Camera face

We discovered last week during Thanksgiving break that Lydia loves waving at pretty much anybody and always makes this one silly face when taking a picture. Even when you pretend you have a camera in your hands, she'll start making this face. I don't know if I should try and teach her to "unsquint" or just let her keep it up; after all, at least she's somewhat smiling. *shrug* BTW, you'll probably recognize this face if you've been keeping up with my blog.
Last night Lydia watched her first full length movie, Ant Bully, and in HD! We rarely get animated movies from Netflix, so this was a treat for her. Lydia started off watching the movie sitting next to me on the couch, but got restless after about 30 minutes (which is about how long her usual Sesame Beginnings DVDs last). So I put her on my lap and she sat there quietly, watching the movie. Towards the end, she started whimpering a bit because, I think, she started getting scared. When she went to bed, she also started crying when she typically doesn't, so maybe bugs are still too scary for this toddler.

Cars

Whoo-hoo, yeah for Helio! He's just to dang cute with those dimples for America not to choose him. Oh, and it probably helps that Julianne is his partner; they should really hook up if they haven't already. Were those kisses for real during the foxtrot or is it just because he's Portuguese and they maybe kiss a lot?

Today I went to my insurance claims adjuster and afterwards, dropped off the car at the shop. The loaner cars available were a Chrysler minivan or a Hyundai Elantra. Trung and I chose to go with the minivan to see how it felt to drive one if we decided to purchase one later and because the Elantra is pretty small. Too bad the minivan has over 94,000 miles on it and smells like urine, but it's the experience that matters. :P

Boy or Girl?

I had my doctor's appointment today and got my "20" week sonogram. This isn't the gender revealing picture, but just for kicks, what do YOU think we're having?

Stay tune on Christmas Day for the results!

Results

I went to four mechanic shops today to get an estimate on the car; we're looking at $2500-$3500 worth of damage. Since it was more than we had expected (isn't it always though?), we decided to file a claim with our insurance company because who knows what else needs to be repaired. Now we've just got to wait for the claims adjuster to take a look at the car so that we can take it to the shop. The sooner the better though because the hood is currently being strapped down by rope.

Some good news...we sold the HD plasma TV for a $350 profit. Now all we've got to do is find a really good deal on the TV that we want, sell our old TV and we're set!

After watching Dancing with the Stars tonight, my prediction is that Helio and Julianne will win. Everyone did quite poorly, especially Marie, considering that it was the finals. Anyhow, it will be nice to see all the celebrity dancers again tomorrow night.

Woes back at home

We were only about 20 miles away from home on our trip back from Houston when we got into a little fender bender. Basically, the car in front of us had someone cut in front of it, but we couldn't brake fast enough and ended up skidding right into the car. The whole accident seemed like it was in slow motion; all we could do was wait for the hit. Of course, it didn't help that the weather was horrible on Saturday and it had been raining almost all day. *sigh* Well, at least we had our new plasma HD TV to look forward to, right? Not really. Trung and Henry went to go pick it up later that afternoon and it ended up looking a bit small for our entertainment system. The TV was awesome, but we thought that we needed a bigger one. We had gone through a lot of trouble buying and returning items to get a really great deal on the TV, so rather than return it, we decided to post it on Craigslist and maybe make a little profit to put towards a bigger one.

Friends

Friday we had a great time meeting up with some of my old classmates. We met with Sid and Rami at Starbucks after eating lunch at my parents' house with a couple of Mike's friends. Trung and I shared a Caramel Apple Spice, which was pretty good.Then after Lydia's afternoon nap, I had some yummy desserts at Sarah's house. She had wanted to meet at Starbucks as well, but her flight was delayed for three hours due to mechanical problems.
When Lydia and I got home from Sarah's house (Mike dragged Trung to Sears to buy more stuff), we had dinner at Thomas' house. Unfortunately, Chi had to work that night, so it was just Thomas and Daniel this time around. Great job on the Christmas decorations, Chi. I don't think we'll be doing Christmas stuff at our house this year since we'll be gone for half of the month anyways.

We elfed ourselves

We ELFED ourselves! Check it out.

Catching up

Today after a snooze of a nap, we headed to the mall so I could make some returns. Then we hopped over to Le Peep to meet Tiff and Christian to have some breakfast for lunch. The food was very good, especially since we've been having Chinese styled breakfasts these last few days. My has little Christian grown into a handsome boy AND he's got little freckles like his mommy now! Too cute!

Finale and Finals

I forgot to watch the season finale of The Bachelor last night, so I caught up on abc.com; I almost wish that I hadn't. I cannot believe Brad did not choose either girls! I'll definitely have to watch "After the Rose" to see what he has to say for himself. I also read up on the web just now that Jennie got kicked off of "Dancing with the Stars". I kind of saw it coming since everyone seems to love Marie, and Mel and Helio are "neck and neck". I am now okay with either Mel and Helio winning (though I still prefer Helio); I just don't want Marie to win.

