End of 2023
The last couple of weeks of school were busy. The last week of school was structured like a finals week, with secondary students going only half days and high school students only being required to go when they had a test or project due. The girls did a good job pushing through and finishing. Eve’s class put on the play of “The Polar Express” which her sisters and I went to see. It was really cute. Eve was the reindeer who's bridle they cut the bell off of for the boy to take home. There was also an elementary concert that I attended where each grade sang some Christmas songs, then the entire elementary school performed a song. It was fun to get more of a feel for the school and, of course, to see Eve. On the last day of school before Christmas, Mini and Emmy attended the Winter Formal. It was a dress up event for secondary students, held at a hotel. There was a nice meal, a talent show, and hanging out with their peers. They seemed to have a fun time and looked beautiful all dressed up.
On the 24th we had one hour of church then FaceTimed with Hafens, Farfar, and Pops/Grannie. It’s definitely dfferent to not be seeing them for Christmas so was nice to connect. For Christmas Eve dinner Adam did an amazing job of weinerschnitzel. It was no small effort to track down all the ingredients. Bernaise sauce was essentially impossible to find so he made a homemade version. It was a delicious meal! We also had brownies and ice cream, watched The Chosen’s Christmas episode, and danced around the Christmas tree. In dancing around the house Adam led us outside then realized he didn’t have a key. Thankfully Emmy, who was the end of the chain, hadn’t shut the door yet (the door locks automatically when closed). We were glad to not be locked out of our house! We had a fun time and after dancing, Eve stated, “I like our traditions. Even if other people think we’re a cult I like them!” (We had been joking about what Chinese people would think if they could see what we were doing.)
Christmas morning, we got up relatively early for us, around 9:30. We FaceTimed my family in the middle of their party at Dad and Mom’s house. As expected, it was chaotic and crazy. It was nice to tune into the chaos and craziness for a bit. We went downstairs for Adam’s delicious cinnamon rolls and FaceTimed with Belnaps as we ate. We miss them so much and wish they were here! After breakfast we opened gifts. Highlights were Mini getting a MacBook Air (we got it for her in DC and have kept it a secret since), Apple Watch and punching ball for Emmy, Fjallravens for the girls and me (Adam got a screaming deal on Taobao), and everyone getting thoughtful gifts for each other. That evening we had dinner at the Smiths’ house with them, Nik, Roger and his daughter, and several other Chinese employees from the consulate. It was a delicious (American!) meal, and we enjoyed being with friends.
For the days after Christmas, we hung out with the Smith kids in the afternoon since Esther and Johnnie both work. We went to the basketball court and played basketball, soccer and badminton. One day we went to the consulate for vaccines (we all got three shots) then got dinner from a Lanzhou La Mian place. In the evenings we watched “Liv and Maddie,” which we all love but Adam and I have never watched all the way through. Friday evening Adam and I went to Aion Mall for an anniversary date. We ate delicious curry at an Indian restaurant and walked around the mall for a while. Happy #18 to us! I’m so grateful for Adam and to be married such a loyal, devoted, faithful husband.
We did our New Year’s Eve tournament on Saturday (the 30th) and Sunday (the 31st). We had so much fun! The events were Limbo (Eve’s choice), Unstable Unicorns (Liv’s choice), free throws (Emmy’s choice), Disney trivia kahoot (Mini’s choice), paper airplanes (Adam’s choice), Nerts (my choice), Smash Bros, UNO Flip, candy jars, and Rock Paper Scissors. There were some hilarious moments, like when Emmy swung her paper airplane like a bowling ball and it ended up about two inches down from her. I almost wet my pants. She had watched two minutes of a three minute video and it turns out the last minutes was crucial! After the competition she finished making her airplane according to the video’s instructions and it flew super far and would totally have one. Liv laughed so hard she wet her pants. All in all we had a blast and Mini ended up being the Queen of New Years! We finished the night with “It’s a Wonderful Life,” in honor of Farmor as it’s her favorite movie. Hooray for a wonderful, life-changing 2023 and bring on 2024, the Year of the Dragon! (I'm so excited that our full year in China is a dragon year!)
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