Happy New Year!

Its been a great year! I have accomplished so much! I am traveling the world, making great friends, becoming a better teacher, and finding myself. 2015 will be just as wonderful. I have many goals for the new year.

1. I want to read at least one book a month. That doesn't seem like many but I am a slow reader and a busy girl. Being who I am, I made a list of what book I want to read each much so I have a plan to stick to. I already know for the month of January I will get through 3 books as I am reading the Divergent series. Here is my planned list:
January: Insurgent by Veronica Roth
                Allegiant by Veronica Roth
                Four by Veronica Roth
February: Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
March: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
April: Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne
May:The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson

June: The Girl Who Played with Fire by Steig Larsson
July: The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest by Steig Larsson
August: Saving Max by Antoinette van Heugten
September: Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin
October: Something Blue by Emily Giffin
November: The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
December: Christmas Novel

2. My next goal is to lose some weight, get back in shape, and get toned. I want to be ready for the beach when I get back. Stopping softball and coming here with different foods has really got me off track. However, I have a gym membership and I will go everyday except Sunday and workout. I already started today by running for twenty minutes. I will be following a workout plan and eating right. Eating right leads into my next goal...

3: I will eat healthy. Now being in China, for me, it is a little difficult. Most of the foods I like are bread and that has been killing me. I have decided I am still going to eat what I like but in much smaller portions. I will not snack on junk food. I am cutting out pizza, cookies, and junk food. I am going to stick to the healthy things like egg whites, fruit, baked and boiled chicken, etc. I will allow myself one piece of chocolate a day until it has run out (Christmas gifts).

4.  While in China, I want to learn how to cook at least a little. I can't cook at all. I can follow recipes when I bake so I feel as though I can do the same with other meals. I will begin to try.

5. I will finish my jewel craft I bought for myself. I would like to try to do 5- 10 rows of jewels a day.

6. I want to keep working on my Chinese. I only know a few words here and there and I should know more. I am not saying I want to be fluent by the time I leave but I would like to be able to communicate some. The language is very hard and I have to repeat and repeat and repeat to remember. I plan to get a notebook and start writing words and phrases down that I learn.

7. Sign up for a 5k when I get back. I have never done one and now that I am done with sports, it seems like a perfect time to get into them.

8. Lastly, I want to find a job for when I return home. I have been searching but I think it is still too early for job openings for the following year. I am nervous but I know I will be able to find something eventually.

For New Year's Eve, I didn't do much. Ally has been really sick and hasn't been up to much. Miki, a good friend of ours and Rou, her daughter, came over for dinner. We made dumplings and chicken salad. We didn't even stay up till 12. We talked had a good time and called it night but it was all I needed.

 Rou decorating my computer with foam stickers. She also made Ally and I a foam sticker picture.

 The night before we went to eat duck with Michelle, her parents, Miki, and Rou.

Happy New Year everyone and I hope all had a wonderful year like I did!

Beijing Capital Museum

Last weekend a parent invited me to go with her and her son to the Capital Museum. After the museum, she treated me to lunch and gave me a Christmas gift. So sweet. The museum was very nicely put together. It was kind of interesting but wasn't my type of thing to do but it was something that I am glad I did. I had a good time and learned some interesting thing about the history of China. I realized there is tons more to learn though.

Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. It has been a crazy and very stressful couple of weeks. The holidays were hard for me being away from my family but I got through. The friends I have here are amazing and are a blessing to have. For the holidays we didn't do anything special. We had a lot to worry about at the school with the Christmas and New Year show. Ally and I had a small tree, I made homemade decorations, and we exchanged stocking stuffers. However, Ally surprised me with a skiing trip for January 10th. I am very excited because I have never been skiing. She even booked a room that has a fireplace for us to cozy up to after a long day on the snow. I can't wait. I am mad because she got something that does not count as a stocking stuffer but I couldn't really be mad. Her gift is still on the way. Hope she likes it. All and all it was a good Christmas.

To talk with my family, I stayed up until 3 in the morning. I was exhausted and had to go to work the next day but it was worth it. The video was a little rocky and at times I couldn't see or hear what was happening but oh well. My family and I were glad to have me there even if it was through a computer screen.

Michelle is Jewish and doesn't celebrate Christmas. For Christmas, I made a Advent Calendar and for Hanukkah I made Michelle a Menorah. She loved it. It wasn't my best work on either but I worked with what I had and it's the thought that counts.

Michelle's parents came to visit for a week. Today was the Christmas show. It was very cute. I will have to wait for pictures and will post them as soon as I get them. Tonight, we are going an overnight train to go see the warriors. I am looking forward to it.

 Ally hosting the Christmas Show

I am going skiing for the first time!!!

 Family photo in China!

 Advent Calendar and Menorah

 My little Christmas tree at home upstairs.

Family Christmas Tree at home