Mornings.

Photo Courtesty Tutor2u.net

For Christians, the beginning of the day should not be burdened and haunted by various kinds of concerns that they face during the day. The Lord stands above the new day, for God has made it. All restlessness, all impurity, all worry, and anxiety flee before Him. Therefore, in the early morning hours of the day, may our many thoughts and our many idle words be silent and may the first word and the first thought belong to the One to whom our whole life belongs.

- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Lots of dishes.

Here's what currently lies in my kitchen: Lots of Dishes.

This is a great thing you see because it reveals relationships being built...

By conversation had while new friends taste and stir and prepare to serve you dinner...

As these new friends play hide and seek, peek a boo and just simply delight in your children.

Throughout dinner you talk about things like :

- American music

- How you never knew Asian "Stars" (a.k.a Celebrities) live right in your neighborhood!

- Roles in and Views of Marriage

- How people here are ALL ABOUT the Twilight movies.

- How my daughter definitely has shape and booty (yes, there's a word here thats similar to ghetto booty... who knew?)

- You laugh and makes jokes and realize there's so many things where your home culture crosses your new culture.

So this morning I'm actually thankful for my dishes.

Oh the wisdom of John Newton...

Image:tree-pictures.com

As I head off into my day of caring for my family, language, preparing to have friends over for dinner and really often just focusing on one foot in front of the other I found this quote on another blog and it encouraged me greatly....

"Remember, the growth of a believer is not like a mushroom—–but like an oak, which increases slowly indeed–—but surely. Many suns, showers, and frosts, pass upon it before it comes to perfection. And in winter, when it seems to be dead–—it is gathering strength at the root. Be humble, watchful, and diligent in the means, and endeavor to look through all, and fix your eye upon Jesus—–and all shall be well."

John Newton, Letters of John Newton

I will be enjoying my Starbucks this morning too, thanks to that package yesterday!

I heart packages from Moms!

This afternoon we received our first package! It's so funny to get these items that have no foreign writing on them and that are such "american" treats.

We were so excited to get items like:

*chocolate chips

*A hand mixer (much needed)

*Yoga Mat and a few workout videos

*A few books

*Starbucks coffee... we don't have a starbucks here.

*Soy Protein and Vitamins

*Right size sheets (the ones we've been using are too small and they do not have fitted sheets at all here).

All these things were so much fun to get and know we were being thought of! We love you back home!!!

Slices of Life.

Job and I went to the grocery store this morning together. I usually go to our bigger more "western" place once a week and then try and buy my fruits and vegetables at this place that is really just a road near my apartment with stands and families selling fruit/vegetables. I have not had as much time lately because of language to go to 2-3 places (it can be up to 3 sometimes depending on what I need if only one place has cheese, another has black beans, etc) so I usually ask my helper if she will buy my my fruit/veg for me. She's great! A huge gift to me. With language, 3 kids and LIFE here you feel like your days are so full! The last thing I want to do after a day of language and keeping up house is go spend my "free" time doing errands. I have been enjoying trying to get the kids out and let them play and get some face to face time with them. It also gives us a way to interact with locals and get more comfortable with our surroundings.

Here's a picture of Job in front of the fish tanks at the bigger grocery store. Think PetSmart meets WalMart - I guess that really would just be named "PetSmart" :) Anyway, there's these enormous tanks with lobsters, crab, various types of fish, shrimp and sea urchins. My kids love to walk around and look (we inevitably use our sense of smell too!). I was able to order a few pounds of ground beef this morning without any help too...progress. Don't think I sounded like a local though, all I know is I definitely got "cow meat". Then she asked me something I had no idea what she meant. Such is my life at this point, unless I'm within my walls the majority of communication I'm hearing is not understood. I have to tell myself often this is a great season for breaking, depending and of flexibly learning, being "sanded down" by life.

Good and uncomfortable.

My Girl.

