CW & Cindy

Project “Pineapple"

2011-10-04T22:24:00.001-05:00

Cindy and I love pineapple! It is a wonderful and delicious tropical fruit.
One of the experiments we did this year were trying to plant our own pineapple.. it is quite an interesting experience for us and it is really fun seeing it grows....

It was an easy process to grow an pineapple, anyone can do it at home..

Step 1 - Buy a pineapple,
Step 2 - Remove the crown/head from the pineapple..
Step 3 - Root the crown by placing the crown on a glass/bowl of water.(Change water every 5-7 days)
Step 4 - Plant the crown on the pot.

Try ”Google/YouTube" on pineapple growing, there are many planting tips and information you can find over there, but there are about similar method...

Anyway.. Here are some of the pictures to share...

1st week - Need to keep the soil moist for 1-2 weeks..

After 3 months...

After 3 months - Different view...

We also tried to grow it on a ground beside our compost bin, it grows beautifully with not much maintenance needed...

Our next challenge is to wait for it to start flowering and produce a ripe fruit..... 1-2 years maybe.. hahahaa...

4-Night Bahamian Cruise on Disney Dream

2011-05-18T22:29:00.000-05:00

Cindy and I together with Sam & Winnie will be heading to Florida this weekend. And yes, we will be sailing on the new 2011 Disney cruise ship - The Disney Dream. We have been looking forward to this vacation trip since Feb. And finally this is the week, we will be boarding this Sunday...

I am a first time cruiser, Cindy always wanted to sail on a Disney cruise, and I always thought that Disney cruise is for kids, but I must admit that after spending time looking at all the ship amenities and introduction video, I'm so impressed and totally all for it!!

Our trip itinerary as below:

4-Night Bahamian Cruise on Disney Dream

The Stateroom we will be staying is a Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah:

Some Facts about the ship

Disney Dream

The Disney Dream is a fantastic, family-friendly Disney Cruise Line ship that takes Guests of all ages on amazing vacations to fabulous ports of call in the Bahamas. The gleaming ship is a modern-day marvel with an innovative design that combines sophisticated technology and magical elements made possible only by Disney.

Ship Facts:

Maiden Voyage: January 26, 2011
Passenger Capacity: 4,000
Gross Tonnage: 130,000
Length: 1,115'
Beam: 121'
Draft: 26'
Cruising Speed: 22 knots (maximum 23.5 knots)
The Disney Dream is approximately 40% larger than the Disney Magic or the Disney Wonder.
The total number of beds on the Disney Dream is 5007—over 1,900 more than the Disney Magic or the Disney Wonder.
The Disney Dream is 2 decks taller than sister ships, the Disney Magic and the Disney Wonder.

One of the intro video...

Will share more once we came back....

source and pictures from

芥菜+蘆筍

2011-03-02T23:22:00.001-06:00

阿馨兩年前給我們播的蘆筍苗今年終於可以收成了。。其實蘆筍挺好種的﹐平時只要澆澆水﹐長得太茂盛時修一修﹐ 其他時間就不用怎麼處理(沒蟲害﹐不必常施肥﹐而且耐寒。。) 很方便喲。。

上禮拜六採收了一小把﹐ 本想說可以用來做蘆筍抄辣蝦。。結果雁姐表明自己種﹐ 第一次採收要吃原味的說。。我只能說﹕ OK 嘍~~

去年十二月播種的芥菜﹐ 現在也可以開始收了...順便也介紹一下我們家壞了的蒜頭﹐ 也被我們種下與芥菜作伴﹐ 書上說是可以防蟲作用。。。

春天來了。。。可以開始播種種菜嘍。。。鄰居們。。大家一起加油吧!!

House Finch & Sparrow

2011-02-26T22:54:00.002-06:00

We welcome our new guests - House Finch and Sparrow. Cindy and I enjoy watching them using our feeders at our back yard.

Couple videos to share - taken this morning while I was working on the garden... The red head is an adult male house finch.. female house finches has brown back and streak fronts..

At one time, there was a full house on the feeders....

Some facts about House finch... Source from allaboutbirds.com

Keys to identification

Finches

Size & Shape
House Finches are small-bodied finches with fairly large beaks and somewhat long, flat heads. The wings are short, making the tail seem long by comparison. Many finches have distinctly notched tails, but the House Finch has a relatively shallow notch in its tail.
Color Pattern
Adult males are rosy red around the face and upper breast, with streaky brown back, belly and tail. In flight, the red rump is conspicuous. Adult females aren’t red; they are plain grayish-brown with thick, blurry streaks and an indistinctly marked face.
Behavior
House Finches are gregarious birds that collect at feeders or perch high in nearby trees. When they’re not at feeders, they feed on the ground, on weed stalks, or in trees. They move fairly slowly and sit still as they shell seeds by crushing them with rapid bites. Flight is bouncy, like many finches.
Habitat
House Finches frequent city parks, backyards, urban centers, farms, and forest edges across the continent. In the western U.S., you’ll also find House Finches in their native habitats of deserts, grassland, chaparral, and open woods
.

Tulips are growing...

2011-02-23T23:29:00.001-06:00

We wrote about our Tulips planting experiment in our previous post.
Couple weeks ago, we had few days of hard freeze in Houston.. We are glad that our Tulips survived this crazy cold temperature!!
Now they are growing.... Some pictures to share below:

Here comes the Tulip Tailo...be the 1st to bloom...

Planting Tulips

2010-12-05T22:59:00.001-06:00

We bought a $1 pot of tulip at Wal-Mart early this year, surprisingly it did blooms well, and when we found out that Costco is selling a bag of tulip bulbs, we told ourselves why not try to grow some tulips start from the bulbs at our back garden. So, the experiment start....

