A Tasty Cough Remedy

About a week ago, our whole family developed that nasty sinus stuff that we get at least once a year.  However, I was the only lucky one that got a loud, hacking cough to go with it.  I think our language tutor got tired of hearing me bark, so she suggested a popular East Asian treatment.

As a person who loves essential oils, has tried acupuncture, and is open to most natural remedies, I love learning about how other cultures "treat and cure" certain illnesses.

I found my favorite one to date: The Pear & Sugar Cough Remedy

You'll need:

1-2 pears per day (depending on size)
1 bag of raw, natural sugar cubes (they really just look like rocks)

If you are super talented, carve out the core of the pear with a knife, being careful not to puncture the sides or the bottom of it.  I'm not that skillful, so I just cut the pears in half and dug out the core with a knife & spoon.  The point is that you need a good groove to hold liquid, without sacrificing the yummy flesh of the pear.

Next, stack as many sugar rocks cubes as you can in said groove.  Now, you need a good way to steam them (NOT in the microwave).  I used our rice cooker.  It comes with a little basket to steam veggies, fruits, etc.

Place those puppies in, let them steam until the sugar is melted into liquid perfection and the pear is soft.  Drink the liquid sugar and eat the pear.  From what I understand, the pear delivers good antioxidants to push the bad stuff out of your body, and the liquid, raw sugar coats your throat and suppresses your cough.  This particular area of the world NEVER recommends sugar for anything, so I knew the suggestion must be legit!

I don't know if there's any scientific backing, but my cough is better today than yesterday! Plus, it is SO VERY YUMMY!

Flying With a Toddler

Hey Mommas!

If you're reading this post, chances are you don't actually have time to read it for the same reason that I don't have much time to write it.  We have kids.  And lives.  And blogging takes up either quality time or sleepy time!  So, I'm going to try to get to the bottom line when it comes to flying internationally with a toddler.

Before our journey, I searched the internet for tips on this subject with little success.  Why is no one writing about this?  Imagining a hyper-active toddler on a 14 hour flight is enough to give even the most easy-going momma a small anxiety attack!

So, this is how it went for us.

• STICKERS, STICKERS, STICKERS!!!
• These, along with a few other disposable toys (like pipe cleaners and pom poms) provided immense entertainment for A.  Keep the toys lightweight and preferably of a throw-away nature.  Not only are things easily lost on long trips, they can get heavy. 

• Bring the Baby Carrier.  Counts as a baby item and gets on for free.

• Bring the Carseat, if it's a one-way trip and your baby is cool with it.  Also counts as a baby item, for free. Will you need it where you're going? Probably not.  But it's really great to be able to strap your kiddo in during meal and/or nap times...and take off...and landing...

• Bring the Stroller.  Good for layovers and acts as a great dolly for all of your carry-on luggage! They will most likely gate check this, but check your airline for specifics. 

• Benadryl Not Necessary.  I heard both opinions before we flew and eventually decided against it.  Although A might fall asleep with it, the quality of her sleep is never good.  We packed her PJs, her stuffed penguin, her toothbrush and the book we read every night before bed.  Making the routine as close to normal as we could definitely helped settle her down.  She slept for the majority of all of our flights.  She was a little fussy because she didn't get much run-around time, but we had almost no lay-over time. 

• Bring the appropriate food and snacks.  We ended up packing almost too much food for A (she actually ate the plane food!), but it was nice to have snacks left over when we arrived.  I would think carefully about milk.  We couldn't find it in any of our airports (even SFO), and they didn't have much on the plane.  However, there really isn't a good way to keep it cold long enough to cross the globe.  So, I would recommend either taking your chances on finding it on your journey or just buy the boxed stuff that doesn't need refrigeration.  You should be able to claim it as a baby item when you check in and go through security. 

• Not required, but we make these airplane bags (pictured below).  I wish I would have thought to include a translated version.  The girls behind us really appreciated them, and I think it reminded them of the sleeping baby a few inches away.  I noticed that they tried to keep the light off and stay quiet even when they were talking/playing games.  

