Be Still

We had a wonderful staycation in Manila. Since we were trying to maximize every dollar...eh...peso...we didn't end up at a beach. Since we live in an overcrowded Asian city, we weren't that excited about being out and about in an overcrowded Asian city (that is fun at times, but we just weren't in the mood). Enter a resort residence...it's a brand new place (actually still under construction, but most amenities are open) where there's a man-made beach and wave pool! Just what we were looking for. A reasonably priced place to stay with tons of entertainment options for the kids.



Here's where I start to feel guilty. We flew all day with our children to a foreign country to STAY. We've never been big fans of resorts, but this time we just felt like we needed a break. As I was preparing for this trip, I felt God impress this verse on my heart:

"Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!"

I can get super anxious about a trip and try to plan every second and fret about hotel choices and food and, and, and...just as I began doing that, God put this verse in my path. "Be still, and know that I am God." So I stopped second guessing my choice of accommodation, stopped fretting about whether or not Violet would sleep in her pea pod, stopped worrying about getting my passport stolen, stopped anxiously imagining scenarios of being stranded without a taxi and I just stilled my heart before God.

Thankfully, God had given me this word because a day before we left, we noticed a SUPER TYPHOON was storming through the ocean headed toward the Northern Philippines. All the weather reports said that the storm would weaken and become a tropical storm by the time it hit the Philippines and that Manila would only get a day of rain and gusty winds. I found out about it the afternoon before we left. What in the world? I found myself packing my bags to haul my three young children to an island where we could be stuck in the middle of a hurricane. WHAT?! the WHAT?!



Friends on the ground said the storm wasn't a big concern. (up to 20 typhoons pass over the Philippines each year, by the way) I tried to settle my imagination as I packed, trying not to daydream about hunkering down for a storm in a hallway of a tall apartment building in a foreign country in the middle of the night with my little kids. Then, I remembered: BE STILL. We had this trip planned a long time ago. People on the ground and all the weather reports are not concerned. Trust God and go.

So, we prayerfully went. One thing we kept mulling over was the fact that storms don't always do what people and computers expect them to. Manila was close enough to the path of the storm to be in big trouble if something crazy happened. We thought about canceling and just going on a daytrip to Korea so we could get our exit stamp, but we really felt God's peace in the situation. In the end, the storm ended up going even farther north (extremely best case scenario for us) and Manila was hardly affected. In fact, it was actually a blessing because temps were in the low 90s due to the passing storm instead of the upper 90s! I'm thankful for this amazing reminder that He is looking after us and truly guiding our paths. Even when it looks like we're flying into a hurricane, we can trust Him!

Why I'll Never Forget DFW Baggage Carousel B20

Maybe if I just write about this suitcase thing, I'll feel better. So one of our suitcases got lost on our first little one hour flight right before our big international flight. At the time, it was not a big deal to me. We were almost late for the international flight, so even though they found the suitcase before we left Dallas, we were in Terminal D and it was in Terminal B with no way to get to it. They said they'd send it on. We haven't seen it since.

Problem number one...our flights were not "connected" (because we purchased our tickets at separate times since it saves money if we book the big international flight separately) so we couldn't check our bags all the way to Shenyang starting out in Midland. Our first flight was just a simple, one hour leap to get us and our eight checked bags to Dallas.  We would have three hours to claim our luggage in Dallas, switch terminals and then re-check it with the other airline for the international flight.

At the time, I was agreeable to the situation since the domestic airline didn't charge us for our checked baggage since we were transferring to an international flight. They could've been picky and charged us as much as $300 extra! So, we'd get to Dallas, get the bags and the kids on the inter-terminal transfer bus, get to Korean Air, get through security, get Starbucks, get on the plane. Sounds simple (if not exhausting), right? Well, it was supposed to be. It has ended up anything from simple.

Problem number two...we arrived in Dallas on time and proceeded to baggage claim carousel B20. I will never forget baggage claim carousel B20. We promptly herded our three children and all the carry-ons to baggage claim and waited eagerly for the bags. Twenty minutes later, nothing had happened. We re-checked the flight board which still said "B20."

I asked a lady nearby at the baggage help desk and she disinterestedly said, "Oh, it's jaaaaaaammed," like that happens every day.

"Jammed?" I said, "I've gotta claim my bags and get over to the international terminal."

"They're working on it." she said, blinking slowly like she might nod off to sleep and fall off her chair any second.

Returning to B20, I gave Jeremy the update as he watched the two boys run laps around the carousel. Good time to get some energy out before the big flight, I guess. 20 more minutes went by, the boys were now wrestling on the ground, and luggage still did not appear.

"I've gotta go get someone to make this their problem!" I said, trotting off to the airline check-in counter, baby in tow.So, I plead my case to another employee, and, thankfully, she became a little more interested than the last lady.

