raisingafamilyinasia

gifts and games

2012-02-17T01:20:00.000-08:00

Tims family sent 'trouble' the kids game. I am pretty sure we have played it every day multiple times a day since he received it a couple weeks ago. It has been a great game to teach him good sportsmanship. When we send one of his little guys 'home' or he does it to us we say, "that's okay it is all part of how you play the game." Also for whoever wins we tell them congratulations. He does a good job at this.

Another thing they sent was a couple of crafting kits that they got off of our amazon wish list. We opened it up over the weekend and he made this lovely Caterpillar.

Thank you so much of thinking of Preston he is loving all the other things you bought as well. My personal favorite in the package is the Bible story coloring book.

Very thoughtful thank you!

I love rock and roll...

2012-02-09T19:45:00.000-08:00

I love saying things like, "my kids"
I love giving hugs and kisses to two of the most adorable munchkins on the planet
I love having baby hands and feet to oooh and aaah over

Isabella is such a good baby...I love making her smile. Preston is the best big brother and is such a great helper. I am BLESSED!

a pinteresting valentine

2012-02-08T23:06:00.000-08:00

I got this idea from pinterest :) I got a picture of Preston holding his hand out and then poked 2 holes in the picture. one above and one below then stuck a real sucker through his hand so it looks like the sucker is coming out of the card. We then added a little valentine touch. These are what Prestons friends will be getting as well as our Vietnamese teachers. :) A huge thank you to pinterest and all the fabulous ideas you give me

from scratch

2012-02-08T05:26:00.000-08:00

When we moved to Asia 7 years ago I remember being at a loss for how to cook in my new surroundings. I had never really made anything before that didn't call for some sort of instant something. Whether it was an instant spice mix like taco seasoning, or biscuits you can cook out of a can. It took me about 2 years to fully embrace my new life in the kitchen. I made a lot of mistakes along the way, but now there are things I would never consider NOT making on my own. Things like homemade bread, tortillas, pitas, and biscuits to buttermilk and sour cream and many things in between.

Another benefit of living near 2 markets is that there is never a shortage of fresh fruits and vegetables in our house. We always have some sort of fruit cut and in a container for snacks as well as an assortment of veggies ready to go. Because we eat so many veggies we also eat a LOT of salads. Since cheese is so expensive we do not put it on a salad, but something I love putting on my salads are croutons. Of course you can't get a box of these either, but once a month I make a bactch from my left over bread collected throughout the month. I keep a ziplock bag in the freezer and when the bread is about to get old, or we come to the last piece I stick it in the freezer bag. When the bag gets full I take it out and cut all the bread into squares.

I throw all the bread cubs in my frying pan, and drizzle extra virgin olive oil in the pan making sure that all the croutons get a drizzle. Then I sprinkle salt and the best ingredient is the Italian seasoning (which I can now buy at my grocery store). I then keep stirring the bread cubes until they are all lightly browned on both sides.

I transfer all the croutons into another freezer bag and pull them out to top a salad. It adds great flavor and Preston even likes to eat them for a snack. So there you go. No excuse to throw away old bread or buy prepackaged croutons.

making memories

2012-02-03T04:40:00.000-08:00

When you decide to move overseas at the age of 24, you don't think about what it is like for the family you leave thousands of miles away. Last week my parents came to visit us. It was the first time they had come since we moved overseas 7 years ago. I loved watching Preston make memories with them.

We took them to all of our favorite local places. They enjoyed the food and touring around our great big city.

Mom and dad got to be the first grandparent to meet Isabella.

I was so proud of them for eating anything we introduced them to. They even said they would eat it again. :)

I think their favorite fruit was the dragon fruit. I only wished I had introduced them to it on the first day instead of half way through the visit.

It was always interesting to see if dad could fit in the tiny chairs at coffee shops or noodle places. I loved that my mom and dad got to see a little piece of our life in Hanoi. It was so much fun having them. There just isn't anything like your parents telling you how proud they are of the person you have become! I only wish we could see each other more often. The hardest part about family visiting is having to say good bye.

Mom and Dad thanks for a GREAT visit! We miss you already!

To infinity and beyond...4th birthday party

2012-01-16T23:04:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to my special boy. He wanted to have a buzz lightyear party, so thanks to pinterest I found a lot of creative ways to make that happen. We set up a photo booth for all the kids to have fun dressing up as a character and taking pictures behind the etch a sketch.

For the food table I made a watermelon rocket. It was supposed to have melon balls put back in, but they didn't come out as nice, so we just displayed the melon rocket in front of the sliced melons.

The above cake was a pinterest idea. It came from here. It is layered chocolate cake surrounded by kit kat bars held on by icing and filled with little chocolate candies on top. I knew I wouldn't get it round, so I went square. Notice the 'moon' pops (4 of them) around the cake.

For games we found a free printable Toy Story bingo game. The kids loved it and Preston tied for 1st place. It was a fun way to gather the friends and get them in the party mood. For bingo chips we took the pieces from our connect 4 toy story game.

We also made a life size Mr. Potato head out of cardboard. We used this for 2 games. The first game was a bean bag toss. We had cut a hole out behind the nose so when we removed the nose everyone got 3 trys to get their beanbag in the hole. Everyone had a GREAT time. Prestons friend Andrew won this game.

Next we took off all the Mr Potato head parts and blind folded each child. They each got a turn placing the face parts back on the the Mr Potato. We then took a picture of each child with their recreated Potato Head.

Preston wasn't very excited about being blind folded, but loved seeing what his potato head looked like when the blind fold was off.

Finally I had spent days making a pinata with a balloon and newspaper. I would mix flour and water into a paste and then take little strips of newspaper and put it all over the balloon. I think I got 4 layers on it. I would recomend giving this project a week, I only had 3 days, so it wasn't as dry as I wanted it to be. When it was finished I used the rest of the wrapping paper we had to decorate the outside. I filled the pinata with candy and trinkets. All the kids had fun beating it and Tim managed not to get hit by any of the zealous kids.

Preston used his woody hat to collect his pinata goodies.

We all sang Happy Birthday and he blew out his candles. Afterward he opened up his presents. The kids all had fun and so did we.

To Infinity and Beyond

Before we knew it the day was over and we were exhausted.

Our Amazing Family Christmas

2012-01-14T03:45:00.000-08:00

My 2 kiddos ( I love saying that)

Every night after dinner during Advent we lit our advent candle and put a new advent ornament on the tree. Preston was so excited to light the 4th candle and then the Christ candle. When the new year came and I was cleaning up the decorations Preston looked at me distraught and said, "you are going to throw away the Christ candle?" He just couldn't believe it. :) I have so many fun memories of Tim telling the new story and Preston telling the stories from days past. It really set the tone for the whole season.

On Christmas eve we had a dessert party. I baked all week and even tried my hand at cake pops. My mom and Tim's mom both sent/brought candy melts so I could make this happen. I wanted to test them out for our dessert party, so I knew if I wanted to make them again for Prestons birthday days later. I don't like chocolate so Tim was the tester, and he said they were great. I learned a few tricks and am sure next time they will be even easier to make.

The table was set with cake pops, ginger snaps, kringla (thanks GRAM), snicker doodles, regular chocolate cake, special K bars, veggies and fruit. It was yummy and for me would be the last of the baking I did for a while.

We also went to the Int'l church for a candlelight service and afterward got our only family picture (can you believe it)

Isabella looked so cute in her Christmas dress from my Aunt and sweater from Amanda Pennington.

My little boy was not so little any more and it made the season even more fun watching him grow with anticipation for the day we would celebrate the birth of our Savior. I couldn't help but to remember that 4 years earlier we were in Thailand on Christmas eve. I was 4 days overdue and we spent the evening with the Himstedt house Aussie style.

Christmas morning arrived and I made a cherry kringla for breakfast, thank you pinterest, and a sausage egg and cheese casserole. We skyped in with our families and of course reviewed all of our advent stories.

Preston received a new train part for his Thomas set and while I cooked Christmas dinner, Tim and Preston put the track together and played.

Among a number of dishes, I also made turkey. It turned out lovely, and with the leftover carcass I made turkey stock. DELICIOUS!

We had a great day celebrating the birth of our Savior with friends. At the end of the day we were tired and full. I love the slow pace of life in Asia, we don't get all the holiday craziness that happens in the states. I love that my children will always remember Christmas as being a time to reflect on the coming of our Savior. It is a much quieter time of reflection and filled with great food and wonderful friends. This year of course seemed extra special. As we told the story of the little baby born unto us over 2000 years ago, I got to hold my sleepy baby girl born just over 2 months earlier.

I pray your Christmas was as magical as ours!

taking inventory of my heart

2011-12-28T20:02:00.000-08:00

A good thing about blogging, like journaling, you can look back and see where you have come from. Reading this post from Sept caused me to take some time to reflect on what a different place I am in today as opposed to 1 year ago. looking back

On Dec 21st of last year I wrote this post and at the end of it I wrote, " My prayer and HOPE for 2011 is that where I have sowed in tears I would reap with joy." That has never been more true for my year.

As you know In January of 2011 I wrote a few goals for myself. One of them was to stop focusing on the child I so dearly wanted and to really appreciate the child God had given me (Preston). I dug in full time to my Vietnamese study and really all around I knew it was time to pick myself up and move on with my life.

