Mafan and Zhufu

Maddie and jetlag
So we've been back in China now for 1 month as of right now. It has been a long month. Starting over again is never easy. While I love a bit of adventure, I also really like familiarity and comfort. Moving again to a new city, a new apartment, new friends, and all new surroundings was a bit harder than I thought. I always forget (maybe intentionally so) how difficult it is to get anything done here. My friend Carrie always reminds me that when in Asia you must adjust your expectations and realize that you can only really achieve 1 thing in any given day. If you plan to achieve more than 1 you will be continually frustrated because accomplishing things here is really Mafan (troublesome).
Robbie helping Daddy assemble our bed
Where Robbie fell asleep during assembly
We arrived home to an apartment full of boxes with nothing yet unpacked or put together and with much of the furniture still missing. My first task was to purchase a refrigerator which I accomplished quickly with the help of my friend Lisa, while Rob set out to assemble our bed so we at least had one thing to sleep on that night. I then made my first error and attempted a second task for the day; a surefire recipe for disaster. Off we went to the internet facility, only to be told that we would have to wait a minimum of 1/2 a month to receive internet at our apartment. I was incredulous. That didn't seem possible to me. However after much arguing and pestering of the office staff we discovered this was indeed the way it would be. That mildly devastated me. I am just a smidge addicted to the internet since it is my only window to the world outside of Asia. It is my only connection to family and friends and since in addition to being disconnected from them I also had no family or friends in my new home it was quite a blow. However there didn't seem to be any way around it and we had many other problems to tackle so we began to work out a few more. We were successfully able to purchase Robbie's bed, a wardrobe, and a desk that we were pleased with in the local furniture market. What we were and are still noticeably lacking is a table of any sort. Eating dinner on the floor for 4 weeks is getting pretty old. Toddlers and food don't do so well together on the floor. But, as we are still awaiting the delivery of the promised table, I am learning patience once again. It is not a virtue I am skilled in so I suppose God is hoping to really help me out in that department this time. In the meantime Rob was out in search of a vehicle for us. Before we left for America for the summer I used up or gave away all of our spices and anything that was opened or I felt could spoil. As a result I had an empty kitchen to come back to. I hadn't been concerned because I thought as soon as we got back we would purchase our vehicle, thereby giving me access to all of my necessary basics I needed to purchase back in our old city. However this was not to be. The car we intended to purchase was no longer being sold this fall so we had to scramble to choose a new vehicle and then jump through all of the paperwork hoops. Once Rob located a vehicle and placed his order we were told it would be 2 weeks until it arrived. 2 weeks came and went, and first it was Tuesday, then Thursday, then sometime next week. Once he finally went to pick it up he was told that he would pay for it that day but it would be 7 more business days worth of wading through insurance and licensing paperwork. Each day I learned to steel myself against the hope that today would be the day we could finally have the car because each day there was always the reason it would be another day. Somewhere in the midst of that waiting we did finally get the internet. When the technician arrived, he was young and confused and told us it was impossible for us to get internet to our apartment. I nearly had a fit. But after calling around, we finally got him to return the next day with a more competent technician who finally was able to solve our problems and get us connected to the wide world outside. We were quite thankful for this blessing after 2 plus weeks of waiting. Finally this weekend our car was ready and we were able to pick it up. We made the long awaited trip to Metro and I purchased my kitchen staples. We are finally eating complete and tasty meals (on the floor :-). This week we hope to finally pick up Maddie's bed and maybe....possibly....a table. But that might be too much to hope for in one week so we'll try to keep our expectations reasonable.
Our first visitors
Our HD family
Now that was enough of my Mafan. Are you tired of listening to me complain yet? I am. We have in the midst of this had many, many Zhufu (blessings) which for a while I was having trouble seeing since I was so focused on the frustrations around me. However, I have a wonderful husband who is quite adept in opening the book of life and helping my eyes to see. This weekend he was able to talk with a group of young people on the topic of complaining. We had a wonderful time listening to them and lifting our hearts together to Him. As I listened to him speak, my heart was sternly rebuked for my inability to see all of the good in my world since I was so focused on the frustrations. In reality, we have moved to a beautiful city, everything that we need to get to within the city is in walking distance of our home, and our home is quite beautiful and big. We have lots of space for company (including a second bathroom) and we have had lots of company since our arrival. There is plenty of room outside for the kids to run and play. Our city is filled with lovely parks to walk in, beautiful beaches, and a more quaint older feel than our last home. Although getting a car has been Mafan, we actually have the money to purchase one which is wonderful. In addition, we have a very small but wonderful group of friends that have either moved to our city with us, or make the weekend trek to be with us every Sunday, with 1 having arrived last night, and 1 more still to come. Robbie has had a much smoother transition into preschool than last year (and by much I mean like world apart). We have been quickly making acquaintances around town and in time I am sure we will be able to call many of them friends. Our friendship with the locals has been developing beautifully and it has been a blessing to us already. And I have had 3 friends able to visit (Kenz, Carrie, and Cindy) who have encouraged me by their presence. Since our social schedule has not been as full, we have had lots of family time and the kids have been doing great at learning Chinese and A,B,C's. Of course this doesn't even include the basic blessings of family, life (both physical and eternal), health, and provisions. I am working to see my Mafan as the Zhufu it really is through the lens of His word.
Robbie's successful first day of preschool with not even 1 tear shed

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