Chúc mừng năm mới!

We celebrated Tet last night. The Vietnamese New Year. We had friends over whose son came home from Vietnam about a year after Zach. Garrett is a year younger than Zach. I made my first Vietnamese meal. We had chicken Pho for dinner and coconut rice pudding with mango for dessert. It was a lot of work but so worth it. We all had a blast! They stayed until close to 9pm and the kids were awesome the entire time.

Tet means the first morning of the first day of the new year. Like in China, the Lunar New Year is one of the most celebrated holidays in Vietnam . The Vietnamese do not celebrate birthdays on the day they were born. Everyone turns a year older during Tet. Preparation for Tet starts weeks before New Year's Day. Homes are cleaned to get rid of bad fortune associated with the past year. Families paint their homes to give it a new look. Everyone gets new clothes and new shoes. Debts are paid and differences are resolved between family and friends. Food is cooked in advance for big meals that are to be eaten during the seven day celebration of Tet.

Ready for our guests...

Eating Pho with chopsticks...

T used chopsticks, too...

Eating and chatting with friends...