Christmas

I hope everyone had a great Christmas! It was so wonderful to be able to spend time with family this Christmas since last year was our first year not to be around for Christmas. Unfortunately, our plans to travel to Oklahoma to visit some of Nate's family was canceled due to the blizzard in OK City, but we were able to travel to Corsicana (which is much closer) instead to visit some of the family. We will be traveling to North Arkansas next week to visit Rudy's famiy. 7 hours one way...with two very pregnant girls! How much fun is that?! Anyways, here are some pictures of our Christmas holidays :)

Me and my pregnant sis -- me at 29 weeks, her at 25 weeks! Both of us are having boys!


My sister and her family -- she is currently expecting #3. The youngest was not happy at all to be taking family pictures!


Here is Nate practicing his baby carrying ability with my new baby sling -- I think we will both have to practice!


Picture one of us :)


We didn't realize we were wearing halloween colors!


Ma and Pa :) Aren't they cute?!


Here's the whole family together!


The four kids -- me, Nate, my sister, and her husband.

I'M SO EXCITED!

I just got the best news in the world -- just absolutely made my day. It was an email from my old college roommate. Most of you don't know her and don't know anything about her, but I'll fill y'all in anyways :) She, we'll call her "M", and her husband have been trying for a few years to get pregnant, but with PCOS, she wasn't having any success. Right before I told her I was pregnant, she had emailed me with hopes that with the medicine that she had been taking that she might be pregnant. Unfortunately, the tests came back negative. I went ahead and told her about my pregnancy, and being such a wonderful friend, she was so happy and excited for me, despite their troubles in this area. She has completely relied on God during all this, which has always been an encouragement to me. Let's fast-forward several months to today... I get an email from her saying that she is PREGNANT...with TWINS! God is so good and this timing is perfect! He has always known this time would come and all He needed was this couple to stay patient and wait on Him and His timing. And the time has come :) M -- if you read this -- CONGRATS AGAIN!

A little better pictures

So, thought I would post a little better pictures than my previous ones (I've had a complaint about taking lousy pictures -- thanks PJ!;). These are after coming home from school today. I'm 28 weeks today!

Baby Stuff!

Thought I would share some of our baby items so far :) I'm surprised about how many clothes we have already! Some are from garage sales and some are new that people have already given us or donated to us. Here are just a few:


This is the crib that we ordered. We really like it -- simple but still beautiful! We don't have crib bedding for it yet, but we're searching...


The clothes on the left were donated brand new to us -- Ralph Lauren! Our little boy is going to win all the little girls wearing those :)


And how could we not have a hunting outfit?!


Aren't these just precious?! Nate really likes the one on the right, with the brown vest :)

We also went to start registering today. We both felt absolutely lost about what to register for! I felt like the majority of the stuff we registered for are all the big expensive items -- play pens, car seat, high chair, etc... It's a good thing we are having showers or there would be no way we could afford a baby!

Shopping

Nathan and I decided a few days ago that we should do an angel off the angel tree, so off we went today to do some shopping (which is something we rarely do!). We asked Father before we left to show us the perfect child to buy a gift for. Well, looking through all the angels, I, of course being partial to little boys right now (who could blame me?!), wanted to look through the boy section. Nathan happened to find a 6-year old boy that was listed as disabled, so we both knew right then that is who we were supposed to get. Nathan had the best time shopping for him! "A boy needs to have this...a boy has got to have that..." I actually had to stop him before he got too much out of control! I asked him what is he going to do when he is shopping for his actual son?! So far, all our shopping for Tristan has been at garage sales and consignment shops, which I honestly think is the way to go! I have actually found so many cute camouflage/tractor clothing at places like these :) Anyways...back to our evening... So, afterwards, we treated ourselves to Dairy Queen because I have wanted to try their new peppermint chocolate blizzard -- we both loved it! Definitely worth a try :)

I also went for my 27-week baby check-up today. Heartbeat was 150 and everything looks great :) He's a growing and squirmy boy! 13 more weeks and he will be here!!! Can't wait to meet little Trist!

Third Trimester...almost!

So, in four days, I will officially be in my last trimester! Then, only three months until this little one arrives! Not ready at all yet, but that is what the next three months are for, I guess. Here is a picture at 26 1/2 weeks -- have I grown since the last picture at 22 weeks?

