Autumn Moon Festival

The Autumn Moon Festival is one of the biggest celebrations in China, second to the Chinese New Year! This Chinese Festival of lanterns is held when the full autumn moon is at its fullest and brightest.It's a day of family reunions, a lot like our Thanksgiving, where families gather and food is abundant. In China, kids are thrilled to be able to stay up past midnight, parading multi-colored lanterns as families take to the streets to moon-gaze.
Kayli and I participated in the local autumn moon festival, hosted by Families Blessed With the World's Children. All the kids dressed in their Chinese silks, and lots of families showed up, ready to participate in some traditional Chinese activities. It was a beautiful afternoon-into-evening, ending with a dragon lead parade at dusk. The drums beat while the kids followed the dragon down the walking path, with homemade lanterns in their hands to light the way, as the perfect full moon shone above us!

the lantern parade...

what a FUN event!

* just in case you noticed a little black eye on my sweet pea, she had a collision on the playground with a little boy with a very hard head... she got knocked flat to the ground and he apparently was off and running, no worse for the wear!