The Lord of the Double Daddy Dates

Today the older two kids (Miriam 11 and Asa 8) dubbed "The Lord of the Double Daddy Dates as I (Joab) spent nearly the entire day with them going to special places and connecting with dear friends.  After serving at Miriam's Sunday School class we headed for our favorite restaurant for Shanghai food - Jesse Restaurant in Xintiandi.

The kids enjoyed some of the favorite dishes including - Shanghai Style Braised Pork Belly and Dates Stuffed with Sticky Rice.  We also had a blast reading our favorite sections of "The Hobbit" - a preview for our afternoon activity.

Later in the afternoon we went to see "The Desolation of Smaug" in 3D with some of their favorite friends - Anna and Elijah Bowman.  It is hard to believe it, but we have been friends with the Bowman family nearly the entire time we have lived in Shanghai, which began in the fall of 2007.

Chinese New Year Highlights - 2014

One of the biggest holidays of the year here in China is always Chinese New Year.  Below are some of the highlights from our family's Chinese New Year celebrations.

The New Year's celebrations begin with great anticipation as decorations went up around our complex - including a carousel style horse - this year is the Year of the Horse - at the complex entrance.

We knew the New Year's celebration was close when we began to see the extra fruit boxes and fireworks being sold in our neighborhood. 

There were also some great displays at our local mall - including a three story tall red horse.

We also got a great family picture at the base of the horse, which we then climbed and shot an arrow off in hopes of winning a prize.

On New Year's Eve (Jan 30, 2014) Emily cooked an amazing meal, which included fish - an essential dish in a Chinese New Year's meal

After dinner we went to our neighbor's house to set off fireworks - the kids had a blast.

The fireworks climaxed at mid-night and here is a short video I shot from the 33rd floor of our building

 

On New Year's Day (Jan 31) we went across town to with our good friends the Bowmans where the kids had a blast - including setting up a "Kids Cafe" and serving the dads.

After time with the Bowmans we had a chance to take a short train ride to nearby Kun Shan with families who are part of our home school coop.  Miriam had a blast at the party with one of her good friends from coop - Haley.

We spent the next several days of the holiday at a hotel downtown in order to avoid the nosiest fireworks.  Near downtown in the Yu Garden area there were some impressive lantern displays with traditional Chinese New Year scenes.

Unexpectedly, there was also a "Garden of Eden" lantern display where Adam and Eve were standing next to Jesus with a white horse.

From our hotel room - on the 33rd floor - we had a great view of downtown.

This is the westward view of People's Square, which was the horse racing track during Shanghai's colonial days.

From the eastward view there was a nice view of downtown Shanghai - including the Pearl Tower (lit up in red) and the Shanghai Financial Center (lit up in blue).

One of the highlights of our time at the hotel was the great view of the fireworks that were lit off at mid-night to celebrate the arrival of the god of wealth.  The fireworks culminate about 2 minutes into the video.

Celebrating Christmas and New Year's Day in Penang

This year we celebrated Christmas and brought in the New Year in a special way; we took a family trip to Penang, Malaysia.  In the end, this was a blessed family time of relaxing, re-connecting and enjoying a culture quite different than any other our family has experienced thus far.  

Beautiful Beaches

The first thing we all enjoyed was the beaches and clean air.  Here are the kids standing on a small beach near the National Park.  It was their first time to see the ocean, which Asa declared was "Awesome!".

The second beach we visited was Monkey Beach, which is inside the National Park.  As you can see each of the kids - including little Silas - greatly enjoyed playing on the beach.

Here are the older two kids enjoying a beach-side swing.

The younger two kids enjoyed this "baby pool" type section of the beach.

No beach trip is complete without a sand castle and digging for shells.

Hiking

At the end of the beach was a trail to a light house we heard had a beautiful view of the surrounding area.  Our guide told us it would take 30 minutes to hike (each way), but I guess he didn't calculate hiking with a 14 month Silas and 4 year old Salome.  In the end, the hard work was worth it as the view from the top of the light house was amazing!

