Happy New Year ~ Year of the Snake!!

Chinese New Year usually passes us by, as we're in sunny Australia about this time of year every year. We've stayed put at least till nearly the end of new years this time round. And we're hosting the New Years Eve dinner tonight and the traditional 'Return to Mother's Home' dinner also. Which happens on the 11th of February, or officially the 2nd day of the Chinese lunar calendar. If I was Chinese, (and I'm not.....) this would be my day of the holiday to go back to my mother's house. Traditionally this was the one day of the year in which all married off daughters were allowed to go back to their mother's homes to see their family. As my husband is the eldest boy in the house, he's decided to take on the hosting of the return to mother's house for his sisters sake, who has her mother in her house and technically never has the chance to 'Return to Mother's Home' as she's always there........ We'll not be hosting in the house as we are tonight, we'll be taking everyone out for dinner.

I often miss this time of year travel wise and I forgot the general buzz in the air as everyone hurries to prepare for the week off. The one whole week of the year that the Taiwanese go easy on themselves and take a break.... This morning I took the girls to the market and it was alive with excitement. My usual vendors had hired extra staff, the market was full, people were walking about everywhere with bags bulging with meats, fruit and vegetables. The markets will shut down until the 17th, so now is the time to buy up. Of course, 7-11 and  places like supermarkets won't shut. But most Taiwanese get their produce fresh from markets.

I've always wanted to take photos of my local market. But I hate looking like the big white foreigner in the midst of people going about their normal business, with a camera in my hand. But today I just couldn't miss it. It was too much fun and I had to get the camera out. Yes, they all thought I was a bit soft in the head. But who cares. Most of them know me anyway.

My nuts and dried goods vendor. 

She sells fresh free range eggs too. 

Vegetables galore!

Pineapple ~ in Taiwanese the word for pineapple sounds like the Mandarin Chinese word for good luck. Get all that? 

My favourite fish vendor. I get my prawns from here. I'm not much into dealing with whole fish.

Nice and fresh. 

Noodle stall. The boss man was covered from head to toe in flour. So was my camera at the end of it. 

Just made this morning. Fresh as can be. 

Noodles being wrapped around in the machine.

Getting bigger and bigger. It looks like leather getting wrapped up. He's holding a bag with flour in it and bouncing it up and down on the wide strips of noodle to stop it from sticking. 

Out it comes into beautiful strips of fresh noodles. Noodles are for longevity at Chinese New Year, and generally just for yummy-ness anytime else. 

Selling new years banners and ornaments to hang in the house. 

Happy New Year!!

How does your garden grow?

Yay for us! Nature has done it's thing and we have vegetables!!

School break

Public school kids are off now until next month. Everyone had a half day today and here are the girls after class. On the way to get passport photos for Tilly's Taiwanese passport. 

Someone received a special invitation to go to school with her big sister today! At just two and a half years of age Evie-lyn spent her first full (half) day at school... Crazy I know. I would never have been so bold with Tills. Haha. Tilly's teacher invited her to join them, without me, today as it was a play day only. All the other children were besotted and she was well taken care of. Even played out in the playground of the school. She sat down in the stroller at 11:45 and crashed. Just before I was able to take this shot, she had actually been sitting up in the stroller with her eyes shut. She fell back down and got herself comfortable and is still there now, snoring her head off, in our bedroom. Here she is minutes after leaving the school.

I'm not even sure she can legally go to public school kindi! In fact I'm pretty sure she can't. However, she is very well acquainted with Tilly's three teachers and happily waved me goodbye and Tilly's teacher is the Principle of the kindi, so...... Just a one off... 

Here she is last night. This is pretty typical for Evie. She was shopping. 

~

Yesterday was a sunny day. I took the girls to the park for 3 hours to play with Sarah and soak up the "rays". A sunny day in a Taipei winter is not to be sniffed at. This morning it's cold and wet, yet again. The rain just keeps falling.

Lately we've started to own our Saturday play time more. It's the one day of the week that something isn't scheduled, that Tilly doesn't have to get ready to be somewhere. The one day of the week that the girls get to spend completely as they wish.

This morning Tilly slept in a little and when she woke she asked for this quiet space to be created for her:

Homemade muesli, Chinese tea pot, Chinese tea cup. Weak green tea. Science books and picture dictionary. 

Evelyn, instead chose to entertain us with her own rendition of "Joy to the World" on this noisy Yamaha Mouth Organ given to the girls by a distant second cousin. It sounded something like this: 

Joy to the World! The saviour reigns! Let men, their sooongsss ploy.....!!!! (No mama, not employ, I say PLOY!)

I had to move it off the table where it came crashing down breaking the spell of quiet and causing daddy to rumble from the bedroom under his warm covers, 'Is it smashed into pieces?"

As blissed out as she could possibly get.........Tilly's quiet time was still rather quiet.

 So an invitation was extended. 

And room was created for a sister and friend to join in the quiet. 

An hour later they're still at play, though slightly less quiet and they've moved on from the tea party. But oh how I love Saturday mornings!

Sister play

 

The Christmas gifts proved to be quite successful. Friends Lego for Tilly and Duplo for Evie. They love it and Tilly is quite the engineer.

Doing this whole stable/horse thing, by herself! She loves it. When I tried to get my paws in there tinkering she stopped me and told me my hands were too big for this sort of thing and to leave it to her. 

 

Washing her little sis' hair. Love it! 

Christmas 2012

Ending 2012

Talking with Nan and Pop. Actually this was unusual as we usually do it on Skype on the Ipod.

 

Keeping close with friends.

Watching things grow. 

 Soaking up the sun, knowing we're headed into a long dreary, cold and wet winter......