Thoughtful Speech

Today's Mom Time was a farewell for Heyam as she's headed back to Canada this weekend. It was a great time of fellowship but the highlight was praying for her before she left. I've always been open about my faith among these ladies but today was the first time that I stepped up in front of all to do something like this. Very few moms in our group believe in Jesus as their Saviour but it's always been my prayer that they would discover the one true God. I've been racking my brain how to more intentionally incorporate God into our fellowship times and today was a great start. They all responded well and I think this opened the doors to the book that we will study and having more opportunities to pray for them. I love these ladies and feel very blessed to serve them by organizing this group.

We started our time playing the game 2 truths and a lie and it was really fun. We got to know some fun facts about each other. I'm thinking of playing this as an opener each week... it's a much easier and fun way to learn things about everyone all at once.


Here's a few pictures of the ladies....

and this is Heyam and Luna


As we waited for everyone to arrive, Isabella and Isaiah were staring out the window watching a man trim the hedges. Buddy was just entranced by this as you can see....





Just a few more days and then I get to hug my family! I'm very excited about this trip ... excited to see my family and excited to catch up with Adelina. I really miss having them around.

I've been really challenged lately about the things that come out of my mouth... realizing that every word counts... that they can be really encouraging or really hurtful.... and realizing that I have a lot of work to do to improve in that area. I can't change what others say but I can be careful about what I say and I'm thankful to a friend here Dori, who posted this scripture in a note on facebook that challenged me to be more like Christ...

Matthew 12:36, 37 "But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. . For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.

final check-up

I had my last Dr's appointment for my eyes today... well hopefully for along time. My right eye has totally healed and my left eye just has two spots left! So I was put back on the drops for 10 days and that should be the end of that! I get my new glasses on Tuesday so life is good!

My computer is dying a slow death... the delete button is now no longer working which makes typing extremely hard since my f's and r's don't work either and I have to cut and paste those. Ugh...

So I'm going to sign o f f and see how many people turned the lights o f f for world earth hour.

BesT frIenDS

Isabella and I were talking about friends yesterday and I asked her who was her best friend. I thought she might say her usual 'I don't know' answer but she promptly said, 'Timothy.' Here they are at his birthday party. The only negative thing about them being so close is that they have to be reminded to include others... when others are around. I don't know if that's an age thing or not so I'm working on that with her. I certainly don't want Isabella to grow up unwilling to make new friends or leaving others out.

Mike's at the 7's tonight. It's been a yucky rainy day so I chose to stay home and work on worship for Sunday. It's been a fairly relaxing evening which is good because the next few days... not so much. :)

This is the way.... walk in it.

Lord, I give up my own plans and purposes, all my own desires and hopes, and accept Thy will for my life. I give myself, my time, my all, utterly to Thee to be Thine forever. fill me and seal me with Thy Holy Spirit. Use me as Thou wilt, send me where Thou wilt, work out Thy whole will in my life at any cost, now and forever. ~Betty Scott Stam a China Inland Mission worker

Psalm 37:4 "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart."
Isaiah 30:21 "Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, 'This is the way, walk in it"

I like to start and end my day by saying the Lord's Prayer. I don't exactly remember why I started doing this, and sadly when it's the alarm clock that wakes me.. I'm often shocked it's the am already and forget my prayer, but it always helps me to calm down and focus on the Lord before bed. Mornings are not my friend (just ask Mike and sadly Isabella takes after me in that way) but I've been trying really hard to make the am less stressful and more joyful... for myself but also to set an example for Isabella. To teach her that are attitude is a choice and that life is much more pleasant when we choose joy. :) As I was reading this evening, I came across this prayer (by Betty Scott Stam, typed above) that just spoke to me on so many levels. This was her daily prayer and it will become my mine. I know it will be a challenge to give my plans/purposes/desires/etc totally to the Lord as we often think we know what's best for ourselves but I honestly want God's will for my life... even if that means giving up my desires and I will trust that God will give me peace and help me to let go if necessary.

