Hi Everyone!
We are fortunate enough to be able to celebrate this Harvest Festival at Shawn and Chris's home.
We wanted to make sure that people know that their property is a 'working farm' and it is also a 'work in progress' as they are doing a considerable amount of renovating inside and outside the property. So, there may be some building projects in the works while we are enjoying our weekend there!
Shawn and Chris are taking every precaution to make the space completely safe, but we feel that it is important for families to make sure their children are supervised while not engaged in structured activities (such as making crafts, which will take place inside the house) ... especially while playing around outside.
You may want to pack your child's wellies, or footwear suitable for running in fields and possibly mud!
All the best!
Sunday, 11 October 2009
Saturday, 10 October 2009
Can You Make A Contribution to Our Feast?
The invitations have been posted and inside, we included a list of foods that we would appreciate receiving as contributions towards our feast. We have duplicated that list here and we would be most appreciative if each family could bring along one (or more if you'd like) of the items we are requesting.
We would also be grateful if those who are planning to join us for our Harvest Festival Thanksgiving on the 24th October can consider bringing along the drinks that your family will consume, and perhaps a drink to share with others?
Could you please let Ellen know which contribution you'd like to make? You can email her direct on bower_ellen@yahoo.com - or click on the 'email me' in the right hand column of this blog. Having that information will help us to best coordinate the meal.
Condiments for The Table:
~ Cranberry Sauce (we'll need 2-3 jars/tins)
~ Olives (black and green - we'll need 2-3 jars/tins)
~ Selection of Nuts (walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts - we'll need 2-3 bags/jars/tins)
Side Dishes for The Table:
~Fresh Rolls (perhaps the type that are part-baked? We'll need up to 6 dozen)
~ Cornbread Loaves (optional, but a nice addition - we'll need a few loaves)
~ Bread Sticks/Flatbread or similar (we'll need a few packs/boxes)
~ Cheese Selection (blend of soft and hard cheeses and spreads - we'll need enough to feed 20+ as a prelude to pudding or as a 'starter'/appetizer)
~ Savoury biscuit selection (we'll need several boxes/tins of assorted savoury biscuits)
Puddings:
We will provide freshly baked pumpkin pies (if you haven't tried it before, ours will be delicious!). We think it will be nice to also have some additional puddings that we can share throughout the feast and the weekend (though probably nothing like pavlova or anything that would require preparation and that might have to be refrigerated - we'll probably be light on refrigerator space with all the other food we'll have to store).
Here are some suggestions:
~ Cupcakes/cookies/sweet biscuits for the children (we'll need 3-4 dozen)
~ Pies - such as Cherry, Apple, Cheese, Lemon Meringue etc. (we'd like to have several on hand)
~ Cakes - such as Chocolate, Lemon, Jam Sponge, etc.(we'd like to have several on hand)
~ Fresh Berries or Mixed Fruit Bowls (we'll need enough for about 15-20 people)
So ... if you think you can make a contribution, we will very gratefully accept!
Many thanks!
We would also be grateful if those who are planning to join us for our Harvest Festival Thanksgiving on the 24th October can consider bringing along the drinks that your family will consume, and perhaps a drink to share with others?
Could you please let Ellen know which contribution you'd like to make? You can email her direct on bower_ellen@yahoo.com - or click on the 'email me' in the right hand column of this blog. Having that information will help us to best coordinate the meal.
Condiments for The Table:
~ Cranberry Sauce (we'll need 2-3 jars/tins)
~ Olives (black and green - we'll need 2-3 jars/tins)
~ Selection of Nuts (walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts - we'll need 2-3 bags/jars/tins)
Side Dishes for The Table:
~Fresh Rolls (perhaps the type that are part-baked? We'll need up to 6 dozen)
~ Cornbread Loaves (optional, but a nice addition - we'll need a few loaves)
~ Bread Sticks/Flatbread or similar (we'll need a few packs/boxes)
~ Cheese Selection (blend of soft and hard cheeses and spreads - we'll need enough to feed 20+ as a prelude to pudding or as a 'starter'/appetizer)
~ Savoury biscuit selection (we'll need several boxes/tins of assorted savoury biscuits)
Puddings:
We will provide freshly baked pumpkin pies (if you haven't tried it before, ours will be delicious!). We think it will be nice to also have some additional puddings that we can share throughout the feast and the weekend (though probably nothing like pavlova or anything that would require preparation and that might have to be refrigerated - we'll probably be light on refrigerator space with all the other food we'll have to store).
