This Easter

It has been a long while.

I lost my Mom last summer. A vicious form of cancer came unexpectedly and took her in only a few short months.

But this is not the end of the story.

This past Sunday evening, I sat at our church for the Lord's Supper in preparation for Easter. I had been a follower of Jesus for many years, and had taken part in many a communion. However, this time, God gave me a deeper understanding of the Cross through Mom.

I watched my Mom's body deteriorate in her fight against cancer. All my life, I only knew her as healthy and vibrant. She might have the (very) occasional cold, but I could not even remember her ever taking a sick day. About ten years ago, she changed careers and became an aerobics instructor. She was so good at it that she would be teaching multiple classes a day. She was fit. But the cancer changed the story. In a short time, instead of being strong and active, she became weaker and more fragile. Both the cancer cells and the radiation treatment took a toll on her body. The last ten days of her life were spent in a quarantined hospital room as she was being observed and treated for pneumonia. Her body became swollen as a result of fluids being pumped into her body to sustain her life. The last few days, her organs began to shut down one by one. The once lively person was slowly fading away. Her body was breaking down.

As I was sitting in the pew at my church for the Lord's Supper this past Sunday, I listened to the familiar Scripture about Jesus breaking bread with His disciples before He went to the Cross. 

The Lord Jesus on the night when He was betrayed took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it, and said, “This is My body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.”In the same way also He took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 

- 1 Corinthians 11: 23-25

Jesus said His body would be broken for us. For me.

Because of my Mom, I now more fully understood what it meant to have a broken body. To think that Jesus would do it for me long before I was even born from my mother's womb was too much for a human mind to truly fathom. What love was this, that Someone would love me so much that He would willingly break His body for me to save me from myself?

As I was holding in my hand the piece of bread and the sip of grape juice that symbolized his body and blood, I could only be grateful for His love for what He had done for me.

I no longer have my Mom on this earth. I can't talk to her and we can't make new memories. Some days, these thoughts sadden me.

But this is not the end of the story.

While my Mom was lying in the hospital bed and her body was shutting down, she gained a new - and eternal - life. I had the utmost privilege to lead her to Jesus a few days before she took a last breath. But this passing was not permanent. She was leaving this earth for an eternity with Jesus. She died only three months short of her 60th birthday and retirement, but she "retired" to a far better place. She went to heaven.

My Mom's physical body might have deteriorated, yet her soul had never been more alive. This is only possible because the Crucifixion was not the end of the story. Jesus died on the cross, but on the third day, He is risen! Death and sin had no grip on Him because He had victory. Today, my Mom is with Him in heaven.

Because of what He has done on the Cross and His victory, I will see my Mom again. Because of His Resurrection, we celebrate Easter. 

Hello!

Long time no post!

Since I still have a photo of our Christmas tree on the front page of my blog, it is high time I post something new. Lots have happened since the last post but here is a quick update -

• I became a full-time student in the beginning of the year (yes, shortly after the last post). The past four months were very busy, feeling rather like an intellectual boot camp. But it was wonderful! As of May, I finished my coursework, so now, onto reading for comprehensive exams and dissertation research!
• Hubby and I celebrated our wedding anniversary and his birthday! 
• We have a (betta) fish! It was a present from my friends. I have never thought I would have a fish, but it's been fun having him around, and I am very thankful to Hubby for being a huge help in taking care of him. Kitty cat was a bit confused and jealous at first, but having been affirmed that she is still the princess of the household, she is now fine with a fish in the house. :)
• Within a little over two months, we have a new nephew AND a new niece!!! We are very excited!
• I still have not figured out how to link my Twitter updates to the blog, although I must admit I have not tried very hard to make it happen either. However, if you are on Twitter, do say hello @RecordingSnow! 

The summer has already been quite busy, but hopefully I will be more diligent about posting in the next few months!

Christmas Memories

We had a wonderful Christmas week with family. Here is the list (again in somewhat chronological order). Enjoy!

• Getting our Christmas tree from a wonderful tree farm (that we heard about not long ago)

• Finishing Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve (close call!)
• Making my first ginger bread house alongside my cousin (who also made one)

• Going to Christmas Eve service at our church (with a full house!)
• Watching kiddos open their Christmas presents and sharing their joy
• Receiving one of the best Christmas presents ever from Hubby - donations to some of my favorite organizations
• Recovering from a cold and some kind of stomach virus (I am still not sure what it was) - being healthy is priceless
• Watching Tangled (the Rapunzel movie) for the first time with my sister-in-law -- and nephews!