Little did I know that 1 month from that post I would be writing this post. I still remember the day I took a pregnancy test more out of a routine before I started my final fertility treatment. I remember getting a positive and just crying long sobs because I felt like it was some cruel joke. I remember feeling so forgotten by God for so long and then in the same breath so undeserving of such a gift.

It took me until about half way through my pregnancy to rejoice in the miracle. I felt so guilty that still so many friends were still praying for their miracle.

Now 1 year later Im staring at the face of my 2 month old daughter and tomorrow will be celebrating my sons 4th birthday and I am left with just one thought. THANK YOU GOD!

Thank you for my 2 kids...thank you for your unconditional love...thank you for this miracle!

So it is with a happy heart that I go into 2012 excited for all that the year holds. Excited to feel more and more at home in the culture we are living in.

squeezing it in before we left Chiang Mai

2011-12-26T19:32:00.000-08:00

The last week before we left Chiang Mai was busy. We had a lot on the list, one of which was to get the kids Christmas pictures taken at the mall. We foolishly found the only time that worked which was at 6:30pm after dinner. Not the best time for the kids and as it turned out every photo place in the mall was packed. When we found a place that wasn't it took a while to talk them into photographing Isabella. They were sure the light would do permanent damage to her and were baffled that we had even left the house with her. After patiently talking with them. We did manage to get them to squeeze the kiddos in for a photo session. Literally 25 snaps in 20 min we were done. Preston was also DONE! We paid our $5 and left with a CD. All we needed was 1 good picture for the photo card and our friend would turn it into a lovely Christmas card. Enjoy some of the pictures we had taken and the final product.

My favorite time of the year

2011-12-19T20:05:00.000-08:00

For our family, the Jesse Tree has been a fun way to focus on God's foresight, love, and grace in the matters of men as we remember the world's first "advent" of waiting for Christ from creation until His Birth.

Ignoring the official church calendar for Advent, we usually begin our Jesse Tree tradition Dec. 1st by finding a large branch that each of the ornaments will rest upon in the coming days and weeks. We will start out with, "In the beginning" and have a globe ornament as representation. typically we eat dinner and then sit in the living room by the Advent wreath where we will light the 1st candle. We then talk about ornaments we have already talked about. Mostly it is Preston telling us in his words what each one means. We then in story form explain the new ornament and let him hang it on the tree. Afterward we sing a song and we each pick someone or something we can pray for other than ourselves a neighbor, family member, someone in need etc. We end the evening by letting Preston blow out the candle. Since Preston is just shy of turning 4 we try to keep the whole thing to about 30 min.

I have come to LOVE the season of ADVENT! It is a meaningful time for our family. My favorite thing about this is watching Preston light up with excitement while telling us what each ornament means.

May the peace of God be evident in your house during this powerful season. For unto us a child is born.

Later I will share some new traditions that we have begun this year and are excited to carry out in the years to follow. What are some of your favorite traditions that are meaningful for your children?

My kiddos

2011-12-14T20:43:00.000-08:00

This is Isabella's CUTE Christmas dress from my Aunt. Sometimes I feel like Im dressing a little doll. It still feels unreal to fully wrap my head around this miracle I get to hold and snuggle with daily.

Preston and I have been up to fun as well. When we got back from Thailand we made wrapping paper to wrap his Christmas presents in.

famous in Hanoi

2011-12-13T21:16:00.000-08:00

The other day Tim came home and said that a lady told him she saw Preston on tv. Tim just thought his Vietnamese was rusty from being away and dismissed what she said. When he told me what she said I reminded him that the week we moved to Hanoi in August of 2010 we walked into an ice cream shop and they were filming something. We searched for the shop on google and found what they were filming. At 3:10 in the video you can see our family enjoying our ice cream and Preston with his thumbs up.

Some priceless 'Vietnam' moments

2011-12-13T00:47:00.000-08:00

When we returned to Vietnam after being in Thailand for 3 months I was happily greeted with cooler weather. In Thailand the weather was nice. 70's at night and 80's during the day. A perfect warm spring like weather. Isabella and Preston were used to wearing light clothing. However, in order to fly back to Vietnam I wasn't sure if the plane would be cold, but I put Isabella in long sleeves and pants just in case. She sat in her car seat and I had a blanket covering her. She was cozy enough, or so I thought.

We arrived in the Hanoi airport and as Tim was about 15 feet away arranging our taxi a lady came up to me to admire Isabella. Im used to Preston getting poked at by complete strangers and being asked to take a picture with people. However after a minute of this lady admiring Isabella we soon had a crowd of women gathered. around us. They all smiled and commented about various things from her red hair to her tiny body. It is true that when you get pregnant everyone has an opinion about how you should or shouldn't raise your kids. In Asia, or rather Vietnam it is almost the God Given Right of the community to make sure you follow certain unspoken rules. I found out quickly that not only do people have an opinion about how you should raise your children but there are certain things that are close to child abuse if you do not follow them. I found out last week that putting a hat on your newborn is one of those RULES.

As I stood there waiting for Tim to finish negotiating for the taxi it became clear that I was not going to be able to leave the airport without proper clothing on my child. They felt it would be negligent on their part if they let me do so. Let me just say it was probably 60 degrees outside and Isabella was pretty snug in her car seat. Clearly not cold, but when in Rome do as they do right?

I was glad that I had my moby wrap in the bag next to me so, with a crowd of people looking to see how I was going to remedy the problem tied the moby on and tucked my cozy sleeper in it. They weren't sure this wrap was going to be enough, but when they saw that even her little head was tucked away underneath the wrap they were all satisfied, and there was a sigh of relief in the crowd and a clearing was made to let the 'negligent' foreigner through.

It was a fun moment reminding me that in this country it takes a village to raise a child.

We now know to never leave home with out socks and a hat on our tiny red head. A huge thank you to Renee Horsman for the MOBY and to all the ladies at the airport who helped me see the error of my ways.

Happy Birthday to my MOM

2011-12-02T05:02:00.001-08:00

Happy Birthday MOM! I wish I was there to celebrate with you.

The saddest part of Amy's visit

2011-12-01T01:27:00.001-08:00

The worst part of Amy's visit was seeing her leave. She spent 11 days with us. It was so nice to have family come and see us. Preston LOVED having her as did Tim and I. We miss Amy and wish we could see her more often. We are thankful and blessed that she flew all the way out here by herself to spend time with us.

GROUP HUG...and below is Isabella's way of saying, "COME BACK AMY I MISS YOU!"

1 month and so strong already

2011-11-30T01:31:00.001-08:00

On November 17th Isabella Grace turned 1 month old and Nana Janis made 12 onesies to mark each monthly occasion. LOVE THEM!

'nong dang' my little red head

2011-11-22T19:58:00.001-08:00

Ill let the pictures speak for themselves, but thai people love to call her 'nong dang' because of her red hair. She truly is PERFECT!!!

A very proud BIG BROTHER

Amy's visit part 3

2011-11-22T17:36:00.001-08:00

It was sort of an animal themed week while Amy was here. I didn't realize how many animal things there are to do here in Chiang Mai. Because Preston is so young, he could only go see the new born tigers

1 month old already

2011-11-18T05:14:00.001-08:00

Isabella turned 1 month old yesterday. I can not believe how fast time has gone.

Our miracle baby!!!!

She is still a good sleeper and a good eater. This week I can tell she is starting to recognize more and is becoming more aware of her surroundings. She still has a full head of red hair. We still can't tell what her eye color will be.

We are looking forward to getting back to our life in VN. Im excited to introduce her to all of our friends there.

Only 1 month old and Isabella Grace has already brought so much joy to our lives.

Amy's visit part 2

2011-11-17T18:47:00.001-08:00

No visit to Thailand is complete with out a trip to the elephant camp. The last time we went Preston was only 2 and was scared of the elephants. This time he is almost 4 and giddy with excitement. He loved feeding them bananas and sugar cane.

Tim, Amy, and Preston enjoyed the elephant ride while Isabella and I relaxed in the shade.

Amy's arrival to Thailand

2011-11-10T19:24:00.001-08:00

Amy brought a full suitcase of gifts with her. One of Preston's favorites is the buzz light year costume she brought. He loves playing dress up with his friends. The costumes Amy brought along with the capes my mom sent make a great starting place. I especially like when Preston gets Tim to put on some of the costume as well. :) Sorry no pic yet, but soon I will get one!

On day 2 of Amy being here we had a picnic at a waterfall. Isabella just hung out, but Preston got to put his feet in the very COLD mountain water.

More pictures to come of Amy's visit. We had a GREAT time and miss her already!

Our first week as a family of 4

2011-10-27T05:25:00.000-07:00

So much to post about. So much to be thankful for. First let me say, as I opened up the blog to make a new post I saw my last post and all the maternity pictures. There was sort of a grieving in my heart...questions like, "Did I enjoy my pregnancy enough." "Will I remember what it feels like to have her move in my belly." Having had such a LONG and DIFFICULT journey to get pregnant I was grieved by the fact that I might never have this opportunity again. Then as I looked up from the pictures I saw my miracle baby girl snoozing away in her favorite chair. PURE BLISS!!! SHE IS PERFECT!

So I guess the grieving is more of a sense that a season has come to an end. 9 months is a long time to have a life growing inside you and then in a matter of hours that season has ended and a new season is just beginning. So I put the past behind and look to the future.