We love bargain shopping!

So, our new thing, since I'm not currently working on Fridays, is to go garage sale shopping. But what is even better than garage sales? Estate sales! We went to two estate sales today and got tons of good stuff...for cheap! We got some corningware baking dishes, pyrex baking dishes, full set of knives in the block, full set of dishes (with bowls and everything), electric hand mixer, glass mixing bowls, and on and on -- for $30! We looked online and saw that some corningware baking dishes can cost $30 for one piece, so we thought we really bargain shopped today. The other week, we went to another estate sale and got a nice toaster for $3 -- I found the same one later at Bed, Bath, and Beyond for $30! Hope Tristan doesn't care that his parents are cheap :)

Snow!

Yesterday, we got snow! Nothing stuck, of course, but it actually snowed pretty good for a while. We went to the movies yesterday, and it was snowing when we walked in, but when we walked out, it was beautiful and clear...no sign of snow anywhere. Oh, well -- it was just fun to see the snow falling :) Here are two pictures of us in the snow:

Oh, so thankful!

So, today was Thanksgiving. We didn't travel, didn't get to see lots of relatives that we haven't seen in a long time, didn't do much more than what we usually do with my family when we come in on a Sunday for lunch. My dad's family got together, as they do for most Sunday lunches, had Thanksgiving food, and just spent the day together. It may sound like a boring Thanksgiving to most people, but actually, it was great. It was such a good time to reflect on what I am thankful for -- something I never really took time to do on past Thanksgivings. But I feel that I am so thankful for so many things this year. Here are a few:

I am so thankful for...

Being with family on such a wonderful holiday instead of half a world away from them.

Even though I wasn't able to be with my mom's side of the family, I am thankful that I have the opportunity to see them this Christmas.

My family, for all their support, encouragement, and prayers those 18 months that we were away...far, far away...

Tristan, who will be here in March -- having a doctor tell you it will be hard to get pregnant, then being pregnant within 4 months -- what a blessing!!

My husband, who takes care of me everyday, makes sure I'm resting enough, feeling good, and who loves me more than I ever imagined possible.

Being blessed by people around us -- a couple lending us their truck for 3 months, a church for allowing us to stay in their missions house for however long needed, a camp for letting us stay in one of their houses to set up home for little Tristan...I could go on!

Being cold outside, but being able to walk into a warm house -- such a precious gift.

Clean water!!!!!!!!!!!! Not having to worry about getting giardia from my water, vegetables, or fruits!

Living in a country where people speak my language -- amazing feeling, that's all I can say.

Living in such an amazing (not perfect but amazing) country -- it's a honor to be an American.

Ok...I could go on and on, but I have so much to be grateful for. Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Kids and Pregnancy

So, I think more kids at school know about me being pregnant than actual teachers. It's so funny how amazed and interested kids are about pregnancy. There is not a day that goes by that my Deaf ed students do not mention me being pregnant or ask questions regarding it. They have asked me when it will be born (March 10 -- which to them is such a long time away!), what I will name it (I've been told by two of the Deaf ed 1st graders that the name should be "Sam" -- "s" at the temple), why am I not fat yet (that time will come), how does it grow, and "You are just joking...you're not pregnant!". Then, during lunch duty, I've heard it from the hearing students as well. Today, one 1st grader girl tattled on another student, saying that the other student said I was having a baby. Well, to her surprise, I told her, "Well, I AM having a baby." You could hear all the kids just gasp. Humorous, I thought :) I have a feeling I'll be answering a lot more questions as time goes on!

Pregnancy Photo

So, on Wednesday, I will be 22 weeks (I'm not sure why the little pregnancy gadget is always a little ahead). I've had several people ask for a picture, so I thought it was about time to post a picture. It's a lousy picture, so forgive me, but it will have to do for now :) Starting to get that baby bump...

Trip to Arkansas

Nathan and I had the opportunity to come to NW Arkansas for the week to have a chance to relax and think things over concerning our future plans. Shawna's aunt and uncle have a beautiful lakehouse that they let us stay in. It was so wonderful to have a huge place to ourselves! On Wednesday, we went out and toured some of the attractions around the area. It was such a beautiful day, just driving around on the beautiful AR roads was enjoyable. Here are some of our pictures of the week:


The lake were the lakehouse was located. It was so relaxing there.