• Don't impose your usual technology limits.  Honestly, A didn't really end up playing with our baby-friendly technology much, but I heard this advice from several people.  The plane will most likely have in seat entertainment, and Frozen is probably on there.  She. Was. Riveted.  I think it's an in-born trait for females under 12 to love "Let It Go".

• Navigating Airports.  If you are traveling with your spouse, decide beforehand who handles the important documents, who handles the kiddo, who talks to people, and who carries what luggage.  Just do this.  Please. 

• Be sure to check specifics with your airline!  We had 3 SEPERATE SEATS on ALL 3 FLIGHTS.  Seriously? Anyway, we called United three weeks before our flight, and they said there's nothing they could do.  Right.  So, we called two days before our flight and not only got seats together, but got a free upgrade on one of our flights.  Woot!  Also, for many airlines, family boarding is a things of the past.  Boo.  So, check the policies on prices, gate checking, and boarding procedures. 

• Tell yourself that you can do anything for 14-30 hours.  It will be over, eventually, I promise.

Those are the big ones!  Anything else you can think of?

Our New Home!

Here it is, our high-rise apartment in the middle of a city of about 13 million!

It's still a work in progress, but it's feeling much more homey (and clean), these days.  Amazing how two trips to Ikea can do that:).  Also, the majority of the furniture and all of the curtains belong to our landlord.

The rooms are all pretty self explanatory: kitchen, dining area, living room, master bedroom, and study/guest room.  However, the second picture is best described as a mudroom.  We have the Fort Knox of all front doors, this area, then another door into the actual apartment.  In this entry area, we have the landlord's extra furniture, the washer & dryer, and our strollers.

I didn't take any pictures of Addie's room because it's pretty unremarkable.  There is a pack n play, a changing table, and a very unstable wardrobe.  I wish her room and our master felt more homey, but we'll only be in this particular place for about 18 months to 2 years, so I'm not sure I want to invest a whole lot in it.  Anything we buy, we'll have to ship.

One day, she'll have a room that's as bright and sunny as she is!

Our place has a lot of great things about it, and we are very thankful for it!

What We Packed: Looking Back On Our Move

Hi There!  I know I've been absent from blogging for about 4 months now, but, we hadn't actually started our "Asian Adventure" yet, so what could I really talk about? 

In my last post, I talked about what we were packing (by, the way, I didn't realized how many grammatical errors I made.  Sorry.).   Two months of training, some wisdom from experienced expats, and lots of strategizing changed our list slightly.  So, let me do a follow up on what actually went down...er...over. :)

I dramatically stated that we were fitting our entire lives into 6 bags.  Correction.  We fit it into 7 fifty pound bags, 3 backpacks, 2 carry-on suitcases, a camouflage diaper bag, a stroller, and a carseat.  Whew!  We paid for one extra bag and carried-on or gate checked the rest. 

*People have asked what kind of bags we took.  We took a standard rolling suitcase, this, this, and 4 of these.  Overall, the variety of luggage served us well, and the duffel bags held up like beasts. 

Here's what actually made it to EA.

Clothes- After packing and moving several times over the last 7 months, I began to experience this overwhelming feeling of I NEED TO PURGE EVERYTHING.  Also, we knew that H&M, GAP, and oldnavy.cn could help us in a pinch.  So, we purged and tossed and trashed.  Brad and I cut down our clothes to just our favorite items.  So far, we haven't missed much.  NOTE: I did not plan on how hot it would be here in our first city, and I sorta forgot that the rest of the world doesn't utilize air conditioners quite like the US does.  So, about three weeks in, I made a quick trip to H&M and scored some 20 and 30 Kuai (about $3-$5) short-sleeved shirts.  Also, they totally carry larger (not taller) sizes.  No worries.  For Addie, we went to Once Upon a Child and stocked up clothes 18M through 2T. 

