Thank You!

Thank you everyone, for your words of blessings and congratulations. It's been a great journey so far!

FYI, the picture in the announcement (with the question mark) is Karl :)

It was fun to tell our families, especially Karl's mom, Betty. This coming Chinese New Year is the year of the pig; "pig" in Cantonese is the same word as "Chu." We wrapped up a pig stuffed animal and gave it to Betty in a gift bag. Karl said, in Cantonese, "Mom, here's a baby Chu [pig] for you!" As she was opening it, and she responded, in Cantonese "Now I want a real baby Chu for Chinese New Year!" So Karl said, "Okay, we're giving you a real baby Chu too!" The conversation was a bit lengthier, as Karl convinced his mom that he really meant, yes, a real baby. He said, "We need another red envelope this year!" and she laughed. With a wink, she said if we have two babies we could have two more red envelopes this year, so we said we would see what we could do about that!

I gave my mom a "Grandparents Magazine" that she had given me as a joke before our wedding. I still had the same copy, it was funny to give it to her dated Nov/Dec 2003.

We're not sure of the gender or the exact due date as yet, but Karl had an interesting dream a couple of years ago... we will see if it comes true!

I was pondering whether to start a new blog for baby stuff. I was thinking... is our current blog going to become a "baby blog?" and then thought, well, our current life is going to become a "baby life," so we may as well start here!

So, the first Chu baby gender contest... will baby Chu be a boy or a girl?
There's huge prizes at stake here...
which means I need to narrow the pool of winners...
Okay: Gender, birth date, and weight
your answers will all be here in virtual black & white... the closest guess wins
Dinner for two in Tuscany*!
(*Tuscany Valley Green that is... travel costs not included...date negotiable)

New Jobs for the Chus...

Yes, Karl and I are both getting new jobs this year...

We're going to be parents!



I'm seven weeks along and feeling good;
our bundle of joy is due early September

(comment by clicking below, you don't have to be a registered blogger user)

Word of the week

Although I am a software engineer, I actually work in the health care industry. I came across this word today: Cervicalgia. It is a clinical term for "pain in the neck". So next time someone is being a pain in the neck, you can perhaps call him/her "cervicalgia".

mmmm, wasabi...

I just had to share about a new snack I discovered... can't quite call it my "new favourite," as that will remain reserved for my sweet tooth favourites.

If you're the least bit adventurous, give these Japanese Wasabi & Honey Rice and Corn Crisps a try, from "the blue menu" (President's Choice) at Superstore.

Keep an eye on your flyers... We read that the Superstore is doing a mega-inventory clearance of their "non-food" items to prepare for the entrance of the new "Walmart Supercenters" coming soon to Canada.

Snowzilla

As Dayna packs away our holiday decorations this year, most of which are some variation of a snowman, I found this article on the web. I told her we are not getting it for next year.

Our Third Anniversary!

Yesterday was our 3rd Anniversary! We just loved every minute of our wedding day. It was a really fun day. And the last three years have topped it!

We had a Chinese tea ceremony first, and then the 'western' ceremony.

lotus seed and lotus root tea, part of a symbolic tea ceremony

A true coffee fan will sacrifice her wedding day lipstick for one last latte before walking up the aisle!

We had all of our professional pictures (some below) done at Chinook Mall, the largest mall in Calgary, complete with a merry-go-round that we got exclusive use of for some photos! Our photographer had some inside connections apparently. We kind of weren't into the 'pretend it's summer' look by going to indoor gardens... it was -30* and there was no hiding it! Check out our Wedding Website for more photos (including our engagement through to honeymoon!).

we borrowed a white Lexus SUV for our wedding day!

Last weekend we went to Banff for an anniversary celebration to one of our favourite little restaurants there (Barpa Bills) then for mochas and some people watching at the "Wild Flour Artisan Cafe." Couldn't quite miss the opportunity for a little celebrating yesterday too, so we went down to the Avocado (best sweet potato fries in the west! and I had the Baja Salad, a little memory of our honeymoon!) and then wandered around Ikea for a bit. I got an 'unofficial' anniversary gift: a down-filled pillow! ahhhh... I've had my eye out for one for the last year or so. Love it!

