trip to mainland China

We just got back from a five days trip to mainland China this morning. It could have been shorter in my opinion. We took a 12 hours train to Longyan, Fujian (my parents' hometown). We visited my grandma and some extended families. I was glad to see my grandma. She's 88-year-old, and not in the best health. This may be our last time seeing her. Her vision has deterioated so much that I had to get up close for her to see me. Then we took a 2 hours bus to Xiamen to visit some more friends and families. Xiamen is right by the ocean and much more modern than Longyan. It seems like a nice place to live. Peter really likes it there. Then we took a 16 hours train with another 30 minutes connecting train ride back to Hong Kong. I'm so exhausted. I can't even think about the long flight coming up in a couple days. I wish we could have more time in Hong Kong. Although I'm not looking forward to the flight back, I'm so excited about my brother-in-law's wedding in a week. More family time and eating. Here are some photos I stole from my brother.

Train joy

No surprise

Peking duck is my favorite.

American superman vs. Japanese superman

Those are the typical halmet they use. I think they are plastic.

Five bucks per ride. We gave ours extra becase we were too heavy.

Eli's new toy.



This lucky chicken gets to wake up to this beautiful scene every morning

Typical feasts we had while we were in China. This one is extra special. My parents' friends took us deep into the mountain to have this meal. All of the ingredients are grown and raised locally.




I wonder if there are any hobbits down there.

Tips on traveling to China:

1. Most of the places in China don't have air-conditioning. Even if they have, the air isn't very cool. So if you can't stand the heat and humidity, go during fall or winter.

2. Bring plenty of toliet paper and kleenex. Almost all of the public bathrooms don't have any toliet paper. Of course you will have much better bathroom setting in a hotel.

3. Another thing about public bathroom, be prepare to squat. Most of the public bathroom in mainland China are just a hole in the ground. Oh, and try to hold your breath if you can when you are in a public bathroom.

4.Foot wear: don't wear any sandals or open toes shoes, espeically again, in a public bathroom. You don't want to get your toes or feet wet by yours or other people's body fluid.

5. Don't give any money to beggers unless you can stupid.

6. Don't be afraid to eat local dishes. They are probably better for you than McDonalds. Yes, there are McDonalds and KFC all over China, so you won't starve to death.

pizza, sushi, cakes and friends

grandma's funeral

what we have been up to

Some pictures of what we have been up to in the past week or so. Not much has happened. We didn't do any sight seeing because we are here for my grandma's funeral. There are lot of hanging out with family and friends and good eats. It's been strange not having a baby to take care of since Eli is staying with my parents. To be honest, I don't find that as enjoyable as I expected. Not because I miss him, but I'm so used to being a mom, sometimes I feel meaningless and blah without him. It's obvious this little guy has brought more joy to our lives than we knew.

Hong Kong trip part one

I can't believe I'm Hong Kong, even harder to believe that we survived the fifteen hours plane ride with Eli. I don't want to about it. It was as awful as it could get. By the end of that flight, the idea of leaving Eli with my mom for a year sounded really great. Here's how our trip started...

We had to drive to Chicago couple days earlier. so I could get a permit from the Chinese embassy. They were very helpful and I was able to get it on the same day. To ensure we got there at the earliest, we left our house at 3am. We didn't get there until 9ish. Now we understand why people always try to avoid the rush hour in big cities. It took us thirty minutes to drive four miles there.

After a gruesome fifteen hours flight, we have finally arrived Hong Kong. Hong Kong is in the 60s and 70s and humid. My dad's first reaction when he saw us was to run toward us and scream "My baby!". The biggest reaction we have seen anyone every has for Eli. He forgot he's in public. We had a delicious home cooked meal, and for once, we didn't have to take care of Eli while we eat. Maybe that's why it was so delicious. My mom asked if Eli could stay with them while we are in Hong Kong. I told her to take him and no need to return at anytime. Then we went to best friend Shan's place. Shan and I stayed up until 3 am. We talked and laughed. We were laughing at old letters that she wrote me and playing with makeup. Good times.

kids play

We took Eli to the play area in a nearby mall last week. He loved it. It's very hard to keep him in one place. You have to keep your eyes on this little guy at all-time. There were a few times when he escaped the play area and started walking in the mall without his shoes. There were also couple times when he took the cell phones from couple of the moms' purses and started talking on the it and walking away. There was a boy there that seemed to want befriend with Eli. He kept following Eli and taking Eli to his mom. I imagined he probably asked his mom if they could keep him. It was so much fun to watch Eli interacting with other kids. Oh yeah, and there was this little girl that pushed Eli down. What a umm... nevermind.

so sick and so precious

Can't do anything. I wish I could bear your sickness for you.


