Happy Birthday, Caleb!

Well, Caleb is now a whopping 3 years old! His birthday was on Sunday, the 14th, though I think we celebrated all weekend!
On Saturday morning, we spent time with Dave’s parents via skype (talking on the phone through the internet, with webcams so both parties can see each other). They had sent a care package that arrived the day before, so they got to watch Caleb open the gifts they’d sent. We were able to do the same with my (Gracy’s) parents on Sunday, and with my aunt and uncle on Tuesday, so Caleb was more than happy with all of his new treasures. Though it was difficult not to have our families here with us, it was very special that they could share in the celebration in spite of the distance.
Saturday afternoon was the big birthday bash.









We rented a party room at an indoor playplace and invited everyone we knew—Caleb’s preschool classmates and teachers, Dave’s classmates, teacher, tutor and friends, and my tutor and friends.


The turnout was fantastic--we had about 42 adults and 17 kids there, so it was alot of fun!

First we had snacks in the party room, and to my delight, I was able to order a huge cake from a bakery here and decorate it with little cars, which Caleb of course loved.

After singing, blowing out candles, eating, and playing with balloons, the party moved next door to the play place, where the kids had a blast burning off all the sugar they’d just eaten!

A paper mache piñata made by some friends topped off the fun and replenished the sugar high.

We made our way home after having dinner at one of our favorite Western restaurants, and Caleb crawled into bed—a happy but exhausted little boy...

But a good night's sleep does wonders, and the birthday boy awoke bright and early Sunday morning, ready to continue the celebration. We had a fun day together, and that evening, we enjoyed a special pancake dinner followed by a gift opening extravaganza.

He now has nearly more toys than he has time to play with them…a welcome problem for a 3 year old!

And so, it was a very special weekend for a very special boy. I can’t believe he’s growing up so quickly. Seems like yesterday I was holding a 7 lb. 4 oz. black-haired little bundle. My, how time flies…

The park that has it all...

A couple of weeks ago, we went to a park in the south part of the city.
It’s a beautiful place with several flower gardens, a lake, and lots shady places to sit and relax.


Since it was the end of a holiday week, the park was very crowded with people enjoying the gardens, playing cards and mahjong, and taking in the sunshine.
In addition to relaxing, there’s a wide variety of activities for families and kids—paddle boats, rides, games and such, so we had fun exploring.


Caleb enjoyed climbing on this rock formation with his dad, while Susanna and I watched from below and made some new friends.











As usual, if the stroller stopped for a moment, admirers young and old gathered round for a picture or a smile.



















More bonding time for the boys came at the kiddie rides—bumper cars were a hit with Caleb (no pun intended!)—he’s into crashing and smashing, though I think David enjoyed his share of it too!

The highlight, though, was their ride on the water inside a giant blow up ball. They climbed into the deflated ball, were zipped up inside, and then air was blown in until the ball was full. Then they rolled into the water and floated for about 10 minutes (connected to the dock by a rope).

Though at first glance it may look like cruel and unusual punishment, it was really a blast, and I must say very entertaining to watch! Of course, Caleb was ready to do it again when it was all over! For
some fun footage, click here: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5645309917650572623


We ventured on from kiddie land, wound our way down a shady path by the lake, passed by several interesting monuments and statues, and found ourselves in the roller coaster section of the park.

David enjoyed a ride on their biggest coaster while I stayed with the kids, and thirty seconds, a loop, and a few twists later, he was pulling back into the station (That's him in the very back). Though it was a bit different than Six Flags, we had a lot of fun, and we were glad to have had another adventure.

Some new friends

Last week, a young man approached me (David) at a large university campus, and I was impressed by his assertiveness in asking if he could “make friends with me.” A few days later, I had lunch with him and his close circle of buddies. They took me to a pretty nice restaurant and insisted on buying my lunch. I was so humbled, because out of the nine, only one had a job, and it was part-time at that! Twice they toasted my presence with Coke and orange juice, and I felt very honored.
I learned quite a bit about the life of a young adult here. Not only must you excel academically so as to distinguish yourself from the pack, but you must also cultivate a solid network of relationships to help you get where you want to be. Not being relatively well-connected (most coming from poor farming families in the countryside), these friends will really depend on each other in the coming years. The success of one means good things for the whole group. In fact, my new friend said that at times, concern for the welfare of his friends motivates him to persevere in his own studies.
The warmth and friendship within the group was inspiring. Though we as Americans might view reciprocity and interdependence as chains that can choke a friendship, for Asians, the lack of giving and receiving prevents a friendship from ever even beginning.