Here are some suggestions:
~ Cupcakes/cookies/sweet biscuits for the children (we'll need 3-4 dozen)
~ Pies - such as Cherry, Apple, Cheese, Lemon Meringue etc. (we'd like to have several on hand)
~ Cakes - such as Chocolate, Lemon, Jam Sponge, etc.(we'd like to have several on hand)
~ Fresh Berries or Mixed Fruit Bowls (we'll need enough for about 15-20 people)
So ... if you think you can make a contribution, we will very gratefully accept!
Many thanks!
Sunday, 4 October 2009
Gratitude ~ Thankfulness ~ Blessings
The Autumn Season is a time of Harvest ~ a time for recognizing and gathering our bounty and the abundance of our good fortune.
In many parts of the world, the Autumn season marks cultural celebrations such as Thanksgiving, Harvest Festival, and Moon Festival (China). While each of these are shaped by the cultural traditions within the countries they originated, there are some shared values among them, including:
~ Devoting a special time to being thankful for good fortune and blessings in life.
~ Remembering those who are most dear and precious in our lives, near and far, of this world and already departed.
~ Reaping the benefits of a life lived with strong values, hard work and solid principles.
As a community who have formed our families through the blessing of international adoption, we hope to begin a tradition of gathering each Autumn to 'count our blessings', to pay tribute to our community of friendship, and to honour our childrens' rich heritage - the heritage they may have left behind in China, but that we are committed to keeping alive in all of our hearts and souls.
Please join us for our very 1st annual 'HARVESTING OUR THANKS' gathering where we intend to celebrate the gratitude in our lives, to honour the abundant blessings bestowed on us by our children, and to begin our intention for building memories that we hope will sustain our community of support, nurturing and friendship.
A formal invitation will be posted to all participants closer to the time, which will provide more detail and introduce some of the traditions we hope to birth and nurture.
Please mark the date of Saturday, 24th October, 2009 in your calendar, which is when we intend to hold our dedicated Autumn Harvest for our community. There will be activities planned throughout the entire weekend so you may want to consider reserving both Saturday and Sunday.
Our celebration will be held in the Norwich area, with specific details to be
provided in the formal invitation to follow in the post closer to the time.
If your family would like to join us, and we hope that you will, could you please send your RSVP including your family name and full mailing address to:
Ellen
We intend to post formal invitations at the beginning of October.
Thank you!
Xie Xie!Toa chie!Doh Je!Ta!Dankie!Obrigada!Diolch yn fawr!Tapadh leat!Gracias!Go raibh maith agaibh!Gwra'massi!Khawp khun kha!Ar Kun!Merci!Grazie!Danke!Tak!Kiitoksia!Tanke Wol!Ashoge!Shukran!Wneeweh!Bayarlalaa!Sas fharisto!Shukriya!Dank je!Wa'-do!Kinanâskomitinawaw!Ahéhee'!Ngiyabonga!Cám on!Mahalo!Askwali!Takk!Arigato!Ashi!
Terima kasih!Pidamaya ye!Dua Netjer en etj!
Saturday, 3 October 2009
Beginning Our Tradition
The Harvest Festival is a celebration that we hope will become a tradition every year. There are some new traditions that we will be introducing this year for our 'debut' festival! These are meant to be 'optional' activities and anyone wishing to participate is very welcome.
We will also provide a 'handout' summarizing the weekend's intentions and festivities, and these ideas will be included in that.
Here is a glimpse into some of the ways we hope to honour and nurture the blending our our 'thanksgiving' traditions:
1. Recording Our Thanks: We will lay a white tablecloth during our Harvest Festival and this will be available for anyone wishing to write their thoughts about gratitude and thanksgiving (either privately or with ownership). This tablecloth will be preserved and presented each year so that our families can add their thoughts, images, words about how they embrace gratitude and Thanksgiving in their hearts.
2. Chain of Gratitude: We will provide strips of colourful paper for guests to write their thoughts about gratitude. Each strip will be stapled and added to our Chain of Gratitude. This will be on display during our Harvest Festival, and we can add to it each year that families gather.
3. Balloon Release: The legend behind the Mid-Autumn Harvest Festival in China is that it is a time to remember those who are important in our lives, near or far, alive or deceased. One way that we can help our children to make a 'connection' with their birth families, is to have them think of something they would like their birth family to know, either about them, their families or just a general sentiment. This thought could be placed (emotionally) into an Eco-friendly balloon, which can then be released and carried to China. It is a symbolic exercise and the balloons we will provide are ecologically friendly.
