I dont think I've ever met anyone that likes church as much as Aubree.
Last Saturday just Auntie Sis, Aubree, and I went to Saturday mass. B was chortling, she was spitting, she was singing louder than the canter, AND she was doing the Mexican Hat Dance on the pew. Talk about touched by the Holy Spirit!
Man that kid makes me laugh! I love her to pieces and back again twice as far :)
We celebrated our first Moon Festival this year with the trying of Moon Cakes. Moon cakes are the Chinese equivalent of German fruitcake - your granny makes them every year and they have a shelf life of a hundred billion years. Since everyone celebrates just a little bit different - we will probably celebrate next year with the Moon festival cheesecake - Aubree's choice on flavor!
Here is a story I found about how the Moon Festival came about - I adore love stories!
<<
I got my quarter portion of the yummy red-bean, double-egg-yolk, bit-
of-heaven sweet moon cake, I always wondered who the lady was on the
box and why we ate them only in the months of September or October.
I never knew then how eating more than a quarter piece of moon cake
in one sitting could cause a terrible stomach ache, nor did I know
that a story about the lady on the moon cake box actually existed.
Now I know:
A long time ago, the sky had ten Suns warming the sky. During one
summer, the ten Suns shone so brightly that it caused all the plants
and rivers to dry up. Life became unbearable for the Emperor and his
subjects.
The Emperor called on the great archer Hou Yi. Hou Yi was a well-
known archer who could shoot and hit targets far and near with
perfect precision. The Emperor commanded Hou Yi to shoot down all
but one of the ten Suns from the sky. Taking nine magic arrows to
his bow, the archer pulled back with all his might and shot down
nine of the ten Suns. The summer returned to normal and the
Emperor's people were safe once again.
The Emperor rewarded Hou Yi with a great wealth of money and jewels.
Hou Yi took this money to marry the woman he so greatly loved and
long for, the beautiful Chang Oh. The wedding was fabulous and the
families of Hou Yi and Chang Oh were happy.
Later on, the Emperor called on Hou Yi again to perform another
great feat. He wanted Hou Yi to build a new royal palace. Hou Yi was
not only a superb archer. He was also the Emperor's royal architect.
The most lavish, grandest palace was built, decorated with gold and
jewels and filled with precious silks and exquisite handicrafts.
The Emperor was impressed with Hou Yi's accomplishments. This time,
the Emperor chose not to reward Hou Yi with jewels or gold. Instead,
he chose to give Hou Yi a small bottle containing the elixir of
immortality. The Emperor told Hou Yi to be careful not to drink the
entire bottle. It was supposed to be shared between Hou Yi and his
beautiful wife, Chang Oh.
Hou Yi rushed home to share his reward with Chang Oh. Chang Oh,
driven by excitement, drank the entire bottle of immortality elixir.
When the elixir reached her stomach, her head spun wildly and then
she fell to the ground. Suddenly, weightlessness overcame her and
she started to float towards the sky! She grabbed everything she
could to keep her from floating: chairs, plants, even her husband.
The last thing she held onto was her caged pet white rabbit. Hou Yi
desperately screamed for her and watched helplessly as the beautiful
Chang Oh floated to the Moon.
Chang Oh had become trapped on the Moon to live eternally without
her husband, only to be kept company with her pet white rabbit. It
could only be magic that the Moon Bridge appears one night, once a
year, during the eighth lunar month towards September or October,
and connects the Earth to the Moon. During this one night, Chang Oh
and Hou Yi are reunited for a brief moment of happiness.
So every autumn when I eat my quarter portion moon cake and see
Chang Oh's image on moon cake boxes, I am reminded that the Full
Moon is the brightest during this time of the year. And it is
possible even for a little while for true magic to happen and for
lovers to reunite.>>>>
--- End forwarded message ---
'B' and papa are sick with colds... little one has a poor little red button nose that is running down to her armpits... the bigger of the two has a very sore throat :(
Mama doesnt have any of said illness yet and we'd like very much to keep it that way! :)
I think we're doing pretty good - only the second cold since we got home! I will pile everyone with liquids, hot baths, warm pjs, and humidifies tonight :)