Nate and I posing on some rocks.


This is at the War Eagle's Mill. We were the only ones there under the age of 60 probably, but we enjoyed it just the same! The land around it was beautiful. Inside the farmhouse, they had a store full of organic grains and goodies(we bought some blue cornflour and some pancakes mixes), a gift store, then a small restaurant at the top. Very neat :)


Here is Nate's lunch -- cornbread turkey sandwich, chips, and coleslaw.


Here is my lunch -- good ol' beans and cornbread with coleslaw.


The river at the mill -- just beautiful with the sun glistening on it.


Thought this was a beautiful picture.


This is at an chapel in the woods -- absolutely beautiful and incredibly peaceful. Definitely worth going to see. The sides are mostly glass windows, so you see woods all around you while inside.


Looking at at the front of the chapel.


Looking at the back of the chapel. I told Nate that if we ever renew our vows, we are doing it there!

My thoughts on the subject

I figured since I was asking everyone to leave their thoughts on the subject, I would as well.

"God whispers in our pleasures, but shouts in our pain."

Uncle Jeff used this saying when he was talking to us about things we have learned while overseas. When we are happy and have no stress ("our pleasures"), then God whispers, meaning it's hard to hear Him because we are not focused on Him, so we rarely learn anything during that time. I mean, why would we? We are happy and all is going well, so why try to learn anything (so we think)? We forget to rely on Him.

However, in our pain, God shouts at us, meaning it can be so easy to hear Him if we just take our hand off over our ears and listen. Usually, this is the time that we finally turn to God and ask those hard questions, when we learn those hard truths, when we grow in our faith. No one truly grows in their faith until they have a reason to, until there is no other way out of the situation than to have trust and faith in God and His plans for us. It's hard, not any fun whatsoever, but can be so worth it in the end.

Just wanted to share my thoughts! Thanks for reading!

Thought for the Day

We ate dinner last night with some of my mom's side of the family (we are vacationing at the lakehouse in AR this week). It was really enjoyable. Went to a nice mexican place, then went to Braum's for ice cream. There, my uncle was talking to us just about some of our experiences overseas and things we have learned. One thing he said really stuck with me:

"God whispers in our pleasures, but He shouts in our pain."

I started thinking about that on the way back to the lakehouse yesterday. I started thinking about how often God shouts to us to teach us during our times of pain and suffering, but how often we cover our ears to this. Maybe because we don't feel that we should be "teachable" while we are in pain. Maybe other reasons. What are your thoughts on this statement and perhaps about the idea that we "cover our ears" during this time? Just curious your thoughts!

Finally!

I'll begin by saying I apologize if I offended anyone with my last blog. It's completely just my opinion, whether it's right or wrong. So, anyways, to my blog!

Well, I hope it's a "finally" -- I've never experienced it before so I am guessing :) I've been feeling that "bubbles" feeling in my stomach today. I wasn't hungry, so it wasn't my stomach growling, so I'm guessing it's little "Tristan" moving around! It was really subtle, so I sat there a while thinking "did I really feel something?". Then, I could have sworn it felt like he completely turned over, although again...it was very light. But, I'm sticking with my gut feeling and gonna say today was my first day to feel him move! I think I expected it to be more of a "wow" moment, but I think that when it happens, it's more of a "oh, so that's what it feels like...if that was it...". I am excited though that I am feeling him, which mean that I'll be feeling him more and more as time goes by!

My Soapbox

So, this is a chance for me to be on my soapbox about something that has really started to bother me lately. It started with two things I saw today. 1) A church bulletin sign that read "A golfer can't do anything about his lie, but politicians...WELL!". 2) On the news this morning, I saw that Pres. George H. Bush was a guest speaker at A&M and had invited Pres. Obama also to speak -- only to have students protest against this and bring in more protesters from the outside -- there were so many there! I find all this ridiculous. What has happened to our country? What has happened to the unity of our country, the support of our authority, the respect of the offices that govern us? WE, THE PEOPLE, voted him into office. Don't get me wrong -- if I had been able to vote this past election (and I wasn't able to unless I wanted to take a 3 hour bus ride to the capital), I would have voted for McCain. But I realize that McCain is not our president, and our president for at least the next 3 years is Obama. He is the head of our country and is looked upon as the head of the world! How can he run our country, keep this country together, help the world, if his own people don't support him? As my husband says "If you are not going to respect the president, then at least respect the office!".

