Pizza

Have you ever heard of the Pioneer Woman? She has a cookbook and blog full of non low-fat foods. Last week I decided to make her potato and leek pizza, inspired to do so mainly because I found Hormel bacon at the supermarket...which was an event in and of itself. I had to contain myself when I saw the bacon because people were already watching me as usual, and I did not want them talking about how the crazy foreigner got excited when she saw bacon. Aside from our brief Christmas trip home, I have not seen anything "Hormel" in 2.5 years. It is amazing how comforting something familiar as a name brand can be...even if I refused to ever eat bacon when I was in the U.S.

Somehow I forgot to actually buy potatoes, but no worries. Our supermarket has also started to stock frozen french fries. We do not actually eat french fries, but I was so excited to see frozen veggies that I bought them anyways. So technically this is a french fry and leek pizza. It was pretty good - a nice variation from our usual homemade pizzas. I think it would be better if I had the different cheeses called for in the recipe, but we are doing good in our corner of Asia if we can locate something other than processed cheese at all. Fortunately for us we can get mozzarella.

Here was our colorful pizza.

Who Ate My Cake?

Two days ago I made a chocolate cake. This cake is a personal favorite of ours. When I was pregnant and struggled to find anything good to eat, this cake always came through for me. It was responsible for the only 10lbs I gained while pregnant in this country, and it was probably responsible for the gestational diabetes I was diagnosed with in Thailand once we arrived there...even though I had only gained 10lbs.

Anyways, yesterday after lunch KB brought the cake from the kitchen joking that I had already started eating my last piece. I did not know what he was talking about. However once he sat the cake in front of me I saw that a little slice had been cut from the cake. KB and I am are scrupulous about having equality in our cake size, so this was not a light matter. I know I did not sneak the slice of cake, and I believe KB when he insisted he did not eat it either. That leaves two other possibilities - either our helper, Ms. Ge, ate the small slice of cake, or our cook, Ms. Song, ate the slice of cake. I tend to believe it was Ms. Song since she has shown an interest in our food before, but why all the secrecy? I would make her a whole cake if she wanted it. Personally I think it is kind of funny. Cake thief.

Why I think I need a fancy new camera

I love this picture. I think it thoroughly captures the cuteness of my daughter. However, I am am so upset about this picture. It is not clear. I try my best to use natural light when I take pictures of AB. I think flashes ruin pictures, and it makes everyone's skin tone look unreal. However my point-and-shoot is not up to speed with me. It seems incapable of taking pictures of less than perfectly still objects in low light. I have tried manipulating it every way I can, and it all ends up with same one way or another - bad quality pictures.

One annoying thing is that if in a hurry it likes to focus on non-human objects, like the elephant in this picture. However, my primary complaint is that it is unable to take clear photos in low light. If I mess with the ISO it will take the picture quickly, but the picture is grainy. I can lower the level of the brightness of the picture, but that just results in a dark "unhappy" looking picture. People have suggested using the "kids and pets" setting, but I think that setting is almost useless and I essentially get the same results, bad pictures.

So, I am saving up for a new camera. KB actually told me to order a new camera for Christmas, but then he realized all we had to buy when we were in the US. He did not actually take back the offer to let me get a new camera, but when I suggested waiting a while he did not say no. If anyone has a suggestion for a basic, entry-level (i.e. not too expensive) DSLR, please pass the word on to me.

What a pity. It is such a cute picture of her.

While in HK...

While in HK for 5 days I managed to only take these two pictures. One picture is of us, obviously, and the other picture is of what we are looking at. What we are looking at is just an inconsequential ordinary street, but I felt like I needed to take a picture of something while we were there.

Kimchi Flavored Potato Chips

AB's Birthday Party

AB's first and only birthday party...and these are the only pictures on my camera. I know my parents and KB's parents have some, thank goodness. Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate AB's first birthday. If I had remembered to take a picture of everyone at the party I would post it now, but as you can clearly see, I do not.

The party was super fun but went by so fast. We ate hamburgers and hotdogs. AB's cake was pink with polka-dots. She was given lots of wonderful gifts, and today her favorite of the gifts are the Little People.

Since it was her first time to eat cake ever, it took her a while to warm up to eating it. I am proud though. She ate like a third of it.

Scary Claus

For just $15 you too can own a genuine "Scary Claus" face mask and suit that is clearly being displayed on a female mannequin.

Flying with Peyton

Our return flight from seeing my grandmother (in December) was not quite full, so after we took off AB and Peyton shared a seat and toys.