Isabella's first week on the outside has been GREAT! She eats like a champ, even gaining weight in her 1st week check up. She also sleeps ALL THE TIME! I know newborns are supposed to do that, but you forget how much they sleep. I almost always have to wake her up to eat.

Things that I have LOVED this week are:

When Preston refers to Isabella as 'our' baby
When Isabella cries as I give her a bath Preston comes to her side and says, "It's okay Im here."
The smell of her skin
The feeling of all 7lbs of her snuggled close to my chest.

Those are just a few small things. I LOVE being a mom to 2 amazing children. I pray for the grace and wisdom to raise both of my kids the way He wants. My kids belong to God alone and I am but a steward over their lives for a short time. I pray that I can cherish every moment.

2 weeks and counting

2011-10-04T20:33:00.000-07:00

Isabella should be here in the next 2 weeks. We are beyond ready and excited. The first half of this pregnancy went by so fast, but it seems that the last 8 weeks have moved SO SLOWLY... here are some more pictures from our photo shoot.

almost 4 wishing he was 5

2011-10-01T01:47:00.000-07:00

about 18 months ago Preston saw a couple of guys playing soccer and said I really wish I could be on the team. I told him when he turned 5 we would try to get him on a soccer team in Hanoi. He has never forgot that promise and still talks about all the things he can and will do when he is 5 years old. He isn't even 4 yet and will randomly talk about, "when Im five I get to..." I keep telling him that he has to stay my little guy forever. The other day we were walking and we were getting on an escalator and he randomly grabbed my hand and said, "mom I'll stay with you forever." SO CUTE!!! Here are some of the pictures that were taken of just him when we did our family pictures. ENJOY!

These cars were given to him from Aunt Kim. Every time we do something Isabella related like take family maternity photos go to hospital for long amount of time to do ultrasound etc. we have tried to give him a present that people have sent for him. On this particular day when we were done taking pictures he opened the cars that Aunt Kim gave him. We still have a few more presents to give him when Isabella comes. Sort of like a CONGRATS you're a big brother sort of thing. He was happy to get the cars and even happier to be done with pictures.

She is almost HERE

2011-09-30T07:14:00.000-07:00

3 weeks ago we decided to do family pictures and preserve the belly moments of Isabella growing in my tummy. We just got some of them back and I think they are GREAT. 3 weeks to go until she arrives. Im so ready to meet her. Today over lunch Preston said when Isabella comes Im going to give her a kiss. He is going to be such a great big brother. Enjoy looking at some of my favorites. There are more, but I will give them to you a couple at a time so I don't overload you with pictures.

Dentist for Preston

2011-09-21T07:38:00.000-07:00

12 days ago Tim and Preston were playing and Preston tried to jump from one end of the bed to the other where Tim was standing. Tim could see that he was NOT going to make it and tried to get him, but Preston hit his front two teeth on the bed frame. It was instant tears and blood.

It took a week for the swelling of his gums to go down and for him to let me touch inside his mouth. I instantly noted that his front teeth were loose. So I made a dentist apt. and today was the day. Since it was a last minute 'emergancy' apt it was at 7pm ( I know for a 3 year old) but I was thankful to get one so soon. We practiced going to the dentist all morning. Laying on the couch and using chopsticks to poke at his teeth etc. I kept telling him, "it might be scary, but it WONT hurt."

He was so excited to go, so after dinner we got in the car and headed to the dentist. At the reception I had to fill out some paperwork, and Preston quickly went up to the counter and proceeded to tell the ladies what happened and that his tooth is loose and might fall out. They were all in awe of his articulation and charm.

A minute later the dentist was ready for him. He skipped into her office and then it hit him...he was scared. He hid behind my leg, but the lady was SO GOOD WITH KIDS. She showed him her tools and then the highlight of his night came. He got to pick out a pair of glasses to put on so the light wouldn't be too bright. Below are the pictures. He didn't scream or shed a tear. He opened his mouth wide and let her poke around. He got x-rays done by himself since they wouldn't let a prego in the room :) SO BRAVE. Below are the pictures. My only question for him was, "why do you scream and cry when we get your hair cut, but are excited and happy to go to the dentist AND get vaccinations?" Yes you read it right. He cries every time he gets his hair cut, but has NO issue with vaccinations and apparently going to the dentist.

What was the outcome you ask? Well thankfully his tooth was not broken and there is no root damage so in another 2 weeks the tooth should tighten back up and in November he'll go for a cleaning. He is excited to return and wear those special glasses again.

sushi...YUM

2011-09-18T05:29:00.001-07:00

Im so glad that Preston likes to eat Sushi with me. It is an inexpensive meal to buy both in Thailand and Vietnam. Yay for healthy and affordable.

Christmas in Sept.

2011-09-14T03:24:00.000-07:00

Last year we started a new tradition in our Advent observations. I made a 'Jesse' tree that had about 20 ornaments that represented creation until the birth of Christ. Since it was more of a last minute idea I worked on the fly last year and this year wanted to improve the ornaments. I have been working diligently on this project while in Chiang Mai waiting on baby Isabella's arrival. Below are a few that I have improved on.

Noah's ark

Wall of Jericho

Tree of knowledge of good and evil (sin entering the world)

10 commandments

The above were made from a simple salt dough recipe, but I soon learned that in SE Asia it is too humid and they don't fully dry. So I have since bought air dry clay and am in the process of redoing them and seeing if the clay will dry better. I am almost finished with all the ornaments. I have a few other things we will be doing as a family this year, but I will save that for the actual season of Advent. I know it is Sept, but I also know that with Isabella coming in 5 weeks I wont have time to do these crafty things before Advent as I will be all caught up in staring at our miracle baby.

Pregnancy journey and words from my heart

2011-09-10T19:00:00.000-07:00

Just because no post is complete w/o pictures

(random picture for this post I know)

Wednesday I had my Dr apt. baby Isabella is growing, active, and healthy. He thinks she is already about 3kg (6lbs) and I still have 6ish weeks to go. On a positive note I only gained 1 lb this whole month for a total of 15lbs this pregnancy. Isabella is already head down, and has found new places to kick me. I LOVE how active she is in my belly and have tried to enjoy every moment of this miracle inside of me. I still am at awe of how God knitted this whole miracle together. Healing, not only my body, but mending broken wounds of my soul as well.
The last 2 years have been extraordinary for us. I feel like I have undergone a GREAT surgery of the body, mind, and soul and am finally able to take recovery bandages off. I remember praying that if we ever got pregnant again that it would be a sign to me that the work God has been doing in my heart was well on its way (we know it is never fully complete). I feel that way! I feel like I have open communication lines again. I feel free in so many areas of my life. It actually took me until after I was 20 weeks pregnant to begin to fully enjoy this miracle. I had prayed fervently for 2 years for this and then all of a sudden BOOM GOD DID IT!! I dealt with a lot of guilt for my friends who are still struggling with infertility. I felt the weight of their burdens on my shoulders. I had a little 'survivors' guilt. The WOW why me? I had felt forgotten by God for so long. I felt insignificant and unimportant in the scheme of eternity. Then all of a sudden it was as if God reached down from heaven touched my womb in a way only HE could have done and said, "let there be LIFE." and there was. I can't explain that feeling, but for sure weeks of unbelief followed the positive pregnancy test. I still pray almost daily and many times multiple times through out the day for my infertile friends. My heart is broken for these families. I want God to touch their lives like he did mine. I want them to be set free from the lies that the enemy tells us, 'we are insignificant...God doesn't care about our burdens etc.' I want them to experience the joy I have over this least 8 months. I want desperately more that all of that, for God to mend broken hearts and heal old wounds of the spirit. So when I think of this season I will forever think of the endless possibilities that God has in store for us. He has made my joy complete... not by answering my prayers, but by mending my broken heart and soul. HE has set me FREE...Im free to love more selflessly. Im not sure what the next phase of our lives hold. Im not sure what the next mountain will be that our family will climb, but I hope to look back on this season as a place to draw strength to take the NEXT STEP! I am NOT in CONTROL HE IS!!! God remind me of this daily. I don't want to go back to the valley of dry bones, but I want to continue to swim in the water that brings life.

had a dream about this Psalm last night

2011-09-06T18:26:00.000-07:00

Psalm 135

¹ Praise the LORD.   Praise the name of the LORD;
   praise him, you servants of the LORD,
² you who minister in the house of the LORD,
   in the courts of the house of our God.
³ Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good;
   sing praise to his name, for that is pleasant.
⁴ For the LORD has chosen Jacob to be his own,
   Israel to be his treasured possession.
⁵ I know that the LORD is great,
   that our Lord is greater than all gods.
⁶ The LORD does whatever pleases him,
   in the heavens and on the earth,
   in the seas and all their depths.
⁷ He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth;
   he sends lightning with the rain
   and brings out the wind from his storehouses.
⁸ He struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
   the firstborn of people and animals.
⁹ He sent his signs and wonders into your midst, Egypt,
   against Pharaoh and all his servants.
¹⁰ He struck down many nations
   and killed mighty kings—
¹¹ Sihon king of the Amorites,
   Og king of Bashan,
   and all the kings of Canaan—
¹² and he gave their land as an inheritance,
   an inheritance to his people Israel.
¹³ Your name, LORD, endures forever,
   your renown, LORD, through all generations.
¹⁴ For the LORD will vindicate his people
   and have compassion on his servants.
¹⁵ The idols of the nations are silver and gold,
   made by human hands.
¹⁶ They have mouths, but cannot speak,
   eyes, but cannot see.
¹⁷ They have ears, but cannot hear,
   nor is there breath in their mouths.
¹⁸ Those who make them will be like them,
   and so will all who trust in them.
¹⁹ All you Israelites, praise the LORD;
   house of Aaron, praise the LORD;
²⁰ house of Levi, praise the LORD;
   you who fear him, praise the LORD.
²¹ Praise be to the LORD from Zion,
   to him who dwells in Jerusalem.
   Praise the LORD.

our growing family

2011-08-31T01:46:00.000-07:00

Not long ago we went to a wedding in Thailand. Not only was the wedding beautiful, but it gave us an excuse to get dressed up.

