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Permalink The girls were well prepared for International Day this year as we shopped Justice over the summer. Most items we purchased after the 4th to get them on sale. I did purchase Eleri’s skirt at full price as it would have been gone after the 4th…it was too cute to pass. I have a bag of accessories from Claire’s just for this day. I always find something fun after the 4th of July for 50-75% off.
Eleri is adorable in her skirt…
Emersyn in red, white and blue…
The girls pose in the glasses from the Expo, but they don’t take them to school as they really don’t stay on the nose…but they are fun!
Eleri decided she wanted to wear the cowboy hat from our Yunnan horse riding adventure…
The middle school gym was set up for International Day. It is hosted by the parents. I arrived at the fair during Eleri’s time. She was having fun with Josie.
The Indian booth had some delicious food for tasting and bracelets for the girls.
This display at the Indian booth was done with colored salt. At the day’s end, it had been touched by little hands, but it was still was beautiful.
The Korean booth had this tiger. This is Eleri’s teacher, Ms. Muir.
In the past, Eleri enjoyed having me walk around with her…this year, she was happy to NOT have me walk around with her…she is growing up!
Average Rating: 4.6 out of 5 based on 184 user reviews.
Permalink Metro Madness is an 8th grade field trip to work on skills of team work and map reading.
A quick explanation as to what our Metro Madness entails. The entire eighth grade class is split-up into approximately thirty-five groups of three students each. Each group of three has one parent volunteer that follows them throughout Shanghai as they attempt to answer various questions and take specific pictures of landmarks around the city. All transportation is on the metro.
Each group has prepared a written detailed plan they will use to visit the various sites. It will consist of the locations along with the Metro stops needed to get there. Teachers will be scattered throughout the city during this time. If a group is able to find a teacher, the group then needs to perform their jingle for additional points. They must visit 4 different regions specified on their map.
The parent’s job is to follow them around, but offer no assistance and provide assistance in case of any emergency. Plan on bringing a lunch as students and their parent leader are to have their meal when on this journey taking a 30 minute lunch break. In additional, two-20 minute breaks (one before and one after lunch) are required. The entire day starts off at the Science and Technology metro stop and ends there too.
I had Elyssa, a freind of Emersyn, Henry and Nikhil in my group. I didn’t have a camera as Emersyn took mine for her group. Nikhil was the trying the hardest in getting the most points. He did most of the map reading and asking for directions.
Our group didn’t start off well. It was 9am when we were hitting the metro…along with the working people of Shanghai. I got on the train, but my students did not. I squeezed the doors open and stepped off the train. Well, I was failing my ONE job – keeping the students safe and together. We put into action our HK train emergency metro plan…if someone gets separated from the group, get off at the next stop and wait on the platform. The next train pulls up just as crowded. Henry gets on and no one else does. He manages to squeeze the doors open and get off, also. On the third try, we all get on the train.
My group had planned their first stop at Fuxing Park. They had to sit on a bench at the park and take a photo. I took their photo on the bench with another man. I figured this was a good place for the first 20-minute break.
From Fuxing Park, we went to Xintiandi. The kids had to ask a few people how to get to Xintiandi once we exit the station. Once there, they were able to find a few items on the list to get points. From here we went to Lujiazui as there were many points in this area. A stop at the aquarium, the Pearl Tower and the Jinmao Towerall added up to needed points. We had our packed lunch at the Jinmao Tower. During lunch, the group looked at the time and realized they were not going to hit all 4 required areas. They would lose points for missing an area. They decided to go to the Super Brand Mall to get a few more points before heading back to Science & Technology. We had to be back by 1:30pm. If your team did not arrive back on time, the buses would leave because they needed to be back to school for after school runs. A taxi could be taken back to school, but points would be lost for being late.
This is a photo of Emersyn’s group at one of their sites. Emersyn was with Paula Nelson, Brandon’s Mom. Paula’s Mom was visiting so she ran around Shanghai with the kids, too.
 Emersyn, Judy & Jonathan
it was a fun day. Mark Gandy had on a counter. He reported he walked 6 miles so we can guess we all walked about 5-6 miles. My feet were tired by the end of day so we headed to Pistolera for a few margaritas!
Average Rating: 4.9 out of 5 based on 213 user reviews.
Permalink Emersyn’s writing assignment describing her Metro Madness.
“Jonathan, Judy, once we get off the Metro and we get above ground…sprint. Just sprint like crazy to the Science and Technology Museum.†I say, calculating our game plan. Judy and Jonathan nod in agreement. We have ten minutes left, and we need one more region before we can hand in a semi-complete Metro Madness form.
“So we just pass everybody and sprint, right?†Judy asks, uncertain.
“Yep, †I say, my anticipation making the butterflies in my stomach flutter. The metro train begins to slow as we reach the station. Judy, Jonathan, our trip leaders and I shove our way to the car’s doors. When the car stops and the door open, we push and shove our way off the train to see the smiling face of Mr. Lambert.