Shoes: One of the best things I thought to bring were my crocs rain boots.  It rains often and unexpectedly here, and these are very lightweight and can even roll up.  Other than that, I brought my Toms, one pair of old flip flops, tennis shoes, and two pairs of heels (which I haven't even glanced at, yet).  Brad wears his Chacos pretty much every day. 

Bedding:  We were provided a pack n play, so we brought a couple extra sheets for that.  Would do that again, simply because finding them here is possible, but not quick or easy.  I also ended up packing my favorite soft fuzzy blanket, a quilt for Addie, a few of her smaller lightweight blankets, and a duvet cover (this is totally not necessary, but it didn't weigh much or take up a lot of room...it was nice to be able to put it on the bed the first night that we were here). 

Homey Items: The picture frames, family photos, and this awesome pillow have generated many compliments and made the apartment feel like it's ours.  

Medicine:  The one trunk we brought was packed full of mostly medicine and toiletries.  I DO NOT want to be ill and trying to decipher a foreign language to figure out what might help.  We brought Motrin, Tylenol, and Benadryl (adult and child), Tums, Pepto, various allergy medicines, the stuff that makes you go, the stuff that makes you stop going, sleep aids, bandaids, Neosporin, Aquaphor, and Addie's pediatrician even gave us some antibiotics, just in case. Highly recommended.   

Toiletries: Deodorant, shaving accessories, and make-up made it into the trunk.  The first two are available here, but limited and very expensive.  I brought my clinique liquid foundation and NAKED palettes.  The other stuff is easily found in local shops. 

Spices/Mixes: Taco, chili, and fajita seasoning, ranch dressing mix, soup and gravy mixes, etc. Again, in our large city, we can find some of these things, but not always and it's even less likely if you live in a smaller city.  The only thing in this category I regret not bringing is chocolate chips.  It never occurred to me that they wouldn't have them here. 

Toys: We brought her favorite toys and books, and bought a couple of new toys at IKEA.  The big pink tent has been a hit.  I wish we would've packed crayons.  They have markers and colored pencils here, but not crayons?????   However, we can find almost anything, including WASHABLE crayons on Taobao.com. 

*I think I'm going to do a separate post on flying with a toddler and lots of baggage*

Books:  We packed almost none.  We ended up having just enough weight for our electronics, Bibles, and the Duck Dynasty book that Brad snuck in:).  Kindle books are our friend. 

Water Bottles: At the suggestion of a good friend, we packed our adult and baby Camelbak bottles.  Because the tap water here has a high mercury content, we have filtered water delivered to us every week. We just fill up our bottles and go.  Bottled water and assorted sodas are usually available at restaurants, but toddler friendly drinks/cups are not.  Highly recommend bringing this wherever you go! 

A Collapsible Booster Seat: Most restaurants don't have high chairs.  PTL for the wise lady that told me to bring one.  We brought this one. 

Other than that, we packed a few odds and ends (like our favorite coffee mugs,  power converters, and the baby monitor) and feel really good about what we brought and didn't bring.  The expat community here has been very helpful in helping us find things and lending us items that we didn't know we needed.   We have been shown how much stuff we DO NOT NEED.  I've really enjoyed having our apartment look so clutter free!  I know collecting things is just part of our nature, but I really hope we can keep our belongings close to this level of simple.

What do you think? Did we miss anything? Hah!   

Moving Overseas: What We're Packing

6 Bags...We're fitting our entire lives into 6  50lb. duffel bags.  The company that we work for is giving us a flight allowance of 2 bags per person (not including carry-ons), and an "outfitting allowance" for furnishing our apartment.  Here's the tricky part.  We're moving to a mostly furnished apartment in our city where we'll do 2 years of language school.  After we get to the advanced level and pass our exams, then we can move on to actually working with our global non-profit.  We DO NOT get another outfitting allowance, even though we'll probably be moving to an unfurnished apartment.  So, Brad and I will have to be very careful to save the majority of our allowance for our "job city."

But I have good new!

There's an Ikea in our city...3 to be exact:)

For a girl who has never lived even close to an Ikea...I'm pumped.

