Birthday Boy, CJ

This year CJ was ecstatic about his Birthday.  Not only did he get to celebrate with a Lego theme but with lots of friends (who were also XY chromosomes and spoke in his heart language- this is the first time in years that this has happened).  This past May we were blessed to meet a native English speaking family with 6 children.  They have 4 boys in their family, three of which are 8,10 and 12 - or something close to that.  CJ has been in boy heaven.  Our families haven't been in the city together much this year because of various travel plans but when we have been together the boys have loved to play- soccer, Lego's, and all things boy.  CJ was beyond happy to know that, for his birthday this year, he would be able to celebrate with his sisters and this other family.

Our two families loaded up on the subway for a 45 minute trek to an indoor play area.  We brought along cupcakes, treat bags, bottles of water and lots of energy.  The kids had a blast and we were so thankful for a great day of celebration.  A day to celebrate our precious boy- Christopher Lane Hanley, Junior.

A ride on the subway to the indoor play area (a ride that is much more fun with friends).

These boys are an answer to prayers.

I wish I had an up-close pictures of the Ninja cupcakes and Weapons cupcakes.
  It was quite  an adventure making them :)

Lego was the popular gift this year- CJ couldn't have been any happier.

More Legos and a Dinosaur Fossil kit.... hours of fun in a box!

The Ninjago Cake!
  We used this cake during a separate celebration with our grown
 up friends a few days closer to his birthday!

Ma in her kerchief and Pa in his cap...

     Winter in our home is a bit chilly.  In China there is an invisible line that splits the country in two.  Above the line has government controlled heat from mid October to mid April.  Below the line there is no such heat.  Guess where we live?  Yep, below the line.  In the winter we do have heat, but it is an air conditioning/ heating unit in the corner of the living room that is not very efficient.  To try and keep the general living space warm and to keep the utility bills down we close all the bedroom doors and turn on the heat during the day hours.  We also have smaller heating units in the bedrooms but they too aren't very efficient.  So, we just layer up and pile on the blankets at night.

     Well, to get to my point....  Since Chris' recent hair doo (the NO hair look) he has started wearing a hat to bed during winter.  Actually he wears a hat all day too. :)  One evening after explaining to the kids "why" he wore a hat all the time they all decided that they too wanted to wear a hat to bed.  Here is a shot of the two that kept their hats on all night and the nights that followed too.

Princess Sleepover

Our friend Caroline is the best.  She knows our girl's love language and spoke it so beautifully to them last month.  She asked if she could come over to our house and have a Princess Sleepover.  Our answer, "Of Course!"  Caroline came with her puppy in tow (Miriam was in heaven) and the adventure began.  They dressed in princess clothes, ate princess strawberries (chocolate covered strawberries with sprinkles), watched a princess movie, made a craft and slept together in the living room.  We love Caroline!

Thailand 2012

Our family recently went to Thailand for a home school conference, yearly physicals... and vacation.  There were so many fun pictures of vacation I just couldn't decide what to post.  I tried something new- I uploaded them and created a link for those who are interested to view them.  Here is the link: Thailand 2012  (The same pictures are also in the side bar of the blog but the link has captions if you are interested in knowing more of the background of the picture.)

January- Catch up!

Well, it obvious to me, every time that I look at my blog, how much life has changed with number four.  Even before he was born I felt the impact of number four in our family.  He has been such a great gift to our family- lots of smiles, giggles, hugs, kisses... but the little time that I once had to myself- well, its no longer my own.  Rarely do I have time for such things as blogs, emails... yet alone sleep :).  So, after not posting for months I once again am trying to play catch up.  Mostly so family can see pictures of the kiddos.

Has time gone by so quickly.  Jedi is 5 months old in January and starting to eat baby food.  He is happy to add some yummyness to his diet and is starting to put on some much needed weight.

Relationships are everything in China.  I'm continually learning more about this fascinating culture and how to be more relational with those that are so kind to let me share their world with them.  Well, in January our family was planning to go to the local Zoo.  We invited a few friends and were pleasantly surprised by some special treats upon our arrival at the zoo.  A friend of a friend holds a high position at the zoo and had a day full of privilege for us.  First a super yummy meal, second an opportunity to hold a baby orangutan (Chris labeled this picture 'mix up in the nursery')- poor thing was so nervous- she clung onto her little blanket for dear life.    

Then CJ and I were given fish to feed to the grizzly bear.  We were told to hold the live fish in our hands, and swing our arms in a circle over our heads.  The bear stood on it's hind legs and spun in a circle.  Then we were to through the fish to the bear and he would catch it... CJ and I both were not very good at the toss- oops!

We were than treated to free 20 minute rides on the bumper boats.  It was so great to be with our Chinese and America friends for the day.  The Lord is so good to give us such sweet friends... we know they are a gift from him and we are thankful.  We have experienced life with and without- we're thankful for the gift of friends.

I couldn't resist the sign.  Walking on the grass is a big No No!

"Grass smiling, please let it alone!"

A pet what????

Just a few weeks ago we were walking home from having lunch with friends and saw this man with rats on a leash.  Actually they were just tied with a string to the top part of the rats jaw.  I have NO idea what people may buy these for... we'll just have to wonder about the possibilities.  Hmmm?!!!

Preparations for Chinese New Year

Sometimes the sheer volume of where we live drives me crazy- cars honking, salesmen with megaphones, people everywhere...  but one thing I love about our location- we get to see all kinds of cool things on a daily basis.  The most recent happenings- preparations for Chinese New Year.  About a month ago they began with the decorations.  The light every and anything that is green- bushes, trees, grass... it is beautiful.  I need to go out at night and get some photos but this is one I took the other day after picking the girls up from Chinese Kindergarten (it happened to be there last day before their month long vacation for Chinese New Year).  

The only thing about the tree lighting that I wince at- the cluster of lights plugged into multiple extension cord which are plugged into each other at the base of the tree.  It's kind of hard to see here but can you see the yellow and green tape (just to the right of the center of the photo) wrapped around the connecting plugs of about 6 strands of lights?  There are dozens and dozens of such connections on each tree.  Some are wrapped in sandwich bags, I would guess to protect from the elements.  But the balls of lights at the base of the tree are just screaming "HAZARD" to me.

On the same day that I took the above pictures there was a group of ladies practicing for Chinese New Year Celebration.  These ladies are part of a Drumming Group that practices outside each morning (at least week days for sure).  They either hold flags, cymbals or drums and play and dance in a synchronized fashion. We love to watch them.  Anyhow, for the New Year they put down the drums and picked up a dragon.  This group is coordinating about 4-6 dragons in their presentation.  Another little glimpse into life here.  *** Warning- turn down the volume on your computer- I was standing right next to a drum and a cymbal- it's quite noisy***