Little Friends at Work

This is where I went hunting for fabric to make the girls sheets. They really gave me the foreigner inflate, but they were super nice and I always stop back by to see them when I go to the market across town. This little guy loves being doted on. He's always showing off for me. He, unlike most kiddos, actually has several toys, but he still hangs out on the sewing machine

My friend Hang here is the tinmaker's son. (Or is it a "tinsmith??) He was out showing his patriotism and unknowingly drumming up business for his Baba. His tiny brother was toddling all over a long sharp piece of edging... his flag had already broken.

Isn't he handsome??

He did a little patriotic show for me :)

This little tot helps out with the meatgrinder in the market. (Notice the massive gash on his forehead?? It's a wonder he's still got his fingers!)

Someone told me that in America we try to control the environment, but in Asia they control the children to adapt to the environment. Some of us vary on this at home, but I'm still a little taken aback by the extreme discrepancies...

The market can be REALLY crazy. I've seen fights break out when old men are hit by bikes, motorcycles take out stalls, someone in a van stops to shop and blocks traffic...
This wasn't a main drag, but I was still surprised to see this little guy. Partly because I've never seen a walker, and partly because I feared for his safety!

These children were on break from school (they have a 1.5 - 2 hour daily lunch break), so they stopped by their families' market stall for lunch and a little pedaling of veggies!

There was some sort of traveling market in town (Complete with some carnival games!)

This little guy was about a 1/4 mile from the action, all alone and having a ball in the peace and quiet.

Santa's little helper! This was a week or so after Christmas, but I guess it was a functional hat. I thought she was cute... She exchanged Ni Haos with Em and proudly showed us her very fetching necklace.

Kids do the darndest things! They really pick up what they see :) A couple of weeks after we got here, she also tried to hauk a lugey (sp??) on the sidewalk. And Emma said "This is how the Chinese people smoke" and proceeded to hold her fingers to her purse lips, remove, and puff...

These covered the entire sidewalk for the length of the laobon's (shopkeeper's) store. I was gingerly trying to step around them when some guy came flying through on his bike!

I'm forever amazed at how these hunches over old people manage to haul so much in their baskets! Then again, maybe they are only 45 and they just look this way from all the hauling ;)

(Sometimes I FEEL this old when I am hauling our things!)

Our favorite noodle maker on the way to the market. I've actually never eaten there, because I am either rushing to get to the market or loaded down on the way home. But he is very fun to watch and quite personable.

Grandmas and Grandpas almost never want their pictures taken, but they are forever stopping the girls to have their grandchildren say "Hullo!" or pose for a picture.

So I've told some of you about the first meal we ate, the day after we got here... We were so pleasantly surprised by how good it was!! ...But it was a good thing I didn't see the dish washing station until AFTER we ate. Most restaurants in town use the same system, and it's one of the many things that I just have to deal with because there's nothing I can do about it. At least outside there's a better chance of the water being warm...

This is the "drinking water" section at the three wells!

More stoves and kettles on the sidewalk...

Laney, happy for a sunny day and the chance to get OUT!

Laundry Time :) This is actually a laundromat type place -- they do have one machine, sitting on the front step beside this setup. They do mending as well. But you often see people washing and hanging their laundry to dry on the sidewalk/ street.

Peppers! Lots and lots of peppers... sometimes spread on the street, in baskets... and when they have had some good sunshine, they get hung up to finish drying and be stored.

Traveling salesmen are always pedaling their wares!

Simple beauty everywhere!

Grandmas and Grandpas are almost always with the little children. I don't think they ever stay home, either.

A new perm! (the contraption looked pretty daunting to me!)

Outdoor pool tables are a big attraction!

And we ALWAYS see construction!

This ramshackle building is becoming just like the ones around it!

(Not very reassuring!)

They pick everything they need to out by hand with pickaxe and sledge... then tons of people work very hard to hand mix cement and lay handmade bricks.

I actually stopped one day to watch them pull the wet cement up to the second story -- quite a show!

Emma and her new doll, Mei-Mei ("Little Sister")

(I FINALLY found an Asian "baby" as promised when we left all of their dolls behind!)

Laney's cast (pretty sorry to begin with!) is looking pretty worn and haggard by now.

(I have retied the wrapping several times when it has come undone!)

We are hoping that she will get this off on Monday!!
Yay! She'll be able to wash her own hands,
get dressed, and lots of other things by herself!

(One last fun Christmas pic!)

Christmas Celebrations

A lot of you have asked about our holiday celebrations, so before I get "back to basics" with some info and pictures about daily life and our place, I thought I'd show you some Christmas Highlights.

It WAS lonely and it WAS hard -- even in the midst of all the fun and new friends. We really missed our loved ones at home (as well as traditions and special foods/events), but it was really nice despite all that. We were really thankful to get our first two packages -- meds from Matt's mom and some WRAPPED gifts (a real treat!) from mine. It really helps us feel less lonely to get ANYTHING from home! (Thanks SO much to those of you who contributed to the packages on their way!!!) Even though we missed "normal" things (like Eggnog and turkey and friends and family!) we had lots of chances to be reminded of the real reason for our celebration!

I also really enjoyed being able to get the girls some things to play with (although what we really wanted to get them was a PUPPY -- maybe next year!) and to pass out gifts to new friends and explain why we do it!

Matt's main gift to me was getting a wooden kitchen made for the girls. I'd been wanting it for "center time" (i.e. to keep Laney and sometimes Emma out of my hair during school time!) and I knew it would go a long way. We'd been told it was really easy to get things made, but turns out it's a bit more difficult when you don't know much language (go figure...). Matt maxxed out his language capabilities, but he did a great job -- and what we ended up with was good enough to get them really excited and occupy even Chloe for hours on end. (Amazing how even "baby toys"can become appealling in a hurry when they're the only option!) I even found a few little cups, bowl, plates, and glasses (all real and breakable) and a set of that really great wooden food with velcro that you can "cut" (a rare gem in a place with no quality toys -- occassionally they rip off some of the higher dollar toys they produce. Not sure about lead paint, but luckily we don't have any mouthers anymore!)