“Crap!†I think. “We needed to run, now!â€
“Hey, guys. How did it go?†Mr. Lambert asks us striking up a conversation.
“It was fine, †I comment behind my shoulder as I speed walk to the escalator. Judy and Jonathan trail behind me, uncertain what to do. “Guys, †I whisper harshly motioning for them to come. Following my lead, Jonathan and Judy rush up the escalator after me.
Together, we race up to the dark, smoggy sky. The wind sends a chill down my back and causes my breath to freeze in my lungs.
“Run! Run! Run!†I scream as I take off into a sprint. The cool breeze rustles my hair as I slap my feet on the pavement. I turn around for a couple of seconds to see Jonathan and Judy barreling towards me.
We race to a guard booth with Chinese writing. We crowd around the booth and read the information. It’s not what we’re looking for and my stomach falls to the floor. We have ten minutes and I’m panicking. We were are all panting hard, out of breath.
I turn and scan the area ahead of us. Like a hawk searching for prey, I see another Concordia group racing to the main entrance of the Science and Technology Museum. “There!†I say to my group as I point to the other group racing, their navy blue shirts flapping in the wind.
I gather up my fallen stomach from the floor and stuff it back in place. Jonathan, Judy, and I sprint again, leaping down the huge stairs. The cold temperature sharpens my senses as I rush to the main entrance.
Halfway there the other group spots us. My friend, Julian, stops running and waves his hands wildly. As we approach, he steps right in front of us. “Move!†I say forcefully to Julian shoving him out of the way.
“Emersyn! Come back, †Ignoring his helpless cries, Judy, Jonathan, and I push past Julian and continue to dash towards the Science and Technology Museum entrance. We scramble past the other Metro Madness group and randomly click pictures. We take a sufficient amount of pictures and write down the answer to the question.
I turn around just in time to see Julian’s group sprinting back to the meeting point. “Hurry! We have five minutes left!†I say to my group.
“We’re done, †Judy informs me.
“Lets go!†Jonathan calls, already running. Again, we sprint back up the stairs, taking them two at a time. We race past the other group who are taking pictures. My legs ache and my stomach is cramping, but I keep running.
“We can’t be late!†I think to myself, knowing it’s true. Slowly, the Metro Madness meeting point comes into view. I push harder, forcing my legs to run faster. Finally, Judy, Jonathan, and I make it back and just in time. We’re all breathing hard, gasping for breath. The cool breeze freezing the small sweat I broke running. Judy and I are smiling from ear to ear, while Jonathan cracks a small smile.
“Finally!†I say, exasperated. “I have been trying to get you to smile the entire day!†At this, Jonathan’s smile widens. A round of high fives travels though out the group while a sense of achievement washes though me.
“Ahem!†Mr. Halula says, attempting to quiet the crowd before continuing another speech.
“We made it back just in time!†I think. Accomplishment keeping the chilling winds at bay.
Average Rating: 4.9 out of 5 based on 164 user reviews.
Permalink Eleri’s braids were done tight since she had 24 very small braids. Therefore, she was able to wear them over a week. When I took the braids out, she looked like Roxi!
One word – Adorable!
Average Rating: 4.6 out of 5 based on 207 user reviews.
Permalink Today, the 4th graders were given their speeches. It was a free dress day to come to school looking professional. Eleri’s professional dress is a skirt given to her by Mimi and a hand-me down sweater from Emersyn. Her shoes were Emersyn’s shoes from Jenna’s wedding!
She was professional and ready for the day! Well, maybe the braids weren’t business professional!!
Average Rating: 5 out of 5 based on 243 user reviews.
Permalink We arrived home from Thailand on Saturday. On Sunday, the girls and I made a cake for Jim’s birthday. Jim and I decided we would celebrate his birthday tonight – on Sunday. Eleri wanted to celebrate on his birthday – on Monday. Monday nights are not a good day for a celebration. The girls have tennis to arrive home around 7:20pm then it is a race for dinner, showers and homework. So, we celebrated on Sunday!
The cake – Eleri and I made the cake and Emersyn did the decorating!
Jim with the girls on his 49th birthday. The last year of 40 something!
A fun celebration with our girls!
Average Rating: 4.8 out of 5 based on 166 user reviews.
Permalink October break is National Holiday or Golden Week in China. School just began, but we have a week off for Golden Week. We have spent many Golden Weeks in Shanghai – the weather is generally nice at this time…but, this year we are spending the week in Thailand.
Thursday, September 26 – From the airport and back to the airport
Emersyn arrived back from her intrim trip to Yangshuo as scheduled at 3:30pm. I picked Emersyn up at school as she had been expressing that I NEVER pick her up from these trips. I tell her that is what our “soccer Mom, Mr. Nie is for”. I gathered Emersyn from the bus in which her comment when she saw me was, “you’re here”! We went to the ES Building to get Eleri and then to Jim’s office to get Jim. When we arrived home, we unpacked Emersyn’s mess. The kids had rain most of the time so she had a muddy mess. I began washing items she wanted to take on our trip with us. Emersyn just came from the airport, but we were going back again at 9:30pm for our 12:35am flight. We used miles for free flights, therefore, we are on night flights for this trip.
