Fresh Mart Store

We are lucky to have a small convenience store in our residence complex.  It's similar to a Stop-N-Go, or 7-11 store.  There is beer and wine, and basics like bread, eggs, etc. The girls are allowed to go to the store on Fridays after school, and buy something with their allowance.  Usually candy or ice cream. 

    Since we live in an expat heavy area, lots of items they stock cater to us.  But some items are just strange.  I saw a bag of Aji-No-Moto - pure MSG.  I haven't seen one in years.  When I was growing up, my family used to sprinkle it on food and cook with it.  Then we found out it may cause cancer, so we stopped.  

Creamed Smoked Roe

$32.24 for (2)

Big Bag of MSG

Bag of MSG - comes w free drink 

Aji-No-Moto (Japanese MSG)

The prices are higher than in a Chinese store, but about the same or a little lower than the import stores like Olé and CityShop.  But you really can't beat the convenience.  

Emily & Katie

     A few weeks ago, Emily's 5th grade participated in the "Invention Convention".  All the students created a product and then made display boards.  They also had to demonstrate it's use.  A group of judges then rated their ideas and gave out awards.  Chris was one of the judges.  Emily created a candy bracelet.  It could be worn like a watch, and had a compartment that could hold candy.  So if you were getting low blood sugar and were on a bike ride, you could have a handy snack on your wrist.  Everyone that visited her display could take a candy sample from her bracelet.

Chris & Emily

Emily & her friend Valentina

candy bracelet

The girls got to spend the day with their favorite baby-sitter, Sirine.  They had lunch at California Pizza Kitchen, went to the Adventure Zone in Kerry Sports, and had a Happy Lemon treat.  

     The girls loved it, and they loved her.  Sirine works with Chris for Disney, and was here on a business trip for a few weeks.  She is so much more fun than Mommy, totally.

Sirine, Katie & Emily

Pizzas!

Adventure Zone

The girls are almost finished with their first year at Shanghai Community International School.  The last day of school is June 14th.  And just like back in Pasadena, the last month of school is very busy.  

Last week, the girls both performed with their classes in the SCIS Spring show.  The 5th graders also spent a day on the middle school campus.  They were given tours and saw a show put on for them by the older students.  

     They were also able to pick their "House Team" for middle school.  Think Harry Potter.  The students participate in House Team activities that combine kids from 6th, 7th and 8th grades, from all different countries and cultures. The House teams are given points for non-athletic competitions, i.e, raising money for a local migrant school, decorating for spirit weeks, participation in recycling drives, etc.  I think it's a great idea.  The older kids become mentors & friends to the younger kids.  The houses are: Monkey, Ox, Snake and Tiger.  Emily is a Monkey.  

    Katie has an after-school movie party this week with all the 2nd grade, and an Ice Cream / Bounce House Party the last week of school.  

     Both girls have made some really nice friends this year, girls from the US, as well as from all over the world.  I think this is the biggest benefit of living here in China.  Yes, their school is great - A Private International Education is something we could never manage back home.  But more important is their ability to learn first-hand that all kids are the same from all over.  Some good, some bad.  And that they can make friends with different people, and be accepted by different people as well.

Buddy's blog

Going for walks is the highlight of my day.  Lately, we've been going a new way.  We walk along the river near our house, and there is less car exhaust.  Mom says pollution is bad for everyone, including dogs.  duh.  Down low where I am, it smells pretty bad.  I have a heightened sense of smell.

So I've been sampling some new treats lately.  They're, uh, …interesting.  Some from Germany and some from Japan.  The dogs they choose to put on the packages are weak at best.  C'mon, is this the best y'got?!
     Lucy won't buy dog food or dog treats from China.  She says some Chinese companies put ground-up sick animals in the dog food.  Eeewww.

He's ok, but too needy looking
Sushi, really?

This dog looks like he's been dumpster diving-
are those eye-brows? 

 little dried fish treats
The dog looks little too yappy for me

 So she gets this new toy that looks cool, haven't had a new rope toy in a while.  But wait, she sprays this stuff on it to make my breath,…wait…what exactly are you insinuating?  My breath is as fresh as any other dog's.  Maybe I just won't play with it then.  Maybe I'll just leave it in the corner, and ignore it.  That would show her.

So what're you saying? huh?
I don't have the freshest breath or what?

num, num, num

a dogs gotta learn to pick his battles

Mommy struggles in Shanghai, and everywhere else

I know this is good for me.  Whenever I am in an uncomfortable situation, I know it must be good for me.  I must really, really be growing as a person.

Living in a foreign country, especially one that is simultaneously modern and ancient as China, can be challenging.  Daily concessions are made, and all we foreign moms are really trying our best to manage each situation.  That said, I sometimes think that as Mothers, we are our own worst enemies.
     As a Mom, I can only speak for myself.  But I don't think I'm off base by assuming that many of us fret over things that aren't in our control (pollution, food safety, etc.).  We ponder, we price compare, we check our watches, we try to stay a step ahead.  Now, this is all too true in the US as well, but I feel like everything gets heightened living outside our comfort zone.
     I have met some incredible women here, some that I hope to be life-long friends with.  I have also felt the judgement and superiority of some that insist they "know best".  Ok, I get it, you are more organized, more adept at managing Shanghai, healthier, holier, smarter, etc., etc., - OK, you win.  
And sometimes I admit, that judgement gets to me: "Why am I struggling?  Everyone else has got it together".

