Life Between The Covers

Keeping Track of my Thousand Gifts

2011-11-01T08:49:00.000-07:00

Returning to gratefulness...

#30 - bad hair days
#29 - good hair days
#28 - the Shipbroker's generous love
#27 - monthly makan-adventures with grandma & grandpa
#26 - time to enjoy His blessings
#25 - A. A. who helps us keep our house clean
#24 - school-vacation
#23 - THE Christmas gift :)
#22 - cool and rain
#21 - Favourite-son's blog entry at jared-anakin.blogspot.com/2011/09/just-came-back-from-kuching-we-went-for.html

#20 - my baby telling me he loves the smell of mummy :)
#19 - the shipbroker arriving safely in Brisbane
#18 - afternoons for science experiments
#17 - watching the boy's cheeky grin at Mozart Madness
#16 - a lovely evening sharing music despite costly seats that had a blocked view
#15 - the truth of the Word
#14 - Marveling that God causes all things and not just "allows"
#13 - the little guy to share my night's rest while the shipbroker is away
#12 - for a shot at the cello
#11 - impromptu lunch with Grandpa

A teeny step closer to an important discovery

2011-07-02T08:05:00.000-07:00

Singapore Flyer, 2008

East Timor 2008

It has been 6 months, hasn't it, since my last post.

And a long 6 months and yet so quickly they passed, if such a contradiction was possible. In the blur of homeschool and church activities and the adrenaline rush of family time, my son has grown some more.

As custodians of this precious gift from God, we've been trying to discover God's purpose for His gift. That's also part of why we homeschool - to give Jared the time and space to discover what God has designed him for.

He's dabbled with violin lessons. Personally, I think he's got music in him and I've loved watching him express himself with the highs and lows of melody. But he says, "nah...I don't think it's what God wants me to do..."

He's dabbled with writing and poetry. But he says, "nah...I definitely don't think it's what God wants me to do..."

He enjoys his sailing and swimming, loves biking, dabbled with tennis, roller-blading and Aikido. But again,"nah..I don't think it's what God wants me to do..."

But he's taken apart all our old machines, can sit for hours plowing through computer/game programming, absolutely loves shadowing his Uncle Tzun at work with sound equipment. For all these things, he's had not one formal lesson and yet, of these, he claims, "I think this is what God wants me to do. I think it's computer engineering of some sort...at least I think it's got something to do with machines."

Bless him and thank HIM.

Now we work on confirming and refining the call and giving Jed the character and tools to be the "something to do with machines and computers kind of job" person God designed him to be. A long-term work in progress...

Sundays are for remembering

2011-01-16T06:50:00.000-08:00

to start the week with a clarion call to live with Jesus - my ALL in all.

One Thousand Gifts

2010-12-21T00:02:00.000-08:00

The tree has been put up, our schedule has wound down. Intentionally, we've kept our diary to a minimum this week and the next. I wanted life to be slower so that we could think of the child who came many, many nights ago.

But I lost sight of that baby today. After both boys interpreted my saying "no butter cookies" as meaning they could have "a" butter cookie, I lost sight of the baby with the reaction that followed.

With a stuffed-nose and aching head from the flu, I gave up and gave in to a nap.

But back up, I'm looking for the baby again. A reminder of His grace in my own life. A reminder to show grace in their lives.

A reminder to grow grace in our lives.

Here's starting A Thousand Gifts for which to be thankful this coming year.

#0001 - #0010

- laughter in the house
- being able to stay home with Jared and Elson
- gramps, brothers, sisters, husband and children
- friends whom I can count decades with
- pictures in books
- wind against my cheek
- sound sleep every night
- the sweet sound of fingers gliding across the piano keys
- Christmas
- stillness

Perhaps you too would like to count your thousand blessings.

Planning for 2011

2010-11-14T01:17:00.000-08:00

the.boys.on.elson's.birthday.outing

***
"Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask for the "ancient paths". When you find them, walk that way and you will find rest for your souls". Jeremiah 6:16
***

I've been going over my plans for our homeschool next year. I started out most systematically - laying out all the books to cover next year then breaking down the work into months then weeks. Looming overhead was the thought that we're hitting our Primary 3 year and we "need" to be gearing ourselves towards the PSLE. A "gan-cheong" spirit crept in.

At the same time, I finally got down to reading "I Saw the Angel in the Marble" by Chris and Ellyn Davis. The book is a collection of essays of their own homeschooling journey.

