Wheels, Wheels and Stroller Wheels

Hey Ya'll,

I dream of the day of being able to go shopping and not have to worry about what stroller I need to take or if I'm going to be able to get in the store with my stroller on my own. But we make it work here.

One of the things that is so different here in China from (in my limited experience) America is walkways and strollers. Never before in my life have I seen escalators and elevators and even store entrances blocked off so much so that you can't fit a normal stroller through.

Welcome to China!

I have found that it takes two different types of strollers (one with big wheels and an umbrella stroller) to make life work and even a really good baby carrier. In the beginning, when Pickle was really little, the umbrella stroller was not an option so that made going out on my own pretty complicated. But we eventually figured it out and he lived in the baby carrier for a long time. Now we have learned how to get around and when to use the big stroller and when to take the umbrella stroller, cause there is no way I'm putting Pickle in the carrier anymore...he is way to heavy. Ha!

The walkways here in Wuxi are not very even and at times make for a rough ride for the kiddos, but if you have a good stroller with big wheels it makes it a much smoother ride.

Yea...taking a stroller up all those steps.... No way! Baby carrier it is! 

We LOVE the Bob stroller and it gets around wonderfully everywhere we need to go, up and down stairs, off roading, whatever is need. 

Even our favorite Starbucks has stairs to climb to get inside. 

The umbrella stroller is great for shopping! Easy access in and out of the stores and up and down escalators and elevators. 

Do you see the blockades? My BOB in no way fits through there, so umbrella stroller it is! 

Even at the grocery store you have to have either an umbrella stroller or a great group of friends to help you lift it up and over the blockades. We love our friends! 

The big wheels on the BOB come in handy when you have to go up a few flights of stairs and you need to "bump" it up. 

Before moving over, take inventory of what you have and what you need. If possible, purchase the strollers in the states because you will pay much more most of the time for the same type thing over here. My umbrella stroller came from Babies R Us and was about $20. The same thing here goes for about $30.

In essence, with proper planning and knowing what you are in for, you will be just fine. We make it work every day...we just call it our "work out" for the day! So come on over and join in the stroller brigade!

Packing List: Moving to Wuxi With No Sea Shipment

Intrigued by the minimalist lifestyle, my husband and I were actually sort of excited to rid ourselves of the excess we had accumulated over the years. We held at least three garage sales prior to our move, and said goodbye to everything from vehicles to silverware.

To say we cleaned house was an understatement. 

We determined what we wanted to keep in storage by asking ourselves, "when we return in x years, would we buy this exact xyz, or would we choose something different?" . If the answer was that we would  buy the exact same piece of furniture, for example, then we kept it in storage. It's amazing how many things we were able to let go of. This allowed us to pack our entire 1200 sf house into a 10x20 storage unit. 



see ya in 3 years, stuff.

So, what were we left with?

Glad you asked.

Clothing

Shoes

Toiletries

Baby gear 

Five checked bags. One carry on. A car seat and a stroller.
 

Our life. Packed and ready to go.

That's six bags total and the inescapable baby paraphernalia.

Instead of boring you with exactly what we packed, I thought I'd share with you the items that I feel are need-to-packs: 

Shoes: 

BG has an average American mans shoe size, but it is considered large by Chinese standards--if your husband's foot is larger than a US size 10 don't count on finding shoes in China for him. Same goes for women. Any shoe size over a US women's 8 will be hard to find in Wuxi. We each brought two pair dress shoes, one pair flip flops, sneakers and our UGG boots. 

Underwear: 

A fellow expat bought her husband LARGE boxers here and her small ten-year-old daughter ended up wearing them. True story. Sizing here is not made for American men.  As for women's underwear, if granny panties aren't your thing, or if you're over a B cup, you'll wanna Give Victoria's Secret a holler before your move.

Clothing: 

As with underwear, if you're over 6 feet tall and 200 lbs, best bring your own clothing. I packed a few of my favorite outfits, and sold the rest. I figured I am close enough to the size of an average Chinese woman that I could find clothing here as needed. Can't say as much for BG. In addition, we each brought two winter "coats" (I use the term "coat" loosely, as we are learning just how Californian we are during our first winter here) and a couple of sweatshirts.

