Having a healthy child is not guarantee, some children were born with sickness or disabilities and they're fighting it hard everyday. We really need to be grateful if we have healthy child, who can enhance their abilities to fulfill their happiness in life.

Many parents often focus on worldly values and want their children to be the best in the group. However, I truly hope when Alicia has grown up, she can find her own interest, recognize her own talents and abilities, and then use these blessings to bless other people. I hope that she will continue to live a life that is align with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, so she can feel secure and peace even when the world is unstable. I also hope she could continue to feel the love of her parents and understand all we want her is to live righteously and happily. We promised we will do our best to be her example, instead of choosing a life for her, we will help her to find her own.  Although we cannot guarantee that we can keep her as the most healthiest baby on earth, we promise we will bring her happiness.

 Alicia,we love you, and Happy 9 months! :)

Alicia's first Christmas

It's the most wonderful time of the year.

Christmas is always a special season for me. The Spirit of love is spreading in the air. It is a time to celebrate Jesus's birth, and also a great time to teach our children about Jesus Christ.

We are so busy to settle down after we are back to Hong Kong, but we never forget to prepare a Christmas gift for Alicia! On Christmas Eve, Kay and I bought a new toy for Alicia, and we give it to her on Christmas morning. We are still debating if we should tell her the story of Santa, since we really want Alicia to understand the true meaning of Christmas is to remember the birth of Jesus.

After many years, we can finally celebrate our Christmas with our family, although we only have a simple Christmas, my heart are full and grateful for the opportunity to spend time with my family.

Alicia: E? What is this?

Alicia: Wow.. It is very colorful..

Alicia: Okay! Mammy and Daddy, I love it and I am ready to open it! :D:D

Alicia, thank you for spending your 1st Christmas with us, mammy and daddy enjoyed it a lot! Sorry for not being able to put up Christmas tree with you this time, we promised we will do it next year! Mammy and Daddy can't wait to see you run, jump and walk around the Christmas tree and sing along the Christmas song with us! Love you my dear~

My timeline in BYU-Hawaii

In January 2007, I came to Hawaii. I was only nineteen.

In December 2008, I left Hawaii to go on my mission in Hong Kong, I was twenty-one.

In September 2010, I returned to Hawaii to finish my degree, I was twenty-two

In January 2011, I have met a new friend called Kay, who has become my best friend and later become my eternal companion, I was twenty three

In April 2012, I graduated and returned to Hong Kong, I was twenty-four

In September 2012, I got married with my best friend and returned to Hawaii, I was still twenty-four

In November 2012, I have found out that I was pregnant. I just turned twenty-five.

In June 2013, I had given birth to one of the cutest babies on earth -- Alicia Au-Yeung, I was twenty-five.

Hawaii - a place where made me to become who I am. Thankful for all the great experiences that I have received in this special place. Words couldn't explain how much I love this place, it has prepared, strengthen, and transformed me from a teenager to a mother. I will never miss bugs and insects in Hawaii, but I will always remember the Aloha Spirit that carry with the people from this land Hawaii - the rainbow States. 

Two more days until I turned 26. It will be my last year celebrating in Hawaii until we meet again. Life goes on, and I am excited to move on to the next journey, but I promise I will re-visit this place someday.

4 months and 2 days

Today, Alicia got poked 4 times, she was extremely fuzzy in the afternoon; she cried so hard and loud, and needed comfort constantly. I was holding her for almost 2 hours until she calm down completely. When she was crying so hard and loud, I don't know what to do, Kay was in class and I was scared, I have checked her temperature and Nope! she didn't has fever, she must just felt very uncomfortable. I tried my best to comfort her, calling my sister in law for advices, praying, singing, and using some warm cloth to relief her pain.

Being a mom is not easy, especially a full-time stay home mom or single mom. Basically you have to deal with any situation alone for your children because your husband will not be home 24-7 to make decision with you.  Sometimes in an emergency situation, you still have to stay calm and THINK! Today, I had one moment that felt so lonely, scared, and helpless, no one was around and baby just won't stop crying, and I didn't know what to do. Although it was hard, after today experience, I felt accomplished.