The first few chapters which includes an exhortation to find the "ancient paths" in God's purpose for Jared's education has calmed mummy's soul. I am reminded that I'm staying home and spending all this time to be God's instrument to turn my child's heart. I am reminded that I'm there to show that relationships come first - our relationship with God, with our self, with others and with created things. Skills come second - relational skills, thinking skills, God's giftings, academic skills. Information is last priority. As Jared grows the right relationship with His maker and his fellow created beings, as he develops the life skills he needs - he will also have the right motivation to pick up the "information" he needs for his God-given purpose. :) I like that.

Looking back on the year, the Lord has been faithful in our "homeschool". We have had plenty of opportunities to build our relationships with family time, being able to be at BSF, having the luxury of meditating on our devotionals in the morning and spending time with friends. Daddy has made a concerted effort to be available as much as possible in our post-Vancouver lifestyle. The topping on this "cake" definitely has to be Elson coming to stay with us. The experience has taught Jared much in relating to someone he doesn't (yet) love/like and I dare say will continue to challenge him in that area next year.

An intentional learning of "life skills" has been a little lacking this year. I have to look into that more for the next year. I think it's time to take another step back and increase his responsibility for managing his own time and resources.

There have been no lack of opportunities to gain "information" as well - our History group, learning to sail, violin lessons,field trips, a huge stack of great books read. Praise be to God!

All in all, next year looks set to be a full year. Hehe , the books have been laid out; the pages marked; the Chinese still has to be done but even as I end this post, the boys are outside spending the heavenliest afternoon playing on the xbox with Daddy - with peals of laughter all round!

Love is a Choice

2010-09-30T10:14:00.000-07:00

We've been looking into adopting a child for quite some time now. In all our considerations, we'd always thought we'd meet the child, decide if we love him (mummy got outvoted 2-1 in favour of a brother for Jed), then decide if we wanted him. But looking back on these last five days, I think God has a different lesson up His sleeve.

8 days ago, a friend asked if we would consider fostering a 6-yr old boy for an indeterminate length of time. 7 days ago, we agreed. 5 days ago, we picked up our foster son. We had never met him before and knew nothing but his name. But the Lord knew and he prepared us...

We'd seen the movie "The Blind Side" a couple of months before and just 2 weeks ago, chanced upon a book written by the family themselves. First "lesson" in chapter one was to "not turn away from the person in need in front of you". There's no need to go looking for a great cause to give to. "Stop and give to the person in front of you", was the message loud and clear.

I remember lying in bed with SK. We're both reading the book - me a copy borrowed from the library and him a copy we'd bought for ourselves. He turns to me and says, "that's exactly how I imagine us adopting a child. It'll be someone who really needs it." Of course, at that time, I just thought, "ya right, all kids up for adoption need a family."

Around that time, I was also introduced to someone who had written a book for adoptive families to share as a life journal with their adopted children. She was hoping to list her book on our bookshop. In the course of our conversations, I just felt a nudging that our time was soon.

Well, we have all had a steep learning curve these last few days. I'm proud to say that Jared has been unusually patient and so mature about it. We have our "I-want-to-talk-to-you" time each night which is his "code word" for wanting personal time with us. And tonight, as we chatted, it occurred to me that this is what it means when we say we "choose" to love someone.

Love is a determination of the mind as much as it is of the heart. With no "choice" in who came to live with us, we continually determine moment by moment to show love to Mr E. (as Jared calls him). It is in the "at-this-moment" choices we make to include him as part of the family that is love. There is a cost: our carefree homeschool schedule is no more so carefree as Mr E. attends school, Jared doesn't get our full attention all the time as he used to, finances are shared among 4 instead of 3 (and children are expensive investments) :) I am reminded that we didn't start out by being "family" with Christ - he made the conscious decision to include us and that choice came at a cost.

And it's just the beginning. Nothing is "legal" or final. It's not an adoption. We don't know how long he'll be with us. He can't come with us when we go for a family holiday overseas in 4 weeks (unless God does a miracle). There are so many question marks in the near future...even more should this future stretch on.

And yet, when a child you've only just met 5 days ago takes to calling you, on day 2, "daddy" and "mom" (for he already has a mummy), how can you but "stop to give to the person in front of you"?

