We have car insurance! Next step is getting the release from the loan people so we can set up a pick-up time for the car to go to the port. We have landlord insurance! The sign goes up in the yard on Saturday and everyone cross your fingers that we get a renter starting in April. Still need to get personal property insurance.
Last week was Katherine's birthday and the festivities spread out over the week with a dinner out to Sakura (Japanese steak house where they cook at your table). A couple days later, grandma took her for an overnight to get new shoes, a haircut and to see a show at my old high school. It was Beauty and the Beast and a rather unique production. Then on Sunday we all went to grandma's house to celebrate both of their birthdays since Katherine was born on the 5th, just like my mom.
We were supposed to celebrate with her at school as well, but Friday turned out to be a snow day. And so was Monday! You know, the past 2 1/2 months I don't think that Katherine has had but one full week of school.
So, the little lesson on the Philippines that we were planning to do last week has been post-poned to tomorrow. Since it's also Valentine's Day, it's going to be a do-nothing day as far as work for those First Graders.
This afternoon we're putting together Katherine's valentines. We all made heart sugar cookies last week, so those along with some little chocolates from Paris (courtesy of grandpa) will be her valentines.
Thursday, February 13, 2003
Sunday, February 2, 2003
Should have just stayed in bed.
Yesterday we went skiing at Ski Liberty in Pennsylvania. It's a once-a-year treat for us.
Earlier in the week we registered the girls for lessons. Rebecca was taking the very beginner class and Katherine was going to take the learning to turn class. For 2 hours they were going to lessons, snack, etc. We paid over the phone.
Got there before noon, get lift tickets and rental tickets for Ian and me. Woman at the window says to take the girls to the learning center and they'll take care of everything. Ian takes the girls, I head over to the boot/ski place with Jerry, Julie and Jeff so we can get Jerry and Jeff over to their beginner lessons. As we're going through the lines, Ian comes panting up WITH both girls in tow, saying that it's still up to us to get them fitted out. There's like, 5 minutes before class, it takes longer than that to get everything and get to the bunny slope.
Get there and all the noon classes have gone out. We find Rebecca's class and put her in, we ask the various instructors we see where the learning to turn class is. They tell us to ask at the learning center, learning center tells us they're on the slope. It's 12:15 and at least Jerry and Jeff and Rebecca are in their classes, but Julie and I can't ski yet and Ian doesn't even have boots yet. Finally someone says they'll get another instructor. They put Katherine in a class with another kid, but that kid has never skiied before.
Finally, Ian gets set so he and Julie and I do a run down the bunny slope, then head to the top of the mountain for a longer run. We get to do several runs when we notice that the guys' classes are wearing down about the same time the girls' classes are, so we wave to Jeff and Jerry, watch Jeff wipe out, and head over to the bunny slope so we can pick everyone up.
Get Katherine, she's upset because she didn't get to go on the lift at all. The other kid in her class wouldn't go, so she was stuck at the bottom of the slope, no poles, doing stuff she did last year. She's itching to get some poles and go on the lifts. Ian goes with her to get poles. Then, we get Rebecca, who is doing great on skis (surprise surprise!) but informs us that they didn't get a snack at all. We had an early breakfast, no lunch, it's now 2 p.m. and the snack that was part of the class wasn't given to her, so she's starving. Knowing how she is though, I coax her into going down the bunny slope with Julie, Katherine and I first.
Meanwhile, the guys got out of their class, and Jerry is doing great (Jerry is/was a pretty crappy skiier :) ) but Jeff is walking down the bunny slope. Before I get on the lift with Rebecca, I meet up with him to find out that the wipeout I'd seen had either broken his arm or dislocated his shoulder. He headed for 1st Aide. Ian sent Katherine back with her poles, and met up with Jeff. I'd gotten in line for the lift with Rebecca, Julie and Jerry were with Katherine further back. They shout up that Jeff had dislocated this shoulder and Ian had just taken him to the hospital.
