Sisters, Aunts, and Mothers

In the photo above I am in Changchun, China (January, 2006) which is my friend Yeheng's hometown. I call her by her western name, Tracy. Her sister, Mao Mao, took me and Li-Yin to an ice and snow festival in a local park. It was very cold, as you can see. This structure, by the way, is built on the frozen lake of the park. For about 25-30 RMB (around $3.00) you could lug an innertube to the top of the structure (No, thank you. Did I mention it's built on frozen water?) and slide down the ice slide. Yes, ice. How fun this would be.....if I were 20. In the photo above the slide you see Mao Mao, Tracy's sister. Right now Tracy is here in Knoxville with her husband. She's almost four months pregnant. Her sister, who lives in Changchun with her husband, is two months pregnant. Tracy is due May 4th. I believe Mao Mao's baby is due around the first of July. The Li sisters will become aunts about the same time they become mothers. Pretty amazing, right? Tracy's mother must be absolutely overjoyed. It will be exciting to see whether they both have boys or girls or one of each. I'm trying to convince Tracy that Teresa can be a perfectly acceptable Chinese name!