The Battle of Agincourt - as told by Daddy

2010-08-21T08:23:00.000-07:00

The English led by King Henry V

The French - at first confident of winning this battle.

The guest story-teller

The enthralled son.

The enthralled son.

Our history co-op had a guest storyteller last week. We had gotten to the chapter in "The Story of the World" that touched on the Battle of Agincourt and Joan of Arc. It was my turn to take the session and I knew next to nothing of the battle. In an "aha" moment, it occurred to me that I lived with someone who knew loads about it (and many other events in history)! Haven't I always wished my husband to be more involved in Jared's education? Here was the perfect opportunity.

At first, he agreed to write a page about the battle for me to read aloud at group. You can imagine my delight when the night before group, he volunteered to take off work early and come tell the story himself. He is a GREAT storyteller....

So I got a bunch of other things prepared as I imagined he would take about half an hour to tell how the English fought the French at Agincourt. Well, I never got to any of those other activities as he took the entire HOUR and a half for his battle tale. Let's just say, it was the most attentive I've ever seen this bunch of kids! Now all that remains is to persuade Daddy that his REPEATED involvement at history will be much appreciated.

oh, grandma came along because she wanted to listen to Daddy's story too!

Jabberwocky by Lewis Carol

2010-07-29T11:28:00.000-07:00

Reading this poem was fun for Jared - he concluded it was "cheeky".

Jared's Music

2010-07-29T08:37:00.000-07:00

An impromptu video taken during today's violin lesson. :) His aunty-killer song. Ironically, he loved the music so much, he took the initiative to go learn the lyrics and it is the ONLY chinese song he can sing! :) Now, if only I can get all our chinese textbooks set to beautiful music! :)

:) We've been enjoying our violin lessons. I say "ours" because mummy works hard to write down all Uncle Alex says and she gets "blamed" if her notes aren't clear enough. Jared gets upset with me if he misses an exercise or can't remember what he's supposed to do at various points of a song because it's not in his notes. But I'm not complaining. I'm just glad the little fellow has a love for beautiful music - and my idea of beautiful music and not the loud, unimaginative noise of some of today's songs that make a feeble attempt to pass as music.

His violin teacher is having his annual concert in a few days. I've been asked to co-host the concert together with another of his older students. Today, he culled my script of all references to faith and God in the name of being sensitive to others. Jared, who is going to play Amazing Grace, was going to share a verse from the hymn. That's been scrapped off the script too.

It made me reflect how so much of classical music was born out of the great composers' faith and adoration of God. Just as I cannot figure out how a child's education can be "secular" and devoid of God if it is to inform the rest of his life, neither have I yet figured out how music which tugs at the very heart can be "secular", especially when the created being who wrote that music meant for it to be as praise and worship to the creator of all things (including music!).

Jared, after some clarification, is still going to THINK about the words of the hymn in his heart as he plays it at the concert on Sunday. I'm thankful our Lord will still be his inspiration for the music. Hopefully we get a decent video of Jared's "Amazing Grace" and I'll put it up in another post. :)

Jared loves his violin lessons and his teacher. He now has it on his little prayer journal that his teacher will find God's amazing grace and then his teacher, too, will tell the truth of the music he plays so beautifully :).

The Snake, The Woman, Jared and I

2010-06-28T07:31:00.000-07:00

We started out on a new devotional "Grandpa's Box: Retelling the Biblical Story of Redemption" a couple of days ago. Chapter two was aptly titled "Sneak Attack". I've been praying for wisdom to open Jared's spiritual eyes a little bigger. My prayer was too small - mine eyes needed some work on as well. :)

Our conversation yesterday morning was lovely.

Jared figured out that we are in a dangerous situation. Our enemy is always figuring out the best battle tactics to use against us. Eve had it all going for her - she could even physically enjoy walks and talks with God. She saw God in His splendor and glory. And YET, Satan found her weak point. He sneaked up on her where she had no battalions guarding her.

The little mind realised that we, who don't have a "face-to-face" relationship with God, are really at risk. We need to have watchmen at the towers of our lives on the lookout for enemy troops. Just a little break in our defense lines could be big trouble.

I just loved how he was fitting all this in with his current fascination with war, war strategies and famous military figures.

Praise God that this morning's reading showed us the enemy has been crushed.