Tulip bulbs from Costco

Organic Compost for the bedding- got it from Lowes

Pre-bedding with compost mixtures..

Here is the quick snapshot of the bulbs... pretty large in size..

Planting the bulbs..

Another closer view of the bulbs arrangement...

Final Step will be fill up the bed and water thoroughly after planting... Then we will wait for the beautiful blooms at Spring 2011...

When To Plant Tulips: Tulips should be planted sometime between September and December (depending on which zone you live in, usually about one month before the heavy Fall frost is a good time).

Where To Plant Them: Plant tulips where they will receive at least six hours of sun, the bulbs need plenty of sun so they can store energy for next year’s blooms. Soil should be well draining to prevent bulb rot.

Blooming Beauty - $1 Tulip from Wal-Mart we bought on Feb 2010...

2010 - 絲瓜

2010-08-21T00:38:00.000-05:00

開始採收了我們家2010年的絲瓜。。今年跟去年一樣。。都有種了普通絲瓜及稜角絲瓜,不同的是去年是姨丈給的苗﹐今年是用去年留下來的子所發的苗。今年從我們家也分出去了好幾株苗﹐不知大家種得如何﹖

與大家分享~~

稜角絲瓜又稱八角瓜、十角絲瓜、角瓜、廣東絲瓜、澎湖絲瓜、金門菜瓜或雨傘瓜

普通絲瓜 - 這個長得有點像個 J 形。。

這就長得比較好。。授粉及成長空間都是因素。。。

阿蜜蜂正在忙。。。

絲瓜花現正盛開。。

如果今年像去年那樣盛產﹐ 將與村名及好友們分享。。一起期待。。

Galveston Short Term Mission Trip

2010-08-05T23:27:00.003-05:00

Two weeks ago, together with MYAF, we went to a short term mission trip @ Galveston. The trip was fruitful, it gave us a chance to learn a little about the life story of brothers & sisters and an opportunity to learned how blessed we are. I believed the message from Pastor Huang and the sharing from Xin, James & Joey were truly an encouragement and inspiration to everyone at Galveston Chinese Church as well as brothers & sisters from MYAF. God is faithful and awesome, it is a blessings that God used MYAF for this mission trip, even it may not have been in the way we expected but in the way He intended.

Some of the photos taken during this short term mission trip:

1. Rooftop of Galveston Chinese Church

2. Worship team doing a final rehearsal before the evening event starts

3. Mark - our videographer setting up the camcorder..

4. Wen Chi - reviewing the small Evangelical booklet.

5. Both Cindy & Michelle were enjoying their cup of coffee.. perhaps tea..

6. Bibles on one of the bookshelves at GCC.

7. Wild Flower at front of GCC

8. GCC brothers serving dinner.. Cherry: Yummy~~

9. Xin - Accepting a plate of dinner with a grateful heart & humble smile

10. Both James & Guo-Shi were chatting with church members during dinner session..

11. Praying session just before the evening event starts.

12. Full house on Saturday evening event.

13. Paul praying silently before the event starts.

14. Worship team lead the 1st song of the night.

15. Guo-Shi solo moment..

16. James starts his first sharing of the night with a moment of humor.

17. James share his story

18. Xin share her faith journey of accepting Christ as personal savior.

19. Joseph Solo moment.. "給我一個機會"

20. Pastor I-Ming Huang sharing a short message..

21. Expression from Pastor I-Ming Huang...

22. The message of the night: "尋找一個機會"

23. Andy - Moment of Praying..

24. Brothers & Sisters were praying after the short message by Pastor Huang.

25. Esther ~ An excellent shot by Cindy

26. Hsing ~ Another excellent shot by Cindy...

27. Joseph ~ Shot by Cindy

28. Sisters posting.~

29. Aunt Rose & Tiff.

30. Paul ~ Having smile of a child..

31. Saturday evening group pictures...

Day 2 - Sunday Morning......

32. Kan observing the switch board...

33. Xin ~ million dollar smile

34. Sunday morning worship...

35. Patrick sing praise to the Lord.

36. Camcorder recording the practice

37. Pastor I-Ming Huang featuring his "SAX" melody..

38. Sunday service message: " 恩典之路"

39. Cindy listening~

40. Joey sharing moment...

41. Xin taking pictures on two little girls..

42. Two cute little girls posting ~ Shot by Xin He

43. Agnes is teaching Sunday school after the morning service.

44. Drawing by Cindy: "Garden Menu"

45. Group Pictures~

46. Red

47. Walking toward “The Strand"

48. Building

49. I want that one~

50. Excited~

51. Matching colors~

52. Ice Cream Galore~

Watermelon

2010-07-16T23:39:00.000-05:00

We have our first ever homegrown watermelon harvest today... yeah.. our little watermelon finally ripe.. Both Cindy and I were really excited....

.. after 60days... 1 ripe watermelon... ~3.5 lbs

It is time to cut it..... We were very curious how good it is inside.. :)

Here we go....

Chop.....

Ta...da....Wow....

Closer Look...Not bad at all..

Ready to serve!!

The overall taste were really good, very sweet and great texture. Since this is a total organic, my only complain will be too many seeds in there, yeah. I know.. being spoiled by the genetic altered/hybrid seedless watermelon in the market...

We looking forward for couple more watermelon harvest in next few weeks..

Watermelon vertically hanging on a vine...

Happy July 4th!!

2010-07-04T23:58:00.055-05:00

While July 4th is the great opportunity to enjoy the parades, festival and fireworks shows going on around the areas, sometimes staying at home just to relax ourselves during this long weekend is not a bad thing to do at all.
It's the 2nd year we watch the fireworks from our backyard... here are some of the pictures taken....

