All Good Things Must Come to an End

This is us. The one showing lots of shoulder (in her Chengdu, China Marine Ball ball gown!) is the EFM who writes this blog. The one wearing a tux (James) is the employee who moves her (and their two sons) around all over the world. The red link, below, is how you can get in touch with me...

The time in Chengdu, China

Chengdu: city of fabulous food and beautiful Buddhist monasteries!

In Our Same Boat (with State)

Beyond the Cornfields
Brand-new State Department family in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Love their two little girls (she just recently had a baby while being posted in Dhaka), horticulture, traveling and adventure!
Email From The Embassy
State Department family formerly in Beijing, China, and recently posted to Amman, Jordan. A trailing spouse, she's also a writer, and frequently publishes articles with major news sources. A very experienced State family, this new post is something like overseas post number six or seven for them.
Just US
A beautiful family of seven - they have arrived at their new post: Jerusalem! They just finished off an unaccompanied tour to Iraq and are very much looking forward to sightseeing around the middle east.
Our Life
State Department family on their second post...Tijuana, Mexico. It's their first overseas assignment and they have two little boys. They love Tijuana so far and post pictures frequently! They also get to enjoy the best of both worlds for they can sneak over the border into San Diego when they want to!
The Dinoia Family
State Department family formerly in California, now in DC for a DC tour. Next, the husband will do a one year unaccompanied tour. A very experienced State family (formerly in Iceland and Caracas) with a blog that has been around quite a while and has great archives. Jen has a sweet heart and a lot to give!
The Perlman Update
State Department family formerly in Chennai, India, who then did a year-long unaccompanied tour in Iraq. They are now on a DC tour and after that will do another unaccompanied tour (Afghanistan). She totally tells it like it is and doesn't sugar-coat what life is really like. Witty, snarky, funny and down-to-earth. Look elsewhere if you want fake. Read if you want REAL.
Where in the World Am I?
State Department family formerly in Bujumbura, Burundi and now in Hyderabad, India. They just had their first baby this summer - a beautiful little girl- (there's a separate blog about this) and she also eats gluten-free (with a separate blog, also).

One of the most intriguing things about Chengdu is that it is a seamless blend of ancient and modern... all together, side by side.

Can't Live Without (non-State)

Crass-Pollination: An ER blog
The best ER nurse blog EVER!
Doctor Grumpy in the House
The best doctor blog EVER!
In Which...
My IRL friend, a stay-at-home, homeschooling Mama of seven. Her darling daughters are, goshdarnit, probably too young to be hoped for as my future daughters-in-law.
The Crib Chick
My IRL friend, a stay-at-home, homeschooling Mama of five. Hopefully two (Any two! I'm not picky!) of which are my future daughters-in-law.
the underwear drawer
An anesthesiologist who is possibly the most talented & entertaining writer ever. I've read her blog ever since she started medical school. No, don't know her in real life. Wish I did.
The Bloggess
This blog is both hysterically funny and hilariously irreverent. I actually let my 17 year old son read it (who loves it as much as I do!), but wouldn't even CONSIDER letting my 12 year old son read it. Which is about all the description it needs!

The grounds of Chengdu monasteries can be very, very peaceful...even though they are smack dab in the heart of a city of millions of people.

Specifics

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01/09/2013

All Good Things Must Come to an End

Hello from Florida!

I haven't blogged in a while because, well, I don't usually blog during R&R breaks. Which is what we're on right now.

For the last several weeks, Matthew and Zachary and I have been in the U.S. James was able to join us a couple of weeks ago. So here we all are. Together. It's wonderful.

Unfortunately, we're only here for one more day.

James literally made it to Florida (the boys and I were already here, having left Chengdu the day school got out for the holidays) on Christmas Eve Day. I was a nervous WRECK that he would end up getting caught in bad weather while he was traveling, and would thus get stuck in an airport for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but we were very blessed in that he arrived on Christmas Eve Day, just barely in time to celebrate with us. He was jetlagged and exhausted, but we were all thrilled to be in the States, to be with our families, and to be together.

James's beard is reaching back through time and space to wish you a belated Merry Christmas. Unless you don't celebrate Christmas. At which point James's beard wishes you a happy whatever you celebrate. Because James's beard is culturally sensitive like that.

How to put this nicely? Oh, hell, I can't. I don't say things nicely, anyway, which is why I always get myself into trouble. So I guess I'll just come out and say it: Christmas in the States this year was FAR FAR FAR FAR better than Christmas in Chengdu, like what we did last year. Which sucked. This year, Christmas didn't suck. Didn't suck AT ALL.

Christmas this year was actually FANTASTIC, just ask Matthew, who actually smiles when we're in the States. I had forgotten what Matthew's smile looked like, since he never smiles in Chengdu.

Yeah, both of my boys were/are glad to be back.

This is Zachary. Smiling. Zachary smiles sometimes in Chengdu. In direct contrast to Matthew, who NEVER EVER smiles in Chengdu.

Christmas Day provided me with many photo ops, which made me happy.

Look! ALL THREE of my guys together - smiling! A true Christmas miracle. Kid you not.

