Yay!  After signing to Erica for the past 6-7 months, she’s starting to sign back on a regular basis!

I should change the name of the blog to “stuff about Erica”… but anyways, I’m sure only parents and grandparents would find this video fascinating, but she’s recently started to play ‘peekaboo’… during dinner… sometimes with sauce covered hands.

For awhile we were wondering if Erica had much interest in walking. She seemed fine furniture walking and crawling along at half light-speed. Earlier this week she hit the 16 month mark, and I’d say within the last few weeks she’s starting to do more ‘stuff’. Here’s a video of her practicing standing without holding onto anything. You can see she’s getting confidence, so I think her first steps are just a few days away…

We got back from my sister’s wedding in Mexico early Friday morning.  I think it was one of those events where there’s so much going on that you can’t fully absorb everything… but when everything is finished and you have a few free, quiet moments to reflect, then you start to realize some things.  My one and only sister is now married (I guess it took 2 ceremonies to cement it <grin>) and she’s officially starting the next phase in her life.  Paul is my brother-in-law, and we’ve officially welcomed him to our family, as the Vegas’ have welcomed Vennie into their family.

We made a lot of new friends, renewed old friendships, and learned a lot about Paul’s family.

Getting there is half the fun

Not really.  To get to Merida, we took the 10:35pm flt from Vancouver to Toronto.  Arrived in Toronto at about 6:30 EST.  Then we had 5 hours to kill before boarding the flight to Cancun.  We reached Cancun at 2:30 local time where I was very surprised to see the new airport!!  The last airport left a lot to be desired, and this one was pretty nice.  My parents and Bill and Wendy were waiting outside, and so we hopped into the van for a thrilling 3 hour roadtrip from Cancun to Merida. 

I would say that my flight to India was worse… but only just.  If I am ever booked on a red-eye again, I will toss my passport into the shredder so I can’t go.  Throughout the journey, we could only think of how much worse it would be if we had brought e with us.  🙁

Back to the wedding… 

Anyways, I have a lot more to write about the wedding, travel, Mexico, etc. so I’ll leave that for future entries.  I think the highlight for me, and most everyone was the reception.  Great venue, food, and speeches.  I’ve been bugged a few times to include the speech I wrote for Vennie, so here it is.

I’m here to talk and say some nice things about my sister.  Yes, I enjoy a good challenging topic…

My sister was born in the year of the tiger, and so I looked up the personality traits of the Tigress. 

It states:

“The tigress is Passionate, powerful, dynamic, and is a stick of dynamite waiting to go off…

They live life with Vigor, and are very goal oriented.  They are never halfhearted about their endeavours.  The Tigress must express herself, find her identity, and shape her personality.

Fashion conscious, articulated, and liberated.  They love being the center of attention.

They have a sensitive, artistic side.  They are also nurturers and humanitarians, great with children.

The Tigress is the ultimate optimist who will always bounce back for fresh challenges.

But the downside is that they are often hot-headed.  Don’t taunt the tigress, as she keeps her claws sharpened just in case.”

My first memory of Vennie’s emerging personality when she was just 2.  Our family took a vacation to Ottawa to visit our Aunt Nora/Uncle Larry and our cousins Robin and Denny.  We took a walk by the Parliament buildings, and I recall pushing cousin Denny in a stroller.  Out of nowhere came these tiny little claws, and before I knew what had happened, my sister had cut in front of me, taken the stroller, and was already running off in the distance pushing the stroller.

What was it like growing up with Vennie?  Here are some words that come to mind… Fleece sweatpants, piano lessons, braces, endless hours of off-tune Olivia Newton John and Sheena Easton songs, fashion forward/thick round glasses- think of Vennie as an owl, bowl cuts (thanks mom), and of course, more claws.  It wasn’t until she was much older that things became more interesting, and we could finally be civil to each other… however the claws were still ever present.

When I think of my sister and what is important to her, Family and friends are the first to come to mind.  In many ways, she is the glue that helps hold our family together.  Ever thoughtful, she makes a point to keep in touch and celebrate anything and everything.  As Kara can attest, at some point, most of our younger cousins were looked after by Vennie.  She sets a good example, provides her unique form of “direction”,and helps anyone who is in need.

I want to go back to the quote “The Tigress must express herself, and find her identity.”

Coming from our family, there’s an expectation to enter the medical field.  My sister went to U of C, completed her BSc, and took the MCATs.  Somewhere during that process, she changed her direction, and went into interior design.  After graduation, her next decision was to pursue her career in NY. 

These two decisions in career choice and relocation to NYC, were made because of who she is.  They are decisions that took courage, conviction, and belief in herself.  I can say that not many people born in Drumheller have made the jump to a successful career in NY. They are also pivotal decisions in that they eventually led her to Paul, and are the reason why we are here today. 