Aside from this prayer, two verses also spoke to me. Psalm 37:4 and Isaiah 30:21. Psalm 37 reminded me that God does care about us and hear us but that I need to delight in Him and His desires will become mine. Isaiah 30 challenged me to go deeper in my walk. I can imagine walking through life hearing God's still, small voice saying... 'This is the way, walk in it.' How awesome to know that He will guide me and I can trust Him completely.

I was disappointed when Mike headed to bed early tonight (though I knew he needed to and that it was good for him) but what a blessing to me it turned out to be. Thank you God for knowing what I needed!

I'm excited to daily commit myself to the Lord, using this prayer. I can already see how God is using it to change my perspectives.

How do you daily commit yourself to God?

One of Those days

I don't really like to write many negative things because I know that whatever complaints I have... they're so minor in comparison to how God has blessed me and what He has done for me but man.... today has been a long day and I'm frustrated and disappointed and well.... sometimes I just don't understand why things happen the way they do. And I just needed to say that out loud.

Tomorrow's a new day and I'm grateful for that! So I'm going to head upstairs (it's pretty darn cool that I can say that!) and read and make a list for the trip.

But before I finish...
I've been trying to make a list every night of 5's... 5 ways I'm thankful, 5 prayers for others, 5 prayers for myself and 5 dreams so I'll post my 5 thankfuls for today here:

1. I'm thankful that my activity at school went well today. I had the two oldest groups and they tend to be the hardest to keep focused during activities.
2. I'm thankful that I connected with a mom during ballet class today. She lives just down the street and her daughter and Izzy get along really well. So I'm hoping that maybe we can set up some playdates and build some friendships out here.
3. I'm thankful that both kids went to bed very easily and that Isabella fell asleep earlier tonight. She has been so exhausted since camp.
4. I'm thankful that we've benefited from people's generosity ... I came home from school today with a bag full of clothes for Isabella.
5. I'm thankful that tomorrow is Thursday and we have nothing planned. It's been a crazy few weeks and I'm looking forward to coming home and staying home.

Shy, Sensitive Isabella

Yesterday Isabella was invited to her best bud, Timothy's, birthday party. When I asked her what she wanted to get him (I was actually just asking cause I was just curious what she'd say) she said a Superman costume. I thought she'd forget about it but when I asked her again a few days later, she said the same thing. I asked her why she wanted to get him that and she said so that he would have something to wear, instead of princess dresses, when he came over to play. When I asked why superman, she said so that they could match. (she has a supergirl dress) I thought it was so sweet of her to think of him. What a pair these two are. I did however forget my camera so I don't have pictures of them to share.

Today we went to Disney for the afternoon. We had a great time, the weather was perfect, and it wasn't too crowded. We started off with the usual... spaceships, tea cups, it's a small world.... When it was time to see the princesses, Izzy was second in line. Because it wasn't so crowded, we were excited that she would have time to talk to Cinderella and Snow White. She'd been talking about them all day but when they came... she became shy and wouldn't say a thing. So we headed off to see High School Musical and have Mickey waffles. Buddy was the star of the day as many mainlanders stopped to look at his blue eyes. I'm thankful that I've finally learned the balance of letting them have a look but moving on with my day as well. It's a bit tricky now too with Isabella as many do enjoy seeing her.. they ooo and ahh more over Isaiah (being a baby and having blue eyes) and I don't ever want her to feel that he's more special or anything of the like.

So anyway... that was our day. Nice and relaxing and now we're headed up to bed to watch LOST on our big screen.

Worship: so many questions

I came home this evening from camp so that I could organize and cook a bit before everyone arrives tomorrow and with just a few minutes to put my feet up, I wanted to write how blessed I've been with all that has taken place in the last 24+ hrs. We've had a small group this year... (a max of about 25) but I think it's really helped them to connect. We had some from Sunday mornings and some from friday nights so they didn't all know each other but they mixed and mingled and participated in what was going on.

