soo funny.

I love getting emails from old students in China. This one, Jiyong, is in 5th grade now! She just cracks me up and her emails are like bright rays of sunshine on my long school days...

An excerpt:

hi MRS SARAH!!!

I miss you so much!!!
I can't imagine that you got married!!!!

I just reamember when you were young and so pretty!!!!!

I think you and your husband is destiny!!!!!

And good that he is a nice man!!!

I thought maybe you wouldn't get this mail but thankyou for remembering me too!!!!!

I wish you come back to yanji fast w/ your husband!!!!(I want to see your husband!!!kkkk)

hahaha... she goes on to describe each new students in the school from the past 4 years, to keep me up-to-date. Her descriptions went something like this:

Yehun-He has really small eyes and looks kind and quiet.he was really, super quiet until miss stella prayed for him to get louder..(He is super loud now!!!)

and in 4th grade-Joshua:he is kind of jokester.....and like end of the 4th grader,a boy from newzealand came.....john-He is the smallest height of all people in our grade.he is like 10cm smaller than me....aqnd he has dots all around hisFace

Jonh lee-he stayed almost all his life in Ameica and dyed little bit of his hair in the front .

Hilarious. :) I miss them.

oh yes we did.

It's official - we are in the "old geezer" category. We just ate dinner at 4:15pm.

(I can't help it! I hate to keep things warm in the slow cooker, so I serve it right when it's done!)

On the bright side, wow! So much time before I head off to praise practice! =D

fa la la la la la la la la

I am hoping today will be the day we can deck the halls :) Ideally, it would have been on Saturday (SNOW!!!!!) but alas, it did not work out. I have been looking forward to this for weeks!

{!}{!}{!}{!}

{!} Early Bird. This morning I woke up early - well, earlier than I have been waking up for most of this semester. As much as I adore sleeping, I know that deep down, I am a morning person. It made such a big difference in my day to start it off right...I've been really bad at that this semester, making excuses to myself about adjusting to a new married-life schedule and a new home to look after, blah blah blah. No more excuses. I want to be disciplined.

My heart resonates with this song:
i'm so messy and distracted/ undisciplined and tactless here on the inside/

and yet it swells with this chorus: Spirit, draw me to my knees/ captivate all of me, all of me/ here before You, honestly/ captivate all of me, all of me


{!} Christmas Music. It's funny - last year, I was totally not into Christmas music (maybe because they started playing it ALL THE TIME even before Thanksgiving...). I would immediately switch on a CD when I got into the car. Now I find myself singing along at the top of my lungs on the way to school. I really like this version of Carol of the Bells by BarlowGirl - so crisp and clean! Looking forward to my first Christmas in our new home - and, of course, going back to Shipp to celebrate!


{!} RealSimple. Thank you, Ali, for this subscription! Honestly, I'd never heard of it before, but I really like all the little stories and the DIY ideas, shopping/budgeting advice, and even used a couple recipes for Thanksgiving dinner. Don't tell anyone, but I think Mr.A. likes it too.


{!} Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing. What a great hymn. How true - that He IS the fount, the source, the beginning point of Every Blessing. Favorite line ever = Tune my heart to sing Thy grace.

Friday Two

[+] While sitting around our Friday lunch group table, my kids were chattering on and on about iCarly. Never have seen the show, probably never will. And even though she brought up the topic, Leilani interrupted in a loud voice, "Let's talk about vegetables!"

The funny thing? The kids quickly and effortlessly switched gears and then launched a discussion about their favorite vegetables. :)


[+] Yesterday, I brought in my wedding album to share with my co-workers. Since the students were fairly quiet at the end of the day, I decided to show them too. While looking at one portrait of me & Mr. A, one of my students called out incredulously, "That looks like YOU!"

just your typical day.

Setting: Mrs. Park's 1st grade classroom. A few boys are lined up to have mini-conferences with the teacher.

MIGUEL(puffing out his chest): "Mrs. Park, look at my six-pack!"

MRS. PARK: How do you know what a six-pack is?

MIKEY: It's a big round belly!

JHAHIDI: No, it's when you got squares on your stomach!

MIGUEL: My brother has a six-pack. That's how come I know.