To conclude, let me share a couple of words of wisdom that our Pastor shared as part of the wedding ceremony message; they have really stuck with us: "The golden relationship question is... and ask yourself and each other this often: 'What's it like, to be married to me?'"

Canadian Invention: five pin bowling

Karl suspected over Christmas holidays down in North Carolina that Five-Pin bowling must be a uniquely Canadian phenomenon, since the guys couldn't find any one day when they went with the kids.

Well, it turns out, he was right!

Happy New Year!

new year's eve: hong kong harbour

"We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves.
The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day."
~Edith Lovejoy Pierce

"People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year,
but they really should be worried about what they eat
between the New Year and Christmas."
~Author Unknown

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;
the old has gone, the new has come!"
~2Corinthians 5:17

"Dear friend,
I pray that you may enjoy good health
and that all may go well with you,
even as your soul is getting along well."
~3 John 1:2

Turkey and Gravy Soda?!

My sister did all the hard work on this Holiday Album, but I am using the same link anyway since I have all the same photos (Thanks Melissa!).

One of our adventures over the holidays was trying these Jones Soda Holiday Flavours (a "gag gift"... quite literally... from the Forsyths to the Chus):
Antacid, Sweet Potato, Dinner Roll, Pea, and Turkey & Gravy. You know it's bad when you hear, "Hey guys, try this one, it's the best one of them all; it just tastes like medicine!"

Next year maybe we will go with the dessert pack instead:

Flavors: Cherry Pie, Banana Cream Pie, Key Lime Pie, Apple Pie, Blueberry Pie.

"Smoky Mountain Saloon"

Merry Christmas from the Gents and Southern Belles at the Smoky Mountain Saloon!

We arrived in Charlotte, NC on Dec 20 and spent the night in Mooresville with my twin sister (far right) and her family, and then packed up all 8 of us and headed to the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee. We stayed in a condo/cabin in the "Hidden Mountain" area... near Seiverville and Knoxville. After 3 days there, we returned to Mooresville for Christmas. We went to church on Christmas Eve day, and had a nice supper and opened a couple of presents.

This morning the chaos was unleashed as Joel and Alisha (9 yrs and 7 yrs) were allowed to wake us all at 6:30 for their gift opening. Paper flew and the kids gleefully tore through each package thanking each giver if present. The grande finale was the new bikes in the garage from their Amma and Grampa (my mom and step-dad, above left).

Hope your Christmas was as incredible as ours. More pics and updates later, probably on the weekend when we get home and have pictures downloaded etc.

Blessings,
DC

Wishing you a Merry Christmas
& a blessed holiday season

Pre-Christmas Dinner

We are definitely getting the best of both worlds for today's family Christmas Dinner: We get a house full of delicious turkey smell, but aren't hosting the party!
But speaking of the party, I need to go. Just wanted to show off my new cupcake stand and some mocha cupcakes with cream cheese icing and sprinkles.
More pics to come... I head up to see my step-mom tomorrow, then return on Tuesday night... we'll see how the blogging goes. Honestly, I don't know how you gals with kidlets keep up... I bet it keeps you sane though eh? Kind of like journaling and "debriefing" with an audience...?

Anyway, off to turkify :)

D

"severe storm"

Abbotsford Weather-1

Funny how weather definitions vary drastically across the world... or say, between two provinces. I was on the Columbia Bible College website, and came across a news update, saying that today's Christmas party had been postponed due to severe weather... Severe weather? I hadn't heard anything... so I click over to The Weather Network and check out Abbotsford weather... MINUS ONE WITH LIGHT SNOW?! seriously... help me out here folks. Granted, I did then find this article on CBC regarding the snowstorm... but it doesn't defend the cause much.

Severe weather? Try an average 5-day high of MINUS TWENTY FIVE and see how sympathetic I am. For my American friends out there, that is MINUS 13*F. At least we get Chinooks... I have a hope of getting warm again by next week... Winnipeg however: Deepfreeze season, see you in the springtime!

