Saturday, February 24, 2007

Saturday Night - Date night!

It is cold, wet, dreary here and we are staying in. Dad is out of town on business, so I have a date with the kids.
We are playing what Jacob refers to as 'Parking Lot'. It's a game we play on the kitchen floor and get every car toy imaginable out. He even found cars hidden under the bed. Then we make parking lots and drive them back and forth. It's really a lot of fun. Sometimes the drivers even stop and talk to one another. That's my favorite part, because it's really funny what they talk about.

Side Bar....Isabella will only play 'Parking Lot' with her pearl beads on, so she spent at least 20 minutes in her room digging for her purse and pearls. Once she found them, she came in to play.

What a great date night. Need I say more.

Enjoy,

Sunday, February 18, 2007

Xin nian yu kuai!



Ni Hao (Hello)~

Xin nian yu kuai! (Happy New Year)

Gung hay fat choy! (May you become prosperous)

China’s most popular traditional holiday, Chinese New Year is a time for feasting, family reunions, and fun! Throughout the world families spend weeks preparing for the 15-day celebration, officially called the Spring Festival. Families clean their houses, repay any money they owe, get their hair cut, and buy new clothes. They decorate their houses with signs that wish peace and luck for the coming year.

Sunday, February 18, 2007 marks the first day of the new Chinese lunar year; one of the most important of all Chinese festivals. The first day varies from year to year between January 21st and February 20th of the solar calendar.

Legend has it that in ancient times, Buddha asked all the animals to meet him on Chinese New Year. Twelve came, and Buddha named a year after each one. He announced that the people born in each animal's year would have some of that animal's personality. Those born in pig years (1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995) tend to have excellent manners, make and keep friends, work very hard, and appreciate luxury. They are very loving and make loyal partners. Lucille Ball, Humphrey Bogart, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ernest Hemingway, Alfred Hitchcock, David Letterman, and Arnold Schwarzenegger were all born in the year of the pig.

We have spent a little time ourselves preparing for the new year here. We are doing some painting, cleaning, organizing, and some much needed floor work. We even decorated a bit around here for the holiday.

Our family has attended two local events to celebrate the Chinese New Year. We attended a dance performance at a local museum. It was a wonderful time. We met up with some friends, saw some traditional Chinese dances and even learned a few little moves ourselves. We also had the privilege to attend a Chinese New Year/Birthday party for a little Chinese American girl friend of ours. It was a great time. Again, we got to visit with some friends, see all the children dressed up in Chinese clothing, celebrate the New Year and had a Chinese dinner. It was a perfect way to celebrate and keep Isabella’s rich culture into our lives.

All is well on our front and just looking forward to spring the saying bye-bye snow.

We wish you well, happiness, and lots of adventure for this New Year.

Xin nian yu kuai,
Robb/Angela/Jacob/Isabella

Happy 'Heart' Day!



Hello to all,

Happy be-lated Valentines Day!

We have been spending a lot of time (too much time) inside, as it's freezing cold here and the snow just keeps showing up.

We didn't do much for Valentines, stay in and watched it snow, wipe runny noses, and play!

The photos are before's and after's. We made Brownies for dad and then got dressed up in red for the special 'heart' day.

Enjoy,




Robb/Ang/Jacob/Isabella

Sunday, February 11, 2007

Where do you fit?

Today's thoughts:

You have to do you part....so GO out and do it!