Harry Potter, Harry Potter!

We went to the movies! This is the first time we have made such a venture in China because it tends to be really expensive. Just the tickets are pricey, mind you, the food is dirt cheap. What a change from the U.S. If you want to buy the large popcorn and 2 large drinks combo then it will cost you 22 yuan. That is like three bucks. AWESOME! Anyway, the theatrer right next to us is actually quite cheap compared to the bigger places in the city, but it is kind of like a dollar theater. It plays much older movies and they are not often in English. But I guess Harry Potter is as big a deal here as it is in the states because it was here the same week as it was back home. Stacie kindly offered to babysit and Joe and I went out for a real date night. She even let us borrow her scooter so we could ride together like a cute couple. It was so great!

The movie was exciting, the company was fun, and I had no idea how much I missed the whole movie experience. It was a good night for all.

Thanksgiving Bust

There is no Thanksgiving in China, obviously. But I live in a place with enough westerners that some of the restaraunts provide a Thanksgiving dinner for a price. Joe and I were willing to pay the price to have a nice traditional turkey dinner, so last night we made our way to the restaraunt all giggly and excited. Okay, that was just me. Joe doesn't get excited over food.
They had the whole spread. There was turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, salad, corn bread, veggies, gravy, and pie. I have been here long enough that I should have known that just because something looks good and yummy doesn't mean that it is. The turkey was completely unseasoned, but it was nice and moist. The mashed potatoes had no salt, pepper or butter; and they were cold. The gravy was the WEIRDEST tasting gravy I have ever encountered. After 10 bites or so I still could not figure out what they had made it out of. After that I gave up on the potatoes. And for the bread, no butter. Hmph.
The only thing about the evening that made it even sort of worth it was the pie. Oh, the pie. It was pumpkin pie made from cooked down and processed pumpkin. There is no canned stuff here. It made the pie grittier than I am used too, a little stringy. But the flavor was so much richer than the pies at home. I am suddenly VERY inclined to make some myself. I may try to do the whole meal over myself. It will be quite the challenge with my tiny oven and limited materials, but I think that for the price we paid I could come up with a better spread. I'll let you know.

Working Girl

I have no photos, but Avery had her first modeling job yesterday. She was called in to do a shoot for a Chinese clothing line called Xiayidao and got to spend nearly 6 hours changing into almost 20 outfits. It was about as fun as it sounds. The saving grace of the day was when they turned on "Finding Nemo." After that they could change her clothes all they wanted and shoot photos all day. She watched the movie 3 times before the end of day. I think that it may have been harder on me physically then it was on her. My big and pregnant self spent the day sitting on prop chairs from kiddies and squatting down trying to get Avery changed as fast as possible, sitting in the right spot, facing the right way, etc. I feel like I've been hit by a car. Avery left the place happy and ready to ride the bus home while I left thinking that I may never go back. We'll see.

Relaxin'

This is one of Avery's new favorite things; watching movies in bed with Mommy and Daddy with some yummy popcorn. But you better let her hold the bowl or you are in for it. Unfortunately we have gotten into this little habit because Avery will not go to bed at night. We want to be resting so we just put her in bed with us so that we can lay down and relax. This is a phase that I am anxious to close.

Avery's New Best Friend

Her name is Axin (pronounced Ash-en). And she gives Avery pretty much anything she wants. Avery likes the Minnie toy in Axin's car, well, she can have it. Avery wants more frosting, no problem. Avery wants to pick flowers from a display that has guards all around it, that's fine. When I commented to Axin that she would give Avery anything she wanted, meaning that maybe she should NOT, she just said "I will! I love kids!" How could Avery not love her back?

What the heck?

It is 2:30 in the morning and I am awake because Avery is awake. This makes the 5th night in a row that she has woken up and decided that she either can't sleep in her own bed or she just can't sleep at all. What is going on? She has gone through phases like this before, where she just needs a couple of nights in Mom's bed and then she goes back to hers no problem. But this waking up at 10 and staying up past 3 is a little too much for me to handle right now. All this extra awake time just makes me realize that I actually do get hungry in the middle of the night. I guess most of the time I am too tired to be woken by the sensation.

AN OVEN!

I own one now!! It is not very big but it works! The same day that I bought it I made cookies. The next day I baked some chicken. And today I'm thinking apple crisp! I just might make it through the holidays now!

Swollen Feet=New Shoes

One of the perks of swollen feet (due to pregnancy) is the need to buy new shoes. I'll take any legit excuse! So my feet recently grew out of my only black dress shoes so I HAD to go and find a new pair. Not as easy as it sounds I am afraid. Luckily my feet have gone up to about a size 8, any bigger and there simply would not be any shoes for me to buy. Chinese women, and men for that matter, have tiny feet. There are more shoe stores here than I think I have ever seen in a city, but finding ones with out glitter, jewels, feathers, chains, or ruffles was nearly impossible. There is no such thing as a plain ans sensible shoe here. They all have some kind of bling. It is not a fashion trend I am really into. Luckily I finally found these little shoes with a simple flower detail. I LOVE them. Finding them was a relief on multiple levels. Better for my feet, more appropriate for my wardrobe, and affordable. Not everything in China a actually cheap.

Big Night Out

Joe took me out the other night. We took the bus into the city, saw some awesome lights, and then we went to dinner. Being here in China you may wonder where we chose to go on our big evening out on the town. Well let me tell you it was just about the yummiest dinner I have had in a month. We went to PAPA JOHN'S! Surprised? You should not be. Let me tell you why Papa John's is such a wonderful place. The pizza tastes just like it does in the states! Incredible! Good pizza is hard to come by here and it is never cheap. I realize that back home this might not be considered "good pizza" but when you are used to frozen crusts topped with tomato paste and toppings that vary from mushrooms to shrimp, clams and tuna, Papa John's becomes your new favorite place.

The American pizza chains that make it here to China look a little different than they do in the states. When you walk into a Pizza Hut or P.J.'s you see big stuffed chairs and wood tables, or nice booths and artwork making it feel like a real nice Italian place. Pizza is not something you just order up and have delivered here. It is a nice, sit-down-and-take-it-easy type of meal. The menu is a little different too. Along with pizza and cheesy bread you can order calamari and fried shrimp. As well as some skewers that looked a little too scary for me to try.

But the most important thing is that I could get REAL pepperoni pizza! Oh, the things I miss.