There are really so much to learn to be a mom, thank you Alicia for giving me this opportunity to learn. I will keep learning and become a better nurturer:):)

Everyone in the world can make a different, it doesn't matter how "small" it is

Click here to my story

Many people in this world often think of themselves are ordinary, there are nothing special to talk about themselves. However, you should really believe that your personal story will make a different, it can inspire and influence others in any aspects of their life, because it has happened to me.

Couple months ago, one of my friends approached me and asked, "Would you like to publish your personal story on a website?" and I response,"I don't think my story is special enough to publish on any website, I am just an ordinary girl." Then, she continues,"everyone think their story is not special but I am telling you, it is not true." Because of her encouragement, I decided to accept her invitation and started to think of my own personal story.

My friend and I did a skype interview for my story, and I was able to reflect my life a little bit and ponder of the decision that I have made 8 years ago. Three months later, my story has finally ready to publish, However, I was still hesitated to post it because it is very personal.  After reading it a couple time, I just hope that this story was able to reach someone who need it. 

My story has finally published on www.mormonwomen.com, and I have also shared a link on facebook. I couldn't believe how fast people responded on my story, some of my friends even shared it with their friends, all of a sudden, I have received many thank you messages from sharing my story, at the same time, I am also grateful for the opportunity to share it with them. It truly made my day!

You never know how your "small", ordinary story can influence other people's life. Everyone of us are special, we all have different experiences, even your experience may be similar, your thoughts and feelings toward these experiences will never the same. Although I don't know how many people I have inspired or touched, I know I do make a different.  Therefore, Share your thoughts, Share your mind, Inspired Others, and Get Inspired! 

Kay and I --- Parenthood

Heavenly Father has trusted us enough to bring His children into our family,and we know we should not let Him down. However, it is the first time in our life to be parents, so Kay and I always discuss how we should be good parents, how to raise Alicia, or how we should teach her.

As a mother, I also worry about Alicia since the world is very "CRAZY" nowadays. Although Alicia is still small, I can't wait to teach her many things so she can "SURVIVE" in this "CRAZY" world. However, what is the most important thing to teach her? 

Tonight, when I was feeding Alicia, I was singing "I am a child of God". I have sing this song more than 100 times since I was young, but tonight,the Spirit was so strong that made me stop and ponder about the lyrics, and I've found this lyrics more important and meaningful to me.I have found my answer!

1.  I am a child of God,
   And he has sent me here,
   Has given me an earthly home
   With parents kind and dear.
2.  I am a child of God,
   And so my needs are great;
   Help me to understand his words
   Before it grows too late.
   
   
3.  I am a child of God.
   Rich blessings are in store;
   If I but learn to do his will
   I'll live with him once more.
4.  I am a child of God.
   His promises are sure;
   Celestial glory shall be mine
   If I can but endure.

Chorus

Lead me, guide me, walk beside me,

Help me find the way.

Teach me all that I must do

To live with him someday.

It is very direct, I need to be a parent who are kind and dear to my children. I need to help my children  to understand Heavenly Father's words and learn to do His will. I need to teach them to endure or even endure with them.  I also need to lead, guide, and walk beside(support) my children, and help them to find THE WAY, teach everything that they must do to live with Heavenly Father again, and to obtain the Celestial Glory.

I know NOTHING is more important than to teach our children about Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ and His teaching, to help them build their own testimony and strengthen it. I know when we are teaching our children to live righteously, the Spirit of the Lord will help them throughout their life, to continue to choose the right even when their parents are not with them someday.

Now I should say, I can't wait to teach her everything about Heavenly Father,Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost.

Alicia! Daddy and Mammy loves you!

Alicia - 2 months and 2 weeks

Time flies, baby Alicia is already 2 weeks and 2 months old. She is such a happy, peaceful, and easy-going baby. Alicia, mommy and daddy love you so much! We really love seeing your smile, hearing your laugh. We love your burping, farting, and hiccup noise. We love seeing your pee pee and poop poop diapers, because all these things show us that you are developing well and feeling happy. We love playing, bathing, singing, talking, and sleeping with you. Although you don't know a lot yet, we can see you are enjoying your life.

Alicia, please continue to smile and be happy, this is all what mammy and daddy want you to be. we love you so much! sorry that if we made you cry, because we are still learning how to be  parents. In the future, we will also make mistakes, please forgive us, please always remember that daddy, mommy love you so much! you might not remember how many times we kiss you every day and tell you we love you, but we hope you can feel our love and keep this love in your heart. Alicia, stay healthy and stay happy!