Here was another thing that got to me. I saw on the news several weeks ago about people throwing fits about a school assignment giving to students that made them write letters to Obama on how they could support him. Ok, please no one throw things at me when I say this but...GOOD FOR THEM! Whether we respect Obama or not, we HAVE to teach our children to respect those put in authority about us! What are we teaching them if all they hear is negative comments about the president? They don't know anything about what he stands for -- they just know he is president and if we don't teach them to support those put in authority above us, then what are we doing to our kids?!

In Matthew 22, the pharisees asked Jesus if it was right to pay taxes to Caesar or not. Jesus asked them "Whose inscription is on the coin?" They answered "Caesar's". Then, Jesus replied "Give to God what is God's and give to Caesar what is Caesar's!"

I found this at http://www.ucg.org/issues/gn19/respect_wrestling.htm.

Regardless of the outcome of the crisis of the presidency, Christians are obliged to obey God by respecting government authority—the law and national and local leaders. Two of the apostles made this point in their letters.

"Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities," wrote the apostle Paul. "For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God" (Romans 13:1). This includes the payment of taxes and other obligations (verses 2-7). Remember that the Roman government of the time had its own problems with corruption and abuse of power. But such behavior does not give people an excuse to disobey the law or disrespect the authority of their leaders.

Peter gave his readers the same instruction: "Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors ..." (1 Peter 2:13-14). We are also to "honor the king" or chief ruler (verse 17). Paul echoes Peter's instruction to Titus: "Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready to every good work, to speak evil of no one ..." (Titus 3:1-2). Elsewhere Paul exhorts us pray "for kings and all who are in authority" (1 Timothy 2:1-2).

All this does not mean that we are to disobey God in situations where the law of man may conflict with the law of God (Acts 4:18-20; 5:40), but even then Christians are to continue to respect government authority—even when those in positions of authority have abused their offices. GN

-- John Ross Schroeder

My final thought is this: The president is not disunifying the country -- the people of this country are by cursing, bad-mouthing, refusing to support the president. Other countries look at our country, the blessed country of the world, and can't understand why we "hate" our leaders so much when WE are the ones that elected him. Many countries don't have free election, and they are left with dictators and people over them that cause their country grief and turmoil, and often times death for thousands to millions of people.

No, America is not perfect, it definitely has it problems, but how is a president supposed to do anything about it without support of his country? No matter how bad things are here, we are still an incredibly blessed nation. I lived in a country for 1 1/2 years where the citizens couldn't leave their country for any reason unless they worked for the government. It's a bad world out there, so be grateful and supportive of the country and leaders you have!

Thank you. And remember, this is just my opinion...and I'm pregnant...so hormones may rage a little...

It's a baby BOY!

So, we finally know and let everyone else know -- we are having a boy! We went to the doctor today and saw everything -- fingers, toes, heart, stomach, brain, everything! Everything looks great, which makes us much happier! Anyways, short blog, but just wanted to inform you all! Maybe when I am actually in a place that I can fax pictures, I'll post a picture. Someday.

First day back to school

So, I just got too bored. I needed something to do. So, after getting permission from my "already job", I got a job (again) at Clarkston, where I used to work before we went overseas. I am working part-time, no benefits (since I already have a "job"), but it gives me something to focus on at the same time as working with who I enjoy most -- deaf children. Now, just like any children, they drive you crazy at times, but I really miss working with them. I'll be tutoring 2nd-5th grade in math and science (oh boy, science...never have taught that before!) four days a week. I'll have all my previous students...they are just now a little older :) They seem happy to see me -- they keep telling me they remember me (it's only been less than 2 years - I hope they haven't forgotten me!). It's neat to see how they have progressed. One of my previous students, who was in K when I taught him and now in 3rd and who we will call "F" for those who know, has progressed so much. It makes me so happy to see that -- he is just such a precious student. I remember teaching him the coins and telling him that the presidents on the coins are no longer alive. Well, every time I pulled out a coin after that, the first thing F would ask is "He dea?!" (never could get that last d out :).

