Better late than never...

It has been a year and a half since our last blog and it is exciting for us to be back in the blogosphere updating you on our lives. It has been an exciting time for our family and the biggest news is that we have decided to leave Hong Kong permanently this summer.

Our plans at present are uncertain but we do know that God is calling us to a new city and to a new ministry. We have enjoyed our years in Hong Kong immensely and we often comment on how much we will miss our friends here.

We will be making a decision on our future plans at the end of February. We are applying to numerous international schools in Singapore and are praying that God will open a door for us there. We have only travelled to Singapore once but we really felt comfortable and at home during our visit. In many ways, these two cities are similar but the main advantages of Singapore, for us, are that the official language is English and Singapore is only a few hours drive from my parents in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. While I am a self proclaimed "dinosaur" when it comes to language acquisition, our desire is for the girls to grow up knowing of their Chinese roots and be bilingual in both English and Chinese.

If we are unable to secure employment in Singapore, we will be returning to North America somewhere. We have a number of cities on our list for a variety of reasons. We will cross that bridge if and when necessary but we have a deep peace that God will guide us and take care of us. Due to the timing of our return, the possibilities of teaching that academic year are unlikely so we are looking forward to having time to visit family and friends all over Canada and the U.S.

As for the girls, they have both grown so fast. Naomi started

kindergarten this year at International Christian School. I still can't believe they start school here at three years old. But, I guess it isn't surprising considering how the Chinese emphasize education. We have been blessed that one of my benefits as a teacher is free tuition and we are thrilled at the amazing start Naomi has received. She has grown so much in her ability to communicate and interact and she is such a source of happiness and pride. She is a compassionate and kind little girl and we have seen many instances of her trying to comfort other children who are in distress. She is very sensitive and emotional; this Christmas she began to sob when she watched the claymation classic "Rudolf, the Rednosed Reindeer" becuase Rudolf was being mistreated for being different. We know that her empathy for others is special and look forward to witnessing how God will use her to love and encourage others.

In school, Naomi has been learning about community helpers. When asked what she wanted to be when she grew up, she said she wanted to be a golfer! When asked by her teacher how being a golfer would benefit the community, she said she would give her money to help others! I cannot express my pride as a father! We just bought Naomi her first 7 iron and she has been working on her swing. I think she's a natural! She did also mention that she wanted to be a teacher like Mommy! I think its funny that she doesn't see me as a teacher as well!

Like Naomi, Taylor has grown up very quickly. She has just hit a growth spurt of late and has been eating nonstop. She is still petite, but compared to the smaller Chinese children, is pretty much average. She is a free spirit and has an infectious smile. In the past month she has started talking more and it is so touching for Anna and I to finally hear her calling us by name. Her favorite things to do include petting and kissing our dog Mia, playing with doors, climbing stairs, trying on our shoes, and getting into things that she shouldn't! Her favorite animals right now are monkeys and she loves saying "ooh, ooh, aah, aah." We bought her a toy monkey for Christmas who we have named Max. She cuddles with him at night when she goes to sleep; it is so cute!

Taylor loves her sister and always wants to do what Naomi is doing. We just moved the girls into the same room and they get along really well. Naomi watches over Taylor figuratively and literally as we have her on the top bunk looking over Taylor's crib. Our hope and prayer is that these two little ones will be best friends and always be there for one another as they grow up.

As for Anna, it has been a busy year for her. She has been working at Christian Alliance International School as an elementary art teacher. She has loved the experience of teaching these younger children and imparting her passion for art upon them. She is genuinely respected and appreciated by her school and I believe this has made this last teaching post especially rewarding and fulfilling. Anna has also been working on illustrating her first children's book. She has been on an intense and grueling timeline but hopes to complete her series of 20 paintings before Father's Day. The book is called "The Gift of Time" and is written by a close friend. Despite all this busyness, Anna continues to serve as a stay-at-home Mom. I admire her for her ability to balance work and care for our two energetic girls. God's grace truly has been sufficient for her! I am so blessed to have such a wonderful wife!