"I've got to get 3 kids and 8 bags to Terminal D before I miss my International flight!" I said, trying to smile so she'd help me.

She picked up the phone, called so-and-so who said such-and-such and what's-his-face is working on it. Ten more minutes went by (somehow I kept my cool, but that cannot be said about an irate lady at the counter beside me). The report came back that our luggage was indeed stuck in the ramp inside the carousel and they couldn't get to it until maintenance was done working on it in ten or so minutes.

After waiting a total of ONE HOUR, the baggage carousel finally began spitting out bags. Low and behold, our bags were just right behind that little rubble curtain! 1...2...3...4...5...6...7................Where's the red bag?????? Baggage carousel B20 lurched to a halt. One of our bags was missing. You've got to be kidding me.

I went back to the dozing lady at the baggage desk and proceeded to fill out a missing bag report, all the while trying not to shout, "Hurry the hell up! My plane leaves in less than 2 hours and I have to get THREE KIDS AND EIGHT...uh make that seven...BAGS over to Terminal D."

Somehow, I managed to be nice and smile and not wake up sleeping baby who was strapped to my chest. I felt reassured that this lady would help get my bag to Shenyang somehow, because that's the hope I had at the moment, and without that hope I might have lost it.

Problem number 3...we have three kids and eight...uh...make that seven...bags and would need three "smart carts" to get it all over to the inter-terminal bus stop that is close enough to see from where we are, but far enough away to be impossible. I noticed a valet's cart sitting over in the corner that hadn't moved for an hour. No one was using it or even seemed to know about it. I dashed over (in a gentle manner because, remember, baby is sleeping) and hauled it over to Jeremy who threw the bags on the cart like we were robbing someone and we hauled butt (like a turtle racing a snail) over to the bus stop where we waited ten more minutes for the bus we had seen roll by like thirty times when we didn't need it.

Problem number 4...when we got off the inter-terminal bus with our THREE KIDS AND SEVEN BAGS, there were no valets or carts to be found. Again, we could see where we needed to be, but it was just far enough away to be impossible. We tried the "grab that cart and run!" scheme again, but got caught, so Jeremy had to load a cart, unload a cart and finally I found a valet who was helpful, but didn't run like I wanted him to!

We finally got the kids and bags to the Korean Air check in desk with 15 minutes to spare before they wouldn't have accepted our bags. And, that's when I ran into my coach from high school who I haven't seen in forever! Ha! Nothing like being a sweaty, baby-wearing lunatic to greet someone I haven't seen in ages. The boys were feeding off all the frenzied energy and had to be separated before one of them hurt themselves or took down the entire maze of line-guiding straps that were now empty because everyone else had already checked in for our flight.

Thankfully, security was a breeze (which never happens in the D terminal of DFW). We were able to slip past the line using the priority line. Korean Air told us to do it. And, Jeremy didn't even have to go through the "see your whole body" machine because we had stuff and kids everywhere. I think we sat for ten minutes in the terminal before it was time to board our flight.

So, it's been a week and a half, and I still have not seen my lost suitcase. The internet says 98% of lost bags are found within 2-3 weeks. I'm still holding out hope, but it's causing some mafan (trouble) that I'd rather not deal with.

Grocery shopping in America

I've been hearing from locals around here how crazy the local grocery store, H-E-B, has become due to the oil boom. At first, I was tempted to skip it because of their warnings and head to Wal-Mart instead, but then, I thought “I live in China. It can’t be that bad.” So we headed into the gigantic store, put Kanyon in the gigantic cart and began our hour-long shopping expedition. If you've heard that everything in Texas is bigger, it’s very true. This grocery store feels like it is a mile long after I've become accustomed to shopping in smaller grocery stores in China. It’s a lot more crowded than I remember, but the amount of space available for each shopper still amazes me. The aisles are 3 super-size carts wide so the crowd never hits gridlock like I've experienced many times in China. Everyone is very polite, saying excuse me every time you might have entered their huge personal space bubble, which startles me because my personal space bubble is pretty much non-existent now.

I have to be careful not to make others uncomfortable as I zip in and out of aisles, squeezing here and there to grab this and that. “I’m not in China, I’m not in China” I keep reminding myself as I watch someone slowly remove a box of cereal from the shelf to carefully examine it. They’re blocking the Fruit Loops I was going for, which wouldn’t be a problem in a Chinese situation where I would simply stand close enough for them to smell me and then reach across them to grab the Loops and go, no “excuse me” necessary. Do that here, and the other person will immediately jump back, smile and say “well, excuse me!” fully expecting me to apologize. My blank stare and failure to reply “no, excuse me” will certainly cause a ruffle in their feathers. So, I decide to calmly wait until the other shopper and their Texas-sized personal space bubble clears the area to make my fruity selection.

