Grinding Pain

What's goin on with us right now...

Planning times to meet with friends and family, planning times to meet with different congregations, and Elders to talk about China. Planning separate times to talk to "M" committees about support. It's so exciting!! When we left China, I knew this Summer was going to be exciting....and busy. I knew it would, but like in any situation it hasn't effected me the way I thought it would. I don't want to speak for Stan and myself, but I can say that we are so very grateful for the opportunity to speak anywhere people let us. And we are so very grateful to have the opportunity to spend time with friends and family! We are at the half-way point, and we've already had a blast! Within the past week, our schedule has filled up even more with friends, family and extended family meetings!

Well, a couple of weeks ago Stan said, "You've started grinding your teeth again at night." Bummer. (Background info.: I have a long history of T.M.J. from grinding my teeth at night.) I was telling the following story today... When I was little I would grind my teeth at night and my parents could hear it through the walls into their bedroom. So, my mom took a stuffed monkey's tail and put it in between my teeth so the grinding wasn't so loud and detrimental to my health! haha!! It's funny to think about now. Well, I have been to the dentist about it, and he said I should just keep using my mouth guard I got from Wal-Mart. He said if it continues to be a problem, then I should come back and he will make me a professional one. When we moved to China, the teeth grinding stopped. Completely. Stan has told me he can't remember a time when he woke up from me grinding my teeth at all!! So, when we came back to America I decided to leave my mouth guard in China.

Well, it's back. I guess with these particular blessings of having the schedule we have right now is also added stress. I didn't realize I was stressed until my jaw began to lock up again, like it has before. It's literally a pain. (haha, pun intended!) Well, the good news is, all I have to do is just go get another mouth guard at Wal-Mart. So I'm going first thing in the morning so I can stop this craziness! Yay! It's crazy how things can sneak up on ya when you're not paying attention! I have a lot to be thankful for, and I'm trying to turn this situation around to be thankful for it! :) So, I'm thankful for pain, because without it, I would do nothing to prevent my jaw from further damage.

That got me thinkin about what His Son did for me. I am thankful for His pain, because without it, I wouldn't know what it's like to be part of His family. Without it, I wouldn't know what it's like to feel guilt from a sin...none of us would. It always helps me when I'm in any kind of pain to remember what He did for me and it really makes the pain not as difficult to handle. It shrinks my pain, and puts things in perspective. Culture shock is a form of pain and suffering. I hope this experience will help me when I feel that, because without it, HE would not be brought to China through me.

I got tagged by Ashley... :)

20 questions (chain letter style)

1. How often do you go over the speed limit? Well...I don't really drive in China, but while we're here in the States...no because I'm so used to the slower speed limit in China. haha!

2. Do you dance like crazy when no one is looking? Yeah, probably ONLY when no one is looking. ha!

3. If you were going to be stuck on a desert island, which book, which movie, and which CD would you take with you? I don't wanna give a cop-out answer...but there are too many to choose from!

4. What did you get in trouble for when you were a kid? Most likely the answer is fighting with my sisters, or talking back to my mom. It didn't really matter what the topic of defiance was, just the act! haha!

5. What really gives you the creeps? People staring at me...China!

6. What was your favorite toy when you were a kid? Either Barbie or trolls!

7. You run into a friend while shopping. Where are you? I'm the same as Ashley... Wal-Mart or Target!

8. When you fall asleep, are you usually on your side, your stomach, or your back? side....no special reason.

9. If fat or calorie intake wasn't an issue, what one food would you eat the most? Ice cream all day long. (re-post from Ashley) :)

10. If you could hire one of the following, which one would it be? Driver, chef, maid, or stylist? MAID!!! Duh!

11. What movie have you watched the most? Either "Nepolian Dynamite" (I know, I know) or... It's a Wonderful Life! At least once a year every year I've been alive!

12. What kind of perfume do you wear? None, but it's not that I don't like it...I just can't find the perfect smell.

13. What was your favorite sitcom growing up? Anything on TGIF between the year 1990-1995ish

14. What were you doing the last time you had a really good laugh? At camp, I don't remember what it was...but you alway have a good laugh at camp!

15. What was the very first concert you ever attended? Switchfoot in Nashville

16. Who is the fourth person on your missed call list? Stan

17. How long does it take you to get ready in the mornings? Now that my hair is short, the time has been cut down from 1 hour 15 minutes to 30 minutes: Straight or curly!!

18. When is the last time you went to the mall and what did you buy? Yesterday...nothing, just window shopping

19. Ever go to camp? Refer to answer 14! :)

20. Do you collect anything? I used to collect all kinds of things, but none of them have stuck!

Well, there you have it! I tag Rebecca Hooper, Kris Bowen, and Christine Brewer!! It's your turn!!

Before I came to China, My brain worked...

Ahhh! We are home! Well...it has been an adventure! We got to see my family at the airport and then we got to surprise everyone at camp! It was great fun! We are excited to be here and have been ready for this for a couple months! I'll have to say the things I was most excited about (besides family and friends) was the food!! But, I'm glad that wasn't the thing I was THE most excited about because it's kinda been a let down. Now, let me explain myself. My stomach has been trained to eat certain things...not meat! It's amazing how much your stomach can be trained without even thinking about it. We ate pork steaks at Aunt Sandra's and Uncle Rick's house last night (our favorite). I ate my whole steak (only because it was in front of me) and I felt like a beached whale. It reminded me of eating at "Texas de Brazil". After eating there, you feel sick from eating so much meat. That's the way I felt! It wasn't even that much meat, but my stomach was rejecting it because I haven't had that much in a while! But it sure was gooooood! :)

Now, onto the title of this blog post. Since I have been in America, I have forgotten more things than in all my life's experiences combined! It's ridiculous because I really try hard to have a good memory about things, but no-can-do when I have this many things on my mind. I lost my phone 3 times in one day (I hardly ever lose my phone) so to lose it 3 times in one day is so ridiculous! I even lost the house phone looking for my cell phone. I left some gifts in China that I was going to get for some close friends, I just about cried. That's ok, when we find them in our apartment in China, I'll just send them.