*Editor's note: Although it would be quite impressive if true, Miguel does not, in fact, have a six-pack.

babies everywhere!

Seriously. I feel compelled, in the middle of my parent-teacher conference day, to make a list:

RECENT BIRTHS
1. Abe & Kisung had their 2nd child, Josiah, in June.
2. Mike & Catherine had a baby girl, Carlin, in July.
3. Cousins (Jay & Jo) had a baby girl, Gloria, this Sept.
4. Mary & Raef had a baby girl, Helena, in late Sept.
5. Cousin (Sue) had a baby girl recently in Korea.
6. Jason & Kelly had a baby boy, Jacob, last month.
7. Matt & Janelle had a baby girl, Aubrey Mae, yesterday!


ON THE WAY:
1. Cyril & Mary's baby due in December!
2. Co-worker's baby due in early January
3. Another co-worker's baby due in mid-January
4. BELLA BABY LEE due on January 24!!!!! :) :) :)
5. Choongman & Belssi!
6. Richard & Jennifer E.!
7. Nick & NanHui!
8. Abraham & Susanna!
**Edit:***
9. Dr. John & Maria! (Eee! Maria, thanks for sharing!!!)

I am sure I am forgetting many others. But seriously, being a newly wed in the midst of all these babies sure is prompting that same old question (accompanied by an elbow jab and a wink*wink)...haha. In God's good time, is what I say. Right now I am content - more than content! Excited! Exuberant! Ecstactic! - to be an auntie, gomo, emo, tia, whatever! to many many cuties. <3

adorable.

I just cracked up during an ENTIRE commercial. Long time since that's happened! Click below to check it out.

American Express Faces

I absolutely love this - mostly because I usually notice little faces like this in everyday items too! :D

little smiles.

There is always a reason to be joyful, to be hopeful. I was really struck by this truth during our youth prayer meeting on Tuesday. Joy is always an option with our God, and I love that.

I also love how He gives us little smiles through other things as well.

Here are my Friday Five:

1. CONTIGO TRAVEL MUGS. My coffee drinking has gone through much change over the years. I never drank a drop of coffee all throughout college, despite all the hookups I could have had since many of my friends worked at Starbucks. Nope - I was very content with my Short Steamed Cider- yummy. But when I went to Korea in the following years, I began to curiously eye the little Dixie cups of sweet instant coffee they served in restaurants after the meal...and my love for coffee was born. Once I started teaching in MD, I got quite dependent - to a scary point where I could drink 3-4 cups a day and that was normal. I decided to go cold turkey and gave it up for a year. Since then, it's gotten to a more normal consumption level :) After all, as Mr. A. reminds me, caffeine is a drug...
At the beginning of this year, I had a travel mug that looked something like this:
But it leaked a lot and our relationship soured over time.


THEN. Syunie told me about these phenomenal travel mugs (at Costco) and I rushed over to see what the fuss was all about.

It wasn't everything it was cracked up to be.... it was more! :D

Not only does it never ever leak or accidentally spill (vacuum-sealing between sips prevents this and therefore I can just drop it in my bag and go!) BUT it keeps my coffee/tea HOT for 4 hours! I also tested out the cold factor. After all, I am most definitely a person who needs to consume cold things cold, and hot things hot. Anyway, I poured in some juice with a few ice cubes and five.hours.later....it was cold...AND the ice cubes had not melted! The packaging even states that cold drinks stay cold for up to 12 hours. A M A Z I NG .



2. BLISS. Oh my. I was craving chocolate earlier this week and picked up a bag of chocolates while running errands. I was looking for Dove, since it is silky smooth goodness, and when I popped one in my mouth at home, it was just beauteous. Then I realized that it wasn't Dove - it was Hershey's Bliss! It was ohmygoshsogoodyouhavetotryit. And yes, the center did indeed melt away in my mouth.



