yes, danielle - there's definitely a viable business opportunity with my new tofu venture - the way that my japanese friend's eyes sparkled when i told her about it, man, it's a goldmine! now, don't you want to share in this million dollar opportunity? i know you do, come on over, baby.
anyhow, apart from slaving over the stovetop in making 50lbs of tofu everyday, i have settled into a pretty nice schedule here. did i mention that i have a cleaning lady and two regular babysitters? and I LOVE THEM! i actually found that people here are easier to trust for some reason. they are LOVELY. the cleaning lady doesn't speak english but we get by with various hand gestures and man, she cleans!!! she seems to love ethan as well. she always grabs him and says "super! super!"
one of the babysitter is an older lady who used to be a music teacher - she's a natural teacher - she seems to want to teach ethan about everything! one time, ethan wanted to get carrots out of the tupperware, i just handed it over to him. she then takes it away from him and says "wait, wait" and goes to show him how to open the tupperware (it has these side things where you have to click it open) - open and close, open and close. finally, ethan loses his patience and starts to scream. it's hilarious. joe's so happy that ethan is getting taught since i'm not doing any of that. i mean, he'll learn once he goes to school, right?
the other babysitter is younger college student. she's been working with ex-pat families for about 10 years now, so her english is excellent and super experienced with kids! she actually thinks ethan is so easy to watch! it's true, she's only seen him in the mornings so far, when he's energized and ready to play - we'll wait and see, her evenings with both the munchkins are coming up shortly.
oh i digress, so here's my schedule. mak is at school from 7:30 - 4:30 - can you believe it??? our day starts at 6:45 - i can't even begin to tell you how painful that is to everyone involved. i also have my sitters come daily for 3-4 hours so i can do: quiet time, crafts, exercise, polish lessons, household errands, plan for family devotion time. (mind you, i have not started any of these things because i'm still organizing the house.... but i wanted to put it out there so you guys can ask me how any of these things are going :P - please, don't ask me too often)
monday - cleaning day. ethan and i just chill trying to avoid getting in the way of thorough cleaning. we can hop over to tracie's house (the other american family at joe's company) or just wrestle all day long.
tuesday - kid's club - kind of like gymboree run by international moms. i'll take a picture of the dreary environment where we try to stimulate our children.
wednesday - women's bible study - run by a missionary who's been here for 18 years - eclectic gathering of native polish women and international women.
thursday - free day. i'll probably hang out in the city with my new found friends!
friday - playdate with other american women. i'll tell you guys more about these two other american family we've met - i really like them!
so that's it. pretty good, huh? i'm still looking for a polish tutor and plan to contact 2 korean women who's apparently dying to meet other "korean protestant" - when my japanese friend told me that, i couldn't stop laughing. who actually says that? but anyway, i guess i fit the bill so we shall see if that goes anywhere.
my next agenda:
1. learn to make kimchi now that i've discovered napa cabbages. stay tuned for step-by-step on that one. (yanghwa, i'm waiting for yours so i can just follow your directions!!)
2. contact my fellow korean protestants.
3. get tick shots for my children.
on the next post: (this is to remind myself....)
1. my adventure to a malaysian food store
2. makayla's school picnic
3. new friends.
have a great week!
Planet of the apes
10 years ago
3 comments:
who in the world are you turning into? wow, you have become such a active participant in the polish economy by hiring so many servants ;P. goodness, maybe my life is becoming too complacent my days usually look the same. but at least i don't have to spend 5 hours making tofu :)....if you come back making everything from scratch, i am going to expect you to make some for me, so learn everything in large portions please!
My trip out to Krakow will definitely include 50lbs of soybeans! Consider it my initial investment. I was in California visiting Ellen this past weekend. She made her own Kimchi which was pretty good. I don't know whether she uses measurements, but it's worth asking for her recipe, too.
how's makayla adjusting to school? your tofu looks amazing!!! very impressed!
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