Toiletries: 

Hit up your local one-stop-shop (ahem, Target) to stock up on the following: 

• Shaving needs (razor, refills, gel)
• Deodorant
• OTC meds (allergy, pain reliever, cold/flu, anti-diarrheal, TUMS, pepto, vitamins)
• Basic first aid (band aids, ace wrap, elasticon tape, gauze pads, scissors)
• 6-12 mo. of your Prescription meds. We learned the hard way...as did Southern Belle.
• Toothpaste 
• Hair gel
• Tampons- I've recently seen OB tampons sold in Wuxi, but I'm convinced they're made for fairies..I mean, who uses those? Bring a stockpile of your favorites from home. We lined the entire bottom portion of a medium sized suitcase with tampons. My husband thought I was nuts, but for me--tampons are one of those things I don't want to run out of, ever. 

Electronics

• Unlocked smart phones
• Laptop computer 
• iPad 

Baby paraphernalia (for a 5 month old)

• Carseat carrier and snap and go stroller frame
• Boppy feeding pillow
• Infant meds (thermometer,gas drops, Tylenol, teething gel, saline, pedialyte powder)
• Infant grooming (qtips, Vaseline, butt paste)
• Diapers & wipes to get us through two weeks before having to find more
• Clothing for the next three sizes. 
• Crib sheet 
• Two blankets
• Baby books
• Handful of baby toys

Now that I sit here and look at my list-I'm even more amazed at my husband's packing skills. It's hard to believe all of that fit in our suitcases on one trip!

written by Elle Lay

Packing List for Wuxi, China - Moving with a Sea Shipment

Hey Ya'll! 

The Real Wuxi Expat Housewives have put our experiences together and put a list together of things that we either didn’t bring enough of, or didn’t know we would need when we arrived and want to make it easier on you as you move. This post will deal with those of you blessed to have a sea shipment where you can pack more with you. 

Tractor Man’s company provided a sea shipment and an air shipment for us coming over. But, with a newborn and thinking, “Everything is made in China, so I’m sure I can get what I need there”, I ended up asking my mother to ship quite a bit of stuff to me during my first year in China. 

One thing to remember though, this list does not apply to everyone. This is more to get you thinking of things that are easy to pack and will (in my humble opinion) make life a little easier. Also, as you are packing, think of what kind of apartment space you have and how much space you will have to store things. If you plan to make trips home then you can space out what you bring to when you need it. 

You can find quite a bit of stuff here, but a lot of it is quite a bit more expensive than in the US. 

Regular Packing:

Q-tips

    ***you can buy them here but they (again in my opinion) are not as good of a quality as the ones you can buy in the US. Tractor Man stocks up for me every time he goes back. 

Deodorant

     ***PLEASE pack...you really can’t find this here at all. I have found 2 different types but they are tiny bottles and not at all what I’m used to. We probably have enough in our storage to last 2 more years. Ha! 

Shave Gel

    ***maybe I’m just a shave gel snob (probably....) but I much prefer the gel to the foam. Tractor Man doesn’t mind the foam so that is what I buy for him and use when I run out of my gel. Plus they don’t have women’s shave gel over here. The one type of gel that you can find is Gillette, but one can is $8.00. So take that under consideration as well.  

Razors (women and men)

   ***Especially women’s razors. The women here do not shave as much so the options are very limited in this area. 

Tampons

    ***so far the only type of tampon we have seen here is the OB brand and in very small boxes (6pk). 

Shampoo - if you have oily hair

      ***There is quite a large selection of shampoos and conditioners here, but my hair type is vastly different from the local Chinese so it didn’t work for me. Had I known (or even thought) about this in advance I would have packed more. 

Plenty of new underwear (panties & bras)

Floss

Toothpaste 

     ***Elle Lay was told before she moved to stay away from toothpaste here. I did not know that so Tractor Man and I have been buying Crest Pro Health here and it has been fine. So take this into consideration and decide what you think is best. 

