Christmas at the Nguyens

We had a very memorable Christmas this year. It seems as we get older, Christmas brings on newer/deeper meanings. I didn't really fully enjoy Christmas songs in previous years.. but this year.. I would just cry at the lyrics of songs like "O Holy Night" or "You're Here" by Francesca Batastelli.. I just find it amazing how Love came down to save us all and give us a hope.. flooding the world with joy. Emanuel- God is with us.

Christmas was not the same without Vincent who was in California with his friends this year. Lots of food and very thoughtful gifts. Highlights were spending time with the family. Especially Van and Lisa since we don't get to see them often.

At the Blazers vs. 76ers Game on 12/28. Got to see AI play.. but sadly lost to the 76ers. As Van would say, "Can't win em all". Thanks for the tickets and memories, Van and Lisa!

First snowing this year/winter. Picture with one of my dearest and closest friends, Laurie! Thanks for always being there for me! =)




















Work in Progress: Painting the nursery room. (elephant gray and white. door was painted w/ black chalkboard paint)

Finally! Christmas Break!!

This past weekend, I (kind of) surprised Tony with a quick weekend trip to Seattle to celebrate the end of his first quarter of school and finishing finals. He worked and studied so hard these past few months. Most nights, he would come home from school very tired around 10 o'clock.

Not only was Tony working hard at school.. but he also had to go through some difficult situations that were unrelated to school.. and they were very stressful. We would sometimes wonder why this was happening. Many nights we would pray together and just give all of our worries to the Lord.. Putting our trust in Him.. That He would cover and protect us in this situation.

This verse really sustained the both of us when we felt vulnerable:

The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
Psalm 18:2

I'm so thankful to say that God is forever faithful and He did truly protect us from harm in this particular situation. If you're ever wondering what this situation was about.. feel free to ask.. I just feel uncomfortable blogging about it =)

I'm very proud to see how Tony handled the situation. I'm just so honored to be his wife.


Taking a picture in front of the Pike Place Market.. Doesn't Tony look so Pacific Northwestern with a Starbucks in his hand? =)


Eating lunch at Paseo in Seattle

taken on 12/20 @ 27 weeks.. (one week away from being 7 months) in our hotel room.

at theo's chocolates.. my favorite is their milk chocolate coconut curry (very good chocolates and they sell them at whole foods if you're interested)

Thanksgiving success!

This year- Thanksgiving was just not the same without my mom (who was visiting her mom in Houston) and Visa (Van and Lisa who are now living in California). = /

In past Thanksgivings - the only dish that I would help and cook up were the mashed potatoes... And without my mom this year.. I was literally petrified and scared to death about preparing a turkey. I even considered getting a back up ham. just in case!

Thankfully, with the help and encouragement of my awesome husband, the turkey turned out WONDERFUL! Thanks to Alton Brown and the Foodnetwork peeps! I couldn't have done this without you. I also want to thank Laurie for her cranberry sauce and my aunt for her eggrolls. Also thank you to my former host student, Nguyen and his friend-Anh who helped tremendously with clean up. And also thank you to Phuong and Vincent for always asking to help and washing the dishes. You guys are the best!

And lastly! Thank you Lord! Thanks for always providing for our families and friends... We can never thank You enough.

Happy Thanksgiving!

brining the turkey- alton brown style......

Seasons changing

I love fall. I love the beautiful fall colors and all the cool things to look forward to- Thanksgiving and Christmas. It's also the beginning of basketball season!! Go blazers!

This is the view from my cubicle office in downtown Portland. I love the color of the leaves. Sad that they will all be gone very soon.

A few weeks ago, Vincent cooked his very first meal for the fam- thit ko. It was very delicious!! I'm so proud of him! He's going to be a wonderful cook! Love the picture w/ him and Chewie too. When Vincent was playing xbox- Chewie just come up and curled up under him. So cute!


I'm now almost 6 months along! Time is going by fast. I thought I would never be one to take a picture of myself while pregnant.. But I couldn't help myself!

The baby has been very active.. And I love being pregnant! It's been such a great experience. I feel very energetic and just in awe of this awesome miracle. No cravings or swelling of the feet yet... Tony and I can't wait to see and know him.

Mystery solved.....

Tony and I went to our big 20 week ultrasound today. Walking to the doctor's office- Tony told me with full confidence that our baby was going to be a boy.. and he was right on. We are going to have a BOY!

The baby is also very healthy and everything is looking great! We are so excited.

Pregnancy is going very well! I feel great and am trying to eat healthy. I started to feel the baby move around at 16 weeks. Tony was able to feel the baby kick on 10/27. He described it as being an awesome and extraordinary feeling. =) This baby is pretty active.. so I think we may have a soccer player in there!

Thanks for all the prayers and support!

Head and Body






Feet!




Shot that tells us that he's a boy! (honestly.. i can't really make out the picture very well.. But our ultrasound person is "100% positive" he's a boy!)

