Last week the kids had their day of learning when Liz came to our home to educate the kids about their upcoming life in Singapore.    

 

***  Yes … my walls ARE purple, although not that purple.  For some reason it is really bright in this photo.  Please don’t think my walls are painted the same color they were when I was teenager!

****** See the suitcase on the floor behind Liz?  It’s my holding place for all my spices that I cannot live without.   Garlic, onion, Italian seasoning… all for my sauce.   I’ve got priorities ya know!  

Anyhow, back to the kids …

Liz spent the entire day with the kids, teaching them, eating lunch with them, putting up with their antics, and even seemed like she enjoyed it!   She made them do silly games … all the while making them think about what their life will be like and what to expect, while living in Singapore.

 

 

She even made them look at a Singapore cookbook to see if there are any recipes in there that they think they would like. I don’t think they found any though.  That’s why I’m bringing the spices!!

 

The one of the most interesting things of the day was when Liz made the kids graph how they think they will feel during the next two years during different events and/or stages, hopefully making them aware, somewhere in the back of their minds, that this move is not going to be all easy-as-pie and smelling-like-roses.  They are going to have some ups and downs.  It’s going to be hard to say goodbye to their friends.  It’s going to be hard to say goodbye to their grandma, grandpa, pap pap, aunts, uncles, cousins.   Their swim team friends and coaches.  But then they will have the ups of the adventure, a new house, new school, new swim team.  New friends.  But then a few months will go by and reality will hit with an “oh man, we have to LIVE here”  and we may have some low days.  

Christmas might be hard, with no snow.  Oh wait, it might not be that hard, haha.  

But you get the idea, right?  

So she made them graph out how they think they will feel, and by physically seeing this graph, I think the kids got a pretty good idea what they are in for.  But they also understand that each one of us will be having some good days and some bad days,  all at different times, and we all need to be understanding and patient with each other. 

And Liz brought some candy for the kids, which I totally enjoyed.  🙂

 

Trent is next for culture class.  Unfortunately, he took off for Asia so fast that there was no time in his schedule to include this.   The kids and I really did learn a lot from our culture classes, and I do think that we are better prepared to live in Singapore now.  I think that we will be better residents of this country, and we will know how to respect and show respect to our fellow countrymen and our soon-to-be friends.   So, with the few days that Trent will have here in Wisconsin, between packing up, running errands, finalizing flight plans for our family and cats, swimming championships, and last runs out for Dairy Queen fixes, he is scheduled for his own culture class.   

And I’m thinking of joining him … and bringing Dairy Queen to the class!  

Culture Class & a Blizzard for Trent.