Friday, September 27 – Bangkok Shopping
We arrived in Bangkok at 8:30am after a short stop in Singapore. Bangkok traffic makes Shanghai traffic look mild. We had normal traffic to arrive at our hotel around 10:30am. We are using points to stay at the Sheraton on Sukhumvit Road. We were able to get an early check-in to drop our bags in our room before venturing out for the day. The plan was Central Shopping Mall for food and a small shop and then off to a couple temples. We haven been to the temples in Bangkok, but it has been a few years so we thought it would be nice to revisit the reclining Buddha and another temple if we had time.
The best way to travel in Bangkok is the sky train…above the traffic. A sky train station was a short walk from our hotel. We were all hungry by the time we started our journey. One of the food stalls at the sky train station was a waffle stand. It smelled so good we had to try them…they were as good as they smelled!
The girls waiting for the sky train.
We enjoyed lunch at the Central Food court. When it comes to Thai food, it is hard to find bad food. The spices make it all so delicious! After lunch, we went to do “a little” shopping. Jim and Emersyn found the beach/surf wear floor. Emersyn had some Roxy tops she wanted to try on and Jim found a dive bag on sale! We picked up a dive bag in Bali on Spring Break at the outlets, but it was apparent we should of picked up two. When we priced the dive bag on Amazon, it was $230. Jim found a Roxy bag for $100 and it was fun colors that Emersyn liked to make it her dive bag. Now, we had to make a stop at the hotel and the day was getting away from us. When we arrived back to the hotels, the girls voiced their opinions that there was no need to see the reclining Buddha as we have seen it before. Emersyn was very tired from late nights on her Yangshuo trip and the night flight. The girls decided to stay at the hotel room. Eleri was given instructions to wake Emersyn after an hour or she would not sleep tonight. Eleri asked Emersyn “how should I wake you…like Dad with a song or like Mom with a cheerful good morning or like Grandpa by pulling the covers away (which was how he was able to get Terri and I out of bed for our early morning departures as kids) or like Grandma”. I asked Eleri how does Grandma wake you and she replied, “she wouldn’t because she would let you sleep!” You just have to laugh at Eleri sometimes! I do have to add that Grandpa has never woken his delightful grand girls this way…but, I always threaten the girls with it if they don’t get out of bed because it really works. Once you lose your nice warm covers, there is no reason to stay in bed.
Jim and I went to ask about the temples to find out they closed in about 30 minutes AND it was Friday afternoon so traffic would be horrible. We decided to visit the Jim Thompson outlet. Jim needed new boxers as these are his favorites. We had a short time to shop which is good for the wallet. Jim found a few nice shirts and I found a scarf (which I don’t need until my girls began to steal mine) and a few small items.
When we arrived back at the hotel room, Emersyn was still sleeping. Eleri woke her up Grandpa style and Emersyn was not pleased about it. We had dinner reservations at the Blue Elephant a few sky train stops so we needed to get moving. The Blue Elephant is a cooking school with excellent food.
The Blue Elephant Restaurant from the sky train station.
The food presentation is always an art in Thailand with other foods like carrots being presented as a flower. It was as good as it looks!
Enjoying dinner at the Blue Elephant.
By the time we left, Eleri was done and she was ready for bed. She is still small enough for Jim to give her a ride to the train station!
Saturday, September 28 – More Bangkok Shopping
We all slept hard and woke ready for the day’s adventure – the weekend market, Jatujak Market. Eleri loved to help to get the tickets. You can ONLY get tickets from the machines with coins. There is a booth that gives you change, but not tickets. Most locals carry a card similar to the ones we used in Hong Kong.
We have been to the Market many times on the sky train, but Jim was having too much fun with the sky train station name this time. It is pronounced “Mo chi”, but Jim liked to add the “t”. We were going out to the market to get Mo Chit!
We had discussed leaving the market early to see the temples, but again no takers. We took a shopping break to get some Phad Thai (Emersyn’s favorite) and some cold drinks.
Since we have been to the Market, we knew what we wanted and where it was located. We picked up a few silver items, hang bags for the girls, ceramics for the bathroom and a few more small items! We still had a full load with all our small items for our trip back to the hotel.
When we got back to the room, we packed the bags with plenty of room since we acquired a new dive bag! We picked a restaurant close to the hotel as the girls were tried from the day of shopping. Tomorrow we leave early for Phuket.
Sunday, September 29 – Phuket and Wet Season
It was Sunday so we could guess traffic should be good going to the airport, but we left in plenty of time. We planned to find breakfast at the airport. The first place we saw was Krispy Kreme Donuts. We each started the day with a donut – always a nice treat. After the donut, the options were fast food. So we all had lunch food for breakfast at 8:30am. The girls wanted McDonald’s and Jim and I had Burger King. We did the burger and fries comparison. We all agreed the Burger King burger was better and the McDonald fries were better.
