Q & C : Life's Latest

Different expressions of Emmett

2011-05-30T21:18:00.000-07:00

I got this driver cap on sale for $3! He looks so adorable in it!!! I love Emmett's different expressions on his chubby face. Only 5 months old, he already has so much personality.

Happy Morning

2011-05-30T16:38:00.000-07:00

Here's a video of Emmett laughing this morning. I am going through the camera and will be posting some older pictures and videos soon.

Emmett Digs His Name

2011-04-19T22:41:00.000-07:00

Either Emmett really likes his name or he thinks his name is really funny.

Work and more

2011-04-08T21:01:00.001-07:00

I started my new job about 2 weeks ago. It's a smaller clinic (2 providers including myself). It has been a bit stressful, adjusting to the new job and being away from my precious little guy. He's changing so much, and I feel like I'd miss everything. When I was at home, not working, I was feeling so guilty for not being able to provide for our baby. And now I feel guilty being away (and leaving the baby!) most days of the week. It must be part of the mom syndrome! I hope like most things, a routine will form and I will get used to it. Since it's a smaller operation, I don't yet have a medical assistant. Which means, I room my own patients, take vitals, and draw blood as well. I haven't done that in years! All the while, speaking medical Vietnamese! But with practice, everything is getting easier. I successfully drew blood on everyone this past week, and I'm learning all these new Vietnamese words: pancreas, thyroid, prostate... Needless to say, there are more awkward moments, but I find that the Vietnamese patients are more.. um.. patient with me. But once Adventist Health takes over this clinic, there will be more resources and support available. I'm grateful for the organization and their flexibility. So I just have to remember to be flexible myself, at the moment.
Baby Emmett laughs, sits up, and tries to roll over now. He's in 6-9 months clothes. And he sleeps through the night! He didn't seem to have much problem with transition to being with a nanny instead of mom and dad all day- with the exception of sleep schedules at the moment. But we're working on that. Being a mom really do test my patience and tendency to have high expectation. He's a champ though. I thank God everyday for blessing us and entrusting us with him.

Laughing at Q's office
Sitting up in the Bumbo
Nice and warm for a walk

Emmett Having Fun with Aunty Tina

2011-03-18T23:13:00.000-07:00

Emmett at 12 weeks enjoying time with aunt Tina.

Dr. Seuss

2011-03-17T14:05:00.000-07:00

Story time fun with Daddy.

Emmett

2011-03-16T20:39:00.000-07:00

Our baby boy is 12 weeks old today. Life is completely different, interesting, exciting and exhausting since he arrived. He's gaining plenty of weight and we're sleeping training at the moment. In the last week, Emmett has slept through the night (meaning 5-6 hours stretch)! There is still one fussy period at around 9 pm but we can deal with that. Looking at him, I really can't believe that he's ours. What a blessing and miracle he is! God is so good to us.

On Advent

2010-12-05T15:06:00.000-08:00

I (Chau), think I understand the meaning of the advent season a lot more this year. For generations, the Israelites have been waiting for the Promise, the Messiah, the Christ, who will deliver them. The anticipation and the stories of their past are repeatedly told at each family gathering, at meals. They are reminded time and time again that the Lord is coming. And when He's here, all will be well again. That is the reason why the angels sing and Mary called herself blessed.

We are also celebrating advent of another kind. I'm 38 3/7 weeks pregnant today. The little guy is technically cooked, mature and full term. We are just waiting for his arrival. The anticipation has me tickled with excitement and apprehensive with the unknown of it all.

This is the 4th year that we are participating in Advent Conspiracy. We are trying to be more purposeful with our resources. Instead of getting caught up in consumerism that occurs around this season, we are joining our church in using that money in a more meaningful way: building wells in 3rd world countries, serving Portland, Kosovo, and Haiti.

Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you find much joy during this advent season.

Rachel's Baby Shower

2010-09-25T19:26:00.001-07:00

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice. That's What Little Girls are Made of.

I had the pleasure of throwing my friend Rachel, her baby shower today. Rache's baby girl is 3 weeks ahead of my little peanut. We are so excited for her arrival!!
It has been a while since I did anything crafty, so it was such a blast doing it. The theme was sugar and spice (and everything nice). Therefore, the focus was more on the desserts. But the sandwiches from Meat Cheese Bread were a hit too! I had to thank my patient husband who put up with my insane, detail oriented, OCD craziness at and while planning for this party. I really hope everyone enjoyed themselves as much as I did. Here are a few pictures, recapping the event.

The inspiration- the cutest cake ever!
My friend Krista (who's a pastry chef) did most of the baked goods shown here. Call me if you want her information.

The top was red velvet and the bottom chocolate. The shoes were made from cupcakes and icing. Adorable!

Onsies sugar cookies, lemon cupcakes and chocolate covered strawberries. There were buttered short bread cookies too, but I forgot to take that picture.
Strawberry, 2%, and chocolate milk
We also served Izze sodas and store bought Italian sodas from World Market.
I made little place cards and signs to coordinate with the pink and chocolate theme.
Home made garland
Savory foods were ordered from Meat Cheese Bread in Portland. Gotta thank Q. for picking them up.
Husbands hanging out
Checking out the food table

General goofiness and chit chatting. I realized by running around, I didn't get a chance to take any real portraits of the guests or of Rachel herself, aside from the top goofy picture. Sorry Rach!
Rachel's mom practicing with baby Ethan while waiting for Lilly.

Congratulations you guys!! It was really fun putting all this together. Quoc and I are really excited to meet her. Can't wait for our babies to have play dates!

Oh and here's a random picture of my sister, who visited last week and helped me make some of the decorations. Thanks, sissy.

Big News

2010-07-28T15:58:00.001-07:00

Where did the time go? Summer is almost over! If you haven't heard, we're pregnant! We're 20 weeks today. We went for our anatomy survey/ultrasound today. I was holding my breath, as the ultrasonographer scan over his nuchal fold, heart, lips, looking for abnormalities along with him. Everything is normal and great, thank God. I'm just paranoid for nothing. Ah.. the trouble of knowing too much. And oh yes, it's a boy! We're uber excited. I'm feeling kicks and movements- it does feel like there is an alien inside me... odd and wonderful at the same time.
Things we did this summer so far: picked berries- a PNW tradition, entertained families of both sides, went to Maui for a conference/vacation and of course lots of hiking. Here are some pictures.

I guess we didn't take that many pictures when the Les were here. Above were just some of the better ones from Sunriver, OR. It was a beautiful house and we had great weather while staying there. Aren't the babies cute?
Snorkeling in Maui with Mom. Well, I snorkeled. Mom waddled in the water.
Here's all of us at the Old Lahaina Luau. More pictures on Facebook. Do you even see my bump?

We hope to do more fun things before summer ends. It's so beautiful here this time of year. We also did several hikes but we didn't bring the camera most of the time. Here's a picture of the latest addition- our little guy...

Profile picture with the umbilical cord right at his mouth- looks like he's blowing a big bubble.

Empanadas

2010-05-13T18:04:00.000-07:00

Hispanic food is one that I have hard time mastering. I've always loved empanadas when offered at restaurants, so I decided to ask my friend Anita to teach me one of her mom's recipes. Here's us making Chilean beef empanadas one Saturday afternoon in my fabulous kitchen :)
The dough is made up of all purpose flour (6 cups), butter (3/4 cup), salt (1 tsp), approx 1 cup of boiling water (adjusted to dough consistency similar to pizza dough). Using a wooden spoon, roughly mix altogether.

Knead and rolled out thinly- as much as you can.

Filling consists of 1 lb lean ground beef, 1 medium chopped onion, seasoned with 1 tsp of cumin, 1 tsp of paprika, 1 tsp. cayenne pepper (for extra kick), and salt, pepper to taste. Cook this on stove top with a few tbsp of olive oil. We also had raisins and pieces of hard boiled eggs before folding the dough.
Cut with a pizza cutter in half moons, making sure the edges stick (apply water around the edges and press down). Deep fry.