Then, the whole situation turns on me. I’m standing in front of the bagels trying to hurry up and choose one, but I just can’t decide because there are so many options I’m overwhelmed. Blueberry, wheat, everything, honey wheat, raisin, white….Sara Lee or Hearty Grains….regular size, mini, or flattened???? It takes me 5 minutes to get over the shock of so many choices (we’d be elated to have just one of those choices appear in our local grocery store). I finally commit to a bag of wheat bagels and return to my cart as I notice a man standing behind me, patiently awaiting my departure from the bagel area. I’m a little embarrassed he’s been standing there watching my bread-product indecision and a little annoyed that he didn’t just butt in and get whatever he needed and get on his way!

There are many things about my grocery shopping experience that excite me beyond belief. Walking down the chip aisle, seeing the huge selection of carefully placed bags of non-crushed crunchiness particularly pleases me. In China, the chips are smashed into the shelves so that half the bag comes back crunched. Avocados cost 3 for $1!!! I have to limit myself to nine. Cheese is so reasonably priced I’m tempted to buy it all and store it in the freezer. The cereal aisle is so amazing I can only take in half of it before my head starts to spin. I don’t have to play defense at the check-out counter afraid someone’s going to cut in line. The checker carefully places my bread on the top of all my other items whereas my local Chinese checker always seems to put the bread on the very bottom of my sack and pile everything else on top of it!

Our expedition comes to an end and we roll the groceries out to the parking lot to toss them in the back of the car and drive home. I’m definitely not in China!

Nanjing & Huangshan Spring Trip

Each year the school takes students on a Chinese tour to learn more about our host country. This was my first time on a spring trip, but having been on Chinese tours before I was prepared for anything. At least so I thought.

Monday
The trip began with 24 hours on the train to Nanjing marking the longest I've been on a train in China. I switched bunks to the very top and gave the students quite the laugh as I hung my feet over the end of the bed into the aisle. The time passed quickly and students really enjoyed this part of the trip as they got to talk with each other and deepen relationships among classmates.

Tuesday
Upon arrival in Nanjing, we immediately went to a local restaurant and then to the hotel to quickly clean up. First impressions of Nanjing, it's stickin hot. I took a shower only to immediately begin sweating. We then toured the Republic of China's President’s Office. This museum houses the history of China from about 1911-1949 during the Republic years after the fall of the emperor.



Wednesday
We transferred to Huangshan by bus over five hours on mostly paved roads. After eating lunch we were completely surprised to learn that our Huangshan hotel was at the top of the mountain 10 km (6 miles) from where the cable car stops. We were completely unprepared for this. Guess I should have known to ask the travel company where our hotels were. I just assumed (big mistake) that the bus would take us to the front door of our hotels.

After counting the number of students with backpacks, we spent considerable time in the parking lot unpacking and repacking our luggage and backpacks to make the 10 km trek up the mountain. If only we'd known this information before the trip so that we could have packed accordingly. We did make it to the top of the mountain to our hotel in time to take a shower during the three hour window of available hot water.



Thursday
The morning began with more stairs. By now everyone was tired of climbing up and down mountains. We split the groups to offer tired students the chance to not climb to the last observation point. I did make it to the top. Man that was a lot of stairs. All tired out, most slept on the bus back to Nanjing.



Friday
We visited two sites in Nanjing, neither of which the tour guide explained much about so I'm left with only what I've learned previously about the sites or read on the propaganda displays. Purple Mountain (or Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s tomb) seemed like a cake walk compared the the stairs we climbed at Huangshan. 392 stairs later, we were at the top. Next, we visited Yuhua Stage which from the Chinese displays was a museum to remember the Communists who fought bravely against the KMT. What really happened here I don't know because as in all history, the winning side tells the story.

The highlight of the trip for students may well have been when NBA D-league players walked into the airport KFC.

That's it. I survived a Chinese tour and my first spring trip with 18 students. To see more photos from the trip, click here.

T train on the D train

China trains are labeled by letters. Different letters represent different speeds and often represent the train’s atmosphere. The two basic categories of trains are budget trains and high speed trains.

Cheap budget trains
These trains are by far the slowest and cheapest trains. Trains identifies by number only are the slowest, K trains are a little faster, followed by T trains. These trains have hard seats, soft seats, hard sleeper bunks (6 beds per room), and soft sleeper bunks (4 beds per room). Each of these trains are usually filled with low budget travelers either migrant workers or students returning from the city to visit family in the countryside. Each traveler carries large rice bags stuffed with personal belongings and oftentimes chews sunflower seeds the whole trip. Instant noodles are a must.

