Christmas gatherings

I usually forget to pull my camera out during all of the Christmas festivities, especially because we host a lot of it.  I at least managed to snap group shots with the timer this year though.  There were a lot of laughs involved, but I think I managed to at least capture the people there :)  Christmas is my favorite holiday for many reasons, but I adore all the family time.  We spend two days together, and it's really just wonderful.  Lots of chatting, coffee, and eating.  Ohmygoodness, the food.  So. much. food.  We will have leftovers for awhile.  We are also still digging out, but I am beginning to see more of my floor.  It was a magical day for the kids, it's so fun to see Christmas through their eyes.

Visiting Washington DC

We had such a great day!  We took the kids to DC today to finish up our astronomy studies with a visit to the National Air & Space Museum.  We ALL had a blast.  I have such fond memories of the museum as a child, and today's experience was just as fantastic.  We hit the planetarium for a look into the planets and stars; and walked through all of the other exhibits as well.  I loved the Apollo exhibit, especially after just studying about the trips to the moon.  We ate a picnic lunch on the mall and then relaxed and hung out for awhile, soaking in the amazing 70 degree weather on the first day of winter.  We then took a long-ish walk to Chinatown which, unfortunately, was a bit lacking.  But at least we know for the future!  We ended the day with a funny self-family portrait in front of a very large mirror, and then headed home.  Everyone was exhausted, but I know this day will be talked about for years!  Such  terrific memories were made!

Zhu ni sheng ri kuai le!

We had the honor of celebrating Sweetie's 17th birthday on Friday with her!  I've never put 17 candles on a cake before, it was so fun to see all of them lit up :)  I baked a Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Cake" with delicious chocolate fudge icing, and we practiced all day to sing Happy Birthday to her in Chinese. We also got her a few gifts, hoping to make the day special for her.  It must be difficult to be away from family and friends for such an important celebration.  I hope we made it a memorable day for her!  Sheng ri kuai le, Sweetie!

First Snow Day!

And oh my, the kids sure did enjoy themselves!  They went sledding with the neighbors, rolled around in the snow, and even threw a few snow balls ... all while I stayed inside next to the fire and watched.  It's nice to have kids that are old enough to go out by themselves!  Ha!

It's here

The feel of Autumn is definitely in the air in these parts.  And I love it, as do all the kids.  We celebrated the much-welcomed weather with a trip to a Cider Mill, a place I've been visiting since before I can remember.  It was still before the season had started, so we had the place to ourselves.  What a nice evening we had!  The kids ran around freely, we laughed a lot, and we goofed around with the camera. We drank apple cider and ate donuts.  Yes, we are definitely happy about the weather change.

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!

According to TravelChinaGuide.com, "Falling on the 15th day of the 8th month according to the Chinese lunar calendar, the Mid-Autumn Festival is the second grandest festival after the Spring Festival in China. It takes its name from the fact that it is always celebrated in the middle of the autumn season. The day is also known as the Moon Festival, as at that time of the year the moon is at its roundest and brightest."

"Mid-Autumn Festival is an inherited custom of moon sacrificial ceremonies. The ancient Chinese observed that the movement of the moon had a close relationship with changes of the seasons and agricultural production. Hence, to express their thanks to the moon and celebrate the harvest, they offered a sacrifice to the moon on autumn days."

"On the festival day, family members gather to offer sacrifice to the moon, appreciate the bright full moon, eat moon cakes, and express strong yearnings toward family members and friends who live afar. In addition, there are some other customs like playing lanterns, and dragon and lion dances in some regions. The unique customs of ethnic minorities are interesting as well, such as “chasing the moon” of Mongolians, and “steal vegetables or fruits” of the Dong people."

"The Moon Cake is the special food of Mid-Autumn Festival. On that day, people sacrifice moon cakes to the moon as an offering and eat them for celebration. Moon cakes come in various flavors according to the region. The moon cakes are round, symbolizing the reunion of a family, so it is easy to understand how the eating of moon cakes under the round moon can evoke longing for distant relatives and friends. Nowadays, people present moon cakes to relatives and friends to demonstrate that they wish them a long and happy life."

Xie xie ni to my hao peng you for presenting us with moon cakes in celebration of Mid-Autumn Festival!  I know it made Sweetie very kai xin!

Church Carnival