I have one final quote about the Tigress- “Life with the Tiger will be volatile.  It will be filled with laughter, tears, drama, joy, and every conceivable emotion in the dictionary.”  Paul- get ready.  🙂

For Vennie- I have a short story for you.  When mom was really pregnant with you, she asked me if I wanted a brother or sister.  I remember seriously thinking about it for a few moments, and I decided I wanted a brother.  Mom asked why wouldn’t I want a sister, and pointed out all the good things about having a sister.  Mom said enough to change my mind.

Later in school, I learned that you should always go with your first answer.  It took some time, but I came to realize I’m very glad I didn’t go with my first answer.  (Now I also have a brother in Paul!)

My life in the past few years has been better than I could imagine- first as a husband, and then as a parent.  I wish the same happiness and contentment for you and Paul.

Please raise your glasses to Vennie- Mountain climber, world traveller, artist, marathon runner, one-time model, and forever my kid sister- health, happiness, and more cousins for Erica!    
 
Salut!

 

Photo of Paul and Vennie’s wedding favor

I couldn’t help but to laugh the first time I saw her do the L sit. I think you can view at the proper screen size by hitting one of the screen size icons.

A couple of weekends ago, I had a craving for berry pancakes with butter and maple syrup. I had a bit of batter leftover, so I made a mini pancake for e, just to see what she would do with it…

It’s hard to believe that Grandma left us 7 years ago today.  Maybe it doesn’t seem that long ago because we, as a family, still talk about her quite a bit, which keeps her memory very much alive.

 As I posted Grandpa’s eulogy, I thought it would be fitting to find Grandma’s eulogy and post it.  I found that reading the words now, probably means more today given the state of our family.  And now that the next generation is here, we have a promise to fulfill!

On Behalf of my sister Vennie and my cousins- Jason, Jennifer, Michael (who could not be with us here today, but passes along his love and support), Christopher, Lester, Jonatan, and Cindy- I would like to say a few words to express how much our Grandmother means to us.

Thank you, Grandma, for being there during the first month of our lives to teach our parents how to cope with the shock of parenthood.  Thank you for impressing upon us the importance of family… reminding us to get along with each other, to support each other, and to play fair.  You taught us about love, respect, generosity, integrity, and you set the example of what it means to be polite and well mannered.  You encouraged us to do our best in school and in our work.  But, most importantly, you wanted us to become good people and to enjoy life to the fullest.

Without your wisdom, support, and unconditional love, we would not be who we are today.

We cannot think of a better way to thank you than to pass along these values to future generations.  To this, we each promise to do so.

Wherever we are, we know in our hearts, that you will always be there to watch over us, your Monkeys.

On July 19th, I came home and E told me that e said her first word!  Until then, she’s been babbling quite a bit, saying some actual words, but not in any context.  I was skeptical.  E told me what her first word was, and so I went over to e, looked at her and said “Up?”  Little e looked me straight in the eye, and said “Upppph”… and I could instantly read it in her eyes that she comprehended!

They say it’s a big deal when your child says her first word, and you really don’t understand that until your own kids says it to you for the first time.  “Hey, you understand me…. I understand you!”  That is so cool!

The day before, AJ called to let us know Grandpa was in the hospital for Pneumonia getting some antibiotics.  There was cause for concern as he is 85 with a lung problem… so I planned to visit the next day.  I got home from work, and was waiting for a ride to VGH with UR.  When he came over, he told me the news that Grandpa was gone…

 I thought that when you got older, gained some wisdom, that you could better cope with loss.  I learned that is not the case.  I won’t go into how I felt that week, other than to say I was glad to have family around to lean on.

As for my Grandfather, all I have to say is captured in the Eulogy and 2 photos, which I now include for the family… 

On behalf of the Lau family, I want to welcome and thank everyone for coming today.  It’s very heartwarming to see the faces of my Grandparent’s long time friends… to know that you valued their friendship as much as they valued yours. 

What a life…
A few years ago, we sat down with grandpa, and with a tape recorder asked him to tell us his story.  Often, we take it for granted that those who know our family history will always be around to tell them.  Our Grandparents loved to tell stories, and although we remember some of the details, nobody can tell a story like they did.  So we decided to interview Grandpa, and record what we call “the Grandpa stories”

Grandpa was the eldest son of six surviving children.  When he spoke of his childhood, he talked about how his Grandmother brought him to watch Chinese opera with her, and how she was the one who sent him to music lessons.  She was the one responsible for his life long passion for music and the arts. 

When the war against Japan started in 1937, Grandpa was just 15 and living in HK.  As soon as he finished secondary school in 1941, he made the decision to leave his life and family in HK to study Engineering and join the Chinese Army.  Grandpa was eventually promoted to Captain, in charge of logistics, and from family photos, he certainly looked dashing in his uniform.

