Internet advice

Every year my Bosch dishwasher goes on the fritz. For a while I stopped using it, since I didn't want to pay a repair man, especially when I have another dishwasher in the butler kitchen.
It never occurred to me, until yesterday, to use the Internet for self-help advice.

I love the Internet.

I found an online bulletin board with the same question I had: Why does my Bosch dishwasher get stuck on 1 minute and not drain? I also found an answer.
Simple fix, I am SO glad I didn't pay someone to do this. All I had to do was take out the filter, take out the lower panel and scoop the water out of the float valve area. I didn't even need any tools, just an empty butter tub, which I filled up with water a couple of times.

Apparently the Bosch (I won't buy another one) doesn't like to be used more than once a day, so when you do, water accumulates on the floor of the unit, causing the float valve to stick. Removing the water fixed the problem.










Last year when this happened I thought it was a dead mouse. I'm thinking now, that probably was not the problem.

Only Katie

Just remember, anything you say or do might be used against you during any holiday season.

Last night, Katie was tired. She claims she was so tired that, after lying down, she didn't want to get back up to brush her teeth.

Bad idea.

To alleviate the problem she put 3 sticks of gum in her mouth (I still can't figure out how she got the gum without getting up).



When Luke came in, he asked her what was in her mouth.

"Gum," she said, and kept lying there.

"You know you're going to have to get up eventually and spit that out, right?" Luke asked, pretty sure he was right.

We're talking about Katie here.

She shook her head. "Nope, you have to take it."

Kidding, right? Nope.

Open wide, Katie.

I'm Dreaming...

Some families have a traditional holiday. That's typical.

The Coleman family is really no different, in some ways. We cook the meal.













We have a turkey, eat a big dinner, talk way too much.














We put up the tree.













We play with the kids and watch the kids play with the dogs.


























We even watch movies. Not just any movie - it has to be White Christmas.














Other families, like ours, have rather unusual ways we spend our holiday time together.











Like the way we dispose of our turkey carcass.








Or the walks we take after supper.
























Or what we do after the sun goes down.






Yep. We're odd. That's what it's like to be a Coleman.

At least we have fun.

Touring Gaylord

I realize my episodes of being a tourist may not be entertaining to everyone. If not, you're free to skip today's entry.
This week I am a tourist in my own state, and my own metropolitan area (at least the closest one). Shari likes to visit spas; she tells me that Gaylord hotels have nice ones. I wouldn't know. I've never before visited any spa anywhere.

Nashville is home to Gaylord's oldest and most elaborate hotel, and I have to say, the spa there was fabulous. I didn't think I'd like all that pampering, but once in a while I could get used to it.

Afterward we walked around the hotel. It's enormous, with decorations that almost outdo Disney. The hotel is more like a city, with over 9 acres of gardens inside. The flowers were blooming, they had poinsettias everyplace, and lights hanging from the ceiling.



We spent 8 hours at the hotel, about half that at the spa and the other half just enjoying the decorations, and of course the food. We ate at the Old Hickory Steakhouse inside Gaylord. They have the best Creme Brule (the steak was good too).

Shari spent way too much money, but it was lovely, a week's worth of vacationing in a single day.

Self portrait on Ice

Thanksgiving week has begun. My sister arrived today and we decided to be total tourists.

First we went shopping. Shari had a whole list of places to see and things to do, so we ended up at Gaylord, where there's an annual Ice Festival.

Inside the temperature is about 20 degrees. Maybe it was warmer but not much. They made us wear parkas, and all the decorations were made of ice. The ice was colored and each of the Snoopy characters were done perfectly. Even the little Charlie Brown tree was made of ice.

I can't play the tourist without taking my own portrait. Not too bad really, and you can sort of see some of the ice behind us.

Everything inside is made of ice, except the carpet and the lights. Even the slide was made of ice - and of course, I had to slide down it.

The only thing that was missing was having a drink inside, but since this is a family place, that was pretty much out of the question.

Afterward we managed to find our way to the Loveless Cafe, a famous southern food spot in the area.

Tea with me

I love tea. Actually, I enjoy any hot drink, even hot water when I'm desperate.

I drink tea every day, not just in the morning but pretty much all day long. Sometimes I can't decide which tea I want, so I have a few at once.

Today I had my usual: white tea and ginseng tea. I like to combine them (but don't tell the Chinese this) because white tea is so mild and ginseng is much stronger. There are health benefits for both, but I drink them together more for flavor than anything.

