Spring, Sprang, Sprung

It's time to crawl out of the cement building, stretch our limbs, and breathe in deeply...though not too deeply, since the pollution is still an issue. 

Here are some pictures from the beginning of April, that I've been trying to post. There were more, but blogger has stopped cooperating again, so oh well! 

Willow is chasing some strange kid around. All of the sudden, I realized Willow was no longer playing on the play-set. Seriously, I look down at Noah for five seconds and she disappears. She followed a crowd of kids who were running home to their building that was on the other side of the district. I was worried, so I went after her, but she was so fast it was difficult to catch up with her darting figure while I was pushing the cheap-o stroller. Anyway, I saw all the kids run into the building, but one girl kept running. And Willow doggedly pursued her. What a weirdo!
Here, you can see her chasing the much older girl. When I finally got ahold of Willow, the neighbor girl walked home in relief. She was probably freaked out by the foreign toddler who wouldn't go away.

And then she thought it would be nice to get soaked with polluted rain puddles on a 40 degree afternoon.

But I still love this girl.

Cool reflections and lighting.

We love all the blossoms from the beautiful ornamental trees that are planted around the complex. I'm so thankful for the nature that we have in our complex. A rarity in our city, for sure.

She's a stick-magnet. Willow is sure to find a stick and latch onto it.
In fact, she has some special sticks that she hides outside our building so that she can play with them whenever we go outside. They are particularly special since they are so thick and long--they're her walking sticks. You know, for when she journeys through Arendale during her "Let it Go" sequences. 

Daddy Came Home!

I am so thankful that Adam paid the several hundred kuai so that he could spend two days with us over the weekend. It was so nice to see him again, spend time together, eat yummy food together, and play with Willow together. I was looking forward to this visit so much, especially since my patience with Willow needed a little jump start. We were worried that Willow might have forgotten who Adam was after two weeks--but she remembered immediately. The second he opened the front door, she was running into his arms for a hug. It was so sweet! Adam was able to get lots of play time in with Willow. He helped to give her a bath, and took her to the store. I was able to do a lot of cooking over the weekend--and made 8 different recipes in two days. That's like some sort of personal record, I think. 

These pictures are from Sunday afternoon before Adam had to return to Beijing. He has one more week of classes left; he returns on Friday night and then on Saturday we leave for America! 

You might be tired of all the pictures I take of Willow at this little park. I am projecting this emotion onto you, my readers, because that's how I feel. I am tired of this setting; but it happens to be convenient, close to home, and entertaining for Willow. So, just deal. Compared to any other locations where she could be playing in our immediate area, this is definitely the most ideal....that statement could be depressing, but I'm going to choose thankfulness. I'm thankful for this little playground set....even if I am bored to tears.

At this point, Willow saw a stray cat walking past. She promptly followed the cat. She is getting so fast! I yelled out to Adam, "get her! That cat is going to bite her!" She almost succeeded in getting to the cat before Adam saved her [from herself]. In her dad's protective arms, they continued following the feral cat, until it found a shady spot in the bushes. You can't really tell, but it's just laying in the shade in the background.

Willow is obsessed with cats. Usually, the stray cats around here are pretty scary beasts. They are used to fighting for their lives. Some are very dirty and are constantly foaming at the mouth. Scary. Since they are lethal hunters, and crazed fighters, I don't really feel that Willow is safe in their company. Proportion wise, they are like tigers compared to her.

Adam had to hold Willow back. She would have tried to get even closer to the cat. 

The following pictures could be entitled: 

Willow Getting Bullied at the Playground 

Willow encounters a small boy with a stuffed Minnie Mouse in a tutu. Willow is intrigued by said little boy and his stuffed animal. She gawks, rather awkwardly. Then she babbles off some gibberish. 

She shows the little boy her daddy's hat. He is unimpressed. 

They babble on a little about this and that. 

Willow gets excited about her new 'friend' and starts to flap her arms wildly in his direction. 

To which, he retaliates, and pushes her down on her bottom. Willow was emotionally crushed. Both of the dads, who had been observing the interaction rushed to the scene. I was actually really interested to see that the Chinese father made his son apologize to "Didi" ('little brother---yes, can't go a day without being called a boy. Sorry Willow). It is rare to find this kind of courtesy being taught and encouraged when so many of the adult population disregard what Western cultures would dub "common courtesy". The little boy apologized to his "little brother". Adam hugged Willow until she stopped bawling. 

Then Willow walked over to me, with tears still on her face. 

She watched the little boy leave the playground. She was very interested in watching him depart. 

Willow and I walking home. Adam had the camera for once. I desperately need some new clothes this summer.
Those pants are two or three sizes too big for me. I'm so excited about the prospect of new clothes. 

Willow is such an independent little girl. Enough of this 'hand holding', she exclaims.
She's off to more interesting activities. 

We were sad to see Adam leave, but sent him on his way with chocolate chip banana muffins. As it turned out, he had to sit in the airport for three extra hours because of flight delays due to storms in Beijing. Poor guy! Since my phones are not working, I wasn't able to communicate with him during this time. I'm glad he was able to get on the correct flight (there was some airport chaos going on)---considering everyone speaks Mandarin only.

Now, it's Monday night. Four more days until Adam comes home. Five more days until we leave China to visit our family and friends in America! Lovely.

~julie