Flashback to the Beach

by Amy

I'm sorry I've been a slacker blogger lately. It seems like we've been hopping from one thing to another all summer long. I have tons of posts floating around in my head, but haven't had a chance to get them on the blog. So, I'm going to start a series of flashbacks....

A few months ago, Brad had some meetings at in a beach town about 3 hours away from our home. So, I decided to take the kids and go play while Brad worked. It was tons of fun! Before Brad's meetings began, we spent one day playing at the beach. It was a little too cool to play in the water for very long, but the kids had a blast in the sand.

Then, another day, I took them to a zoo/amusement park place. Even though zoos over here are not nearly as nice as American zoos, they're still fun. The kids really enjoy getting to see some animals, being outside and running off some energy. It's also really fun to see what types of animals are deemed "zoo-worthy." In the past our kids thought it was funny to see dogs -normal, everyday house trained dogs from the US - in cages on display in our local zoo. This time Alex was super excited to see a real raccoon. He has a little beanie baby raccoon name Ringo that Grandma gave him. Other than Peter, Ringo is Alex's best friend. So, he was thrilled to see a real raccoon!

My sweet daughter of course, was thrilled to find bunnies. We bought some grass for 25cents and the kids got to go in and feed them. Alex and Savannah really liked it when the rabbits hopped up to them, but Peter was content to sit on the sidelines and watch.

Then, I told the kids they could each have 20 local dollars to spend on whatever rides they wanted in the amusement park. A ride typically costs 10 local dollars each, but since it was a slow day, we were able to talk them into giving the boys "buy-one-get-one-free" tickets. So, they got to ride on four different rides.

Savannah remembered visiting this park over year earlier when my parents were in town, so she wisely held on to her money and spent it all on one "ride." She basically put on a harness that was attached to some bungee cords. Then, she would jump on a moonwalk-type-thing and bounce really high! She got to jump for about 15 minutes. Last year, she barely got off the ground, but this year she went flying! My little girl's growing up!

On our last full day there, I took the kids to an aquarium. It's actually really nice. We had been there two years earlier, and were happy to go back. They had a great polar bear exhibit, a fun show with dolphins, penguins, and other fun things. But, like most places here, when they tried to translate their signs into English, something was lost in translation....

They also had some fun little things set up for pictures. I'm not exactly sure who they're supposed to be....

I love this pic of Peter! What a nice smile!

Our time at the beach city was really fun I really enjoyed that time with our kids and am thankful for the special memories we made!

Sorry, completely wrong...anyone else?

From Brad.

After dinner we typically have our family devo time. Recently we've been reading "Leading Little Ones to God" to our kids (we love it). We came to the section where Jesus was arrested and brought before Pilate.

The book says "Pilate asked, 'What bad things has He done?' Nobody could think of even one bad thing Jesus had done." So I stopped and asked the kids, "Why couldn't anyone think of even one bad thing Jesus had done?"

Now, it isn't unusual to get strange or wrong answers from time to time, but typically we can pull some truth out of the attempt and encourage our kids in trying to answer our questions. However, at this time, Alex responded, "Because Jesus is so powerful..." I thought, good start, keep going kid. "Because Jesus is so powerful, he blinded them from knowing or remember all of the bad things Jesus did!" Well, ummm, let's see...No Alex, sorry, completely wrong...please never, ever say that in public. Anyone else? :)

Do you like cake?

by Amy

I love cake - I love a moist chocolate cake served warm with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream. Mmmm! It doesn't get much better than that (especially if there's peppermint icing involved!) And, I have a really great recipe that's super easy, so I thought I'd pass it on....

It's called A Darn Good Chocolate Cake, and it comes from the book The Cake Mix Doctor by Anne Byrn. (It's a GREAT book! I'd highly recommend purchasing it!)

1 box of Devil's Food or Dark Chocolate Fudge Cake Mix

1 small box of chocolate pudding (3.4+ oz.) (about 2/3 cup if you happen to buy pudding in bulk like me :) )

4 eggs

1 cup sour cream (add 2 t of white vinegar to 1 cup of heavy whipping cream - just in case you live overseas and can't buy sour cream, like me!)