The theme was Our Journey with God and Mike had asked several adults to share their journeys with God. So far we heard Pastor Mark, Sarah and David... all with sweet stories on the journey God has taken them. Tomorrow I share... eek I do not like speaking in front of people but my story is to hit a hit on something that I'm quite passionate about so I think I'll be okay. :)

But the thing that touched me the most was their worship. I can remember being their age and not interested in singing or really understanding what worship was all about. Plus I can remember there always being those people in the back who were talking or doing their own thing and it just all felt awkward. And I think all youth groups still struggle with those things but this group showed a lot of respect for what was going on... what the purpose was. They may not have been comfortable to sing and they may not understand totally what worship is all about but they all tried. I don't think there was one who didn't make an effort and that really blew me away. Tonight before I left there was one more 'singing set' and Mike challenged all of us to worship in a way that we felt comfortable... meaning dance, clap, raise hands, kneel, whatever it might be. He reminded those of us that attended the Delirious concert that we don't have to stand straight and look like prunes but this was our time with God. And I couldn't believe what happened after that... the energy that produced... the joy that came upon the students faces. They were dancing, singing louder, clapping... they were praising God in their own special way and it went from quiet whispers to loud, joyful praises.

And it made me think.... I wonder what guests think when they walk into a church and see people standing still, singing quietly, maybe some even with unintentional frowns? Would non-energetic/enthusiastic singing make people question our faith or passion for God? And why do we feel that we have to worship one way in church and another way at a concert? Why can't/aren't we comfortable worshiping in a way that brings us joy and helps us connect to our Creator? What exactly does sincere worship in song look like? Now I know that everyone is different... I wouldn't be someone who dances or jumps up and down (partially because I can't dance and can't jump up and down and stay in one place.. which on a side note is why I don't do it at a concert too... not because I'm boring) but there are other things I've wished I've felt more freedom to do.

Anyway... I'm leading worship next week and this is just me randomly thinking through some things that I've been challenged with.

I'll share more about camp on another day. Hope you have a great Sat!

Sushi Making

I've only tried sushi a handful (if that) of times and I've not been impressed. I'm just not a raw fish kinda gal nor can I really even handle the sight of the little fish eggs. But I do like learning new things and I'm willing to give foods another chance when made by natives of that particular culture. We've been asking the moms to teach us different things that they are gifted at and so far we've learned how to make beaded rings. This week was sushi making.

I was excited to learn for Mike's sake as he really enjoys it, plus I thought it would be a fun new cultural experience. Junko was our teacher and she did a fabulous job. She had all the supplies ready and she taught us how to put it together and roll it up. It wasn't as difficult as I thought it might be and I did give it another taste. It wasn't as bad as I remembered it being but it still wasn't something that I kept eating... as I did the cranberry bread that we also had at the party. :)

We made up a new roster of moms and we currently have 15 active moms in the group! That's so exciting to me! We've found a book that we are going to study called 'Discovering the Joy of Parenting'... a book translated into both English and Japanese. We'll be starting within the next few weeks and I'm really excited about the opportunities this book study will allow for. 

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Isabella's cough has been bothering her again (weather changes) and I think it's actually getting to her this time around. Tonight at dinner, she started crying (I thought it was because there was debate on what she would eat for dinner) but when I asked her what was wrong she just kept saying, 'my cough is back... it's not getting better.' It just broke my heart. So if you think of her, please say a prayer for God's healing.

6 Months

I can't believe my baby is 6 months already! Here's a few pictures that I took today. He was a bit more serious... so not many of his adorable smile but still cute.

Mommy/Daughter Date

I had today off and I really wanted to take advantage of the day. I was looking forward to sleeping in a bit, spending the morning with Isaiah, going for a run, getting Isabella off the bus and taking her to Disney. But beginning on Tues, big storms were being forecasted. I thought I'd just wait until today and see what happened.

