Inspiration Words: Strawberry and Sweater
December 3rd
I haven’t had time to write in my diary for so long, but Samantha just texted me, and it reminded me of university, when I used to write in my diary more often. So much has happened, and I can hardly remember those days when my biggest struggle was what to eat for dinner or if I would ever be able to understand my foreign teachers.
I haven’t seen Anne and Samantha since my wedding a couple months ago, so I’m super excited that Samantha invited my husband and me to her house for a Christmas party next week! During university, I often celebrated Christmas with them, and I’m really looking forward to doing it again.
I actually almost forgot about Christmas because work is so busy right now, since it’s the end of the year. I’m teaching elementary school students, and I love it so much, but it’s so much work to plan lessons and make sure all the students are listening and then take pictures and send all the pictures to their parents after class. My husband, Alex (Samantha suggested that as an English name when Alex asked her for a recommendation in choosing an English name), says I spend more time sending messages to parents than I do actually teaching lessons. I think he’s exaggerating a little bit, but sending all those pictures does take a lot of time. I guess it makes the parents feel more involved in their child’s education.
Anyway, my big decision right now is what I’m going to wear. Every year, we get a different Christmas item to celebrate with together. Our first year, we all got Christmas mugs. Mine was painted red with gold buttons to look like Santa’s coat. It even had two handles on the side that were designed to look like his arms. The second year, we all had Christmas hats. I got reindeer antlers, but Samantha’s fluffy Santa hat was everyone’s favorite. We all took turns taking selfies with that one.
This year we are going to do Christmas sweaters! I can’t wait to choose my sweater! I already started looking on Taobao (tow bow—rhymes with how, a Chinese version of Amazon), and I found a couple I really like. But I can’t decide if I want to get the silly sweater with a reindeer or the pretty sweater with a nice snowflake. I’ll probably get one I can wear to work also, but there are some really funny ones that I love! There’s a red one with a green 3D Christmas tree that looks so cute and fun. There are also a few reindeer ones that would look great with my reindeer antlers if I can find them. When Alex and I moved to our new house, I might have thrown them away.
I love our new house, but it’s so expensive. I had no idea that buying a house would cost so much money. We had to get one that’s a little farther from the city because the ones in the downtown area are ridiculously expensive! I don’t know how anyone can afford those. Alex’s parents gave us a little bit of money, but it was nowhere near enough to be able to afford a house close to where we work. So, we just have a nice long subway ride every morning. Thankfully, we can ride most of the way together.
I’m a little worried though about what will happen when we have kids. I really want to have kids before too long, but Alex keeps saying we need to wait. He always reminds me that kids are expensive, and we don’t have much extra cash right now. And when we do have kids, what are we going to do about school? Most of the good schools are in the city center, which means we might not be able to send our kids to the best school. But we didn’t have a choice, since we could only afford a house on the outskirts of the city. Maybe we can move back to Alex’s hometown, which is a smaller city. The houses will be a little more affordable, and the schools will probably be closer. But now that we’ve lived in the city for several years, it will be hard to go back to a small town. The big cities are just so interesting and convenient.
Another problem with going back to Alex’s hometown is that then we will be really close to his parents. They’re both very nice, but I don’t know that I want to live with them or close to them. They will probably move in once we have kids, and I guess it will be nice to have someone to help take care of the kids, but I don’t know. I like having time alone with just Alex and me. Wow. So many things to think about lately! Maybe I can talk about some of these things with Anne and Samantha—they always seem to have good ideas, even if they don’t completely understand the Chinese system.
~Becky
December 12th
I haven’t had a chance to write about the party yet because the weekend was so busy and I’ve had a lot to do at work. The party was so much fun, and I’m so glad Anne and Samantha planned it for us. We all had really cool sweaters. Alex and I decided to get matching ones with little reindeer on them and alternating red and white stripes.
Anne and Samantha both had cute sweaters too. Samantha had a Christmas tree one, and Anne got a snowflake. Her boyfriend, Johnson, had a Santa Claus sweater. Our pictures all look so cute, and I’m glad we did a Christmas sweater theme!
We also made Christmas cookies together! Alex and Johnson had never been to one of our parties, so it was fun to teach them how to decorate the cookies. Samantha had already baked them, so we just frosted the cookies. It took a really long time, though, because we kept stopping to talk. We all had so many things to talk about! It was the first time I met Anne’s boyfriend, and I’m so glad she has a Chinese boyfriend. I’m hoping that means she will stay in China forever! Samantha doesn’t have a boyfriend yet, but I think she will also marry a Chinese guy.
After we frosted the cookies, Samantha brought out a big surprise! She had made chocolate covered strawberries! Actually, I think Anne was the most excited about it. I thought they were tasty, but they were a little too sweet.
Anne and Samantha both wanted to hear all about our new house, so we showed them lots of pictures and asked them to come and visit us sometime. I really hope they can, but it’s a little far away, so I’m not sure if they will be able to soon.
Even though I was so tired after the party, I’m so glad I got to see my friends. While Alex and Johnson were talking, I went into the kitchen with Anne and Samantha and I told them all about my thoughts about having kids while we washed dishes. They were really kind to listen, and I already feel better just after talking about it. And they also reminded me that I don’t have to think about it too much yet because even after I have kids, they don’t have to go to school right away. “There’s still time!” Samantha kept saying.
And they’re right. I wish everything were clear now, but since it’s not, I can just enjoy this part of life now. And who knows what will happen next. Maybe the next time I have a chance to write in my diary, I will have a kid!
~Becky