It's 2 p.m., half way through out flex ticket. Ian has taken the car, the cash. We ski.
I go down the slope with Rebecca, she has already decided that she wants a snack and I don't blame her, she's hungry and thirsty. So I try to coax her into one more trip down beforehand but it's a no go. She says we'll ski again after.
So, Katherine goes off to ski more with Jerry and Julie and I take Rebecca to the lodge. We find a place to stow the skis, we go into the lodge, she wants a cinnamon roll. The only place that sells them is cash only, I have none. So we go to find the ATM. The one I know of is out of order. We find the other, get cash, get in the ridiculously long line, get our snack. It's after 3:30 p.m., cause anyone who's walked in snow boots knows that you go slower than molasses. We eat our snack, and Julie comes over asking if we'll take Katherine so that she and Jerry can do the longer slopes. Katherine comes and sits down, my Flex ticket runs out. We return all our skis and poles. I finally looked at the girls passes and their lift tikets don't run out for another hour *smacks head* I assumed their 4 hour ticket would run out the same time ours did. They can't even go on the bunny slope alone. Stupid mom.
Shortly after 4, Jerry and Julie come back. The girls and I have a snowball fight. We sit for a bit then decide to try to figure out how long we're actually going to be there. None of our cell phones work as we're out of service range. We headed to the 1st Aide center where we learn that the guys are at Gettysburg hospital and it's only 8 miles away. I even get to call with their phone, get passes around, finally talk to Jeff's nurse who says that Jeff is totally groggy and not ready to be released yet, but that Ian just left to come get us.
We're still wearing our ski boots. All os us had assumed that since Ian had the locker key that he's still have it. After 5, brilliant Julie figures it's worth a check since Ian and Jeff had to get -their- shoes, they might ahve just left the locker open. Wouldn't you know....
So, she gets her shoes, Ian pulls up, the rest of us get our shoes, we leave back to Gettysburg.
Get there, Jeff isn't ready yet, we watch the miserable footage of the Columbia disintegrating, that horrible news that had me in tears on the way to the slope in the morning, this is our first chance to see anything about it.
Jeff gets released, we head home, stop for Wendy's, get back to my parents house after 9, the boys were asleep but we scooped them up and brought everyone home. Jeff stayed over with us last night and Ian brought him back to his car this afternoon (parked at my parents' house).
All in all, the 5 of us (Jeff, Ian, me, Katherine and Rebecca) spent over $400 for lessons, rental, skis and 4 hours each of lift time. We got about 1/2 what we paid for, and this was Jeff's first time ever skiing and I feel totally bad for him that this is how it was spent.
Earlier in the week we registered the girls for lessons. Rebecca was taking the very beginner class and Katherine was going to take the learning to turn class. For 2 hours they were going to lessons, snack, etc. We paid over the phone.
Got there before noon, get lift tickets and rental tickets for Ian and me. Woman at the window says to take the girls to the learning center and they'll take care of everything. Ian takes the girls, I head over to the boot/ski place with Jerry, Julie and Jeff so we can get Jerry and Jeff over to their beginner lessons. As we're going through the lines, Ian comes panting up WITH both girls in tow, saying that it's still up to us to get them fitted out. There's like, 5 minutes before class, it takes longer than that to get everything and get to the bunny slope.
Get there and all the noon classes have gone out. We find Rebecca's class and put her in, we ask the various instructors we see where the learning to turn class is. They tell us to ask at the learning center, learning center tells us they're on the slope. It's 12:15 and at least Jerry and Jeff and Rebecca are in their classes, but Julie and I can't ski yet and Ian doesn't even have boots yet. Finally someone says they'll get another instructor. They put Katherine in a class with another kid, but that kid has never skiied before.
Finally, Ian gets set so he and Julie and I do a run down the bunny slope, then head to the top of the mountain for a longer run. We get to do several runs when we notice that the guys' classes are wearing down about the same time the girls' classes are, so we wave to Jeff and Jerry, watch Jeff wipe out, and head over to the bunny slope so we can pick everyone up.
