Madison's view of teenagers...

Madison to her sister a couple of days ago...

"Jaclyn, you are going to be a teenager soon and that is really sad.  You are going to have big boobs and be all makeupy.  I don't want to be a teenager."

A New Meaning for Grilled Cheese

Madison helps daddy put cheese on the burger and puts a new meaning to grilled cheese!

Chinese New Year superstition

CNY fell on Feb 19th this year.  Dad's birthday.  Here's a Jaclyn quote on CNY:

Me:  "Do NOT eat meat for the first meal on Chinese New Year's Day!"

Jac:  "Why?"

Me:  "Because it is not good to kill lives at the start of a year."

Jac: "Yea, but the animal was probably killed a coupla months ago."

Taj Mahal

I said to Michael, "Are you going to build a Taj Mahal to display your love for me?"

Jaclyn said, "He doesn't have enough money!"

Real or not real?

On the way to church two days ago, Madison was asking about if something was real (about the musical "Into the Woods").  Is it real in the story?  Is it real?  Etc.  She kept on persisting because obviously Jaclyn and I didn't understand what she was getting at. 
We kept saying it is NOT real.  It is a story.  "Yes, but is it real in the story?!!!"

Anyways, it ended with Madison very frustrated and upset.

So I said, "I am sorry Madison that Jaclyn and I couldn't answer you in a way that was satisfying.  I am sorry that you are frustrated." 

Then Jaclyn said to me, "Did you learn that from a parenting class because it sounds like you did!!" 

The Wizard of IBS and OZ

this morning's conversation went like this:

Madison to me, "Mommy, what is heavier ibs or oz?"  ("ibs" rhyming with sibs and "oz" as in Wizard of Oz)

Me:  "Huh?  What is that?"

Madison:  "What is heavier ibs or oz?"

Me:  "I don't know, Madison."

Jaclyn answers nonchalantly: "ibs" (again rhyming with sibs")

Madison, "Mommy, is Jaclyn right?  ibs is heavier than oz?"

Me:  "I don't know what that is.  Is that something I should know?"

Jaclyn says to me, "She means pounds and ounces."

Priscilla Shirer's The Names of God

In Genesis, He’s the breath of life
In Exodus, He is the Passover Lamb
In Leviticus, He’s our High Priest
In Numbers, the Fire by Night
Deuteronomy, He’s Israel’s guide
Joshua, He’s salvation’s choice
Judges, He’s Israel’s guard
In Ruth, the kinsmen’s Redeemer
1st and 2nd Samuel, our trusted Prophet
In Kings and Chronicles, He is Sovereign
In Ezra, He’s the true and faithful scribe
In Nehemiah, the Re-builder of broken walls and lives
In Esther, He’s Mordecai’s courage
In Job, the Timeless Redeemer
In Psalms, He is our morning song
In Proverbs, He is our wisdom
Ecclesiastes, He’s the time and season
In Song of Solomon, He is the lover’s dream
In Isaiah, He is the Prince of Peace
In Jeremiah, the Weeping Prophet
Lamentations, the Cry for Israel
Ezekiel, the Call from Sin
Daniel, the Stranger in the Fire
Hosea, the Forever Faithful
Joel, the Spirit’s Power
Amos, the Strong-arms that carry
Obadiah, the Lord our Savior
Jonah, the great Missionary
Micah, the Promise of Peace
Nahum, our Strength and Shield
In Habakkuk and Zephaniah, He’s brings revival
In Haggai, He restores that which was lost
In Zachariah, He’s our fountain
And in Malachi, He’s the Son of righteousness rising with healing in His wings
AND THAT’S JUST THE OLD TESTAMENT
In Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, He is God and Messiah
In the spirit filled book of Acts, He is the reigning fire from Heaven
In Romans, He is the grace of God
Corinthians, the Power of Love
Galatians, Freedom from the curse of sin
Ephesians, our Glorious Treasure
Philippians, the Servant’s Heart
Colossians, He’s God and the Trinity
Thessalonians, our calling King
In Timothy, Titus, and Philemon, He’s our mediator and our faithful pastor
In Hebrews, the Everlasting Courage
In James, the One who heals the sick
In 1st and 2nd Peter, our Faithful Shepherd
In John and Jude, He’s the lover coming for His bride

AND in the Revelation, in the very end, when it’s all over, said and done, when time is NO MORE. He is and will always be the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Prince of Peace, Son of Man, Lamb of God, The Great I Am, Alpha and Omega, God and Savior

He is Jesus Christ the Lord

HE IS EVERYTHING THAT YOU NEED

My Sweet Angel

I went to bed really early last night.  Not sure if I was under the weather or just a bit sad.

Sometimes grief just comes upon me in big waves, and I feel paralyzed.  And even though I am busy with life raising my kids, I have a big ache in my heart for my dad.

