Okay ladies and gentlemen, gear yourself up for this one. Because I am so slack when it comes to blogging I have lots of fun, crazy, interesting and praiseworthy things to update you on! Not to mention lots of fun photo’s to keep you entertained. We are actually going to start with the newest events and work towards the older ones from the past couple of weeks. Why, you ask? Well not because I want to try to be witty or cool but simply because there is a process to blogging here in China that out smarts me every time. So, when I uploaded my photos which is step 1 I forgot I had to upload the newest ones first to make them last on my blog. In other words, it’s backwards. After the hours it took just to get the photos up I decided to try something a little different. For those of you who enjoy particular order I apologize in advance! So lets begin shall we…

Christmas in the classroom...

What better place to begin then with some of my adorable students!? Since the beginning of December I have been teaching my students Christmas Carols/songs leading up to this week. This has been a great way to get them to loosen up and be a little silly. I have really enjoyed being able to laugh with them and show them a less strict side of myself and of the classroom. This week I brought my guitar with me and taught them all Joy to the world. Sharing with them the story of a King who was born in a lowly manger. What was crazy was when I finally got this chance it was like this secret that had been welling up inside me bursting to come out. It was great just to share His joy in His story. At the end of class I gave the students paper to make a Christmas card anyone they would like. Over all I would say it was a successful month of teaching!

How sweet is he! Working on their Christmas Cards.



Gingerbread extravaganza...

Last night the girls and I got together for some pre Christmas fun! With some fabulous goodies that arrived via some awesome Mom’s back in the states we made a gingerbread village, drank hot chocolate, ate some peppermint kisses and listened to some festive Christmas music.

Thanks Mom for the hot Chocolate which made this picture/smile possible! :)

My Peppermint creation...I have to say when I heard gingerbread houses I was extremely hesitant because my track record is a little rocky when attempting gingerbread architecture. However for people like myself this mini village version was awesome! They were the perfect size. Although its hard to believe from this picture, my house really was a MESS in the beginning and I'm pretty sure I finished with more icing on me than on the house but the peppermint covered it well and I was pretty proud of my finished product.


Our finished product!

This week has been more difficult than I expected being away from home. At random points it will just hit me and I’ll tear up but after doing some fun activities it started to feel more like Christmas. It was just what I needed to cure the homesick blues! I am missing home and the traditions of the holidays but I am so grateful for the opportunity I have here and the wonderful people He's placed in my life, near and far!

The best way to spread Christmas Cheer is to sing loud for all to hear...

Last weekend we spent our Saturday evening out on the square with between 250-300 high school students singing Christmas carols! It was a blast. It was too complicated to try to explain to my students because their English is so limited but it was great to see the students that came from Leslie and Camille’s school (#1 high school) and Paul and Erin’s school (#3 high school). We honestly had no clue if any students would actually show up and weren’t really sure of a game plan until about five minutes before we arrived. It turned out to be a blast! It was so cool seeing so many students eager to hang out with the foreigners and sing some Christmas songs. Because this is not something that normally happens in the middle of downtown (singing in English/forefingers gathered for all to see) we drew quite a crowd around us. After we sang through the songs we knew the photo ops began and turned into a full on out photo shoot for most of us. Don’t worry we had prepared mentally for this ahead of time and were ready with our best smiles!

These last two pictures were of our favorite Waffle man in town! We went and ate dinner with him after caroling to warm up and eat something good! He is so funny and loves it whenever we come by, considering he sees us often because we love these things! My favorites are chocolate and banana.
Oh the weather outside is frightful..

Whats better when its cold outside then something warm to eat?! A couple weeks ago we had a chance to go out to eat with some of the English teachers at one of the top primary schools in town. Our friend John Randall and his family are here in Huangshi (they just so happen to be the way Dad got me here to begin with!) and he is a teacher at the school. We ate at a really good hot pot restaurant. It was so good to hang out with these sweet teachers and new friends!

The way hot pot works: You sit down at a big round table with a rotating top, they place all the food;ie. meat, veggies and carbs on the table and you choose what you want to cook in your own individual pot of boiling broth. I guess you could compare it to a dinner fondue, like at the melting pot. Its super delicious but takes some getting used to. Figuring out how long to cook what and when.. lets just say I got to wrong more than I got it right the first time but it was fun and yummy!

Making Mexican Happen in China...

Last but not least of the photos is of a girl night we had two weekends ago. We decided we were going to make Mexican food happen and it was delicious!! We made chicken nachos, with Velveeta salsa dip(from stateside), black beans, and fresh salsa it was amazing!

