Life afterwards....

So I'm safely back in the states. My family and I took a trip to Vegas just barley and I think going from China to there is about the biggest culture shock that you can get :) Its good to be home though. No one stares at you or tries to sneak pictures of you. You can walk around barefoot, and you remember that commercials on TV are annoying. Thanks for always keeping updated on my blog. Its always nice to know that I have family and friends that care. Right now, in life, I'm going to start working at Old Navy again until Fall semester starts and then I'm headed back up to Utah State University. Back to reality....darn.
I love China and I'm so grateful for the opportunity that I had to go there and experiencing the things that I did.
Love you all! Signing off.....

Today is the Day

So today is the day that we all go home. It is very weird, the emotions that are going through me are of a different variety. If anything being here has made me more grateful. More grateful for our country, the freedoms we have, our government, my family, my friends, the Temple, the sacrament, carpet, dryers, shower curtains, boneless chicken, toilets, etc... I love China. I love the people here. They made this experience one to always cherish. I've never met a more humble loving people in all my life. I love that they go out of their way to go help a stranger. My last picture is of my kids and I. That is why I was here. I love them with all my heart. They were my life for five months and I am going to miss them very much. They taught me more than I would have ever taught them. They taught me patience, how to be silly, how to love. I hope that I can walk away from this experience a better person because they were my friends.
Anyway I get in on Friday at 7 pm. Hopefully all goes well. Thanks so much for always checking out on my life. You guys are the greatest! I'll make sure and update when I get home to tell you how jet-lagged I am :). I love you all! See you on the other side!

Love always, Mandy

2 Days Left!

Here's one of the cute stories for our kids that we like to talk about:
While teaching kitchen one day, Emily was making 90 second cake with frosting. When she pulled out the frosting she let all the kids try it. When she asked the kids what they thought the frosting tasted like Lucas replied "It tastes like love". I agree Lucas :)

Love always, Mandy

3 Days Left!

I saved one of the best things about China for the end-half of the countdown. This is a squatter. This is what the Chinese people "do their business" in. This has been the hardest thing that I've had to overcome in China BY FAR! These Chinese people are great at it though. They can squat all the way down and still keep their heels planted firmly on the ground... sheer talent. I know this because sometimes they just go in the streets.
My favorite memory with a squatter was on our way to San Ya. Our bus stopped at a "rest stop" for a few minutes and I went to go use the restroom. You had to pay one yuan to get into the bathroom. Right when I walked in I saw that there were no stalls at all, not even dividers. They was just a trough thing, like what the pigs eat out of, that you squatted over and did your business, then it was carried away in the current of waste. I walked in, then I walked out. I pretty much paid one yuan to witness the grossest squatters in the world.

Love always, Mandy

4 Days left!

So today's blog is a memory:

In China they don't have soft places to sit like we do. We have found few sofas at all, they don't even have carpet in any of the houses that we have ever been to. Comfort isn't really something they worry about here. So the first night we got here in China was a rough night, because we were sleeping on something stiffer than we usually sleep on :). The mattresses don't sink a fraction of an inch when you sit on them. That first night Emily had a dream that she pulled off the sheets of her bed and found that she was sleeping on a cement slab and remarked "I knew it!" We all found this dream super funny because thats pretty much what it feels like.

Love always, Mandy

5 Days Left!

The Chinese people really believe in conserving energy. For example: Escalators don't move until someone steps on them, in hotels you insert the key into a slot in the wall to get the power to work, you have to pay to get a plastic bag at the grocery store, they also don't have dryers... at all. So how does everyone dry their clothes you might ask? Outside. We have some chains hanging on our balcony where we hang up all our clothes. Usually with the humidity they don't dry for several days. You pretty much get use to seeing everyone's underwear hangin around everywhere.

Love always, Mandy

The China ILP Experience

This is the video that was shown to the parents of the children.
Enjoy!
-Kyle Carter