I've decided he is the animal that represents everything I love about Nanjing. First of all, you can't deny the special style, one unique and, well honestly, not in the mainstream of dog fashion. Then there is the quiet proud attitude of this little furry friend. Last but not least, he's no stupid dog. He knows what kind of stuff is on the sidewalks here in town, and he frankly doesn't want his paws to come in contact with that! So, why not do that with style? And so what if he lost one of his shoes, he can improvise. Now, look at our city, here on the Yangtze River. It has a style all it's own. Everyone in town is proud, but friendly, just trying to find a way to make it in this new expanded world they know. I love the ingenuity of our Chinese friends. They think so differently from us, but they are very clever! All that now said, I name this dog the Mascot of Nanjing! (Well, I haven't ever seen a Nanjing Lion roaming around, so I'm appointing my own)
On the seventh of January, I turned 37. Yes, that's getting up there, but Mike is still older :-) I had a wonderful birthday with lots of friends. They all donated to my favorite charity, yes, Hopeful Hearts. Julie, my good friend hosted a nice morning get-together. Then Mike surprised me and took the day off! What a great birthday. It snowed on my birthday, so the walk we took was beautiful. The family made a nice meal for me, and gave me really nice gifts. I guess I'm OK with turning older if I get to have fun days like that!
Life is busy, and good. We are excited because the children and Mike get the next week off for the New Year holiday. It will be nice to hang out together. We are thinking of taking a road-trip to Yellow Mountain. Should be exciting!
The birthday walk:
My Man:
Another hike with the whole crew:
