Day 19 - China in Review

We are enroute to the U.S. now - please pray for a smooth and boring return home!

With the magic of the international date line, WanYing will leave China for the first time, fly 22 hours, and become a U.S. Citizen, all on Monday, March 28th! It's a banner day, indeed :)

Over the past couple of days we've made a list of our favorite and not-so-favorite things about China. Of course, the best thing about China was meeting WanYing, the hardest thing is when she's upset (Ben volunteered that one and he's completely right), and the best thing about returning home will be starting real life with WanYing! But other than the WanYing stuff, here's our list of what we love and struggle with in China...

Stuff we're going to miss about China:

• The food (Steve)
• Panda bears (Sasha)
• Staying in classy hotels (Ben, and Jamie seconds that!)
• Amusement rides in the parks (Sam and Ben)
• Feeling really tall (Steve)
• Eating noodles at least once per day (Sasha and Ben)
• Watching people hang out in the parks singing, doing tai chi, playing hackey, playing cards, etc (Steve and Jamie)
• The Great Wall (Sam)
• The way the money looks really unique (Ben)
• How cheap the electronics were (Sam)

Stuff we're not going to miss:

• The food (Sam and Ben)
• The way the food interacts with my stomach (Steve)
• Strangers mobbing my children and trying to pick them up and take photos with them (Jamie)
• Smells of the street sewers (Steve)
• Strangers on the street openly staring, pointing, and discussing my family (Jamie)
• Not knowing how much money I was spending, cause I didn't know if I was spending like $3 on a stinkin' Coke can (Ben)
• Squatting potties - I think they're hugely practical, I'm grateful that they're there, but I won't miss them (Jamie). Seconding that, Sam says he will not miss the public bathrooms.
• Filtered internet (Give us Facebook and Blogger or give us death!) (Steve and Jamie)

What we're looking forward to the most at home:

• The food (Sam and Ben)
• Reading books (Sasha)
• Video games (Sam and Ben)
• Getting Chorney from the doggie hotel because she wants to lick me (Sasha)
• 3 bedrooms, 5 beds, 3 bathrooms, and a washer and dryer (Jamie)
• Going to school with my friends (Ben - yes, he actually said this!)
• One more day of skiing this year (Sam)
• Seeing our friends again! (Everybody!)

We've had an amazing time here on the other side of the world - and we can't wait to see y'all when we get home!