This last week was really great. I think I've kept my Mom and Dad busier than they could have imagined. They have been great sports about it all. We went to the silk factory on Monday, and on a bike ride Tuesday to see a cemetery I found a while ago. I think that Dad really enjoyed seeing a Chinese Cemetery. It looked like it was a government official and military cemetery. There were only a couple of plots that were made for a whole casket. The rest were small boxes for cremains. We even got to see some people burning money for their family to have on the other side, and some fireworks. They scare away the evil spirits with fireworks. The ride to the cemetery is also quite interesting, with many small farms along the way.
Wednesday, we rode the train to Suzhou. That was great. We saw some beautiful gardens, and went to Zhouzhuang the next morning. It is a small canal town. We were able to see some huge old houses. That afternoon we went back to Suzhou and saw a silk factory, and rode on a boat down the Suzhou canal. It was so beautiful, and interesting. The houses backed right up to the river. We even got to see a traditional Chinese wedding. They were all dressed in their traditional costumes and got onto a decorated boat. They went down the river and continued their procession on another street. It was fantastic! We got back to Nanjing on Thursday night. On Friday morning we went to the Nanjing massacre museum, which was very disturbing. It is a memorial for the Japanese invasion of Nanjing. It was hard to see. There were so many horrible things that were done to the people of Nanjing. Friday night we made pizza and watched a movie. On Saturday, Mike had to work , which we were all sad about. We took Mom and Dad to the slide park on Purple Mountain. Dad kept an eye on the boys, but Mom did the obstacle courses and did a great job! Mike and Dad took Mom and I to dinner that night to a Thai restraaunt as a special Mother's Day treat. We had a foot massage, and Hagen Das ice cream!
On Sunday, was what everyone joked as the Wadley Family Primary hour. It was the primary program. The kids did great. Eli gave a scripture, and Nicole, Jay and Caitlin each gave talks. Nicole and Caitlin wrote their own talks and did a much better job than if I had helped them. They sang some songs they had been working on with their awesome teachers. Eli had a hard time sitting still. First his tie came off, then his shoes, and socks. I think he would have been naked by the end if I'd let him. He was supposed to give the closing prayer. When I went up to help him after their last primary song, he said very loudly,"Mom, my P___s hurts!" Yea, that was fun. He got through the prayer, though, after tipping over a chair. He was the comic relief for the program.
Mom and Dad will leave for Shanghai tomorrow. We will be so sad to have them leave. It has been a wonderful time with them here. And I'm proud to say, that I've worn them out so much, that Mom has slept almost every night! It will be so hard to say good-bye, but we will see them in just over a month when we visit Utah. Hurray!