Get Katherine, she's upset because she didn't get to go on the lift at all. The other kid in her class wouldn't go, so she was stuck at the bottom of the slope, no poles, doing stuff she did last year. She's itching to get some poles and go on the lifts. Ian goes with her to get poles. Then, we get Rebecca, who is doing great on skis (surprise surprise!) but informs us that they didn't get a snack at all. We had an early breakfast, no lunch, it's now 2 p.m. and the snack that was part of the class wasn't given to her, so she's starving. Knowing how she is though, I coax her into going down the bunny slope with Julie, Katherine and I first.
Meanwhile, the guys got out of their class, and Jerry is doing great (Jerry is/was a pretty crappy skiier :) ) but Jeff is walking down the bunny slope. Before I get on the lift with Rebecca, I meet up with him to find out that the wipeout I'd seen had either broken his arm or dislocated his shoulder. He headed for 1st Aide. Ian sent Katherine back with her poles, and met up with Jeff. I'd gotten in line for the lift with Rebecca, Julie and Jerry were with Katherine further back. They shout up that Jeff had dislocated this shoulder and Ian had just taken him to the hospital.
It's 2 p.m., half way through out flex ticket. Ian has taken the car, the cash. We ski.
I go down the slope with Rebecca, she has already decided that she wants a snack and I don't blame her, she's hungry and thirsty. So I try to coax her into one more trip down beforehand but it's a no go. She says we'll ski again after.
So, Katherine goes off to ski more with Jerry and Julie and I take Rebecca to the lodge. We find a place to stow the skis, we go into the lodge, she wants a cinnamon roll. The only place that sells them is cash only, I have none. So we go to find the ATM. The one I know of is out of order. We find the other, get cash, get in the ridiculously long line, get our snack. It's after 3:30 p.m., cause anyone who's walked in snow boots knows that you go slower than molasses. We eat our snack, and Julie comes over asking if we'll take Katherine so that she and Jerry can do the longer slopes. Katherine comes and sits down, my Flex ticket runs out. We return all our skis and poles. I finally looked at the girls passes and their lift tikets don't run out for another hour *smacks head* I assumed their 4 hour ticket would run out the same time ours did. They can't even go on the bunny slope alone. Stupid mom.
Shortly after 4, Jerry and Julie come back. The girls and I have a snowball fight. We sit for a bit then decide to try to figure out how long we're actually going to be there. None of our cell phones work as we're out of service range. We headed to the 1st Aide center where we learn that the guys are at Gettysburg hospital and it's only 8 miles away. I even get to call with their phone, get passes around, finally talk to Jeff's nurse who says that Jeff is totally groggy and not ready to be released yet, but that Ian just left to come get us.
We're still wearing our ski boots. All os us had assumed that since Ian had the locker key that he's still have it. After 5, brilliant Julie figures it's worth a check since Ian and Jeff had to get -their- shoes, they might ahve just left the locker open. Wouldn't you know....
So, she gets her shoes, Ian pulls up, the rest of us get our shoes, we leave back to Gettysburg.
Get there, Jeff isn't ready yet, we watch the miserable footage of the Columbia disintegrating, that horrible news that had me in tears on the way to the slope in the morning, this is our first chance to see anything about it.
Jeff gets released, we head home, stop for Wendy's, get back to my parents house after 9, the boys were asleep but we scooped them up and brought everyone home. Jeff stayed over with us last night and Ian brought him back to his car this afternoon (parked at my parents' house).
All in all, the 5 of us (Jeff, Ian, me, Katherine and Rebecca) spent over $400 for lessons, rental, skis and 4 hours each of lift time. We got about 1/2 what we paid for, and this was Jeff's first time ever skiing and I feel totally bad for him that this is how it was spent.
Friday, January 31, 2003
A few more things checked off.