3. STARFIELD. I love the lyrics, the vocals, the sound, the heart of worship! Finally got out to a concert last night (it seems like so long since I've been to a concert!) and enjoyed worshiping with them again. One comment, though? The harsh bright spotlights shining in my eyes, blaring electric guitar and loud screaming fans did make me wonder why I like concerts so much. I felt like an old geezer but the acoustic part of the concert was my favorite :)



4. FALL. We had a Fall Festival at school today, and despite a few crazy moments, it was a success! The kids had a blast and left happily clutching their mini-pumpkins. As for me, I loved being outside with them, making leaf rubbings, playing Steal the Pumpkin, and Apple, Apple, Pie! (our fall version of Duck,Duck, Goose). After my daily and constant monitoring of their volume, their "walking feet," and their attentiveness in class, it was good to just let them RUN and SCREAM and PLAY HARD. I feel bad for the kids, since the most time they are allotted for recess is 15 minutes (and that's on a good day). Today was a great day to make up for it. Pictures forthcoming :)



5. MILLIONAIRE. I recently discovered some earlier episodes that are available online via streaming and it is such a weakness of mine. If I were an actual contestant, I would fail horrendously (I have been known to even get the $100 Q. wrong...) but it's such a motivation to grade papers, since I put it on as background noise :)

girlygirl.

<<>> I have really girly hair. I am still trying to decide whether it is more high-maintenance or not, but one thing is for sure: I am loving the change.

<<>> I decided that I could get used to this whole domestic housewife thing :) It's incredibly satisfying knowing that a table full of people have happy tummies and that I had a part in it. What clinched this fact? When I realized that I was spending my lunch break looking up cooking tools on the Williams-Sonoma website...

<<>> My toenails are looking sad as ever these days, with half-chipped scraggly purple paint on them. I know I don't usually paint my toenails in the fall/winter, but for some reason, freshly painted toenails makes me happy...even when they're hidden under layers of stocking and boots.

(()) On a not-so-girly-girl note, I discovered on Saturday night that I really like watching baseball. Go A-Rod! (Just cuz I have his baseball glove...)

kingdom.

Every Friday, I choose the most well-behaved table group from my class and they bring their lunch back to the classroom to have lunch with me. They get scootched up to the front of the line and everything and, as if having lunch with Mrs. Park weren't enough (har har), I also give them some sort of "dessert" to go with their lunch.

I love this time because it's the time I get to spend just chatting and getting to know the kids more personally. I sometimes use it to find out what their home situation is like, whether they go to church, and silly stuff like their favorite food and favorite color, etc. Today we talked about what we wanted to be when we grew up. All the boys claimed they wanted to be firefighters or policemen and all the girls said they wanted to be doctors. Except one.

"When I grow up, I wanna be a princess!"

At first, I swallowed back a giggle, thinking back to my fascination with princesses when I was a child. But as the afternoon passed, I began thinking about a deeper meaning behind this. These days we've been spending our Friday meetings learning and diving deeper into the different aspects of God's Kingdom. I've been thinking about how this requires us to really see ourselves the way that those in Hebrews 11's Hall of Faith saw themselves: as "aliens and strangers on earth" and "longing for a better country—a heavenly one."

If we really view ourselves as sons and daughters of the only True King, shouldn't our hearts be allowed to yearn for such things - to essentially, be a princess, "when I grow up"?

Hebrews 11:40- God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.


simply beautiful.

words.

Words are powerful.

Tonight my sister handed off a bunch of bags from home - old shoes, scarves, and papers from my old room at home (my parents are probably converting my old beloved bedroom into an exercise room or something). I spent almost an hour sifting through some of my old belongings and traveling down memory lane.

It is so hard for me to throw away things...but mostly, it is hard for me to throw away letters. I was reading old letters that I had kept from the past 5 years and even now, I don't want to part with some of them. Words are powerful.

Here's a letter from one of my 1st graders in China:

(Front)
From: JiYong
To: Mis Sarah

(Inside)
I am sory
I miss you
Thanks you
I Love you
I'm JiYong
You is my Best Teacher
I like you

--- The best part is that she is currently in 5th grade at the same school in China, we are Facebook buddies, and she still emails me from time to time, asking when I am coming back to China. This kind of stuff makes me want to keep teaching forever.

*****

Ironic: This was scrawled on the envelope of my college roommate's birthday card to me, written at least 4 years ago:
SLee...P
[You know that if you met a guy with the last name that starts with a 'P,' married him, used your first and last initials + maiden name....SLeeP.]

