It's only been 3 days

We've spent three whole days in China now, but it feels as though we've been here for a week! We are having a very interesting time, seeing a lot and spending a lot of time in the minibus, but the downside to it all is that we are completely exhausted.

We are currently in Sanya, a city on the southern coast of Hainan. Upon arriving in the country we initially spent two nights in Qiong Hai, on the east coast, near to our ancestor's village and house. We visited the village (I'll write more about it when I have more time) and house - absolutely incredible. My father was so excited and rushed around everywhere, followed by crowds of local villagers.

We will be spending one more night here in Sanya, then go back to Qiong Hai, and then will be spending two nights in Haikou, the capital of Hainan, before heading off to Hong Kong and then home. It doesn't sound like very much time, but it feels like ages!

Oh, and I seem to be developing a little pot belly from all the food that we've been eating! Ack! The seafood is so fresh and delicious, and the veges are, too. There's not much meat here and when we do get it, it's pork. Yesterday we ate goose for lunch - it's quite similar to duck. The chicken is okay - probably not as good as the Singaporean or Aussie Hainese Chicken Rice! It's usually a bit tough, here. My brother says that it's because they make sure it's really cooked in case of avian flu.

Anyway, today we're off to do more sightseeing. We're not really told what's happening until we get in the van - communication is difficult. Next time I come here I'll make sure that I learn Mandarin first!!

Free internet and booze!

Aha... hahahaha... ha... This is me after having a free drink and free food (but not hot food, unfortunately) and using the free internet (with free printing) in the Qantas Club lounge! My wonderful brother Mark managed to get us all into here while we wait to board the plane (in twenty minutes' time). We feel a little out of place, but who cares? We are making the most of the facilities :) Well, I am, at least. Thank goodness I'm so much better than I was last night.

Today was quite a trial, trying to get packed and do all the housework before I left. Poor Atticus had to come home early from childcare, and then Dan came down with the dreaded ills that are going around (which my mother succumbed to this morning, incidentally). Dante was feeling a bit out of sorts by my leaving (and after an hour of soccer training, where he sat around and/or ran away from the ball as much as possible), but he drew me the cutest picture and cut a heart shape around it. We tried calling around to see if anyone could give Dan a hand with the kids, but everyone was busy... on a Wednesday night!! Oh well, he managed in the end - I got an SMS that all was well (Atti was howling when I left) so I'm a lot happier now.

Oh yikes! There's the boarding call! Got to go.

Leaving on a jet plane

Well, see you later, folks! I'm off to China for 10 days! (Actually, I leave at 5 to 10 tonight but I've got so much to do today that I'm pretty sure I won't have time to blog.)

Last night was interesting... I started feeling off in the afternoon just before I had to go and pick up Dante from school. Driving home was a struggle, trying not to feel sick. Got home - Atticus was happy to see me, but must have sensed that I wasn't well as he wasn't too clingy, and actually quite happy. Dante was incredibly well behaved and helpful, too. Maybe because I was too sick to get mad at him. Anyway, after depositing my lunch in the toilet (yuk!) I felt a little better and went to bed almost as soon as Dan came home.

Ack! I'm about to go overseas to a place where we're not sure of the hygiene, especially in the rural areas. And I get sick! Hopefully it's just a 24 hour thing - Dan said I've probably picked up what Atticus had on the weekend, combined with the stress of getting ready to leave. I hope he's right. This is the last thing I need right now! (Plus, it's almost 3am and I'm wide awake because I went to bed so early... but at least I don't feel too ill at the moment).

Anyway, I'm sure that was way too much information for you. I'll stop whinging now, and hope you all have a nice, safe Easter (and don't eat too much chocolate - apparently Australia is the highest consumer of chocolate over Easter, per capita... something like 20 eggs per person. Gee whiz!). I don't know if I'll be able to post blog entries from overseas - not sure if I'll even be able to access blogspot.com since the Chinese censor everything (don't they?). So we'll see how things go! Bye!

