Him & Chi's Sandwhich

"I want the yummy medicine!"

2011-08-30T02:22:00.000-07:00

Our kids both got sick on vacation so we bought a bunch of medicine from a few different stores. Out of all the different brands of children's medicine, the Walgreen's store brand fever & pain reliever was reported by our 3 year old to be the tastiest. Arthur Quan seems to love all his medicines! Praise the Lord that we have a way of relieving our children's discomfort during such times of illness.

Operation Clean-Up

2009-10-29T09:34:00.001-07:00

I really need to organize my craft desk... here's what I have to work with:

The shelves don't need that much work, it's everything else...

Hubby still hasn't mounted my magnetic board for me.

It's all the paper that is going take the longest to organize.. I'm the worse at picking coordinating cardstock for my projects. So one project would mean piles & piles of paper scattered all over the room.

All this mess and I still haven't even gotten to my sewing stuff, but the fabric pile is another day's mountain to climb. Today... paper crafts!

Another thing that Hubby hasn't mounted even though he said he'd do it ages ago, my pegboard.

I've got my work cut out for me... not I just have to wait for the babies to fall asleep, and I'll be on my way.

Lil Art & Lana Pictures

2009-10-28T01:02:00.000-07:00

Happy Babies

Not so happy...

Cute weird face..

Baby Mice in Our Kitchen

2009-10-28T00:13:00.000-07:00

These 2 baby mice were squeaking from underneath our refrigerator for 2 nights before we found them. We were going to take them to the pet store to find out what kind of mice they were and whether or not the pet store people wanted them. However, they died without their mother (who could not find) before we could get them to the store... they were pretty cute for rodents!

"Sleeping Angel" Page

2009-10-27T23:35:00.000-07:00

This is the latest & only page I've been able to scrap in a long time.

I love the little paper flower. I used rub-on letters to make the title.

The little photo corner was cut out with thick textured cardstock using a Cuttlebug die, then painted with a coat of gold acrylic paint.

The little brown flourish holding up the photo was just a clip art of ornaments I found online & printed out. I colored the originally black & white flourish with Tim Holtz "Vintage Photo" Distress Ink. As for the flower, Prima Flowers are one of my new obsessions! SO PRETTY! I stamped the cream cardstock in the background with a French Writing stamp in black ink.

The journaling is written with a silver jel pen on a tag. On the blue background cardstock I used my favorite fiskar border punch. Then I stamped the cardstock with some flourish in "Peeled Paint" Distress Ink.

A Card From Long Ago

2009-05-05T21:43:00.001-07:00

This is a post I should have done months ago! Anyways here is one of the first successful cards I've made. It was for my friend Bao's birthday. Looking back, I sure didn't have much to work with then, and the end product was very... lacking.

SideNotes:

absolutely LOVE the cork alphabet set I used to make the "HAPPY"
the word "Birthday" is one of the rare instances where I've used my clear alphabet stamp set (Autumn Leaves brand by Katie Pertiet)
the green strip of cardstock came from K&Co - Brookfield Scrap Pad
the lonely leaf is stamp I bought in an autumn clear stamp set at Target for $1!!!

I do like the back of the card though. I made 'em much better back then:

Lana Pictures

2009-05-05T14:21:00.000-07:00

Here are the pictures of Lana I promised all you crazed relatives.

(Click "Read more" at the end to view all the photos - THERE ARE A LOT!)

Let's start from the beginning...

(Dec '08) Disney World photos that I never posted...

Funny inside one of the DW attractions...

Lana eating a piece of the turkey leg:

Lana reading at home:

One of our car trips - I think Lana just woke up:

Saying bye to Aunty Quynh at he airport:

(Feb '09) Visting Grampa's:

(April'09) Lana playing in here room:

... then in Mama's room:

(April '09) Grampa comes for Easter!

(Apr '09) Lana playing around the house:

To googly or not to googly...

