anyone comes out here to visit us, I will make you sweet and sour chicken that tastes like we like it back in the states. Next on my list is General Tao's Chicken. No really I told my Ayi that I would like to make her favorite meal. It is fun learning how to cook new dishes with all of their ingredients. So much flavor!
Here is another picture for you dad on a load of styrefoam! Not the best picture but I couldn't get my camera out of the bag quick enough! It is probably 8 towers high and a good 16 long. When we saw it they were stopped and were trying to push it back level. Imagine that, driving a huge cube of styrefoam down the highway, and it not staying in the correct form that you want it to. It is just bunged together but not tightly enough!
And we wonder why the internet is slow and gets disconnected often! This is what we see at every intersection or on all electric posts! With more than 20,000,000 people in this city, I guess it just adds up!
The bus driver literally dropped us off at the curb as he had to get back and shuttle people around! It was very kind of them to even let us use their bus as we would have had to take many, many taxis to get all of our stuff there. Reese found her room right away and began settling in. She was so excited to see some of her toys that we didn't see or hear from her the first few days we were here because she was playing so nicely with them! (Note to self, I should take more of her toys away from her for periods of time so that she will think that they are new and play with them better!) And as you can see GRANDMAS, we don't need anymore stuffed animals!! Don't get me wrong, she LOVES them and plays with them ALL, but has more than any one girl should have!
Like I said before, it seems like all we do is go to the grocery stores and get more things that we keep forgetting, but Reese actually likes this because one of the grocery stores we go to (that is AWESOME because it actually has many of the brands that you would find in stores at home, PRAISE THE LORD, like cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soup, can't make many meals without, am I right moms?!?!?) well this store has little grocery carts for kids! Well this is just the best thing ever to Reese! So, we have to fill her cart first of course as we shop! Oh, to be a kid again and be able to push your OWN shopping cart like a mom! The simple pleasures in life right! The kids have been so good with going to furniture stores and electronic stores and textile shops and stores like Home Depot. I think we have been back and forth to Ikea, well...I lost count! Needless to say, they have been so good without complaining!
This is a HUGE, probably as big as an airport or bigger, store with as many kinds of fabrics, curtains, bedding, carpets, rugs, and clothing that you could ever want or ever think about looking through. It has hundreds of little shops! Each shop is not huge, but hundreds of them and I think there are 5 floors. We heard that this is the place that we can find cheap, large rugs for our apartment. Right now the entire apartment has either wood floors or tile. Nice, but not nice for babies and little kids to play on. So, we were in search of big rugs! I think we were here for maybe 2-3 hours, with kids, and we didn't even see a quarter of it! CRAZY big and will have to go back by myself for a day to look around! Hopefully I don't get lost, I'll make sure to bring my phone.
So when moving into a new home or apartment or whatever you usually have things that need to be fixed, replaced or installed, well that has happened A LOT in the last couple of days! This is a funny picture I got of the guy installing a new light bulb in our bedroom! I will remind you that it literally took him about 1 1/2 to install after not realizing it was the light bulb but the light socket thingy and various trips back and forth to the store! Not sure what it is called but it was a small electrical box of some sort, I'm sure Larry G could explain to us what it is called :) Anyways, he kept coming into the dining room to get chairs. After grabbing three of them, I had a funny suspicion that he was up to something crazy and I had to see! So I of course grabbed my camera and this is what I saw:
Eric asked me after I sent it to him on email, "How many chinese guys does it take to install a light bulb!" He is standing on three chairs and one of the girl's stools! Not bright, and I was worried that if he fell, I could be liable, so I grabbed on tight and was going to push him towards the bed if he fell! Just to let you know, he did make it off the tower of chairs alive and my light does finally work!
On Sunday we went and checked out the church that I was talking about. It is called Shanghai Community Fellowship and it takes place at the Marriott Hotel. When we walked in we had to show our passports because they do not allow locals to come. Not because the church wouldn't allow it, but rather their government doesn't want their people to be influenced by it. After looking at their information tables we went into the grand ballroom and had a seat near the back because that is where Cambry allows us to sit :) The room was HUGE! They had tons of seats set up and bunches of them roped off. Honestly, I was expecting maybe 30-50 people tops! Completely wrong AGAIN! Eric thought that there were for sure 500 or more people there! It was AWESOME! Every nationality that you could imagine! It was great worshipping with so many like believers! Their service was very similar to the one that we have at home. We sang many familiar songs so it felt just like home! I took Reese out to go to Sunday School and stayed with her the entire time. She wasn't too sure of it by herself but assured me afterwards that she could do it by herself next time. She sang songs, participated in a role-play of Andrew and Simon Peter being friends with Jesus, and made a craft! She LOVED it! They did a really nice job! I also got to meet some of the other mothers of some of the kids! Very friendly and hope to see them this week Sunday!
Cambry has been growing like a weed and Eric thinks he can see her hair growing! She loves to read and look at books! She is very very content and will just play! We love that!
Reese just got a new "big girl" bike and is anxious to learn how to ride "just like Grant"! Grant, do you think your's is bigger? Probably! She will be ready to ride when she comes to the beach this summer so get ready! She did good the first time out, but definitely needs some more practice. Reese also loves reading books and loves to read "No, David at School" to us and Cambry! I'll have to get it on tape for you grandmas soon!
Today my Ayi taught me how to make Sweet and Sour Chicken! It turned out great! That is my favorite chinese dish, even though it really isn't a true chinese dish out here. Who cares, I love it and now I know how to make it! DELICIOUS! So, if anyone comes out here to visit us, I will make you sweet and sour chicken that tastes like we like it back in the states. Next on my list is General Tao's Chicken. No really I told my Ayi that I would like to make her favorite meal. It is fun learning how to cook new dishes with all of their ingredients. So much flavor!
Here is another picture for you dad on a load of styrefoam! Not the best picture but I couldn't get my camera out of the bag quick enough! It is probably 8 towers high and a good 16 long. When we saw it they were stopped and were trying to push it back level. Imagine that, driving a huge cube of styrefoam down the highway, and it not staying in the correct form that you want it to. It is just bunged together but not tightly enough!
And we wonder why the internet is slow and gets disconnected often! This is what we see at every intersection or on all electric posts! With more than 20,000,000 people in this city, I guess it just adds up!
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