Merry Christmas!

I haven’t talked to most of you in ages so I wanted to be a responsible adult and send out some Christmas cards this year. Alas, I didn't, so now you get to read about it on my blog.
2009 has been a roller coaster with the addition of Draidan to the family in January. He has made our lives a lot better but also a lot more tiring. We were hoping he would have turned out to be the quiet, reserved, unobtrusive child that I was but now we are starting to worry he is going to turn out like his mother. Drai started walking at 7 months and there has never been a dull moment since. He runs about chasing the cats, rearranging our furniture and opening anything that can be and often can’t be. He is freakishly strong for a baby his age and was able to do a chin up on the table by 8 months. He also can push around furniture that easily ways over double his own body weight. He is a lot like Bam Bam from the Flintstones actually. I might be worried that he has too much testosterone coursing through his veins if it were not for his favorite toys: A comb, a vacuum cleaner and a mop. Although, he now seems to be using the mop more as a ninja weapon. He is pretty damn funny though and quite popular with everyone in the neighborhood. I take him to the park almost every day and the grandmother’s taking care of their grandchildren are always shocked at how a baby his age can climb ladders, scale ledges and negotiate different obstacles. The only ones not impressed are the older children- as Draidan leaves a trail of drool everywhere he goes. Drool on the steps, drool on the rope ladders, drool on the slides… kids just aren’t diggin’ the saliva gym. It’s quite embarrassing when I hear the little girls shouting to their grandmothers that they don’t want to play on the jungle gym because the foreign baby drooled all over it. (Yea, they call him the "Foreign Baby')

We are really excited to have our first Christmas together. I bought him a Ferrari that he sits in and I can steer him about via remote control. It is awesome! It even has a sub woofer sound system built into the dash board and LED headlights. I am sure he will score tons of chicks with his new ride and it gives me a good excuse to play with remote control cars again! It’s times like these that I am glad I have a son. Girl toys are so lame!
Teaching is still going well The staff at my school are awesome and like a second family to me here. I still take any chance I can to torment my students and play practical jokes on them constantly. They are getting pretty good at doing them themselves. They used to be horrible at it because if I was setting someone up, the others would all stand around in a circle, staring at the intended victim, snickering as they waited for the joke to happen. (Which would of course always tip the individual off.) Taiwanese don’t play jokes on each other, so it is quite strange to them. Even the grade ones are now on program and will look away from the victim and pretend they are working when they come into the room. I scared the living daylights out of an adult class a few months ago as well. We were talking about ghosts. (Taiwanese are deathly afraid of ghosts.) I have a watch with a really interesting face plate that almost looks like a crystal ball. It throws off the light in different directions and for some reason gives off a blue glow as the light bounces off of it. I said to them, “Do you guys want to see something scary.” They all said, “Yes.” Then, I took off my watch, placed it on the table in front of them and said, “They say the crystal in these watches can capture the faces of ghosts nearby every time the second hand reaches the 13.” They were confused but then I pointed to the 13 second mark and told them to stare closely at it. “When the second hand hits it, you will briefly see a face. Now just watch…” The second hand was at about the 30 second mark, so we all stood around watching the seconds tick by. I could tell they were starting to get mesmerized by the way the light was shining off of the crystal. With ten seconds to go, the room was totally silent and you could feel the anxiety in the room. One woman was peeking through her fingers and all of them began to lean in a little closer uncomfortably. As the second hand touched the 13 mark, I threw my arms into the air and let out a horrible screech. Every person in the room leaped back screaming, some clutching their hearts. Two men actually ran half way across the room and the alpha male in the class actually pushed one of the women out of the way to escape the ghost watch. I of course, was in tears laughing at their reaction as I put my watch back on. All of them were looking at me wild eyed and then one woman asked me, “So… it really has ghost?” Which made me laugh harder. “No,” I replied. “ I made that part up.” Which got all of them laughing along with me except for the alpha male who was still shaking and wild eyed. They then began giving him the gears for throwing the women to the ghost. I don’t think teachers could do that in Canada.
Jenny is doing well, she is teaching out of our house a couple of hours a day and works in a trade company in the mornings twice a week. If I am not home when she is teaching, we have a nanny come in. Draidan really likes the nanny and she is studying pediatric nursing at university, so she is perfect for us.
Other than that, not much is new. We have had an amazing winter so far. It was 25 degrees yesterday and we have been averaging about 26 for the last two months. It is supposed to get colder later this week though. The mountains are even going to get snow apparently.
Anyways, we wish we were there to celebrate Christmas and ring in the new year with all of you. We hope 2010 proves to be an even better year than 2009 for you.
Much Love,
Danny, Jenny and Draidan