As a mother, I cannot describe how much joy I had with this precious baby, and how much I've learned from being a mom. I am so thankful for this opportunity to raise a child, and teach her everything about this world, her Father in Heaven, and the love that He has given us.

I love you baby Alicia!

A day that I will never forget.

June 28th, Friday. 40 weeks of my pregnancy. Doctor and I had decided to induce baby. Yes! Most of the time, induction is not necessary until 42 weeks of pregnancy, however, after discussing with my husband, we decided to do it.

We woke up at 4:45am, make sure we had everything, and drove to the hospital. When we were on our way, I still couldn't believe I was going to deliver and see my baby, I was nervous and worried. haha! well, I tried to look calm so my husband would stay clam too. I kept praying that everything would be alright.

We've arrived to the Castle birth center, Kaneohe,Hawaii at 6:15am. The nurse confirmed some of my information and directed us to our room immediately. Since I went to their birth tour before, I got familiar with the place already. While Kay was organizing our bags, the nurse told me to change into the hospital gown, I felt super nervous. After changing, she started to poke me with needle. I am glad that I wasn't too afraid of needle because that needle was quite thick. Haha! Although I was nervous, I felt super hungry since I haven't eaten anything. Luckily, I could still eat solid food.

Since it was induction, it took time..so here is the story:

we have waited for about 4 hours (around 11:00am) and only dilated 2cm!! I guess baby just not ready to come out yet. Well, there are no turn back, so I waited patiently, after another 4 hours (around 3:00pm) my dilation is 5 cm and doctor is ready to break my water, I was so excited since I finally have some improvement on my delivery, and luckily, I still didn't feel any pain. About 1 hour later (4:00pm) it dilated from 5cm to 7cm, and within another 45 mins, it dilated from 7cm to 9cm! I AM IN PAIN!!! I tried my best to control my pain, (keep thinking about food, keep thinking about so many random stuff to try to distract myself), but it didn't work,I CAN'T STAND it anymore! Controlling my pain is really tired and I am so worry that I will have no energy to push when the time come, so I asked for an epidural. At 8:30pm, doctor instructed me to push a few times, honestly, I didn't really feel anything after the epidural, but I do feel the pressure that I need to push...so I have been pushing...pushing...and pushing for 2.5 hours(around 11pm) and baby is still not yet come.. I am exhausted!!! Doctor suggested me to take some rest for 30 mins, so I will start pushing again at 11:30pm,(That scared me because baby is in my tummy for soo long after the water was broke, and now he still ask me to sleep.. ) At 11:30pm, I started to push again! and the very last push before I need to have a C-section, SHE IS HERE!!

(Left) The 1st picture took by her daddy. Alicia Au-Yeung, was born on Jun 29th at 12:47am at Castle Birth Center in Kaneohe, HI, she is 7 pounds 11oz and 21" tall. She is so precious!

I cannot describe the feeling that I had when i am holding this precious baby, she is so small and so cute! My heart is full of gratitude, joy, and love. I felt so proud that I am being able to bring this special and loving spirit into my family. I feel the Lord's love and He is very happy to see Alicia was born healthily.

After laboring, I was exhausted! but I couldn't take my eyes away from her. Look at her, she looks clean and peaceful after a bath.

I have stayed in the hospital for another day before I discharged. During that time, I am so thankful for my husband for his love, when I was laboring, he has never let go of my hand, he hold it tight, and pray constantly, he is so brave, and I was comforted.


The second day of Alicia, she is still calm and peaceful. We are ready and excited to go home. This is an experience that I will never forget. I am very happy and excited for the new adventure and the joy that will bring to our family.




I love you Alicia! please always remember that! :)

Homemade Pizza on Aloha Friday

For me, baking bread always take a longggg.. time.. so, I will only bake bread when I feel like it. haha :) Waiting for an hour to let the dough raised, and knead it, and wait for another hour, and knead it again.. I just hope that the bread will turn out great every time I finished. :) So far, I am lucky, the bread always turn out great and I would like to continue to make bread.

