happy birthday to me

When I turned 34, my birthday wish was to become a mom. Last Friday, that wish came true. God blessed us with a beautiful daughter.

While I was nursing her in the wee hours of my 35th birthday, I spent some time praying for her and my husband. We are trying to figure out how to strategize his career-- namely where he should pursue his graduate degree in philosophy and how to pay for his studies, especially with a new addition in the family.

Yesterday, he came home to say that he had his quarterly review at work that day. His supervisors not only put in a recommendation for a raise, but a higher raise than normally given at the quarterly review. They also set up a meeting with the plant manager to discuss possible ways to offer a scholarship for his studies. Nothing is guaranteed, of course, but the news was a wonderful answer to prayer.

I happened to be reading about the life of Joseph that morning, and it struck me that while he had a "lucky break" in interpreting the dreams of the cupbearer and baker, any "strategizing" on his part was really nothing next to God's unfolding sovereign plan for his life and the salvation of his family and an entire nation.

We may not know how to get where we think we want to go, but God will direct us each step of the way.

year-end thanksgiving

It's been a few months since I wrote the last post. I don't want to end the year on that note, because God has provided for and blessed us in so many ways...

• My husband loved his first semester of school. It's hard to share him with the books, but I'm so glad that he has found something that he thrives on.
• God has blessed the company where he's now working, so he's put in a bit of overtime. 
• At his quarterly evaluation, his supervisor told him that he would put in a word for a small raise. It's not much, but a raise is a raise-- and we were not expecting it.
• His company also offers a health initiative which offers a bonus for maintaining a certain degree of physical health each quarter. He passed with flying colors-- and a nice check to show for it.
• God provided some much-needed furniture for the baby at half the retail cost.
• A kind woman at church blessed me with an unexpected gift specifically to purchase maternity clothing. 

I could go on... God's grace has no limits. We are so very grateful for all His blessings to us. Happy New Year, everyone!

cold, hard numbers

Nothing quite like doing finances to give oneself a dose of reality-- kind of like a slap (or two) in the face.

That's what I did last week. After sorting through receipts and bills for the past few months, I came face to face with the cold, hard numbers that we were spending more than we were making.

Granted, it included large expenses such as traveling overseas to my grandfather's funeral and my husband's college tuition. But with this being just the beginning of his academic pursuits and with a baby on the way, my mind began to spin, wondering how long it would be before we exhaust our savings going down this road.

This morning, our pastor preached on the story of Abraham offering Isaac to the Lord (Genesis 22). I don't know how many times I've read this story, but this time I was faced with a cold, hard number of a different kind. Abraham had one son-- that one represented the culmination of everything God had promised him and everything God had given him in life. God also has one Son-- and He gave up that Son for a world that still can't comprehend His sacrifice.

It doesn't make sense for my husband to be pursuing another degree on a lower salary while we're preparing to have a baby... but it didn't make sense for Abraham to offer Isaac as an offering to God either. We know God led my husband back to school, and we know that this child is a gift from Him. I don't know how we'll pay for it all, but I can still learn to be supportive (and thrifty) now.

And someday, I'll look back and see how God took care of those cold, hard numbers one day at a time.
_____________________

"The dearest I have known, whate'er that may be
Help me to tear it from Thy throne and worship only Thee."
-- William Cooper

back in the saddle... soon

I sent my husband off to university for the first time this week. When I asked him how it went, he replied, "Not too intensive, actually." That was before his metaphysics class and before he had to stay up till 3:45 AM finishing the assignments he missed while we were out-of-town.

We're back after two very full months away-- my sister's wedding in New York; a summer conference for international students in Oklahoma, Michigan, and Chicago; a family vacation in Montana, and my grandfather's funeral in Taiwan. This week, we're enjoying our unemployment status as a much-needed break from the hectic pace of the summer.

Next week, in addition to classes, my husband returns to work and I will as well. Our exchange student has decided not to return to the US, so I'll be shipping or selling his belongings and figuring out how to set up the baby room. But that can wait till next week. In the meantime, I'll enjoy the break while it lasts.

moving on...

Today was my husband's last day of work. This summer, we'll be hosting a conference for international students, so he had to take a long leave of absence. Before he left, his supervisor gave him his cell phone number and told him to call when he was ready to work again.

Yesterday, we received an acceptance letter from a local university. My husband would like to start graduate studies in philosophy, but because he doesn't have that in his bachelor's or master's, he needs to take a few undergrad courses first.

As for me, well, today marks eight weeks. Yes, we're going to be parents!!

weathering our first tornado

"Smells like a tornado."

I looked incredulously at my friend, but she was right. That afternoon, the tornado sirens went off as I was preparing for dinner, so we tuned into the local radio station.

The next hour felt like an eternity. We listened anxiously as tornado after tornado developed around the greater Oklahoma City area. I glanced up nervously at our skylights while I finished chopping lettuce and green onions, realizing that this beautiful blessing made me particularly vulnerable in the kitchen. We went through the house gathering emergency supplies, squeezed into our little laundry room, and shut the door.

Being a relatively new Okie, I felt fear rising in my heart. A tornado had ripped through our neighborhood before—and it could very well happen again.

Rumor has it that over 20 tornadoes developed throughout Oklahoma state that evening. While God chose to protect us and our skylights, other families are picking up debris from their demolished homes. Does that mean God loves us more?

No. This experience reminded me a lot of the days leading up to my husband's layoff. We heard rumblings of it, but we weren't quite sure who it would hit. That time, it was us.

Even though it one of the hardest trials we've faced as a couple, now in retrospect, we thank God for it. God allowed that "tornado" to hit us to help us reevaluate our purpose as individuals and our direction as a family. And we're still praying. Turning in the right direction is only the beginning.

early mornings and sore muscles

So a week and a half into the new job means...

Getting up at 5AM is becoming a normal-- albeit not yet comfortable-- part of life.

Figuring out two work schedules with one car. (Good thing our exchange student can now ride his motorcycle to school!) My boss gave me a key to the office, so that I can check in with security and go to work at 6:15. Problem is, I went to the bathroom one morning and forgot that my keycard wouldn't work until 7:00, so I had to find a way to climb over the receptionist's desk to get back into our office.

Packing lunch and snack again. I confess I didn't miss this part when my husband wasn't working. But now, because his job is so physical, I not only need to pack him a lunch but also a morning and afternoon snack for break time.

Dropping him off and picking him up at work when I need to use the car during the day.

Having him home for more of the afternoon, because he gets off between 3-4 PM. We like this part of the job.

Doing more laundry, because his clothes get greasy and sweaty from assembling oil valves.

Structuring our lives around his work schedule because it is very taboo to be late. (I was so worried about this that I dreamt that I dreamt that we had overslept-- yes, that means I woke up "twice" thinking he was late to work-- all in the same night!)

Making tentative weekend plans, because he may have to work on Saturday. (There are 3 out-of-town weddings we'd like to attend this month...)

Feeling exhausted throughout the day as we learn to go to bed earlier...

Changes-- yes. But it's been good. We are grateful for this job and the opportunity he has to be part of industrial America.