• Participating in our family reunion (lots of family members). Great food and fun!

• Youngest nephews joyfully shouting "I love you" before my drive home (~swoon~)!

Thanksgiving Memories

As we welcome the new year, it is also a good time to cherish great memories. I am therefore doing a couple of lists of memories (in somewhat chronological order) for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Here is the list for Thanksgiving. Enjoy!

• Getting dinner plates for Thanksgiving. To prepare for the large party coming in town, Hubby and I went to the store and looked at every single available pattern there. We each liked different patterns but eventually settled on this one (with a flower on it! - Thanks, Babe :). It was quite fun and felt like we were doing our wedding registry again! :)

• Hosting 20 family members (Hubby and I included)! I think it was a record.
• Making pumpkin bread!
• Having plenty of food for everyone. I forgot to make mashed potatoes and our microwave stopped working, but in the end, we even had leftovers and we had a back-up microwave so all was well.

• Taking a nap after Thanksgiving dinner.
• Getting our fridge covered with kid art. Through his drawing, middle nephew turned kitty cat into a super hero (complete with cape).
• Getting "shorter" - oldest nephew was officially taller than I was (with oldest niece getting extremely close).
• Watching nephews play tennis, baseball style (imagine the tennis racket as a baseball bat).
• Watching the kiddos (youngest nephews included) watch the Barbie cartoon (!).
• Running the dishwasher eight times in three days.

Wonderful memories. Christmas memories to come. Stay tuned!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to my mom, my mother-in-law and all the moms!

Thank you for nurturing us while we were in your womb, for enduring birth pains, for feeding us, changing our diapers, picking up after us, taking us to school, picking us up from school, teaching us, guiding us, developing us, disciplining us, helping us pursue God's plans for us, sharing our ups and downs, being there for us, and loving us with the kind of love only mothers can give.

Enjoy your special day!

Grandparents

The first time I lost a grandparent, I did not know to grief. I was not yet fearfully and wonderfully made.

The second time I lost a grandparent, I was a young 18-year-old, facing death suddenly and unexpectedly for the first time. My heart broke.

The third time I lost a grandparent, a few years ago, I was blessed enough to know the Gospel had been presented to my Grandma. I was there when she drew her last breath on earth and I saw how beautiful and peaceful she was. My sorrowful heart had a reason to rejoice.

The fourth and last time I lost a grandparent, a week ago, I was sad again. Yet, in the midst of grief, God put a song in my heart -

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

August Birthdays!

It has been two months since my last post. Since two months ago, I have returned to school (part-time), begun a new Bible study, seen my toe heal, and gotten a year older, among many other things. Speaking of birthday, we celebrated three birthdays in the family in August. Here are some pictures. Enjoy!

The first one was my sister-in-law Rachel's birthday. We had a pool party at our aunt's house and it was a lot of fun! We also welcomed my other sister-in-law who had moved to the state with her family about a week before.

Rachel cutting the cake while the kids eagerly waiting to have a piece.

Later in August, we had another party to celebrate two birthdays! Princess N's and Miss E's birthdays were only a few days apart and my baby sister-in-law was going through town before moving out of state, so my back-to-Texas sister-in-law threw a party for both birthday girls.

Fun water balloon fight between my nieces and nephews before the birthday (cup)cakes.

Princess N turned 10!

Miss E turned 1!

We ended the day with dinner at Hubby's favorite barbeque restaurant, and with a picture of the five oldest children lined up by height.

Celebrating Freedom

We had a great Fourth of July weekend with family.

We first spent a little bit of time with my aunt and cousins before my cousins went back to Hong Kong for a few weeks. It was a musical night as we played drums on XBox and listened to my younger cousin play the flute. Fun!

Then we spent the rest of the weekend with my sister- and brother-in law and our three nephews. It was a fun-filled weekend as we watched baseball and World Cup (and I snuck in however much Wimbledon as I could :), drew pictures, played ball/toy airplane/video games/Scrabble/magnetic letters, read stories, went grocery shopping (okay, that was just my sister-in-law and me, the girls), did dishes together, ate home-made icecream, and as a bonus, I even got kisses from my youngest nephew......good times.

