Our Street...

The street our temporary house is on has a lot of character. We have figured out that stores are often organized by street. For example, you go down one street and it will have all antique furniture. The street our house is on appears to be the dried fish street. It is very fragrant, but we are getting used to it.


There are also a lot of crab shops on our street. Each shop must sell hundreds of crabs. The store workers wrap crabs all day long.



There are stairs everywhere! This would be frowned upon so much in the US. Here, now one even thinks twice about it.

Week 1...

We have had a successful week so far. We have figured out a lot of the various forms of public transportation. We have Kay signed up in a preschool starting next week. This was no small task as they are very competitive in Hong Kong. It seems to be very hard to find openings. I think we lucked into a great school with an opening. We hope to get her in one that will do a little more Mandarin as she gets a little older.

We found a great park right up the street from our temporary housing. Kay really enjoyed being able to run around and play with stuff. She also really enjoyed watching everyone do Tai Chi. She is really missing toys and other kids. I think school next week will be good for her. It will also help once I meet some people so she will have other kids to play with.




I read there was a kids street event that was Sesame street themed. Kay was so excited to see the Elmo parade. When we arrived everyone was lined up for the parade and we heard music. We thought for sure we were in the right place. Kay was on Craig's shoulders so excited! Next thing we know... lady dancers were coming up the street. We were at the wrong street event! Kay was disappointed, but her daddy was excited. Soon we found the right event. We saw Elmo coming and Kay was waving and squeeling in excitement. Once Elmo came up to her, she got scared, screamed and ran toward me. We captured the classic child mascot picture!

Waiting anxiously for the parade...



Ooops....Not a Sesame Street Parade!



Found the Kid Street!



We found Elmo!




NOT a fan of Elmo once he tried to come up and say hello to Kay!

House Hunting

Last night we were exhausted and tired of trying to find a "kid friendly" restaurant for Kay so we had our own take out picnic. We dont really see anyone out with their kids. The Chinese food here so far has all been yummy. Poor Kay was so tired we had to wake her up from nap. She was so asleep I was able to go in her room and take her picture. It is hard to see in this picture but she fell asleep with her leg in midair.

Today we spent the day looking for preschools and house hunting. It was pouring rain so we were glad to have a driver. We would have been soaked trying to find all the places. There is a wide variety in the type of flats. Small with huge terraces, tiny but very fancy, small in the middle of everything...the list goes on and on... We are going to have a hard time deciding. Tonight we are going to try to investigate the furniture rental places to understand our options.

Tomorrow is more house hunting!

The name of the game....survival!

Our plan for this week is..survival! We are all exhausted and waking up in the middle of the night. Kay is not napping well either. She is in a new "big girl bed" and has fallen out twice. Thankfully, it is very low to the ground.

We accomplish about 1 thing a day and are excited when that is done. Everything is a learning process. There is no Target to stop and get everything at! So far we have successfully 1) set up a cell phone for me 2) purchased shampoo and soap (I had assumed that would be included since they described our flat as an "hotel" type experience)(this was harder than it sounds) 3) Figured out the metro and purchased a card for me to be able to ride it easily 4) bought a printer 5) bought umbrellas 6) bought adapter plugs

One tired little girl....We are trying to find the best way to get Kay around the city. I look longingly at the other children that are not jet lagged, sleep deprived, used to walking all over and not getting tired, and used to holding their parents hand at all times. Kay will get there, but right now we are struggling! On day 1 we took our stroller in hopes it would speed up the process. Well, this is not a stroller friendly city. Steps everywhere! Day 2 we took the ergo which helped, but Kay kept wanting in it and out of it over and over. Day 3 Craig had to go into work for a bit so I lugged a 27 lb sleep deprived, wiggly child all over trying to find my way around. I now completely understand why there are foot massage places everywhere!

Small victories...I am so proud of myself! While Craig was at work I managed to get Kay to two pediatrician offices. I wanted to have one ready to call in case there is an emergency. After entering the same building three times I finally realized it was the right place. Buildings and streets are marked very differently here. I have never been so thankful for GPS on my phone! I am not in love with them yet so I think I will keep looking...

Will try to post pictures of our flat soon...Here are some pictures of Kay in the morning (happy) and afternoon (exhausted).

on the plane for a LOOOOONG time...

I think that might be the understatement of the century. First we flew to Chicago (about a 2 hour plane ride) next to HK (about a 17 hour plane ride --- or course it was delayed!)

All things considered, Kay was amazing. She slept for about 6 hours on the overnight flight (Craig and I just a few hours). The flight attendants loved her. They brought her crayons and tucked her in once she fell asleep. Kay loved all the new sights and sounds. She has flown many times before, but this is the first time I think she got into it. She loved watching the planes take off, using the warm hand towels they hand you before meals, enjoyed the several course meals that were served and even drank her milk out of a wine glass! The big bag of new toys and books definitely helped make the time pass as well. I am sure all passengers around us groaned when we boarded with our two year old, but I don't think she woke up anyone! There was a pediatrician sitting behind us and she commented on how well behaved Kay was for the flight. We all survived (and the other passengers did not hate us (too much) so I consider that a win!)



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Lots...of...Stuff...

GG and Grandma took us to the airport. Although there were many tears goodbye, we are all really excited about this adventure.

We had to bring with us on the plane everything we would need for a month. We also had to bring any valuables, paperwork, etc. that we could not afford to loose. 12 bags plus a stroller, book bag, and purse later we were all packed for the airplane. We maximized our checked bags and carry ons. After loading the car, unloading onto a cart, getting the bags checked, getting through security with six carry on bags and a wiggly two year old, getting the bags at baggage claim, putting them on two carts, wheeling them through the airport at HK, loading them again into a van, unloading them into two trips up the elevator and into our flat...we were exhausted!

Getting Ready to Move...

GG was in town right before we moved. This was so very helpful as she was able to entertain Kay while we got everything ready. We had one last Bojangles going away breakfast (boy was it good!) We will miss you sweet tea! The movers came and boxed up 438 lbs in 12 boxes. We were allowed 3,ooo lbs so I think we did pretty good! Our stuff will stay in storage until we know where our final home will be.