Mad and in love

2010-06-12T08:09:00.000-07:00

It's just been such a hard day. I've been so mad all day - at Jared and at SK. Surely it must be for days like that that the word "escapism" was coined. I'm pretty sure it's not the "time of the month", but I do think it's the bubbling over of pent-up "molten lava" causing my volcano of emotions to explode.

But as surely as night comes, so does the regret. Jared has a friend whose parents are separating and this evening, between sobs, he said that he didn't want mummy and daddy to be like that. The parenting textbook would say this was an opportunity to show the child that people can be angry with each other and still make the commitment to stick it out together. But what the parenting textbook obviously doesn't say is how you'd then worry about the emotional damage already done....

sigh...

"weeping may last a night but rejoicing comes in the morning...."

At times like these, I so miss our time in Vancouver - our family time, the beauty of nature that made our homeschooling so special, just a saner work-family balance.

I Don't Want to Raise Successful Children

2010-04-24T07:27:00.000-07:00

Jared at the start of his first Garage Sale

Right, so this blog is not "original" because another Mum, Lysia Terkeurst, wrote it. I have never met her but am thrilled that because we have the same Lord in our lives, I can be edified by her thoughts about raising her children. I only have one child and have no margin for second tries...so I pray each day that I get it right :). I like her recipe for what is "right" :)

I Don’t Want To Raise Successful Children
By Lysa TerKeurst

Proverbs 22:6 {NIV}
Train a child in the way he should go,
and when he is old he will not turn from it.

I don't want to raise successful children. That's a shocking thing to read, and a shocking thing for a mother to type. So, let me clarify.

I used to define success according to my child's report card. Good grades and academic achievement would surely equal a good child with great potential in this world. But then several of my children wound up being average students with average grades. Though we carted them off to tutors and spent many a late night at the kitchen table helping them, they remained average. And I remained concerned and frustrated.

One report card day I found myself facedown in the fibers of my carpet crying and wondering, "Where have I gone wrong as a mom?"

I dug into Scriptures. I begged God for wisdom and discernment. I prayed for God's perspective with each of my kids. Finally, one day it dawned on me - what if I simply chose to embrace the natural bent of each of my kids as God's way to protect them and keep them on the path toward His best plans for their lives?

What if my A student needs academic success to prepare her for God's plans while my average to below-average student needs to be steered away from a more academic future? What if my sports star kid needs that athletic excellence for his future assignments by God, but my benchwarmer kid is being protected from getting off course by her lack in this area?

And that's when it finally dawned on me. My job isn't to push success for my kids. My job as a parent is to recognize the unique way God created each child and point them to Jesus at every turn along their journey toward adulthood. Yes, I want my kids to learn and thrive and grow up educated, but it's not a flaw in me or them if they don't have straight A report cards and trophy cases full of sports medals.

Proverbs 22:6 says,
"Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it" (NIV).

I am challenged to ponder these words, "... in the way he should go." Are we training our kids that the "way he should go" is to chase worldly achievement or to chase God? Whatever they learn to chase as a child, they will chase as adults. Therefore, we must be challenged to honestly assess the way we are pointing them to go.

My daughter, Hope, is one of my average students. She has also warmed many a bench in the sports she's tried, and can always be found hiding on the back row of the stage during school concerts. Using the world's benchmarks for achievement, Hope wouldn't be seen as a child positioned for success. But God...

This past January, my 15 year old Hope, shocked me when she announced she wanted to go to Ethiopia with some missionary friends of ours and live in the remote African bush for the summer. Yes, she may not have trophies and straight A report cards but she does have a heart of gold. And because she's not entrenched in sports and academic pursuits that could have created obligations for her summer, she was free to go to Africa. Free to chase God in a really big way.

One of the first e-mails she sent me from Ethiopia read, "Mom, I've fallen in love with the AIDS orphanage children. They rushed at me when I held my arms out and I tried with all my might to hold all 30 of them at once. I love it here."

Now, don't get me wrong. I do expect Hope to return to her studies this fall, give 100% effort, and finish her high school career having done her very best. She will most likely then go to college. But she probably won't be delivering the valedictorian address or wearing the honors cords and medals. She'll be the one with a vision of a dying AIDS orphan pressing against her heart ready to chase God's plans to the ends of the earth.

So back to my original statement, I don't want to raise successful children. It's true, I don't. Though Hope's sister coming behind her is an A student and can always be found on the front row of school performances - we don't chase after success for her either. I trust God that she needs those things in her life for the plans He's unfolding in her life. We train with that bent in mind. But, we don't chase it. Just like Hope, we point her in the direction of God at every turn and pray like crazy.