Checking out dad's IPod.


Bless his heart. Still a happy baby even when he's sick.


He hasn't slept on his dad's chest since he was few months old.

smitten

my first birthday present from Eli

I got my first birthday present this morning from Eli. As always, I was excited to see my little boy's smile, as I walked into his room, he looked excited to see me as well. He was holding up something for me with a nice grin on his face. "Oh BB, a birthday present for your ma? You shouldn't have." As I walked closer, I noticed with his first two fingers, he was holding a piece of poop. Oh poop, you really shouldn't. Sorry, I didn't capture this moment on camera, but you all will understand.

valentine's day recap

So on valentine's day, we had plan for homemade candlelight dinner. Unfortunately, we spent out evening in ER after my one year old c-section incision got infected. That incision had been swollen and red for a few days, but that night, it broke open and bunch of pus came out. Here are the pictures, nah, just kidding. I called my OB doctor, but didn't hear back for a while. I decided to go to ER when I started thinking about the worst scenario. My mother-in-law came over to watch Eli. Going to ER with a baby is not fun. Luckily, I didn't have to spend the night at the hospital. They prescribed me two different antibiotics and sent me home. We went to TGIF for our valentine's dinner. I had a berry mojito and some food. I can't remember when the last time we had a date. It was really strange to be sitting in a restaurant without a baby. I still remember the first time we took Eli to a restaurant was for my birthday last year at the Cheesecake factory. I remember how nervous and embarrassed I was. We are not afraid to eat out with Eli anymore. He will be good as long as he has food in his mouth. He loves his food.

Happy Valentine's Day

hands dancer

He makes us laugh every day.

baby sleep screams

Does anyone know why my one year old baby screams in his sleep? Eli does it every night. We are not talking about that kind of screaming bell that may suggest night terror. His scream usually lasts no longer than a minute. It's annoying if I'm awake. Yes, I said it, my son is annoying sometimes. Still love very much regardless, in case he reads this when he's older. The only think I can think of is that his dad sleep talks sometimes. It's creepy when you are not prepared to hear someone sleep talks, because it usually comes on very sudden and loud. Sometimes it's all gibberish. So maybe Eli got this weird habit from his dad. So if anyone has any idea what this is and how to stop it, please leave a comment.

photography

Some of my friends are amateur photographers. Every time I saw their photos, I wished I could do that too. I think photography is underrated. Photos often say so much more than words. I want to be the photographer of my family. I want to record our lives. Someday when we look back at our photos, we will remember all the memories that would not have been genuinely captured with words. With that said, I hope to be able to buy myself a nice camera maybe with our tax return. Not the point and shoot kind, I already have my sony cybershot. I will have to discuss this with the husband and hope that I will get his support too.

we just all look similar

The other day I had a patient asked me if I knew this Asian friend of his who also works at the hospital I work at. He said I reminded him of her. This happens a lot. People from time to time ask me if I know certain Asians that live in town. I just don't know what to say to that. I told this patient I don't know his friend, but throughout the night, he would tell me his friendship with his Asian friend. At the end of my shift, he asked me again if I was sure I didn't know his friend, I finally said, "no, we just all look similar." I wasn't trying to be rude, but I thought that would an end to that conversation, and it did.

Sick baby

My mom asked me for a recent video or photo of Eli. Unfortunately, the only recent photo I have of Eli was taken today, but he's sick. Poor thing has a cold. You can see his skin gets worse from him rubbing his snot all over his face.

When he's not sick, he's usually a happy dancing baby.

My favorite things

So I was inspired by my friend Amanda's recent post "my ten favorite things". I used to make youtube videos about my favorites of the month. I think this is fun and helpful to those who want to try new things. So here are my ten favorite things of this month.