Little did we know.... I bet God was chuckling to Himself right about then...


*****

As I was re-reading and opening up these letters and cards from my time in China, I couldn't help but notice that a great deal of them were from my accountability partner and close friend, J. Some of them were long notes with Scripture references about a particular struggle I was going through, and some were quick cards scribbled down to tell me something she noticed or appreciated about me that day...but all of them were meant to encourage - and encourage they did, even on this October night some five years later. What a gift that is...the gift of encouragement. J always inspired me to utilize this gift even more by leading through her example...and again, I am feeling the conviction and the call to encourage. Words, after all, are powerful.

*****

Lastly, I found a tiny little Post-it with a birthday message from one of my Russian friends in China. At the end of her quick birthday greeting was one of the nicest things I've ever heard:

P.S. When I see your smile, I know that God loves me....Always smile. Always be happy!!!

How could I not smile after reading this?

*****

Maybe some day I will be able to "clear the clutter" in my house and throw away these little notes. But today they are precious tidbits and reminders that words are powerful. They can build up and they can beat down. The words we speak are powerful and are, at times, indelibly imprinted on the heart. And the words we write sometimes are kept and remembered forever.

sunrise on the gossie boots

God gave me a beautiful sunrise this morning, just to encourage me. And I needed it! It has been a really stressful week at work, and that rainbow-streaked sky was sheer perfection in reminding me that it's all in His hands. I had a big observation by someone from the county this morning, and even with a few technological difficulties, it went pretty well. Of course, it helped that 3 students were absent - it's always nice to teach a smaller group!

I am wearing my birthday boots (thank you ASP!) and loooving the warmth they bring, especially since my feet are used to the cold from the classroom floor tiles seeping in through my thin flats. I feel a bit like Gossie today. Which, by the way, is creeping up to be one of my very favorite children's book series! It just makes me "awww" on every page!

Look how cute! Unfortunately, I couldn't find any pictures of Gossie in her red boots on Yahoo.

!!!!!

Starfield is coming to MD!

4 and 3 bits

1. There is something so satisfying about a toasted bagel with butter & honey paired with a cup of coffee. Since my travel cup is leaky and unreliable, I've become a pro at transporting a mug in the car.

2. My gas tank is full. Makes me happily itch for a road trip.

3. This morning, on the way to school I saw 2 full flying V's, followed by 4 geese flying in a perfect slash. Like this: \ Where was the other half? / ? If I understood geesese, they were probably squawking, Wait for uuuuusss...

4. I haven't talked too much about my class this year yet. I'm still getting a feel of what they're like. But I must say, a couple of them made me laugh today.

:: One of them proudly showed off her new coat to me. She said, "It's a "hi kitty" coat!"

:: The same little girl also giggled to herself and told me, "My mom tells funny jokes." So intrigued, I asked, "Like what?" She quickly rattled off, "Knockknock. Who's there. Banana!" (class erupts in laughter.) I'm still not sure why it was so funny...weirdo kids. :) Anyway, I asked, "Banana who?" and she made up an ending, "Banana in the water" and burst out laughing.

:: The other day, for our literacy campaign kick-off celebration, all the teachers came to school dressed as literary characters. I dressed up as Daisy Head Mayzie (from a lesser-known Dr. Seuss book), and fashioned a headband with a large fake daisy sticking out of it. Today, one of my boys marched into school with a flower for me (probably plucked out of someone's garden...oops...) and presented it to me as if it were sticking out of the top of his head too.

Bible to spare?

I stumbled upon this today...and in light of cleaning up our house, it struck a chord with me. I'm such a Bible-buying addict...but reading this reminded me of a quote I once heard which said something to the effect of a Bible on a shelf being a waste.

Anyway, the Bible Foundation is having an October Bible drive. All of the Bibles are then donated all over the world to hospitals, nursing homes, inner city churches & ministries, rescue missions, ship ministries, prisons & jails, homeless shelters, street ministries, ethnic neighborhoods, migrant camps, individual ministries, remote villages around the world, homes, schools, bus stations, railway stations, small churches, halls and open air meetings, and refugee camps.

