The Valley of Beracah 比拉迦谷

our new blog

2010-07-22T22:16:00.001-07:00

greetings from ping-tung, taiwan~
please check out "our" new blog!

Love Overflow

http://www.loveoverflow.com/

回家

2010-07-08T19:30:00.000-07:00

這是去美國以後第二次回到台灣
上次是冬天的時候回來,不過覺得那次時間好趕好趕
這次是夏天回來,雖然回來的時間很久,但是覺得不是很好玩
光是炎熱的氣候就讓我有點受不了,實在不是很想出門
加上有很多不屬於"玩"的事
讓這次的旅程覺得很不輕鬆...........
很想回"家"

24 小時

2010-07-02T08:51:00.000-07:00

在過去的24小時裡, 我學到很多人生的功課

從昨天晚上就和老公和婆婆陪著公公在醫院裡
等待今天早上公公的手術
其實, 這還是我第一次身邊有親人住院動手術
這跟在醫院等待生產是截然不同的感覺
看著老公幾乎整夜都沒睡, 好心疼喔～

六個多小時的手術其實對於病人和家人都是種煎熬
肉體的煎熬, 疼痛的煎熬, 等待的煎熬, 擔心的煎熬
生命是如此脆弱, 卻也是如此堅強

婆婆是公公的支持
老公是婆婆的支持
而我, 是老公的支持
這有點像食物鏈般的精神支柱其實是最重要的
我們需要彼此來一起扶持一起走過這個試煉

病房裡, 期待的是聽到公公睡覺的呼吸聲
那表示他能舒服的睡著不會感到傷口的疼痛
在日常生活裡最不經意最微小最被認為理所當然的呼吸聲和睡眠
頓時間都顯得非常珍貴

健康, 就是幸福
生命的氣息, 是上帝的禮物
常常禱告, 不要灰心
因為我依然相信神必賜下奇蹟

開心的相聚 Part 2

2010-06-26T09:04:00.000-07:00

今天也是開心的一天
因為也是跟老朋友見面
從小學一年級認識到現在也真的蠻久的
上次我回台灣有一起吃飯
那時候她還是大肚子
這次見面小孩已經一歲多了
看到他們一家三口很幸福

很感動他們全家特地到台中來跟我見面
也很謝謝他們熱情的招待
還特別帶我去吃好吃的養生火鍋店:無老鍋
很漂亮的餐廳,很特別的鴛鴦火鍋
第一次發現"油條"也可以當火鍋料
台灣人好像都很喜歡吃火鍋

很珍惜細水長流的友情
very thankful for our friendship.

開心的相聚

2010-06-25T06:54:00.000-07:00

今天感到開心
因為和一位老朋友見了面
老朋友就是不管多久沒見面,見到的時候還是很熟悉很親的感覺
更開心是她懷了雙胞胎

今天跟著她和她老公一起去產檢
第一次去台灣的婦產科看看
還看到超音波銀幕上的小寶寶們
很開心她把我當親人可以跟著他們做產檢

今天學了很多懷孕方面的新知識
也真的覺得美國看醫生和醫療保險都好貴
台灣就算沒健保也是比美國便宜太多
光是"照超音波"美國的費用就是台灣的15倍

中午我們三個一起去吃shabu shabu
吃的好開心喔~
很開心好朋友嫁了個好老公
從很多小細節就發現她的老公非常貼心,細心,熱心
讓我今天特別想老公.....

may God bless her entire pregnancy and surround them with peace and joy.

happiness

2010-06-11T11:19:00.000-07:00

after we got married, hubby converted me to a TVholic.

our all-time must-see favorite tv shows are "criminal minds", "24", "amazing race" & "american idol". we also finished the first season of "lost". we continued season two and agreed to stop somewhere in the middle due to the millions of episodes and time consumption.

this week, hubby told me that he recorded this new tv show called "persons unknown". here's the intro i got from the website:

"it's a mystery drama in which a group of seven strangers must come together to solve the puzzle of their lives. All of them have been taken from their everyday lives and have arrived in a deserted town with no recollection of how they got there. watched by omnipresent "security" cameras with no idea who or what is behind them. their chance at survival is to rely on each other. But who can they trust in this vulnerable state - either behind those cameras or amongst themselves?"

it's like another version of "lost", figuring out who they can trust to survive. there is a scene in the first episode where a waiter puts down a plate of fortune cookies after the meal, and one of the characters spins the lazy susan, claiming that fate will decide their fortunes.

yesterday morning before leaving for work, hubby and i had had enough time to actually sit down and have breakfast together at the table. we haven't done that for a long long long time. it just brightens my day. after i finished my breakfast, there was a fortune cookie on the table and i opened it. it says "stop searching forever, happiness is right next to you." and i looked at hubby and smiled. he's right next to me.

you're my happiness. =)

a day of grace

2010-06-10T13:28:00.000-07:00

today is a day of grace.

a friend from work went to vegas and brought me my favorite croissants from bellagio. she even hand-delivered to my office. hubby tried it before and said that it's the best croissant he's ever tasted.

it's grace, to receive those buttery treats from a thoughtful friend who remembers that we'd really enjoy it.

later in the afternoon, i went to my old optometrist to have my eyes checked. the doctor is so nice and welcoming. we had good conversation about life, church, family, and of course, my eyes. when i was about to pay, the lady there told me that the doctor gave me some discounts and also two big bottles of solution.

it's grace, to receive the favor from a kind doctor who knows that i'd need the solutions for my contacts.

very thankful, for a day full of grace.

我是阿姨

2010-06-08T22:44:00.000-07:00

I've learned a lesson today, 那就是千萬不能discipline 別人的小孩
反正只要不是親生的, 都不能.....

昨天Zoya不小心把我撞了很大一下
雖然她不是故意的, 但是我們就跟她說要說sorry
不過她怎麼都不肯說
我就面對面對她很嚴肅的口氣說
“欣妮阿姨很痛, 妳撞到阿姨要跟阿姨說sorry,
只要說ㄧ個字sorry就可以了“

不過怎麼說她都是不說話
為了想“教“她要學會說sorry
我和叔叔就很堅持一定要等到她把sorry說出口才可以放她一馬
結果.....
她還是不說......

所以把她當自己女兒的我就說
“數到三要是還不說就會被time out!"
1, 2, 3.....
還是不說sorry......
所以阿姨我就把她抱到time out zone

當然Zoya媽媽還把小手拿出來
不過那輕輕ㄧ兩下根本沒感覺吧～～這也太溫柔的處罰了吧媽媽！！！
後來叔叔和阿姨就離開了
（阿姨實在很想就算了...不過還是離開了, 但是我有說I love you!）

結果今天下班打電話回家, Zoya媽媽說昨天晚上Zoya說明天要去公園
不過, 不過“不要“欣妮阿姨和叔叔！！！！
我聽了心都碎了......... 而且Zoya竟然不要跟我講電話

掛了電話我突然覺得好難過喔～～～～
想到我愛她愛到不行....超級疼她的！！
我想來想去, 領悟到一件事
I've realized that it's not my role to discipline her
不是媽媽或爸爸, 這種感情還是不一樣的～～～～

真想買ㄧ大堆糖果, 冰淇淋, 麥當勞, yogurt...去巴結她
還好, 晚上在吃飯的時候, 手機響了
接起來一開始都沒講話
後來就聽到Zoya可愛洪亮的聲音說“欣妮阿姨, SORRY!"
哎.....我的心情頓然開朗起來～～～～
我的小寶貝兒～～～

我的心情竟然被這還不到三歲的小寶貝弄得....七上八下
我是阿姨, 我可以教她, 但是不能處罰她

好久...

2010-06-03T12:46:00.000-07:00

好久....真的好久沒來這裡了
都快被遺忘了....my blog.

現在也邁入六月, 進入炎熱的夏天
期待這個summer
這次給自己放了個長假
準備好好的玩,好好的吃,好好的經歷神

回想這半年,很多事情都改變了
去年底開始很認真的寫日記(手寫的那種journal)
前幾天大概讀了一下
發現這半年生命有改變喔~
包括my marriage, church, serving, spiritul life...and so on,
praise the Lord,是好的改變....

還是很感恩四月到IHOP的那趟trip
總覺得那次得著很多
真的有more passion for Jesus.
也可以spend more time before God and always think of Him.
the more of Him, the more joyful i am.
雖然生活裡面還是有很多challenges & trials
但是面對事情的眼光和態度都比能很positive and have peace in me.

總之,
God is super good to me.

Photo Sharing

2010-04-22T16:02:00.000-07:00

4.7.2010 ~ 4.14.2010

a journey to the heart of the continent...

Kansas City, Missouri (4.7.2010 ~ 4.10.2010)

IHOP (International House of Prayer)

Oklahoma Joe's BBQ & Gates BBQ

Hallmark Visitors Center

The College Basketball Experience

St. Louis, Missouri (4.11.2010 ~ 4.12.2010)

The Gateway Arch & Museum of Westward Expansion

White Castle & Pi at The Loop

Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis

Anheuser-Busch Inc. Budweiser Brewery Tour

More St. Louis Attractions

Kansas City, Missouri (4.13.2010 ~ 4.14.2010)

Crown Center

Fiorella's Jack Stack BBQ at Freight House

Crayola Cafe

Hotels & Views

晃晃....

2010-03-22T22:17:00.000-07:00

好久沒來這裡晃晃了
好像有很多東西可以寫, 不過卻又覺得不知從何寫起

時間過的好快好快
非常非常非常期待spring break的來到
很想離開這個地方, 呼吸一下陌生的空氣, 看看新鮮的景色
讓自己沒有“很累“的感覺

March 2010

2010-03-01T20:32:00.000-08:00

Today is the first day of March. New goals are set for this month: no TV on weekdays, eating healthy, spending more quiet time reading the Word of God, organizing our garage and closet.....so on. Trying to use our time more wisely and change our lifestyle. We spent too much time watching TV last month, with the winter olympic games, Lost, American Idol, 24, Survivor, Amazing Race....we just couldn't help ourselves. We are easily addicted to something we enjoy doing, like playing Wii Super Mario back in January.

We recently found a new hobby that both of us like to do: puzzles. It started on a Friday night when we were with the kids at church. We put the 100-piece with the children and it was a lot of fun. After we got home, we took out one of my unopened/forgotten 1000-piece puzzle and challenged ourselves. We spent several days putting all the pieces together and we actually finished it!Life is like a box of puzzle. Your goal/dream/vision is like the complete picture on the box, but you have to try hard to put all the pieces together. It takes courage, determination, patience, perseverance each step of the way. Once you see part of the picture, you know you're getting closer and closer to the finish line. There're times when you struggle and maybe you even doubt if you could really reach your dream. You can easily give up, just put all the pieces back to the box and pretend that you never start. But when you press onward and persevere, you'll feel the extraordinary joy of accomplishment and it will definitely bring a smile on your face. What's more beautiful than reaching your goal/dream/vision?

If you have a dream, continue to weave it. Don't give up!

A Walk to the Stop Sign

2010-02-26T19:04:00.000-08:00

今天回爸媽家洗衣服
下午跟Zoya在客廳玩, 我真的好愛這個小寶貝
本來想帶她去公園的
不過她的媽媽很懶, 不想出門, 也不想帶弟弟一起.....
加上天空有點陰陰的感覺
所以, 我就跟Zoya說：“走, 我們去門口看看外面會不會冷“
她超級高興的想出去, 果真, 打開門後發現外面還有點涼涼的
回到房子裡幫Zoya拿件外套
穿好外套後, 我就跟她說我們走一下下就好
我牽著她的小手, 走在sidewalk....
我跟她說我們走到"STOP" sign就回來
她望著遠遠的stop sign念著S-T-O-P
真是聰明的小孩...
我們走到stop sign還兩個人都摸了一下stop sign, 就回頭了

回頭的路上我問了她很多問題
這兩歲的小孩還真的有問有答ㄟ～

欣妮阿姨：Zoya妳最喜歡吃什麼食物？
Zoya: 我最喜歡吃薯條

欣妮阿姨：Zoya妳最喜歡喝什麼？
Zoya: 喜歡喝juice

欣妮阿姨：Zoya妳最喜歡什麼顏色？
Zoya: 我最喜歡粉紅色, 還有紫色

欣妮阿姨：Zoya最喜歡玩什麼？
Zoya: 我喜歡去公園玩

欣妮阿姨：那你最喜歡誰？
Zoya: Zoya最喜歡叔叔和欣妮阿姨

真是有趣的對話～語言能力非常的強
就連我要走的時候還會在門口說：“欣妮阿姨再見, 要小心喔～“
小寶貝, 我愛妳～

Baby Zech

2010-02-11T00:12:00.000-08:00

Zech從小就比較愛哭, 每次都要媽媽抱抱

所以我除了跟他打招呼, 逗逗他之外, 還真的比較少抱他
說真的, 我這個欣妮阿姨都把大部份的時間花在Zoya身上
不過Zech越長大, 越覺得他可愛, 真的是名副其實的“萬人迷“
皮膚又嫩又白, 又喜歡笑口常開

肉肉的Zech大家都喜歡抱他

愛笑的Zech大家都喜歡看他
因為他的笑容真的好可愛喔～～～～～～～
好甜好甜～～～～這幾次回去看到他
他都是這樣一直對我哈哈笑, 超級可愛的！！！

Bucket in the Bathroom

2010-01-29T21:23:00.000-08:00

Yesterday at work, a 5th grade boy from Philippine came to our office for language test. During the testing, he asked me where the bathroom is. I walked him to the restroom and waited outside. After awhile, I heard him flushing the toilet. But he didn't come out. So I waited and wondered what was taking him so long. Then I heard him flushing the toilet again for the second time. Still, he didn't come out.

I was thinking maybe I should ask someone, a guy, to go into men's room to check on him. Then he opened the restroom door just a little bit and asked me, "where is the bucket?" I said, "what do you need a bucket for?"

Silence for a few seconds and it was a little awkward, a little embarrassing.

The boy said, "to wash my butt."

Errrrr.... how does this work?!?!?!
I said, "I don't have a bucket..........."

He shut the door and probably did what he had to do.

So, I googled it and found this on youtube. In Philippine, you need buckets in the bathroom, in order for you to scoop the water to wash hands, flush toilet, or I guess, wash your butt.

老闆娘

2010-01-29T21:02:00.000-08:00

爸爸媽媽下個月要去以色列旅行
有些去過的人就建議要帶飽暖又輕便的外套, 還說可以去全統買
所以今天就帶媽媽到了全統看看
沒想到裡面的店都快倒光了吧
只剩下兩家有在賣衣服的, 而且都是50%的廣告
仔細一看標價, 每件衣服都是兩三百以上, 是的, 我說的是美金
覺得很誇張, 誇張到了極點....看不出是什麼高級貨

我們到的時候, 除了老闆娘之外還有一位太太在買衣服
老闆娘和顧客太太在聊店裡賣的衣服的質料....

以下就是我親耳聽到的對話

老闆娘：唉呦, 你穿這看起來好看啊～
太太：我很喜歡這件衣服的質料
老闆娘：你好年輕喔～你看起來才二十幾歲！
（這時我已經覺得很誇張, 因為這位太太真的看起來少說也是上了年紀的中年婦女）
太太：我已經48歲了～
老闆娘：完全看不出來ㄟ！！因為你的身材, 你的穿著, 你的臉蛋, 還有你的髮型...看起來真的只有二十幾歲
（這位太太已經拿出卡來刷了....還拿出ID)
太太：你看我ID, 已經48歲了
老闆娘：我-的-媽-呀！！真的看不出來～～～～

對, 這位老闆娘真的可以再誇張一點..............