But my favorite Fourth of July moment actually came a few weeks earlier, if that could count. At my baby sister-in-law's college graduation in mid-May, I happened to sit next to my oldest nephew. We sang the national anthem at the beginning of commencement. As we sang, I also heard David's singing. It was such a beautiful sound to me. Listening to adults sing those treasured words often brought tears to my eyes, but listening to a 9-year-old sing those words was in a way much more powerful.

Not only can we celebrate Independence Day by singing the national anthem and watching fireworks on the Fourth of July, but we can sing those words any day of the year. And even more significantly, our next generation has the freedom to sing it too. What better way to celebrate our country than this?

Nieces and Nephews: Hanes

Yes, it's Hanes, the cat. Since she is my sister-in-law's cat, we call ourselves uncle and aunt when we "talk" to her. In that sense, she is our "niece," the feline one. But I guess this post is also a way for me to update on Hanes, because it has been a while since I last posted her pictures.

When I met Hanes for the first time (if we could call it a meeting), she was sleeping on the couch at my mother-in-law's house. It was before Hubby and I were married, so it was many years ago. She did not get up (or get away) so I did not even see her face or any movement. She was just a ball of fur on the couch. She did not seem too "friendly."

Then, I saw her move around the house during our subsequent visits, but she was shy and I still did not know her much.

Hubby became her keeper almost three years ago, when my mother-in-law moved and we moved hubby to our current town (I was still in school in Florida). Since I was not moved yet, I would see her once a month for a weekend, but she had become much more "friendly."

When I joined Hubby in our current town two summers ago, I spent the first couple of weeks of summer at home unpacking boxes from my move from Florida and his move from his apartment, and setting up our new home. But I spent most of the summer finishing my thesis. Hanes began to let me love on her and we developed a bond over the summer. She would come sit on my lap while I was writing, and she let me play with her.

Now, Hanes is no longer just the ball of fur that kept a distance. She is my "little one" or "sweetie," as I sometimes call her. I love it when she comes and drapes her head on my arm, or just sits on my lap, because she lets me love on her.

Below are some pictures of Hanes. Enjoy!

Hanes likes sleeping on Hubby's shirts, like this one (note her paws, very proper like a lady)

Napping on the couch by the window

Cute!

Robo-kitty!

She likes paper

Having a sweet moment with Hubby

Napping, again (but her paws were all over the place that day!)

She also likes shoes

and bags

and boxes

and Christmas presents

Hanes hanging out on my lap

On Hubby's lap

I love this picture of Hubby and Hanes, even though Hanes seems a bit indifferent

Hanes on my lap as I was sipping tea

Robo-kitty (with laser-sharp eyes) in her box

Hanes "hiding" behind my tennis bag

This post also officially concludes my little "Nieces and Nephews" series. Hope you have enjoyed it!

Celebrations

Since the last post, Hubby and I have celebrated many special occasions -

Hubby's birthday
Our anniversary (same day as Hubby's birthday)
My youngest sister-in-law's birthday
Valentine's Day
Chinese New Year (same day as Valentine's Day this year) i.e. today!

Can I use them as an excuse for my lack of post? :-) In any event, I thank the Lord for the many happy and special occasions we have in the last couple of weeks!

Nieces and Nephews: Princess N

Nine-year-old Princess N is big sister to Lady A and Miss E. She is tall for her age (she will be taller than me in a few years) and is active, fun to be around, easy-going, tranquil and practical.

She absolutely loves Star Wars. She got a Star Wars Lego set for Christmas and was very excited about it.

N holding her Star Wars Lego set (see below)

She also likes Webkinz and has a lot of them at home (I can't keep track of what she has). She got a Love Monkey for Christmas too.

I also played Apples To Apples with her (as a group) for a while and she was laughing pretty hard too, just like David did! It was great to be with kids who were enjoying themselves so much!

However, my favorite memory with N was when she was reading to me before she went to bed one night. I had read a few books to the kids. Afterwards, N picked out the Cars book to read. It was a fairly long book and N was already halfway through when I joined her. She read the rest of the book to me and she did a great job!