1. LUSH godiva solid shampoo. The smell is amazing.
2. LUSH angels on bare skin. I have been using this for couple months, it exfoliate my skin so gently. My skin has never been softer. I'm a new LUSH fan can you tell?
3. These mugs I got from target. I love them cuz they are so cute and tall enough for water.

4. Animal crackers. Perfect snack for Eli.
5. Online shopping. My all time favorite. Life can't be any easier.
6. My curling iron. The barrel is big to create nice soft curls.
7. CHI silk infusion. This makes my hair shinny and less tangly.
8. O.P.I. nail polish in metro chic. It's a gorgeous purplish gray color.

That's all I can think of for now.

the new president

I'm so behind on my blog. As I'm watching the president inauguration, I see people weeping and so enthused over the new president Mr. Obama. Peoples' reactions uis strange to me. They worship this man like he will do no wrong. It's good to have trust in your president and hope that he will do well for your country, but don't get your hopes up people. He's not God. He's human just like everyone of us. He will too make mistakes. To be honest, I think people will have a hard time criticizing him because they think he's "just perfect". If I were able to vote, Obama wouldn't be my choice, neither would McCain, but this is what the people decided, so let's hope and pray that he will change this country for the better as he promised.

holy crap what happened

What happened to 2008? Were there really 366 days? Time really flies when you are having fun, or when you have a baby. I have no idea how my husband and I managed to survive our first year as parents. We probably would have died if my mom wasn't here for the first six months. She's a little upset that she is missing out all the cute and funny things Eli does now. When she left in June, Eli was still just a baby that ate, pooped, cried and lay around all day. Now he's walking, talking, laughing, all that good stuff. If she had a choice now, she would come see Eli everyday. I don't have any resolution for 2009. I just want to make it to 2010. I look back in 2008, here are some of the things I experienced.

I miss...
Staying up til five in the morning and sleeping pass noon.
Going to movies and not worrying about having to get home soon.
Being able to just grab my purse and go.
Enjoying my meal.
Peace and quiet.

I'm grateful for...
Waken up to Eli's babbling.
Poopy diapers because that means Eli is healthy.
Eli's baby teeth.
Bananas, Eli's favorite snack.
Strong arms to carry Eli around.
Warm weather that is good for Eli's skin.
Hand held shower head for Eli's bath.
Cheerios.
Cuddle time with Eli.
Hugs from Eli.
The big happy smile on Eli's face every time he sees us.

In 2009, I look forward to...
Hearing Eli's words.
Eli being able to feed hinmself.
More baby smiles.
More cuddling.
More hugs.

And more hair.

In 2009, maybe another baby? Nah, we will save that for 2010.

Eli's first year

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Our boy turns one today. This has been the best year of our lives.

thank you uncle Jon

Eli got a package from his uncle Jon yesterday.

Christmas tree

You know what's crazy? That we got rid of all the food I cooked for the Christmas dinner. (see previous entry) We ate all the chicken wings, sickening I know, and I took most of the lettuce wraps to work this evening.

We went to the mall yesterday, and we finished our Christmas shopping yay! We only had a few people to buy for. I hate mall shopping these days. Eli was good, but really, there's no place for babies or little children at the mall during holiday seasons. It's too crowded and too much stimulations. I'm sad that I can't put up our Christmas tree this year. We don't need to have a fake tree filled with lights and breakables for Eli to destroy.

Christmas dinner

We had our church Christmas dinner party last night. The theme was national cuisine. We were supposed to bring dishes from different countries or heritage, preferably our own. I didn't have any family recipes, but I picked up one of the suggested recipes from church the other day. I was going to make chicken lettuce wrap ( I ended up making turkey because I couldn't find any ground chicken) and chinese marinated chicken wings. The recipes were very simple and didn't require much time. I didn't start cooking until three, and the party started at six. I did have enough time, but I didn't defrost the chicken all the way. Some of them were still frozen inside. They were delicious, just weren't cooked all the way. So I thought at least I had the lettuce wrap. On our way out the door, we were in such hurry that my husband grabbed the lettuce and the chicken wings. I didn't realize until I got to the party that I had lettuce, no fillings, and half cooked chicken wings. I quickly carried my food back to our car. Not too many people noticed. Some asked me about the food, and I had to tell them this embrassing story. I actually got really sick on the way to the party that I didn't feel well enough to be embrassed. Also, I had never cooked for fifty people before, so I overestimated the ingredients and got tones of chickens and round turkey left. We know what we will be having the next few months. We had to much fun at the party. The food was great. There were plenty of food that my little mishap didn't runin anything. After dinner, we all sang Christmas hymns. Eli was good most of the time. He wasn't happy when he had to sit in the high chair. All he wanted to do was walking around. After the dinner, there was piñata. Eli got scared from people hittimg the piñata. Haha... Silly boy. We had a blast.

