A Month of Firsts

Well, December is almost over and it has been a busy time with a lot of new experiences.

Hong Kong Christmas

This year we decided not to go home to the States for Christmas. We went last year because the kids had three weeks off and Sarah was so little and changing so much. But the kids have two weeks off instead of three this year.  And last year was insanely hectic to the verge of unenjoyable, trying to see everyone and get through jet lag, only to turn around and come back and be in decent shape to start school again. Our decision was made a little easier knowing that both sets of grandparents were going to visit at some point during the year, and our good friends had asked/offered to come for the month of December.  So we seemed to be set and ready to have a different kind of Christmas...but as it got closer I missed the impending anticipation of going home and seeing everyone.  Plus, I realized this was the first time I have not seen my family at some point for Christmas...ever. I battled through bouts of disappointment, but knew that we would still have a great time and having our friends come to visit really helped alleviate the "pity party." I spoke to another friend at church who was dealing with the same thing, and we both came to the same conclusion...you don't compare Christmases, you simply be grateful for the Christmas you have...even if it's different.  Things were also put into perspective for me when I took Abby to the bus stop the week before Christmas.  I spoke to a sweet helper who comes to the bus stop every day and who has befriended our Marina.  She asked about Marina and I told her that she was getting ready to go home to the Philippines for Christmas. The helper said how lucky Marina was...that she hadn't been home for Christmas for 20 years.(Helpers receive one week vacation per year, and the employer gets to decide when). Wow.

So we have been able to keep most of our traditions here in Hong Kong...Christmas tree-ordered and delivered, stockings and ornaments, church Christmas Eve service, and even Christmas cookies and Christmas morning rolls (although I had to make the bread dough from scratch since I couldn't get our Rhodes dough balls). The weather has obviously been warmer than we are used to, although the two weeks before Christmas we got into the 40's.  We clearly have "Hong Kong blood" because it felt like the 20's...we were freezing.  It could also be that we don't have heat...Andy went to bed a few nights with a hat and gloves..sorry, I didn't get that pic:) There are a lot of lights (although Andy misses putting his lights up) and lots of "Merry Christmas"...but there is not a lot of meaning behind the greeting.  There are also a ton of poinsettias...so things look beautiful and sometimes (ok, many times) over the top...but we definitely have the Christmas spirit.

                                               Waiting to go downstairs Christmas morning

                                                          Christmas dinner with friends

Phuket, Thailand

One of our Christmas gifts to ourselves was a four night, four day trip to a resort in Phuket.  It was spurred on by a great deal through a friend, and we thoroughly enjoyed two two-bedroom villas between five adults and five kids.  Its very challenging to find that kind of room anywhere in Asia, so we took advantage of it. This was the first beach vacation since living in Hong Kong, and we made the most of it. Of course, to keep the trip affordable, we had to take some unconventional flights...leaving at 11:30pm and 5:30am...but it all worked out rather well.

Our first full day we went on a boat tour of some beautiful beaches surrounding the mainland of Phuket.  Even though the first boat trip was a bit rough, the gorgeous fine white sand beaches and scenery made up for it.  We got to feed some monkeys and enjoyed a lovely Thai and international lunch by the water.  All of the kids (even Abby) got to snorkel, and we had some time to beach it while Sarah and I took a snooze in the shade, enjoying the ocean breezes.

The second day we took a wonderful elephant ride and had an amazing time seeing the jungle on the back of a very large pachyderm! The kids had a great time on the ride, and then we got to feed and take pictures with our new friends.  Sarah LOVED the elephants, even getting excited looking at the pictures.

The rest of our time was spent enjoying Thai food, playing in the pool and enjoying the beach at the resort.  We soaked in the wonderful weather...80's and sunny everyday! This vacation was a wonderful distraction from missing our friends, family, and all the fun snowfall at home. And we felt extremely blessed to be able to enjoy it with our friends.

 

 

 

 

 

10K Run

Well, if you know me at all, you know that I am not a big fan of running.  I really want to be a fan, but all the years of "having to train" for soccer and other sports have ruined my enjoyment of just plain running.  Well, now that I am done being pregnant (an excuse that I have used a lot), and the weather is almost always great, it seemed I should try again. When we came back after our summer in the States, I began running with my neighbor.  She had started running the previous year with a Dutch friend, who had just moved back to The Netherlands.  We are compatible runners and enjoy each other's company.  Then we decided to do a run together.  There are runs all the time, so we picked out one in February that was set in the city.  Well, we were online trying to sign up, and in between her signing up and me signing up, the run closed.  I'm not sure who was more disappointed.  So, we decided to keep training and find something else. She was already signed up for a run the weekend before Thanksgiving, that I bowed out of because of our trip to the Philippines. So as we were still training, another run came up in mid December.  Another new friend had signed up with my Aussie friend, and because of circumstances beyond her control, she had to stop training.  I asked if I could take her place, and she graciously gave me her spot. This seemed divine intervention...and I kind of did it without thinking.  I didn't think about how busy I was that very week, but that was probably a good thing or I wouldn't have signed up.  So the morning of the race was a little dreary, and the promise of a downpour was glaring at me.  Because of the rain, I told my family not to come...so I went by myself, meeting a few other people I knew.


As I'm driving in the taxi, I'm wondering what my goal should be...what is realistic and how disappointed I will be if I miss my goal. It was also getting cold, with a slight drizzle.  But when I got there and met up with people I knew, I started to get amped up and felt better about just getting it done.  In fact, the anticipation was worse than the actual run.  I ended up meeting my goal, and got finished before the downpour began. I did enjoy the race, and am signing up for another one in March...but here's hoping that I will be less nervous and I will catch "the bug" that everyone raves about.