an Americanish life in backwater China

Category By the Numbers

9 Preschool Safety Tips from Chinese Youeryuan

I was sorting through a box of old books and happened upon some of the workbooks my kids used in youeryuan (Chinese preschool). One of the books was called Safety Education. It teaches kids some basic safety tips with illustrations… Continue Reading →

8 Foods You Never Knew You Could Make from Scratch in China

When we first moved to China oodles of years ago, it felt like all my cooking skills evaporated. Or rather, that everything I had learned to cook so far in my life was no longer applicable in the new culinary… Continue Reading →

9 Ways China Expats Offend on U.S. Soil

I try to remember how to act American, I really do. But so much of behavior runs on a subconscious autopilot setting, and mine stays set to “China mode” even after landing in the States. Yours, too? It takes a… Continue Reading →

8 Observations about the First 5 Hours in America

Like many American expats, June is the month our family boarded a plane back to the U.S. It’s always surreal to arrive back in the Land of the Free and Home of the Big Gulp. And there’s nothing like the… Continue Reading →

14 Things China Expats Binge on in Thailand

Every year around Spring Festival, there’s a flood of Chinese expats from the Great Chicken over to the Land of Smiles. I don’t have an exact number, but judging from the way my Facebook and Instagram feeds are currently bursting… Continue Reading →

Forks vs. Chopsticks – The Showdown Winner!

It’s time to announce the winner of the Fork vs. Chopsticks SHOWDOWN! Honestly, I thought these two utensils would be evenly matched, and we’d be seeing a very close race. However, it quickly became clear that one of them was winning by… Continue Reading →

It’s 39°F in My Bedroom, But I Can’t Complain (Seriously. I vowed not to.)

When we woke up this morning, the thermometer showed that it was 39°F (3.9°C). Not 39°F outside, friends. That was the temperature INSIDE our bedroom. Brrr…. But I am not going to complain about how frigid it is because…I promised not to. This… Continue Reading →

One Pumpkin, Four Ways

Our friends gifted us with this gorgeous gourd about a month ago. Wow. It was so pretty that I couldn’t bring myself to slaughter it right away. I just wanted to enjoy looking at it for a while before we… Continue Reading →

6 Chinese Words I Learned from Songs

Learning the lyrics to Chinese songs is a really fun way to learn new words and phrases in Chinese. It’s a great window into culture, too, to hear the poetic way sentiments are expressed in songs. From the time I… Continue Reading →

These 6 Taobao Freebies are All Winners

If you live in China, you know just how much most people have come to depend on Taobao. You can get ANYTHING on Taobao. Some of my friends from Israel just bought a shofar on Taobao, for crying out loud…. Continue Reading →

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