Anyway, here are some of the things that we will take with us.  Some are "no-duh" items, but some you might not expect.

-Clothes...Brad and I feel pretty comfortable taking as many clothes as we want seeing as how he is 6'3" ish and I'm 5'9".  I'm not likely to find a size Tall in anything denim.  The good news...both cities have an H&M and one of them has a GAP.  However, they don't carry anything above a medium.  Not a problem as of now, but it's good motivation to stay skinny!  Also, most clothes made for kids ages 0-4 have a hole in the crotch because they don't really do diapers...eek! So, we will also be stocking clothes for Addie.

-Shoes.  The shoes over there are not good quality and have very thin soles.  Also, they only go up to Size 9 (I'm right at 9/9.5)

-Bedsheets/Cribsheets

-Medicine...not only do we not want to play a guessing game with type/dose when we don't know the language, but, sometimes, medicine is not...ahem...of the same quality.  We will be loading up on the stuff, particularly baby meds.

-The "homey" items.  I've been told to bring little things that make it feel like home.  So, I took this as license to go buy the most adorable set of picture frames from Hobby Lobby:)  Also, we'll be bringing all of our family photos and our massive world map.

-Certain spices/mixes.  I'll probably do an entire post devoted to food, but we'll be bringing things like Tony's, ranch packets, chili/taco seasoning packets, etc.

-Toys for Addie.  While a great selection of toys are readily available over there, we'll pack up her favorites.  For Christmas, I bought her a huge pink tent that folds up very small.  That way, where ever we move, she'll always be able to bring "her space."  Also, there's a pink penguin that she sleep with every night.  She might love it more than she loves us...

-Books.  Brad will be responsible for doing some teaching/training, and, if you know me, you know that it'll be easier to part with certain humans than to leave my counseling books behind.  We're not really sure if they'll come with us on the plane or if we'll have them shipped. But we NEED our books.

-Deodorant.  We're packing like, 2 years worth.  Seriously, they don't sell it anywhere over there.

-Razors/Razor Blades/Shaving Cream.  The selection will be limited and expensive, so we'll probably take at least some of our own.

-Make up.  Unlike our side of the globe, pale skin is IN over there.  Most make ups have a lightening agent in it.  I don't need any help in that area, thank you.  I'll be bringing a little Clinique with me:)

****Lastly****

-A sense of humor!  I know we're going to find ourselves in situations where we either want to laugh or cry hysterically.  I hope we choose to laugh!

I know I've forgotten some things that we'll bring, but this is the majority of it!

Can you think of anything I've forgotten?

To Our NOLA Family

To Our NOLA family....  

It's funny.  Almost 5 years ago, we moved to New Orleans, and I HATED IT.  I cried every time we left Hattiesburg to go to the city where left turns are unheard of, potholes are waiting to annihilate your tires, and customer service is, ahem, an experience, and there's a real possibility of getting shanked in a McDonald's parking lot. That last one's an inside joke...but, seriously. 

When we moved, I cried harder the day we left the Crescent City than I EVER did when we first moved there. I love the Indian couple that runs the Subway we always went to. I love that I now say, "We just made 4 years married." I love that the city shuts down on Mardi Gras day (even Target!). I love that New Orleans has spoiled me, and chain restaurants are no longer very appealing. Mostly, I just loved the mixture of people that I found in the city!

You see, we've weathered a good bit in our 4 1/2 years there.  The newlywed days, multiple jobs (for both of us), 3 apartments, 1 house, a dog, a miscarriage, Addie, 2 masters degrees, and much more. 

See those things I've listed above? You don't do those on your own! We will never be able to fully express our gratitude to those who have walked with us these past 4 years.  You will never know how much you will be missed. You were an answer to a year of prayers, and the Lord has blessed us tremendously through all of you.  Thank you for letting us serve alongside you. Thank you for encouraging us, praying for us, and challenging us. Also, thanks for all the times you helped us move...I stopped counting at 5. :/

So, to our New Orleans family, thank you so much!  We will miss you every bit as much as our biological families!