We've gotten an overseas insurance quote (including marine, etc) for our van, so we'll send off the application and fee, and our car will finally be set. Then we'll have to schedule the pick-up to have it driven to the port.
Also have the landlord insurance finally getting somewhere. What a pain that has been.
I'll be picking up the girls' dental records today to keep for school admission. On Tuesday of this week Rebecca went for her 5 year check-up along with a vision and hearing screen, so she should be set for Kindergarten in the fall.
We also e-filed out tax returns, so getting our refund us will totally set us for our move.
Also have the landlord insurance finally getting somewhere. What a pain that has been.
I'll be picking up the girls' dental records today to keep for school admission. On Tuesday of this week Rebecca went for her 5 year check-up along with a vision and hearing screen, so she should be set for Kindergarten in the fall.
We also e-filed out tax returns, so getting our refund us will totally set us for our move.
Monday, January 27, 2003
More stuff done
My my my I'm chatty today.
I've called the chimney sweep and although they didn't have the one requirement by Ian's standards (an outrageous cockney accent), I saw their truck down our street last week, so I know they're doing actual business on our road. I also called the carpet cleaner and scheduled a chem-dry cleaning for the whole house. I also called a couple maid services to come in and clean the kitchen and bathrooms once the house is packed and empty. This is totally new territory for me, but I figure anything they do beyond what I've already done by then has to be good, right?
Now if only I could get landlord insurance for this blasted house. I called again and wouldn't you know their computers are down *weep* I'm waiting on this litle piece of information before sending in the papers to the property manager. I guess I could send it without but I really wanted it to be out of the way beforehand.
I've called the chimney sweep and although they didn't have the one requirement by Ian's standards (an outrageous cockney accent), I saw their truck down our street last week, so I know they're doing actual business on our road. I also called the carpet cleaner and scheduled a chem-dry cleaning for the whole house. I also called a couple maid services to come in and clean the kitchen and bathrooms once the house is packed and empty. This is totally new territory for me, but I figure anything they do beyond what I've already done by then has to be good, right?
Now if only I could get landlord insurance for this blasted house. I called again and wouldn't you know their computers are down *weep* I'm waiting on this litle piece of information before sending in the papers to the property manager. I guess I could send it without but I really wanted it to be out of the way beforehand.
The Black Hole
How do these things disappear? Yesterday it was Nicholas's blanket, which we still haven't found. And today my checkbook that was right on my nightstand no longer exists. How does this happen? Thankfully Katherine's other tennis shoe finally appeared, after going missing for nearly a week.
My current issue, should we ever get landlord insurance so that the papers can be sent out to the propery manager so we can finally get the rental process going, is how on earth I'm going to keep this house neat for potential renter viewings. I tried it last week and it did nothing but drive me nuts. I know the only true way to keep the house presentable is to not be here, but 8 hours a day every day is going to be tough to fill with errands. What to do.
Yes, I've been on the computer a lot today. On Saturday we're going skiing with Jerry and Julie and Jeff, so I was checking up on Ski Liberty and Massanutten. This will be Rebecca's first time on skis. It should be amusing, to say the least. Jeff and Jerry will be taking lessons as well. Hee. I'm wondering though if it wouldn't be worth just going tubing like Julie suggested. Sounds like fun.
My current issue, should we ever get landlord insurance so that the papers can be sent out to the propery manager so we can finally get the rental process going, is how on earth I'm going to keep this house neat for potential renter viewings. I tried it last week and it did nothing but drive me nuts. I know the only true way to keep the house presentable is to not be here, but 8 hours a day every day is going to be tough to fill with errands. What to do.
Yes, I've been on the computer a lot today. On Saturday we're going skiing with Jerry and Julie and Jeff, so I was checking up on Ski Liberty and Massanutten. This will be Rebecca's first time on skis. It should be amusing, to say the least. Jeff and Jerry will be taking lessons as well. Hee. I'm wondering though if it wouldn't be worth just going tubing like Julie suggested. Sounds like fun.
