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It was a really fun weekend at Kalahari Resorts in the Dells, seeing all the girls and watching them interact. In one year they’ve grown so much. There were fourteen families in total. Only three families were not able to make it. Our group were the families that travelled to Wuhan plus two families from the Guangzhou group and one family that went to Nanchang. The water park was the perfect venue for the reunion. There was lots to do and plenty of time to visit with everyone. The water park was huge. The hotel had both an indoor park:
and an outdoor park:
On Friday, it took us about four hours to get there, including lunch. The girls quickly found their own means of transportation to the room once we registered at the hotel:
and then it was off to check the water park:
Our first meeting with all the families was for dinner at a Mexican restaurant in the Dells.
Hua Mei reconnected with a friend from her orphanage in Wu Xue City.
The next day we spent almost entirely in the waterpark.
In the evening we had a pizza dinner and then there was bowling at the Amusement Center which was also connected to the hotel.
On Sunday it was time to say, “Goodbye and see you next year.” We had to leave in the morning to get Hua Mei to a birthday party in the afternoon. It was a great weekend. We were all tired but happy from a fun time. It was a fun road trip too.
Back in 2005 when we received Hua Mei, our travel group was quite large, about two dozen families. About half the families went to Wuhan while the other half of the group went to Guangzhou. Prior to traveling to China we had a couple of get-togethers with many of the families. So, when we finally all travelled to China, it was more like joining up with friends. Since returning from China, our group has had a reunion every summer. Even though most of us live in the same region, we only see each other once a year at the reunion to catch up. This year will be our fourth reunion. The first year we met up in Duluth.
In 2007 we all met up at a family’s home in Hastings.
In 2008 our reunion was at a family’s home on Lake Minnetonka.
This weekend we travel to a water park in Wisconsin Dells for the reunion. During our first reunion a person remarked how it was like a family reunion only better because we got to choose our relatives. That struck a strong chord with all of us. It will be a good time to catch up with everyone and see how the girls interact. We’re really looking forward to getting together again.
This afternoon we had an office outing to watch the Twins play the Kansas City Royals. Since there were extra tickets, I brought Hua Mei to the game with me. This would be the first baseball game that I would take her to. Last summer her babysitter took her to a game with another child she took care of and that child’s mom. It was a fun time and Hua Mei was a hit with my co-workers. I didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to the game but Hua Mei lasted through all nine innings, wasn’t very restless, and she said she had a good time. For me it was fun to share in the ritual of a ball game with her and ply her with treats. It started with popcorn:
and a hot dog:
and a soda to wash it down:
I shared some peanuts with her:
and taught her that it was okay to throw shells and popcorn on the ground:
She liked the crunching sound of the shells under her feet. Ah, the joy of it.
She shared her popcorn with the people around us and ate about 3/4 of the bag. After a little while she asked if she could have some cotton candy. Being the enabling dad as well as wanting her to partake in the entire experience, I of course obliged.
Finally it was my turn for a treat and I got a root beer float which Hua Mei did share a little with me.
It was a fun afternoon and we stayed for the whole game. The Twins lost 5-4 but it was a good game. The proudest moment for me was the seventh inning stretch. Hua Mei stood on her seat and sang along,
“… and let’s root, root, root for the CARDINALS, if they don’t win it’s a shame …”
I’m a very proud dad.
Last weekend we drove up to Crane Lake for the wedding of our friend Candace. She is a good friend of Karen’s and the guardian for both Hua Mei and Xia Mei. Crane Lake is a five and a half hour drive north near the Canadian border. Coincidently, the town of Buyck which is just south of Crane Lake is also the home town of one of our babysitters. Just before we got there, we made a pit stop at a rest area. As I was looking at the map of the area I saw how close we were to Voyageurs National Park. I pointed this out to Karen and we quickly decided that we needed to make a quick trip to the park.
Since we’ve had Hua Mei, we have taken a vacation to a National Park. In 2006 we drove to the Badlands and the Black Hills. We bought a National Park Passport book that year and started collecting rubber stamp cancellations for each park and monument that she would visit.
In 2007 we went to Joshua Tree and in 2008 we visited Capitol Reef, Bryce, Zion and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Each of those years we met Laurel and Abby. This year because of the basement remodel and Laurel’s commitments, we did not have a trip planned. Karen and I were thinking of taking a trip to St Louis to visit the Arch (to get a stamp) and see some Cardinals games but that was very tentative. Now we had our chance to get a passport book for Xia Mei and a stamp cancellation for Hua Mei.
