Happy Chinese New Year!

After watching Monkeydoos yesterday, Juliana wanted to do one of the crafts, the tiger mask! So we pulled out some scissors, paper plates and markers. Daddy did the cutting while Juliana colored another plate and then she helped finish up the tiger. She was so proud of it and looked absolutely adorable!

This weekend was a long four day weekend for Chinese New Year and our good friends, Sue Lynn and Mun Cheong invited us over for a delicious lunch and fellowship. Before eating, there were lots of traditional Chinese munchies for the girls (and Jacob)...

Juliana enjoyed playing soccer with Bethel...

Then it was time to eat! This isn't even all the food and it was only lunch! The yusheng salad, two dishes from the left in this picture is the same salad we got introduced to last year. It's a huge part of the Chinese New Year celebration and promotes good luck, abundance and fortune in the new lunar year. So here is the full spread of delicious food...

Then it was time to mix the yusheng salad as a "family' to promote good luck among all of us in the New Year. It's always fun and actually, I have come to appreciate the Chinese traditions a lot more over the last year since our first experience with Chinese New Year. We felt very special to be included in their family's meal and celebrations. We have been truly blessed with such amazing landlords that have turned into wonderful friends. So here we are, sharing the love and luck of the New Year with them...

Juliana wanted to take part in the mixing as well and thoroughly enjoy it! This was at the conclusion of mixing and the beginning of loading our plates to eat...

We are hoping that this Chinese New Year will be prosperous, successful and full of new and exciting experiences as a family...

After everyone was full, the girls wanted to show Juliana how Wii Fit Plus was done! Juliana actually enjoyed being able to stand by them, watch and then copy their movements as they did the snow ball fight, the kung fu fighting and many other activities. Jacob even got a chance at snowballing with Juliana's help!

It took Juliana a few minutes to warm up to Auntie Banjie (Eden and Bethel's Auntie), probably because it's been some time since we've seen her, but by the end, she had nothing but hugs for her!! It doesn't take much, since Banjie has such a warm and loving personality. Julian agave her some big hugs when we were getting ready leave...

We love spending time with Sue Lynn, Mun Cheong, Eden and Bethel and feel blessed in so many ways that "landlords" turned into such wonderful friends. We always have so much fun with them and I know Juliana enjoys all the extra attention. I hope they realize just how much we have grown to care about them and look forward to making many more memories with them in the coming year!

Happy Chinese New Year everyone!

The day of L-O-V-E!

We've never been big celebrators of Valentine's Day, but it was nice to have Jacob home today after nearly three weeks. For the past (almost) two days, Juliana has been very demanding of his attention, obviously fearing he's going to leave again, so we've just enjoyed hanging out as a family. Yesterday afternoon, we had our date at the movies, but then decided on take out and brought it home to eat dinner with our girl.

This morning, I got some delicious waffles and a "Happy V Day" on my plate in maple syrup! Juliana was adorable too, because she seems to get jealous whenever daddy gives mommy attention. Ha! Who would have thought I'd have to battle with a 2 year old for my husband's attention?? :-)

For months now, we've been playing this game with Juliana, which I believe began with singing "Ring around the Rosie" and ending with us falling down and "sleeping." So whenever we "sleep," Juliana now knows that she has to give her Princess Kiss to wake us up! I know it might sound strange, but it's rather adorable. Here's Juliana and Jacob pretending to sleep...
And the magical kiss to wake daddy up!

After playing a bit and talking to my mom and brother, we headed downstairs to play outside. Juliana was so happy to have both mommy AND daddy with her!

I warned Jacob when he got home Friday night that he would need his energy pills to keep up with her. As I said, she's been demanding 100% of his attention and she worries whenever he leaves the room. She also woke up nice and early this morning crying and ended up in bed with us, but it will just take her a few days to realize that daddy is home now and he's not going to just pick up and go away again. Well, hopefully not anytime in the near future!

At the playground running around the pole...

Then climbing it...

So, Happy Valentine's Day everyone. I am truly grateful to have such a loving, supportive husband, which led to a beautiful little girl! I love and miss my family and friends back in the U.S. too and they should all know that they are always on our minds and in our hearts and prayers.

Jacob's business trip to Sydney

Jacob just returned on Friday night from his business trip to Sydney. As most of you know, business trips typically consist of seeing the airport, hotel and office. Although he didn't have a chance to do much sightseeing, he did get to see a few sites and take some pictures. The rest are posted on the shutterfly site.