蝦仁干貝煎

2010-01-29T20:56:00.000-08:00

今天中午回去吃飯

沒想到媽媽竟然親手做了“蝦仁干貝煎“給我們大家吃～～～

原來是媽嗎昨天看電視學到的
連配的醬都是親手特製的, 真的很好吃！！！不輸給店裡賣的喔～

媽媽說下次要試做“肉圓“...好～非常期待～

Mission Inn, Riverside

2010-01-28T22:02:00.000-08:00

The sun is finally out after a week long heavy rain. Refreshing, love the fresh breeze. It's southern Cal again with warm sunshine and blue sky. We couldn't wait to get out and take a look of the mountains. We immediately decided to have a day trip to the nearby Mt. Baldy to play snow. We took out our snow gears and put on our thermals and snow pants. FYI, we quit snowboarding. We were gonna just "see" snow, "play" snow, and take pictures. We were all excited and off we went.

Surprisingly, Mt. Baldy is so close by, maybe just 20 minutes away from our place. But the traffic was terrible once we got to the bottom of the mountain. Well, we were just like others, all thought the same. We all wanted to see the snow but the problem was that the cars were not even moving. Couldn't imagine how long it will take us to go up there, so we made a U-turn and came back home.

We still wanted to enjoy the beautiful weather for the rest of the day and we headed to the city of Riverside, to visit the historical landmark, Mission Inn.

Mission Inn is a historical hotel with early California mission style setting. The adobe bricks make it very unique, vintage, antique... The outdoor courtyard in the middle of the hotel is beautiful, a great place to have a date or afternoon tea, or just for some photos. =)

Praise the Lord for a very enjoyable day.

DIY Shoe Rack

2010-01-26T17:18:00.000-08:00

Recycle. Reuse. Rethink.

Hubby made this shoe rack with unwanted headboards and empty shoe boxes. Great Job!!! Now those shoes look very organized. THANKS!!!!

If we have more shoes, we just need to stack more boxes and more boards. Time to buy new shoes! =P

Kids Sunday School

2010-01-26T16:44:00.000-08:00

Praise the Lord for the opportunity to help out the first & second grades kids Sunday school the past Sunday. It was quite interesting. Kids have great memory. They actually know and able to learn more than we think.

The Bible story is from Luke 4:14-21, about Jesus teaching in the synagogue, reading the scroll of the prophet Isaiah.

Jesus came to......
preach good news to the poor.
proclaim freedom for the prisoners.
recover the sight for the blind.
release the oppressed.
proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.

I asked the kids why they come to church. They gave me the answers like, "to worship God, to learn more about God, to get close to God, and to think of God...." I'm very impressed with these 6 and 7-year-old kids. I thought they would say that they come to church to see friends, to play, to eat lunch...haha =)

We then made our own scrolls with Bible verses, played a game to give out prizes, and ended with prayers.

A 7-year-old girl asked me, "why did Pastor Will mary you?" I said, "why? you have to ask him!" Then she asked again, "why did you marry Pastor Will?" I answered, "because I love him!" I don't know if that's the answer she's looking for, but I'm sure she is curious about Will and me, as a couple.

Butter Fingers

2010-01-20T21:44:00.000-08:00

Today, I accidentally dropped a plate in the kitchen while taking the dishes from the dining table to the sink. The plate broke into tons of little pieces. I didn't get hurt, but, I spent some time cleaning and wiping the kitchen floor.

Lesson learned. Don't try to take too many plates at the same time. It's okay to walk a few more times from the dining table to the sink.

Butter fingers. I actually chipped two plates and one mug while washing the dishes since I got married. And today I broke one even before it reached to the sink. A little frustrating. Clumsy? Careless? I'll be extra careful next time when I handle the plates and cups, and I'll start shopping for more plates. haha =)

Here are some photos of the homemade dinners from last week:
Ribeye steak with broccoliHoney glazed chicken drumsticks with ceasar salad & sweet corn

QT

2010-01-18T18:45:00.000-08:00

My spirit. My heart. My body.

One of my new year resolutions for last year was to finish reading the entire Bible once. And I didn't reach my goal. I think it happened the year before last year too. For the past two years, a group of us signed up the GetPassage Bible reading site to follow its reading schedule and to keep each other accountable.

In year 2008, we started from Old Testament and 14 people joined in the beginning of the year, only 2 people actually finished reading the Bible once. Last year, we started with New Testament and with 13 people signed up, also only two people did it at the end. I had an average of 75% completion....errr....but that leaves me some room to improve.

It's just too much distractions and temptations that stop us to be closer to God. It's so easy to watch TV for hours, play games for hours, surf on the web for hours, go shopping for hours, check our facebook for hours, take a nap for hours....but, not to spend some quiet time before the Lord on a daily basis.

So here I am, writing this to remind myself and to encourage you.

Let's draw near to God in a fresh and exciting way.

Let's cultivate a strong and intimate relationship with God and become more like Him.
Let's have a meaningful daily devotional life.
Let's have a deeper and more meaningful faith.
Let's glorify God and uphold His truths.
Let's keep God first in our hearts.
Let's stay spiritually strong.

Let's open our Bibles and have some conversations with Jesus.

BJ's + Pinkberry

2010-01-07T19:24:00.001-08:00

If you like BJ's pizza, they now have "Holiday Party for Two for only $19.95." This special is good thru January 8th, which is tomorrow. It comes with two salads or soups, and a medium pizza to share , and a pizookie for dessert. We ordered one set of the special and two appetizers.

Here's the happy Hsien Family. Zech is sooooo cute, so is Zoya! His bib says "This is what HANDSOME looks like!"

Erin & I enjoying the great beginnings of Thai Shrimp Lettuce Wraps & Avocado Egg Rolls.

For the pizza, we did half and half of BJ's Favorite & Mediterranean. For dessert, we had BJ's famous Pizookie, also half and half of chocolate chunk & white chocolate macadamia nut. Zoya is ready to dig in....huge scoops of ice cream! YUM!

After dinner, we took Erin to the Shoppes. The Christmas tree and lights are still up. Since Erin hasn't been to the famous/popular Pinkberry, we went there just for her. Yes, we always have more rooms for more desserts. Unfortunately, Erin doesn't really like yogurt and she found the frozen yogurt somehow very disgusting..... haha

It was a great night eating out and hanging out together.

Teriyaki + Miso Soup

2010-01-07T16:29:00.000-08:00

2010 is a great start, a new beginning. I believe it's going to be a fruitful journey.

Two weeks winter break was gone before I knew it. It seems like we didn't have enough time to really "relax" or go on any trips, and it felt like we were busier than usual, but we enjoyed spending time with our families and friends. Many fun gatherings and tasteful feasts were basically what we had over our Christmas and New Year holidays.

Will got a few bottles of teriyaki sauce as gifts over Christmas and they "inspired" me to make some teriyaki chicken last night. It was the first official homemade dinner of year 2010. I made it as combo plate so we wouldn't eat too much!

Menu:
Miso Soup with onion & organic white mushrooms
Combo Plate: Teriyaki Chicken + Broccoli + Avocado over Tofu + brown rice

Seize the Moment

2009-12-27T15:47:00.000-08:00

The moment.

Last Sunday of year 2009. December 27, 2009. 1:02p.m.

Photo taken by Terry. Thanks! :)

Christmas Gifts

2009-12-23T13:45:00.000-08:00

This is something we'd never done before: buying Christmas gifts for all the sunday school children. It's really interesting when we asked the kids what they really want for Christmas. It all started with a mechanic pencil. A 6th grader told Will that he wants a cool Japanese mechanic pencil that when you shake it, the lead would come out. He even wrote a note to Will to give him instructions on how to find the pencil online. Then, some other kids started giving us their wish list thinking we are their Mr. and Mrs. Santa.

This is the hot item the 6th grader wants, "Uni-ball gel shaka shaka mechanical pencil."

A 5th grade girl introduced me to "Webkinz" something I'd never heard of. Webkinz are plush animals that each come with a secret code. You can log in with the code on their website where you can care for your virtual pet and play different games. I picked up this little cute-innocent-look puppy just for the girl but unfortunately the girl thinks the dog is way too scary with its two big eyes popping out. I was very disappointed and now this doggie is still sitting in our living room waiting to be exchanged in the store.

What does a first grader girl like for Christmas? "Pony in My Pocket & Puppy in My Pocket." I went to the store and found the "in-my-pocket" series of toys. They even come with "Jungle in My Pocket" and "Kitty in My Pocket." Those are cute little toys for little girls.

We spent so many days shopping here and there, trying to get all the presents ready before the Christmas program on Saturday night. With an extremely thoughtful Mr. Santa, he wants to grant everyone's wish but Mrs. Santa was there to remind him to stay within the budget. We finally got everything we need after four days of shopping. Then we threw a wrapping party on Friday night, well, just two of us, wrapping all the gifts.

Here are some group shots of "before" and "after".

Before the gift wrap.

After the gift wrap. Ready to give out to the kids.

Here are the goodie bags filled with yummy treats.

We gave out the presents after the Christmas program last Saturday night and kids were super happy when they received the gifts. Who wouldn't be happy, right? Hope these gifts not only bring smiles one their faces and joy to their hearts but also make them want to come back to church every Sunday, and most importantly, to remember the meaning of Christmas.

LOVE comes to us in many ways, but none more beautiful than the gift of JESUS.

May you have the endless blessings of His love

throughout the season and in the New Year

Have a Blessed & Joy-filled Christmas!

六人小組火鍋夜

2009-12-23T13:13:00.000-08:00

上個禮拜一大家突然心血來潮想來我們家吃火鍋
為了方便, 每次我們都在有小孩的游家或外面的餐廳相聚
這次可是我們搬來這後第一次“有朋自遠方來“
辛苦了兩家還要在尖峰時刻塞車上來
還要謝謝李家預備所有的火鍋料
還好平時房子沒有太亂....不過也是用最快的速度來個大掃除

it was a great night. great food. great company. great talk.
looking forward to our next gathering!

Nightmare

2009-12-13T20:16:00.000-08:00

這兩天都睡得很不好, 應該說是幾乎沒睡一樣
黑眼圈應該黑到像熊貓一樣
其實好累好累, 不過沒辦法入睡
其實這真的是一件非常痛苦的事情

昨天凌晨躺在沙發上, 終於睡著了
不過卻做了一個夢...算是惡夢吧～

夢到媽媽, Ruth和我遇到美國Obama總統
（可能西雅圖在ㄧ起玩太久, 感覺又是三人一起出遊）
很興奮能夠看到總統, 所以還跟總統一起拍很多照留念
場地是在一個可以看到很漂亮夜景, 有一整遍落地窗的大樓裡

接著鏡頭就轉到一台車子裡
我是車子裡的乘客, 坐在後座
車子裡還有另外三個人, 其中一個在開車, 不過都是我不認識的人
車子開著開著經過了一個很漂亮的海邊
月光照在海灘上好漂亮
沙灘上還有好多沙灘椅
我從車子裡回頭看, 一直想記下來這海灘在哪裡
車子繼續開....離海灘越來越遠
旁邊的建築物一直變, 還看到一家Starbucks
接著竟然看到好多好多廟（還懷疑自己到了台灣...)

後來車子停下來, 停在一家超市前面, 大家都下了車
其中有一個女的, 是個白人, 說沒有人可以帶她, 她就走掉了
沒想到那台車是我的
夢中的我開始考慮要不要開車去幫這個走路的女生
我想下車看ㄧ看, 我還在下車以前用外套把包包蓋住
沒想到正要下車的時候, 這個女的竟然突然站在我車子正前方
這很像鬼片裡面鬼突然從空氣裡出現一樣

雖然還沒發生什麼恐怖的事
不過感覺像是我把自己從夢裡叫醒一樣
因為總覺得站在那裡的那個女的就是恐怖的東西
我趕快從沙發上坐起來
去把暖氣關掉, 免得聽到奇怪的聲音.....
坐在沙發上一看只有凌晨四點多
一直禱告禱告禱告....好像很久沒這樣“毛骨悚然“.....

Johnny's Birthday

2009-12-11T23:06:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was Johnny's birthday and 6 of us celebrated his special day together at JT Schmid's Resaurant and Brewery.

It was a very interesting night because so many interesting things had happened at our table over that corner. The birthday boy had to work and the rest of us actually ate dinner first without him. The waitresses weren't friendly and attentive. The kids screamed because the meat balls were too spicy with too much garlic. David had to repeat almost three time telling the same train/santa/pizza story that happened at the park. We sure now remembered that day was the coldest day of the year. Birthday boy's ribeye steak was on the table before he got there. 85 degree cake without any plates and forks. Just so much noise and so much going on but we had a great time!

I didn't bring camera last night so I went through the photos we took last year and found this funny video. 一邊看我一邊笑....大笑...好好笑～～～～

Johnny的三個願望
第一, 我賺大錢
第二, 大家都賺大錢
第三, 我們都賺大錢

Will的祝福：希望Johnny能夠賺大錢
ManMan的祝福：希望老公可以讓我過無憂無慮的生活, 就是要賺大錢

我的旁白：這些人都愛世界....

Gracy的祝福：希望我們每年都可以跟Johnny一起過生日
aw.......so sweet....and it came true this year! We did celebrate together this year!!! =)

Ending
Jocelyn's Happy THURSDAY!! Soooo CUTE!!!

Raining Day

2009-12-11T22:19:00.001-08:00

It started to rain again last night and good thing is I have a day off today. Of course, we slept in. I think we slept 9 and half hours straight. It's too cold to get out of bed. Getting enough sleep does make us happier, healthier, and less stressful.

With this freezing weather, we wanted some shabu-shabu to keep us warm. We went to this place called "Shabu Shabu Station" for the very first time. It has the ads on their glass door for $8.99 for lunch special. We tried both pork and beef with sukiyaki and seaweed soup base. But the $8.99 only comes with 6 slices of meat, no wonder the waitress wanted us to order the bigger plates. Overall the shabu is just ok, probably won't come back again.

Shabu Shabu Station
2803 S. Diamond Bar Blvd.
Diamond Bar, CA 91765
909.839.2560

Tokyo Shabu Shabu is another shabu place in Diamond Plaza in Rowland Heights. Lillian and I went there several times and i think their meat is probably a little better compared with the Shabu Shabu Station.

Tokyo Shabu Shabu
1330 S. Fullerton Rd., #108
Diamond Plaza, Rowland Heights, CA 91748
626.810.6037

We think the best shabu place is the one in Japan town called "Shabu Shabu House Restaurant." It's the most famous place for shabu and it's always a LONG wait. But I think they have the best meat for shabu. Maybe one of these days we will drive all the there to downtown just to enjoy their shabu shabu. =)

Shabu Shabu House Restaurant (closed on Mondays)
127 Japanese Village Plaza Mall
Los Angeles, CA 90012
213.680.3890

不過, 最省錢的方法還是自己在家吃火鍋. Time for HOT POT gathering!

小籠包+海南雞飯

2009-12-10T12:17:00.000-08:00

從五月多到現在都很認真的工作
今年暑假也沒有放假
一直到11月中工作才慢慢放慢腳步
所以這個禮拜開始又回到我真的很part-time的part-time job
But I'm thankful that, with the budget cut, I still have a job.

昨天沒有上班, 好久沒有可以這樣慵懶
It feels good to know that I can sleep in
had my quiet time, used the computer, took shower
老公和我決定在這寒冷的天氣裏來些"小籠包"
所以我們就開到Monterey Park的"一口福"
沒想到開這麼遠竟然星期三關門~~~~~

所以改變計畫去吃"海南雞飯"
Weekday的禮拜三在Savoy生意還出乎意料的好
大客滿還要排隊, 不過真的好好吃喔~~~~~

一口福 (**Closed on Wednesdays)
153 E. Garvey Ave., Monterey Park, CA 91755
(626)307-5700, (626)625-8399

Savoy Kitchen 海南雞飯 (**Closed on Sundays)
138 E. Valley Blvd., Alhambra, CA91801
(626)308-9535

Christmas Lights

2009-12-08T20:32:00.000-08:00

We put up the Christmas stuff last night. Now it feels more like Christmas season. We took out the snowmen, ornaments, candy house, snow flakes candle holders and placemats, and of course, Christmas lights. Now we just need a Christmas tree to complete the picture. =)

It's a sweet and warm feeling to have a home.