Interesting week in the Nguyen household.

This has been one of the most difficult and toughest weeks of our lives. It started on Tuesday when I lost my phone. Still cellphone-less.. So if you need to get ahold of me.. Please call Tony. =)

On Wednesday, we had to put down our beautiful dog, Lucy. She was accidently hit by a car. Tony and I had to put her to sleep that same night. I have been fortunate to not have the experience of losing a closely loved family member or friend.. This was a very traumatic and deeply sad experience for both Tony and I. It made us realize how much we should take the time to love people and be quick to forgive. That night, I definitely squeezed Tony a little tighter and longer.

Lucy was a beautiful light in our lives. She was loyal and loving to her family. I loved coming to see her after a long day at work. She would get so excited when we would come and pick her up from my parents house to take her home. I will always remember her never ending licks and how much she loved to ride in the car. She will be truly missed. We will never forget her.

On Thursday, we celebrated our friend Eva's 26th Birthday at Saburos and Papa Haydens. She has been a blessing in our lives. Tony met Eva through school. She's a great inspiration because she is always on the quest to know everything about anything. She also has a great heart for her friends.

On Friday, my mom and I went to my 16th week OB appointment. We mistakenly thought that we would find out if we were having a boy or girl at this appointment. Unfortunately, we have to wait another 3-4 weeks! But the great news is the baby's heart beat is strong (160) and I was able to ask my doctor to use the portable ultrasound machine so we could see what the baby was up to.. And the baby is very active! My mom is convinced that this baby is a girl because the heartbeat is over 130. I loved being with my mom that day and just talking and hanging out. I have really grown to love her more than a mom but as a friend too. She is so excited for this new adventure in our lives.

On Saturday, Tony and I decided to go on a date to just wipe this crazy week off the books.. He surprised me with a beautiful hike at Forest Park. Beautiful place.. We actually saw a famous director- Gus Van Sant with his dog there.

We went to Saint Honore Bakery afterwards. Awesome cream puffs. I would definitely go back there to try all the other delectable goods. http://www.sainthonorebakery.com/

After another few hours of window shopping and a stop at Potato Champion- we decided to go home.. and to our dismay- our neighborhood was in the process of being blocked off by police officers. We were told that there "may be a man with weapons" in our neighborhood. Stunned, Tony and I went to my parents-who were not at home at the time.. And we accidentally set off their very loud house alarm. We had no idea what the code was either! Eventually, the alarm people called my mom and she figured that we probably broke into their house and everything was ok afterwards.

After another 2 hours, we finally got word by email from a news reporter that we could go back into the neighborhood. When we returned, there were 4 news crews and a couple of police cars right in front of our house. Tony and I talked to the police officer and they just told us that they have not arrested anyone yet and they are monitoring this gray house that is just a few houses away from ours to see if anyone will come out.

It appeared the police were looking for a bank robber named "the River Rat". The house ended up being empty and they found the River Rat in Puyallup, WA today! Praise God because Tony could not sleep very well last night knowing that this guy had not been found yet!

http://www.koinlocal6.com/content/news/topstories/story/River-Rat-Bandit-Captured/0gsasknvJE6ze9mztD9YVA.cspx

We ended (or started) this week with an awesome and refreshing time at church. We're beginning in the book of John. God has shown us a lot of things this week. He has the perfect timing for everything and He is our comforter and encourager during trying times.

"Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:21-23

First Posting- A picture of our first baby!

A ultrasound picture of Baby Nguyen at 12 weeks and 5 days (September 11, 2009)

After viewing several blogs of friends- I found inspiration and decided to create our very own blog! I'm looking at this as an online scrapbook. =)

As many of you already know, Tony and I are going to have a baby in late March. This is so special to us because it has been somewhat of a long journey. But God's grace and mercy covers all and has made this pregnancy so worth the wait. All I can say is this: God has the power to move mountains and His timing is perfect. There is nothing that we can do to deserve or earn this.. He is faithful even when we are not. We also are very thankful for all of our friends who prayed with/for us. It means so much more than you can imagine. We love you all.

Our next appointment and ultrasound is on October 9th. Hopefully, we will be able to tell what the sex of the baby will be. I have absolutely no preference- boy or girl! Tony thinks by looking at the ultrasound picture, the baby is a boy. =) Our prayer is that the baby will be healthy and will come to know the Lord at a very early age. I have also been praying for my baby's spouse! Just praying my baby's spouse will be "set apart" and also have the same heart for the Lord.

I'm so excited this week as Van and Lisa are in town! We miss them very much.. And we'll also be visiting our great friends, Diane and Duy in Seattle this weekend. Lots of family/friend love!

We did receive our first baby gift from wonderful friends, Janice and Joel. We met them through Duy and Diane. They are so very thoughtful and God loving people. We loved them from the very first time we met them. We hope to see them this weekend. =)