This is Sydney's Observatory. He didn't actually go in, but took a picture since his hotel was right next to it...Walking on the boardwalk towards the famous Sydney Opera House...
The Sydney Harbor Bridge...
And the night view...

A night view of the Opera House, which I really hope I get to see someday too!!

An old coworker of Jacob's from BLL in Boston now works in southern Australia, so flew up to visit Jacob over the weekend with his wife. They had dinner, drinks and did a tiny bit of sightseeing. He also gave us a very nice gift of red wine, maybe to entice us to fly down and visit? We hope to be able to do so!
A better picture of the Opera Theater...

So, this is a close up of the building, which I now know from Jacob is made of tiles. Wikipedia states: The roofs of the House are covered in a subtle chevron pattern with 1,056,006 glossy white- and matte-cream-colored Swedish-made tiles.

Gorgeous! I'm impressed with this picture...

The other afternoon adventure he actually got to take was to Bondi Beach, which he has told me that the pictures don't do it justice. It's one of Australia's most popular beaches, where some television shows are often filmed and locals go to sunbathe, surf and swim...

My good looking man...

Apparently, this is a popular view of the beach. Jacob was saying that he as walked through some of the shops, he saw lots of art with this view of the beach...
I'm glad Jacob had this opportunity to work with BLL in Sydney, but I'm even happier that he's home! Juliana too, seeing as it's all about daddy now :-)

New toys for a spoiled girl

While talking to Jacob on skype last night, Juliana set up her desk and started working on her letters and numbers. She was at "school" and teaching Hello Kitty all about the ABCs and 123s...
This Melissa & Doug toy was something I got a while back, but kept aside for a later time. I figured after another tough morning for Juliana (runny nose and fever), it would be a good time to pull out a gift! We had a blast making pizza and then she served me a slice...

Little did I know that after I gave Juliana a new toy, a big box from my mom and grandmother would come in the mail filled with goodies for Juliana and even stuff for me and Jacob too! Juliana woke up from her nap to this Thomas train set, among other things and I couldn't get the box opened fast enough! As you can see, she really like it...

Thank you to Nana and Nanny for another wonderful gift box, now we just want you two out here to play with all of the toys with Juliana :-)

Love to you all back home. We miss you!

He's coming home!

Finally, Jacob is officially flying home this evening, YAY! Juliana and I are both excited to see him and I know she'll be ecstatic when she wakes up in the morning to find that he's home.

It's been yet another tough morning, since Juliana is still sick, but she's taking a snack/TV break which is really turning into a singing break, along with the show...even better!

I must thank all of those of you that read the blog, because I also share the posts (most) with Juliana and she gets a kick out of herself on the computer screen. She even enjoys reading the comments and looking at our friend's pages. Amazing, huh? I was in high school when I got my first computer and my 2 year old daughter is already turning into a pro!

Thanks for all of the prayers and support over the last few weeks. I'm looking forward to getting back to a somewhat normal routine as soon as Jacob's home. Thankfully, it's also a long weekend due to the Chinese New Year, so it gives us a lot of family time and time for rest!

Happy New Year everyone and here's a bit of info about this year, the Tiger. I'm hoping a lot of those characteristics will come into play this year!
The Tiger is said to be lucky vivid, lively and engaging. Another attribute of the Tiger is his incredible bravery, evidenced in his willingness to engage in battle or his undying courage. Maybe he’s so brave because he is so lucky. But the Chinese say a Tiger having a Tiger in the house is the very best protection against the evils of fire, burglary.

Sick little girl

After a very rough couple of days (okay, maybe more than that) and some horrible nights with a sick little girl, I am still trying to have fun with her as much as possible. Last night may have got us about 3-4 hours of sleep all together with a lot of crying, a running nose, fever and a very tired and miserable little girl. She would wake up crying and then ends up asking for her daddy too, which just breaks my heart.

Even though she had a bad start to the day and felt awful, we pulled out the play dough for something to do other than lie down, watch TV or read books. I felt so bad for her, because she kept getting frustrated that her nose was running and mad at me when I tried to wipe it! I can't wait until we figure this all out and she feels better.

This is her showing me her "daddy" cutout from the play dough...
Then she talked to "daddy" and gave him kisses...

After making the daddy cutout, she asked to make the rest of the family. Adorable! Here they are as she tells me who each one is...