The Life of a Boy

Climbing, jumping, wrestling, pillow fights…the stuff life is made of for little boys! Caleb’s been having a blast with friends here. Last weekend, we took him to a birthday bash for two of his fellow playmates. He had fun playing pin the tail in the donkey and of course eating cake and ice cream. But his favorite activity was the father/son wrestling match. The little bare skinned fiends paused only long enough to show off their bulging biceps. (The dads kept their clothes on, of course!) =)

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!

About a month ago, we started seeing little round pastries for sale in stores, and gradually there were more and more until it seemed they were taking over (a bit reminiscent of Easter baskets or Valentine stuff—in every store everywhere until the holiday is over)! We soon found out that they were for the celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the second most important holiday here (the first being the Lunar New Year in February).
Each year, the festival falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month when the moon is at its fullest and brightest. The holiday originated over 3000 years ago when worship and appreciation of the full moon became prevalent. For Asians, the roundness of the full harvest moon represents abundance and togetherness, so the practice of making the round “mooncakes” as gifts for relatives began a thousand years ago as an expression of best wishes for family reunion. There are many varieties of these little round pastries—orange, sugar, sesame, even rose petal. We decided to try the ham, date, and nut ones, and our favorite was the traditional ham.
Though the night of the festival was dreary and we couldn’t see even a glimpse of the moon for all of the clouds and drizzle, we did hear fireworks and knew that people were enjoying their holiday together. I’m sure we weren’t the only ones, though, who were not with family and couldn’t help but miss our loved ones who are so far away. This excerpt from a traditional poem written during Mid-Autumn Festival in 1067 (David’s teacher shared it with his class) reflects the desire for connection and togetherness that we all feel at one time or another:

…why does the moon always wax full when people suffer from separations?
No human is free of sorrows or joys, partings or reunions,
Nor is the moon of shade and light or wax and wane.
Nothing’s perfect since ancient times; but I would rather humankind live long,
And however far apart they are, share the beauty of Goddess Moon.

Yes, we can certainly resonate with the author’s longing to be with loved ones…

Wedding feast

I (David) attended my first Asian wedding the other night. My Korean classmate married a Chinese gal, and our class was invited to attend the reception.
It was an evening wedding, and the bride and groom greeted each guest at the entrance of the hotel (they stood there without a break for over an hour!). When I arrived, I gave the groom a 100 kuai bill (the traditionally appropriate amount to give--about 12$ US currency) in a special red wedding envelope our teacher had purchased for us.

Upon entering the banquet hall, we were seated at a table of honor. I sat with a Korean, a Swede, a German, three Americans, and our teacher. The bride and groom joined everyone in the banquet hall and were thoroughly doused with silly string on their way in. Then they and some family members took the stage and gave speeches, followed by the emcee singing a couple of musical numbers and a group of young women performing traditional(??) dances to pop music. :)

Next they made their rounds to all of the guests, toasting at each table. (Because of the large number of tables, the bride was given diluted alcohol so she would be up for the task!)







While the bride and groom were toasting, we enjoyed some tasty cuisine. First, we were served appetizers: nuts, cigarettes, and candy.

Next came a noodle dish, and we were all beginning to wonder if this might be like an American wedding where people sometimes keep the snacks simple. Thirteen large dishes later, we were all stuffed and weren't even thinking about more food!

Our meal had quite a variety of dishes, including squid, fish (the whole fish, of course), pig skin adorned with sweet potatoes, fried bullfrog (I thought I was eating chicken until I spotted a conspicuously froggish leg...), duck, bok choy, and more. I particularly enjoyed the duck soup and the bullfrog, and learned that when you are hungry and you think about all the other people who enjoy these dishes, you are willing to try new things and might even find something you like.