We arrived to Phuket on time and gathered our economy car rental. Since Jim had plans to dive, he would need a car to get to the pier. Our economy car was an economy box with a few dents, but it served the purpose. We arrived at our hotel, JW Marriott, to have the tropics rains open up and pour. We waited for the big rains to pass before going to our room. The Marriott calls our room a villa, but it’s more of an apartment with plenty of room. We were on the 4th floor.
The girls have their own room with their own beds.
An extra large bed in our own room.
The living area has plenty of space to be comfortable.
The dining are with a small kitchen for cooking breakfast.
The best part of the accommodations…the washer/dryer. I had dirty clothes from Bangkok to laundry.
In addition, the dryer was the exact same dyer I just purchased in Shanghai…with English. Now, I know what all the buttons are for – bonus!!
I HAD to get photos of the girls with the towel elephant!
 Eleri – October 2013
 Eleri – May 2010
 Eleri – May 2008
The afternoon was a typical wet season in the tropics. The rain would down pour for about 15 minutes, stop and pour again. We spent the afternoon unpacking, getting our pool stuff ready for tomorrow and resting. I read my book and the girls played games on their ipads while Jim worked. When Jim was done working, we drove to the Mall. Emersyn wanted to go to the Mall the dive group visits. She had a glass necklace she purchased in June that she wore everyday until it broke. She wanted to get a new one. The Mall was about an hour drive from the hotel. At one point, the sky open up and our little car was lost in a sea of rain. The windshield wipers couldn’t whisk the water fast enough…but, we were dry in our econo box.
Emersyn and Eleri were picking out necklaces while Jim finished up work on the phone. By the time the shopping had finished, it was after 7pm. We didn’t have lunch and breakfast was at the airport in Bangkok. We were all hungry! No one really want to walk around looking for a restaurant so we went to the food court in the basement – the one the kids visit on the dive trip. It wasn’t anything fancy, but it was good Thai food…for cheap! The chicken and cashew Phad Thai was perfect!
Monday, September 30 – Pool Time
The sun came out to shine for a day relaxing at the pool. Concordia friends, Sunny and Bob, were at the JW Marriott. They have two daughters, Sara and Ellie. Sara is a 4th grader, but Eleri and Sara have not been in class together. Ellie is in the 1st grade. The three girls had fun playing in the pool all day.
After lunch at the deli, we took the girls to the swim-up bar for ice cream. However, the bar no longer serves ice cream, but they had non-acholoic drinks for them to enjoy. We had a full day in the sun.
 Ellie, Eleri & Sara
We left the swim up bar after 6pm to go home and shower for our 7pm reservation at my favorite Thai restaurant on the resort, Ginja. We enjoyed the evening with Sunny and family.
Tuesday, October 1 – More Pool Time
Jim and Emersyn left at 7am for their dive adventure. They went diving with Subacat, the same company the school uses for their dive adventure.
Here are a few photos from their dive adventure…
While they were off diving, Eleri and I had a pool day planned. We were down at the pool by 10am to begin our pool day. Eleri and I swam together until the girls arrived. They are more fun than me – which is great so I can enjoy my book poolside!
The evening was a cocktail party for the members of the Marriott timeshare. Sunny and Bob are members, also. The girls had some chips and a soda and they were done…this was boring. They skipped off to kids club!
On the way home, we saw this HUGH snail. Before we reached it, Eleri said, “there’s a snail”. I said, “no, it’s too big to be a snail, it must just be a leaf”. What do I know!
Wednesday, October 2 – And More Pool Time
Jim went off for another dive day, but Emersyn was good with one dive day. She was ready for pool time!
The tubes were a big hit today…
 Sara & Eleri
Always slide time…
Emersyn in the pool…
Blown up like a pink balloon…
We had reservations at Ginja for the 8 of us. Kids club was have a movie night – movie and popcorn. The girls asked to go to kids club instead of dinner…no problem. We ordered the girls food to be delivered to kids club. Emersyn decided she would stay in the room alone with room service – she was happy to have the time on her computer. The adults had a lovely meal outside enjoying the food and the view at Ginja. We picked the kids up at kids club at 9pm for an evening sweet treat at the deli.
Emersyn went to bed saying her tummy was upset. At 3am, Eleri very casually came to tell me Emersyn threw up. When I arrived at the girls bathroom, she had vomit all over the bathroom. She was trying to find the light and it didn’t make it. She had tomato soup for dinner and it was now covering the bathroom. It took me over an hour to clean up the mess. I sent Emersyn back to bed with the light on!
Thursday, October 3 – Kids Club Day
Jim and Eleri were up first. Jim asked Eleri what was going on in the night. She reported nothing happened in the night and a bit puzzled why Jim was asking. Jim asked, “did Emersyn throw up or something?”. She relpied, “no”. Eleri slept through it all – even the part of getting me! Emersyn reported she was sick three more times in the night, but felt much better.
