Another year older...

Pretty sure I'll always remember where I was for my 31st birthday. The fun started a week before my birthday when we rec'd 3 care packages in the mail from our parents and my sisters. It was loaded with a TON of greatly missed food and Easter presents for the kids. So a big THANK YOU to you all (as we know shipping isn't cheap!)

So Wednesday came along and Susan showed up with a lovely bouquet of lillies for me. I was very shocked and touched how she remembered.

She watched Brady while I enjoyed the rest of the day to myself. I went back to Gillian, my lovely Irish hairdresser, and got my hair done. Then came home and got ready for our evening out while Susan babysat the kiddos. We headed out to a nice restaurant in Puxi (right on the river) called M on the Bund. We were early so had a drink at the Glamour Bar below the restaurant. Chad ordered this drink, but didn't want to say the name :) LOL
Our Milkshake brings all the Boys to the Yard ~ iced strawberries lavished with Baileys & Tia

Maria, blended together... forever...

It was a nice place to eat with an AWESOME view.

We headed back to get a slice of birthday cheesecake by our house and then ended the evening getting a massage. It was a great night and great birthday!!

Taikang Lu

I started taking a photography course here last month to learn how to 'really' use my camera. It's been really fun and helpful. My teacher, Baja Van Hulst, is from Holland and teaches a basic, intermediate, and advanced class here. My goal is to made through all of her classes before I leave. It's also been great meeting a whole new group of people. There are 12 of us in the class and I'm the only one from the US. The rest are from Italy, Sweden, Brazil, and Germany. Like me they are all expats and all speak pretty good English. In 2 weeks we are going on a photohunt in the 'Old Town' of Shanghai. More pictures to come from that :)

Anyways, I obviously love taking pictures so I love getting the chance to wander around here by myself and take some while exploring. The other day I went back to Taikang Lu and the wet market by it. We visited both of these places on our look see trip. I have already been back to Taikang Lu a couple of times since, but not the market. I was shocked on how much I've changed and not freaked out by the sight and smells of the market :) But still will not be doing any shopping there!!!

Taikang Lu was built in 1930 as a residential district and remained a place for the locals to live. In 2006, it was slated for demolition. However, there was a famous artist living there and a group proposed to the government to preserve the area for its traditional architecture. Currently, it has 200 diverse small businesses and has turned into a very popular tourist attraction. I won't say it's a beautiful area, but it is still very cool to roam the alleys going shopping. All while you can look up and see laundry hanging outside or walk down an alley up to someone's house. If anyone comes to visit this is definitely a place where we'll check out!

Here's some pictures from my adventure by myself. Will definitely be going back for more exploring with my camera!

Washing some clothes

There were just random birds in the cages hanging around outside.

Wet Market- Not used to the smells, but being a nurse you learn quickly how to breathe through your mouth :)

Like the meat laying out wasn't' bad enough, let's just 'smoke' it up a bit!

Since Taikang Lu is a very artsy place, it's fitting to put in pictures of Rilynn's art show at school.

Our Artist- They were selling their artwork and donating the money for charity. I paid the artist her 50rmb for this lovely one of a kind art!

Rilynn's class artwork where they held a silent auction for it.

Fuxing Park

The weather has been gorgeous lately (60-70 degrees) so Brady and I decided it was about time to go check out some of the many parks here. After we dropped Rilynn off at school on Tuesday we headed over to Puxi to check out the popular Fuxing (pronounced "fooshing") Park. We got there around 9:00 and I was shocked how busy it was. There were groups of people everywhere. Some groups had their own boombox and were either line dancing, ballroom dancing, or singing. Others were practicing Tai Chi or doing some moves with swords! It was very fascinating to see all the very different activities and the amount of people who gathered on a Tuesday morning.

 Some ballroom dancing

 Thought this was cute. There were a lot of grandparents with their grandchildren at the park.

 The only place where you can play with swords in a park! Ha

 A choir

Some more exercise equipment. This man was doing some crunches!

 Some ladies having fun with fans

Brady was having fun with the other 2 chinese boys in the bouncy castle until a field trip showed up and they let them ALL in!!!

