Happy Halloween from Changchun!

I miss trick or treating.  I miss all things fall.  The kids school does a really lousy version of Halloween.  But they still managed to have a good time.  Milly just couldn't understand why the Chinese don't trick or treat!  

Secondary did their dress up day on the Friday before Halloween.  They waited so long to plan anything that the Halloween Party isn't until Nov. 11   But this is how all things at CAIS seem to be.  Jocy picked out her costume awhile ago when my favorite website Chasing Fireflies was having a clearance sale on costumes.  She looked beautiful.  And so grown up.  I swear she was just Cinderella like yesterday.

Primary got to dress up and have a parade on the actually day of Halloween.  They also did a little  "trick or treating" around the classrooms.  Elly had picked out her costume the same time as Jocy's.  I was surprised by her choice of "Bird of Paradise".  It took her until the end of Halloween to realize she was just a fancy parrot. Ha!  But she looked amazing.  Nate had a hard time deciding what to be.  I had picked him up a Spiderman costume to add to his dress up collection.  He had stated that it was unfair that his sisters had a big chest full and he didn't have much.  He also got a Jedi costume from Disney Paris that he said he was going to wear.  But last minute, he went with Spiderman

Milly didn't get a school party.  I'm not sure if they had done it the Friday before or what, but I let her pick what she wanted to wear on Halloween.  She is a huge fan of her new Bat girl costume.  Joel picked it up at Target while in Troy, NY.  She has been in love with it ever since.

Nate with his BFF Sebastian

Nate's class

Elly's class

This picture came up on the School's Wechat account.  It said, "I am a child, but I am also a Super Model"  Sigh... this school is filling Elly's head too!

The Expat Struggle

Every time a holiday comes around, I have this internal struggle.  This Halloween was no different.  And I think it gets worse the older my kids get.  Seeing everyones wonderful Halloween pictures on Facebook makes me feel sad that my kids are missing out on that.  We used to spend every Halloween with Joel's cousin's family.  Plus, there were all the parties.  We had so many friends in Kansas City.  But here we are, again, the newbies.  Trying to figure out life and find new friends.  I don't even know if there is any Halloween celebrations in Changchun?  Mommy guilt in full effect here!

The kids had a great time at their school Halloween shindig.  But come Halloween night, they were all whining about the lack of trick or treating.  Nate actually said, "Tell the US President to tell China to have Halloween."

As I was sitting with my eldest watching everything we could find Halloweenish, I asked her how she felt about missing Halloween?  Really all holidays?  Would she rather we had gone back to the US?  She said that yes, she kind of misses all the events associated with American holidays (bad parents), but that school helped fill in those gaps.  Then she said, that while she wishes she was back doing all these fun things we see my friends and their kids doing thru Facebook,  none of them are spending Christmas in Japan, CNY in Thailand and spring break exploring China.  That right there, made my day.  I still have a bit of mommy guilt but I know when they look back at their childhood, they will be grateful for all the amazing adventures!

Oh how I miss Fall

Fall has always been my favorite time of year.  I love sweaters and jeans.  Football and fires.  Bringing out the crockpot and making that first Pot Roast of the season.  So many things that we can't do in Istanbul.

I am missing our trips to the apple orchard.  When I was a kid, that was the start of fall in Michigan.  I'd go with my parents, my Brownie troop, and school field trips.  It was so much fun to run around the orchards and climb the trees, trying to find the best apples.  And then eating them until you were sick to your stomach.  And once everyone was tired (and sometimes cold), it was time for donuts and hot apple cider.  Those last two were really the only reason to go!  I have no idea what mom did with all those apples.

 I tried to recreate those same trips with my kiddos in Kansas City.  The orchards were smaller and no donuts, but the apple cider usually made up for it.  Plus I loved watching Jocy and Elly running like crazy thru the orchard as I once loved.  Oh how I would love a trip to the apple orchard right now!  But from what I can find, there is only one place in the center of Turkey.  So last weekend, Joel got a bunch of apples from the pazar and I was going to try to make my own cider.  Thankfully, it was a success!  I got a small amount of my happy Fall.


I think the thing I love most about fall is the beautiful colors the trees create.  Now, living on the edge of the Belgrade Forest, you'd think I'd be in heaven.  But I'm sad to report that fall in the Belgrade Forest is quite a disappointment.  You will see an odd yellow and red here and there, but they are pretty dull.  It's like trees go from green to dead overnight.

I miss Halloween.  We still do our Halloween crafts and all the windows in the living room are covered in homemade pumpkins, ghosts, bats and black cats.  BISI does trick or treating and a big haunted house for the kids.  They love wearing their costumes to school.  And I've heard that some of the large compound do trick or treat, but not ours.  Plus the candy is not that good here.  You'd think all Snickers would be created equal.  Nope.  I swear they taste stale here.

 I miss our trip to the pumpkin patch and every ones search for their perfect pumpkins. Then the crazy mess they make decorating them.  Mmm.. and roasted pumpkin seeds are my favorite!  I loved our trips to the Big Red Barn and Deanna Rose.  Both were always on the field trip list in the fall!

 And I really miss trick or treating with our family and friends.  Almost every Halloween that we were in Kansas City, we spent with Joel's cousin's family. Their two boys are Jocy and Elly's age and its been a great tradition.  The one year we didn't go with them, we went with my good friend and her two girls.  They are the same age of Jocy and Elly and we had such a wonderful time.  I kind of wonder if they will grow out of it before we get back to the States!  That would be so very sad. :(

I miss my fireplace.  I miss both of them.  I loved that the one in the family room and the one on our back porch were just a light switch flip away.  I miss the nights hanging in our neighbors driveway with a fire and adult beverages.  I really didn't like giving up a fireplace during our apartment hunt but having a garden for the kids and dogs to play in makes it worth it.  One of these days I will get Joel to get me an Turkish outdoor fireplace.  That might make up a little bit more.

I am enjoy the beautiful warm days here in Istanbul.  And making our plans for our Christmas trip.  So even though I really miss all those things, I will have them back again sooner than I probably will like.