Baby Boy, Utah, and the Present

Super duper long over due post but it's now or never. OHMYGOSH.

It's really December guys! December.... 

Not much to update. Husband dearest is finishing up his first semester of year THREE of UTSW! Whattt??? 아싸라비야나이스붕붕!!!! Can I just say.. having husband gone every third day has been awful. The surgery rotation he was on was absolutely horrible. Our schedules were complete opposite and we barely saw each other. I came to really hope for moments with David. And when we were granted with time here and there, I truly appreciated it. Appreciated David. Heavenly Father really does have these intentional "teaching moments/learning curves.." 

With the holidays and such, I've been thinking of family. And time.

Living countries and States away from family is so hard. My family has had to do it for quite some time. The moments when all six of us were together, all at once, was pretty slim. Family, it's a weird thing. You have no choice to see the very best and the very very worst in a human being. You hate them with all your guys yet your the first person to defend them when others start to criticize them. 

I was able to fly out (awhile ago, back in Oct) and visit (some of) my family. Who am I kidding.  I went solely to see this baby boy. Cutest bundle of fatness joy!! Oh his squishy cheeks are absolutely delicious!

It's crazy! He's grown so much... Oh how time flies.. 

Visits to Utah also requires gab-fests with friends. There's a saying in Korea that says if you have three friends that you can count on, you've lived a successful life. I'm lucky to have such jewels in my life because I can count at least three friends that I trust in a heartbeat.

I've been thinking a lot about time. Have you ever thought about how we never appreciate time?
Our past mostly filled with regret, and how we're so concerned about our unknown future. We spend too much time living in the past, worrying about the future, we rarely live the moment and enjoy the present..

 We're all allotted the same amount of time. Unlike money or any other tangible thing, we cannot save it, borrow it, or share it with others. We have the same amount of time. But the way we use time will result in a different life overall. Kinda scary, huh? {Of course I start trying to calculate how much time I waste on Social Media. Darn you FB and YouTube. Oh, and Instagram. I've become a slave, completely addicted to my phone.. I'm thinking about Social Media fast.. What do you think? Yay or nay?} Anyow, going back to "time," I recently read a book called, "the Present" by Spencer Johnson. It's good. Inspiring in an informative way. Maybe it's the aftermath of the book or maybe because I'm turning the dirty thirty next year but I'm realizing again and again the importance of making the most out of the present.

“If you are depressed you are living in the past.
If you are anxious you are living in the future.
If you are at peace you are living in the present.”

-Lao Tzu

Oh Utah, my beautiful Utah. 

Anyhow, I'm grateful for the chance I had to fly out and see my family and get in tune with mother nature again. And, glad my mind is clouded with random thoughts that come here and there. It pushes me to do better. Become better. First day of the last month of 2015! What will you do to make it worthwhile?

Three Down, Forever To Go..

Blogging has been the last thing on my mind but if I don't document it somewhere, I won't have anything to look back on to remind me of this special day. While David and I were busy chewing through our food and enjoying each other's company (during our anniversary dinner) I tried to think of what we did last year.  My mind went blank. What did we do? ... When I asked my Chinese man, he also was clueless. Age is finally catching up..... Fearing I'll soon forget these precious memories I share with my dear husband, here is my attempt at another cheesy post about us. Bear with me.

You and I

He took me to my favorite restaurant in Dallas! 

Say what? THREE smoking years with this babe. It seems like only yesterday when we were both trying to woo each other while trying to finish up our last year of college. Can't believe it's year three as being Mrs. Eng. I've spent almost half a decade with this man..

Marriage is never easy. Sometimes I think an additional year comes with additional trials... I'm learning that these trials are necessary for a stronger relationship between not only husband and wife but also with God.  Keep throwing these learning curves at us... Together, we can overcome anything..

David and I try to balance our marriage with medical school (rotations for David) and my full time job. Plus the chores and errands that comes along with marriage. Toss in Diana's emotions that comes in waves. We also can't forget about Diana's nagging either...  But, luckily, we have David's patience and logic that balances out Diana. David and Diana always belong in the same sentence, don't they?

The past few months have been overwhelming for me. I was in my motherland for work. I've been tested in every possible way. Teaching has always been my calling, it's in my blood. I'm in love with my job. Yet,  I've never been given so much responsibility, never felt so incompetent, insecure.  I understand that it's a learning curve. And throughout my trip, I've fallen numerous times. There were times I just refused to get up,  dust away the past and move on... Even though he was continents away, whenever I fell, he was there to catch me and prevent me from giving up. 

My love

I'm such a flawed person. Imperfect in every imaginable way. But he loves me as I am. I hope the years I've spent with him have helped soften up my difficult personality. I hope some of the selfishness I came with has been replaced with his selflessness.  He gives me faith. Together, we hope. 