I can't even tell you how exhausted poor James was on Christmas Day. He powered through it - through the jetlag and everything - like a good husband and father.

Please ignore how badly my sons need haircuts and focus only on the familial joy.

My parents were forced to cook a huge Christmas spread full of food we cannot get in China. Like, you know, mashed potatoes and stuffing and cranberry sauce and yeast rolls.

And turkey. You cannot get turkey in China.

It's very, very difficult for normal Americans to understand the depth and breadth of the items you cannot get in China.

Like a "Happy Birthday Jesus" birthday cake. Can't get that in China. And, anyway, poor Jesus didn't even get ONE SINGLE PIECE of His own birthday cake. How sucky is THAT?!

So, anyway, that was Christmas.

New Year's was far less exciting, owing to the fact that I was desperately sick with the stomach flu and was vomiting everywhere. And actually, any and all womanly mystery that I may have held on to over these last zillions of years of marriage (and after birthing many babies, with James present every time) FLEW out the window as I lay on the bedroom floor, sobbing and wailing and VOMITING, right in front of James. Vomiting so hard and fast that I literally couldn't breathe in between violent heaves.

All RIGHT. IN. FRONT. OF. JAMES. Who sat, eyes wide in horror, tapping furiously on his iPad trying to figure out which hospital to try to take me to at 3 am.

(Spoiler: I lived. Without even needing to go to the hospital.)

Everything else over our R&R has been shopping and eating and smiling and being together as a family.

And pelicans. Because there are pelicans in Florida.

Which is why I haven't been online much. Haven't been blogging, haven't been returning emails, haven't been on Facebook.

I've actually been standing underneath flying Florida wildlife, looking up into the air and holding my mouth open. Or not.

Life looks very different from Florida than it does from Chengdu.

Of course, this may be because Chengdu doesn't, you know, have an ocean. JUST SAYING.

Tomorrow is our family's last day of R&R. Last day of the States. Last day of U.S. food. Etc.

::sob::

~ ~ ~

I don't believe in New Year's Resolutions. But I do believe in New Year's Revelations, which is where you think/write about what you learned over the past year.

Over the past year I have learned many things. The most important things I have learned - not that I didn't already know them, but they've become even more obvious over this last year - are:

1.) Going through incredibly painful, very difficult circumstances that would most certainly tear other relationships apart serve to actually strengthen our marriage, which is an amazing blessing, when you think about it. And...

2.) When we are going through horrible trials and my husband is forced to choose between family and anything else in this world, my husband chooses family. Always. ALWAYS. And, to me, this makes James a man of character and strength and morals, which is a rare find in this day and age. I am a lucky girl.

~ ~ ~

James and I were walking along the beach today, just the two of us. The eighth (I think? I'm actually losing count...) DS panel for last year's summer bidders (which James is) has come and gone and no, we have no clue where we're going when our assignment to Chengdu is over this coming summer.

And as we were walking and talking about what in the world 2013 might end up looking like for us, James gave my hand a squeeze, shrugged his shoulders and said...

..."I have no idea what in the world will happen in 2013, except that I know that we'll have each other... and so nothing else matters."

Exactly.

Posted on 01/09/2013 at 03:11 PM in Chengdu, China, Complaining, James, James - State Department, Matthew, Photos of Birds, Photos of Which I am Proud, R&R #2 from Chengdu, The Grandparents, Travel, Travel with State, Vaycay in Florida, Zachary | Permalink

Comments

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Awwwww!

Posted by: Jen | 01/09/2013 at 03:21 PM

So much to say my beautiful friend. This post (and your email last week) remind me so very much of myself. Our life. Back in 2004. My heart breaks for you over certain circumstances, yet I'm beyond optimistic that things will be MORE than fine. It's your faith right now that's the most important. Never lose sight of the light at the end of the tunnel. Because it doesn't really matter what size or intensity it is. It's there ... You just have to believe you'll see it soon. xxx

Posted by: Jill | 01/09/2013 at 03:29 PM

I love the things you learned. Not all FSOs put their families first. Mine does too, and I learned it the hard way, just like you. What doesn't kill us truly makes us stronger :)

Posted by: Kelly | 01/09/2013 at 10:17 PM

Awwwe!

Posted by: Camille | 01/09/2013 at 11:43 PM

I teared up. I did I did I did. Because we've been there my friend (not exactly like you guys - but you know what I mean). I'm so glad you got to be home for Christmas with your beautiful family. Because you needed (and deserved) that down time, to think clearly, and breathe in the clean air. Stay strong; I'm thinking of you.

Posted by: thewanderingdrays | 01/10/2013 at 11:43 AM

I so LOVE the pictures of your boys all smiling! What a way to melt a Mama's heart! Wherever you end up on 2013, you can always come visit me in the armpit of Africa!

Posted by: Melissa | 01/16/2013 at 02:03 AM

The comments to this entry are closed.

James loves me. And our sons. And his job. But not having his picture taken. In 2011 he finished up over a year and half of training, and in the fall of 2011 we got to our first overseas post - Chengdu, China!