Like I said, here's more
Who knew that today and tomorrow are teacher in-service days at school, so Katherine is home, and the kids are happily playing on the main floor (while I stay warm upstairs).
I've been steadily reading _Culture Shock: Philippines_ and it's making me nervous about the whole hired help aspect of living overseas. I'm looking forward to having the help, but all the training involved is nerve-racking. I know I'm almost 30, but I still feel like I'm in no position to be giving anyone (but the kids) orders. With a part-time maid and a full-time driver though, I guess it'll just have to be done.
Manila really is a cosmopolitan city. With 10 million people and the influences of China, Japan, and mostly the United States, there's a McDs on every corner, just like home. You can find anything there and while I'm not brand specific in most things, there are some that I've become accustomed to, like Pampers. It's the only diaper that doesn't leak on Jonathon and the least likely to cause rashes. He is so sensitive that it's not worth taking the risk on the unknown with disposables, so I'm seriously considering switching to cloth. Seems really late, doesn't it, especially since we aren't having any more kids. But it also seems to make the most sense. After all, there will be someone else to do the laundry.
This summer proves to be interesting. Manila has summer camp offerings for ages 3 and up so I'm hoping to put the 3 older kids in camp this year. Wouldn't that be great? The school also has Brownies/Girl Scouts so Katherine can continue with that, and hopefully (haven't heard for sure yet) Rebecca will be able to start Daisies this fall when she starts Kindergarten.
So, we're flying to Honolulu on the 24th of March, via Chicago. And my mom is coming with us. She offered to come all the way to Manila, but that's a 2 full day flight and she'd have to do the return flight on her own which is no fun. So, she's coming to Hawaii and will no doubt be a huge help on the Chicago-Honolulu leg. Once we're in Hawaii, we have 3 nights and have reserved 2 adjoining rooms at the Hilton which is right near the water (what isn't, right?) but also has lots of kid targeted activities including a mini penguin zoo right in the hotel. Ian's consultations are the mornings of the 2 days we're there so it seems this will be a fabulous break for everyone. The rest of the flight takes us through a stop in Guam, somewhere I've always wanted to go. Does anyone really believe all those snake stories?
So. we'll arrive in Manila the evening of the 28th, Katherine will have testing for school at 8 a.m. on Monday, the 31st, our air shipment should arrive sometime in that week or the next.
That brings me to my actual question, what do I do with an 18 month old for 18 hours on the plane?
I've been steadily reading _Culture Shock: Philippines_ and it's making me nervous about the whole hired help aspect of living overseas. I'm looking forward to having the help, but all the training involved is nerve-racking. I know I'm almost 30, but I still feel like I'm in no position to be giving anyone (but the kids) orders. With a part-time maid and a full-time driver though, I guess it'll just have to be done.
Manila really is a cosmopolitan city. With 10 million people and the influences of China, Japan, and mostly the United States, there's a McDs on every corner, just like home. You can find anything there and while I'm not brand specific in most things, there are some that I've become accustomed to, like Pampers. It's the only diaper that doesn't leak on Jonathon and the least likely to cause rashes. He is so sensitive that it's not worth taking the risk on the unknown with disposables, so I'm seriously considering switching to cloth. Seems really late, doesn't it, especially since we aren't having any more kids. But it also seems to make the most sense. After all, there will be someone else to do the laundry.
This summer proves to be interesting. Manila has summer camp offerings for ages 3 and up so I'm hoping to put the 3 older kids in camp this year. Wouldn't that be great? The school also has Brownies/Girl Scouts so Katherine can continue with that, and hopefully (haven't heard for sure yet) Rebecca will be able to start Daisies this fall when she starts Kindergarten.