Anita among the yummy goodness. Thanks for sharing, lady! Your mom must be so proud. Maybe next time, I'll venture to make arepas... or just stick to tacos and burritos...

House updates & more

2010-03-08T21:40:00.000-08:00

It started with a sink I saw on overstock.com on sale. Then before we know it, we're chiseling out the old, dirty and ruined marble tiles, brass hardware, stained sink and replacing practically the whole thing. Props to Quoc for doing most of hard work. I picked the replacement pieces and painted though. It was a team effort. We're really happy with the result. Below are some before and after pictures.

Before

After

I haven't put up a lot of food pictures lately, but I have been cooking- promise. But I want to share a picture of a meal that Quoc made for Valentine's day. Grilled lobster with lemon and chives glaze, broiled fresh asparagus, orzo and garden salad drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette. He doesn't cook often, but usually goes all out when he does. We paired it with Chilean Santa Rita Camenere. Yum! That was a good meal. Coffee ice cream- my favorite- was the dessert.

And here's one of mine- pan-seared salmon with capers, grape tomatoes vinaigrette.

I also recently went to visit my friend Kim in Phoenix, and had so much fun taking care of her 6 week-old baby girl. Here's Isabella Faith Mah. Isn't she precious?

And here are some random hiking pictures @ Angel's Rest and Hoyt Arboretum

Haiti

2010-01-13T19:48:00.000-08:00

Devastating news about Haiti yesterday onto today...

10 miles outside of Port au Prince, the capital of Haiti, an earthquake of 7.0 magnitude hit, crumpling much of the city's buildings and structures, leaving thousands dead, wounded, and without shelter, food or medical care.

I watched the pictures in horror, fighting back tears the whole time, wishing I can be there among the volunteers, instead of here. My clinic day just became futile; patients' complaints felt irrelevant. Good news (small but made a huge difference) came about mid day. Pastor Delamy, who is our Haitian compassionate leader and gentle minister and his family are safe. Communication are still erratic. I can imagine- it wasn't great before the disaster hit. I can't imagine what it must be for the volunteers, for my dear friends, Joe and Linda, who will be flying there tomorrow night.

Haiti is a country of trials. Its people has been through slavery, wars, conflicts, internal and external, robbed of a normal way of life, surviving on foreign aid as its government seems to be helpless and/or dysfunctional. When I was there in March, I saw need- so much need. How much more can a nation of people handle?

However, I must believe that God is still in control. That He alone holds the future, ours, and my friends, the people of Haiti, as He has always been a faithful, good, and loving God. I can only hope that there is good in all of this.. chaos, destruction and turmoil. All I can do now is pray, since I can't be down there, for peace, safety and for my own sanity.

If you want to donate money, please go to medical team international's website.

From Chau's 2009 Haiti Trip

New beginnings

2009-12-31T11:36:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

We've officially moved in for approximately 1 week now. I unpacked the last box today!! It has been quite a flurry of activities- mostly just boring unpacking and organizing. It has been tremendously helpful to have my sister here, visiting. She's proven surprisingly, to be quite useful! :) She's always been "lil sis" to me (as she is 5 years younger), and it's a joy to finally see her grown into her own self. And more than ever, we can share more of ourselves equally. We painted Quoc's entertainment room from peach to warm nutmeg.

Furniture are still lacking, but it's finally starting to feel like home. My favorite part of the house is the kitchen. The previous owner was a part time caterer, so I'm in cooking heaven! We eventually will put in a hood over the gas stove, as most Asian recipes require high heat. As things are organized, I will put more pictures up. Here's just a preview of my beloved kitchen.

Sorry the lighting is poor.

During my sister's stay, we had the first snow fall. She of course, was ecstatic! We had to run outside to do a photoshoot in front of the new house. It was loads of fun, and the neighborhood looks beautiful in the snow.

And here's another few of us trying cross country skiing in Sun River during Thanksgiving. It was a lot of fun as the snow/conditions were perfect, and I think we found our new snow sport!

We did not have much of a Christmas this year. Mainly, it's because of the move, and lack of decorations. Our official move in date was the 20th, and with boxes laying around for the duration, we did not have the energy to find garlands, tinsels and ornaments, let alone go chop down our tree. We did squeeze time in to get some Christmas cards, but did not have time to send all of them out. So we're sorry if you're getting yours after New Year.

Until next time. Have a safe and fun New Year celebration! Think of us as we probably will be cleaning and organizing...

Obsessions

2009-11-17T13:52:00.001-08:00

Last week, I picked up the Twilight Saga from a friend, and devoured all 4 books in 5 short days. I surprised myself- shocked(!) that the hysteria that swept all readers of Stephenie Meyer's series applied to me too. So several thoughts, as I pondered why....

1. Romance: the books centered around this passionate, deep, intense, impossible love story that rings true and relates to a profound desire that most women have- to be wanted and loved completely (shown between Edward and Bella). Apparently, I am one of those women. It's fantasy, true, but is it a crime to wish, and long to be known in that way?

2. Hobby: reading used to be one of my favorite pastimes. Ever since I was little, I'd go through volumes of books, magazines, journals in my free time, escaping and dreaming, sneaking books to bed, reading late into the night by the hallway's light so my mom would not know that I'm still awake. I remember, in college, people who visited my bookshelf would ask if I'm a lit/English major. Medical school and residency interrupted that and other hobbies, replacing it with medical journal reading and studying. I'd feel guilty if I pick up a nonfiction instead of JAMA (Journal of American Medical Association). So there was a hiatus of 7 or so years- how did I do that? Hmph! Therefore, I assume when I picked up this series, I was making up for lost time.

3. Obsessions: I never thought of myself as the obsessive type; however, I must have some OCD trait to be (and survive) in my profession. Because I read continually with such..er.. ferocity last week, the characters were very real to me. I thought about them as real persons (props to Meyer for excellent character development), and continued to analyze about their reactions if such and such was to happen. Was it just this series? No...it happened before, in a subtler way. I remember reading all of John Irving books starting with A Prayer for Owen Meany to The Fourth Hand in a span of a few months. And there was my first favorites- The Bronte sisters, and Shakespeare plays and Hemingway's complete work. Hm... there is a pattern! Are all obsessions bad? Should I allow myself this one OCD trait? Until the next book... I'm taking suggestions :)

On another note, we are moving forward with buying a house in Washington. If every goes smoothly, we will be in the new house before Christmas! Will post pictures when we move in.

New endeavours

2009-11-03T16:47:00.001-08:00

Today, I went to New Heights Clinic for orientation. It's been 3 years since I worked here last. Then, as a resident, and now, as the nurses say, a real doctor! The clinic is sponsored by New Heights church and staffed with Christian volunteers. And I'm proud to say that I'm their newest member. It serves the uninsured of Clark County and even Portlanders as well. I'll be spending Tuesday mornings there- excited to see how God will work through me.

A pot of Bun Bo Hue (Hue-Style Spicy Beef Noodles) is simmering downstairs, but I don't think we'll be eating it tonight, since I started it too late. Instead we'll be eating leftovers from my Ca Ri Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Curry) and Tom Rang Muoi (Shrimp fried with salt) that I made earlier today, which was excellent, btw. See picture below.

On another note, I met the instructor of my Spin class today. She called me "kiddo". Really? Hmph... don't really want to start wearing makeup to the gym! Guess I should enjoy it while it lasts.

Angel's Rest and Oregon's Fall

2009-10-26T20:13:00.001-07:00

On Saturday, the sun was out, and it was dry all day. We took that opportunity to try a new hike. Angel's Rest is so close to town, and had amazing colors. It's now one of my favorite hike. It was so pretty that I hardly noticed that it was uphill all the way!

Leaves-lined path
Creek & mini waterfall
Shiny/sweating on the way up. The mighty Columbia in the background.