Marriage: 

"4 cups of love

3 cups of forgiveness

2 cups of loyalty

1 cup of friendship

5 spoons of hope

2 spoons of tenderness

4 quartz of faith

1 barrel of laughter.."

Here's to another year that will be filled with joy, laughter, trials, tears, anger, disappointment.  But dearest husband, I'm glad it's you by my side. I will continue to enjoy our never-ending story. 

As Our Paths Separate

This post is so overdue but better late than never. I flew out to Utah last month to meet my newborn nephew. As I was getting ready for my flight, I realized a trip to Utah might be the last time all my close friends will be in the same city, let alone same state. This is why I dragged them out at the crack of dawn in 20 degree weather into the canyons for a glamorous photo shoot. Thank you Maya Inoue for the pictures. Even though Rachel groaned about how no one would bloody look good at 8am in the morning, I think we could pass for K-pop stars, no? Maybe it is Maya's amazing skills but I dare say we look darn good!

 

My friendship with all these lovely ladies mean the world to me. As we were walking, laughing, grumbling (ahem Rachel),  I couldn't help but realize how different our lives were compared to when we first met. How bittersweet... I marveled at how far we've come along but saddened  that our adventures together might come to an end.

We were on the same path called college for quite some time. That long journey threw some curve balls at us--school itself, grades, boys, sometimes our faith, sometimes our family. But together, we made it through. Now that we've finished that journey, we're each starting to tread along our own separate paths. And to look back to see what we've all accomplished over the years, I'm confident we will all do well. No doubt about that.

 

Oh how the years have gone by. It seems like only yesterday when we were all so naive.  I'm grateful for the trials that were thrown at me and you. Thank you, world, for teaching me a lesson or two, but the greatest lesson I learned was to have you guys in my life.  Until we're gray and wrinkly, I hope our friendship never dies. 

 

Sarang <3

Quick Quarterly Update

I'm horrible with keeping up with my blog. But, to be honest, David and I don't lead very exciting lives.  Nor do we have any littles to brag about.. As you all know, David continues his journey through medical school. And I diligently continue to carry on as his proud sugar momma while trying to fit into this grand southern state.

The good looking couple, David and Diana.

Ooh! I did get a promotion at work that will allow me to use my Education degree (kind of) and my language skills. As always, I'm grateful for my days at BYU and appreciative towards my parents for forcing my siblings and I to use both languages. Never did I think being bilingual (especially in Korean) would be so advantageous. I do thank my Lord in Heaven the most for the abundant blessings in our lives.

The first three months of 2015 flew by! We said hello to David's second semester of MS2, survived a few ice storms. David also went to El Paso for a Medical Mission Trip. And, with a blink of an eye, we just welcomed Spring!

My hot Chinese man.

It blows my mind to think in less than two months David will take his Step One exam and jump right into his THIRD year of Medical School! It only seems like yesterday when I was sobbing in our apartment in Murray, UT, dreading our move to Texas. After two years of living here, I think I might actually like Texas. We have our moments but for the most part, this big, southern state and this little Asian girl seem to get along quite well. Texas for one is softer on my heart. Despite the challenges I face, I think I'm going to be kinder towards Texas as well.

I've been eating out, a lot because our busy schedules. One thing I absolutely LOVE about Texas is the food. Guys, the FOOD itself was so worth the move. (Although they can't do desserts like the Beehive State.)

Pig feet at Koryo Galbi

Tokyo One- All you can eat sushi and Korean galbi

Spicy chewy noodles at Ajuma's!

Pig intestines, for $5.00!

Kimchi jigae. This bowl of deliciousness is only $6.00. 

Kimchi Ramen at Ramen Hakata. This bowl of heaven and I meet at least once a week. 

Okay, I have a new favorite restaurant. Japanese ramen made my Korean chefs! Guys, if you think that top ramen is ramen, you need to try this place out! Ramen Hakata on Beltline. This place is right next to work and I visit quite often. They just came out with a new menu and added on Kimchi ramen. It is the best ramen dish I have tried. And that's saying a lot! They boil the broth for days then they add fermented and fried kimchi. It's the bomb! If you come visit me, it'll all be worth it! I promise. 

I continue to make my weekly trips to Barnes and Noble. I'm kind of in a rut though.. I usually read at least two-three books per month. But, my heart hasn't really been into the books I've started. If you have any recommendations, please let me know.


Last but not least, say hello to the cutest baby boy on earth...!!

 My sister and brother-in-law welcomed their first baby. I was staring at pictures of him all day long. Isn't he the most adorable thing you've ever laid eyes on? I'm going to spoil him rotten! heehee~

Anyhow, this girl gets to fly out to Utah on Wednesday to see her little nephew. Be prepared, I'm going to overload IG and FB with pictures of this little baby boy <3