Today, I want to make pizza. As usual, I think I am going to take about an hour to make the pizza dough, but GUESS WHAT! I found this Quick and Easy Pizza Crust Recipe online! it only take me about 30-45 mins to finish the entire Pizza! I don't really believe the crust will turn out great because bread doesn't usually turn out great if you are lazy and not following the steps.. but this one is an awesome one!! I really didn't spend too much time and it tasted so good!

That's my pizza! can you see the crust! it's so crunchy!!

Ingredients:

1 cup warm water
2 teaspoons of dry yeast
1 teaspoons of sugar
2 1/2 cup of bread flour
1 teaspoons of salt
2 teaspoons of olive oil

Steps:

Put 1 cup of warm water in mixing bowl
Add dry yeast and sugar, stir it, let the dry yeast mix sit about 10 mins
Add bread flour, olive oil and salt, mix it well.( I just use my hand to knead it until it become a dough, only 3 mins)
Let the dough sit around 5 mins
Put the dough on a slightly floured surface, roll it on pat it to your preferred shape, mine is rectangle
Put on any toppings you want
with LOTS OF CHEESE!! :):)

Bake 15mins to 20 mins in an 450F preheated oven! :):)

Done!

I promise this is a very easy and quick recipe and the crust does taste good! I don't want to say this but my husband and I finished the whole thing!

you can go to this site: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/quick-and-easy-pizza-crust/detail.aspx if you need to visualize the procedure. :)

ENJOY BAKING!!

64 days before baby come.

Sorry, Haven't been updated my blog..

New semester has finally started. From now on, I can reduce my work hour to 25-30 per week, until my maternity leave.. :) 

Recently, I am feeling more tired, however, couldn't sleep well.. any suggestions for me? Doctor recommend me to do some exercises.. haha! I know I should~ Maybe I really should start swimming soon.

64 days before baby come.. I talked with my baby girl more often, telling her how much I love her already. even though I get emotional sometimes, I still try my best to control my temper when things frustrated me.. I hope she will be a happy baby girl :) To be honest, I am very nervous and excited at the same time, finally I am in the stage of being a mother,I am also worry if I will be a good mother, but I am sure I will learn so much from it.

Alicia Au Yeung, mammy and daddy can't wait to see you. stay healthy and remember we love you!

Super lazy dinner - potato puff!

To be very honest, work is driving me crazy and I am very tired. However, looking at my tummy growing every day makes me happier. It is 28 weeks and 3 days.. I can't wait to see my baby soon! so far, she is very gentle to me, not kicking me very hard. so, hopefully, she will continue to be a gentle girl. :)

Alright, I have bought this puff pastry couple weeks ago and finally able to use it..For me, Sunday is always the best day to bake because I have more time and so I can enjoy it.  However, today is General Conference Sunday, hubby and I both woke up at 6am, went back to sleep at 8am till 10am, and finished up our last session of General Conference till 12pm. Then we start our brunch, Yummy peanut butter french toast. It is going to be our General Conference family tradition. :):)

Since we both woke up early and didn't take a nap, when dinner time came.. I was so dead, therefore, instead of cooking a fancy meal.. I just made this very lazy dinner - potato puff with salad.  Hubby loves it! ( He love potato and anything that is with potato..haha!)

All you need is to make mashed potato, whatever flavor that you like, I would say garlic mashed potato would be the best! :) and put it on puff pastry, wrap it up! and put it in an 450 Degree oven, baked 20 mins! DONE!

Very Easy and Lazy meal, eat with Salad so you don't feel guilty too heavy! (an excuse to eat more than 1) whaha!

ENJOY BAKING!

Peach Cobbler

Peach Cobbler

Aloha Friday again... which means... Baking Time!!

Peach Cobbler, I tried once when I went to a ward party long time ago.. I still remember this fresh baked peach cobbler served with French Vanilla ice-cream!! Super Ono!! Since I have got all the ingredients on hand.. Why not just try to make one by myself tonight!


1 cup of self-raising flour
1/2 sugar ( add 1 cup of sugar if you are using fresh peach)
1 cup of milk
4 Tablespoon of butter
1 can of peach (you can use fresh peach)

Yes! that's it! that's all the ingredients

Steps:

If you are using fresh peach, make sure to sweeten it a little bit, just put peaches in a small pot, add sugar and little bit of water, low heat until sugar melted.

