Happy New Year everyone! Hope everyone had a great holiday! We certainly did, and it was way too short. Many friends postponed holiday dinners and get together till after the holiday, and I thought these Fortune Cookie Soaps are perfect hostess gifts to start the new year clean. They even come in a little cute take out container. Can’t go wrong with it.
This recipe is from my friend Natalya and it’s one of my favorite holiday cookie recipes.
½ cup butter or margarine, softened
1/3 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg, separated
1 cup regular all-purpose flour
¾ cup finely chopped blanched almonds
apricot jam
Confectioners’-sugar frosting (optional)
Enjoy!
Thanksgiving – 感恩節 – Gǎn ēn jié
This Thanksgiving, I’m thankful for all those who have taken an interest in teaching my children…school educators, music teachers, scout leaders, sports coaches, Chinese school teachers…the list is long and the impact is profound. Their guidance and influence mean so much to my kids, and for that I am very thankful!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone! 感恩節快樂!
Students drawings of the Terra-cotta Warriors
Washington Yu Ying Public Charter School was opened in September 2008, and the school is now in its third successful year. Yu Ying was the first Chinese language immersion program available to DC residents. Half of their classes, including Math and Art, are taught in Chinese. Yu Ying has about 200 students from Pre-K to 2nd grade, and majority of the students are not Asian.
The students in Yu Ying have alternate language day, so they only learn in one language at any given day. As many people would agree, being able to speak and use a foreign language is the best way to learn. Research indicates that in order to gain fluency in a language, students need to spend significant time in an environment saturated in the language they are learning.
Learning Chinese has been in high demands over the past few years, as our economic and political connection strengthen with China. Teaching children more than one language will help with brain development, and hopefully useful for future careers. Chinese language education is particularly well-suited to the early education setting because, as a State Department-graded “level 4″ language, it is especially difficult for non-native speakers to master. Yu Ying takes advantage of young children’s innate ability to acquire language through early introduction to and immersion in Chinese.
For those of you with young children living in the Washington DC area, check out Yu Ying’s website, www.washingtonyuying.org. They began to accept application for next year in October, so you may still have time!
This set of blocks is totally perfect to raise our bilingual babies. Each block is embossed to give it a classic look inspired by traditional blocks. They are handcrafted in Michigan of Basswood grown in the Great Lakes area and printed with non-toxic inks.
This beginner Mandarin set has 32 character blocks. Each block has the character alone and with its English equivalent, a stroke grid to learn how to create the character, and a number and a picture with its pin yin equivalent. There is also a puzzle side for this set… a map of China, the Chinese flag and a yellow dragon (responsible for bringing the seeds of writing to the Chinese people).
Hooray to celebration the continuous awareness of the Chinese language! These blocks are available at Uncommon Goods!
Remember one of our favorite customer’s little girl who can recognize Chinese characters at 15 month old? Well, this little girl is now 27 month old, and she can read a Chinese book! So sweet and so smart. She can also read in English too! That’s so amazing. This family does not live near a city with big Chinese population. She doesn’t attend any Chinese school. Her ability to read is through her mom’s tireless effort in teaching her. Check out the video. I am so proud of our cutest, youngest reader!
Trick or treat, smell my feet.
Give me something good to eat.
If you don’t, I won’t be sad.
I’ll just make you wish you had!”
Happy Halloween Everyone! We had a little party with our friends yesterday for the kids. There were so many creative and yummy treats, including the monster cupcakes, spiker crakers, and jack-o-lantern cheese. We are you doing this Halloween? We would love to hear from you about your halloween traditions and the cute costume ideas you have for your little ones!
I love wearing slippers at home, and I’ve been noticing most of my Asian friends wear slippers at home too. Maybe it’s an Asian thing? Anyway, I always need a new pair, especially for winter every year. It’s never too early to start a holiday wish list. This year maybe I will go for something as whimsical as this pair of Sushi Slippers from Uncommon Goods.
I’m the first to admit I’m not very creative or crafty. However, when we visited the Botanic Gardens in Montreal over the summer, there was a lady who was offering origami lessons to kids at the Japanese garden. So we all sat down, and 10 minutes later, each of us had a beautiful flower made out of origami paper. We have great origami paper, in various colors and patterns for you at our store. Check it out and stock up for cold weather activities. They are also great as stocking stuffers!
Coat - 外套 – wài tào
While it’s still Fall, there is definately a chill in the air here in the Northeast. In Chinese, we use the phrase 外套 loosely. Translated simply, it means outer layer. So, a jacket, or a coat can be translated into 外套.
