Just finishing the biography of Ann Judson, Adoniram Judson's wife. It would take too long to share all the details of this book that touched my heart, but one thing that stood out was her life of suffering. I've never personally known anyone who has suffered as much as her. All I know is that she must have SO much treasure in Heaven because she faced every sort of trial that any woman could go through. Just to give an example: while her husband was being brutally held as a prisoner of war in Burma, daily facing prospects of death, Ann was caring for her baby daughter in an evil land. She lived in deplorable conditions, had no family or friends, was barely clinging on to her own health, and had to endure heart-breaking nights of separation from her husband and hearing her precious baby cry because of hunger. Yet, because of her obedience to the Lord, the Lord used her to encourage her husband, who pioneered the missionary effort in Burma.
Here's a quote from the book: "Her courage in leaving America, her dedication in insisting that her husband remain with the young church while she sought medical help abroad, her loyalty during Adoniram's imprisonment and her disregard of personal risk seem almost superhuman. Yet she was only too human in that she suffered greatly; she was not hard, insensitive or cold. She was a woman who loved intensely, loved her husband, loved her children, loved the people of Burma, but above all loved her God."
Much to reflect on after reading this book. Highly recommend it!
And...Simple Joy #16: When your baby has the giggles.
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Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Sunday, December 25, 2005
Merry Christmas, Everyone!
Audrey's Christmas wish to her grandparents and to her Eemo Jane in Hawaii...
Take One: Uh, I'm hungry, Mama.
Take Two: Now I'm tired.
Take Three: This is too stressful.
Take Four: Help! Please help!
Finally! Merry Christmas to you!
Here's a Psalm that is not exactly Christmas-related, but is perfectly fitting for this season of worship... Psalm 145:1-3
I will extol You, my God, O King; and I will bless Your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable.
Take One: Uh, I'm hungry, Mama.
Take Two: Now I'm tired.
Take Three: This is too stressful.
Take Four: Help! Please help!
Finally! Merry Christmas to you!
Here's a Psalm that is not exactly Christmas-related, but is perfectly fitting for this season of worship... Psalm 145:1-3
I will extol You, my God, O King; and I will bless Your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable.
Monday, November 28, 2005
Recap of Past Few Weeks
A few weeks ago, Mike and I went on a date to Villa Nova (thanks to the Whites and Kangs!) and we had such a good time. Auntie Miriam babysat for us so that we could enjoy some time alone and it was so wonderful! I was surprised with a gorgeous bouquet of roses and I really felt like we were dating again. Can't wait to do it again soon!
Audrey has been growing like crazy and she's already playing in her Exersaucer. Can you tell she really enjoys it?
We went to a friend's wedding recently and Audrey got all dolled up. Whenever we used to go to weddings, I would reminisce about my own. Now, I reminisce about my own and also think of Audrey's wedding...Lord-willing.
Audrey caught her very first cold last weekend. She was very tired and just not herself, but the Lord answered our prayers and she was back to smiling and giggling again.
Thanksgiving morning, the men of our church played football at a nearby park. The single men beat the married men, 10 to 3. How did they do it, you ask? Well, there was a beautiful group of godly single women cheering them on. Hee hee.
And the very cute Seo kids came to cheer on their own dad.
Audrey cheered for her daddy too, while playing with the Aunties.
We had dinner at our place and we had a blast! It was so much fun cooking together and I really felt like I laughed nonstop the whole night. Thanks for the laughs, everyone! I was also so blessed by our time of prayer and giving thanks to the Lord. It was so encouraging to hear what everyone was thankful for. I was also thankful that Mike and I won Trivial Pursuit.
Shane looks real serious in this picture, but he was laughing all night too. Sorry about splattering turkey juice on you, Shane!
Min ate a lot and talked a lot too. He's a funny guy!
Here are Andrew, Julie, and Miriam, enjoying their dinner.
Here is Audrey, the morning after. It looks like she enjoyed her first Thanksgiving!
One of Audrey's hobbies is dancing with Daddy after dinner. Here she is, dancing to Charlie Brown Christmas. Watch for her shimmies at the end. For sure, she's got her Daddy's dance moves!
