One day, Ricky brought home an iPod Shuffle from work. It was a prize he earned at work for making “zero error” on a task. I am glad to be married to a detail-oriented man because I’m the opposite.  He can make up for my clumsiness and carelessness. I walk into glass doors and bump into brick walls.  Sometimes I put food in the refrigerator, and then try to look for the QUICK COOK button!  And for more than once, I walked away with my car’s door wide open in the parking lot.  One time I came home after shopping, Ricky looked at my shirt and said, “Is this the latest fashion?”. I was wearing my shirt inside-out after trying on new clothes at the store. However, I am quite accurate when I’m focused. In fact, I’m one hundred percent focused when I have to. At other times, my mind just wanders.

I was going through our photos from this past weekend’s retreat. Out of the 576 photos that Ricky and I took, this is the one that touches my heart. A four-year-old little girl singing praises to God. What a beautiful scene!

I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. ~Psalms 63:4

A couple days before the session, Hanns called me to confirm about the session detail and our trip arrangements. Before he hung up, he said to me, “Oh, by the way, Winnie has no right hand. So you don’t need to ask her to pose with her right hand.” I had question marks all over my head and didn’t quite get it. “What do you mean she has no hand?” I have met Winnie a few times during the past three years that we knew each other, but I had not noticed about her hand.  Not until two days before her engagement session, I learned that she was born without a right hand.

After spending an afternoon with Winnie and Hanns, I noticed Winnie has the most cheerful and optimistic personalities. As I see her living a life no different than anyone else, I will probably never understand the challenges and emotions she has been through. And here is her story to share with you…

Winnie is the only one in her family with a physical challenge. When she was young, her elementary school classmates laughed at her. She then had questions about her existence. She asked God why He had created her like this. She doubted if her existence would bring troubles to her family and people around her. She didn’t want to be a burden to them. Then at the age of 17, her life was changed when she formally proclaimed and accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord. Through God’s words and encouragements from brothers and sisters, God started His healing process. As she started learning about who God was, she also became more clear about who she was.  In her words, “He is my creator, and I am His creation, His chosen one, and His object of love.” She shared with me her favorite bible verse from Psalms 139:14,  “I praise you for I am wonderfully and fearfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” Now Winnie is comfortable using her right hand to glorify the Lord.

I am so happy to know that she found God, and Hanns, to be part of her life. She is in good hands.

One of the biggest rewards I get out of my photography job is the closer relationship that I can build with other people. I truly enjoy learning about their stories, their personalities, and their testimonies. Ricky and I spent a wonderful afternoon with Hanns and Winnie in San Fransisco. We walked, talked, laughed, learned about each other, and grew our friendships. And I can’t tell you how stoked I was to see all these beautiful places when we were walking around town.

Special thanks to Anna for doing Winnie’s hair and makeup! I am excited about documenting their wedding in April.  And here are a few favorites from their engagement shoot…

He is thoughful.  She is cheerful.  He takes care of her, and she reminds him to smile.  Isn’t God a great match maker?

We all laughed as Winnie retold the story of how Hanns flirted with her on the phone when he first asked her out.  “It was not the typical serious him.”  She revealed.  It must be the magic of love.

To see more photos, click here for the slideshow.

It was Bethany and Joshua’s 1st birthday party (could also be their engagement party.) With fourteen babies and kids playing and the parents hanging out, it was a blast for everyone!
Bethany was arrested for killing Joshua.

All the kids by age. (Next time can I do all the adults by age?)

Bethany was arrested for killing Joshua!

Happy birthday to this perfect couple! (And congratulations on your engagement!)

Bethany: Me or hat, only one could live.

Ken, you look gorgeous!

Today is our wedding anniversary.  Six years ago, Ricky and I got married on the yacht Dream On in Newport Beach.  It was my dream to have our own little family, to be able to cook for him every night, to snuggle under a blanket and watch movies on the couch together. It was a dream came true, on the yacht Dream On.

Although we only had our point and shoot at that time, we already loved taking pictures.  But our budget was tight and could not afford to hire a better photographer or upgrade to a digital package.  That’s why our wedding pictures were captured on film.  The photo quality was acceptable I would say, but they were boring.  I think wedding photography is the best investment couples can make in their lives.  Not to say fifty years later, even now I can’t remember a lot from my wedding day without the photos.  They are the only memories we have for ourselves and for our friends and families.