Medicine

   ***Even if you don’t normally use a lot of medicine its better to stock up and have it. Some of my suggestions are: Pepto Bismol, Advil, Children’s meds (Tylenol, Advil, etc), Cold Medicine, Neosporin, Hydrogen Peroxide, Cold Sore Medicine, Flu medicine, Any prescriptions you have, and Vitamins. 
                ******A side note on this (there is another post just on this topic) but now it is becoming illegal to ship medicines in to the country by packages, so you want to bring as much with you as you can that you will need. 

Aluminium Foil
   ***Again, you can find this here in China, but in smaller rolls. If you can find the larger rolls on sale in the states, it would be easy to pack. 

Wax Paper
   ***The only place I have seen this here is in Shanghai at the foreign goods store and Tractor Man about has a heart attack when he sees the price on it. Ha! So if you are  a lover of wax paper as I am, I suggest packing it. 

Pam Cooking Spray
   ***This would need to be packed in a suitcase since from everything we have ever been told, you can't put aerosol cans in any shipment. 

Paper Plates 
  ***This is something for sure you can find here, but if you have a sea shipment coming and have extra space, pack them. It will make your life easier and you won't have to shop for them for awhile. Plus they are much cheaper in the states and you can buy them in a big pack there. 

Paper Towels
  ***Same as paper plates, but in the states they are a much better quality. 

Napkins
  ***Napkins like we know in the states are not so easy to find here, so if you have space pack some of your favorites!  

Packing for Babies & Toddlers: 

Car Seats for all stages that you will be in China

    ***Granted, it is not required to use car seats here, but I still put my kid in one for long trips with our driver. You can buy car seats here, but again they are just way more expensive. So if you have the shipping space, plan for it and pack it. 

Walking Stroller

    ***There are a lot of great places to walk around Wuxi, but the ground is not always even and you have to go up stairs a lot as well. My personal opinion would be to get a stroller with big tires to make walking easier. 

Umbrella Stroller

    ***The small strollers are better for indoor walking and shopping where they block off the elevators and escalators. This type of stroller fits through there barriers where as my big stroller will not. 

Table Toppers 

Foldable Booster Seat

   ***This was something that I never even knew existed until I realized I needed something to take the restaurants. Most of the local places here either do not have high chairs or only have one. So if you go to dinner with another family with kids then one of you has to hold your kid. I bought a Brica Fold and Go and it folds flat and goes everywhere with me. (You can find the Brica Fold and Go on Amazon.com)

Clothing for all ages that you will be in China

   ***This was one of those times I was thinking, “I can buy that in China...its made there right?” But no...well...yes you can but you are going to pay quite a bit more for most things. So hit the sale racks and stock up as you can. My sweet mother is always shipping me the clothes that I go online and purchase. 

Bigger type toys 

   ***Again, just a money saving issue. 

Books

   ***The one store here in Wuxi where I could find great kids books in English closed down and I haven’t found another one yet. 

Boogie Wipes

  ***Great for colds. 

Shoes for different stages

  ***This is a tough one I know...how do you know what size their foot is going to be? We just guessed the last time we were home and bought shoes in the next 3 sizes according to the season. 

Baby & Toddler Snacks

   ***If you have space to pack some stuff with you do it. 

Baby & Toddler toothpaste

  ***I found this here at a new baby store today, but since I can't read what is in it I would still get mine from the states, but there is always that option. 

Food Type Items That Can be Packed: 

Ranch Seasoning

Taco Seasoning 

     ***This can be purchased here but is more expensive. They are in flat packages so they are easy to pack. 

Pudding Packets

Again, this list is just a guide to get you thinking. Take a day and go to Target (or your favorite place to shop) and look at things that you wouldn’t want to live without and make a list. Then as you know what type of shipping you will have you can buy and pack accordingly. As you start thinking through these things, let us know if you have questions. Can’t wait to hear from you. 

Thanks ya'll,

Belle