Not in Longmont anymore!!

I am back!!!! I apologize in advance this is likely to be a long post. Due to the Chinese government and their internet firewall, I had to overcome some obstacles in order to access my blog. More about that later.

So the Chicago stop over for a few days was an excellent idea. With all the stress of moving and closing down a household, a few days with good friends, good food, fun museum's and even a spa day for mom with her gal pals was what the doctor ordered. Thank you to all my girlfriends for making time to spend with us on our short stay, it meant a ton to me.

Question, flying across the planet with 500 lbs of luggage and 3 small children easy or hard? Do I have to ask. It actually went as good as it could go, I guess. Steve and JP were upgraded to business class...again. While I slaved in coach with a four year old and 17 month old. Thankfully, I had an extra seat which let us stretch out. AC was awesome, Miss E...well what can you expect of a 17 month old. All I can say, is thank God we bought her a seat. She cried far less than the lap children, of which there were many. Her biggest flaw was that she liked kicking the seat in front of her. Thankfully, she had a very gracious Chinese man in front of her. In the end I was fried, but I did manage to squeeze out a couple of hours of sleep and it definitely could had been worse.
So we landed in the Pudong airport, all 5 of us, after 14 1/2 hours of flying time. We left on a Monday morning and arrived on a Tuesday afternoon. The air was humid and the kids were tired. Now it was time to gather our massive cache of luggage. A grand total of 26 pieces. Oops! only 25 pieces... oh where oh where has our green duffle gone!!! Yes we had a 5% attrition with our luggage. For the first time in my 13 year marriage, it was not my bag. Since Steve was preparing for a natural disaster and consumed about 60% of our checked luggage, it was not a fatal loss. Luckily the bag was not home alone for long and did arrive a couple of days later. We had a decent reception with 3 minivans picking us and our luggage up.

Our first meal, if you can call it that in China. We stayed at a Marriot downtown we were all exhausted. Overtired jet lagged kids are no fun. It is like they are on speed. So we sat down at a local restaurant, the kids were loud and squirmy, Miss E was cranky, mom and dad were cranky too. When we realized this was likely not going to work, we aborted immediately and headed to an iconic Chicken establishment, KFC. Not that ordering food from there was any easier, but it was faster. The boys promptly fell asleep at the table, and that was that.

Chicago: The first good night sleep in weeks

So, we are on our way. We left Colorado yesterday with quite an impressive entourage; 2 adults, 3 children, 10 large (just under 50#) checked bags, a pack-and-play, 2 booster seats a car seat, a stroller and 10 carry-ons. The carry-on luggage was a sight to see. Both boys with a small roller filled with their "most precious" items, like a megaldon tooth, a flashlight, teddy bear and froggy etc.. as well as a backpack for each loaded with the advertised and the desparately needed "pillow pet," which I am told by my 4 year old is "wishy washable." My camera bag was on my back, the baby bag was on the stroller and both Steve and I were toting heavy tumi suitcases and computer bags. We monopolized an entire security line with all of our stuff for 10 minutes, much to my efficient traveling husband's chagrin.

Leaving our home of the past four years was filled with mixed emotion. Excitement for the journey we are embarking on, but emotional about all we are leaving behind. Leaving my home, my friends, my belongings, my job.... my comfort zone. Saying goodbye to many special people who will be friends for life. You can't freeze time. Things will never be the same again. Kids grow, jobs change, people move on, these are pivotal moments that make you appreciate how many different people touch your life and how fortunate we are for so many reasons.

Pause... everyone take a moment to appreciate how fortunate you are.

Back to our travels. The stress of moving an entire household is amazing, thus sleep has been a luxury I have been missing. For some reason, I have gotten into the habit of waking up at 5:30 every morning since being unemployed, thinking about how to organize this move. Now it is happening and we are our in Chicago, our home away from home, with some of our closest friends. We are staying with the L's whose home is a safe haven for kids and adults. I finally had the opportunity to sit back and relax and enjoy a glass of red wine and sleep. Never underestimate the value of good night's sleep.
Sweet dreams.

Leaving Colorado

Welcome to my first time navigating a blog. So here I am 2 nights left in my home in Colorado. I am watching the last of US programing on T.V. Most of our stuff has already been shipped to China, or is being placed in storage. We have a pack-and-play for the 17 month old. The 2 boys are asleep in the last bed left in the house, which leaves me on the couch. My husband is working on "China" time conferencing in the middle of the night. So here I am ready to "Blog"

I should be nervous... but I am not. I have left my medical practice as a Rheumatologist and I am ready to become a student and citizen of the world. I am preparing for an adventure and I plan to enter this experience with an open mind. As an arthritis physician, I spend a lot of time telling patients that we don't have a way to stop the progression of disease. When asked about alternative medicine, I have to be honest with you, I haven't had a lot to add ( I am an evidenced based western doctor for the most part).

Then, I went to China. First of all I saw very little obesity. Second, I saw an older population getting up with the sun to practice Tai Chi. Let me tell you, I saw more gray haired folk moving like I have not seen our more experienced population move in some time. I have to admit, I was inspired. I want to open my western mind to discover the secrets of life and health in China.

So here we are. Moving my family of five across the world where we don't know the language or the culture taking on a tremendous challenge which will likely become the best experience of our lives.

I invite you to join us on this amazing ride.