Anyways, skipping my 2nd day of class (making it up on Friday instead) to do something really exciting! I'm going to the doctor to see if I'm having a boy or girl! 9:00 am -- I'm ready! Either way, we will be really excited. Then, we can throw out one of the gender's names and focus on whatever gender it is!

We'll let you know :)

Faith

Faith -- it sounds so easy to have. I mean, we talk about, learn about, and teach about it all the time, but if we are honest, it is one of the hardest things to have in our lives. For some reason, while we lived overseas, faith wasn't something I struggled with, or at least not to a large degree. Now, don't get me wrong. It's not that I had this great faith...it just wasn't something I really dealt with, needing lots of faith, not seeing an outcome, being confused and weary. I probably should have struggled more with it, I probably should have shed more tears over our situation there and the people we were working with, I probably should have felt much more than I did. Well, it's catching up with me now. Since we have been married, we never went through a time that we didn't know what the next month held, where we would live month to month, what kind of work we would have next month... I thought coming back to the States would be a breath of fresh air, would be a time of relaxation, would be a time to gather our thoughts about the future. But, I've discovered that this time, however long it might be, is a time for me to grow in faith. I've been shown that faith isn't easy, not when you are actually finally put in a place that faith is all you have to keep you going, to keep you hopeful of the future. I've never needed faith more, and although it is not always fun "growing in faith", it is absolutely a necessary part of life. I thought I had faith before, but what I had was a "logical" and "practical" faith, which isn't true faith at all. I need to learn to have that faith of a child, to go back to the time that I never worried about where my next meal would come from or about if my parents had enough money, because I knew that my parents would always take care of me. Well, I have an eternal Father who also promises to take care of me, and I know he is fully capable of keeping that promise. Faith -- it's definitely not easy, but it's definitely worth whatever it takes to get it.

Going to the East Texas Fair!

So, when we found out we were coming back to the States, the place we decided we were going to no matter what was the East Texas State Fair. However, we realized, go to the fair before the end of the week -- lots of the exhibits (and free stuff) had already packed up and left...and the homemade ice cream stand that we were both craving had already left :( Oh, well -- still fun. Here are some of the pictures of our evening!


I just wanted a picture of a longhorn, but the man that owned this cow thought we really wanted a picture of us in front of his cow. Oh, well. Nate let me stand in the "safe zone" while he kept the cow calm while the man tried several times to get a good picture. I just need to learn how to say "no thanks!".


I definitely have "pregnancy brain". I saw this sign at the goldfish stand and I asked Nathan "Do you think they will really babysit your kids here?" (I was so confused), then he corrected me by saying that they will babysit the FISH you win until you leave. Oh, well...


We rode this ride last time we came to the fair -- I guess about two years ago. Stupid stupid idea! We both hated it and afterwards, we gave out the rest of our tickets to random people. We were DONE with rides!


I thought it would be fun to ride this ride but Nathan said because of the baby, I couldn't ride any rides -- not even a little kids ride!
(I really wasn't wanting to ride it...)


There were 75 of these food stalls that evening -- how do you pick what you want to eat?!


I ended up with the good ol' hamburger and fries and Nate had gumbo and...


CORN! (the red on the napkin is ketchup -- who ever thought?!)


They had a whole table full of fried everything -- fried brownies, cheesecake, pizza, pickles, batter-fried bacon (how unhealthy is that?!)...but then it gets worse..way worse...


FRIED BUTTER! We passed :)

Lack of Pregnancy Blogs

I've been reading all these blogs of pregnant people (especially Carmen's -- my cousin's wife who is 10 weeks pregnant), and they do so well on their blogs with keeping everyone informed of the progress of their pregnancy. I just wanted to apologize for being so inactive about keeping up blogs of my pregnancy. Sadly, I just don't have that much to blog about! Trust me, my husband and I are very excited about being pregnant, so don't get me wrong there! I just feel that everything is on hold for us in preparing for this baby. We still don't know where we will be in a few months -- whether here or overseas somewhere (who knows where!) -- and if that means before or after baby's birth. It's hard to get excited about baby cribs and furniture, baby room themes, baby clothes and items, etc... I don't even have any idea where I will give birth! Even if we stay here, our insurance will most likely change and I'll have to change doctors in the middle of my pregnancy. But I guess I am learning that material things are not important right now. Instead, I just need to rely on Father to settle all of our decisions and know everything will be ok. So, anyways, just to update on everything so far...

