China's Version of Baby Headbands and Ribbons

Having not lived in the US the past six years I can sometimes fall behind with popular trends. One thing I've continued to see pop up in baby pictures are little girls wearing these cute little headbands with bows and flowers. I'm not sure when this trend started in the US but I must say they are cute! 

For example:

Since coming to China years ago I've seen a similar trend but the only difference is the headband has a wig attached to it. I see moms in the park carrying their daughters around wearing these little wigs constantly trying to keep them from falling off. Similar to the US, lots of baby pictures are taking wearing the hand bands!

When you purchase them on Tabao.com (Chinese version of ebay) you have a choice of what color of hair you want (blonde, black, red, or dark brown), the style (straight or curly) and if you want bangs added. 

Renting a boyfriend/girlfriend for the Spring Festival

As time got closer to Chinese New Year this year we began asking friends what their plans were for the holiday. As the country pretty much shuts down for 10 days, the tradition is for everyone to go back to their hometown and spend the time with their families and follow the traditions of celebrating the New Year (fireworks, banquet dinner, giving money in red envelopes, etc). However, over the years many of our friends have expressed that they were dreading going home because of the pressure they would receive from their families about not making enough money or not being married yet.

Due to the pressure of getting married, within the last few years the idea of renting a boyfriend/girlfriend to go home for the holiday has become very popular. Below are some articles I've found about this:

http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/536610/20140131/rent-boyfriend-1-day-solves-problem-single.htm#.Uusobne1akQ
"Take my daughter!" Parents post pictures and ads of their children to try to find a spouse for their child. I highly recommend watching both videos on the page.

http://www.theworldofchinese.com/2014/01/rent-a-lover-this-spring-festival/
-This guy offers 1 million rmb (roughly $165,000) for a female to escort him for seven days. Special bonus was included if she had a Phd and/or was a virgin. Requirements included holding a bachelor's degree, not weighing more than 50kg (110 lb.)  and was cute looking. Over 5,200 girls responded to his post offering their services.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/17/world/asia/chinese-mother-newspaper-ad/
One mom placed a full page ad in the Melbourne newspaper ($2465) in Australia begging her son to come home for the holiday promising she won't pressure him to get married anymore.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2011-02/08/content_11963739.htm
Defending the practice of renting someone to take home

http://www.theworldofchinese.com/2013/07/chaoji-shengnu-episode-20-rent-a-beau/
Renting a 'loved one' on taobao.com (equivalent to craigslist or ebay in the US)

26 Weeks!

We had our first appointment at the Fu You Hospital in Xiamen. Its the hospital we plan to have our little one in! During the appointment I almost cried just being so thankful to be in such a clean, organized, and well staffed hospital (compared to my experiences in Xining)! The nurses and doctors were so kind and it was so orderly! David and I were very impressed! Its also really reassuring knowing many of my expat friends have also given birth there and have had good experiences. 

I had the glucose test and some blood work done. They just called a few hours ago saying all the results came out normal. Very thankful! Our little one and I are both growing and I’m at the weight I’m supposed to be (thanks to all the good food in Xiamen!). Lately, David and I have been learning a lot about hospital procedures, labor, and vaccinations. In China, most women opt for c-sections because its more convenient to schedule them and its what the doctors really encourage (they believe its more predictable even though it takes moms longer recover and the hospital makes more money from a bigger procedure). Also, vaccinations are done differently here so we’ve been having to do a lot of research about how to make the right decision for our little one (slightly different shot schedule along with different types of vaccinations are offered compared to western countries). 

We're Expecting!!!

Expecting our little girl on April 28, 2014 

Three Months! 

Xiamen ladies showing off the bellies! 

Six Months! 

Our New Home

We've found a home in our new city! We're so thankful! We're the only foreigners in our half of the neighborhood. There are a total of 30+ buildings in our our complex. There are three minority groups that live here: Tibetan, Hui Muslim, and Han Chinese. 

This is our building! We're on the second floor window on the left. Also very thankful that to enter the blue door to our building we have to have a key (a lot of times its just broke). 

The little exercise area in front of our building.

I see lots of interesting cultural things happen in our complex, such as Tibetan monks walking and praying with their prayer beads and Tibetan women doing dances in the mornings. Recently the Hui Muslims celebrated Kurban Bayram (Feast of the Sacrifice-honors Abraham for being willing to sacrifice his son before God intervened) and I watched many families sacrifice, slaughter, and butcher cows right outside my front door.  

The area where kiddos play! We love that our little neighborhood is full of families! 

Folks usually just sit on the benches for hours chatting or reading. This is also the area where the ladies do their dances in the morning

The entrance to our xiao qu (neighborhood) 

Little store and post office right out front our gate 

The street that we walk up to get to our gate entrance (its about a 7 minute walk from the main road)

Very thankful to have a bus stop on the main road near our new place 

Trip to the Philippines

During the Chinese New Year David and I went to the Philippines. For the holiday most of the city shut down and folks headed up for two weeks. We decided to go to the Philippines with our friends, Anna and Nathan. 

On our first day in Manila we went to a slum that Anna used to work in. We visited with some of the families and kiddos there.

 Trisha sharing in single room that serves as the Building in that area

Kiddos Sunday school

Click below to see the video that Anna and Nathan made from our trip in the Philippines 

Visiting with Camile 
  (Link  will take you to Vimeo) 

 Manila

 

 We found Dunking Donuts on the street! 

 Hand washing clothes in the shower in our hostel

 Taking a break from snorkeling

The boats we went snorkeling out on

  We spent three days in Puerto Princesa. We met this young guy and spent some time with him as he showed us around town and took us to a local joint to eat dinner.

 Durian! The smelliest fruit!

Visiting our friends in Davao! It was a great time for us getting to hang out with them and learn more about their lives there!