Another day

Well, we are moving ahead with life as it comes.  We said our last goodbyes to Xiao Chen today.  Definitely sad for all of us, but we are praying things will go well with them as a family.  They get on a train in the morning for a 19-hour ride.  We also got Chris back (at 3 am last night), though he was out again tonight for a meeting.  Tomorrow we are going to breakfast as a family, with a doctor's appointment and grocery run planned too.  Austin has had this hacking cough for almost 3 months now.  I think it is most likely what is known as the "(insert out city name here) cough"...pretty common with the air here.  But we want to make sure it is nothing else.  We are thinking about finally investing in some good air purifiers...really a must here but the exorbitant cost has kept us from doing it before.  But we think it is time so we may investigate the options soon.

Otherwise, it was a fairly normal day around here. I am trying to quickly establish a new cleaning routine, since things will pile up pretty quickly without a helper.  I need to really stay on top of the dishes and laundry...wow those things pile up so fast.  Think my nights after the kids go down will look a little different now. Austin was so sweet though...he said he will help me a lot now that ayi is gone. He attempted to mop the other day...he probably would have done a great job actually except for the fact that he decided to also mop the outside back steps, which of course were filthy.  So that ended the mopping session inside the apartment.  Maybe this really will be a good time to train the boys more in picking up and doing chores around the house.  Though they do have some jobs (setting table, putting pajamas and clothes away and picking up toys) they don't always get done and usually someone will pick up after them.

Well, hoping to get to bed soon.  Lucy seems to be having a growth spurt (I hope and not a new routine) and has been up multiple times a night wanting to eat.  Better sleep while all is quiet.