July 1st was the big day -- the day that we found out! However, it took Nathan several more days and several more pregnancy tests before he felt sure...men...
We told our parents and siblings that day (or soon afterwards) but kept it hush hush from most other people until we went to an actual doctor. My (deaf) tutor did take me, however, to the hospital in town because she thought I needed to go. I paid $2 (without insurance) to get another test and to sit for 30 minutes before they gave me a paper that said "Pregnant" in Chinese. Then, went to the doctor who said "Come back in 2 months, then at six months." That's it!

August 5 was my first real doctor's appointment. We had to go to Hong Kong for a visa run, so went to see an actual doctor there. I was then 9 weeks and saw the baby and heartbeat -- very exciting and fun! Doc told me to rest, rest, rest! However, after I asked about blood work, she looked at me and said "You don't look anemic, so we'll just not do that now." Ok...?

Sept 5 we finally get back to America, where a week later, at 14 weeks, I had my first real real doctor's appointment, where again, we saw the baby and actually heard the heartbeat for the first time! The baby sure was twisty and turny the whole time -- really active. Heartbeat was 150. Doctor mentioned seeing "something between the legs"...hmmm???

Currently, I am 17 weeks -- waiting for Oct 15 to come so we can know for sure if it is a boy or girl! I've finally started to gain a few pounds, but I'm not sure if that is actually from being pregnant or just from being back in America with all the good home-cooking and desserts!

Oct 15 -- come back to see if it is a boy or girl!

Does life ever go as planned?

You know, as kids and as teenagers, we always have a plan for our lives. We want to have a specific job (I wanted to be an oncologist until I realized how insanely hard it would be to become one), get married, have this many kids, live in a certain place, travel the world, have lots of money, etc... We have all been there. And then, over and over again, we realize that life doesn't go exactly according to our plans. Some of us never find that special someone, some have trouble having children, some can never get that perfect job, some get an illness that prevents them from living life how they always dreamed, and so many more outcomes in life that seem "unfair" to us, and we don't understand why life isn't going how we always dreamed.

Now, don't get me wrong -- I have had a great life so far. I have been blessed beyond words. I have a wonderful husband (who definitely wasn't in my "plan" since it took us three years to even have a decent conversation :), I love working with deaf children (even though I studied for a year to become a doctor of audiology before changing my plans...), I have a wonderful family and same for my husband, I've been able to travel to several countries the past year and a half, and I am 16 weeks pregnant without any medical intervention (which seemed improbable after being diagnosed with PCOS). I could go on an on, but in all, I am blessed.

So, why this topic? Well, two years ago, my husband and I had this plan, this BIG plan, to live overseas and work for however long we were supposed to. We were really thinking "long-term". We sold almost everything we had, got on a plane, and started living in China. This was my calling -- what I was born to do. Fast forward to now... After a year and a half of living overseas, we are back in TX. We have dealt with medical problems since the second month overseas. And now we are back, for who knows how long. We have to make some big decisions -- the main one being going back after all is well or making a life here. We had lots of struggles over there, lots of trying times, but we never thought of returning back home until the doctor told us to. Now, with the unknown cause of N's weight loss and my pregnancy, we have to make some huge decisions on where we are supposed to be in a few months. It would be a much easier decision if it was either TX or California, but it is TX and a world away from home -- China. Isn't life supposed to be easy? Isn't it supposed to go according to our plans? No, I guess it never does. But, I guess if it did, we would not have married who Father would have us marry (we would have married that hunk/supermodel instead of marrying the most perfect person in the world for us), we would not have adopted those precious children from all over the world or dedicated our lives to serving others, we would have way too many doctors instead of all those other jobs that need to be filled, we wouldn't learn how to appreciate life and the time that is given us, we wouldn't learn how to rely completely on Father and know that His plan is so much better than our own.