Crock-pot #2

2009-10-20T22:57:00.001-07:00

Chicken tortilla soup (sans tortilla) was excellent today. This is giving me great hope that this crock pot thing is going to work out! Maybe I just had bad recipes in the years before. Forgot to take a picture before dinner so there's none to post. Sorry. It tasted really authentic even without cilantro (ran out and the ones in the herb garden died/burned when it was too hot last month), avocado (left out on the counter too long) or sour cream (didn't buy) or tortilla (cutting down on carbs). Imagine what it could be with all the fixings! Thanks Sherri for the recipe.

Tried spinning (gym resistance biking) today and it was a great work out! Note to Julie- this will be something I'm doing for exercising in the winter. I'm embarrassed to say that at one point, I even got slightly light-headed. Maybe because I didn't eat much for breakfast. Will change that next time. I'm just excited to find something active that I'll enjoy throughout the gray season.

My goal this week is James 3:9-10. It seems like I need a daily reminder. Until next time.

Tuesday once more

2009-10-13T16:02:00.000-07:00

The weather suddenly got cold and rainy almost over night. We pulled out our down comforter, sweaters and wool socks (I know, I go a bit overboard sometimes). Fall always remind me of stew or something simmering all day. So, braving that world once again, I took out the crock pot. Now you may think that crock pot-ing is easy, cheater way to cook. But for me, I've always managed to burn, ruin and destroy all recipes tried, no matter how fool-proofed the authors/reviews say. Well, I really only tried twice but failed both times. Got discouraged and stowed the crock pot away for good. Now what possessed me to try it again? Maybe the thought of cooking after a long 8 hours of work is tiring or just wanting fall comfort food. I'm trying my hands at pulled pork! 4 out of 8 hours into the process and no burnt smell yet. I'm crossing my fingers. If it works, I may try to chicken tortilla soup next time. In the meantime, I made Vietnamese Lotus Stem Salad with Chicken to hold myself over. Plus, it's pretty to look at and yummy to eat!

Today's Dinner

2009-10-07T19:10:00.001-07:00

Tortilla Espanola with aioli. Easy and delicious!

Tuesdays in the Kitchen

2009-10-06T16:33:00.000-07:00

As you may know, I have Tuesdays off. In the past month or so, I've used this time to catch up on sleep, run errands, go to the dentists, etc. Now that all major chores that require daytime, working hour presence are done, I find myself looking for a meaningful project. And since we're selling the house, I can make too big of a mess on crafts, etc. Two weeks ago, I wandered onto a Holy Basil food blog and now am hooked. Christine (the author) is a brilliant cook (chef? I'm not sure if she is a chef by profession). I'm overjoyed to find recipes such as Bo Kho (Vietnamese beef stew), Ca Kho To (catfish in caramel stew sauce), Bun Bo Hue, and various goi (Vietnamese salads). For so long, I've tried to replicate my mom's cooking but never could. You see, my mom, like most moms, don't measure. Tough luck for me.

So the project: to make something yummy every Tuesday, preferably Vietnamese food- to get back to my roots, to get to know and cook the food of my childhood, of which my husband craves for. No doubt, there will probably be an occasional Italian or American dish because to me, they're easier to make. And I will try to post pictures of the dishes. So far, I've made Pho and Ca Kho To in the last two Tuesdays. (No pictures, sorry. The project wasn't realized at the time.) And today, I made this- Cucumber Salad with Shrimp and Shredded Chicken.

Yum!

October

2009-10-01T14:51:00.001-07:00

October? Already? Where did the summer go?

I'm settling into the new clinic. Routine is good, I think. Patient panel building is slow, but I'm making progress I think. One of the best things about this so far, is that I can do as much OMT (osteopathic manipulative treatment) as I want. I need to keep it up to retain the skill. The organization is being very supportive and even getting me a new OMT counterstrain table in the new year!

We're moving to the 'Couv (Vancouver, WA- for out of state readers). Sad, but true. My job is in Battle Ground, and it simply makes more sense to us. Our current house is on the market and we hope to move in the winter. We'll still continue to go to the same church and do the things we love in Portland. After all, it's only 10-15 mins away!

Pulling out my sweater from the winter clothes box this morning, I'm reminded that fall is here. Although I love fall and fall colors, I'm reminded that we need to be stratigizing for ways to be active in the upcoming colder months. Sadly, we may have to put our mountain bikes away soon, and go back to the gym. I may take up swimming. There's always P90x, but we like to be outside, and will probably miss summer a lot. Would love your suggestions.

Johnny & Kelly's Wedding

2009-09-29T19:13:00.000-07:00

We went to San Diego to attend one of Quoc's oldest friend- Johnny's wedding. It was in La Jolla and the weather was perfect. So much fun catching up with friends we haven't seen in a while. Everyone seems to be attached (finally!) or pregnant or more children. Time certainly flies by quickly; I feel so old hearing stories about kids we knew now in college and dating! We stayed at Quoc's brother's apartment, which gave us all a chance to catch up-- trying to convince them to move to Portland, as they would fit in and love it here. The weekend was full of good food, friends and family. We visited some old favorites as well as new ones to eat. I certainly had my share of yummy carbs, so I have to work hard this week to burn it off!

Here comes Kelly (the bride)
Sand ceremony
The kiss
Friends

And here's one of baby Florence.

Vashon Island

2009-09-29T18:09:00.000-07:00

Over Labor Day weekend, we went to Vashon Island with the Sherwood Les and Sterretts for a bit of R & R. The house we rented was right on the water, and we had gorgeous view of the Sound from the big windows in the living room. My favorite part was the pool and ping pong table, where we had several Les vs. Les challenges- so much fun that we must have space for one in the next house. Outside the house grew several apples and plum trees as well as multitudes of blackberry bushes. We picked enough fruits for ice cream and homemade pies. On Saturday, my sister-in-law cajoled me into a 3 hour walk with her (she's training for the Portland marathon this weekend). Oh man, I was sore for the rest of the weekend. Here are some fun pictures of the kiddos.

Just cute as a button

Drew in the kayak, soaking wet from throwing rocks into the water.

Hey! stop taking so many pictures of me, co Chau! :)
Le brothers kayaking

I like this picture of Mr. Sterrett hard at work.

4 Day Work Week

2009-09-01T22:44:00.000-07:00

Really? You want my opinion? My thoughts on processes, how I'd like things done? You want to pay me how much to work less than I've been working for the last 3 years? And 4 day work week? Is this real life? Lord, You are so good to me.

I have nothing to complain about lately... so refreshing! Current situation is just too sweet. I feel I can finally breathe, take it easy, do things my way. Clinic is slow but good and necessary for starters, and I feel like we're in transition again, but this time, it's a good one.

With a bit more free time now, I've been able to be more active, more frequently, as an effort to shed some poundage gained from the aforementioned gelato binge in Europe. It's working, slowly, with the combination of eating better, P90X, mountain biking, tennis and gym- good old fashion way.

This weekend, we're heading to Vashon Island in the Puget Sound near Seattle with the Sherwood Les and Sterrett. Will hope to have amazing weather and pictures to share!

Counting my blessing...

Roma

2009-08-25T10:22:00.001-07:00

Our hotel (Hotel Gerber) was in a quiet residential neighborhood just outside of the Vatican city... so nice and modern with free internet access that we took refuge here often for longer than other cities.
Rome is to us a sprawling city, a mix of the ancient and new. And I marvel at how the locals just blend perfectly while living in both. It's incredible how old it is! We went from the Colosseum to the Roman Forum, imagining what it was like to be in the Senate and invited to Caesar's house for dinner.
The Vatican Museum and St. Peter's Basilica was even more grand than I've imagined from reading/studying in the past. The pope was in his summer's residence; perhaps that explained why our line was not long, but the crowd through the museum was still massive. At the infamous Sistine Chapel, we stood elbow to elbow with likely a hundred other tourists, snapping illegal pictures of the ceiling. The poor Italian guard just gave up, knowing that people will just take pictures anyway, and it was a humongous crowd.
We love the night walk through Rome among the locals. From the pizza of the people to the Spanish steps, Rome really came alive at night- full of artists, entertainers, musicians, and local teenagers hanging out and tourists (me) licking gelato through the whole walk. It was here that I heard a German guy play the banjo and singing Sweet Home Alabama. So much fun.
We hopped the intercity train to Orvieto, Umbria, one of he hilltowns of Tuscany. Not like the book, but plenty quaint. Good food, wine and souvenir shopping- perfect day.