High speed trains
Moving up a class of trains are the D trains. These are new, faster, and more expensive day trains that speed from one mega-opolis to another. These trains offer first or second class seat tickets. While about twice (or 4-5 times) as expensive as the budget trains, these trains offer a high speed alternative to the budget trains cutting the travel time in half. Each train is usually filled with business travelers making a quick trip to another city for a business meeting, conference, or sales event. Instant noodles are still a must, but these trains also offer a hot meal served for 40 RMB. G trains are the most recent China addition as the fastest and most expensive alternative, but I’ve yet to ride one.

When we travel with kids, we choose the high speed day trains. The kids love to ride the bullet train and these trains are less crowded, newer, cleaner, and faster.

As we returned from Beijing we jumped on board our D train and headed back to Shenyang. It quickly emerged that this would not be a typical D train experience. We were on a D train with a T train atmosphere.

Just behind us, a traveler without a purchased seat sat on his rice bag. He purchased a cheap standing room only ticket and yet he played Fruit Ninja on his smart phone the whole trip. Another time a standing room only passenger quickly sat down next to M’Lynn having finally found the open seat. A seat in front of us, passengers munched on hard boiled eggs and seeds.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

That awful sinking feeling

You know the feeling when you realize something is not where you thought it was and you call all hands on deck to begin the search.

Well that happened to me last week. I swore my phone was in my backpack. It wasn’t.

Quickly I did a mental scan for the phone’s last known location. It wasn’t in the car. It wasn’t in the suitcase or with the kids’ toys. It wasn’t anywhere. It was lost.

M’Lynn finally joined the search two days later. I think she was so upset about the prospect of buying another electronic replacement that she joined the search party. Earlier this summer, I purchased a new Kindle to replace one with a broken screen. No way was she going to allow another purchase. I had to find the phone or it’s bye-bye Android for me.

Not wanting to accept my T9 texting fate, I called the hotel a full nine days after we checked out.

“No way they have my phone,” I thought as I dialed. “But I sure don’t want to go back to T9.”

I called. They checked, or didn’t, and never returned my call. No one called back all day, or the next. It was surely lost and I’d soon only be dreaming of Ice Cream Sandwiches.

I called back just to confirm my fate and this time they asked for my room number. How was I supposed to remember that? It was two weeks ago! All I could remember is that it was in the corner across the hall from the Shamu elevator.

You know what? That worked. They had my phone. It was found!

I quickly gave payment information so the phone could be mailed to me. Five days later without any bubble wrap and in a simple FedEx envelope mailer, my phone arrived as good as new.

(The awful sinking feeling is back. The phone was lost (again) as we boarded the plane from Seoul to Shenyang. It was too late to go back to the gate and get the phone. The airplane doors were secured.)

10 things to remember in America

1. Drink the tap water. It might not taste good, but it’s at least been filtered and will not make me sick.
2. Keep my shoes on when I come inside. This rule is bent some on the farm with the addition of a mud room specifically designed for muddy shoes.
3. I can get more dishes dirty because there’s a dishwasher. Bye-bye hand washing.
4. Stay in line. It’s not acceptable to move to the front of the line at Walmart even if I only have four items.
5. Stop lights and other traffic rules are more than guidelines; they’re enforced and costly here.
6. Don’t have the kids pee on the tree. I must find them a bathroom.
7. Kids can pet dogs and cats.
8. People speak English or Spanish but definitely not Chinese.
9. Chicken bones must remain on my plate. Don’t spit them out onto the table cloth.
10. Flush the toilet paper. Really. It won’t clog the pipes.

Swing into summer

I bet we've had every-other meal outside and off the grill. Now that's the makings of a great summer!

I continue to soak up everything life in China doesn't offer with new things added to my list daily.
For example,

• Playing with puppies and 12 of them at that. I don't let the kids touch animal in China because on stray bite results in round of rabies shots.
• Watching a baseball game (or any sporting event for that matter). It's not much, but at least it's double A.
• Enjoying wide open spaces especially as I hang out on the farm. Endless straight rows of cotton as far as the eye can see.
• Eating hot dogs. You know what, I actually miss eating a simple processed meat hot dog on a bun that opens the right way.
• Driving a car. Actually I enjoy life without a car (and all the maintenance a car requires), but I can't avoid driving in West Texas. Often driving 100 miles per day.
• Fountain drinks. I went into the local convenience store yesterday and bought my first fountain drink of the summer. So much better than bottle drinks, even though the glass bottles from China are pretty cool.
• Chips and guacamole and chips and salsa. Living a year without Tex-mex, need I say more?