Bear Bank

2009-12-08T14:46:00.000-08:00

不知道從什麼時候開始我們就有隻小熊了
It's the container for pudding/jello from the supermarket and it's also a bear bank for coins. We've been using it to collect our spare coins. It was almost full so last week we decided to go to the bank to change the coins into dollar bills. We'd never done it before and really had no idea how much those coins were.

We dumped all the coins into the coin machine and surprisingly, the total turned out to be $191.

深深體會“積少成多“的道理

Friendship

2009-12-06T16:31:00.000-08:00

Today is a day of friendship.

六人小組自上次星期五晚上在Taiko & Guppy House歡聚之後
游家小倆口去了趟台灣, 李家小倆口去了趟紐約

（為什麼我哪裡都沒去？！）
現在想要見面可真是不容易, 因為大家的時間很難瞧
所以午餐不行, 晚餐也不行, 那只好來個前所未有的brunch
為了見面就算犧牲禮拜六早上的睡眠也是值得的～～～～
這次brunch的地點是“Costa Mesa Omelette Parlor"
超級country style的餐廳
難得早上吃的這麼營養豐盛
小小的桌子擺滿了好多好多食物
6個大人+2個小孩+1個胎兒, 擠在小小的桌子....很溫暖～～～～
It's great to see each other every single time we get together..... It feels awesome to know they are always there for us. =)

Thank You Lord for giving us lifelong friends.

We were able to attend SOP kids choir praise and worship event in the afternoon. The kids are amazing! It's such a joy to see kids enjoying in worship through music. Children are so genuine and their hearts are simple when they come before God. I had tears in my eyes so many times through that one hour event. I thank God that those kids can get to know God at this young age and they can worship Him freely without feeling embarrassed or awkward. They have the faith and confidence to claim that Jesus is the one who deserves all the praises and worship. The theme of this season for kids choir is God is our friend. "I am a friend of God; He calls me friend." The kids choir is super inspiring and my prayer is that more children will get to know Jesus to receive His salvation, and more children will be raised up to be the true worshippers for our Lord Jesus.

Thank You Lord for being my FRIEND.

晚上是我們第一次到巴牧師家吃飯
第一次一起吃飯是在corner bakery
他們是很年輕的一對牧師師母, 跟我們年紀一樣
他們的小孩真的是超級無敵可愛ㄉ, 白人小孩怎麼都這麼這麼這麼口愛啊！
我對這對夫妻充滿了尊敬和敬佩
一對白人夫妻竟然可以在華人教會裡服事這麼多年（全教會都是華人）
想到這....真想起立幫他們鼓掌
我很難想像自己可以在全部都是白人的教會裡服事
共不用說是黑人或是墨西哥族裔
所以說若不是神的呼召和感動應該很難生存吧～

文化真的是很有趣的東西
這次是到人家家裡去hang out 吃晚餐
昨晚要去吃飯前還跟老公在猜會吃什麼
很少這樣到“美國人“家裡去吃飯
結果很有趣的是竟然大大的盤子裡有ㄧ大團親手烹調的馬鈴薯泥
馬鈴薯泥裡有一些碎肉和紅羅蔔, 很好吃
吃著吃著拿出麵包和奶油
吃了兩片類似法國麵包的麵包
吃完盤子上的馬鈴薯泥
以為還有什麼烤雞或pasta之類的
沒想到晚餐就是那盤馬鈴薯泥+麵包
真的是吃七分飽.......
這就是美國人的純真和直接

飯後我們就開始聊天
這樣一聊竟然從5點的晚餐聊到快11點才回家
這兩次的相聚我都有一種感覺
就是“心會打開“的感覺
是種開心, 臉上會帶有微笑的那種感覺

Thank You Lord for this new friendship.

2009-12-04T10:16:00.001-08:00

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Christmas is just around the corner. With the holiday music and decorations here and there, the joy of christmas is in the air!

Thanksgiving!

2009-11-28T01:09:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's good to have a 5-day long Thanksgiving holidays. Unfortunately, I got a little sick with running nose just the day before the vacation. But I still give thanks because hubby has been taking good care of me and I was able to sleep more than 9 hours a day for the past few nights. It feels good to rest, eat, sleep, and rest more.

I spent my first day shopping with Janice and Zoya. It was good hanging out with my sister. I miss the the time when she was pregnant and we got to hang out all the time. We were at the mall for six hours, trying on new clothes and shoes. It was so much fun. On Thanksgiving day, we made "five-color-fish" and "pearl balls" and had dinner at my in-laws. It was my third year spending Thanksgiving at my in-laws. We had a feast!

Black Friday, didn't go shopping. Basically we rested for the whole day and went to my parents' church for Thanksgiving dinner. Another feast tonight. Mom's turkey is so juicy and the 豆花 is still the best. I think I had three cream puffs. Great to see some familiar faces, old friends and cute babies.

Looking forward to the Thanksgiving weekend.

Thank You Lord for all of Your blessings. I'm richly blessed in every way.

Pyramid Beer

2009-11-23T16:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Hour makes you happy.

We went to many "Happy Hours" to have our late lunch/early dinner while we were at Seattle. Mom was happy that we took her to those "Happy Hours" to enjoy the great ambiances, foods and alcohols, and of course, cheaper prices. We were there mainly for the foods because we don't really drink and honestly, we don't know the names on the wine/beer list. Three of us would share either one glass of wine or beer.

We went to a seafood restaurant one of the nights and the waiter recommended a beer that he thinks is the most popular and good with the seafood, Pyramid Haywire Hefeweizen. Mom loved it! This aromatic and light brew is really great with the shellfish.

I just googled it and found its official website. Surprisingly, it's the gold medal winner of 2009 Great American Beer Festival.

Seattle之奇幻旅程

2009-11-20T15:29:00.000-08:00

對我來說, 西雅圖是個很淒美的城市
“淒“是因為天氣總是烏雲密佈, 不是颳風就是下雨
又冷又暗...總是帶來惆悵憂鬱的感覺
“美“是因為它的景色優美, 空氣新鮮, 充滿著藝術文化的氣息
在這熱鬧的城市裡, 像是可以一層層揭開發掘它的寶藏和豐富

這是第二次來到西雅圖
母女三人行的奇幻旅程
從7天的旅行變成12天
我們走遍了各個景點, 享盡了許多美食
玩到第一次有那種“可以回家“的感覺

終於, 回到了熟悉又溫暖的加州
真的, 有陽光的地方才感覺有生命力！

Biggest Boss

2009-11-02T21:28:00.000-08:00

這篇一定要用中文寫, 因為是寫有關工作方面“老闆“的事情
今天憋不住了, 一定要在這發洩一下......

我, 只是公家機關裡小小的一個職員
上頭有個主管, 主管上面還有個大主管
她是我們部門的頭, 算是我們這一群人的“老闆“
其實幫政府做事並沒有什麼“老闆“可言
因為上頭的人也沒人在管

這個“老闆“是個很bossy的人
仗著有著高職位, 常常會目中無人, 覺得她要什麼就要有什麼
常常利用上班時間做自己的私事, 甚至去逛街
有時吃個飯都吃個兩三個小時
還有開會訂午餐的時候會私下多訂一些帶回家
她的秘書是個大好人, 但是很可憐

因為總是要幫她掩護, 還常常被她吼....
這老闆脾氣不是很好, 需要的東西一定要“馬上“拿到她面前
她要找的人一定要“馬上“出現在她面前

雖然大家都很受不了她, 不過大家還是很怕她
表面上都是用笑臉對待她
我很少跟這老闆有接觸, 除非是像要請很長的假啦或是有聚餐之類會看到
或是去上廁所看到閒聊打招呼
能不看到就不看到, 我是不會刻意到她辦公室找她

常常聽到別人被她轟炸的事, 總覺得很不可思議
一直到上個月的某一天, 她要找的人都剛好不在去開會
所以她的脾氣就來了, 結果竟然把氣出在我身上
那一次我真的嚇了一跳.....也算是大開眼界

今天剛好也是, 該去開會的人都分別去開會了
只有我還在辦公室裡
沒想到電話響了, 一接起來竟然是這位“老闆“
她問我其他的人去哪了怎麼都不接電話
我把其他人的行蹤都交代清楚後
她竟然問我知不知道一樣資料（一份數據）
我說負責這項資料的人不在
她竟然要我去打開那個人的電腦
問題是我怎麼可能在別人不在的時候去打開人家的檔案

（加上每個人都有自己的密碼）
所以老闆沒辦法“馬上“得到她要的數據
當然囉～口氣就變得很不好, 我就當場被“轟炸“了
她說這些資料我應該都要有

如果大家都不在, 有人要問的時候我就應該要知道....
反正我就莫名其妙的被炸了

沒過一會她的秘書來找我
她說剛剛老闆和我的對話是用speaker, 她和另外一個人都聽到了
it wasn't very nice....yes..it wasn't at all.
秘書要我不要在意

我只是覺得很無辜啦～
我天上的無敵超級大老闆啊～這一切祢都看到了....
Lord, thank You for this job.

Lord, bless the work of my hands and bless my bosses and coworkers. Amen.

Baby Wave

2009-11-01T21:49:00.000-08:00

昨天有個很久沒有見面也很久沒有連絡的朋友打電話給我
才講幾句, 他就問我：“妳什麼時候要生？？“
我說：“生什麼？？？“
雖然我知道他在問什麼, 也知道他沒有惡意
不過我心裡在想, 應該是覺得我已經懷孕了才會這樣問
他說他是“聽說“我好像有了所以才想打電話來親自問我
這個“聽說“也真的讓我想不透
那麼久沒見過面也沒連絡, 是怎麼“聽說“的

我知道前陣子我比較愛吃
所以是真的看起來比較胖
所以那個時候照片裡的我比較“臃腫“一點
有人看到照片也以為我懷孕了
這種感覺其實還蠻“嘔“的
顯然別人覺得我“胖“到像懷孕
不過我也這樣看到別人照片猜過別人（當然不是指著別人講）
所以我可以理解.....

還有一次在教會有個很不識相的阿姨還指著我的肚子說：“妳懷孕囉？“
那時我還蠻氣的, 又沒很熟就這樣指著我的肚子問.....
還有一次有人也看著我的臉說："wow, sydney, are you pregnant?"
這種舉動是不是有點太直了點？！？！？！

常常有很多人看到我會問我什麼時候要生小孩啊？
特別是教會的叔叔阿姨們
上次有個阿姨看到我在抱一個baby

就很大聲的說：“啊妳怎麼不趕快生一個？“
那是我第一次感到有點生氣, 也不能說生氣啦
只是有點覺得莫名其妙, 好像是我故意不生一樣......

我很喜歡小baby, 如果我懷孕我會跟整個世界宣佈
但是現在我還“沒有“.....

這陣子好多人懷孕生產
算一算, 我知道最近有13個媽媽懷孕生小孩
13個！！！好多喔～這一潮的baby wave好大一波喔！

這裡我也想分享個見證
2008年8月曾經我在我的journal裡我寫下六對couple的名字
這6對couple都是非常想要有小孩的夫妻
那時可能我對於他們很想要有小孩卻沒有辦法有小孩而感到很有負擔
所以就寫下來幫他們禱告
他們不是嘗試懷孕好多好多年, 不然就是身體上有問題幾乎不可能懷孕
或是因為身體方面還不適合懷孕
很奇妙的,

今年這6對夫妻裡有5對都奇蹟式的懷孕了, 而且是自然懷孕的喔～
最不可能的那對今天小寶寶滿月了
其他的還在待產當中, 有一對還懷了雙胞胎呢！

我每次回去翻那篇journal都覺得神真的好奇妙
God does miracles!! He is truly the giver of life.
He is the one who opens the wombs.

我想神有祂自己美好的時間
God has made everything beautiful in His time. =)

Water. Water. Water

2009-11-01T21:35:00.000-08:00

It didn't feel right when I went to the bathroom early Friday morning. I went back to sleep and again felt the urge that I needed to go to the bathroom again. Then immediately I knew that I had the bladder/urinary infection. I had it twice before and I knew the symptoms and really scared of the nasty "burning" feeling. I called my family doctor right away and went to the doctor's office Friday morning. With my urine tested, the infection is confirmed.

I spent my Friday and Saturday taking medication, drinking plenty of water & cranberry juice, and running to the bathroom numerous times. Thank God, now I'm 90% recovered. Just need two more days of medication and keep drinking water and I will be fine.

Drinking enough water is something I really need to watch out. Of course, go to the bathroom more often. =)

Couch Potatoes

2009-10-30T19:12:00.000-07:00

My hubby loves to watch TV. His whole family loves to watch TV. It's a habit, a lifestyle. I don't think he can live without a TV and I think I'm just becoming like him. We are two big couch potatoes! =P If we are going to calculate the hours we spend on watching TV, then it's obviously too much. Can't imagine the one hour per week entertainment limit for D&G's discipleship class. I don't think we are able to go through that class at all. haha~

Soap opera is extremely dangerous and addicting. 自從上次不眠不休的看完“命中注定我愛你“以後就休息了一陣子. With D's recommendation, hubby decided to watch "痞子英雄“ and of course we watched it together. We finished 24 episodes within 4-5 days if I remembered it correctly. No wonder I was so tired at work those days when we stayed up so late. “痞子英雄“還算不錯的偶像劇, 拍攝手法不錯, 取景都還蠻唯美的. 它是屬於懸疑推理的劇情, 比較不像“命中注定我愛你“那麼多感情戲, 會讓我感動到哭得西哩嘩啦

My favorite genre of movie is suspense/thriller, action, and drama. I love those investigations on crime scenes and murder cases. But I think as I get older, romantic comedies do make me laugh. I was surprised after watching this movie, "Proposal." I didn't have too much expectation when we rented it, but it turned out to be a movie we enjoyed. 第一次覺得romantic comedy會讓我笑得這麼開心, 讓我覺得很溫馨. Therefore, I gave "Proposal" an "A."

With the previous great experience on romantic comedy, we then rented the movie "Management" starred by Jennifer Aniston. To me, Jennifer Aniston is a superstar and I like her movies, such as "The Break-up" & "Marley and Me." But this movie "Management" is a TERRIBLE movie. Can't believe she would even agree to star in this movie after seeing the boring, weird script. Anyway, it's the worst movie of all, definitely giving it a "F."

Yes, we watched another romantic comedy, "Ghost of Girlfriends Past." This one is just an okay movie. Not exciting, not funny, very predictable from the beginning to the end. I rated it a "C" movie.

E.K. recommended us a movie called "Orphan." We've been waiting for it to come out and sure thing we rented it this week. It's a creepy, scary, psycho-demon, high-intense frightening thriller. WARMING: NOT for pregnant women or couples who want to adopt children. The story has a twist that is quite surprising. It earned a "B-" on my list.

This post is like a movie review. It's just my opinion to share. What's next? “福氣又安康“？？？

2009-10-19T01:55:00.000-07:00

another sleepless night.

it's two in the morning and i'm here blogging.
what do people do when they wake up in the middle of the night and can't go back to sleep?

back in the kitchen

2009-10-18T16:43:00.000-07:00

For me, cooking is something I enjoy doing. Eating at home is healthier and also cheaper. After moving in to this new place, this is my first "official" homemade meal. The good news is the dishes turned out better than I thought. But the bad news is that the ventilation of this place is extremely terrible. The air just doesn't flow even with the vent on and all the windows open. It's like we really need to put on the oxygen masks to breathe the fresh air.

