We got poop! Give thanks! - Week 1

It's week 1.  As newbies, both Chuck and I are clueless as to what we are doing.  However, we are managing and surviving (I might even boldly claim that we are thriving)...except we have one serious matter at hand.  Em needs to poop and she isn't...

Em is bit jaundice, although not quite to require phototherapy.  Our pediatrician, Dr. Katy, told us that bilirubin is passed through poop; hence, Em needed to poop.  Alas, she just could/would not gift us that dirty diaper.  Finally, on the day that she was a week old, which happened to be Thanksgiving, she finally started pooping.  Chuck was on diaper duty and he joyously shouted, “We got poop!”  I ran over and we were both in glee as we changed her.  We’ve never been (and my guess is, will never be) so happy to see poop!  

Photo credit to Bella Baby!

Introducing...

...so, it appears this website will just have to remain neglected for a little while longer...

However, I am determined to do a better job to keep families and friends in the loop via this blog once Emerson arrives.  A blog feels a bit more personal then posting it to the world on Facebook.

Who's Emerson?  The next generation of Ko/Dauk families, of course!  Today, she is 29 weeks and 6 days in incubation!

As I did in 2010, our yearly update will come soon enough.  For now, very briefly, we are now based in Stamford, CT while I continue to work at Northwestern.  I have been commuting weekly until about two months ago, when frequent traveling was discouraged by my doctor.  So, I rented an apartment in Evanston and here I am while Chuck, Patty, and Selma are in CT.  On September 23, I head back to CT for good!  [I can't wait!!]  I will continue to work remotely until maternity leave, then figure out what to do from there post Emerson's arrival.

Without further delay, here's introducing Emerson (Emma) Dauk!

I also managed to add a few photos from recent past to the slide show.  Enjoy!

2010

Happy New Year to everyone!  Hope everyone had a meaningful finale to 2010, and may God bless each and every day in 2011 with His Grace and Peace. 


Have been slacking on sharing "KoDauk moments", but here's an attempt at remembering all the special events of 2010:


January: 
I started working for one of the most acknowledged chemist/nanotech scientist in the world.  After so many years working in the field of Circadian Rhythms, switching the field of research was exciting but also very terrifying.  Thanks to great co-workers, the new work began with full blast right off the start!


February:
Hm...looking through my calendar, only event that stands out for February is that I finally got my IL license after 9 years of living here! The calendar is full with work, work, work...and some wedding planning.  


March:
I am now a permanent US resident! Unfortunately, on the same day that we had our immigration interview, we also heard that Chuck's company is closing down after being unable to reach an agreement on a new round of funding with the PE firms. We were anticipating this might happen, but the news was still difficult.  


April:
Work and wedding planning pretty much consumed my life in April. Our friends were great in helping us get ready -- JM & AM took us to a trip to Costco for welcome bag contents, JB & AM organized a girls only gathering, and Chuck's groomsmen took us all out to a wonderful dinner out. We felt so loved and we were immensely grateful to have such wonderful people in our lives.


May:
May was all about the wedding!  HK and EMB organized a lovely bridal shower/brunch on the first weekend here in Chicago (MdG also came up from Dallas to surprise me at the shower); and DP and JC organized one perfect bridal shower at the resort for all the ladies on the trip.  The weeks leading up to [and following] the wedding were precious and unforgettable.  We happily soaked in all the love and support from our friends and family, and we only hope we are able to give back just as much in our lifetime.


We got married on the 14th and had an awesome(!) week celebrating with family and friends in Punta Cana.  The wedding went without a hitch.  I was very impressed with the resort and the wedding coordinator (we had Sandra) since I never even spoke to her before arriving at Punta Cana -- everything was done via email!  Ha!  :)


June:
Both of our birthdays are in June.  We each got our turn in celebrating with friends. We both attempted to throw each other a "surprise", but only Chuck succeeded.  For his birthday, he wanted to keep it low key, and when it was forced that we go out for a nice dinner, he figured out we may be expecting company.  For Chuck's birthday, we headed to Japonais and enjoyed a summer night by the Riverwalk.  For my birthday, we went out for drinks at Edge - one of the bars in the Wicker Park neighborhood.


July:
We hosted our first house party! We had the Chicago peeps over for BBQ one rainy day. We thoroughly enjoyed hosting and entertaining as husband and wife. My brother and his wife also came to visit Chicago. We didn't know it then, but we later learned that my little niece came to visit as well inside her mom. Can't wait until she graces us with her presence in March, 2011!


August:
We quietly celebrated our civil ceremony anniversary (August 31). We devoured a chocolate chip cookie cake, then had dinner at one of our favorite neighborhood restaurants (Angels and Mariachis).  


September:
We learned that we were pregnant. We were both overjoyed, and tried our best to keep the babe safe and healthy. Sadly, we lost our baby boy in mid-November at about 14 weeks.


October:
Despite the pesky First Trimester symptoms, we had a wonderful month. I traveled to NYC for a college/sorority reunion. It was a fantastic weekend re-connecting with sisterhood.  Getting some private time with Miss Burns was the icing on the cake!  We then traveled to Saint Augustine, FL for a wedding. We rented a beach house in Villano Beach with a group of friends and had a wonderful time vacationing and celebrating Puma's wedding.


