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I am very fortunate to be able to take school off for a few quarters because of Z. It enables me to discover many things that I'm interested in, though at the same time, I can barely start one thing without having to attend to Z. I can have a strong urge to make a sundress for her one afternoon, but won't even finish measuring and cutting the fabrics by the same night. It doesn't make me want to complain, after all I got this long break because of her :) It gives me opportunity to think about the old hobbies I used to enjoy doing, and find out new ones. A couple things on my list: sewing, cooking, baking, crafts, writing/journaling, yoga, and morning devotion. I know, half of my list is very gender stereotypical, but to me, it's fairly new and surprisingly enjoyable.

I've always loved sewing. I loved playing with fabrics when I was a little girl. I made all sorts of stuff...but stuffed animals are the only thing I remember now. (I'll never forget the days in the fabric store with my dad - how excited I was, and how he patiently looked around with me and graciously offered his opinion on the fabrics I liked.) Now that I'm at home with our babygirl and supposed to have "more time," Gary encouraged me to buy a sewing machine. It's one of the fanciest machines I have, and also one of the easiest to operate.


These are the two main things I've tried sewing. One is a sack-like summer top, and one is a tote bag, good for grocery shopping. They turn out alright, though "suei bien" is I...I really should care more about whether my seam is straight enough.

Another thing I want to talk about is cooking. It is one of those things that I never thought about or had to do until I moved to America. Also, until I got married. Learning how certain meat and vegetable combinations create flavors that I'm so familiar with is a lot of fun. And it's encouraging when people appreciate my effort and are willing to be guinea pigs. However, cooking for another person/a family is sort of a struggle for me. Guessing which dishes my husband is in the mood for is especially difficult when my recipe collection (and skills) is quite limited. Gary and I are both laid-back people about eating/food. Maybe too laid-back. We don't really have a sit-down-it's-time-for-dinner type of routine; we have cereal for dinner when we feel like it. Or chips. I've realized it's kind of a bad thing...and want to start a daily family time at the dining table in our home. It's good motivation for me to stop being a bum on the couch and get busy in the kitchen, too :)

Oh, and some recent updates: We are moving into Gary's childhood home in Northgate area at the end of this June. Home renovation is what we discuss and think about these days...we've been looking for materials and colors we want for kitchen cabinets, countertops, and flooring; paint colors for the living room, kitchen, and the bedrooms. Mmm, there are actually a lot more work than what I just mentioned, but I shouldn't bore the few of you who read my blog by listing it all. :) It will be a pretty stressful, major renovation, but we are excited!


We visited IKEA last Thursday to look at some kitchen layouts for some ideas. Gary was hard at work, I was being playful (he got mad by the way; but I was really paying attention at the same time!)

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Thanks to Connie's reminder - I totally forgot to mention the useful 3D model Gary made of our future home! I somehow found it online but had no idea how to work the program and get inside of the house. So I can only offer this picture (and I had to look up how to take a screenshot on Mac. How embarrassing)