Domestic Diva Part II

Did some more baking today... some of my gingerbread men thought they were the pillsbury dough boy (emphasis on the dough) but otherwise everybody came out okay...

Karl was playing "Winning 11" today on PS2, so I made him a lucky gingerguy player...

domestic diva

With a blazing high of minus 21 today, I decided to start some Christmas baking...


Lemon Poppyseed mini coffee cakes

The first step of chocolate caramel pecan squaresGood ol' fashioned sugar cookies (to be decorated...)


and of course... the flop... affectionately known as the "I'm-sure-they'll-taste-just-great-honey" -chocolate-mocha-merangues. And it's a good thing they do taste great, because nobody will be receiving this batch!

-Martha: over and out (or mostly just over?)

Fog Nog

Two years ago Karl invented one of our favourite espresso drinks, the "Comfort & Joy"... and I have a new one to add to the list: The Fog Nog... it's a London Fog, made with egg nog instead of milk (skip the vanilla).

All I can say is that it's perfect by the fire when it's a windy daytime high of minus twenty-something outside!

Let me know how it goes...
Dayna

You don't want to miss this!

I'm coordinating an event at my church for Home Based Business Women... Get your tickets soon, they're going fast! $5 advance, $8 door: includes dessert, coffee, seminar, and a chance to win one of 25 door prizes.

Tuesday, December 5
7-9pm
Christian City Church Calgary
(formerly Westhills Community Church)
1009 Prominence Way SW
Calgary AB

Five things that happened while I was on my road trip: Part II

1. Michael Flatley ended up in the hospital, making me selfishly fearful for the fate of my early Christmas gift... turns out things are going to be fine.
2. I ate the best bruchetta ever at Kelsey's... feta cheese and tapanades...mmm. turns out they don't really make it like that in Calgary.
3. TWO WORDS: Beaver Tails.
4. I missed out on the cutest snowman teapot EVER... I decided to go back the next day and buy it, and it was GONE :'( The blowing scarf is the handle and spout... and the top hat doubles as a mug. How cute is that? Why didn't I buy it right away? I'm a fool, a FOOL I tell you.
5. I got some wheelin' dealin' rates at a couple of sweet hotels... Sheraton 4 Points in London, and the Crowne Plaza in Ottawa. That was sweet.
   

Conversation of the Week

Trent: "Do you mind moving these couches?"
Carpet Cleaner: "Sure, they're plastic so they should be fine."
Trent: "UM... actually they're leather..."
Carpet Cleaner: "I meant the legs."
Trent: "Oh."

Five things that happened while I was on my road trip: Part I

1. Fynthia and Finnigan recovered
2. My sister and her husband went on a Carribean cruise to celebrate their 10th Anniversary
3. I ate the best chocolate pecan pie and drank the best latte of my life at "Oh So Good Cafe" in Ottawa thanks to a local tour guide (it was awesome Tim K!)
4. I drank a lot of starbucks... now affectionately called "St. Arbucks" by the participants on the CCUfairs Ontario
5. two words: new scarf

Faster! Faster!

There has got to be a Guinness World Record for everything. This one may not be the strangest... actually, it is pretty normal. A 16-year old Singaporean student set the record for fastest SMS typing. Hmmm... I wonder if the Guinness Book of Record sets the record for the most records in a book of record...

fynthia update

Well, Fynthia is not out of the danger zone yet, but she's looking much better already, after only 3 treatments (out of 6):
Finnigan has been doing strange things now though, so when the hospital room is available, he's getting a turn in there for a round of antibiotics.

Off to buy a 30GB iPod and head to Grandma Jacquie's for supper :)

Fynthia

We adopted 7 fish from Mary when my dad died. She was worried that they wouldn't do so well when she went away for a while, so I took them home with me last time I went there for a visit...

