Princesses and Pirate Ships

Put a grey beard on Ash and she is starting to look more like Santa (at least the bowl full of jelly part) **Taken in front of the Christmas tree we decorated for our apartment.

So, I was thinking about why I love the holidays so much, and decided to blog about my thoughts. I heard this song (Taylor Swift) that mentioned princesses and pirate ships... it just explained perfectly what I love about the holidays. I love the magical hope that this time of year brings to families everywhere. This is the time of year when families hope they can put aside their differences and have those special moments that fuel our hearts for the entire year to come.

So, where did my love of the holidays come from? For me, there are a couple things I remember about the holidays growing up...

No responsibilities. This is the only time of year when everyone gets a break, and the days include adventure and variety. The rest of the year life is muted by our weekly routine, but this season we get time off, travel, family events, and gifts! Each day is an adventure waiting to unfold...

Fairy tales. Even after we inevitably find out the real truth about Santa Claus, this is still the time of year when we hold closely to our most fantastic stories. Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer, Santa, Frosty, Jesus in the manger, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. I think each person holds hope in their heart that we are living in the midst of great stories, and this is the time of year where we can think and talk this way without public ridicule. These stories give us hope that we're living in a world where people are kind, good trumps evil, and someone bigger than us makes sure that everything will be OK. What a wonderful thing to believe...

*I am not comparing Rudolph, Frosty, and Jesus... just including all the stories we talk and think about during this season!!!


*Where are you going to put a tree that big, Clark?

Generosity. 'Tis the season where we collect jackets and christmas shoeboxes full of gifts for the less fortunate in our society. I love the idea that the Christmas season can bring people together to do great things for others.

Skiing. A weird addition, I know. But I remember since I was a kid driving up to Big Bear or Mammoth mountain...the majestic snow covered mountains seemed so far from our San Diego home. There was something magical about cramming into a ski cabin and playing board games after hurling ourselves down a mountain all day. The adventure of skiing a run where you honestly don't know if you can get down without breaking something, those times where you are so out of control you can't help but laugh that scared laugh where you know you could be seriously injured at any time. Awesome.
*This may or may not be me. If it is not me, it looks a lot like me.

Cookies. My family used to make those press sugar cookies, and each kid got to choose what shape they wanted their cookies to be. We then iced, sprinkled, and devoured our slice of the cookie batch! Most of the year, my sisters and I were engaged in a battle that rivaled WWII, but I remember us all laughing and baking cookies without name-calling, hair-pulling, or scratching. This was a miracle that was only possible this time of year!
*Our cookies were even better than these...

*My memories were likely altered by the amount of sugar I ingested during the cookie consumption (with egg nog, and hot chocolate to wash them down). Therefore, we probably fought the same amount as any other time of year, but had better treats to drown our sorrows with afterwards. Still a moral victory!

Anyways, I hope you take the time to make the holidays special this year... and hopefully we'll be seeing many of you as we pass through Minneapolis, Vail, San Francisco and Indianapolis this season.

If we don't see you, feel free to send holidays treats to our house in the mail. Presents are also welcome. Do NOT send us your children after they have ingested 4 lbs of press-cookies.

Thanksgiving

*Me, after thanksgiving dinner

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays of the year. This is because of the delicious food, time with family, but most of all because it marks the beginning of my favorite time of year (between now and Christmas).

Here are some things I am thankful for...

*Turkey is good.

Although I have missed them @ thanksgiving for the first time in years, I am thankful for those delicious yeast rolls I normally eat.

*Not the yeast rolls I usually eat, but you get the idea.


I am thankful for incredible friends...Ash and I have always been very blessed with loving people all around us, and being in China makes us even more aware of how important these friendships are.

I am thankful for a healthy marriage and an understanding, beautiful, funny, smart, sugar momma.

I am thankful that I'm going home to 3 of the hottest ladies (almost used another word here), to share a bed with Ash, Zeta, and little Haase.

I am thankful for my family, which has grown this year...all my sisters are in serious relationships and so our family continues to grow(married, engaged, dating...all three levels of the commitment pyramid!).
*Technically, this is not my family. However, I am thankful that this family is so happy. But, if pressed, I would have to say I am not thankful for this family, just for family in general. Sorry, family.

I am thankful to have a good job in this economy.

I am thankful that I continue to get better-looking every day. I know that some of you think this is impossible, but wait until you see me when I get back. Amazing. My hair has taken it to a whole new level, I lost my Europe fat, and now I look more refined because I am going to be a dad. I'm thinking about becoming a model...perhaps a mer-man model.

I am thankful to live in a country where the streets are relatively clean, where we can lobby our government for change, where we can disagree, and where everyone has a right to liberty, justice, and the pursuit of delicious food.

We are truly blessed, and I'm thinking we should have thanksgiving more than once a year. Mainly for the food, but it also does the soul a lot of good to remember all the things that are going right.

The bund- a last video..

Hi kids! Me, again...

So the sad news is that in classic Ash pregnancy fashion, I lost our video camera. :(

But, here is one final and fabulous video of "The Bund."

This is a cool area along the Huangpu river- Puxi is our side and Pudong is the other side that I am video-ing but I do love it at night time.