Hilarious story about the chicken for this meal... You see in China as in most other places outside of the West does meat a little differently. I volunteered to go with our sweet Chinese sister Dawn to get the meat, little did I know what I was in for. We waited until the night of, so I knew we couldnt get frozen chicken because it would take forever to thaw. So I tell Dawn we need to get fresh chicken, she politely says "okay, lets go, I'll help you!" like she always does and we take off. I knew we'd be heading towards the meat market because it is a common stop for the people in town on their way home to make dinner. I pass by it often cutting through the streets from my house to downtown and you can smell it a mile away. That was enough to keep me away until this point. I knew I needed to go and help but was not necessarily looking forward to the experience. Mainly because the market is known for selling dog meat. :( We arrive at our destination but I realized Dawn wasn't going in, so I thought, okay well she knows what shes doing I'll follow her. The next thing I know she stops in front of some cages with live chickens staring and clucking at me.. yep. Her exact words being TOTALLY serious were "you want fresh chicken right?" Oh goodness. I can not begin to tell you how I proceeded to explain to Dawn I did not want to know my dinner while it was still alive nor see them kill it and was determined there had to be another way. She laughed at me and I asked her if we could find it already off the bone. Thats when we walked into the actual meat market. Gross. The smell is enough to knock you off your feet if you're not ready for it and the meats literally just hanging out. But you know when in China... Dawn proceeded to go to every vendor making sure she got the best deal/chicken in the place while I was just wishing she would grab anything so I could get out! haha. The whole thing was hilarious and so true of the cultural differences!

Spring Festival..
Some more exciting news on the fore front is that I will be starting my break for China's spring festival on January 3! This is a month that the students and teachers have off to celebrate the coming season and spend time with all of their family. The reason this is so exciting for me is because this means I have a month to explore Asia! I will be gone for almost three weeks stopping in Southern China, Vietnam and Thailand. This is such an awesome opportunity to travel and see new places and new things along with staying focused on pouring out and proclaiming His love over this side of the world!
As you are getting all the preparations ready for Christmas I am prying that you would be filled with a peace and a joy in the understanding of just how faithful He is. This season has taken on a new meaning for me here and its something I will never forget.

Christmas time is here..

Well, I’m a little slack in the area of blogging it seems!! Everyone else around me has updated so I feel like it’s my turn. Things are going well. The temperature dropped drastically in a matter of 24 hours, like literally from being in the 70’s to the upper 30’s overnight! Needless to say I was not prepared mentally or physically for that one. But don’t worry China has many remedies for my problems. First off hot water is the cure and answer to all of your problems, your cold, drink some, your sick, it will heal you, your hoping to get pregnant (which I’m obviously not), it will help you. Its obviously healthier for your body and your mind because if you drink something cold especially being a woman they all look at you like you’re crazy. Also, I now wear on average three layers of clothing before stepping outside my bedroom door, why you ask? This would be because those wonderful, beautiful windows I have enjoyed so much because of their natural lighting are actually awful for insulating warmth. So when I step outside my bedroom there is a 30-degree sting waiting to greet me. I won’t even get into the fact that my shower is literally walls of windows… yep you can only imagine. If I’ve ever not been motivated to bath before, now its even worse. I almost feel as if I’m camping sometimes, but PTL I at least have some kind of heat in my bedroom and living room. I would have no hopes of surviving without it. South Carolina has thinned my blood and ruined me for the cold weather, so I have been challenging myself to toughen up as my dad would say and dare to wear less layers to try and thicken my skin a little before it gets worse! You don’t realize how much you take advantage of buildings with central heating systems. It’s the “small” things like that I never think about until they suddenly do not exist. Even through this experience I’m learning so much and attempting to rewire my perception of the little things I’ve always taken for granted.

BUT with winter comes December which means Christmas decor and classic holiday tunes to set the mood!