1/2 cup warm water

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Place cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, sour cream, water and oil in a large bowl. Beat thoroughly with mixer, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Grease you pan and bake at 350. The time will vary depending on the type of pan you use. Look on the back of the box for guidance. She recommends 45-50 min. for a bundt pan. You can tell the cake's ready when it springs back when lightly pressed with your finger and it just starts to pull away from the sides of the pan. **Be careful if you test "done-ness" with a toothpick. There will be melted chocolate chips through out the cake that can fool you into thinking the middle of the cake is not done.

Ice the cake with your favorite icing, drizzle with a ganache or glaze, or serve plain. Any way you cut it, it's delightful!

The First and the Last

by Amy

I figure since I posted on the first day of July, I should post on the last day of July as well. Sorry there was nothing in-between!

Our time in Hong Kong was really great! One unexpected blessing was running into some friends. They were also in Hong Kong waiting to get a new visa. This family has a 7 year old daughter and a 4 year old son. So, needless to say, our kids had a BLAST playing with them. We also hit the beach and pool 3 times each. That was super fun. All three of my kids love to swim! And, Alex and Savannah LOVED jumping off the diving board and swimming to the side by themselves. Peter didn't want to do it, but he still had a great times splashing around and "swimming". We did hit Disneyland one day. It was fun, but it was SOOO hot! And, Savannah was a little disappointed that we couldn't find all the princesses this time. We saw them in the parade, but that's all.

Since we came home we've hit the ground running! We got home on a Monday night and Brad taught at an English Camp for 4th-6th grade kids the following Tuesday - Friday. Then, we had two American friends come visit us! Sarah came all the way from Colorado!! Oh, it was so great to see her. She was visiting a friend from college who teaches here. So, as they toured the country, the came to visit us for 3 days. What a sweet blessing to connect with Sarah again and meet Megan. They both have such precious hearts. It was exciting to hear what our Father's been doing in and through them both! Amazing....

Then, this past week, we've been getting back into the home schooling routine. Savannah continues to amaze me with how well she's doing in school. Sometimes I forget she's only in first grade. She has read over 850 pages - only 150 left until she gets her BIG prize! (I'm so excited!) Peter and Alex are truckin' right along in their reading lessons. Alex has really surprised me with how well he's doing. I expected it to be more difficult for him than it has been. I'm thankful! Peter had a rough week of reading lessons, but by the end of the week, I was thankful to see an improvement in his attitude resulting in an improvement in his reading. They've each completed 50 lessons - we're half way there!

Well, I'm sure more things have happened over the last month, but that's all I can remember at this very moment. The other stories will have to wait until a later day!

Here we go again....

by Amy


Brad got a job!! We have a friend who recently opened an English school and he was looking for an "Expert Engineer" to help things run more smoothly. So, after serious consideration, he offered the job to my Expert Engineering husband! So, what exactly does that mean? I don't know. Brad's going to help John with his company, maybe teach a few classes, and offer his expertise when needed.


But, in order for us to change from a student visa to a visa that will allow Brad to have a job, we have to leave the country. The government doesn't allow anyone to apply to change visas from here. So, it means.....






I knew my kids would be SOOO excited! Hong Kong = Disney Land, boats, YUMMY food, swimming, subways and airplanes, Toys R Us, double-decker buses, and so much more! As all the arrangements were being made, we didn't dare tell our kids. As Brad and John went through the process of applying for a work permit, Brad could have been rejected at any stage. So, we made our plans (reserved our housing, did extra school lessons, etc.) but didn't tell our kids that we would probably be going to HK. If Brad did get turned down for some reason, our kids would have been super disappointed. So, on Monday, when we got the final word that we could definitely apply for new visas, we decided to tell them the good news by playing hang man. Originally, we planned on letting them each guess one letter a day. But, I was so excited that it was not difficult for them to talk me into letting them guess two letters each on Monday, and three on Tuesday. Then, Wednesday morning, they finally completed it!