White tea is something I never liked before going to China. The white tea we get in the States is flavorless. But in China they sell fresh white tea. After all, white tea is a specialty not just of China but of a specific region and terrain there.

White tea is harvested from the same plant as green teas and even black teas (Camellia sinensis ), but is picked younger and processed less. There is no oxidation (or curing) in the preparation for white tea. That's what makes its health benefits higher. One study discovered that white tea has more anit-viral and anti-bacterial benefits than green teas as well as more theanine, a relaxation and mood enhancing amino acid.

When you make white tea there are usually these little specks in the tea that look like dust. Don't get rid of those, they are part of the tea and what make white tea unique. Those specks are the fleshy hairs of the tea leaves, a silvery down that comes from the bud and leaves. The best white teas have them.

White tea is scarcer than the other traditional teas, and a bit more expensive. Typically harvested in the spring, it keeps best in the freezer, to keep the leaves fresh and flavorful.

I also got a fruit tea in China. I've never heard of fruit tea before and didn't think I'd like it. It sort of looks like a bag of dried fruit and flowers. Actually, it IS a bag of dried fruit and flowers, along with white tea added.

I don't care for strong tea. I typically brew my tea for short periods, there's much more tea flavor and a lot less bitter residuals. This is true of both hot and cold teas. If I can't see through my tea I'd rather not drink it.

It's the same when I brew my fruit tea. I put the tea leaves into the pot, pour the water over them then immediately pour the first batch into another holding pot. That gives me more tea out of the same leaves.

Now you are invited to tea with me.

Baby dedication

The International Church in Shanghai is for internationals who live in the city. It's strictly English speaking, and although you don't have to show your passport to get in, it's not for Chinese citizens.

When I visited there the service was very good. Great music and a practical sermon. Michelle and William don't go too often but they had heard there would be a baby dedication day so they took little Bonnie for that. Aren't they lovely?












Today, Nov. 18, is little Bonnie's one month birthday. I can't believe it's been that long already.








More photos on Shanghai Noodles.

Swap shop

Last week I decided to buy a book. It was a book I've wanted for a while, but I didn't want to spend any more money.

I started looking at Amazon's used books. Those seemed reasonable. Books for $0.01 and up. Nice.

Then I happened on a website I hadn't seen before. It's called PaperBackSwap. When you sign up, you can post any books you own that you want to get rid of. I had a truckload of books from grad school I knew I'd never read again. I posted nearly 50 books my first day, and before the day was over, I'd "sold" twenty of them.













I wish this site was around when I bought these books. It would have saved me a lot of money back then.

On PaperBackSwap, when you "sell" a book, you agree to ship your book to the person requesting it. The cost to ship one book is about $2.75 at the post office, or you can use PBS printed postage, or even Stamps.com. At first I used the US Post Office.

So I paid money to let someone else own my books. Hmmm.

Here's the best part. For each book you "sell" you get a book credit. I'm always buying more books (which is why I have so many to get rid of). The PBS database is HUGE (at present there are 4,127,417 books available), so when you find a book you want, you "Order it" and the owner ships the book to you. That's when it costs you nothing. Brilliant.

I know it's going to pay off in the end, but that first day, selling twenty books, it was a little costly just to clear some shelf space.

The nice thing is, now I have room for new books. Twenty-seven of them to be precise.

Lamps and creepy pets

I mentioned earlier that I bought a lamp during my visit to China.

It isn't just any lamp, it's one designed by a poet, and a friend of Michelle and William's who just happens to be friends with a furniture shop owner in Shanghai. This friend is Shelly, who I've mentioned before.

One day, the shop owner had an idea; why not take Shelly's poems and put them on some lamps.

Why a lamp? Probably because lamps are small, easily customized and, when lit, can display artwork nicely. The shop had an artist who hand-painted each of the 30 lamps designed. Each lamp is unique. I didn't intend to purchase one, until I saw the one with the spider.

It's not that I really like spiders all that much. In fact, they're really pretty nasty, especially when running around on my bedroom floor. But spiders do make interesting pets.

Most people, when they consider a pet, do so for the affection a pet offers. Spiders are not typically very affectionate, unless, of course, that pet's name is Charlotte.

Shelly's poetry on the lamps are short haiku. Seeing the artwork and reading this poem makes me remember our pet spider.

Eye-catching glitter
Dewdrops on her silky webs
Dangling like gemstones.

