Tomorrow is the last day of school! I'm itching to travel and am excited for a few [domestic] trips planned here and there. But amuse me while I dream of traveling to faraway lands.
Banff, Canada
Provence, France
Dead Sea, Israel
Cinque Terre, Italy
Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
Santorini, Greece
Where are you "wanderlusting"?
Oh hello there! And Happy Monday.
In light of it being Monday, I thought I would try something new: Makeup Monday.
I love makeup.
And though luxury makeup products are appealing, I've said it once and I'll say it again: I love me a bargain. So my daily makeup routine consists of quite the fair share of drugstore products. (Hey, if you can buy something that works well for cheap, why not?)
I go through phases: seasons where I try new things. I've been recently pushing the envelope and trying out a bold lip, winged liner. But sometimes, simple is best (especially when you have to wake up at 6am for work).
So here are the products I use for my current makeup routine:
Foundation: Bare Minerals Original Mineral Foundation in Light
Powder: Bare Minerals Touch Up Veil
Bronzer: NYC Bronzer in Sunny *Would you believe that this bronzer is a drugstore matte bronzer that costs less than $3???*
Blush: Milani Baked Blush in Luminoso
Eyelash Curler: Shu Uemura
Mascara: Loreal Telescopic Shocking Extensions Waterproof Mascara in Blackest Black
Lipgloss: NYX Butter Gloss in Creme Brulee
In recent times, I've come to realize it's not easy wearing many hats in life and juggling the various obstacles and inevitable unpredicabilities that come. But for as long as I could remember, my dad has been doing just that: wearing many hats and juggling being a son, brother, husband, father, colleague, leader, pastor, counselor, chaplain, professor, dean.
one of my favorite pictures. i look like i'm guilty of having done something but my dad's expression is full of love and grace. we even have matching haircuts.
Three (of the many) roles he has played in my life:
1. Teacher - He taught me the importance of respecting others but also respecting myself. He taught me to appreciate differences. He taught me to advocate for myself, for others and to fight for justice. He taught me the importance of forgiveness: to forgive others, to forgive yourself. He taught me a love for music, art and creativity.
He taught me the love of learning. Receiving a doctorate in a country not your own studying in a language that's not your native tongue while raising a family must not have been easy (for my dad and for my mom). And though we didn't always have a lot, growing up our house had shelves and shelves of books (many that my dad would find in used bookstores - he even taught me to appreciate a good deal!) When I was wee little, I would sometimes wake up in the middle of the night from a nightmare and would walk to the living room and see my dad reading, researching, preparing a sermon - learning.
on my wedding day - dad's first look
2. Coach - One of my fondest childhood memories is living on-campus of Drew University and following my dad to the tennis courts in the summers and watching him play tennis with his buddies for hours on end. I didn't know it at the time, but I learned a lot watching him play: camaraderie, self-care, sportsmanship, integrity.
I can credit him for my love of watching sports. But I can also credit him for my love of playing sports and a constant pursuit of an active lifestyle. He taught me to play tennis, softball. He still coaches me in golf (whenever we have the chance for a round of golf). He taught me to swim, ride a bike.
this is one of my favorite pictures with my dad because this was taken on a family vacation that i will always cherish.
3. Supervisor - I am blessed beyond measure because I share a profession and calling with both of my parents. My dad teaches/trains/equips counselors and am pretty lucky to get "free" supervision.
Though he is in a position of teaching and supervising others, he never stops learning and working on himself. I am inspired and challenged by his humility. I can only pray that I become half the counselor he is.
wedding day: dancing with daddy.
I am so thankful for an incredibly affectionate, ceaselessly expressive, wise, humble, sacrificial, caring father whose mission and calling in life is to point to the Father's love.
Thank you for being my counselor, my fan, my friend. Thank you for being you.
Happy Father's Day, dad. I love you.
As I was driving to work this morning, I realized, today was the LAST Friday of school of the year! Yahoo! That means summer vacation is just around the corner and summer vacation = travels, family time and free time!
But even before we get there, I am excited for the weekend - two BBQs, date with husband, church time. Wishing you a wonderful weekend!
Here are pictures from this past week!
delicious pastries from last weekend's "Work & Faith" ministry event
I reluctantly followed Y to Home Depot (his favorite place) but was pleasantly surprised to find herbs and veggies. we brought these beauties home and planted them.
writing a card to each of my student leaders with a jar full of green juice
my indulgence: justin's peanut butter cups. dare i say they are better than reese's
this JUST happened. an epic feast to kick off the weekend! (BBQ #1 for the weekend was brought indoors but it was nonetheless amazing.)
I was able to finally make a much anticipated visit to Mokbar several weeks back. Mokbar is a ramen joint nestled in the hubbub of Chelsea Market and owned by Chef Esther Choi. I met Esther many years ago when we both served as counselors at a summer camp. More recently, I got back in touch with her through mutual friends. And since finding out that she was going to open up a restaurant, I have been following her endeavors on Instagram and Facebook.
I am inspired by her vision, her drive, her creativity and her faith.
Her desire to bring Korean flavors, tastes and food to the world is inspirational.
And to be honest, I was so inspired after my visit to Chelsea Market, I decided to go forth with launching this website.
You can read more about Esther and Mokbar (featured here, here, here, here)
entrance wall to Mokbar: love the decor!
refreshing iced teas (non-alcoholic): citrusy and fruity, slightly sweet. just perfect on that hot day.
Mokbar now serves alcoholic beverages, for those of you that would prefer a slightly stronger drink!
the HO-CAKE!
The ho-cake was divine: crispy bun with a pork belly filling. But what was the icing on the cake: the sauce! It was savory and slightly sweet at the same time. (I am salivating as I write this.)
the KIMCHI ramen
I loved the kimchi ramen. It tasted like kimchi jjigae and the ramen was perfectly cooked, al dente, just the way I like my noodles!
DISCO fries
Esther was so sweet and gave us the disco fries to try, on the house. I love disco fries, in general but it was a new and interesting twist to have it topped with kimchi! We Koreans often joke around about how if we could we would carry around kimchi to eat with everything. The gooey cheese and savory, thick gravy with the refreshing, crunchiness of the kimchi. Genius. I could go for some right now.
Proud to feature Mokbar as my first in this Good Eats series. Now, go enjoy some delicious food at Mokbar!!!
