Our downtown summer

We had to pack out and leave our house on Yangmingshan, so they could prepare it for the next family, but they moved us to a downtown Taipei apartment. Kind of like a vacation pad.

Pioneer Day--kids decided to dress in "pioneer" clothes and make a covered wagon out of the furniture

Major benefit of living downtown was being within walking distance of a rec center and public library

We finally rode the gondola on one of our last days. We love the Cai sisters!

Can't say goodbye to Taiwan without eating mango ice!

view of Taipei

We continued our day of water fun by a last visit to our community pool on the mountain. The view was the clearest we had ever seen it. You could even see Taipei 101.

Water fight!

Our final activity with our ward here was their annual water fight.  The youth filled up the baptismal font with water balloons, which all had to be carefully transferred outside. When the starting gun went off, it was a free-for-all. There were a few rules, like no faces, and no making people cry, but no one minded getting soaking wet on such a hot day.

swim lessons

We had to make a move downtown for our last month in Taiwan. Although moving twice is a pain, the big advantage has been that our downtown apartment is right next to a big rec center where the kids took two weeks of swim lessons (an hour a day).  They all made terrific progress!

east coast

In a last ditch attempt to burn some of the gas in our car before we shipped it, we took a spontaneous road trip east, to see some of the beautiful coastline of Taiwan. We definitely didn't get to explore all we wanted to in a year, but hopefully, we'll be back!

Primary Class

We will surely miss our teachers and friends in Primary! What an accepting, loving group.

saying goodbye to the beach

What a perfect day for the beach.  It was our last weekend with a car, so we had to go. The waves were a bit bigger this time, and the kids jumped and jumped.

saying goodbye to friends

On one of our "pack-out" days, we went around the neighborhood to say goodbye to friends. Claire's most touching goodbyes were with the neighbor's pets, Hugo and Hitch. She's really hoping our new neighborhood has some equally loving friends.

My walk to school

In so many ways, this year has been wonderful.  Intensely busy.  But, to be able to be a student again--what a joy!  

On one of my last days of class, I chronicled my walk to school.  It was so nice to live just 10 minutes away and get to experience the beauty of Taiwan every day.  True, it was juxtaposed with 1950's U.S. military installation buildings.  (Picture the Dharma Project from the TV series Lost.)  But, by going to school a little early, I got to see and hear the birds, see dew on spider webs, watch the seasons change and see the clouds envelop Yangming Mountain.

Our house:

Part of my walk:

Sights along the way:

Much of the old military housing has been sold back to the bank.  Rather than maintain it, they are letting the elements do their work before the whole area is redeveloped.  So for now, an American ghost town in Taiwan.

It may look like this is a reflection of trees in the window, but the tree is actually growing on the inside of the house.

The inconspicuous entrance to our language school:

The school itself is nothing much to look at, but the environment and view can't be beat.

A view of the mountain in the morning mist.

Our library and break room:

Where I liked to study:

Some of my favorite teachers:

Square Dance

Our ward had a talent show where all families were required to participate. Here's what we came up with (two minutes).

Joel is three!

Everyone loves Joel.  He is cute and funny and sweet.  And, he's three!!

Taipei 101

Sylvie has really wanted to go up to the top of the Taipei 101 for a long time.  We finally had the chance during spring break.  It wasn't that clear of a day, but at least the lines of mainland tourists weren't that long.

Girls outing to see "Journey to the West"

Ready for sale or pick your own

Endless flowers

Calla Lily festival at 竹子湖

Daily Life with Creative Kids

Our kids are in constant motion (unless in front of a screen or absorbed in a book).  On good days, it is creative motion; on bad days, destructive motion.  But, either way, we are usually running to catch up with them (and the messes).  Every once in a while, we capture the creativity with a picture.  Here are some examples.

Using the crib to reach the window to reach the kumquat tree, that clearly needed to be harvested.

A favorite way at our house to encourage the consumption of vegetables: funny face dinner.

Playdough factory to market: each kid was creating a different good (bricks, coins, etc.) and trading them.

Lego Friends: a beach house for friends and pets (with a full story to go with it)

A butterfly cage

A frog leash