I stand by what I said and I'll say it again, I don't want to raise successful children. Because--- raising God-honoring adults who will set the world on fire for Christ is just so much more rewarding.

Jared after sticking it out at his Garage Sale for four hot, sweaty, lonely hours. I was really proud of him!

Dear Lord, being a mom is a really tough job.
Please help me, teach me and show me how to define success for my kids.

In Jesus' Name, Amen.

A Rhema

2010-04-13T08:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Jared and I were learning during our devotion that God speaks a specific word, or rhema, into our lives when we ask of Him or tune in closely to what He says. As is our practice, we spent a couple of minutes in quiet meditation. Most times, we're just practicing our "being quiet" so that the still voice of the Holy Spirit can speak. Well, the verse that I seemed to get was Mark 12:30-32 - "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."

I shared it with Jared. I also shared that I thought God was reminding me that I need to find ways to show love and reach out to our new neighbours. Chatting to one of them in the lift, I've discovered they are a bunch of students from India who are attending Republic Polytechnic nearby. So far, I've just been irritated by the music and loud movie sounds they constantly have blaring day and night. I suspect they are also the ones who have been leaving their trash outside the chute instead of bagging it and throwing it down the chute. Sigh...

Well, as it turns out, there was a surprise in store for us as we settle down to copywork for the day a couple of minutes later. Our CM copywork passage for the day was just this very verse! Jared was impressed that God was definitely saying something. He looked up with a grin, "now, that's what I call double confirmation!". Right, now there's no worming my way out of this one. Something will have to be done about our neighbours....

:) And trust my God to make sure I get his point, I've just realised that our sermon topic at church this coming Sunday is "Transforming our Community".

Back Among Friends

2010-03-28T11:24:00.001-07:00

We've been back almost 2 months. I'm still missing Vancouver and our life there - it is spring for friends there. BUT I'm also glad to be back among friends and fellow homeschoolers - a glimpse of Japan's history complete with sushi!

Did I need my degree?

2010-03-28T11:05:00.000-07:00

It's been a most hectic weekend. Hectic but thankfully, productive. The house got vacuumed, the floors mopped, the toilets scrubbed, the clothes ironed, fresh blueberry muffins baked, the extended family got a home-cooked Sunday evening meal and we even managed to squeeze in a visit to the Ancient Egyptian exhibit at the National Museum. The nagging question has been, "Did I need an honours degree in Psychology to have done all that?!?". I'm still working on that...

Margaret Peterson's book "Keeping House: The Litany of Everyday Life" has been food for thought. She's done her Bible homework well. An excerpt from the review on the back says it best. "Christian service and spiritual growth are inherent in the acts of keeping people fed, clean, housed and comfortable. Housekeeping, she says, is akin to a litany, a long public prayer to announce needs and requests. A litany is repetitive and focused on the basics: food, health, shelter. Similarly, housework is ongoing and incarnational, teaching us about Jesus' earthiness and decision to live among us; it requires perpetual tending, much like God's active sustaining of the world."

How true. Our floor will be in dire need of another mopping all too soon.

Lifestyle Choices

2010-02-07T08:36:00.000-08:00

We've been back in Singapore for a little more than a week. Yesterday, while riding in the car, I was browsing through the pictures on SK's camera. Well, he hadn't downloaded the shots taken in our last few weeks in Vancouver and when I re-looked at the ones we took snow mobiling in the back country of Whistler, I couldn't help but start to tear.

One of the things we held precious there was the time we could spend as a family just hanging out and doing stuff. Our resolution when we were preparing to come back was to try our best to maintain that family time. Have we managed it so far? It's true that the situation is much better than before our time in Vancouver. My dear husband has really been trying very hard to be home as early as possible and we have been careful to not simple jump back into every activity we were involved in before. But unlike in Vancouver, each minute is a conscious choice. Where before, SK would have 30-40 emails to clear on his blackberry at night, that now numbers in the thousands and he has to make a difficult choice of how much to clear at night, and how much to leave till he gets in the office tomorrow. We have already compromised our "weekends are for rest" ideal to make room for Jared to get Chinese tuition from a trusted friend. And there are more choices to make soon.

I hope we choose wisely.

