The Smell of Fireworks in the Morning

Lunar New Year.


It is a wonderful holiday in Asia--although you might not even mark it's passing in the USA.




It's pure magic. In a city of uncounted millions--the streets are all but deserted. Everyone is at home, celebrating with their families. Watching the National Variety show on CCTV, shooting off fireworks and noisy fire crackers. They feast on traditional dishes that are symbolic for everything they hope for in the coming year. They burn symbolic money and other disposable goods in the streets for their deceased relatives. They eat jiaozi (aka, potstickers or dumplings) at midnight. It seems like they stay up all night, blasting off fireworks until you can't see through the gunpowder haze that settles over the city. It sounds, smells, and even looks how I imagine a city under attack might be like.


For some Chinese people, it is the only time of the year that they get to see their spouse and kids. Read this about migrant workers.

2011: Pregnant with Willow
16 Weeks

Every Chinese New Year that we've spent in Shenyang, we've gone to a hotel. Saturday night, China ushered in the year of the snake (yes, our second child will be a snake...) and we went off to the Holiday Inn with a group of friends. Here's a post from our Holiday Inn trip in 2011 when I was pregnant with Willow: War Zone. I especially like the pictures of people shooting fireworks from their high-rise apartment windows.

Chun Jie 2013: Pregnant again--wearing the same maternity shirt at the same hotel.
Because I'm weird like that. 15 Weeks

Well. I'm pregnant again, and I  can't believe it's 2013! How have two years gone by so quickly? It truly leaves me speechless--to think that Willow will complete her second year in five months...it's just craziness!

Here are some pictures from Chun Jie 2013. There aren't any pictures of fireworks yet, but I'm sure there will be eventually. Adam is going to buy some boxes to set off this week. 

There was a little wardrobe in this hotel room. The kids pretended to go to Narnia or Terebithia through it. I think Willow hoped that the Oreos would multiply if she put them in the magical cupboard.

All the girls, minus Kiera and Kaeya who were on their  way over. 

One sad part about Willow's first Chun Jie was that she started to run a high fever some time during the evening. After we checked into the hotel, we walked over to Starbucks to meet some friends. While there, she seemed fine. But by the time we returned to our hotel room, she was very fussy and lethargic. We went out to dinner at Pizza Hut---where she refused to eat and wanted to be cuddled the entire time. During the evening, she seemed to play, but started to look worse. She burned with fever all night. I don't think she fell asleep until 3am--which means that we all had a late night. She was so hot in our stuffy hotel room, she ended up sleeping in just her diaper. She slept until 10:30, and woke up 'happy' enough, but still didn't seem quite herself. By the time we were returned home around 2pm, she took a super long nap. That night, her fever spiked yet again and we were trying our best to keep her comfortable. It's the 4th day of her fever now, but she is feeling much better. She is playing and laughing, and actually eating. We decided that if she refused to eat and drink for yet another day, we would take her into the hospital for an IV. We are turning so Chinese.

Willow, when she woke up the next day.

Adam's hamburger: egg, beef, onions, lettuce, tomato, onion, and pickle. No mayonnaise  ketchup, or mustard. This would be considered an awesome find in Shenyang.

Okay, that's all for now--but there are more pictures coming from our Chun Jie break.