When the children were little they observed someone panic when seeing a spider. This reaction was a little extreme, and I wanted to try and show the kids they needn't fear those eight-legged beasts.

So I caught a large wood spider and began to feed it.

We had that spider for months. We caught flies and other insects to drop in the spider's jar. She greedily sucked them dry, leaving their remains on the bottom of her glass home. We would spray water onto her web to give her a drink. We even got a sitter for that spider when we had to take a trip out of town. We grew very fond of our own Charlotte.

When I saw this lamp it reminded me of that experience.

My wallet is a little less fat due to my lamp purchase. But it helps me remember, and that is more valuable than any amount of money.

My lamp now sits in my living room, reminding me of three things; a memorable experience I shared with my children, my visit to China, and Shelly, my newly found friend, and talented poet.


A haiku is a three-line poem with five syllables in the first and last lines and seven syllables in the second line. They usually have emphasis on a some aspect of nature. A haiku does not rhyme.

Oh, just this

I left China with regret.

Regret that I wouldn't get to see the kids for four months. Regret that I didn't help out as much as I hoped. Regret that I didn't buy as many tea sets as I wanted.

I wasn't that good a tourist on my visit to China. I never really am. I didn't buy much. Not much at all. Except some tea.

And that's it. That was the only thing I needed. Except I really didn't need the tea.
Maybe I did buy a tea set, and a tray.
Oh, and a cup.
And a purse.
I wanted to buy some matches. But I didn't, so that's all.

Well, I did buy this lamp. I really needed this lamp.














The tea, the tea set, the tray, the cup, the purse and the lamp. That's all. I didn't need one other thing.

I did not buy a remote. Or an ash tray.

No, I am not a Jerk.

And I don't need any of this. I don't need this stuff, and I don't need you.

Oh wait, yes I do. I need the love of beautiful people. And, I need my dog, instead of my spider.

Not what it seems

A picture can be deceiving. Pictures can often make you see something that isn't really there.
Take these pancakes. These are not really pancakes. Not technically.













Things like bread, pancakes, even tortillas often contain a similar ingredient that holds them together - gluten. That gluten is like glue. It makes them pliable, giving them cohesion and structure. Without gluten, grain based foods simply fall apart.

Gluten is important. It makes breads fluffy and soft, muffins light and airy. It helps pizza dough be toss-able, and causes those pancakes on the griddle to be easily flipped.

But gluten can also be deadly. It can make a person feel like someone is ripping out your intestines. It can make you you overly grumpy, your head ache and cause boils to appear on your face. For some people, like me, it's like a poison.

I've heard people say they like gluten. They like to eat gluten because it makes them lose weight.

Yeah, just like bulimia.

Learning to live without gluten really isn't all that bad, but it takes some adjustment. Instead of a sandwich, you have a salad. Instead of flour tortillas, you eat corn. You can buy specialty products that are labeled "gluten free" and many of them taste great. But they are also expensive. And fattening.
So then, what should a person, like me, do?

There are plenty of recipes that are healthy, high in protein but low in carbs and contain no gluten.

Like these pancakes. These are not real pancakes. They are impostors. They contain no flour - i.e., no gluten. They are high in protein and don't leave you feeling like you need to eat another meal, twenty minutes after you're finished. Doesn't sound quite like the bisquick pancakes mom made growing up, does it?

Want the recipe? It came from Katie, who got it from her mother, who got it from a book called "Feed Me, I'm Yours." It's actually a book about how to make healthy foods for your youngster. Maybe I do have tendencies that are childlike. Yeah, so what?

Don't always take things at face value, they are not always what they seem. You can make your own reality. Even in the kitchen.

Remember, there is no spoon.


For the pancake recipe, see Comments.

Prime Motivator

I'm greedy. I've been greedy for years.

If it weren't for my greed, my children would have normal lives. But, alas, that was not their destiny.

My greed was no accident. I meant to be greedy. It all started when I had my first child, and it didn't stop. The more children I had, the more greedy I became.

Michelle asked me recently what it was that made me choose the type of education I did for my kids. It's funny how having children suddenly makes you think about these things. There she was, my firstborn, standing there holding her firstborn, Bonita Rose, and asking me this question.

What could I say? It's not an elegant answer. There's nothing lofty about what made me choose to teach my children at home. My entire decision was motivated by greed. I was not willing to share.












Every little step of growth and progress my babies made, every "first" they experienced during their early years, I was there for. It was awesome! and I would not trade it for anything in the world. Every little thing they learned each day was mine to rejoice over. And I did.

