T.M.I, Dad! (....Taiwanese Mastery Incognito)

We were at an all-you-can-eat restaurant where Evangelina wasn't going to be able to have the dessert course, right before I was going to (unnecessarily) tell the waiter, Jadon blurted out in Taiwanese, "Mai Kong! (不要講!)"

special request at a little one's behest

A few Saturdays ago after an outdoor fellowship time at the park with the youth group from EFC (Evangelical Formosan Church) Irvine, I wrote to Pastor Sam Boyce to thank him for organizing the fun time together.  As usual, he and his wife Awill brought along their toddler Faith, whom Jadon always enjoys immensely.  Apparently, the impression was mutual.  

Here's Pastor Sam's response: 

"Great to have you guys today. When Faith woke up from her nap she was asking where [Jadon] went?  She said she wanted to play with him at the park."

larynx in flux

a few days ago we checked Jadon's depth of voice, and he was able to sustain a low F.  we think it was lower than what we checked just a few weeks ago.

What do the childrearing experts have to say about "corduroy punishment"?

Jadon, after telling us how his new pants don't fit because they squeeze his private parts:  "When I grow up,  I'm not going to spank my kids. I'm going to make them wear tight pants instead, because I know how much I hate it."

10 years, 2 months, 8 days ago

Jadon singing at JJ and Sidney's wedding

Jadon singing and JJ and Sidney's wedding

Carrying on about Avalon in the Avalon

Not long ago we took a weekend trip to Catalina Island, which was overall a beautiful time of making memories in a beautiful place, even in spite of the COVID-19 fears and precautions we had to take (in addition to our masks, shields, and hand-sanitizer, we brought Lysol wipes for our hotel room, and we skipped out on swimming in light of LA County beach closures).  On our first full day we took a late morning hike from Avalon Bay to near the top of Mount Ada.  The beautiful views and the wonderful opportunities for conversation notwithstanding, our kids complained much of the way, enough for me to mentally re-name the mountain "Mount Queja" (Spanish for "Whining").   

Near the top I even had to carry Evangelina (my little athlete?!) on my back...

Thankfully, we did have some fun and even beautiful moments on that hike...

The next afternoon we rented one of the ubiquitous golfcarts which we'd so enviously looked upon the previous day, and the kids were hooting & hollering & smiling from ear to ear as we drove the same exact route we had hiked.  I had to admit that it was pretty fun driving that buggy up the mountain so much faster than we had trekked the day before!

Back on the mainland later that day when driving (our real car -- the Avalon, Evangelina pointed out!) home from San Pedro (our first time through that port), I asked the kids what was their favorite part of the weekend.

Jadon answered, "My favorite part was the pedal boat and the hiking."

I couldn't help but be surprised, "What?  Your favorite part was the hiking?  How can that be, with all that complaining?"

Jadon had an interesting way of seeing it: "Well, because it gives me bad memories, but then because it was with my family, it gives me good memories!"

Generating numbers

Recently Jadon was doing some calculations that reminded me of how much I longed to be a father (& believe or not, how I look forward even now to be a grandfather -- obviously I'm far behind "schedule"):

"I'll have my first child when I'm 19, and they'll have kids when they're 19, so I'll be a grandfather when I'm 38.  Then my grandchild will have kids when they're 19 too, so I'll be a great-grandfather when I'm 57, and a great-great-grandfather when I'm 76, and a great-great-great-grandfather when I'm 95!  Ha-ha!  I'll be a great-great-great-grandfather when I'm 95!"

He might have gone on with the numbers beyond 95, but what struck me is that he was excited about having kids and raising a large family, and was unashamed to share it with us.  At first he used 18 as his base number for calculating, but I had to remind him that he needs to marry first (I guess when he's 18) before his wife gestates and bears the child about a year later!

It also reminded me of an obituary I wrote for myself as part of a high school assignment: while I forget all the numbers, I wrote that I would be over 110 years old, surrounded by masses of great-grandchildren (possible great-great-grandchildren, too).