2009-04-06T10:05:00.000-07:00

I finished Andy's birthday card... this started out looking really girly, but luckily I man-ified it up a little with all the black and brown, and the owl helped (a big step up from the pink flower & button). I can't wait to see what he thinks of it!

Sidenote:

Can't believe I got the CUTE owl stamp from AC Moore for only $0.70!!!! On Sale, Baby! They've got a ton more (just as cute) wood-mounted stamps on sale - I've gotta go back!
I didn't know whether or not to put googly eyes over the owl's orginial stamped eyes. What do you think... I've actually gotta get the picture of the card w/o the googlies from my husband's cellphone... be back with that soon! In the mean time, are the googlies too silly?

I feel....

Blockage

2009-03-26T09:29:00.000-07:00

I wish I could just put my artistic skills to use with my card making & other crafts. I think the blockage comes from my lack of creativity. Damn it that I have the craftsmanship but not the ability to express it in a productive, coherent way.

This is how I feel about this:

In the Corner of My Life

2009-03-26T09:00:00.000-07:00

Only one life to live, how shall I live it? I wish the question was "how do I WANT to live it?"

I want to be humble and make the best of everything God gives me, but so often do I find myself yearning for more - Nice Things, fancy modern house, with all the trimmings & personal touches. I don't know if it is with envy that I look at other people's things. I hope not. I believe it is just a sense of wanting to make my own life better - not so much an "I wish I had their things, I hate them for having it when I don't" ... I don't know, I see that a lot in movies where the villain's motive is driven by jealousy & consuming envy. (This is where Hubby will come in to say, "You watch too much TV." - which, might I concur, is indefinitely true).

I will always hope for a day when I have my own craft room, with wood-framed window sills, designer layout, & decorations. A day when I'd have time for all the craft projects that have piled up in the craft corner, the stench of forgotten passion & vigor cloaking them like a veil of cobwebs. One day, this one life shall be lived.

Until then, here are a few examples of my dream room:

Something like this only less dark...

Something like these pictures only not so bright & antique looking:

The shade of blue on this wall & peg board is the exact color I'd like my craft room to be:

Overall, I'm really drawn to the style of this blogger's home:

I love the atmosphere created by the lighting in this first picture. I would love to live in a house with a similar design - wooden door/window frames, lots of space & sitting places (i.e. couch), hardwood floors.

The wall color in the second picture is not my cup of tea, but everything else is just as I'd like my corner to be (minus what looks like a wooden closet to the right of the chair). Quaint.

Here & There

2008-12-12T10:53:00.000-08:00

Here are some of the places I've been since we've gotten to Florida. Florida's got a lot of the same franchise places as California... but I've noticed that everything feels & tastes better when it's from Cali. Anyways, let's start with some restaurants:

Great Wall Chinese Food & Buffet - awesome chinese food, got onto a list of Top 100 Chinese Restaurants in America
Denny's - same old, same old, still yummy & convenient, California's Denny's food is tastier
IHOP - another disappointment for the franchises in Florida.
Yamato Japanese Steak & Seafood - a neat little place where the waitresses wear cute kimonos!!
Okinawa Steakhouse & Sushi Bar - kind of a fancy place, but I thought the sushi sucked
Isaribi - a very modernized, artsy-fartsy Japanese restaurant, food is pretty good, but it's the arrangement of the dishes that will leave you at awe.
Sonic - this fast food restaurant is pretty cool, drive-in style parking/dining. I think the SuperSonic (double cheese burger) is the bomb! Plus their tatter tots are yum yum.
Hardee's - ok... this is the southwest's version of Cali's Carl's Jr. (there's the smiling gold star and everything) Just one word: YUCK! I love Carl's Jr. in CA, but Hardee's doesn't have half the good stuff & quality as Carl's. I asked for a Grilled Chicken Salad and they're like... uh... we only have a side salad (which tasted discussing, how can you mess up a simple salad?).
Whataburger - lol don't really know what to say about this place other than I think their burgers suck... Hubby said their drink mixer inside the restaurant is really cool & that I'd have like the food better if I'd gone inside. Well, maybe we'll try another location soon and I'll give a new review.
Cakemaster Bakery - I was so excited about their pies because of all the awesome reviews! Then I tried it with a sandwich on the side =( SO disappointing. I guess once you've had a Marie Calender French Apple Pie... no other pie'll ever hold up in competition. Art says that people in the south just aren't that much into bakeries... and I'm like uhm... pies, danishes, donuts, & cookies... are u nuts? who's not into bakeries?? Anyways this places was a disappointment from the pies to their sandwiches (ick).
Heavenly Croissants - another bakery... their cheese danish was good, but too sweet for my taste. The place is kinda small and has little selection.