Happy July 4th!!!

Durian?

New addition to our garden...

2010-06-29T21:37:00.001-05:00

I have been searching for Kaffir lime leaf for past couple weeks, being craving for one of my favorite Nyonya dish and Kaffir lime leaf is one of the must have ingredients for the dish. On Saturday, after having dinner with our fellow neighbors at Chinatown, we stop by at one of the local Vietnamese nursery to check out whether they have the tree we want.

Yes!!... they do have it!!! This is it... Kaffir Lime Tree (Tai-Ko Kam)

Here is the closer look of the Kaffir Lime leaves, it always serves as popular ingredient in South East Asia.

In the meantime, Cindy also found her favorite passion fruit tree, she has been thinking for growing a passion fruit tree for a while, just couldn't find one in Houston, and today, she is bringing it back home!!

Both of us went home with our face smiling.......

Dinner at home :)

2010-06-24T23:59:00.001-05:00

My wife cooked a simple, healthy and yummy dinner this evening... She is really doing a great job!!

It is our first harvest meal for the white bitter melon...

Steamed bitter melon stuffed with ground pork& mushroom

Okra with wasabi soy source

涼拌小黃瓜 (Pickled Cucumber Salad)

Tomato soup in progress - waiting for boiling before eggs go in...

CWnCindy’s Review (5 Stars Rank):

Taste
Price	(Free!)
Food Presentation
Service
Overall

We gave the food presentation 3 stars since the outlook of each dish didn't really attracted us much at first sight. However, once we get a taste of it, we were totally “WOW" by its excellent flavor!!
(Wah... now we are food blogger.. Maybe山寨版..okay.. Maybe not.)

Great job!! Cindy !!

2010 - Our Organic Garden

2010-06-22T23:17:00.000-05:00

People were asking how is our vegetables garden doing this year? We kind of take a step further to expand our backyard to grow even more this year.. The following is a quick snapshot on what is going on now at our back garden, I will post a little more details on each individual topic(vegetables, soils, fertilizer..etc)...only if I have time.. :)

Baby "Bok-Choy" 小白菜... Did you notice the ladybug... :p

"Yin Choi" 莧菜

芥蘭菜

A-菜

高麗菜

大番茄

Snow Peas...

Cucumber - 小黃瓜

Taro - 小芋頭 - from 阿馨

EEggplant -茄子 - Still growing~~

Bitter Melon - 苦瓜

Broccoli - 西蘭花

Garlic Chives - 韭菜

Sweet Potato Leaf - 番薯葉

Long Bean - 長豆

Green Bell Pepper - 青椒

Jagung

Perilla - 紅紫蘇

Ridged Gourd - 絲瓜

Blackberry

Blueberry

Sugar Apple

Watermelon

Last but not least.. Cindy's favorite Herbs Garden...

There are still some of the plants/tree that I have not got a chance to introduce... will definitely introduce them on a separate post... Looking forward to share with our family and friends on a vegetables galore...

In Everything, Be Thankful...

2010-06-01T21:52:00.000-05:00

Hello family and friends, we are back!!
It has been a while we didn't update our blog... June is already here for 2010, and it is indeed another fruitful year for Cindy and I... In everything that happened to us, good or bad, happy or sad, We have a lot to cherish, to share and to thank God for.. We learn to appreciate more on the God's greatness and love...

We will be trying our best to regularly update our blog.... check back often...

Love,
CW & Cindy

BH and Eric’s visit~

2009-09-30T20:18:00.001-05:00

We were so happy that our dear friends Eric and BH came back to Houston last month. Here are some pics we would like to share~~~ Hope to see you guys again soon~~~

On the day BH brought two kids to our house, CW was on his business trip. Me and BH had a lot of good time playing with two kids. We went to our back yard to water the veges. However the kids got totally wild when they saw the water coming out from the pipe… taking shower after playing in the back yard… as you can see, Isaac was very very happy~~btw…i do have some pics of Meredith taking shower too…but since she is a young lady now…I will keep them to myself lah~~

After shower~~

They like to climb the stairs very much…and like to wear the monkey slippers as well… Guess where the other slipper is??

Oh~~my sister stole it~~

Let’s see what is behind the wall…

My sister again~~

~THE END~ See you next time!!!

Adiós Humming Birds….

2009-09-30T00:37:00.001-05:00

It has been almost a week we have no sign of hummers stopping at our back garden.. I guess they have already continue their journey to their southern migration.. I read some articles mentioned that Humming birds will return year after year to particular gardens they have visited, well let's hope we will see them again next year during their Spring migration to the north.

I manage to do a few video shot for this tiny little humming birds during their visit at our back garden.. Post it here to share with all our friends and family..

This was shot on 8/18/09… Other than the humming bird, you can also see the sugar apple(釋迦) tree at the back…

Two hummers playing on the scene…

An up close view of hummer enjoying the sugar syrup…

Another up close view..

1st Wedding Anniversary...6 Wonderful Years together...

2009-09-15T00:59:00.000-05:00

Today is a very special day for a few reasons. Last year on this day, we are getting married with the witness of our families and friends when hurricane Ike hit Houston. Just wanted to thank you all for the help for our wedding. Without your love and support, we will not have this very special wedding. Hurricane Ike has left a wake of devastation of all degrees throughout the greater Houston Area and we are in constant prayer and praise that God is still in control and carrying us through this time!!

Today both Cindy and I also celebrating our 6th year dating anniversary. Hahaaa..I know...I can only imagine some people might be thinking what is so special about it? Well, for us, it is about celebrating our love for each other and cherish each day that we get to spend together. Even though Cindy and I are so different in every aspect, life is too short not to be thankful for everything that you have.. and God only knows how thankful I am to have Cindy as my lovely wife, my life was changed for better the day she walked into my life..