These are a few things that I am having to adjust to. I was driving on I-40 today at 70 miles an hour. 70 MILES AN HOUR! I felt like a crazy out of control driver! The fastest speed I have seen on a sign in China is 80 KM, which is around 50ish MPH. I felt like a maniac on the interstate! haha, it was the weirdest feeling! Anyway, we are happy to be home and excited to spend time with family and friends! Thanks for reading, I love you all!!

Dragon Boat

The 16 of June is (in English) "Dragon Boat Festival" in China. We don't really understand what happens during this holiday, because we are too caught up in coming home, we aren't thinking about Chinese things! It's kind of funny, because that is showing us we really need a break from this culture. It will do us some good! We will come back next semester refreshed and better because of the rest.

Even though the 16th is the actual date of the holiday, our school let us off the 14-16th. By this, I mean we had to work on Saturday and Sunday the 12 and 13th to make up those days, but we still got them "off" for the Festival. This is what we've been doing this holiday. Packing.





Well, it actually only took us one full day to pack all that is pictured. Those bags are called "Rice Bags". I don't really know why, because they are not for toting rice around. People use them to move, actually. So, that's what we are using them for! We've got clothes, shoes, dishes, pots, and lots of other things in those bags! Ad you can see in the second picture, that is all the food/goodies we have not eaten and are saving for next year! (if we don't eat it before we leave) But we are going to tote it out to Xiasha, so we are leaving it in a suitcase. :)

This next picture is to show you what our naked walls look like now. If you remember this blog where I talked about putting up our Christmas Tree, you might be able to see where the tree use to be. Haha! We took it off the wall and it's really bare now!



We still don't move for another couple of weeks, but we are getting ready! We are excited to get home to see you all! Well, that's all I've got today! Thanks for reading and don't forget to think of me in China! I love you all!!

These things about China...

There are just a few things I have been thinking about since America is drawing nearer and nearer. There are a few things I will miss over the Summer and a few things I will not miss.

Things I will miss:

1.) The Dumplings and Fried Rice: This is probably my favorite food here. I wouldn't say I could eat it everyday, but it is yummy! I'm not saying I will crave it while I am eating a steak somewhere, but it will be missed. :)

2.) My students: I'm not really a sentimental person, but I do become nostalgic from time to time. I think I will miss some of my students, but I can still keep in touch with those who I have befriended. It helps me not be sad when I think I will gain even more friends next year at our new school!

3.) The small shops. Our area of town, and the area around out school is fantastic for shopping. They are little mom-and-pop places to shop. You can find some good Chinglish T-shirts there and little bags and purses. You can bargain a little in these places, just like at the night market!

4.) Bob, Linda, and Angel. The first couple of times we hung out with the Kings, it took Angel a while to warm up to us. Now, she gives us a hug when we walk in the door! This is progress and we are happy to have them in our lives!


Things I will not miss:

1.) Being stared at: The saying "Take a picture, it'll last longer" applies here more than in America. They will literally take a picture of you with no shame. In fact, my parents got to experience it first hand. A man was acting like he was dialing a number, but he sure was holding it high up in the air. He was taking a picture of the foreigners at the airport. haha! Another example: One time I was sitting on a city bus. It was in the afternoon and I was tired. I was going to be on the bus for a while, so I fell asleep. I was awaken by the sound of a camera phone clicking in my ear. I opened my eyes and saw a man standing in front of me pulling his phone away from my face. He just took the liberty of taking a picture of me sleeping. I know to some of you this might sound like I'm complaining about something lots of people want: People staring at you everywhere you go because they think you look so different from them. But, you kind of begin to feel like a freak after a while, and it becomes irritating. This is the biggest thing I will not miss, but I will get use to it again when I come back in the Fall.

2.) Getting "Chinese-d" as I like to call it. The Chinese are oddly enough a collective type of person... "people pleasers". Now just hear me out, because this is a generalization. If you want to get something fixed, or if you want something the store does not have, you will ask them, "When will it be fixed?" or "When will you have it?" You will most likely receive an answer similar to this: "Tomorrow or the next day." If they do not say that, they might give you a day like, "This Friday". A lot of times this answer is only given to please you momentarily. You are pleasantly surprised, because what would normally take 2 or 3 weeks in the U.S. seems to only take 2 or 3 days in China. Not true. When you return "Tomorrow or the next day" you will be unpleasantly surprised to find nothing has been done, and a new deadline is decided. When you call to check up on the status of the item (because you don't want to make the trip all the way there, like you did last time) you are told it will be longer. It ends up being the same amount of time it would take in the U.S., they just go about it in a different way. This, I will not miss. But once again, I will get used to it when I return.


Whew! I had a lot more to say about the two things I will not miss about China. I guess I needed to vent a little. Haha! Anyway, thanks for reading and I miss and love you all! It won't be long before we are home!

It's Chinglish Time again!

This might be my last Chinglish blog of the year, but I'm not sure. I might be able to get one more in before we leave. We went to Anji (Huzhou) this weekend and a lot of these are from that trip! Come of these you might have to click on and enlarge to see. Enjoy...


























































I love you all and thank you for reading! Don't forget to think about me in China!!