Miriam's Mind on Math

Miriam is finally at a stage where she dislikes math (who doesn't, anyway?).  Don't get me wrong - she's good at math.  In fact this trimester she got a better grade in Algebra than in Language Arts.  The problem comes when she does not understand her teacher; she decides that it is about the subject matter.  It takes a lot of prodding from me before she gives in to asking for help.  Sometimes Brahms explains things to her and Tim works with her a lot - not me because I have long forgotten all about Algebra even if it was once a favorite subject of mine.

This Sunday morning she set out to work on her math problems (I give her credit for good planning instead of procrastinating till the last hour of the day).  Tim on her side, she began to say, "I should just eat fruit".  This comes from her earlier thought that there is life outside of math; that Adam and Eve did not have to suffer with math - they simply ate fruits.  Her statement was both humorous and witty; it ignited a long and lively discussion in the house.  After some time of working together she gave a statement of relief and grief, "It is a sad thing that daddy is better at math than Mrs. McGee." 

Later on you'd heard some whistling and every once in a while phrases like: "Why do they teach little kids about negative numbers?  That's just cruel!"  or "Ha ha!  I figured it out! Yay!" or more whistles in various tunes. 

Oh well, it's still Sunday morning.  I got some reading done on N. T. Wright's "After You Believe...".  Tim is working on some banners for the FCC (our Filipino church).  Brahms is at Cornerstone Christian Church (our American church) playing bass with the worship team.  Miriam is progressing with her work.  The sun is sunny and cold outside; we had to bring our pet dove, Lala,  to get some needed sunlight. 

New Family Room Furniture

A new couch set was delivered here today.  It's been painful to part from the two old ones after sixteen years - they've been like family members.  But the new ones have come and we like them.  It took us many trips to different furniture stores  -spread over many months- to find the right one with the right price.  Fortunately, we found just the right one at Scandinavian Design.  It was very easy to find something we liked from the store.  It appears that we have a natural attraction to the sleek, unpretentious, and organic quality of the furniture that they offer.  We chose Paulo Leather Sofa and Chair.  It's very nice.  Unlike most leather chairs or couches, the Paulo is not "slippery". 

Way back in 2000, we also purchased Tim's desk and the kitchen bar stools from the same store.  The teak dining set that we ended up buying from Copenhagen was something we saw first at Scandinavian.  It just happened that they did not have the size that we preferred. 

So what did we do with the two old couches?  The larger one went to Brahms' room while the other one went to Miriam's.  Both kids were happy to have them but they had to rearrange their rooms.  I on the other hand will have a lot of updating to do in the family room. 

Note: I was supposed to post a picture here but I could not get my phone (Samsung Galaxy IIIS) and computer to sync.

Thanksgiving 2012

                                                       Playing video game (Portal 2) while waiting for our guests.

Thanksgiving this year is beautiful.  Shannon is home, the siblings are all happy together.  The never-ending stories that they tell each other seem to be continually amusing to them all.  Tim and I are happy to be watching them.  Our family is whole once again and we know that God is here with us always.  God is good.  God is good.  I praise Him!  

I've been thinking more deeply about Thanksgiving lately - in an attempt to search for a deeper meaning to the occasion, if there is such a thing.  Having been raised in the Philippines, I consider Thanksgiving as an acquired tradition.  Beyond the feast that primarily consist of roast turkey, sweet potatoes, corn, and cranberries - all of which were discovered (as in gold) in the wild New World by the pioneer settlers - it meant nothing to me.  To the settlers, however, their discovery and introduction to the food of this land was tantamount to seeing a glimmer of hope.  There was an alternative to starvation!  Life could be sustained.

 As I have noticed during the last two decades celebrating Thanksgiving, we people are passionately thankful for the blessings we've received. Indeed there are many things that we can all be grateful for.  However, if they are the basis of our gratitude than the spirit of thankfulness is short-lived and flitting.   Maybe a better way is to be thankful to the One who gave and will continue to give everything we need.  

This year we shared Thanksgiving dinner with our friends, the Lippuners.

Eating together is a good thing to do. 

The young ones - Miriam, Shannon, Brahms, Alex, Marcus, Erich, and Anna 

The old people - wonder who they are... 

After every heavy meal, a card game is always in order...Perpetual Commotion

Thanksgiving Menu 2012

21.5 lb Roast Turkey (Grilled by Tim)

Giblet Gravy  (by Helen)

Cranberry Sauce (by Helen)

Stuffing (Mix from Costco prepared by Helen)

Sweetened Sweet Potato and Apple (by Sue)

Mashed Potatoes (by Brahms) 

Pumpkin Cheesecake (by Sue)

Apple Pie (by Helen)

To God be the glory!