Since today is such a BIG day for us, I thought to start the celebration by showing you some of the photos since day 1 we’ve met... Hope you enjoy it~~

Jan 2003, the 1st digital picture we took together…

July 2003 – Retreat at Victoria, it’s the 1st retreat we joined in US..

Oct 2003 – Joseph and Lilian’s wedding ceremony at Chapel at UH

March 2004 - Eating turkey leg at Houston Rodeo, it’s the 1st time we attended Houston Rodeo that year…

June 2004 – At IAH, Cindy flying back to Taiwan for holidays, I remembered that was a sad moment for us since it was the 1st time we will be apart since we start dating..

July 2005 – 1st time for me to visit Taiwan.. Pictures taken at 淡水漁人碼頭. We saw a breathtaking sunset view on that afternoon…

Jan 2006 – 1st time for Cindy to visit Malaysia…

View Full Album

Oct 2006 – Cindy’s cousin wedding @ WHCC..

Dec 2006 – In Taiwan..

April 2007 – Pictures taken at Brenham, the day I proposed to Cindy..

View Full Album

Sep 2008 – Our Wedding

Dec 2008 – Our reception..

Aug 2009 – Cancun, Mexico..

Ritz-Carlton Cancun – Total Paradise!!

2009-09-04T23:20:00.001-05:00

Just want to drop some sharing on our stay at Ritz-Carlton Cancun. This is our first stay at the Ritz-Carlton chain of hotels, and we were so impressed. The hotel is outfitted with crystal chandeliers, beautiful antiques, and elegant oil paintings and furniture. Overall the hotel environment is so European that you may well forget you are in Cancun, Mexico.

Stayed at Club Level – excellent value, free wifi, Serving several meals everyday at Club lounge(Breakfast buffet, Lunch, light dinner & Chocolate from 8pm-10pm) plus unlimited alcohol drinks and cocktails.

Housekeeping and hotel staff services were impeccable, Our room was cleaned twice daily, the housekeeping maid will check with us every evening to make sure we have all the toiletries covered.

Beautiful white beach, crystal clear water at the back of the hotel. Two swimming pools – One large meandering pool and smaller adult pool. Taking bus was easy, 3 mins walking distance to bus stop, Two famous malls(Plaza Kukulcan and La Isla Plaza) are within 10mins bus ride.

We really had a very pleasant stay in Ritz and cannot say enough how satisfied we are on our stay at the Ritz Carlton Cancun. Highly recommend to all our friends and family if you are planning a trip to Cancun, Ritz is the place you want to stay!!!

Location of Ritz Carlton Cancun

Hotel environment is so European that you may well forget you are in Cancun, Mexico.

Ritz can actually setup a romantic dinner at the beach area…

Cindy was very happy as one of the evening dinner, the Club lounge are serving Asian food which include her favorite Japanese cuisine..

Ritz doing a good job maintaining their beach area.. Beautiful white beach, crystal clear water at the back of the hotel.

Two swimming pools – One large meandering pool and smaller adult pool.

Chocolate strawberry dip from the hotel the first day when we arrived!

Photo taken in front of the hotel the last day at Cancun…
Cancun is a very nice place, we will definitely come back to this Paradise again…

Under the sea~~

2009-09-01T22:36:00.001-05:00

We are back to Houston this afternoon. Just wanna thank my dear cousin, Tina, who gave us a lot of great advice on the trip. The most important, they lent us their underwater camera which allowed us to take pictures anywhere we want near the water or even in the water!! We took a lot of amazing pictures when we went snorkeling. Actually, it was CW who took all the pictures when we were in the water. I was all busy at handling my life jacket, snorkel, goggle, fins and the water kept getting into my eyes and nose. He was so relaxed in the ocean because he is a beach boy as he always says so. Anyway, here are some pics we took when snorkeling in Cozumel…

Before we got into the water

In the water..yes, that was me..

Pretty fish..

Thousands of fish (or more than that??) were around one huge fish

Look how many they were!!

and look how 狼狽 I was…

our guide was helping me fixing my goggle problem…

View Full Album

Still…

View Full Album

It was an great experience for us and we had so much fun!! After I overcame the difficulties handling all the equipment on me… I really really enjoy it… Look at us holding hands and swimming together~~:)

Here we come, Cancun~~ Quick Update for Day 1

2009-08-28T22:26:00.001-05:00

This morning before leaving for IAH, CW brought me to Chinatown to see a doctor because my face and neck are pain due to the injury in my mouth. This last minute decision made our morning extremely hectic and rush and also make me very very tired and sleepy now ( I guess it is because I was too tensed the whole day). Yet I am very thankful that my dear hubby was very patient this morning and we got to the airport just in time~~

Although I can fall asleep any second right now, still I have to share some of the pictures we took today. It was extremely beautiful~~ The ocean view is breathtaking.. oh! by the way, we attended the baby sea turtle release this evening…too bad that we couldn’t take the pictures of them because we were not allowed to use the flash light. They are just tooooo cute!! There are abt 100 turtles released into the wild ocean today, but according to the hotel staff, only one of them can make it all the way to become adult sea turtles...

Here are some pics we wanna share with you~~

Do you see the baby turtles???

To be continued…

Day before Cancun Trip

2009-08-28T02:10:00.001-05:00

Some of stuff we do before Cancun Trip…

Picking up all grown veges from our back garden.. distribute it to our neighbors..

Cindy went to shop for some snacks for our trip.. See below what she has bought… Looks to me like we are also ready for Hurricane season..