happy days

The low gas price is the best Christmas gift this year. Everyone is smiling at the gas station, well not literally. The other day, it only took twenty bucks to fill up our suv. No more "back in the good old days when gas only cost...". I hope this will last for a long time. At least until our economy improves.

Eli is walking, and he's loving it. He's very skilled too. We have hardwood floor, and we always put socks on his feet. Sometimes they are very slippery, but Eli learned to balance himself most of the time.

ignorance

[I just want to make it clear that this post is not supposed to offend anyone. I'm no better than any of you. This is just my two cents, so you can take it or leave it. Also, this post is somewhat incoherent, because that's how my thoughts are.]

My college roommate came to visit this past weekend. It was nice to be able to catch up. We both have been really busy, her with career and my with changing diapers. On the last day of her visit, she asked me how I can live in a place that has so little diversity. I can see why she asked such question. I live in a caucasian dominant town. During the three days she was here, she only saw a few asians and few mexicans. She also mentioned how borthersome it is to be around people that are igorant. I was agreeing what she said, but now I have time to think about it, I have a different view on that. It's easy to quickly assume small town people are ignorant because of their lack of exposure to other cultures. If that's that case, aren't we all ignorant on some level? Big city people aren't necessarily less ignorant. When we city people laugh about how the country folks know nothing about the world out there, do we know anything about their culture? Wouln't we seem complete idiots when we walk into their daily lives and know nothing about it? And aren't we a little arrogant to assume just because they prefer the small town life style, they are automically narrow minded? I have lived and been to quite a few places around the globe, but there are still so many cultures I haven't been exposed to. I can pretend to be an expert if you ask me topics about Asia, but when it comes to other parts of the world, the Middle East for example, I know very litte. From my personal experience, it is safe to say that people from big cities can be just as ignorant. While most of my asian friends often talk about how americans are always wrong about their asian knowledge, I have to laugh, because if you ask the people in asia, most of them are probably wrong about their american knowledge too. They probably think all women in america wear stiletoos and sip on cosmopolitant like those in the "sex and the city".

Nowaday with the magic of internet, there's really no excuse to be ignorant. I think the worst kind of ignorance is the arrogant ones. There are people who are ignorant because they too prideful. They can never admit that they ignorant. It's okay to not know about something, just don't assume you know everything. Those are the true ignorant people that I can't stand.

awkward childhood

This picture makes it look like I was born in an old era. I'm only twenty eight.


There are so many things wrong with this picture. Why were my cousin and I eating apples outside, why did my mom allow me to wear that, and why was this taken???


I look a lot like Eli in this one.


I'm not sure what we are trying to capture here. Maybe to show that we love climbing on metal bars.


I was thrilled.


Look at the makeup our moms put on us. I got an expression to go with it too.


Classic pose of the 80s.

By the way, do people know it's wrong to have Christmas decorations up before Thanksgiving?

tickle

I'm sorry I have been MIA, but there's not much to update right now. Eli is doing great. His skin has been clear since he started taking zyrtec. Finally baby soft skin. He just started walking today. I know, I should sound more excited, and I am. Even though it was just a few steps, we are so happy for him. I didn't take a video of his first steps, but here's a video that may tickle you.

daily dose of cuteness

it's winter again

I was sitting by the window today, all of a sudden, I saw snow flakes coming down. I said to myself, "Is it really snowing? It can't be. It is!". I forgot it is November already. We have had a beautiful fall this year, now it's time for winter. Last year this time, I was still pregnant. I remember the anticipation of the birth of our first child and how exciting it was. The mood is a lot different this year. There's a baby in the house! I still feel strange sometimes that I'm a mom. Watching Eli crawling around, standing on his own, trying to talk to us with his own baby language are the biggest joys in our lives right now. We are so excited to share this Thanksgiving and Christmas with him. That alone has made the winter my favorite time of the year regardless of the snow and the cold.

