Keely's "Boo" Party

Keely had her Halloween party at school today.

Tyson's 8th Birthday

As per the Sandness tradition, Tyson got to pick the restaurant for his birthday dinner. Although he had a few restaurants in mind, he ultimately went with California Pizza Kitchen. We all thoroughly enjoyed the rarity of the "free refills" on the sodas.

Check It Out

If you haven't yet, check out my other blog...just photos for the most part...most with no purpose...

Trey Home from Beijing

Beginning in 6th grade at Hong Kong International School, the kids are required to go away on a PEAK trip (it is some learning related acronym, but I don't know it at the moment). The Middle School is divided into what they call "houses". All the house names are related to areas in Hong Kong. So, Trey is in the Central House, but there are also Lantau, Peak, Shek-O, etc. The 6th grade PEAK trip is the same for everyone. They all go to Beijing, but in stages. So, the first House leaves on Friday, next on Saturday, etc.

Trey left for Beijing last Sunday morning and returned late last night. The 7th and 8th graders have a small variety of trips that they can choose four from, and one is chosen for them. Unfortunately, due to the Typhoon looming, many Middle School trips were either cut short or canceled. Trey really lucked out for timing as his House was able to complete their entire trip with no change in itinerary. What an experience for our 6th grader!! I haven't seen his photos yet, but it sounds like he had a great time...despite some very grumpy adults on the trip. So happy to have him home safe!

4th Grade Camp for Kyra

Well...I have survived another camp! Yes, it is somehow all about me. Well, not really but with a bad back, it truly is about survival with the "hard as rock" beds to sleep on. Starting in 3rd grade here, the kids are required to go away to camp for three days & 2 nights. It is a great way for the kids to get to know each other better and a great way for some of these kids to have their first true experience with independence and personal responsibility (i.e. getting themselves showered and dressed without help). This year I was blessed with a respectful, although energy-filled, group of girls. And although I came away with many stories full of laughs, "shake-your-head" moments, and a severe back ache, I had a great time building memories with my daughter.

Yesterday, Kyra came home with a handful of thank you cards for me that the girls in our bungalow had written and drawn. Many were filled with very thoughtful comments and heartfelt thankfulness, but Kyra's truly brought tears to my eyes and just have to share...

"Dear mom,
Thank you for taking out of your precious time to come to camp with me. I don't know if anyone had as fun of a time as I did. Thank you for watching over us at night and day. I had a blast and I'm sure everyone else did too. I'm so thankful that God made you such a great person. Thank you for helping me get the food from across the table and serving me every meal. Thank you for keeping all your promises. Hope to see you at 5th grade camp! I love you Thanks mom for everything."

That card alone will make me go to 5th grade camp...aiyaiyai! which means I'll have to do what I did last year...go to 5th grade camp straight to 3rd grade camp for Tyson.

Chong Yang Festival

I remember one of the things that we used to joke about when living within the Eden Prairie School District was that there were so many Fridays off of school. Implying that surely there was no other school district with so many Fridays off. Well, I've learned that it happens on the other side of the world as well...except here it seems we are always celebrating another holiday. Although this particular one falls on a Saturday this time, it seems most often they fall on a weekday. There are many and they are hard to keep track of, but thankfully the head of Chinese studies at the kids' school sends out an informative email for us to learn from. I am sharing her words of our upcoming holiday this weekend and hope to share more in the future.

Chong Yang Festival: the 9th day of the 9th month in the lunar calendar (Saturday, October 16th this year)

The 9th day of the 9th month in the lunar calendar is the Chinese Chong Yang Festival and a happy occasion in autumn. According to the traditional theory of Yin (Shadowy side) and Yang (Sunny side), both the 9th month and the 9th day of the month belong to Yang, which means positive and masculine, and Chong means double, thus it is called Chong Yang.

On the double 9th, the Chinese people traditionally go to the hillsides to tend their ancestor's graves, make sacrifices of special paper money and paper winter clothing, after which a picnic is held. Children in many provinces fly kites on this day. Since the weather during this time of year is excellent for kite flying, many families go to the countryside to take advantage of it. In Hong Kong, you will see people hiking in the mountains. It is customary for the whole family to climb high in the mountains and spend the entire day hiking.

The double 9th this year is this coming Saturday. According to the weather forecast, it should be sunny with the daytime high of 28 degrees. Enjoy some hiking in the mountains and kite flying on the beach with family and friends. Wish you a happy Chong Yang and a great family holiday.

"The Princess"

Well...Princess Keely was invited to a "princess birthday party" for one of her friends and, of course, she had to wear her princess gown. She was totally in her element. This dress, which we bought in Stanley Market is probably fancier than any prom dress I ever wore!