Brynn is still under the weather, but her and mommy have been exploring the campus and new hairstyles.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Brynn at Houghton...
Brynn is still under the weather, but her and mommy have been exploring the campus and new hairstyles.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Monday Night Update...
A lot has happened since I last updated the blog, even though it has only been a short time...
Brynn's ER Visit: Yes, you are reading that correctly. My daughter was taken to the emergency room in, New York or Amish Country. That is correct, we passed two horse and buggies outside of the hospital. Brynn woke up with a low-grade fever on Sunday morning, which is no reason for concern. We gave her some Tylenol and kept her inside most of the day. Come 5 o'clock, however, things go SOUTH. Brynn's temperature jumps to 105.7 or Sarah Meltdown Stage. She does not go berserk screaming, but runs around the room for no rhyme or reason with Brynn in her arms. I get her calmed down and go to retrieve the nurse with our group. Her husband drives us to the closest ER (30 minutes away). We get to see much of upstate New York, but not by choice. The hospital staff was fabulous. We were in and out in an hour. The doctor seems to think Brynn has an upper-respiratory infection which led to an ear infection from the plane ride. We got her some medicine (antibiotic). Today, she has done very well. She has not shown any symptoms other than a fever. Tonight, her fever spiked, but she did not go lifeless, drank plenty of fluids and ate some food. Her nose has started to run, so we think it might be passing!!
Ultimate Frisbee: I have been able to throw the Frisbee over the past few days. I am able to relive some of my glory days from Montevallo by wowing onlookers with my flick, hammer and overhead flicks. I played in a game on Saturday night and was in the process of dominating before AGE came a calling. After about an hour of play, I was dropped to the ground by calf cramps. I have never cramped in my life! Needless to say, my Frisbee career has come and gone.
Classes: We have had our first full day of classes. Sarah was excused to take care of our daughter. This morning started with devotion and praise, followed by an introduction to the two-week process. We also participated in an activity which divided us into groups. Our group was assigned a way to act (one group was laid back, one group had a servant mentality, one group was military oriented and another group was extremely outgoing and touchy). It gave us a good view of the different cultures that we will be exposed to in our classrooms and communities. This afternoon, we were given our results to the MBSTI personality test. A really old lady, who is an expert in the field, explained her views on the test from a God-centered view. It was awesome. She has been married to her complete opposite for 51 years.
Favorite Quote of the trip: "It is your job as parents to mold your child's personality, not change their personality."
Favorite Lesson Learned of the trip: Negative Attribution Theory-People automatically attribute negatives responses to anything new that comes into their lives. For example, if you are in Tuscaloosa and see someone dressed differently than the norm, then you automatically think something negative about them. I need to work on this as I enter a new country with all sorts of different people.
Until later,
The Perdues are out!
Brynn's ER Visit: Yes, you are reading that correctly. My daughter was taken to the emergency room in, New York or Amish Country. That is correct, we passed two horse and buggies outside of the hospital. Brynn woke up with a low-grade fever on Sunday morning, which is no reason for concern. We gave her some Tylenol and kept her inside most of the day. Come 5 o'clock, however, things go SOUTH. Brynn's temperature jumps to 105.7 or Sarah Meltdown Stage. She does not go berserk screaming, but runs around the room for no rhyme or reason with Brynn in her arms. I get her calmed down and go to retrieve the nurse with our group. Her husband drives us to the closest ER (30 minutes away). We get to see much of upstate New York, but not by choice. The hospital staff was fabulous. We were in and out in an hour. The doctor seems to think Brynn has an upper-respiratory infection which led to an ear infection from the plane ride. We got her some medicine (antibiotic). Today, she has done very well. She has not shown any symptoms other than a fever. Tonight, her fever spiked, but she did not go lifeless, drank plenty of fluids and ate some food. Her nose has started to run, so we think it might be passing!!
Ultimate Frisbee: I have been able to throw the Frisbee over the past few days. I am able to relive some of my glory days from Montevallo by wowing onlookers with my flick, hammer and overhead flicks. I played in a game on Saturday night and was in the process of dominating before AGE came a calling. After about an hour of play, I was dropped to the ground by calf cramps. I have never cramped in my life! Needless to say, my Frisbee career has come and gone.
Classes: We have had our first full day of classes. Sarah was excused to take care of our daughter. This morning started with devotion and praise, followed by an introduction to the two-week process. We also participated in an activity which divided us into groups. Our group was assigned a way to act (one group was laid back, one group had a servant mentality, one group was military oriented and another group was extremely outgoing and touchy). It gave us a good view of the different cultures that we will be exposed to in our classrooms and communities. This afternoon, we were given our results to the MBSTI personality test. A really old lady, who is an expert in the field, explained her views on the test from a God-centered view. It was awesome. She has been married to her complete opposite for 51 years.
Favorite Quote of the trip: "It is your job as parents to mold your child's personality, not change their personality."
