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Lunar New Year 2023

Did you know that in some countries that celebrate the Lunar New Year, it lasts for about two weeks? Lots of businesses in China and Taiwan shut down completely during this time. This year's Lunar New Year celebrations, starting the Year of the Rabbit, will come to an end this weekend.

My MIL and my kids in 2016

San Francisco's Chinese New Year Parade is pretty famous and it usually takes place at the end of the holiday. When my husband and I lived in California, we made a trip to Chinatown one year when our oldest son was a toddler to watch the parade in-person. It was a lot of fun! Since then, we make a point to try and find a broadcast of the parade online to watch as a family. This year will be no exception with the parade happening tomorrow evening, February 4th. 

My husband's family is from southern China, and these are some of the traditions that we've woven into our family. From what I have learned, these are similar among many Chinese families. 

It's tradition for folks to spend this time with their families; especially if they don't live close to them. It's considered lucky to wear red and there are lots of traditions one follows to ensure an auspicious new year. Many families do a thorough clearing of their home to sweep out any bad luck from the previous year. It's actually considered bad luck to clean your house, or cut your hair, on Lunar New Year's Day because you will sweep out any new good luck or cut your chances for a prosperous new year. 

My oldest not knowing what to do with his lucky money.

On Lunar New Year's Eve, families usually get together for a big dinner chocked full of dishes that represent positive aspirations for the new year. There is often steamed whole fish (prosperity), chicken (togetherness) or duck (loyalty), noodles (long life), and dumplings (wealth). It's not uncommon for families to come together to make dumplings for this meal. Deep fried spring rolls are also common because they look like little gold bars.

We sometimes have sweet desserts, but my in-laws have tried to teach my kids that oranges and tangerines (success & wealth) make a great dessert too. And they are luckier with the stem and leaves still attached. Some years, my mother-in-law has made sweet, deep-fried, sesame cookies called zhà má yè.    

Here’s a website that has some really wonderful Chinese recipes that are popular around the Lunar New Year.

This year my husband smoked a whole duck and my mother-in-law steamed a whole fish. We had sweet, sticky rice, that had diced char-siu (bbq pork), onions, ginger, and mushrooms. We had homemade bao (buns) to make little sandwiches with slices of the smoked duck, spring onion, and hoisin sauce; similar to Peking Duck.

Our Lunar New Year dinner this year

Of course, the part my kids most look forward to: Lucky Money! Pronounced lai see in Cantonese or hong bao in Mandarin. Traditionally children and unmarried adults receive red envelopes from parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles that contain money. Sometimes they have a "lucky" amount too. The number eight sounds very similar to "get rich" in Chinese, so it's considered a very lucky number. We've often seen dollar amounts given in eights ($8, $88, etc.).

My kids digging into their red envelopes in 2016, back when they were still cute!

My in-laws and my husband's aunts also give our kids red envelopes for their birthdays. My mother-in-law still gives my husband and me a red envelope at the Lunar New Year and on our birthdays too.

In celebration this year, I created a Lunar New Year cootie catcher. The symbolic items on there are pretty specific to many Chinese traditions. You can purchase and download a printable file from my Etsy shop.

Are you from a country that celebrates the Lunar New Year? If so, how do you traditionally celebrate? I would love to make a cootie catcher that is unique to how you celebrate. Are there different symbolic foods, items, or animals in Vietnam, Thailand, or Korea? Anywhere else? Please share!

Printable Calendars on Etsy

I have had these printable wall calendars in my Etsy shop for more than a few years. I just added a handful of new ones and I wanted to share. Here’s a link to my Etsy shop.

These are a fairly simple and really useful concept:

  • Print the calendar page at a local print shop at 16x20 inches (Office Depot, Staples, etc. You can order online or take the file to a store on a flash drive. Some will accept files via email.)

  • Insert it into a 16x20 inch ready-made picture frame and the glass becomes your dry erase board.

  • Write in the month, days, and your family’s activities and appointments for the month.

  • If you have the wall space and need to have two (ore more) months up at a time, print as many as you need.

I have two 11x14 inch calendar frames hanging on the wall in my office and they’re really handy for me to see what the coming weeks have in store for us. 11x14 is all I have wall space for right now, but I am hoping to be able to go up to 16x20 in my next home office. Fingers crossed!