Better pictures are on the DSLR and not load-able to Blogger. Sorry.

Cinque Terre

2009-08-19T10:14:00.000-07:00

One of our favorite cities.

We arrived at Vernazza mid morning and climbed lots of stairs to find Monica's rooms up atop the hills, next to her family's restaurant. We immediately felt like part of the family. She was so welcoming, introducing us to her family, walked us through her own house, offered us her boat to use whenever we wanted. Nice!

We hiked the Cinque Terre romantic path starting with Riomaggiore and ended a bit past Vernazza (we didn't have the energy to finish at Monterosso and it was getting late). The views are spectacular along the way. The towns seemed to be teetottle above these incredible cliffs that dropped straight down to rocky beaches, sprinkled with fruit trees, various green bushes, cacti, and grape vines. There were areas where one could jump into the pristine blue and warm water. It was at times a difficult hike, and we were glad that we wore our hiking shoes as I did see many with blisters and band-aids.

We took out Monica's family row boat that afternoon/evening after our hike to get a different view of Vernazza. A bit hesitant at first, but once Quoc was comfortable with the boat outside the harbor, we had lots of fun exploring, but still not too far from shore. We swam in the ocean briefly; the water was pleasantly warm and refreshing.

Dinner was at Monica's family restaurant. She reserved a special table for us, overlooking the ocean, at sunset. We could see Monterosso in the distance, lit up as the sun dropped below the horizon. Great food, perfect ambience. It was one of our best meals.

We were sad to leave Vernazza and its welcoming, warm, hospitable local hosts and its seafood. We definitely will return and stay longer next time. Next stop, Roma!

Vernazza, where we stayed

Florence, Italy

2009-08-16T17:14:00.000-07:00

There was no line for the Academia! We quickly finished our gelato and walked straight in. August is apparently a slow month for tourism here. We couldn't photograph the ginormous and beautiful sculpture, and after several rotations around David, we left for the infamous Mercato. The outdoor market reminds me so much of Vietnam, but in Italian. Stalls and stalls of goods, bargaining is welcomed and the occasional commotion caused by the Italian police chasing down illegal vendors, selling fake Louis Vuilton and Gucci bags. I had fun bargaining here, and we bought some small things, as we have determined to travel with backpacks only, no check-in luggage. However, if I have the opportunity next time, we'd take less things and buy more in Florence!

We skipped the Uffizi museum as we didn't make reservations, but we are pretty done with art for a while, anyway. More gelato, pasta and table wine please. A walk to Ponte Vecchio and around the city in the evening ended our quick stop here. I'd come back I think, but only for the shopping...

Fake David where the real one once stood, as we couldn't photograph the real one legally.

Europe continued

2009-08-14T09:22:00.000-07:00

Venice, Italy

The morning train stopped at what seemed like a dock on a wide river. We didn't sleep well last night on the couchette. Mine sloped towards the left and the French man above me was snoring. However, I was grateful to have mostly slept through the long journey through southern France and saved a night's hotel stay. We stepped out of the train, groggy, but my eyes were once again wide opened with amazement. To watch on TV vs. seeing Venice in person is completely incomparable. Mansions, theatres, museums, houses seemed to float on this winding body of water. It's old, some are even moldy, but so very beautiful.

We hopped on a boat-bus down the Grand Canal and checked into our hotel, a pensione just shy of the Rialto Bridge. Right outside, the mercato has just started, stands of fruits, vegetables, meats and loud chatters (as opposed to from the quieter mutters in France) of Italian rose gaily around me.

The loads of tourists that poured in from neighboring cities and cruise ships got the better of us, especially Quoc. It was thoroughly much too crowded. We skipped the Doge's Palace tour and didn't spend too much time in St. Mark's Square but opted instead to walk the back streets and find eateries, i.e., more gelato for me. We had squid ink pasta for the first time here, and discovered that Venice is more expensive than the parts of France where we've passed. The air-conditioned pensione proved to be more of a refuge than previously imagined.

After dinner, when most of the tourists have left, we took another stroll through the markets near the Rialto Bridge, where I bought a hand made leather journal, pondered about the Venetian glass but decided we couldn't travel very well with it. Around our hotel, a Venetian jazz band was playing - American and Italian songs alike, in front of a waterfront restaurant. People were dancing, licking gelato, drinking wine in the moonlight. We picked a spot near the water and joined in, pretended that we were locals. It was thoroughly romantic. I asked my husband what he thought about Venice now. "Well... you can't ignore all the water." I think he likes it, finally.

Europe Summer Trip Recap Continued

2009-08-13T15:07:00.000-07:00

Beaune, Burgundy Day 5-6

We arrived in Beaune to find it small (compared to Paris!) but quaint and pleasant. The weather was perfect, and streets were filled with more locals than tourists. Wine and all things related to wine seem to be the town's livelihood. We knew we'd like it :) That night, we had one of my best meals (if not the best) of the trip in a Wine Cave (shop). Traditional southern French cuisine, escargot burguignon, beef burguignon and a tasty chocolate tart along with 3 different glasses of the region's red wine. I don't think I've had food like this ever, anywhere else! Quoc had a salad, and their version of the duck confit which he loved. We sat at a communal table, where we met an Australian couple who were extremely good company. The electricity went out momentarily during dinner, and suddenly, the whole restaurant burst into the same French song, as if planned. Later, it was explained to me that it's a well known drinking song, sang whenever someone drops a glass or an accident happens. Curious but fun!

We rented bikes the next morning, based on the recommendation of our guide book. Once again, Rick Steves was right on! The rental guy was a curious fellow, quiet, melancholic sounding but warmed up nicely after we mentioned we like Salvadore Dali. He recommended and drew out our route for wine tasting and got us free admission to the Dali exhibit in one of the vineyards.

Off we went. I had to remind myself that I'm not on my mountain bike. Once out of town, the view was breath-taking. Miles and miles of grape vines with little farm houses dotted the hills. Our route was for bikes only, and we stopped quite often to take pictures. After stopping at the first two vineyards and obtaining a premier cru bottle of Pommard pinot noir, we stopped along a bench to have our picnic. Having forgotten glasses, we drank out of the bottle (no one else seemed to mind), chewed on a freshly made baguette, along with goat and camembert cheeses and pate campagne (country styled liver pate) oh and a leg of chicken. Simple and delicious!

Onto the next town, sweeping views, cool air, and so we obtained another bottle- premier cru chardonnay. And we ran into that pleasant Australian couple again. It was a small town. They too were biking and drinking. Surprise we didn't get into an accident, drinking and biking :)

My friend Anne (an osteopathic physician from Lyon) drove down to meet us for dinner that night. I had frog legs with garlic and parsley- yum, and Quoc had some prawns dish and again good wine.

It was sad to leave Beaune. We were relaxed there, among wine connoisseurs, and where French food was perfected. People are nice and we were out of the self-imposed fast paced sight seeing frenzy. I wish we had more time there. But off we went, onto the only night train out of town. Next stop, Venice, Italy.

Europe Summer Trip Recap

2009-08-12T09:28:00.000-07:00

As I didn't blog as I went along, here's my attempt to remember the details of our trip, with the help of pictures of course.

