Catching up

Hello friends and family. I am sorry I have not been as prolific as previously, so as not to bore you with minor anecdotes, I try to save up my good stuff!!!!! Not really, it has just been hard to find time to blog with all the events of life. So in a nut shell, we have had a cub scout camp out at the school. All Laughlin boys were in attendance. Instead of camping, Mom had the pleasure of a night out with Sarah B. who was in town on business. The hairy crab and "yellow" Chinese wine were superb. You know you are assimilating when your western guests are getting food all over themselves, while you remain perfectly clean. You see, napkins are not a standard practice in China. You gotta lean forward over your plate baby...use that rice bowl and spit out the bones with the rest of them.

The kids have been healthy, at least no major health issues. We celebrated our first full week of school in Oct. Yes, seriously, with all the goofy holidays and various ailments, I had not had a full 5 day week without at least one kid home from school. The kids are loving school. JP is thriving in the smaller class size. A little personal attention has been the fertilizer for some tremendous personal growth. Not to mention their personal spiritual growth as well. It has been amazing to see my little Christians blossoming. Jackson has been reading his bible on his own voraciously, he asks amazing questions and has been using prayer in day to day activities.... He is setting a good example for his parents. Other new achievements from the boys; AC can now burp on command and JP can make fart noises with his armpit.....lovely. Gotta love the male species.

Halloween was quite an experience. You would think after I was ridiculed for my $20 pumpkin that the holiday would be a bit uneventful. On the contrary, it was as if the masses of humanity converged on our compound for the event. Luckily we were prepared with a mix of Chinese and western candy. As typical for the Laughlin household we had plenty of decorations. The famous "guy who takes off his head" arrived in time for the big event. Much to the local kids chagrin, as they were a little frightened by our display. None the less, a good time was had by all. I even had a witch outfit made at the fabric market. Sorry, as the family photographer, the outfit was not documented, but is was fun.

With the coming of fall, the weather has been cooler allowing for more exploration. We recently went to one of the local ancient water towns, that dates back to the Ming and Ching dynasty (see pictures posted on the right). I still can't quite get over the scale of things here, but as time passes it becomes a little less overwhelming. I do miss home. I miss our fire pit and the conversation around it with close friends. Thank you to everyone that has been reading my blog. It is great to hear from you and to know you are following us on our adventure.