So, I will stick to my old "healthy-eating" style with just my steamer, oven, and 大同電鍋。

Birthday Cards

2009-10-07T22:41:00.000-07:00

以現今科技的進步, 應該已經很少人在寫信了

我講的是“手寫“, "hand-written"......
肯花時間親手寫, 只能說是很有心......

這次生日收到3張卡片, 親手寫的卡片
一張是老公寫的, 是26號晚上熬到12點鐘老公送給我的
老公喜歡把卡片偷偷放在枕頭下面
所以這招已經被我識破, 所以卡片才藏在枕頭下就被我找到
硬是得等到12點才能看卡片
內容在這就不多說, 當然是那種看完會決定一生一世愛死他的感動

另外兩張嘛....竟然都是柔寄的！！！
因為剛搬家, 所以卡片都是寄到我爸媽家
前幾天回家收到一張覺得很感動
因為卡片寫得滿滿的...還有一些插圖和貼紙
沒想到, 今天晚上又看到第二張卡片！！！！
也是寫得滿滿的, 再次祝我生日快樂～
信封上還有口紅印的kiss一個.......
剛剛把兩張卡片又再重新看了一次覺得很貼心....很可愛.....這人會不會太想我了一點～～～～～～
在百忙之中還能花時間給我這小小的驚喜....厲害喔～～～～

謝謝妳～希望德州的天氣會快快轉晴！

Meeting the Animals

2009-10-02T12:20:00.000-07:00

For kids, visiting the zoo is part of the childhood must-do. We'd been wanting to take Zoya to the zoo for a long time but just couldn't find the right time. We bought this annual membership gift card for Will & Janice for their birthdays early this year and we also got one for ourselves so we can tag along. We found this SD zoo annual membership gift card at VONS and it's a very great deal for two adults for both SD zoo and wild animal park. It also came with two free admissions. That's how Ruth got in for free. So Saturday morning the entire crew came, even the 2-month-old baby Zech. How lucky he is to go to the zoo for the first time at such a young young young age. This the only group shot we had. Baby Zech is actually on the bottom level of the stroller....if you wonder...haha

Bringing two kids is NOT easy at all. Everyone just needs extra patience and slow down our paste and be flexible. The zoo is actually very big and we started our visit on the tour bus to get an idea where the animals are. I had the chance to take a close shot of baby Zech while sitting behind them on the tour bus. You look cute Zech! It was a comfy ride~

Meeting the "real" animals is extremely exciting for little Zoya. She knows a lot of the animals from TV, DVD, and books. We were also super excited and eager to see her reaction when she sees the animals. I think all of us had a blast. Those creatures are just very unique and cute. Here are some of the photos we took. Aren't they lovely?!

This rhino is completely clad in armor. very cool...

This polar bear is taking a sunbath and looks like it's looking directly at my camera!

The koala bears are extremely cute and fluffy. All the koala bears were sleeping when we visited them. I think they sleep 19-20 hours a day. It's so interesting how they just stick themselves between the branches on the trees when they sleep. I think they got really good balance skills! They won't fall off from the trees...

Giraffe is one of Zoya's favorite animals. They're TALL!

The zoo closed early on Saturday due to a fundraise event. We were not able to see the entire zoo so we only saw the major ones we wanted. Yay! Zoya had so much fun and for sure she is such a happy girl.

For the night, we walked to the nearby Gaslamp District for dinner.

This place is not kids friendly. Many were dressed up and ready to party through the night. I didn't see any strollers except ours. We went to this restaurant called "Ocean Room" which is recommended by the hotel concierge. It's located on the busiest street of the district. We had the seafood pasta with lobster sauce.

Today was the last day to be a 29-year-old.

Mini Weekend Getaway

2009-10-01T00:14:00.000-07:00

To celebrate my birthday, we had a mini weekend getaway to San Diego. It's always good to take a break and be with each other. The traffic down to south on a Friday was bad but we made it there before the sunset. After checking in the hotel, we took a walk to Seaport Village.

It was just so calm and peaceful with perfect temperature and breeze. It was our Friday date night! Everything just looked so artistic and romantic with the yummy light from sunset.

We had our dinner at Fish Market by the water. We had the patio sitting and the view was stunning.

Their seafood is actually really good. We had clam chowders, grilled fish, and steamed shellfish. The bucket of clams and mussels are steamed with wine, butter, and fresh garlic. We loved it.

Photobook

2009-09-30T23:49:00.001-07:00

I've been using Kodak Gallery (Ofoto) to upload photos and create online albums for many years since 2004. It used to be FREE but now they require users to make at least $19.99 purchases each year in order to keep all the photos. I got a second notice telling me that I need to make a purchase to renew my photo storage by 9/30/09, which is today, or all my photo albums will be deleted. Errrrr.....I didn't want to lose all my photos so I had to buy "something" from Kodak. So I'd decided/been forced to make a photobook by tonight. I just finished creating a photobook for our trip to Kauai. I ended up adding more and more pages to the photobook and each additional page is 99 cents. I spent total of $43 for the order, more than I expected.

I wonder if all the sites that provide online photo albums require minimum cost......

Refrigerator

2009-09-25T00:16:00.000-07:00

We got a new fridge.

It's not easy to choose and buy a fridge. I guess it's one of those big household items that requires some research and consideration. I think we at least spent more than 6 hours at Sears looking at different fridges. We drove the salesperson crazy. It was a hard decision just because we're not homeowners and we don't know exactly what we really need/want.

We actually purchased one refrigerator last week but we canceled the order the next day. We forgot to measure the depth of the space and the fridge is too big and would probably occupy too much space in the kitchen. Earlier this week, we went to another Sears (to avoid the same sales guy). We decided to buy a not-so-expensive ordinary white side by side Kenmore fridge. It's been delivered this afternoon and now it's sitting in our kitchen with some drinks inside.

Now we can have some cold drinks and leftovers. We survived without a fridge for two weeks.

買二送一

2009-09-24T00:49:00.000-07:00

昨天晚上我們去找朋友之前想說買些小蛋糕帶去
所以就到貴夫人bakery
進去就看到兩位店員小姐很忙的在包月餅和蛋黃酥
店員雖然在忙還是很有禮貌的問我們需不需要幫忙
我們說先看一看
然後兩位店員小姐繼續低頭認真的在包月餅和蛋黃酥
我們看著冰櫃裡好多各種口味的小蛋糕
冰櫃上面還有著大大的sign寫著“買二送一“

看了看, 老公就問店員：“請問一下盒子可以裝幾個蛋糕？“
店員說：“可以裝3個, 6個, 9個...幾個都可以“
講完就繼續埋頭忙.....

我們看了又看....
店員說：“如果看好了可以跟我們說..."

結果過一會兒, 老公跟店員說我們決定好了
其中一個店員問：“那你們總共要幾個？“
老公竟然說：“5個！“
馬上這兩位埋頭包裝的店員小姐同時抬起頭異口同聲提高聲亮驚訝的說：“5個？？？？？？？？？“
其實我也嚇了一跳....買二送一...怎麼會跑出“5“這個數字？？！！！
老公, 如果買5個他們還是會再送ㄧ個....

最後我們是帶走了6個小蛋糕
一上車我快笑倒了....問老公：“你剛剛有看到上面寫買二送一嗎？“
老公說：“有."
有？？？？？？？？？？？？....吼....................
老公啊, 你真的是我的開心果ㄟ～～～～

Reunion

2009-09-20T23:34:00.000-07:00

忘了上次6人小組6個人都到齊是什麼時候了

算算應該是大概2個多月以前
現在游家一家終於從亞洲回來了
這之間李家也傳出當爸爸媽媽的好消息....（真是令人興奮！！！）
我們陳家嘛～還請大家多為我們禱告
等待公佈好消息的那一天～～～

星期五晚上終於來個大團圓
好高興看到大家, 可以又在一起“吃飯“和“聊天“

這好像是我們唯一會在一起做的事...哈哈哈
還好有ipod touch裡面的巧虎讓小朋友不會無聊老婆們老公們（強尼在廚房裡.....下次補照）

中文程度

2009-09-20T10:23:00.000-07:00

如果有人跟老公說他的中文講的很好的時候
他就會“牽拖“說是因為我的關係
因為他是認識我之後才開始講中文的
電腦會打中文也是認識我之後才開使學會的
It's good to know that I inspired him to learn something new!
雖然老公也是junior high才來美國的
不過他的英文怎麼這麼好啊？！
遇到我這中文比英文好的老婆只好用中文跟我講話....

昨天早上我們在討論有些爸爸媽媽都不好好管教自己的小孩
因為身邊很多朋友有小孩
工作性質也常常看到很多學生
在教會裡面也有好多小朋友
所以常常可以看到小朋友的行為舉止和之間的互動

我們在想當爸爸媽媽的應該會選擇自己的小孩和怎麼樣的小孩一起玩
因為小朋友在ㄧ起會學來學去
當爸媽的應該不會想讓自己的孩子跟很“皮“的小孩在一起
不然應該多少會有點學些壞習慣或是變得也很皮

這時老公竟然說“對啊～這就是“近朱者赤, 近墨者黑“！！“
天啊～～～～～竟然突然給我說出ㄧ句這麼高程度的成語
吼.....厲害喔～～～～～（驚訝中.....)

讚美完老公以後很興奮的請老公再講一句成語來聽聽
老公說“吃葡萄不吐葡萄皮, 不吃葡萄不吐葡萄皮“
....................很好..........很好.................... =__=

靜...近....

2009-09-18T16:34:00.000-07:00

前幾篇講過說新家很吵, 不過這幾天適應得還算可以
可能是上班太累了, 加上早起晚睡, 所以睡得都還不錯
昨天晚上10點半就去睡了
現在都是晚上窗戶關起來, 冷氣調到舒服的溫度
放Gracy的piano album (謝謝 Gracy每天晚上都彈琴給我們聽.....)
以前有一點音樂都無法入睡, 現在有著柔柔的鋼琴聲陪伴竟然都睡得著
是的, 人是會隨著環境改變的, 適者生存是有道理的

這地方雖然沒有很安靜, 不過倒是離上班很近
近到我沒事都還可以回家一下
離辦公事大約3 miles...大概要6-7分鐘
如果是需要到學校去的話, 也都是在這範圍之內
這幾天剛好需要到對面的高中
所以只需1分鐘的路程....真高興....真的只要1分鐘ㄟ

所以這幾天都是先到一些學校去
在回到辦公室前買個東西回家吃, 看看在家上班的老公
然後再回去上班
雖然這裡不“靜“....不過我很喜歡它的“近“～～～～

cupcakes

2009-09-17T17:19:00.000-07:00

我心愛的照相機壞了.....Nikon coolpix S550.

The lenses is not working....heartbroken....

壞掉的時候我還真有“心痛“的感覺
這已經是第二台老公送我的小型照相機
也是第二台被我“弄壞“的照相機
這是我覺得最有意義的禮物之一
因為喜歡亂拍照, 所以每天都會放在包包裡面
加上記憶力不是很好, 照相機裡的照片可以幫我紀錄我的生活點滴

我也不知道怎麼懷掉的, 會不會是因為屁股太大壓到包包裡的照相機.....有可能

今天看一看前陣子照的一些照片
突然想到上次吃得“超級甜“的cupcakes
這家店叫"Dolcissimo"...不知道正確念法, 聽起來很像“這是什麼....?" haha =D
第一次經過只是想看看探個究竟
不過老公超級老實加上不好意思就硬要買兩個來吃吃看
看起來真的很可愛的cupcakes
還裝在有cupcake holder的小盒子裡付錢的時候覺得“超級貴“的....

one cupcake for $3.25..what a rip off!
回家迫不及待的打開來吃吃看
One is "red velvet", cocoa cake with cream cheese frosting.
The other one is "diva", rich chocolate cake with pink vanilla buttercream.天啊～～～～～沒吃過這麼甜的東西
啊呦喂呀....怎麼這麼這麼這麼的甜
已經很小了不過我根本沒辦法吃完一個...花了六塊多真的很不值得ㄋ

Lesson learned. Never buy the cupcakes from Dolcissimo.

Too sweet for us. extremely sweet...........

習慣

2009-09-16T18:14:00.000-07:00

過了幾天沒有電視沒有網路的生活
過去的這幾天都在忙著搬家
搬家這件大事也就到此告一個段落

在打包的過程當中, 只覺得我們還真的蠻浪費的
竟然櫥櫃裡堆滿了好多過期的零食
以前還真愛亂買......
兩個人竟然有這麼多東西, 裝箱都裝不完一樣.....

搬到這個新的地方後, 我們發現了一個大問題
那就是.....“噪音“
這是沒搬進來住沒發現的嚴重問題
噪音從哪來ㄋ？？大馬路上的車子和隔壁的冷氣機
雖然不是直接就在馬路旁邊, 不過是離大馬路還蠻近的
所以可以聽到車子來來往往, 咻來咻去的聲音
就連關上窗戶都還可以聽的到...特別是晚上該安靜的時候
至於隔壁的冷氣機嘛, 就剛好就在我們窗戶外面
馬達的聲音還真的讓我很受不了.............
所以如果隔壁鄰居開冷氣我們就受到很“大“的影響

本來就不容易入睡的我對聲音還蠻敏感的
所以晚上有任何聲音都有可能會醒來
連音樂都會讓我睡不著
更何況是對我來說超級大聲的“噪音“

現在晚上睡覺一定窗戶全部關起來
如果熱的話要開冷氣
如果還太吵就開音樂
如果還是睡不著就整理房子
如果.....如果真的受不了就“搬家“

很多人都說這種聲音是可以習慣的
沒錯, 到任何地方都是可以隨著時間習慣的
只是這種習慣還真的會降低生活的品質

每天睡覺前就禱告神讓我聽不見.....但是要聽到起床的鬧鐘
我可以禱告神讓隔壁的冷氣壞掉嗎？！
btw, 神幫我們預備了一台microwave. =D Praise God.

Cleaning Company

2009-09-09T22:55:00.000-07:00

中午趁午餐時間跑去新家看看上工的老公
上次擦完油漆有一些要補的地方
本來我們是很想請人來清理廚房和浴室
不過人家介紹的不是時間不剛好, 不然就是太貴, 不然就是不給個價錢
所以早上老公就自己去買了ㄧ堆清潔用品
還好我要上班....不然我的玉手應該會變得很粗很粗吧～～～～

沒想到午餐時間過後正要離開回去上班的時候
看到門口前面停了一台van, 上面寫著“保潔清潔公司“（還是中文的ㄋ）
馬上打電話給老公說“趕快出來, 門口外面停了一台清潔公司的車子ㄟ“
結果我就去上班了

下午大概三點多老公打電話來
說房子全部清好了!!! 而且很乾淨ㄟ!!!
老公說他跟我講完電話後就出來門口, 看到這清潔公司的人在樹下休息
結果人家是本來要去The Country那裡的某戶人家打掃的
不過因為主人還沒到家所以先找個地方休息休息
剛剛好...就找到我們家門口的樹下......

結果他們總共有4個人一起清
把廚房浴室上上下下裡裡外外都弄得非常乾淨
就連本來覺得一定得換廁所的sink都清得很乾淨
所以現在sink不用換了喔～～～～開心 ^__^
還順便再請他們洗地毯（真是專業, van裡面還有專業洗地毯機器）

我下班後有過去親眼鑑定一下
果真廚房的countertop都乾乾淨淨, 縫縫裡一點都沒油垢
明天地毯完全乾了以後就可以搬搬搬囉～～～～
（不過完全還沒打包....)

感謝主, 差派了這個清潔公司到我們家門口休息乘涼
真是太神奇了!!!! 真的, 他們像是神派來的天使一樣
讓我們省時省力省煩惱
Thank You Lord!