I spent the weekend having all sorts of Christmas fun! Going to the “flea market” and hunting down all sorts of goodies to decorate my silver Christmas tree with(as you can see above, I was successful!). I had my holiday music of choice for the moment being, the new Michael Buble CD and the ever classic Nat King Cole, blazing from my computer helping to get the festive juices flowing! I am still in the process of getting all the decorations I have envisioned in my mind up, which is typically the case, but I’ve enjoyed making my apartment feel more like home. I think the idea of being separated from my family and friends this holiday season is really stating to sink in, and yes sometimes I break down (also not surprising I know) but I am so grateful for my sweet China family and our plans to have a Christmas eve dinner/service/sleepover fun! I feel like I am being opened up to the real meaning behind Christmas more than ever before. His love and His truth during this advent season has been sinking deeper into a new place inside of me. Learning how to sit and recognize the constant He is in my life, no matter where I am, no matter what I’m going through, no matter what life has looked like, He is ever present, the sturdiness that has carried me through. The joy in a child being born, a baby, a king who represents the coming of freedom, of new beginnings, rewriting the mistakes that had left us stained, giving us hope and new life. Coming as a baby, living a sinless life, dying on the cross and defeating the grave, knowing He comes to us today through the comforter and He will come again. To serve and be apart of His incredible plan is a blessing and exciting in real ways. To know right where He has each of us, He is positioning us with opportunities, lessons, and grace to bring Him glory and to represent the Kingdom. I have been reflecting lately a lot more on the weight of what this carries. Understanding that He doesn’t just want out lip service but more than that our life service, out actions, our ability to just do because we can. I have seen the fruit of this more so in my life here because without Him I am short tempered and closed off. I can talk a good game but when it comes down to it without relying on Him I am instantly reminded that I am weak in my own strength, feeling discouraged in classes and my ability to build relationships. But when I am empowered through His word and His spirit, I am overflowing with an understanding and a grace that extends beyond myself and am able to see Him moving, to become more aware that all eyes are on me, I mean this literally. I am a foreigner, an outsider, I look different and its obvious I don’t “belong” and most people in my small town don’t know what to do with themselves when they see me, so they stare. I am constantly on display, especially with my students, who watch my every move. What a wake up call. If I am not centered in Him I can get on my soapbox and end up extremely frustrated by the end of the day, not wanting to love or invest in anyone, not the fruit I would hope to produce. Actions matter, they speak more than our words ever can, my students may not be able to understand my words, but they understand my actions, my body language, my reactions, these things speak loud and clear. This revelation has made me wonder what message am I sending? If someone were to look at my life, my actions, my character, never talking to me what would they see? I would only hope His image would project. But JC was radical, He shifted atmospheres so much that when He walked into the room the darkness had to leave, and He is alive and living in me. I hope to grow more in this truth, trusting and believing that with Him the unimaginable is imaginable, the crazy occurrences become normal and the power of His kingdom becomes fully alive. I can not express the ways I have found hope and joy in who He is. For such a time as this. I am continually amazed by His presence and His power.

I have begun to teach the first part of my Christmas lesson. I am starting with simple Christmas traditions and sharing pictures of past Christmas’ in my home. It is a blessing to share with them the joy of my family and our traditions, along with some of my favorite Christmas Carols. This week I am working on The 12 days of Christmas, okay so, its not my favorite but its hilarious to see them so dramatic. By the time we get through the seventh day I can hear them breathing hard and begging me “Teacher I can not go on, its going to kill me, I can not breath.” But by the time they accomplish all twelve they clap for themselves and they all cheer. I have a feeling I’m never going to want to hear the song again for many years after this but its entertaining right now. My next lesson with them will be to share the Christmas story, the real meaning behind why we celebrate. I am most excited about this, a chance to share my heart and my passion with so many students will be incredible. And of coarse there will be fun activities and little gifts from their wonderful teacher (that would be me). :)

An update on the teacher friend I talked about in the last blog: I have had a chance to get to know her and am learning so much about her life and her heart. I am excited as the relationship builds to share more with her who I am and who He is. She is so open to allowing me to be myself. I’m hoping to start going for walks with her and just getting to know her more. She shared with me this past week about her family and the pressures of being a teacher at our school. Dad used her to speak encouragement into me when I needed it most, sharing that she admired my life, my joy and my ability to be outgoing and to love and care for the people around me. Just sharing with me that she appreciates me in her life. I was so humbled in that moment, and grateful, finding his peace and love in the most unexpected ways. I hope with all my heart someday she will fully understand the life I’ve found in Him. Knowing its not me but who lives in me.

I guess that is all for now! Please be prying for me as I begin to really work hard to learn the language beyond the functional level. I want so passionately to communicate with them but I can be easily discouraged and feel overwhelmed! I promise to attempt to get back on top of my blogging game again. I love you all so much and am prying that you would be blessed beyond measure and growing in His abundant love. Please don’t forget my email is always open!! I love being updated on your lives and also to know specifically what I can be prying for!

I will leave you with some great/fun/laughable/terrifying yet real life China facts:

-The coined phrase for my students who love to be dramatic is “Oh my Lady Gaga”

-There is no concept of personal space so when people stare they are not afraid of being all up in your face with eyes that look like they may pop out. These reactions still make me laugh every time.

-Children go to the bathroom wherever is most convenient, public sinks inside restaurants included.

-Cheese hardly exists here

- -street food/venders is a way of life- what I like to call the “fastest” food in China

- I say “hello” about 150 times on a daily basis

-People are super hospitable and instantly except you as apart of their family

-People really do eat dog L (you can imagine MY horror!!!!)

-He is moving in some AWESOME ways!!

Also a shout out to my boy Kevin (blue arm;)) who had a birthday last week! We celebrated with some sushi and numerous yummy desserts.. this was my first China sushi experience and it was wonderful!