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Audrey has been growing like crazy and she's already playing in her Exersaucer. Can you tell she really enjoys it?
We went to a friend's wedding recently and Audrey got all dolled up. Whenever we used to go to weddings, I would reminisce about my own. Now, I reminisce about my own and also think of Audrey's wedding...Lord-willing.
Audrey caught her very first cold last weekend. She was very tired and just not herself, but the Lord answered our prayers and she was back to smiling and giggling again.
Thanksgiving morning, the men of our church played football at a nearby park. The single men beat the married men, 10 to 3. How did they do it, you ask? Well, there was a beautiful group of godly single women cheering them on. Hee hee.
And the very cute Seo kids came to cheer on their own dad.
Audrey cheered for her daddy too, while playing with the Aunties.
We had dinner at our place and we had a blast! It was so much fun cooking together and I really felt like I laughed nonstop the whole night. Thanks for the laughs, everyone! I was also so blessed by our time of prayer and giving thanks to the Lord. It was so encouraging to hear what everyone was thankful for. I was also thankful that Mike and I won Trivial Pursuit.
Shane looks real serious in this picture, but he was laughing all night too. Sorry about splattering turkey juice on you, Shane!
Min ate a lot and talked a lot too. He's a funny guy!
Here are Andrew, Julie, and Miriam, enjoying their dinner.
Here is Audrey, the morning after. It looks like she enjoyed her first Thanksgiving!
One of Audrey's hobbies is dancing with Daddy after dinner. Here she is, dancing to Charlie Brown Christmas. Watch for her shimmies at the end. For sure, she's got her Daddy's dance moves!
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Monday, November 7, 2005
Something New
Simple joy #15: When your baby shows off something new in front of the camera and also gives you a surprise.
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Monday, October 24, 2005
More Simple Joys
A few more simple joys of motherhood that I was thinking of today. Please feel free to contribute your own simple joys too!
9. When you feel a huge sense of accomplishment in getting your baby down for her nap, but you can't wait until she wakes up again so you can play with her.
10. When you are short on time in getting somewhere and you decide not to risk being late by kissing your baby because you know that once you start, you just can't stop.
11. When your baby does something new like grasping a rattle or holding her head up, you know that she is progressing along normally in her development but inside, you totally believe that she is super genius baby.
12. When while admiring your baby's cuteness with your husband, you both share a deep and weirdly natural desire to eat her.
13. When during a middle-of-the-night feed, you find a rather large booger on her face and since there is no Kleenex within arm's reach, you decide to wipe it on your arm. And after putting her back down to bed, you peel it off yourself and dispose of it appropriately.
14. Spot-cleaning your baby in the sink after a poopie diaper.
9. When you feel a huge sense of accomplishment in getting your baby down for her nap, but you can't wait until she wakes up again so you can play with her.
10. When you are short on time in getting somewhere and you decide not to risk being late by kissing your baby because you know that once you start, you just can't stop.
11. When your baby does something new like grasping a rattle or holding her head up, you know that she is progressing along normally in her development but inside, you totally believe that she is super genius baby.
12. When while admiring your baby's cuteness with your husband, you both share a deep and weirdly natural desire to eat her.
13. When during a middle-of-the-night feed, you find a rather large booger on her face and since there is no Kleenex within arm's reach, you decide to wipe it on your arm. And after putting her back down to bed, you peel it off yourself and dispose of it appropriately.
14. Spot-cleaning your baby in the sink after a poopie diaper.
Thursday, October 20, 2005
Simple Joys of Motherhood
Here are Audrey and Jacob Park getting ready to get their diapers changed last Sunday. Notice they are more interested in their hands than they are in each other.
This made me think of when Daniel Pyo told me that his mom used to watch my sister Jane and his brother Joe during church when they were babies, and how she used to change their diapers at the same time. My, how time flies, huh? Before we know it, Jacob and Audrey will be reminiscing about these times together...Lord willing.