At the Edge of the World

2010-01-06T00:51:00.000-08:00

We took a trip to Tofino over the Christmas holidays. Emily Carr called it the "edge of the world". Looking out at the waves crashing on the rocks, it sure seemed that way. It was a magical place and it was the first holiday that we've ever had where we did nothing but laze and eat. Good for the soul.

It was also a time to reflect on the year past. God has been good. All our needs and many wants were met. We've had more family time this past year than we've had in the last decade. I've had the opportunity to see so much of God's creation and know Him as the creator.

What lies ahead?

There's so much I want to do and do more of. Spend time with family, grow our little bookshop, be with friends, know Christ deeper, cross-stitch, cook, knit, walk the forests, see the seas...and a million other things. With God's help, may I do all He has planned for me, enjoy doing what needs to be done and find grace to grow in all the "doing".

2009-12-23T14:06:00.000-08:00

Michael card is one of my favourite Christian artists. SK and I walked down the aisle to his music. This one is my prayer for Jared. I'm sure I can say, on behalf of SK too, that it is "our" prayer for him. As I look back on the year, I know the best moments have been those that have put a smile on Jared's face.

Reject the worldly lie that says,
That life lies always up ahead,
Let power go before control becomes a crust around your soul,
Escape the hunger to possess,
And soul-diminishing success,
This world is full of narrow lives,
I pray by grace your smile survives.

For I would wander weary miles,
Would welcome ridicule, my child,
To simply see the sunrise of your smile,
To see the light behind your eyes,
The happy thought that makes you fly,
Yes, I would wander weary miles,
If I could see the sunrise of your smile.

Now close your eyes so you can see,
Your own unfinished memories,
Now open them, for time is brief,
And you'll be blessed beyond belief,
Now glance above you at the sky,
There's beauty there to blind the eye,
I ask all this then wait awhile,
To see the dawning of your smile.

Avatar vs. World's Best Storyteller

2009-12-21T00:13:00.000-08:00

We caught the premier of Avatar in Vancouver 2 nights ago. Needless to say, we were glued to the screen and it was an amazing movie. I'm pretty sure that it'll be part of our DVD collection when that's available. As we were leaving the cinema, our conversation turned to the storytelling prowess of James Cameron. SK thought Mr Cameron had outdone himself this time round. With a price tag of $300 million, it almost seemed as if all things were possible. Then, my wise husband made the most astute observation. While the movie awed us, he reminded us that the greatest story-teller ever is our Lord and each day, he weaves an amazing tale with our lives and His creation. And the price tag for the movie of our lives was way more than $300 million - the blood of Christ. Set me thinking for the evening....

My Father's Reading List

2009-12-15T10:04:00.000-08:00

My father, a booklover, recently ordered some books. He wanted them in hardcover so that they would be in good condition for Jared and Kaiqi, his grandchildren, to enjoy a few years later. While I put in the order, I thought back to the apartment we lived in while I was growing up. There were books everywhere; Dad had a study full of his own! We even had his Shakespeare texts from when he did his A-levels. My favourite was an old, old, old book titled "The Church that Would Not Die". It had a torn cover and the pages were yellow but that just gave it even more character. I still have these books in my own home now. I look forward to the time Dad can share these books with his grandchildren just as he has shared the love of the well-written word with me. Grin. And a lovely illustration here and there never did hurt anyone.

Here's Dad's reading list:

1. Lord of Finance: the Bankers who Broke the World by Linquat Ahamed
2. The Good Soldiers by David Finkel
3. Raymond Carver: A Writer's Life by Carol Sklenicka
4. The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty
and Terror of Science by Richard Holmes

First Snow...

2009-12-13T16:36:00.000-08:00

The first snow of the year is finally here. It started just before church began this morning and was the perfect backdrop as we sang, "Jesus gave it all. All to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow".

More snow, please...

I Never Tire..

2009-11-25T21:56:00.000-08:00

I never tire of hearing Jared say "I love you". It was a good day today and he was inclined to demonstrate his love for me several times today. I'm certainly not complaining. In my mind, it was almost as if I was saving the extras for a day when things don't go as well and the exchange of I-Love-Yous is sparse between us.