Paris Day 1-4
On the Roissy-Paris bus connecting CDG and city center at 7 am on Sunday upon arrival, the city was still quiet. The architecture shifts to what's old, foreign but beautiful. As I watched the scenery with my eyes wide opened, I realized it is Sunday and I need to come up with a plan as most businesses are closed.

Paris has one of the most efficient public transportation we've found, esp. the Metro. Our hotel is close to one of the stops and we can get anywhere in the city w/in 15 mins. We discovered Rue Cler neighborhood to be a quiet refuge (although we're only 10 mins walk to the Eiffel Tower) after a long day of sight seeing. Good affordable food among locals and savvy tourists, sampling fusion and very French cuisine, while sipping on house wine by the 1/2 litres- that's what we found ourselves doing most nights in Paris.

Our days were usually filled with sight seeing activities. The Louvre is way too crowded- we should have known as it is summer, peak season. However, I did not expect it too be this much! We breezed (still took 2 hrs) through the Louvre, spent more time at the Picasso, Rodin Museums. We enjoyed our walks through Montmartre, the Left Bank, Historic Paris, the Latin Quarter, the Champs-Elysee, with stops for crepes and pain-au-chocolat along the way. But we especially enjoyed our night time stroll to The Eiffel Tower, waiting for the light display that happens on the hour. There is always a picnic, and someone is playing the guitar. We played with our new lens on the camera and got some good pictures.

A side trip to Versailles was a definite plus. I'm glad we got the Paris Museum Pass as we did get to skip a lot of lines. Strolling through the Palace almost by ourselves as we got there early right when it opened, I imagined what it was like to be a noble person of the court, playing pool with the King :) The gardens to me is even more extravagant than the palace itself. It just keeps on going. We even made a side trip to Marie Antoinette's quarters and tired our little feet out. I highly suggest Keens and Smart Wool socks by the way.

Sorry, the photos we took exceed the allowed size for blogger. So I have to re-size them before uploading. In the meantime, see our Paris pictures on Facebook.

Activities

2009-07-21T09:30:00.000-07:00

We are almost ready to leave for Europe in a few days. I'm tickled with excitement, thinking about seeing those pages in my art, architecture and food books in real life. This trip marks the end of an era, for me. In the past 11 or so years, I've been going and going non-stop. Between undergrad, medical school, then residency plus multiple moves in different cities and states, I look back and realize it's slowing down finally- surreal end and a beginning of a new unknown. But let's not talk about the new job yet. I'm on vacation :)
It has been a flurry of activity, getting ready for the trip. I think I've been to REI and Target too many times in the last week. Also, I got a new lens for our DSLR camera too! Hopefully, we'll get some good pictures in Europe with it.

Since I've been off, we've had time to do some more outdoorsy activities. See the pictures below.

On top of Chinidere Mountain, Mt. Hood in the back
Wahtum Lake (where we camped) from the top

Last week, I went hiking with friends to Tom, Dick and Harry Ridge, where the view was similar to Chinidere Mountain, although the hike up was easier. Beautiful hike- the wild flowers are vibrant and beautiful.

Reflection of Mt. Hood off of Mirror Lake.
Macros on bear grass- shot with my P&S- not bad.

And last weekend, we drove to Vancouver, B.C., Canada, mostly to eat good Chinese food, but ended up seeing a lot more of the city this time. We biked the sea wall of Stanley Park, walked Granville Island, went to Richmond's night market, and crossed over Lynn Canyon suspension bridge to Twin Falls. All the while, eating good food, almost constantly :)

Totem poles
Granville Island Market- better than Pike's Place in Seattle
Music, random goods, and tons of food while rubbing elbows (literally) with hundreds of Asians in one parking lot converted into the Richmond Night Market. Chaotic, must experience in real life sorta thing. Mmm... grilled squids, fried tofu, chicken on a stick, boba, dragon beard candies... Must. go. back.
Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge (free to cross- as opposed to the Capilano one)

Phew! That was a lot of pictures to load. I don't know why I do this all the time- wait a month then blog... more work this way, I realize. Next blog- somewhere in Europe. A bientot!

May & June

2009-06-29T14:42:00.000-07:00

Is anyone still reading this blog? :)

My fault I know.

May- we went to Cannon Beach for a weekend, celebrating our 3 years' anniversary. It was such a fun weekend. We drove to Ecola State Park and hiked down to Crescent Beach. It was a muddy hike with narrow paths, so not a lot of people ventured on it. Therefore, we had the beach almost completely by ourselves. But we didn't know and was unprepared. I wish we had a picnic basket made up since it was such a nice and private place! During dinner, and elderly woman next to us was choking on her food, and I had to perform the Heimlich maneuver on her. My first medical emergency outside of the hospital...

June- Quoc's family came to visit for our cousin's engagement party. It was quite an event, lots of dinners, outings and of course, eating. We went on a few hikes with them. I took some pictures this time.

D&D- The happy couple.
Le family
Lighting makes him look esp. more Asian. The bandages are for the scrapes/burns from biking accident the day before, where he broke his precious smart phone.
Scootch on over...

It is the end of June, marking a huge milestone/chapter in our lives. Residency is over as of tomorrow. I can't believe the day is here. I'll have graduation pictures up when I get them from a friend's camera.

Recap

2009-04-08T10:41:00.001-07:00

Haiti medical mission trip came and went. Most of this blog's readers have gotten a detailed report about the trip. I had an amazing time. But returning home has been an experience as well. I paused and thought of Terre Blanche when I took a hot shower, had a salad, or slept in my warm bed. However, I didn't have much time to think about the trip, except in brief moments when people ask, "How was Haiti?". I had to get back into the swing of things right away. I came back to the OB ward with longer hours and more stress. Haiti and its images had to wait to be pondered upon when free time permits. See slideshow below for some pictures from my camera.

San Diego

2009-03-01T21:56:00.001-08:00

It has been quite a while. Sorry for faithful blogger readers who visit daily (Jen-sorry) that I haven't been updating as often as I should. We can start with the last trip to visit the family in Phoenix and San Diego. Quite a whirlwind of events. I didn't take many pictures in Phx as SD though.

My best bud, Kim and I at a coffee shop in Phx. What happened to my hair that day?
Squinty eyes in the bright sunshine at Mission Beach, SD.
Best fish tacos in San Diego! South Beach Bar and Grill in Ocean Beach. Sorry I took a bite off of it before the picture. Highly recommended. Will come back!
(A bit cloudy) sunset at Sunset Cliff.
I like this shot.
Hanging with Rani at Lucille's BBQ in Irvine. Thanks for coming out!
We visited the Luus'. It was nice catching up!
Dinner with Quoc's college buddies (mine too) at Gordon Biersch Brewery

Coffee and dessert at Mille Feuille. I would agree with yelpers, I like Extraordinary Desserts better.

Regina and her baby boy Ethan at Carl Strauss

Baby Florence- the latest Huynh, my new niece.
I think I was squishing her.
Ahh.. much better.

There ends the long update with pictures. And that was only one trip. I'll write more tomorrow. Thanks for your patience, waiting for the pictures to load :)

More of Arctic Blast 2008

2008-12-22T23:23:00.000-08:00

We have been snowed in for 3 days now, and I've been going to clinic off and on because it has been snowing all week. This phenomenon has not happen in Portland since 1968! I think we have to shovel snow tomorrow and venture out to the grocery store because I'm running out of food, particularly fresh veggies and milk. On Saturday and Sunday, Quoc attempted to drive out with chains on my car but got stuck right outside our driveway. So we haven't made a repeat attempt, perhaps out of fear of being stuck, and/or fear of being cold or just plain laziness. The city of Portland nearly shut down because they don't have enough snow plow to keep up. They're busy with the freeways and our side streets don't get serviced- understandable though, because this doesn't happen very often. Plus, we're appreciative of the extra time spent together. We've been cleaning a bit, doing much needed laundry, and playing lots of video games (just got Rock Band and Sing Star). And I even squeezed in some exercise today :-)
Quoc and I are planning to fly to visit both sides of the family on Saturday. I hope we can get out of the city. Flights have been canceled left and right. It's supposed to get better by the weekend, so we're praying... In the beginning, it was really fun to play in the snow, but now, I think I'm ready for it to warm up now :) Here are some shots that we took around our house and neighborhood.