As for me, I have begun preparing myself emotionally to leave Hong Kong. This has been my home for the last nine years and am thankful for the experiences I have gained from living overseas. My Chinese - or should I say Chinglish - is almost passable and I have a new appreciation for my culture. And, it is very meaningful that my entire family will be leaving Hong Kong as permanent residents. While we have decided to leave Hong Kong permanently, both Anna and I believe we will be back again. The wonderful thing about our residency status is that we have the freedom to return at any time to work.

Professionally, I have learned much as a teacher here and know that my greatest impact lies not in the curriculum I taught but more in the relationships that were fostered with my students. While it makes some anxious that my future employment is uncertain, I am truly excited to see what God has in store for me and my family. I have always been a dreamer and I am praying that I will have a chance to pursue some of my dreams in the coming year.

We will remain in Hong Kong until August of this year. After this point, we will either move to Singapore for our new jobs - God willing - or travel to Malaysia for an extended stay with my parents. Anna will begin her Hong Kong permanent residency application on Aug. 1 and will need to remain in the region until she is granted a new Hong Kong ID card. This process will take one to three months and our timeline will have to remain flexible as we wait. We will obviously be sad to leave this amazing city and the incredible people we have gotten to know, but we are looking forward to this next great adventure! If you would like to come visit us, your time is short. Our guest room is ready, our dog is ready for a walk, we'll take you to eat yummy food and I'll take you golfing!

A blessed July!

It's been over half a year since our last post on our blog and we thought what better time than now to update you on how God has blessed us in our lives. While this month has been incredibly busy, it has truly been a blessed time as well. We have so much to thank the Lord for and we hope that our blog update would be an encouragement and blessing to you.

Birthdays, Birthdays, Birthdays...

All the girls' birthdays are in the month of July. On July 7, Naomi celebrated her 2nd birthday. Her special day was a low key affair but we celebrated in the evening with a special meal, candle blowing and delicious brownies.

Naomi has grown so much in the past few months and every day is a special adventure with her. She has blossomed into quite the boisterous, fun-loving, and excitable little girl. She loves dancing to music, trying on shoes at the mall, jumping on the bed, drawing on the walls and just being silly.

In the past month, she has learned how to combine words together to create sentences and it is so neat to see her transition from a baby into a toddler. Her sentences are sometimes even 4 words long and we are so proud of her. Also, she has been learning how to use the potty and she loves earning yummy treats after her success! She has quite the sweet tooth now; I think she
gets it from her Mom!

On July 11, Taylor Faye Goh was born. One of our friends asked us if she came out craving slurpees since she was born on 7-11! She is named after Hudson Taylor, one of the key missionaries to bring the gospel of Jesus to China in the 1800s. Her middle name, which coincidentally means "faith" in Spanish, comes directly from her grandma, Nana Mortenson. Taylor is a beautiful girl with features more similar to her Mom's. She definitely looks less Asian than when Naomi was born! She was 8.1 lbs when she came out and she has already started to gain weight. She seems to have a gentle disposition thus far and seems very content just cuddling with Mommy and Daddy.

On July 20, we will be celebrating Anna's birthday. There is much to celebrate for Anna this past year; in particular, she successfully completed her part-time contract at Norwegian International School. The past year has truly been a professionally challenging one for her at this school and she has gained a new perspective on her teaching experiences.

Also, another obvious reason to celebrate is giving birth to baby Taylor. It was a physically demanding 9 months for Anna with numerous difficulties and complications. It started with terrible morning sickness and a threatened miscarriage in the first trimester and ended with an epic 39-hour labour and delivery. Through all these trials and ordeals, Anna has and continues to be the pillar of strength in our family and she truly is my hero.


As for me...

Well, as for me, I have thoroughly enjoyed doing nothing for my summer holiday. Like Anna, it was also a very challenging teaching year for me with lots of negative drama. But, as always, the end of another school year brings about a huge sigh of relief and a true sense of thanksgiving. As I have now completed 13 years in teaching, I am more and more convinced that I am entering the twilight of my career. God has taught me that my identity is not to be found in my professional career; instead, God has shown me that I am first His child, second, Anna's husband, third, Naomi and Taylor's father and lastly, a struggling golfer. So, as result, my priorities this summer have been to rest in God's peace, support and love Anna, spend lots and lots of time with my two beautiful daughters and play as much golf as I can afford!