Also she bought this Biodegradable Sun block which is environmentally friendly sunscreen that lacks the harmful ingredients that are destroying the coral reefs. These sunscreens are biodegradable, meaning they break down naturally in the environment, and eco-friendly, meaning that they minimize damage to the environment.
You can get this at ”WholeFood” Market..

Ready to go!!

Our 1st Anniversary + Honeymoon Trip!! :)

2009-08-25T22:35:00.001-05:00

In three more days, Cindy and I will be flying out from Houston to spend our honeymoon and 1st wedding anniversary at Cancun, Mexico!!

Since this is our first time we both travel together and get to spend some personal moment privately, we decided to make it a nice one. We will be spending 4 nights staying at Ritz Carlton Cancun with Club level Ocean View room. Yeah~~

With Tina(Cindy’s cousin) recommendations, we have booked a day trip to Tulum and Hel-ha. Tulum is an archaeological site of the Caribbean coast of Mexico. Ruins correspond to the twelfth and sixteenth centuries, but its foundation dates from the sixth century. After the hearing Tulum then travel to Xel-Ha.

We will also book a day trip to Cozumel for a snorkeling experience at the beautiful coral reef. “Finding Nemo”?? Maybe??

So.. We are ready to go!! Please keep praying for a great weather. Thankyou~~ ^^

We will show you some great pictures when we are back!!

Hummingbirds is coming to town!!

2009-08-18T00:58:00.000-05:00

Cindy and I has been putting up couple bird feeders for hummers since April this year. We were hoping to create a great habitat for this cute tiny little creature when they are on their Spring migration, however, due to our trip back to Asia on early May, we don’t really get a chance to have a good observation on whether they are stopping by at our garden.

After coming back from Asia, we have the feeders cleaned up, fill it up with fresh nectar, and get ready to welcome the return of hummers for their Fall migration. At that time, it was end of July, no sign of hummers showing up at our back garden for next couple weeks, not until… 8/15/09 11:40am, when we were walking from the back porch to the garage, Cindy saw a tiny little thing flying around the feeders, yes.. It’s the hummer!! We saw the first hummer of the fall at our back garden, we were really excited!! Then the following day, Cindy saw it again around 7pm.

Anyway.. below is a short video clip I shot during a hummer visiting our back garden.

Fall 2009: First hummer observed on 8/15/09 at 11:40am.

Some quick facts about hummingbirds in Houston:
- Most of the hummingbirds in Houston appear during Spring and Fall season while they are on their migratory way to the South and North.
- One can expect hummers to visit Houston on their Spring migration around first week of April and Fall migration around first week of August.
- Other than a homemade nectar/sugar water, hummingbirds also love flowering plants and small insect.
- From late March to early May, hummers migrate in large numbers from Mexico and Central America through southeast Texas to their breeding grounds in the eastern half of North America and in the eastern portion of the Great Plains. In late July, the ruby-throats begin a return trip to wintering grounds in Latin America, passing through Houston once again in large numbers. But instead of moving through quickly as they do in the spring, they dawdle in our area to build up body fat that fuels their arduous journey south of the border.

Special Home Made Beef Noodle Soup

2009-08-06T00:43:00.001-05:00

It was a great experience for me to try out my wife very 1st time cooking of beef noodle soup. When I wikipedia “beef noodle soup”, it shows that beef noodle soup is actually first introduce by the Hui people ( a Chinese Muslim ethnic group) during the Tang Dynasty of China. Mainly, there are two different kind of beef noodles soup, One is the clear broth stewed beef noodles((清燉牛肉麵) where only salt and green onions are used to add flavoring to the beef soup. The other one is called red roasted/braised beef noodles soup(紅燒牛肉麵), where soy sauce and some spices is added to the soup for more intense flavoring. Compare to the clear broth stewed beef noodles, the red roasted beef noodles soup is more popular in Taiwan/China.

Some of the pictures to share below…

At first glance, this is just a typical beef noodle soup, but if you have tasted it, you will know this is a truly home made beef noodle soup, the soup is extremely delicious without the MSG taste after 6 hours Thermos cooked, the beef is very tender as well as the noodle is very Q(springy and smooth).

According to Cindy, this is not a hard recipe, everyone can easily try to do it at home.

Original Recipe: Provided by Sabrina

Who let the “Snake” Out…!!! who..who..

2009-07-14T00:58:00.001-05:00

Another hot, sunny & dry day in Houston.. As usual.. my daily routine task when I get home from work—>give my trees and vegetables a cold shower...

When it’s “Ong Choy” turn to get shower.. Saw a rare visitor resting underneath the leaf… See pictures below for details..

Photographer: Xiao Cindy
Snake Hunter: CW

“Ong Choy” also known as kongxincai (Chinese: 空心菜);water spinach, kangkung(Malay), eng chai(Hokkien), ong choy or tung choi (Cantonese pronunciation of 蕹菜)

This is our backyard visitor for the day.. “Ah 蛇”
Not sure whether it’s venomous..