There's Snik, Nub, and Uhs (shubunkins, a type of carp/goldfish) an Finnigan, Fynthia, Dolly, and Little Amigo. We changed Uhs's name to Cal... because he's a Calico and Uhs was just awkward.
I used to make fun of people who did crazy things for their pets, like simmering boneless skinless chicken in gravy for a dog. That was until I found myself skinning individual peas and snipping them into bits so that my goldfish wouldn't be constipated. Right... and it helps to avoid bladder infection too, in case you were wondering. If your fish are ever swimming upside down, or floating at the surface, but seem to be alive, feed them skinned peas. Anyway, my excuse is that these fish have special sentimental value.

Here's a picture of Fynthia (she even looks sad...), who is now in a separate little 'hospital tank' beside our 35 gallon one... because she seems to have some version of "pop-eye" that may develop into some form of "dropsy"... Our water quality is nearly perfect and we're not sure how she might have got it. We hope she's okay, but she's not doing all that great right now. We're giving her antibiotics, but draw the line at surgery!

My Father's Eyes...

God's goodness does not change. I don't know what it means that He gives and takes away, but I do know what it means to choose to praise Him regardless.

I have a friend right now whose son is in the hospital with leukemia. Does that change God's goodness? No. I have another friend who's Dad just survived brain tumor surgery. I have survived brain tumor surgery... Does God take good care of His children? Yes. What if I had died, or if her dad would have died, does that change God's goodness? No.

If there is one thing that I have learned through losing my dad, and throughout my life for that matter, it is that God's goodness does not change. Our circumstances change, we lose those we love, God can choose to heal and sometimes doesn't... God hates divorce and cancer and sin, and no part of Him is in it... but those things are in the world.

My dad died too young. He only got to teach 2 of his grandchildren to fish, and won't meet the rest. He won't get to go camping again, head to the Yukon to visit his buddies from his gold mining days, or road-trip it in the motor home back to the island. I won't see him tug his black leather ball hat over his forehead, scarred from a motorcycle accident he survived 20 years ago. I won't hear him whistle through the gap in his front teeth, that he wouldn't let the denturist correct when he got dentures... there it was, brand new teeth and his good ol' gap crafted right in there. I won't see his handwriting on another belated-but-carefully-picked birthday card, "To my darling daughter, Sorry it's late! Love Dad." He was a good gift-picker, but I don't think I ever received one before my birthday had come and gone. My dad loved life. In a lot of ways I want to be like him; he was very generous and had a great sense of humour and a great laugh. He was impulsive and spontaneous and loved people... loved being the life of the party. Somebody at his memorial said, "Mike would give you the shirt off his back... but don't you dare take the last beer in his fridge!" That says a lot about my dad.

I can't say that I learned a lot of biblical spirituality directly from my dad, but I can say that he taught me about appreciating life... and Life in all it's fullness is what Jesus came to give (John 10:10). Genes gave me my dad's eyes, and now I pray that I will have my Father's eyes. I remember my sister loving this song by Amy Grant when we were new Christians, and I have a new appreciation for it now... here's the chorus:

She's got her Father's eyes,
Her Father's eyes;
Eyes that find the good in things,
When good is not around;
Eyes that find the source of help,
When help just can't be found;
Eyes full of compassion,
Seeing every pain;
Knowing what you're going through
And feeling it the same.
Just like my Father's eyes,
My Father's eyes, My Father's eyes,
Just like my Father's eyes.

My prayer for you is that you will also have eyes to find the good in things, when good cannot be found. God's goodness does not change.

Top 5 Christmas Gifts...

As you make your Christmas wish list this year, here's a few ideas for you...

A Goat
Mosquito nets
Vitamin A
Crutches
Hearing Aids...

There are more ideas for you here

Happy Shopping!

True Pacman Fan

So, as it turns out, I've been a Pacman fan from the very beginning! I was cleaning out some boxes in my basement and found this drawing that I did when I was 6...

