It's been a bit of a whirlwind at the Martin-Neff house since we celebrated Thanksgiving. Because Christmas coincides with the end of the school year, there's a lot of activities and preparations to fit into our days. Plus, we have to get our beach time in too :)
I thought I'd write a quick post about some of the things we've been up to lately and how we're preparing for our first Christmas in New Zealand.
1 Belt test success!
As you know, the Adorable Girl is our little ninja-in-training and has been taking Tae Kwon Do lessons for three years now. When we arrived in New Zealand, we found a TKD school for her to join, but the school follows a completely different form than what she practiced in the U.S. Basically, she had to start over with her training, but she's been a superstar, kicking butt since Day 1.
Recently she tested for the next level in her training -- something they call 9th gup (?? don't ask me :) and passed! It was a stressful experience, quite formal with one of the top TKD practitioners in the country grading the kids. The Adorable Girl even had to answer a question in front of a crowd -- which, as some of you know, can be difficult for her -- but she NAILED it!
We were so proud. Her teachers called her "awesome!" I almost cried from the stress and definitely said "shit" out loud in a pin-drop room -- BUT we got her ribbon. Mission accomplished.
2 My ceramic owl
A few years ago, the kids' preschool had an end-of-year ceremony where they gave the kids certificates and thanked the parents for all of the support (and incredible amount of money!!) we gave them over the year. It was nice. Until I had a fit of jealous rage that lasted, oh, a few years. ;)
At the event, one of the moms was given an award, a ceramic owl, to recognize the time she had spent volunteering at the school. She deserved it. She's a nice woman, a realtor/stay-at-home mom with time to spare. I should have gracefully acknowledged her achievement and moved on with my life. But, oh I can be a petty one sometimes.
I grumbled over that damn ceramic owl for...well, three years. To be clear, I didn't deserve a ceramic owl. I had spent very little time helping out at the school. I didn't come dressed in native Western Maryland garb to show off my culture during international week. I didn't help the kids make their Christmas crafts or hire a clown for their graduation party. She did those things -- while I was at work. I was jealous because I felt bad, I felt not good enough as a working mom who had someplace to be every day between 9 and 5. I felt upset because Shane and I were overwhelmed, doing our best at parenting, working so hard to make life happen -- and it honestly felt like we deserved a gold medal for getting through the day.
Fast forward a bit. This week, I was invited to a special morning tea for parents who help out at the kids' school. The girl handed me the invitation -- given to her by her teacher -- and I felt, gosh, I don't even know. Happy, I guess. Honored, grateful. I helped out a bit in their classrooms here and there over the last few months. Because I wasn't rushing to and from work, I had a little time in the morning or the afternoon to help blow up some balloons or cut up paper for their crafts, chaperone the field trip. I enjoyed helping out and certainly didn't need or deserve any recognition. But goodness it felt good to get my ceramic owl. I think I've finally healed that chip on my shoulder. :)
3 Getting ready for Christmas
I love Christmas. Who doesn't love Christmas? It's such a fun time of year, especially when you have two excited little kids to celebrate with. We've bought and put up our Christmas tree and decorated the house with secondhand decorations (David, wherever you are, your ornament has a place of honor on our tree :). I've been working behind-the-scenes to get presents ready for everyone here and at home. The kids have been opening the doors on their advent calendars. It's an exciting time, doubly exciting because we're also counting down to the last day of the school year.
Next Friday, Dec. 15, is the end of term and the start of a 6-week summer break. It will be the second summer vacation of the year for our kids -- lucky, aren't they? I'm excited to get off the school schedule and spend our days at the pool or the amazing Auckland beaches instead. There's so much adventure waiting for us here. And the weather has been perfect -- blue skies, hot sun, gorgeous temps.
So while Christmas will be decidedly different this year, it's gonna be a good one. And then we get to look forward to something even better: Greenbean (my mom) coming in the new year!
We made a little video about Christmas traditions in New Zealand to share with my friend's 5th grade class back at home. Take a look to see how we've been tapping into the Christmas spirit.