So, an activity like this would usually last a long time, but I could tell she was simply tired and sick, so she asked to "put the toys away." She's such a sweet little girl, even when she's miserably sick and sad, missing her daddy.

I just hope and pray that she feels better soon and we can figure out what is going on with her poor little body!

What a week...okay, weeks!

As you all know, Jacob is away on business in Sydney and his trip got extended a week (he was supposed to come home this past Saturday). He's due back tomorrow night, woo hoo!! But of course, he leaves and I get sick, then Juliana gets sick. When it rains, it pours! But we're managing and you end up finding strength deep down you never knew you had in times like this.
Juliana has not been feeling well, but in her good moments (probably when the medicine kicks in), we get to enjoy a bit of the day. She got to borrow this from Sue Lynn and Mun Cheong...
She's getting better at it! Then, as always, we have our chats with family back home on skype. My mom has been in Florida, visiting my brother, sister-in-law and niece for the last week, but we still get to talk. Juliana wanted to play dress up for my mom. She chose to be wear her fire hat and princess shoes, what a mix!
That's her princess skirt she's showing off to my mom as she sings and dances...

Finally, when I asked her, "What should we do now?" she wanted to eat, so she grabbed her wooden bread basket and put everything out on the floor for herself, me and Nana!

I'm so glad we have skype, because it's allowed us to talk to Jacob nearly every single day that he's been gone and it certainly helps Juliana to see that he is okay. Can't wait to see him!

Flashback

Flashback to the days of dating... I have the most amazing husband who loves and supports me unconditionally. I was looking through old pictures and came across this one from Meg's wedding. I love him more each day and I am grateful that God brought us together, then blessed us with an amazing little girl.

I just can't wait for him to come home and just in time for Valentine's Day! I know it's not a big deal and we usually don't really celebrate it, but this year feels different and I suppose that's because he will have been away for nearly three weeks. Sometimes distance truly does make the heart grow fonder.

I love you,
Not only for what you are,
But for what I am
When I am with you.

-Roy Croft

Often, a good marriage allows us to take another look at ourselves. We learn more about who we are and who we want to be. Then when parenting becomes part of that bond, we begin to change our views about what is truly important in life. Be grateful, for what you already have and tell your loved ones just how much they mean to you. Life's too short to wait until tomorrow.

God is working

I really enjoyed today's devotion and wanted to share, as well as add some of my own comments along the way! I hope this helps some of you that have expressed frustration in your own lives too.

God is working, regardless of how you feel
by Rick Warren

That is why we must hold on all the more firmly to the truths we have heard, so that we will not be carried away. (Hebrews 2:1 TEV)
As you grow to spiritual maturity, there are several ways to cooperate with God in the process - Believe God is working in your life even when you don't feel it. Spiritual growth is sometimes tedious work, one small step at a time. Expect gradual improvement. The Bible says, "Everything on earth has its own time and its own season." (Ecclesiastes 3:1 CEV)

This is where I am struggling, because although I do trust in God, I often get frustrated with the ways in which he is working in my life. I pray hard about something and His answer can sometimes be scary, challenging and nothing close to what I had hoped for. But I know that in the past, these are the times when God is really testing me, helping me build my faith and forcing me to use the strength that is deep down inside of me. It's all part of my spiritual growth.

There are seasons in your spiritual life, too. Sometimes you will have a short, intense burst of growth (springtime) followed by a period of stabilizing and testing (fall and winter).

Okay, I admit it: I feel like I am in a season of fall and winter, especially these past two weeks. A lot of changes have happened in my life and my family's life, but I also do know that life is full of seasons and God may have BIG plans for my spring and summer, who knows! Patience is the key here, because life is full of ups and downs and without the downs, we would never learn anything or grow into the people that God intends for us to be.

What about those problems, habits, and hurts you would like miraculously removed? It's fine to pray for a miracle, but don't be disappointed if the answer comes through a gradual change. Over time, a slow, steady stream of water will erode the hardest rock and turn giant boulders into pebbles. Over time, a little sprout can turn into a giant redwood tree towering 350 feet tall.

If only life were so easy and things could "miraculously" change, but this is and will never be how life goes for any of us. I used to pray and wait for the answers to just come to me the next day, because I didn't fully understand that faith often means patiently waiting for God to do His work in our lives in His time. More recently, something I have been praying about for weeks now is slowly coming together, but I am not jumping the gun. I know that it will still take more time and I will continue to be challenged in being patient for God to guide me. When in doubt, I need to remember to just look away from the circumstances of my life and simply look up to God.