According to my wife, the snake does not look like venomous, so it should be non-venomous snake. I said, OK, Sorry, won’t take a chance… grab my spade then “chop chop chop”..end of story..
All I can say is RIP “Ah 蛇”

part of the snake body after “chop chop chop”…

Fresh cut water Spinach.. Ready to cook.. Anyone interested..? ^^

So long, my cookie monster~~

2009-05-06T00:12:00.001-05:00

戴老大之前送了我一個小零錢包，被我藏起來一直沒拿出來用。除了捨不得用，另一方面也是捨不得跟我的Cookie Monster說掰掰。

說到這位老兄，跟我有點交情的親朋好友應該都不陌生，從我大一他就一直忠心耿耿地跟著我，看盡了我身邊的人情冷暖，悲歡離合～～

如今他的眼神不再雪白明亮，臉蛋也不再有當初那樣毛茸茸的好觸感。但是我身邊的人來來去去，一直陪著我的只有他阿…每次看到他，總會浮現好多好多回憶，多半是讓我嘴角上揚的回憶。

不過他真的老了啦，雖然我常常幫他洗澡，但是他越來越禿，看起來也越來越髒。今天我下定決心要讓他退休啦！幫他洗了一個澡，以後就不用跟我出去勞碌奔波囉～～

雖然要跟他說再見了，我還是很高興我可以用戴老大送我的小包包啦～～～

看他的黑眼珠，以前可是絨毛的說…

“All My Love for You” Coffee Mug from Chi Chi

2009-05-06T00:10:00.001-05:00

Went to their website.. http://www.boldloft.com/
Found out they have many cool stuff…
Thanks Jenny~~ Love it!!

Gourmet Chocolate Strawberries Dip

2009-04-28T22:32:00.001-05:00

Chocolate Strawberries Dip from Chi Chi… @ CW & Cindy Kitchen…
Not bad at all for the 1st timer… Yummy~~

Technorati Tags: Jenny,Chi Chi,Chocolate Strawberries Dip,Houston,Apr 2009

酸菜

2009-04-28T20:23:00.001-05:00

那天吃飯跟陳太太聊到酸菜的醃法，回家以後我就努力地上網查資料，綜合了各家作法後第一次試做成果如下：

看起來還可以，改天炒來吃吃看在告訴你們好不好吃。

悼raspberry

2009-04-28T20:17:00.001-05:00

本來不覺得今年可以收成的Raspberry出乎意料之外的開了一朵花，讓我們喜出望外，天天都要去關心關心它。

漸漸的，小果子長出來了。

他就在我們的殷殷期盼下越長越大，雖然只有小小的一顆，我們還是期待著有一天可以瓜分它 …

沒想到，昨天去看他的時候，他居然給我就這樣不說一聲再見的死掉啦！！

再見啦~~希望明年可以再見到你囉！！

風雨過後

2009-04-28T19:50:00.001-05:00

半夜的一場大雨搞的整個休士頓人仰馬翻，菜圃裡的土都被大雨給沖走了，很多小菜苗都露出根來，整棵倒下了。

下午我忙著救他們、忙著把他們埋回去的時候，居然徒手挖了出了一個螞蟻窩，滿窩的螞蟻衝出來，還有一堆卵在我手上，真是看的我頭皮發麻…

希望今天晚上不要在下大雨了，淹水真的很麻煩。

再補上一張茉莉花圃被沖掉的照片。

真是傷亡慘重…

小板凳兒~~

2009-04-20T08:59:00.001-05:00

戴老大最近忙著在後院釘東釘西的為著我們的菜圃努力著，那天居然用剩下的碎木頭釘了一個小板凳，再幫他拍拍手！！！

現在在外面整理菜圃的時候，可以坐下來啦～～

充滿"驚喜"的茉莉花花圃~~

2009-04-17T20:05:00.001-05:00

最近我們種茉莉花的花圃常常嚇到我們，是個充滿驚喜的地方…

先跟各位來點前情提要，事情是這樣的，

餐桌的窗邊有個戴老大圍出來的小花圃，其實茉莉花已經算是第三代植物啦，當初剛搬進來的時候我們種了海芋，最左邊那棵。

再看清楚一點，

因為種下去不久就謝了，所以我們又種下向日葵。

到了冬天，我們又把向日葵全部剷掉，把茉莉花種下去，一直到現在，順帶一題，現在花開的正茂盛喔！！

那麼，為什麼說他充滿驚喜呢？？

首先，在春天百花爭鳴的時候，被我們看到在茉莉花叢中冒出了明明已經被我們剷除乾淨的向日葵花苗。

接下來我又在整理磚頭的時候意外看見磚頭的洞洞裡有東西在扭動，原來是好久不見的小癩回來啦！

然後在已經很熱鬧的花圃裡，居然，最早的住戶海芋也給我冒出來了，瞧！

本來長滿茉莉花的花圃現在變的雜亂無章，什麼都有啦。

最最最驚悚的是，我那天蹲在那幫海芋拍照，居然，在我的腳邊，發現了一隻死鳥！！！

嚇得我馬上飛撲到戴老大的懷裡，過了好久才回來幫牠拍照…

希望牠安息啦～～

話說回來，植物的生命力真的很強，常常在我們沒有心裡準備的時候長出來，帶給我們很多驚喜，像我們用自己堆肥的土幫菜圃施肥，結果我們的菜圃長出很多莫名其妙的菜苗。

想了很久，應該是之前吃完拿去堆肥的香瓜子長出來的吧～～

古早味

2009-04-02T16:57:00.001-05:00

之前愛迪生先生擔任寒舍貴客的時候送了我一本做「糕」與「粿」的食譜，為了回報Edison的贈書之恩，昨天我就做了傳說中的傳統台灣味小點心--「古早味粉粿」啦！！

謝謝陳太太不怕被老闆笑，忍辱負重到中藥行幫我買的十五顆山梔子啊..:) 雖然是少少幾顆卻扮演著舉足輕重的角色，缺了他們可真是不知該如何是好呢。主角粉粿忘記拍照就被吃光光了，下次有做再貼照片好了。配角糖漿倒是熬了不少所以可以借大家「聞香」一下～～真的很香喔！

