dying Easter eggs

Saturday afternoon before Easter we invited friends to color Easter eggs at our house.  I bought and boiled more than 50 eggs, and Elaine brought another 20. I covered the table with newspaper, prepared paper cups with vinegar and egg dye.  The kids (and some adults) had a good time.

Josh helping Caleb with his eggs

We were very happy that  Phoebe came and brought her parents to help us color the eggs.  We can't believe how much she has grown!

I think the final count was 72 colored eggs.  This year, we only hid the plastic eggs.  These eggs were eaten at the picnic.

New Teacher

Last year all of the Hardins were taking classes at Mandarin Capital.  This school helps foreigners learn Chinese.  We really liked the school and  our teachers.  However, I was not as happy with what we were paying for Liam's  and Eryn's class and what they learned.  It seemed like a lot to pay for the results (which were very few).  So I did not enroll them again once we returned after the summer.  I knew I wanted them to learn Chinese, but was not sure how to go about it.  Hallie and I continued to have classes once a week.  Jon did not have as much time and his teacher left to have a baby.

Then Tina (Hallie's teacher) told me that she was starting a new job and would probably not be able to be Hallie's teacher much longer.  Then Judy (my teacher) got a new job too.  It seemed like a good time to take a break from Chinese class.

I remembered meeting a lady on the street once.  She gave me her card and told me that she was a Chinese teacher.  I hunted her card down and e-mailed her.  She quoted her price per hour for lessons and then a day or so later told me that that if Jon, Hallie and I all take lessons then she will teach Liam and Eryn for free for 3 months!

We had our introductory lesson this past Friday.  We will start classes next week.   We are looking forward to learning more and more importantly developing a relationship with our new teacher, Cherry.

Dan and Patrick

Before Spring Festival Dan said he was planning to move to Singapore to work. I hoped he was just dreaming or that maybe he would not follow through or that some other work opportunity would come up in Hangzhou.
As we sat on the grass for Thursday Bible study March 22, Dan announced I’m moving to Singapore “next month.” I was surprised. I said, “We need to wrestle to decide if you can move to Singapore or not.”
It is funny how friends in China speak of “next month” like it is forever away. In America we have our calendars and we schedule days according to the hour. We plan exactly what will happen next month. In China “next month” is three days from now, but it is a whole different page on the calendar. It is the next number month: March month 3, April month 4, and plan month 4, move to Singapore when April comes along.
Patrick has the most beautiful Bible I have ever seen in the hands of a young Chinese man. It is all highlighted and dog eared with notes in the margins. The pages are soft from turning and reading both the Old Testament and New. Patrick started reading the King James Bible following his teacher’s method to truly become interested in classical English literature to improve his English skills and he has found the truth of Jesus. Patrick has promised, “I will get baptized this year”.
Elaine has recommend C.S. Lewis as an interesting study to Dan and Patrick. Patrick loves English books and Dan loves English movies. Dan has been trying to download the movie Shadowlands, a biography of C.S. Lewis’ life.
After our March 22 Bible study, we were walking down the stairs and Patrick said to Dan quite at random, “Maybe you will want to get baptized after you watch Shadowlands.”
“That’s a great idea,” I quickly joined in.
“I don’t know,” Dan said, “I have not even read the whole Bible.”
“I was a Christian for nearly 15 years and 30 years old before I read the whole Bible,” I assured.
After Sunday worship, we were walking down the stairs and GaoYan suggested to Patrick, “Maybe you can get baptized before Dan moves to Singapore.”
Patrick shot back, “I will not get baptized just so someone can see me get baptized.”
GaoYan said, “You can encourage Dan’s faith by getting baptized. You can encourage Josh. You can encourage all of us. Think about it.”
Praise God for giving us these conversations with Dan and Patrick. Pray with us that God will work powerfully in Dan and Patrick’s life “next month” April, month 4.