So, we're flying to Honolulu on the 24th of March, via Chicago. And my mom is coming with us. She offered to come all the way to Manila, but that's a 2 full day flight and she'd have to do the return flight on her own which is no fun. So, she's coming to Hawaii and will no doubt be a huge help on the Chicago-Honolulu leg. Once we're in Hawaii, we have 3 nights and have reserved 2 adjoining rooms at the Hilton which is right near the water (what isn't, right?) but also has lots of kid targeted activities including a mini penguin zoo right in the hotel. Ian's consultations are the mornings of the 2 days we're there so it seems this will be a fabulous break for everyone. The rest of the flight takes us through a stop in Guam, somewhere I've always wanted to go. Does anyone really believe all those snake stories?
So. we'll arrive in Manila the evening of the 28th, Katherine will have testing for school at 8 a.m. on Monday, the 31st, our air shipment should arrive sometime in that week or the next.
That brings me to my actual question, what do I do with an 18 month old for 18 hours on the plane?
We're on our way
With the never ending list of "Things to Do" in order to move half way around the world, I get the feeling that we're not doing to poorly. So far we have...
Gotten our passports
Gotten our plane reservations
Gotten our hotel reservations in DC and Hawaii
Received our Manila housing assignment
Gotten our HepA and Typhoid shots along with our yellow immunization cards
Applied for all the advances/per diems
Scheduled our packouts, had the walk-throughs
Scheduled the INS consultations
Sent Katherine's school application to ISManila and scheduled her testing
Been clearing out the house
Today I need to call around about insurances and schedule a carpet cleaner, a chimney sweep and Merry Maids to clean the kitchen and bathrooms, all after the packers are gone and the house is empty.
Of course, we haven't done a thing about the car yet because Geico won't cover us overseas so we need a new insurance company, and our Property Manager forms are in a holding pattern until we can get landlord insurance for the house. Everyone keep your fingers crossed that we'll have a renter in March. It would just make things that much easier.
Oh, some particulars. We'll be flying out March 24th from DC and arriving in Manila the evening of March 28th, after spending a couple days in Hawaii. Yeah, this tour is starting our rough :)
On a more personal note, we decided against having a going-away party. After all, what fun is it throwing a party for ourselves? And along with that, we realized that so few people have expressed an interest in our departure, and so few people have kept in contact with us the past couple years, that it would feel more like work and strain than a fun gathering of the folks who did bother to show. Do I sound bitter? Yeah, well, I'm not apologetic.
On the other hand, we are doing special stuff for the kids. Down the road we have a Filipino grocery store so we've stopped in there and picked up regional foods. Most have not been well received, but we figure it's a matter of time before we get used to things like Fish Chips.. made from real bits of fish. We had a full hot meal from there a few weeks back and while there were some good parts, the fishy clear noodles were not loved, no one really cared for the sour pork soup and the barely boiled whole squids had Rebecca in tears and Katherine earning an adventurous gold star with her ability to choke a bite down.
Oh, but back to the girls. Since we're pulling Katherine out of school, on the 7th of February I'll be going to her class with some story books, a big picutre book, a CD of The Mabuhay (Welcome) Singers, and a tub of purple ice cream and cookies. The purple ice cream is a favorite in the Philippines, and it gets it's color and flavor from the purple yam that grown there. I found a distinctly mild yam taste to it (very good by the way) and Ian liked it too, though he said it didn't taste like yams at all. There is another favorite in the Philippines of Cheese ice cream, but we haven't quite taken that step in tasting yet. The halo halo ice cream that we have in our freezer is coconut flavored with bits of tropical fruit in it and it's very good too. Ok ok.. we're readily delving into the sweeter side of Filipino food. We'll get around to the rest of it again later :) Back to the visit to Katherine's class, I'm trying to come up with a quick and easy craft for the kids to do and so far I've come up with them making their own flags. On the backs of the base sheets I was going to put our snailmail and e-mail address so that if any of her classmates wanted to write to her, they could. Well, we'll see if that actually materializes! Also I'm going to see if her principal will make an appearance. Mr. Shaw knows every kid in the school by name and even recalls a lot of their siblings, and recognizes every parent at least by sight. In a school of over 500 kids, that's no small feat and he has always been loved by Katherine. He sits down with her and her friends often at lunch, and when I brought Rebecca to school for Bec's birthday, he stood her on the lunch table and had the whole cafeteria sing Happy birthday to her. How cool was that?