All we did for fun was go to the Gun Show at the Fort Walton Beach Fairgrounds... it was boring because I'm not interested in guns (though I did get to eat so YAY!). But man, if you're into guns... there were A LOT of guns... and gun stuff. Arthur, who is much more gun savvy, said that even though they had a lot of guns for such a small gun show (small? I thought the place was huge for just having guns & all), there weren't very many gun & rifle parts... which was what he was looking for & had seen at many other gun shows... so both Arthur & I were disappointed with this gun show... maybe next time the fairgrounds have a INTERESTING show, we can make an appearance =)

We went to Destin a couple weekends ago and thought the place was really pretty - white sand beaches, clear blue water - the place was just heavenly. There are so many neat things to check out there, like: Fudpuckers (an interesting looking restaurant), tons of shopping malls, and a bunch of small but fun looking amusement parks!!

I want to go to all these places before we move away from Florida.

Vultures Spotting

2008-11-06T10:48:00.000-08:00

The other day while driving through the neighborhood on base, DH and I saw a vulture! At first I swore it was just a turkey (as if that made more sense??). Anyways, I wish I'd taken a picture, but we were way pass it by the time I'd thought of doing so. Yup, there are vultures in Florida.

Is It Time Yet?

2008-11-06T10:22:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I took Lana to the restroom with me... she saw me "going" so she started making her "going" face... full on with grunts and all =P

And it made me think... is it too early to potty train? She just barely turned one and she has yet to develop the ability to fully communicate to me "I need to go."

Despite all of that, I still have the desire to start teaching the Little One how to go on the toilet... (Is it normal to potty train at 1?) well, I guess it's time to do away with the diapers (yay for money saving!!) and to say hello to "Ooph, I just kicked that little stump of a step stool again!"

Climbing

2008-11-06T10:12:00.000-08:00

Today I watched the Little One climb onto her stroller then off again. I didn't have to give her one little push or boost (only watched & spotted). I guess she's in her climbing stage now... I'd better watch out.

Her Daddy's a Soldier

2008-10-02T17:20:00.000-07:00

Today Lana had her 12 months check up with the Doctor.

First the Nurse Lady pricked Lana's middle finger for a blood sample. That prick didn't render enough blood so the Nurse Lady pricked Lana's finger again. Not one cry out of Lana.

Then Lana got two shots in the thigh..

Still not a cry. The Doctor & Nurse Lady complemented Lana for being such a brave little girl.

We went over to the laboratory to give another - bigger - sample of Lana's blood. The Ladies there said to "prepare for screaming!" They got a whole tube of blood out of Lana but not one tear! Then they all agreed that this one's a tough one 'cuz her Daddy's a soldier! (They probably figured it out because of the Tricare...)

See her boo-boo?

How Crafting Makes Me Feel

2008-08-22T02:50:00.000-07:00

When I see scrapbook pages & other similar paper crafts that contain pretty & fancy pieces of stamps, keys & anything else you can think of, I feel all wonderful inside. Like the world is an amazing place filled with so many wonderful things... there are so many ways to be creative. I wish for one day in the future that I will have the opportunity to make similar & wonderful cards and scrapbook pages as I've seen on craft blogs so often.

On the Move

2008-06-03T03:27:00.000-07:00

Everything is happening so fast! In, what seems like, weeks Lana learned how to crawl, sit & stand up on her own, wave, and clap.