現在, 我們需要一個冰箱和microwave
明天會直接出現在門口嗎？？

新家

2009-09-08T21:32:00.000-07:00

Yes, we’ve found a new place to live.
因為現在住的公寓的租約早已經到期, 加上房租又要漲
所以我們最後決定要搬家囉~

這一個月裏我們的確找了也看了很多地方
當然, 希望能找到在我們budget範圍內的房子
我們希望找至少有兩個房間的, 這樣就有more working space
最好是有attached garage, 除了放東西, 買菜回家也不用提的那麼辛苦
還有要離freeway近一點, 這樣去哪裡都比較方便

這個新家, 符合了我們的要求
尋找的過程也蠻特別的
是老公因為開錯路剛好看到房東先生在路口插rent的廣告
所以馬上就當場跟房東聊起來
房東是廣東人, 看起來是上了年紀的夫婦
房東先生是主內神的僕人, 準備要去讀神學院

這個房子算是一個townhouse
2 bedrooms, one bath, single floor with high ceiling
attached 2-car garage
But, no fridge, no microwave, no washer & dryer
We have the access to the swimming pool, jacuzzi, and the playground
空間的確大了很多, 租金跟我們之前的一樣
房東還把爐台烤箱換一套新的, 地毯洗乾淨
地點離我公司只有3 miles…..真好~ 好近喔~~

不過, 就在簽完約, 開始我們的租約之後
老公和我都覺得有點”不確定”
特別是我, 我的”潔癖”讓我全身不自在 (其實我的標準只是普通而已…)
雖然我們還沒搬進去, 但在這預備整理的這個禮拜裏
我發覺這個新家以前的主人很不愛乾淨

是沒錯, 每個人對”乾淨”的標準和要求不同
不過我想連房東都是隨便清清就給我們了
廚房有很多廚櫃抽屜, 不過我每格一擦抹布都快變黑的
很好奇這麼髒怎麼放廚房的東西啊….?!?!?!?!
我可是一邊擦一邊做潔淨的禱告
當然, 廚房的countertop 更是一大工程 (超黏的油垢…)

另一個問題是廁所, 也是”髒”一個字
其中的一個sink非常的髒, 髒到覺得一定要換個新的不可
不過房東非常的”節省”, 並沒有打算要換

上個禮拜我們自己 (主要是老公啦!) 在客廳裝了兩個窗戶的百葉窗
因為本來是窗簾, 要是想要有風或是光線, 窗簾拉開就沒有privacy
所以自己掏腰包裝百葉窗
除此之外, 室內油漆的顏色我不是很喜歡啦
客廳是淡淡的橘色(還好….說的過去)
其中一間房間是深橘色 (問題是地毯是深粉紅色的….)
另一間則是很不平常的藍綠色
所以, 我們自己重漆了這兩間房間
當然, 也是自己掏腰包買paint

除了廁所的sink, 廁所的電燈也都生鏽的非常利害
還有其中的一個sink的轉熱水的faucet knob 壞了
真的有一些東西是不搬進來是不知道的………

老公覺得住的舒服最重要
當然, 要在這裡住一年ㄟ!!!!!
只不過覺得只是租的地方, 除了租金我們又得自己花錢修這個改這個
這感覺不是很好~

不過我相信神會祝福這個地方的
我的禱告是這個家會成為我們充滿愛和恩典和平安的居所
可以透過這個地方讓更多人受到祝福

We're trying our best to make this place clean and comfortable.

Goodbye

2009-09-08T21:30:00.000-07:00

這幾天回到家總是會東看看, 西看看
覺得自己還真喜歡現在住的這個地方
好乾淨, 好清爽, 好舒服的感覺~
雖然它只是小小的一個one-bedroom apartment
但是它可是麻雀雖小五臟俱全
有冰箱, 微波爐, 爐台, 烤箱, 洗碗機, 洗衣機, 烘乾機
搬進來的期間廁所的sink & 馬桶都換全新的
也因為是在樓上的unit, high ceiling 的感覺很好
尤其是因為在山坡上, 可以從客廳和陽台看到很棒的view
這裡, 像是一個山上的渡假小屋

這個地方對我來說很重要, 很特別
那時候看了好多好多地方才決定住在這裡
因為我從來都沒自己在外面住過
這可是我和老公第一個愛的小窩
所以它對我有很深的意義
在過去的一年半裏, 這裡裝了許許多多的回憶

不過, 是時候說再見了~
Goodbye, Apartment 151.

告發

2009-09-08T21:27:00.000-07:00

天氣終於稍微轉涼了
感覺到一點點秋天的氣氛
昨天晚上可以不開冷氣了
總覺得開窗戶都會睡得比較舒服, 喜歡有空氣有自然風的感覺

不過今天一大早, 房間窗戶面對的那一棟鄰居竟然放音樂給我放超大聲的
雖然我已經起床準備要去上班, 不過那也是才早上七點
寧靜的早晨就這樣被轟炸….
放的音樂還是西班牙語的廣播電台, 是南美洲那種搖滾的音樂
這已經不是第一次這樣了!!! 上次是半夜看電視看得超大聲的…..
這裡本來是很寧靜的…., 這一戶人家真的是完全不視其他人的存在

洗完澡, 感覺音樂越來越大, 就連客廳另一邊都聽得到
吼……..受不了, 我把整個百葉窗拉起, 站在窗戶望著那棟公寓
想說到底是哪一戶……我要告發我要告發……………………
真想直接對著那個方向吶喊…(當然, 我沒那個膽…)

出門要去上班, 剛好看到在這公寓上班的維修人員
我搖下車窗”告發”一下
不過得到的回應是
“sorry, I can’t do anything. You have to report to the office so they can send out the notice.”
好吧, 我也沒那美國時間去file這種complaint

至少, 我今天早上對於搬家沒有那麼”捨不得”了……

Random Thoughts

2009-08-30T15:52:00.000-07:00

It's really hard to blog every single day. With the hectic schedule at work, I now don't have time to cook or try new recipes. All I want to do is to rest and sleep, or just simply stay at home doing nothing, or visit my lovely Zoya.

Can't bear the heat and the scorching sun. Feels like burning myself by the leather seat when I get in the car. Just had some shave ice and now back home with the air on.

It's the end of summer. What have I done during the summer? Work. I really think I need a vacation, a time just to rest, to relax, to feel happy. There're some changes in life. I pray that God will give me peace and joy in heart.

After a few weeks of house hunting, we found a new place. We'll sign the new lease next week and start moving stuff within the next two weeks. Time to pack again.

More cooking

2009-08-17T23:07:00.000-07:00

I think I'm crazy. I did three loads of laundry and cooked five different dishes yesterday, yeah, on Sunday. Just because I know that I'll have a hectic week at work and probably won't have time to prepare for dinner when I get home. At the same time, I wanted to clear out the fridge. I checked the freezer and there're just so many meats that I bought long time ago. I don't know if those are still fresh but I guess they're still edible. haha.... hubby eats everything I make.

趁洗衣服的時候, 用大同電鍋做了3道菜（我愛大同....)

用小烤箱烤了雞翅, 加上爐台上的番茄蛋花湯

翡翠玉白菜

只用了大概半顆白菜, 洗淨切段

放入蝦米(先用水浸一下), 2-3個蒜頭(切片), bacon(切細), 紅蘿蔔片

全部放到電鍋裡（兩杯水）好了後用鹽和hondashi調味即可

香菇雞丁

因為冷凍庫有雞胸肉, 所以這次是用雞胸肉做的（兩塊雞胸肉）

不過, 還是要用“雞腿肉“, 會更好吃喔！！【下次我ㄧ定要用雞腿肉】

乾香菇5-6朵（先浸水）【下次可以用新鮮香菇或草菇試試看】

先將雞肉切丁, 加上6-8片薑片, 調味後醃放約20分鐘

調味：蠔油2大匙, 太白粉1大匙, 麻油1/4小匙, 鹽和胡椒適量

之後將香菇切丁, 紅蘿蔔切丁, 加上調味醃好的雞肉放入電鍋

兩杯水的電鍋時間就好囉～

蛋蒸肉

約半磅的豬絞肉（對...上次沒用完的）

調味：醬油1大匙, 米酒1大匙, 糖1小匙, 麻油1小匙, 胡椒少許

加上2-3個蒜頭的蒜頭末,大約一根蔥(切碎), ㄧ起攪拌均勻

將肉餡放到ㄧ個大碗公裡, 把表面鋪平, 打兩個蛋在上面

放入電鍋20分鐘（兩杯水的時間）

【下次可以使用生的鹹蛋, 或是先把蛋白和蛋黃分開, 先鋪上蛋白再蛋黃】

烤雞腿

沒想到上次還留個5個雞翅（也不知道是哪一次...)

調味：醬油1大匙, 米酒1大匙, 糖1小匙, 約2個蒜頭末, 胡椒些許

先醃個20分鐘, 放入烤箱350度約25-30分鐘

番茄蛋花湯

先將番茄切成像月亮的形狀（像切柳丁一樣）, 打2顆蛋, 豆腐切小塊

水煮滾後【如果加點雞湯味道會更好】放入番茄, 豆腐

滾後打入蛋花, 加上ㄧ些蔥花, 加鹽調味

Try. Try. Try.

2009-08-11T23:01:00.000-07:00

Trying new recipes is something I enjoy doing these days when I get home from work. Both hubby and I lost a few pounds from our weekday light/healthy/no-carb eating style. That makes me happy.

Tonight's menu: 波菜香菇魚丸湯 Spinach fish ball soup, 烤魚 baked Cajun catfish fillets, & 百花鑲香菇 stuffed mushrooms.

My first time making the stuffed mushrooms with shrimps. It always takes some time to chop the ingredients for something fancy.

百花鑲香菇

8朵香菇 (我用的是乾的香菇, 要先泡水讓香菇變軟）

蝦仁（大約6隻蝦）, 洗淨, 把蝦腸拿掉, 切碎

荸薺/馬蹄/water chestnuts 3-4個, 切碎

一點青豆和紅羅蔔

調味：米酒2匙, 麻油1匙, 太白粉1匙, 些許鹽和胡椒

將材料調味好, 在香菇內部塗上太白粉, 把蝦餡鋪在香菇上

放入蒸籠蒸約10分鐘

（找到的食譜有醬汁, 不過這次我沒做, 沒醬汁也是ok的）

醬汁：高湯1杯煮滾, 加少許鹽, 加入太白粉水, 加香油

將醬汁澆在蒸好的香菇上

波菜香菇魚丸湯

將一把波菜洗乾淨, 切段

把一鍋水（加一些雞湯）煮滾

先將魚丸放入, 煮滾再放入波菜（保持波菜的新鮮度）

最後加點鹽調味即可

烤魚

這次用的是catfish fillets, 已經調好味的Cajun口味(超市都有賣）

放入烤箱400度, 每面烤10分鐘

catfish的肉質比較有嚼勁, 我還蠻喜歡的

Monday Night

2009-08-10T21:52:00.001-07:00

Menu for Monday night: 翡翠蝦盅 Stuffed cucumbers, 烤魚 baked salmon, 青花菜＆紅蘿蔔 broccoli & carrots.

翡翠蝦盅

大黃瓜1條, 削皮後切成一小段（每段大約1inch)

豆腐, 1/3盒, 切碎

蝦子6隻（依照大黃瓜的數量而定）洗淨, 蝦背切開, 拿掉蝦腸

先將蝦子調味（10分鐘）：

薑末1小匙, 米酒1大匙, 太白粉1大匙, 鹽些許

將豆腐放入大黃瓜裡面, 再把蝦子放在上面

放入蒸籠蒸5分鐘（不能蒸太久以免蝦子變硬）

（找到的食譜有醬汁, 不過我做不成功....

所以自己用了上次吃soba的醬汁加點麻油, 味道還過的去....）

醬汁：1/2杯水煮滾, 加1/2大匙醬油, 1個蒜末, 香油, 1大匙的太白粉水

烤魚

這次是用調味好的salmon fillet

在錫箔紙上塗點橄欖油, 放上魚片

放入烤箱400度, 烤15分鐘即可

青花菜＆紅蘿蔔

我現在只用燙的, 先放紅蘿蔔到滾水裡

在放入青花菜

用一點滾青菜的水加上蒜末和鹽調味澆在青花菜和紅蘿蔔上

Bottles & Cans

2009-08-08T23:59:00.000-07:00

This is the picture of the day: Recycling.

Yes, that's hubby carrying the bottles and cans that we'd accumulated over the past few months. We had bags of empty bottles and cans at home and we finally got the chance to clear them out this afternoon. Hubby used my pretty ribbons to tie those bags together. Both of us were guessing on how much we would get. Guess what! We actually got $15.60 from recycling!!!! That was just more than we expected.

If case you're wondering, most of our bottles and cans are drinking waters. No beer or wine, only our favorite drinks like V8, 蘋果西打, 舒跑, 可爾必思....

I remembered that I had a post on recycling on this blog before. That was more than 2 years ago. I'm glad that I'm still doing recycling this day. It's still interesting to know that we humans have the same lifespan (80-100 years) as aluminum cans. Let's protect the environment and start recycling. =)

珍珠丸子

2009-08-08T22:55:00.000-07:00

晚餐的組合：珍珠丸子+烤魚＋四季豆＋蠔油芥蘭

這次是第一次一起和老公合作做“珍珠丸子“

雖然材料需要很多“切工“, 但還不錯吃喔！

珍珠丸子

材料：豬絞肉0.5磅, 香菇3朵, 蝦米1匙,

荸薺/馬蹄/water chestnuts 6個, 蒜頭2個, 糯米1杯, 蔥花些許

糯米前一天先洗淨浸水, 糯米會吸水, 水一定要放夠

最好把浸水的糯米放在冰箱裏, 糯米要用的時候要瀝乾

香菇浸水泡軟後切碎

蝦米浸在米酒裏約5分鐘後撈起, 切碎

荸薺(還是不知道這兩個字怎麼唸)/馬蹄這次是用罐頭的, 切碎

蒜頭切碎

調味: 醬油1匙, 米酒1匙, 切碎的蒜頭, 麻油1匙, 鹽些許, 胡椒些許

先將豬絞肉調味好(同一方向攪拌)

之後再加入蛋黃1個, 太白粉1匙, 香菇, 蝦米, 馬蹄, 最後才放入蔥花

把調味攪拌好的肉餡捏成一小球的丸子, 再放到糯米裏滾一滾

拍一拍讓糯米黏好在小肉球上面

＊＊＊這可都是老公親手捏的喔＊＊＊

放入水滾的蒸籠裏蒸個15分鐘就可以囉~

這樣的材料大約可以做16-18顆珍珠丸子

烤魚 Baked Talapia Fish Fillets

2片Talapia fish fillets

（這次是在Albertson買的, 兩片魚片竟然還不到1塊錢）

先用把魚片洗淨瀝乾, 兩面都塗上olive oil

再把兩面都撒上Emeril's Fish Rub

放入烤箱300度, 烤15-20分鐘

四季豆

把四季豆洗淨, 切成小段

把水煮開, 將四季豆燙幾分鐘撈起, 沖冷水

調味：鹽1小匙, 雞粉1小匙, 麻油2/3匙, 熱水1大匙

把四季豆和調味料混合均勻即可上桌

蠔油芥蘭

將芥蘭菜洗淨, 切成小段

把水煮開, 先將芥蘭菜根的部份放入滾水中

過幾分鐘再放葉子的部份, 幾分鐘後撈起

調味：蠔油2大匙, 糖1/2匙, 水1大匙, 麻油1小匙

將調味醬汁淋在排好的芥蘭菜上就完成囉～

What to eat?