With lights out and tears in my eyes, I said to Madison, "I miss my dad!"

Madison said with much empathy and a hug, "Oh Mommy!  Let's pray for Gung Gung"

Then she prayed.  She prayed for Gung Gung and talked about our mixed emotions, "we are also happy because he suffered for so long".

She prayed for people all over the world who are having a hard time because they lost someone they loved.

I shed more quiet tears because my heart was so moved with her compassion and sweetness.

Seahawks are NFC Champions Again - Miracle

Nail biting game.  Nerves were shot.  Seahawks played poorly and were being slaughtered by Green Bay with Russell Wilson getting sacked 5 times, and throwing 4 interceptions.  Green Bay was the better team.  They played well.  The Seahawks were down 16-0 at halftime.  Then 19-7 in the fourth with 5 minutes remaining.  Then the miracles started to happen.  The Seahawks refused to quit and got two touchdowns with 3 minutes remaining.  The game goes into overtime.  Seattle won the coin toss.  And Seattle won in overtime.  Final score 28-22.  One of the most amazing comebacks in NFL history.  Definitely one of the most memorable moments in Seattle sports history.  A true miracle (and so worthy of praising God for, which Russell Wilson & other players did publicly). As coach Pete Carroll said, "This has got to be one for the ages."  Seahawks are off to the Superbowl...again.

Madison's Family Portrait

Never Will I Leave You

The other night, I saw Madison draw on an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper.  She drew 3 pictures of a time when she was afraid.  One picture was a square completely filled in with pencil.  That picture represented being in the dark alone.  The other picture was a bridge over water...afraid that it would break.  The third picture was of a plane...afraid that it would crash.

Under each of those pictures she wrote 3 questions with its answer.

1.  Was God with me?  YES
2.  Did I remember that God was with me?  YES
3.  What could I have done to not be so afraid?  PRAY.

And then she wrote this verse under each picture.

Hebrews 13:5b
Because God has said,
"Never will I leave you:
Never will I forsake you."

 Later that night at bedtime prayers, she prayed,

"Dear Jesus,
I pray that Duh Duh knows that You will never leave him and never will You forsake him, Hebrews 13:5b.  And that he doesn't get married!"

And after she prayed for God to fix pollution and protect polar bears and help the poor people, I asked her why she would pray that Duh Duh would not get married.  Her answer was, "Because i don't want him to."
"But Madison, that is not very nice."
"Well, I guess I could pray that I hope he gets married but..."

An old Jaclyn Quote from May 1, 2013

"I wish Gung Gung didn't fall and have to go to the hospital."

And then on the way to school...
"Bobby made a good choice.  She stayed with Gung Gung because he was honest.  Why do people leave when someone has a handicap?  Is having one hand bad?  And how did she not know he had one hand when they were dating?  How did Gung Gung hide his hand and she didn't know?  Bobby made a good choice."

Madison and the Tooth Fairy

Last week, while Michael and I were away in Vegas for the A4M Conference, Geoff was putting Madison to bed.  Here is their conversation:

Madison:  Do you believe in the Tooth Fairy?

Geoff:  Why do you ask?

M: Well, I think that the next time I pull out my tooth I'm going to put it under my pillow - BUT, I'm not going to tell mommy and daddy.  I want to see what happens.

G:  Why?

M:  Well, some of the kids at school think that there is no Tooth Fairy.  Do you?

G:  Well, I'm older now so I don't have any young teeth to pull out and put under my pillow for her.

M:  Oh ya.

G:  So what do you believe?

M:  I believe there is a Tooth Fairy ...

Vimeo for Posterity

 One of JMa's talents was to document her life through photography, videos and blogging. She had an incredible eye for composition, and she was a great writer. For as long as I have known her, she always had a camera at hand. I will miss her blog entries and her vimeos.

Here's the one she made of our trip to London last year.
www.vimeo.com/80498909

JMa, who fought cancer well and hard, passed away Dec 7th

In the past few weeks, several people have passed away that I personally know. One was Uncle Dawson Kwauk who was like a grandfather figure to me. The other is my dear, dear friend Jessica who fought cancer bravely, courageously and with much dignity. My heart is heavy as I mourn the loss of my friend of 30 years. We shared a lot of laughter and good times, including a 2-month trip in the Caribbean. I am so thankful that Lisa Parish, Chris Bjorndal, Kerry Lum and I went to London last year in November so that we can have one last fun time with JMa. What a great trip that was. I hadn't laughed so hard in such a long time. JMa had that affect on people. A fun time was always had with her. I miss you already, JMa. Thanks for the memories, for the great parties, for helping me through business school, for Carnival in Trinidad, for showing me the beauty in art-architecture-design,your amazing photos, my honeymoon/your wedding in France, for the years of friendship, for the example you set when you fought cancer. Rest well. No more pain. No more suffering.