On Saturday, before the wedding we left Nelson’s Resort and drove an hour and a half to visit two Visitor’s Centers: the Kabetogama Lake Visitor Center and the Ash Lake Visitor Center. We got stamp cancellations at each center for both girls. They were able to pet a beaver pelt and we watched an video about the parks. We also got a refrigerator magnet for Grace who we have forced to become a collector of National Park refrigerator magnets. 
Just outside the park entrance there was a fish statue that we had fun with:
It was a fun side visit and we had an extra treat when we left for our excursion: a large bald eagle flew overhead in front of our car and then landed on the road in front of us. Before it flew off, we had a great glimpse of it. We were all thrilled.
We also had a great time at the wedding. Hua Mei was a flower girl and Xia Mei had a great time dancing at the reception. It did rain that day so the wedding was held inside at the resort. This might have been a blessing since the mosquitoes and black flies were terrible. It was a fun weekend jaunt up north, logging about 14 hours in the car though.
While I was away this past week at the TWI Summit, Karen and the kids took the opportunity to come visit me during the end of the week. They flew into Cincinnati Wednesday evening and they spent Thu and Fri with me. The Summit was held at the Great Wolf Lodge in Mason, Ohio which is about a half hour north of Cincinnati. Even though I was taking classes, there was plenty of things for them to do. The Great Wolf Lodge is very family oriented and they have a large water park.
The water park had a wading pool, wave pool, and some fountains that Xia Mei could enjoy. Hua Mei played a lot with Xia Mei but also took advantage of the slides. There was also a lazy river loop that we rode along on inner tubes. We spent a few hours at the water park on both days.
They also had other activities such as a craft club and an animatronic show that the kids enjoyed.
Friday evening Karen took advantage of the spa and got a massage.
The lodge also had a live action role-playing game called MagiQuest that took place on the second, third and fourth floors. Hua Mei got a wand that interacts with various items such as treasure chests, paintings, and video screens. Hua Mei and Karen had a great time running around the three floors performing quests.
Hua Mei got up to the rank of Junior Magi in the couple of days we were there. Karen enjoyed the game so much that she went off finish the rest of the quests that got Hua Mei to the rank of Magi. Hua Mei got to keep the wand and it can be used at other MagiQuest sites and her status is saved. There are other locations around the country and the original one is in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
We had a great time. There is also a Great Wolf Lodge located at the Wisconsin Dells. Several of the others also have MagiQuest. Karen and I were really impressed at how family friendly the place was and it is a place we’ll definitely consider taking the kids to again.
Lately two of Hua Mei’s favorite cartoons deal with goats and sheep (both denoted by the Chinese word 羊 – yáng). “Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf (喜羊羊與灰太狼)” is a very popular cartoon series in China. It’s about a group of goats that live in this field and their adventures with a couple of wolves that would very much like to have them for dinner. A total of 500 episodes have been created over the past three years, including 60 episodes for the Olympics. The dvd is in Mandarin (with no English subtitles although that doesn’t matter with Hua Mei). She can follow along with the stories and she does pick up some Chinese from it.
Recently full length movie based on the series broke Chinese records for an animated film and the demand for the movie was so big that a theater chain in Beijing showed it in their biggest hall, displacing the scheduled premiere of “Red Cliff II,” the epic movie by John Woo.
The other series she’s been watching is “Shaun the Sheep.” It’s a claymation animated series by Nick Park and Aardman Animations, the makers of Wallace and Gromit. Shaun originally appeared in the Wallace and Gromit feature “A Close Shave.”
Shaun now has his own series in which he lives on a farm with a flock of sheep, a dog and the farmer. It’s quite amusing and actually we all often watch it together.
A new series starring Timmy the baby sheep is due for release in the UK later this Spring.
Hua Mei has been doing a lot of drawing lately and likes to draw with markers. Today she was drawing with a Sharpie that she grabbed from my desk. I went to cook dinner and when I returned to see what she was up to, she had the brilliant idea of painting her finger nails with a black Sharpie. Whoops. Karen quickly checked on the Internet for suggestions on how to get permanent marker off. She was able to remove all traces just using sunscreen, no toxic chemicals at all. Hooray. I think that Hua Mei was relieved to get her fingers cleaned and she’s sworn off of Sharpies. Just in case, I’ve removed them to a safe place.
