First Snow!

We woke up this morning to a blanket of snow on the ground ... and now we have about 5 inches of the frosty stuff!

There is a snowball fight in progress in our yard. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves! Click on the pictures to see a full size view!

Thanksgiving Feast!

Beverly enjoyed her first Thanksgiving in the U.S. with a complete Thanksgiving Feast! She wanted me to get a picture of the table to share with her friends and family.

A traditional Thanksgiving meal at our house includes a roasted turkey (ours was about 16 pounds, or about 7.25 kg weight). We boil and mash potatoes and serve them with gravy made from turkey broth, and we also cook sweet potatoes (yams) in a sweet glaze sauce, with melted marshmallows on top. Sage dressing is also a favorite, which is made from mainly dried bread, chicken broth and the herb sage. We also enjoyed steamed broccoli, and some corn and carrots. Beverly enjoyed most everything but the sweet potatoes have a little too much cinnamon for her taste!

Beverly also got to meet Grandma Gilpin and enjoy the day with her. Here is a picture of all of us (minus Lisa, who was taking the photo) as we sat down to enjoy our feast!

THS Lady Turks Basketball

Tonight was "Meet the Team" night for Beverly's basketball team! This gave families the chance to take some pictures and hear from the coach what the expectations are for the girls for the basketball season. Beverly is pictured here with the JV team, which is made up of freshmen and sophomores.

They are working hard, but also having a little fun with one another. The girls are getting an excellent workout, including weight training. Each girl has an individualized training plan to boost their strength for the season. It will be a great team experience, and a way to get to know some other students at THS.

We signed up for the parent responsibilities ... Mitch working a concession stand shift on a home game night and me helping get a dinner together for the team to take on the bus since they leave right after school for most away games. The first game is December 1, with the first home game falling in mid-December. Should be fun!

SSAT Test Day

Beverly took the SSAT test yesterday, which is a secondary school admissions test. She is looking at 3 boarding schools in Massachusetts to complete her U.S. high school education over the next 3 years, and this test is an admission requirement.

She felt that she did very well on the test. She is working on her applications for the 3 schools ... Groton School, Milton Academy and Deerfield Academy. She'll be a long way away from Illinois if she lives in Massachusetts for the next 3 years, but we have told her she is always welcome for a holiday visit!

Beverly joins the basketball team!

Beverly has decided to become part of the THS girls basketball team ... it will be a lot of hard work (6 days a week practice) but also a lot of fun! Practice begins this week, and their first game is December 1.

Experiencing Halloween!

Halloween is one of those weird US traditions is that really hard to explain to someone from another country ... I think you just have to experience it to understand it. And that is just what Beverly did!

On Friday night she put on a costume and went to a friend's house in our neighborhood who was having a Halloween party. The kids decided to go trick-or-treating, which teenagers normally do not do around here ... but they had to show Beverly how it works! So they put their costumes on and walked door to door, collecting candy from the neighbors who were participating that night. At each door they told the person, "We know we are too old to do this, but this is Beverly, our exchange student from China, and she has never been trick-or-treating before!" Then the person at the door laughed and gave them handfuls of candy. It was a great way for teenagers to get in on the act of something usually reserved for younger kids!

Last night we went to dinner at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants and "somehow" the server was told it was Beverly's birthday .. even though it was not! She was delighted to find out that after dinner, when it's your birthday, they come clapping and singing, bringing you a sombrero to wear home and a big chocolate sundae! Now she wants to go back on her real birthday in May! ha ha That is the picture at the top, of Beverly at her "birthday celebration"