The Wehners moved to Beijing from St. Paul, Minnesota in the US in 2018. Mom Regina and Dad Matt both work for Western Academy of Beijing (WAB) and their daughters Nola and Ivy are Grades 5 and 4 students at WAB.
Meet the family
Our No. 1 house rule is:
We don’t have any specific family rules, but we try to focus on balance in our lives. Balance in the amount of screen time, healthy eating, and work/home life.
Our favorite weekend activity is:
Pancakes on Sunday mornings, movies on Saturday nights, bike rides and walks outside when the weather is nice.
Our favorite restaurant is:
Annie’s for the kids and Element Fresh for Mom and Dad.
Our favorite thing to cook at home is:
Tacos with chicken and beans.
Our advice to new families in Beijing is:
During the October holiday, don’t try to go see the Forbidden City or other tourist areas! They’re way too crowded.
Our favorite moment as a family in Beijing is:
Coming back home in March.
The children’s favorite Chinese dish is:
It’s not a dish, but we love the fresh fruit and vegetables, especially strawberries and cauliflower.
Mom’s favorite Chinese dish is:
Dumplings.
Our favorite place for date night is:
Hulu in Shunyi.
Dad’s favorite Beijing discovery is:
The trail by the river near our compound.
Best thing you did as a family while in quarantine:
Puzzles and ‘bowling’ with empty water bottles. We went to visit friends in Bali for the CNY holiday. When school was postponed due to COVID-19, we stayed on for a few more weeks. Then, our tourist visa was set to expire, so we decided to meet other friends in Kuala Lumpur. Because our school and work went online, we stayed in KL for a whole month. We had only prepared to be gone for one week, and after two months away we needed to be home. Beijing is our home and even though it was hard to get back, we needed to try. The journey was difficult, but worth it in the end.
Our shopping haven in Beijing is:
Decathalon.
The one thing we can’t live without is:
Cell phones: for WeChat and Didi.
How would you sum up WeChat in 5 words?
Necessary, can’t live without it.
Click here for more insider tips from Beijing families like the Wehners
Photos: Uni You
This article appeared in the beijingkids 2020 June issue