I've learned that babies are kind of schizophrenic (did i spell that right?). Here is Audrey BEFORE her feeding.
And here she is right AFTER. My, what a difference momma's milk can make!
Now for some simple joys of motherhood that I was reflecting on during my walk today:
1. When you hear your baby crying as she wakes up in the morning, but you realize it's just to call you over to her crib so that she can give you a "Good morning!" smile that just melts your heart. (This happened this morning.)
2. When you do something silly to make her smile or laugh, and afterwards she makes you feel like you're the funniest person in the world and the most fun person to be around.
3. When you grumble in the car on your way to the grocery store because it's raining and entertain sinful complaints like, "Do we REALLY need groceries?" or "Is ramen really THAT unhealthy to eat for dinner tonight?" or "If we only had a garage, this would be SO much easier." But, when you take your baby out of the car and realize it's her first outing in the rain, you are rebuked and decide to teach her about thanking God for all types of weather and to marvel at his creation instead of complaining about it.
4. When you watch your husband holding your baby, you think to yourself, "There are my two favorite people in this world!" And, you also marvel at how your baby is 50% you, 50% your husband, and 100% a gift from God.
5. When you talk to your 3-month old baby and she coos back at you, you really feel like she's totally understood what you were saying and that you've just had a really deep conversation.
6. When after you've cleaned the kitchen after dinner and you've put your baby down for the night, you kind of feel like the day's work is "done" (although, is a mom's work ever really done?) and you can enjoy sweet alone time with your husband.
7. When after nursing, your baby lets out a deep man-belch and you're thankful that you've been able to provide a hearty meal for your baby for free!
More simple joys to come at a later time...o wait! One more!
8. When you've managed to dig out a huge booger from your baby's nose and you're so proud that you run to your husband to show it off to him.
This made me think of when Daniel Pyo told me that his mom used to watch my sister Jane and his brother Joe during church when they were babies, and how she used to change their diapers at the same time. My, how time flies, huh? Before we know it, Jacob and Audrey will be reminiscing about these times together...Lord willing.
I've learned that babies are kind of schizophrenic (did i spell that right?). Here is Audrey BEFORE her feeding.
And here she is right AFTER. My, what a difference momma's milk can make!
Now for some simple joys of motherhood that I was reflecting on during my walk today:
1. When you hear your baby crying as she wakes up in the morning, but you realize it's just to call you over to her crib so that she can give you a "Good morning!" smile that just melts your heart. (This happened this morning.)
2. When you do something silly to make her smile or laugh, and afterwards she makes you feel like you're the funniest person in the world and the most fun person to be around.
3. When you grumble in the car on your way to the grocery store because it's raining and entertain sinful complaints like, "Do we REALLY need groceries?" or "Is ramen really THAT unhealthy to eat for dinner tonight?" or "If we only had a garage, this would be SO much easier." But, when you take your baby out of the car and realize it's her first outing in the rain, you are rebuked and decide to teach her about thanking God for all types of weather and to marvel at his creation instead of complaining about it.
4. When you watch your husband holding your baby, you think to yourself, "There are my two favorite people in this world!" And, you also marvel at how your baby is 50% you, 50% your husband, and 100% a gift from God.
5. When you talk to your 3-month old baby and she coos back at you, you really feel like she's totally understood what you were saying and that you've just had a really deep conversation.
6. When after you've cleaned the kitchen after dinner and you've put your baby down for the night, you kind of feel like the day's work is "done" (although, is a mom's work ever really done?) and you can enjoy sweet alone time with your husband.
7. When after nursing, your baby lets out a deep man-belch and you're thankful that you've been able to provide a hearty meal for your baby for free!
More simple joys to come at a later time...o wait! One more!
8. When you've managed to dig out a huge booger from your baby's nose and you're so proud that you run to your husband to show it off to him.
Sunday, October 9, 2005
Recent Pics
Here are some recent pics...
Audrey's appetite has really grown. Yesterday, she downed the large bag of kettle corn that we bought from the farmer's market...all in one sitting.
Our beloved Elder Bob is so good with kids! He played so lovingly with Audrey's face today and introduced her to Star Trek.