News from Shannon

The house was quiet when I got home from work.  I assumed that Tim was on his way from bringing the kids to Youth Group.  Lazily, I walked my way into the living room - dropping my lunch bag and jacket on to their usual place- when Tim came out.  He met me with his usual greeting then he told me the news:  "Shannon fell and she's is being brought to an Urgent Care."

Shannon was running to Pippin - the dining hall closest to the Shire - with a bunch of friends when Zack Soohoo stopped suddenly causing a collision.  Shannon fell onto the ground hitting her head against the concrete pavement. 

To make the story short she had a mild concussion and the problem was that I can not do anything.  I can't help her from El Dorado Hills.  So Ia asked my cousin Ronnie Lim, who lives hear Irvine to go check on her.  Fortunately, Shannon was fine.  Times like this bring me to a total dependence on God.

Crater Lake

Snow on the way to Crater Lake

April 4, 2012 - We took the train to go to Klamath Falls, Oregon.  We left Sacramento around midnight and when we woke up in the morning we were in a cold snowy place - which was a very pleasant surprise.  This trip was the first time we traveled without Shannon.  There were only four of us.  It was really different without her.

Crater Lake



Before the fight.



 First thing we did was to check in to our hotel then we headed towards Crater Lake.  It was a scary experience - the road being full of snow and lacking traces of tire marks in some parts.  The thought of being stranded there in the middle of nowhere seemed so possible knowing that Tim, a Bay-Area-grown man, has nothing to brag about driving in the snow.  There was no lack of praying in that car, I tell you.

Snow Fight

Snow-machine

And so the Lewises did what the Lewises do when they are ever near snow - snow fight!  Well, I was the spectator or should I say referee who blew her whistle whenever the players went out of bounds.  My role was to make sure that no one went rolling down the lake.  The sight was quiet amusing.  Who would have known that snow-fighting is such a competitive game?  So the fight went on until they all got tired. 

Dr. Who?

Beautiful time and place...

Just to prove that I was there...

Crater Lake is an amazing God's creation.  I cannot even fathom the time it took for this mountain to turn into a gigantic bowl of clear water.  Truly God has always been there... 

I hope to see Crater Lake in the spring, someday.

Spring Break 2012

 

Since I started working, I have not had a lot of free time to blog...or perhaps I had the time but I was too tired to do anything beyond the basics.  However, I really want to document some of the things we do as a family and some thoughts that come to my mind.  So slowly I will try to catch up with my schedule. 

UC Irvine - February 4, 2012

On February 3, 2012 we all went to visit Shannon.  This was the first time we went back to see her since e dropped her off last fall.  She got to show us her place - the Shire.  We even met some of her dorm mates who were eating Taco Bell at the time. 

 

With us there, she got a chance to go to McDonalds - she swears that their fries are the best in the world.  Then she brought us to have dinner at her new favorite place, Koba Tofu Grill.  I immediately understood why she loves this place.  I enjoyed the food so much that I over ate fried fish.  In the end I missed going to the Cha for Tea (another place she wanted us to try) because I was so sick.  So I stayed in the hotel alone. 

 

After all the times we spent with her we had to leave her again.  It was sad.  But we had to go to see UCLA for Brahms. Yes, he is now checking colleges!  I hate to think about it because it means that he will also soon leave us.  Sometimes denial works.  :)  

 

UCLA - February 4, 2012

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Job Leaves No Time to Blog*

I used to spend my after-dinner-resting hours blogging.  It was my time to be alone.  Since I started with my new job about three months ago, I have not had the time to isolate myself from the family.  When I come home from work, the only thing I want to do is to spend time with them - eating, talking, playing games (mostly CIV V), watching TV or driving to the Towne Center and eat ice cream at the parking lot.  So if you are reading my blog and finds out that updating of the website happens rarely these days - it is just because I do not have the time. I might, in the future

My current job is, so far, the most time-demanding job I ever had since I got married.  Now I am kind of shocked to find out that I cannot do all the things that I used to do.  Of course, eight hours everyday has just been eliminated from my disposable time with family.  I am adjusting  - trying to figure out how to maximize the use of my time without jeopardizing the important aspects of life.

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* (I just found this draft from my old files and thought I'd post it for the record. Today is 7/19/2015 and I'm still working and feeling the same sentiment - however, I have already lowered my expectations to some extent.)