She's like an evolving master piece:

Cinco De Mayo Wedding and Straight to Boot Camp

2008-05-15T01:12:00.000-07:00

My Hubby & I talked for the last time 2 nights ago as he was on the bus ride to his Basic Training station... I don't know exactly what he's doing or where he is right now, but I know he's somewhere in Fort Jackson, South Carolina at a... what did he call it? Reception Battalion? I'm not sure... I don't think he can call me anymore, otherwise he would have already. His official boot camp training doesn't start 'til Friday, but I'm guessing once a soldier gets to the station, as his or her paperwork is being processed, ALL OF ONE'S BELONGS ARE TAKEN AWAY IN A VIOLENT YANKING MOTION?!?!? does anyone know? feel free to straighten me out. hehe ;)

With that said... I've been very studiously learning my ACRONYMS!! So far I've got down these: PCS, NCO, ACU, a few of the ranks like PFC & SGT... PX that's an easy one because I came across it a lot when reading about living on base. DEERS! that's the program to which Hubby needs to add me... a some other ones I don't want to recall off the top of my head. Anyways, YAY FOR ME! 'been doing my military homework!

I found a ton of helpful sites where I gazed upon the activity of the many Army wife "support groups" (blog rings actually) and the fellowships that were formed. Oh how I want to be apart of such things... but I feel so... different. Out of my element. I would really like to fine somewhere to fit in. It's a bit difficult because, to be truthful, I am not your typical Army wife & mother: caucasian, mid-twenties and older, living on base, & enrolled in all of those programs at the ACS. I seem to be out of range if you know what I mean: I'm going to college, I live off-base, I'm 20 (not even legal drinking age yet in California), I'm Asian (Vietnamese to be exact... I just haven't been finding any Asian military wives online & blogging) [side note: Asians fall in the "Others" group which makes up 6% of the Army enlisted on duty... so I'm not expecting to see very many Asian spouses].

I wish Baby & I could be living on base with Hubby right now... that would be I could enroll in all of those helpful programs at ACS and such.

When I DO finally move on base I feel very out of place. I'm just very used to my extremely Vietnamese surrounds here in Little Saigon, Southern California. I am predicting a very Caucasian community on the base, and that will be a very dramatic change of dynamic and social group. I read that I shouldn't get too attached when I move on base because I'll probably be moving soon again. But I still love to form intimate sister-like friendships so I don't know how I will cope with uprooting so often. I'll just have to wait and see...

I would like to close with letting everyone and anyone know that I am in search of a young group of military spouses who have children... do u feel my pain? (heh, this is me indulged in moping). Anyone out there?

Twisted

2008-02-18T13:53:00.000-08:00

I am so twisted now. I was reading an article in my textbook about the problems created by our government paying for old people through the Social Security system. When the article started mentioning the only way to fix the problems are... a thought popped into my mind before I could finish the sentence: kill off the old people. Then we won't have to worry about the lack of tax money to pay for their living expenses.

It took a few seconds but that was then I realized my thought process is not normal, healthy psychological behavior. It's not normal to solve problems by killing people off. It's not normal that I reacted so quickly with such a heartless, malicious solution. I will get help.

Who me? Who knows?

2008-02-16T01:25:00.000-08:00

How can one person be so different at one time and another? It is as if I lose all of my convictions right after they've inspired me to change my life. I remember feeling so empowered. I still can sense that feeling. Yet I am not that way anymore. I am a worm now. A chicken. A sloth. There was moment when I was a fighter, a woman with a mission. I don't know where she went. I'm all alone now with this person I loath.

Early Bird?

2008-02-08T05:16:00.000-08:00

The early bird gets to study... that's what I say.

It is 4:30 AM as I muster my energy and consciousness in order to get up and study. Changing and feeding the baby helped a bit with getting me out of sleep mode, but I still find myself nodding off every few minutes. So I decided to do a little blogging to completely wake my senses.