Keep a notebook or journal of lessons learned. This is not a diary of events, but a record of what you are learning. Write down the insights and life lessons God teaches you about him, about yourself, about life, relationships, and everything else. Record these so you can review and remember them and pass them on to the next generation (Psalm 102:18; 2 Timothy 3:14)

Entry for today: Juliana is confused, sad and emotional. Yes, she is a typical 2 year old, but she's also dealing with her daddy being away. I know that she doesn't understand exactly why daddy is gone, but the lesson for me has just been to hold her, love her, kiss her and constantly reassure her that mommy and daddy love her and that daddy will be home soon. I think God is using Jacob's business trip to also teach me how to look inside myself for the courage and strength to handle a lot of different things all at once. And hey, I'm still here, so I must be doing something right!

The reason we must relearn lessons is that we forget them. Reviewing your spiritual journal regularly can spare you a lot of unnecessary pain and heartache. The Bible says, "It's crucial that we keep a firm grip on what we've heard so that we don't drift off." (Hebrews 2:1 Msg)

I have learned this the hard way and I know I will go through it again. God does not just hand us a solution on a silver platter. He waits for the time to be right and sometimes that means He will tests us numerous times. Often times, we may be praying for the wrong thing and God is simply waiting for us to change direction in our prayers. As parents, I think this is especially important to remember as we go through each stage of our children's lives. We learn more about ourselves through the eyes of our children.

God bless everyone. Jacob, we love you and miss you. Can't wait to have you home. Juliana said her prayers for her daddy tonight before bed...wish I have the video camera for this one, it was precious!

Daddy update and etc.

We have started some new art classes at a different location and I'm hoping that Juliana enjoys it just as much, if not more, than the other ones she was taking. She has become so much more creative and made a beautiful arrangement of flowers yesterday! It's now hanging on the kitchen door so she can show it off to visitors. Here she is while working hard on it...
Juliana just got spoiled again with some boxes from the U.S. that included some toys, coloring books, and lots of clothes! She seems to be outgrowing her clothes fast lately...growth spurt coming? Think so. She got this Hello Kitty shirt from her Uncle Justin and Auntie Brit and as soon as I opened her drawer this morning, this was her first choice of what to wear! Here she is chilling out with her friends, the new Valentine monkey from Nana and Nanny and of course, Pooh!

Showing off her outfit! Is it just me, or is she beginning to look older lately?? And a lot more like my mom!!

Praise God for this beautiful smile! All I need to do is ask for a hug and kiss lately and it makes all the rest of the problems in life melt away...

Whoever thought to put paper on a roll is a genius! Thanks to IKEA, I stocked up and she gets to color as much as she wants on a nice big piece of paper...

Okay, on to the sad news. Up until this morning, we were all excited at the idea of "two more sleeps" without daddy until the dreaded phone call came this morning when he informed me that his business trip has been extended for another week. UGH. I admit, I am not handling it well, probably due to lack of sleep, being sick, and the emotional roller coaster of Juliana's mood swings lately. I didn't exactly react in the most supportive and positive manner. I am trying to just put my faith in God and trust that this happened for a reason, possibly one that we may not fully understand right away. I just miss my husband and I know that Juliana misses her daddy. She's been saying, "Come home daddy" a lot more this week and continues to ask for him every day, multiple times. I just keep reassuring her that daddy loves her very much and will be home soon. When I ask her where he is, she answers, "Far far away." Breaks my heart.

Fortunately, skype allows us to connect with him, so at least Juliana gets to see him and hear from him almost every night. I think it helps for her to see that he's okay and to hear from him how much he loves her and misses her. She talks to him about her days, sings and dances and simply blows him kisses and give him air hugs.

Please pray for us over the course of the next week and for a safe and quick return for Jacob next Friday.

Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. -1 Peter 5:7

God, we pray that you take care of our family (not just the three of us, but also our family back in the U.S.) throughout all of the changes in our lives and pray for the strength to overcome the obstacles we must face in our daily lives. With you, all things are possible.

What if......

So, things have been ridiculously busy this week, with Jacob away, a new job for me and LOTS of changes in my adorable little daughter. I often feel like the whole world is caving in on me and then I just need to remind myself that God has a plan and He will see me through all of the trials, tribulations and chaos of life. This poses me with the "What if" questions that I think we all face.