Telemarketers

The telemarketers seems to be out in full force in the last couple of days. Our phone has been ringing off the hook. I don't know, may be it is the fall and they think there is a better chance to catch people staying home watching hockey or something. At any rate, I always know that there is a do-not-call list kept by the Canadian Marketing Association (http://www.the-cma.org). It had never been a huge problem, so I never took the time to investigate. Besides, I was under the impression that I would need to pay an annual fee to have our number added to the do-not-call list. Having had more than a few calls in the last couple of days, I was annoyed enough to be willing to pay for that. After about five minutes of research, I found out that one can now do that online without a fee. I will have to see if that works since it takes up to three weeks to take effect. Here are a couple of links:

http://www.cbc.ca/consumers/market/files/home/antitelemarketing/tips.html
http://www.cornerstonewebmedia.com/cma/submit.asp

They're back!

 You may know that the real estate market in Calgary has been extremely hot in previous months. In the last few weeks, there has been talks about it cooling down a bit. Today, I saw evidence of that -- open houses. 

conversation of the week

K (reading the Tiger Direct flyer): Hey, do you want a universal remote control for four hundred and forty six dollars?
D: Does it control the universe?
K: Probably.
D: Okay.

Giving Thanks

I can't help but be Thankful this week,

For Karl, you're amazing... what else can I say? You know my heart.

For Melissa, you know and share my pain like no other, but thankfully you also know and share my faith. Thanks for your strength and friendship and boldness in sharing the song lyrics that you shared, inviting those at the memorial to cry out to Jesus in their time of pain and loss.

For my Amma, sending me her favourite prayer,
"Loving God: As we go our way into the future, no matter what we face, not sure of the way to go, surprised by turn of events, may we say good-bye to the past, giving thanks. May we embrace Your future plans, showing us the way to follow Christ as leaders and mentors; Amen."
For cards & flowers & emails & calls & prayers & tears & taking on my workload...
from my family, my friends, and my colleagues...

Grandma Dillon (my Dad's mom), Aunts Carol & Maureen, Uncles Danny & Bobby, Cardium Vac, Darren & Sandy, Marky G, Wendy & Brian, and the many friends of my Dad and Mary's that attended the memorial and expressed their care and sympathy and Kim Roy for officiating with care. Strangers named John and Christina Goddard for being the hands of Christ, thank you for bringing meals and desserts that fed over 20 friends and family the night before the memorial. I wish I could have met you, but your card indicated your desire to shine God's light, and I thank you.

Mom, Trent, Ralph & Jo-Anne, Mark & Lynn, Blaine, Leslie, Rocky Mountain College staff and faculty, Gaileen & Ron, Lorne & Kelly, Trevor & Amy, Larry & Susan, Susanna & Glenn, Marian & her team; Tim K & Shelley and SSU staff, EMFT colleagues, Joy, Stacey, Kori, Keri, Rachel, Rachelle & Gerald, Nicky, Jane & Russell, Johanna, Dan C, Larry & Sandra, Grandma Jacquie, Brenda, Jeff & Lori-Anne, Randy & Donna, Amy, Tim C, Auntie Marilyn, Gordon, Jason & Melissa, Diane, Isobel, Sheryl, Ruth, Dunn, Andrea, Dennis, Gerald, Melanie O, Karen M, Mary N, Hilda, Kevin K, Bryan H, Ken, Darcie, Aly, Dawn, Weldon, Dianne, Pamela, Helen, Calvin, Tim H, William, Nita, Brian K, Vandana, Debbie, Jeff S, Arnie, Pam, Barbara, Karen R, Melissa S, Karin K, Rich & Melanie, Craig M, Irene, Stan, Stephen, Cheryl, Cathy, David, Abe, Marion...

There is so much more to be thankful for. Most of all to God my Father, who, though You give and take away... my heart will choose to say, "Blessed be Your name..."

Dayna

memories

August 2006 | Edson & Area
Dad, Mary, Melissa, Joel & Alisha
(www.sentimentsfromthesouth.blogspot.com)


Vancouver Island
January 2005


Friends & Family,
Thank you for your continued support and prayers in this time of loss.