My Mom had asked me to get some HK Disneyland umbrellas for my nieces and with rainy season upon us (yes Mike you can do your 'I told you so' dance but it is March) we wanted to get Isabella one her size so even though it was a bit sprinkly, I thought it would be a fun surprise to go. I figured we'd go, get the umbrellas, see the princesses, jump in some puddles and head home.

But when we got to the last stop before switching to the Disney train, I heard a large boom and splash. I looked out the window to see very dark clouds, trees swaying like crazy... the storm had hit. We got off and I wondered what we should do but I thought... well we're here and we're here to buy umbrellas so lets just have some fun. (Thankfully, I was smart enough to remove our long sleeves so we'd have something to change into once we got soaked.) So we made a run for it and by the time we got into the park we were drenched. Poor Izzy was so cold. But we picked out our umbrellas and went into the bathroom to change.

In the time it took us to change, the rain stopped and we had about 45 min of warmth. We rode the Cinderella carousel and then headed off to meet the princesses. Belle passed by and grabbed Isabella's hand and asked her to come take a photo with her. Then we met Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty and finally Snow White. By then it was raining a bit heavier so we went into one of the stores to look for a birthday present. Once we finished, it was back to pouring so I suggested to Izzy that we head home and she agreed.

We ran from building to building trying not to get totally soaked and once we were out of the park, the rain stopped again. So I took some picks of her with her new 'Izzy sized, princess' umbrella and we headed to Kowloon station where Mike so generously offered to pick us up. We waited at Starbucks for Mike and had hot drinks since I was freezing.

But despite the weather, we did have a great time. Isabella wasn't totally shy (as she has been lately) with the princesses so it was fun to watch her interact with them and it was a blast watching her pick out a gift for her friend.

We came home and watched American Idol. :) The kids are in bed and I'm just planning my day for tomorrow.

and because he's so cute

Getting Mobile

Isaiah is officially on the move... army style. At dinner, we let him play on the floor while we eat since he doesn't like to be downstairs on his own, I put him down and his computer in front of him (apparently too far away) and instantly he was off like lightning. It was super cute. I put him down this evening to get it on video and he just cried and cried. He was a bit too hungry to care about toys. But I did eventually get it so be on the lookout.

Isabella did great at ballet today. I reminded her to listen to Miss Tina and copy what she does. Don't know if that made a difference but she did much better this week... less watching herself in the mirror. She's still a bit shy in the group and I really feel that part of the reason is because it's all westerners and she's not used to that but who knows.

I'm still trying to get my glasses. But I can see a bit better with my current ones so life is good. The kids are healthy again though Isabella was exhausted today... in bed and asleep by 7:07! Mike seems more life-like though I know he's still struggling but it's always good to see him smile and laugh.

I've got the next two days off and of course it's to rain both days! yuck but oh well... I'm trying to be creative in what I do. I'm actually scrapping tonight which is really fun. I've also decided to try a 21 day challenge to make a habit of exercising. I haven't done much since my half-marathon and I'm feeling sluggish and yucky but I can't seem to motivate myself. So we'll see what happens.

okay... mike's home and i'm ready for sleep.

Mom Time

We had our weekly Mom Time gathering this afternoon. Today was exercise and we did the 2 mile, walk away the pounds video. It's funny to me that they all really enjoy our exercise times. I don't think many are regular exercisers but they really look forward to this. :) But anyway...

We had 6 moms today, one of which was new. It was great and I praise God that all the moms left their children with the babysitters! This is something I've been praying for... for a long time. In HK, there are a lot of things available to children (play-group activities) but very little (if any) for moms. So our purpose for Mom Time is to invest in the moms. But I think because most ladies don't have family to help, they rarely leave their children with anyone else and insist that their children can't handle it. Obviously... when you're trying to discuss something important and there are kids running around, you don't get very far so I've been praying that these moms would let go for an hour and take that time to invest in themselves. Today, one mom in particular left her child for the first time (i think ever... not just with us)... what a huge step!