Green Eggs and Red Shirts

Dante is going to the Easter Show today with his school. How great is that? Not only do we save a tonne of money by not having to pay for two adult tickets, we don't even have to go! We don't have to deal with the "Can we buy that?" and the "I want this" and the "Can we go on the ride?" and the "I'm hungry, I want " and the "I'm thirsty. Can I have some buzzy drink?". Yay!

It was so cool seeing the kids all lined up at the train station this morning (that's where we had to drop them off, rather than at school). I wish I'd brought my camera, but unfortunately I forgot. So you'll just have to imagine about 100 kids in red hats and shirts sitting along the fence with teachers and parents milling about. It was fantastically well organised and those teachers are pretty brave!

In other news, Dante had his first sleepover (not at a relative's place) on Saturday night. His friend Lauren had her 5th birthday party! They've known each other since they were about 1 or 2, when they moved near us (before we moved to our current house). We spoke to her mother this morning when we dropped the kids off - she said it was a really nice party and the kids had a great time, although they were all a bit exhausted afterwards.

It amazes me how much the kids are growing up. Yesterday afternoon, after having a bit of a nap, Dante sat down and read the entire book of Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss. He needed help with a few words, but managed to sound out the rest. I am completely astonished that he's come so far in just 10 weeks of school. And oh so proud!

A better result

The second match of the football season was this morning. Thankfully at our home ground around the corner! The kids did much better this time around. Apparently the final score was 5-nil! Hooray!

Unfortunately I didn't get to watch the second half of the match. Atticus was really tired and a little unwell, and proved the point by vomiting all over me. Eeyuk. Grose. He's been really tired all day and is currently having his second nap for the day... poor kid. He's not been able to keep much food down either. I hope he gets better before I leave on Wednesday night!

One week... then China!

Well, as usual, the time has flown by, and it is now one week until I go to China. It's very exciting, although I am a bit worried and anxious as well. Atticus has not been so easy to put to sleep the last few nights and I hope he'll be good for his dad! I'm not too worried about Dante - he is growing up so much, especially since starting school. This evening Dan came home late from work and Dante was so good looking after himself in the bath while I put Atticus to bed (which took longer than it should). Prior to the dinner-bath-bed routine, he happily sat down at his desk (formerly his "craft table") and did his homework. What a good kid. He makes me so happy, except for when he is infuriating me, which is too often these days. I'll miss them all so much when I'm overseas.

Starting to read

The first term of school is almost over and I'm completely amazed at the speed at which Dante has picked up reading. I remember being in Year One and being one of the few kids that could read well. Now, it's first term of Kindergarten and the kids are starting to read simple sentences and books.

This afternoon I picked up a couple of books that I'd ordered through childcare. One was a simple board book about Rob the Robot on the Red Planet. I'd bought it for Atticus (it was only $3) and a more interesting book (at three times the price) for Dante. Well, Dante immediately grabbed the little book and started reading it out loud. He had trouble with a chunk of the words (but who wouldn't if they were just learning English - so inconsistent!), but managed to read most of them by sounding them out. I'm so proud of him! I never expected him to have come this far so early in the game.

When he was finished with the book he happily passed it on to Atticus for the duration of the trip home. Atticus just chewed up one corner.

Oh well, luckily there are a few more years for Atti to learn about reading and writing! (and proper care of books)

My father, the Movie Star

I took the day off sick today (trying to stave off some horrible flu thing that has been niggling at me all weekend), and ended up going to Bing Lee with my folks to print out some photos (on special for 19c each). We spent an hour and a half in the store, sitting at the machines viewing and cropping those darn pictures. When I say "we", I mean my mother and I. My dad spent almost the entire time chatting up the girls behind the counter and talking about his role in the film Fat Pizza as well as other film and tv work that he's done - some of which is pretty neat: Big Hollywood films such as The Matrix (2 and 3), Star Wars 2, Mission Impossible 2 (cutting room floor), Moulin Rouge (a few seconds head shot on the screen!), as well as advertisements (such great money!), small short films, TV soapies, and one music video.