Melt the butter

Combined Self-raising Flour and sugar, add milk little by little, add melted butter the last, MIX WELL.

Bake it in 375 degree for an hour. :) Done and Happy Baking!!!!

A Day off from work and My Very 1st Dinner Roll..(Fail)

I didn't feel well this morning and decided to take a day off from work.. a little sick can make me feel so weak during pregnancy... I can't take any medicine, all I can eat are fruits, veggies, and all kinds of food that can boost up vitamin to fight against my sickness... Anyways, I did take some rest, but later decided to wake up and move around, I feel so dead to lay on bed..

Since I always want to try making dinner roll, this is a good chance.

I don't have a standing mixer, all I use are my hands, to be very honest, it is very tired to kneed the dough..for a standing mixer, it took 7 mins, medium high speed to make a good dough. I only spent 5 mins to kneed the dough, that's why it didn't turn out great..(not the taste, but the texture is not fluffy and soft).. haha! HOW MUCH I WANT A STANDING MIXER..

This is the result:

 As you can see, my roll is not as soft as it should be. These might be the reason:

1. Not enough kneed
2. Too much flour
3. Dry Yeast didn't activate in right temperature.

The taste and texture is just like regular bread.. but just NOT QUITE LIKE A ROLL.. =.=





Oh Well.. my first time , hopefully I can try again in the future.. Yes! not very soon because I don't think Mr. Au-Yeung would like try out my dinner roll over and over again.. I will try something new so he can get excited to try it too~ :):)

Although it didn't turn out great! I enjoyed the process! It helps me to forget about the sickness!! :) So.. Enjoy Baking!!

Ham and Cheese Croissant

Since I was called into the Primary, one of the best part on Sunday is always being able to listen to the children singing, their voices always touched my heart. Today, they performed during the sacrament, even though they don't remember all the words of the songs, but they have brought the Spirit in the sacrament. Children can easily invite the Spirit, especially when they are singing.

I know my baby loves that too, she seems so peace when the children are singing peaceful Primary song but get so excited when they are singing wiggle songs like "pop corn" or "snow man". haha! :) I hope she will as happy, as smart, as righteous as the children in my Primary. :)

Well.. Of course I won't finish this post without sharing what we have tried today. I have bought this from foodland yesterday and tried to make ham and cheese croissant, according to the original recipe, it should be made by puff pastry.. however, puff pastry is seriously expensive in foodland, so I decided to buy this: 

2 for $5 ONLY!! GOOD DEAL

I am sure the texture is a little bit different, but hey! it tasted great! very easy meal, you can make 8 of them from one roll of crescent, Look at the result:

Look at that FAT CRESCENT!! YUM YUM

  

Just buy the Crescent, wrap with HAM and Cheese of your own Choice, I would say choose ham and cheese that is not too strong of the flavor, because this Crescent dough has a little bit salty flavor. Preheat the oven 375 degree, bake for 15 mins until it is golden brown! Super Easy! Good Appetizers or Great snack! ENJOY!!

 

First Try - Classic Butter Pound Cake

After all this stresses from work in the past week, I can finally get off from work earlier today, therefore, I decided to make some dessert for myself and of course my dear husband. Happy Baking again. 

Classic Butter Pound Cake

 

 

Ingredients:

Freshly baked! :)

½ Cup of Unsalted Butter at room temperature
3 Eggs (Large Eggs with stronger egg flavor, if you don't like it too strong, use medium egg)
½ Cup of Milk ( you can use sour cream or yogurt)
1 ½ Cups of All Purpose Flour
¼ tsp of Baking Powder
1/8 tsp of Baking Soda
¼ tsp of Salt
1 Cup of Sugar
½ tsp of Vanilla Extract


Steps:

Very moist and have a slightly crunchy top

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Spray/butter a 9 by 5” loaf pan.
2. Use electronic mixer to mix Butter and sugar first, then put egg, mixed until it is smooth and fluffy, don't over mixed
3. Add Milk and Vanilla Extract ( I started to use spatula to mix it to avoid over mix the mixture)
4. Put flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix Well
5. put it in loaf pan, bake for 1 hour. Test if it is cooked by sticking a toothpick in the middle, if comes out clear, it is ready to serve!
6. Keep an eye on your pound cake! don't over bake it!