Playing with Peyton

AB, my mom, my sister, Paige, Peyton, and I all flew to Lubbock for one day to see my grandmother. While at her house AB and Peyton did what toddlers do best, tear apart a perfectly good Tupperware drawer.

McKenna was a good sport. She often kept an eye on the kiddos too.

My Maw Maw

This morning I received a phone call from my dad telling me that my grandmother has passed away. I was told she passed very peacefully and that all 4 of her children made it to her home before she died. Although not specifically sick with any one illness, her health has been quickly declining over the past 6 months. Her death was not a surprise, but is still quite surreal. In the next day my whole family will be descending upon Lubbock for her burial in Littlefield. I am sad that I will not be able to take part in this time with my family, but I am forever grateful for getting to see her during our trip to the US this Christmas. Bye bye Maw Maw.

New Friends

While at her Lolli and Pop's house AB made some new friends.

This little guy is not too crazy about AB. I can't blame him though. She kept using him to pull up on, to balance on, and she also used him to help her walk. It is like he is saying, "GET HER OFF OF ME!!!"

AB's First Christmas Morning

She was pretty much the center of attention.

Whew! What a Relief!

When we flew back to the Asia we carried with us 5, 50lb suitcases, a stroller, 3 carry-on bags, and 3 personal items. It was a lot of stuff. When the "episode" happened and it was certain that AB and I would be flying to Hong Kong, I frantically opened all of the suitcases, in front of the 6 curious immigration officials...they were especially curious about the Robert Pattinson calendar in one of the bags - gee thanks KB, and started throwing things out of one suitcase, and threw things from the other suitcases back into it. Miraculously AB and I had about 3 days of clothes each, toiletries, a stroller, a carry-on, and a baby bag with us - it is miraculous because I did not even consider what I threw into the suitcase; I just grabbed. KB then had the responsibility of getting everything else home.

Knowing that trying to sneak 4, 50lb suitcases, 2 carry-on bags, and 2 personal items onto the tiny plane that flies us to our city would be next to impossible, KB did the only thing he knew to do. He decided to mail them. He shuffled things around, so that the 2 suit cases he mailed were both 60lbs, and he shoved all of the personal items, and one of the carry-on bags into the two suit cases he flew to our city with. All in all, it only cost $20 to mail 120lbs of luggage. It is crazy cheap.

Since the day he mailed them, we have been a bit nervous. Although they have broken things before, at least everything we have previously mailed has made it to us one way or another. Other people we know have not been so lucky. Friends have told us stories of loosing half of their bag's contents in the mail, or the parcel being "lost" all together. Basically sometimes less than honest postal workers take what they want, and send the rest on. These suitcases of ours contained AB's birthday presents, her clothes for the next year, my awesome new tennis shoes, tons of lovely food from the US, and other random items that make life easier. Most of this stuff we could live without, but cataloguing it for insurance purposes was going to be a pain.

Guess what? They arrived yesterday! Going through the is like opening Christmas presents all over again. I should have left one unpacked just so I can go through the excitement again tomorrow, but I just could not restrain myself. I have already used my new Pyrex 4 cup measuring cup, and it was wonderful.

Jet-Lag

First thing we did the morning after we arrived in the US was go to the mall to take a picture with Santa. We had to do it early before AB's jet-lag set it. On the return trip from the mall this was AB.

Out Of Order

I guess this is one way of indicating a toilet is out of order. Who needs an "Out of Order" sign when you have a super long bamboo stick. It effectively gets the point across.

Happy B-day Loli

Traveling

When we flew to the US we ate lunch at a restaurant in the airport. AB clearly enjoyed her carrot baby food and bread. I think it took like 3 days for the orange to fade from her cheeks.

About 36 hours later she was in a bath tub being give a bath by her Loli.

Going for a Walk

We took this picture just before we left for the US. AB and I are bundled, and Toby is wearing his shoes. I know the shoes look goofy, but they are the only way we let him go on walks and then step a paw back inside our apartment without taking an immediate bath. We have a "no shoe" policy in our home.

Home is Where My Stuff Is

We are finally home! We landed in our city yesterday about 5:15 pm; KB met us there with a waiting taxi and a hot thermos of tea. He was beyond excited to see us. This was the longest he has gone without seeing AB since she was born. While we were flying I saw that every body of water below us was completely frozen. The harbors are also frozen but the ice had been broken up in a few places so that the ships can make it out to sea. So needless to say, it is cold. I am still glad to be home.

In case you did not know, AB got deported when we tried to reenter our country after spending Christmas in the US, and we spent the last 5 days in Hong Kong.