Anyway, I was looking up Fat Pizza in IMDB and discovered that my father has an entry! There's not much there at all, but I'm thinking about submitting a photo and other details of what he's done. *grin*

Lightsabres rock!

Our dear friend Petto is moving overseas and had a farewell barbie at his folks' place yesterday afternoon. Barrels of beer and mountains of meat were promised, so we had to go!

While we were packing the numerous bits and pieces that the kids need into the car, I decided to let Dante pack the six remaining lightsabres from his birthday party. I have to say, it was the most inspired thing I have done all week. As soon as we got there, he was out of the car and grabbing his two favourites (blue and green) and allowing Atticus the use of the red one (because he has to be the baddie). Our friends are, how do I say, quite enthusiastic about Star Wars and other such things. They immediately got into the swing (literally!) of the game and much fun was had by all. Dante was in his element.

I have to say, those lightsabres were the most brilliant idea, especially considering how cheap and easy they were. They are sturdy (stand up to 20-something year olds' fights), tasty (apparently... Atticus thinks so), and can stand upright on their own (which Atti also takes great delight in). And so simple! Everyone loves them! I can't stop blabbering about how good they are! Because they rock! And they keep the kids occupied for ages!

The other thing I wanted to say about the party was that the only other child present, apart from my two, was an older girl (maybe 11?) called Rebecca whom Dante instantly fell in love with. He was by her side the entire evening (whether she wanted him or not) and didn't stop talking about her the entire trip home.
"When can we go to Rebecca's house?"
"I'm Rebecca's friend, so now she's got a boyfriend."
"Can we visit Rebecca? She's my friend."
He liked her so much that he happily let her use whichever lightsabre she chose, but not to the extent of letting her keep any, I should add.

First Soccer Game

The first official soccer (football) match was on this morning. We were all excited and nervous about it - Dante was actually feeling a little sick. I'm hoping it was just nerves. He certainly had enough energy to jump around and talk and sing!

The kids were given their uniform for the first time before the match. Black and white, with the sponsors logo blaring across the front. Dante got number "2". I think he was pretty proud. Then there was some waiting around for 20 minutes as the game before us took longer than scheduled. The team had a kick around and some warm up with their coach. One of the kids, who at training showed exemplary behaviour, skills and enthusiasm, burst into tears and wouldn't go on the field (something to do with his shirt - he didn't like the collar, perhaps?), which was a great reminder that these kids are still only very young! To tell the truth, I was greatly relieved. I thought Dante was going to be the only one that would have problems. I'm glad he's not so out of the ordinary.

The match finally started, and it was pretty exciting and funny to watch. They had the "pack" mentality as expected. Pretty early on, one of the boys from the other team got possession of the ball and made a fantastic dash to the goal. Pretty good, I thought, until I heard the fathers of that team shouting out, "The OTHER way! Run the other way!!". We parents all had a great laugh about it! Anyway, I should have realised that this kid was the one to watch out for. He really knew what he was doing and was on top of his game. Every time he got the ball, he just went for it. And scored most of the time. Our cute little goalie managed to save a couple of balls, but unfortunately let more in. We lost 6-nil.

Dante managed to kick the ball once, and he was pretty proud of himself after the match. Too bad that the ball wasn't the one in play, and belonged to the adjacent field (someone had kicked it out). He ran around with the pack most of the time, usually a metre or two behind. I think he was happy to be a part of the group, but didn't want to get too involved. I noticed that he managed to duck away if the ball came too close to him! Much to his coach's dismay. He did get a bit bored towards the end, actually lying down on the field at one point (until we yelled at him to get up - I explained that if the ball came his way, he might get trampled).

Afterwards the coach told us that the first match can be very daunting for the kids, and they'll gain more confidence after a few matches. I hope so! I think I really need someone to explain the game to him properly, and have a kick around with people he knows. I'm hoping that we'll soon meet the team which his schoolmates are in so that he will realise that they are involved in the sport, too. I just hope he doesn't start siding with their team!