a LOVEly month

It is February, a month of love.

I have been wanting to meet all my neighbors (and there are 11 doors in our unit) but kept delaying it. For Christmas, I was going to make cookies to pass around. Never did it. So now I have a second chance- homemade biscotti for Valentine's Day.   I really just want to let them know Jesus loves them more than anyone else ever could and what's a better month than February to do that!

My little girl helped with the process. We had a blast spilling flour and watching eggs drip off the counter! She called butter "cheese" and ate flour, saying "YUCK!" She's not yet two so everything is new in her world! But in the end, They came out fabulous! I forget how easy biscotti is to make and should do it more often.  There are countless recipes online and I encourage you to hit the search engine and find a recipe that best suits you!  Mine called for anise extract but I had done that once and no too many people liked that flavor. This time we used vanilla extract. Not a bad substitute.

We actually leave for a visit back to Taiwan on the 14th, so we passed them out on Sunday afternoon. I had so much fun knocking on doors and surprising them with a colorful bag of biscotti. People were so quick to share about their lives and so grateful for the treat.

An hour later, we got a knock on our door and the neighbor handed us a card, saying that was so nice of us. After he left, we opened the card. It was a thank you card from Hallmark and had a very thoughtful note inside how much it meant to him and a gift card to Applebee's was tucked in! I am overwhelmed with that and can't wait for the next opportunity to spend time with our neighbors.

As far as recipes go, there are a million out there but one I'd check out is here on Lindsay's blog.She uses vanilla paste, Amaretto, and vanilla creamer!

Happy Valentine's Day!

新年快樂- Happy New Year

Today is the official start of the Chinese New Year this year. It’s based on the lunar calendar so it falls on a different date every year, anywhere from late January until mid-February.  We were privileged to be a part of six celebrations in Taiwan. We saw incredible festivals decorated with a different animal every year which repeats itself every twelve years.

In Taipei(台北), the capital city of Taiwan, a city with a population over 2,000,000, people gather at the Chiang Kai-shek memorial during the holiday for fireworks, food and to check out the animal-shaped lantern displays. It is simply breath-taking!  I remember being PACKED in the sea of people and I had to push and squeeze through the sea of people just to move a few feet! Then is started raining with nowhere to run!  It is always a memorable experience.

In Taiwan, everyone would asked what year you were born so they can figure out what your zodiac sign is. They all have different characteristics. Which year were you born?

  

Rat		1924	1936	1948	1960	1972	1984	1996
Ox		1925	1937	1949	1961	1973	1985	1997
Tiger		1926	1938	1950	1962	1974	1986	1998
Rabbit		1927	1939	1951	1963	1975	1987	1999
Dragon		1928	1940	1952	1964	1976	1988	2000
Snake		1929	1941	1953	1965	1977	1989	2001
Horse		1930	1942	1954	1966	1978	1990	2002
Sheep		1931	1943	1955	1967	1979	1991	2003
Monkey		1932	1944	1956	1968	1980	1992	2004
Rooster		1933	1945	1957	1969	1981	1993	2005
Dog		1934	1946	1958	1970	1982	1994	2006
Boar		1935	1947	1959	1971	1983	1995	2007

Check out this website for a detailed account on each animal’s characteristics. It’s fascinating!

 Something still so enchanting to me is the tradition of placing red papers with written blessings on the top and sides of the front door.  They do this to protect themselves from the “dragon” that comes during midnight of New Year’s Eve.  Doesn’t that sound familiar to the story of the death angel in Egypt long, long ago?

God instructed the people of Israel to place the blood of a spotless lamb “and smear it on the sides and top of the door frames of the houses”   and  ”the blood on your doorposts will serve as a sign, marking the houses where you are staying. When I see the blood, I will pass over you. This plague of death will not touch you when I strike the land of Egypt.” You can read about it in Exodus 11-12. 

We love the people of Taiwan and are so thrilled to be able to go back for a visit this month for a few weeks!