At the dinner table, our dear son popped an unexpected question. Of his daddy, who is a partner of his company, he asked, "Daddy, I've been thinking about this for a long time. Who is the boss in your company? Who pays all the others to work for him?" I thought I knew pretty much what went on in that little brain-machine of his, but this took me quite by surprise. It turned out to be a great opportunity to explain that everyone has to work, even the boss. In fact, he was a little disappointed to learn that as boss, Daddy often has to work even harder and longer hours than the others. Hmm...come to think of it, we kind of glossed over an answer to his long thought about question and I shall pick it up with him again tomorrow.

On a somewhat different note, Christmas is slowly creeping into our household. Jared and Melissa started work on a duet version of Jingle Bells. I love it when Christmas comes around and can't wait to put a second video of the fiddle version he's going to work on next...

The Khoos go to the Okanagan

2009-11-23T22:12:00.000-08:00

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Our time in Vancouver has held many treasures. It has been a time of discovering God's glory in His creation. It has also been a time of strengthening our family ties as we spend time playing together.

This morning, Jared and I attended the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra's concert series for elementary school children - VSO goes global. They played a selection of songs from around the world. At the end of the journey, they "landed back in Canada". The orchestra members rose to their feet to play "O Canada" to an audience of Grade 4-6 children who had also stood up and sang their national anthem wholeheartedly. Jared and I were probably the only two who couldn't remember the lyrics but I had tears streaming down my face as I heard the young, clear voices sing, "God keep our land, glorious and free. O Canada, we stand on guard for thee". In a few months, we will go home. I will be glad to be together with family and friends again but will dearly miss this land that has shared much of its' beauty with us.

Don't They Say the Darnest Things?

2009-11-21T21:31:00.003-08:00

The heat a couple of days ago got to a point even we thought it was hot. Jared declared, "I'm steaming, I'm boiling, (crescendo) and I'm frying! (matter-of-factly) Now, I'm just a crisp!"

Then yesterday, he felt a sudden but obviously very real need to use the washroom and issued this warning while we were in the car, "Warning. Warning. This bad fart will activate in 2 minutes. There will be no further warning." (said as if you were the computer in Star Trek). Let's just say his father was very proud of him!!!

How Blessed We Are...

2009-11-21T21:31:00.001-08:00

Since our Il Divo concert experience on Saturday, I've constantly had their music playing while I cook, clean or do laundry. And Jared has been humming Amazing Grace. In fact, while we were waiting for the bus to violin lesson today, quite out of the blue, he remarked that it is a "very blessed thing to be gifted with a good singing voice" - obviously in reference to himself!!! :) But it is not far from the truth as it is indeed a beautiful gift...

It has occurred to me several times since the concert how powerful an impact they could have for God if they became believers and used their gifts for His glory. And each time I would have to catch myself and remind myself that God doesn't need to use our "gifts". He wants to use our lives...and might quite possibly call us to do things that we are not gifted for....

:) But in the meantime, Il Divo sounds great!

A Lesson from the Lilies in the Field

2009-11-21T21:29:00.002-08:00

We've been stopping frequently on our walks around town and in the neighbourhood near church to look at the flowers and notice what the plants are getting themselves up to. The cherry blossoms have come and gone, the magnolias had their moment of fragrant glory and patches of flowers have had their moments only to give way to another kind of bloom waiting to astound us with it's glory. Even though their beauty is but in passing, yet our Creator spared no expense in making them exquisite...the thought has given new meaning to my understanding of His word when He tells us that even more than the flowers of the field that are here one moment and gone the next, He cares and provides for all our needs. Hallelujah!

Catching Up

2009-11-21T21:29:00.001-08:00

The best part of our week was to witness Jared getting baptised. None of the civilized baptismal pools for us - Jed got dunked in the English Bay (Vancouver) with it's near freezing waters! Daddy had the privilege of being there with him and co-baptising him. I was positively beaming. We've been talking about it for awhile now. The week before saw our usual exchange - "yes", he wanted to be baptised but "not yet". But on Good Friday Jed and daddy had a 'serious talk' while I was out for worship practice and they concluded that Jed would get baptised on Sunday and had it all arranged with Pastor Jerry before I got back. I think they should have lots more of these 'serious talks'. We worked on Jed's testimony on Saturday. SK made a valiant attempt to restrain himself and refrained from editing Jared's sharing. But we had to smile when Jared likened being baptised to the caterpillar emerging from its cocoon as a beautiful butterfly - a new creation.

Such a momentous occasion called for a celebration: a whole week's break from our homeschool routine. Grin...actually, I'd already scheduled the week's break.