Come visit us...

Anyway, there is our bi-annual update. We are sorry that we can't be home this summer to visit you all. We miss you all dearly and still are terribly homesick. But, graciously, God has allowed us to have his peace and contentment as we spend our second-ever summer here in Hong Kong. We hope to visit Malaysia and Singapore in December and then be back home in the summer of 2010. For our friends back home in North America, please come visit and stay with us. We are only planning on being here for two more years before returing home. For our friends in Hong Kong, come by and visit us in remote Tai Wo. We can BBQ on our rooftop as we admire the beautiful mountins that define Lam Tsuen Valley. I might even offer to drive you home!

Goh Christmas Update

Merry Christmas from Hong Kong!



Glory to God in the highest,and on earth peace,good will toward men. Luke 2:14

We decided to stay in Hong Kong this Christmas break! Thinking back, I think this is the first time we have not travelled during this time. Indeed, it has been very quiet and very restful. While, we have been terribly homesick of late, we have enjoyed starting our own family Christmas traditions.


It has been so much fun watching Naomi grow up. She is so curious and so silly. Many of the "amas" in the market tell us that she has my face and Anna's hair. One Chinese teacher at my school was even upset that we dyed Naomi's hair blonde! Of her many stunts, Naomi is now running around the house, climbing the furniture, eating scraps of food on the floor, giving hugs and flying kisses, calling every animal a "dog," calling every fruit "nana," learning how to use a fork and spoon, dancing with music and combing her hair. We love her to death and each day is a new adventure with her. We are continually amazed at how quickly she is growing and how much she is learning. For Christmas she got a sweet pair of Puma shoes from Mommy and Daddy, some dinosaur books, lots of chic new outfits from Nana and Popop and a new frog bath toy. Naomi wanted to tell you all "Wow!"


It has been a professionally challenging year for Anna. She has been teaching 4th grade part-time at Norwegian International School (NIS). In many ways, this has been a perfect job as she has still been able to be a stay-at-home Mom while staying current in her teaching career. This is Anna's first experience as a classroom teacher and presents a big shift in approach from her previous experiences as an art education specialist. Perhaps the most exciting aspect of working at NIS is sharing the truth of Jesus to her students.

In October we learned that we will be expecting our second child. Anna has fought a brave battle with morning sickness and fortunately, she is now starting to feel better in her second trimester. Earlier this month Anna began bleeding and we made two visits to the emergency room. At the time, the doctors told us that Anna had suffered a threatened miscarriage and that they couldn't explain her bleeding. But, fortunately, on both occasions we were reassured that new baby was healthy. Since then, we have learned that there was a partial "separation" of the placenta from her uterus. Our doctor told us that while the baby is healthy and growing, it is a situation of wait and see. We have been filled with an enormous sense of God's peace during this trial. Please pray that our child will "reattach" and make it full term.


Lastly, for me, it has been a difficult year professionally. The school year has been filled with lots of negative drama and has, at times, been very discouraging. Nonetheless, as it always is, working with young people has been an absolute joy. I coached the girl's volleyball team again for the third straight year and we medalled for the second straight. I am still teaching full-time middle school PE and the kids are keeping me young despite my hurting and broken body! Last week, I made the tough decision to re-sign another two year contract and we are committed to staying in Hong Kong till June 2011. At this point, it is almost a certainty that we will be returning "home." Where "home" is, we aren't quite yet sure but please pray that God would lead and open and close doors. My golf game is crooked and inconsistent as usual. I'm hitting the ball as long as I ever have in my life but playing once a month is making my goal of shooting in the 70s a pipe dream, at least until the summer. I am blessed with a wonderful supportive wife and a terrific job in order to be a golf junkie. Perhaps the new golf shirt (inset right) that Anna got me for Christmas will inspire a new confidence!

We wish you all a very wonderful Christmas. We are sorry we can't be home to celebrate with you but we hope and pray that we can be reunited with you all one day. We hope to be in Malaysia in March and maybe back in the U.S. in December. If you're ever in the neighbourhood, come golf with me!