In my last “Boys are from Mars” post, Christian was still a toddler who communicated with single words. Ten months later, he is talking in full sentences with a sense of humor that makes me laugh, for real.

Me: How come you didn’t finish your lunch today?
Christian: My tummy was full.
Me: Why was your tummy so full?
Christian: Now my tummy is not full…because I burped!

Conversations like this makes me think that Christian will grow up to be a comedian.

I have a weird reading habit. When I first pick up a book, it is my instinct to start reading from the back to the front. I just can’t wait. I recently picked up this like-new used book, 90 minutes in heaven, from Amazon for $0.01 + $3.99 shipping. This time, I faithfully read from the beginning and on. Even when I feel so tired at night, I still couldn’t put it down.

The experience of heaven by Don Piper gives me hope and comfort that there is a much better world than this to look forward to. However, he spends more time telling his hell-like rehabilitation life after he returned to earth. This is my biggest take away from the book. Most of the time I enjoy my life and my family on earth, but sometimes not as much. Piper’s rehabilitation experience reminds me to be grateful for every inch of my flesh and bone. It made me stop complaining that “my neck and back hurt!” and “I can’t fall back to sleep at 3am.” This book also reassures us that God still lives and does big miracles in ordinary people’s lives, not only in bible times.

If you’re looking for a book that talks about every detail of what heaven is like, this may disappoint you. But it reassures us that heaven is real and gives us encouragement and motivation to persevere through sufferings and hardships. I hope this is a book that can touch on your life as in mine.

The days when I have to think about what’s for dinner are back. After spending nine months with us, my mom and dad went back to their home in Hong Kong last night. This officially put an end to my spoiled days, at the same time,  marked the start of a whole new era in my household.

Since I no longer know where things are in my house, I spent half a day today looking for kitchen towels, mac and cheese, paper plates, and the cleaning lady’s phone number. And then I realized that cooking skill is not like riding a bike, you actually lose it if you don’t use it, consciously or subconciously. Doesn’t matter. So instead of cooking dinner tonight, I proudly showed Ricky my accomplishment when he came home. I covered my kitchen counter with a layer of kitchen towels, then with another layer of paper towels. Woohoo! Keeping my fingers crossed that the counter will stay clean until the cleaning lady comes, without me cleaning.

Mom and dad, have a nice “vacation”! Don’t miss us too much. Just kidding. Please miss us. A lot!

We were quite happy with this tripod picture…

When I first came to America and crossed the street alone for the first time, I was shocked and felt helpless.  In Hong Kong where I grew up, cars are to stop completely without exception if the pedestrian signal is on. So after I came here, I didn’t know what to do when I saw the cars kept turning and going in front of me even when the pedestrian traffic light signals that it’s my turn to go. I stopped in the middle of the crossing and almost ran back thinking that I will get run over by cars if I don’t. This was how I felt when we did a studio photo shoot last weekend.

We went to a home studio put up by Ricky’s cousin Bill, and did I say cultural shock? For the first few minutes, I was holding my camera and didn’t know what to do. Feeling a bit lost in space, but yet so excited like when you go to a different country for the first time. Everything is a new and mind-blowing experience.

Since I am an on-location photographer, it feels weird to be shooting in front of a piece of paper. My mind is already pre-programmed to finding light and finding background as I shoot. When I don’t have these two things to do, I felt lost like an ant who loses its buddy in front. So after circling around for a bit, Bill’s family and us managed to exchange a few family shots. Since no kids will stand in front of a piece of paper for too long, and the men will also run as fast as they could from the front of the camera, I was left there by myself with these faces.

Despite the cultural shocks, I had fun! Thanks to Bill and Ricky who didn’t run away completely to take these shots of me.

Ricky in action…

My 2010 wedding season has officially ended. This means no more weddings until 2011. While I am still busy wrapping up the last couple of weddings, I do look forward to taking a short break from wedding work. Trust me, my home will be glad to get my attention back, for a little while. It will also be a good time to renew my mind, re-position my business, take some photos of my kids, and read some good books.  That’s the goal. What I have experienced in the past 6 months though, was beyond what these words can express.  If I have the time, I will share more in a later blog post.

I said it. Abused by amusement is the summary of our family day at Disneyland. I didn’t get to take a lot of photos because as I said, we were being abused. I hesitated to further torture ourselves, but managed to take a few snapshots and video clips. Here is a short slideshow that shows our not-so-adventurous day. (Before you hit “play”, turn down the volume on the video, somehow the music came out way to loud.)

My son Christian has a bad case of copycat syndrome. While it is normal for children to imitate others since that’s how they learn, Christian goes far and beyond. Let me give you an example. One time his sister Annabelle bumped her hand on something. She was hurt and started crying. Christian copied exactly what happened. He hit his own hand against a table, for real, and then pretended to cry. Now with some photo illustrations…

He saw what Annabelle was doing…

…then it was his turn.

Following the way daddy walks…

“I’m a copy master!”

A few months’ of virus-free days in my household have come to an end as the flu season officially starts again. Last week I got a flu and was worn out for two days. When CJ and Norman’s wedding came on Saturday, my body actually forgot that I was sick. It didn’t even look like I was sick at all the entire day. I’m pretty sure God was at work. Right after Ricky and I said goodbye to CJ and Norman, I collapsed. With my lost voice, I begged Ricky to carry me from the car to my bed, and then I passed out for the 12 hours that followed. Here is a sneak peak of the wedding that I survived:

Sometimes people come into our lives and we know right away that they were meant to be there, they serve some sort of purpose, teach us a lesson, or help figure out who we are and who we want to become. We never know who these people may be: they can be our neighbor, child, long lost friend, lover, or even complete stranger who, when we lock eyes with them, we know at that very moment that they will affect our lives in some profound way.

I was at my church brother Kenny’s memorial service last Saturday. I was touched by the outpouring of good vibes from those who gave an eulogy or who shared in the memory book. It amazed me how Kenny led a life that has influenced so many along the way, slowly but deeply. Now I stop on each day to thank God for each person who comes into my life to influence me in every different way. And I look at myself in the mirror, asking how I could make a difference in other people’s lives.  As Abraham Lincoln has said, “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”

I went to photograph Dominique and Jeremiah’s wedding after the service. They are not only my clients, but friends who came into my life. I had a great time being around them. And here is a teaser for now.

I love watching Giada’s cooking shows. Not so because of her cooking, but I just enjoy looking at a modern and beautiful cook.  I am not born to be a cook. I lack the patience and love for it. As Ricky used to tell me after eating my food, “Food tastes better if you put your heart in it”. I humbly accept what he was implying.

Although I enjoy making quite and easy treats once in a while, food is not where you can find my heart. If an entree takes more than 30 minutes to prepare and cook, I’m dropping it from my menu. Even Rachael Ray’s 30-minute meals are not fast enough for me. Sad. So I use her recipes as a starting point and personalize them with my own short cuts. I am collecting these magazines so that when my mom has to move back to Hong Kong, we won’t have to order pizza every night.