T square and the Great Wall memory lane....

 One the way to school yesterday we were talking about our trip to China 4 years ago.  Nian remembers the Great Wall especially the "tunnel".   I remember him asking us where Jesus was when he saw it. 😭😇🙏🙇 my sweet sweet boy...    He said he would like to go back to the wall.  Cheng was sad he hadn't seen it.  I told them both how wonderful it would be if they could come with us to get their little sister.  My nephew Caleb said he's ready and willing to head back with us if needed, his wife Emily as well.  That would be so awesome. 

I was sworn in last night as a Trustee on our Union board. I'm looking forward to this new position and hope to learn more about the workings of it all. This means I no longer will be secretary on another committee but that's ok. I'm ready to pass that torch on to a new person, hopefully she'll be interested.

The boys are growing so much each day.  We are setting up some new routines to better help them learn.  Report cards came home last week and conferences are next week so we have some work to do.  I really find it irritating that they expect teachers and parents to discuss their kids needs/concerns/issues in 10 freakin minutes..  I mean really.. WTF?  10 mins.. NOT ENOUGH TIME!!!  That drives me nuts.. 

That's about all that's going on so far with us, and it keeps us pretty busy.  I'm doing good with keeping up on my goals, which I am super happy about.  Especially my daily devotions and prayers..  They start my day off on such a wonderful note. I can really feel a difference since I've started them.  I highly recommend you give it a try. 😉😊

Here are some memories from our first few days in China 4 years ago...  We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.  Wishing you a blessed day!

Feb 24, 2017 -Breakfast was good and I was happy to see Nian more than normal.  We came back to the room and was able to chat with Joe's mom for a little bit. Then we headed to the lobby to meet the group, at least those here, and start our 1st day of touring. So far we have met 4 others from our group.  2 more join us at the train station on Sunday to Zhengzhou. One of the families also brought their son who's name is Liam, and he's 5 so that was great to see..  

First stop was Tiananmen Square, just a short bus ride from the hotel. Nian did good but tired out quickly. No doubt from the lack of sleep and time change.  Next was the Forbidden Palace aka Emperors Palace. We took a different walking route through this time and also stop in different areas so that was nice.  And we didn't do as many pics this time either.  After we headed to Old Beijing which still has some of the original buildings/ courtyards. Everyone got into their own Rickshaw and we had an authentic Chinese lunch at a local families home and she also allowed us to see the different rooms.  Amazing how each room was it's own building and not an actual "room" as we know it.  Interesting as well is they do not have facilities in their buildings, just running water for cooking and cleaning, so they have to walk to their nearest Bathhouse.  That would totally suck in the winter. 

Nian fell asleep on the short bus ride from the Palace to the rickshaw location. And he's still sleeping now.  We tried to wake him for lunch but he is SO out of it..  Later we'll meet our guide Jason in the lobby and go to a local restaurant for dinner with whomever from the group decides to go. 

They had the best damn coffee ever!!!!

Feb 25, 2017 - Thank God for the boys.. We ended up going to a different part of the wall this time. bummer because we wouldn't be able to put little brothers lock by Nian's.  But we were in the area I wanted to climb the last time we were here.  We could take the harder steep route, or the easier route. Well that was a no brainer for us. Caleb offered to take Nian in the carrier and off we went. I have no idea how he managed to get him up there but damn I wish I had his energy.  My legs weren't bothering as much as the breathing. I felt like I was hiking the mountain in Salt Lake City again. ugh..  BUT we made it to the top so I was SUPER HAPPY about that...  on the way down we did a small portion of the side track, but decided not to go further due to the amount of time we had left.

Only I could break down in tears on the Great Wall.  Bless this little boy of mine, every time we went into one of the towers/tunnels he asked where Jesus was.. Joe explained they were Towers not Tombs.. But he just kept on asking. We reminded him that Jesus wasn't in the tomb any longer that he rose from the dead. Love how his little heart, mind, and body absorb so much. This kid doesn't forget stuff either.  

We slowly made our way down the wall.  Some lady was going on to me about I have no idea what. I can only imagine that she was wondering what I was doing with my son.  I just pointed to myself and said Mama. she just kept going on so..  I said Bye and started down the steps again.  Nian had a great time, and Joe got more pictures taken with the locals.  They just love him on the wall.  This side wasn't as busy as the other either so that was nice. 

After the wall we headed to the factory for lunch. Again a different place than last time, but the food was still good.  We did not make a purchase this trip.  I plan to shop with a local guide in our last city and she has told me she can get Jade at a good price.  I do know this place was a LOT more expensive than I remember the other being. After we headed back to the hotel, and drove past the 
Olympic sites.  Part of the group got off of the bus, while the others went on to the acrobat show. We decided to skip it, since we'd seen it last time. And honestly I was not impressed at all so there was no way I was going to watch that again.  It was a long day already. 

Nian was pretty worn out by time we got back, but as usual got his 2nd wind and was once again bouncing off the wall. Heaven help me.....We got his tablet working and we are ALL having some quiet time.  which means I'm doing my blog, Nian is watching videos, and Joe is napping. Shocker I know...  Not sure what the boys are doing but probably napping as well.