Here we are after church. I was so blessed by both Pastor James' and Pastor Marcus' teachings from the Word. So convicted that if I want my prayers for my family to be answered, I need to first pray for myself...that I would be a holy and sanctified wife and mother to be able to minister to my family as a clean vessel. Also, that if I really love God, then I will love scripture and pray. Such a simple and profound truth that breaks my heart and reveals many areas where I lack. Got a full week ahead with much to apply and meditate on. Praise the Lord for the purity and power of His Word to direct our hearts, and for equipping righteous men to proclaim it!
Audrey's appetite has really grown. Yesterday, she downed the large bag of kettle corn that we bought from the farmer's market...all in one sitting.
Our beloved Elder Bob is so good with kids! He played so lovingly with Audrey's face today and introduced her to Star Trek.
Here we are after church. I was so blessed by both Pastor James' and Pastor Marcus' teachings from the Word. So convicted that if I want my prayers for my family to be answered, I need to first pray for myself...that I would be a holy and sanctified wife and mother to be able to minister to my family as a clean vessel. Also, that if I really love God, then I will love scripture and pray. Such a simple and profound truth that breaks my heart and reveals many areas where I lack. Got a full week ahead with much to apply and meditate on. Praise the Lord for the purity and power of His Word to direct our hearts, and for equipping righteous men to proclaim it!
Monday, September 26, 2005
Grandparents
Audrey misses her Maryland and Hawaii grandparents very much and they miss her like crazy too! Here are some pictures for you, hal mu nees and ha rah buh jees!
Audrey with Maryland Grandma
And her Hawaii Grandparents
She can't wait to hang ten in Hawaii with her first bathing suit!
Audrey in her bath robe
Close your eyes, boys!
She's really smiling a lot recently. Especially right after Mommy and Daddy give her a big smooch on the lips.
She's already showing her depravity. Audrey, it's not nice to make fun of people.
Here, she is either posing like her friend Mr. Ty, or she is trying to be intimidating. You choose.
On a side note, Mike's really been enjoying grilling up steaks on Joan and Dale's little grill (thanks for letting us borrow it, Shims!). He makes a mean rib eye.
Audrey with Maryland Grandma
And her Hawaii Grandparents
She can't wait to hang ten in Hawaii with her first bathing suit!
Audrey in her bath robe
Close your eyes, boys!
She's really smiling a lot recently. Especially right after Mommy and Daddy give her a big smooch on the lips.
She's already showing her depravity. Audrey, it's not nice to make fun of people.
Here, she is either posing like her friend Mr. Ty, or she is trying to be intimidating. You choose.
On a side note, Mike's really been enjoying grilling up steaks on Joan and Dale's little grill (thanks for letting us borrow it, Shims!). He makes a mean rib eye.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Attack of the Lizard Part 1
What a strange day! (this is quite long...if you don't want to read, just ask me about it later.)
My parents came from Hawaii Sunday night, the same night that Mike left for Denver on a business trip. All was going well Monday morning. My parents got to play with Audrey, they made me a wonderful breakfast, and we were enjoying each other's company. But once they left to run some errands, my stomach started to feel queezy. It turns out that I got the stomach flu that's been going around at church.
After a few hours of battling the nausea, I finally felt a little better. Let's just say the breakfast didn't stay in too long. Then, I took Audrey downstairs to feed her. As I was feeding her, I was thankful that I was feeling better and praying that she wouldn't get sick from me. All of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I saw something moving. I was almost scared to look because I had a feeling that it didn't belong inside our house. Well, I did look and my heart skipped a beat when I realized that there was a LIZARD in my living room, right next to the couch where I was sitting with my baby in my arms! My gut reaction was to panic and repeat, "O my goodness, O my goodness." What was I to do? Why was there an 8-inch lizard in my house? Let me tell you that I did NOT have a gentle and quiet spirit at this time.