My prego belly at 30 weeks. hard to believe I have any room left to grow.

ultrasound fun

2011-08-18T00:13:00.000-07:00

Preston was way more interested in the ultrasound this time around more than the last. I think because we did a 4D one and because she looked more human :)

SO PRECIOUS!! I wouldn't trade these moments for anything!

My curious onlooker wondering what all the gel was and asking if he could smear it on my belly.

The countdown has really begun for us. Tim is up against some major deadlines in the next 5 weeks and after that just wait for baby. My next OB appointment is Sept 7th. At the time I made the appointment that seemed like light years away, now it seems to be fast approaching. In the meantime we are enjoying the August cool fall like weather Chiang Mai has to offer. This week has been strange as Preston has been really sick so I have been busy getting some Christmas crafting off my 'to do' list while he has been taking MANY naps. Tonight we go to the Dr. and make sure he is on the road to recovery.

public thank you's and our #1 baby name

2011-08-15T06:10:00.000-07:00

This week I was able to open up 2 packages from 2 great people/families. First I opened a box that came in the mail from Tiffany Dowdell. Thank you Tiffany for thinking of all of us. The Starbucks card is always a hit, especially while we are back in Chiang Mai for baby girl to arrive. Love the pool cover up and Preston has been playing with hot wheels since we arrived. As for baby girl... the CUTE little outfits are even cuter in person than on the registry. LOVE THEM!!! Thank you so MUCH! You are such a good friend

The second package came from the Konold family. Thank you Daniel, Emily, and David for thinking of us. You are always faithful friends. Almost every evening after dinner Preston asks Tim to play baseball with him. He LOVES his new glove and ball. Although the first day they played Preston threw it so hard, it went into a swampy area and Tim spent 30 minutes fishing it out. Preston was so happy and his tears dried up as soon as his new ball was safe in his arms again. I can't wait to put baby girl into the new onesies you sent. As soon as I can I will be putting her in the new little headbands you sent. So CUTE! She is one blessed little girl and we are beyond blessed to have friends like you. THANK YOU!

Now as for names...we had about 10 or 12 names that either one or the other liked, but there were only 2 names that we BOTH liked. They were/are Alivia (but Tim liked it spelled with an O not an A) with middle name Hope or Marie and the second name was Isabella Grace. As we kept saying the names over and over we continued to like Isabella more and more. So with only about 9 weeks until due date we think we are settling with Isabella Grace. Of course we reserve the right to change that name at any time, but for now you can pray for baby Isabella by name. I like to hear it and read it over and over. It helps to assure me that I haven't picked some crazy name that I would regret 10 years from now. However, if Preston had it his way he says the baby's name should be 'Skyla Booty' not sure where that came from, but he giggles every time he says it.

So we are in Chiang Mai for a couple of months, and doing well. Tim is VERY busy, but will be able to take a break in October when Isabella comes.

The random picture below is of our new apartment in Hanoi and Preston and I making homemade pretzels YUMMY! Soon I will post ultrasound pictures from Wed.

belly progression shots week 23 to 29

2011-08-07T04:22:00.000-07:00

I have tried to take a belly growth shot every 2 weeks so here they are:

Week 23

Week 25

week 27

Week 29

Baby is growing and moving only 10 weeks to go until SHE's HERE...we leave for Thailand on Tuesday and I have an ultrasound on Wed. Tim will busy with lots of work for the rest of August and all of Sept. He will have time off in October so pray that the baby comes sooner than later in October.

6 years ago we moved to Asia

2011-07-28T06:18:00.000-07:00

6 years ago we moved to Asia. So much has happened since then. Besides the obvious of learning language and getting settled in our lives in Asia, we learned to live at a much slower pace in life in order to survive Thai culture. We had our fair share of miss communications due to culture and language barriers. I learned to drive a motor bike in Thailand, as well as learned to drive on the left side of the road. Our son was born in Thailand a little over 2 years after our arrival. We were 24 and incredibly ambitious. The world was at our fingertips and we were going to grab hold. After years in Thailand we decided to move to Vietnam and have basically started over again. What we thought our lives would be like when we moved to SE Asia in 2005 and what they look like today are very different. Through all the difficult seasons of life I am always and forever grateful that I married the man that I did. I wouldn't want to live this crazy adventure with anyone else. So happy 6 years of living overseas anniversary. Hard to believe we have been married 8 1/2 years and most of that has been in Asia.

What the future holds

2011-07-23T05:55:00.000-07:00

We leave Hanoi mid August and head to Chiang Mai for about 3 1/2 months. We will be delivering baby girl mid October and before that Tim has some work to be doing in Chiang Mai and Kunming China. We already have a place to rent in Chiang Mai, but our lease in Hanoi was running out on Aug. 9th so we needed to either put all of our stuff in storage for 3 1/2 months (not ideal in this climate), or find a new place AND subletters at the same time. I have been looking at various apartments for about 2 months now, and NOTHING has really 'fit' our family. For those of you reading this blog that are at all familiar with Hanoi you know that inflation is OUTRAGEOUS and the cost of living very high here so finding something suitable in our budget has been just shy of impossible. When Tim's parents left on July 18th we began searching the internet for apartment options to see if there was more out there than what we had already seen. We asked the Lord to lead us and to give us both peace about the next move. We had only 2 weeks to figure it all out before heading to Chiang Mai. The stress levels began to rise at the start of the week. On Wed. night we visited an apartment and it was not only in our price range, but felt like it could be "home" right when we walked in. A bonus was that we got to stay in the same area we live in now instead of moving 30 minutes away. It was a total answer to prayer. The bad part was a 3 bedroom apartment in our area for the price they were asking was bound to go quickly so we said we would take it right away, but in the next 36 hours to follow the realtor couldn't get a hold of the owner. I tried to calm my nerves and prayed it would all be sorted out. The peak came Thursday when we still hadn't heard from them. My stress was at peak, with a little over 2 weeks to go until we leave and still no answer. Shortly after a good cry and a facebook post I got a call from Tim that we had an appointment to pay the dept. on the apt. the following day and it would be ours. To top it all off we also found a very nice couple to sublet the apartment for the months we are away. So after American Thanksgiving end of November (for you non Americans) we will be heading back to Hanoi with a baby girl and our very own apartment to move into just in time for Christmas holidays. My heart was put to ease and once again am reminded of Gods faithfulness. It has been a long journey over this last 6 plus years living overseas of learning that I am NOT in control HE is.

So we move out of our house on Aug. 1st and spend the first week of August unpacking our stuff and getting settled in our 'new' home before leaving for Chiang Mai.

So as we DIVE head first into this next phase please keep us in your prayers. Pray for Preston to be at peace as we once again find ourselves living in suitcase mode and adding another life to the family.

out in the village

2011-07-21T05:51:00.000-07:00

Right before Tim's parents came to visit he was in a village with a couple of people from the UK. They visited places that had never seen foreigners before. They were welcomed with open arms.

They came and went...

2011-07-19T20:23:00.000-07:00

It has been a summer full of visiting teams and family. Tim left for the village on Tuesday the 5th of July and a week later, 1 hour after getting back in town his parents arrived. It has been a fun filled 10 days. We showed them all the sites and had them taste lots of local food. They brought a TON of baby stuff (thank you to everyone who contributed) Im so excited for October to be here and I know it will come quickly. Below are some of the pics taken while family was here.

Preston is only 3 1/2 and literally has NO fear of water. He is a GREAT swimmer and had lots of fun with Marlee.

At the American/Vietnamese war museum

Marlee read lots of books to Preston. When she left, Preston said, Im going to miss her, she is my best friend.

Sauteed EEL anyone?

Boats through the river and under huge caves.

Nice Helmet Jule now you just need Hello Kitty Stickers to go with it.

lemon muffin recipe

2011-07-05T19:05:00.000-07:00

Okay so my In-laws are coming on Saturday and I wanted to make sure there were a few 'comforts from home' around for them to snack on while they are here. I have made peanut butter cookies and choc chip cookie dough and froze them so I can just put a batch in the oven when we want them. You don't want to spend any more time than you have to with your oven on b/c when it is 100+ degrees outside with no air-conditioning that makes the kitchen about 110+ and humidity. Anyway, I also wanted to make a variety of mini muffins for quick on the go breakfast while they are here so we can make sure to get all the sites in and not have a lot of kitchen clean up :)

I made the lemon muffins using little key limes (because they are so cheap here) Lets just say the batch I made to freeze is all gone and I'll have to make another before the In-laws arrive. They are so light and refreshing.

Now if you are like me and don't follow recipes very well I would suggest you not do that for this one. In order for them to be light and fluffy you have to follow exactly. It is well worth it I promise. My only suggestion is to double the recipe. This made 24 mini muffins. Preston gave it 2 thumbs up!