It's hard to understand sometimes, but there is always a reason for everything, whether we see it now or not. All we have to do is trust. There is a reason our life didn't go according to our BIG plan, and I know I will see the reason someday, sooner or later.

Peaceful Retreat

So, this week or so, N and I have been living at our old homesite -- Brookhaven Retreat. Our former bosses have been letting us stay in their apartment, which we have enjoyed immensely. We have been taking walks around the lake every night, seeing former co-workers, enjoying time with our former bosses (which the husband just told me that they painted the foyer a "bloody olive" color -- not sure what color that would be...). Anyways, just some pictures of where we have been living. Not the best pictures but it will give you an idea :)


On the road going around the lake. It's been rainy since we have been home, so no beautiful sunny pictures -- sorry!



Looking uphill at the motels that guests stay in. I like coming here and sitting on the porch swings outside and reading.


One of my favorite things to do when I used to work here...and before I realized that I could hurt myself trying to learn how to do a front-flip off the trapeze (although the back-flip was a cinch!).


Here is one of our former camp bosses and her beautiful adopted granddaughter from China (actually, right from the city that we were living -- small world, isn't it?!).

We just love the country!

Babies!

Babies galore! Or at least about to be! On July 31 (I think -- sorry, I'm not one of those people that keeps dates of every event in their life), when we found out we were expecting, I was the sole person pregnant (or with people I knew -- I know...the world doesn't revolve around me!). Then, let's see...a friend that moved into our city (overseas, right before we had to leave) found out 3 weeks after me. Then, my sister informs me she is expecting her 3rd just four weeks after me. Then, one of my best friends emails and says she is expecting about 6 weeks after me. THEN, I find out that my cousin's wife is just expecting and is about 7 weeks along (so that would be...7 weeks after me)! My mother will double her grandkids to four, my grandmother in TX will double her great-grandkids to four, and my grandmother in Kansas will double her great-grandkids to 6 just this year(until my other cousins are able to finish all the adoption processes as well as rumors about two of my other cousins having baby fever, then who knows!)! I guess when baby fever starts, it really starts...and spreads!

So, I went to my first "American" baby doctor's appointment this past Wednesday. She said I was 13 weeks 5 days (but I think I was 14 weeks that day :). We saw the baby but never could get a really good picture because we have a wiggle worm in there! Hopefully he/she will settle down once born -- I don't think my mom can handle another super-active grandchild! Both "Mom" (I) and "Dad" (Nate) love reading, so we are hoping that is passed down to child. While checking everything out, even though it is still really early, the doctor thought she saw something between the legs :) Even though I'm not a betting girl, I'm placing my bets that doc is right -- I've always thought it would be a boy! We already have a "probably" boy's name, but we are holding on the girl names as well, just in case. October 15 is the day of the big ultrasound, so we will find out for sure then (hopefully, if he/she behaves!). Yeah for ultrasounds! I feel guilty that our parents didn't have such wonderful technology when they were pregnant with us! But our children will probably say the same thing about us someday.

Sighting of the Day

After a while, nothing that you see really sticks out in your mind. You just get used to seeing strange, "why?" things. But of course, you don't ask "why?" because you will never find a good answer. We see ladies in pajamas and fancy high heels all the time outside -- why? "Because they just want to run out and get vegetables..."...but why the high heels??? We see mothers with their young child/toddler squatting on the sidewalk going to the restroom. Isn't there a bathroom just around the corner? Why? "That is how they train their children to use the bathroom." Hmmm... We see people throwing their trash on the ground, just steps (literally) from a trashcan. Why? Never got an answer there. Anyways, you get the idea. Well, yesterday, Nate said to me "You will never believe what I saw just a while ago!". Of course, my initial thought is "try me". He continues, "I saw a man walking down the street in his boxer underwear and holding his pants out to his side with his hand -- just walking casually down the street. I should have had my camera with me!" Yes, he should have, because that is definitely something I have never seen here (but not sure I want to), and probably won't see while in America (fingers crossed!). Will I miss seeing these unusual sightings while back in America? I'll take the risk :)

N's Quote of the Day

N was recently telling me everything he was excited to experience once we got back to the states, such as sleeping in a bed in an air conditioned house, seeing country scenery again, walking around the lake at camp...then one statement that I laughed so hard, I had to blog about it:

"I can't wait to listen to the radio and get an English song stuck in my head instead of a half-chinese half-english song coming from the cell phone of a chinese man in the squatty potty next to me."