 It was an absolutely beautiful day!!!

 I'll admit, I turned into a Chinese paparazzi here, but at least I asked! These boys were posing for a picture and I walked up to them and pointed to my camera to their mom and she even posed them better and straightened their jackets for me :)

Sarah and Claire met us at the park to play. The kids had fun playing in the dirt :)

Since Rilynn and Chad aren't able to check out the new places with us, but we knew that Rilynn would like this park. So we headed back to the park this morning. And we were right.. She had a blast!! And I'm pretty sure Chad enjoyed the bumper cars too :)

Fun Weekend...

When Chad is traveling weekends are by far the hardest. So this weekend we had to stay plenty busy and that we did!! Plus had a lot of fun :)

Saturday night we were invited to a party at a friends apartment in our compound. It was a family night out, which was nice for the kids and I. Stacy had 13 kids under the age of 6 there!! Thankfully they all got along and played great together. We then ordered pizza and they changed into their PJ's to watch a movie. We ended up splitting them up in 2 rooms (the noisy one's and the quiet one's, LOL), but it worked out well. There were also 2 ayi's there to watch the kids so the parents could socialize. I met a lot of great new people and will also be spending our Easter with most of them too! A friend has organized a Easter Egg Hunt followed by a brunch at a hotel, which should be a lot of fun! 

Missing a couple kids here. Would you also believe that all these kids are sitting so nicely all while watching a 6 inch screen sitting on the dresser?!? HA

Today we were out the door at 7:30 on our way to Jinqiao, about 15 minutes away, for the 2K Fun Run we had signed up for. They had a 2K and 8K, which we opted for the 2K. Since Rilynn just got her bike she begged to ride it, which I was hesitant about letting her, but she did and rode it for almost the whole race. She would've made it, but I had Mr. Hou come and get it so we didn't have to deal with it in the crowds again after we were done. We met up with our friends, Katherine and Brycen, to walk with. The boys get along great and are actually only a couple weeks apart in age. They were lucky enough to ride in the strollers for the race :)

 Here is a tiny glimpse into our life with the paparazzi. I had thought I was used to it after being here for 5 months, but today it was ridiculous!!! It's so crazy and I totally don't understand with the fascination with the kids. They will literally stop in front of us to take a picture. When I took Rilynn to the bathroom, Katherine had told me that Brady put his shade down to block the photographers :)

TONS of people getting ready to start the 8K!!

Kids receiving their awards for finishing the race. Only took us 38 minutes :) We were definitely not in it to win it! Ha

I wished I could've gotten a better pic, but we were crossing the street. Check out that load all being carried on a bike?!?

The kiddos eating some yummy Mexican food and enjoying the beautiful weathery!!

So much for sweat and tears.. For Brady it was dirt and tears!!!

Rilynn- The runway model

I found an agent here and we were fortunate to directly book Rilynn for a runway fashion show at a very ritzy mall, Xintiandi Style. This is one of the most expensive areas in Shanghai. Across the street from the mall is a Jaguar store to give you an idea. Chad is gone until Wednesday traveling so thanks to a friend here she was able to watch Brady for me. Had no idea what to expect or even how Rilynn was going to do, but I was very honest in explaining the process to her and she wanted to do it. So, we accepted :)

Wednesday night was a fitting. We showed up and met with the agent who brought us in the large dressing room and gave us her outfit. Tried it on and looked nice, minus her squeaker shoes that were too small. Told us they would have a bigger pair for the show for her. Was there for about 25 minutes and on our way. A little bummed and nervous that they didn't have a rehearsal that night, but was at least able to show her the stage.