2009-08-05T23:21:00.000-07:00

這陣子覺得人生像是烏雲籠罩一般

唯一讓我覺得開心的是應該只有兩件

第一, 就是看到小若雅還有抱弟弟

看到他們怎麼能不開心呢？！純真的模像真的好可愛

而把弟弟抱在懷裡那種溫暖的感覺.....真棒～

第二, 就是努力的想每天晚上的晚餐吃什麼

自上次從台灣回來後就幾乎沒下廚過, 算算也超過半年了吧～

常常都是吃外面, 吃到都不知道胖了多少磅

所以上個禮拜開始聽了好朋友的建議要吃得健康

非常努力的讓每一餐都色香味俱全

重點是, 完全沒有油煙的煮法

只能用大同電鍋, 小烤箱, 蒸籠, 還有用水煮或燙

這算是我給自己的一種挑戰

吃得健康其實最重要, 但是配菜也是ㄧ種技巧

不過感覺到吃得健康, 吃得有創意是種開心的感覺....

上禮拜都把晚餐的照片放在facebook

但是我又想把一些做法和食譜記下來

所以想有空就應該把它紀錄下來, 這樣以後如果要做才可以參考

養生雞湯

雞腿6根, 山藥一小段, 紅棗8顆, 枸杞1大湯匙, 薑片3片, 雞湯罐頭1罐

先把雞腿放在冷水裡和幾片薑片一起煮到水滾

水滾大概3分鐘後再把雞腿沖冷水洗乾淨

把雞腿和其他配料（除了山藥以外）放到大同電鍋的內鍋

加水到覆蓋住雞腿（電鍋放兩杯的水）

山藥等到快煮好再放下去以保持山藥的營養和脆度

涼拌蒟篛絲

蒟篛絲燙一下撈起沖冷水

調味：

醬油1大匙, 水3大匙, 醋1小匙, 糖1/2小匙,

麻油1小匙, 芝麻1/2小匙, 蔥花1大匙, 些許胡椒

蒟篛調味後冰到冰箱會更入味

把番茄切片擺盤（當然, 番茄跟著蒟篛也很好吃）

蘆筍培根捲

蘆筍洗乾淨把粗粗的地方削乾淨, 切一段ㄧ段的配合培根的寬度

培根的選擇很多, 這次第一次用Turkey Bacon (cooked/extra lean)

培根切半, 一片捲上2根蘆筍

放入烤箱250度, 烤約20多分鐘（烤的時候就可以作別的菜）

清江菜

菜洗乾淨, 燙幾分鐘就可以

撈起來後拿一點燙青菜的水加一點鹽和幾片蒜頭做點調味（蒜頭鹽水）

澆在青菜上就好囉～

Flat Tire

2009-08-02T22:59:00.000-07:00

Having a flat tire on the road is no fun at all, especially on a hot day like this.

We heard this weird loud clinking sound when we were about to exit the freeway on the way home this late afternoon. We slowed down the car and no doubt it's one of our tires. We made it to the light from the exit ramp and made a right turn to stop the car. Hubby went out of the car to check and he said that we got a really bad flat on the left rear back. To be safe, we drove a few feet further to lot of a high school. It was really hot in Chino Hills, even in the late afternoon. When I got out of the car to take a look, wow, the tire is ripped open.

Hubby changed the spare tire under the scorching sun and he had sweats all over him!! And I was next to him supporting him and busy taking pictures for him to document the incident. heehee~~ He did a great job!!!!

We still praise the Lord that both of us are safe! Praise Him that it wasn't noon or early afternoon or at night! Praise God for a place to stop our car and giving us the skill to change the spare! God is GOOD, all the time.

Godiva

2009-07-31T20:20:00.000-07:00

Chocolates make people happy. Now I understand.

We bought this box of Godiva chocolate biscuits 2 weeks ago. Hubby always buys Godiva for his bosses or friends on holidays and this was our first time buying Godiva just for ourselves to enjoy. As of today, we finished the last piece. These 50-piece chocolate biscuits are just perfect. I don't like sweets that much but I fell in love with the box on the day we opened it.

Ramen Lovers

2009-07-30T22:49:00.000-07:00

We are ramen lovers, especially hubby. I think he loves it very much that he can have ramen everyday. Sometimes he misses ramen if we haven't had it for awhile.

This week, we had the chance to try Daikokuya 大黑家 with the newlyweds for the very first time! We visited the one in Monterey Park and the place is quite small, kind of like Shin-Sen-Gumi. We think the soup base is a little too heavy/salty, but its size is huge.

Here are some other places we'd tried.

Foo-Foo Tei 風風亭: plenty of choices to choose from. Their grilled squid is the best! But the ventilation over there is pretty bad.

Ajisen Ramen 味千: salty-salty-salty! Their fried rice is even saltier than anything! The chef probably emptied the whole bottle of salt in the fried rice. Not-so-good experience last time there.

Now they have fresh ramen noodles and soup base in a package at 99 Ranch market. We tried it once and it's actually good, but without the meat and toppings, it's kind of just like instant noodles.

So far, Shin-Sen-Gumi 新撰組 is still our favorite. You can choose the hardness of the noodles, the thickness and richness of the soup. It's just more right for us!

Here is an interesting website (rameniac) that I'd found that lists out top 10 ramen places in L.A. of 2009.

http://www.rameniac.com/index/comments/2009_kotb/

Birthday Girl

2009-07-27T22:55:00.001-07:00

We remember it...but it's just a little too late to call you.

We want to say "Happy Birthday Josephine! We love you!" ^__^

Mommy Jean, isn't it fast that she's now a 5-year-old kindergartner?

7.15.2009

2009-07-27T22:42:00.000-07:00

It has been exactly two years since hubby proposed. We'd found this day quite important and very meaningful to us, a day that both of us decided to take a step further in our relationship and tie the knot. To celebrate the day I said YES, hubby arranged a special dinner date at Ruth's Chris Steak House.

This is our first time dining at Ruth's Chris. What an enjoyable and pleasant experience. The atmosphere is classy and inviting. The service is excellent and personalized, with "happy anniversary" confetti on our table when we arrived and greetings throughout the night. The food is delicious and mouth-watering, we loved every ounce of it.

Both of us tried their "Ruth's Summer Classics", a full-3 course meal featuring a starter, entrée, a side and dessert.

Starters

Mixed Greens & Asparagus Salad: Field greens served atop fresh asparagus, tossed with roasted tomato vinaigrette, garnished with grape tomatoes & Cajun pecans and topped with crispy onions.

Roasted Tomato & Crab Soup: A roasted plum tomato soup topped with crab meat and garnished with fresh basil.

Seared Ahi Tuna: Perfectly complemented by a spirited sauce with hints of ginger, mustard and beer.

Entrées

6 oz. Filet & Jumbo Shrimp

The famous steaks are seared to perfection at 1800 degrees and served sizzling in butter (no wonder it's so good) on a 500 degree plate so that it stays hot throughout the meal.

Sides

Creamed spinach & Mushrooms

Dessert

Summer "Symphony" Selection: Duo of fresh berries with sweet cream & raspberry sorbet in a chocolate cup.

In addition to the desserts that are included with the meal, the restaurant gave us a complimentary creme brulee for our anniversary celebration!

More Photos of Dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse (Click Here)

7.15.2008

2009-07-27T22:35:00.000-07:00

Celebrating the day I said YES.

(This entry was written last year, just didn't publish it on my blog. For my own record, decided to post this now. ^__^)

We celebrated this speical day at Summit House, a restaurant that is located on a serene hilltop in the city of Fullerton. The ambiance is elegant and their food is even better!

We started our dinner with the seaside sampler, a combination platter of Chesapeake crab fritters, chilled Mexican prawns and Hawaiian ahi sashimi, along with their house bread.

For entrées, both of us had roasted prime ribs, served with creamed corn, creamed spinach and Yorkshire pudding. We got the Summit House cut and the portion is pretty big. The meat was really good, just the way we liked it. Next time, the cottage cut will be enough for us.

More Photos of Dinner at Summit House (Click Here)

Dinner. Cake. Gifts.

2009-07-25T17:18:00.000-07:00

離開museum後, 為了避開塞車

我們決定先吃飽喝足再回家

到底小若雅喜歡吃什麼ㄋ？？？“鼎泰豐“！！！

我看是我們大人喜歡吧！哈哈

點了酸辣湯, 兩籠小籠包, 上海炒年糕, 紅燒牛肉麵

看看小若雅吃得臉都不見了！

吃完看時間還早, 就到隔壁的“辛芭樂“

點了個八寶冰和鹹酥雞（對, 雖然吃飽了還是想吃....)

小若雅硬要喝Will叔叔的西瓜汁.....好冰ㄚ！

更多照片：Zoya's Bday Dinner (請按這裡）

晚上回到家也就是大家團圓要切蛋糕的時候ㄌ

小若雅這次可知道這是她的生日, 她是主角, 也會吹蠟燭喔！

baby Zech和坐月子的威嫂都入鏡囉！

弟弟竟然在如雷聲般的生日快樂歌中依然睡得香甜...佩服佩服....

我們有錄了一段全家一起唱生日快樂歌和Happy歌的畫面

這就要等威爺或威嫂有空弄到youtube上面才看得到了（等待....)

欣妮阿姨只有照到幾張照片因為照相機照到完全沒電囉！

小朋友最開心的就是開禮物了吧～

特別謝謝Kanny阿姨的“你好Kai-Lan" & Minnie

小若雅超級專心的打開這們書, 非常喜歡

還有小阿姨的ABC玩具是小若雅自己挑選的

最好笑的是當威嫂把超大一盒的LEGO拿給小若雅的時候

小若雅竟然超大聲的說：“謝～！謝～！“

還“哇～～～～～～～～～“的好長一聲（真是配合ㄚ孩子！）

這就是威爺威嫂給小若雅的禮物: LEGO Big City Zoo

可愛的小寶貝, 欣妮阿姨和Will叔叔的禮物改天再捕給妳

還沒挑到想買的禮物, 所以先欠著～哈哈哈

小寶貝, Happy Birthday!!

Kidspace Children's Museum

2009-07-25T16:03:00.000-07:00

為了慶祝小若雅2歲的生日

我們決定到Kidspace Children's Museum一日遊

威嫂馬麻在做月子, 沒得選擇的和弟弟留在家裡

所以欣妮阿姨和Will叔叔趁著機會跟著威爺和小若雅一起出去玩

Kidspace Children' Museum在Pasadena, 是我們第一次去

這是一個蠻特別的兒童館, 有很多室內和室外的地方可以給小朋友玩

這兒童館強調的是小朋友是透過“玩“來學習

所以很多hands-on的活動讓小朋友們親自動手一邊玩ㄧ邊學

門票只要是1歲以上都一個人$10, 然後在手上蓋個章

膽子不大的小若雅可是ㄧ開始連蓋個章都怕怕的......

我們先到室內的自然館: "Digging Deeper Gallery"

說真的, 這比較適合年紀大ㄧ點的小孩子

主題是有關昆蟲, 石頭, 化石, 地震...等等, 大自然的主題

小若雅超級害怕的, 一開始什麼都不敢碰

不過當小若雅看到有小朋友在拿畫筆的時候, 她終於踏出了第一步

這是可以畫畫在一片葉子上, 過一下上面就有水沖下來像下雨一樣

再來就有一個桌子有一些小朋友在畫水彩

小若雅很快的就坐下來加入他們, 看看她專心作畫的模樣！！

其中有個很多小女生喜歡的地方, 就是"Bugsy's Diner"蟲蟲餐廳

像是個小廚房一樣, 小朋友像在玩扮家家九一樣

看菜單, 點菜, 做菜, 上菜...

Chef's Specialty竟然是"The Poo-Poo Platter"!!!

玩了一陣子後我們就到室外的courtyard休息休息

原本害羞的小若雅竟然開始玩起水來了, 就是從地上會噴水上來

小若雅超開心的跑來跑去還被水噴的全身都溼了

在大太陽下玩水真的是太舒服囉！

小若雅愛上了這個Splash Dance Fountain!

玩完水換個衣服已經要下午3點了, 剛好是小小朋友的音樂時間

這個兒童館有個Early Childhood Learning Center

這是專門給4歲以下的小小孩

所以我們帶著小若雅一起去瞧瞧

就像是一間教室, 裡面有很多不同玩具, 進去每個人都要拖鞋鞋

小若雅最喜歡拼圖了, 在這個桌子好久ㄟ....

接著music time要開始了, 有一個老師拿了ㄧ籃的shakers

大人和小孩圍著一圈, 看看又開始緊張的小若雅....

老師帶著大家唱了好多首兒歌喔！

不過聽不懂英文的小若雅都乖乖的坐在把拔的懷裡, 動都不動

一直等到英文版的“王老先生有塊地, 咿呀咿呀優", 小若雅才有反應喔～

看看威爺, 好爸爸喔～好像是唯一的把拔陪著女兒上music time~

音樂教室結束後, 我們就到最後面的室外區走走

沒想到還有很多好玩的ㄋ

有騎腳踏車區: "Trike Tracks", 而且還提供安全帽喔！

小朋友會照著地上畫的路線騎車

接著可以看到有一條小溪,好多小孩子都在小溪裡玩水

還有一個水車, 偶而會有水像下雨一樣可以被淋的全身溼掉

看看威爺喜歡的小型rock climbing...哈哈哈哈

室外還有一個角落是給4歲以下的小小孩

可以玩水, 溜滑梯, 東爬西爬...不過才換好衣服的小若雅只好先skip這區

回到自然館, 小若雅看到拼圖又開心得不得了

我們四個人坐下, 一邊吹著冷氣, 一起合力把100片的拼圖完成！

逛逛禮品店後, 我們就跟Kidspace說ByeBye了！

整體來說, 這是個小朋友會喜歡的地方, 因為什麼都可以摸

可以玩得很盡興, 弄得很溼, 弄得很髒, 可以很自由

不過還是跟小孩的個性和年紀有關

欣妮阿姨覺得比較適合大ㄧ點的小朋友

不過無論如何, 小若雅多了個經驗, 多看多玩多聽多學～

更多照片：Kidspace Children's Museum (請按這裡）

Birthday Girl!

2009-07-24T00:00:00.000-07:00

親愛的小寶貝Zoya：

祝妳2歲生日快樂!! H-A-P-P-Y!!

欣妮阿姨跟Will叔叔好愛好愛妳喔!!

忍不住...

2009-07-23T23:27:00.001-07:00

本來想說威嫂回家以後就會偷偷用電腦

果然沒錯, 有上Facebook

不過我們馬麻認為她在坐月子, 不應該也不讓她用電腦

其實也對啦, 坐月子就該好好休息, 眼睛也不能太累

所以ㄚ, 欣妮阿姨“忍不住“又再次出現, 這樣威嫂的部落格才不會落寞

今天欣妮阿姨上了一天的班, 同事都在問baby Zech的情況

當然囉, 欣妮阿姨除了描述刺激的生產過程

還要很驕傲的把baby Zech的照片拿出來“現“一下！

下班後當然要回去探望探望

其實今天還蠻想小若雅的, 結果威爺下午帶小若雅出去逛街買玩具

因為明天是小若雅兩歲的生日喔！！！

威爺把拔買了一個超級大的禮物給她！是驚喜, 明天才能揭曉！

這張照片是威爺下午從他的iPhone寄給我們的～

好吃的pretzel & juice

今天看到弟弟又覺得弟弟長大了喔！

欣妮阿姨就這樣盯著弟弟看了好久.....包著肚兜兜好可愛ㄟ....

弟弟的頭小小的剛好可以用雙手捧著

睡得好甜, 偶而還會笑一下 ^__^

Will叔叔今天有去IKEA幫小若雅買吃飯的bib

是可以接食物的那種, 整組還有碗, 湯匙, 和一個杯杯

剛好小若雅很喜歡青蛙, 所以這套很合她的口味

只是小若雅今天吃飯的時候竟然很故意的把食物放到肚兜裡面....

威嫂的精神不錯, 只是上下都在痛

餵母奶餵得很痛, 生產後得傷口也很疼痛

請大家繼續為她禱告, 求神賜給她更多體力and fast healing

也為威爺禱告, 讓他有足夠的energy and joy. =)

Welcome Home Baby Zech!