On Monday we dropped off AB's passport at a visa service center with the promise to have it back to us no later than 4pm on Tuesday. However on Tuesday morning I decided since AB had been suffering through a cold for 3 weeks and I cannot take her to the doctor in our hometown, that I should take her to see her pediatrician in Hong Kong just in case. He said she had an ear infection and recommended we not fly until Thursday in order to allow her antibiotics to take away the majority of her ear pain. I felt terrible that she had an ear ache, but she could not have been suffering with it for too long. She had a check-up on Monday last week in the US. I just hate to think her crying on our trans-Pacific flight could have been because she was in pain.

Anyways, on Tuesday we picked up her passport with her spanking new visa nicely stuck inside.

The next day I was amazingly busy for not having much to do. Hong Kong is very easy to get around but it was exhausting because I was on my feet most of the time and AB was strapped to me. It would have been more practical to wear tennis shoes with all the walking we did, but Hong Kong is like New York City. It seemed everyone was willing to sacrifice comfort for fashion. Besides, my new tennis shoes were in another suitcase, in another country with KB. We went to Starbucks a couple times each day just because I needed a place to either rest my feet, feed AB, or go to the restroom. Also compared to the prices of most of the restaurants in HK, Starbucks is quite a bargain.

Thursday morning I made my way to the curb with our large Samsonite hard suitcase, our carry-on roller suitcase, AB's stroller, AB's baby bag, our laptop and laptop bag, and AB strapped to me. If someone wanted a perfect picture of a frantic mother loaded down with junk while trying to wave down a taxi, this was their perfect chance. Thankfully a good Samaritan taxi driver stopped for me relatively quickly and were off to the airport.

The rest of the trip was uneventful. They served Hagan Daz (I have no idea if that is how it is spelled) ice cream on the flight - in economy. It was awesome, but I could not believe the locals were eating something cold during the winter. I was on a great airline, and it looked as if the plane was brand new. If anyone ever plans to travel over here I can give you my list of airlines I recommend and the ones that I would rather take a bus than fly on (i.e. Air Asia).

So right now I am in my PJ's, sitting on AB's sofa, while watching her chew on shoes she has outgrown. Today I have plans to finish taking down Christmas stuff, and maybe go to the grocery store since we are out of chicken. Other than that I plan to do a mix of nothing for the rest of the day and maybe the weekend.

The Adventures of Our Return Trip to Asia

International travel is stressful enough without having a huge, shocking crisis spring on you during the trip...however with the smoothness of our travels in the past, we were due a major, major, MAJOR bump in the road.

First of all, we loved our trip to the US. When we arrived in America it felt like no time had passed at all. Our daughter was the primary proof to myself that almost two and a half years had in fact passed since we were last in the US. Because of our visit I finally realized how uncomfortable and awkward I feel in Asia. We do not blend in by the way we physically look, speak or act. It was so surreal to be in a place where I felt absolutely normal, and it was nice.

Although AB caught a cold almost immediately upon our arrival to the US, she adjusted beautifully to the time change. The biggest hurdle to her contentment was her two new teeth that started coming in the day we flew to Lubbock to see my grandmother, and the 6 injections she received on Monday. I would like to say though, I was as pleased as could be that I was not the person giving the injections - yea for awesome nurses! On Friday morning we boarded a plane bound to San Francisco then to Asia with our 5, 50lb bags, 3 carry-ons, 3 personal pieces, and a stroller. AB did not do as well on her return trans-Pacific flight, but I guess I had it coming with all of her calmness in the previous flights.

The real drama happened when we landed in our country. All ex-patriots know that 1.) You protect your passport, 2.) never let your visa expire, and 3.) ummmm...the Maclaren stroller is the greatest (I made that one up). Which of these three did I violate? None of them. So, why was AB deported on Saturday evening? Unknown to us, in June they mistakenly issued her a visa that only allows one entry into the country, and we used up that entry when we made our trip to Hong Kong in September. However they issued KB and I the correct multiple entry visa. When we were going through immigration on Saturday they told us that her visa was no good. I thought, they must be looking at an old one, but after taking us into "the room," an hour later they finally told me that we either must return to America or fly to another country immediately. It was official, AB was being formally rejected from entry into the country. I tried crying, but it did not soften them up.

KB and I decided that we would, of course, not fly back to the US. Instead two hours later AB and I boarded a plane to Hong Kong without KB. Right now we are in Hong Kong waiting for AB to be issued another visa. KB is home. The whole situation kind of stinks, but somehow it still feels okay. All in all AB and I traveled 35 hours on January 8-9th.

By the way, Saturday was AB's birthday, so when she plays that game "Two Truths and a Lie" she can say "I was deported on my first birthday" and most people will think it is a lie.

AB at 11 Months