Lemon Tea Mini Muffins
2 eggs, separated
1/2 C butter, softened
1/2 C sugar
1 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3 T lemon juice
1 tsp grated lemon peel
Topping:
1 tsp suar
1/8 tsp cinnamon
Dash ground nutmeg

In small bowl, beat egg yolks until lemon-colored (apprx 5 min). In large mixing bowl, cream butter and suar until light and fluffy. Fold in yolks. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternately with lemon juice and peel, stirring just until combined.
In another bowl, with clean beaters, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold into batter. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups 2/3s full. Combine the topping ingred.; sprinkle over the batter. Bake 20-25 min. I baked at 350 Cool for 5min. before removing from pan.

This is what 23 weeks looks like

2011-07-03T18:32:00.000-07:00

Definitely packing on the weight quicker than I did with Preston. However, loving that God chose to bless us with baby #2. This pregnancy has been different in EVERY way. For example I can't brush my teeth take a pill or drink water before I eat breakfast or I throw up. This morning I took my prenatal vitamins and then started cooking bacon and eggs for breakfast and had to quickly run to the bathroom because taking the vitamins first made me sick. CRAZY!

Still looking for girl name suggestions, so if you have any bring on the names. I think we might have narrowed down the middle name to: Grace, Hope, or Marie but drawing blanks for first name.

back to "normal"

2011-06-22T20:48:00.000-07:00

So life is getting back to normal for us in Hanoi. It is about 100 degrees out so lots of water is being consumed at our house. It is still a daily struggle for me to use my Vietnamese, because I still want to speak Thai instead. For every 1 word I speak in Vietnamese there are usually 3 or 4 that follow in Thai. Not sure when my brain will ever make the switch, but when it happens I'll let you know.

Last week Tim took a team of young people to the village. They had lots of walking and lots of praying. Most of all they got to meet and see the people.

They worshiped and prayed inside a cave.

Prayed for the many people they came across.

They got to play lots of football (soccer) and then gave the ball to the village head

It was rice harvesting time so they helped in the fields and continued to pray for the faces they came across

The hikes were hard, but views were breath taking.

Tim will be leading another team starting July 4th. Pray for Preston and I as well as Tim. On the 9th of July Tims family arrives, and when they leave we will be moving out of our house. However, we are not sure where we will be moving to. So a busy summer for us, how about you? There is still time to plan your trip to Vietnam for next summer. :)

Happy Fathers Day

2011-06-18T19:55:00.000-07:00

Happy Fathers Day Dad! Not only are you an amazing father and grandfather, but you are an amazing husband to the most wonderful mom in the world. God has blessed me greatly.

3 weeks and counting

2011-06-17T19:01:00.000-07:00

Tim's mom, step-dad, and niece will all be visiting us in Hanoi in 3 weeks. We are so excited for them to come. I'm so excited that they are willing to bring all of the stuff that people have sent to baby girl Edwards. Karolyn for sure is the queen of packing. When Preston was born she bought a hockey bag and fit the stroller, car seat and base into it, then stuffed 10 lbs of baby clothes in it until it was exactly at max weight. She even traveled with a Boppy pillow as her airline pillow. AMAZING! Please don't feel pressure to buy us anything, but if you are planning on doing so we want to save you on shipping it to Thailand. All things that you want to send to us via Tim's mom needs to arrive at FL address by July 4th. Again we are in NEED for nothing it is all just a blessing.

And because a post is always more fun with pictures I leave you with this random Vietnamese sight. A guy snoozing on his motor bike.

Our view last night

2011-06-16T22:57:00.000-07:00

Last night after it rained this is what the sky looked like outside our balcony. I couldn't really capture it, but it was breath taking!

Vacation part 2

2011-06-15T20:59:00.000-07:00

Our view from our hotel balcony overlooking the ocean.

A little father son bonding moment

Lots of rest and relaxation for all 3 of us.

The view from our hotel pool was breathtaking.

On our adventure we found a bunch of palm trees and even found a monkey getting coconuts down.

Lots of sea shells to be found

Preston practicing his photography skills

What beach vacation is complete with out put-put golf. Of course I WON! However, fun was had by all

Finally I leave you with my pregnant belly. There will be more of these to come in the weeks ahead.

our vacation part 1

2011-06-06T01:54:00.000-07:00

Of course taking a beach vacation is much cheaper in Asia, but sometimes that means you have to travel in a more budget way. So in order to save money we took a flight to Bangkok, then took the underground transport to the bus company for $3 total. When we got to the company at 6pm we had to wait to load our overnight bus at 8pm. Prestons biggest entertainment at this point was the rat that kept creeping out. The picture below is a BAD pic. of our friendly rat that was more the size of a small cat.

By 8:30 we were ready to load our bus that cost us about $6 per person to ride for 8 hours to the coast. Preston slept the whole way. He really is an AMAZING traveler. Although no matter how amazing there is always some eventful travel story to be told when a 3 year old is around. This came about 3am when he peed in his pants while on the bus fast asleep. Luckily I never travel without another change or 2 of clothes. Problem solved.

We arrived at the coast around 5 or 6 am. Preston was sleeping so we carried him to a seat where we had to wait for daylight to come. This boat was to take us to our island and cost a total of $40 for the whole family to go. In total to get to our island it took 19 hours and less than a $90 for the whole family to travel.

Loading our boat to the island we were all hungry, dirty, and tired, but really excited to start our vacation.

After 2 hours on our boat we arrived at blue water and a 13 square mile island where we called home for 9 nights. It was PARADISE. So enough about how we got there, soon I'll post some of the fun things we did while there

Baby and Vacation

2011-05-25T18:34:00.000-07:00

Today marks 10 days of a MUCH needed family vacation. We will be leaving today for Bangkok and taking an all night bus to the coast. Even though we might have internet, it is my goal to be OFF LINE! So some quick information for the blogosphere

How far along are you? 19 weeks on Monday

When is your due date? Sometime mid to late October

What are you having? Girl (Dr says 90% sure)

How much weight have you gained? 4lbs

Where will you deliver? Chiang Mai Thailand

Baby name yet? Not yet, but on vacation it will be discussed at length

Registry information? b/c various people ask what to buy or where to send stuff to we
went ahead and created a registry. Some family will be coming to visit
us in Vietnam in July and will be delivering many of these blessings.

Shipping information Anything sent overseas must be shipped to Thailand the address is:
please mark these items on shipping label as:
( NO COMMERCIAL VALUE)
Tim and Jamie Edwards
PO BOX 27
Amphur Muang Chiang Mai
50000 Thailand

Anything sent to the states to be brought out can ship to:
Tim and Jamie Edwards
1957 Spanish Oaks Dr N
Palm Harbor FL 34683

Registry information:
http://www.amazon.com/wishlist/23ITU6I58NB40/ref=cm_wl_rlist_go

http://www.toysrus.com/registry/myregistry/index.jsp?overrideStore=TRUS&action=deleteItem&pidnum=11268471

The toys r us registry takes you to a search page, just look up info for Jamie Edwards in Palm Harbor FL

please note that these are only ideas, ANYTHING including used clothes/toys/books are GREATLY appreciated.

We are beyond thrilled to welcome our MIRACLE into the world. Follow the link to read a little about her story.

So for the next week we are going to be doing a lot of the above. As a family we are praying to be REFRESHED, RENEWED, RESTORED, and REVIVED for the year ahead.

IT"S A ...

2011-05-23T19:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a full day. It started with Tim defending his proposal on his research with the people group we are working with. Of course he passed (was there any doubt). Then all 3 of us got hair cuts.

Some shorter than others (sorry can't figure out how to turn picture around) After eating lunch at our favorite restaurant, it was time to go to our 1st of 3 Dr apt's. All 3 of us had an apt and each of us at a different hospital. Preston had 2 vaccination boosters, Tim had a routine check and as a family we went in for our ultrasound. I thought Preston would be way more interested in this than he was, but apparently Looney Tunes on the tv was way more important that finding out that he was going to be a big brother to a little

SISTER...

thats right they said 90% it's a GIRL. I totally thought she was a boy, but then again with Preston I thought he was a girl so I average 100% at being wrong. I hope she doesn't mind wearing blue since everything we own for a baby is BLUE :)

We are 18 weeks along and SHE looks GREAT. Perfect the way only GOD could have done. Due date around October 25th.

LOOK AT ALL THE CUTE THINGS A GIRL CAN WEAR

Im slightly nervous about raising a girl, but God knit her in my womb and Im confident HE will give us wisdom to raise our little miracle. Pray for us as the spirit leads. Pray for wisdom as parents, Pray for a safe and healthy delivery in Thailand, Pray for Preston as he transitions from being an only child to a big brother.

hungry...got milk?

2011-05-22T19:43:00.000-07:00

just another daily sight you see in Hanoi.

spring in Hanoi

2011-05-21T19:20:00.000-07:00

When the weather warmed up enough we could open our house again, the kids all come out to play. They love playing with Prestons toys and it is a good lesson for Preston in sharing.

Some of Prestons friends

2011-05-13T19:51:00.000-07:00

In January we decided to put Preston in an Int'l preschool 3 days a week from 9 till noon. It was such a good decision. During the winter months kids aren't outside playing. The days get long and staying in the house gets old for both Preston and I. School gave him a creative outlet to play with friends and learn. Of course art class was his favorite. He made all sorts of creative things. He made so many friends and everyday he wished it was a school day. Here are some pictures of his friends and his teacher. Every Friday they have an assembly and each class will present a song or activity that they focused on for the week. The first picture is Preston's class standing up before they presented the song they learned about vegetables.