Some Moms have asked for some parenting discussions so Vivian and I are going to look into some books, that we can also find in Japanese so all moms can read in their native language, and do a book study as well as the activities. We pray that this will give us more opportunity to deepen relationships and introduce Christianity and the love of God.


On a very silly side note.... Isabella is back to her old 'I'm scared' tactics at bedtime and last week when she'd say this, I would say, 'Well lie down and if you're still scared when I bring buddy to bed, you can come sleep in our room.' Well of course she was conked out way before I put buddy to bed. So tonight she starts and I say it again but this time she sits (without my realizing it) on her chair (next to her bed) saying... 'Mommy, I'm waiting.' I told her she had to be in her bed lying down and so she did but it was too late. She had already willed herself to stay up and Buddy was about ready for bed. So tonight... Izzy's in our room and Mike is doing his 'I told you so' dance. :) Oh well.. at least it's quiet now.

She and Buddy seem to be improving, my eyesight seems a bit better (I could at least tell where the numbers were on the clock at school today) and Mike was quite energized to be able to go back to work if only for a bit. Please continue to pray for healing and answers.

May you have a wonderful day!

Buddy's Sunday Outfit

Whoever said you can't buy cute clothes for boys... lied. My mom got this outfit for Isaiah and I just LOVE it. Actually.. I've loved all the outfits he has and toys. It's so fun having a boy!

Health Update

Some of you may not get our family/ministry updates so I decided to post the health update here so you can here what's going on...

I'm sitting here listening to nothing.... it's strange not to hear any cries, any 'Mommy can you put these shoes on her,' no High School Musical singing, etc... Mike has taken Isabella out to get some ice cream and Buddy is asleep. Peace and quiet... so now I can concentrate and write. :)

I just want to Praise God for who He is... He's our comforter, our Peace... and our healer and I'm so thankful that I only have to rely on Him for these things. It's been a trying time in our household... we've been told many times that God does not give you more than you can handle and we do believe that but sometimes it gets us thinking about what He may have instore for us in the future or even questioning His belief in how strong we are. But through it all, we've had God's peace. Well at least I have, maybe I shouldn't speak for Mike, but I'm not worried about Mike, I'm not worried about my vision, I'm not worried that Isabella's asthma is acting up again and that is sounds as though Isaiah is going to suffer the same asthma related issues. I trust that God will work it all out according to His plan and I try to take one day at a time. I know this woudn't be the case if I did not have a personal relationship with God and I'm extremely thankful that He has given me this peace.

I know many of you are concerned and praying for our health issues so I will just update on those things today though we still appreciate all prayers in regards to our ministries.

Mike: The hospital stay calmed things down a little and after spending a week in bed at home resting, he begged for an evening out to a car show (Top Gear) that had been given to him as a Christmas gift. We both knew it probably wasn't the best idea but he it was a gift and he promised to be careful. He had a fabulous time but was a bit tired today. He's discouraged though as all of his meds have greatly been increased but he's only seeing minor improvements. He goes back to Dr Kelly tomorrow and we'll go from there but there's a good chance that he'll have to ask another Dr to re-refer him to have a scope done. I know that he misses being at the office and is nervous about having to take another week off but realistically, we all know that would be best for him. So please pray for wisdom for the Dr's, peace for Mike, and just overall healing.

Melissa: I saw the Dr again this past Tuesday and there was good news and bad. :) The condition of my eyes (the erosion and spots) has not changed yet the vision in my left has returned to what it was before which is great. The vision in my right eye however has not. The Dr seemed a bit concerned about that but he changed my meds a bit and said he'd see me in 10 days. I'll go back this friday and hopefully my eyes will be okay enough to get new glasses. So please pray that my vision will return so I can get the appropriate glasses and please continue to pray that I can adjust to the changes that I may have to face.