Enjoy!!

An update for the folks at home...

It has been awhile since I've blogged... greetings!

Hard to believe that this is my final week here in Shanghai! Dave will stay one extra week and I am going to San Francisco to get some work done with Lynda (my former boss and main client still). I am excited to see the Haases and all of our friends left in the Bay.

Not too many updates, but I will catch you up quickly:

- When I am not working, I run around town with my mom and grandparents!

- We have been taking lots of walks around the city streets trying to find the best ice cream- we found it! Blueberry yogurt topped with fudge and slivered almonds- delicious!

- Starbucks has the Christmas cups here, which makes me more than happy.

- I have been listening to Christmas music non-stop for the last two weeks!

- We took a family excursion to a water town- my Dad said some Chinese compare it to Venice- this is a ridiculous comparison, but Mission Impossible 3 was filmed there. We rented the movie later that evening to see what we saw, just on screen- very exciting! :) Oh- and our tour guide "Celine" actually sang for us in the car- like full on eyes closed, belting out- a karaoke performance of "My Heart Will Go On..." I could not even make eye contact with Dave.

- I am officially done with all of our Christmas shopping- thank God for online and the shops of Cheena! Now... all of you pray that I don't get stopped in customs. :) As I am carrying a lot of illegal goods for my friends and family, of course out of love.

- I had my last China doctor's appointment- all is good in my belly hood. She is 50th percantile which means she is not too big and not too small- certain parts of my body pray that she remains closer to the not too big category. :)

- Our house is ready to move in and just waiting for us in Indy- with a small team of elves, including our awesome realtor and my amazing mother everything is fixed, painted and clean!

- We are celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow with my whole family and then again Saturday with Dave's boss's family- lots of great food, even in China!

Love and hugs to all of you reading- can't wait to see a lot of you soon!

Lazy Weekend

I would love to share with everyone the incredible adventures we had this weekend, but this blog entry would look like this:

Saturday-went to dinner

Sunday-went to fabric market

Yes, we had a lazy weekend. Saturday at 6pm we were still in our pajamas (don't visualize, it was not pretty). This was a much-needed recharge, and frankly the weather was awful so we didn't want to go outside.

Sunday, however, we rocked the world, even though the world doesn't know it yet. Ash came up with a million dollar idea, a pregnancy website that is witty, informative, inspirational, and experiential (and any other great words you can think of).

I created a small institute that will work to engage leaders to solve problems in the environmental and social spaces. It is called the SEE Institute (social and environmental engagement). I don't know what it takes to create an institute, but I'm thinking research and cool ideas. I like my ideas, and I read a lot on the internet, so I think I'm set.

Taglines are my favorite things to think about. Here's some for our ideas:

Pregnancy Website

You're not fat, you're pregnant, stupid!
Big bellies, bigger ideas
Thinking for two
Kicking the pregnancy habit
Get out of my belly! (said in Scottish accent)
I birth, therefore I am
To conceive is human, to give birth is divinely painful


The See Institute

Creating a See of change
Seeing the future
See no evil
RESPE See T

OK, that is a start. I like taking famous quotes and changing them to fit one of these themes...any ideas out there?

It's raining men

*cat trying to get out of the shower

OK, I had to follow up the email post(below) with a commentary on our shower. Most things here are awesome...but this shower is outragelous (outrageous and ridiculous at the same time).

First, it is a handheld unit. However, hands in the shower are convenient for things like washing and scrubbing, so this requires that the unit point in a certain direction without moving. Our shower will not do this. The head moves randomly (or devilishly, depending on who you ask), and thus sprays water all over the bathroom. Ash has been sprayed in the face while fully clothed, and Dave has narrowly avoided the same fate (I am fast like cheetah).

Next, should you get the shower positioning correct, you have to contend with the temperature of the water. I think we were well prepared for bad showers after our European vacation (cold showers @ hostels most of the time), but this takes it to another level. The shower is not cold. It is not hot. It is not mildly warm or cool. It is simply a random assortment of temperatures somewhere between scalding and freezing. It is as if someone has this thing rigged to a laptop and is hitting a button to send the water from hot to cold at inopportune moments. This person likely has rigged the shower with a video camera, and is selling our videos to China's Funniest Home Videos as we speak...

During any normal shower, there is at least one temperature swing severe enough to cause an involuntary scream to pass through your voice box. I'm sure our neighbors love hearing this!

Finally, the icing on the cake. The bottom of the shower is, as I would describe it, "The Floor of Death." This floor was specifically designed to endanger the lives of anyone stupid enough to enter the shower. If you are bold enough to step on the curved sides (only the middle 3-4" is flat), you will certainly slip and likely hurt yourself. It nearly killed Ashley the other day, who shifted suddenly when the water became freezing, only to slip and pop out of the shower on the floor. Luckily I was standing at the sink to watch the whole thing! It was like a hippo popping out of the dense rain forest, stumbling, and squealing on the ground. Except cuter.

OK, that was the random thought of the day...enjoy your warm showers in the USA!!

