That's China

It rained last night. On my early morning walk with our guest-pet, I witnessed something that happens every time it rains here.

The compound guards use brush brooms to sweep the water to the storm drains. This isn't the best picture, but you get the idea.

Two wet klicks for me, a wet broom morning for the guard.

Wistow Picnic, Guest Post

On Sunday August 23rd Christine and Housemates at Wistow invited friends & family for a potluck Luau BBQ. The weather was tropical: hot, sunny and humid.

Guests were escorted to the beautiful backyard where each received a lei. Guests were decked out in colourful attire befitting the tropical theme.

As per the nature of potluck gatherings, there was an overabundance of delicious food which was enjoyed by all.

The smile on Chrissy's face tell us she was so happy to entertain in her garden: a little slice of paradise.

Loving this low AQI!

We walked and rode and walked and rode today. The girls earned half of these Klicks. During the day, it's sometimes a little frustrating because I want Little Bit to ride in the bike trailer so I can go farther. But at the same time, I am so proud of her because she wants to ride her bike or walk so SHE is earning Klicks for Aunt Chrisy. I guess I really can't complain about that!

Total today: 15km

Fantastic way to earn Klicks!

We visited Longqingxia or the Longqing Gorge today. It was beautiful. We walked, rode a dragon escalator, rode boats, climbed, walked more, toured a strange cave decorated to show the seasons and regions of China and rode a giant toboggan style slide with no safety measures. A true China Style day.

The majority of our walking was done going up stairs. Ok, maybe not the majority of our walking but a great bit of our time anyway! We were attempting to reach the Illusion Temple. We made it about half way and then little legs sat down refusing to go up another step. I can't really blame them, it was a long way up.

The scenery today was amazing the the girls were troopers. The Dad, aka Tool Man, aka Shutter Bug, took some beautiful pictures. These two best show where we were walking. It's so hard to capture just how deep this gorge is. Maybe the little Chinese heads in the first picture give some perspective?

We had to estimate the distance as I forgot to start my "Map My Run" ap. Sorry about that. We were with another couple, both Canadians, who estimated we walked about 8km. They are both experienced in land nav, so they may be right. But Brian and I didn't think we walked that much; so we are guessing 5km. Multiply that by 5... not a bad day for klick earning.

All tallied, 29.5km today, all walking!

Saturday update

More great AQI.

Dad's kilometers for the week: 9.5

Our family AQI for today: 16.5

The dog we are puppy sitting may be wearing out! This was all he had left at the end of the day today... poor pup!

Fantastic AQI!

What a fantastic day! It started out with a high AQI but dropped so I was able to get in lots of biking and walking today. The girls claimed it was "too hot" so they didn't add much. But hopefully the air will be nice again tomorrow and we'll all get in on the fun!

21 km today.

Exciting update!

It's another cloudy, smoggy day in the Jing. But we managed 13.5klicks today!

This whole "Klicks for Chrissy" idea came about after a strategic planning meeting with Chrissy over the summer. A fantastic PH worker sat with Chrissy and her family to set dreams and goals for the year. The girls and I were fortunate enough to participate in the last portion of the planning session. It was fascinating to watch this woman work with Chrissy and read her responses. The PH worker incorporated our verbal input and Chrissy's subtle cues. I was impressed with how well she included Chrissy in the conversation and made the planning session about what Chrissy wants, not what we all thought Chrissy wants.

One of Chrissy's dreams is to be on the London Tour of Gardens. Broken down into time specific and achievable goals... build the sidewalk.

Another dream and goal is to stay more connected to her nieces (the girls) and her brother

And one more dream? To go swimming.

I cannot begin to tell you how excited I was to get this note from Mom/Oma:

A short report re: Chrissy's swimming experience. The Y was recently renovated and they did well; larger change rooms with change tables and ceiling lifts. The therapeutic pool itself is warmer and has a ceiling lift for getting in and out of the water. The smile on Chrissy'e face was unbelievable, I have not seen that smile since before her kidney stones. It lasted the whole 45 minutes she was in the water and beyond. At on point I held her upright and her legs were down. I told her we could actually measure how tall she is when she is in the water. She was very relaxed and we are planning to go on Mondays for the time being. A rewarding experience.

I am so very excited for Chrissy and for Mom/Oma. They have wanted to get this done for Chrissy for as long as I can remember. I can imagine Chrissy's radiant and beautiful smile in the pool!!

I wish I were closer to give everyone a giant hug in celebration.