November:
We headed to West Lafayette for some U of M vs. Purdue football - Go Blue! It was cold and rainy (down right pouring!), but we braved the weather and stayed for the most of the game with PMel, his sis, TN, and KN. Have to say, the highlights were wonderful conversations we shared during the drive to and from with TN & KN!


We were also faced with the worst times of our lives. What can I say about the miscarriage? It's an experience that no one should ever be faced with. We were amazed at how attached we were to the little being who was no longer with us. I do believe we coped with the situation as best as one couple could. We faced the grieving process full on. We were blessed with so much support from our loved ones, and I was ineffably grateful to have a partner who helped to make the unbearable loss bearable.


December:
The pain of losing our little one is still with us, but we are doing our best moving forward. We think of him often and we hope we never stop. He is forever a part of us, and we look forward to meeting him on the other side one day. We now have an angel who threads all our families together in heaven. We know he is safe with our beloved ones who went before us, and it is comforting to know that there is no better parent than God who is looking after him.


Chuck recently signed on to a new job and starts his new venture on January 3, 2011. This also means we are looking at a new adventure as we will relocate to the East Coast (NYC!!!) in next couple of months. We are both excited, nervous, and anxious about the move.


Well, the pages of 2010 have turned. It was one dramatic read, and the story continues. I, for one, can't wait to see what is ahead in our story. Here's to a great new chapter, 2011!  

It's almost MARCH!

Time is flying by, but I assure you, I'm doing my best not to let it get away so easily.  As a friend of mine put it on her FB status - "time passes, but life doesn't have to."

I started a new position in January back at NU.  Different department and different field of research - I have temporarily left the neuroscience research to learn about and gain technological knowledge in nanoscience.  My current projects focus on various forms of cancer and developing therapeutics.  It has been very challenging yet stimulating; and it has certainly re-energized and re-focused my long-term career goals.

Chuck and I are settling into our life here in Chicago as a family (along with our pugs, Patty and Selma).  We are learning to divide the chores around the house, sharing responsibilities, and learning the little things that you learn about each other as you live together.  Chuck's been incredibly understanding and supportive of  my long hours at work; and luckily, he is still finding my imperfections endearing and being able to laugh at them.  [Thank goodness!]

We cannot believe that our wedding is only weeks ahead!  With the new job, and a couple of life "issues" that were thrown at us during the past few months, we have had hardly any time to put into wedding planning.  On that note, I am SO(!) glad that we are doing a destination wedding!  Although there are many things that I wish I can plan/do, reality is that we just don't have the time and/or energy.  We are leaving everything to the resort coordinator, and plan to relax and have a great time vacationing and relaxing with family and friends.

November & December - Synopsis

What a whirlwind it has been! November came and went with a blink of an eye; and we are already approaching the middle of December.  Just a quick recap of the past month and my apologies in advance - I'll take shortcuts and link to Facebook/web photo albums and post no pics.

As of Nov.11, I officially moved in with Chuck back in Chicago; although I headed right back to Dallas for a week to wrap up.  My mom came down to Dallas, did some sightseeing, then drove with me back to Chicago via St. Louis.  While we were in Dallas, we took an advantage of a Groupon deal I purchased awhile back and took pictures at Dallas Arboretum with Javier from La piqure Studio.  Once we got to Chicago, we focused on dress shopping and I'm happy to say - "wedding dress? CHECK!"  At first, it was quite stressful since my mom and I had very different visions of the dress.  In the end, however, we both agreed on a particular dress and had that moment of "this is it!"  The dress didn't induce tears or overwhelming emotion; however, it just felt right.

We hired a mover to ship my belongings from Dallas, and it arrived before me!  Lucky Chuck, he had the pleasure of receiving all the boxes by himself.  During the week prior to our arrival, he had put in extra effort to rearrange the furniture, tidy up the place, and cleaning it twice to receive my mom...alas, his efforts were not as evident with all the boxes crowding the place!

*At this point, I'd just like to say "Thank you, hon! You're absolutely the best and your thoughtfulness is so~ much appreciated! Love you!*

Well, as soon as the dress shopping was over and mom had safely returned to Toronto, we headed to Colorado for Thanksgiving with Chuck's family.  Chuck's parents retired to Colorado mountains, and they have built a wonderful home (the view is absolutely stunning and it really is a peaceful place).  More importantly, I can't describe how lucky I am that my in-law's are simply fantastic!  They are down to earth, easy going, fun, caring, genuine, and inspiring people.  I look forward to spending more time with them and leaning on them for their guidance and wisdom in life.

We returned home for a few days, then we were off to Jamaica for our good friends, John and Amber's wedding.  Another wonderful trip to mark 2009.  John and Amber were wonderful hosts; and everyday, I was in awe of how graceful and relatable they were with each and every guest.  They definitely set a standard for us to aspire to when May'10 comes around!

Sadly, a tragic, one of the most horrific events had abruptly taken away a family member of our friends...we were brutally reminded how precious are the times we share with our loved ones, and how we simply cannot take any of these moments for granted.

Next week, I have a couple of job interviews for a postdoc position and it is likely that the rest of the year will be spent on trying to determine the path of the next chapter of our lives - wedding planning, career planning, family planning(?), etc.  I just hope we remember to treasure each and every moment, and to remember to live for the present as much as planning for the future.