the joys of fall in the south

We don't seem to let living in China affect the import things in life...like college football in the south :) We made a trip home last October and happened to be traveling through Alabama the weekend of the Tennessee/Alabama football game. Very convenient. We were able to see both friends and family which made for a really fun weekend!

We had no idea beforehand, but my sister, Lauren, ended up sitting right in front of us!

Aaron's college roommate, Phil, and his wife Kristen went to the game with us

My cousin, Carson, dressed in orange and white

Gloria's Baby Shower :)

It's a little embarrassing that I'm just now posting pictures from my friend Gloria's baby shower when Mia (her sweet little girl) is now over two months old! I can't seem to come up with any good excuse as to why I get so behind on updating...maybe one of these days I'll be all caught up.

Starting from last September...

China Open

Our great neighbors who work for Mercedes and get lots of cool stuff gave us their tickets to see Nadal and Andy Roddick play in the China Open here in BJ in October. It was a perfect way to spend a Saturday afternoon :)

Our first official Chinese Wedding :)

Over October Holiday (China's National Day) we were privileged to be the honored "foreign guests" at one of my Chinese teacher's weddings. To their knowledge, we were the first "wàiguórén" or foreigners this town had seen in 10 years! The red carpet was literally rolled out for us, but in return, we both had to give a speech in Chinese...in front of 300 people! With it being my Chinese teacher's wedding and all, my ability to speak reflected my teacher's ability to teach--no pressure! I had never been so nervous in my life! After both the bride and groom's fathers gave their speeches, it was sure enough our turn...Thankfully everything went well and my friend seemed pleased :) It was a cultural experience we will never ever forget and will probably talk about for years, and years to come :)

With the Bride at 6:15 am in her hotel room

(did we mention that weddings start early over here??)

The Bride and Groom enjoying pre-wedding festivities

The Bride's twin sister and her husband (who didn't even have to give speeches!)

...the transportation

...the ceremony

...and the after party

Vicky's Baby Shower

Vicky is one of my four pregnant friends in BJ, and co-hosing a baby shower for her last September was so much fun! Hosting anything in China takes creativity and is always an adventure! Thank goodness for the fabric and flower markets and import grocery stores :) Now we're just waiting for all these little ones to get here!

Gloria, Vicky, and me

Both cute mommy-to-be's!

September trip to Henan

During our trip to Henan in September, we literally ran into a professor who we had met through International RUF at Georgia Tech while we were living in Atlanta. He was as surprised to see us as we were to see him! He invited us to his Tai Chi class before taking us to a traditional tea house and dinner. A friend of a friend, Hannah, joined us while we were in Zhengzhou and visited the orphanage there with us. She is a speech pathologist in the UK, and has had a lot of experience working with kids with cleft lip and palates. It was very insightful having her there.

phoebe

More pictures of Phoebe :)

The View

The view from our apartment on a really clear day :)

Goodbye

One of the downsides of living the expat life is that your friends come and go. Our friends Charlie and Mawuli moved back to the UK in August, so we had them over for dinner before they left. Phoebe was extra hyper that night and enjoyed putting on a show for all of us. She has gotten so big!

Priscilla, Charlie, Mawuli and us

Hong Kong

We were able to meet my brother in Hong Kong towards the end of July for his first trip back after his stroke. We also got to celebrate his birthday before he returned to the states, and we headed back to Beijing. We're thankful for that time and will miss him living on this side of the world with us!

It's hard to beat the Hong Kong skyline at night!

View from the Peak

Celebrating Chase's birthday at Nobu