I was glad to see the phone right in front of me and called my dad. I sobbed and screamed while I told him my predicament and demanded that he and my mom come home right away. However, they were stuck in traffic and it would be another 20 minutes before they got home. Aaah! After we hung up, I realized that something had to be done. Since the lizard slithered behind the piano, I thought it would be safe for me to leave Audrey on the couch while I got our bottle of Raid Max (as if that would have killed it). I sprayed and it started to come back out. I then ran to grab a bowl from the kitchen so that I could trap him underneath until my parents came home. But, I was grappled by intense fear that it would be too fast for me to trap him, so I gave up and grabbed Audrey so we could go upstairs.
I called my dad again while approaching the stairs and saw that the lizard was following me!! I was screaming uncontrollably on the phone and my mom tried to give me some comfort:
me: AAAAHHH! Please come home quickly! It's moving! It's on the baby's blanket now! AAAAHHH!
mom: Sue, it's okay. It is part of God's creation.
Obviously, this did not comfort me AT ALL. She later told me that she was totally scared too and just tried to remain calm for my sake. However, the whole time, she was thinking of calling Animal Control Services to come and rescue me.
Audrey and I finally found shelter upstairs in her room and I decided to call Mike in Denver.
me: (trying to remain calm so as not to panic him) Hi honey. How are you?
mike: Good! How are you?
me: Uh, I'm upstairs right now...and there's a reason why I'm here.
mike: Why?
me: BECAUSE THERE'S A LIZARD IN OUR LIVING ROOM! (I proceeded to tell him the story.)
mike: Ha ha ha ha ha! Well, you know the lizard can go upstairs too, right?
me: Well then, I'll close the doors.
mike: You know it can go under the doors too, right?
me: Well then, I'll put towels underneath.
By this time, I was exasperated, but I knew that Mike was probably using his sense of humor to try to comfort me. Besides, what could he do from Denver?
My parents finally came home and I stayed upstairs, feeling quite nauseous again and trying to catch my breath from almost hyperventilating. At the same time, I was happy that my dad was here to catch our unwelcome house-guest. I heard him shuffling things around to find him when all of sudden, I heard someone play the piano.
mom: Honey, don't play right now, Audrey's sleeping.
dad: Okay.
me: MOM!
mom: Yeah?
me: WHY IS DAD PLAYING THE PIANO! TELL HIM TO CATCH THE LIZARD! O MY GOODNESS!
mom: Okay.
My dad has been working part-time as an apprentice to a piano tuner for the past few months. I guess since he didn't see the lizard behind the piano, he kind of gave up and decided to start tuning our piano instead. So I came downstairs and begged him to re-start his search for the creature and confessed that I wouldn't be able to come back downstairs until I knew it was gone. Since I was almost crying, I think he understood how desperate I was and started looking for it again.
mom: (while putting groceries away in the kitchen) Oh, here it is!
me: AAAAAHHHHHH!
Fortunately, my dad had a large wooden stick in his hand and cleverly killed it by smashing its neck. After he picked it up and threw it out, I finally felt like I could breathe normally again. The day ended with another episode of the stomach virus and battling a fever in bed, but I was SO thankful to the Lord. He brought my parents to visit from Hawaii at just the right time...so they could catch the lizard and take care of me while Mike was gone. The Lord is good!
Some pics to end this long entry:
Our first real picture together as a family
Proud papa
Audrey with her friend Jack, who was born on the same day, at the same hospital. His parents are friends of ours, whom we met during our lamaze classes.
Audrey has just started to learn how to soothe herself to sleep. She found her thumb!
She's also been very fascinated by her own hands.
Hello everyone!
My parents came from Hawaii Sunday night, the same night that Mike left for Denver on a business trip. All was going well Monday morning. My parents got to play with Audrey, they made me a wonderful breakfast, and we were enjoying each other's company. But once they left to run some errands, my stomach started to feel queezy. It turns out that I got the stomach flu that's been going around at church.