Isabella: The weather has gotten the best of her again.... her cough and runny nose has returned. She actually asked to stay home from Awana yesterday so she could 'rest up' (it was so cute) which is so unlike her. And she did, she sat on the couch and in bed and just watched movies. She complained about an earache last night so I'm thankful that Mike needs to go to see Kelly tomorrow as Isabella will go in as well and get all checked out.

Isaiah: The weather has got him as well. He woke up with a fever and runny nose as well. Other than that though, he's doing really well. He's started on solids and throughly enjoys his um..... cereal. :) Well he has enjoyed the bananas.

So that's what we're dealing with at the moment. I'm looking forward, I think we're all looking forward to our visit in April... to be spoiled by time with family and good friends.

Thank you so much for your prayers... we can definitely feel them, usually at our weakest moments too. We hope you all are doing well and feeling as blessed by God as we do.

Serving Him,
Melissa , Mike , Izzy and Isaiah (Buddy)


UPDATE***
Mike's Dr appt didn't go as well as we had hoped. Kelly said his stomach will take time and adjusted his meds but she didn't feel that his exhaustion should have anything to do with the stomach issues but she was stumped as to what was causing them. That was not encouraging news to Mike as she threw out some new things.... liver and possible Hepatitis A, a high platelet count, etc... She also insisted on him having a scope done. She did give him permission to work a half-day though which pleased him. :) So please continue to pray for healing and wisdom for the Drs.

The kids have the usual and are on their 300 meds. :)

Thank You

Just wanted to say Thank You to everyone for your prayers. Mike actually got some sleep last night and he feels like the meds are working though one of them make him a little loopy but he's not sure what one. :)

My appt yesterday wasn't exactly what I was hoping for but that's okay. The dr said my eyeballs haven't changed in their condition but my vision in my left eye has returned to normal. Not exactly sure how that works but I can see in one eye so that's all that matters. He started to wean me off the steroid drops and I'll go back next friday (the 27th) and hopefully my right eye will improve and I will be able to get new glasses at that point. I did learn that I have a strong astigmatism in both eyes (never heard that before) and could possibly be why my glasses made me sick... wrong prescription. So we'll see.

Just a fun side note... this is how big I have to make the font to be able to see without squinting too much. Though I'd need it bigger to make sure I'm not misspelling words. haha

Man it's been a crazy few weeks and I'm tired... Buddy's not been sleeping well on top of all the other things. I think he's growing so hopefully in a few more days he'll be normal again. :) Tomorrow we have Izzy's sports day and I'm looking forward to hopefully getting to meet some of her friends moms.

But again thank you for all the sweet notes and comments and most importantly prayers. We're blessed to have such great friends and family!

What's going on with Mike?

What's wrong with Mike?

That's the question I've heard a lot lately so I thought I'd answer it here. I asked Mike how he'd like me to explain it and he simply said, 'His childhood stomach issues have returned with a vengeance.' He said that sounded a lot cooler. :)

The week before we left for Thailand, we all headed to the Dr's for different issues. Kelly is always very thorough with each of us but especially Mike due to his past. She checked him over and immediately put him on some stomach meds (of which I can't remember at the moment) because she could hear that something was going on with his stomach.

We all had hoped that a holiday would help him to relax and heal but unfortunately, that wasn't the case so upon returning from Thailand, Mike went to the hospital an another Dr friend diagnosed him with peptic ulcers and put him on some more meds. He also referred him to a specialist but Mike wasn't able to get an appointment until March 2010! Gotta love the public health system. :) Though we did receive a letter last week that his appointment was moved up to this June.

