Yes.we went to the Renaissance Festival.

My baby sister Teresa, her partner Eric, Jazzy Jeff and friends ventured into territory past.

I have gone to the festival for ages and it has evolved into a sort of major mall of fun and frolic.

The kids all got painted, climbed rock walls and then watched puppet abuse.

We then proceeded to the fire swallower, who not only swallowed fire, but made a giant balloon disappear in his digestive tract.

I then offered advice to all of the kids( don't do that at home) before they ventured onto sand bottles,crowns, swords and a ride on a sea serpent,minus mimi.

Sunday, September 26, 2010

It's Different For Girls

Mimi and I attended a very girlie pajama/dance party this past Friday.The evening began with a dinner served in a room festooned in giant pink paper flowers and Daisy paper garland.The girls ate pizza and sipped pink fizzy drinks through twirly straws.
Next came the manicures and makeup sessions, followed by dancing under the whirling disco ball.

The girls changed into jammies and crashed on a giant sofa to have a first time screening of the latest Barbie movie.
This very smart mom had two parent pick up times. The girls could be picked up at 9:00 pm or 9 am the following morning.

Mimi opted for leaving at 8:30 pm. She promptly gathered her belongings, including a goody bag and a pink balloon, and made a polite yet quick exit.

Mimi is my little homebody.

Burning Down The House

Over the weekend we had our family Moon Festival gathering.

I roasted ducks, made Mandarin pancakes and fiery Dan Dan noodles.

Aunt Julie made some gorgeous dim sum.

Friends and family gathered and feasted.
Weeks ago I had purchased these sky lanterns online.

I had every intention of launching them during our celebration.

The lanterns arrived and Mr Safety, gave 2 big thumbs down on launching them in our yard. Mr Safety even consulted with our neighbor and dear friend on the matter and he also nixed the idea.

In my thrill seeking ,short sighted way, I protested. I simply asked them to read the details on the package stating that they could be used at weddings, business openings and parties.

How dangerous could they be?

Mr Safety pointed out, a mere shift in the wind could redirect one of these open flames and send them onto someone's roof. Killjoy.

Some of my less responsible com padres followed me out into the yard and proceeded to light these babies up.
The photos do not give justice to how cool they are.

The soared up into the sky and only descend when the flame goes out, and the packaging is completely biodegradable.
This was a dramatic end to our evening in more ways than one.

Moonglow

This time of the year is my favorite.I love the Autumn and all of the rituals that accompany the season.

One tradition we have is celebrating the Mid Autumn Moon Festival.

This is one of China's biggest holidays and it follows the lunar calendar, so it technically takes place this September 22.

The holiday is a celebration of harvest and family. There is feasting, lantern parades and moon gazing.

There is also the eating of the traditional festive moon cake which is filled with all kinds of different ingredients. We, lean away from the salted duck egg and lotus bean and take part in eating the pineapple filled.

The moon cake is a dense cake that weighs a half pound each. The cake is cut into tiny pieces and shared with friends and family while drinking tea and moon gazing.

We attended a wonderful festival this past weekend. This annual festival takes place at a local farm and it really sets the tone for the holiday.
We met up with our dear friends and one of Mimi's best mates.

There was a magician, yo yo masters ,crafts and hip hop dancers.
We then headed out to a field where we paraded with real lanterns(yes, lit with candles),to a bonfire.

After that, the six of us had our own private hayride,the evening was perfect.

Its Your Birthday

Mimi, Terry and I attended a dear friends birthday last week.

The girls got to bowl and the adults had the solid entertainment of watching them.

There were several different styles of bowling, but the most popular was to throw the ball without really looking.
The move involves carefully rolling the ball, while casually turning and walking in the other direction, exuding a sort of I don't really care where my bowling ball goes feeling.

Every one had a ball(sorry).
Bowling is Awesome!!!!!!(cue the yo gabba gabba sound effects)

The Leaves are Falling

Somebody To Love

Justin Bieber has invaded my home.

I really have no idea how this happened,but at this moment my home has been infested with Bieber fever.

I know he is a little cute boy that kind of sounds like Michael Jackson as a youngster.
I also realize that I had crushes like this at Mimi's age (Donny Osmond,Davey Jones,David Cassidy).

Mimi, at this moment has 2 large glass jars with her savings safely divided into 2 categories.
Category 1- Justin Bieber concert tickets
Category 2- Life size Justin Bieber card board cutout to put in her room.

She has cut out many pictures of Justin Bieber from Jie Jie's old fashion magazines and made all kinds of Justin Bieber tribute crafts.

Yesterday she made a house for one of her faux Justin's out of magnetiles.

Here are some of the photos she took.

My Old School

Mimi went back to school last week.
Although she was returning to her ole stomping grounds, she was fraught with anxiety.


To be honest, her whole life would be spent in her small clothes(unders), in the comforts of home and hearth.

I can't say that I blame her.

Happy Birthday My Darling Baby

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Twenty one years ago today, my darling baby Paulina Julianne was born.


At 2:21 pm Paulina arrived. She was completely calm, no crying, despite the obvious rigors of traveling into this world.

Paulina was and is the greatest baby!