He didn’t talk much about the war, except to say it was a long time ago.  We do know that he nearly lost his life on two occasions.  First, during the beginning of the war when he was studying engineering, he fell seriously ill, near death, only to be saved and nursed back to health by a caring woman.  The second story was told to us by our Grandma.  Grandpa was working at his desk.  He got up to use the washroom, which was in another building.  Moments later a bomb was dropped, and the explosion destroyed the building he sat in moments ago.  Once again, he was saved by fate.

It was near the end the war that he met and married my Grandmother in June 1944. They started a family in a time where the China was still under threat from the Japanese; and after the war, the communists rose as the new threat.  Just months before the communists took power in China; Grandpa had the foresight to move the family from certain persecution back to HK, to the one place in China that was still under British rule.  We remember how fondly our Grandparents talked about China; it was hard for them to leave their homeland. 

1965 he and Grandma made another pivotal decision- they decided to move to North America, realizing that HK would never be able to give the same educational opportunities to their sons that North America could provide.  Applying to the States and Canada, Canada just happened to be the first to grant admission, and so Grandpa spent a small fortune on air tickets, and the family was off to Calgary… but fate thankfully intervened again, and after a stopover in Vancouver, they decided to stay here.

The 70s and 80s were spent working, going to Church, traveling, and being the best Grandparents to a growing number of Grandchildren.  In the late 80s, Grandpa was finally able to retire for good.

One of the secrets to a fulfilling life is giving and being in service to others.  Grandpa was always there to open his door to help friends and family.  Back in the 1950s, he practically raised his brother and sisters along with his own large family.  He and Grandma devoted many hours to the Church- helping in many different capacities.  He gave guidance and support when needed, even helping many of us grandkids with mathematics; and as we got older, helping us with the problems of growing up.  He rarely told us what to do; rather, he gave advice and insight from his years of experience.  Grandpa gave to us in other ways- if you enjoy taking photos, playing a musical instrument, or drawing… that’s from Grandpa.  If you enjoy raising fish in an aquarium, target shooting, collecting gadgets, working with your hands, or doing word searches or Sudoku puzzles… that’s Grandpa.  If you place labels on all your belongings, shop at Sears instead of Holt Renfrew, enjoy Church’s Chicken or pork chops with cream of mushroom soup, munch through the biggest jar of Planters peanuts while watching TV, and finish it all off with big bowl of ice-cream for dessert… that’s also Grandpa. 

In his lifetime, he was a Civil Engineer, Army Captain and veteran of the Second World War. A skilled craftsman, talented musician and music teacher, photographer, traveler, patron of the arts, a long time church member, and a good friend to many.  A big brother, devoted husband, father to 5 boys, grandfather to 9, and great-grandfather to a little boy, and to a little girl.  Although he didn’t say it with words, I could tell that Grandpa had a special place in his heart for the newest generation.  I can only imagine how proud he must have been.

When Ma-ma passed away, Yeh-Yeh wrote that part of his heart was taken away… but now they are reunited, happy, together once again.  Ma-ma, Yeh- Yeh, I don’t know how to thank the both of you for all the sacrifice, guidance, and love you have given us.  One day, when my daughter is old enough, I will show her a picture of the both of you, and I will be so proud to tell her all about you and your stories.  I know my sister and cousins will do the same for their families.

Yeh-Yeh, thank you for being a good man.  Goodbye for now…

 

Grandpa and his Great-Grand daughter

Erica started her 10th month with a cold.  Poor kid was a sniffling snot machine.  Her nose was so raw that she started to shake her head and complain if she saw you reach for a kleenex.

This month has been a very interesting month.  Her hair is finally starting to thicken, she’s vocalizing and repeating sounds a lot more.  Ma Ma, Da Da, Ca(t), etc.  She can certainly make the sounds, but we’re not sure if she’s associating them with the proper object/person yet. 

No signs or interest in crawling or walking yet.  She’s lazy that way, but she’s definitely developing in other ways.  Manipulating objects, doing the Vulcan hand pose- like the one Spock uses when figuring out a complex logic problem, mastering various jump styles on the jolly jumper, following along as you read a book to her, eating cheerios/mum-mums, giggling at the cats, drinking from a normal cup, and her favorite- flicking water from her sippy cup straw. 

It was at Lauren’s one month dinner when I first saw her do this.  She has a sippy cup with a flexible straw.  She takes her finger, and flicks the straw so water flings up to 5 feet away.  When the straw is empty, she would suck up enough water to fill the straw, flick it until it’s empty, then reload.  Soon her face was dripping, and she was having almost as much fun as bath time.