These meds seemed to be helping but then life got a bit crazy. We had our family camp and he had a week of late nights. As the case usually is for Mike... after a crazy week, the day he lets down, his body lets down and that's what seemed to happened on Sat. We don't really know if this is the exact reason but it makes sense to us. :)

We came home from Awana and shortly thereafter Mike was in pain. He thought he'd go to bed and sleep it off but by midnight he knew it was pretty serious. He insisted on trying again to sleep it off but Sunday morning he developed a fever and the pain continued to increase. Another Dr insisted that he come to the hospital and he would admit him that afternoon, so at 3:30 he headed out to Prince of Wales. Stewart admitted him, took some blood tests and gave him an IV. He spent the night and on Monday they took more tests. His potassium was low but the other tests seemed to be okay so they sent him home.

He felt better for a few hours but then he just continued to grow worse. Thankfully he had an appointment with Dr Kelly today and I thank God for her and the care she has shown us. She immediately knew that things were not good, took some more tests and gave him lots of meds and orders to rest. It just so happened that our Sr Pastor was there and she even talked to him about making sure Mike rests and not expecting anything from him.

Mike says that his past issues were severe acid reflux, ulcers, etc... to the point that he had holes in his esophagus and stomach that you could put your finger through. I didn't know Mike at that time so this is all new to me to so I apologize if I can't explain it all clearly. I just know I hear a lot of groaning, that he can't eat/sleep, and he lost any color that he got in Thailand. :)

Dr Kelly did a test for pancreatitis today and really wants him to have a scope done but to have a scope we need to get some other people on board with that decision so we'll wait until next Tues (unless of course things get worse before then) when Mike goes back to see Kelly.

I can't thank all of you enough for your prayers. We both are at peace with what's going on ... we just want him to get better. So I'm playing mean/nagging wife and took away his phone, computer for work purposes.. he's still allowed to watch Chuck, and have him camped out in our room. And I'm begging anyone that needs to talk with him about work things to take it through me first... I'm not Mike but I may be able to help. I really, really don't want him doing anything but resting until at least next Tuesday.

So that's the basics. He seems to be in much better spirits this evening and we even saw a few smiles. Please continue to pray for complete healing.

Blessings

7/11 Hopping

I'm very thankful that the kindergarten that I teach at is a small one where all the teachers get along and spend time together outside of work. I've been invited to several outings that I've not been able to attend so when I was invited to reg's birthday party, I did everything I could to go. She's a very fun/outgoing woman and she wanted a unique party so she planned a 7/11, Circle K, restaurant hopping night. There were at least 20 of us (probably more but I didn't count) and we started at one 7/11 for drinks. Then we went to Jaspas' for appetizers. Then another 7/11 for ice cream. We stopped off at another 7/11 for drinks before heading to a park for pizza. At that point it was about 11:30pm (we started at 7) and I decided to head home. As one friend commented... it was definitely unique and only in Hong Kong. :) It was a fun night and I got to know a lot about the other teachers which was fun. It was very fun to get out without kids and I was happy that Mike was able to join us for the pizza after reload. But as I said before, 'only in HK,' here's another 'only in HK' story....

Our bus schedule changes somewhere between 4:30 and 7pm but I can never remember when so I decided to head down to the bus stop around 8:35. After about 15min of waiting I realized that I missed the bus and I began to stress because I knew I'd be late and I didn't want to have to go searching for the group. At about 6:55 a lady pulls up by the bus stop, rolls down her window and yells, 'Sai Kung?' I said yeah and she said, 'Hop in.' I didn't even think twice, I just hopped in (along with another lady) and she gave us a ride to town. Once I got out I began thinking how crazy that sounds and is in most places is but in HK... it's not, especially in Sai Kung. This is actually the second time this has happened an Mike and I talk all the time about doing the same thing, only we usually can't because with car seats, we just don't have the room. I just thank God that HK is a place that we feel safe enough to do something like that... and of course we are careful about it too.

Today we had Awana and while Izzy was there, I walked around Jusco and found some pre-school skill books. I decided to pick one up as she loves playing school now and doing her homework. And since she's learning Chinese, I realized that I need to work with her on those basic English skills a bit more. Plus I thought it would be great for the plane ride in April and something to keep her going since she'll be missing almost a month of school. I'm really excited to do this with her... i just hope she doesn't get tired of it.