pathetic

Working at the hospital, I see all kinds of people. I would be lying to you if I say I don't ever judge them. It's really impossible not to judge anyone. We even judge ourselves sometimes. The important thing is no matter what I think of my patients, I still treat them the same, still give them the best care with respect. Just this past weekend, I had a 19 years old patient. He is what I would call... well, I'm not going to tell you what I thought. He was pretty much a big baby. He had his girlfriend, mom, and grandma at his bedside. When I was taking out an IV site, he would have his girlfriend hold his hand on one side, and his grandma on the other. He was always nasty to his mom and grandma. He would have his mom to adjust the pillows under his leg just to the exact way he wanted, or he would be effing this, effing that. His mom helped lift his leg while I was changing the dressing, he wouldn't help at all. It was really hard for the mom's back after holding her son's leg for a while. When I was done with one part, I told the mom to put his leg down to take a break, she asked her son if she could take her hand out from underneath his knee, he yelled "NO!". I didn't say anything, well, not out loud at least. Although I was pretty disgusted with this young man's manners, I know he is this way because of those around him allow him to be. If they are enabling this kind of behaviors, they are to be blamed just as much. So I don't really feel bad for those, especially females, who are in his life. No matter what he does, he's still probably the apple of their eyes. Seeing someone like him made me realized how lucky I am to have a husband who treats everyone with respect and just a genuine nice guy. His parents raised him well, and we will try out best to raise Eli to be the same.

BPA

Husband just found out from the internet news that many of the baby bottles here in the US contains Bisphenol A {BPA}. Apparently this organic compound is hazardous to humans. Canadian government has banned the use of BPA, but US hasn't. FDA has started investigating it, but no official ban yet. When we found out some of the bottles we have been using contains BPA, we were horrified. Here's a report on BPA on children products.

first halloween

We had fun with the Luceros last night. We went to their neighborhood and went trick or treating with all the kids. I worked in the morning yesterday, so I made a few phone calls at work and found out their still have some baby Halloween costumes at the Nobbies. I ran over there after work and got Eli a Tyrone costume. If you don't know what Tyrone is, I didn't, google search "Backyardigans". That's not my first choice of costume, but that's the best one I could find. He's still looks cute.

P.S. When I went to the mall today, they have a Halloween store there that has all kinds of baby costumes. They even have a lion costume that I wanted for Eli.

*Photos are provided by Amanda*

costume emergency

I got off early tonight, so I thought I could run over to the store to get Eli a Halloween costume. I went to Target, Babies R Us, and Nobbies, and I couldn't find any. Most of the costumes have been sold out. What am I gonna do? I'm not crafty enough to whip up a last minute costume. I think I'm going to try Walmart and maybe Spirit tomorrow after work. This is Eli's first Halloween, and it's important to me. Not to Eli, he won't know any difference.

I have been wanting to share this with you guys. These two guys are so hilarious. Every time I watched this video, I was gasping for air from laughing so hard.

playtime with dad

My husband doesn't want me to post this video because he thinks he looks awful. It was before bedtime, and he's already in his pajamas. I say who cares?! Nobody is going to be watching him, people are going to watch Eli and how cute he is. So here you go.

long overdue

Family and friends keep asking me for recent photos of Eli. I admit I have been slacking off. I have been enjoying our time together so much and forgot to share. He started standing on his own. Yesterday, he attempted to make his first step but not quite ready yet. He will be walking very soon. Here are a few long overdue pictures.

What's that smile? It's poopy diaper smile.

gas price

Gas price oh my gosh! I forgot the last time when gas price was under two dollars. When one of my patients told me gas went down to one ninety nine, I filled up our SUV after work. It only cost me twenty six something to fill up an empty tank. That's mid-western living for you.

