9 to 5

We may have adjusted to the time change already. With only one extra nap during the day, the girls both stayed awake until their regular bedtime of 8:30 last night. We only stayed awake until 9:00. Now both Dave and I woke wide awake at 5:00 in the morning, working on a solid 8 hours of sleep. I expect the girls will get a good night's sleep as well, and (dare I say) we may have made it in only 2 days!

Our girls have proven to be quite good travelers. Not only are they adjusting to the time change like champs, they also flew like old pros. The flight left over an hour late, and we spent the entire delay in our seats (often with the seat belt sign on). S-- fell asleep before take-off, and L-- spent the time reading and coloring. She fell asleep as soon as the tires left the ground. Both girls took solid 2 hour naps and were in lovely moods until falling asleep again for the last 4 hours of the flight. Out of 15.5 hours in an airplane, they were awake for around 9 and both kept themselves amused quite well. They watched movies and cartoons, read and colored, played with toys on our vast bulkhead floor (we had all 5 center bulkhead seats to ourselves) and ate their meals like little ladies.

I think these girls are well worth bragging on.

A few items of note upon our return:

1: The temperature in Chicago at this moment is 25F with a windchill is 16. The projected high in Shanghai is 58 degrees. We are well on our way into spring.

2: Upon our return, our driver informed us that his monthly rate would rise by 550 RMB. That's around $75. We took it, because we trust him and we will still be paying a low monthly wage. Our friend out-sourced to a new young man who speaks no English. We are to call him Michael, although I doubt this is his name. We now employ a full-time driver.

3: My favorite thing about American culture is that family life centers around the kitchen. In both of our parents' homes, the kitchen is a large, warm space attached to a family room. Preparing and cleaning up after meals is simple, because the girls play with their toys while I am in both sight and earshot. Our kitchen is a closed off space away from the dining room and away from the toys. Preparing and then washing the dishes after every meal is particularly difficult because I have two young toddlers at my feet, playing with pots and Tupperware rather than toys.

4: We have a friend who is putting together a small group of 2-3 year old little girls to do a bit of a preschool program. I couldn't be more excited. I feel this could be a wonderful answer to prayer - a way for me to really get to know some other moms, and a way to socialize my little girl without shipping her off to full-time school. I'm crossing my fingers that they want to keep going through the next school year.

5: The only thing we left unpacked, and therefore on the counter in Chicago, is S--'s medicine. She takes Pepcid every morning with her yogurt. There seems to be a strong correlation between mornings she did not receive her Pepcid, and evenings where she screams for seemingly no reason. Upon realization, we sought out our stock. Apparently, and rather foolishly, we had brought our last bottle of Pepcid to the states with us and not replenished our stock. Two days in, and she has not screamed all evening either day. We hope that she has outgrown her acid reflux at just the appropriate point. If not, we will embark upon what may be quite a difficult search for Pepcid in China.

Overall, the adjustment back has gone smoothly and I do feel as if I have returned home. We are hosting our regular playgroup this afternoon, and then we are already to the weekend. After which, Dave will travel for most of next week. Please pray for the girls and I, that we have patience with each other and don't suffer from loneliness and isolation.