Here are Emily and the older three kids while our guide patiently waits at the top of the hill.

This is the light house at the top of the hill, which was built in the late 1800's.

Here is the breath taking vista from atop the light house.

Food

Besides the view another thing that kept us going on the hike was the incredible lunch we ate before hand.  The new types of food we were able to try in Penang was certainly a highlight, especially for Emily and I.

This is our spread from Monkey Beach, which included grilled chicken, fish, shrimp and satay.

Another local treat is shaved ice with flavors and sweet veggies on top.  While the kids didn't go for the sweet canned corn, they loved the shaved ice.

Cool drinks were also a big hit.  Miriam typically stuck with her old standard - Sprite - while Asa discovered milk tea and Salome enjoyed pineapple or mango juice.

We also enjoyed the easy access to Indian food - even if Asa didn't like the Tandoori chicken 

I ordered in the "Little India" section of the historic Georgetown neighborhood.

Local Culture

Penang has a fascinating history that mixes influences from the majority Malay communities as well as ethnic Chinese, Indians and European settlers.  We explored Fort Cornwallis near Georgetown to get a sense of the European influences and also had an opportunity to interact with the local Malay Muslim community near where we stayed.

The kids enjoyed climbing on the old cannons at Fort Cornwallis.

It was also fun to see how much they enjoyed being together - especially the older three kids.

Everyday we were awaken by a call to prayer from this mosque in the neighborhood where we were staying.  The few Malay Muslims we had the opportunity to interact with were very hospitable to outsiders and at the same time earnest about their faith.  We have much to learn about this faith held by many people across the world and here in Asia.

This is a picture of our entire family squeezing with all of our luggage into a single taxi for the last leg of our trip in Penang.  I love seeing the joy on the kids faces - something common throughout the trip.  Not only from the amazing sites and food, but most importantly time together as a family and the opportunity to interact with and learn from many different kinds of people.

Happy Birthday Miriam!

Last year we started a tradition that I would take Miriam out on her birthday for a special "Daddy Date".  This year was extra special because we were on a family vacation in Penang, Malaysia. 

 

I took her to Hard Rock Café Penang where they not only gave her a special birthday cake and had the entire restaurant sing her happy birthday, but they also gave us a commemorative Hard Rock photo.

 

This is Miriam blowing out the candle.  After the server left she quickly noted that she didn't like cake and would much prefer "Monkey Bread" :) !  Oh, Ms. Miriam, always so direct about what she wants!

Our dinner conversation was a delight that covered a wide range of topics.  What a delight to have such a daughter who is incredibly beautiful - inside and out!

After dinner we returned to the apartment we are staying at and a friend of ours took these professional grade photos that are an absolute treasure!

 

 

 

For this beautiful outfit we have both Nei Nei (Emily's Mom) and Christy Grandma (my mom) to thank.  Nei Nei helped Miriam pick out this special dress this summer and Christy Grandma helped pick out the high heels and the necklace.

 

 

Here is a close up of the high heels - this was her first time wearing high heels!

Christmas 2013: First Sunday of Advent

Continuing the holiday theme for the weekend, we kicked off our Christmas celebration on the First Sunday of Advent by setting up our Christmas tree.

The Kids enjoyed setting up the tree and eating popcorn.

Asa showing his University of Nebraska loyalties - a Husker Sweatshirt and Ornament - one of my favorites!

Miriam with of U of M (Minnesota) ornament; when I asked which team it was for she proudly announced - The Minnesota Tigers!  Uh, no....it is actually the gophers, honey.  Much sports education remains in our household!

In the end, everyone played a part in setting up the Christmas tree and had a blast.

Both of our girls have December birthdays, so a few years back Emily started the tradition of a "birthday tree".  The girls have collected their ornaments over the years and have a way to make their birthdays festive and special.

What a gift to have this family tradition of celebrating advent to help our hearts begin to celebrate Christ's birth!