I loved the Chinese wedding crown because it made me look almost a foot taller.

Notice how my bouquet can win “the crappiest wedding bouquet” category in the Guinness world record? When the florist delivered the bouquet to me, she told me she didn’t have the kind of Orchid that I wanted so she used a different kind. There’s no way I’m hold this thing on my wedding! I told her. When we met to order my flowers, I showed her the picture on the left but she came up with the one on the right.  She did manage to add in some half-dead tulips before the ceremony. Otherwise, I might have to walk down the isle with a bunch of balloons.

We already celebrated last night by having a spicy hot pot dinner on a 98°F hot summer day. That’s how crazy we are about spicy hot pot!

Happy Monday!

Kris was my high school classmate in Hong Kong who lives five minutes away from me. I invited her and her hubby Oscar over for dinner last night. They brought us some fabulously looking desserts from 85°C Bakery Cafe (which is named for the ideal temperature at which to brew coffee). How could I not have been to this place and tried its bakery and desserts. It is a hot hot franchise in Taiwan but this one in Irvine, which was opened a few months ago, is the first and only one in the U.S. This place is actually known for it’s salty coffee. Salty coffee? I’m not a coffee drinker, but since I like salty oatmeal, may be I will like their salty coffee.

I think when the food looks this good, it doesn’t matter how they taste. My taste buds would automatically follow signals from my eyes.

Without a bit of hesitation, I picked mango. Mine, mine, mine! Delish!
Thank you Kris and Oscar!

Have a wonderful weekend!

The internet has been my blessings and curses.  I rarely go shopping at the mall now after having babies, except at Target.  But it doesn’t mean I’m spending less. It is just the opposite since internet shopping from home is so easy. I have a bad habit of spending hours shopping online, adding everything I want in my shopping cart, but after about 45 minutes, I will just have to close the browser and say goodbye to my love with tears in my eyes. At least it satisfies my desire of finding treasures, even though I can’t own them in the end. At least they were in my shopping cart for a whole 45 minutes.

And I did it again today. I’ve been looking for a pair of perfect shoes for weddings. One that’s so comfortable to wear for a 16-hour shoot but doesn’t look like a pair of Clarks. I miss the days when I can go to weddings and torture my feet in high heels. I still haven’t found the perfect one, but successfully checked out a pair of flats that looks a little better than Clarks.  Only because they’re on sale. I hope these will be comfortable. I have faith in the quality of Nordstrom shoes. Sale ends August 3.

Having a birthday in the summer has the privilege of celebrating by the pool. The magic of water has made all the kids gone wild. Happy Birthday Brian!

Annabelle has never been this wild with water.

I just love this one!

My son’s big tummy.  I’ve only seen this kind of pictures on pregnant women though.

Home-baked raisin cake, substituted eggs with lots of love since Brian is allergic to eggs.

Candle lighting seemed to be a very serious moment for them.

Help me Lord! I cried out two minutes after started shooting, as I was laughing, laughing and laughing.  I knew this was going to be a super fun session, but I also hoped that I wouldn’t laugh so hard that I could actually take some pics without shaking the camera.  They were just too hilarious, and I love hilarious sessions!

Despite their strong sense of humor, there is so much Ricky and I can learn from Danny and Gigi. Their love for God.  Their love for each other.  Their hope and faith.  All these things make them shine in front of others as a couple.  They will be moving back to Hong Kong in September because of their family.  I will miss listening to their stories and  jokes.   Have a great wedding in Hong Kong next year!  And I pray that they will adjust well in their new lives together and start growing their family into a soccer team.  I have absolutely no doubt that God will bless their family and they will live happily ever after!

Wow, Danny can jump really high!

See the slideshow for more photos from their session.

I’m a loser. He’s a finder.   One day I was looking for one of my memory cards.  Although there wasn’t anything too important on it, I had an engagement shoot to do the next day and really needed to find it.  Ricky and I were looking everywhere.  As I was about to give up and asked him to go buy one, he kept trying “Is it under your laptop?”  “No…” I lifted up the laptop to show him that it was not there.  “Awwww!”  We He found it.  I knew he would.  He always find the things I lose.  And there’s no question that I’m getting old.

Here is a sneak preview of Gigi and Danny’s hilarious engagement session…