Love Is In The Air

I recently made a statement publicly that surprised a lot of people. That statement was, "I love living in Beijing!" I cannot say, yet, that I love Beijing, but I can definitely say that I love living here! 

What is the difference you might ask? Well, I love the experiences we are having while we are living here. On a daily basis I think, "that is so cool". Don't get me wrong, I will be coming back the US. I am an American and I love being an American! I just realized that time is short here and I better embrace every minute! I still get homesick. I still miss American luxuries and food. Life here can be complex. So below I am making my current love list that I can refer back to when I momentarily forget why I love living here.

I love being able to go to the gym for over two hours every single day! I never had time to do that back home. 

I love the fact that I don't have to clean my house! We live in a serviced apartment and ayis come everyday to clean, make beds, change towels etc. Just to keep me humble I still do the dishes and the laundry.

I love that our money goes farther here and that we are able to save money monthly.

I love being able to go out to lunch with my hubby every week since he walks to work, instead of having a horrendous California commute!

I love that our life is simplified. We only have what we use.

I love living a stone's throw from so much history and one of the wonders of the world! I will never, ever get tired of seeing The Great Wall.

I love the psychological change to "this is temporary so sieze the day" from "life is mundane, repetitive and dull".

I love that I don't have to cook four nights a week. It is much more expensive to cook (plus it is a challenge in our small kitchen) than to eat out.

I love the spiritual growth I have felt! Even though we previously thought we would be isolated from "regular operations of the church", we have had tremendous opportunities for our testimonies to grow.

I love that my children are getting a top notch education! If there were any reason to stay, this one would be it!

I love having opportunities to serve where it is truly needed. I know there are valid needs in America too, and I hope to seek those out when I get back.  I have loved giving my time to help the orphans on a weekly basis.

I love meeting the variety of people we encounter. Every expat here has a story of where they came from, how they got here, why they are here and where they are going. It is a constant changing society and it is cool.

I love knowing that I am overcoming something that was difficult for me to grasp; the move, the culture, the language.

I love the travel opportunities it allows us. We hope to visit many parts of China, Indonesia, Tibet (the boys), Thailand, South Korea, Singapore, Dubai and Australia by the time we come back in the summer of 2013. For a non-traveler like myself I think that will be pretty good. 

I love living in a big city! The hustle and bustle, the public transportation, the tall buildings. Being able to walk across the street to pick up last minute dinner ingredients.  

I love that my family is here with me and that we are making memories that will last forever! Even the most mundane tasks become exciting....like this video below!