Well, we're in November and it's starting to get cold and chilly in Shanghai. I really miss the autumn colors of New England, carved pumpkins and most of all, I miss the smell of a freshly baked apple pie. So, today, I've decided to bake one complete with cinnamon and nutmeg and hope that I can recreate that wonderful feeling of New England here in Shanghai. Trying to find a pie plate here is a mission in itself. I went to every "kitchen" store and no pie plates to be found. So, I'm going to have to improvise. So it's not going to be round. Who said an apple pie had to be round anyway? Remember the Hostess Apple Pies in a package? They were rectangular. As long as it tastes good, it doesn't matter what shape it is.Yesterday, we had our family photos taken by Gangfeng Wang. He's a pretty famous local photographer. He's like the Chinese Bruce Weber of the Shanghai photography scene. We see a lot of his work in local magazines and books. The photograph is our annual family photo. I usually send out pictures to our friends and family for the holiday season so they can see Matthew as he's growing up. Unfortunately, there isn't a Sears or a JC Penney's in Shanghai, so we decided to have Gangfeng do the photos. The back drop is a very old cobblestone street in Shanghai, lined with houses built in the early 1930's. It is a street rich with cultural history and we thought it was the perfect setting for our pictures. Years from now, when we look back at these pictures, they will remind us of our time here.
He took several pictures of us as a family and he even took several of Matthew on his own. I know that the photos will be great. Now I just have to figure out how to get the photos made into holiday cards so I can send them out in time for the holidays.
Now, onto my apple pie. Maybe I'll even make chocolate chip cookies!