So when the time for school grew closer, I began to think, "The teachers at those schools don't love my kids like I do, why would I send my kids to them?" I was not willing to share even one of those moments of learning with a complete stranger, who doesn't know - and doesn't really care - about my child.

It's not something anyone can understand until you hold your own baby in your arms. It's difficult to understand why a parent would make such a choice. It's something you have to just know for yourself. It's a sacrifice, and it's demanding.

It's also rewarding. It's the best job I've ever had, even though it was probably the hardest. I loved it then, through all the years, and I have no regrets.

It took me years to become willing to share my children. I'm still greedy, but now I'm greedy about other things.

If I could do it all again I wouldn't change a thing. There's a time to be greedy and a time to let go. When it's my time to be greedy, I'm about as greedy as they come.

Bowing out

There are reasons I do not read books about animals. They are sad.

Always.

There are also reasons I don't read other sad books when I travel. Crying in public is not my idea of a comfortable situation. But as I sat in my seat on the flight home, I may as well have been reading a sad book. At least the people next to me would know why there were tears.

I rarely cry when saying goodbye to my children, because I know they are living the life they chose. I enjoy encouraging them to live where they want, even if that means living apart from me. While I love being around my children, the last thing I want to do is make them feel as if they aren't able to make the choices in life that most appeal to them. I do not believe in guilt trips. My children will love me more if I let them go, encouraging them in whatever they want to do. Even if it's something I'm unsure of.

When Michelle and William first left for China, I did not cry. I was sad to see them go, but happy for them to fulfill a lifelong dream.

This time was different. Leaving them this time was harder than I expected, not only because of the baby, but because I realize how much I enjoy each of their company. Michelle and I are great friends. And William is like my third son. Literally. When we are all together we may not even sit in the same room much of the time, but there's comfort just knowing we are nearby. I will miss that.

It will be sad if they ever leave Shanghai because they've established some wonderful relationships. Even though I miss them, I know they are where they belong. At least for now.

My visit in China has ended - at least the physical one. Digitally I intend to keep visiting, using Skype, to watch how little Bonnie grows and changes. We'll also gossip now and then, or talk about Star Trek.

The posts on this blog are likely to return to mundane reports of life on the farm and other animal posts, life in the kitchen or even random things that happen to me. Sometimes you'll see things about places I visit, though I won't be traveling, at least for a few months. You are welcome to read these posts, but I'll warn you now, they're usually pretty boring.

Michelle's a little preoccupied these days with all the baby stuff, but I hope she'll be able to keep us posted now and then on how things are at home in Shanghai and how the baby is doing.

To follow things in Shanghai with Michelle, William and little Bonnie, check out Michelle's blog - Shanghai Noodles. Or you can look at Michelle and William's Facebook, which I think they update more regularly.

There's also a link to Michelle's blog on the right side of this page, so you don't have to find this post in order to find the link. The title on this page is Michelle and William's blog. ---->

I hope you've all enjoyed my visit to China.

Catching the mood

Michelle has a friend, Lukas, who likes photography. He's quite talented, able to capture mood in a setting that many photographers miss. The photo in the background here is one of masterpieces. It looks like a painting but it's actually a photograph taken on the edge of Shanghai with a very old style camera. The characters on the cart say zòng zi, which is a Cantonese food sold on carts like this one. It's basically a Chinese tamale made with rice instead of corn. In fact, to find the correct pinyin spelling of it, I just typed into Google "chinese rice tamales" and found many entries for zòng zi. This one even has a recipe for the red bean ones - which I'm pretty sure I would love.












William actually took this photo of the four of us right before I left. While you can't see our mood, you can see that we wanted to remember. This photo will always serve to remind me how much I love them, how much I am going to miss them, and how technologically handicapped I am sometimes. I still can't figure out the remote for my camera.

Comfort things

Little Bonnie sleeps so well in my room. It's warm in here, the bed is soft and my nightlight always stays on. She's happy here. I wonder if she'll still like it when I'm gone.













Many of Michelle and William's friends came to tell me goodbye. For a few people, like Shelly, it was like saying goodbye to old friends. At least I know Michelle and the baby won't be lonely, they have many people who love them here.

