JAY DRESSES UP -- CHINESE

NEW CHINESE HAT AND COAT:

JAY BOUGHT A NEW HAT AND COAT FOR THE COLD WINTER WEATHER WE ARE EXPERIENCING AND FOR OUR TRIP THIS THURSDAY TO BEIJING. HE WALKS TO WORK AND BACK EACH DAY, IN THE COLD.

WE ARE LEAVING EARLY AT 6:00 AM AND LOOK FORWARD TO TRAVELING 3 HOURS ON THE FAST "BULLET TRAIN" TO THE 2008 OLYMPIC CITY. WE WILL BE ABLE TO SEE THE COUNTRY SIDE AND SCENERY. SHOULD BE FUN IN BEIJING.

It is Monday morning and Jay has left for school, and my first class isn't till 1:30 pm and the students are coming to our apartment. It is a small class of 20 with only 2 boys in the class. I thought while Jay was gone I would write something of our experience in China inregards to Jay and I. We do a great many things together. In the USA going out to eat was a major hobby. That is not the case is China. Jay has come to like the real Chinese food I am learning to like all their wonderful fruits and vegetables and some Chinese foods.

Our second hobby was watching TV, after 2 months that doesn't happen very often. The word never applies here. We did learn how to use our DVD player on Sunday and I watched MacArthur, -- not a movie to show my Chinese students. After a little while we found ourselves back on ourcomputers listening to a streaming movie. So our new hobby has been walking and finding exciting places to see.

Jinan is such as large place, it will take a long time to do that. Jay has been really patient, as I have had this need to make our apartment our home. On Saturday when we went to this amazing shopping center, 2 miles long, I thought, "I don't need anything else. The windows all have new curtains. The furniture is like I want it and the only room left to paint is the bedroom – perhaps a new throw carpet in there would be nice. The kitchen has every convenince and that I need. I realized that I didn't need all the things that I thought I needed. So it is now time to settle in. I mentioned that to Jay this morning and he said, "I am so grateful, I was wondering when you would be finished with your nesting." Of course rearranging furniture and rooms is still possible.

Part of the reason I fixed the apartment up is that I wanted to have all our students over during the year. What I have done isn't professional, but it is "me" and I feel comfortable with it.

Now about Jay, that is the funniest part of being here. When he was at BYU he loved his students, but the last few years he was so pigeon holed that he did not have as much opportunity to relate with them as in the past.

Now he has 250 graduate students whom he enjoys and loves and they love him. He goes out to lunch with them. They plan tours and activities to take him to and try to make sure I am included. However, I didn't go to the soccer game with them. They also email him letters of appreciation and occasionally ask him for help in editing and improving their English writing applications and resumes (which is he very good at).

They come over to the apartment to visit and talk English. All these things makes him feel of great value now . His Chinese is getting quite good and he works on it every day. He is a very caring person and to be able to use his educational skills to help others has been a great blessing in both our lives. We get blog comments that we really look happy. Like I tell Jay, we don't put in any of the pictures showing us as a little upset, but 98% of the time we are very happy and grateful that we have been chosen to come to China and are having this marvelous growing experience.

We are looking at coming back next year. After our China experience we will be on to other adventures, but for now this is were are supposed to be. We truly have been blessed and are grateful to our children for their support and encouragement in this exciting adventure on the other side of the world.

Where we are located in Jinan China, the time is exactly 14 hours before your local time there in Utah.

So, if you want to know what will happen there or in the world in the next few hours, just email us and we will tell you what is going to happen... LOL