2009-07-22T22:46:00.000-07:00

今天是威爺威嫂要帶baby Zech回家的日子

原本以為一早顏醫生就會去醫院幫北鼻做circumcision割包皮的手術

欣妮阿姨今天也特別請假到今天就是為了可以到醫院幫忙

中午照樣的和Will叔叔接了ㄚ媽和小若雅

我們就到醫院去送月子餐和午餐

沒想到, 顏醫生竟然以為北鼻沒有要這項手術

總之, 醫生早上沒出現, 竟要等到傍晚醫生才有時間ㄋㄟ

我們只好先回家.....又是“等待, 再等待“

今天比較特別的, 是欣妮阿姨第一次餵baby Zech喝ㄋㄟㄋㄟ

雖然是喝母奶, 但是還是有用formula幫忙, 這樣欣妮阿姨才有機會

聽威嫂說昨晚北鼻哭好多次喔～可能肚子餓餓沒喝飽

喝完還要拍拍打嗝喔～

下午回家後就又是陪小若雅一整個下午

想到小若雅, 我又想寫一篇特別有關她當姊姊的心情和反應

因為從威爺威嫂到醫院後, Will叔叔和欣妮阿姨有很多時間陪著她

如果這幾天有時間再寫.....（請等待）

我們等阿等的, 想說晚上要一起去醫院幫忙迎接弟弟回家

可是等到快八點醫生才開始circumcision的手術

所以最後是威爺和威嫂兩人自己帶baby Zech回家

回到家也快晚上10點了, 小若雅已經入睡

明天應該會很驚訝把拔馬麻和弟弟都回家囉～

看看baby Zech坐在cart seat的可愛模樣

超小的.....看起來有點像美國人ㄋㄟ

威嫂說因為沒有弟弟的褲子

所以坐car seat的時候還要露著兩條小腿....哈哈...好可愛ㄟ！

Welcome Home Baby Zech!!!

這篇應該是欣妮阿姨在威嫂的網站最後一篇的網誌

因為威嫂回家囉！！！

她會不用電腦嗎？？？答案是：“那是不可能的！！！！！“

不過大家有空還是可以去看看欣妮阿姨的部落格

雖然不是像威嫂寫得那麼勤, 不過還是偶而會啦～嘻嘻～

在這裡偷偷廣告一下：

The Valley of Beracah 比拉迦谷

http://syd-ney.blogspot.com

第二天 Part II

2009-07-22T00:53:00.001-07:00

今天為什麼要寫兩篇ㄋ？因為有太多照片想放上來了啦

欣妮阿姨好愛拍拍拍.....而且趁威嫂沒有電腦, 可以在這裡撒野

下午從醫院回家後就跟小若雅混了一整個下午

等到晚上再全部出動送晚餐和月子餐, 小小的房間裡特別熱鬧！

聽說威爺威嫂傍晚還有訪客喔～

而且其中一位訪客還不太想走

原因是因為想等看看會不會吃到馬麻親手做的月子餐ㄋ

晚上的月子餐主要是魚湯, 忘了是哪一種魚

威嫂忙著吃晚餐, 北鼻也餓了, 雖然是餵母奶, 還是有加一些formula

看看威爺, 第二胎非常的熟練ㄟ

喝一喝還稍微張開了雙眼看一下～

這是何等幸福的畫面啊！！！威爺真是有福啊～～～～

女兒＋兒子, 都那麼聰明伶俐可愛貼心....欣妮阿姨也想要

ㄚ媽抱抱的時候突然在睡夢中笑一下

請問是夢到什麼好吃的ㄚ？還是夢到欣妮阿姨？哈哈哈

小若雅姊姊再次被逼和弟弟照相....非常勉強的表情....

突然冒出一個弟弟來, 還在熟悉中啦～

一直很少看到baby Zech睜開眼睛

原來是太亮啦！我們把燈關暗一點, 果然, 馬上眼睛就打開了

不知道比鼻在媽媽肚子裡眼睛有張開嗎？！？！好奇好奇～

晚安晚安～明天就要回家囉！！！

yay!!明天欣妮阿姨和Will叔叔會和小若雅和ㄚ媽一起去醫院

會一起幫忙並迎接威爺威嫂帶著弟弟回家喔！

不知道明天威嫂會不會讓欣妮阿姨再po一篇"Welcome Home".....

第二天 Part I

2009-07-21T23:38:00.000-07:00

今天是baby Zech出生的第二天

為了大家和威嫂, 今天還是由欣妮阿姨代筆跟大家報告報告

欣妮阿姨昨天被累到在寫完網誌之後就倒頭大睡, 整整睡了10個小時

在醫院只有椅子, 都不知道怎麼睡ㄋㄟ, 在家有床可以睡覺真是享受啊!!

為了慶祝baby Zech出生, 欣妮阿姨連續請假3天不用上班

我想同事應該覺得又不是欣妮阿姨生還請假這麼多天....

中午Will叔叔和欣妮阿姨接馬麻和小若雅一起去醫院

除了去探望威爺威嫂和弟弟, 還順便送月子餐和午餐喔

午餐是馬麻親手做的豬肝湯喔~威嫂的氣色好的不得了！

午餐是威爺愛吃的Shakey's Special Pizza & Mojo Sliced Potatoes

放這麼多橄欖, 看起來還真像是藍莓..........

早上有人來幫baby Zech照相喔, 這是其中一張proof

看看弟弟的眼睛張開了ㄟ...好可愛喔～

這麼好看要不要買ㄋ？（考慮中）

今天看到baby Zech感覺又跟昨天不太一樣

弟弟很乖, 都乖乖的睡覺, 欣妮阿姨忍不住一直拍ㄚ拍的

雖然在睡覺, 不過還是招招手稍微笑一笑

照夠了沒啊？？？抿嘴一下表示不要照那麼多嘛

夠了, 我要睡覺～直接擋住不讓我們看～

ㄚ媽要小若雅姊姊跟弟弟一起照相, 被逼的......

我只能說弟弟長得好清秀, 好可愛, 威嫂說弟弟不是那麼愛哭喔

所以我們討論覺得他應該會很好帶, 長大應該是老實人啊～

欣妮阿姨覺得長得這麼俊秀, 應該像是瓊瑤八點擋連續劇的男主角ㄟ

威爺, 辛苦你了！！

Ｍore Photos with Baby Zech

2009-07-20T22:57:00.003-07:00

See how happy Zoya is!!! First time meeting little brother baby Zech.

Thank You Lord for the new addition to our big family!!! Uncle Will and Auntie Sydney will be busy hanging out with Zoya & Zech!

I'm super tired and lack of sleep...off to bed NOW!

終於生了！！！！

2009-07-20T22:52:00.001-07:00

終於生了！！終於生了！！！

是的, 威嫂在經過長達“19個小時“的煎熬終於熬出頭來了！

當然, 這篇網誌是由欣妮阿姨代筆, 把最熱騰騰的照片跟大家分享一下

不過由於欣妮阿姨也有一整夜沒睡覺, 這篇就暫時重點帶到就好～

話說昨晚十點多就接到威爺威嫂的電話說他們要去醫院了

大約十一點半的時候欣妮阿姨和Will叔叔就去接我們的馬麻一起去

小阿姨和舅舅留在家裡照顧小若雅

離譜的是, 其實在星期日早上羊水就算部份破了

所以下午竟然還在喝下午茶的威嫂早就該前往醫院.....

電話裡說已經開始打催生針和無痛分娩, 最快一兩個小時就會生

我們以飛快的腳步到達醫院就是怕會錯過Z-baby的生產過程

誰知道.....都要半夜3點了還沒生, 所以先請Will叔叔回家睡覺

等阿等的......漫漫長夜, 等到天都亮了才開四指

接下來的12個多小時裡, 就是無數的等待, 無數的PUSH!!!

感謝神讓威嫂有非常非常細心照顧的護士小姐

負責拍攝生產過程的欣妮阿姨也是鼓起勇氣從頭拍到尾

真的忘記了有多少次的PUSH, 再PUSH

Z-Baby好像就是很固執的不想出來媽媽的肚子裡

裡面可能太溫暖太好玩了～

待在醫院的這十幾個小時真的是讓欣妮阿姨覺得在坐牢一樣

Will叔叔也和小若雅, 小阿姨和舅舅在等等等......

除了等待再等待, 不知道要熬多久...

覺得威嫂好辛苦喔～覺得生小孩可不是一件簡單的事ㄟ

一直到下午5點半, 威嫂終於在眾醫療人員的加油和無數次的PUSH後

我們期待的小寶貝才決定出來跟我們見見面

拍攝到一半的欣妮阿姨可是看到北鼻的頭的那剎那激動到眼筐都紅了

太感動了嘛～小小的新生命就是如此奇妙的來到這世界上～

Zechariah Hsien

7.20.2009

7 lbs. 13 oz.

感謝神賜下平安！讓生產過程雖然不容易, 但母子都很平安健康！

好可愛的小北鼻喔～～～～～～～

小若雅好奇的看著爸爸懷中的弟弟

謝謝你們大家的愛和關懷～如有更多照片會再放上來!!

Special Delivery

2009-07-15T22:32:00.000-07:00

When I was heating up my lunch, through the window I saw the warehouse guy crossing the parking lot with a box in his hands. Then while I was eating lunch and chatting with my two other co-workers, the warehouse guy came into the office and said there's a special flower delivery and here's the last destination. Three of us looked at each other thinking who's the one. I looked at the calendar and didn't think of anything. Surprisingly, the flower is for me! Wow! I'm the lucky winner!! =D Who's my secret admirer?!

I double checked the name on the package and it sure says my name. I opened the message first feeling clueless but it immediately brought a smile on my face and tear in my eyes as soon as I read it. The flower is from hubby! He thanked me for saying YES two years ago today! He remembers the date that he proposed to me. I totally forgot about it...oops, SORRY! It just really touches my heart to know that I have a very thoughtful, sensitive, and romantic husband who loves me very much.

It has been a little depressing for me lately and the flower and the message it brings totally lightened up my day!! Thank you hubby! Thank you for giving me the opportunity to say YES two years ago today! =D

Lovely pink roses & calla lilies

Coughing...and coughing

2009-07-09T12:38:00.000-07:00

I've been kind of sick for many days. Starting with minor sore throat, then I lost my voice. Now my voice is cracking and my scratchy throat causes coughing that keeps me up at night. I wonder if it's allergy cuz' it gets really bad especially at night.

Please pray for me when you read this, pray for complete healing! I really need my voice at work and good sleep at night!

4th of July BBQ

2009-07-05T22:08:00.000-07:00

It's 4th of July. Of course, we gotta have BBQ. Thanks to my in-laws for opening up their house and preparing those delicious foods: short ribs, ribeye steaks, corns, 杏包菇, shrimps, 烤魷魚, yams, salads, sausages, hotdogs, chicken wings/legs, pudding, red bean ice cream, and all kinds of fruits. Those signature BBQ chicken wings really reminded me 台灣路邊用愛心燒烤的小攤販.

Orange County is always so much cooler than the inland. Kids really wanted to get into the pool but it grew a little bit chilly in the late afternoon. They still had fun just putting their little feet into the water.

When a kid meets another kid, they become friends immediately, at least for Zoya and Jocelyn jie jie. I've never seen Zoya being so happy around another child. They just love each other. Zoya would follow her around, imitate everything Jocelyn does. They would hug each other so many times. I think it was a really good opportunity for Zoya to learn to "share" since she has been the only child. It was so great to see them having such a wonderful time playing with each other. =D Aren't they just too cute??!!

We didn't plan to see any fireworks but we happened to see some big beautiful ones right above us when we passed by the Angel stadium on the way home!

More photos from 4th of July BBQ (Click Here)

Chuck E. Cheese's

2009-07-03T10:33:00.002-07:00

We went to Chuck E. Cheese's with J & J on Monday and we went again with Zoya last night. It supposed to be a place to have fun but 他們的表情都好正經ㄟ！ I guess they're scared of the sounds from the machines. Btw, if you sign up to join their e-club on their website, you'll receive coupons for discount on foods and tokens.

It's J & J's first time at Chuck E. Cheese's. She enjoys the ride in this cool car. I think she rode it at least 5 times! heehee =D This is the only picture of her smiling.

This is also the only picture of Zoya smiling.

For Zoya, she likes putting in the tokens into the machine and getting the tickets. She knows that when she inserts the coin in there, the ticket will come out and she'd clap and cheer. The first time we were there, she didn't want to get on any of the rides. This time, she made big improvement; she was willing to ride on a horse! She even rode in the car with Chuck.

This is our family picture from the sketch photo machine! I wanted one so bad that I kind of "forced" Zoya to take it with us. She was scared of the machine so she didn't want to face the camera. We tried so many times and finally came out a good one. :D

More photos to share:

Chuck E. Cheese's with Zoya (Part I)

Chuck E. Cheese's with J & J (Part II)

Chuck E. Cheese's with Zoya (Part III)

Wedding Cake

2009-07-02T16:31:00.000-07:00

I have two wedding anniversary dates. (That means we get to celebrate twice a year!) :D To make it more special and easier for my hubby to remember, we got married at the court house on my birthday. The other date is our actual wedding day.

We had a 4-layer cake at our wedding banquet. We didn't finish all the cake and we ended up taking home the top layer. We locked it up in the freezer for the entire year.

After one year and one day, we took out our wedding cake. It still looks edible and the fillings are pudding and strawberries. I had the courage to take one bite but WHY?? Why would I want to eat an year old cake??!! Hubby took several bites till I told him to stop..... hahaha :-D

More photos of our wedding cake (Click Here)

6人小組

2009-07-01T19:55:00.000-07:00

忘了從什麼時候開始我們給我們自己取名為“6人小組“

就是有6個沒什麼朋友的6個人（結完婚的人都會覺得自己沒朋友）

其實除了3對夫妻之外還有兩個小孩

但是我們只算大人, 所以還是稱為“6人小組“

這小組的特色呢, 就是吃, 除了吃還是吃, 吃完還要泡老人茶＋閒聊

聊是非, 聊生活, 聊工作, 聊夢想, 聊要去哪玩, 聊說誰要加入我們

另一個特色就是大部份的時間, 我們都在有小孩的家裡面聚集

而且吃一吃偶爾還要聽聽小孩的爸媽discipline小孩

閒聊的時候還會有一個爸或媽去幫小孩洗澡

當然, 我們也會去外面逛逛玩玩或是吃飯

曾經有一個晚上換過3個餐廳才吃到飯

目前我們最喜歡吃的是Carlsbad的Benihana

還有Boiling Crab的蝦, crawfish, 玉米和螃蟹

還有在家裡吃火鍋, 還有85度C的蛋糕

今天6人小組的一員飛回台灣, 開始為期一個月的亞洲巡迴

所以我們決定趁他不在好好大吃大玩, 還要照相寄給他看

沒有啦.....我們哪會這麼殘忍, 我們大家都會很想他...

我想我家老公會特別想他, 因為他就像老公的男朋友一樣

祝他帶著神的恩膏回到台灣！We pray that God will heal you completely and give you wisdom & good memory with the lyrics! =D May God send His angels concerning you to guard you and protect you in all your ways!!!

Z-Baby's Baby Shower

2009-07-01T19:12:00.000-07:00

We just threw a baby shower for Janice and Will to welcome their second baby. Her due date is in two weeks but her tummy is super HUGE!! I can't imagine how a baby could squeeze in there. I'm asked again to film the entire delivery like last time when she gave birth to Zoya. I'm surprised that she actually watches the video, so brave.

I like baby shower. It's always so much fun and everyone is full of joy expecting the new addition to the family. Isn't it great for the baby to know that he/she is welcomed and loved even when he/she is in the mother's womb.