Yesterday I took Hua Mei to see “Coraline.” The 3D version returned to the theaters this weekend and I really wanted to see it. Karen was sick so I thought it would be a good opportunity to get Hua Mei out of the house. I told Hua Mei that she would get to wear glasses and she was thrilled. The movie is rated PG but she’s watched some PG movies (such as “The Incredibles” at home on DVD (to Karen’s dismay). Truth be told, I had a feeling that the movie might be a little too intense for her.
When the movie started she was intrigued by the 3D effects. She turned to me and told me that it was really fun. She liked the way “the letters came out of the TV.” About two thirds through, though, she turned to me and asked to go home but then some cool flowers appeared and she said she wanted to stay. At the end of the movie she said that she liked it and that she had fun. I asked her if it was too scary and she said it was just a little bit scary but not too bad.
At night though when I was putting her to bed, Hua Mei turned to me and said, “Baba, I didn’t like that movie and you shouldn’t take me to movies like that until I’m seven.”
I said, “Sorry, but I thought you said you had fun. There were other kids in the theater.”
“But they were all bigger than me. I shouldn’t go to the movie theater until I’m seven.”
“Oh, but, there are other movies at the theater and we can go see them.”
“You mean they change movies?”
“Oh, yes, every week.”
“Okay, let’s go see a movie that is okay for kids to see.”
Out of the mouths of babes … Anyway, I’ve learned my lesson. Hopefully she hasn’t been too traumatized. I’m sure I’ll hear about it again when she’s a teenager.
btw it was a good movie and the 3D effects were really good. We’ll try again when “Aliens and Monsters” comes out.
This afternoon Grace and I will be taking Hua Mei to go see “100 Years of Magic,” a Disney on Ice show.
They’ll be doing musical numbers from many of the Disney movies including Mulan. Last year Karen went with Hua Mei and friends to a Disney On Ice show of Finding Nemo. So, this is my turn. Actually I’m kind of looking forward to it. It’ll be fun to see Hua Mei’s reaction to the music, the characters and the skating.
Update: we had a lot of fun at the show. It took some cajoling to get Hua Mei out of the house to go to the show. She was a bit tired from the Home and Garden show. The show started at 3 pm and had one intermission. We got out of the Target Center around 5 pm so it was about two hours. Hua Mei had a lot of fun and did not get restless at all. She knew all the movies and songs. She said her favorite part was when the princesses came out. Souvenirs were expensive. It cost $10 for a sno-cone (though it came with a plastic Cinderella cup, not as though that is much of a consolation and I’m sure that Hua Mei will now want to drink everything out of it). I denied her of any other souvenirs but she seemed to accept that just fine. The skating was pretty good too.
This past weekend we were busy taking Hua Mei out to see some events. It was nice to give her a little treat. She’s been a great big sister but there are times I’m sure she feels neglected. Saturday morning we took her to the Ordway to see a group called Tales & Scales perform with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra telling the story of the Arabian Nights. Grace got free tickets to the show and she brought Karen, Hua Mei and me. Candace came over to babysit Xia Mei. It was very entertaining although at four years of age, Hua Mei was a bit young to keep attentive to the whole show. The show lasted an hour which was just about right. We went to have lunch at the St. Paul Grill. We discovered it’s a great place for lunch and will definitely return.
On Sunday, I took Grace to see Stars on Ice as a very early birthday present. Last year I brought her to see Champions on Ice and the US Nationals for her birthday and Christmas presents. I brought Hua Mei along with us this year. Grace is a big figure skating fan so it has been fun to take her to these events. Watching skating in person really is much better than watching on TV. I didn’t really have a feel for the speed of the skating and spins or the height of the jumps until I watched the skaters perform live. Skating joins the list of sports that need to be seen live, along with tennis, ice hockey and volleyball. We got to see Sasha Cohen, Evan Lysacek, Todd Eldridge, Yuka Sato, Michael Weiss and Ilya Kulik, which was pretty cool. I also learned a valuable lesson: don’t give a four year old a 16 oz bottle of Sprite if you don’t want to take her to the bathroom a couple of times during the show. It was a two and a half hour show and towards the end Hua Mei was getting antsy and ready to leave. But she did great and we all had a good time.
