Xin Nian Kuai Le!!!

I'm a day late, but that's better than my average...Happy Chinese New Year! This is the Year of the Rat...I know, a rat. But in Asian cultures, the rat is a symbol of luck. I would consider it a curse personally :-) They admire the rat for their quick response, ability to maneuver out of situations and a rat is "witty". Since the 7th of February started the Chinese New Year, we decided to have a little party.

We started with the kids making Chinese lanterns, I made Chinese Moon Cakes, and then we had a Chinese themed dinner. We had shrimp and broccoli, teriyaki chicken, fried rice and egg rolls - yum! I made everyone "attempt" to eat with chopsticks. Carter and Jacob, not my most adventurous eaters, didn't enjoy the meal. They did have fun playing trying to pick up food with the chopsticks, but ended up eating sandwiches and chips...go figure! My kitchen was a mess with vegetables, pots, pans, etc. trying to make a Chinese meal and my kids are begging for anything not on the table. Rodney, Anna, my sister-in-law and myself made pigs of ourselves...it was really good even if I did make it.

The Chinese New Year is one of, if not, the most important holiday in China. It is the time of year that really focuses on family. Business close, migrant workers travel home and a huge celebration erupts in every city and village across China. I thought it would be a good time to try to do something for Anna to remember her birth country's culture. I know that she doesn't remember much about China, but I think it is important for her to know and be comfortable with who she is and where she is from.

Anna is my daughter and is an American, but she is from China and we are proud of the fact. Just as we are proud of our biological children and every little detail about them is special and important to us, Anna's birth heritage is important to us as well. There are things that I cannot offer her in regards to her past...knowledge of her birth family, the circumstances surrounding her birth, the reason she was placed for adoption, these are things that we will never know. They are facts in her life that can bring uncertainty and if not handled appropriately they could bring insecurities and damage to her confidence of her self-worth. Anna's confidence in her value and our love for her is something I never want her to question. Anything that we can do to show her how proud we are of her and how blessed we feel that she is in our lives - I want to do it. It may just be a dinner, crafts and a cute little outfit, but I hope it shows her how important every aspect of her makeup is to our family.

Gong Xi Fa Chai!
Sending love from Rodney, Marcy, Carter, Jacob, Parker & Anna Mei