Skip to main content

what a morning

If you have ever lived or passed through eastern PA you may have experienced an unspeakable joy in the form of the gas/convenience store, "Wawa".  Because of Wawa, I L-O-V-E hazelnut coffee. 

Yesterday, a package came from our good friends in northern OH.  Among other wonderful things, was a coffee can of hazelnut flavored coffee.  happy sighhhhhh.  My house smells amazing this morning.  It's a combination of coffee, fresh baked bread and apple butter simmering in the crock pot.

If hazelnut coffee wasn't enough to rejoice about, I also finished the 5th and final book of our Chinese textbooks yesterday.  Yippeeeee!!!  With the birth of Lilian, going to Chengdu and studying this particular book only 4 hours a week, it has taken a very long time to get through Book 5.  So, I couldn't stop smiling yesterday as we finished up the lesson.  I proudly announced to the school office that I was finished and there was much rejoicing among us.  It is a very good feeling.  I still have other books to study but finishing these 5 is a big deal.

Even a smoggy morning can't dampen my spirits today.  

Popular posts from this blog

bakery

This morning I got up around 5:30am. I'm leading a study tonight at a friend's house and so I've had time to this morning to think over what I want to share with my sisters. Our weather cooled off yesterday and this morning it's still cool and the crickets sound so lovely. Something about this morning has reminded me of working at My Favorite Muffin in Clarkesville. I had to get up around 5:30am back then so I could be at the shop at 6am. We opened at 6:30. I was never the only one on the road but it always felt peaceful and fresh driving to the bakery. The baker was always at the shop before me. He would get there around 5am to start the days baking. I really loved that job. It was so simple and predictable but it was just a great job. The sun is just coming up here and it looks like a nice day is coming. This is our last full day with the Littletons here. They'll leave tomorrow night for their flights back to Thailand. I'll miss them.

to Madeleine

So it's here. It's September 1, 2010. Madeleine Diane Steiner, the girl that made me a mom, is going to kindergarten. She's 4 years and 10 months old. Why does my heart ache and my eyes well up with tears? Madeleine is showing signs of growing up and somehow that feels sad. Who knows all the reasons why but I safely assume I'm not the first mom to have these feelings. And I assume I'll feel them many times again. I have all these hopes and fears for her today. I hope she makes friends. I fear that she'll be lonely. I hope she loves to learn. I fear that she'll be overwhelmed with the Chinese language. I hope she gets the best education we can offer her. I fear that I'll too soon be writing about her first day of middle school, high school, college. Yet, in these hopes and fears I have this knowledge that this is all right. This is good. This is how it should be. She is meant to grow up, meant to move in to a stage of life where challenge...

boop de loop de moop ohhh, boop de loop!

That's not Chinese in my title just a little happy song bopping through my head as I think about being done with language school. Yesterday was it.  The last day.  No more schedules to figure out every semester.  No more wondering which teacher I'll get.  No more.   Formal study may be over but learning Chinese is not.  This morning for some odd reason I thought about something catching on fire and I thought, 'I don't remember how to say that in Chinese'.  So, after 2 years of study I'd have to call the fire department and say something like, 'Fire is on my room.  I mean, fire is in my house.  Do you understand?'. I took 2 test on Wednesday.  I have to say that I am very proud of my Chinese character recognition in The Book.  There were a few passages that I had to read where I knew every single character and didn't even hesitate while reading.  I don't think I can describe how amazing that feels.  I LOVE reading the passage in John when Jesus a...