After a few hours of battling the nausea, I finally felt a little better. Let's just say the breakfast didn't stay in too long. Then, I took Audrey downstairs to feed her. As I was feeding her, I was thankful that I was feeling better and praying that she wouldn't get sick from me. All of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I saw something moving. I was almost scared to look because I had a feeling that it didn't belong inside our house. Well, I did look and my heart skipped a beat when I realized that there was a LIZARD in my living room, right next to the couch where I was sitting with my baby in my arms! My gut reaction was to panic and repeat, "O my goodness, O my goodness." What was I to do? Why was there an 8-inch lizard in my house? Let me tell you that I did NOT have a gentle and quiet spirit at this time.
I was glad to see the phone right in front of me and called my dad. I sobbed and screamed while I told him my predicament and demanded that he and my mom come home right away. However, they were stuck in traffic and it would be another 20 minutes before they got home. Aaah! After we hung up, I realized that something had to be done. Since the lizard slithered behind the piano, I thought it would be safe for me to leave Audrey on the couch while I got our bottle of Raid Max (as if that would have killed it). I sprayed and it started to come back out. I then ran to grab a bowl from the kitchen so that I could trap him underneath until my parents came home. But, I was grappled by intense fear that it would be too fast for me to trap him, so I gave up and grabbed Audrey so we could go upstairs.
I called my dad again while approaching the stairs and saw that the lizard was following me!! I was screaming uncontrollably on the phone and my mom tried to give me some comfort:
me: AAAAHHH! Please come home quickly! It's moving! It's on the baby's blanket now! AAAAHHH!
mom: Sue, it's okay. It is part of God's creation.
Obviously, this did not comfort me AT ALL. She later told me that she was totally scared too and just tried to remain calm for my sake. However, the whole time, she was thinking of calling Animal Control Services to come and rescue me.
Audrey and I finally found shelter upstairs in her room and I decided to call Mike in Denver.
me: (trying to remain calm so as not to panic him) Hi honey. How are you?
mike: Good! How are you?
me: Uh, I'm upstairs right now...and there's a reason why I'm here.
mike: Why?
me: BECAUSE THERE'S A LIZARD IN OUR LIVING ROOM! (I proceeded to tell him the story.)
mike: Ha ha ha ha ha! Well, you know the lizard can go upstairs too, right?
me: Well then, I'll close the doors.
mike: You know it can go under the doors too, right?
me: Well then, I'll put towels underneath.
By this time, I was exasperated, but I knew that Mike was probably using his sense of humor to try to comfort me. Besides, what could he do from Denver?
My parents finally came home and I stayed upstairs, feeling quite nauseous again and trying to catch my breath from almost hyperventilating. At the same time, I was happy that my dad was here to catch our unwelcome house-guest. I heard him shuffling things around to find him when all of sudden, I heard someone play the piano.
mom: Honey, don't play right now, Audrey's sleeping.
dad: Okay.
me: MOM!
mom: Yeah?
me: WHY IS DAD PLAYING THE PIANO! TELL HIM TO CATCH THE LIZARD! O MY GOODNESS!
mom: Okay.
My dad has been working part-time as an apprentice to a piano tuner for the past few months. I guess since he didn't see the lizard behind the piano, he kind of gave up and decided to start tuning our piano instead. So I came downstairs and begged him to re-start his search for the creature and confessed that I wouldn't be able to come back downstairs until I knew it was gone. Since I was almost crying, I think he understood how desperate I was and started looking for it again.
mom: (while putting groceries away in the kitchen) Oh, here it is!
me: AAAAAHHHHHH!
Fortunately, my dad had a large wooden stick in his hand and cleverly killed it by smashing its neck. After he picked it up and threw it out, I finally felt like I could breathe normally again. The day ended with another episode of the stomach virus and battling a fever in bed, but I was SO thankful to the Lord. He brought my parents to visit from Hawaii at just the right time...so they could catch the lizard and take care of me while Mike was gone. The Lord is good!
Some pics to end this long entry:
Our first real picture together as a family
Proud papa
Audrey with her friend Jack, who was born on the same day, at the same hospital. His parents are friends of ours, whom we met during our lamaze classes.
Audrey has just started to learn how to soothe herself to sleep. She found her thumb!
She's also been very fascinated by her own hands.
Hello everyone!
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