I'm trying to think where all that time went...I know I gave the house good cleaning and we hung out at the library a lot because they're having a sale of books they are taking out of their inventory (I got a copy of The Young Persons Guide to Shakespeare for 50c!). We spent almost all of Thursday in the kitchen. Our meet-up group was coming over for dinner. And Jared had his first violin lesson with Melissa Bandura. Thankfully, he liked her. It helped that instead of "nagging" about his hand position NOT being in the right position, she gave him a code word "sniper" to remind him about it. Plus she set him clear goals for the week and about 1/3 the amount of practice work compared to his teacher back home.

:) I think the best part of our week has to be stopping to enjoy the beauty of the flowers blooming in the city. We smelled the cherry blossoms and watched their delicate petals float off in the breeze. We discovered some very unusual flowers or at least I think they're flowers with stamen and all. We made a mental note of which trees or shrubs had buds so we could look out for them the next time we walked along those streets.

The birds are also getting busy. We've been watching them pair up and have so much fun making up their husbandly-wifely comversations for them as they busy themselves with picking up materials for the nests. We've seem lots of busy birds with nest material between their beaks but we're still trying to find those nests.

Today, Jared reminded me that he just deserves to "know" all sorts of things. We'd gone to watch an IMAX movie about Van Gogh at the Science Cente. I must admit I caught myself dosing a couple of times so I wasn't surprised when Jared gave a big yawn at the end of the show as he slowly unfurled himself from his I-am-oh-so-a-slouching position. Yet, when we were walking past a photographic exhibition of China's mountains yesterday, he chose one of the pieces as his favourite because it had complementary colours. He said, "the red part makes the green part look greener...just like Van Gogh thought..." So he's listening!

And last night, at our meet-up dinner, I was clearing up while SK was sharing his testimony. At one point, I interrupted him from the kitchen with a comment afterwhich Jared came over to tell me that I was evesdropping. He had been doodling in a different room! Again, I thought, "he's listening!" He and I had a good laugh today when I pointed out that he was also evesdropping to know that I was doing it!!!

Then today, we'd made a purchase and the cashier extended an invitation for us to make a donation to an organisation that helps abused women. I'd made a similar donation a few days ago so I was not inclined to make another donation but Jared insisted that we should. It turned out well because we had an opportunity to explain and discuss family violence. He couldn't understand why the women don't just hit back or run away...and had lots of questions. Aha, he's listening.

Reminder to myself: be sure that I'm worth listening to in my conversations with Jared.

Bits Here and There

2009-11-21T21:28:00.001-08:00

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

He's Growing Up Too Fast

2009-11-21T21:27:00.000-08:00

My resolve to blog frequently is already waning..sigh.

Spring is struggling to make a comeback in this pretty city.

Today, at church, the fields are just starting to be blanketed with tiny flowers and the magnolias are flowering. I loved how our friends at church took their bread and wine at communion and stepped out into the glorious morning to pray with loved ones and spend a moment with God in His creation before coming back to continue with the service.

Earlier this week, I pointed out to Jared the verse that exhorts parents to "train a child in the way that he should go when he is young so that he will not fall away from it when he is older". A few days later, the little fellow solemnly remarks that when he grows up and "if" he has children, he will train them up when they are young - before they "learn all the bad things". I quickly tried to seize the moment to remind him that that is precisely what mummy and daddy are trying to do and it is one of the reasons we homeschool. A few minutes later, he quips, "but i'm already grown up. It's too late. I already know everything including the bad things!". Sigh...they just grow up too fast.

:) We spent our Sunday afternoon earlier making and flying paper aeroplanes in the playground nearby (while daddy took the afternoon nap that he always claims he will never take 'cos "it's a waste of time"). The weather was lovely. On the way back, we stopped to smell the magnolias blooming right outside the front door of our condo. Jared said they smelled of his shower gel...except he wanted to know how the flowers got the smell from the shower gel..sigh...these city boys!

It's Time

2009-11-21T21:26:00.000-08:00

It's about time to keep a sort of journal. All the small things that make our days just right seem to slip out of my memory so quickly. For instance, I remember some of Jared's antics just long enough to tell Daddy when he gets home and maybe write about it to grandpa or grandma then it's lost. Perhaps this will be a place to capture some of those memories...a place to tell of God's precious gifts of grace in our lives.