Tonight Mike, Trung and I had dinner at Bluefin, a trendy Japanese restaurant near Dairy Ashford off of Westheimer. I "enjoyed" watching Mike and Trung eat sushi and sashimi while I munched on tempura, unagi, and a spider roll. Afterwards, we watched "Beowulf" at Memorial City Cinemark, which is quite a nice facility. The movie was entertaining and unique with its animated effects. Overall, Trung had a great time and it was nice taking a break from Lydia for an evening!

Much ado about nothing

Here's a family picture that someone took of us at my parents' reception.

We didn't do much today...ate breakfast at Panera Bread, ate leftovers for lunch at my parents' house, and had hot pot with the family for dinner. Trung looked up the items he wanted to purchase on Black Friday, but mostly we just sat around and flipped through advertisements. This will be our only real "down" day since we will hopefully be meeting up with friends and hanging out with family the rest of the week.

Family Weekend

This weekend was all about the Lee Family. Saturday afternoon we had a reception for my Dad's 25th anniversary at the church and my parents' 35th wedding anniversary. The program ran a bit longer than planned, but overall everyone, especially my parents, enjoyed it. I didn't get a chance to eat for awhile since everyone wanted to talk to me, but it was great seeing people who I hadn't seen for ages. After getting a moment away and chowing down some Americanized Chinese food, we rushed over to my niece Jocelyn's first piano recital. Unfortunately, we arrived ten minutes late from all the socializing and missed her thirty second performance.

Today after the 11 AM Tallowood Baptist Church service and lunch with the Chinese mission, Mike and I dropped Trung and Lydia off at home for Lydia's nap while we picked up balloons for Jocelyn's 6th birthday party. The event was held at Teddy Bear Forest, a knock-off of Build-a-Bear, at Katy Mills. The 14 kids got to pick out an animal, help stuff it, and then clothe it; I made one for Lydia too...a teddy bear with a purple gingham dress. :) After making the animals, the kids played some games and then had pizza and birthday cake

We helped load up the birthday gifts into Jimmy's minivan after the party and then headed to his house for an early dinner and to hang out with Cora's sister Kate and her family. Jocelyn and her two female cousins had a great time playing with each other and opening her presents. Lydia was kind of a loner since she's much younger than the other girls; the boys were either sleeping or way too young. We ate some fajitas and chilled for a little while before heading back to my parents' house. I am exhausted and am afraid that I may be getting sick (Mike and Lydia had the sniffles). It's going to be a long, but fun week, so I hope I get better soon.

Packing for Houston

First of all, I want to mention that I want Helio to win on Dancing with the Stars because Jeannie is inconsistent (Helio is too, but not as much) and Mel B, I think, is just plain lucky. Frankly, I don't know why America keeps Marie Osmond around...for kicks, I guess. Anyhow, that's my two cents about that.

Next topic...packing for Houston has been harder than ever before. I've always had the problem on deciding what to pack based on the weather this time of year, but this trip, I've got my belly size to consider as well. I'm in that in-between stage where I can wear some regular clothes, but they are a bit tight or I can wear maternity clothes, but they are a bit loose. So, the question is whether I want to look pregnant or kinda fat. :P Anyhow, I've been packing a mixture of the two because I'll probably be bigger at the end of the week from all the eating that I will most definitely be doing.

Getting smarter every day

When Lydia got her first knob puzzle for her birthday, she could only put in the circle piece. Gradually she figured out all the pieces and on those days when she really concentrates, she can complete the puzzle all by herself in record times.

First playdate

Today Lydia and I went to our first playdate; we met up with ACC church friends Joyce with her daughter Rebekah and Vicki with her kids Isabella and Ethan. We had a delightful lunch of noodles and dumplings at Joyce's house. Rebekah took a quick nap while the other kids "played" though Ethan and Lydia are still a bit young at fourteen months (one week apart) to really play. Ethan didn't want Lydia too close to him, so that's why she's a bit distant in this picture. :P

Isabella (3), Rebekah (2), Ethan (1), Lydia (1)

Showers of blessings

Saturday, I attended two baby showers. The first one was for my one of my bridesmaids Wendy, (middle front) who is expecting a little girl in late January.

The second baby shower was for my neighbor Grace, who is expecting a little girl next month.

Congratulations to you both! We cannot wait for Baby Cheng and Rachel to arrive!

Come one, come all

Come and celebrate the goodness of God with us!


You are cordially invited

to a reception to celebrate

the 25th anniversary of

Pastor Jason Lee

as a Minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ

to the Tallowood Baptist Church

Chinese Congregation.

and

We will also celebrate the

35th Wedding Anniversary

of Pastor Jason and Mrs. Ruth Lee

on Saturday, the seventeenth of November

Two thousand and seven

at three o’clock in the afternoon

Tallowood Baptist Church Fireplace Room

555 Tallowood Road

Houston, Texas


Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His name together.

Psalm 34:3


Your love is a treasured gift we request no other.

