9.23.2007

Fall is here!!

Asia loves learning about the seasons - so today, when we told her that Fall (秋天 = qiū`tiān) was finally here, she asked, "where are the leaves, mom??"....since Fall is typically associated with colorful leaves all over the ground. Well, we don't have lots of colorful leaves, but the temps have dropped significantly, and we got our first rain (下雨 = xià yǔ)!! The chilly weather called for some hot soup & lounging around in jammies for the majority of our Sunday. This morning (Monday in China) the thermometer read 8C which = 47F!! That's getting cold for us! Its not even October yet!! We may have to bust out the winter clothes earlier than normal....but that is fine with us!

I am so glad we went on an adventure on Saturday....it might be some of the last warmth we see for awhile. Here are the kids playing at a big park with their "English friends." They loved playing in the sprinklers, running on the paths, eating our picnic lunch and riding this rickety bumper car ride. I am so glad they didn't fall out! :) But for now, its back to the books - continuing to learn new vocab, grammar, characters, tones and how to use it!! Justin's classes are much more rigorous this semester - his 3rd so far, and he has more homework and assignments at night. His language skills are incredible - but there is always more to learn! I am still hoping osmosis will work if I hang around him enough. :)