Five Feet = Mile Stone

July 9, 2020 is the day Jadon is recorded to equal his mother's height!

I love you too much to make you endure what I don't want to do anyway...

During our visit to Sedona, one of the "must-do" activities was to hike about the many beautiful natural land formations all around us.  I was tentative about the kids' readiness for hiking, but still felt it essential while we were amidst such inviting scenery (plus, I paid for a parking pass and, being a Wu, wanted to make the most of what we paid for!)... so I scheduled us to go on two (short) hikes per day.  The kids were already "tired" from the first hike, so when they discovered we were planning for a second, they were a bit alarmed.  They turned to their mother to see if what I planned was really happening, and she said yes.

Jadon decided to throw in a last ditch effort: "Aww, Mom, don't you still have that headache?"

(Epilogue: we never got to those second hikes of each day.)

Living and active, even to a teen (Hebrews 4:12); Viva y eficaz, incluso a un adolescente (Hebreos 4:12)

Recently in our Bible reading we came to the end of Ecclesiastes, and I feigned to Jadon that we had to skip the next book (Song of Songs/Cantar de Cantares) because he was too young for the "adult themes of physical love in marriage," to which he immediately pleaded, "Pleeeeeeease!  You're making me miss out on something beautiful!  It's part of the Bible!"

It is really funny to see his rapt interest in this book, even though we (continue to) read it in Spanish.  His grasp of the language is already pretty good (or else I wouldn't read this version -- NVI), but unlike with other books, he asks for clarification/translation at least once every verse!

Tonight we read the first part of chapter 4, where the Lover praises with descriptive symbolism the various parts of his Beloved's body: her eyes/ojos, hair/cabello, teeth/dientes, lips/labios, cheeks/mejillas, and neck/cuello.  We continued into verse 5, "Tus pechos..." and without missing a beat, Jadon inserted, "...son ¡como montañas jugosas!"

Of course that got us laughing a bit, but then I read the real version, "Tus pechos parecen dos cervatillos, dos crías mellizas de gacela que pastan entre azucenas."

Jadon looked confused: "What does THAT mean?"

So, I read the English (NIV): "Your breasts are like two fawns, like twin fawns of a gazelle that browse among the lilies."

Still looking confused, he asked, "You mean, like, they bounce?"

Gained in Translation

One morning last week, Jadon and I were learning Spanish together, and we ended with listening to some Spanish praise songs, including "Eres Todopoderoso" ("You Are Almighty") and "Yo Le Alabo de Corazón" ("I Praise You with My Heart").  I commented on how most praise songs refer to God in the familiar "Tú," while a few refer to Him in the formal "Usted."  Jadon understood the nuances of why one would refer to God in either sense, for the intimacy of "Tú" and the reverence of "Usted."  Not knowing the answer myself, I asked Jadon, "What do you think God wants us to call Him?"

Jadon's answer showed a lot of insight: "I think God just wants us to TRUST Him.  Saying that you have to say it one way or another makes it like you have to earn His love, like you're working for your salvation."

Daddy Nose Best

Everyone in my family knows that I enjoy demonstrations of physical affection, and sometimes it can lead to rather interesting situations.  The other night, as I was bringing cups of water into the kids' dark rooms, my 7th grader asked me, "Daddy, would you please nose-snuggle me?"

I was pleasantly surprised, as it'd been a long time since I'd done Eskimo kisses with my son.  But with all that's been going around, I said, "Maybe it's better that we not..."  

Then I smiled with mock-accusation, "Plus, you probably put something on your nose."

Turns out I wasn't too far off.

"Yeah," he giggled, "I put a booger there..." 

Our son's thoughtfulness at work (literally)

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Dictatorially explosive, reclusive, and unpredictable music?

(During piano practice seeking a good example to follow for Prokofiev's Sonata in D minor Op.14...)

Jadon: Mom, can I watch the video of Kim Jong Un?

Dad: What??!!

Jadon (with a sheepish chuckle): Ooh, I mean

Hyungjung Kim.