Now, you may not understand why I thought that was so funny, but trust me, after you have lived here and experienced squatty potties with no doors and seeing people squat while texting or talking on their phone, reading the newspaper, or whatever else they may decide to do during that precious time, you have to find humor in situations like that :)

Oh, how cultures differ...

Headin' Back!

So, in just 6 days, we will be on a plane heading back to Texas -- at least for a while. This was definitely not a planned thing, but due to N's continued weight loss and the Hong Kong doctors suggestions, we feel like going back to America and having a change of environment might be the best thing for now. It's a strange feeling knowing that in a few days, we will be surrounded by grass, trees, quiet, countryside, family, friends, good home-cookin', etc, etc, etc. I'll be able to see my sister who just found out she is pregnant with her third child and be able to share the joys (or un-joys!) of pregnancies with her for a while. I'll be able to see my 6 year old niece and 1 1/2 year old nephew (whom I have only seen a few days at a few weeks old before moving here). We'll be leaving friends here who we have been building relationships with lately, but we know they are being left in the good hands of our American friends (who are learning sign language to hopefully work in the schools soon). They just found out they are pregnant too, so we are a little sad that we will miss so much of each other's pregnancies. So many mixed emotions! Leaving here (temporarily or not) is nothing like moving halfway across America -- you are definitely moving worlds, moving cultures, moving away from everything you have experienced or seen during the past 18 months. It is hard to imagine us going through "reversal" cultural shock (cultural shock when you go back to the States), but it will probably happen in some ways, ways that we can't imagine right now. I will say that although America has problems and is not perfect in any ways, I LOVE America and feel incredibly blessed to be an American citizen. I hope I never take my citizenship, my country, my people for granted again. America (and Texas!), here we come!

Hong Kong!

We just got back from a visa run/vacation in Hong Kong. It is such an interesting city, I wanted to show you some of our latest pictures. I didn't want to mess with organizing them in a sequential order, so forgive the randomness...


We went to Lama Island and did some easy (but super hot) hiking. This is one of the beautiful views from the island.


View #2 from Lama Island


View #3 from Lama Island


Here you can see the typhoon slowly approaching. We were under a severe typhoon warning but luckily, and unexpectedly, the typhoon went around Hong Kong instead of over it. So, I still can't say I've truly been through a typhoon...


We are at Stanley Market -- a huge outdoor market where you can buy lots and lots of touristy stuff. Really peaceful there also. I loved watching the waves and decided that day that my dream vacation is an Alaskan Cruise (random though, I know, but it was realized there :)


Here I am standing on the balcony of the guest apartment that we stayed at during our visit. Look at all the many apartments around me!


Here I am just sitting on my favorite thing to do in the city -- ride ferries! It is so relaxing...and cheap!


All the different shops at Lama Island. We loved this island. So quiet and peaceful, which about 6000 residents and no cars! I may move here.


Just both of us sitting on the ferry, trying to get us with beautiful background, but I think you just see mainly us. Sorry!


Me enjoying some ice cream from Mister Softee! Soft serve is my favorite :)


Enjoying some good ol' Mexican food. I had a mexican sandwich (who knew?!) and Nate had a fish soft taco and chicken soft taco. He raved about them all day!


Just another picture while on the ferry. I love this place!


We had to stop and have some of Mister Softee's ice cream! It was well worth it :)


All the other days were cool and rainy because of the close-call typhoon, but we stupidly decided to pick the hottest and sunniest day of the year to go hiking (easy hiking, but still hot!). And as I have learned, pregnancy hormones make you sweat a lot!


After our hike, we stopped at this little vegetarian restaurant. N had hummus with pita bread (falafels), which was super good!


And I had a tasty tofu burger, which was also good, but the humongous fries were amazing!


Isn't this the cutest little boat!?



This has to be the most expensive car (Lamborghini) I have ever been able to touch (although I kept my hands off) -- security guard motioned us away though...


I just love boats!


I thought this was a neat looking boat. We were on a ferry when this boat went past.