Nothing compares to Texas sunsets and BBQ

Living in China, we miss a lot of things. The two near the top of the list, sunsets and barbeque. Sunsets in China just don't compare to Texas sunsets. The former is blocked by endless tall buildings and covered in smog. The later is blocked by nothing except the occasional pump jacks and windmills that dot the west Texas landscape. On one of the first days back in Texas having not adjusted to the time difference we woke up early enough to stand outside for 45 minutes guessing where the sun would rise.

Awesome!

But sunsets get all the glory and I would have missed it if not for Kanyon. I carried him kicking and screaming out of a wedding reception dinner before he knocked over the groom's cake when I saw the most incredible Texas sunset of my life.

Amazing!

And then there’s BBQ. Chinese barbeque is barbeque in definition only. It is cooked outside over coals with a highly seasoned sauce. Not the same. It’s more like “hepatitis-on-a-stick” because it's a kabob prepared and sold as common street food that sits in the sun all day waiting to be purchased and cooked. That doesn't stop me! I chow down all the while giving thanks for my hepatitis vaccine.

Simply put, Texas BBQ is the best. Nothing compares to ribs, brisket, pulled pork, chicken, or sausage. It’s all good. It’s so good that BBQ brisket and ribs are quickly climbing my list of foods I can’t live without.

Scrumptious!

Shamu is bu ting hua

As we took the elevator up to our hotel room a guest motioned toward Corbin and asked, “How old is he?”

“He’s two and a half” we answered.

“My son was three the first time we took him to Sea World.”

“My daughter was two her first time.” another guest chimed in.

Our kiddos are 4.5 and 2.5, the perfect age to go to Sea World, at least according to the sample of hotel guests riding up the elevator. Besides, no trip to San Antonio is complete without visiting Sea World. I still haven’t figured out why a Sea World is located in the middle of Texas. San Diego, I can understand, but San Antonio is just a little too far inland.



Let’s see, we watched the dolphins being feed, watch the kids’ favorite dolphin and divers show, returned to feed the dolphins, saw sharks, raced across the park to eat BBQ ribs for the third time in three days, saw Shamu, rode a roller coaster, saw sea lions, rode another roller coaster after a wind delay, played at playground, and saw Shamu again, waited for the shuttle bus back to the hotel.

The final show, Shamu Rocks, began great and then got delayed. The mother whale didn’t want to perform. She preferred to swim around the show tank. As M’Lynn and I sat sections apart, we both told our kid the same thing.

“Shamu is being bu ting hua. She doesn’t want to listen and obey.”

We tell the kids to “ting hua” every time we leave them with the babysitter. It’s so much easier to say than “listen and obey.”

View all the pictures from the Sea World adventure.

How not to snap a jumping picture

One person jumping, that's an easy photo. But try to snap a photo of 11 people jumping, that's nearly impossible. Here's some advice, the group counts, not the cameraman. Especially when the group is large. This is how the photo is supposed to work, at least ideally.

The group counts together, 1, 2, 3, JUMP!

Then the cameraman snaps the picture following the group's jump. Jumping picture perfection!

Reverse the process and the results are mixed at best. Sometimes it works but most likely the picture will cause you to crawl into a closet to hide or roll on the floor laughing. Since there are no closets in China, we laugh. Especially when we look at ourselves closer and give the pictures captions imaging what we're doing.

PHOTO 1: Dancing

And in front of a train station cathedral. I don't even have these moves if I really tried to dance.

PHOTO 2: Screaming for joy

I imagine these guys have just won the $500 million lottery jackpot.

PHOTO 3: Surf's up!

This family is surfing, or since they're in Yabuli, they must be skiing.

PHOTO 4: Exercise

(L) She just won the Boston Marathon, both excited and exhausted. (R) She must be doing Richard Simmons or something.

Sun & Mountains

"Let's have an argument." our teammates said as we sat comfortably on the bottom bunk of a soft sleeper train returning home from our team retreat. We've become so close as a team we love to argue about things we are supposed to avoid. That's community. We argue in love challenging each other to think deeply. All the while having fun.

That's what this weekend was all about. We traveled together as a team to Yabuli, China's premiere ski resort. The purpose was simple, to reflect as a team on the amazing things the Father accomplished over the past two years together in Harbin and to get out of the city for fun.

So into the mountains we went using only the internet as a resource and a whole lot of Chinese help from teammates, we found The Villa. Owned by an animated retiree, The Villa is a two story house tucked into the mountains surrounding Yabuli. The Villa felt much like America with its open kitchen, breakfast nook, and covered front porch, but it also had lots of Chinese characteristics like hot water in only one bathroom. It was the perfect place for a team getaway.



Just a few days before, a teammate commented how funny it would feel to be in America together. Especially how strange it would feel to visit each others homes. For a weekend it felt like we did just that. We were in a home together as a team sharing chores, cooking, eating, and sleeping under the same roof.