The show was Thursday night at 8:30pm. We had to arrive by 5:30 for rehearsal. I was well prepared with snacks, DVD player, Iphone with Angry Birds charged, and a present to last for 3 hours. There were 3 other 5 year old models and the rest were young adult. 2 of the kids were siblings from China and the other boy was from France. They all were seasoned models, which we were not so it was nice to know that Rilynn was going to be able to walk with one of them. Rehearsal began and she did so good. It was a matter of stopping 4 times to wave and smile, which was no problem once I was able to explain it to her. The director spoke english but with a very heavy accent and all the other kids were fluent in Chinese. Did alot of sitting around backstage, but it wasn't too bad. Rilynn liked playing with her new friends and on their phones and I just liked watching the hustle bustle backstage. 6:30 was dress rehearsal which had already gathered an audience. She did great again. She then was able to change back to her street clothes are we were free for an hour. Went outside for some fresh air (well, as fresh as can be in Shanghai) and then went back for hair and makeup. She wasn't too sure at first having a swarm of people hovering over her trying to take pictures, but she warmed up to it. Thankfully they only put a little makeup on- foundation, glitter eyeshadow, and lip gloss. They also didn't do anything crazy with her hair as she was wearing a hat. Then it was time to get changed again and they had a different pair of shoes for her, but once again didn't fit. I had told them she wears 11 before our fitting, but for whatever reason both of the pairs they brought her were 10. Go figure why they didn't fit!! So thankfully she had a decent looking pair of navy blue mary jane shoes on and they just let her wear them for the show. Had about 45 minutes before show so we were hanging out backstage with everyone. I was doing a lot of people watching and checking out their crazy hair and outfits while Rilynn was staying busy with the kids playing games and on my phone (Thank you Angry Birds!).. Even some of the models were playing Angry Birds :) Some of the outfits were pretty crazy and I couldn't imagine walking in their heels!!

Added 4/26/11- Found out Rilynn's picture made the China Daily and another paper! Here's the link to the articles..
China Daily Article
Finance Article

Also here's a video that someone took of the show- Much better than mine :)

Video

Rehearsal

Dress rehearsal

Right before the show. It was packed!

Showtime- Kids lined up backstage and the parents were instructed to 'follow' their kids on stage through the audience so they would look at us in the crowd. It worked well in rehearsal, but not when the place was packed with people. Since Chad is traveling I didn't have any there to help take pictures or video, so I had to try and maneuver through the crowds while trying to take video. So I apologize for the poor video.. Rilynn walked out with Thomas and they did so great. She waved and smiled and stopped at all her spots. There were a ton of people taking pictures and videos and even the 2 floors above were packed with people watching the show. Backstage again until the show finished and then they did one more walk together with a model for the finale.

Showtime

Finale

Went home and picked up Brady, then I had to carry my 2 sleeping kids upstairs to bed. Mr. Hou waited with one until I came back down for the other.

We didn't bring Rilynn's bike with us here and she has really been wanting one. So I explained how much money she had and how much the bike would cost and she wanted to buy one. Headed off to Walmart after school yesterday and she's now the proud owner of her own bike that she bought with her own money :) Plus she still has some left for her savings.

I'll be honest.. I wasn't too sure how she was going to do, since is known to be pretty shy at times.. However, she completely shocked me and I was so proud of her that she was able to get in front of that many people with lights and music going and do great!! She kept saying that she liked being a model :)

She is now my international model..

Corner of the ritzy Xintiandi Style Mall

Ritzy as see the upclose of the Jaguar store across the street :)

Her show was the beginning of Fashion Week

Spring/Summer Show

View of runway from the 2nd floor of the mall

StompStamp the really expensive children's store she modeled for. Wished they would've given us her outfit to keep, but definitely not able to buy it!

1st rehearsal

I had to help her out as they were speaking english, but with a heavy accent.

Rilynn with her partner Thomas. The other girl Bethany was his sister. They were so cute!

Rilynn sneaking in the back for the pic. These were all the kid models. The 2 siblings from China and the other boy was from France. Rilynn was the only one who hadn't done this before and you wouldn't have known it :)

Rilynn posing in front of the red carpet entrance

Crazy backstage getting her make-up done. The ladies were loving the girls. They all were taking pictures of them with their phones :)

So beautiful! Thankfully they didn't go all crazy with the kids. Just some powder, glitter eyeshadow, and lip gloss. Rilynn loved it :)

Rilynn hanging out with the models backstage.

Posed and ready to go!

Rilynn with her new friend Bethany

Check out the neon colors and crazy hair do's!

Rilynn with her model partner for the finale

Another shot of the runway from above

And the best part of the whole thing.. Her new bike!!