It was raining today, but kids club had some fun activities. Yesterday, the kids club had batik painting, but we missed it. However, they said our kids could come and paint at 10:30. Emersyn painted turtles on a sarong and Eleri painted sea horses on a bandana. When we came to get the girls for lunch, Eleri, Sara and Ellie were done painting. Emersyn was still painting and not feeling well. She went back to the room while Jim, Eleri and I finished her background sea. It took the three of us an hour to finish it…it takes more time than you plan to paint.
Emersyn painting her batik.
After lunch at the deli, the three girls went back to kids club for cookie making.
 Ellie, Sara & Eleri
It rain most of the day, but we had other plans. At 3pm, we were going off the resort for a little shopping and dinner at the beach at the Lotus Restaurant. I had called for a reservation – just in case, but have never needed one. Jim dropped us off at the Handmade silver shop while we went to get fitted for his custom made wetsuit. He was to be gone an hour, but two and half hours later he came back for us! He said traffic was terrible as there is one main road around the island. We did a quick shop at the Jim Thompson outlet and then to dinner. Good thing I had made reservations as our little beach restaurant has become fancy…white table clothes and all. Sunny, Bob and Jim were in fish heaven with all sorts of fish dishes for dinner. The three girls had a fun evening together and we left Emersyn home alone, again. She was ordering room service, but feeling better.
Friday, October 4 – Last Day to Play
Our last day at the resort and we had planned to spend the morning at the pool. But, the rains came in again so Eleri kept busy at kids club with activities. After lunch, Eleri and I went for a swim in the rain. Jim went to get his wetsuit and Emersyn chilled in the room. She was feeling better, but had no desire to swim in the rain.
Before we left, we had to get Eleri’s hair braided. I took her down to the ladies on the beach. They started just braiding her hair, but I said no as I like these braids that pull her hair out of her eyes. One lady was braiding very small on one side of her head. On the other side, a lady was braiding very large which was not working. I had them take out the large ones and she ended with 24 braids in her hair. She should get a good two weeks from these braids.
We packed out bags and went to the lighting ceremony at 6pm. We hadn’t seen the ceremony while we were here.
A couple last photos of the girls on our way to dinner at the deli.
After dinner, we loaded the car and headed to the airport at 8pm. We had a 10:30pm flight back to Shanghai with a stop in Korea. We were home on Saturday afternoon by 1pm. Roxi was happy to see us! Another fun holiday spending time together as a family.
Average Rating: 4.6 out of 5 based on 228 user reviews.
Permalink 
“Okay, guys, we’re going to play a game now, †David, one of the kayaking instructors said.
“Thank gosh!†I thought. My arms were screaming for relief. Quickly, David explained the game to us. Apparently, the object of the game was to switch kayaks with another person. Seems easy enough, I thought to myself. I thought this for the next five seconds until David told us how we had to switch kayaks.
“I know what you’re thinking, this should be easy, †David said reading my mind, “I admit, it does sound easy. However, you have to switch kayaks by running across the top your teammate’s boats. Now, who wants to go first?†At this, almost all the guy’s hands raised along with some of the girl’s, including mine. David scoped out the hands sticking out in the air and picked four people’s hands.
“We’re going to make this a big difficult as you seem to be professionals, †David said maliciously, “We’re going to have four people switch boats at the same time. You and you, †He said while he pointed to Hunter and Julian. “And you and you, †He said pointing to Chris and Katherine. Julian and Hunter stood up first and everyone clung desperately to their neighbor’s kayaks as Hunter and Julian began dashing across the front of the kayaks.
After Julian and Katherine were settled into their kayaks, Katherine and Chris stood up for the challenge. Chris and Katherine ran across the kayaks in record speed, until they met in the middle. At this point, they just stopped and stared at each other. Suddenly, the forceful waves they created boomeranged back and began rocking the boats. Katherine fell back onto Joey’s kayak and Chris fell onto mine.
“Move! You’re on my leg!†I screamed, my leg being crushed under Chris’s weight. Chris jumped at the sound of my voice and fell backwards onto Blake’s kayak. Blake and Chris wildly bobbed up and down, Chris desperately clinging onto Blake’s kayak. Katherine was doing the same to Joey’s boat while Joey cursed up a storm of fifty pushups.
Slowly, Katherine and Chris both stood up, then the mayhem began. “Katherine!’ I screeched. I could see the water rising in Joey’s boat. Not knowing what to do, Katherine clambered on to my kayak and Chris fell back onto Blake’s kayak, again.
Suddenly, water flooded my kayak. “Katherine! You’re sinking my boat! You’re going to sink it!†Panic flooded my mind like the water was doing to my kayak. Slowly, but surely, the water level continued to rise. Chris didn’t help this situation either by also dashing across my boat. “Really Chris?!†I thought, “I’m already sinking and you’re going to climb onto my boat. That’s smart.â€
“Get out!†Mr. Muir yelled to me. “Get out!†I knew I had to get out, but I had to find my water bottle first. I plunged my hand into the cold water and began to blindly search for my water bottle. The water level slowly rose from my waist, to my torso, until it reached my chest. I knew I had to get out, but I couldn’t find my water bottle! Thinking that I had lost my water bottle I sprang from my kayak as it continued to sink.