We had plenty of fun too. We went up the gondola to the top of Sun Mountain and then took the alpine slide down. All 2,600 meters down the mountain. It was amazing! A quiet villa in the mountains for a weekend with the teammates that have become like family. Priceless.

There are plenty of photos from the weekend. Click here to see them all.

Our best tips for traveling with kids

Here are my tips for traveling with kids on the long journey from America to China...or China to America...(or substitute any destination)

1. Mentally prepare the kids to travel. Weeks before getting on the airplane or train, we tell the kids, "In ___ days we're going on an airplane. What do you do on the airplane?" The kids should respond. "Sit, seat, sleep." We sometimes add the additional line "Do you poop on the airplane?" hoping to train the kids not to poop in their diaper because who wants to change a sticky diaper in the tiny bathroom.
2. Don't expect them to sleep on the plane. They might, but usually mine don't. If I go in with the expectation that they will sleep, I'm frustrated the whole time trying to make them sleep and wondering why they won't. Even if it is a time when they would normally be asleep, the airplane is very fun and interesting to them, so their adrenaline is going and sleep isn't always possible in that sort of situation!
3. If they aren't going to sleep, what in the world are they going to do???? We bring lots and lots of interesting snacks. When they get restless (especially during take-off when you're trying to keep them happy so you don't get kicked off the plane before it even takes off...) we let them choose a snack from the super exciting bag 'o snacks. (and I love that when we're leaving from China our snack collection is so Asian now)
4. Before the trip, we go to the store without the kids and pick out a fun, brand new and exciting toy for each of them (something small and good for travel like a new toy motorcycle or army guys). Then, at about hour 5 on the long flight when they've seen all the kid stuff on the in-flight entertainment screen and gone through all the crayons and coloring pages, we get out the new toy. Buys a few more hours. Caution: lots of new things is not a good idea because then they expect a new thing every hour. So be sure to explain this is the only new toy in the bag!
5. Think of the long flight in terms of climbing a mountain. (I do this even when traveling without kids). Divide the total flight time in half. On a 14 hour flight, I think of the first 7 hours as a slow climb to the top of the mountain. At the mid-point of the flight, I throw a little party and celebrate the fact I made it to the top of the mountain. Then, after the celebration, I imagine that I'm now descending the mountain...7 hours downhill. It's all a mind game :-)
6. We don't like to let our kids walk up and down the aisle much because then they think they are free to roam about the cabin, and that gets old.
7. We call ahead or go on-line to choose our seats. If we have a lap child, usually we request the bulk-head row. If not, I at least request that our seats are together. Some airlines offer kids meals, but you have to pre-order. Call ahead for this. Kids meals are handy and more exciting than foil-wrapped rice dinners.
8. We download some new apps for the iPod touch before the flight and don't let the kids notice the new ones until an opportune time. We try to keep them entertained with stuff like new sticker books (books where you have to hunt to put the sticker in a certain place) or coloring or drawing or matchbox cars or army guys or dinosaurs or snacks for a few hours before we're worn out and hand them the technology
9. If they sleep, we sleep.
10. I mentally prepare myself. Traveling with kids over the ocean can be arduous. I tell my brain that for the next 24 hours or so, I am on-call and that's all. The trip is not about me being comfortable and relaxed. My job while traveling is to keep the kids happy. While traveling, happy kids equals happy adults. I am usually a parent who keeps my kids on a time-sensitive routine. As soon as the traveling starts, the time-sensitive routine goes out the window. And it won't return until a few days after traveling. If I remind myself of this, I don't stress as much when they won't nap at 1:30 pm or go to bed at 8 pm or they're awake on an airplane at midnight gleefully watching Super Why.
    *this is the one I struggle with the most. I'm selfish and I want to watch newly released American movies on-demand while crossing the ocean, but I most often find myself changing diapers and pretending to be extremely excited about stickers.
11. Pack an extra set of pants for each kid. Even if they are potty trained, accidents happen and they are a lot less stressful if they're is a dry set of pants handy. When traveling with kids under 1, I pack an extra shirt for myself as well.
12. We bring along "Take n Toss" straw cups with lids. The flight attendants will fill these up with juice or milk or whatever and they have lids so the kids don't spill them everywhere! (unless you have sippy cups and don't mind milk in those...) We use these straw cups everywhere in China, not just for traveling.
13. Make the kids sip water on the way up and down so their ears will adjust to the pressure. If you have ear troubles, look into "Ear Planes." Little inserts you put in your ears that help the pressure problem. I've used them before while flying with sinus problems, but I've never used them for children. You can buy them in most any drug store.

Who is the Chinese traveler?