*A reinactment of Ashley's shower fall, approximately

Everybody's working for the weekend

Tonight (Friday night) I emailed ash to tell her what I wanted to do…she took my initial email (the times and events) and added funny comments. I thought I would share:


you forgot to add details....

5:15- walk home amidst the small chinese people while avoiding their spitting and swaying
5:30- go down the elevator (that hopefully doesn't smell like BO) to the sub par gym for an invigorating workout
6:45- take a cold or maybe scalding shower (who knows? Maybe both) while listening to some soothing musical tunes
7:00- eat a delicious meal prepared by your lovely wife who provides nourishment for you body
7:30/ 8:00- take a nice walk in the polluted air to an overpriced bar where we will enjoy a beer and watch the crazy people walk by
11:00- snuggle your little hippo and tire your eyes while reading and warming her freezing feet
11:30- lights out
Midnight- Ash will still be awake so she can call the damn hospital about the bill !!!!!!!
Cheers,
Ashley Haase

Just thought you might be interested in a glimpse of our daily activities!
Hope your weekend will be as grand as ours...

Hope...

OK, I do have to comment on politics (one of my rules is that I will NEVER talk politics on my blog) for just a moment...here goes.

I am very excited to see the amount of hope that the election has brought this country. I do think this is a crucial turning point for our country, and I am glad to have an intelligent and charismatic man at the helm during what will be a crucial 4 years.

I am also disappointed by the state of politics in the US over the past 8 years. While I am a fiscal conservative who normally leans toward the republican party, the divisiveness and politicking in Washington in the past two presidential terms has been embarrassing. Because of this, I am ready for change.

Additionally, what an amazing time to see the first black president. It is wild to think just 50 years ago that the black minority was fighting to have access to schools and buses (!!), and now we have a black man as president. I can only imagine how hopeful minorities in the US must feel today.

I would like to make a couple comments on the state of politics and religion in this country (Uh oh, skip ahead now!). First, I hate the fact that Republicans use the politics of fear to increase their influence (again, I normally lean republican, so please give me the right to criticize a little). They repeatedly did this by painting Obama as a terrorist, as a radical, and as a foreigner...this is just not playing fair. I hope fear never plays a role in our voting, as it leads us to choose leaders who can be over-reactive toward defense. When defense is in the conversation, every other policy fades into the background (the economy, health care, schools, etc.). That is not the kind of politics I hope for, and I miss the days where people could speak freely in America without being persecuted (in the past few years we've had the troubling episodes with the Dixie Chicks, Michael Moore, and today's dumbed-down political campaigns). It doesn't matter who's to blame on this topic, only that it changes going forward.

Now, the real icing on the cake. I am offended that, as a Christian, I am expected to vote for republicans because they support the roll-back of Roe v. Wade, because their leaders talk about God more, and because they vow to kill the evil-doers who are Muslims.

This is a pause for you to take a deep breath and forgive me...

I don't believe Christians should only vote for Christians, and I don't believe the Republican party is the only one that represents the interests of Christianity. My Christian perspective includes many things democrats are known for:

A commitment to reducing social injustice (Jesus said serve the oppressed, the widows and orphans, the weak, the poor)

A commitment to represent the rights of the weak (gay marriage, even abortion, though morally contentious, is an attempt to protect mothers' rights)

A tendency to seek fewer military engagements (love thy neighbor, turn the other cheek, etc.)

My point is that Christians can vote either way and still be Christians. Additionally, if you have thought about this topic before, check out what this pastor has to say about how the Church is being destroyed by getting involved in politics: http://www.whchurch.org/content/page_726.htm

This guy lost 1/3 of his church after preaching this powerful message! This was just before the '04 election, and he had some interesting comments on Bush as well.
Here's a taste: "When the church wins the culture wars, it inevitably loses. When it conquers the world, it becomes the world. When you put your trust in the sword, you lose the cross." He goes on to cover abortion, gay rights, and many other topics we all spend years avoiding!!! Listening to these about a year ago forever changed the way I view politics.

Here is what I am hoping for this morning:

That we become a country where differences in opinion are celebrated

That we stand for the rights of the oppressed and weak

That we find a way to correct the social injustices that exist today in Education, Health care, and taxes (Ouch! That one will cost me!)

That we separate religion from government

That we'll find peace during the next 4 years

That we become the leader in the solution to the Global Warming crisis.

OK, I got that off my chest, now I'll go back to shallower topics for the next 4 years!!! Yes I can!

*Additionally, to be completely honest, I am also hoping for the invention of a dessert where a river of cold pudding runs through a forest of hot brownie.

*I am also hoping that Santa brings me some sweet stuff this year

*I am hoping that you will all forgive me for speaking so much about politics, and send me wonderful birthday gifts!!!

Belly on the blog

Hi all!

Here is a 6 month update!! Here a shot of me head to toe in black lycra (closest you'll get to skin my friends) and another fully clothed. I am still feeling good and plugging along! Things are getting a little more complicated but still no major complaints and I just feel so blessed to have escaped bed rest and to be here with Dave! I exercise everyday and keep moving around so I figure if I can do that, then I am good to go! Thanks for caring!

XOXO- Ash and baby girl