I quickly swam over to Joey’s boat and clung to the rope that was around the front of his kayak.
“I’m not done yet!†Chris yelled defiantly. Then, Chris being Chris, launched himself away from my kayak and into Joey’s in a hopeless attempt to save himself.
“AAAAAHHHHH!†Joey cried and Chris violently rocked his boat.
“Chris! What are you doing?†I shrieked at him. Again and again–even though he was already wet from rain and the water–Chris tried to get into Joey kayak. The weight, plus the constant rocking of Chris made Joey’s kayak capsize, spitting Joey into the water.
Joey, Chris, Katherine and I splashed around, clinging onto our friend’s kayaks. “Chris! Katherine!†I yelled.
“What?†Chris asked sheepishly.
“Um…†Katherine said hesitantly. I simply glared them both down. When I looked down, I realized Blake held my water bottle in his hands.
“You saved my water bottle!†I said, amazement and joy welling inside of me.
“Um, yeah. I grabbed it when it was sinking.†Blake replied, oblivious to my gratitude.
“Thank you!†I cried, almost knocking him into the water as I tried to hug him. To me, this was no ordinary water bottle. This was from my Leadership Trip to Yunnan. I carried this water bottle through sleet, snow, rain and hail. This water bottle was my story.
Somehow, the kayaking instructors righted Joey’s boat and recovered my kayak from the water. During the entire fiasco, Katherine saved my paddle from drowning. And when she went to climb into her kayak, she thrust my paddle into Blake’s hands.
“Emersyn. Emersyn. Emersyn!†Mr. Muir called with my kayak safely floating on the water. I quickly swam to him, not realizing my paddle was with Blake. I oh-so-gracefully climbed into my kayak, then I realized my mistake.
“Blake!†I called.
“Yeah?†He said, turning around.
“You have something important of mine.†I said to him.
“Your water bottle or your paddle?†He said jokingly, knowing I meant my paddle.
“Well, they’re both important, but I was talking about my paddle.†I said back to him. Using my arms as paddles, I splashed my way over to Blake where I reclaimed my water bottle and my paddle.
“Thanks, †I said to Blake, not realizing he was already off kayaking. “Well, I guess I don’t need a shower, †I murmured to myself, the wind bouncing off the water, just enough to chill my soaking self.
Average Rating: 4.6 out of 5 based on 162 user reviews.
Permalink 
Sounds of wind rustling through the trees and of boots stomping filled my ears. I had just finished kayaking with the rain in the Li River with my eighth grade friends. “Ow, my arms hurt!†I thought as I reached up to adjust my overloaded backpack. Everyone marched to the busses while the rain poured down with no end in sight, our third day of rain. Everybody was drenched, tired, and hungry. When we reached the busses, Elaine, our trip leader, asked for at least two people to travel in the small van as the bus wasn’t big enough for all eighteen of us.
“Kaitlin and I will go, †I said. As Kaitlin and I were climbing into the van, Emma popped over.
“Can I come too?†Emma asked.
“Sure, †I said. Emma was new this year and I really enjoyed being around her. The three of us piled into the small, cramped van and began driving to the camp sight where we would be setting up our tents. Emma, Kaitlin and I talked about the trip and other things. The van ride was taking longer than expected as the rain was causing flooding and the roads were all blocked.
“Um…†I said, “I really need to use the bathroom.â€
“So do I, †Emma said.
“I think I’m going to throw up, †Kaitlin moaned.
“Uhh, †Elaine began, obviously overwhelmed. She quickly said something to the driver in rapid fire Mandarin. “Can you girls wait ten minutes?†Elaine asked us.
I nodded even though my bladder was screaming “No!â€
Finally, Elaine found us a bathroom and I eagerly hopped out of the car. At that point, Kaitlin was feeling horrible. She had finally accepted the fact she was sick. It all started during kayaking when I noticed she had a black tongue during our kayaking adventure. Kaitlin suddenly made a gurgling noise as she vomited in her mouth, then swallowed it back down. When she did this, my gag reflexes were instantly triggered.
“Can I go first?†I asked, except it wasn’t really a question. It was more of a plea.
“Sure, †Emma said, obvious to my need of the bathroom. Before I left for the bathroom, I told Kaitlin to leave the door open and maybe the fresh air would help her.
I ran for the bathroom, looking for a bush. “Over there, †Elaine said pointing to the small outhouse. It was built of wood and was rotting like it had been built a two decades ago, then forgotten. Rain was splattering from the roof to the ground. I peeked inside and there was a giant spider waiting inside for me.
“AAAHHHH!†I shrieked. I ran from the outhouse and started doing a spastic dance even though the spider was still in the outhouse.
“What happened?†Elaine asked me.
“Spider…in the…bathroom.†I said through shuddered
breaths. “I hate spiders, †I thought.