Funerals in Hanoi

2011-04-02T22:40:00.000-07:00

If you spend any time in Hanoi you will see a notice posted on different walls at any given time during the month. The paper is a death notice and it tells the community that someone has died and gives all the information. Below is the notice that we saw on our neighbors wall 2 days ago and then today we saw them preparing for the funeral. It was NOT our neighbor who died, but a family member.

Im not sure why they wear what they do, but what you wear depends on what generation or distance you are from the deceased. Often when you are driving down some of the narrow roads, the whole road is blocked with a big blue tent and then you know that a funeral is in progress.

50 days after the funeral we saw these table and chairs being delivered in front of our house. Our grandmother next door said it is the 50 day observation of the deceased and the tent will be put up in front of our house. Little did we know exactly what that meant. Below is the tent that was put up. It was so interesting to see. The tent took up our whole road and since we only have 1 front door the only way out was to open the door and see all the mourning Vietnamese eating lunch and observing this momentous occasion. I wish I had taken pictures of what it looked like when we opened the door, but it was awkward enough to open the door and be stared at let alone take a picture of it. You'll just have to use your imagination.

Luckily the tent was put up on Sunday afternoon. The funeral was Monday afternoon and by 3pm everything was being cleaned up.

skype with grammie

2011-03-07T18:09:00.000-08:00

A couple times a week Preston will get on skype (with our help) and have Grammie read him books. She goes the library every week and picks out 2 or 3 she thinks he'll like so she is always ready when Preston calls. It is so cute! They have been doing this since Preston turned 2. It totally captivates him like watching a movie. It's hard to see, but on the computer screen is the book she is holding up for him.

February sensory bin

2011-03-04T18:20:00.000-08:00

I have made 4 or 5 sensory bins for Preston. I made one for the month of Feb. with a valentines theme. While I cook dinner he plays in and explores the bin. I only bring it out when I cook dinner so that it doesn't loose its appeal.

He knows that if he drops things on the floor by accident no problem, but if on purpose then we have to clean it up and he can try again another day. So far it has been a hit. I think I will take this one a part and make a greened themed one for March.

Father and son

2011-02-27T18:08:00.000-08:00

I love watching Tim teach and instruct Preston. He is both patient and wise. I love that when Preston grows up he wants to be just like his dad. Obedient to God!

Beyond words

2011-02-25T17:38:00.000-08:00

I have tried to think about how I will tell this story over the last week. I'm not a great writer, I'm not even a good writer, but I want everyone to know about our little miracle. When Preston turned 11 months old which was November of 08 I weaned him so that we could begin trying for baby number two. After 6 months of trying I went back to our fertility Dr. and we continued trying to have a child and did 4 rounds of clomid before returning to the states for a much needed break. During our 8 months in the states God spoke to my heart in a myriad of ways. Most of all I felt like I would have another child. In some ways looking back I was just sure we would deliver a baby in 2010, but when that time came and went I held out hope that we would get pregnant in 2010. By the end of 2010 and the week of Preston's 3rd birthday I realized my hopes and dreams would have to change. After two rounds of fertility treatment in Thailand resulting in 1 hospital stay and 1 miscarriage. We knew it was time to take a break. The months following our miscarriage were lonely dark days. Depression had begun to set in, but mostly a longing to hold a child that I began to feel I would never have. I had many sleepless nights praying for a miracle in our lives. Believing that one day Preston would be a big brother. After our failed attempt in November to have another baby, I knew in my heart I had to begin to move on. There is so much to this story I'll never be able to convey, but the long and short of it is that God granted us our miracle.

We were preparing to start another and probably our last round of fertility treatment at the end of March. I was to start my meds on the 20th of Feb. Over the weekend I took a pregnancy test just out of routine before I started my meds. In utter disbelief I looked at the test and saw a double line. I held my breath and prayed, "God please let this be true. Please don't let this be a trick." I took another test and it was also positive. Tim wasn't to come home for days, so I waited for his return. I had dreamed of a time when I could tell Tim in a special way that we are expecting another baby. I had so many great ideas. However the excitement took over and with in hours of his arrival I through the box at him and yelled, " We're pregnant!" Of course he couldn't believe it.

That was last Saturday. It has now been 1 week since I found out I was pregnant. To the best of my ability I am pretty sure I'm 6 weeks along. I'll be 7 weeks on Monday. God is good! Of course it is easy to say when your prayers are answered, but something I realized even when I didn't think our prayers would be answered is that God knows us. He loves us more than we could ever imagine. His heart is not for withholding from us. He sees our tears! He knows our pain! God is good!

So we are telling the world now. I'M PREGNANT! Please pray for me. My heart is so fragile. Pray for baby #2 to be born in October. We will go for an ultrasound end of March I'll be 10 weeks and looking forward to a healthy heartbeat 120 beats a minute.

Blogs I follow

2011-02-23T04:47:00.000-08:00

I have many different blogs that I would like to read, and all of them for different reasons. I have personal blogs of friends so I can keep up with their lives while living so far away. Cooking blogs to help inspire me to change it up sometimes. My favorite these days are preschool crafty blogs. I love getting new ideas from the various blogs I subscribe to. The best part is they all come into my google reader. Some of my favorites are below.

skiptomylou.org is great because of her made by you monday post I like to quickly look through these and find new blogs that I haven't discovered yet. Anything form fun crafts to knew menu items.

If you're familiar with ucreate you'll love kids create for all of their great craft ideas. Red Teds blog introduced me first to STart (story art). You take a story and from the story do a craft with your children. For example If you choose Go Dog Go by Dr Seuss when you finish reading the book you can then make funny hats with your child afterward just like the dogs talk about in the book. Here is an idea that we used at the house. Preston winter tree turned out beautifully.

A few other blogs I follow for fun preschool ideas are:
counting coconuts
growing up our style
pink and green mama
1+1+1=1

Of course there are a ton more, but for now those have been some favorites. Then there are a number of cooking blogs or food blogs I like to follow as well. In the last year moved away from baking blogs like bakerella and geared more toward blogs that posted weekly menus and meal ideas.

Dining with Debbie always has a weekly crockpot post . Of course we all know the pioneer woman can cook. The last one I'll post about food is Ucreate food

There are so many creative ideas out there. I love to create, but don't have the time to think of many of these things on my own. I loved getting inspired over Christmas to do many fun things to decorate the house with items found around our house. I love being able to create things with Preston that help him expand his imagination rather than buy more store bought toys. What are some of your favorite blogs?

Our Neighbor

2011-02-05T01:41:00.000-08:00

We have the cutest old lady that lives next door to us. We call her our Vietnamese Grandma. She always loads Preston down with lots of goodies. Here is Preston leaving her house with Banh chung (common sticky rice cake during TET)

Then before we opened up the sticky rice cake she kicked the soccer ball with Preston for a while. She is so great and ALWAYS has a smile on her face.

This is what the cake looks like inside the banana leaf.

play dough

2011-02-03T19:04:00.000-08:00

Our play dough was getting old, so we made some new play dough.
For the red and purple we used kool aid to color them. The hard part
about using Kool aid is keeping Preston from eating the dough

The old stuff that Preston built a tower with.

Seeing the Sites

2011-02-02T05:49:00.000-08:00

Today was the first time in a month that it was both sunny and warm. So we went on an adventure. Behind our house is a river and many orchards. It is like we are in the city, but can get away from the noise. This is also a time when the river is dry, so we took advantage and went exploring. These were some of our sites.

Others taking advantage of todays nice weather.

This is Preston and I trying to cross the dry river, but It was muddy so we tried to step on the broken pottery that was around us until we reached the sand.

Can you tell we were excited for 60 degree weather? What a great day and Im thankful we were outside to enjoy it.

Preston is praying for...

2011-01-25T00:28:00.000-08:00

Every month I make a place mat for Preston. It has different pictures on it of different kids that he can pray for. So every day for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the month of January Preston has been praying for these guys. In Feb. we will make a new one. It has been a lot of fun praying for and over the many young ones in Preston's life.

This month the line up was:
Ashton and Alex (my nephews)
McKaylyn and Kaiya (friends from Thailand)
Caedmon (friend from China)
Lydia and Alaina (friend from VN)
Emmett (friend from MN)
Grace (friend from village) and Thai Dam kids

Next month we will have some repeats, and some new one's. I'll post a picture when we finish it.

January happenings

2011-01-24T00:42:00.000-08:00

Many of you know that in January I started studying Vietnamese for 18 hours per week. I study from 9 until noon from Mon. until Sat. Of course I thought I would be entering my last trimester and preparing for baby #2 to be born April 6th, but life didn't happen how I planned. After our miscarriage in Sept. I had to come to grips with the fact that Preston continues to be an only child. I realized I had to study more and make the most of where I am at today not where I "hope" to be tomorrow. So in order for me to study this much we had to make a decision about whether we should start Preston at a preschool or not. At first I thought ABSOLUTELY NOT. I had this perfect picture of us having 4 or 5 kids, thriving in our work in Southeast Asia, and homeschooling all of them. The "perfect" family picture. In reality I realized Preston needed more "play" time and there was an Int'l preschool near our house. After checking it out and confirming that they were actually learning something and it was not a daycare, we enrolled Preston for 3 half days a week.