As we trek to and from Shenyang to get our passports, I sometimes wonder what the general Chinese traveler thinks of our American family traveling in China. One thing for sure, they're astonished that we purchased two tickets for our kids. Most Chinese families would not, opting to hold their kid on their lap (if they even traveled with kids at all).

Other times, we draw quite a lot of attention. Especially to those who can speak English. The general traveler loves to watch our kids on the train. We're observed eating bags of snacks, drinking Sprite, and playing with the many entertainment options we brought for the kids.

We're certainly an oddity as we travel across China, but I believe the reverse is just as odd. Who are the Chinese travelers abroad that we so often see in the line at Disneyland?

CNNGo tries to "Demystify the Chinese Traveler." Here's some of the most interesting parts of this article. Chinese tourists:

are expected to take nearly 80 million international trips, spending US$80 billion in 2012.

account for 8 percent of the total one billion international trips expected to be taken this year.

are not wealthy. In the last year, 23 percent of Europe-bound Chinese travelers earned less than RMB 5,000 (US$793) per month; and 36 percent earn RMB 5,000-10,000 (US$793-US$1,587).

prefer “natural scenery” and “island getaway” as the two most important items.

are annoyed by restaurants that have no idea how to stir-fry -- and dead camera batteries.

Read the complete article from CNNGo here.

I felt like a cow...

...in the Shenyang train station.

We traveled to Shenyang to renew our passports because it's the nearest location from Harbin. After a sucessful trip to the US Consulate, we found ourselves at the train station waiting to catch our ride home. The thing about this train station is that it's under construction and the waiting room is a temporary building made with Styrofoam wall panels. If you imagine a large rectangular "barn" for all the waiting passengers, your mental image would be pretty close.

We waited with the other passengers in the barn behind a metal fence for our train to arrive. When the time came to board the train, metal gates opened, everyone rushed through and scurried to find our train's platform. As the metal gate clanked open, I remembered that distinct sound from my childhood. I was reminded of my days on the ranch watching my dad work with cattle. The metal fence clanking open is exactly the same sound. And then the thought of cattle rushing through an open gate to the next pen made me laugh, except I was the cow rushing through the open gate to catch my train home.

Cambodian Free Massage

In the process of booking our tour to Cambodia, the tour company asked if we'd like to transfer from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap by air or ground. We inquired about the road conditions and were assured that the road was "the best road in Cambodia." Once confirmed by a friend living in Cambodia, we made our choice.

Day Three: Six hour transfer by bus from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap.

The road was great, at least for the first 45 minutes. Then the road took a turn and the tour guide said, "For the next 5 km you'll receive a free massage."

That "free massage" lasted for about one hour (and probably 50 km) as we bumped down the road. One side of the road was paved and the other side was dirt. Potholes covered both sides of the road. The holes were huge and provided quite the massage. We rejoiced when the tour guide said, "That's it. No more free massage."

After our massage, we snapped tons of countryside pictures: houses on stilts, water buffaloes, rice fields, fish farms, and cheap Vietnamese gasoline sold by the liter in old glass soda bottles.

Elephants in Angkor

When we asked my brother what he'd like to do in SE Asia, riding an elephant was number one on his list, a definitely must-not-leave-Asia-without-doing type of thing. I imagined an elephant ride as a cheesy stroll around the big tent of a traveling circus. The ride we took was anything but. The elephant ride turned into a trip favorite for everyone.

The ride took us from outside the ancient city guarded by walls, through the gate, and into the ancient Angkor Bayon. We first viewed the ancient ruins from the top of an elephant. Amazing! Along the way, our "driver" picked a leaf from a tree and played it like a harmonica. The ride was quite bumpy and uncomfortable, but the sights were amazing.

My brother was right! Definitely put an elephant ride in Angkor at the top of your list if you're ever traveling to Cambodia.

Anniversary in separate rooms

On February 21, 2002, we met on a Thursday evening after the Wesley Foundation's weekly event. Ten years later on February 21, 2012, we spent the night in separate hotel rooms.

You see, we spent the 10th anniversary of the day we meet traveling home from Bangkok to Harbin. It was the beginning of a long and eventful two day event.

The day began on the beach in Thailand south of Bangkok eating breakfast and taking some last minute photos of the boys on the beach wearing something other than a swimsuit. We boarded a van, traveled 3.5 hours to Bangkok's airport and waited for our flight home. We ate lunch at Burger King and Subway (the last of those we'll see until we visit to America this summer) and boarded the delayed evening flight to Shanghai.

30 minutes from Shanghai, a flight attendant told us that our plane would not be land in Shanghai because we've been diverted to Qingdao because of bad weather. Minutes later, the crew announced this to the whole cabin.

