* Obligatory message about how I haven’t posted in forever, but have been meaning to, and have delayed it

I just read the last post I made in the Summer of 2020 and it’s wild to reflect on all that has happened since then. I could make a list of 2022 things that happened, both big and small. But I have a brunch to go to, papers to write, and spring cleaning to do. Firstly, Happy Chinese New Year! Here is a look at the biggest events since August 2020. I will attempt to do one for each month that has gone by to where we are now in January 2022.

Here goes nothing.

August 2020

I welcomed the new Zebra Class: 20 wonderful, silly, curious, and creative 5 year olds.

September 2022

I special visitor, my former student, came to visit before her family moved to another city in Shanghai!

October 2020

My dear friend and teacher partner, Gianna, got married and I attended my first Chinese wedding!

I also was a robot with her for Halloween. I am so lucky to have her a friend and (now former) coworker.

November 2020

I turned I forgot (26) years old and went to Disneyland to celebrate. The best part of Shanghai Disneyland is the Tron ride. I hate roller coasters and this is the most unique and glorious ride!

December 2020

Christmas celebrations before the holiday break. My very patient boyfriend acted as Santa for the whole school.

January 2021

We celebrated New Years Eve and rang in 2021. I was also experiencing very hard decisions this month that challenged me personally and professionally. A year later I can now look back on it and see how hard it was for me. I felt scared, uncertain, anxious, and sad about a decision that I am so glad I had the courage to make.

February 2021

We celebrated Chinese New Year with spectacular views on a staycation.

March 2021

Turns out I didn’t take many pictures this month. So here is a picture of a massive and beautifully groomed dog I saw on one of my many walks around the neighborhood.

April 2022

My class gave the most stunning performance about the country of Inner Mongolia. They worked SO SO hard dancing and practicing. It was so beautiful and some of the parents in other classes messaged me saying they cried because they were from Inner Mongolia and the performance was so moving.

May 2021

Ashley and I took a glass blowing lesson at the Glass Museum. He made a penguin and I made a bowl. We had been watching the Netflix show, Blown Away, and got so excited to try it.

June 2021

My class graduated. This class was full of so many superstars and amazing children that I have so much love for. It was also my last class of Kindergarten and last month working at that school as I made the decision to leave and teach Grade 1 students at another school. I learned so much from this job change with the number one lesson being to be courageous and stand up for myself. I am so lucky that I had the opportunity to work with amazing people and students at this school, but it was time for change.

July 2021

Enjoying walking to Starbucks to study before meeting up with friends later! Previous summers I worked in the school’s summer camp, but being in-between jobs meant I had the whole summer off! I took two courses for summer semester to work on my degree. Oh, and I moved to a new apartment with my roommate aka boyfriend!

August 2021

I went to Disneyland once again with Gianna! Here we are on the famous Thor ride. I also started the new school year with my Grade 1 students.

September 2021

I got acquainted with all my new students! I used to be a homeroom teacher and this year I am a subject teacher. It’s a whole different skillset working with elementary students! My new school is in one of the most schools that I have ever seen! It was designed by the architect who helped create Disneyland and other Shanghai landmarks.

October 2021

I finished my volunteer training in September, but started officially volunteering in October doing shifts at a call center with an organization called Lifeline. This has been an amazing way for me to be more involved in the Shanghai community. Lifeline is a confidential hotline that provides a listening ear to anyone who needs it. I had 4 days of training, observed shifts, and was also mentored before I started doing solo shifts.

November 2021

I turned 27 this month woo! But a highlight was eating Korean bbq which is one of my favorite meals!

December 2021

We went to a Christmas market with friends to celebrate birthdays and got in the festive spirit.

January 2022

I made dumplings for the work Chinese New Year holiday party! I am now on break for three weeks before returning for semester two.

January 29, 2022

The last two years have had lots of ups and downs for everyone around the world as we all adjust to life in a pandemic. We take photos of daily moments, forget to take photos, and are all doing the best we can at any given moment! Here’s to blogging more and not waiting until 2023 for the next post.

-Kaila