He is loving his new school! He goes Tue. Wed. and Fri. from 9 until noon. It is an Int'l preschool, but many of the kids are Vietnamese and one of those days they have Vietnamese instruction. So I am learning more and more Vietnamese and Preston is one happy boy playing with his friends.

Above is the picture from our rooftop. We are pointing in the direction of Preston's new school. It is near the very tall hotel in the background.

NO NICKNAME FOR PRESTON

2011-01-20T20:14:00.000-08:00

I remember the day we "named" Preston. I was 23 weeks pregnant and had just found out that we were having a boy. We were sitting in the Dr office and just saying every name we could think of. We first said Payton, but I liked that more for a girls name and then Preston came out. We loved it. We told everyone the name and had everyone refer to him by the name to make sure that we liked hearing it. When Preston was born it fit his cute little face perfectly.

Now to back the story up. One of the criterea for me/us in picking a name is that either the name could NOT be shortened or I had to like the short version as much as the full name. For example I like Olivia, and i like liv or livi just as much. I didn't like names like Sammuel because I didn't like Sam (no offense to the sams out there). With Preston there seemed to be no way to shorten it. I mean who would call a kid Pres...right?

Well we had some Vietnamse friends over and as I was getting Preston ready to head up for bed. I said, "Preston, you need to pick up your toys. okay bud?" Well our Vietnamese friends thought I said bum and now they refer to Preston as bum. They think it is polite and a good way to show closeness in friendship to refer to Preston by his family nick name (which he doesn't have). I don't know how to tell them that I would prefer they call him Preston and that BUM is NOT his nickname. Tim laughs because he thinks it's funny. I have to admit I giggle when I think of them saying it, but his NAME IS PRESTON NOT BUM!

New Beginnings

2011-01-12T23:17:00.000-08:00

I rarely make New Year resolutions. This year I decided more to take inventory of what I'm doing and areas that need improvement. I came up with a LOT, but could only focus on a few.

some of my thoughts are:

1. I want to focus less on the heart break of trying to get pregnant again (trying for 2 years now) and just be thankful for the now 3 year old that God HAS blessed me with. I want to be a better mom by: cooking healthy, playing fun and meaningful games daily, reading more to him, and crafting for fine motor skills etc.

2. Memorize more scripture: Tim and I have started a journey of memorizing the book of Philippians together. We should finish by Easter. So far I have the first 10 verses done. After Philippians I'm not sure what I'll memorize but for now that is enough.

3. Be diligent in my Vietnamese language study. As a mom there is ALWAYS the excuse that you are too busy being a mom you can't be a full time language learner as well. When I learned Thai, Preston wasn't born so that excuse wasn't available to me. However in January I started a new program and it requires me to study 18 hours a week with my nurturer (language teacher). This means Tim has to share more Mr. mom responsibilities. We are now done with the first 18 hours and by the time I post this will be half way through week 2. It has been good and I'm enjoying it. I pray daily for God to give me a sharp mind and a diligent work ethic in this regard.

4. BLOG MORE! as you can see Im already doing this. I decided that twice a month I will sit down and write 4 blogs each time so I can hopefully get a post up twice a week to keep all of our friends and family involved on just the ordinary parts of what we do here in Viet Nam

So those are the ones I decided to focus on for now. So far I am moving in the right direction with all of them. Happy New Year to you all.

Preston turns 3 part 2

2011-01-11T21:59:00.000-08:00

If you have a child with a birthday in December you might know the feeling of wanting to make their day special and not mixing it in with Christmas. At the beginning of Dec. I made a paper chain count down for Preston. It had a special ribbon for Jesus' birthday and a ribbon for Prestons birthday. Every day we took a ring off of the chain and watched the count down. We made Christmas a big day and celebrated the birth of Christ. When Prestons turn came on the 30th he was so excited.

In the morning we sang happy birthday to him and talked on the phone with family from the states. He then opened a few presents. I made a big breakfast and finished his mini train cakes

At 10:30 we met a few of his little friends at a play area. It is NOTHING like Chuck-E-Cheese, but it was fun for the kids. His friends came back to the house and we had lunch and then I gave them the mini cakes that they could decorate themselves. Of course we then opened a few more presents and after all of that, Preston and his friends went to the living room and played with all of his new trains.

Above you can see the ginger bread train next to Prestons mini little cake trains. It was a fun day. Happy Birthday PRESTON!!!

Preston turned 3

2011-01-07T00:43:00.001-08:00

For Prestons birthday this year we had a big train theme. I decided to make a ginger bread train to compliment the mini train cakes I already planned to make (thank you Renee H. for sending the cake pan out). To make the ginger bread train, I cut out the pattern from cardboard, then rolled out my ginger bread dough (recipe from this book),placed my pattern cut outs on dough then cut and baked. When the ginger bread came out of the oven I put my pattern pieces back on to make sure the edges were straight so we didn't have a crooked train. When the ginger bread was completely cooled we put it together with quick butter cream icing, and decorated with candy.

I put some crackers inside the train engine to support the round cookies. Preston sorted through the M & M's to find the red and green ones. We then used little Hershey bars for the coal cart. the poles sticking out were 3 HUGE candles for singing Happy Birthday (more like flames).

We even had a lumbar cart with chocolate sticks and pretzels. We had a lot of fun making our ginger bread train. That was the day before his birthday. Pictures of his birthday are still to come.

Holiday Baking

2011-01-07T00:36:00.001-08:00

Besides baking a turkey for the first time I also made lots of holiday cookies. After Thanksgiving I usually make a variety of cookie doughs so that I can make batches of home made goodness throughout the month. This year I put a spin on the traditional sugar cookie and went with melted snowman cookies. I put a half marshmallow for the head and white icing for the melted body. I also made mini pumpkin cheesecakes, and ginger snaps (thanks Clair). What are some of your holiday traditions?

Holiday crafting

2011-01-07T00:24:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite things to do over the holidays was lots of crafts with Preston. We made snowmen out of cotton balls (close as I want to get to a snowman). Behind us you can see some of the presents wrapped under the tree. We took butcher paper, and sponge painted Christmas trees onto the paper. Of course there were ornaments and lots of other little fun things we made.

Looking back over our Advent season

2011-01-06T23:25:00.000-08:00

The month of December went by quickly. After being in the states last year for Christmas I was anxious to get back to our traditions in Asia for the holidays. Since Preston was almost 3 we had a lot of fun each night lighting our Advent candles and telling a Bible story that eventually led up to the birth of Christ.

Above is the first week of our Advent branch with ornaments. We covered creation, the fall, Noah, Babel, God's promise to Abraham, Abraham and Issac, Jacob's dream. I will try to find a picture of the full branch for later. I had fun making all of the ornaments. It was a very meaningful time for us as a family.

On Christmas day we had many friends come over. I cooked my first turkey and it turned out lovely. We had a great time celebrating the birth of our savior and look forward to similar traditions during Lent.

The end of a year

2010-12-21T19:25:00.001-08:00

Many of you know that this has been a very difficult year for us. We headed back to Asia in Feb. spent 1 month in Singapore for some meetings. Then spent months in Thailand before finishing a 14 month long journey of living out of our suitcases to finally arrive in Hanoi. Of course there has been the difficulty of starting over in a new country. However, for me the thing that makes 2010 hard is our struggle to have another child. We have spend many hours in prayer and petition. I have cried more tears this year then I think this whole decade combined. I experienced real depression for the first time in my life. I lost the baby that took 2 years to concieve at 9 weeks along. I have seen countless friends who started this journey with me get pregnant and have babies (in which I rejoice for them). All that to say Im glad 2010 is coming to an end. My prayer and HOPE for 2011 is that where I have sowed in tears I would reap with joy. So raise you glass with me for a FRESH START IN 2011

Our New Advent Tradition

2010-12-15T00:44:00.000-08:00

Advent is a special season of the year and we are enjoying each day of expectation and waiting for Christmas. Right now this is one of Preston's highlights of the day: After we finish cleaning up from dinner we head up to our living room and together light the advent candles. In the corner of the room opposite our Christmas tree we have our advent branch. Every day we tell a different story from the Bible as we move chronologically from the creation of the world to the birth of Christ. Jamie has creatively made a series of ornaments that symbolize each of these stories. We review the previous stories with Preston and listen to him retell as much as he can from the earlier stories, then add a new story and place its ornament on the branch. Besides being great fun for all three of us, it is a good way to practice our storytelling and we are seeing some of the principles we have learned about oral communicators lived out in Preston. He learns so much through repetition and other memory devices, and the symbols on the ornaments take him right into each of the stories.

Celebrating the last days in my 20's

2010-10-31T19:31:00.000-07:00

My birthday month has been full of exciting adventures. We went Geocaching

at the war museum in Hanoi. We also got a free grill from some friends who never used the sad little thing so we have had many nights roasting marshmallows.

In Thailand October is hot so we usually found ourselves at the pool on my birthday, but in Hanoi the weather has been very cool. We have loved wearing long sleeves and jackets. Im told we won't love it so much in Feb. when it is cold and wet.

I baked my first apple pie of the season. I don't really use a recipe so you never know how they turn out. I gave this one a 7 out of 10.