It's midnight by the time we learned the flight was cancelled and we're stranded in Qingdao. (Guess we won't be using the room we reserved in Shanghai.) During the next thirty minutes, we cleared immigration and customs, claimed our bags, used rockin' Chinese to change our flights, and waited along with everyone else for a bus to the hotel.

At the hotel, everyone jostled for room keys at the check in counter. Since we had four travelers, we're given two rooms. We spent the night apart.

After 3 hours of sleep, we're shuttled back to the airport ready to board our new flight home from Qingdao.

We arrived at our apartment in Harbin by 12:30 PM ready to sleep. This time in the same bed.

The Adjustment Bureau: Thailand Edition

We never made it to the park for our picnic as we planned. Instead, The Adjustment Bureau got a hold of us and changed our plans.

If you haven't seen the movie, check it out. The movie examines this question as summed up on IMDB, "Do we control our destiny, or do unseen forces manipulate us? A man glimpses the future Fate has planned for him and realizes ... he is up against the agents of Fate itself - the men of The Adjustment Bureau."

While we don't believe in Fate, we do believe the Father has a plan for our lives, including a plan for each moment of every day. At times we don't understand the point of all the adjustments (things not going as we'd planned), and at other times, we see the point immediately. Today was a little of both.



So this morning as we headed out of our apartment for the planned picnic in the park, we simply couldn't leave.

1. Corbin wouldn't eat breakfast so he wandered around outside with M'Lynn.
2. Kanyon and I met M'Lynn and Corbin outside to leave, but when we did, I realized I forgot to bring the laundry downstairs and returned to the apartment to retrieve it.
3. I returned to the apartment with Corbin to give M'Lynn a break from the screaming monster child and to give Corbin a talkin' to.
4. When we returned and met Kanyon and M'Lynn outside, Kanyon declared he needed to go to the bathroom immediately.
5. I returned with Kanyon to the apartment to take care of his business before we returned outside to M'Lynn and Corbin.
6. We got inside a taxi to the grocery store to buy supplies for our picnic. The taxi picked up additional passengers and headed to their destination first, away from the grocery store but right by our laundry place. We got out to do our laundry first.
7. While we picked up/dropped off our laundry we saw some friends also in town for meetings. We chatted for a while and loaned them 300 baht to pay for their haircuts. (Was this the Father's plan all along?)
8. When we finally made it to the grocery store we bought snacks but no sandwiches for the picnic. Corbin screamed constantly so he and M'Lynn waited outside.
9. We settled for a "picnic" at an outside bakery/restaurant.
10. And now, we are all taking long naps. (Or maybe this the Father's plan all along?)

Maybe we'll go to the park tomorrow.

Can we see the sea creatures now?

So you always wanted to visit Thailand but never had the chance. Well, here's your chance! Follow us around as we share what's been keeping us busy since we arrived in Chiang Mai. It's almost a photo essay, if you can really call it that. The real photo essay is here.



Umbrella Festival
Outside Chiang Mai a small village (really it seems like we were still in Chiang Mai) hosts an umbrella festival. This year was the 29th annual. We saw all kinds of umbrellas, floats, and even a factory where they assemble umbrellas. Quite a colorful outing.



Swimming School
Each afternoon, Kanyon suits up and heads off to the local pool for his class. He's taught by a Thai instructor one-on-one for about 30-40 minutes or until his lips are blue and he's too cold to continue, whichever comes first. He's currently taking small steps overcoming his fear of getting water splashed in his face.



Chiang Mai Zoo
It's really cool. Check it out. So many animals. Kids love the place! At least they loved most of it. Corbin's afraid of the elephants, but Kanyon fed elephants large and small.



Chaing Mai Aquarium
"Can we see the sea creatures now?" Kanyon asked after about 10 minutes walking around the zoo because right in the middle of the zoo is an aquarium. And it's air conditioned which is a big plus for hot afternoons. Here there's plenty of "sea creatures" and an underwater tunnel to see "black tip reef sharks" and other creatures.



Bike rentals
Tired of paying for the rides in Song taos or tuktuks, then it's time for a bike. They even come with kids seats! Remember one detail "STAY TO THE LEFT!!!" In Thailand cars drive on the left (like England). It was fun to experience the freedom of riding around. 24 hours later, we were a little sore and glad to be a back seat driver again.



Meetings
While there aren't any pictures to prove it, we've met with our supervisor here and with our company's state-side staff to go over all the details.

Upcoming Events

• Waterfall excursion to see the best of natural Thailand.
• Leadership Summit - meetings for Team Leaders and other leaders throughout Asia. It's a time of intensive training and organizational vision casting.
• Annual Thailand Conference - more meetings, training, corporate worship, and other cool things. We look forward to this time every year.
• Parents and siblings are coming to visit just after the conference! With them we'll visit Thailand and Cambodia. We're so excited.