“It’s just a spider.†Elaine said, looking at me strangely.
“Okay.†I said, my pride diminished. Carefully, I crept back into the bathroom. When I finished going to the restroom, I ran like it was a monster going to gobble me up. “Your turn, †I managed to gasp out to Emma.
I watched as Emma walked up to the outhouse and looked inside. “You know what, †she said. “I don’t have to go anymore.†I nodded in understanding of what she actually meant.
“Are you coming back to the van?†I asked when I turned around to realize Emma wasn’t following me.
“I’m going to take a minute away from the van. It’s a little claustrophobic for me.†She said.
When I arrived back at the van, Kaitlin was looking greener by the minute. “How are you feeling?†I asked her.
“This is the worse I’ve felt in years, †she said her voice came out weak and trembling.
I knew this was a bad sign. “Okay, Kaitlin, I want you to lay down and rest, okay? Do you think calling your mom about your situation might help at all?â€
“I’m going to call my mom, †Kaitlin said to me. I was scared for her. She was so pale and thin.
While Kaitlin called her Mom about her black tongue, fe- ver, nausea, and all her other symptoms, I waited for Emma to return.
I peered out through waterfall streaming down the windows of the van. I saw two blurry shapes. I opened the door and saw Emma and Elaine standing under the covering of a small hut.
I walked through the needles of rain crashing down. Emma was crying and she looked like she was hyperventilating. “Emma, †I said in my calmest voice, “Are you all right?†She definitely didn’t look all right.
Emma shook her head and told me, “I…can’t…breathe, †through gasps of breath.
Elaine wasn’t helping much. She was clearly over- whelmed. “I, um, I’m going to go get Mr. Muir.†I stood in the pouring rain alone with Emma silent and afraid of what would come next.
“Okay, Emma, †I said very seriously, “I’m going to need you to breathe with me.†Emma nodded. “In, †I said while breathing in. “Out, †I said while exhaling. Tonight, my scuba diving training came in handy. This was just the beginning of my long night.
“Kaitlin? Are you okay?†I asked. I was really afraid and so was Emma. When Emma saw Kaitlin, she started her self induced asthma-anxiety attack. Yeah, this was going to be a problem.
Kaitlin’s dark circles that had surrounded her eyes for the past day were even darker and deeper. Her eyes were blood shot and her tongue was the color of tar. She was sickly thin and was looking worse. I was scared, nervous, and freaking out. Bile and fear flooded me, but I knew I had to stay calm if Emma and Kaitlin were going to make it back to the ho- tel.
“Emersyn, †Elaine said with little to none certainty, “I’m going to need you to coach Emma through breathing. We need to be ready if we need to take them to the hospital.†At this, Emma’s gasps for air quickened and her eyes became wild and panicked. Elaine told the driver to drive back to the hotel fast, but the rain had caused serious traffic. We were going to be stuck in traffic for a while.
In the car, I assessed Emma’s breathing problem as the most serious. I turned to Emma and said, “Emma, I want you to breathe with me.†“In, †I said while breathing in. “Out, †I said while exhaling. Emma and I repeated our cycle of “in and out, †while the driver honked his way through traffic. We breathed in and out while Emma tried to calm herself down and to stop crying. Finally, Emma was able to control her breathing for ten good breaths. “Emma, keep breathing, †I told her very seriously. Again, she nodded.
“Guys? What’s wrong?†Mr. Muir said upon arrival.
“Emma can’t breathe, †I said through inhaling and exhaling with Emma.
“At this point, I think the best thing would be to return back to the hotel. We can’t really sleep out here anyway, the rain is too much for us, †said Elaine, our trip coordinator.
“Come on, †I said to Emma, clutching her. Emma and I walked back to the dry safety of the van to see Kaitlin crying on the phone to her Mom and looking even worse than before.
Next, I turned to. “Kaitlin, I want you to squeeze my hand as much as it hurts.†Immediately Kaitlin squeezed my hand with bone crushing force. “Good, †I said. “Just keep squeezing.â€
Next, I started talking to both of them, anything that would keep them from thinking about their conditions. “You are both doing great. Emma, keep breathing. Kaitlin, just keep squeezing my hand. You are both doing amazing. I’m so proud of you. You are both amazing.†I said this over and over, partly for them, partly for myself.
Kaitlin vomited a couple of times, but refused to allow the already processed food to leave her mouth and she continued to swallow it back down. “You are both doing amazing. We’re almost there. Everything is going to be fine.†We were quite a ways away from the hotel, but Emma and Kaitlin needed to hear it.
Suddenly, Emma starting having another major attack right when Kaitlin was feeling worse. That was when I realized that the two set each other off. If Kaitlin started feeling worse, Emma began to panic and couldn’t breathe and vice versa. This was a problem and I had to keep both of my friends calm in the drive back to the hotel. That wasn’t an easy task as I was on the verge of panic myself. I knew once we made it back to the hotel, I was going to break down and cry. Cry for Emma and Kaitlin and all the stress of that night.