I'm also not saying that I haven't been guilty of "judgement-itis".  Yes, I have shushed kids that were screaming.  I have stared down a Mom that I saw striking her kid at Carrefore.  I've wondered how parents can leave their teenagers alone so much, and be shocked when they get into trouble.

But I do get that everyone, EVERYONE, has a different experience that is solely their own.  Some families are here with kids, toddlers, infants or teens.  Some kids have allergies, some Moms are pregnant.  Some Dads are at home, and the wives are working.  Some are here, and their grown children are back in the US.  Some families have access to a personal driver, some have large spending budgets, some have a full-time Ayi.

I read a post about a Mom who got stuck in the rain with her toddler while shopping here in Shanghai.  Taking the Metro is not easy with a toddler, especially while carrying grocery bags.  I've had subway doors close on me, and I had to pry them open to get through.  But trying to catch a taxi in the rain here is really, really hard - they all seem to disappear.  So I'm reading this and picturing a Mom and little boy, stuck in the pouring rain, she's trying to hold groceries, an umbrella and the boy's hand, and trying to hail a taxi.  It's crowded, and windy.  And the taxi driver charges her double.    
     I know this same scene could play out anywhere, in any country, at anytime.  But I also know if it were my situation I was living in, I would want to cry, and struggle to hold it together.

So I need to remember this.  To try not to listen to the critical voices.  To cut myself a little more slack.    

Sunday with Disney VoluntEars

     Yesterday we had an opportunity to volunteer with other Disney families.  Disney is sponsoring a wing at a local children's hospital, and the walls will be decorated with canvas paintings of "Small World" children.  We had the chance to help-out, and also spend the day painting.  Everyone had a great time.  The most productive people were the kids.  They each managed to paint 2-3 canvas' each.  The adults were much too serious and precise.  We had to stay within the lines and be perfect, so we accomplished much less.  Of course.
      It was the first time our family volunteered together, and it was a nice experience.  We will definitely want to do it again.

Disney VoluntEars

Katie & Nomi

Emily & Chris

first one done!

watched by the communist party -
stay in the lines little girl!

Emily

Lunchtime in China

Lunch is always by 12:00 noon to around 1:00.  Not 1:30, not 2:00, always around noon.

     Sometimes if I am shopping during lunchtime, the counter person might be eating lunch.  Instead of sandwiches or chips, they might have fruit or a cup of instant noodles.  I rarely see anyone eating a sandwich, but I think that might be changing.  Subway sandwiches are starting to gain in popularity.
     But the most popular meal is a boxed lunch or Asian-style bento.  Always rice, stewed vegetables, small portion of meat or fish cake, and maybe a hard-boiled egg.  Vendors on bicycles with a trailer attached haul stacks and stacks of pre-packed box lunches to construction areas, subway stations and residence apartment complexes.  Boxed lunches are also sold at convenience stores and markets.  Pre-made lunches are very inexpensive - around ¥12 - ¥18 - which is about $2.00 - $2.50.
     We live near the Shanghai Expo Center.  When an event is scheduled, there is a ton of construction   beforehand.  Trucks line the streets and workers are everywhere, lots of deliveries of set pieces, furniture, scaffolds, merchandise, etc.  But at noon, all business stops.  The construction workers, truck drivers, gate guards, etc., line the streets and eat lunch.  In China, it is standard for workers to have a hot lunch.  The streets are lined with food vendors, each offering different selections.  They cook on gas grills or burners on the back of motorcycle carts and make-shift tables.  They provide a variety of items, and each vendor has a specialty.  The workers pick the meal items they want, then sit on the curbs, or on their hard-hats, or in their vehicles and silently eat.  Then, they all smoke.

Yesterday it was raining, but no problem.  Vendors covered their soup pots with plastic tarps, people ate huddled under umbrellas, they even took turns holding boards over each other so the rain didn't get on their plate.

Nothing interrupts lunch.

everyone leaves their trash

sittin'.  eatin'

cleaning up after everyone

dining on unloaded furniture

drinks

wok cooking

delivery crate as table

making a box lunch

don't rain on my food

hurry up and eat so you can hold the board

fish trash

lemme squeeze in

Mother's Day 2013

     First of all, let me say in a completely un-biased way, that my girls are the best.  That said, sometimes they are also the most challenging people on the planet.  The most annoying, selfish, sassiest, kindest, sweetest, creative and surprising.  All at the same time.
     Emily & Katie, like lots of sisters are so alike and so different.  They teach me as much as I teach them, and I am lucky to be their mom.

Happy Mother's Day in Mandarin

drawing of Katie & Me

Going to lunch

Happy Katie

 We had lunch at the Intercontinental Hotel in Pudong by the Expo.  It was really nice, and we saw families from the kids' school as well.  Lots of the standard food stations: Dim Sum, Chinese, Indian, Roast Beef & Turkey, etc.  There was also a whole roast Lamb, Emily said "Is that a camel?".  

whole lamb, but it does look like a camel

Dessert was great.  There was a whole honeycomb sheet, and Katie helped me spoon out some for my cheese plate.  Of course there was a chocolate fountain as well. 

honey comb

Lucy's dessert:
peach tart, cheese, walnuts, honey & bread

Chris' dessert:
cheesecake, tiramisu and
dipped chocolate chip cookie sandwich w peanut butter in the center

chocolate dipped marshmallow

strawberry panna cotta, brownies

here's the bill

the Lamb girls