We had some awesome food this past month. I've had hairy crab for the first time. I had plenty of Boba, and I've had food from nearly every region of China. Not once did I have the food that Shanghai is famous for - the Shanghai dumpling. There were plenty of wonderful things to eat without it. Especially the brownies with frosting we made, the enchiladas and the chicken Caesar salad. If it weren't for Newman's Own Salad dressings, that last dish would not have been such a hit. I just can't live without my salads.

On my last day in Shanghai we elected to do three things that are always comforting when you're down; stay home, watch Star Trek and eat. We all snuggled up in my bed, and watched a bunch of season 5 episodes. In between, we cried and said how sad it was that time went so quickly. It will be four months before I can hold these babies again in my arms. I hope those months go as quickly as this one did. Then, it might be bearable.

Strange but True

It's a little strange when...

-- you get into a taxi cab and hand the driver an address. Instead of driving he reaches under the dash and pulls out a large magnifying glass.

-- you check in to the hospital to have a baby and the nurse makes you sign a paper saying you won't eat the placenta.

-- you start thinking that using a bicycle to transport furniture is a pretty good idea after all, even if you do have to stop now and then and adjust your rope.

























-- you start calling white people foreigners, and get annoyed when they stop traffic to hail a taxi

-- you would rather have eel than a good steak

-- you think congealed fat is one of the tastiest part of a main dish

-- you start thinking the Chinese are pretty good drivers, there's hardly ever a traffic accident, even if you did almost get run over while getting out of the taxi.


It's been fun in Shanghai. Some of my favorite things are traffic related. It's one place where there's an obvious rift between the old China and the new. In a lot of ways it's a very fun place. It's the people that make it so interesting. I'm going to have to come back soon and see what other funny things I learn.

Baby Talk

Bonnie Rose has a message. She wants to say Hello to all her fans and relatives.

After she's chatted a while (and ready to move on to more intereting things) she wants to say zai jian goodbye).

What a smart baby. See, she's already bilingual.

Baby me

I can't help it. I'm proud of little Bonnie.

I would be proud no matter what, but it was an unexpected surprise when she came out looking like me.
I never saw me as a baby until later, when my mother shared my baby album with me.














Ok, that sounds stupid, but it's still true.

If it weren't for seeing those old photos, I'd never know that little Bonnie Rose closely resembles me.

Or maybe it's just my imagination.

Me and Tea

No one appreciates tea like I do, and knows so little about it.

I love to drink tea. I've been drinking tea for years, of one sort or another, but a few years ago I grew fond of green types.

I dislike shopping a great deal, and like souvenir shopping even less. Still, I'm usually sad if I go some place and don't bring myself back something from the area. So I shopped for tea.

Or more accurately, William did. I just went along to watch. We left Michelle and baby home.

Tianshan Tea City is not a place for tourists. It's a large building, three stories, of nothing but tea vendors.













China takes it's tea very seriously. There are dozens of types and far too many shops to choose from. Plus, there's the language barrier. William managed to barter a deal in a couple of shops so I could take home three types of tea - White Tea (high mountain), Ginseng and Fruit Tea. These are just the simple American names but the teas were very good.

To purchase a tea you must go in to the shop and sit down to sample the teas. Then, you decide on what grade you want, lowest quality, mid-range or high quality. The white tea I purchased tasted so fresh, and we sampled the lowest quality so that was what I bought. It's just for me, and there's no guarantee you really get a high quality one anyway, so I paid the lowest price. I'm happy with it.

I also wanted a tea tray. This is a tray that has a box underneath it to catch water that you pour out or spill. It is part of the traditional service for tea but there are varying grades of those too. I chose a very nice one, and some little tea coasters to match.

I also have a weakness for little tea sets. I found one for myself at Michelle's favorite tea shop, which I purchased. I saw several others later that I like, but did not purchase. I have to draw the line someplace - I only have so much shelf space.













I wish I could find some reason to keep going back to China (that would make money), maybe to buy tea or tea sets to sell. The only problem about that might be, I'd probably want to keep the stuff for myself, so it might defeat the purpose.

Five Little Monkeys

Not many couples have a history like Michelle and William. They first met when they were both five - shortly after Michelle's youngest brother, Stevie, was born.

Here, they are about six. I can tell because of the age of the youngest. Notice how Michelle latches on to her brother Luke, and William, both very close in age. She loved them as playmates. She was a very happy child.
Her joy here is unmistakable.












One characteristic about Michelle has always amused me; she wears all emotion completely on the outside. There's never a question about how she feels - about anything.

When the children were all small, we used to go over to William's house once a week for a craft day. We all looked forward to that. William was pleasant as a child, always polite, cheerful and tolerant of his house being overrun once a week by four younger children.