顏色看起來還不賴吧，但是戴老大一直問我熬那麼大罐要幹嘛？的確，粉粿吃完了我也就不知道要拿這些糖漿怎麼辦了，各位親朋好友有需要焦糖糖漿的話歡迎來我家取用。

順帶一題，今天的風真的很大，我們家的油桃樹快要被連根拔起了

連Bird Feeder都吹成這樣，太可怕了。

日出而做日落而息

2009-03-30T20:21:00.001-05:00

今天老公下班回家後我們又跑去當農夫，終於把小菜圃一號完工囉！正式把一些菜苗種下去了，超有成就感的啦！！

老公倒土，我把土鏟鬆撲平，最後，將將將將～～～就在天色將暗的時候，我們終於準備好可以把小菜苗種下去囉！！

這是大蕃茄

接下來是小蕃茄

即將第一次踏上大地的小黃瓜～～

種好啦！！

天黑了～～所以我們就學古人，收工啦！！

幫老公拍拍手啦~~~

2009-03-30T13:13:00.001-05:00

禮拜天做完禮拜，因為要練習一個人留在教會，放老公一個人回家做農夫，結果我們家的老公實在是太棒了，一個人完成了一個小菜圃，在這裡幫他拍拍手啦~~

雖然我們在上主日學的時候偷偷畫的「設計圖」還沒有全部完工，但是到目前的成果我已經非常滿意啦～～加油加油～～～

讓大家瞧瞧～～這是我們去Home Depot 搬回來的木頭，謝謝Edison的熱情幫忙！！

現在變成這樣啦～～

別看這些木頭好像沒幾根，可沒有看起來那麼容易喔，是非常辛苦又費時費力的，之前買的那幾根又粗又長的鋼釘(12吋長，跟我的手指差不多粗)已經讓我看的渾身不舒服，汗毛直豎了，老公昨天居然又給我跑去買了電鋸…我實在受不了這麼可怕的”武器”收在家裡，雖然身為「皇家童軍」的老公說電鋸跟開山刀都是他的好朋友，我還是逼著他們絕交說掰掰啦…

話說回來，我還是覺得老公很棒啦，希望這個禮拜就可以把已經發芽的小菜苗種下去囉！

We survived 1st month of marriage life...!! Photos Video Part 1

2008-10-14T23:55:00.000-05:00

This video is dedicated to my lovely wife... Cindy...
So many things happened for past few years... I am so glad that both of us make it through...
My love for you - Always and Forever...

結果了結果了!!!

2008-10-14T23:38:00.001-05:00

還以為今年吃不到了

沒想到他們真是爭氣阿

秋葵....我們還在收集集滿一盤就下鍋

番茄...目前就這麼珍貴的一顆希望她好好長大

再附上兩張向日葵盛開的照片

大概趕不急結果了

2008-09-25T16:53:00.001-05:00

我們有一些命苦的蔬菜因為我們播種的太晚

估計是趕不及在冬天以前收成了

番茄

其實她有開兩朵小花還有一絲絲希望...

苦瓜

冬瓜南瓜傻傻分不清楚

我們不是只有愛吃而已...

2008-09-25T16:41:00.001-05:00

我們也是有種些花的

茉莉花現在在休息不開花了...

結實累累

2008-09-25T16:21:00.001-05:00

隨著果子長出來

我們幾乎可以確定這不是檸檬啦

不過到底是橘子柳丁還是柚子

還是沒人敢確定

看起來比較像柳丁不過聞起來像柚子喔

但是阿姨說皮像橘子....

那天我們切了一顆 ...

一分耕耘一分收穫

2008-09-25T16:02:00.001-05:00

雖然我們的菜園至今還沒有收穫

不過菜菜們的確是長大了很多

雖然還沒吃到但是仍然是挺有成就感的

秋葵

是唯一我們從種子種起已經結果的菜

剛發芽...

長高了右邊那棵不知道是冬瓜還是南瓜...

秋葵很高了..不過本來在旁邊的冬瓜或南瓜不知道爬到哪去了...

仔細看結了不少果喔...

小蜜蜂

2008-09-25T15:37:00.001-05:00

我們終於把我們家的房客趕走了

勇敢的戴小弟在一群女人的尖叫聲中把越來越大的蜂窩夾了下來

謝謝田原與苗苗提供的工具

在此我們就來懷念牠們一下吧

順帶一提蜜蜂蓋房子的速度真的很快

幾天的功夫聲勢擴大地驚人 ...

一開始覺得有兩隻小蜜蜂還挺可愛的...

過了幾天覺得他們工作真勤奮這麼快就有"家"的樣子啦...

沒想到幾天沒注意蜜蜂越來越多蜂窩也越來越厚仔細看裡面還有東西而且阿你們有沒有覺得這種蜜蜂有臉耶...

最後整個蜂窩十分的熱鬧白白的東西都爆出來了我們終於痛定思痛把它整個摘掉了..

真是害小蜜蜂們白作工了....

風雨過後

2008-09-25T15:18:00.001-05:00

我們的婚禮總算是完成了一半....

事前花了這麼多時間去安排計畫的婚禮

怎麼也想不到最後是這樣的結果

我想沒有多少人可以像我們一樣擁有這麼特別的回憶吧

浪漫的燭光將溫馨的佈置映襯得更加美麗

在黑暗當中揮著汗步入禮堂我的心中是充滿感恩的

弟兄姊妹忍著家裡沒水沒電的不方便

還是踴躍出席見證了我們的大日子真的很感動

謝謝大家的大力幫助謝謝 Renee讓我從她家出嫁

謝謝我的伴娘一早冒著淹水的危險跑那麼遠到Renee家來化妝還有一整天幫我看前看後

謝謝Tffany 堅持不放棄的精神謝謝Agnes和Dolly把現場佈置的一點都不覺得有受到停電的影響

謝謝我所有的工作人員冒著被風吹走的危險留在Houston 而且還跋山涉水的到教會來參加

當然最感謝神在祂的時間裡成就了美好的大事

至於另一半的婚禮我現在也還不知道要怎麼辦

等到我們討論出來要怎麼辦以後會盡快告訴大家

希望可以為我們的婚禮畫上一個美好的句點啦~~~

7 days to our wedding....