Pro Tip: Use Command Strips to hang these on the wall (yep, that’s an affiliate link). They make pulling these frames down to write on easier to do each month and no holes in the wall. It’s easier for me to write on these when I can put them on a table and Command Strips totally make that easier.

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I also keep track using the calendar on my phone, but I’m a very visual person, so having months visible on the wall makes it easier for me. It also makes it easy for my husband and my kids to see what family or school events and appointments are coming up.

These DIY calendars are very simple with a space at the top to add in the month and information in all of the date squares. Ultra-fine tip dry erase markers work the best, but regular fine-tip pens will work as well.

I can customize the name at the top to say pretty much anything; whether it’s just your family name or something different like “The Hollises Craziness,” “The Murray Clan,” or “The Gonzalez House.” I have even made one that says “Girl’s Office” or even a company name. Other fun ones to consider, if it works for your family: brood, flock, clan, dynasty, and progeny. Since my married name is Wong, my husband and I would totally go punny and say “The Wong House.”

If you would like to skip the fun, family name at the top, you can always opt for just a few lines and space to write any notes at the top like the ones on my wall.

Clicking on any of these images will take you to its listing on Etsy.

If you’re interested in customizing a wall calendar with different fonts, adding colors, or going with a different size, shoot me an email and we can talk details.

Our Holiday Card - 2019, and more!

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It’s December 20th and we’re winding down the school week and getting ready to head to northern California to spend Christmas with family. As of today, I’m no longer accepting custom orders for holiday cards for 2019. If you card is already in progress, then I’ll get your order finished before we leave. All listings in my Etsy shop are either Instant Downloads or calendars. I can still handle orders for custom family calendars since I will have my laptop with me when traveling.

In the meantime, both my Hanukkah and Christmas cootie catchers are on sale for just $1 in my Etsy shop. Show your kids how much fun these were when you were a kid. The Christmas cootie catcher will remain $1 until December 25th and the Hanukkah cootie catcher will be $1 until December 30th. A page of folding instructions is included with your instant download. You know… in case it’s been a while since you’ve folded one of these. They look best and are easiest to fold when printed on plain paper.

Click on either image to get to the listings in my Etsy shop.

For our family holiday card, we’ve been going to a local photo studio for Santa photos for the last six years called FotoFly. They have one of the parents wear the Santa suit so the kids are comfortable and your chances of getting smiling faces is much higher. It’s been a family tradition to figure out whether our boys will wear matching clothes or PJs or if we’ll do a theme or not. This year, both boys wanted to wear their taekwondo uniforms and we borrowed a black belt from our studio so Santa could wear it. Because, of course Santa would be a black belt.

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I had actually created a more traditional design with a lovely script font and Christmas-y plaid background, but it was way too serious for the photo. A comic book theme just worked the best. I had these printed at Office Depot instead of my usual Overnight Prints because I ran out of time. Gotta love having them ready in an hour.

Wishing you and yours a joyful and peaceful holiday season, no matter what you celebrate.

Holiday Cards 2019

Thanksgiving is right around the corner and I had holiday cards on my mind this weekend. I’ve been playing with watercolor elements lately and created these new holiday cards. They’re all listed in my Etsy shop along with a bunch of favorites from past years. Clicking on each photo will take you to its listing on Etsy.

This one below here has accents in gold glitter! I think I’m going to have to make another one or two that also have that fun glitter.

Hoping to add some more if my kids and time lets me.

Santa photos by Fotofly.
Family photos by Jessica Kay Photography and Cari Hollis.

Custom Jam Labels

At the end of every summer, I buy a big box of Utah peaches and turn them into jam. It’s one of my favorite jams ever and I look forward to making it every year. Nothing is more satisfying that hearing that POP as the jars seal after sweating over a pot of molten fruit and sugar.

Every year I create a custom label and this year my kids wanted input on the design. They loved the label I made a couple of years ago with the dancing peach and “That’s my peach jam” wording. This year they said the peach needed to be a disc jockey with headphones. After I was done laughing, I got to work figuring out how to turn a vector drawing of a peach into a DJ. Both of my boys approved how it turned out. Mom win! They are looking forward to giving a jar to their teachers.

One friend of ours got her own custom label this year. Hee hee hee She’s very possessive over her annual peach jam.

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Both of these new labels have been added to my Etsy shop and can be customized with your name and whatever fruit jam or jelly you’re making.

That’s My Jam Label

My F@#&ing Jam Label