Honor Thy Father and Mother

I again have internet access!

The 10 Commandments have been on my mind and especially the idea of honoring thy father and mother.  I have been here for a week and the word busy does not even define what the days have been like.  Being with my mom, I have had to tell her what she should and should not eat.  I also went through all the clothes and spot things that needed washing.  My sister, Annie, and I also packed up 7 large black garbage bags of clothes to donate.  There is still tons more to do.

But one night, I was putting my mom and Daddy George to bed. After tucking them in, I gave them a kiss tonight. My mom looked up and said, "Oh, how I'd like for you to kiss me good night every night."  I had to go to the bathroom and cry for a bit.  As they get older, they are becoming more and more like babies, needing a lot more assistance.  I cannot be here and so daily, I entrust them into the care of my loving Heavenly Father. I know that He is with them and He tucks them in and kisses them good night.  It was His idea to honor our father and mother and He is faithful to help me to do just that. I rest in His care.

During this past week, I have had to remind myself of that every morning when I wake up and every night when I go to bed.  For a few nights, I was not able to sleep well, thinking about all that still needs to be done and how fast the days are going by.  God has continued to sustain me and I know He will carry me back to Taiwan and one day into the embrace of His arms.  He will do the same for my parents.

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I Missed A Day...

I was hoping to blog every day... but I forgot that during my time in the States, I won't have regular internet access, not to mention I am constantly busy helping out with things. 

My parents are really getting old and need a lot of help.  Here is one example -- I was trying to get Daddy George dressed and I pulled out one long sleeve shirt from his drawers and tried to put it on him.  I soon discovered that the shirt was way too small for him. It belonged to Mom. I pulled out two more and found the same problem.  So, after getting Dad dressed with a shirt his size, I went through all the drawers again and resorted through things -- there were things that belonged to mom, things that needed to be washed, things that were torn or had a hole and things that should be donated.  This is just one example.

So, sorry to say... for the next few weeks, the postings will be sporadic. 

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HAPPY TO HAVE ISAIAH HOME

Isaiah had a great graduation trip.  Here are just a few pictures --

He came home totally exhausted. He didn't even want to eat dinner. He took a shower, ate a few slices of apple, told us about his trip and went to bed.

Tomorrow we will be taking off for the States, and he has lots of winter homework to do.  I am busy doing a load of wash!  He brought home some very stinky clothes!

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The Northern Prayer Tower

Today we moved things into the Prayer Tower!!!

The Prayer Closet with a thick Prayer Rug
Thank you Kathryn!

The bedroom with the bunk beds and table
(These bunk beds are 15 years old. Our kids slept on them when they were babies!)

I made the covers for the stool and the chair!
And look how sunny it is!!!!

The living room
I need to make a sofa cushion cover and another cover for the ottoman!
I have the fabric. I just need the time!

 Now with our sofas gone, what does our living room look like? 

This is only temporary!



Needless to say, it's been a long and exhausting day!


Hab. 2:1

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Trying to Get the Hot Water Heater Changed

Today was an interesting day. We were all up early as Isaiah had to be at school by 6:30 for the start of his graduation trip.  After saying goodbye to him (and he has called us throughout the day to say that he is having a great time), I waited for the service man to call to let me know when he could come over to change our hot water heater.  He finally called at 10 minutes before 12 noon and said that he could come at 7:00 this evening!

Let me back up and explain a bit.  I had the fire inspector come on Monday night as Taipei city is trying to encourage all citizens to replace their old hot water heater.  Our hot water heater was installed 10 years ago when we first moved in.  It uses natural gas and there is a battery which helps it to start up.  If the wind blows too hard, the fire might go off but the gas will continue. Hence, you can die from gas poisoning if you close the windows to prevent the wind from blowing.

So, I got the paperwork, called a company that sells hot water heater and was trying to get this all done before our trip to the States.

The guy came this evening with all his tools and the hot water heater.  He went to my back balcony and looked.  Unfortunately, the pipe to push out all the gas fume needs a 7cm hole and the opening we have right now is only 4.5cms.  WHAT??? I have to either change the window panels or cut a hole through cement, which can't be done tonight!

The conclusion -- I won't be able to get the hot water heater changed until after our trip and we won't be able to get the subsidy from Taipei City Government.

Here is a picture of our back balcony (I had to take several as I was planning to apply for the subsidy.)  That's our hot water heater.  We have our washing machine and our dryer right next to it. Across from the hot water heater is our little oven.  And we hang dry our clothes as much as possible, hence the rod hanging from the ceiling.

While I'm at it, here is my kitchen --

Above the sink is not a dish washer. It's a dish dryer that we NEVER use!

And just in case you're wondering, my rain-drenched iPod is sitting in that blue cup of rice, waiting to be revived!

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By Request

Yesterday I wrote about Alan's mishap and my sister wanted a picture. So, here you go -- a picture of Alan's chin.  It doesn't look so bad.  We can't post a picture of the chipped tooth... but my brother in law told Alan to bring back the piece and he will bond it back on!!!

Tomorrow, Isaiah will be going on his graduation trip and won't be back until Friday evening. I'm going to miss him.  He will go to two different amusement parks down in Central Taiwan with all the 9th graders and their homeroom teachers. 

Today has been a day of catching up for Abby.  She did so much in one day.  Both my kids are still behind on Science and will have to bring the computer back to finish up all the lessons. They not only have Science to do, but they also have several essays to write!!! 

Alan worked on grading papers.

I sewed and packed and cleaned and called people and ran errands and cooked and baked.  I have not had time to prayer run!  I hope to have time to run in the next four days before I'm at the Sung Shan Airport on Saturday.



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Alan's Mishaps

Last summer, just four days before going to the States, Alan had a scooter accident.  He banged himself up pretty badly with bruises and cuts and scrapes. 

Today on the way to the Soochow Chinese New Year Banquet, he had another scooter accident. He chipped his tooth and cut up his chin.  I don't even know how he could have chipped that inside tooth.  He had to get 8 stitches and will have to go and see a dentist.  That's one thing about being in Taiwan. The clinics are opened until quite late almost every night.  So, I just took him over to the clinic in our neighborhood and he didn't have to go to the ER.

What a day!  San Diego Chargers lost to Denver Broncos and didn't make it to the Super Bowl and Alan had another mishap!



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