2008-09-06T22:05:00.000-05:00

7 days til our Big wedding day....

Cindy is working on the slides..

Tiff is working on labeling the favors...

me..? I am trying to promote and compliments their hardworking spirit... :)

看門牛

2008-08-12T22:13:00.001-05:00

新朋友....?!

2008-08-12T21:46:00.001-05:00

今天發現我們家又有新訪客

而且居然打算住下來

他們的進度實在是超快的

我的家裡還一團亂

他們有效率多了

恩恩小蜜蜂真的是非常勤勞

害我滿腦子都是

嗡嗡嗡嗡嗡嗡大家一起勤作工

來匆匆去匆匆別作懶惰蟲

(請自行配樂我找了好久找不到這首歌的音樂要是有找到的人提供一下吧)

雷聲大雨點小

2008-08-05T20:35:00.001-05:00

這次的tropical storm 到底是有來還是沒來

實在是搞不清楚

昨天期待了一天今天可以放假

還煞有其事的囤積起水跟食物

沒想到一覺到天亮都還是風平浪靜

中午還是認命的回到公司上班

不過今天菜菜都有長大喔

彎彎芽不彎了昨天才從土裡冒出一個小頭

今天居然變那麼大

還有毛毛葉也不毛了

大的太誇張了

看來我們很快可以看出他們到底是什麼了

對了介紹一個好東西

正所謂工欲善其事必先利其器

要在後院裡暢行無阻

必須要有一雙好鞋要不然每次腳跟腿都會其癢無比

瞧瞧我上禮拜在Marshall買的一雙雨鞋

花俏的咧~~~

我家的小菜園跟小花圃

2008-08-04T22:11:00.001-05:00

在這裡正式的跟各位介紹

我們家的新成員

一號海芋他是最早住進我們家也最早枯掉的花

這是戴老大做的小花圃左邊的就是一號海芋小姐

至於右手邊的咧就是二號繡球花本來有兩球很漂亮的花的

不過大概是一號海芋枯掉了他只好跟著共存亡了

還有一盆還沒種下去

最後要介紹的就是最近加入的三號向日葵啦~~

他們夾在繡球花跟海芋中間剛剛發芽

不過每天都有長高喔！！

跟上面的照片比一比是不是長高了呢？？

接下來是我們家目前收成最多的四號茉莉花

他們在門口排隊早晚都讓我們家香香喔！！

至於小菜園還處於草創階段

有些芽發出來了但我們忘了"是什麼來的"

故在此僅以他們的代號以及暱稱也就是小名介紹給大家認識

不明芽A-毛毛葉

毛毛葉長大了但還是不知道是什麼

不知名芽B-彎彎芽

芽C-據戴老大說應該是辣椒沒錯

這些神秘小芽包括了苦瓜南瓜冬瓜秋葵蕃茄跟辣椒

另外我們還有一棵神秘果樹他的英文名字叫 Lemon Drop

據說是檸檬跟另一種水果的混種不知道長出來到底是會是酸的還是甜的就等等看吧

花花菜菜介紹完了最後要跟大家介紹一位新朋友

他就住在我家後院

有時後在花圃有時後在菜圃有時後蹲在我家門口

看不清楚？？再給你們看張特寫

雖然他長的實在不討喜

不過來者是客既然他也不嫌棄我們的"寒舍" 我們就試著跟他和平共處啦~

好啦以上簡單介紹

希望接下來我們家後院可以越來越熱鬧

對了我有放鳥屋可是鳥都不來....

CW & Cindy

Project “Pineapple"

4-Night Bahamian Cruise on Disney Dream

4-Night Bahamian Cruise on Disney Dream

The Stateroom we will be staying is a Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah:

Some Facts about the ship

Disney Dream

Ship Facts:

芥菜+蘆筍

House Finch & Sparrow

Keys to identification

Size & Shape

Color Pattern

Behavior

Habitat

Tulips are growing...

Planting Tulips

2010 - 絲瓜

Galveston Short Term Mission Trip

Watermelon

Happy July 4th!!

New addition to our garden...

Dinner at home :)

2010 - Our Organic Garden

In Everything, Be Thankful...

BH and Eric’s visit~

Adiós Humming Birds….

1st Wedding Anniversary...6 Wonderful Years together...

Ritz-Carlton Cancun – Total Paradise!!

Under the sea~~

Here we come, Cancun~~ Quick Update for Day 1

Day before Cancun Trip

Our 1st Anniversary + Honeymoon Trip!! :)

Hummingbirds is coming to town!!

Special Home Made Beef Noodle Soup

Who let the “Snake” Out…!!! who..who..

So long, my cookie monster~~

“All My Love for You” Coffee Mug from Chi Chi

Gourmet Chocolate Strawberries Dip

酸菜

悼raspberry

風雨過後

小板凳兒~~

充滿"驚喜"的茉莉花花圃~~

古早味

日出而做 日落而息

幫老公拍拍手啦~~~

We survived 1st month of marriage life...!! Photos Video Part 1

結果了結果了!!!

大概趕不急結果了

我們不是只有愛吃而已...

結實累累

一分耕耘 一分收穫

小蜜蜂

風雨過後

7 days to our wedding....

看門牛

新朋友....?!

雷聲大 雨點小

我家的小菜園跟小花圃

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雷聲大雨點小