Small tree in front of the house iced over
Looking down our street
Grasses

I like macros :)
Our backyard. Our bench is on the left- disappeared under the snow!

Artic Blast and New Job!

2008-12-16T22:01:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas! (I made the above wreath- didn't know I was crafty!)

Portland is the middle of snow storms. Once a year, this happens and it's sort of fun. I imagine being a kid here and getting to stay home from school and go outside to sled and have snow fights. What fun! I have to make it over the I-5 bridge to get to Vancouver for work. When snow freezes to ice, it can be treacherous. But as a resident, you have to try, because someone has to see those patients in the hospital! If you can't make it, they'll try to get the firemen to come get you, or you have to lose one of your vacation days. Either way, it's not as fun as the kid missing school to go sledding. But we're gonna try if we're stuck at home (I'm hoping to be stuck at home tomorrow- got my hot chocolate ready) to have fun :) Here are some fun pictures of the storm's first hit. Tomorrow will the be second, and according to the weatherman- Sunday is the third, when I'm supposed to be in the hospital for an overnight OB call. Yikes!

Our garden shoes :)
My poor watering can- looks sad and neglected, doesn't it?
We still have some roses, amazing!

In other (and awesome) news, I signed my first real job contract today! Yay!!! It's official. I, along with 3 of my "classmates" are going to be working for the same system (SWHS). It's a brand new clinic out of a primary care underserved area north of Vancouver, WA. The deal sounds really good, and after much negotiating and reviewing the contract, etc, we signed today! It's a huge sigh of relief for me to know early on where I'll be working. Plus, seems like the light of the end of the tunnel is finally here. High school, college, medical school, wedding, moving to Portland, new house, residency... seems like I haven't stopped. And now, I'm almost... "arrived". We haven't figured out what to do with the sign on bonus yet; it's going in the bank right now, but we're going to Europe before I start. I'm really excited and extremely thankful for my God who provides and is faithful in all things. Below are some pictures of the signing- I had to bring the camera to document!

Everyone signing: John, Anita, Diana and me
Dr. Alden Roberts, VP of the hospital, my new soon-to-be boss, signing his part. It's official!
Contract and sign on bonus :)
VPs and directors and us. We look (and feel) important!
Us with our current boss, residency medical director, Dr. David Ruiz.
I'm the only one in scrubs because I had procedures clinic today, otherwise, I would have tried to look a bit more dressy and professional- for the pictures :)

We did lots over Thanksgiving break- our friends Jason, Tom and Katie came to visit from San Diego, but I didn't take any pictures. And they haven't sent me any, so um.. next time.

Signs that I'm getting older?

2008-11-13T17:56:00.000-08:00

So I've been getting a lot of weird ads in my mailbox lately about things like AARP and reverse mortgages. But this last one, I just had to share.

Maybe they know something I dont...

Beach Weekend

2008-11-06T21:55:00.000-08:00

Instead of handing out Halloween candies this year, we decided to go to the beach for the weekend, even though it's the end of October and all. We stayed at a condo/resort in Seaside and had a great time relaxing and eating a lot. It rained off and on Saturday, but a huge storm Saturday night. We had fun anyway, walked on the beach at Seaside and Cannon during the sun breaks. Here are some pictures.

Freezing on the beach :) Look, we only have a simple sweatshirt on. Look how far we've come since our first year, coming from SoCal and all.

Quoc being cheesy. He was pointing at nothing, just posing for the camera.

Windy! My friend from medical school Anna and me behind sea grass at Seaside.

Anna surprised us with a kite to fly, but it started to pour right when we got down to the beach. Ah well.. such is Oregon weather. Thanks, anyway, Anna! The idea was nice.

Iconic picture of Cannon Beach

Pak & Yau's Wedding

2008-10-20T21:06:00.001-07:00

Last weekend, I was the matron of honor for Yvonne and Andrew's wedding. She looks so beautiful.. and Andrew, y'know... a guy in a tux. Her dress is a form fitting ivory lace with a small train, perfectly fitting with the Arizona Inn as the backdrop. It was fun to catch up with old friends, and it's wonderful to see them finally married and so happy! Here are some pictures that we took.

Long Time No Blog

2008-10-10T23:20:00.000-07:00

It's been a while, but we've been busy. Well, mainly me. I was on night float then medicine senior for 2 weeks; therefore, I was very tired when I got home most days.
A few Christian faculty in the hospital are actively mentoring Christian residents in the program now, and it's such a refreshing experience. We get together for dinner once a month, and I'm feeling quite supported. It's not as lonely out there, knowing that there are people who feel the same way about certain things as I do.
Job offers are coming in. I think Quoc and I have pretty much decided that I will work in Vancouver, WA, which means we will have to move across the river some time next year. The hospital put together a recruiting dinner last week, and I was pleasantly surprised to hear about so many different job opportunities around the area! I got a package today and it looks really promising. Still have a few more recruiting dinners to go in the next few weeks. We will pray and see. It's certainly uplifting to see an ending to residency in sight.
Several of our friends and family members recently have pre-term labor or other complications of pregnancy. I've seen a lot of it in my practice, but it certainly takes on a different meaning when it's someone close to you. Makes me think about having a baby sooner than later. But then, I don't feel quite ready yet. Will I ever feel completely ready though? Hmm...
On another note, fall is here. I love fall and its colors. I will have to take some pictures of the leaves in the next few weeks.

Playing Hooky From Church

2008-08-26T23:26:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, instead of being at church with my wife, I decided on playing hooky and go fly fishing. The place is called Trillium Lake.

My punishment ...

but the joke is on the Big Guy upstairs, because maybe he doesn't know, but this is the first time I did fly fishing so I'm happy with anything.

Back to the Farms

2008-08-26T22:56:00.000-07:00

When we first arrived in the States, my parents picked berries to put food on the table, figuratively and literally. I would follow along and sleep in the car until the rumbles in my belly wake me to tell me that I must feed it. Now, almost 30 years later, my belly grumbles again.

Poor berries, they never had a chance...

Washington D.C. trip

2008-08-15T21:33:00.000-07:00

Last week, I went to D.C. for a CME (continuing medical education) about osteoporosis, and Quoc tagged along. It was a really good conference and I learned tons (!) while Quoc explored most of the museums by himself. I joined him after the conference ends on Friday afternoon. At the conference, I met my friend Rani from medical school! What a small world. (Hi Rani!) Also, we hung out with Julie and Billy and stayed at their place (thanks, guys!). D.C. was very... efficient, diverse and much more interesting than I remembered. We ate lots of good food, and walked a lot. I think we both lost a few pounds each. My favorite museum was the Holocaust museum- it was really nicely presented and organized. The highlights of the trip are in the pictures below.

The lowlights of the trip are the troubles we ran into trying to get back home. There was a huge storm in NYC, where we had a connecting flight to Portland. So we delayed getting into JFK by 6 hours- got there around 2 am. The only other flight available was 8:30 pm the next day. So we frantically called everyone we know in NYC, and found Kevin, who's an ER resident and long time friend from San Diego who graciously picked us up, let us stay at his place and dropped us off the next day before his shift. (Thanks Kev!) The story isn't over yet. We lucked out and got put onto an earlier flight @ noon to Seattle, but the storm hit again and we were delayed for 3 hours. And... apparently, there was a volcano in Alaska that erupted which causes interference in our direct flight to Seattle- causing a detour to Utah (needed to fuel up). After waiting there, we finally arrive in Seattle around 7 pm. At this time, the Amtrak's last train out of Seattle to Portland was long gone. We had to cancel that reservation and decided to rent a very expensive car home. Fortunately, there was 2 other Portlanders in the same boat and we decided to drive together and share the rental fees. We got home around midnight and crashed.
Did I mention the last day of travel was my birthday? :) It was the most terrible travel experience I've ever had. But I think we made the most of it. We met lots of interesting and fun people along the way. For example, the whole plane was watching the Olympics' men's swimming relay, on the tar mat, waiting for permission to fly. At the moment that USA beat the French, everyone stood up, clapped and there was a roar of "yeah!!!!" throughout the plane. It was a really cool moment. Also, we're thankful for our friends who are so generous, as always!