Water and Children

Caleb and Joy love to stand at the water’s edge and test their limits. They love to lock their knees bent at the waist and put their fingers in the water. Caleb and Joy have both taken a turn falling right in.
Under our building where we park our car there is a dark and dangerous hole. We don’t know the purpose of the hole, why it is a foot deep with water, or why there are electrical wires leading into the water. Back in cold December Caleb tripped and fell right into the hole head first. His feet were kicking around up in the air with head and shoulders plunged down into the water. I ran with Joy in one arm and yanked Caleb up by the leg out of the water. His head, hat, and coat were soaking wet. We ran him home for a hot bath.
Spring is here and the tulips have bloomed in our favorite park. We brought some chicken, apples, and chips ahoy and chose a spot by the little lake in the tulip park. I wondered if this was a safe place for a picnic close to the water with small children, but Joy was already sitting down eating her chicken leg. After the battle for the last cookie GaoYan walked to the water’s edge to wash her hands. I was packing up the bag and I turned my back for a half second. Joy was not just running for the water. Joy was barreling for the water, like the winning run rounding third and headed for home plate.
I yelled out, “Joy! Joy!” GaoYan turned with wide surprised terrified eyes and open arms.
Joy slid in under her catch. If it was a baseball game GaoYan clearly made the tag and the runner is out. But Joy’s legs, shoes, socks and pants were covered in wet sticky mud.
One lady said, “How fun. That little girl jumped in the water.”
A nice man gave us one of those tiny packages of napkins.
We stripped off Joy’s muddy clothes, changed her diaper, and headed back home for a hot bath.

Spring!

I was sitting here thinking that I needed to post something on the blog.  I have been thinking about it for a couple of days.  I was thinking about posting something about spring time.  It looks like Jason an Dale beat me to it!  Oh well, there is still plenty to say.

Winter in China can be hard.  It is cold.  It is dreary.  It can be down right depressing.
Actually, this winter was not really not that bad.  However as Spring approached we had about 3 straight weeks of rain.  I will admit, that started to get to me.  But the yucky cold weather is over.  We may have a few cool days still, but we are having days with temps in the 70's  and lots of sun shine.  There are flowers blooming all over the place.  It is glorious!
We are no longer wearing our long-johns every day!  I even wore short sleeves today!  It is wonderful.

It is almost like when you have been sick with the flu or something and after days you finally feel good enough to get out of your sweats and take a shower, or maybe even get out of the house.

Ahhhhh....

The kids are playing outside, and we are finding excuses to just go for a walk.  We are seeing neighbors again, and meeting new friends.  

I love this time of the year in China.

Peach Blossoms & Other Beautiful Things

I guess this is why we're good friends and teammates with the Clarks. They just posted about the beautiful weather, which is just what I was gonna do.

After two months of rain and cold, the sun has finally come out and God has given us a great spring! One of my unofficial rules for life is to have a half-day retreat by myself once a month. Usually I try to go to some natural place to walk around, be in nature, and get in touch with the Creator. I missed a few months because I was so busy and the weather was so "not-retreat-friendly", so I'm making up for it by going out every Thursday lately!

When we lived in Jingzhou I was usually limited to walking out among the farms and talking to old farmers (which was very cool!). In Shaoxing though, I'm finding lots of beautiful parks and mountains to visit. In Chinese parks, the key is to wade your way past the huge crowds in the front of the park to find the beautiful places in the back of the park that the mob never makes it to.

Two weeks ago I visited the Orchid Pavilion along with 1000 middle school students. It initially had TROUBLE written all over it as I had to bob and weave my way through 30 minutes of giggly, uniformed, young Chinese zombie crowds shouting "Hello!", "Welcome to CHEENA!", and "I love you, foreigner!". When I finally made it past the crowd I found a great mountain with a stream, caves for exploring (until my camera & flash battery died!), and a bamboo forest for a great nap.

Last week I went to Hou Shan for what was proudly called the 17th annual Peach Blossom Festival. This park was slightly less impressive with only 400 middle school students, but still amazing with lots of wildflowers, peach trees, a mountain, cool rock formations, and even a small waterfall.

Going to these places is lots of fun, but it also helps fill me up spiritually and make me feel alive. It's a lot easier to wrangle up conversations with random quiet students when I'm overflowing with energy and praise for my God. We're thankful to live in such a great place and thankful to be able to see His goodness in so many ways.

p.s. There are a lot more pictures of the Peace Blossom Extravaganza and Hou Shan at our Flickr page.

Sunshine, Warmth, and Our Little Girl

We have had lots of beautiful, sunny days as of late. This is a huge blessing to our ministry because it brings people outside where we can more easily meet them, get to know them, and see them again and again. It is wonderful to be a part of this culture because in China people love to just hang out and aren't too married to a schedule to stop and suddenly spend an hour or two just visiting and relaxing. Also the culture is warm and friendly toward children, showering them with gifts and attention. Each person we meet becomes, instantly, an "aunt, uncle, brother, or sister." Phone numbers are readily exchanged.
We are so thankful for this awesome weather, the warm culture -- and Phoebe, who helps draw people to us. We are also grateful for our students, who love to hang out on the spur of the moment, or invite us to do special things. Pray for a long, warm spring. Good conditions for Sowing Seeds! Thanks!