Happy Chinese New Year

Happy Chinese New year!

恭贺新禧，年年有余，万事如意。（Congratulations on the new year! Wishing you have surplus every year, and everything in life went smoothly as you wish)

Well, today is actually Chinese New Year's Eve.  But since China's time zone is ahead of us, you can say it is Chinese New Year already.

To be in line with the new year sprit, I am wearing red and gold today.

Sweater: Anthro Don't remember the name

Top: Anthropologie Floreat Ice Capped Blouse

Skirt: Anthro Field Skirt 

Boots: UGG australia

In this foreign land and in the middle week that I have to work, not much celebration is going on, but when we were little, Chinese new year is the happiest time of the year.  Each family will cook up a feast.  There will be at least 10 course to go around and a fish dish is always included. Fish in Chinese has the same pronunciation as Surplus.  So eating fish brings good luck! When we live in the northern China, we always make dumpling from scratch and that is part of must have dinner too.   We don't get new cloth often as China was having a shortage in goods that time,  but on new year eve, my parents always change me to something new.  Children gets extra allowance too, a red pocket (Hong Bao).  A big chunk of those money would go into buying fire cracker and firework.  At mid-night new year's eve,  it is quite a display.  There are so many different varieties of firework and fire cracker.  None are grand like the ones at the night of Disney, but together the noise and the color fill the night and truly brings out the festival atmosphere. The best part of that is that you lit them yourself and the participation brings out more fun.

Tonight although we can't do much, we will have fish and dumpling for dinner (although the dumpling would be the frozen ones, haha :)  I will even let my daughter watch the New Year celebration broadcasted on the Chinese channels even though she is not allowed to watch TV on weekdays normally.

And of course, we all have to call home.  My parents are in Chicago right now.  They send me those picture this morning.  I just saw similar picture at Kim's blog and had a very Deja Vu feeling.

I wish they are near me. Notice the snow is over knee high of my Dad? I wish he hadn't have to do that at his age.

My mom was in a very good mood however.  Dad had to cancel his business trip and that means he will stay with her at home :-)  There is always a positive side of everything.

瑞雪兆丰年,  as the Chinese say,  A good snow brings ample  harvest next year.  For those of you get snowed in,  stay warm and May the snow bring you good luck in the coming year!

OOTD: Season of wrapping

Do you feel the Christmas Spirit yet?  My daughter has been counting down towards Christmas every night now.  She is the Christmas spirit of our family because she is the one most anticipating the holidays.  She had pushed us to put the lights up outside our house and  buy the the Christmas tree.  Without her, we would probably procrastinate till the very end and not do either:-)  This year she wrote her first letter to Santa, at 4.5 year old.

Luckily the wish is simple to fulfill.

I had spend the last few nights wrapping presents and printing out pictures for the Christmas card.  There should be a rule that all toys should arrive in the perfect rectangular package, no curves, no missing package sides to save packaging material because it just made it that much harder to wrap! By the time I am done with the 4th princess doll, I am pretty sick of wrapping gifts already.

So here is some wrap that I am not sick of.  It is the JCREW Dulphine open cardigan.  My mom said I tend to like all the open cardigans and maybe that is true.  I liked the light weight of it.  I liked the pocket.  I liked the ribbed around rib cage.  I also like the softness of its peach pink color.  I felt the color was different enough than the black so I got another color.

Top: Anthropologie Floreat Ice Capped Blouse

Bottom: JCREW Taffeta skirt

Cardigan: JCREW Dulphine open cardigan (Buy it here)

Boots: UGG Australia

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope you all had a good break.  I have notice the lack of new post in the blogger world.  Everyone is busy with their families I bet.

So did you score any deals from black Friday?  I was at Disney, so no getting up early to the store for me. We went with the family of my daughter's best friend and it was so much more fun than going by ourselves.    I happen to caught a cold and lose my voice.  Let me tell you, it is not easy to herd the overly exited girls without your voice.  I was worried sick that they would get lost in the crowd. We all trying to teach our daughters our phone number just in case they get lost.  We end up writing them down and put in their jacket after they repeatly missing a digit here and there :-)

I frankly didn't appreciate Disney after we have kids. We had always been the national park type. But after my son is born, we were so traumatize by the trip we had taken him at 1 year old that we didn't have any vacation till he is 5. The trip we took was to disneyland, thinking if it became too much for him we can just drive back right away.  To our suprise he enjoyed the trip.   We felt so liberated.  We finally felt that we can go somewhere and stop being the prisoner of our own home.  Disney had put a lot of thoughts in taking care of their guest and the service is impeccable.  From the clean bathroom to the volume control of the music,  everything is done with great attention in details.  I know how some people think it is over crowded and everything is fake, but I have to say the crowd is unavoidable, but they did their best to make their guests comfortable.  I appreciate how they use the techniques in the movie to give you the full sensory enjoyment rather than just the thrills of drop and turns.  For the crowd, they routed the long lines so kids felt there is progress, providing fast pass to the popular rides, open up special event such with the princess royal carnation ceremony so they accommodate a bunch of girls who wanted to see princess at the same time during holiday seasons.

My favorite at Disney had always been the firework.  The music and the firework is so in sync.  Other park's firework just pales in comparison.  Every time during firework,  I watch the children's face, with their expression so attentively and their eyes sparkles with the lights of firework.  It makes me want to cry.  Somehow it makes everything worthwhile.

Thanksgiving is not a traditional holiday for us, but the Chinese has a long tradition of "Following the tradition of the locals".  So the day at Disney, we got a Turkey leg for lunch.  Haha.  I am not a big fan of turkey, but I must say the turkey leg is pretty tasty. It is also darn cute to have little kid holding the gigantic drumstick and eat it too.

Naturally I miss the Anthro Sale last Tuesday.  But there isn't much I really wanted, other than the Pholox and Coral coat.  You can see my review here.

After we got back,  we went to a friend's house for their house warming party.  Ah, how I envy their gigantic master bath and the walk in closet and the ample room in the kitchen!  It is a gorgeous new house and functional too with the in-law cottage and workshops and balconies, all nicely architected. Normally I'd wear a skirt or dress to a party, but I was in too much of a rush that morning from waking up too late at 9:30.  Had to drive my daughter to Chinese class, drive back, make lamb bryani for my son's lunch, fearing there is nothing he can eat at the party due to his diet restriction, take a shower, run back to pick up my daughter, wrap the house warming gifts and feed my son ahead of time as he tents to get cranky on empty stomach, and yes, the party starts at noon so there is no telling when the lunch will be begin.  Good thing is my son love the bryani I made. I gave him some and he clean the plate as if it has been licked clean.  Not a single drop of rice left!

Top:  Anthro Wild Bunch Tank.

Cardi: Anthro 2010 don't remember the name. 

Pants: Arden B super skinny jeans (I don't like Arden B.  These jeans are from my experiment buy from this store and I won't buy from Arden B online again) 

Boots: UGG autstralia.  They are warm and they are water proof, best winter boots ever!