Here is the closest collection location:

BETHEL WORLD OUTREACH MINISTRIES INT'L
8252 Georgia Ave.
Silver Spring, MD 20910
(301) 588-8099 x207
www.bwochurch.org
Open 10 - 7 P.M., Tues - Fri.

adoption.

This keeps on popping up everywhere for me. Over the weekend, I reunited with a good friend who shared her heart to one day adopt babies from all over the world. Last week, I read a book(which I absolutely love) to my kids. It basically has the same theme:


This is the sweetest story about what a mom is really about...regardless of whether the child is yours biologically or not. I'm nearly brought to tears reading it, and I'm not even a mother! I'm reminded of my very simple thinking when I was little and first learned about adoption. I remember thinking, "Why doesn't everyone just adopt? It doesn't make sense to keep having children when so many kids are already without families..." It's not so easy...but something to pray about, for sure.

scc

For some reason, these days I've been watching and reading a lot about the Chapman family. I've always found Steven Curtis Chapman's songs to be really catchy (e.g. Let Us Pray, Yours, etc.) and I grew in such respect for him and his entire family after the release of his love album dedicated to his wife of 25 years. They have 3 biological children and adopted 3 little girls from China, and their lives are an amazing, amazing testimony of the love of Christ.

Last May, there was a tragic accident in which their youngest daughter, Maria Sue, was struck by a car (with her older brother behind the wheel) and she passed away. I remember hearing about it and not even being able to comprehend the hurt and pain the family must have been experiencing... it was painful even hearing the news of a family I've never even met before. And I wondered, how would they cope?

From recently stumbling upon and reading their blogs and watching their family interview on Larry King Live (thanks, youtube), I see God's grace all the more abounding in their lives. I am so encouraged and inspired by their faith in His goodness, even through tragedy and pain. And surely, He is good.


I want to adopt.

hmm...

i never thought I'd see the day where furniture would excite me so much. i think (i THINK) this may mean that i'm finally growing up??

it's official.

i have a severe addiction to hershey's kisses... (what can you expect, really, from a PA girl?)

Walk in Love

What a good verse!

NASB: Ephesians 5:1-2
¹Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; ²and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.

Thanks to Grace & Haiku for this tangible reminder :)

mahnill

Ewww. My hands are so garlicky right now. I tried the stainless steel "trick," but to no avail. They should make stainless steel gloves for cooking with garlic...

We bought and assembled the TV stand today. And by "we," I mean Mr.A, with the exception of about 4 screws and 10 nails, which I did with glee. The TV is ridiculously and unnecessarily big, but hopefully will be used for good purposes.

One thing we are praying about this house is that it will be completely His. Individuals and ministries can be His...so why not houses? [I am reminded of a memory verse from camp, lightyears ago: The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it -Psalm 24:1 ]

There are countless stories (from when we were making a bid on the house to when we finally closed) that all reveal God's goodness, provision and favor on us...it's undeniable. We want to give it back to Him...kind of like an Isaac sacrifice. There is so much hope within these 4 walls. I don't want to get in the way!

blogblogblog

For some reason, I feel compelled to update my blog, though I have absolutely nothing to write about.

I miss blogging. (RIP my xanga. I was in denial for awhile, but I'm pretty sure it's dead now.) Anyway- blogging. There's such freedom in dumping out the contents of your brain into written form. You have to let yourself be somewhat vulnerable and transparent to blog, though, which probably is what keeps me from updating too frequently.

I only have 1 day and a weekend left of my summer...it is sad to know I won't get to laze about the house and leisurely cook whatever I want, whenever I want anymore. It's sad that my day-to-day stressors will no longer be limited to tiny decisions like Do I want Corn Pops or Cheerios for breakfast? or Should I read a book now or post photos on Facebook?

But in a way, there's something in me that craves structure and loves the thought of going back to a daily schedule, and most of all, a classroom of six year olds. I'm so glad I get to continue teaching firsties this year! :)

Enough blogging. The front yard beckons...must clip hedges before they threaten to take over the entire yard!

it's been ages...

...and so much has happened.

i sense the beginning of many fresh beginnings.

so good!