Here's the diaper cake hubby and I made together for the shower. We made it while watching the soap opera. =D We used 72 diapers and made it 3-tier. Hubby helped me to roll up most of the diapers!!! Thanks!!! It's always cheaper, fun, and personal to make our very own. We got the idea from the diaper cake on the babyshowerstuff website.

More baby shower photos from Janice:

01 Baby Shower Preparation

02 Baby Shower Brunch

03 Baby Shower Games

04 Baby Shower Group Photos

05 Baby Shower Gifts

命中注定我愛你

2009-07-01T18:35:00.000-07:00

已經很久沒看連續劇了

很怕看上癮, 很怕那種一直想看下一集的那種感覺

也覺得每次看都會浪費好多時間

小時候喜歡看瓊瑤的八點擋

好多年前日劇流行的時候也看了幾部

像是“神啊請多給我一點時間“, "長假“...等等

韓劇嘛...我只記得“大長今“, 還有“天堂的階梯“

最近心血來潮, 竟然跟manman借了這套“命中注定我愛你“

聽很多人說這部片很好看, 沒想到, 還真的不錯看ㄟ！！！

我跟老公兩個人一看就被“迷住“了, 完完全全忘了“節制“這兩個字

我們還破紀錄的在星期天下午回到家就開始看

整整看了快11個小時

還有熬夜看到半夜兩點多.....

雖然這是有點搞笑的偶像劇, 可是還是有些感情戲讓我們感動到哭

對...是“我們“, 就是老公和我都看到哭（對的, 我老公是很感性的）

而且不是落淚而已, 我已經抱著棉被啜泣.....

不過這部片到後面有點拖戲, 有點過於搞笑

但是overall來說是一部看了讓人蠻開心蠻感動的一部愛情喜劇

心得：

1. 這世界上真的只有懶女人, 沒有醜女人

2. 如果錯過了一次機會, 就該好好把握住第二次的機會

3. 好好珍惜你身邊的人, 不要等到失去了才發現他們的好

4. 如果能讓身邊的人感到幸福, 就盡力去做

5. 人與人之間總是會有不小心造成的誤會, 給別人一個機會解釋清楚

偷笑.....

2009-06-24T12:59:00.000-07:00

老公和我都很喜歡小孩

我們參加過很多個baby shower和小朋友的birthday party
也探望過很多新出生的newborn babies
身邊的朋友很多也都有小孩
當然, 我們最愛的還是我們家的小若雅
我們常常覺得她就像是我們的親生女兒一樣

其實, 我們也很期待有一天手裡抱的是自己的小孩
逛街時買的衣服和玩具也是給自己的小孩
所以, 我們也一直把這件事放在禱告中
我們知道, 也有很多人在幫我們禱告

前幾天晚上, 我和Will有這麼一段對話

Syd: 如果我們已經有兩個女兒, 你會不會還想再生個男生?
Will: (想得很快) 會!
Syd: 是喔~ (心裏想說, 拜託! 怎麼還有這麼傳統的觀念), 那如果第三胎也是個女的, 你還會再生喔?
Will: 會!
Syd: (聲音分貝上升音量加大) 你以為我是豬喔!!!!!!!

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

父親節當天, 有一位吳牧師和我們全家吃晚餐
晚餐後, 爸爸請她幫我們每個人先知性的祝福禱告
以下就是據我有限的記憶所記得的內容

吳牧師先幫我禱告:
"我看見妳在挖土, 在灑種, 在灑很多種子, 妳在吃自己所結的果子"
(當時感覺我的職業好像是農夫一樣...)
禱告到有關"傳福音" (頓時感到有點愧疚, 我都沒有好好為神傳福音)

(繼續禱告中....這時還真的蠻感動....)

接著吳牧師就為我們有孩子禱告
求神賜給我們恩典, 她禱告說我們會有很多孩子
她看到一個數子"3" 接著又說, "還有一個數子"5""

(在這麼神聖的禱告中我竟然整個人忍不住的"噴笑"出來....馬上腦海中想到聖經裏神跟亞伯拉罕說, 明年撒拉必生一個兒子, 結果撒拉在帳棚偷聽到還暗自偷笑, 神還問撒拉說妳為什麼偷笑?! 撒拉害怕不敢承認, 神說有, 妳有偷笑...所以我趕快跟神承認我剛剛笑了, 而且還笑出聲音來...)

(繼續幫Will禱告中........)

最後, 牧師說她看到Will開著一輛敞篷車, 上面載滿了好多的麵包和水果!
(哇....我老公以後會開著麵包車去賣麵包嗎??希望是85度c的麵包.....)

至於這兩個數字"3"和"5",
3個小孩, 5個小孩, 3月5號, 5月3號, 3個小孩一家五口......(微笑中......)

God, we received. We open our hands wide open to receive all the blessings from You! May Your will be done in our lives!

Blog Update

2009-06-16T23:56:00.000-07:00

Ok, here I am again!! Didn't abandon this place, just didn't have much time to sit down and blog like before. June is so far a busy month for me with wedding, graduation, kids choir, and birthday. Even though it has been gloomy all the way, it's just full of celebrations. Looking forward to more sunshine and more fun for the rest of June.

Photo Sharing

2009-05-20T16:36:00.000-07:00

Kauai Highlights

Kauai Day 1

Kauai Day 2: Morning at the Beach

Kauai Day 2: Shrimp Station & Shave Ice

Kauai Day 2: Waimea Canyon

Kauai Day 2: Kauai Coast Resort

Kauai Day 3: Kayaking & Hiking Tour

Kauai Day 4: Blue Dolphin Napali Coast Tour

Kauai Day 4: Spouting Horn & Poipu Beach

Kauai Day 5: Kilauea Point

Kauai Day 5: Beach & Waterfall

Home Alone

2009-05-18T20:49:00.000-07:00

It's rare to be alone by myself.

Hubby went to play some balls with the guys and now I have couple of hours to myself. I'd decided to continue uploading the photos we took recently. Since we got the big camera and have the love of taking pictures, there're just too many shots. It actually takes so much time and energy to go through all the photos and pick the ones I like. Sometime I just feel that my eyeballs are going to fall out after staring at the computer screen for hours.

The American church celebrated their 10-year anniversary over the weekend. The pastor shared a message about "a decade of faithfulness: Remembering our past and rededicating our future." I immediately thought of my "age." I'm hitting "30" this year! =P My mind just traveled back in time. What had happened during the past 10 years? What God has done in my life over the decade? The sermon just made me think so much, about marriage, families, friends, church, small group, work, God, myself, just all aspects of my life.

Life is interesting, full of surprises and excitement. One thing doesn't change is the love of God. I'm grateful to know that God is with me all through these years. I thank Him for His grace and mercy is sufficient for me through the times of trouble and sorrow. I praise Him for His presence, provision, protection, and all the perfect gifts He has given in my life. =)

So, I just want to say, God, I want to make a commitment to you. I want to rededicate my future to you. To love You and to serve You, and to be like You, more than before.

Wild Chickens

2009-05-12T11:57:00.000-07:00

We all eat chickens, but we hardly see any real/live chicken here in California unless we visit the barn at the OC fair. In Kauai, chickens/roosters/hens/chicks are everywhere. We first noticed them on the side of the road when we were driving from the airport to the resort. We thought they just happened to be there by escaping from their owners. But then we realized that those wild chickens are everywhere, in the parking lot, on the high mountains, in the jungles, at the courtyards, just EVERYWHERE. Generally, roosters crow when the sun rises, but these wild roosters crow all day long, whenever they feel like to. To tourists like us, these roosters look so beautiful and they're quite entertaining. I wonder how the local people think, the all-day-long-crowing might be a little annoying.

It's common to see people walking their dogs. Last time at the park, we saw people riding horses.

To beat the excitement of seeing wild chickens, yesterday on our way home from Costco, we saw a man walking a "zebra"!!! The man has a rope tied to the neck of the mid-sized zebra, which is probably the size of a donkey. It's just very odd but interesting to see that. Unfortunately, we didn't get the chance to take a picture of it.

More photos to share:

Kauai Day 2: Shrimp Station & Shave Ice

Kauai Day 2: Waimea Canyon

Quick Update

2009-05-11T12:03:00.001-07:00

Last time I posted an entry was a week ago. I was going to write about our trip before my memory fades away but the plan just didn't work out. Besides work, we actually went to a Laker game, an angel game, part of the small group, and two Mother's Day celebrations. What's going on with the Lakers?!?! I hope they'll defeat the Rockets so my hubby can still sell his playoff tickets. =)

I'm now currently working on the photos of the events that took place in our lives. Woohoo, it's Monday and I'm thinking about "24", looking forward to the new episode tonight.

Now back to work.
Here are the links to some of our pictures:

Kauai Day 1: Welcome to Kauai
Kauai Day 2: Morning at the beach

Travel Journal

2009-05-04T11:56:00.000-07:00

Happy May!

It's hard to believe how time flies by so fast as we step into a brand new month. I think this blog is now becoming more like a travel journal. It took me awhile to finish blogging on our 17-day winter trip to Taiwan and now I have more to write from our recent trip to the island of Kauai. We planned this last minute 5-day getaway to celebrate our first wedding anniversary. Yes, it has been one year! We'd thanked each other for loving/bearing one another for the entire year. =P

It all started with me. One day I just came home from work and simply told hubby that I was taking certain days off. (What a great way for a wife to give her husband the "hint!") We booked everything on Wednesday and left the next morning.

We love Hawaii. We love the natural wonders. We love the laid back island lifestyle. Kauai, the garden island paradise, is treasured for its magnificent scenery and lush rainforest. The mountain in the middle of the island is actually the wettest place on earth. God just loves to water this place to make it so greeny. To me, it's a place for outdoor-lovers like us, JUST KIDDING! For people like us, who don't move or exercise at all, it was quite an experience for us throughout the trip as we tried different activities to challenge our physical abilities/limits.

More to come, stay tuned.....

Happy Birthday!

2009-04-09T00:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Honey!

yay!! happy birthday again and again! =)

01.16&17.2009 Last Days in Taiwan

2009-04-08T23:00:00.000-07:00

老公的四舅和四舅媽帶著我們從高雄回到台中南華找阿媽
答應過兩個阿媽回美國前一定會再回台中看她們所以也在南華住了一個晚上
小舅媽和柔柔也帶我們去誠品買了一些書
又再去吃一次那好吃的肉圓
禮拜五一早四舅和四舅媽就來接我們回台北
下午我們約了Lucy見面, 去吃鐵板燒還去85度C喝飲料吃蛋糕加聊天
很高興能在台灣又見到彼此, 讓我想起那段她在美國的生活晚上又是和大伯一家吃飯, 又是高級享受
這次是到一家很特別的餐廳："人間 People Restaurant Taipei"特別是因為如果沒來過, 還不知道怎麼進去呢
門沒有手把, 也不是自動的.....原來, 是在旁邊那形狀像是小涼亭的小石柱裏有開關
還好大伯有去過...不然怎麼知道進去後裡面的裝潢很現代, 像是紐約曼哈頓的pub
餐廳一邊主要是用餐, 另一邊是喝東西吃甜點的地方這地方, 就是吃它的氣氛, 一種現代的神秘氣氛
我的甜點, 芒果幕斯星期六, 也是我們搭飛機回家的時候了
其他沒紀錄下來的時候, 應該都是我們去買東西
沒有照片的, 我的記憶也很模糊......
最後跟二舅媽的愛狗"嘟嘟"照個像留念總之, 這趟台灣之旅是如此的充實豐富
我們帶著滿滿的祝福和回憶回來
謝謝所有接待我們的家人和朋友～深深的謝謝你們每一個
我想, 在不久的將來我們一定會再回到台灣！

Photo Album: 01.16&17.2009 Last 2 Days in Taiwan (Click Here 照片請按這裡)

01.15.2009 CiJin

2009-04-08T22:35:00.000-07:00

來到台灣南部高雄當然要去吃吃新鮮的海產囉
我們來到渡輪港口準備搭船前往"旗津"
沒想到看到一個帶著斗笠的阿媽說搭她的船一個人只要10塊錢
我們通通就都跳上去了, 還有很多騎著機車上船的
這個船很好笑, 因為還有一個"辦公椅"在上面
老公還給人家坐上去, 為了拍張"開船"的照片留念到了旗津輪渡站囉！船一靠岸, 帶著斗笠的阿媽就放下一塊木板讓機車和乘客下船
這種便宜的船當然很簡陋, 所以也要特別小心其實旗津是個繁榮又帶著傳統的地方
像是7-11的前面這排帶著古早味的三輪車我還看到兩個帶著斗笠很農村的阿媽坐在一台Smart裡面
這種對比的感覺還蠻新鮮的！
三舅特別帶我們到"鴨角活海產"吃海鮮
門口擺滿了新鮮的海產我們大家真的是享盡了最新鮮的海鮮大餐
特別照了這盤"鳳螺", 好好吃喔～吃飽後我們散步到旗津海水浴場小時後去過, 不過早已沒什麼印象
至於海邊嘛....還是夏威夷的海邊最美
我們又回到旗津輪渡站, 準備搭船回到對岸
不過這次不搭阿媽的船, 我們搭大渡輪"旗鼓一號"在海上還遇到"旗鼓二號"擦身而過來到高雄, 一定要去吃當地最有名的"大碗公黑砂糖剉冰"
有很多家都有賣一樣大碗的剉冰
但是只有一家是好吃的創始老店, 有註冊商標的喔我們點了一大碗四到六人份的冰, 我們八個人吃都很夠
老公還把手機放在冰旁邊, 這個碗公真的很大
上面是有水果, 底下是傳統式比八寶冰更多的料
加上黑糖和煉乳, 在台灣吃這樣大碗的冰真的是非常的過癮～
吃著吃著, 我們發現店裡的小姐在做一個3000cc世界杯超級大碗公的冰不會吧～～～～真的有人點ㄟ....
原來是有一個日本的雜誌社記者來採訪這家冰店
所以點了世界杯超級大碗公, 要來拍照放在雜誌裏的
我們也算是觀光客啦！所以趁記者還沒準備開拍前先借來搶個鏡頭大！這真的是名副其實的大碗公！

Photo Album: 01.15.2009 Cijin (Click Here 照片請按這裡)

01.15.2009 British Consulate

2009-04-08T19:32:00.000-07:00

早安高雄! 又是新的一天!
好不容易大家從不同樓層下來到一樓集合
我們大家決定好好去吃一頓高級的飲茶
好巧不巧的, 經典飯店的服務人員說他們沒有飲茶
這時, 大人的"火氣"又再次燃燒起來
馬上決定各自回房間打包行李, 離開這惹人的高雄85大樓
我想應該又是因為"肚子餓", 因為我肚子餓也會脾氣暴躁嘛!
只不過大人們的脾氣比較難控制.....
四舅決定帶我們去吃一家小吃店
開開開的, 開到一條巷子裏
好不容易找到停車位, 而且還是停在人家家大門口呢!
好巧不巧的, 這家小吃店竟然沒開門!!!!!
晴天霹靂~ 算是"第二次"受傷啊!
大夥決定直接前往"打狗英國領事館""打狗"就是古早時期"高雄"的名字, 英國領事館就位在於中山大學門口
不過要真正看到英國領事館還得爬這彎彎曲曲的觀海樓梯
邊爬邊停下來看看海邊的景色, 讀中山大學的學生們真是幸福~ 好不容易爬到最上面, 終於看到了英國領事館!
紅磚建築, 拱型迴廊, 的確有它獨特的風味先到它的中庭, 看有賣什麼吃的
沒想到, 所有吸引人的"英倫情人三層下午茶"要等到下午啦~再次晴天霹靂~ 這可是"第三次"受傷啊!
我們趕緊以龍捲風似的速度把領事館參觀一遍
風和日麗, 可以看到高雄港的風景
看到英國的國旗, 下次, 一定要親自到英國看看
Photo Album: 01.15.2009 British Consulate (Click Here 照片請按這裡)