“Emma, in. Out. In. Out. In. Out.†I said over and over as I watched Emma try to regain control of herself. I felt horrible, all I could do was say in and out. I couldn’t actually make her breathe better. Guilt flooded my mind.
On the 45 minutes back to the hotel, Emma had about six panic attacks and Kaitlin went on a roller coaster of feeling a 4-7 on sick scale. Finally, we arrived in town and we were just five minutes away from the hotel.
“Emma, Kaitlin, we are almost there. I swear.†I said confident that I could give my friend accurate information. When we finally reached the hotel, relief filled me up. When we climbed out of the van, everybody from our bus was already on the sidewalk. Immediately, we were asked questions from every direction.
“Can’t… breathe…†Emma gasped again from all the screaming. Kaitlin almost fainted and clung to my arms.
“Guys, stop! We don’t have time for this!†I yelled at every- body. “I need everybody to be quiet!†At this everybody stopped, finally realizing the seriousness of the situation.
As quickly as possible, I herded Emma and Kaitlin into the hotel, safe from the chilling tendrils of rain. I sat them down in the giant chairs. Mrs. Hawkins rushed up to us and began asking Emma and Kaitlin questions. At this, I breathed a sigh of relief.
Average Rating: 4.9 out of 5 based on 153 user reviews.
Permalink 
“You’re so close! So close!†I murmured to myself, “Almost there. Just a little farther, then you can be done with these stupid steps, †I was tired and hungry. Food was screaming my name and my only thought was to get off the mountain in Yangshuo. I swatted away brush and loose tree branches. The air was hot and sticky with moisture and humidity. Sweat trickled down my back. The “steps†I was climbing down were still slick with the morning’s rain.
Step after step I took, careful not to slip. I constantly took sips from my water bottle not wanting to become dehydrated. My breath came in large pants and I looked for Kaitlin and the rest of my group behind me. I stopped to wait for the rest of my group.
We were almost at the bottom, the end was near in sight. In a few minutes time, I heard the chatter of my fellow classmates and carried on walking. Step, by step, by step.
“Hey, Kaitlin!†I called behind me, not looking at where I was stepping. “AAAAAHHHHHHHH!†A scream tore from my throat as my foot fell straight through nothing. Leaves and vines and berries assaulted me as I fall. Panicked, I grasped for anything that could slow my fall. Finally, I grabbed a sturdy piece of vegetation and my hands tightened around the thorny vine.
“HELP!†I managed to squeak out of my trembling body.
“Emersyn!†Kaitlin cried out alarmed. “Where are you? Are you okay?â€
“I’m okay, I think. I don’t know where I am though, †I shrieked back. I realize what I automatically said was true. I had no idea where I was. I was too afraid to turn around with risk of falling again. I only stared up, up at the gaping hole where my body fell. I quickly assessed myself in my upside down position. Nothing seemed to hurt. I didn’t see blood. I could still speak. “Kaitlin! Hurry!†I called up, not only to Kaitlin, but to anyone who was around. My hands gripped tightly to the vine, my knuckles white and holding tight, but I could feel my grip slipping and the plant slowly breaking.
I heard someone call out to Mr. Muir. Then, I heard heavy footsteps round the corner and down the steps. Strong hands grasped me and pulled me up from my feeble position on the ground. I stood up, shaky and afraid.
“Emersyn, are you all right?†Mr. Muir asked.
“I think I’m okay.†I said unsure, my whole body trembling. Then, I tried to laugh, but it came out a gurgled moan. I quickly cut the laugh short. When I looked at myself, I was covered in mud, dirt, leaves, branches, berries, but surprisingly no blood. Mr. Muir also assessed me looking for injuries. We both found none except for a few scratches.
“Wow!†Mr. Muir commented. “You fell a long ways.â€
I looked up at the place where I had fallen. “Wow, †was all I could say. I was shocked that I had fallen that far and hadn’t broken or cut anything. Mr. Muir was in the same shock.
“You probably fell five or six feet, Emersyn!†Came Mr. Muir’s astonished voice.
“Emersyn!†Kaitlin’s frantic voice cried out. “Oh my gosh! Are you okay? How did you fall? Is that where you fell?†Kaitlin’s questions came out in a rush, all attached to one breath.
“I’m okay. I think I fell because I wasn’t looking and I just stepped right off the mountain. There were a ton of vines and brush covering the path so I thought I was stepping on stone, but I ended up just stepping on plants.†I told Kaitlin. Kaitlin simply looked at me like I was a living miracle, her mouth agape.
“Do you think you can keep walking?†Mr. Muir asked me.
“Yeah, I think so, †I replied, walking about as fast as a snail to the bottom of the mountain. Luckily, the bottom wasn’t far and everybody else was waiting for us. When I reunited with my group, everyone looked at my dirty appearance and questions exploded from the group. I simply shrugged, my universal sigh for “I’ll tell you later.†At that point, I was simply thanking God that I was all right. It was simply a miracle.
Average Rating: 5 out of 5 based on 289 user reviews.
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