TGIF

Thursday night after our eventful trip to Neili, we joined the kids at TAS for a girls' basketball game against a local school. The TAS girls were preparing for the international school games that are going to be played in Kuala Lumpur next week. How many years has it been since I yelled for an American school basketball team? It's all we can do to keep Kevin off the basketball floor!

A cold front had moved in during the day, so we ran to our restaurant for dinner. Shebaba was opened by a former TAS teacher...his wife is still working at TAS. It is the 4th location in the city, but his first franchise. They serve fabulous pita sandwiches and other Eastern foods...a lovely way to end a very busy day.

I woke up to a gray, rainy, cool morning...really quite pleasant. I walked the kids to the bus stop for their morning temperature check, then took off for the park. My peeps weren't there because of the threatening weather, but I got my morning walk in without a problem. I talked to one of the Purple/Shocking Pink exercisers as she was walking home. I told her how much I enjoyed the music and watching them, and she invited me to attend this morning. I asked "how much?," but she didn't know for sure. I told her I would sing along in English to the hymns I knew and she asked if I was a Christian. When I responded in the affirmative, she said "Praise God!" I promised to attend on Monday morning at 7 AM. TAS has a teacher workday on Monday, so I will head out to Tien Mu Park early. She promised all I had to do was to copy the leader!

Kevin and I took our 2 hour (almost 3 as it turned out) cooking class Friday morning. It was basic Taiwanese comfort food...fried rice noodles and veggies, fried rice with pineapple, and tomato-beef noodles. Most of it we knew how to do already, but her "local" shopping and cooking tips were very helpful. I think I will sign up for the Thursday trip to a Taipei neighborhood that is a prime area for shopping for Chinese New Year. We stopped off at TAS to use the ATM machine and put money on the kids' lunch cards...another temp check...

When we returned home, Candace was ready to antique shop. She had asked a 'friend' for the name of the shop where she had bought furniture at favorable prices. Her 'friend' refused to share the information, so Jeannie's husband happened to see the card and took a cell phone picture of it. The friend had gone back home to the US, so the 3 of us jumped into a taxi for a long ride to Danshui and the 2 floor warehouse "shop." I honestly saw a couple of things I was interested in, but they wouldn't fit in my suitcase. I am looking for a Dell family that is returning to Austin with room in their container before I buy anything! Antiques? I'm not sure. When you can smell the new varnish, it makes you suspicious. Candace and Jeannie have a friend who speaks the language, knows the worth of the items, and can help them bargain. They said they would return with Alice along to help them pick out selected items.

We rode back to Tien Mu and visited 3 other shops in the hood...two new ones that are outrageously expensive, and one...the "Opium Palace"...that was a lovely, lovely shop. I could have dropped some bucks there, but again...no container.

We all arrived home about the same time, and had TGIF and "Glee" to celebrate the end of the week. Christian ate out at Mossburgers and went to a band concert with his friends. He must write two reports this semester of concerts he has attended. We pulled the trigger on our Chinese New Year holiday. Are you ready for this? We are going to Boracay. And where, may you ask, is Boracay and how did we find it? Kerry Vines, another Dell wife and a Candace best friend, went there last year for the holiday. We must fly into the Manila, take another plane to Kalibo, take a two hour bus ride, then ride out to the island getaway on another two hour boat ride. BUT we will be on a beach for a week. It should be very interesting!!!

Today we have tennis lessons, golf lessons, pedicure, and two soccer games. Ms. Leanna is coming to babysit tonight, and the adults are going out for dinner. Tomorrow is definitely a jammie day with time to catch up on our work. Christian is going to help me upload my pictures (sorry I didn't take any pictures at YZU...too stunned? I promise to take before and after shots on move in day). I will also start my Mandarin practice cards, although I think I can say "turn right" and "turn left" now! I just don't know when to say it!

LYL