I challenge you to come up with your own "What ifs?" Don't be afraid to make them unrealistic, because isn't that the point? Sometimes we need to dream in life, take a step away from reality and just dream. I think that's why God gave us some amazing imaginations. Take a moment to write a comment or if you journal, write in your journal about this.

Here is just a few of mine:

What if I had tons of money and was faced with the decision of how to spend it? (Believe me when I say that I have TONS of answers for this one!)

What if I woke up tomorrow and found out that I had to make a decision to work for the rest of my life or never work again, what would I do?

What if I could meet God, what would I ask him?

A friend of mine did a post similar to this one not too long ago and I was amazed at the responses she got. It got me thinking a lot about life and how to find meaning in the HERE and NOW. Sometimes that takes an imagination to think, "What if..." and then bring yourself back to your life as it already is. God works in mysterious ways and I don't think He expects us to always just roll with the punches. I believe he wants us to fight when we need to, cry when we need to, dream when we need to and simply rest when we need to.

"...Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need." - Matthew 6:32-33

God WILL provide, but it's also okay to pray for what you think you need for any given moment and He will answer as He sees fit for your life. God bless.

Just a crazy week

This has been a week of a major change! Daddy was away in Sydney (due back this weekend, yay!) so Juliana had to adjust to a lot of changes all at once. Fortunately, we are blessed with an amazing helper and through the grace of God, we will make it all work out. Somehow, God manages to take care of us and I continue to bring my prayers to Him with trust that he will answer all of them when the time is right and in His own way.

Juliana got to headed over to the Chinese Gardens with Jean this morning while I worked and she took some wonderful pictures of my precious girl! One amazing thing about having Jean when I need to work, do errands, etc. is that we know we are leaving her with someone she has come to love and we have come to trust wholeheartedly. Yesterday, on the other hand, was a bit more difficult since I had to leave Juliana with Jean at art class and she was not at all happy about it! She broke my heart with her cries for her mommy, but after a long hug, lots of kisses and "I love yous," I was able to leave (with a heavy heart though). To make myself feel better, I've begun to read the book, "Guilt-free Motherhood: Parenting with Godly Wisdom" (by Dr. Julianna Slattery - worth a read whether you're a working mom or not!) to learn how to cope with the emotions going on inside of me and find peace in God's guidance in my life.

So, this morning, Juliana got to enjoy some time at the gardens...
Posing with a statue...

She is just such a happy little girl!!! I thank my lucky stars every day that I was blessed with this amazing little girl...

I think all of the pictures I've taken in the last year have turned her into a little model! Check out her poses... I simply love this picture the best of all of them. I guess it's just because she looks so at peace (and confident) sitting up on that rock...

That sweet smile could make any sadness or worries in life just disappear. It's breathtaking!

I really miss seeing my friends (and Juliana's friends), spending more time talking to family on skype. But at the end of the day, I still get to see that I have an amazing little girl to light up my life. Her big hugs and kisses are the best rewards any mom could ask for!

She's so spoiled!

Being away from loved ones is so hard, so it's always a wonderful surprise when a package comes! Juliana now thinks that everything that comes to the door or in the mailbox is for her...okay, to be fair, most of it is for her aside from the typical stuff like bills and such. My mom and grandmother enjoy sending her gifts fairly often and she certainly enjoys opening them. Today's box was full of arts & crafts, clothes and Valentine's Day stuff. I try to give her a little bit at a time so she doesn't always expect gifts to come in large quantities (like at Christmas or her birthday), so we started with the window decorations...
At dinner, Juliana still kept talking about her hearts and ever since she got her Valentine's day cards from Nana and Nanny last week, she's been reading them every single day!! Thank you mom and Nana for these little surprises!

We've also been enjoying all of the jewellery that Juliana has lately...

She keeps saying how "beautiful" the necklaces and bracelets are. Really, it's just her that makes them so beautiful!

The last few days have been a bit tough with Jacob away, because Juliana is always asking for him. Whenever I go on the computer to use skype, she would say, "Nana? Nanny? OK" and wait for them to answer. Now she has added, "Daddy?" to that list, since she knows that this is how we get to talk to him while he's in Sydney. I'm just so grateful for skype, because it keeps us connected with family and friends back in the U.S. and now Jacob, while he's on his business trip. Ah, the wonders of the internet!