Billy, Julie, Quoc, me and Rani @ Malaysian
Sunny and Rani @ Mai Thai
Kevin driving us to the airport before his ER shift.

More pictures to come when I'm a bit more motivated to upload more. It was overall, a great trip.

Beach Weekend

2008-07-28T21:52:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, Quoc's boss/friend was generous enough to let us borrow his beach house in Pacific City, OR for the weekend. So we load up the car with 3 other friends, a trunk full of food and "off we go!" Unfortunately, it was pretty misty and cloudy, so I did not get many good pictures (fear of ruining the lens on my new toy/early birthday present from Quoc. The clouds did not damper our fun though. We climbed the sand dune, walked on the shores and hung out at the house. It was such a relaxing weekend; I forgot about work for a little while. I think we all needed that break. Thanks K_!

Quoc being silly
John & Rachel
Rachel
John
Anita

I'm still getting used to the camera, learning more about shooting in different lighting conditions. Hopefully the pictures will improve with time. It's an impressive piece of equipment; I'm grateful for it. Thanks, husband!

Clam diggin' #2

2008-07-19T18:12:00.000-07:00

Today, Quoc woke me up way early to drive to Netarts Bay once again for clam digging. This time, we have the expertise of his boss, an experienced clammer to show us the way and the right holes to dig. And oh my goodness!! These were huge! See the pictures below. What a workout it was too! At one point, my entire head was in the hole, hanging' on to the clam and digging around it with my fingers as the muddy water fills up and collapsing around my arm. The clam squirts out water too, as an desperate attempt to escape. We caught 23 gapers, a few cockles, soft shells and mussels. We thought we had 24 gapers but one of those were dead shells, filled with mud. Fooled us! By the time we had to go, carrying two buckets-full was quite a task for Quoc. I attempted, but it was way too heavy. We'll share the goods with friends and family, and for sure, we'll go again next low tide!

Buckets of clams! You can compare the size to my garden hose faucet head.

See how proud we are of ourselves? :)
Duy and Diane. I love her face! She's trying to smile, but totally grossed out at the site of the gaper's long neck.

31st

2008-07-10T20:56:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Hubby!

Clam Diggin'

2008-07-06T21:39:00.000-07:00

We went to Netarts Bay today to dig clams. I didn't know it was so much work, and so much fun! The weather was very accommodating and the bay water was not cold at all! Quoc and I dug 40 clams (the daily limit) all together. The day ended with a very exciting adventure. I was helping Quoc dig for a potential gigantic clam that was 3 feet under the surface and lost the time. We looked up and everyone was gone. The tide was coming in fast! So we ran, racing the tide, lugging the day's work, wading in chest high waters at times to cross to safe land. I prayed the entire time that we won't get stranded and die out in the bay. I forgot that I can swim! It was scary and we had a good laugh afterwards. Sticky, wet and stinky, we got lunch and got ice cream at the Tillamook Cheese Factory and drove home. We gave some of the clams to our neighbor and i think I'll attempt to make clam chowder tomorrow. Will post pictures of the finished product. We'll go again, I'm sure, next month at the next low tide.

Posing for the picture. But I did dig all those holes in the back!

A butter clam!

Commuting

2008-06-18T17:51:00.000-07:00

This month, I have a lot of clinic. And since it's closer to home (~15 mins of driving), I figured I'd bike instead. And I did! Approx 6 miles each way- took me 1 hour to get there and 45 mins to get back on my little mountain bike. Not bad, I thought. The worse part is going over the interstate bridge over the Columbia River. It was so windy that I couldn't go down hill fast. Took the fun out of it.
The weather is getting nicer now; by biking, I'll save gas, and get some exercise. Only days I can't bike are when I have to go to the hospital in the afternoon. Hopefully, this will last through the summer, periodically at least. Now, I know I can beat my time if I only have breakfast!

Burnt out

2008-06-09T21:06:00.000-07:00

I feel completely and utterly pooped today- for lack of a better or more fitting word. It's nearly the end of my 2nd year, and the end of a string of hard rotations w/o a real vacation. I found that much is expected of me at work, and today, I felt that I cannot and could not live up to those expectations. There is only one little Chau and I cannot please everyone.
"Why should I feel discouraged? Why should the shadows come? Why should my heart feel lonely and long for heaven & home, when Jesus is my portion. A constant friend is he. His eye is on the sparrow. And I know, He watches me."
I need to focus on what's important. One more year. Lord give me strength.

Back to normalcy

2008-06-01T14:31:00.001-07:00

Over the Memorial Day weekend, our friend Chris and Kim visited from Chandler, AZ. We did some hiking, biking and eating, as usual, around Portland. We brought our camera but managed to forget the memory card, so no pictures until they send us some (Send us some guys!!!). I was on nightfloat again as well. Anyway, seems like things are finally back to normal. I'm baking and cooking again. Today, it's a monstrous pot of multipurpose marinara sauce. I can make spaghetti, pizzas, seafood stews, etc with this sauce and dinner is set for 1.5 weeks or so. Also, when my mom was here, she left a bunch of basic Vietnamese recipes (like nuoc nam-fish sauce and thit kho- pork stew) that I've always had a hard time mastering. May be because Mom measures in Asian spoons and rice bowls portions. But she calibrated to my spoons and bowls here so I'm set :)

Lots of people are pregnant right now. It's got me thinking... but nah....My sister-in-law had a scare of preterm labor last week. She's on bedrest now for the duration of the pregnancy :-/ Makes me think, geez... should we? Nah... :) I don't know what it is that makes people ready to be parents. But I don't think I'm ready. I don't want to get pregnant just because my eggs may be getting old and there may be complications with advanced maternal age. Or because my dad is ready to be a grandpa and mom is asking with each phone call if I'm pregnant. Shouldn't there be a feeling? or a sign from God? In any case, my schedule right now doesn't allow for morning sickness, hyperemesis gravidum, and back pain. And for goodness' sake, we've only been married for 2 years! Ha, sounds like the conversation I have with my parents quite frequently lately. One day... but not now.

The rest

2008-05-16T17:24:00.000-07:00

We brought out our AC today because it hit 95 degrees in Portland. We tried to escape to the coast for the majority of the day- crabbing and visiting the infamous Tillamook Cheese Factory (again- but new for my parents!). Here are some pictures from what we did the past few days- quite a whirl-wind tour of Portland.

Fishing for trouts at Benson Lake- no bite that day :(

Multnomah Falls

Bonneville Dam

Bonneville Fish Hatchery

Crabbing at Netarts Bay- 4 rock crabs! No dungeness :(

Ice cream at Tillamook Cheese Factory

They're leaving tomorrow. Yes!!! j/k. Then I go back on night float for 2 weeks. One more month after that, my 2nd year of residency will be over. Yay!! Hard to believe- so fast.

My parents' visit so far in pictures

2008-05-14T12:40:00.001-07:00

In Seattle
On 1st and Main

Underground Tour

Outside Pike's Market Place
The Original Starbucks Coffee Shop

Washington Square Mall- Portland
Portland Rose Garden
Unfortunately, the roses are not in bloom yet. But they were impressed with the layout of the garden. "Next time, we'll come a bit later in the summer."
At Waterfront Park, looking over the Willamette River. The Burnside bridge is visible in most pictures below.

Tomorrow we're heading to the Gorge when it gets a bit more sunny. I'll try to convince them to hike to some of the falls. We'll see. More pictures for the rest of the week!