my response

This post is a response to my friend's recent post "friends in cyber world". I'm so grateful for internet, e-mails, blogs and such. I'm a really shy person, and a classic introvert. I don't think there's anything wrong with being an introvert, and I have never had the desire to turn myself into an extrovert. I'm comfortable with the way I am. With that said, I found that e-mails, blogs, or anything in text forms are perfect communication tools for me. I like to think through my thoughts first, and I like to be able to edit my words so they are exactly the way I want before I share with others. This doesn't mean I always write long e-mails or blogs. Couple of well thought lines are just as genuine as bunch of nonsense words that come out of people's mouth. Just because I don't call someone doesn't mean I don't care about that person. How often do we feel annoyed we get a phone call from a friend that we don't want to talk to at the moment. Or when your friend wants to hang out with you, but you don't know how to say no. So you ended up engaging in something that you wish it will be over soon. When you e-mail someone, you don't have to worry about bothering that person or fear of rejection in your face. A lot of my friends and family get updates on me and my family through my blog. This way, I don't feel like I'm imposing my life on them. Not everyone is interested in you. But if they have a moment and would like to know how we have been doing, they can simply go to my blog. There are even photos and videos. That's about all I have to say.

a lay back guy

This is so unusual for a blog addict like me not to update my blog for this long. I haven't been consistently blogging. Motherhood is kicking my butt. Eli needs a lot of attentions, and even when he's just playing by himself, which he does a lot, I found myself want to spend all my free time with him. Sometimes I feel like I'm smothering him, but that's impossible. He's really lay back in general. While seeing a lot of kids who are always clinging to people, Eli, in comparison, seems like a loner. When he's in church nursery, he's always off to his own playing. He can play with other kids too, but when there's no one around, he's completely okay to play by himself. Sometimes, he will be looking into the distance thinking about something, then all of a sidden starts smiling. I can't wait for him to be able to share his imaginations with me, and I hope he will continue to be a lay back guy like his dad.

code blue

I know I have been MIA for a while. I have been that busy, but I have been feeling depressed lately. I'm not sure why, but I guess that happens when you are a living human being. Work has been going okay, until tonight. One of my patients coded tonight. It's hard to believe, but this is my first code in my six years of being a nurse. I had only had that patient for two hours when it happened. It all came down really quick, and my patient didn't make it. The worst thing was it happened right in front of my eyes. We were just helping her to reposition, all of a sudden she turned blue and was out. I had helped with a code before, but this was the first time it happened to my own patient. I tried to stay calm, but you could tell I was kinda nervous from my shaky voice. The family happened to be there already. They saw it happened too. After almost an hour of rescuing, the doctor took the family to a quieter room and explained to them that their loved one was not going to make it. I was standing in the corner trying to again stay calm. We are still not sure what happened. It seemed like the patient might have an aneurysm that bursted because they suctioned tons of blood from her abdomen. I keep playing the whole thing my head again and again trying to see if there's anything I missed or I could have done better. I know better not to be too hard on myself. If this happened to my co-workers, I would say the same too. We can't save everyone. Whatever happened, it was God's plan. No matter how hard we try, when God decided it's time, it's time. I pray though God would give me peace in my heart and strength to continue to do the job I love.

work sucked

I had the worst night at work tonight. I don't want to go into details because it will bore most of you. I kept thinking how it was unfair all the problems happened to my group of patients, and I was secretly complaining how nobody helped me. At the end of the night, I had to tell myself, shit happens. This time, it happened to be mine. Instead of throwing myself a pity party, I looked to all the helps I got from my co-workers. They did help me a lot, I was just too overwhelmed at one point to appreciate their help. I'm glad the night is over, so I can enjoy the next three days off.

Johnny Cash's little fan

Y'all wish you could dance like that, don't you? It's genetic. Don't you think he's the cutest! He is.

precious moments

Look what Eli can do now, clapping and giving out high five! It feels funny to high five someone with such tiny hands. The other one was just a silly video of us playing before I tried to put Eli down for a nap. I tell ya this baby is so smart, I'm sure he's going to take over the world someday.

socks suck

The only thing I don't like about the fall and winter is I have to start wearing socks. I recently realized how much I hate wearing socks. The other day it was raining, so I thought I had to wear shoes to keep my feet and toes dry. I was having the most difficult time to find a matching pair. Then I decided to screw it and just let my feet and pants get wet. That was probably my fault, because we put all our clean clothes on the bed in the guest room, and we don't bother to fold them. I also hate wearing socks because they make my feet itch. I have been wearing slippers all summer, and my feet loved it. Now I have to suffocate them with socks. It stinks. So will my feet.

sick again

I'm the blogger of this family. Peter{husband} has no interest in blogging though he used to have a blog. We revisited his old blog today. I told him he should start blogging again because he has great perspectives on things and he's so funny, but he said he doesn't like to advertise his thoughts. By the way, he's sick again, oh no! This is like a sick cycle that never ends. I hope Eli and I won't catch it this time. Contact isolation please.