Favorite Lesson Learned of the trip: Negative Attribution Theory-People automatically attribute negatives responses to anything new that comes into their lives. For example, if you are in Tuscaloosa and see someone dressed differently than the norm, then you automatically think something negative about them. I need to work on this as I enter a new country with all sorts of different people.
Until later,
The Perdues are out!
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Losing Weight....
The Sarah and I that you see now will be quickly disappearing. Once we reach China, we will be starting a new exercise regiment. The regiment consists of living in an apartment, living on the 5th floor and most importantly, not having an ELEVATOR!!!
For me, it may be OK, as I will go to school and come home. One trip down and one trip up, I can handle that. For Sarah and Brynn, I have no idea how this is going to work. How does Sarah get Brynn, a stroller and three bags of groceries up these stairs?
On the positive side, our apartment will be 3 bedrooms, 2 baths with large beds (queens). Brynn will have her own room and also we may have a study/guest room for visitors (hint, hint). It was described as having "old Chinese antique architecture". I think that may sound pretty!!!
On the negative, we have a built in desk that is pink and blue. Our fridge, YELLOW!!
For me, it may be OK, as I will go to school and come home. One trip down and one trip up, I can handle that. For Sarah and Brynn, I have no idea how this is going to work. How does Sarah get Brynn, a stroller and three bags of groceries up these stairs?
On the positive side, our apartment will be 3 bedrooms, 2 baths with large beds (queens). Brynn will have her own room and also we may have a study/guest room for visitors (hint, hint). It was described as having "old Chinese antique architecture". I think that may sound pretty!!!
On the negative, we have a built in desk that is pink and blue. Our fridge, YELLOW!!
Roundup of NY's first 3 days...
Plane Rides: First leg, Brynn played the entire flight. Actually, clapped and jumped up-and-down when the plane touched down for landing. Second leg, Brynn slept the entire 3-hour journey. Mommy and Daddy were ecstatic! Delay in Orlando made us miss dinner with co-workers, so we were treated to steak and lobster at local Buffalo restaurant.
Houghton College: Very much like Montevallo, but a little bit smaller. Similar campus and layout. Only difference, it is located in the middle of nowhere. The closest Walmart is an hour drive.
Our Group: We met the 10 teachers and families that will be teaching with me in the Fall... let me just say AWESOME! The group consist of 2 just-out-of college girls, middle-age single mom, older couple with grown children and six couples of varying ages bringing kids of varying ages (one with baby on way). Our principal and his family are phenomenal. We feel very comfortable about our future move after these first three days. We will be in GOOD hands!
What we been doing: Our food has been cafeteria style. It has been hit or miss. Some meals are real good, while others are edible (just like Montevallo). We have been learning about our cities, the language, company's history and other various orientation events. We have made a lot of good friends, some going with us to our city and others to another city in China.
Brynn: Our daughter has branched out over the past three days. She has a new, best friend named Esther. Esther turned 1 today. She is adorable and the only child of a couple from North Carolina. They are going to another city, but are a couple that we will keep in close contact with. Brynn is being showed a ton of Love from our fellow staff members. We could not ask for more. We have been shuffling her around, a lot, over the past couple of months, but she has done great. Even when she acts bad, we have to remember that a 15th-month old doesn't understand the journey that her parents are taking!
Houghton College: Very much like Montevallo, but a little bit smaller. Similar campus and layout. Only difference, it is located in the middle of nowhere. The closest Walmart is an hour drive.
Our Group: We met the 10 teachers and families that will be teaching with me in the Fall... let me just say AWESOME! The group consist of 2 just-out-of college girls, middle-age single mom, older couple with grown children and six couples of varying ages bringing kids of varying ages (one with baby on way). Our principal and his family are phenomenal. We feel very comfortable about our future move after these first three days. We will be in GOOD hands!
What we been doing: Our food has been cafeteria style. It has been hit or miss. Some meals are real good, while others are edible (just like Montevallo). We have been learning about our cities, the language, company's history and other various orientation events. We have made a lot of good friends, some going with us to our city and others to another city in China.
Brynn: Our daughter has branched out over the past three days. She has a new, best friend named Esther. Esther turned 1 today. She is adorable and the only child of a couple from North Carolina. They are going to another city, but are a couple that we will keep in close contact with. Brynn is being showed a ton of Love from our fellow staff members. We could not ask for more. We have been shuffling her around, a lot, over the past couple of months, but she has done great. Even when she acts bad, we have to remember that a 15th-month old doesn't understand the journey that her parents are taking!
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Prep for NY...
I have been absent from the blog for a while with moving, end of school, prep for our Big Move, etc... From this day forward, Sarah and I will tag-team the blog. We will be updating on our time in Houghton, New York from June 24-July 9. We leave tomorrow morning at 8:45. We are looking forward to meeting 10 other new staff members who are moving to Chengdu and my principal (with his family). Supposedly, cell phones do not work well in this area. If you need us, Facebook, email or Skype are the best options.
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