I just had to post this picture of my sweet girl - here she is in one of my aprons, folded in half. She's getting so big and is such a helper. I am trying to find more unique and girly ways to spend time together as she gets older. In all honesty, I struggle at that. After two boys who take a lot more energy than she does it's easy to let that go first. So last week on her night to stay up a little later, she helped me make banana bread. I am so glad when I make time for her even when I'm tired out, it's always worth it. And it's an investment in her little heart to teach her what being a true "helper" looks like, taking care of others and serving. I am so blessed to have this girl in my life!

The Jiaozi Experience.

Jiaozi is a small dumpling usually filled with meat and vegetables that are very common here. My house helper made these for lunch today and our whole family got to give it a try.

My helper, May, is seriously an awesome cook. We lucked out. I was amazed watching her. This would take an American a lot of skill. She made a filling from ground pork, green onion, finely chopped ginger and some spices.

The wrapper is like a soft dough. You put the filling in the middle and work your way around the edges, crimping them closed. Hers looked like art.

Here I am, having a go at it. I'll be honest, once they were ready to be dished out and eaten, we could tell which ones were mine (warped, odd shaped discs)...

Let's face facts, I'm clearly a Yeti compared to sweet, small May:

Job was focused on making his dumpling. He enjoys learning things about being here, I love that he has people like May to love on him, invite him to pull up a stool and watch.

Sweet little fingers.

When you've filled them, you boil the dumplings. She cooked ours in a wok filled with boiling water. They use a wok for everything and anything. Then you dip in rice vinegar and soy sauce or a similar salty mixture. Really yummy. Really unique to this culture.

Celebrating 7 years.

Marriage is a flawed person married to a flawed person in a fallen world but with a faithful God.

-Paul Tripp

This week I got to celebrate 7 years of marriage to this precious man. I cannot say in words how much I am aware of the grace I gain daily by being married to Him. Not because He's a perfect leader nor because I am a perfect helper but we are growing by grace and learning to love better. Even moving overseas has begun to shape and strengthen our relationship in new ways. I love experiencing this culture with the man I adore. I await future challenges and struggles to die to self with hope because it's a good work going on to deepen love and humility toward one another.

We were blessed to celebrate this sweet occasion with a date out. Our friends were kind enough to keep the kids and it was our first moments out together without them. How do you celebrate when you live in Asia, your familiar date night restaurants don't exist and you don't know your city very well? You go around the corner from your apartment to a local massage place and get a really amazing couples foot and back massage for about $10 US dollars *I should add a note we were sure this place was top notch and not shady if you know what I'm sayin'*. And then you go out to a really American feeling restaurant that your growing to love in your neck of the woods. Then you come back to kids offering you their card masterpieces made especially to help you celebrate. You fall asleep watching the movie you watched on one of your first dates together. For us, bliss.

Undeserving of such great gifts like this. More thankful than if I'd just gone to a Chili's in my own old home-town. Realized how valuable time with my husband is and how situations here truly have unique perks and gifts if I have eyes to see them...

Simple Pleasures

Laughter and imagination at work in the halls of our new home...

Seeing a sunrise like this before I meet with Father...

Yummy cups of green tea that are slowly creeping up on my coffee addiction...

These amazing ruby red grapefruits that are tart and sweet and the feature that makes them an easy snack - you can peel them like an orange....

Articles like THIS and THIS to challenge and inspire me...

Two new beautiful feet in our lives...

These are the shoes that belong to two new friends that have been such a blessing! The two "beautiful feet" I'm speaking of are our house helper and our tutor. We have began full time language study and also hired a part time house helper so these are the shoes that find themselves at my door for a good chunk of the day.

Language study so far has been great! (We are only on day 4 :) We study for about 4 -5 hours a day with our tutor and at this point are playing lots of games to learn new words. It's been really fun to do as a couple! We could not be more thankful for out tutor, he is great! Because of these language demands we were really needing someone to come and help us do laundry, keep things tidy and possibly cook lunch if needed. The helper we found is so sweet and has been a HUGE help to ease the transition to language study. The kids have also done well in playing good and having a little routine they follow for certain days to keep them content while we study. We do our second chunk while they nap in the afternoon.

Thankful for these feet and that they are reminders to me of My Father's provision in every detail...