We had friends staying with us for a week, so we took them to a pottery village outside of town. Preston got to paint a rooster and was happy as could be. He named him Painter (I know the creativity runs deep)

All in all it has been a good month, but we are looking forward to spending some time in Thailand while waiting for new visas to get processed for Viet Nam.

The meditation of my heart today

2010-10-28T00:28:00.000-07:00

Today I read the following out of the Message...Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean, scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life. Tune me in to foot-tapping songs, set these once-broken bones to dancing. Don't look too close for blemishes, give me a clean bill of health. God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. Don't throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me. Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails! Psalm 51

Most of you know that Tim and I have had many struggles when it comes to baring children. Those closest to us know the pain this season has been. Since it took us a long time to conceive Preston and visits to a fertility Dr in Chiang Mai we started "trying" again for #2 when Preston turned 1 year old in Dec. of 2008. When we finally got pregnant again in August of this year I was obviously excited, but my world crumbled when we lost our precious miracle. I will never know the "why" but pray that as I live out my suffering Gods grace is sufficient for me.

Life has been hard...we all go through valleys, but that doesnt make my valley any easier or less painful. The month of Sept was mostly a blur as I cried almost every day of the month and sometimes couldn't get out of bed or function. October came and I could begin to breathe again. I could get through days with out crying and some days with out thinking about our fertility struggle and the fight to conceive a healthy baby.

In the last days as I have opened my Bible the psalms have been speaking to me or at least resonating with my sorrow. We have started another month and a new cycle since the loss of our baby in Sept. We have to go back to Chiang Mai for some visa things in Nov and while we are there we are once again going to implant some of our embryos that are frozen. The last 2 days have been a blur. My thoughts have been consumed with the possibility that it wont work. My heart just feels fragile and I need you to stand by me with prayer. I need people to stand with me and help me fight this battle because more days than not I don't have the energy to fight it myself.

Please pray for a successful FET (frozen embryo transfer) and a healthy beautiful baby 9 months from now. I will let you know on Dec. 1st if it was successful, but in the mean time please just pray for me, for Tim, and for Preston.

Hanoi's 1000th Birthday!

2010-10-11T22:29:00.000-07:00

What is that you say, "1000 YEARS" WOW! Then Preston points to his shirt which says good morning Vietnam.
People were very patriotic with red banners that read I love Hanoi and stickers on their cheeks. The lakes in Hanoi always have people around walking, taking pictures, and just relaxing. However, on 10-10-10 there were more people then normal. Thousands of people were out to celebrate the special anniversary of their beloved city.

We had a lot of fun walking around, but if we stayed in one place for long, massive amounts of people would close in on us wanting to take pictures of Preston. If you ever want to know what it feels like to have paparazzi follow you then come to Vietnam or China with a small child. Getting your picture taken will become a daily occurrence. Preston has started putting his hands up by his eyes and pretending to take pictures of other people.

Fall moon festival

2010-10-07T01:12:00.000-07:00

During the fall moon festival we went into the main city, to see how the locals celebrate. In Viet Nam mid Autumn festival is one of the most popular family holidays. It is held on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month. Vietnamese plan this holiday around the children in their family. In a Vietnamese folklore, parents were working so hard to prepare for the harvest that they left the children to play by themselves. To make up for lost time, parents would use the mid autumn festival to make up for lost time. We decided to head out and see what the families were doing to celebrate. Below is Preston playing a drum while the other kids danced and played with masks and other musical instruments.

If I had to compare this holiday with something in the states. I would say it is a mix between Halloween and Thanksgiving.

The most popular food ate during this holiday is the moon cake

Hard Days, but life goes on

2010-09-21T20:43:00.001-07:00

If you follow me on facebook, you know that the last month has been difficult to say the very least. I have cried so many tears that I have none left. We have had some good hours of prayer and days with out talking or hearing from God. We have had waves of emotions come and go and only a month has gone by. My intention is not to dwell in the valley, but to rise above it. So here is what has happened in our life lately.

We bought a motor bike so we have had to get used to riding on the right side of the road. In Thailand we always drove on the left, so it takes some getting used to. Don't worry Preston sits in the front of Tim, and helmets are always worn. One of these days we'll take some video of us driving through the city.

We promised once we moved to our current place we would get Preston a bike and so a week after we moved in we got one and he has had a lot of opportunities to ride it. He calls it his motorbike and always says he needs to fill up for gas.

We have tried to get to know our neighbors, but as usual Preston knows how to break down barriers better than anyone.

If I have one word to capture this month with it would be THANKFUL...Im thankful for the two guys in my life. Im blessed beyond measure as Tim has picked up ALL the slack in the house and in my current state believe me there has been a LOT of slack. He has been the head cleaner, caretaker and language learner. He has had his ups and down, but with out him our house surely would have fallen a part over this last month. What an amzaing man. Not just amazing man of God, but amazing husband and father. Im also so very thankful for my son. As the years, days, and months go on I realize how much of a miracle he is.

The reality of starting over

2010-09-06T00:01:00.000-07:00

When we decided to move to this new country everyone kept telling us how difficult it would be. We were prepared for hard times. The odd thing about it is that there are some things about this country I like more then Thailand. There are other things I don't like as much, but that is all stuff you get used to. The hardest part of moving is starting over. I turn 30 in less than 2 months and the reality of starting over has hit hard. It is hard to learn another new language. It is hard to get energy to figure out where things are and how they work. My frustrations have not been because of the country we are living in, but the frustrations of starting over. In some ways I just feel too old to start over. I want to move to a familiar place and raise my kids there. Near people who know us and love us. I want to be in a place I know I can grow old at. Im tired of living this "adventure" and ready for some normal. A "normal" middle class American life NEVER sounded so good as it does right now. Is that bad?

we made it to our final destination

2010-08-22T19:31:00.000-07:00

On Aug 1st we moved to our final country.

It had been 14 months of travel and living in other peoples life. Not to metion living out of our suitcases. We have found a house to live in and are starting the language learning process this week. I have high hopes of actually blogging weekly like I used to do. Here are some pictures we have taken recently

This is a picture of Preston embracing the culture we have moved to. Since he is at the end of the process of potty training he often has to go to the bathroom and there aren't very many public places to do so. He has learned to go everywhere. It didn't bother us so much because we see grown men relieving themselves in public places constantly. We are excited for our new lives here and excited to share with the world what every day life is like for us.

My blessing

2010-01-10T04:54:00.001-08:00

We are now in Sunny FL before our return to Asia. It is hard to believe this is the last stop of our 8 month state side tour. We have visited FL, TN, GA, MN, WI, IN, IA, IL. We have met with a lot of people. Preston has been a real trooper. Every state brought new boundaries of do's and dont's as well as new aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents to meet. Tim and I have had stressful moments and some memorable moments as well. I have loved watching Preston interact with all of his relatives. I know every parent says their child is a blessing and we are NO exception. We leave mid Feb. for Asia and are anxiously anticipating our return. Please pr@y for our last couple of weeks in the states and for smooth transition upon our return to Asia. I plan to keep this blog updated more often between now and our return.

leaving MN

2009-11-18T11:49:00.000-08:00

We have been in MN for 3 months and are sad to leave on Friday. We know that our time in the states is more than half over. Pete and Missy (the couple we have been staying with) have been AMAZING! They not only let us take over their basement for 3 months, but made us feel at home. We have made many memories and we'll miss seeing Emmett grow older. We will however wait with anticipation for them to come and visit us in Asia this next year.

Our time in Iowa

2009-11-03T12:33:00.000-08:00

At the end of Sept we went to Iowa to visit my grandparents. This was only the 2nd time that either grandmother got to meet their great grandson.

our vacation

2009-11-03T12:12:00.001-08:00

Some friends at church gave us 3 nights at a cabin in Bayfield WI. We had a great time picking berries, and enjoying the scenery. Preston liked to eat the berries as we went along. I didn't mind, but it was hard to tell him no when it came to picking apples. He wanted to take a bite of every apple he saw. The weather was beautiful and we even had a hot tub to relax in when Preston went to bed for the evening. One day while out and about we even saw three wild black bears. I loved looking out over the water. I couldn't believe that it was a lake, because it looked more like the ocean.

Starting in September

2009-11-03T11:56:00.000-08:00

When we arrived in MN, the state fair was in town and we took the opportunity to get out and have some family fun. Here are a few pictures of our time. Preston's favorite part was the butterfly tent.

My baking extravaganza this fall

2009-11-03T11:25:00.000-08:00

Being in the states and in MN during t
he end of summer and into fall has been wonderful. It has put me in the mood for baking. I have found a love for cooking and baking so I will share some of my kitchen creations here.

Raspberry Pie: We went to lake superior for 4 days and we got to pick berries while we were there. I then made a fresh raspberry pie.

Next came the fall inspired sugar cookies. The leaves are my favorite. We also picked a half bushel of apples while on lake superior and I made my first ever apple pie.

......Of course no fall is complete with out pumpkin cheesecake so I used a recipe I got from one of my favorite baking blogs and make cute mini pumpkin cheesecakes.

2009-09-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

Im just testing out pictures on this new blog. Stay tuned for pics from our time on Lake Superior

the thrills of family life in asia

2009-09-06T12:59:00.000-07:00

This blog is specifically designed to give you a glimpse into our everyday life. We will not be writing about what we "do" in Asia b/c of where we live. This is intended to help you keep up with our children and other adventures in life we encounter.