"Those who wait on the LORD will find new strength. They will fly high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint. " Isaiah 40:31

I am committed

... or shall I say, "my submitted patch has been committed"? Today, my first ever contribution to an open source project has been committed into the project's source code control system. I am very excited about that not because that makes me special. Rather, I feel I have taken a very important step towards my career goals, and this is a significant milestone for me.

I had been wanting to get myself involved in an open source project for quite some time now. However, I was never motivated enough to actually hunker down and do it. Two weeks ago on Sunday after church, Dayna and I got into a long "let's blue sky it a bit" type of conversation. We asked ourselves what we want to achieve professionally, and what can we do today to edge us closer to that goal. The answer for me was to get involve in an open source project. I chose NHibernate as the project, picked an open issue to work on from its issue tracker, and two weeks later, I had my patch committed to the project.

I am committed and I hope my enthusiasm will continue. May be someday I will earn the title of Regular Contributor of NHibernate or some other open source project.

What is logic worth?

Okay, everybody roll your eyes now so we get that over with...

Let's follow some logic here: 1pm is before 2pm, isn't it? And 2pm is before 3pm, isn't it? So why is 11pm not before 12pm? Shouldn't "noon" really be 12am and "midnight really be 12pm? I am sure there are people out there thinking to themselves, "my flight at 12:05pm, is it around noon, or is it around midnight?" The clock is a system invented by man; if you were to invent something, I am sure your thought process would not go something like this...

Hmmm... let me see... these are the rules that will govern how this system works... it will work as is, but for good measure, let me throw in a couple of exceptions

It's tough to be a logician sometimes because so many things in this world, important or not, do not make sense at all. My brain is hurting now, I gonna go watch some TV.

The Blank Stare

I got it again... the blank stare.

Karl and I were driving to a wedding last night and the vehicle in front of us had one of those personalized license plates that read, "Gwamma."

This, OF COURSE, made me think of the old granny from Tweety & Sylvester, so when Karl pointed out the license plate, I said, "I tawt I taw a puddy tat!"

Blank stare.

So I briefly explained it to him as being from that cartoon.

Then today it came up again, and I said, "I have to blog that..."
and he said... "I still don't know what you're even saying..."
Which cracked me up even more, so I had to blog that too.

And, now I'm off to do my mystery shopper evaluations. Yes, they make you work hard for that $150 and free sushi lunch!

Amazing Photos

Scott (once again) opened my eyes this week by showing me these amazing photos. They were shot and processed using a technique called "high dynamic range photography" (HDR)... I bet you are googling it right now (ain't I right, Melissa and Kori?). I downloaded a trial version of Photomatix and played around with it a little bit and here is what I got below... not bad for an amateur, huh!?





[Updated 2006-09-11]
I played with the software a bit more and got, in my opinion, better results this time around. You be the judge...

PEARS!

New High Score... oh yeah baby...

Farofa and weekly awards

We had supper with some new friends last night, Dana (pronounced like my name) and Juliano (with a hard "J" sound, not "H"). Juliano is from Brazil, and they made us some yummy supper to thank us for setting up their computer (us with a capital K that is...). One of the things we had was Farofa: kind of a smoky, salty flour for dipping your meat in. It was sure a yummy addition to the barbequed steak and ribs!

So, the Dinner of the Week award goes to Dana and Juliano for barbequed meat and Farofa!

Other awards:

• Irony of the Week: Tofino, a self described temperate rainforest on Vancouver Island, nearly had to shut their town down this weekend due to water shortage.
• Freebie of the Week: Christian Blind Mission International is giving away free calendars. I got mine in the mail yesterday, presumably because I donated (and received) Christmas gifts last year through them. They're an awesome organization, and I did my Masters degree with the Director, so I also encourage you to donate.
• Smarty Pants of the Week: my niece, Alisha
• How to of the Week: "How to Decorate your Dorm on a Dime" ...Yep, I authored my first wikihow, and it wins my own vote as the "how to of the week" ... check it out here and add your hit to the 800+ hits it already got!
• Other Freebies of the Week: Knock Knock: Seth Godin's new ebook about effective websites, and Who's There, an ebook about blogging

Dayna Chu :: over and out