Please pray

Please pray for my maternal grandmother who originally was thought to have stomach cancer, but has now been diagnosed with lymphoma, a cancer originating from the white blood cell in the vertebrate immune system. She is in her 80s and undergoes chemotherapy today. Grandma has not yet met Trung or Lydia, so we hope that all goes well so that she can meet them and the new baby next winter when we plan on traveling to Taiwan.

Preggers here, preggers there

Jennifer Lopez officially announced last night at a concert that she was indeed pregnant. She didn't say when she was due, but from what I've read, she's expecting right around the same time that I am. Also, Giada De Laurentiis from the Food Network channel is also expecting in early April...a baby girl. If you don't know which chef she is, Giada cooks Italian food and is the one with the big smile and tiny little waist. Here's a fun fact: her grandfather is film producers Dino De Laurentiis.

Here are some random tidbits:
- I have no clue who is going to win Dancing with the Stars, but I kinda hope it's not Mel B. She a really good dancer, but I think she's just been lucky lately because she doesn't dedicate even half as much time into training as the other dancers and their schedules are just as hectic. I do enjoy watching Jennie, Cameron, and Helio dance, so I hope one of them wins.
- My childhood church friend Susan Mitchell was on Jeopardy's Tournament of Champions yesterday. She didn't win this time around, but got second place, so she still might make the wild card round. Good for you, Susan!
- Lydia got her flu shot today. The pediatrician's office ran out of preservative free ones quite some time ago, so she got the regular one. There has been so much talk about the shot causing autism that I honestly would have preferred the preservative free one, but Trung and I think that she will be just fine.

Chilly

Lydia and I went to get the mail today and brrr, it's chilly out there. It's nice having the cooler weather, but in a couple days it will be gone again, and then back again, and then gone again. Gotta love the Texas weather! I taught Lydia how to put her hands in her pockets, well, more like I just put them in for her. :)

Contact

This past weekend I thought I felt the baby moving, but decided that it was gas; last night I definitely felt him/her. I can usually feel the movements when I'm laying down and nothing else is going on around me, like last night when I was going to sleep. I felt the baby move two weeks earlier than my last pregnancy; I already knew the sex of the baby the first time around before I could feel anything.

Okay, so I have a gut feeling now that we're having a girl. I don't know if I can wait three more weeks to find out, much less wait until Christmas. What to do, what to do! I KNOW that I'll slip somehow if I find out first, but I HAVE to know now. Oh, and it doesn't help that I talk in my sleep either. AHHHH!!!

Fourteen Months Old

Every month I'm amazed at how much Lydia has developed and grown. She truly is no longer a baby, but rather, a little girl. Lately everyone has been saying that she exactly looks like me (especially as a child); I can't help but beam with pride. What do you think?

Or does she look more like my niece Jocelyn?

Changes

Yesterday we finally turned Lydia's car seat front facing because though she has been over a year old for a couple months now, she just now got to the twenty pound mark. She thoroughly enjoyed her first car ride facing forward, laughing at loud as Trung and I would look back at her. (I just recently stopped sitting in the back seat with her because she was getting kind of spoiled). I think that Lydia could definitely get used to the change of scenery.

Today was Daylight Savings, which I thought putting Lydia to sleep an hour later last night would help her adjust, but she ended up waking up at 6:30 AM (7:30 AM) still. Our usual church service starts at 9:30 AM, so we definitely weren't going to be able to make it to that service since Lydia woke up from her morning nap at 9:45 AM. So, today we made our occasional visit to Hyde Park Baptist Church. Trung and I enjoy the sermons there quite a bit and we seem to "get" the pastor more than at Austin Chinese Church. We have been attending ACC mainly out of convenience because it is one block away and the service time fits better with Lydia's naptime. We do like it at ACC and have meet new friends, but once the kids are older, HPBC will probably be our church of choice.

We attended our temporary former roommate Henry's housewarming party today after church. Homemade pot stickers and sweet rice wraps were only a couple of the treats provided. Henry settled his family in a new house only three miles away from us; we like to think that he wanted to be near to us. :)

Lost and Found

Wednesday as I was returning home from shipping my eBay items at the post office, I was thinking how fortunate I have been in receiving all my eBay purchases. Well, I "thought" too fast because just that same day, I did not receive my first package. The USPS track and confirm website reported that the shipment was delivered that morning, but where was the package? I called the post office that delivers our mail and they said to call back in the morning to talk to our mail carrier Joe. The next morning Joe said he remembered putting a package in our box, which he did, but it wasn't the "lost" package. After claiming that he would find it and dropping by my house for the tracking number, Joe finally admitted that he couldn't find it yesterday.

I had ordered a bunch of self adhesive labels to make printing shipping labels a lot easier. The package's total cost was about $7.00, but it was the concept that USPS had lost my package that really bothered me the most. Last night I ordered some more labels, but fewer this time just in case the original package turned up. As I was mailing our Netflix movie this morning, I noticed on the floor next to our neighborhood mailboxes a package with my name on it. I guess a neighbor got it and just put it there for someone to claim...it would have been nice to have it hand/door delivered, but at least I finally got my package. Well, I ran into Joe just now and told him about it; maybe he'll pay closer attention next time.