4. Children's Activities: In addition to participating in any of the above activities, we intend to provide the following amusement for the children:
a. A Scarecrow decorating event.
b. A pumpkin decorating event.
c. Harvesting the Pumpkin Patch.
d. Making an Autumn Wreath from leaves.
e. Making masks from nature's Autumn materials.
f. Making collages from nature's Autumn materials.
g. Plenty of Autumn & Harvest Festival colouring pages and puzzle pages.
h. Making Autumn Harvest Lanterns and other chinese traditional items.
I. Plenty of outdoor exploring and general good fun.
If you have any suggestions that have not been mentioned here, please do get in touch with Ellen: bower_ellen@yahoo.com or visit her blog at http://www.threemotherlands.blogspot.com/
We will also provide a 'handout' summarizing the weekend's intentions and festivities, and these ideas will be included in that.
Here is a glimpse into some of the ways we hope to honour and nurture the blending our our 'thanksgiving' traditions:
1. Recording Our Thanks: We will lay a white tablecloth during our Harvest Festival and this will be available for anyone wishing to write their thoughts about gratitude and thanksgiving (either privately or with ownership). This tablecloth will be preserved and presented each year so that our families can add their thoughts, images, words about how they embrace gratitude and Thanksgiving in their hearts.
2. Chain of Gratitude: We will provide strips of colourful paper for guests to write their thoughts about gratitude. Each strip will be stapled and added to our Chain of Gratitude. This will be on display during our Harvest Festival, and we can add to it each year that families gather.
3. Balloon Release: The legend behind the Mid-Autumn Harvest Festival in China is that it is a time to remember those who are important in our lives, near or far, alive or deceased. One way that we can help our children to make a 'connection' with their birth families, is to have them think of something they would like their birth family to know, either about them, their families or just a general sentiment. This thought could be placed (emotionally) into an Eco-friendly balloon, which can then be released and carried to China. It is a symbolic exercise and the balloons we will provide are ecologically friendly.
4. Children's Activities: In addition to participating in any of the above activities, we intend to provide the following amusement for the children:
a. A Scarecrow decorating event.
b. A pumpkin decorating event.
c. Harvesting the Pumpkin Patch.
d. Making an Autumn Wreath from leaves.
e. Making masks from nature's Autumn materials.
f. Making collages from nature's Autumn materials.
g. Plenty of Autumn & Harvest Festival colouring pages and puzzle pages.
h. Making Autumn Harvest Lanterns and other chinese traditional items.
I. Plenty of outdoor exploring and general good fun.
If you have any suggestions that have not been mentioned here, please do get in touch with Ellen: bower_ellen@yahoo.com or visit her blog at http://www.threemotherlands.blogspot.com/
Norfolk Accommodations
We realize that some of our guests may require local accommodations, so we have compiled this listing to help you make your plans.Please note that this listing of B&Bs and Inns are not necessarily personal recommendations - just places convenient to Shawn Tomlinson’s home, where our Harvest Festival will take place.
Elm Farm Country House
01603 898366
Horsham St. Bates
www.elmfarmcountryhouse.co.uk
Moorsticks B&B
01603 488808
Spixworth
http://www.moorsticksaccommodation.com/
Bure Valley Farm Cottages & B&B
01263 732177
Aylesham
www.burevalleyfarmstays.co.uk
Woodmans Farm
01603 754658
Stratton Strawless
www.woodmansfarm.com
Home Farm Cottages
01603 278283
Buxton
http://www.bedandbreakfast-directory.co.uk/uploads/estate/hotels/hotels27046.htm
Morgan House
01603 764971
Hevingham
http://www.bedandbreakfast-directory.co.uk/uploads/estate/hotels/hotels42483.htm
Elm Farm Country House
01603 898366
Horsham St. Bates
www.elmfarmcountryhouse.co.uk
Moorsticks B&B
01603 488808
Spixworth
http://www.moorsticksaccommodation.com/
Bure Valley Farm Cottages & B&B
01263 732177
Aylesham
www.burevalleyfarmstays.co.uk
Woodmans Farm
01603 754658
Stratton Strawless
www.woodmansfarm.com
Home Farm Cottages
01603 278283
Buxton
http://www.bedandbreakfast-directory.co.uk/uploads/estate/hotels/hotels27046.htm
Morgan House
01603 764971
Hevingham
http://www.bedandbreakfast-directory.co.uk/uploads/estate/hotels/hotels42483.htm
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