Tomorrow we're going ice skating with the youthgroup. I'm hoping that they'll allow Izzy to skate. She's been asking us to do this for awhile now and I can only imagine what she'll be like if she has to watch.

Hope you have a wonderful Valentine's Day!!! No matter what there's always one man who loves you... Jesus! Just read the book of John.

the Verdict

Ughhh.. I'm so tired of blogger not allowing my photos. I'll try again tom with the sitting up pic.


Yes I'm just cutting and pasting this from facebook but my eyes are killing me....

Since many of you have been praying, I thought I would just post the update here. It turns out, I'm abnormal, but I'm sure many of you knew that anyway. :) It's nothing too serious but will be something that I will probably struggle with for some time.

I panicked big time when they first checked my eyes as I could not see a thing with my right eye but the left was not that bad. The lady looked at me like I was crazy and pretending that I couldn't see. Then the Dr did some tests, all were okay but yet I still couldn't see so he dilated my eyes and told Mike that something wasn't right.. Thankfully I didn't hear that.

But alas... due to the viral infection my body built up too many antibodies (I should have mike check this first as it made more sense to him but oh well) and left spots on my eyes causing the blurred vision. He put me on steroid drops and said that it will take about 10 days to see clearly again but that my body would need to learn that the virus is no longer there and that could take a long time. So I will wean myself off the drops but my body may react and vision be blurred again until my body adjusts. Meaning that i may be on and off these drops. He also said there was quite a bit of erosion on my eye due to wearing contacts but that it wasn't anything that drops and no contacts couldn't fix.

But the biggest thing he stressed and the biggest discouragement to me is that I can no longer wear contacts. I figured this might be the case so I will have a positive attitude but my glasses have always made me motion sick so I'm praying the optometrist will help me get the right type of glasses to prevent that. And well... I've got a great pair of oakley sunglsses for sale ! haha

So I go back next Tues to get checked again and see about new glasses.

I just praise God that it's nothing too serious and I praise God for our family Dr who has taken such wonderful care of our family and made this appt possible in more than one way.

Thank you so much for your prayers!



On a much lighter note.... I got the results and pictures from Sunday's race. If I had been able to keep my pace, I would have been able to run about a 1:46 race! My halfway time was 53:29! While my final time was not what I was hoping for... I'm stoked that this was my halfway time because it means that I can do it if I am totally prepared. So I'm anxious to get back into training and plan to go out and smoke the Disney Unicef Half next Dec!!!

Isaiah firsts

Isaiah's had a big week... he had his first fall off the couch but thankfully he was just fine and today he sat up by himself for the first time!!! I have a really sweet photo of this but I'm too lazy at the moment to upload it. My baby's growing way too fast!!!

Isabella had ballet today and had a blast as usual. We've begun putting her to bed no later than 7:30 and it has made a HUGE difference! I think she has just been overly, overtired. :) She has not fussed all week and last night she fell asleep in the car on our way home from Mom Time at about 5:45 and slept until this morning. She's waking a bit earlier but I can handle that if bed time is not stressful. So I'm very thankful for that.

I head to the Dr tomorrow to hopefully find out some answers as to why I can't see. Praying it's nothing serious!

I did it!

I survived the half. I was NOT prepared and that definitely showed in my time and the last 5K but I am pleased. I knew that I wouldn't beat my time from Disney but I had hoped to do a bit better than I did. Actually, I started off doing much better than anticipated but the last 6K where up and down and up and down and I haven't run any hills since before Christmas. But I did it and I'm proud of what I've accomplished in just a few months.

I think I'm going to take this week and do some tae bo and focus on my core. I have an incredibly sore back from the race and my scar area is a bit sensitive so I think I need to work on building up those muscles again.

But I'm off to feed buddy and rest my weary body. :)