So, on Tuesday, July 7, we'll fly to HK. We're not sure how long the whole process will take, probably somewhere between 10 and 14 days. While we're there we definitely plan on doing a lot of playing. But, we also have developed a schedule that will help me keep teaching the boys their reading lessons, Savannah can keep reading and working towards her goal of 1000 pages, and Brad and I can study the language together. We praise the Lord for working out all the details thus far. Brad getting this visa is definitely an answered prayer! We hope to use the time out of country well.

How Many Pages???

by Amy

You may remember that Peter and Alex are working hard on their reading lessons and will get a prize when they complete every so many lessons. Those prizes are fun to give out and fun to work towards. So, I decided Savannah needed a goal as well. I wanted to choose something that would motivate her, and cause her to work hard. As a child, I remember Pizza Hut giving out giving out free pan pizzas to kids that read a certain number of books in a month, and the library giving out free stuff during their summer reading programs. But, since those programs don't stretch across the great Pacific Ocean, I decided to call on my fun, creative buddy to help me out -- once again!

I told Rachel that I wanted Savannah to reach the goal of reading 1000 pages, but didn't know how to track it and how to make it fun. Immediately Rachel began plotting and devising a plan. She came up with a path that leads towards an undisclosed location. And, when she offered to make the path for us, I was happy to let her do it!

Each rock represents 5 pages, so as Savannah reads, she gets to color the rocks on her path. For every 200 pages, she gets to uncover a picture that will give her a hint as to where the path is leading. (She's already uncovered her first hint - it's a picture of Cinderella.) She also will get an additional small prize for every 200 pages.

It has been amazing to see how motivated Savannah is to read! For homeschooling, she's required to read independently for 20-30 min. a day. Obviously the pages she reads then count towards her 1000 pages. But, I told her she's free to read other times too, and we can count those pages as well. I can't tell you how many times I've heard her say lately, "Peter, Alex would you like me to read you a story?" And, she's asked many times if she can stay up late reading in her bed. It's great! I hated reading as a child and didn't want Savannah to be like that.

This path is really working. I actually was hoping that Savannah would reach her goal about the same time Peter and Alex reach their 100 reading lessons goal. But, I think she's going to beat em!

Outdoor School

by Amy

My friend Rachel is one of the most creative people I know! She's constantly coming up with fun activities and crafts that her kids love! And, being the generous fun Aunt that she is, she often takes pity on my kids and invites us to join in on the fun. A few weeks ago, she planned an "Outdoor School" day for her kids and mine. (Ages: 6,4,4,4,2,and 3 months ~ it was before birthdays.)

We met downtown at the square. The first activity was to look at the flag and draw what you see. So, with clipboards in hand, plenty of colored pencils to go around, all the kids found a spot with a clear view of the flag and began drawing.

With kids as cute as ours, you can only imagine the crowd we attracted.....

The final product....

After we finished our drawing, we walked through the park noticing the jobs people did. We saw a teacher leading a preschool class, people selling water and mowing lawns, cleaning people and garbage collectors. We talked abut what the park would be like if those people weren't doing their jobs, and drew a picture of our favorite worker.

Then, it was time to begin the water focus of the day. First, we enjoyed watching the cool fountains. They're actually really well done. The water basically "dances" to the music for 20-30 minutes. The kids love it! We enjoyed the "up close and personal view"....

Then we went for the bird's eye view as we watched from a far....

For our math emphasis, we had all the kids count the number of stairs as we climbed to reach the balcony so we could enjoy this "view from a far." Although there was some discretion, I think we all agreed on 64 stairs in the end.

Next, Rachel gave all the kids the equivalent of $.80, so they could each buy these water squirter things....

Rachel fed the baby (Abby) while I took the kids back down the 64 stairs to play in the non-fount-ing fountains. I think I was supposed to give a lesson in water pressure or something, but instead I let run around squirting! It was tons of fun...

Samantha had a few issues filling her squirter.... So, she finally resorted to walking the circles... it was pretty cute!

We ended our grand educational experience by visiting this famous guy! What a fun, fun school day! Thanks again Rach for all the sweet memories you created for our kids!