Anyway, more to come later, when I don't have Jonathon climbing on my lap, so hopefully this afternoon during nap time after I've finished my phone calls.
Gotten our passports
Gotten our plane reservations
Gotten our hotel reservations in DC and Hawaii
Received our Manila housing assignment
Gotten our HepA and Typhoid shots along with our yellow immunization cards
Applied for all the advances/per diems
Scheduled our packouts, had the walk-throughs
Scheduled the INS consultations
Sent Katherine's school application to ISManila and scheduled her testing
Been clearing out the house
Today I need to call around about insurances and schedule a carpet cleaner, a chimney sweep and Merry Maids to clean the kitchen and bathrooms, all after the packers are gone and the house is empty.
Of course, we haven't done a thing about the car yet because Geico won't cover us overseas so we need a new insurance company, and our Property Manager forms are in a holding pattern until we can get landlord insurance for the house. Everyone keep your fingers crossed that we'll have a renter in March. It would just make things that much easier.
Oh, some particulars. We'll be flying out March 24th from DC and arriving in Manila the evening of March 28th, after spending a couple days in Hawaii. Yeah, this tour is starting our rough :)
On a more personal note, we decided against having a going-away party. After all, what fun is it throwing a party for ourselves? And along with that, we realized that so few people have expressed an interest in our departure, and so few people have kept in contact with us the past couple years, that it would feel more like work and strain than a fun gathering of the folks who did bother to show. Do I sound bitter? Yeah, well, I'm not apologetic.
On the other hand, we are doing special stuff for the kids. Down the road we have a Filipino grocery store so we've stopped in there and picked up regional foods. Most have not been well received, but we figure it's a matter of time before we get used to things like Fish Chips.. made from real bits of fish. We had a full hot meal from there a few weeks back and while there were some good parts, the fishy clear noodles were not loved, no one really cared for the sour pork soup and the barely boiled whole squids had Rebecca in tears and Katherine earning an adventurous gold star with her ability to choke a bite down.
Oh, but back to the girls. Since we're pulling Katherine out of school, on the 7th of February I'll be going to her class with some story books, a big picutre book, a CD of The Mabuhay (Welcome) Singers, and a tub of purple ice cream and cookies. The purple ice cream is a favorite in the Philippines, and it gets it's color and flavor from the purple yam that grown there. I found a distinctly mild yam taste to it (very good by the way) and Ian liked it too, though he said it didn't taste like yams at all. There is another favorite in the Philippines of Cheese ice cream, but we haven't quite taken that step in tasting yet. The halo halo ice cream that we have in our freezer is coconut flavored with bits of tropical fruit in it and it's very good too. Ok ok.. we're readily delving into the sweeter side of Filipino food. We'll get around to the rest of it again later :) Back to the visit to Katherine's class, I'm trying to come up with a quick and easy craft for the kids to do and so far I've come up with them making their own flags. On the backs of the base sheets I was going to put our snailmail and e-mail address so that if any of her classmates wanted to write to her, they could. Well, we'll see if that actually materializes! Also I'm going to see if her principal will make an appearance. Mr. Shaw knows every kid in the school by name and even recalls a lot of their siblings, and recognizes every parent at least by sight. In a school of over 500 kids, that's no small feat and he has always been loved by Katherine. He sits down with her and her friends often at lunch, and when I brought Rebecca to school for Bec's birthday, he stood her on the lunch table and had the whole cafeteria sing Happy birthday to her. How cool was that?
Anyway, more to come later, when I don't have Jonathon climbing on my lap, so hopefully this afternoon during nap time after I've finished my phone calls.
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