All Photo Credits: Lady A

Nieces and Nephews: David

David, big brother to Alex and Miguel, has an engineer's mind; he is serious, curious and specific. A perfectionist. He loves baseball and the space. One of the presents he received was a telescope. He had fun watching the moon (there were not many stars) with Papi and Cousin N, even though it was very cold outside.

David also loves video games -

Playing video game with Uncle M

More video game with Aunt S

Did I mention he loves video games? :-)

Right now, he is at the stage where he does not like to be photographed very much so I was not able to get a lot of pictures of him. I tried, and this picture, taken at the zoo, might be the best shot -

With Lady A's help, here is the goofy side of David at our BBQ dinner!

My fondest memory of him over Christmas was when we were playing Apples to Apples. I can't remember whose gift it was, but it was so much fun to see him laugh out loud and could not stop for a few minutes! He does have a lighter side!

Today is also his special day - he turns 9! Happy Birthday, David!

Nieces and Nephews: Alex

Five-year-old Alex is about 8 months older than Lady A. He is Miguel's older brother and is a happy little guy! He is goofy, outspoken, excitable, and loves his Legos. Over Christmas, he got quite a few Lego sets so he was busy building - and playing with - his Lego city.

The funniest memory I had of him over Christmas involved him, Hubby, Miguel and a bunch of Chilean Flemingoes at the zoo we visited.

When we were looking at the Chilean Flemingoes, Hubby joked to Alex that because these were Chilean Flemingoes, they spoke Spanish and he could say "hola" to them. So Alex greeted the birds enthusiastically! He even told Miguel, who was standing next to him, to say "hola" to the Flemingoes which Miguel did. It was so funny!

Other than his Lego city, Alex also played  a little with the sword, another gift he received. One time, when he was playing with it, he put on two hats (one backwards) to make himself look more like Darth Vader/Anakin from Star Wars.

Alex in his gear

The double hats

A funny little guy he is.

Nieces and Nephews: Lady A

Five-year-old A is Miss E's older sister. She is the outgoing and adventurous one. One of my fondest memories of A over Christmas is documented in the following two pictures.

My mother-in-law and my three sisters-in-law were by the dining table right before our Christmas dinner, so I asked the "ladies" to pose for a picture, as follows -

Haivng heard me using the word "ladies," A announced that "I am a lady too!" So there she was, featured in the next photo -

Isn't she adorable? :-) Over Christmas, she also took quite a few pictures with my camera. Below is a collection of pictures from the 5-year-old's perspective. Enjoy!

Nieces and Nephews: Miguel

The next young'un is 3-year-old Miguel. Over the past few months, he seems to have grown a lot, at least to me. He is now more talkative and is showing off his personality which can be goofy at times! He has a contagious smile and is very smart. I played Dominoes with him for the first time over Christmas (it might have been his first time playing the game too) and he did marvelously! We played the game using the colors of the dots instead of the number of dots on the tiles. He had no problem matching the colors. At some point during Christmas too, he rode on my shoulders around the house (I really forgot whose idea that was!), and he loved it! I had great fun too.

It's not easy to take pictures of him facing the camera, but whenever I catch him looking my way, I usually get pretty good pictures, like this one. :-)

He likes his puzzles.

Just finished a game of Dominoes with A and me.

I can't explain what was going on in this picture, but he was having fun with Uncle "Monkey" and Aunt J! (It was Hubby with his tea in the foreground.)

Nieces and Nephews: Miss E

In this blog, I have mentioned my nieces and nephews from time to time. Since we have a lot of pictures from Christmas, but more so because they are such darlings, I thought I would do a "mini blog series" to post more pictures about them. We have three nieces and three nephews, from 4 months to 9 years old. To kick it off, I am going to start with the littlest.

Miss E was born last summer. We got to meet her over Christmas for the first time since she lives far away. She is such a sweet and happy baby! She cried only once or twice, but that was only when it was her bed time at night and she did not want to be left alone. When she was awake, she was almost always smiling. And her big blue eyes are stunning!

I tried to take her as much as I could during Christmas. Various family members were generous enough to let me have her quite a bit, and I took A LOT OF pictures of her. The followings are only a small part of the collection. Enjoy!

All bundled up for the outing to the Zoo.

One of the MANY pictures I took of her.

She likes to put two figures in her mouth.

One of my favorite pictures with E!