Back To School

2008-02-07T12:02:00.000-08:00

I'm back in school. So far I'm two weeks into the semester and already well behind in my classes. I can't seem to get out of my pregnancy & post school habits: eating too much, not doing much work, and sleeping irregular hours. I'm worried I won't past my classes. Side note: my Calculus professor does not allow calculator on his test... I don't know how I'm going to survive. I pray to God to have to will power to get my act together.

And I miss Baby so much when I'm at school. When I get home, all I want to do is spend time with her! Thank goodness her daddy is watching her for me to attend class.

It's a week from Valentine's Day... what special thing can I get my Hubby to show him how I feel? not how I feel right now, but how I usually feel anyways. This morning we got into a silent argument. I don't understand why he needs "a few minutes" every time it is time to get up. I asked him so nicely to explain it to me so I could be more understanding. But he just glared at me. gave me this look of hatred & annoyance. ok... gotta get to class. This is Chi signing out!

My Baby Lana

2007-10-21T11:58:00.000-07:00

She's here!

Lana Linh Verville
She came in at 8 pounds - 11.8 ounces... 20.5 inches.
Big baby. She's the sweetest little person. She has my chinky eyes and her daddy's thin lips. She's also got her daddy's personality: laid back, somewhat quiet (she doesn't cry much, she didn't make more than a coo when she got her shots at the hospital), curious (she loves to look around to see where the light in the room is coming from, then she becomes fixated on it), she must have the sweetest dreams because she constantly smiles in her sleep.

This is Little Lana Linh getting ready for her first bath at home:

Here's her getting sleepy:

...and then sleeping:

Isn't she precious? Definitely heaven sent.

False Alarm

2007-10-05T09:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I woke up with a low dull pain in my side and back. It was persistant, and it was accompanied by what I thought were contractions. I went to my mother's house with Arthur, and she said it sounds like I'm going to have the baby by tomorrow. TOMORROW!?! The room isn't even ready yet! There is still furniture to be moved about and on and on and on...

So we got to it. My mother and Arthur did the heavy lifting while I did the directing (also know as sit-and-point). I wanted to get up and do everything so badly because I know that I can do everything faster (I know where everything is supposed to go). So all of the plans Hubby and I had for the day were thrown out the window. We were overdue for a visit to his mom's house, but that got delayed to very late in the evening. However... it's is "tomorrow" and no baby yet. At least the room is ready and everything's in it's place, ready to receive her. I hope the next one isn't a false alarm because I can't wait to see my precious little angel's face.

Change of mind?

2007-10-02T23:39:00.000-07:00

I think my favorite color is sloOOOowly (almost un-noticeably) changing! I've been a faithful Color Blue lover since 3rd grade, and I never expected that this would change. However, ever since I've become pregnant, so many of my preferences have changed. For example, I can't stand loud, chaotic, or obscene music. Since I won't be listening to that type of music after the baby arrives anyways, I think those days of tolerating popular, yet "bad" music, are over! It's for the better. I am glad .
Anyhow, back to my point. I think my new favorite color is Green (preferably a pastel green, it's all the "neutral" baby things I've been getting). Arthur wouldn't let me buy the blue baby items because we're having a girl (I say it doesn't matter, but hey, she's his kid too). And I absolutely can't stand so much pink on my baby, so I had to settle for neutral (that's beige, green, and yellow). I prefer green and beige over yellow, and green is a bit more lively than beige. So most of our baby things are green. I've grown a strange liking for it to the point where I would even pick green over blue (when blue was actually an option)! I was "weirded out" by my selection. So I started to investigate my feelings on this matter, and it turns out I DO prefer green over blue now. With most things (even outside of baby items). So I guess I'm a changed person .

Hallelujah!

2007-10-02T19:42:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Arthur was able to get out of work for his first class to become a Catholic. I was so relieved that he made it to the class. I went with him to support him in his endeavor to come into my religious community. Completing this class is not going to be easy for him because he does not like the way the class is taught.

RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) is a program that pretty much helps an adult convert to the Catholic religion. Because it is a class for adults and their developing faith, the class is not so much "taught" as it is guided. The deacon that leads the classes said that one is to grow in faith through "breaking down the scripture" and connecting it to one's own life. That's not the part that Arthur doesn't like. It is the sharing of our experiences in a group that puts Arthur beside himself. I worry that he won't be able to handle it.. However, I have hope that he is strong and will persevere. Plus, I will be praying for him constantly.

Kicking the Clutter to the Curb

2007-10-02T19:17:00.000-07:00

I've been quite busy lately with cleaning and preparing for the baby. My room is changing dramatically, and there has been a lot of progress with uncluttering my things. Throwing out the junk I've been hording over the years was not easy, but I was able to let go of many little memento that were not worth the space they were taking up. However, I could not bear to part with a small bunch of the stuff. So that bunch will go into storage until the next junk execution.

I purchased an item that made my organizing experience very rewarding. This is a green closet organizer I bought from Babies"R"Us. I love how it looks and separates the baby things.

I've still got a long way to go with the baby room, but I think I'm making good time. Stay tuned for the final product!

Runny Noses

2007-10-02T18:39:00.000-07:00

Only about 8 days to go and I'm sick! Once my nose started running, I did nothing but drink water and go #2. That had always prevented me from completely coming down with a cold. I guess that didn't work this time. However, I am still at it with the water because the faster I recover the better!

Ready to POP

2007-09-22T23:54:00.000-07:00

Only 18 days to go! I feel like she's ready to come out. My ab now truely looks like a watermelon. See for yourself:

I'm a happy mommy.

Edgar the Sailor Man

2007-09-21T21:15:00.000-07:00

Arthur's best friend, Edgar (who is in the Navy and now away on duty), came home on leave the other day (Sep. 10, 2007). Arthur was very excited, and I was quite happy to see him so. The two buddies had a blast at their small reunion.

We had breakfast at Denny's the morning after the "party."

Lost & Found

2007-09-21T19:30:00.000-07:00

For my 18th birthday, a friend named Arthur gave me a heart-shaped locket made of pure silver. The locket also had my name engraved on the front. At that time, (from the stories his friends and family told me), I found out that he was head-over-heels for me *blush*. However, his feelings were unrequited on my end (I was not ready nor was I looking for a relationship). As a result, his heartfelt gift had minimal sentimental meaning to me. I was also a bit intimidated by his bold gestures and almost didn't know what to do with it.

About two years have pasted, and Arthur and I are pregnant with our first child and closer than ever. One day Arthur asked me about the locket and told me that the gray box it was in he got from his mom (in other words, it means even MORE now). I had NO IDEA where it was! So I go into a frantic hunt for the missing locket. Months go by, and despite the enormous effort I put into looking for the locket which meant SO MUCH to me now, it was nowhere to be found. Then, on a night as ordinary as any other (September 20, 2007), my mother pops into my room and hands me a gray box. This box I opened to find:

I was ecstatic! Found at last! It came back to me =)

Arthur had such a sweet smile on his face when I showed him what I had found. Thank God this locket was in good hands all this time.

Baby Shower

2007-09-21T17:31:00.000-07:00

My first baby shower was relatively successful.

90% of the guests showed up (though not all on time). Quynh, my younger sister, did an awesome job with the decorations:

The "Baby Shower" clothes line banner looked great although the letters started falling off the line during the party.

By the end of the shower, the only letters left on the line were

B-Y-E.

The food was... fitting to our appetite.
A delicious icecream cake

and a fruit topped flan cake! (thank you Andy)

The gifts seemed endless

It was so nice to see all my friends and family gathering and having fun. I felt so pampered opening the gifts. I just can't thank everyone enough for helping out with the baby shower, for attending, and for all the thoughtful gifts. This is one loved baby (and mommy).

Hello!

2007-09-21T16:10:00.000-07:00

This is my first blog. I am very excited to have a place to record all of my events, findings, and thoughts. Here we go! *cork pops*