Looks like I'm going to pick up some extra hours at work to help pay for some upcoming bills. Ah, the joy of being alive and responsible.

night terrors?

We just got woken up again. This is the third night in a row. Eli had been a really good sleeper, but few days ago, he started to wake up screaming in the middle of the night around 2-3. This is very frustrating and confusing for us first time parents. We thought things were going so well. I did some research on the internet while my husband was feeding Eli. Feeding seems to be the solution to every problem we have had with Eli. I'm not sure what is really going on, could it be night terrors? Ladies if you have any similar experiences or suggestions, please do share.

random thoughts

So I was talking to the girls at work last night. I love girl talk. We talked about relationships, friendships, work, just all the good stuff. I miss having my girl friends here. They are back in Hong Kong, and I'm here... None of my friends back home are married. I know many people have trouble to stay connected with their non-parent friends after they have babies. I don't think that would be the case for me and my friends if they were here. We are like family. Even though we haven't seen each other for a few years, we talk all the time online. We care about each other a lot, and they always ask about Eli. We never had problem picking up where we had left off every time I went back to visit. So yeah, I miss them a lot. Lucky me though, I have made some good friends here through church and work. I don't have any asian friends here. Many people think that's strange. Having friends that are the same ethnicity as me is not that important. It's more important to me that my friends have the same faith and similar values as me. We are so blessed to belong to a wonderful church. We have made friends with most of the people there regardless of their ages. Sometimes I feel that having a baby has helped me open up to people more. Maybe it's because I love talking to people about my baby and parenthood.

favorite time of the year

My favorite time of the year has started. Unfortunately I have welcomed it with a cold along with my family. I hope there will be no more cold or flu for the rest of the year. I'm so looking forward to all of the fall and winter holidays this year because they will be Eli's first. First Halloween, first Thanksgiving, first Christmas, and first New Year. Ahh! I can hardly wait.

baptism

Eli and I were baptized together today. It did not go as smoothly as we hoped. That's expected though. There's no way Eli would stay quiet and cooperative the whole time. With all eyes on us, Eli was whining and squirming constantly. My husband was having a hard time to contain Eli in his arms. I was nervous when our pastor took him from my husband's arms. I was worried that he would be kicking and screaming. Fortunately he was captivated by the new face and was quiet and still long enough for the cleansing. He has been showing some attitudes tin he last couple days, which has really drove his parents nuts. At the same time, he does a lot of sweet and cute things daily that completely wipe out all the frustrations we have with him. Tonight my husband was shaking his head, and Eli was copying him. He makes us laugh everyday.

Eli and dad dancing

I have a wonderful husband, and he's also a wonderful dad. Eli loves his dad too. He feels safe and content in his arms. Dad is so in love with Eli, I know because he told me so everyday. Eli loves his dad too. He greets his dad with a big baby grin every morning. Their favorite time together would have to be dancing to their favorite music.

D.A.N.C.E.

Bill Melendez

Those who know me know I'm a HUGE fan of the Peanuts. I love its simplicity and down to earth humor. My favorite characters are Charlie Brown and Linus. I watch A Charlie Brown Christmas and other Charlie Brown holiday specials every year. I read on the news today that the Peanuts animator Bill Melendez has died. I was reading his bio and found out that he also did the Pinocchio and other Disney cartoons. I thought it was interesting how he looked so much like Geppetto.

Bill Melendez was the only authorized person to animate the Peanuts characters. I found this to be interesting too:

"The first special was 1965's "A Charlie Brown Christmas." The show reportedly worried CBS because it broke so much new ground for a cartoon: It lacked a laugh track, used real children as voice actors, had a jazz score and included a scene in which Linus recited lines from the New Testament."

I think I'm going to carry on this tradition with my kids.

sick family

Everyone is sick in the house right now. We all got the cold. It started with my husband coming home early from work last Friday after developing cold like symptoms. He slept for a long time and got better. Couple days ago, Eli started his turn of runny nose and cough. Today, it's my turn, and it seems like my husband is getting a second round of the cold again today. I advise everyone to stay away from this family for now.