Nine Days, Nobody's Counting!

What an incredible experience!

If I were to come home now, having only experienced what I have experienced so far, that is surely what I would say.

My first few days here were full of team bonding experiences.  The Beijing Amazing Race, (Go Team Taiyuan!) The TFP Olympics, (alas, we did not also win the Olympics, although we did take gold in the "Hunter, Bear, Ogre" game!) and many team meals and study/discussion times.  I dearly love my teammates and I'm sure I'll introduce you all to them soon!  Until then, I'm going to insert a shout-out to my lovely teammate Laura Love, who had her birthday on the 6th, and my Mom, on the 7th!  Happy Birthday!!

*Seven Highlights of my past week-and-a-bit*

• Absolutely incredible plane rides.  
• I met lots of friends and saw some absolutely gorgeous scenery!  The aftermath of travel was not so fun..
• Getting to know all my fellow TFP'ers.  We are all a special bunch!
• It's awesome to hear the stories of how each of us were brought here.  It's especially awesome to think about each of these lovely people sharing life with their students in the next year!
• Spending some time with my team getting to know our lovely team leader, Susie!
• This lady is awesome, people.  It has been truly wonderful to hear about the students we will be working with from her.  She is great at speaking peace into my heart too!  The other team leaders are pretty legit' too!
• Hearing about how the Father is working here.
• Enough said!  Can't wait to share more with you about that in the future!
• Learning teaching methods and strategy and practicing them in class! 
• It's super exciting to be so close to be meeting my students and getting to implement everything I'm learning!
• Chinese food! Lots and Lots and Lots.
• Random spurts of unwitting communication in Mandarin!
• Like with the baozi (bow-dzih, big round dumplings) makers, hotel cleaning staff, and taxi drivers. 
• SLEEP!  
• I need more sleep than I ever have before.  Haha, I feel like a kid again, going to bed before ten almost every night!
• The Great Wall! 
• Best day =) I met a friend named Jane who was in fifth grade and taught me a lot of Zhongwen, Mandarin. =)  I told her I had a best friend named Jane and she was very happy.
• Having my dear friend Erin here!

I am thankful for all of you and thinking of you often!!
Until next time!!

* Me and my new friend, Jane!  I met her on the wall, we commiserated about how tired we were, "wo lei le!", "Wo ye lei le!" Then we took a xiu-xi (rest) together.

Mandarin phrase I practiced today: Wo de Zhongwen mingzi shi Gao Bei Si.  My Chinese name is Gao Bei Si. :)  I'm also learning Psalm 23 in Mandarin.  I have verse 1, so far.  Woo!