Happy Anniversary

2008-05-13T14:12:00.000-07:00

2 years... Here's to many more.

The sun came out

2008-05-05T18:53:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, the sun came out so we decided to bike the Mosier Twin Tunnel on the Old Columbia Highway along the Columbia River. It was a long drive there but a short 10 mile ride. The view was gorgeous, and we had a good time. Realizing it's been a while since we worked out, we both decide that we should get that elliptical after all. Please excuse the unattractive biking "outfit". We're not serious bikers, really.

Eww.. Those shorts are not very "becoming" . Thanks Linh (brother-in-law's gift), but I don't think I'll be wearing them again. They didn't have much padding either. My bums are sore.

Below are some pictures of our flowers in the garden. We started planting some vegetables also. We'll have peppers, lettuce and tomatoes in a month. And the mint came back! Very exciting.

Back From San Diego

2008-04-27T01:00:00.000-07:00

So we're back from our trip to San Diego. Some how, we managed to not take a single picture during the whole trip, so my post is again boring and plain. We did take back with us some raccoons from the trip. And I found out that I'm allergic to the sun. Apparently, we get no sun living in Portland. So the first hint of sunlight, I break out in a rash.
The food was good. The wedding was nice. The sun was bright and I'm not longer white.

My first post

2008-03-20T23:43:00.000-07:00

So this is my first post. It wont be all pictury like chau's post, or as entertaining, or as informative either.
Hooray! we're going to SD soon. I miss my burritos.

This and that

2008-03-08T08:50:00.001-08:00

I just finished being senior on medicine for one month. It was a tough one, but I learned a lot about myself and of course medicine as well. I traded away all my weekend calls during the month, so we headed outside when we're free. Spring is finally here and I'm excited for my garden to bloom again. Here are some pictures from the last month.

My buffalo chicken pizza made from scratch. Yay for my mixer!

A hike to horsetail fall and triple fall with our friends John and Rachel.

In preparation for Quoc's brother's wedding in San Diego at the end of this month, we started playing badminton, running and lifting weights again. And boy, do we realize how out of shape we are! As an incentive, Quoc's getting a steering wheel for his PS3 if he loses 7 lbs and me, some sort of jewelry for the wedding, as I have none. Hopefully, this will motivate us some... Until next time.

Bread Making

2008-02-07T22:41:00.000-08:00

I've always thought that bread making is for hippies :) But... since I now own a fancy Kitchenaid mixer and thanks to this No-Knead Bread Recipe modified from the original one from the NY Times, I gave it a try. It took lots of patience as this recipe calls for 20 or so hours of waiting for the dough to rise. I started last night and by 9 pm tonight, we had yummy, artisan quality bread! Wow-wee! I didn't know that I'm a hippie :) It wasn't perfect as we followed the original recipe this time. But the experience has created confidence to venture into the world of baking. I was never really good at it, because it required measuring. Growing up in my family, where things are "eh, half or wait, a bit more than half of an asian spoon of soy sauce plus 2 and a quarter asian spoons of sugar...", I never learned and quite frankly, never had the patience to measure. Anyway, hopefully, I'll continue to make yummy baked goods with the help of good tools and an asian spoonful of patience :)

Here are a few pictures of my creation. And if I can do it, you can too! Oh, and Happy New Year!!

Bread in my Le Creuset dutch oven

All smiles and so proud :) Hm.. I need a cookie sheet and ooh...please excuse the messy hair & kitchen

Retreat

2008-02-04T22:58:00.000-08:00

Last weekend, we went to Skamania Lodge for the annual residents' retreat. Food and lodging was paid for, which was really nice. The place was awesome! Food was great (I think we'll come back just for brunch one day), and it was a relaxing time to hang out with friends and family. We had an informal meeting most of Friday, then Quoc drove up for dinner. We stayed, slept in, played in the snow and swam/relaxed in the hot tub, ate lots and left Saturday night because I had to work Sunday. Speaking of which, yay Giants!!! I caught the last bit of the Superbowl because I was in the ER admitting most of the afternoon. Anyway, here are some pictures of our brief stay away from the hectic & busy schedule of residency.
Outside of the lodge.

The car covered in snow.

Brrr

2008-01-21T22:52:00.000-08:00

It'll be somewhere in the 20s tonight. But no snow yet! It was sunny today, in fact. Spring is coming; I can almost pretend that it's here :)
I've been busy working with the Viet Health of Portland breast cancer project. We are educating lay women to teach other women about breast cancer screening. Great project but lots of work. It takes up most of my weekends.
Oh, my new toy!

I will attempt to bake something next weekend when I'm not on call. Send me good recipes!

Stress

2008-01-07T22:18:00.000-08:00

Lately, stress has done a number to my body and mind. This rotation being on inpatient pediatrics during winter RSV bronchiolitis season (busy!), along with a difficult attending makes me go zonkers! So dragging myself out of bed every morning and reassuring myself that it'll pass, eventually, I spent my days going through the motions to get the work done, not enjoying any of it. The mood is gloom, and the attitude is somewhat bitter. I remind myself of January of last year. Maybe it's the weather; maybe it's self-esteem, or failed self-reliance, or the condescending attending on service... Today, I took the afternoon off (called in "sick") in hopes to sleep it off. Not a chance... So here's to tomorrow. I wish the sun will shine soon!

Merry Christmas

2007-12-25T22:28:00.000-08:00

We started the tradition last year when we were too poor for presents. On Christmas' Eve, we both have 15 minutes or so to run around the house, find a "present" and wrap it up to give it to each other. This forces us to be creative (and quick!) and satisfies the joy of opening something on Christmas. It has been a great success so far. We'll definitely continue it forever as our family's tradition.

Best present that Quoc got me: half a pack of gum.
Best present that I got him: snapshots of me doing goofy things on our digital camera.
Best dinner party: get-together at our house. Yummy Italian food, good wine and karaoke!
Best moment this Christmas: toss up between singing carols by the fire and waking up to snow Christmas morning!

Here are some pictures.
We decorated our mantle this year and hung our homemade stockings as well. We lit the candles Christmas' Eve before reading the Christmas story and singing carols.

Snow!!!
It's the front and side of our house. I've never had a white Christmas before. Well, the snow didn't stick on the ground, but it was pretty, nonetheless.

The Grotto

2007-12-18T22:39:00.001-08:00

We went to see the lights at the Grotto tonight. There were near half a million lights up. We had a good time walking through the pathways and hearing the choirs sing. It certainly put us in the Christmas spirit. Here are some pictures.

Sorry, some of them are a bit blurry. We only have a point and shoot, w/o image stabilizer.

Curious visitor

2007-12-17T16:54:00.000-08:00

In the past few days, there's a cat sitting/sleeping on our doorstep. We don't know where it comes from, but there it is. Everytime I opened the door, it rushed in, trying to make itself at home. Then the "shoo! shoo! kitty!" ensued. We're pretty sure it's someone's house-cat, (although it doesn't have a collar) because it's extremely friendly- or just hungry and pretending to be friendly. Quoc fed it a few times. Me, I'm just hoping it doesn't adopt us, because we are not responsible enough for another life, at least at this moment. The cat's been visiting our neighbors as well, but no one's claiming it yet. We see it sleeping on the front steps of various houses, sometimes marching back and forth, meowing for food. I feel bad, but at the same time- hm.. it can be carrying toxoplasmosis! Who knows! So I peek out the window before I open the door, making sure it's not there, ready to pounce inside. I think we will call the animal control people to get it to a shelter. I'll sneek a picture of it when I'm brave enough :-)

Moved

2007-12-16T23:08:00.000-08:00

Xanga has given me lots of grief about posting pictures. Therefore, I'm moving my blog here. Also, this way, Quoc (Ian) can blog if he wishes. So starting tomorrow, there will be more pictures up. Yay! Time for sleep.