ENJOY IT!! 

Husband is happy now.. so I am happy too! and I guess baby is happy too! :) Next time, I will try Cinnamon roll. first time to make it. hopefully it turns out great! YAYA!

doTERRA Lavender Essential Oil

Today is my 25 weeks and 5 days being pregnant.

6 weeks old ( a seed size)

Time flies, I am happy to see my tummy growing bigger every day, and  to feel my baby soft kick more often. Now I understand why mothers are so connected to their children, because they can feel and witness the growth of their baby throughout their development. I remember the first time hearing her heart beat, doctor told me that her heart is not fully developed yet, it was just a type of tissue that will developed into a heart, but I just felt so touched to hear that little life is living in my tummy.

I have been working 40 hours a week since I was pregnant, except the 1st trimester was killing me, I felt very comfortable after the first 3 months. I continue to work hard, did chores, went shopping, and did all kind of stuff. Until lately, my workload has increased rapidly, I started to feel stressful and get emotional very easily, my poor husband always need to take it all when I am out of temper.. Lol.. Luckily, my friend has introduced this essential oil which help me to reduce stress and have a better sleep. I don't really use oil before but guess what, this works for me! :) When I feel stressful, 1 drop of oil putting on back ear help me to relieve. :) I would totally put some on my husband if he feels too stressful to take in all of my temper. Lol!! wahaha!

My very first Spinach Quiche with homemade crust

The first time I tried Spinach Quiche was after my sister-in-law gave birth, her friends came over to visit and brought her some super yummy Spinach Quiche with strong cheese flavor. (YUM!!) so the other day I was craving for it so I decided to make my own. Luckily I've got this ingredients on hand. (YEAH!)

This is my first time to try it:

Quiche Crust Recipe:

I accidentally found this recipe inside the box of the unsalted butter, I guess it's a perfect portion of my Quiche (6 servings/6 pieces)

1 1/4 Cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter ( I would say you can try salted butter too) MAKE SURE BUTTER IS COLD and cut into cubes
3 1/2 Tablespoons ice water

Directions:
Combine flour and salt in a food processor bowl with steel blade and blend for 8 sec. DO NOT OVER BLEND!! Add COLD Water and mix just until dough comes together. put dough in a plastic bag and chill 30 mins. Roll on a lightly floured board and fit pastry into and 11 inch tart pan with bottom.

Filling:
1/2 Spinach
1 Large Egg
1/4 Milk
little bit of salt
little bit of black pepper
1 tablespoon of flour
(some or a lot) Sharp Cheddar Cheese

To be honest, I have not really measure the Spinach filling, I put a lot of Spinach because I LOVE IT!! and I have only put a little Cheddar Cheese on top because I tried to eat healthy (Blame on pregnancy again that I can't eat too much fat food! haha! ) but it turns out GREAT and I don't feel too greasy after I ate this. :):) YEAH!

This is the recipe that I see for reference: Spinach Quiche, ENJOY!

A relax day that I always hope for. :):)

I have kept my promise to make egg tart for my husband.:) compare to the one that I made last time, I think this one look better and hopefully taste better. (Actually I don't really remember how was the previous taste like.. Lol)

If you are interested. This is the recipe that I use.
EGG TART RECIPE

Another exciting moment of the day is having a painting party with my friends. I would say I have never done this type of wood painting before. I really loved and enjoyed it! It is going to be my first gift to my baby girl who is coming soon in June. I hope she will always remember her role.. not only our beloved daughter, but always a child of God. :)


I really had a great time today, haven't been so relax to make dessert and hang out with friends for so long...(yup! blame on the pregnancy.haha) Hopefully my friends and I can have another crafting party soon. :)

Cheers!

YEAH! Egg Tart is coming back!

After I got pregnant, I hardly ever make dessert. After looking through all of my homemade food album, all of a sudden, I feel like I should start making it again.. This Saturday! Start with our favorite yummy comfort food/dessert....EGG Tart!

在心中的回憶

老公和我經常有攪笑回憶, 這類回憶的累積常令我回心微笑, 幸福的表情從心浮現出來...令疲累的一天變快樂了~