Michelle and William have always gotten along - even if they did have tiffs now and then. That was mainly due to them both being the oldest and not in the habit of sharing that position with anyone else.

Some things never change.

Who would have known that two of these children would choose to spend their lives together - and one day have a baby of their own?

I think joy for both of them is obvious now.






(baby photo by Lukas)

The Apartment

The sound of jack hammers is coming through the wall. I could not figure out what was going on and it started way too early.

Michelle's apartment is usually fairly quiet, which seems strange considering the building is on one of the busiest streets in Shanghai, and close to the very city center. They found this apartment through friends, several of which live right on the same street, just a few minutes away. It makes the neighborhood extra enjoyable, just knowing you don't have to travel a long way to see someone you know. The apartment is also quiet because every wall is made of concrete. Not drywall and plywood like the U.S. but actual concrete all the way through. It makes nearby construction not as loud as it might be in another situation.


(to my right in the photo is the kitchen. Behind us, the bathroom).






It's cute inside too. The owners used to live here themselves, so decorated it with high quality furniture as well as wood floors. I like the brick walls in the living room, although Michelle said that part had to grow on her. The only problem with the apartment at first was the bed. It wasn't long enough for William so part of the deal was, they would pay the rent asked IF the landlord would buy a bed that William could sleep in without hanging off. That worked, and now they have a nice king sized bed, large enough for the three of them, including baby and William's feet.



(this is the original bed, now in the guest room. Also, notice the rocker.)




Michelle explained to me that each apartment is sold separately. In Shanghai, when a building is new, these apartments are completely empty, even without walls and plumbing. A buyer will come in and designate where to put the walls, decide on decor (if any), and give instructions on where the plumbing should go. Michelle didn't know what that might cost, but probably not all that much. In China, labor is cheap. You do, however, get what you pay for.












When someone buys an apartment that is in an older building, that apartment is completely gutted and redesigned to meet the new owner's requirements.

Sometimes the buyer lives in their apartment for a while, then buys another one and moves. That is the case with where Michelle and William live now. And that is why they have such nice furniture. The deal-breaker was the rocker. Most apartments come furnished and this one had a nice stationary rocker. That's the only reason Michelle agree. William likes it because it's closer to the subway.

The photos are before (renting) and after (moving in). Notice, in the photos below, William in the rocker, you can see the guest bedroom behind him. That's my office, and where I've slept (and worked) for the past month.

















The noise we are hearing through the walls is the apartment next door that must have just changed ownership. I peeked over there and saw that it's been entirely gutted, so the new owners can decorate it the way they want. I still think it's strange, doing things like this, but I guess that's the way they like it in Shanghai.

The Three Bonitas

I was honored when Michelle told me what she planned to name the baby. It was exciting, not only because the baby is named after me, but she's also named after her mother.

The three of us all have the same first name - Bonita. It's our middle names (or nicknames) that make us unique (we're not talking about age just now).














The Chinese from this region do not appreciate our names. In fact, when I told Michelle's Chinese friends that the baby's name was the same as mine, they were appalled.

It was Cathy's mother who explained, with Cathy translating. She and her mother are from Shanghai. Her mother is a very typical Chinese parent.

In this part of China it is an insult - not an honor - to name a baby after a parent or even an ancestor. They think it is very rude, possibly because it is a person's only form of individualism, but I don't really know - that's just my own speculation. Whatever the reason, having three people with the same name is one American custom the Chinese do not wish to emulate.

Fine with me. I'm happy, no matter what the Chinese think. My babies aren't Chinese anyway - even if one of the Bonitas was born on a Chinese floor.

All Saints

Today is All Saints Day, which is the primary reason we have Halloween. We didn't celebrate, unless you count watching six episodes of Star Trek Next Generations from Season 5.

We also ordered food. William ordered northern-eastern style Chinese food (Dong Bei).

Afterward, the aunties came over again to visit. I remembered to take some photos of the two remaining aunties - Penny and Lily. They argued over their roles as aunties, but we finally decided that Penny is the bossy (in a good way) auntie and Lily is the obedient one.













Having a group of aunties made me think of the three witches in Sleeping Beauty. Michelle said it made her think of the witches in Macbeth.
Either way, I don't think any of them appreciated the correlation of witches to aunties. Maybe I should have called them saints instead.

Oh well, at least they are in awe of their little princess.
That's all that matters.